Shounen Fightin' Anime [Shounen Protagonist Quest]

2: Ooeyama Ogre

The rumble of your stomach made the decision for all of you.

"Food first," you start, looking directly at your brother. "We need food." It was almost a plea, framing you and your friend's hunger as some sort of dire need. To feed you would have certainly been an act of charity on behalf of your brother.

And so your first order of business was sating the mighty hunger which had slowly been developing over the course of your journey.

Upon leaving the station, you were assailed by neon and noise. You also got your first good look at the Ring up close, and it was exactly as intimidating a sight as it was at a distance. You don't pause in your steps, keeping up alongside Nao and your brother, relying on your spacial awareness to avoid bumping into anyone. That much was child's play. Who needed eyes to see when things were coming towards you?

You finally looked away from the impressive structure after some time, the words of your brother sort of entering one ear and going out the other as he talked about district you were entering. You picked up the broad strokes. The entire island was comparable—and intended to be—an Olympic village, only on some incredibly effective steroids, and the area you were in could have been called the recreational area.

Chain restaurants, arcades, theatres, and all other sorts of fun activities. Well, you'd never really partaken of any of the things on offer, other than watching some movies that an English teacher had brought with him from abroad once.

"That doesn't count as a cinema-going experience!" your brother had told you, and you just kind of took his word for it. He was the city-slicker, after all.

For all the diversity of the crowd—you're pretty sure you spotted a man that was nearly nine foot tall with six arms—you still felt like the odd one out. It was your choice in clothing, mostly. It wasn't something that made you uncomfortable, but it did contribute to the overall tension that was in your gut, a weird and unsettling tingle.

A stray, unwelcome thought enters your mind:

Had she felt the same way?

And like an unwelcome thought, you quickly dispelled it. You weren't there to compare your experience to your mother's. You were there for the exact opposite reason, actually.

But there was that undeniable ever-present sensation that had been with you the moment you laid eyes on the Ring of Heaven, ever since Borealis had looked at you with the slight inkling of recognition. It was like her eyes were on you, judging your every move.

You inhaled, and focused on your breathing for a few moments, along with the impact of your feet on the road. You grounded yourself, and forced your focus onto better things, like the place your brother was leading you; a fast food place which was part of a franchise that had over a century's worth of business going for it, and it was renowned for being basically everywhere where humans were.

"They've even got a few places on Mars, you know!"

"Mars, huh…?" Nao said, a plastic spoon full of ice cream still in her mouth. That was her idea of dinner. Oreo flavoured. "I forgot about that place. I suppose it is only natural that humans would keep trying to populate that dead rock…" she said with the distance afforded to a half-oni. She shovelled some more ice cream in, getting a thoughtful look on her face.

The conversation continued like that, going between harmless topics, more or less your brother getting both you and Nao up to speed with the latest hot news. But frankly, you were more focused on your food. There was so little, so you had to savour every bite. The fries were nice if a bit too salty for your likings, but the satisfying crispy crunch sort of made up for it; condiments helped, too. The burger you had ordered was… fine? Fine was the word you were going to use. It wasn't high quality in any regard, or even that satisfying, but it tasted good. It was half a food, as far as you were concerned.

"Not about it, sis?" your brother said, picking up on your sort of slow and half-interested chewing. You shrugged.

"It's not the worst thing I've had. I think I'll just be a bit hungry after. It doesn't really compare to dad's food."

"...That weird man used to cook whole giant boars for you. T'is not surprising that you would remain famished after such a meagre meal. For one such as I, this food is—" another mouthful "—adequate. Sufficiently sweet. I am sustained, Yoshitoki. You have my gratitude."

You sighed, setting your own food down. "One day you're going to find out that you have prediabetes." You worried for Nao and her overwhelming love of sweet things. How she managed to remain so small while being a sloth of a priestess was beyond you. All you knew is that you had to work to maintain the body you had grown proud of, and she was just naturally in decent shape.

"If that is what the fates have in store for me, then I accept it with open arms."

Your brother, his face stuffed with a burger, extended a fist to Nao. "Amen to that."

She bumped it, the two of them looking overly pleased with themselves.

These were the people you had brought with you, and they were complete gremlins.

Your dinner, while not your ideal meal, came and went pleasantly. You left with some time to spare.

The walk back to the station was slower than the initial rush to get food. It allowed you to take in the ambience a bit more, and even come to be okay with it a little. Sure, having so many people around you set you on edge a little, but it was still a novel and different experience. You could see why your brother fell in love with city life. The knowledge of not being so isolated from other forms of intelligent life was a comfort in its own right.

Something large moved in your peripherals, accompanied with the sound of laughter. You glanced to your right—the side Nao was on—and immediately felt yourself go on guard.

A group of three moved towards your own, the one in the middle drawing your eye for a very specific reason. The blue skin was not too unusual, from the crowds you had seen today. Of course, they were certainly odd ones out, but it wasn't enough to really make you gape. The horns were not uncommon either, the Reverse World had plenty of denizens with horns. But, the golden eyes, in conjunction with all of that, painted a very familiar picture to you.

He zeroed in on Nao, his strides closing the gap between you and your friends quickly. "Oho? What's this we got here?"

Like a pack of trained dogs, the large, horned man's group moved to surround you. You could feel your brother move to talk.

Your hand on his shoulder stopped him. You gave the group a once over, seeing only a relatively undisciplined bunch. Five wastes of space…

And one dangerous creature. Your tried to lock eyes with their leader, but he was very focused on Nao, lurching over to get a closer look at her. The closeness was enough for you to get ready to lash out, but it was someone else's turn to stop you. Nao's hand rested on your forearm, and you grudgingly held yourself back. Nao was grateful for the times you did help her, but she was more than capable of looking after herself.

"Another half-oni. Who woulda thought I'd meet another out here! So small and cute too…!" he drawled, baring his fangs in a grin.

"...A child of Ooeyama," she started, completely unphased by the proximity. "What business do you have with me?"

"Ohya? You know where I'm from?!"

"You stink of their brand of debauchery, so yes," she replied effortlessly averting her eyes not out of fear, but complete and utter disinterest. Boredom, almost. "It is a repugnant miasma."

The group laughed, and so did their leader. "So cold, so cold. But ain't a guy entitled to have his fun? S'not every day you get accepted into the Gauntlet, nor is it every day you see it done so… effortlessly. Alcohol, parties, and fights! Ain't nothin' wrong with that!"

"S'right! Aniki made it past the pools. He's a competitor, y'know!" barked one of the blue half-oni's tagalongs. You squinted at that bit of information. Was that man a competitor? It was a sour pill to swallow, but there were no rules against people of a disreputable character having a shot.

He waved off his follower with a tut. He'd rather be the one to talk about his own achievements, apparently. "So, why don't you ditch lil' stringbean and stringiestbean? What's a little fun between fellow oni, huh?"

The boistrous group had gathered a few onlookers at this point. You're pretty sure you heard someone say something along the lines of "not more of these jackass Gauntlet guys, please."

The other half-oni reached out to place a hand on Nao.

You didn't know where exactly it was going, you didn't care.

You imposed yourself between them, gripping at the wrist of his offending hand, forcing him to look at you. It was half a seconds effort for you, moving as quickly as you did.

The second dragged out, a collective inhale in the moment. He raised a black brow, giving a tug of his arm to try and remove it from your hand.

It didn't move. Your grip didn't tighten, but you made no effort to relax it.

You saw the spark in his golden eyes, the ignition of intent. The air took on a very different feeling, heavy with seething aggression, waiting to explode. This competitor, a newcomer like yourself, had identified an opponent.

"Oi. You lookin' to start shit, stringbean?"

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