Hey guys! Firestorm40 here with a new chapter for you all. Okay guys, I think it's time for another round of action! I hope you're all fired up, because I sure am!

Opening Theme - No Game No Life

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XXX

*Let's Continue where we left off last time*

Shoto, Kirito, Haru and Leafa all shot pass the monsters in front of them, before they all saw a light up ahead in the distance.

"There's the exit!" Kirito called out.

"We're almost there!" Shoto said with a grin.

Leafa and Haru started panicking as they shot towards the light. After leaving the cave. They all launched up in the sky, before Kirito and Shoto's wings appeared. Leafa and Haru let go of the boys' hand's just as their own wings appeared. Taking a deep breath, Leafa looked back to see most of the monsters falling down the cliff.

"What's wrong with you two!?" Haru exclaimed.

"That took years off my life!" Leafa shouted.

"It saved time." Kirito said with a laugh.

"Honestly..." Leafa mumbled, before the group saw the World Tree just up ahead.

"So, where will the peace talk be taking place?" Shoto asked.

"Hmm... Let's see." Leafa said, opening the menu and clicked on the map menu. "To the northwest, inside that mountain." 

"How much time do we have left?" Kirito said

"Twenty minutes." Haru said with narrowed eyes.

"I hope we make it!" Kirito said, gritting his teeth.

"Then let's kick it into high gear!" Shoto said, before the group started flying faster to the location.

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XXX

Butterfly Valley, Neutral Territory*

The four of them were still flying to the location, though it was taking a lot of time.

"I don't know if we'll make it there before the Salamanders." Kirito said.

"Yeah. Even if we can warn them, we'll either barely get the leader out, or all die together in battle." Leafa agreed.

"Who cares? As long as we make even the slightest difference, I'll take it." Shoto said.

"Player signals. A group of sixty-eight players is ahead. That's probably the Salamander attack force." Yui said

"Damn!" Haru cursed angrily.

When they flew past the clouds, they managed to see the Salamander's force.

"Fourteen more are up ahead. Most likely the Sylph and Cait Sith diplomats. Fifty seconds until they make contact." Yui said.

"We didn't make it in time. Thank you, Kirito and Sonic. This is far enough. You two go to the World Tree. Haru and I are going to save Sakuya. It wasn't for long, but it was fun. I hope we meet again!" Leafa said with a smile.

"Running away isn't really our style." Kirito said.

"Huh?" Leafa said, surprised at that.

"Yeah, I've never gotten into a fight I couldn't finish." Shoto said. "I'll be damned if I start today."

"Typical." Haru sighed with a smile.

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XXX

*At The Location*

The Butterfly Valley. A beautiful part of land, with lush forests, cliffs and waterfalls from clean rivers. It is a neutral area and the place the Cait Sith and Sylph decided to stage their negotiation talks regarding an alliance. Near the edge of a cliff, was a large white table were the Sylph and Cait Sith were supposed to have their talk. But they were stopped, courtesy of a large Salamander Army. In front of the Cait Sith and Sylph Guards stood the two Leaders. The leader of the Sylph was Sakuya. She was tall, with dark green, almost black hair that fell down her back. Her eyes were an almond colour and her skin was white. She wore green japanese clothing,with a Katana strapped behind her back. She also wore white socks and wooden sandals. The leader of the Cait Sith was Alicia Rue. She was short, with blonde hair, gold eyes and dark skin. She wore black boots with white stockings, a beige short dress and a gold cape with a red stripe covering her left arm. 

They looked up at the sky with narrowed eyes at the Salamanders, who had surrounded the Sylphs and Cait Siths. They were now hovering in the sky and waiting for the order to attack. 

"Why are the Salamanders here?" One of the Cait Siths asked.

One of the Salamanders put his hand up. The other Salamanders were all ready to attack, when... 

"STOP!!!" A young-yet powerful voice roared as the owner came down from a massive leap to land in front of the two groups. The air reverberated with the sound his arrival. He was dressed in red and orange, with a key-shaped sword and the raging fire in his eyes spelled trouble to either party, but it was the Salamander that he was staring down, which made them more curious than apprehensive.

He was quickly joined by a boy dressed in black and silver, armed with a single sword. Like his companion, he too looked like trouble, but he appeared more reserved than the first.

"Salamanders, stand down!" Kirito demanded.

Lastly, Sakuya was truly surprised when Leafa and Haru dropped down next to her. "Sakuya!" Leafa cried as she moved to stand beside her. "Thank goodness we made it in time!"

"Leafa! Haru!" Sakuya said in surprise. "What's going on here?"

"Long story short, those two are our only chance to make it out of this mess alive," Haru cringed.

"Those two...?" Alicia said skeptically, eyeing them critically, not seeing anything truly spectacular. 

"Look beyond the physical, Alicia," Sakuya reminded him. "Did you see their eyes?"

"Just for a sec..." the Cait Sith admitted. "What about 'em?"

"The one in black bears the look of desperate determination," Sakuya answered. "And the one in red has the look of a relentless hunter about him. I don't see fear in either of them."

"Which makes them brave or stupid," Leafa muttered. "I can't tell which."

"Uh... Let's just say that they're both," Haru admitted.

"Didn't you hear us?" Shoto growled as he stared down the surprised Salamanders. "Stand down. Don't make me repeat it a third time- unless you happen to be slow of hearing or mind?"

"We want to talk to your commander!" Kirito demanded.

The commander then moved up to the front. He was tall and muscular, with purplish-red, flame like hair and purple eyes. He wore heavy blood-red armour and a gold open ring decorated his head.

Seeing him, Shoto and Kirito flew up towards the commander.

"Why the hell is a Spriggan and the Salamander traitor doing here? I'm going to kill you both, regardless of your answer. But in honor of bravery, I will speak to you two first." The commander said.

"My name is Shoto and this is my partner, Kirito. We're ambassadors for the Spriggan-Undine alliance." Shoto declared.

"If you attack this meeting, We can assume you desire a full-scale war with all four races, correct?" Kirito asked, surprising everyone who was listening. 

"An Undine-Spriggan alliance? And you two, without a single guard, are their ambassadors?" The Commander asked.

"Yes, that's right. We're merely here to negotiate trade terms with the Sylphs and Cait Sith. But if the talks are disrupted, it will be much worse. The four races will ally against the Salamanders." Kirito said.

The Commander simply took out his  blade, the Demonic Sword Gram. "You're both all alone, wearing horrible gear. You can't expect me to believe you." He said. "If you can withstand my assault for thirty seconds, I will believe you are ambassadors." 

"That's generous of you..." Shoto said, as he drew his 'Dawn of the Flame' Keyblade and Kirito take out his Black Iron Great Sword.

"This is bad." Sakuya said, with narrowed eyes.

"What, why?" Haru asked, looking at her.

"The Salamander's two-handed sword... It's the Demonic Sword Gram. I've heard you need a two-handed sword skill of 950 to equip it." Sakuya said.

"O-Of 950?!" Leafa exclaimed getting a nod.

"Yes. If he's using it, he must be General Eugene. Do you know him?" Sakuya said

"We know the name." Leafa said.

"The younger brother of the Salamander leader, Mortimer. I'ver heard they're brothers in real life too. The elder is a brilliant strategist. The younger, a valiant warrior. In terms of sheer power, Eugene's said to be the game's strongest player!" Sakuya said.

"The game's strongest player... Kirito... Shoto..." Leafa whispered in worry.

Haru looked up at the duo. "Take him down guys."

The sun's glare caused a bright light to shine, making Shoto and Kirito cover their eyes. Eugene rushed at Shoto, who raised his sword to block, only for Gram to pass through it and slam Shoto, sending him crashing to a pile of rocks. 

"Shoto!" Kirito cried out, before he dashed towards Eugene, and the two clashed blades. Immediately, Kirito could feel that Eugene's strength was far stronger. He tossed Kirito away, and he dashed at him in a blink of an eye. Kirito noticed that he passed him, but he didn't notice the barrage of hits he laid onto him until he finally felt them. He was repeatedly knocked back, but he managed to stay upright in the air. "Damn!" Kirito moaned, feeling how much damage he was given, "This guys no pushover. He's the real thing."

"What the heck was that?" Haru said in shock.

"The Demonic Sword Gram has a bonus skill, Ethereal Shift, letting it phase when someone tries to block with a shield or sword." Alicia Rue said.

"That's insane!" Leafa said, surprised.

Suddenly, Kirito found himself surrounded by several fireballs. He flew up, but the fireballs followed him. They started to close in, so Kirito rapidly deflected them with his sword. He then dashed at Eugene. The two clashed, and Kirito repeatedly slashed at him. Eugene deflected his attack, and went into a slash combo as well. Kirito barely blocked it with his sword. Eugene's attacks were heavy and powerful. 'He might even be as strong as Heathcliff.' The black swordsman thought to himself. Kirito saw an opening, parried his sword, and laid several hits onto Eugene. It looked as if it did nothing to him.

"Is that all you got?" Eugene asked, "Surely you can do more." Soon, they both heard a roar coming from where Shoto was slammed, before flames suddenly burst out of rocks with a figure launching at Eugene.

"Now, I'm pissed!" Shoto roared, and he charged at Eugene. The two engaged into a sword clash frenzy, their movements fast and powerful. Eugene attempted to stab, but Shoto dodged to the side. Eugene tilted the blade towards him, and attempted a sideswipe. Shoto flipped over it, and shot a fire spell at Eugene, which he took. He shrugged it off, and the two ensued their clash.

"I'm amazed you're still alive." Eugene smirked.

"You hit like a bitch!" Shoto yelled. "Ki, let's waste this batsard!"

"Right!" Kirito said, before joining into the fight.

Eugene, Shoto and Kirito's blades clashed, and the two latters struggled to push the former. Kirito was having a hard time, but he roared with fury as he mustered up his strength, pushing Eugene away. The Salamander leader flipped through the air, reappearing behind Kirito. Shoto reacted just in time to stop his sneak attack, and retaliated with a few slashes of his own. Eugene was backed off from this attack, but he recovered and sent a barrage of his fireballs at the duo.

 They surrounded Shoto and Kirito, and began moving in on them. But the two swordsmen started to rapidly reflecting, leaping and flying around one another as they did so. And whenever a fireball was fired, another one would replace it. It was an endless swarm of these flames, and the duo could only reflect them as best as they could. They got damaged from stray ones that got them, but they didn't stop, no matter how injured they were. On and on, the fireballs kept firing, and on and on the two kept reflecting them. Finally, they started to see explosions appear around them, as the reflected fireballs started to do some damage in the area they were in. They continued to keep reflecting, and the explosions kept getting bigger and bigger until finally, their was one great explosion, followed by a bright light.

Once the light died down, Shoto and Kirito flew back to gain some distance, as they readied themselves once again as Eugene stood there. "Impressive reaction." Eugene complimented them, "You two certainly are skilled." 

"Damn, he's good." Kirito muttered rubbing his cheek.

Shoto nodded. "Yeah. Hey, Big Red! It's been thirty seconds by now." He called out. "Do you believe us now?"

Eugene smirked. "Sorry, but I've decided to kill you two anyway. Now you have to survive until I do." 

"Damn it..." Kirito said with narrowed eyes.

"Are you kidding me..." Shoto growled. "We'll show you!" 

Both of them flew up towards Eugene and continue attacking eachother.

"This will be tough. They're equally skilled, but Eugene's weapon is far superior." Sakuya said

"Even so... Even so, Kirito and Sonic will..." Leafa said.

"They can take him!" Haru said, as she watched the duo clash fast and hard against Eugene.

Kirito dove in first, his sword ready. Eugene was gonna block his attack, but Shoto unleashed a  Fireball onto him. Kirito took this chance and unleashed a cross-slash at him, causing Eugene damage. He recovered quickly and bashed Kirito with his demonic sword. Shoto then flew in, unleashing a barrage of slashes at Eugene, who saw them and blocked the attack with his sword.

Kirito came up from behind Eugene. He tried blocking his attack with his sword, but it wasn't enough and Kirito slashed him hard with a barrage of attacks. Eugene was unable to defend himself against the attack. Kirito stopped for a second, giving Eugene the time to turn to him and attempt to slash him. Kirito then flew up, keeping Eugene's attention on him. Shoto came from behind with a powerful strike and knocked into him with a Fira spell. Eugene shot forward, but he managed to stay upright in the air.

The two swordsmen then regrouped, readying themselves for another attack.

"Ki," Shoto whispered to his friend."Do you think you can create a smoke cloud or something in that effect?"

"I think so, why?" Kirito asked, not taking his eyes off Eugene.

A grin appeared on Shoto's face. "I got a plan. Thing is, I don't know if it'll be as effective as it was in SAO."

"And that would be?" Kirito asked raising a eyebrow.

 "Our Staburst-Crosstorm combo, but ALO style." Shoto stated, making Kirito look at him questionably, "We can end this fight with it. What do you say?" 

Kirito wasn't sure about this. Then again, going solo on Eugene wasn't working either. Finally he said, "Let's give it a shot!"

Eugene then gripped his sword tightly. "I don't know what you two are planning, but it's not going to work!" He said, charging towards them.

Shoto and Kirito then took off through the air while the Salamander leader was flying after them. 

While flying Shoto looked at Kirito. "Now, Ki!"

 Kirito nodded and began doing a spell. He then turned around and and created a massive black smoke cloud that covered everything.

"What?!" Leafa exclaimed.

"I can't see anything!" Haru yelled, trying to regain her vision.

"We need to borrow this." Kirito's voice said in the cloud, before he grabbed Leafa's sword.

"I'll give this back, Haru." Shoto said, taking Haru's blade before he flew off with Kirito.

"K-Kirito? S-Shoto?" Leafa called out, looking for them.

Haru made a grabbed for her sword, but found it wasn't there. "Those idiots took my sword!" She yelled.

"Mine too!" Leafa said, seeing her blade was gone as well.

"Was that meant to buy you two time!?" Eugene exclaimed, slashing throught the black smoke, causing it to fade away. He then began looking for both of them.

"They're gone?" Rue said, looking at for the duo too.

"Did they run away?" One of the Cait Siths asked.

"Of course not!" Leafa said angrily, before she thought back to the other day.

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*Flashback*

"Guys, let's just give it up!" Leafa called. "We'll just lose a few hours- its' okay!" She was about to add to her plea, but both boys shot up to their feet and looked back at her with hard eyes.

"No way!" Kirito called back.

"As long as we're alive..." Shoto seethed. "We're not going to let our friends die- never again will we endure that!"

*End Of Flashback*

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Leafa clasped her hands together. 'Kirito and Shoto would never run.' She thought.

"Found them!" Haru called out, pointing up at the sky. 

Hearing that, everyone looked up to see Shoto and Kirito flying down.

"Kirito! Shoto!" Leafa cried out in happiness.

"Kick his ass, you guys!" Haru cheered loudly.

Eugene gritted his teeth and started flying right at them. Shoto and Kirito charged at him with battle cries.

Then, the two crossed their swords, as well as Leafa and Haru's, together and said in unison, "Alfheim Cross!" Their swords started to glow brightly, and they went into action, performing the combo.

They flew back to back, focusing their power, then they shot towards Eugene. He tried to attack them again, but they were too close to him. Their combo attacks consisted of 'Crimson Rampage', where Shoto led Kirito with a barrage of fireballs and sword slashes, and 'Black Whirlwind', where Kirito led Shoto into a wide range, black energy spin attack. 

They continued this attack, and Eugene was unable to block such powerful combos. Finally, Shoto and Kirito went to two sides, forming a triangle with Eugene. They flew at him, and in one flash, they etched a red and black X, with Eugene in the center, cutting him in half. They sheathed their swords like they did in SAO, and the area around the X exploded with red and black energy behind them, with Eugene also exploding in a blast of flames and fell down to the ground below.

Everyone stayed silent for a moment, as they were all in shock by what just happened.

"Splendid! Simply splendid!" Sakuya said, waving her fan in the air.

"Wow, nice fight!" Alicia said, jumping up and down.

Soon, cheers coursed through the air, as the Sylph and Cait Sith congratulated him, while the Salamanders clapped in acknowledgement of his skill. 

"Way to go, you guys!" Haru cheered, thrusting her fist into the air.

Leafa finally snapped back to reality and look at Shoto and Kirito in awe. "So this is what Shoto and Kirito look like when they get serious. They're so..." She said smiling widely as her heart began to beat faster.

Shoto and Kirito looked at each other and grinned. "Now that was a combo!" Shoto exclaimed.

"Sure was! Probably better than the last one." Kirito agreed, as they fist-pumped and laughed.

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XXX

Later

Sakuya was now using reviving to help Eugene's torch turn back to normal quicker.

Eugene rose, stretching his muscles "That was incredible. You two are the greatest fighters I have seen in my life. No doubt about that."

"Thanks." Kirito said, smirking.

"You're not bad youself, Red." Shoto said with a grin.

"I had no idea there was someone like you among the Spriggans, let alone a fellow Salamander. The world is a bigger place than I'd thought." Eugene said.

he said. "And my group was killed by that one, who protected a Cait Sith." Hiro said. Eugene thought for a few moments, then turned to Naruto "Our leader and I do not wish to fight the Spriggans or the Undines. We shall take our leave, but I expect a duel in the future." Naruto smirked "Count on it." he said, as they shook hands.

"Will you believe us, then?" Kirito asked, folding his arms.

Eugene narrowed his eyes, until a soldier appeared in front of him "Kagemune, what is it?" Eugene asked. 

"Oh, from yesterday." Leafa said, remembering wh the soldier was.

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*Flashback*

"Well, then next time I'll have to bring more friends along," the man replied with a smirk. He turned to go, but suddenly- and painfully- he found himself eating dirt with Shoto's foot mashing on the back of his skull.

*End Of Flashback*

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"You know that my party was wiped out yesterday, right?" Kagemune asked.

"Yes." Eugene said with a nod.

"Well, it was that Spriggan and Salamader that did it. There was indeed an Undine with them." Kagemune said.

Eugene thought for a few moments, then turned to Shoto and Kirito. "I see. Then I suppose I must believe it. It's true that neither I, nor our leader intend to fight the Undines and Spriggans. We'll withdraw for now. But someday, I'll fight you two again." He said with a smirk.

"Sounds good ." Kirito said, smirking too.

"Count on it." Shoto said, the three of them fistbumped.

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XXX

Later

With that taken care of, Eugene and the rest of the Salamanders began to fly away. 

"I guess some of the Salamanders aren't that bad." Kirito said.

"Meh, they seem pretty chill." Shoto said, with his arms behind his head.

"You're both insane, you know that?" Leafa said with a smile.

"We get that a lot." Kirito said, while Shoto grinned.

"That's an understatement." Haru laughed.

"Excuse me, but could either you explain what's happening?" Sakuya asked.

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XXX

At The Evening

"I see. I did sense some degree of irritation in Sigurd's attitude." Sakuya said, after hearing the story.

"Irritation? At what?" Leafa asked.

"He probably wasn't able to accept that, in terms of power, we were falling behind the Salamanders. Sigurd is a man to whom power is very important. Not just for his character stats and abilities... He desired power as a player as well." Sakuya said.

"But even so, Why would he spy for the Salamanders?" Haru asked.

"You've heard about the 5.0 patch they'll be releasing soon? Apparently, they're finally putting in a reincarnation system. Mortimer put him up to it. Bring us the head of your leader, and we'll allow you to reincarnate as Salamander." Sakuya said.

"No way!" Shoto and Haru said in unison.

"So what will you do, Sakuya?" Leafa asked the Slyph leader.

Sakuya narrowed her eyes. "Ru, you've raised your dark magic skill, right?" She asked.

"Mhm." Re replied with a nod.

"Open a Moonlight Mirror to Sigurd." Sakuya said.

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XXX

Sigurd's place

Sigurd was sipping his wine and humming silently to himself. Suddenly, a mirror appeared and Sakuya is in it.

"Hello, Sigurd." She said. 

"S-Sakuya!?" Sigurd said in shock.

"Yeah, unfortunately for you I am still alive." Sakuya said, smirking at him.

"Why?...I mean how was the meeting" Sigurd said.

"It went well. Also there's a uninvited guest there" Sakuya said.

"Who?" Sigurd asked nervously.

"General Eugene sent his regard," said Sakuya and smiling deviously. Sigurd looked at shock and then turned to Sakuya's right to see Leafa, Haru, Shoto and Kirito standing there.

"So it's you huh? Leafa, Haru. So what will you do to me now. Fire me? You know perfectly well that the army won't last long without me commanding them" Sigurd said, closing his eyes confidently.

"Oh no, I have a better idea. As you can't stand to be a Sylph, why don't you go around the world to try to be with other races?" Sakuya asked mocking him. Then she pressed a button on the menu and banished Sigurd from Sylph's territory.

"Wait! Y-you are banishing me?" Sigurd said in shock.

"That's right. From now on, you are a renegade. Maybe you could found something interesting to do for yourself on this journey" Sakuya said, dropping the mirror.

"You bitch!" Sigurd yelled and jumped at the mirror but was too late, as he disappeared along with the mirror.

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XXX

Butterfly Valley

After finishing her talk with Sigurd, Sakuya turned to Leafa and Haru, before saying, "I thank you both, Leafa, Haru. For coming here to save me."

"Well, we didn't really do much of anything." Haru said.

Leafa nodded. "She's right. You should thank Kirito and Shoto." She said, gesturing to said boys.

"That's true. Just who are you two?" Sakuya said, lookng over at them.

Alicia smirked at Shoto. "Hey, handsome, what you were both saying about being Spriggan/Salamander-Undine ambassadors... Is that true?" She asked.

Everyone looked at both of them, before Shoto grinned. "Oh, that was just a big lie. A bluff, a con, negotiation." He said.

"You're both crazy. I can't believe you both came up with that in the Spur of the moment." Sakuya said smiling.

"Whenever we have a bad hand, We always raise the pot." Kirito said

Alicia moves close to them. "For two big liars, you're both pretty strong. Maybe you two are secret weapons of Spriggans and Salamanders?" She said.

"Of course not. We're just your friendly, wandering mercenaries." Kirito said

Sakuya then hugs Kirito's arm. "Kirito, was it? How about you join me for a drink this Sylvein? I'd like to get to know you a little better." She said, smothering Kirito's arm with her breasts.

'Oh, Asuna will definitely kill him if she finds out about this. Kirito, Kirito you are at my mercy now. Your whole fate is in my hand. Wahaha!' Shoto thought, laughing evilly. 

Suddenly, Alicia started hugging Shoto's arm. "What about you cutie? If you aren't tied down anywhere, why not be a mercenary for the Cait Sith? You'll get three meals a day, plus snacks and a nap." She purred, while nuzzling Shoto's arm and he nervously rubbed the back of his neck with his tail.

Haru just watched the scene with a poker face. "So, should we help them or..." She said, before Leafa touched the boys' shoulders as if to yank them to her.

"Would you two chill out? FYI, They're mine...." Leafa began to say before realizing what she was about to say and paused with a blush building.

"They're your what, Leafa?" Sakuya asked.

"...Minecraft. I'm sure they're good at Minecraft." Leafa said and Haru raised a confused eye at this.

"Really?" Haru muttered. Leafa just gave her a helpless look.

"We appreciate the offers. But we're sorry. Leafa and Haru promised to take us to the World Tree." Kirito said.

"Yeah, so maybe some other time." Shoto agreed.

"Oh, that's a shame. You're going to Arum, Leafa? Haru? Sightseeing? Or..." Sakuya said

"We were planning to leave the Sylphs... But we will return to Sylvein, although I'm not sure when." Leafa said.

"Understood. I'm glad to hear it. Make sure you both come back. Bring your friends with you." Sakuya said with a smile.

"Stop at my place on the way back. We'll throw you a party." Alicia said.

Haru nodded. "Sounds like a plan." She said.

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XXX

Later

"Thank you so much for coming today, Haru, Leafa, Kirito and Shoto. Had we fallen today, we'd never have caught up to the Salamanders. I'd like to thank you somehow." Sakuya said to the group with a bow.

"No, it was nothing." Kirito said, rubbing his head.

Leafa then had a thought. "Hey, Sakuya... Alicia. Wasn't the goal of this alliance to venture up the World Tree?" She asked.

"Yes, eventually." Sakuya said,

"I'd like you to let us come with you. And as soon as possible!" Leafa said.

Sakuya and Alicia looked at each other, before smiling at looking back at the group.

"I have no objection. Actually, we'd be quite graceful. But why are you in such a hurry?" Sakuya asked.

Haru looked at Shoto and Kirito. "Actually, these two are trying to get there." She told her.

"We came to this world to reach the top of the World Tree, in order to meet someone who may be there." Shoto said.

"Is it The Fairy King, Oberon?" Sakuya asked.

"No... It's not him. It's someone we can't reach in the real world, but we have to see, no matter what." Kirito said.

"However, it will probably take time to prepare all the raid members' equipment. More than just a day or two..." Alicia said frowning.

Kirito looked down at in sadness. "I see... Yeah, you're right. For now, We just want to reach the base of the tree, and we'll work out the rest ourselves." He said, looking back up with a smile.

"Oh, before you guys go," Shoto added as he accessed his inventory. He pulled out a massive bag of an unknown material and tossed it at Alicia, who all but collapsed under its weight. "Could you use this to increase your war chest?" Shoto asked.

Alicia looked inside the bag, only for her eyes to widen. "S-Sakuya! Look!" She called to the Slyph leader.

Sakuya walks over to look in the bag, to see the bags were filled with coins. "All these 200,000 Yuld mithril pieces!? Are you certain about this? With this money, you could build two castles on prime land." Sakuya said in surprise.

"I don't mind." Shoto said, grinning. "I don't need it anymore."

Alicia smiled at him. "You're so awesome, cutie. This will get us really close to the amount we need." She said.

"We'll ready our equipment as quickly as we can. And when we're set, we'll call you." Sakuya said.

"Sweet!" Shoto smiled.

"Thank you." Kirito said, also with a smile.

--------------------

XXX

Later (Once Again)

After that Sakuya, Alicia and the rest of the Slyphs and Cait Siths were now leaving the place.

"Thanks! See you soon!" Alicia said waving at the four players.

They all fly away into the sky while Shoto, Kirito, Haru and Leafa were watching them.

"It kind of feels like none of that really happened." Leafa said to Haru.

"Yeah, but in the end, I'm glad it did." Haru told her.

"Honestly... I told you no cheating, Daddy." Yui said sternly. "I can understand Uncle, but you know better!"

"Wait what!" Shoto exclaimed, as Yui come's out of Kirito's pocket.

"Wh-What are you talking about?" Kirito asked.

"Also, what do you mean by you 'understand' me?" Shoto asked, folding his arms.

"When those two leaders were clinging to you two, not only were your hearts pounding," Yui said, before looking at Shoto. "But you felt like you were about to explode, Uncle."

"W-Well, We're guys..." Kirito said, rubbing his head.

"Besides, it's not my fault girls find me attractive." Shoto told her.

Haru looked at him with a smirk. "Well, to Alicia, you're a 'Cutie'."

Shoto smirked back at her. "Please, cute is for puppies and kittens. I'm adorable!" 

"Seriously." Kirito and Yui sighed.

"H-Hey, Yui, am I not a problem?" Leafa asked timidly.

"No, it looks like you're okay, Leafa." Yui said. "You too, Haru." 

"Wh-Why?" Leafa said surprised at that.

"What do you mean by 'okay'?" Haru asked curiously.

Shoto, Kirito and Yui all looked at each other for a minute, then back at the two Slyphs. 

"Well, you don't really seem like girls." Kirito said with a shrug.

"More like angry ticking time bombs." Shoto said, with a thoughtful expression.

"Wait... Hey. What does that mean?!" Leafa said angrily.

"Run that by us one more time!" Haru growled, reaching for her sword.

Realizing his mistake Shoto waved his arms wildly. "Wait, that came out wrong! We mean you both are easy to get along with... In a good way... Yeah."

 Kirito shot into the air. "Now, let's get going to Arun! The sun will set!" He called out.

"Don't leave me here!"Shoto shouted, shooting into the air.

"Hey, wait!" Leafa said, following the duo .

"Get back here!" Haru yelled, joining them, before the four started flying to the World Tree.

----------------------

XXX

 Asuna's birdcage

Asuna was laying down on her bed, thought far fromsleeping. She then rose from her bed, looking around. Silently, she walked towards the gate and added the password. 

"8-1-3-2-3-2-9." Asuna muttered typing in the numbers.

Soon, The cage entrance opened up. Asuna smirked, as she stared out at the area.

"Kirito, Shoto, I'll do my beat, okay?" Asuna said before she gets out of the cage and walked away.

To be continued...

Ending Theme - Light of Hope

---------------------

Kirito: Aw man! You're just gonna cut it off there?! We were about to get to the good part!

Haru: Wow, even when your girl is trapped in a cage, all you wanna do is see a good fight.

Shoto: Actually, I think he love fighting more than her.

Haru: True.

Kirito: I can hear you, ya know...

Shoto: We know. We just don't care.

Leafa: Guys!

Shoto and Haru: Fine, we're sorry!

Leafa: That's better. Now, we should say goodbye, and hope that people will leave reviews like they have been!

Kirito: I think Firestorm has been pretty pumped about the number of people that have been leaving reviews and messaging him lately.

Shoto: You know it! Until next time, folks!

Haru and Leafa: Bye!