Kill the Little Sister (Part 2) (妹を斬る (中編), Imōto o Kiru (Chūhen)) is chapter 65 of the Akame ga Kill! manga.
Summary[]
Waking up after getting knocked out, Wave runs off in pursuit of Kurome, since Esdeath is currently with the War Council, the only option is to find her himself. He suspects she will be close and desperately wishes for any sign to alert her location to him, all the while the memory of her kissing him playing in his mind.
In the Captial deep underground, the Assassination Squad is put under and have them take in the nutrients necessary for the upcoming battle. They are also subjected to brainwashing to ensure they don't turn on the Empire or get in touch with Akame.
In the outskirts of the Empire, Akame meets up with Kurome in a location called the Habitat of the Dangerous, which is a place no citizen dares to enter. Kurome is surprised to see Akame and then notices several other presences. Akame explains that while her comrades are with her, they have agreed to not interfer with their match and instead will keep anyone else from interrupting. Kurome accepts this and offers some sweets to Akame, which she accepts. As the two of them eat, Leone and Tatsumi watch from afar. Leone points out that they are eating sweets and Tatsumi comments how complicated their relationship actually is because of the trust they have in one another. Leone reports she detects no one else is nearby, and the two remain on standby. The two of them sit together and reminisce on how the two of them always came to this location to train. Akame noted that they were inseperable back then, even when bathing, though Kurome claims she wanted to tag along rather than her dragging her. They both agreed that while they felt like they had the weight of the world on their shoulders, they had each other, so it was worth it.
Kurome then pulls out Yatsufusa and ominously tell Akame that they will stay together. Akame agrees, but only if she left the Empire, then things could return to they way they were before. Kurome tells her she is in no position to be making demands. She disturbingly tells her that if she proves herself, she can find her a place in the Empire and fight for it like before, while also adding that the remorse she would feel for her lost comrades would overwhelm her. After a moment of silence, Kurome once again tasks Akame to do the right thing and rejoin the Empire, but Akame refuses, which Kurome figured. She jumps off the rock they were sitting on and asks Akame how stubborn her will is she would foresake everything. She does add that she always admired her desire to change the world for the sake of others. She turns to her older sister and says that her mind keeps saying that she both loves and hates her. She unsheathes Yatsufusa and tells Akame she won't let anyone else kill her but herself. As Akame acknowledges she knew this would happen, Kurome confesses she took an potent version of the enhancement drug before coming, so Akame won't have the luxury of holding back like when she left. Akame knows that Kurome is right about her emotions being a deciding factor in battle and resteels her resolve. She tells Kurome that now the two of them are enemies, and if she wishes to back out she can, otherwise she will 'bury' her. Kurome tells Akame that after she defeats her, not only will they be together again, but she will have restored her honor, which means she can have "their" existence acknowledged. Akame responds by saying that they will see whose resolve will stand. Kurome immediately charges at Akame as the older sister notices Yatsufusa hasn't been activated. Akame uses Murasame to block her attack and the two of them unleash multiple strikes at wicked speed. Akame barely dodges one of Kurome's strikes as Kurome admires the power the enhancement drug she took has given her. They continue to trade blows until Kurome finally lands a strike on Akame, which brings her to her knees. Kurome taunts her but Akame gets back up, admitting she had been treating Murasame like an ordinary katana because she knew if her own ability falters with the Teigu, it would be her end. She nevertheless declares she will push Murasame's power to the limit as she prepares to unleash her Ichizan Hissatsu.
Kurome, in turn, activates her Teigu as well, and summons forth all her puppets to charge at Akame. She proceeds to cut them all down to pieces. Natala and Doya then charge at Akame, as Kurome notes internally that Natala's body is in shambles due to all the times she has summoned him, and revealling that Doya's hands were grafted on from some random corpse after they were cut off by Enshin, so she isn't at her full power anymore. Nevertheless, Akame cuts down both of them, while adding that now they can finally rest. She is then attacked by Run, but reveals that she knows the strength and speed of Mastema's feathers well enough she can deflect them, which she does at the other puppets and Kurome, though she destroys it easily. Akame gets close to strike Kurome, but surprisingly, her attack is blocked by Run, despite Kurome never giving him the order. Emotionally touched by this, she deactivates Yatsufusa while thanking Run and Natala for their help. Kurome realizes Akame used the threat of her Teigu to goad her into activating her own. Akame admits this while adding that instead of overwhelming her with her corpse puppets, she would have been better off fighting her with her own dull movements. She does admit that Run was the immediate threat, but now that he is dead, he is unable to evolve or progress unlike herself, which is Yatsufusa's weakness. Kurome admits she knew it would come to this and decides to defeat her with her own skills.