Hunter of Hunter III

As Aki ran urgently through the streets, he felt a growing sense of fear, sadness, and anger welling up inside him. He needed to find a phone and call for reinforcements quickly.

Arriving at a telephone booth on a street corner, Aki rushed inside and hastily dialed the association's number, desperate to request assistance in his current situation.

As a hunter from the association answered with the usual monotone voice, Aki wasted no time in speaking. "Listen carefully, we're under attack by a very powerful assassin. We need reinforcements," Aki said with desperation and anger in his tone, gripping the phone tightly.

"Y-yes, where is the location, and which division?" the overwhelmed hunter behind the phone asked in response to Aki's urgent call.

Before Aki could respond, a loud crash echoed from the area, and a cloud of dust could be seen in the distance. Aki's desperation skyrocketed as he knew he was running out of time.

"District 4, 3rd division, Aki Hayakawa, Mission to eliminate the Rata Demon, we need help imme—" Aki managed to say in a rushed tone before, without warning, a chain with something attached to it crashed through the booth's roof, narrowly missing him and revealing the tip of a peculiar sword.

Bending down slightly to evade the sudden attack, Aki swiftly exited the booth and sprinted several meters down the street. However, he abruptly came to a halt when he saw the assassin approaching him from the same direction he was heading, wearing a confident smile. The chain that had attacked him earlier emerged from the worm's mouth, revealing its bizarre nature.

"I failed," were the words that the assassin, Toji, uttered with a mocking smile and a playful tone as he got closer to Aki, stopping about 15 meters away.

Aki's eyes widened in shock and surprise at the sight of Toji standing before him. He knew he shouldn't let his emotions take over, but he also feared the worst for Kishibe, most likely dead or severely injured.

"How are you here?! Kishibe was supposed to be with you!" Aki exclaimed in a state of shock, his hands trembling slightly in Toji's presence.

"Ah? The old man? He wasn't even warm-up material," Toji said dismissively and mockingly, showing his contempt for the older hunter with his words.

Aki clenched his jaw tightly as he glared at the assassin with immense anger and a thirst for vengeance. Retrieving his chain from the booth with a powerful arm motion, Toji smiled savagely. At the end of the chain, the Inverted Celestial Halberd danced wildly, its movements combining brutality and deadly grace.

Quickly stowing his chains and halberd back into his Cursed Inventary , Toji grinned at Aki, who was filled with rage and hatred but also carefully studying Toji's every move.

A wooden sword handle emerged from Toji's Cursed Inherited Technique, and with a swift motion of his powerful arms, he revealed a wooden katana. Its design featured a black handle and a miniature Oni figure as decoration. Toji's face bore an arrogant expression, and his wild smile grew wider as he observed the young hunter before him.

Aki, upon seeing Toji's savage smile, placed his left hand on the Kon's manual summoning seal while his right hand moved closer to his left eye.

"Kon!" Aki exclaimed with a tone devoid of emotion but filled with seething anger as his eye locked onto Toji's figure

"Prepare to witness a level you'll never attain," Toji said with an arrogant smile before suddenly being engulfed by the Demon Fox's head. Aki was well aware of the consequences of invoking the Demon Fox, but facing a being like Toji, he knew he couldn't hold back.

The Demon Fox smirked before Toji suddenly emerged from its mouth, slicing through it like an illusion. However, the reality was far different.

As Toji touched the ground with his feet and casually swung his sword as if cleaning it, the Demon Fox exploded into thousands of pieces, scattered by the sword's strike.

Aki stared in shock at the Assassin before him, both of them now covered in the blood of the disintegrated Demon Fox, a feat he had never seen before.

"What?!" Aki exclaimed, completely stunned by this unprecedented display of power.

"What was that? His speed? It was so fast that I didn't even see it coming," Aki thought desperately, trying to make sense of the situation.

Toji remained silent, maintaining the same position he had taken after his blindingly fast strike against the Demon Fox. He sighed and began to make small hops on the ground, shaking his arms and exhaling, seemingly relaxed.

Aki, who had been staring at him intently while pondering, was bewildered by the Assassin's behavior.

"Two slashes and a kick, game over," Toji said with an arrogant and confident voice before giving one last little jump. Just centimeters above the ground, he dematerialized from reality like a ghost, showcasing pure speed.

Aki's eyes widened even further. In his mind, the idea that this man was not human grew stronger. "How can a human move like that? Could he be a demon?" This possibility couldn't escape Aki's mind as he scanned his surroundings, desperately trying to find any trace of the Assassin.

Sounds of a wooden sword hitting the ground echoed in all directions on the street. Aki moved his head faster, his desperation evident as he scanned the area, even noticing the air moving inexplicably in multiple directions.

"Damn, damn, damn," Aki muttered in his mind, his sense of panic increasing as he looked in every direction with increased urgency.

Feeling something land on his shoulder, Aki turned his head to see a brown fly resting there.

"Wha—," Aki began before two cuts in the shape of an 'X' appeared on his chest, causing intense pain and a great shock to his senses.

Overwhelmed by pain and agony, Aki never saw Toji appear in front of him. Toji had his back to Aki as he placed his wooden sword into his Cursed Inventory, revealing only the handle in his mouth.

With a leap and a graceful rotation of his body, Toji faced Aki and delivered a powerful kick to his face, sending him flying about 40 meters until he was embedded in a nearby red truck.

The previously silent area was now filled with the sound of a metallic impact from the collision.

Footsteps echoed in the area as Toji approached Aki's now-inert body, which lay on the ground, knocked out and wounded by his relentless attacks.

Toji sighed, turned away from his victim without so much as a glance, and disappeared from the scene, walking confidently and calmly.

In his mind, the possibility ran that he might now earn the contempt of Public Safety and, consequently, that of Makima herself. He couldn't allow her to see him, as he didn't know if Makima remembered him or not, and he couldn't predict her reaction.

As for Public Safety, while he didn't care much, since he was too powerful for them, he knew that having those guys constantly after him would be a problem, so he had to think quickly.

A few hours later, you can see Toji walking through the corridors of a luxurious mansion with his hands in his pockets, his Cursed Inventory attached to him across his torso and shoulders.

Upon reaching a large door, he opened it nonchalantly, looking at the man in front of him.

"I've got good news and bad news," Toji said lazily before his eyes widened slightly at what was in front of him, or rather, the people.

A girl in a red coat and red shorts, with young-looking yellow hair, stood alongside a man with black hair and small bangs on his forehead, dressed in a formal suit that, from his appearance, was somewhere between his 30s and 40s. They both gazed at him with inquisitive looks.

The contractor had a pleased smile on his face, seeing Toji alive and well, as he sat in his chair, and the people in front of him looked at Toji curiously upon his appearance.

"Welcome, Toji. Come in," the contractor said, while looking at Toji with an even more satisfied smile on his face and expectant eyes.