46 Candle Light

Life returned to his limbs, and he immediately rolled back, putting as much distance between him and the Silver Samurai, but Keniuchio made no move to follow him.

He merely followed him with those tranquil brown eyes before turning around and walking back to the mangled vault door. In fact, it was not just the vault; the entire corridor was warped and twisted, the large tears in metal revealing the earth outside. If they had continued, the ceiling may have collapsed, burying them both.

Of course, Keniuchio did not come out unscathed. Detonating his energy field came at a cost. His armour was cracked and battered, its healing properties evidently affected. He even seemed to have injured his leg from the explosion - the metallic covering torn, and his muscle bleeding, but he refused to limp, his posture as perfect as it had always been.

The sound of his boots echoed in the now-silent chamber as he walked over to his untouched scabbard.

CLINK!

The blade clicked back into place, and he sat back down in the very same place with the very same position.

"Please leave; I do not wish to fight you again," he said once more, his deep voice quite soothing.

Peter looked at the injured Samurai at the end of the mangled corridor. A warrior who sat among scum. Someone who spared him due to his code.

His brows furrowed as he looked at the Silver Samurai's serene eyes.

He'd lost today, and he'd be dead if it weren't for Keniuchio's honour. Sure, the odds were completely against him, but it was he who'd instigated the fight in the first place. He was warned thrice, after all.

He was fighting to gain leverage over Kingpin while Keniuchio fought to uphold his duty - whatever that was. In the Comics, the Clan Yashida, a once noble family turned Yakuza, owed an organization called the Black Spectre. Was Keniuchio paying off his family's debt to the organization by working for the Kingpin? But why the Kingpin? Did they owe him instead of the Black Spectre in this universe?

'Should I continue?' Peter thought to himself as he clenched his fist.

Given the fact that Keniuchio had detonated his energy field, it would probably take some time for it to be back. Even if it did not, he was once again in much better shape than Keniuchio was.

He could dash forward and fight once more.

He was practically in peak condition while Keniuchio was still healing.

The chances of winning were much higher.

'But should I?' Peter sighed to himself.

He didn't know whether he should listen to his emotions or his logic, and that was shocking coming from him. He was a scientist who wished to follow logic above all else, and here he was grappling with this seemingly trivial dilemma.

If he had been asked this question before he fought the Silver Samurai, he would've urged his current self to fight once more and defeat his opponent, but he wasn't so sure right now.

He needed to improve his skills by a large margin. Sure, Extremis would give him another huge boost to his prowess, but what if he met someone far, far stronger than the Silver Samurai? Someone who actually knew how to fight?

He'd died once today.

He'd lost this fight, and he was a dead man walking.

His eyes cleared as he made a decision. He turned on his heel and walked back to the tunnel - to B.O.B., who was scuttling up and down with worry. His heart turned heavier with every footstep, doubt knawing at his previous certainty.

He was probably making a mistake. Wasn't this the very behaviour that he condemned? This behaviour that he found to be illogical? Could he bear the possible consequences of walking away now?

'I'll try,' he stamped down the doubt and continued, preparing to ascend the tube using his Adhesive touch. He would return at a later time. Stronger and more skilled.

"A moment, Senshi," the Samurai's voice floated by him, and he froze.

He turned around, his eyes wary, but Keniuchio merely smiled at him, his calm, brown eyes twinkling with....pride?

He pressed an unassuming part of his armoured chest with a silver finger.

CLICK!

A small silicon chip popped out, which he promptly flicked toward Peter, who let it fall to the floor before him.

"That chip contains what you came for."

Peter raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"It's evidence," Keniuchoi pressed his armoured chest again, closing the slip. "Irrefutable evidence that Wilson Fisk's Obsidian Nexus is a front for the biggest superhuman mercenary organization on the planet. Photos, videos, recorded conversations and more. Files for forgery, money laundering, and fraud, among others. I am certain, with this ammunition, that any competent Lawyer can tear that dishonourable man down."

A whirlwind of emotions flicked through Peter, but he managed to retain his poker face. Did he get his ass whooped for nothing?

"Aren't you duty-bound to the Kingpin? Why are you giving me this?" he asked suspiciously. His Danger Sense hadn't alerted him, which meant that the chip was safe....so far.

The possibility of it being a tracking device was high. Was it a ploy to figure out his identity? If so, it was an idiotic plan. It also made no sense, given the fact that the Samurai could've killed him.

"My duty is to protect the vault," Keniuchio lifted his chin, as though accusing him of going back on his word was an immense slight. "It was never to be a henchman of the Kingpin."

'Loophole in the code, eh?' Peter thought, slightly amused, but his confusion still remained. Why didn't Keniuchio offer up the chip the moment he saw him? Why ask him to leave?

"For this gift, I request a favor," the Samurai added as he examined the chip at his feet.

'Here we go...', he braced himself. Giving away all that evidence was too good to be true. 'But why did he give me the chip before stating his terms? He doesn't come across as the most trusting person.'

"Which is?" he inquired.

"My father, Shingen Harada, turned the once honourable and noble Clan Yashida into one of the Yakuza. I, as his illegitimate son, have served this clan for decades due to filial piety and in return for introducing me to the Way Of The Sword," Keniuchio smiled, looking into his grey eyes. "I am an old man, Senshi. Far, far older than I look, and my gratitude is running thin. What do you think a man like me wishes for?"

'Does he want me to help take down one of the biggest criminal organizations in all of Japan?' Peter thought, baffled, but then quickly realized that the Samurai was doing the exact same thing for him. 'But why me?'

"You want to return your Clan to its honourable roots?" he guessed.

The Samurai gave him a slight nod, his armour still struggling to heal fully. "That is true. I wish to burn down Clan Yashida and build it back up using its ashes as its foundation."

"That is suicide," Peter immediately said. If Clan Yashida was anything like the comics, Keniuchio had no chance of taking them on alone.

"Then the Clan will burn with me," the man announced as though it was no big deal. "My father's reign has gone on for too long."

"I will not jump into the flames with you, if that's what you're asking me to do," Peter clarified. "I appreciate you sticking to your code and sparing my life, but if it were not for the corridor, you would be dead. You can burn alone."

"You cannot make a blade if the ore is afraid of being scorched. Your meagre skill is not enough to defeat me, Senshi," the Samurai countered. "You came close, but it was not enough."

Peter didn't answer. He didn't need to. Sure, he was outclassed when it came to skill, but he could rip Keniuchio in half in Form II. The modified Extremis would help him overcome the body size issue with Form II, which would make him all the more formidable, but the Samurai didn't need to know that.

"What's the favour?" he dragged the conversation away from the tangent and back on track.

"To be frank, it is more of an opportunity than a favour, but I cannot reveal it now," the Samurai answered. "Meet me in Madripoor exactly one year from now if you wish to pay me back."

"What?" Peter frowned, his confusion.

'He offers evidence to take down one of the biggest criminal organizations on the planet and doesn't mention what he wants in return. Does he not care if I take it and not show up?'

"Of course, you could lie and not show up, Senshi," Keniuchio shrugged, acknowledging the fact that his offer had a wide, gaping hole which could be exploited. "But Obsidian Nexus would fall either way."

Peter let out a sigh, "Then why ask me to leave when I came down the hatch? You could've given me the chip then. Why fight?"

"You wish to know why?" Keniuchio tilted his head. "As I said, come to Madripoor in a year. I'll find you."

'This bastard,' Peter's eyebrow twitched. He was starting to suspect that the Samurai fought to cure his boredom. So much hullabaloo could've been avoided if the man had simply offered the chip in the very beginning. 

"So, let me get this straight. You sold out the biggest mercenary organization in the world, the Obsidian Nexus company, whose payroll you're under, and are planning on burning down the Clan that put you here in the first place - a clan that can very easily compete with Kingpin's," he observed. "You're burning the candle on both ends, you know."

The Silver Samurai grinned for the first time, displaying his pearly white teeth. It was an expression that was quite jarring, given his previous serious demeanour.

"I do, but I find it gives off a lovely light."

***