Chihiro Rokuhira vs. Hirukiko is a battle between Chihiro Rokuhira and Hiruhiko.
Having brought Hiruhiko away from the train, Chihiro readies himself to fight in earnest, seeing a prime opportunity to gain information on the Hishaku. Hiruhiko sees a kindred spirit in Chihiro, believing their shared youth and supposed predisposition to killing makes them potential friends; though this does not take away from his desire to fight him in the slightest.
Prologue[]
Hiruhiko attempts to connect with Chihiro
Chihiro impaled Hiruhiko and threw the two of them outside the train window, the two landing in a crossroads. Hiruhiko briefly questioned Chihiro if he thought he had made the right decision with leaving Uruha and Hakuri when there were already sorcerers headed towards Senkutsuji Temple, but Chihiro ignored him. Chihiro internally recalled their strategy; getting Hakuri and Uruha to Senkutsuji and Samura so Hakuri could recover two Enchanted Blades (Kumeyuri and Tobimune) simultaneously once his powers recovered. Hiruhiko handed Datenseki pieces to three hired sorcerers nearby who had been thrown out of the train earlier, idly calling them the 'Anti-Enten Special Forces' and preparing to kill Chihiro. Chihiro activated Nishiki in preparation to engage Hiruhiko. Hiruhiko briefly brought up their similar ages and predisposition to killing, commenting they were the same and could be friends.
Battle[]
The statement enraged Chihiro, who rushed to slash at Hiruhiko, disgusted at being compared to a member of the Hishaku. Hiruhiko ignored him and asked for Chihiro to call him by his name, before activating his sorcery and vanishing in a flurry of papers. Hiruhiko leisurely walked to a local theatre to attend a play, deciding not to hurry to Senkutsuji just yet.
Chihiro crashes into the theater.
Closing his eyes, Hiruhiko used his paper sorcery to pay attention to Chihiro's battle, a paper butterfly acting as his sight, and guided the Datenseki-wielding sorcerers in their fight against Chihiro, pondering the use of the Datenseki all the while. The fight progressed to the theatre's rooftop and the four combatants crashed through the roof, Chihiro rapidly slicing through the three attackers, horrifying the nearby audience. Hiruhiko once again claimed he was the only one who could understand Chihiro, only for Chihiro to rebuff him once more.
Irritated by his seemingly conflicting intentions, Chihiro asked Hiruhiko whether he wanted to kill or befriend him. Hiruhiko believed they could become friends by trying to kill each other, having never had a friend before and not knowing any better. He activated his paper sorcery to surround the area, concealing Chihiro's view of him and the audience members, knowing that if Chihiro were to try and cut his way through, he would risk the safety of the audience. Wanting to prove Chihiro and him are killers, he tempted Chihiro to engage in his killer instinct to cut his way through the paper, even if it meant killing innocent bystanders.
Chihiro disarms Hiruhiko.
However, Chihiro refused to attack, and Hiruhiko was disappointed, using paper cranes to slash Chihiro, leaving him bloodied and cut, though Chihiro used Nishiki to reduce the level of damage his body took. Chihiro then activated Kuro, engulfing the area in a massive wave of black goldfish that blanked out both Hiruhiko's actual vision and his paper-vision. Under the cover of darkness, Chihiro slashes off Hiruhiko's arms and holds him at blade-point. Chihiro admitted that while he was a killer, he at least avoided civilian casualties and would only focus on bringing the Hishaku to hell with him, before ordering Hiruhiko to talk.
Aftermath[]
Hiruhiko was incapable of comprehending why Chihiro would go so far to protect civilians, believing all killing to be the same. Chihiro disagreed, standing by the beliefs of his father and Samura. While initially Hiruhiko was distraught that they weren't the same, Hiruhiko realised in a moment of deluded understanding that their differences and resulting clashes were what made them friends.
Hiruhiko divulges Hishaku information to Chihiro.
He then revealed details on the Hishaku's operations: the Hishaku consisted of 10 members led by Yura, they had 34 Datenseki weapons and 68 hired sorcerers and Hiruhiko had been placed in charge. For personal reasons, he had aimed the vast majority of that force towards Senkutsuji. Above the theatre, paper butterflies held Kumeyuri and Tobimune aloft. Meanwhile, at a park, Yura noted Hiruhiko's actions indicated a particular resistance to relying on their 'trump card' to his subordinate.
Some time later, Hiruhiko cursed that they had lost Tobimune, but they would still kill the Master Swordsman and bring Shinuchi to Yura. Chihiro insisted the wielders would be protected, but Hiruhiko countered by bringing up how despite the wielders being mentioned as 'heroes' in school, the power Chihiro had witnessed at the Rakuzaichi was anything but heroic. Remembering the second presence he had sensed within Kyora, Chihiro wondered aloud whether the Master Swordsman wasn't a hero. Hiruhiko replied that was what Samura had told them when he made a deal with Yura three years ago, and Samura believed the wielders should die.
Hikuhiko activates Kumeyuri.
Shocked by the statement, Chihiro was late to react as Hiruhiko dropped Kumeyuri onto the stage and used his mouth to threw his severed arm at Chihiro's face, buying enough time to seal a contract with Kumeyuri and activate it. Before a shocked Chihiro could say anything, he was transported away by Hakuri.
Meanwhile Hiruhiko met up with his colleague that accompanied him earlier, and the two headed to a warehouse where Yura was, Hiruhiko's colleague beginning the process of reattaching Hiruhiko's arms. Yura immediately ordered for Kumeyuri to be sealed away, to Hiruhiko's disappointment.