Un'obbligazione è Un'obbligazione

CRUNCH! In an instant, Vittoria was swept up in the clutches of a demonic foe, whose, its face was covered almost completely by a jet-black mask, although it showed three blood-red eyes- the third eye was in the middle of its forehead. It had two long, upward-curving horns and apart from these, its head and face were featureless. It was wrapped in a tight black fabric which was actually more skin, through which its intimidating musculature was visible. It had three pairs of arms and two legs, giving it an appearance that would have been similar to Hindu deities, if not for its plain black appearance. Speaking with a distorted, echoed voice, the beast declared. "…You…reincarnation…of…Rising Phoenix! Your existence is a sin…!"

Vittoria was confused as hell as she struggled to break free from the beast&apos;s grip. "…Shut up! I&apos;m me—and that will never change…! How dare you say such awful things…!" She was struggling with all of her might, though she couldn&apos;t get out of his grip.

Gunha&apos;s eyes widened at this sight as he rushed forward. "…Vittoria—!"

The beast snarled, coldly remarking, "You had no business existing in the first place—as you know fully well, Rising Phoenix. You are merely a glitch in the system of this new universe; as a being whose creation was decided purely by chance. If you are removed from this plane of existence, then it will return to the previous universe."

Vittoria snapped, "…What do you mean!?"

The beast responded emotionlessly, "A being like you doesn&apos;t have a right to know. Nor does it even have the right to be." Charging up the source of life-force within its body, the beast unleashed a powerful, rippling shockwave that resounded throughout the vicinity, destroying all it touched on the hard surface as an enormous crack appeared in the asphalt ground, and noise was created from all the buildings around.

The frames of the buildings were bent, a large number of glass windows were shattered, and the pieces of glass fell down like torrential rain, mixing with the actual rain and creating a truly hazardous maze in the sky to navigate, as shards descended from the sky, aiming to make Vittoria a pincushion. She had nowhere to escape to- all while a small sphere of energy materialized in its other hand, expanding by the second.

Having finished the charging sequence, the demonic figure uttered, "This is the end." before unleashing a powerful, titanic wave of absolute destruction at Vittoria. "I…I don&apos;t want to die…!" These thoughts raced through her head as she met her doom…Or so it seemed.

"…Not a chance—!" Gunha managed to attack the beast before the attack impacted upon Vittoria&apos;s body. The beast was blown back a fair distance; from what it seemed, Gunha had shoulder-barged it a few meters away through sheer brute force. Vittoria caught herself, and merely looked at Gunha in astonishment.

Vittoria stuttered, "…Why did you…? Even though I&apos;m just the reincarnation of your friend…We don&apos;t even know each other.

The demonic figure was utterly perplexed. …Huh, the figure standing before him. At this moment, Gunha reminded him of Gai right now so much it was so uncanny that it dipped straight into awkward. "…Even you think so! This woman must be killed, so that the Rising Phoenix can—"

Gunha silenced him; his voice was fierce and intimidating. "…Shut up! Don&apos;t give me that crap. Let me repeat what a wise man once said. "Even if they&apos;ve met only once, heart and heart have connected, establishing an eternal bond." Do you KNOW what this means? Vittoria is my friend; for now, and forever. I would never sacrifice a friend for another. So, listen up, Vittoria. You&apos;re not alone. I&apos;m here with you; and I&apos;ll stay with you. We&apos;ll always be in each other&apos;s hearts. Don&apos;t think about this reincarnation stuff, okay? You&apos;ve made it this far and I know you can make it the rest of the way. We&apos;re in this together."

Gunha&apos;s words…they brought a smile to Vittoria&apos;s face. "…Gunha, you…"

Gunha turned around and gave her a thumbs up with a sincere smile. "…Now, stand back. I don&apos;t want a friend getting hurt."

The beast growled, "Such nonsense…are you really the one chosen to weld the old universe back together?"

Gunha retorted simply, "…I dunno, and I don&apos;t care. But what I do know is that feelings are made of the people we meet and how we feel about them. They&apos;re what tie us together, even when we&apos;re apart. They&apos;re what... make me strong! I&apos;ll…I&apos;ll bring all my friends back without losing my bonds in the new universe! So…" He summoned Eshajōri, his Zanpakutō; a black and white nodachi. The blade was long and wide, the sword&apos;s handle ran through its guard, continuing on through a hollow space at the base of its blade. "…Let&apos;s do this. Yatte yaruze, Eshajōri!"