Episode 08: Durandal

Durandal is the eigth episode of the Hidan no Aria anime. It was aired on June 3, 2011.

Summary
Shirayuki Hotogi has been captured by Durandal and Kinji's fate has seemingly been sealed! However Aria has joined the fray, saving Kinji's life. Now that the duo has made amends with each other, can they band together and save Shirayuki? More importantly, can the trio hope to defeat the infamous choutei killer Durandal?

Plot
This episode follows up from the last one, starting with Durandal's voice saying "Follow me" to Shirayuki and a hand extending towards her. Durandal says that he will take her to a place more suitable for her: the IU. Just as Shirayuki is about to take the hand, Kinji shouts her name and gets a knife thrown at him, narrowly missing him, and he falls flat on his face. Shirayuki is about to run to him but Durandal grabs her wrist and starts dragging her into the shadows. The voice taunts Kinji, asking him if he is really in a position to worry about others. Just as he gets another knife thrown at his face, Aria arrives and blocks the knife. She states that he's pathetic, but he did serve his purpose as stupid Kinji. Aria then turns to Durandal and declares that she arrests him for attempting to kidnap a minor.

Aria then tells Durandal that she has investigated that, when faced with many enemies, he splits them up and takes them down individually. She then explains that that was the reason why she stopped being Shirayuki's guard, so Durandal would be lured out. In response to Kinji's surprise, she recites Butei Law section 2: You must fulfil your client's contract, and declares that she will never abandon her missions. Then, using one of her Kodachi, she breaks the ice holding Kinji to the ground.

Durandal then states that they haven't won yet. Suddenly, there is a loud sound and water floods in rapidly from the drains. Kinji and Aria run through the place and find Shirayuki chained to a pipe. Shirayuki apologises to Kinji, explaining that the reason she didn't tell Kinji about Durandal is because Durandal claimed he would blow up Academy Island and kill everyone if she blabbed. Kinji then asks when was this, to which Shirayuki replied it was when they were at the beach and Kinji went to buy her fireworks. Shirayuki received a text and said that she had no choice but to follow the orders. Shirayuki also apologises to Aria, being touched that even though she had been horrible to her, Aria still came to help her, and Aria responds by flushing and says that she is only protecting her because of the contract.

Kinji asks Shirayuki where Durandal went, and she replies that after she was bound, she heard the ceiling hatch being opened. Kinji then tells Aria to go after Durandal, due to the fact that she can't swim and will drown in the flooding. At first, Aria protests, but Kinji prevails upon her and she agrees, running off.

After a while, the water has risen to Shirayuki's neck level. Kinji has only managed to unlock one of three of the locks holding Shirayuki's bonds together. Shirayuki tells Kinji to leave her and go, saying that she doesn't want to put him in danger. She says that Miko of the Hotogi are sheltered, and it is their fate to throw away their life for someone else, and that she is sure that no one would cry if she died. Kinji refuses outright, but Shirayuki nullifies the contract of him being her bodyguard, and tells him to live.

A big wave then washes Kinji away from Shirayuki, but he swims back to her against the current. He then kisses her underwater, allowing him to enter Hysteria Mode. He is then able to free her easily. They then climb through the ceiling hatch to the next floor, escaping the flood. However, after Kinji closes the flood doors, he is unable to find Shirayuki, but then finds her coughing as she gulped some water. He begins to wade towards her in the calf-height water, but is distracted by Aria calling him.

Turning, he sees Aria running towards him, but then sees a piano wire at Aria's height like a tripwire. He shouts at Aria to stop, then walks forward and cuts the thread. Aria compliments his eyesight and then checks on Shirayuki. Kinji notices something off and asks her if he hurt her lips earlier. Shirayuki looked confused for a moment before nonchalantly saying it was no big deal. Convinced, Kinji told Aria to get back and shot at Shirayuki, but she quickly dodged the attack. Aria yells at Kinji, thinking he was attacking his friend, before Kinji reveals that the Shirayuki in front of them was fake. Kinji thinks to himself how the real Shirayuki would have been much more embarrassed if he brought up the kiss.

They spar, before the real Shirayuki joins in. After freezing Aria's hands, the newly revealed Durandal disappears. Shirayuki heals Aria's hands before telling Kinji to protect Aria while Shirayuki fights Durandal. Durandal reappears after hearing this, stating that she, as a maiden, could never beat her. Shirayuki then reveals a secret power among the shrine maidens, and pulls out a flaming sword. While Shirayuki and Durandal are sparring, Aria has fully recovered and makes a plan with Kinji to attack Durandal. Finding the precise moment, Aria charges Durandal, and Durandal dodges and attacks the incoming Kinji. Kinji, however, uses the sword blocking technique he's been training to produce, and Aria moves in behind Durandal and places a sword to her neck, stating that the fight was over. Durandal smiles, and then reminds them that a Butei cannot kill, but she can, and as she's about to freeze her sword, Kinji's hand along with it, Shirayuki uses a fully charged flame attack to destroy Durandal's sword once and for all.

Durandal, shaken from her loss, gives up easily, and Aria slaps some handcuffs on her wrists. Later, Aria and Shirayuki are participating in the cheerleading thingymajig. At home, they discuss the cheerleading, and then Aria asks Shirayuki if she could be Aria's slave, but restates that as friend instead. Shirayuki initially refuses, believing Kinji should be slave master, but reconsiders when Aria gives her a key to Kinji's apartment. Aria believes she won, until Shirayuki states that Aria isn't winning anymore and that Shirayuki had gotten a smooch from Kinji. Angered by this, while dodging Shirayuki's attacks, Aria starts yelling at Kinji for kissing a client, and Kinji jumps out the window to escape the wrath of the fighting females.

Meanwhile, Riko is shown watching from a nearby balcony.

(WIP at this stage)

Characters

 * Jeanne d'Arc (Durandal)
 * Hotogi Shirayuki
 * Kinji Tohyama
 * Aria H. Kanzaki
 * Riko Mine