Revealed Vulnerability

Nina worked with Dr. Louree to treat Elliott and Ayuka's wounds, as well as to reduce Ayuka's fever, which had been becoming worse. "Could you please bring the scalpel and forceps to me? A few bits are lodged in her wounds. It appears to be some sort of drugf that paralyzes her internal organs. The infection of her body caused by the wounds raises the likelihood of disease overwhelming her body. Her life may be saved, but she will need surgery. The wounds are far too serious to be handled with care. If her heart had been pierced, there would have been nothing I could do to save her."

Nina shivered with anxiety, knowing she lacked the necessary skills to perform surgery on her friend. She swiftly snatched up the scalpel and forceps and slid them onto the operation table next to Louree, who appeared to be a capable doctor.

"So, it's still possible to save her? That's great; I've examined her wounds before, but couldn't do much. Because my understanding of the operation is still limited, I would have most likely botched the treatment."

"It's fine. You're still a teenager. While you keep an eye on your other friend, I'll continue the surgery. Based on my examination of her body, I discovered that his ribs have been fractured and his skull has been effectively cracked. I'll move on to him once I've finished with her. Unlike that boy, the girl has a higher chance of dying. Make sure to tightly wrap his torso; this will maintain his body pressure flexible. When I go to him, I'll make sure to heal his internal organs, blood vessels, and nerves. To put his ribs back together, I'll have to use plates and screws."

"I-I understand!"

Nina dashed toward Elliott and searched for something with which she could securely wrap his chest, but she couldn't find anything, so she had to crush him with her own arms. "Is there nothing I could use to bind his torso? I'm hoping that holding him like this will keep his body going."

"That should work out nicely. We can't use anything like that to tighten his body. Your arms will suffice, but make sure to give him a few seconds to breathe so he doesn't become breathless."

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The fight between Natan and Carlos progressed, with Natan being held back by Carlos' strikes. Carlos lunged forward, both arms waving behind him in the direction of his opponent. Natan pulled the trigger on his pistol as he pointed it forward. Carlos deftly sidestepped the bullet as it went by. The first bullet got lodged in the floor, but the second was fired. Carlos swiftly generated a strange arrow in his left free arm and linked it to his bow by repeating the sidestepping method. He carefully aimed the bow and drew the string. The arrow raced at a breakneck speed toward Natan.

Natan dragged his violin case in front of his face after raising it. The arrow smacked into it, releasing a yellow liquid that dropped on the floor. Carlos took advantage of the opportunity and hurriedly linked the bow to his belt and snatched the scythe from his back, flicking from the area in front of Natan, who quickly moved the case to the side and rammed his left sole into the ground. He took advantage of the opportunity to spring back and evade Carlos' cut from the top of his head. While Natan fired a round, the scythe was pushed into the ground.

Carlos grabbed his revolver from his belt's left side and fired the bullet. Both bullets clashed in a split second, Natan's bursting on impact. Natan took advantage of the opportunity to run forward, a black shadow trailing behind him like a current of water, and leap through the debris of the explosion. He readied a simple kick by stretching his left arm. Carlos' left arm, which he moved in front of his face, barred his path to Carlos' face.

Carlos thrust his arm forward, knocking Natan back. He flipped in the air before crashing to the ground. He saw the second bullet fired from Carlos' gun and leapt into the air just in time. He put his revolver in his pocket and grabbed the violin, which he turned into a rocket launcher. He leaned the launcher against his left shoulder, both arms holding it, and pointed it at Carlos, who stood beneath him watching.

When Natan pulled the trigger, a big bullet rained down on Carlos at a faster rate. Natan was knocked back and fell to the ground as a result of the shot's force. Carlos snatched his scythe from beneath his hip and swiped it. He prepared to slice the big bullet in seconds and accomplished so. The bullet was easily split in half by the scythe. The two pieces collided next to him on both sides, exploding to the side. He maintained his balance while avoiding the explosion. Despite his surprise, Natan maintained a serious expression.

"He cut through it like it was nothing... How's that possible?"

"Oh, you're curious as to how? That is all. After witnessing how effortlessly the knife cut through butter, I developed an ability. I chose to use that as a characteristic of my talent, so now everything I touch and create is made of butter. Since I chopped through it with the tip of my scythe, your bullet went through it like butter."

"You've developed an ability that is basically the same as butter? That's the dumbest melody I've ever heard in my life."

Natan landed on both feet on the floor and exchanged glances with Carlos, who was keeping a close eye on him. He still had two bullets in his violin, so he decided to save them for later and kept it in his pocket. He took out his pistol and reloaded the cartridges.

"When it comes to cutting through things, this talent is really beneficial. I wouldn't call it stupid. You did observe how easily a huge bullet like yours might be sliced through."

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Tim knelt on the spot and extended both palms toward the ground. He let go of the swirling flames that formed a vortex around his arm and proceeded to spit fire from the bottoms of his feet and around his ankles.

The flames erupted, propelling him toward Byron, who was fleeing from the hole he punched Tim through. Byron began manipulating sand with his left arm swung behind his back. While hurtling toward the earth, he swung his arm forward, releasing an avalanche of sand that would easily trap Tim inside.

Tim attempted to blow the sand back with with a long-range flash of fire, but the sand quickly extinguished it. It devoured it whole and dropped it on Tim, who was taken aback and crossed both arms.

The avalanche formed a giant sand fist that engulfed Tim and dragged him through the air. It swiftly descended to the ground and pushed Tim's body against it. It obliterated the earth and tossed the sand into the air, pinning Tim's body to the ground.

"Your fire will not be effective against my attacks! Similar to water, dirt and sand put out any fire quickly. It was amusing that you tried to suppress it with anything so ridiculous. Now get ready to perish!" He slammed into Tim without compassion, punching him in the face. While still on the ground, he attempted to strike Tim in the stomach. From the sand that flew behind him, he created another enormous fist. He thrust his arm forward, causing the sand fist to fall down like a meteor.

Tim took advantage of the fact that his hands and legs were still free of sand. For the fire to loop into the air, he ignited flames from his palms and soles. It blew the sand off his body and gave him enough time to press his back against the sand to propel himself over it. Meanwhile, Byron was devoured by the fire, but it had little effect on him. He slammed his big hand against the floor, causing a tremor that sprouted long-ranged spikes from beneath the sand. They started after Tim, who flipped back and landed on the floor after bouncing off his bottom.

Tim's shoes began to grind on the sand as he slid backward, his torso leaning against the ground. He had a split second to lift and light his right leg on fire. He slammed his sole into the ground before falling and being struck by the rising spikes, throwing himself through the air obliquely with his left arm guiding his trajectory.

While the orange flames swiped and looped behind Tim, the sand spikes slammed into the building and obliterated it. By turning his body behind him and using his right arm to form a vortex around him, he reversed the direction of his flight and spun in the air in the middle of the flames. To come to a halt, he spread both arms and legs and extinguished the flames on all sides.

He became increasingly fatigued and began to sweat. He inhaled deeply and swallowed saliva as he fell to the ground, landing on both legs, then succumbing to one of his knees while gripping his chest. Byron smiled as he dropped his arms and allowed the sand to pile up next to him.

"You said you'd kick my ass, right? You appear to be becoming fatigued, and you appear helpless at the moment. Look at you, you're already sweating, when I haven't even started."

"How am I expected to proceed? My strikes are ineffective against him, and the fire I produce is readily stopped or extinguished by his sand. There's got to be a flaw that I could exploit."

When sweat poured from the point of his chin onto his knuckles, he got an idea. "The sand absorbs and drains the moisture. If this doesn't work, there's nothing I can do to stop him."

Tim made a fist rotation and then leaned forward. He gripped the floor with his left palm and instantly set fire to his body, which then erupted. Tim used it to catapult himself into the air toward Byron before retracting his arm.

"You know your attacks won't work. So, why keep trying?"

Byron laughed and prepared to start another sand avalanche. He was about to twist it when he observed Tim's body flying directly in front of him. He ejected orange flames to make his body sweat and then punched forward.

"Flaming Fist!"

Tim slammed his fist into Byron's stomach, which unexpectedly hit. Byron's eyes, shook as he coughed up saliva and felt his body being devoured by the expanding fire fist the next minute. It launched Byron into the air at extraordinary speed before crashing against the temple's wall.

Tim landed perfectly on the ground and assumed a combat position. With tinier flames still burning across his torso, he inhaled heavily. "I've discovered your flaw! Byron!" Byron sprang up, clutching his stomach as he struggled to breathe due to the strike.

"D-Damn brat! How would you suddenly figure out my weakness?!" He groaned in pain as he awaited Tim's response, who was also breathing deeply. "What happens to the sand in your body when it comes into contact with a liquid? It absorbs the moisture into its grains and transforms it into soil. Because my perspiration is liquid, it interacts to the sand in the same way that water does. I'm going to kick your ass now that I know your vulnerability!"

The battle continues...