Chapter 122: A Petty Person (Please Subscribe!)

The great battle that would determine the future of Earth's biosphere had come to an end.

In the city, now reduced to ruins, the sky over Tokyo was stained a murky, fiery red by the dust finally settling after the clash of titans, punctuated by the occasional flare of ignited natural gas lines and scattered debris.

The Tokyo Godzilla had been frozen. Its hideous body, weighing over one hundred thousand tons, lay supine in a crater carved out by the sheer force of atomic breath. Even in its frozen state, its thick, serpentine tail reached stubbornly toward the heavens, still clinging to a dozen or so smaller, more complex, and powerful derivatives that were on the verge of detaching. This scene formed the most harrowing vista within the shattered remains of Tokyo.

The orthodox Godzilla did not cease its azure energy flow. On the contrary, an inexplicable sensation transmitted from the unknown energy in its chest to its brain. That energy told it that the terrifying, demonic form before it was merely frozen and sealed for the time being. As long as a single one of its cells remained in this world, it would have every opportunity to stage a comeback and deal a devastating blow to the Earth's ecosystem.

Therefore, not even a single drop of blood could be left behind!

"Hum—Boom!"

The orthodox Godzilla trusted the unknown energy within its body, which radiated a sense of kinship as profound as nature itself. Its dorsal fins emitted an even higher-pitched electromagnetic pulse, and the blue energy stream suddenly surged, thicker and more ferocious.

The unknown energy lent a hand at that moment. Deep within the dreamlike, pure blue energy, a trace of faint yet scorching crimson appeared. It slammed into the obsidian-like body, shattering it into dust. It spent an extra half-minute of atomic breath specifically on the bone spur that had wounded it. Then, it turned to leave, seemingly inadvertently grinding its massive foot into the remains.

It would scatter the ashes to the wind!

"Hmph—"

Godzilla let out a snort as it arrived at the spot where the severed hand had fallen. It caught its tiny kin in the act: the little creature was scraping a bit of flesh from the claw tip, holding it in its arms, and sniffing it closely.

...If you're hungry, I'll take you to eat radiation! What are you doing?!

Godzilla stared at Baitang Jing in astonishment. Gnawing on the flesh of one's own kind was far too advanced a concept for Godzilla, and this prompted a flicker of sympathy in the way it looked at the boy.

Is this little runt starved silly?

"Boom!"

It first incinerated the severed hand with a blast of breath, then growled lowly at Baitang Jing, gesturing with its head toward its own back.

"Follow you? You'll raise me?"

Baitang Jing, clutching a human-sized piece of "Godzilla meat," managed to grasp the meaning of his elder kin through the emotional resonance between their bloodlines. He was deeply moved. Then, he hurriedly waved his hands to decline. Baitang Jing felt that human society was better suited for him.

Godzilla was not persistent. To be honest, it felt relieved. It hadn't raised a child in over ten thousand years; it was happy to be unburdened. Besides, it had never seen a kin of its kind starve to death. After being rejected by Baitang Jing, it turned to leave. Yet, just before departing, whether intentional or not, its low-sweeping tail kicked up a whirlwind of dust and smoke, completely engulfing Baitang Jing.

Feeding you, and you won't eat? Are you not showing me respect!

"...Is it petty, too?"

Baitang Jing, who had regained some of his Nen, raised a protective barrier around himself. He scratched his chin and chuckled as he watched the massive silhouette retreat into the dim, yellow sunlight.

The giant beast was not lightly wounded, especially where the high-frequency bone spur had slashed it. One could still see body tissue baked to the consistency of molten lava. Godzilla had assumed its injuries would take at least a few months to heal, and only in a place rich with radiation. But with the help of that unknown, nature-imbued energy in its chest, the deepest wound on its shoulder was already showing signs of closing and healing.

Godzilla walked along the ruined city wreckage toward Tokyo Bay. A few death-defying helicopters followed like a flock of birds circling a behemoth. They were the money-grubbing, death-defying types who had taken off the moment the shockwaves of the titan battle subsided, all for the sake of an exclusive story.

In every corner of Tokyo, people who had watched the battle from a great distance wore expressions ranging from lingering fear to relief, gazing at the majestic giant beast slowly walking into the deep ocean.

There were no monsters in Tokyo today.

***

Baitang Jing scavenged a large duffel bag from the ruins and stuffed the human-sized chunk of the orthodox Godzilla’s flesh inside. Shirtless, he walked to where he had parked before the battle. The heavy off-road vehicle he had taken from the Katase family shelter had been flipped over like a toy by the shockwaves of the Godzillas' collision. The imposing youth merely gave the frame a light, effortless lift, and the ten-ton vehicle flipped right-side up.

As expected, there was a note with elegant handwriting on the driver's seat.

"Katase Shelter. Waiting for you."

It was a note from Saeko. Baitang Jing smiled warmly at her thoughtfulness, a stark contrast to the unrestrained, wild aura he had exuded during the fight. He tucked the note away and tested the car; aside from severe exterior damage, it was still drivable. He sped off, returning to the Katase family's Shelter No. 1 before the Self-Defense Forces could react and cordon off the battlefield.

As soon as he entered, he saw his master and Saeko, who had removed their hazmat helmets, watching the broadcast on the television with grave expressions. It showed the aftermath of the battle between the two Godzillas, capturing the moment a building far from the center of Tokyo collapsed from the tremors. It was hard to imagine that such a natural disaster, akin to a massive earthquake, had been caused by the combat of two living creatures. This made Take-moto Hisayasu and Saeko all the more anxious; the person they cared about most was right in the middle of that battlefield!

The sudden sound of the shelter door opening made them both whip around. Seeing the shirtless, blood-stained Baitang Jing, Saeko rushed to his side, so eager that she knocked over her chair. She anxiously patted him down, searching for wounds, and only exhaled in relief after confirming he was unharmed. Tears seemed to well up in her beautiful phoenix eyes, and Baitang Jing smiled at her. Saeko suddenly hugged the burly youth, murmuring, "It's so good that you came back safe!"

But just then, Take-moto Hisayasu, still sitting in front of the television, wore a grim expression.

"It is good that Jing is back safe, but Saeko..." The old man put on his hazmat helmet, his tone heavy and uncertain. "Given the radiation dosage on this kid, you're the one in danger now!"

Saeko suddenly snapped out of her joy, her face turning pale with terror as she fumbled for the locking mechanism of her own hazmat helmet.