KILL la KILL IF: The World Where Senketsu Didn't Burn Out - Senketsu, Return — Sisters Fighting Together and Nui's Escape

The air in the underground arena was heavy, hot, and clung to the skin like something damp and alive. Countless scars were carved into every wall. The floor reeked of old blood soaked deep into the stone. The lights hanging from the ceiling flickered erratically, stuttering on and off. Beneath that light, Ryuuko gripped her Scissor Blade. Her right arm alone felt strangely heavy. From her left shoulder down, something still throbbed beneath the bandages. "...Here she comes." Satsuki, standing beside her, spoke in a low voice. Her long black hair swayed faintly though there was no wind. Her sharp, violet-tinged eyes were fixed on the center of the arena. At the end of her gaze— Harime Nui stood there. Soft pink twin-tails. Large blue eyes. Bangs hiding her left eye. Fingerless gloves on her fingertips. She looked like a doll stepped straight out of a fairy tale. But the thing in her hands was the only thing that didn't belong. A scrap of cloth, glowing with red light. The last fragment of Senketsu. "Hey, hey, Ryuuko-chan." Nui tilted her head, toying with the fragment between her fingers. "This is the last one, you know. Amazing, right? I went and collected all seven, just like I was supposed to." "...Give it back." Ryuuko's voice trembled with rage. "Give it back, Nui. That's my partner." "Ahaha, come on now. Like I'd ever give it back? I'm about to use it." Nui smiled sweetly. Her eyes weren't smiling at all. "Let me show you. My greatest masterpiece." Nui pressed the fragment slowly against her own chest. In that instant— A dark red light engulfed Nui's entire body. "—Activate." Nui's voice shifted from its cloying sweetness to something low and cold. Dark red threads spilled from her body. No—that wasn't it. Her body was expelling them. Countless threads squirmed and tangled, crawling over her, swallowing her whole. "W-what is that...?!" Near the arena entrance, hidden in the shadow of the rubble, Mako let out something close to a scream. Her messy brown short hair shook, and her big round black eyes were wide open. "Mako, stay back! Don't you dare show your face!" Nonon stepped forward to shield Mako. Her blonde twin-tails swayed. The headphones around her neck rattled softly. Nui's body no longer had a human shape. Dark red fibers pulsed. Like a heartbeat—thump, thump. Patterns like countless eyes surfaced on the membrane, rolling and writhing. A distorted Kamui that bore Senketsu's shadow. A replica Kamui. "Ahahahahaha!" Nui's laughter echoed through the arena. It was impossible to tell where the voice came from. It seemed to ring out from everywhere across the mass of fibers at once. "This is it! This is my replica Kamui! A masterpiece that perfectly reproduces Senketsu's power! Hey, Ryuuko-chan, what do you think? Does it suit me?" "...You've gotta be kidding me." Ryuuko raised her Scissor Blade. Her fingertips went white with fury. "Turning Senketsu into something that disgusting...!" "Disgusting? How cruel. This is the evolved form of a Kamui." Nui's fibers rippled and surged. "Hey, Satsuki-chan, don't you think so too? We used to research Kamui together, didn't we? Those were fun times, weren't they?" Satsuki didn't answer. She only glared at Nui. "...Ignoring me? How boring." Nui's voice dropped slightly. "Fine then. Shall we continue our little doll show?" The next instant— Countless thread-like blades shot out from Nui's body. Dark red threads tore through the air, sharp and fast. "Ryuuko!" "I know!" Ryuuko and Satsuki leaped apart simultaneously. The thread blades stabbed into the spot where they'd just stood. The stone floor was carved away like tofu. "Ahaha, you dodged, you dodged! But what if I do this?" Nui spread both arms. No—the mass of fibers spread countless tentacles. Thread blades rained down from every direction. "Damn it!" Ryuuko swung her Scissor Blade. Clang, clang—the metallic ring of steel. She knocked away thread after thread. But there were too many. "Ryuuko, fall back!" Satsuki stepped in front of Ryuuko. The power of Junketsu wrapped around her body. White light deflected the thread blades. "Sis, don't push yourself!" "It's not pushing. You're the one who shouldn't be reckless in that condition." Deflecting threads as she went, Satsuki charged at Nui. "Oh my, Satsuki-chan, still so reckless." Nui's fibers sprouted from the floor to block Satsuki's movement. They coiled around her legs. "Kh...!" Satsuki's feet were caught. In that opening, a thread blade aimed for her right leg. "Sis!" Ryuuko screamed. But she was too late. The thread blade pierced Satsuki's right leg. Shhk. The sound of flesh tearing. Blood sprayed. "...!" Satsuki dropped to one knee. Red blood gushed from her right leg. "Ahaha! I got her! Satsuki-chan can't move anymore!" Nui's voice trembled with delight. "Now then, Ryuuko-chan's all alone. A doll who lost her other half. Poor thing. But don't worry. I'll stay with you forever." "...Don't touch her." Ryuuko's voice was low, resonating as if from the depths of the earth. "Don't touch her, Nui. What did you do to my sister?" "What did I do? I just stabbed her leg a little. She's not dead. But she can't fight anymore, can she? My threads are healing-silk threads. They're not ordinary. Wounds from them heal far slower than normal ones." Nui laughed, her fibers writhing. "Now then, Ryuuko-chan. You're next. I'll take that remaining right arm of yours too." Ryuuko glared at Nui. Rage turned her mind white. (This bitch hurt my sister.) (She stole Senketsu.) (She's trying to take everything from me.) "...I won't forgive you." Ryuuko's body grew hot. The Life Fibers inside her began to resonate violently. "I won't forgive you. You, of all people—I will never forgive you...!" In that moment— The stump of Ryuuko's left arm blazed with red light. The bandages burst outward from within. "W-what...?!" Nui's fibers stirred uneasily. The three fragments of Senketsu scattered across the arena—the right eye, the left eye, the torso—the ones Ryuuko had recovered—were being drawn into her body. No, not drawn in. Pulled. The Life Fibers inside Ryuuko were calling to Senketsu's fragments. "A... aah..." Red Life Fibers erupted from the stump of her left arm. Like threads, like streaks of light, the red fibers squirmed and tangled and took shape. The shape of an arm. An incomplete arm, radiating red light. "Ryuuko... can you hear me?" The voice resonated directly inside her head. A voice she knew so well. "Senketsu...?" Tears spilled from Ryuuko's eyes. "Senketsu... is that really you...?" "Yeah. It's me. ...Seems I put you through quite a lot of worry." Senketsu's voice sounded like it was smiling, just a little. "I'm sorry, Ryuuko. I'm not fully restored yet. But you called for me. That alone is enough." "Senketsu... Senketsu...!" Crying, Ryuuko clenched her newly formed left arm. An arm of red light. Still incomplete. The shape of the fingers was faint and blurred. But it was there, undeniably. Senketsu's warmth was there. "Ahahahaha! Amazing! Amazing, Ryuuko-chan! Reconstructing Senketsu from that state! You've far exceeded my expectations!" Nui let out a cry of ecstasy. "But it's incomplete, isn't it? That arm can't fight yet, can it? You can't beat my replica Kamui." "...Whether I can beat you or not, we won't know till I try." Ryuuko reversed her grip on the Scissor Blade. "Senketsu. Let's go." "Yeah. Your body isn't at full strength yet. But I'll support you. Give it everything you've got." Senketsu's Life Fibers coursed through Ryuuko's entire body. Human and clothing as one. The sensation she'd lost came flooding back. (This is it. This feeling.) (The feeling of Senketsu and me becoming one.) Ryuuko kicked off the ground. "Haaaaaah!" She charged straight at Nui. "Ahaha! Come on then! Show me a doll's pride!" Nui's thread blades met Ryuuko head-on. But Ryuuko didn't dodge. With her newly formed left arm, she grabbed the thread blades. "What—?!" For the first time, Nui's voice filled with shock. The arm of red light held the thread blades fast. "Your threads are made from Senketsu's fragments. So I can grab them with Senketsu's power." Ryuuko yanked the threads toward her with all her strength. "N-no way...!" Nui's massive body lost its balance. "Now! Nonon!" Satsuki shouted from where she'd fallen. "I know already!" Nonon had circled behind Nui. She used her Goku Uniform's power to draw Nui's attention. Her blonde twin-tails cut through the air. "Over here, Nui! You've got me to deal with too!" Nui's fibers turned toward Nonon. "Could you not interfere? I'm playing with Ryuuko-chan right now." Nui's threads lashed out at Nonon. But Nonon nimbly dodged them. "Ryuuko-chan!" Mako's voice rang across the arena. "Right! Nui-chan's right side—the threads are thin there! I can see it! Aim there!" Mako was screaming desperately from the shadow of the rubble. Her round eyes were fixed intently on the movement of Nui's fibers. "...The right, huh." Ryuuko trusted Mako's words. Without hesitation, she stepped into Nui's right side. "Like I'd let you!" Nui's fibers tried to block Ryuuko. But just as Mako said, the threads on the right were thin. "Uwoooooh!" Ryuuko swung her Scissor Blade with all her might, still in reverse grip. With the strength of both her newly formed left arm and her right. Senketsu's Life Fibers dwelled in the blade. "Mutoryuu Mōdo...!" One strike. It slammed into the right side of Nui's replica Kamui. GYAAAAAAAAAH! The replica Kamui let out a sound like a scream. Dark red fibers tore. Split. Burst apart. "A... aah...?!" Nui's voice twisted in agony. The replica Kamui crumbled. Senketsu's fragments burst free from Nui's body. "We did it...!" Mako jumped up in joy. "Ryuuko-chan, you did it! You did it!" Nui staggered, reverting to her original form. Soft pink hair. Blue eyes. A doll-like figure. But her smile hadn't crumbled yet. "...Ahaha. Not bad, Ryuuko-chan." Wiping blood from the corner of her mouth, Nui laughed. "But remember this. I'm not the only one who knows your true identity. ...That person knows too." "That person...?" Ryuuko demanded. But Nui didn't answer. "See you, Ryuuko-chan. Let's play again." Still smiling, Nui vanished into the rubble. "Wait! Nui!" Ryuuko tried to pursue. "Ryuuko, wait!" Satsuki's voice stopped her. "Sis...!" Ryuuko turned around. Satsuki was still clutching her right leg, breathing painfully. Blood was still flowing. "...Don't pursue. Your body and Senketsu aren't fully restored. Besides, with my leg like this, I'd only slow you down." "But...!" "Ryuuko-chan, Satsuki-chan's right! Right now, treatment comes first!" Mako came running over. "I can do first aid! My dad's a back-alley doctor, so he taught me this stuff!" Mako deftly wrapped bandages around Satsuki's right leg. Her hands were surprisingly steady. "...I'm grateful." Satsuki said quietly. "I'll check Nui's escape route. You all get to the surface first." Nonon ran toward the rubble where Nui had disappeared. "Nonon, be careful." "You don't have to tell me, idiot Ryuuko. You just make sure you support Lady Satsuki properly." Nonon said it without looking back. Ryuuko supported Satsuki's shoulder. "...Sis. Can you walk?" "Yeah. If I lean on your shoulder, there's no problem." Satsuki put her weight on Ryuuko's shoulder. "...Am I heavy?" "No way you're heavy. Who do you think I am?" Ryuuko smiled, just a little. The four of them left the underground arena behind. --- Night wind blew across the rooftop of Honnouji Academy. The lights of the academy city of Honnouji spread out below. A town surrounded on three sides by low mountain ranges, facing the sea to the south. From the rooftop of the rebuilt academy, all of it was visible.

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Episode 7

Name: KILL la KILL IF: The World Where Senketsu Didn't Burn Out
Author: Novelia

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