Like Me Ch2

The blinding lights of the room were the first thing Rockman noticed when he grudgingly opened his eyes.  The last thing he remembered before he blacked out was that he destroyed a large Spiky virus that tried to crush Medi.

At the thought of the nurse-like Navi, Rockman wondered if she was okay.  He turned his head to the side and was surprised to see a head of blue hair right next to his.

"Medi-chan?" asked Rockman hoarsely.  This caused her to stir from he slumber.

"Rock-kun?" asked Medi as she woke up and blinked the sleep from her eyes.  Her eyes widened when Rockman sat up on the bed. "Rock-kun!"

The next thing that the blue Navi knew, Medi had flung herself into him and hugged him as if he'd disappear if she let go.  The door of the room then opened and in came Blues, SearchMan, Roll, and TomahawkMan.  The scene before them surprised them.

"Damn, Rockman.  If we've had known you and Medi were going to have some fun, we would've waited before entering," grinned TomahawkMan, only to get a blush from Medi, a glare from Rockman, and a punch to the head from an angry Roll.  Blues shook his head at the antics of the Wood-type Navi.

"We heard Medi call your name.  That's why we're here, just making sure you were okay," explained the red Navi.

"Where's everyone else?" asked Rockman, still holding onto Medi without realizing it.

"We had them go home.  They were worried about you, Rockman," said SearchMan. "Not as much as Netto though."

"How long have I been out?"

"A little more than a day," said a voice that Rockman didn't recognize.  Entering the room was a tall green and black armored Navi, maybe a little taller than SearchMan, with a serious expression on his face.  He was slim and aerodynamic looking, had wing-like attachments on his helmet that were 'slicked back' for lack of a better term, and on his wrists were what looked like bracelets made of air.  His Navi Symbol was a tornado.

"Who is this?" asked Rockman.

"Allow me to introduce myself.  My name is TornadoMan, NetNavi of Dr. Yuuichiro Hikari," said TornadoMan, gaining surprised looks from the other Navis.

"Wait!  I didn't know Dr. Hikari had a custom Navi," said TomahawkMan.

"How come I've never met you before?" asked Rockman.

"There was no need before.  As to your lack of knowledge of Dr. Hikari having a custom Navi, he is similar to Meijin.  Whereas Punk is Meijin's main Navi, I am for Dr. Hikari, but they both tend to use other Navis when required," explained the Wind-type Navi.

"I always wondered why Meijin-san had four Navis," said Rockman to himself. "How many Navis does Otousan have?"

"Just myself and an off-the-shelf Navi.  Now no more questions.  All of you follow me."

With that said, Rockman and the others exited the room with TornadoMan leading the way.

-:-

Elsewhere, in a dark room, stood VolcanoMan, PiranhaMan, and SamuraiMan and they stood in front of mysterious figure shrouded in the darkness.

"Status report."

"Master, it seems that the information was indeed true.  Rockman is the one we are looking for," explained SamuraiMan.

"Yeah, seems that Rockman actually was human in the past.  If we can gain the power he possesses, Dark Nippon will be invincible!" stated PiranhaMan.

"Indeed.  But we can't be too hasty.  It is still unclear how Rockman being human gives him the power he has.  As we all know, humans are beneath us Navis, but this power goes beyond anything a Navi could possibly imagine," said the figure.

"Master, if I may say something, wouldn't gaining this power be the same as working with humans?" asked VolcanoMan.

"That's why we must keep watching Rockman to find those answers.  This way, once we do attain this power, we will be able to eliminate the human aspect," said the figure with an evil grin. "Send out the blinder!"

-:-

TornadoMan had led the group to the comp room of SciLab.  Once at the large computer, he typed in a few codes and what appeared on the screen surprised Rockman, Blues, and SearchMan.

"That's SamuraiMan!" exclaimed Rockman.

"Correct.  I wasn't entirely sure about it when Blues and SearchMan told me about the incident you had outside, but your exclamation proved it," said TornadoMan.

"So how do you have info on this guy?  What about those other two Navis that were with him?" questioned Roll.

"The only reason we have data on SamuraiMan is because he was once part of the SciLab Elite Corps," explained the wind user, shocking the others with this information.

"Why did he leave and what could he want with Rockman?" asked SearchMan.

"I'm not sure as to why he would want Rockman.  As to why he left, my guess is that it had to do with another member of the SciLab Elite Corps, YamatoMan."

Before anything else could be said, an explosion from outside shook the place and almost made the Navis loose their footing.

"Again?!" exclaimed TomahawkMan.

"Let's go!"

With that, Rockman ran out of the room followed by Blues and SearchMan.  TornadoMan and the other weren't far behind.

-:-

"So this is what SciLab is capable of.  This mission is beneath me," said the Navi attacking SciLab in an irritated voice.  He was of average build and about as tall as SearchMan and had black armor over a dark gray bodysuit.  Parts of his armor were covered with yellow tubes and his shoulders looked like large yellow orbs.  His Navi symbol was a red horizontal tube with a red orb in the middle of the tube.

He kept attacking any security Navi that got close until an energy blast from the entrance got his attention.  He looked over to notice that it was Rockman.

"Why are you attacking SciLab?" demanded the Blue Bomber.

"Because I was ordered to.  No one expected a second attack so soon after what my colleagues did," said the Navi.

"So you're working with SamuraiMan, VolcanoMan, and PiranhaMan?" questioned Blues.

"Hai.  My name is NeonMan and our organization is known as Dark Nippon.  Now, to continue what I started."

"I don't think so!  Rock Buster!"

Rockman fired off another plasma blast at NeonMan.  Before the attack made contact though, a bright flash of light appeared out of nowhere.  When everyone got their sight back, NeonMan was standing there without a scratch.  The three Net Savior Navis were stunned to see this.

"You look surprised.  In Dark Nippon, I am known as 'The Blinder' due to my skill with light.  Not only am I able to blind my opponents, but I can also "blind" their attacks.  You cannot defeat me."

"We'll see about that!"

"Netto?" questioned Rockman.

"Welcome back, Rockman.  Let's show this guy what we're made of!  Wood Soul, download!" said Netto, imputing the battle chip.

Rockman was engulfed in a bright light.  When the light died down, he looked more like WoodMan.  NeonMan took interest in this.

"Take this!  Leaf Twister!"

Rockman aimed his fan at the Elec-type Navi, blasting him with a leafy cyclone.  Rockman and the others were shocked, however, that when the twister died down, NeonMan was still standing and still with no damage.

"I told you, I can blind your attacks and they will not be able to hit me.  Now, let's really begin this fight.  Neon Shocker!"

NeonMan's shoulders flashed and sent sparks at the Net Savior Navis.  When the attack landed, Rockman, Blues, and SearchMan became paralyzed, causing them pain as they tried to move.

'How did I get paralyzed when I'm in Wood Soul?!' thought Rockman.

"Hey, let them go!" yelled TomahawkMan as he charged forward. "Tomahawk Swing!"

With as strong as TomahawkMan was, even he couldn't get through NeonMan's tricks.  With a flick of his wrist, NeonMan tossed the axe user away.

"Foolish Navis.  My skill is absolute," stated NeonMan.  He was about to attack again, but was halted when Medi attacked him with her Medi Capsule.  Roll and TornadoMan were trying to free Rockman, Blues, and SearchMan.

"Leave Rock-kun and the others alone!" declared Medi.

"It seems I've found that I will kill you first," stated the evil Navi as he readied another Neon Shocker at Medi.

"Leave her alone, NeonMan!" yelled Rockman as he struggled to free himself from the paralysis.

"I think not."

Just as NeonMan lobbed his attack at Medi, it was sent back by a strong gust of wind from TornadoMan.

"Medi, help Roll in freeing the others.  I will hold off this intruder," said TornadoMan, not taking his eyes off the light Navi before him.  Medi nodded and got out of the way.

"You will regret that," stated NeonMan

"Not as much as you will regret attacking SciLab, NeonMan," declared TornadoMan as he sent another gust of wind at NeonMan.

Surprisingly, NeonMan had dodged the attack with speed that matched his body type.

"When it comes to speed, I am one of the fastest in my organization, TornadoMan," explained NeonMan.

"So that's how you really were able to come out without a scratch.  You were just dodging them," stated TornadoMan.

"Very perceptive.  It won't help you though."

Before TornadoMan could blink, NeonMan was before him and struck.  The Wind-type Navi was flung back and crashed into Rockman, knocking the smaller Navi out of his paralysis and knocking him out of Wood Soul.  Medi had gone to check on them while Roll continue to try to heal Blues and SearchMan, while the now standing TomahawkMan acted as a line of defense.

"Rock-kun!  Are you alright?" asked a concerned Medi as she started to perform a diagnosis on her crush.  Luckily, TornadoMan didn't seem to be injured that much.

"I'll be okay, Medi-chan," said Rockman as he sat up, much to Medi's worry. "Netto, can you hear me?  Netto?"

"Don't bother, Rockman.  After you performed that little soul trick, I sent a message back to my master.  Now, whenever you fight anyone from Dark Nippon, you and your NetOp will know longer be able to communicate.  That goes for any other Navi in the vicinity," explained NeonMan.

"You bastard!" shouted TomahawkMan.

"How could we possibly beat him?  None of our normal attacks can harm him," muttered Rockman to himself.  TornadoMan had heard him though.

"There might be one way."

Rockman and Medi look at the older Navi in confusion when he placed one hand on Rockman's Navi Symbol and his own symbol.  Their eyes then widened when both TornadoMan's and Rockman's Navi Symbols started to glow.  The light grew and engulfed both Rockman and TornadoMan, hiding them from everyone else.  When the light died, standing there was one Navi.

"Rock-kun?" questioned Medi.  The Navi looked at her and smiled.

"Hey Medi-chan."

Rockman now looked more like TornadoMan.  His normal armor had been replaced with green armor.  His gauntlets had air-like bracelets on them and he even had air-like anklets as well.  His helmet also had the same wings that TornadoMan had.

Once again glowing with the white aura, Rockman sent a strong gust of wind at NeonMan.  Though he though it was a pointless move; the Dark Nippon member was about to dodge it.  Much to his surprise though, the cyclone was much faster than he calculated.

"H-How?" stuttered NeonMan, noticing that he couldn't move.

"Looks like this form allows me to hold opponents in place with wind.  I guess that means your speed is rendered useless," explained Rockman. "TomahawkMan, now!"

"Right!  Tomahawk Swing!"

TomahawkMan charged forward and brought down his axe upon NeonMan.  Before the evil Navi could react, he took the attack full force.

"Argh!"

Though TomahawkMan's attack was very powerful, NeonMan still stood there, though he looked to be on the verge of deletion.  Data was spewing out of his wounds and he was very weakened.

"Give up or do I have to use another Tomahawk Swing?" grinned TomahawkMan.

"Consider yourselves lucky.  Next time, I will destroy you."

NeonMan, logging out.

-:-

Later on after NeonMan was defeated, the Navis went back inside to recover.  In the human world, Netto and the others were talking with Netto's father, Yuuichiro Hikari.

"I can't believe you had such a cool Navi, Dad!' exclaimed Netto, making the others sweatdrop.

"There's a new evil organization out there and you're more concerned about your father's Navi?" questioned Enzan.

"We still beat NeonMan though," argued Netto.

"Technically, our Navis were the ones to beat NeonMan due to the fact that we were blocked from contacting them," said Laika.

"Laika has a point, Netto-kun," said Meiru. "What will we do if that happens again?"

"According to what TornadoMan has told me, the interference will continue whenever a Dark Nippon Navi is in the area.  It may be a while until I can find a way around this," explained Dr. Hikari. "Luckily, we have a way to fight back in the mean time."

"You mean that new form Rockman has?" asked Dingo.

"Hai.  It seems TornadoMan has upgraded, in a sense, Rockman's Soul Unison ability.  Rockman will no longer need a battle chip for any newer souls he gains."

"What about the ones we already have a chip for?" asked Netto taking the Soul Chips out of his pockets.

"Hmm, let me see those Netto," said Dr. Hikari.  Netto placed the chips into his hand. "I'm going to try and find a way to turn these chips into data that can be downloaded into Rockman.  In the meantime, Rockman will only have the Tornado Soul, which might be a good thing considering that it stopped NeonMan's speed."

"True, but we don't know who else is part of this Dark Nippon.  Plus, there is SamuraiMan.  He will be the biggest obstacle as of now," said Laika.

"What should we do then?" asked Jasmine.

It was silent as Dr. Hikari thought of could be done.  The silence was broken when the scientist let out a sigh.

"The best we can do is stay on our toes."

-:-

At the headquarters of Dark Nippon, NeonMan was in front of his master giving his report.  VolcanoMan, PiranhaMan, and SamuraiMan were standing to the side.

"I apologize for my failure, Master.  I did not think anyone would be able to slow me down like that."

"Nor did I.  It seems that we have underestimated Rockman," said the mystery Navi. "I shall send the reconnaissance team to keep an eye on Rockman and his little friends.  Until then, no one is to confront them until ordered.  Understood?"

"Hai!" answered the Navis.

-:-

Rockman was lying on the bed he had awoken in earlier, looking up at the ceiling.  It seemed that the new version Soul Unison took more energy than the first version.  He'd need to get used to it.  His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Who is it?

The door opened and in walked Medi.  She had a look of concern on her face.

"Are you okay, Rock-kun?"

"A little tired, but I'll live."

There was an awkward silence between the two with many thoughts going through their heads.  Medi had decided to ask Rockman something that has been bothering her.

"Rock-kun, may I ask you something?"

"What is it, Medi-chan?"

"Ano, what was that white aura that surrounded you during the battles with the viruses and NeonMan?"

Another awkward silence arose due to the question.  Rockman let out a sigh and looked Medi in the eyes.

"Can you keep a secret?" asked Rockman in what sounded like a depressed tone.  When he saw Medi nod, he continued. "…I'm not like other Navis.  I was once human."

"Human?" asked the nurse Navi.

"Hai.  I was once a human named Saito Hikari, Netto's twin, but died at birth because of a rare heart condition known as HBD.  Otousan then used data to revive me as what you see before you."

"I'm guessing that I'm the only one outside of your family that knows?" asked Medi, to which Rockman sat up and nodded. "How come you didn't tell anyone else, but told me?"

"I guess I'm afraid of what they might think of me if they knew I'm really human.  As to why I told you…I figured you deserved to hear the truth than some lie to cover up what you saw."

"You trust me that much, Rock-kun?" asked Medi in surprise.

"Honestly, I don't trust anyone but my family with this secret," said Rockman in a deadpan tone, making Medi flinch a little. "Like I said though, lying to you doesn't seem right, Medi-chan."

"Rock-kun, I hope you'll trust me enough to know that whether human or Navi, I'll always be your friend and will always be there for you," said Medi, surprising Rockman with her words.  She surprised him further by wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself closer. "I care about you, Rock-kun.  Nothing can ever change that."

Rockman wrapped his arms around Medi's waist and pulled her into his lap.

"Arigatou, Medi-chan.  I'm glad to have you as a friend."

-:-

A few hours later, TornadoMan made his way to where Rockman was resting to check up on him.  When he reached the room, he knocked and quietly opened the door.  What he saw made him smile a little.  On the bed was a sleeping Rockman with a sleeping Medi in his arms.  TornadoMan quietly closed the door and continued down the hall.

"Dr. Hikari will be pleased by this.  Maybe Rockman will gain the confidence he needs to tell the others his secret," said TornadoMan to himself. "Even if they don't accept him, as unlikely as that is, he still has one who will be by his side."

With that, TornadoMan went to go and report to Dr. Hikari on Rockman's health and his discovery.

CHAPTER END