Xu launched himself towards Danso and even Danso launched himself at Xu. Their blades collided and the sparks of soul energy emitting from Xu and the bare swordsmanship and the struggle to win the fight was clearly depicted on Danso's face.
Suddenly a crack appeared onto Danso's sword.
Then another crack and then the sword shattered into pieces and Danso stared at the shattered pieces in despair. He kneeled down staring at the broken metal as Xu walked closer and closer, his blade being engulfed by a deep dark flame.
"You don't have the guts to kill," said Xu.
"I don't kill," replied Danso.
Danso stared at Xu who was inching closer and closer and Danso got up and picked up the hilt of his sword that still had a piece of the blade in it.
"Can I call Zephyr or Karkous into the realm?" thought Danso.
Danso checked his fingers to the realisation that he could not summon them. He screamed out their names but no response was given back.
"There is no one here except you and me," said Xu.
Danso held the broken blade with a sense of courage and plus he knew that he would probably get a re-try if he died here but even though he could revive he still was scared of death.
"You're scared of death and you don't kill. How did you ever think you could beat me?" asked Xu.
"Fear of Death is part of being human. I have people outside this place that I care for…"
Danso thought of the dinner table with all the DMMS members. Emily eating her dinner quietly, Natsuki trying to control Haruki and talking to Chiro about administrative work, Tensei arguing with me and in a bad mood. Chiro with that usual smile of his backed by tons of confidence. Sasha, Kevin, and Nicole working in the Battle Restaurant.
And last but definitely not least… Hiroshi standing on the same rooftop as him in his Knight Ninja suit while they both ate a midnight snack talking about their villains and their problems.
The only person who understood him the most was taken away from him. He currently had three goals and those were to find and get Hiroshi back to Lukia, save Chiro, and for him to return to Lukia.
"If you die you lose that all you could say I am stronger because I have the fear of death," said Danso.
"But even if you die you get reborn again and try fighting me again," said Xu.
Danso understood Xu very clearly now. He was a battle-hardened warrior. When someone was grown to be a sword or a battle-hungry monster no wonder the line between good and evil merge. The morality is gone.
Danso threw his sword away hoping Xu would do the same.
"I want to talk," said Danso.
"Why?" asked Xu.
"Because I genuinely want to understand you," replied Danso.
Xu did not say a word. His silence replied for him.
"Who are you?" asked Danso.
"Xu," replied Xu.
"What did you do your entire life?" asked Danso.
"Fight. If you fight and win you live or else you die," said Xu.
"What happens if you don't fight?" asked Danso.
"Then I die," replied Xu.
"Do you think anyone could beat you," asked Danso.
Xu did not respond yet again.
Danso knew he was getting to Xu in a mental way but he did not want to keep his guard down fully.
"No…" replied Xu.
"It's okay to take a break. It's okay to just live peacefully sometimes," said Danso reassuringly as he walked closer to Xu.
Xu was on guard; he did not drop his blade yet.
"How?" asked Xu.
"Just let everything go and take a break in your favorite place," said Danso.
"My favorite…Place…Is the top of the Narahara Mountain,"
Danso reminded himself of Xu's second seal.
Danso thought that Xu was a samurai but was he? He wanted to confirm it one last time but he needed an opening in their conversation to ask it.
"Then rest there live a peaceful life, fall in love, eat all you want," said Danso.
He placed his hand on Xu's shoulder and smiled.
"I think you've suffered enough for a lifetime," said Danso.
"How do you know?" questioned Xu.
"Because your eyes tell me," replied Danso.
Xu dropped his own sword and he stared at Danso with empty eyes but now reignited with a sliver of hope.
"Are you a samurai or what?" asked Danso.
"I am a mixture of Xu's past and your past," replied Xu with a gentle smile.
"That means Xu was not a samurai?" asked Danso.
"He never was. He was always a Ghost," said Xu.
Danso did not know what that meant but he knew time was about to run out and he thought that he could find clues about Xu's past later and his connection with Xeno.
He reached into his pocket and gave Danso a red ruby key. There was a gate that appeared behind Danso and he turned back to unlock the gate. As Danso was about to step into the gate and leave, Xu called out to him.
"Maybe you should use some of the advice you gave me to yourself, it looks like you need it as well," said Xu.
"Maybe one day but not now," laughed Danso.
Xu had a silence that sent ripples throughout Danso's soul that made him sad enough to cry.
"Will it be worth it?" asked Danso.
Xu, this time transformed into a mixture of the Xu on the mountaintop and the Third Seal Xu smiled and replied.
"It's worth it," replied Xu.
Danso stepped into the gate and he was sucked into the portal with red swirls around him making him dizzy and wanting to puke. The more he got sucked into the portal the more he felt rejuvenated and filled with life as his soul energy well opened up and started supplying the energy throughout his body.
Then he opened his eyes to find himself in Yvette's hut again.
Yvette was sitting in the same spot as usual as he saw her sipping her tea in her hand.
"I could tell it's a success?" asked Yvette.
"I hope so," said Danso standing up and stretching.
"Well there is only one way to find out," said Yvette.
Everlin appeared holding coffee while walking out of the kitchen as he closed his eyes and reopened them a second later.
"I could sense your soul energy now," said Everlin.
"I could tell," said Danso.
Danso felt much lighter now and more agile probably due to the soul energy well he had just gotten back.
Everlin walked closer to Danso as he touched his chest and slammed his palm against his ribs which caused Danso to cough a lot and then Everlin stepped back.
"What was that for?" asked Danso, holding onto a chair while coughing.
"That was to make sure you reset your soul well. All humans or all beings living in this dimension have a soul well where they drag out the soul energy from and then use it. It's like a normal well but instead of water its soul energy. When the water is dried up you dig further for more and refill it. I've done the same. Your seal only gave you access to use soul energy like a reboot but I have now dug and the soul energy should be filling up," explained Everlin.
Danso could feel Everlin was right as he felt much better and realised that with soul energy no wonder he neglected his swordsmanship. Then Yvette interrupted Danso's thoughts.
"Now the both of you. Fight," said Yvette.