Ryuga stands in front of a pathway filled with cherry blossoms.

“Cherry blossoms? I guess I never had a chance to look around the Dark Elf’s lands. So this is the back entry way to their place.”

Ryuga smiles.

“You are the target.”

A short young boy stands in front of Ryuga. He looks at Ryuga with his cold eyes.

Ryuga takes a deep breath and puts both his hands in his pockets,

“Never thought that Ecio would send me to fight a kid.”

Ryuga whispers.

A Few Minutes Earlier,

“There are three enemies, Ecio, can you sense which one is the strongest?”

Ryuga asks Ecio. Ecio shakes his head.

“The one coming through the main entry way is the strongest. There are two more, one coming from the back entry-way and one under the ground.”

Clayton says.

“Woh…How do you know so much? And what’s with this underground thing?”

Ecio looks confused.

“It’s because of my demon eyes. They help me detect where their souls are.”

Clayton says.

“So, you can see souls?”

Ryuga asks.

“Yes, if there is a soul alive inside a person’s body, I can see them.”

Clayton replies.

Ryuga takes a sigh of relief.

“Anyways, I think Ryuga should go after the underground guy, he is the weakest of the bunch. Most probably because he is the information provider.”

Clayton says.

“Nah!”

Ryuga says as he starts stretching.

“Wha-“

Both Clayton and Ecio look surprised. Even Alicia looks surprised by Ryuga’s sudden stretching.

“I will go after the strongest one. I haven’t had any kind of exercise in a week. I need to keep my body fit or else I won’t be able to fight when we go rescue Tachibana-Senpai.”

Ryuga says.

“Not happening!”

Ecio scolds Ryuga.

“Why?!”

Ryuga looks confused.

“It’s because I will take care of the guy from the main entry-way. He might far too much for you. You hold the person in the back-entry way if you want to fight. I will come once I am done dealing with their leader.”

Ecio says as he walks towards the main entry-way.

“Aight, I will go to the back-entry way than.”

Ryuga says.

“HUH?! Wai-“

Before Clayton could stop both of them, Ryuga and Ecio already using flash step.

“I wasn’t expecting that weakling to go out there and fight.”

Alicia says with a somewhat surprised tone.

“That guy is not a weakling by any means. He is someone who anyone can follow, admire or respect or even do all three things at the same time.”

Clayton says as he leaves.

“What does that even mean?”

Alicia looked even more confused.

A FEW MINUTES LATER,

“You are the target.”

A short boy stands in front of Ryuga giving Ryuga a stoic look and speaking in a stoic tone.

“I am?”

Ryuga asks the boy.

“Yes, you are. The photo we were shown was yours. That is why, you will die. Don’t hold it against me.”

The boy says to Ryuga.

“What’s your name, kid?”

Ryuga asks.

“Tetsuo Naoki, that is my name.”

The boy says.

“You are Japanese?”

Ryuga asks the boy.

“I am not but that is the name I was given by the boss.”

The boy says.

Ryuga looks surprised.

“What’s your boss’s name?”

Ryuga asks.

“That is something that I cannot reveal. Sorry, but that is enough talk. Now, please die.”

The boy disappears from Ryuga’s sight.

“Flash step!”

Ryuga’s mind told him.

Ryuga quickly got out of the way using flash step. The boy appeared in the place where Ryuga was standing with a knife which is piercing the ground.

“The knife was supposed to pierce your heart. You dodged it?”

The boy says to Ryuga as he stops where the boy was originally standing.

Ryuga shrugs his shoulder,

“I don’t know, maybe.”

Ryuga says.

“Please stay in one position and don’t make it harder on yourself.”

The boy says to Ryuga.

“Oh right, Naoki-San, how old are you?”

Ryuga asks the young boy.

“You don’t need to show me so much, respect because you will be dead.”

Using flash-step Tetsuo Naoki tries to pierce Ryuga with his knife but Ryuga dodges easily.

Naoki realised that he had himself wild open but Ryuga didn’t capitalize on it.

“It looks like I dodged this one too.”

Ryuga says with a smile.

“It does look like you did.”

Naoki says to Ryuga.

“But do tell me, why didn’t you attack me?”

Naoki asks Ryuga.

“It’s because you are a kid. I don’t hit kids.”

Ryuga says.

Naoki sighs,

“I am much older than you, Aragi Ryuga. If you didn’t know, I am going to be 31 this year. It’s just that I am a dwarf is the reason why I am this short.”

Naoki says as he points his knife towards Ryuga.

“A dwarf?”

Ryuga looks confused.

“I definitely didn’t expect a dwarf to not have a beard…”

Ryuga thinks.

Naoki keeps attacking Ryuga but Ryuga keeps dodging Naoki.

“I am still not hitting you nor am I letting you kill me.”

Ryuga says.

“Why’s that?”

Naoki asks.

“It’s because, I just don’t like the idea of fighting someone who hasn’t killed anyone yet.”

Naoki stops attacking Ryuga.

“What do you mean by not kill anyone yet?!”

Naoki asks.

“You don’t move like an assassin. Every attack you make is amateurish and even though you have speed, your flash-step is predictable. Plus, there is a moment of hesitation in that eyes of yours.”

Ryuga says.

Naoki tightly grips the tilt of his knife,

“My guess is, since you are dwarf, you make weapons and armour for the black jaguar, am I wrong?”

Ryuga says with a smile.

“Of course I am no assassin but they said you were an easy target to take down. All I had to do is take you down in case you try to escape!”

Naoki looked quite frustrated.

Ryuga chuckles.

“Anyways, you should stay away from the village for now.”

Ryuga says.

“What do you mean?”

Naoki asks.

“That leader of this party…Clayton says he is quite strong. If that is the case.”

A tremor occurs around Ryuga and Naoki.

“Tsch! I knew it. He and Ecio are fighting.”

Ryuga says.

“Wait…You are wrong, that’s not our party leader though.”

Naoki says to Ryuga.

“What? The one at the entry of the forest is not your leader?”

Ryuga asks Naoki.

Naoki shakes his head,

“He is underground.”

Naoki says.

Ryuga quickly realises that Clayton is in danger.

“Clayton!”

He says and starts making his way towards where he can sense Clayton’s mana.

“Wait! You will die if you fight the leader of this party! He is strong! At least several…”

Naoki shakes his head,

“No! At least 100 times stronger than me.”

Naoki says out of concern.

“I am your enemy you know.”

Ryuga says with a smile.

“You can tell me your story later. After looking at your expression, I know this much, you want to get out of this Black Jaguar business. So, how about this, I take care of this party leader of yours and you join us?”

Ryuga asks with a smile.

“You can’t! You will die! Many of them came but none were able to take on Black Jaguar.”

Naoki says.

“None of them were me, Naoki-San. So, don’t worry.”

Ryuga says with a smile as he runs away.

“Wait!”

Naoki tries to stop Ryuga but he already used Flash-step to run in Clayton’s direction.

“Tsch! Another victim…Fell for my trap.”

Naoki gives a wild smile as he licks his finger tip.

~GHOST WORLD ACADEMIA~