Yura Goro VS Takeshi Asakura

Kirishima Miho felt her entire body aching, her consciousness seemingly trapped in an endless dark space. She kept running, without fatigue, and without an end in sight.

She didn't know how long she had been running, but Kirishima Miho finally saw a glimmer of light ahead. She suddenly accelerated and lunged toward it, and then...

"Miho, you're awake!"

"...Shinji?"

"It's me. How are you feeling?"

Kirishima Miho struggled to open her eyes and looked around.

It was a hospital room; so Shinji had rescued her and brought her back.

Looking at Kido Shinji with his clean face but slightly dark circles under his eyes and messy hair, a warm current rose in Kirishima Miho's heart.

This appearance clearly meant he had stayed up all night.

Seeing Kido Shinji's worried gaze, in that moment, Kirishima Miho even had the thought of joining him to stop the Rider War.

But it was only for a fleeting moment; Kirishima Miho immediately pushed that thought out of her head.

Her gaze suddenly dimmed.

Last night, she had lured Tojo Satoru and Takeshi Asakura to meet, then hid in the shadows to ambush them. The result was that Takeshi Asakura didn't die, while she nearly did.

As expected, she was very weak; relying on her own strength, she simply couldn't defeat the other Kamen Riders.

Thinking of this, the thought she had just pushed away quietly resurfaced.

"Shinji."

Kido Shinji was startled, not for any other reason than that Kirishima Miho's call was so gentle it made him a bit uncomfortable.

Additionally, Kirishima Miho looked very fragile right now, making one feel a desire to protect her.

Even though he was a straight man and very slow in matters of the heart, at this moment, he vaguely felt something was not right.

But then he thought it was probably because she was injured and lacked the strength to speak.

Finding an excuse for Kirishima Miho, Kido Shinji approached.

"What is it?"

Kirishima Miho reached out to touch Kido Shinji's face. He instinctively wanted to dodge, but seeing her somewhat pitiful expression, he forced himself to endure it.

"It was my fault for hitting you last time. Does it still hurt?"

"Ah... the pain stopped long ago."

Kido Shinji spoke with a slight stutter and felt increasingly awkward. He quickly grabbed Kirishima Miho's small hand, pulled it down, and tucked it under the blanket.

"It's cold outside; keep it inside to stay warm."

"Haha, you idiot."

Kido Shinji took a sharp breath, feeling his whole body about to stiffen. He quickly stood up and said, "I'm going to wash my face."

Before he could finish, he hurried out of the hospital room as if escaping.

Once Kido Shinji was gone, the pitiful look on Kirishima Miho's face vanished, replaced by a complex expression as she sighed.

"Sorry, Shinji, I really have no other choice."

A moment later, Kido Shinji returned, carrying two lunch boxes.

After eating, Kido Shinji really couldn't hold out any longer; he sat on the chair next to her and fell asleep, his snoring echoing loudly. Kirishima Miho looked at him, her eyes unconsciously carrying a different light than before.

Akiyama Ren still hadn't returned, and Kido Shinji had taken a long leave. Momoi Reiko knew about the situation and helped cover for him with Daisuke Okubo, while also searching for Akiyama Ren and caring for Kirishima Miho.

Unconsciously, under Kirishima Miho's intentional guidance, combined with feelings he himself hadn't realized, the relationship between the two quickly warmed up.

However, Kanzaki Yui was sunk in deep self-reproach, her mood always poor. She constantly sought out Amamiya Rin, who temporarily didn't have to work at the counter, to talk.

Hozer was busy treating Kitaoka Shuichi.

There was still a large gap between theory and practice. Simply removing cancer cells couldn't give Kitaoka Shuichi a healthy body.

This was something he had promised Yura Goro, so he had to do it. Therefore, during this period, he constantly went to the hospital to consult doctors, occasionally knocking Kitaoka Shuichi unconscious to remove the rapidly growing cancer cells in his body.

Because of this, Kitaoka Shuichi was now used to waking up stripped down to his underwear, lying on the bed.

He also clearly felt his body recovering and had somewhat guessed the reason for Yura Goro's departure, so he no longer went looking for him recently.

Yura Goro also gradually began to sneak into his house, cook three meals, and then leave. The two maintained a tacit understanding.

Only Takeshi Asakura, Tojo Satoru, and Akiyama Ren were in a constant melee.

Takeshi Asakura fought both, while Akiyama Ren only targeted Tojo Satoru. For a time, they reached a strange balance where no one could do anything to the others.

The Rider War stabilized in a peculiar way.

Just like that, over a month passed, and it was now November. There were only two and a half months left until Kanzaki Yui's birthday on January 19th of the following year.

On a day near the end of the month, Yura Goro stood guard outside while Hozer quietly slipped into Kitaoka Shuichi's house. Seeing Kitaoka Shuichi sitting in a chair with his back to him, reading documents, he intended to knock him unconscious.

"Wait a moment."

Just as he raised his hand, Kitaoka Shuichi suddenly turned his chair around to face him, saying with a very helpless expression, "Can you not do this every time? Can't you use sleeping pills or something? My neck hurts every time I wake up."

Hozer's hand froze in mid-air, then slowly lowered.

"So you knew all along."

Kitaoka Shuichi glared at Hozer and said irritably, "Nonsense, after so many times, how could I not know what's happening? I'm not an idiot; I'm a super lawyer."

Hozer chuckled softly, lowered his hand, and said, "Alright, since you know, then obediently strip and lie on the bed."

Kitaoka Shuichi's facial muscles twitched, and his hands instinctively crossed over his chest.

"Can you not speak so disgustingly?"

"Stop rambling."

The joking passed, and Kitaoka Shuichi's expression returned to normal. He said seriously, "Why do you have this ability? What did Goro promise you?"

Hozer frowned and pointed at Kitaoka Shuichi; a bolt of yellow electricity flew out.

Kitaoka Shuichi only felt a flash before his eyes, his whole body trembled, and then everything went dark as he lost consciousness.

"What a hassle."

Hozer expertly stripped Kitaoka Shuichi, tossed him onto the bed, then placed a hand on his abdomen as healing energy poured into his body.

This time, he was one hundred percent certain he would cure Kitaoka Shuichi; from now on, he would be a healthy man.

Meanwhile, Yura Goro was guarding outside, his expression stern as he watched Takeshi Asakura walking straight toward him from the distance.

"Stop right there."

Takeshi Asakura waved at Yura Goro and said with a laugh, "Move aside, I'm looking for Kitaoka."

Yura Goro knew this battle was unavoidable. With a cold face, he pulled a Rider Deck from his coat pocket.

Takeshi Asakura's pupils contracted slightly, and he smirked.

"So that's how it is. I was wondering why Kitaoka never showed up. It turns out you took his Rider Deck. You want to fight me?"

With that, Takeshi Asakura pulled out his Rider Deck and aimed it at a nearby mirror.

"Henshin."

The Rider armor covered his body. Takeshi Asakura cracked his neck, beckoned to Yura Goro, and stepped into the Mirror World.

Yura Goro also transformed into Kamen Rider Zolda and followed closely behind.

"Let me test your capabilities."

The Veno Saber slashed straight down at his head, only to be blocked by Yura Goro with one hand, drawing a soft exclamation from Takeshi Asakura.

Then came the sound of gunfire as bullets continuously struck Takeshi Asakura's abdomen, blasting him backward.