Love Live and Kamen Rider 46

"Bang!"

The eagle Mlortha was sent flying by the impact, crashing through the wall of the jewelry store and slamming heavily into a car. Divine slowly walked out through the hole in the wall that had just been smashed open.

"It's about time this ended." As he spoke, Divine reached into the Card Box on the right side of his belt and pulled out an orange-yellow card featuring an emblem of a fist striking a rock.

Upon hearing Divine's words, a flicker of panic crossed the eyes of the heavily wounded eagle Mlortha. Divine then inserted the card into the gauntlet on his left fist, triggering three synthesized mechanical voices.

〖Kill Weapon〗

〖Energy Storage〗

〖Heavy Fist Smash〗

But just as Divine prepared to bring his glowing orange-yellow left fist down upon the eagle Mlortha, a pitch-black blade of energy suddenly struck from his left. Seeing this, Divine redirected his glowing fist to collide with the dark blade, but in less than a second, Divine was overpowered by the black energy and sent flying.

"Boom!"

"Ughhh!!!"

"Bang!"

Divine slammed heavily into a nearby building, forced to revert from his transformed state. At the same time, Senba Gari struggled to climb up from the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood as he lifted his head to look in the direction from which the black blade had come.

A figure stood there wearing a wide, pitch-black samurai robe with a crimson katana hanging at his waist. His head was a grotesque oni mask with sharp, protruding fangs and large, upward-curving horns on his forehead. His glowing crimson eyes signaled his terror, and then the monster spoke.

[Heh, how pathetic, my nemesis! Divine!]

"You... you're the monster that came out of the stone statue that day!" Senba Gari looked weakly at the monster, who seemed just as familiar as Hagoromo Gitsune had been that day.

[Oh, it seems you have not forgotten me, ha! Since that is the case, I shall tell you my name. I am one of the Seven-HBrute, the Ghost Samurai, Muramasa! Remember this name, my nemesis; a battle between you and me is inevitable! Begone, you useless piece of trash!]

With that, Muramasa and the eagle Mlortha transformed into black mist and vanished from before Senba Gari.

Watching the spot where Muramasa and the eagle Mlortha had disappeared, Senba Gari's vision suddenly darkened, and he collapsed to the ground.

〖Master!〗 Silver Phantom, having rushed over after hearing the commotion, witnessed the moment Senba Gari suddenly fell.

Let's Become Idols! (Part 1)

"Whoosh."

"Whoosh."

"Whoosh."

On a white cloud amidst a sky swept by wild winds, Senba Gari held a jade-green bow in his left hand. He nocked an arrow with his right, pulled back the string, and released it. The arrow flew straight toward the wind-eye symbol in front of him, only to be blown off course by the surrounding gusts. Just as Senba Gari prepared to nock another arrow, the voice of the Unicorn reached his ears.

[Kid, I think you should stop. Continuing like this is useless.]

Hearing the Unicorn's words, Senba Gari silently lowered his bow and arrow, turned around, and spoke to the creature.

"Hey, do you know, Unicorn? Although I knew the Seven-HBrute were strong, I didn't expect them to be so powerful that I couldn't even put up a fight. Twice, two whole times! I've been defeated! Utterly crushed. I thought that after the battle with Hagoromo Gitsune, I would be able to hold my own against the Seven-HBrute for a while, but when that Ghost Samurai Muramasa appeared, he defeated me in a single strike. My left hand is still trembling even now."

As he spoke, Senba Gari looked at his slightly shaking left hand. This was the lingering effect of the direct collision with the blade energy Muramasa had unleashed; whenever he thought of that clash, his hand would tremble.

The Unicorn, who had been silently listening to Senba Gari's confession, finally spoke up.

[Tch, you really are... forget it. If you keep going like this, it's pointless. So, leave.]

As soon as the Unicorn finished speaking, it gave a light flap of its wings toward Senba Gari, and he vanished from the spot. The Unicorn then turned to look behind it, speaking to the empty air.

[Garuda, it seems the one you chose is feeling a bit disheartened right now.]

Suddenly, a ball of fire the same size as the Unicorn appeared before it. The flames dissipated, and a Phantom Beast with fire-red feathers and a pair of massive, fiery wings—possessing a human body and a bird's face—appeared before the Unicorn. Garuda then spoke.

[Rest assured, this kid is, after all, the one that fellow and I chose together. So, let us try to believe in him. After all, he is our last hope.] With those words, Garuda vanished from before the Unicorn.

[The last hope, huh? In that case, I shall try to believe in him as well.] The Unicorn looked silently at the wind-eye symbol before it, lost in thought.

---Long-awaited divider---

"Ugh."

When Senba Gari's consciousness returned to reality, he slowly opened his eyes. As he prepared to sit up, Silver Phantom, who had been guarding him, saw him wake and spoke excitedly.

〖Master! That's great! You're finally awake! (≧▽≦)/〗

"Mm, Phantom, how long have I been asleep?" Senba Gari asked, looking at Silver Phantom.

〖Actually, after I brought you back, Master, you slept for a whole night. Your left hand was dislocated, so I set it back into place, but your arm will be weak for a short time.〗

Hearing this, Senba Gari lifted his left hand and clenched it, finding that it indeed lacked strength. At the same time, the scene of the clash with Muramasa's black blade flashed through his mind, and his hands tightened involuntarily. Senba Gari shook his head to clear the thought, then got out of bed and spoke to Silver Phantom.

"Phantom, get ready. We're going to Otonokizaka."

〖Master, shouldn't you stay home and rest a bit longer?〗

"No, an injury like this is nothing. Alright, hurry up and get out." Senba Gari pushed Silver Phantom out the door, then leaned against it, looking up at the ceiling and muttering to himself.

"Seriously, I was actually afraid just now. Afraid of fighting those guys. What has happened to me lately?"

--Perspective Shift--

Below the UTX Academy building, Honoka Kosaka was looking at a brochure for the school amidst the crowd, but she was soon drawn to the massive LCD screen on the side of the UTX building.

〖Welcome to UTX Academy.〗

On the giant screen, three girls in gorgeous costumes were greeting the people below. Honoka Kosaka looked at the three girls on the screen and then flipped through the brochure in her hand. The crowd below began to scream, and Honoka was startled by them. When she turned her head, she was startled again by a petite girl with black twin-tails standing beside her, who was wrapped in a thick coat and wearing sunglasses and a mask.

Honoka Kosaka looked at the somewhat suspicious girl with a hint of nervousness and asked.

"Um."

"What is it? I'm very busy, you know!" The petite girl took off her mask and looked at Honoka Kosaka with apparent annoyance.

"Um... I wanted to ask, are those people performers or something?"

"Huh?!" The girl looked at Honoka Kosaka as if she were insane, then leaned forward, peered at her from behind her sunglasses, and said, "Don't you even know something like that?! Isn't it written in the pamphlet you're holding? How much of it did you actually read?"

"I-I'm sorry!" Startled by the girl's intensity, Honoka Kosaka apologized.

Seemingly satisfied by Honoka Kosaka's attitude, the girl turned to the side, crossed her arms, and said.

"A-ries, they're called A-ries."

"A-ries?" Honoka Kosaka asked, puzzled.

"They're school idols."

"Idols..."

"That's right, and they're idols formed within the school. Haven't you heard of them?"

"Hanayo-chan, we're going to be late, nya~"

"Y-yes, wait for me just a second."

Hearing the voices, Honoka Kosaka looked behind her to see two girls with short hair running toward them.

Then, Honoka Kosaka turned back to look at the three idol girls on the massive LCD screen, finding herself inadvertently captivated by their singing and dancing.

Honoka Kosaka then stumbled over to a nearby railing, her head hanging low, when suddenly, the voice of Senba Gari came from behind her.

"Hey, um, Honoka, are you okay?"

But Honoka Kosaka didn't respond; she just kept muttering to herself.

"This is it..."

"Huh?" Senba Gari asked, confused.

"This is it... I've found it!"

Let's Become Idols! (Part 2)

"Hm? Is that Honoka?"

A few minutes earlier, as Senba Gari rode Silver Phantom past the UTX building, he had spotted Honoka Kosaka arguing with a black-haired girl in twin tails who was bundled up tight. Not far from Senba Gari, Rin Hoshizora was following Hanayo Koizumi toward where Honoka Kosaka and the others were standing.

Then, Honoka Kosaka looked up at the three girls on the giant LCD screen atop the UTX building. She seemed to stagger back in a daze before stumbling to the side and gripping the railing with both hands.

"What's wrong with this girl now? No, I have to go check on her."

Watching from a distance, Senba Gari took off his helmet, climbed off Silver Phantom, and walked quickly behind Honoka Kosaka to ask.

"Hey, um, Honoka, are you okay?"

But Honoka Kosaka didn't respond; she just kept muttering to herself.

"This is it..."

"Huh?" Senba Gari asked, confused.

"This is it... I've found it!"

At the same time, Honoka Kosaka turned to face Senba Gari, grabbed his arms tightly, and looked at him with glowing eyes, speaking excitedly.

Whoa, how does this girl have so much strength?! Senba Gari tried to break free from Honoka Kosaka's grip, but not wanting to use too much force, he simply reached out and flicked her forehead.

"Ow~ That hurts! What was that for, Geki-sensei?" Honoka Kosaka rubbed her reddening forehead, looking at Senba Gari with a pout.

"Don't give me that look. You're surprisingly strong! You actually hurt my arm." Senba Gari rubbed the arm she had been gripping.

"Uh, really? Sorry." Honoka Kosaka scratched the back of her head, feeling embarrassed.

Looking at Honoka Kosaka with a sense of helplessness, Senba Gari checked his watch and suddenly shouted in alarm.

"Oh no! We're going to be late!"

"What?! We're going to be late! Ahhh, it's over, we're definitely not going to make it now!" Honoka Kosaka panicked upon hearing Senba Gari's words.

As Senba Gari walked over to Silver Phantom, he looked back at the still-panicking Honoka Kosaka and called out.

"Hey! Honoka! What are you standing there for? Come on, I'll give you a ride."

"Huh? Oh! That's great, thank you, Geki-sensei!" Honoka Kosaka hopped onto the back of Silver Phantom and, without a second thought, wrapped her arms around Senba Gari's waist.

"..."

Feeling the softness against his back, Senba Gari's face turned red beneath his helmet, and he thought to himself.

Does this girl not know about personal boundaries between men and women?! And wait, do all high school girls have figures like this now? Wait! What am I even thinking?!

"Sensei, aren't we going? We'll be late if we don't leave now." Honoka Kosaka didn't seem to find her current position strange at all, looking at Senba Gari with confusion.

"Ah, yes, nothing, it's nothing. Hold on tight, I'm starting it up." Responding in a flustered tone, Senba Gari started Silver Phantom and drove toward Otonokizaka.

Transition Line--

"Screech—"

At the corner of the street opposite Otonokizaka, Senba Gari said to Honoka Kosaka, who had already stepped out of the car.

"To avoid any misunderstandings, I'll drop you off here. Besides, there's still some time before class starts, so don't worry. I'm going to go park the car now, see you later."

"See you later, Teacher Senba," Honoka Kosaka said to Senba Gari as he prepared to leave.

〖Master, your face was a little red just now~ <(￣︶￣)/〗

Under the streetlamp, after Senba Gari parked the Silver Phantom, the voice of the Silver Phantom came through his earpiece.

"You talk too much! You'd better not cause any trouble for me today, or else, hmph—━ _ ─━?" As he spoke, Senba Gari turned his head to glare threateningly at the Silver Phantom.

〖...〗

Seeing that the Silver Phantom had gone silent, Senba Gari walked toward Otonokizaka with a relaxed expression.

--Perspective Shift--

"Look at this!"

In Class 2-B, Honoka Kosaka placed a stack of magazines about idols in front of Minami Kotori and Umi Sonoda.

"Honoka, what is this?" Minami Kotori looked at the magazines in front of her with some confusion.

"This is the idea I came up with! We're going to become school idols!" Seeing that Umi Sonoda and Minami Kotori were still a bit bewildered, Honoka Kosaka continued, "It seems like a lot of school idols have appeared lately, and the schools where popular ones attend see an increase in applicants. That's why I thought of this."

When Honoka Kosaka said this, Umi Sonoda suddenly felt a sense of foreboding, so she tried to sneak away. Just as she reached the classroom door, Honoka Kosaka suddenly called out to her.

"Umi-chan, I haven't finished talking yet!"

"Um, I just remembered I have something to do..."

"I've thought of a great plan, just listen to me."

After Honoka Kosaka said this, Umi Sonoda sighed and then spoke up.

"You're planning to say that we should all become school idols together, right?"