Awakening Kira

Against the desert night, a massive figure showed off its agile movements and dynamic muscles atop a hill, constantly throwing punches. One punch, two punches—before long, it was unleashing layers upon layers of rapid fist shadows, each punch carrying a whistling gust of wind. A raised leg delivered a powerful side kick; a crouch and leap sent it soaring to a height no human could possibly reach. It spun in midair and launched a flying kick, its form looking incomparably cool beneath the moonlight. When the figure landed again, the violent tremor and immense force kicked up countless clouds of sand, forcing everyone to retreat.

Though those movements looked exceptionally flashy, anyone who truly understood combat could see that they were merely showy maneuvers. They would hardly improve combat effectiveness in an actual battle and were useful, at most, for performance.

With great enthusiasm, Luo drove the Strike Gundam before the watchful eyes of Kira, Mu, Maddock, Mwu, and the others. On a hill not far from the Archangel, he performed a series of seemingly simple movements. Without equipping any weapons, he was simply testing the Strike Gundam's basic performance. Yet these perfectly ordinary actions in Luo's eyes made everyone, Xiao Ran included, stare wide-eyed in disbelief.

"Can an MS really make movements like that? Can it really be that agile on Earth?" Mu swallowed hard and turned toward Xiao Ran with difficulty. "Where did you find such an outrageous friend?"

"I didn't expect this either." Xiao Ran spread his hands in astonishment, staring dumbfoundedly at the Strike Gundam as it rapidly punched and kicked like a martial arts expert, even performing attacks similar to spinning kicks in midair. It could not compare to the units from Gundam G, but for the Strike Gundam, this was already incredible.

As he watched the Strike Gundam seemingly practicing hand-to-hand combat, Kira, who had remained silent, froze for a moment before focusing all his attention on it. His eyes soon revealed deep contemplation, understanding, and sudden realization.

"Is that person really normal? Isn't he a Coordinator?" Mu asked the question everyone was concerned about.

Bargyll in particular had worn a stern expression ever since she learned Xiao Ran had brought a stranger aboard the Archangel and intended to let him pilot the Strike Gundam. If Mwu, the captain, had not agreed, if Xiao Ran had not outranked her as a major, and if Mu had not been curious about just what Xiao Ran's friend could accomplish, then the only three superiors aboard the Archangel would not have jointly overruled her objections. She would never have agreed to let a complete stranger she knew nothing about board the Strike Gundam.

But now, even Bargyll wore an incredulous expression. The corner of her eye twitched repeatedly as she struggled to control her emotions. In her view, anyone capable of piloting an MS and making such movements could not possibly be an ordinary human. Thus, the moment Mu asked that question, she fixed her eyes firmly on Xiao Ran.

"He hasn't undergone genetic modification or drug enhancement. He's a completely ordinary person. If there are geniuses in this world, then Luo is definitely one—a master of machinery, and someone with absurdly good luck." Xiao Ran took a deep breath, and after thinking it over, he seemed to understand why Luo could make the Strike Gundam perform those movements.

Xiao Ran rubbed his chin and said to the disbelieving crowd, "He can make those movements entirely because of his astonishing talent for machinery and his deep understanding of MS limbs, frames, joints, metal flexibility, strength, and so on. Without those factors, he could never pull off such flashy maneuvers. And I think it isn't just because of him personally. Luo has a supercomputer. With that computer assisting him, movements like those aren't strange. I just can't figure out where that guy hid the computer earlier."

Xiao Ran scratched his head but still could not work it out. Little 8, that Artificial Intelligence, did not seem small enough to be hidden on Luo without Xiao Ran noticing. How could something the size of a suitcase have been concealed? Unless...

Xiao Ran subtly turned his head as though his neck hurt and he was merely stretching it, quickly sweeping his gaze across every visible area before finally frowning and giving up on trying to locate Luo's companions in the dark desert.

"So they never completely trusted me from the start, and their companions were nearby to provide support at any moment?" Xiao Ran shook his head, looked up at the completely motionless Strike Gundam, and smiled unconcernedly.

Xiao Ran turned to Kira and suddenly asked, "Kira, what do you think?"

"I never considered making the unit perform movements like that before. Though in my opinion, such movements really are unnecessary in battle. There is no need to complicate movements when simpler, more direct actions can achieve the same goal." Kira glanced at Xiao Ran and said calmly, "If this were a battle, then even if he moved like a fighter, he wouldn't be my opponent. I can protect the Archangel."

Kira's tone made everyone around him frown slightly as they looked at him with strange expressions. In their eyes, Kira was not an arrogant person, so what was going on now?

Hearing Kira's words, Xiao Ran raised his brows. "Don't underestimate Luo. He may not be your match in combat, but it won't be so easy for you to defeat him either."

Kira fell silent for a moment, then said firmly, "Easy or not, if he is an enemy, I will defeat him no matter what."

Xiao Ran froze. He realized something was seriously wrong with Kira. Not only was he arrogant, but more importantly, Xiao Ran felt that his way of thinking had gone wrong. Perhaps he had spent too long being a teacher here, but after hearing Kira say something so irresponsible, Xiao Ran could not help assuming his former teacher's manner and barked, "Kira! Are you sure you're clear-headed right now? Do you even know what you've been doing these past few days?"

Kira had not realized that he had seemed very strange to others over the past two days. He appeared to be filled with an inexplicable sense of tension, suppressing himself as he believed only he could protect the Archangel. He had not noticed that this mindset was making him somewhat arrogant. Yet he still respected Xiao Ran deeply. After all, Xiao Ran had been with him from the beginning, guiding and comforting him.

Thus, although Xiao Ran's sharp rebuke stirred a trace of inexplicable anger within him, Kira suppressed it and said, "I'm very clear-headed, Teacher."

"I know what happened to you that night. Since then, your state of mind has been a little off." Xiao Ran frowned, took a deep breath, and spoke to Kira in a gentler voice. "Haven't you noticed that you've been putting far more pressure on yourself? Before, you would hesitate when facing enemies, and you would feel guilty after destroying an MS. But what about now? Last night, you could even fire at an enemy with no ability to resist. Haven't you realized that you've completely changed?"

"I won't say what the Kira I know is like, because I know you are no different from before. I don't know whether we put too much pressure on you, making you think that the Archangel can't do anything without you." Xiao Ran raised a hand to stop Kira from arguing and continued, "On this point, I admit it. Captain Mwu admits it. Major Mu and Lieutenant Bargyll admit it too. Everyone aboard the Archangel admits it. Without you, the Archangel could never have safely made it from Heliopolis to this place. That is why we have always avoided putting more pressure on you. We were afraid that your constantly strained nerves would snap."

Looking at the silent Kira, Xiao Ran said softly, "When Lacus was aboard the ship, did you really think none of us knew where you went during the time you disappeared every day? No, we all knew. But none of us said anything, and none of us interfered. We just wanted you to relax. We hoped Lacus, also a Coordinator, could ease your mood, help you loosen up, and make you happier. At the time, it seemed to be working quite well."

"But after we landed on Earth, in just one day, the change in your mindset caught us completely off guard." Xiao Ran took a deep breath. Amid everyone's frank and puzzled expressions, he pulled Kira aside and spoke quietly. "Silly boy, your teacher knows about what happened between you and Flay that night. Is it because you couldn't save Flay's father that you feel guilty toward her? I also know you don't want the same thing to happen again. You want to protect the Archangel, protect Flay, and protect all of us. But you can't put so much pressure on yourself because of this, understand?"

"Um... Teacher... how did you know?" Kira's face instantly turned red as he asked hesitantly, embarrassed.

"Of course, I heard it when I went to see whether you were feeling better." Xiao Ran answered calmly without even blushing, then patted Kira's shoulder and continued, "You need to calm down. If you really like Flay, then you should understand that she isn't in a good state either because of her father's death. Yet she is still forcing herself to endure that grief in her heart to support you and comfort you when you're suffering. As a man, you shouldn't let a woman endure her pain just to comfort you. Fighting isn't the only thing you can do, so you need to calm down even more. Only then can you comfort her better, understand?"

After saying that, Xiao Ran added silently, Though she was only enduring her grief to use you.

After hearing Xiao Ran's sincere words, Kira began reflecting on what he had done throughout the day. In the end, he nodded lightly. "I'm sorry, Teacher. You're right about everything. My emotions have been a little off today. I'll be more careful in the future. And that demonstration by your friend just now—while I really do think it wasn't very useful, it still gave me some ideas. It wasn't as though I learned nothing."

"Kid." Xiao Ran smiled and lightly punched Kira. "I didn't invite Luo here just to let him visit the Archangel. Luo is an incredibly capable person. While he's here, quickly point out anything you think is unsuitable about the Strike Gundam. You can also discuss MS piloting with him. That guy's wild ideas will definitely benefit you greatly."

"I understand, Teacher. I know what I should do."

Watching Kira regain his clarity, Xiao Ran thought, Kira has been awakened ahead of time. I just hope Flay can change sooner too.