Chapter Text
Kazuha hurriedly trekked across the cobbled path, being careful not to attract any unwanted attention to himself. His eyes focused on the stone paths, not daring to look up at the faces of the Inazuman people. He had to leave Inazuma before the Vision Hunters found him. Kazuha had seen first-hand what happened to those who had gotten their Vision snatched away, it was like their life was sucked out of them. They had dull, lifeless eyes, doomed to walk around the earth aimlessly. It was like they had no more purpose anymore.
Kazuha’s white hair was resting gently above his downcast eyes, not paying attention to the street. His eyebrows furrowed in thought. The Vision Hunt Decree was truly a horrible thing, and he couldn’t just stand around waiting for it to stop. But alas, he alone cannot stop the will of the mighty Shogun. Kazuha’s eyes stayed transfixed to the stone path, but he did pick up some whispers from some mothers who were gossiping as their children played nearby.
“Tenshukaku…”
“Duel…”
“Musou No Hitotachi…”
A duel in Tenshukaku was certainly uncommon, but not unheard of. It reminded him of something, something his friend had told him a few months ago. The Musou No Hitotachi had been something that piqued his dear friend’s interest. The Musou No Hitotachi was a legendary sword technique that the only Raiden Shogun could perform, one slash of the tachi led to nine strikes of lightning. It was said that the sword technique was a sword art with no parallel in the world.
No one had ever lived after receiving the Raiden Shogun’s divine punishment.
Kazuha did not want to have anything to do with the Shogun, but it did make him interested. He kept listening to the whispers of the townsfolk.
“I heard that blonde guy with the white cat challenged the Vision Hunters to a duel…”
“Hm? Is he that confident?”
Wait, what?
The brief description of the man was suspiciously familiar. It reminded him of the same friend that mentioned Musou No Hitotachi. Did that idiot actually challenge them to a duel before the throne? Kazuha's pace quickened, worry etched on his face. He kept trying to soothe himself, telling himself that there was no way that his dear friend would be in Tenshukaku. He tried to get his mind off the duel, but every step he took just made him think about it more.
“He’s dead…”
“You can’t stop it…”
“You should prevent it…”
The whispers turned into cries, the cries turned into shouts, the shouts turned into screams. The thoughts circled him, he could feel it laughing at him. Kazuha stopped dead in his tracks. He finally looked up, his face a deathly pallor. He clenched his fist and made a silent promise to his friend, his mind was made up. Kazuha didn’t care about his own safety anymore.
He had to save his friend.
Kazuha sprinted towards Tenshukaku, ignoring the scandalised exclaims of surprise of the people around him. A few of the soldiers tried to reprimand him but Kazuha paid them no mind, focusing on rescuing his friend from the deadly jaws of the Shogun. The few minutes that he took to get to the duel felt like hours, and Kazuha was slowly losing stamina. He huffed, running up the slopes, ignoring the soldiers who tried to stop them. Kazuha ran and ran, trying to reach Tenshukaku before his friend’s drew his last breath.
The elegant roofs and walls of the Tenshukaku were not too far away when Kazuha paused to take a breather. He looked up, and there he was. Kazuha tried to move but a wave of fear rushed through him, rooting him to the spot. His friend’s sword dropped to the ground and shattered in front of Kazuha. His friend fell as the Raiden Shogun stepped forward, as if she were getting ready to strike. It felt like an eternity as she pulled out her tachi, and Kazuha felt the pressure of the Shogun’s almighty presence. Her face was expressionless as she sentenced him to her divine punishment. Kazuha’s eyes wandered over to where his friend laid, unable to see his expression as she attacked.
Strikes of lightning slashed the air as his friend slumped over, the Raiden Shogun stepped forward and raised her arm. His friend’s Vision, which had been blasted away from the impact, slowly made its way to the Shogun’s hand. Kazuha, stricken with grief, stared as the Vision floated in the air. He felt tears escaping his eyes. He looked at his friend’s broken figure and then to the Shogun and her army. For the second time that day, he made a promise to his, now deceased, friend.
He could not let his friend’s hope, which shined so brightly, be buried in the ice-cold statue of the God.
Kazuha ran over to the Vision and snatched it from the air and turned to run, bringing the Vision close to his chest. Kazuha could hear panicked shouts and the calm voice of the Shogun ordering her soldiers to seize him. The soldiers obediently followed him, but Kazuha used his Vision to swiftly escape the danger. It took Kazuha a while before he had found a safe space to rest, he checked his friend’s dying vision as the purple slowly faded, leaving it an empty husk of what it originally was. Kazuha let the tears escape from his eyes, as he dropped to his knees, trying to process what had happened. The masterless Vision, still gripped firmly in his hand, stared back at him, as if it were mocking him.
He let his friend die. He couldn’t stop them in time. He was too late.
Maybe if he ran faster. Maybe if he had persuaded him otherwise beforehand.
Maybe if Kazuha had taken the punishment in his friend’s stead.
He could have still been alive. Kazuha felt more tears rushing out of his eyes, he let the Vision drop to the ground as he looked at the sun disappearing, signalling that night has fallen. He heard a faint meowing sound from nearby, and a small white cat emerged from its hiding place. It settled comfortably at his side, licking him as if it were trying to comfort him. Kazuha petted his friend's cat and it purred. The cat must have known what had happened as Kazuha observed that its eyes were downcast and solemn. He looked back at the dead vision.
And after that, he made his final promise to his friend.
Kazuha would avenge him.