"Duel Lunacy, First Part" (063)

"What a pain in the neck... Somebody had reached us..." Not only Genpaku but also Kunio, with Tomomi and Nina's help, stood in front of Elliot.

"Pain in the neck? After I beat you down, you'll be dragged into the trash!" Elliot pointed his finger at both of his adversaries.

"If I'm not mistaken, you're the one who dragged Saraki down to a serious injury, right?"

"So you've heard of it? The only reason I did it was to keep that weak Spiritual Duelist from betraying the Hoaxers, but... even doing so forced you to find our hideout? If you don't mind, Genpaku, may I take him on?"

From under his mask, Genpaku's giggle echoed. "Of course... that's your job, isn't it?"

Kunio took a step forward, his coat continuing to wave as he pocketed both arms.

Elliot took a step forward and raised yellow energy from the ground to the tip of his palm. "E-Elliot... his skill... it's something out of this world... you've got to be careful!" Nina warned him.

"Could you tell me more about it? Maybe then I'll be able to face him in a more effective manner."

"I'm still not sure what his talent is called... but he has six more mouths, two on each arm, for a total of four, and two on each knee, for a total of six mouths... and the more mouths he has, the greater his ability becomes. And, without a doubt, it has to do with a sound release."

"An ability akin to Kineticism like Sound... if he's going to yell at me, it won't stop me."

Kunio extended and swiped his arm after saying so, then summoned a razor-sharp sword that appeared to be fairly lengthy.

"What about those two attractive young ladies... I believe I recognize one of you... mhm, that's it... you're the blondie who was trapped beside the lovely Yui and Ayuka herself."

"You perverted madman, I remember you way too well!"

"Perverted? Please don't refer to me as a bad actor! All I needed to do was touch her for one purpose only, hehe... And her beautiful physique will expire in less than a month."

Genpaku rolled two dice between his fingers and hands, bouncing them up and down. "Now, Kunio, go ahead and eliminate the target in front of you... I have to keep an eye on you to see how the gorgeous teenagers die."

Kunio nodded with simple consent, and his both eyes shone with a green gleam.

Shion and Yumi, on the other hand, killed the final Hoaxers and stood in the middle of the bodies.

"So, now that we've taken down these bumbling Hoaxers, what do we do?"

"We shouldn't become involved in other people's fights. We may have dealt with them too soon, but that doesn't mean we should begin interfering with the Dueling that is taking place across the Hideout. So, for the time being, we remain still and wait for the appropriate moment."

However, only a few meters away, in a different room, Kiyoshi had been heavily exhaling, attempting to understand the fighting, and it all came to pass.

("I believe I've honed my skills to the point where I can beat this guy.")

Without wasting any more time, Kiyoshi carefully rose from his crouch and attempted to cool himself by exhaling the heat.

"You're pushing yourself so hard that you won't be able to move... You're not being cautious with your endurance, and you're squandering it on such valuable combat... Before entering this area, you should've just given up."

"I'm not hesitating because that would be inconvenient, not just for me, but also for others..." Kiyoshi stopped talking and charged at Shijo, who vanished just as Kiyoshi was about to hit.

Kiyoshi rolled through the air and recognized Shijo's body at the top of the ceiling. He raised his palm and unleashed a blast, but Kiyoshi sprang away and teleported to the wall behind him.

The explosions shattered the ground and were swiftly targeted back at Kiyoshi, falling like pebbles. So, without stopping, Kiyoshi leaped forward and dashed away from the wall. To evade the blast, he took a step to the left and then rapidly swept his feet to the right, sliding on the floor and witnessing a slew of blasts rain down on him.

He swung his sword upward in a circle fashion, cutting through the blast, then lifted his soles and sprang to the ceiling, rolling into a roll, and then rushing toward the wall in front of him.

Shijo's hand was fixated on Kiyoshi every second, so to prevent more blasts, Kiyoshi faced the ground and vaulted, then swiftly twirled his body into a side roll and then quickly evaded, landed, and immediately faced Shijo, and jumped.

Kiyoshi's body shot down from above Shijo, and without hesitation, he swiped the sword downward, causing Shijo to raise his arm and defend himself with his wrist armor.

Shijo then clenched his fist on his left arm and smacked Kiyoshi in the face, but Kiyoshi vanished in a crimson shadow and slid down the floor from Shijo's back.

Shijo whirled around and his mask shone as he dragged his blade to match his boots and sliced it at Shijo's neck...

........

... Yujiro swept the blade forward to defend Alpha's cut, then flipped back when he felt pressure. Yujiro slid the blade through the roofing and stretched his left to the side, igniting blue flames before directing it forward.

The burst of flames sped up and joined up in front of Yujiro in an instant. Alpha slashed through the blades and spread them throughout, then sped up and joined up in front of Yujiro in an instant. Yujiro rapidly swung his sword back, causing the chain to wobble.

The metal rang, and Yujiro soared high into the air, followed by Alpha, who leaped after him and vanished in a red flash behind Yujiro, then cut her blade forward. Yujiro spun his body around to face his foe and swung his blade into a cut.

Yujiro's body vanished in a fraction of a second as the swords collided. He materialized on the rooftop's edge, then flung his free arm forward, causing a strong heatwave.

Alpha, of course, crossed her arms and let the fire ignite her entire body.

Yujiro's grin shone in the light, but Alpha arrived behind him in a second, kicking Yujiro in the face and throwing him into a side roll.

She sliced the sword at the right moment, almost severing her rival, without giving Yujiro a chance to avoid. Even so, Yujiro managed to snag a split second and slam two blades together with his sword.

Yujiro and Alpha vanished in an instant, and both of them exploded into the air like distinct colored meteors.

Both of them began to use Air Step to duel in the air while evading and defending at the same time.

The cutting attempts continued to shine brightly in the air, and Alpha ducked just as Yujiro thrust his blade forward.

Yujiro dodged and observed Alpha preparing to bash him in the stomach with her knee. Yujiro hurled the blade in the air as it spun, unable to escape it soon enough. He crossed both arms in front of him and felt Alpha's knee strike the precise center of his guard, sending him flying.

He had no choice except to stretch his right arm and kick the sword's hilt, then flip back, separated from his sword by a few inches. After kicking the sword closer, he raised his arm and caught it, then promptly released scorching flames from the chain and tossed it like a lasso.

After hearing the lit chain striking the floor, Alpha leaped to the side, made a wheel motion, and landed on both feet. She took advantage of this by leaping into the air and kneeling Yujiro in the stomach, causing him to spit up saliva without giving him a chance to react.

Yujiro, unable to recover soon enough, had already noticed the following assault and seen how Alpha's right leg shot through the air and into his face, spinning his body.

But her eyes widened in surprise as she did so. Yujiro brushed his arm across his face, and when he turned back to face Alpha, he was wearing a Spiritual Mask.

It had a white main body with black stripes and blue lighting Liquid crystal displays.

Yujiro's blade shined from beneath his left armpit, behind his back, and he slashed it forward as it gleamed, instantly unleashing a heatwave.

Alpha stood guard, and the blue flames exploded around her, trapping her inside, and Yujiro's corpse was hovering behind Alpha's as they dispersed.

She stared behind her after suffering charred skin, and her Demonic Eyes shook at the same time.

Yujiro kicked her in the left hip, causing a powerful shockwave to envelop them both, injuring Alpha severely.

Her ribs were crushed by the kick, and she couldn't breathe well afterward.

Shigeru, meanwhile, had been dodging around the room while Ayana attempted to strike him with all her might.

Shigeru vanished in a dark shadow and reappeared behind Ayana, kicking forward but being stopped by Ayana's wrist.

Yujiro employed a technique that swapped them in place and then kicked them backward, hitting her in the stomach and throwing her into a backflip.

Ayana then landed on the ground, gripped the ground, and unleashed a shockwave. Shigeru vanished in the black shadow from the area where the green power erupted. He landed behind it and swiftly swung his dagger forward, his body moving sideways.

Black stripes sprouted from the floor and easily pierced the green power, forcing Ayana into defense. She defended herself by cutting through the haze and detecting Shigeru's appearance in front of her.

He swiped his blade, but Ayana stepped aside to escape it, and when Shigeru swiped back and forth, she ducked or backed away to avoid it.

Until Shigeru thrust the blade into his left arm and then elevated his ankles, launching an uppercut to which Ayana gave up her arms and felt the knife pierce her sleeves and skin.

Shigeru leaped on the spot and booted Ayana in the right side of her cheek with his ankle after the blood spurted and spilled on the floor.

She took a hefty strike, but recovered swiftly and swung her fist forward. She hit Shigeru, sending him flying backward with ease, and then rushed after him.

Ayana slashed her blade as Shigeru landed from a flip, but Shigeru swiftly squatted and swept his leg across the floor, causing Ayana to trip with her nose forward. Shigeru then came forward with one foot and booted her in the face, forcing her back and then sweeping his arm forward.

The dagger was thrown through the air with a twist and transformed into a proper shadow, which restrained its physique.

Shigeru vanished in a similar way, employing shadow transmutation, as it pierced Ayana's chest and hollowed it out while the blood spurted.

He teleported behind Ayana, seized the dagger's handle between his fingers, and swung it overhead. The blade flew through the air once more, but this time it pierced Ayana in the back, causing her body to collapse on the floor.

Shigeru turned to face her and checked that she was out cold, so he followed after her and came to a halt above her crumpled form.

"... How is it possible...? You were able to move quicker than the other guy I was fighting..."

Shigeru stood above her, staring her down with a terrifying stare. "Ohoho... don't worry... you may have been able to strike me, but..."

"IT ISN'T OVER!" Ayana exclaimed, but at that same time, she lifted her body and kicked behind her, slamming her sole into Shigeru's jaw, knocking him far into the air, and then dragged out the stabbing dagger and applied her own force.

"You fool! You honestly think I'd lose so boringly?!!" She hurled Shigeru's own dagger with a sweep of her arm, but as it flew through the air, it left a whirlwind of green energy behind it, smashing the floor.

Shigeru's right eye lit yellow, prompting him to correct and turn his body upside down. He kicked the dagger's hilt as he twirled into the air. It reversed direction, and the dagger flew back at Ayana, causing her to freeze.

"You BASTARD! That will not be your last blunder!" As she screamed angrily, she pressed her palms together, absorbing her energy and transforming it into throbbing sparks, which she used to charge an orb.

The redirected dagger and Ayana's green aura collided in a second, and she became dizzy as a result. "This isn't the conclusion of my story! I'm going to put you to death!"

She finally released a tremendous green laser that completely demolished the dagger and was aimed towards Shigeru by yelling in the room.

But, at that very moment, he extended his right arm to the side and began to release a black orb with a white electricity dressing. When he collided with the attacks, he whirled and swiftly sent his hand into the green beam.

The green beam was instantaneously transformed into a violent whirlwind, and the black orb sped toward Ayana, her eyes trembling in terror.

"Daaaaaaamnnnn iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!"

Her words reverberated, as the black ball collided with her in an instant, causing a great explosion of blackness.

The electricity in that room went off, and the room became dark.

Shigeru's feet, however, landed on the floor, and a yellow glow continued to radiate in the total darkness.

Ayana's body was battered and bruised, yet she was still standing.

"Now that it's dark... and this is my personal field and habitat... it's time to die,"

Ayana's body battled terror as Shigeru's voice echoed.

To be continued...