Shindo awoke with the worst headache he'd had in a long time. At some point after he was knocked out, he had been transferred to an unfamiliar bed within the cabin. He shimmied out and slowly made his way to the body length mirror by the door. Somehow, his hair had grown longer and was now tied in a small bun similar to Raitaro's. His clothes had been replaced with an identical outfit except the turtleneck was long sleeved this time. He rolled up his sleeves to check if his kusarigama tattoos were still on his arms but to his surprise, they had faded quite significantly. He took this as a sign that his powers were really vanishing. He pushed the thought aside and walked out the room before heading downstairs.
He heard Raitaro whistling and began wondering how many times he could have summoned Raiju at the rate of his whistles. He pushed that thought aside as well as he went down. When he reached the foot of the stairs, he was confused by a new sight. "Raitaro, why is there a compact Raiju on the sofa?!" He yelled to the kitchen. "Don't be dumb Shindo. That is Raiju," Raitaro answered. "Nope. I vaguely remember him being about five times bigger," Shindo replied.
Raitaro walked out of the kitchen to see Shindo face-to-face. "Just eat. We're a month behind on your training," he said casually before throwing a large ball of bacon towards Raiju. The wolf caught the meat and ate it while still appearing to be asleep. Shindo stared in amazement at what the animal had managed to do. "Wait, what do you mean by 'a month behind'," he asked Raitaro, following him back into the kitchen. Raitaro gave Shindo a full plate of food and said, "Comatose...You've been knocked out for a month. Now eat... fast," he said as he walked out with his own plate. "A month?" Shindo asked in shock. Raitaro nodded before switching his focus to his food. Shindo sighed heavily before taking a seat and doing likewise.
After eating, Raitaro went upstairs and came back down with a uniquely crafted bow and went towards the door. He signalled Shindo to follow him before going outside himself. Shindo rushed out to catch up to him but halted when he saw Raitaro aiming at him. "Stand right there," Raitaro instructed. "Wh-what are you planning?" Shindo asked nervously. "I'm gonna kill you," Raitaro said straight faced. "Excuse me?!" Shindo asked in confusion. "I'm kidding. I'm actually going to impale you in the chest with a lightning arrow at point blank range," Raitaro explained gleefully as he walked up to Shindo. "I'm still going to die, you psychopath!" Shindo replied while still standing in the same position.
Raitaro held the bow to Shindo's chest as he formed an arrow made out of solidified lightning. "Fortune favours the bold," Raitaro said before releasing his arrow. Shindo's body went numb as he fell backwards. His surroundings went black as he continued his fall. The arrow had disintegrated instantly leaving a hole in his chest. He finally landed on the floor of a familiar bleached white space. "Point blank," he muttered to himself as he stood up. He wandered around looking for Kami-gatta but had no success. After half an hour, he saw a person that appeared to be sleeping while seated upright. The weirdest part was that the person was suspended in midair with a kusarigama on their lap.
"Kami-gatta?" Shindo asked as he slowly walked towards it. The person suddenly dropped to the floor, still in their position. When Shindo got a clear view of the individual he had been looking at, his heart skipped a beat. The person was a perfect replica of himself. He stared at the doppelganger waiting for him to make a move. "Expecting something, Shin?" he asked with his head down. "My-my bad. Who the heck are you anyway?" Shindo asked. "Oh me? I'm you. But just call me Deva," the lookalike said as he stood up. "What do you mean by 'I'm you'? Where's Kami-gatta?" Shindo asked sounding irritated.
"That old fart? He's not here. It's just you and me," Deva explained. Shindo grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up. With the eyes of a bloodthirsty warrior, he yelled, "Where's Kami-gatta?!" Meanwhile, Deva didn't seem too bothered by his current position and just smiled back at Shindo. "You mind loosening your grip?" he asked casually. Shindo did the exact opposite and tightened his hold instead. Deva gave another basic smile before holding Shindo's wrist and snapping it instantly causing Shindo's hand to go limp.
Shindo yelled in pain. "Relax, that shouldn't bother you too much. Now get up," Deva calmly stated. "And if I'm being honest, I really am you. Well, a part of you. I'm the embodiment of all your killer instincts. And unless things change right now, I'll be the only part of you," Deva threatened. Shindo analyzed his opponent carefully through the pain and realized something vitally important. "How come you only have one kusarigama tattoo?" he asked. "Because you have the other, you imbicile," Deva answered. "You have your power but you're too weak to use it. I on the other hand, have the same power at my full disposal," he added.
The two boys stared at eachother in silence, both barehanded but one having the clear advantage. In an instant, Deva summoned his kusarigama and charged at Shindo. Shindo rolled to the left as Deva barely missed him. Deva turned and attacked again, attempting to cut Shindo's head off but was countered by Shindo who delivered a donkey kick straight to Deva's face. Deva fell backwards before quickly getting back on his feet. "You fight well for a powerless coward," he commented. Shindo didn't respond but instead took advantage of the moment by charging at Deva attempting to land another kick. Deva jumped back, barely avoiding the kick before wrapping his kusarigama's chain around Shindo's leg.
He tossed Shindo behind him using the chain with ease. Shindo got up and continued analysing Deva for some kind of flaw. He forced a smile and stood up calmly. Force out attacks, he thought to himself as he stared silently at Deva. Both boys charged eachother, Deva with his chain scythe and Shindo with nothing but his bare hands. Shindo threw a punch but Deva ducked and slid past him. Shindo suddenly felt a pain in his hip that caused his right leg to bulk. He looked down and saw that he had been impaled by Deva's scythe. With a slight tug of the chain, the weapons cut through his side before returning to it's owner.
Shindo forced himself to keep standing despite the pain he was in. Deva took advantage of the situation and ran at him before delivering a swift leg sweep. He towered over Shindo before punching him continuously. "You're...just...too...damn...weak!" he said in between punches. Shindo kept smiling despite having his face treated as a punching bag. Deva stopped, clearly irritated by the smile. "What's got you in a good mood?" he asked. "I found the flaw. It's been right in front of me this whole time," Shindo replied joyfully. Deva punched him again but he kept smiling without fail. "And just what the hell is this flaw?" he asked. "You're nothing but a pathetic portion of what you think you are. It's like you forgot that in here, I'm the King," Shindo commented before Deva punched him yet again.
The bruises on Shindo's face as well as the cut in his hip slowly healed as he continued to give Deva the most arrogant smile he could muster. Deva jumped back, now on guard against Shindo. Shindo got to his feet calmly before stretching out his right arm, the arm baring his remaining kusarigama tattoo. "You said I was too weak? Not at all. You're simply too overconfident," he said before summoning his own scythe, ripping off his sleeve.
He cut the band holding his bun together, letting his hair fall. "If you really are me then you know that I dont take a particular liking to people who call me weak," Shindo stated. "Your point?" Deva asked back. "If only I could kill you twice," Shindo said with disdain. He ran at Deva as fast as he could, armed with his own weapon this time. He swung the scythe towards Deva's neck with all his might. Deva reacted by blocking the attack but couldn't guard against an immediate second attack when Shindo brought down both weapons before hitting Deva's head with his knee. He fell backwards but stopped his fall with his free hand.
He got up and charged at Shindo who didn't appear to be bothered by him. Deva's scythe dug into Shindo's chest exiting through his back. Shindo's face remained without emotion even after the attack that may have just decided the winner of the fight. He suddenly flashed a madman's smile before impaling Deva's arm. He kicked Deva backwards causing the scythe to rip through the flesh of his arm leaving a straight bloody line along his arm.
"Looks like the tables have turned," Shindo said, brandishing two kusarigama now. Deva realised that one of the weapons was definitely his but wondered why it was in Shindo's possession now. He got up, trying to lift his injured arm but failed. "It won't work. In that last attack, I cut through your ligaments and tendons. It's useless," Shindo explained casually. "How?!" Deva asked furiously. "Do I really need to answer that?" Shindo replied. Deva, clearly frustrated, charged at Shindo. Shindo dismissed one kusarigama to catch the punch that Deva had thrown before cutting off his arm.
Deva jumped back, now having only one arm and a useless one for that matter. He muttered something under his breath before getting ready for one last charge. "Long live the King!" he yelled as he ran towards Shindo knowing that his end was imminent. His last expression was a smile of relief as he fell to the ground following a straight stab to the heart. He faded away as Shindo walked away from his body. After dismissing his kusarigama and overwhelmed with fatigue, Shindo continued his search for Kami-gatta. He came across his throne however, with the power chain lying on the ground. He picked it up and held it to his chest, instantly reattaching it before sitting on the throne himself. "Long live the King," he said, as if in agreement with his bloodthirsty clone.
Suddenly, a black door appeared in front of the throne. Kami-gatta's head popped out looking around until finally fixing his eyes on Shindo. "Is he gone?" he whispered. "Yep," Shindo responded. "Thank goodness!" Kami-gatta yelled with relief as he walked out of the door. "I believe you owe me an apology," Shindo pointed out, still seated on the throne. Kami-gatta slapped his face before apologetically saying, "Sorry for destroying the power chain and almost getting you killed."
"Good Kami-gatta," Shindo replied playfully. "Shindo...promise me that you won't do something stupid like that again," Kami-gatta demanded. Shindo gave a simple nod in agreement. "Alright then. Shindo, I Kami-gatta, no I Raijin, bestow all of my power upon you for interchangeable use," Kami-gatta said before laying his hand on Shindo's head. "Just don't push it too far, you hear?" he added in a caring tone. "What do you mean by 'interchangeable use'?" Shindo asked. "I mean that I still have all my power but I'm officially sharing all of it with you," Kami-gatta explained before summoning a throne to Shindo's left before sitting down.
"I believe that it's time we part ways yet again Shin," Kami-gatta pointed out. "Way ahead of you bro," Shindo said. He closed his eyes and began the fading process. After he finally disappeared, Kami-gatta slouched in his throne. "Shindo Nakajima. The boy I call my equal," he muttered before falling asleep in his throne.