Chapter 4 - Decisive battle at the tavern

Ah, had a feeling you would return after that tease of a cliff hanger. Aw what's with the face? I hope I didnt keep you waiting too long my friend. Well before you end up strangling me for my cruel tricks let's continue...hey put that knife down.

Edward's heart was pounding in his chest like a drum with each step the trio took down the stairs that only seemed to wind longer as they moved onward. When they finally reached the bottom for what seemed like ages, Tifa noticed right away where the break in was. It was hard to not notice, after all there was a huge hole behind the bar on the wall.

"Son of a....grah they are going to pay for that." Tifa growled out. All three jumped when they heard a clattering in the kitchen followed by a few curses in spanish, a clang of metal on something hard and a loud whimper.

"I told you holmes dont eat that! That stove could be worth something!" A male then bellowed out, showing they werent exactly good at keeping quiet. Edward frowned some at the whimpering noise...he swore he heard that voice somewhere before, but he couldnt place where.

"Ed, Al. You two go handle whoever's in there. Dont let them get away. I'll jump in incase they try to run." Tifa stated while Ed and Al both nodded in union, making their way carefully towards the kitchen. They saw two figures in the darkness, one was a hooded male and it was very hard to make out his features; but he was packing heat no doubt about that, since there was a huge gun strapped to his back that appeared to be a rifle. The other was easy to recognize, a big fat round male who's face was in the fridge. The blonde paled when he got a good look at the shorter of the two robbers.

"Alphonse...th..that's not who I think it is..is it?" Ed whispered while Al nodded.

"I think it is brother...but why is he here?" Al whispered back before Ed shook it off.

"Doesnt matter though, we have to protect this place come on." Ed stated, dashing out from his hiding place as he clapped his hands, a fist shooting up out of the ground as it sent Gluttony flying who in turn slammed into the hooded male, squashing him under the fat homunculus who was flailing dazed. "Who the hell do you think you are, coming in here?!" Edward snapped, transmuting his automail arm into a blade while he pointed it towards Louis who was trying to shove Gluttony off his back.

"Ey relax homey....dude's gotta get a few dollers you know what I mean? Besides looks like ya'll hardly use this stuff hehe." Louis said nervously when he saw the blade pointed at his face, slowly reaching for his gun with the arm that was out of Ed's sight. However Alphonse noticed the smirk appear.

"Brother look out!" Al yelled, shoving Edward out of the way just as Louis had shoved Gluttony fully off of him and grabbed his rifle, shooting at the older Elric. But thanks to Al's fast reflexes his brother had rolled to safety whereas the bullet pinged harmlessly off of Alphonse's armor.

"Dammit, not gonna make this easy are ya? Get em Gluttony, but dont kill short stuff, boss wants him." Louis said as Gluttony grinned evilly, charging after Al as he shoved him through a few tables while Ed snarled.

"WHOYOUCALLINGSOOSMALLHECANMARRYAFLEA?!?!" Ed roared out, dashing after Louis while he dodged another gunshot and then punched said male hard in the gut before he brought his elbow up, knocking the rifle from his grip.

"shoot man you got a temper on ya dont you?" Louis said after regaining his breathe, backing up when the blonde alchemist had cornered him yet again. "Hey..hey now easy. I didnt mean it like that." Louis then stated flailing abit, damn he knew he should have brought more weapons.

"End of the line theif, looks like the stoney lonesome for you. Let's hope you dont drop the soap." Ed stated darkly while grinning as he brandished his automail blade and cracked his knuckles. But before he could even land a single hit on the other male, another explosion rang out right next to the two as the wall blasted out, knocking both a good distance. A male walked in through the new entrace, eyes glowing a deep red and a spider like insigna adorning his back. The ravenette with red highlights cast his eyes on Louis.

"I told you not to make a scene, or get caught." The male growled out while Louis got to his feet and ran over to the other male's side while Ed shivered abit when he saw the newcomer.

"Who the hell is this guy?....nevertheless he cant be human..." Edward thought uneasily.

"Ey man not my fault if Gluttony cant control that damn stomach of his Shadow, he's probly the one who tipped em off!" Louis said defensly while jabbing his finger over at a certian homunculus who was currently trying to escape the armored Elric as he held him in place with a large bind of chain he transmuted from the chrome on the stove.

"Nevermind that, get what you need and leave. I'll handle the brat." The male known as Shadow then said while Louis nodded and quickly took off out of the kitchen, only to get clothslined by Tifa who then knocked him out before he could recover. Edward paled as the male then turned his red hues on him and began moving towards him. "Let's not try to struggle, i'm not in the mood to play around." Shadow then stated darkly while Ed growled covering his fear as he got to his feet.

"If you think you can beat me, you're sadly mis-" Edward then coughed and hacked, panicking when he saw the male had his one hand already around his throat, holding him up high in the air while Ed kicked his legs in a frenzy, stunned at how fast this male was.

"Brother!" Alphonse yelled, turning as he went to charge but stopped when the ravenette glared darkly at him, tightening his grip on Ed's neck.

"I wouldnt boy. Less you want your brother to die quicker. Now stay put and tend to Gluttony, cause it looks like those binds arent going to hold much longer." Shadow said boredly, and just like he mentioned Gluttony broke free and whirled around, forcing Alphonse to block the other beast's onslaught while returning a few punches of his own.

"B...bastard." the blonde hissed out while he still attempted to free himself while Shadow murred.

"I hate people who dont know when they are beat. Oh well guess I have to show you the easy way. Say hello to your mother for me." Shadow stated, his grip growing much tighter than before as Ed yelled out in pain. That was til a black blur came dashing through, and a foot connected with Shadow's face causing him to go tumbling back. He crashed into the counter with great force while letting go of the older Elric's neck as said male dropped to the ground, gasping like a fish out of water as he tried greatly to regain his stolen breath.

"Keep your hands off those children. You're in MY bar so it's me you want. Or do you pick on kids so you dont have to face the big dogs?" Tifa stated darkly while she clenched her fists, standing infront of the male as he rubbed his jaw sitting up. Damn now that was a shocker, never had he expected someone to sneak up on him this easily, let alone a human. His inner demon of course was none too pleased either. He then smirked and vanished before reappearing behind the woman, a flurry of fists dug into her back, more than one could count with the naked eye as he then spinkicked, sending her flying into the fridge across the kitchen, said female gasping out in agony as she spit up blood.

"What was that you were saying?" Shadow said slyly as this only angered Edward.

"Son of a dog! I'll teach you to hit women!" Edward yelled out, getting up as he clapped his hands, sending a large spiked fist towards the male after he slammed his hands into the ground. He only gawked however, when Shadow brushed the fist off, sending it flying into the wall nearby as it made another huge hole in the building.

"Want to see me use both hands?" Shadow then said, which only infuriated Ed who then charged blindly towards the other with automail blade raised.

"Brother no!" Alphonse yelled, knowing this was what Shadow was planning, to lure him into attacking again. But none saw what came next as a loud crack rang through the room and a puff of smoke appeared, a male darting out of the smoke as he elbowed Shadow hard in the gut, knocking him backwards before he then held his arm out infront of Edward.

"Stay back....he's too strong for you Fullmetal." A calm voice exclaimed while Edward blinked regaining his composure as his anger subsided. He noticed the male looked somewhat like a ninja due to his outfit. He wore a white protective guard over a black shirt, and matching black pants with kunai strapped to the lower legs. His hair was tied back in a black ponytail and he wore what appeared to be a japanse animal mask that looked like a wolf or fox.

"Y..yeah sure just get him out of here." Edward then said while the male nodded.

"He's after you so that was my intentions." The male then said while Shadow hissed and pushed himself up, glaring at the male angerily.

"Of all the people; she has to send you to fight her battles. Nevertheless I've been dying to get back at you weasel." Shadow barked out while the other male chuckled.

"Then come at me, unless you are afraid." The ninja stated smoothly which only aggravated the other as he growled and dashed at him, grabbing the ninja by the face as he raised him up. The other struggled some before Shadow crushed his head in like a grape when he added more force, blood spurting everywhere as Edward went white. But to his surprise, the male then puffed away in a cloud of smoke before a kunai came from Shadow's left, digging into his shoulder as both turned to see the same exact male crouching on the kitchen counter.

"Damn those clones, you ninja love to fight dirty huh?" Shadow snapped as the other just smirked behind his mask, dashing forward as he grabbed the other by the throat, pinning him to a wall while Ed backed away since they had gotten too close to his location, all the while wondering who the hell were these guys and why the one was protecting him.

"I thought she told you to stay away from him. Or do you want to meet the reaper soo quickly before you get your precious jem?" The ninja said darkly, Shadow only hissing in response as tendrils of black and red began to shoot out of his back, causing Edward and Alphonse to freak, the armor having spotted this too once he subdued Gluttony by a swift punch to the head to daze him.

"The hell is that?!" Ed yelled out while the raven haired ninja frowned behind his mask.

"Hard way huh? Very well....Tsukiyomi..nightmare realm." the ninja stated, his eyes beginning to turn red as Shadow's eyes widened. The two of them stood there like that keeping eye contact for quite a few minutes, til Shadow roared out in pain, the tendrils retreating into his back again as he collasped onto his knees panting weakly as the ninja then stepped back looking boredly down at his opponent.

"Consider that a warning....now leave before I get serious." The male then said calmly. Shadow glared up at him, oh how he wanted to pummel this prick but he didnt want to endure another attack like that, so instead he'd get the squirt when they least expected it, and when he was fully recovered.

"Dont think this is the last you heard of me. I'll be using your spine as a back scratcher the next time we meet Itachi." Shadow hissed out while he gripped his chest rising to his feet. He then stood to his full height and snapped his fingers, Louis and Gluttony vanishing along with him in a green burst of energy. Edward and Alphonse only stood there in shock while the male then looked to them through his mask.

"No need to thank me....also you better tend to your friend and the bar." Itachi said calmly before he vanished in another puff of smoke. Ed blinked a few times confused, jumping when he realized Tifa was still hurt as both Elrics rushed over to help her.

"Tifa! You arent hurt are you?" Alphonse asked in a worried tone, Tifa being Tifa just shoved Al's hand lightly away and chuckled weakly getting to her feet slowly.

"It's alright, I've felt worse. Dont worry after some of my medicine I'll be fine. Go get me some Ed, it's the one marked mega potion." Tifa said while Ed nodded and hurried to get said container from the back room.

"Who do you think they were?" Alphonse asked while Tifa shrugged.

"Dunno, but I have a feeling they'll try again soon to greet us." She replied.

Meanwhile off in an old warehouse, long forgotten by the city of Central Shadow, Louis and Gluttony reappeared. Gluttony quickly ran off when Shadow roared out, punching a good hole into an old forklift as it creeked and groaned, falling over onto it's side with a loud crash. Louis was still out so he was spared the stream of courses that flew from the raven haired male's mouth. "DAMN THAT OVERCONFIDENT WEASEL! DAMN THAT ICE BRAT SENDING HIM AFTER ME! DAMN THEM ALL TO frackING HELL!" Shadow roared out, now punching a nearby wall into oblivion while Gluttony cowered behind a nearby pile of junk shaking like a leaf.

"Shadow angry...?" He mewed out while Shadow scowled and took a deep breath, gripping his chest again while he sat down with his legs crossed rubbing his temples.

"No shoot....what's worst of it is not only did I get schooled by that arrogant Uchiha...but a human nonetheless....though she did have quite a kick to her." Shadow muttered before rubbing his jaw from where the brunette had struck him. He did admit now that he thought about it, she was rather impressive, only person from what he could remember that could catch him off guard was that accursed blue blur...but now he was interested in this one. She might be a good fight if he were to go after the Elrics again. "Heh, this should be fun." He then said smirking while Gluttony blinked and sweatdropped tilting his head, wondering just what was going on in his master's head.

The next morning and day had dragged by slowly. But thanks to Alphonse and Edward's alchemy they had easily fixed up the spots in the bar that had been torn to hell and back, too bad it had taken a whole day to do the repairs. Edward was sitting at the bar, going over more of the dreaded paperwork while Alphonse sat next to him looking through some documents himself.

"No luck yet brother; still cant find any information on those two males." Al said with a light sigh as Ed groaned rubbing his forehead.

"Dammit who were they?! And what the hell did they want with us?" Edward whined out while slamming his head into the bar in defeat as Al chuckled abit before shrugging.

"I dont know...but I wouldnt want to find out. Seems though like that guy wanted to kill you...and who was that other guy?" The younger Elric then said curiously while Ed shuddered at the thought.

"Probly some grudge against the military...otherwise I havent the slightest clue." Edward muttered as he then flipped through more papers and looked them over to see which ones he needed to sign. Both returned to finding out what they could once more, unaware of a newcomer entering the bar as a light ding went off over the door due to the bell above it. She walked quietly by the Elric's as she headed for her destination in the back of the tavern, long black hair flowing like a curtain behind her, ebony hues twinkling with mischeif as they landed on Edward while her ruffled goth black miniskirt rose and fell silently with each step she took in her stringed boots.

"Hello little lamb...your mary is here." A soft female voice purred out mentally in Edward's mind as he blinked and looked up, his head turning as he instinctivly looked behind him, gold hues landing on the girl now sitting at a table in the back before they widened. He had seen this dark haired maiden once before, the very same girl in his dream!

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