Showdown! The Best of the Best

Chapter Twenty-Two

Danny paced back and forth across the room, desperately longing to bite his nails, but unable to do so, due to his gloves obstructing them. Genji sat cross-legged on the cold stone floor, apathetic to the fantastical architecture around him, as unmoving as if he were a statue. He seemed to be in the throes of meditation. Killua also paced about the citadel, hands in his pockets, but, rather than hurried, clipped footsteps driven by worry, his gait read curiosity and eagerness to explore. The young assassin felt the wind chill around him as he passed Clockwork, who was stationed in front of the viewfinder.

Killua peered up, craning his neck to see what the ethereal oracle was looking at. On the viewfinder, he saw someone he actually recognized:  Boruto. The young, plucky shinobi whom Killua had stayed fairly close to since arriving in Kringle's Realm was standing on some kind of balcony, in what looked like an apartment complex, knocking at a sliding glass door. Killua's eyebrows rose as someone answered Boruto's summons, a boy he didn't recognize. The teen wore a blue and silver tunic, and had silvery blue hair. His skin was pale as a ghost's, and his slanted eyes were amber like a snake's. The vision paused unexpectedly. The ghost of the timekeeper turned and leered over Killua.

"Can I help you?" Clockwork demanded brusquely.

"I'm just making sure Boruto is okay," Killua replied absently.

"Your friend is fine," the spirit reassured him. "Despite the fact that he and the others only have ten minutes left. I dislike being shadowed. You can rejoin your friends, or wander about my citadel aimlessly. It makes no difference to me."

Killua half-turned with a scoff, giving the oracle his space. As the warrior turned away, Clockwork's form shifted back into his younger self. From a distance, Killua could still see the viewfinder. Now, there was an image of a massive school, with two letters adorned on the front of the H-shaped building:  UA. Students milled about at the front of the ornate building. Killua noticed that Deku was running through the courtyard, towards a fairly tall and broad boy with well-quaffed black hair and glasses. 

"This is taking too long!"

Killua's gaze turned as Danny crossed his path. Now, the ghostly superhero was clutching his head, and his brow gleamed with sweat. Clearly he was worried. Killua's casual pace began following the ghost boy as he meandered back and forth across the citadel.

"You're worried about them?" He asked.

"No, they have five minutes and I'm just hunky-dory!" Danny snapped. "Of course I'm worried!"

"Because I'm sure sarcasm will bring them back faster," Killua shrugged. 

Danny whirled on him, clearly flustered.

"You mean to tell me you're not concerned in the slightest?!" He intoned shrilly.

"Of course I'm worried," Killua replied firmly, but coolly, taking his hands from his pockets. "But, here's how I look at it:  we can either worry ourselves sick about whether or not they're going to come back, which we can't control anyway. Or, we can keep our heads and trust that they know what they're doing and they'll make it back in time. Tell me, which one sounds more sensible to you?"

Danny's gaze went from green points of fury to mellowed resignation. He let out a deep sigh, some of the tension leaving his shoulders. However, it came right back as a gust of wind filled the room, a portal opening opposite them. Genji stood, rushing over to the portal with the other two heroes. The familiar shape of Starfire emerged, but she was flanked by two others the three heroes didn't recognize. One was a very hairy boy covered in a coat of coarse green fur, wearing a red-and-white jumpsuit, with a massive, toothy grin plastered to his face. The other was a shorter teen, wearing green and red body armor, with a sword hung at his waist. A green mask covered his eyes.