Chapter 8:

Chapter 8

Killing demon as a deity


“I think six hours should do how about you quit moping and let’s get some more hours in? Cause I’m about ready for some more.” Moto said with an eager smile.

Kira practically jumped up from the ground and stood ready. If you hadn’t seen him sleeping it would have been impossible to guess he had been asleep less than a minute before.

He hadn’t even given a reply before charging in at Moto for an attack. His fist and feet moved at a much higher speed than before, displaying the massive growth he had undergone.

It had been over a week since Moto showed Kira how to use mana more effectively and his growth improved drastically. He had learnt how to adapt to the speeds and new abilities his body displayed.

“Come on~ at this rate you wouldn’t be able to take out a single demon out there!” Moto taunted.

Kiramaru stayed focused and continued with his flurry of punches while mixing in a few kicks and leg strikes.

He made sure to keep all of his moves sharp and precise because he knew if he went wide or slow, he would be eating dirt a moment later.

Kira burst forward and drove a fist into Moto’s stomach causing him to be thrown off balance and shot back.

“Tch! Fine then if you want to be serious about it then I’ll stop whining!” Moto said nervously.

No matter how intense the situation, Moto remained comedic and high spirited. The complete opposite of Kira.

The red in Kiramaru's eyes began to flicker and glow slightly like a fading candle.

His fists emitted black flames which burnt a hole in Moto’s clothes, sending him retreating back.

“Well how about that…you landed a hit.” He said in disbelief while pressing against his chest.

Moto patted down on the burnt clothes while sighing. He then casually strolled over to Kira and placed his hand on his chest.

“Hey- What is it, you’re really close all of a sudden?” Kira asked.

“Make fire. It doesn’t have to be anywhere specific, just release it all.” Moto said earnestly.

‘He seems different, did I do something wrong again?’ Kira wondered.

“Alright.”

His flames released out into a beam of fire that soon towered up from where Kira stood. Moto’s hand became a focus point where all of the flames directed.

All the fire had been sucked into his palm and swirled around it like a vortex of flames on Kira's chest. He pulled his hand away slowly and grabbed onto the flames as if it were a tangible object.

“What is this- what are you doing?”

The flames that he had grabbed from Kira took the shape of a sharp katana, pitch black and baring no symbols.

The further he pulled it out, the more the sword took shape and began to manifest into a real sword. It was now covered with a white hilt and solid black sheath, wrapped in material similar to Moto's clothes.

“Did you already forget what I am boy? I am the deity of blades remember.” Moto said as he held the sword to Kira.

He tossed it into the air for Kira to catch, landing swiftly into his hand. Kira examined the blade with bewilderment while knocking against it with his knuckles to test its solidity.

“Is this supposed to be for me?” Kira asked.

Moto seemed slightly underwhelmed by Kiramaru's response and simply sighed as he summoned a sword of his own.

Within seconds Moto was holding a sword of his own.

“That is a sword made from your own mana; I have no control over it whatsoever. It will react to your powers and state-of-being so take care of it.” Moto replied.

A slight bit of excitement surged across Kira's face after he heard that. He held it up at a horizontal angle and began to pull it from the sheath.

“It feels familiar; I can’t wait to test it out.” Kira said excitedly.

Moto struck Kiramaru with his sword, aiming for his neck but was impulsively blocked by Kiramaru's sword.

Kira had accepted that this was normal for Moto by now; he had always prepared attacks for Kira when he wasn’t ready. It was Moto's way of making sure he would be ready for surprises as well as train Kira to be quicker on his feet.

The two begun their fight but had now incorporated swords, making it especially unfamiliar to Kira as he had been fighting barehanded up till that point.

Every second that Kira would retreat back, Moto rushed in with his broadsword and struck ferociously. His attacks were elegant but carried an almost brutish strength behind every strike.

'This is to be expected, he has never used a sword before. There is no trace of footwork or thought behind his movements.' Moto thought.

“What’s wrong I know the sword isn't too heavy, you tired or something?” Moto asked curiously.

Moto continued his unremitting wave of slices and stabs while talking,

'A sword in the hand of a fighting man gives nearly five times the experience than the hand of a training man.'

Kiramaru barely blocked each of Moto's attacks, and was ultimately pushed back by the pressure of his sword swings.

Kira followed the motions and adjusted his sword to match the attacks, preforming them as Moto did.

Moto swung his sword at a vertical strike and was knocked back by Kira's vertical strike. The two swords ricocheted off each other.

“What do you think you’re doing?! That’s just copying me!!” Moto shouted hastily.

“It stopped you didn’t it?” Kira smiled as he held his sword towards Moto.

‘He is right though, it feels a bit embarrassing to fight like this…can it even be called fighting if my goal is to keep him at bay?’

Moto smiled with an eager expression and charged in with his sword dragged against the floor.

He began displaying a different sword style than before and took Kira by surprise,

“What's the matter, can’t you copy this? I won’t keep it the same every time! Keep up- Keep up- Keep up!!” Moto taunted.

He unleashed a faster barrage of erratic movements that Kira couldn’t see through, but was able to keep up with.

He had only witnessed Moto for a short while but he had spent months training against swords and displayed the same swordsmanship that they did.

‘I know the timing of each attack, the angles they would come from and the pressure behind every movement. Each of those factors was drilled into my head from months of hell training.’ Kira thought as he parried Moto's sword.

Kira slid his foot forward and brought his sword toward Moto's rib for a single slice backed with all of his strength. Moto noticed the sword and wasn’t able to react in time and simply displayed an excited look.

‘He’s…smiling?’ Kira was surprised.

A small sword made of silver had been created from a flashing gold light and stopped Kira's blade before it could cut Moto.

Moto sighed with relief as he looked towards a disappointed Kira,

“Well done, but that’s as far as you can go.”