Dimensional

Atlas' irises crackled with dull violet energy that shone like splitting space radiating from his eyes. Cracks appeared through the whites of his eyes as if his eyeballs were about to burst from holding too much cursed energy. Getting down in a low stance the power from his body emanating in waves that made the Zenin hesitate.

His body tensed unwillingly at the pressure this mere boy was exerting with just his gaze. No! He was NOT a coward, he came here for a reason and the boy was weak, he would kill them. And he would enjoy it.

Dashing forward he swung his sword at Atlas, expecting to cleave his head clean off his shoulders. But nothing happened, the blade just passed through his neck, small folds of mirror-like shards being seen as the blade passed through his flesh.

Staring in shock he didn't even have time to react to the fist that slammed into his stomach. The sickening crunch of an impact resounded through his body, his knees buckling from the force of the blow as he slid back. Looking down in shock he saw that small tears in his flesh, as if jagged knives had run across his abdomen resulting in shallow but brutal cuts.

How had he done that with just a punch?

Looking back up at Atlas who shook his fist and leant to the side with a sigh saying, "fuck my output is low…"

He was tired from his fight with the first-grade and special-grade spirits. And it was a pain in the ass but he really couldn't output much power right now without sacrificing the stability of his defence. He would rather have that right now than stronger attacks. Even with a higher output, his opponent was strong.

Strong enough it would be hard to take them out by fraying the gap between dimensions.

Getting back into his stance he waited, waiting for a moment where his opponent would strike so he could counter. But the man was not a fool.

Stopping he stood there, holding his sword in both his hands as he got ready to engage again, studying his opponent, measuring what had happened. How could he actually hit his opponent?

Dashing forward he swung again but this time pulled back at the last moment, stopping his blade. A grin crossed his face as he saw the small mirror folds happen where his blade would have gone. Quickly readjusting his angle with a flick of his wrist he cut a shallow slice in Atlas' armpit.

Pulling away Atlas glared at the man. The stinging pain from his armpit flared whenever he moved it. Cursing he looked at the slice in his haori with a grimace. "Fuck, I liked this… now I'm going to have to sew it up," Atlas said, his face falling before he leapt into the air jumping over the swipe of the blade only to find himself falling down towards the cut?

His momentum had changed, just like the blade had quickly changed angles so had his jump.

Pushing positive energy into his body he phased through the blade before backing away. Springing from his hands, the small slice healing as he stared at his opponent.

God damn that was tricky? Could he change the vectors of movement? Or perhaps change the direction of movement with his technique. It was simple but that was what made it dangerous.

Standing up straight Atlas said, "Looks like I have to take this seriously. God damn it…" His voice fell into a deeper more serious tone as his eyes narrowed. The crackling energy in his eyes increased in intensity.

Sprinting forward he felt his movement suddenly halt as he was pulled backwards. The speed he was travelling changed directions to his right, throwing him off balance and into the path of a sword strike. Twisting he barely dodged it before the sword suddenly changed directions with no momentum lost cutting towards his ribs.

Letting the blade pass through him he felt his energy start to drain faster, god damn it this was annoying!

Spinning he launched a kick towards the waist of his enemy only to feel the direction his foot was travelling change to the side. Cursing the lack of control he had as he started to spin he was forced once more to flood his body with energy as the blade passed through him.

God damn it.

Backing away he tried to make distance only to push forward when he leapt off the ground suddenly and towards his enemy. He had enough, throwing his fist forward he pointed his hand at the Zenin, a wave of crackling folding mirrors launching from his palm in a sheering space-splitting attack. The cracking of concrete made dust rain down as he felt his momentum stabilize.

Backing away he watched the dust cloud as it settled to show the Zenin member laughing dryly, "It has been a while since I have been hit by something like that. Impressive boy, but not impressive enough." The man said, a gash down the side of his chest, it was long but it wasn't deep enough to hinder him.

Taking a deep breath Atlas focused on his power, this was going to be harder than he thought, and he knew that they hadn't even started properly. This was just the warm-up, testing the waters.

Waiting for a small moment he watched as the Zenin member charged towards him sword raised high. Taking a deep breath Atlas started to move to the side but just at that single moment he felt his momentum start to change, that small hint he got just before he felt his weight shift. He forced himself to start moving towards the strike. As his momentum changed he found himself going the way he wanted, away from the blade.

Smiling he couldn't live out his victory for long as he raised his arm to defect the changed angle of the blade just to have his arm start to move in another direction. Cursing he once more had to phase to stop the blade from slicing through him.

Going go back away he suddenly leapt towards the Zenin at the last moment hoping they would change his movement but his eyes widened when they didn't. Instead, he threw himself towards the swinging katana blade.

Cursing he phased through the sword and the Zenin member. His body tumbled to the floor with his lack of control before he felt his rolling body change direction and was once more forced to phase, but he was running out of energy and was a bit too slow. A shallow cut started before the blade passed through him saving him from being impaled.

Leaping to his feet he felt his body once more slam into the floor only for him to barely pull to the side with a quick change in the way he was planning to roll. Damn it, this person was good.

And so it continued, he tried to dodge but every move he made was read, his phasing getting slower and slower as his energy ran out. If only he was at his peak, then he could handle them. But he couldn't enter another plane right now, he didn't have enough energy.

Feeling the sword impale his side he phased through the blade to escape the oncoming kick. Only to find himself being thrown to the floor by his attempt to move towards his opponent and confuse them.

Feeling the hard concrete against his back he took in a deep breath, the feeling of a weight on his chest he knew to be a foot pressing down on his ribs.

He needed cursed energy.

As the sword once more shot down towards his chest he put his hands in the way, crossing his hands as he felt the blade slice cleanly through his palms and barely being able to change the direction so that it didn't impale his heart he felt the cracking of his ribs as the tip of the sword slammed into it. Not going any further as he pushed with his hands. Blood ran from his mouth as he stared defiantly at the man above him.

Reaching into the other plains, the plains he felt that his energy came from whenever he wanted to use it he pulled at it, pulling at the last threads of energy. Wanting something more. His body produced cursed energy, yes but he had to pull it from his reflection in another plane making the cracks in space. That was what made the cracks. His energy coming into this plane. That meant that there had to be more than one reflection right? The fourth dimension was made out of countless plains. So there HAD to be more! He NEEDED there to be more!

Pulling widely he screamed, he didn't even realise he was screaming until the sound tore from his vocal cords in a primal cry of desperation.

As the sword was ripped away from him tearing the holes in his hands wider he watched as the blade was once more positioned to strike down at his head.

And then there was a moment of silence, the blade tip of the blade falling towards his forehead, he couldn't phase. He was spent. He was done.

And then he felt it. A wild raging stockpile of energy. More cursed energy lingered on the edge of his fingers. An almost endless sea of… him? Reflections of his plane? This one or others he didn't know, but he felt it. More cursed energy, almost an endless amount scattered throughout the countless plains of the fourth dimension. He could access it all.

It was his to command.

Pulling it into his plain in a wild maelstrom of energy the air around him rang like a high pitch scream, the cacophony of shattering glass the resounding ring of millions of bells blinding in its intensity.

And the sword impaled concrete.

Stabbing inches deep into the stone. Cracks webbing from where the blade was planted. A shattering sound ending in silence, no glass breaking, no bells. Silence. Echoing, endless, unsettling silence.

Panting for breath Atlas looked up, he was in another plane, he had fully phased into another plane. He shouldn't be able to do that with the energy he had left? It took tremendous amounts to travel through the planes like he did.

But then he realised he did have enough energy, more than enough. Instead of his energy draining he was being constantly fueled. Flooded with waves of cursed energy from countless other reflections of his dimension. He didn't know how it worked, or what was happening. But he felt like he was going to explode.

Standing up he looked at the Zenin member who was looking around in shock, trying to find where Atlas went.

Holding his hand out Atlas pushed his hand back into his original plain. And in that single moment, the Zenin member turned around at the sound of bells and glass, only to see a hand, no movement he could change. Before a blast of shattering dimensions hammered into his chest, rending his flesh.

Feeling his body be sliced to pieces he gasped for air. The sudden attack from the hand was shattering, his body feeling like it was forced within an inch of his life.

Watching Atlas step out of the folding mirror-like space the Zenin grit his teeth, grinding his jaw. He had been winning! Dominating! Why was he losing now!?

Charging forward he swung his blade down in a vertical strike, and as Atlas stepped to the side he changed the momentum only for him to… not be able to?

Atlas stared down the Zenin member, dried blood caking his body from the hundreds of shallow cuts he had suffered that all had healed in an instant.

His momentum, his 'movement' was no longer on this plane, he had left it in another. The only thing here was a reflection of his physical mass so that he could hit them. They could hit him yes, but he wouldn't give them the chance. He had left his 'momentum' and 'movement' behind. Separating himself into reflections with fine control of positive energy and negative energy.

It was like mixing them together to pull and push separate parts of him to other dimensions, he could have what he wanted here and leave the rest safe, out of reach. Even concepts such as his momentum and movement could be left behind.

He felt so strong.

Throwing a punch into the Zenin member's gut as hard as he could he knew they would be desperately trying to change the course of his fist only for nothing to happen. As soon as his fist made contact a tree of shattered folding glass erupted from the Zenin members back behind the strike. A splitting fragment of space before it folded within itself like a vortex taking the top half of the man with it into another plane.

And letting the disembodied legs fall to the floor limply.

Staring down at the legs he spat on them. A bloody glob containing his anger.

It was a dick move to attack someone at their weakest, but he guessed he should be grateful in a way. He had been pushed to his limits once more.

And now he felt that his cursed energy was boundless, expanding through not only this plain but countless others. A stockpile that was almost infinitely large. What was better? The efficiency that six-eyes granted, or overwhelming amounts. He liked to think the latter was.

--- Kenjaku ---

Looking in from a distance he couldn't help but tilt his head to the side. That was certainly unexpected. He hadn't awakened his technique, that wasn't ideal. But he had started to merge with the other planes. His body was becoming more than simply 3-dimensional… it was starting to envelop concepts outside of space.

Using positive and negative energy in conjunction to form, unrealistic results.

It was frightening, to be honest, more than frightening. Something so… unnatural personified before him. A 4-dimensional being. This was not the power he tried to make with this experiment, no… it had changed. Whatever had taken over Hoshi's body had taken something with it. And it had adapted to this plane.

Had Hoshi been possessed by some 4-dimensional being? Maybe, that seemed likely. And terrifying. But if he was indeed correct and Hoshi was still alive in there somewhere. That faint connection that he still felt, oh it would be glorious. This was perfect.

More than perfect, this was ideal. But dangerous. Would it go his way? Or would it not… only time would tell.

Only time would tell.

--- Ayumu (The Principal) ---

A presence was approaching, an overwhelmingly crushing presence. Standing at the top of the stairs he looked down the large stone flight to see Atlas walking up them one at a time, a tired weight to his steps. But something was different about him.

It was as clear as day.

Before he had seen a spark in the boy as if his cursed energy had always been somewhere that shouldn't be seen, couldn't be seen. Somewhere 'beyond' his sight. As if it wasn't part of this world but another.

Now it was before him. A supernova of energy cascaded out of him in waves. His cursed energy was no longer invisible as it once used to be. Before it had been hard to detect his cursed energy as it resided 'beyond'. Now it was impossible not to notice it. It was as if he was standing before the sun itself.

"You will need to rein that oppressiveness in young Atlas… contain your feelings," Ayumu spoke, looking up through thick eyebrows, his knuckles tightening on his walking cane as he waited for a response.

Watching Atlas start to take deep breaths he felt the energy settle into less of a supernova crushing everything near him into more of a giant star. Silently sitting in deadly power, although it no longer radiated off him in waves that threatened to crush everything before it.

It still felt tremendous. Just contained. This was not an energy that could be hidden anymore. Atlas was no longer invisible with deceptively small cursed energy. No, his cursed energy went beyond just this plane now, it expanded to all of them. It was not just 3-dimensional anymore.

It could be seen, it was heard.

---

Atlas quietly made his way towards the dorms that he slept in. His shoulder felt heavy, and his eyes were tired.

Hearing footsteps behind him he turned around, saying, "What?" Before he even saw who he was talking to. Standing behind him was both Geto and Ieiri. They were still young, looking so meek…

And a bit frightened.

Softening his gaze as much as he could right now he turned to face them. "Sorry, I didn't mean to seem so scary… just had a big day that's all. Hell, you were there for most of it so you would know." Atlas said, his voice trying to be as soft as he could make it but the low hoarse sound was tired…

"N-No problem. I just wanted to give you your sword back." Geto said. Handing over the weapon that he was holding, it was his sword that he had lost to the spirit. Taking it and staring at it for a moment Atlas' face softened into a smile.

Letting out a small sigh he put the blade back in Geto's hands. His face displayed a small grin as he said. "I don't think I will be needing swords anymore. Keep hold of it for me will yah? Don't go breaking it." Atlas responded, chuckling to himself. A sword was not something he needed anymore, someone else could use it now.

"We also wanted to say thanks. For saving us and giving Geto some help getting spirits." Ieiri said. Her voice was a bit shaky. Standing there for a moment she felt Geto poke her side with his elbow. "I… I also wanted to ask if you could teach me that energy you pushed into our bodies to make us 'go' somewhere else." She finished, her face betraying how nervous she felt.

"Ah, I can't teach that, it is special to me sorry," Atlas said, feeling a bit bad at shooting her down, oh wait she meant-

"Not the property sorry… but like, the energy, it felt warmer than negative energy." She said. Her eyes widened a bit at the memory.

"Sure… that is positive energy, it's just negative energy multiplied by itself. Harder than it sounds though. I'll talk more about it another time. I need to head to bed alright. Cya round kids." Atlas finished, turning and walking away before they could respond to him.

Getting into his dorm he fell down onto his bed, sighing, the caked blood staining the sheets. But he didn't care… they would get cleaned tomorrow. Closing his eyes he felt his body start to relax… and before he knew it he was asleep.