After the previous fight, the next one arrived. A boy named Zento descended into the arena; his presence was intimidating, showing he wasn't there to play games. His rival was already waiting for him in the arena.
TWENTY-FIRST MATCH: ZENTO VS LUCA MORTIN.
—Dimensional Opening Technique.
BEGIN!.
—Dimensional Net.
As soon as the order to start was given, Zento had already created 20 portals throughout the entire arena.
Luca thought logically, assuming Zento would approach him through the portals, so to prevent that, he summoned 3 carnivorous plants around himself.
—Plant Technique: Defensive Carnivores.
Zento took a step forward, and the portals began to move in a circle around Luca. He prepared himself for any attack that might come.
—Damn it...—He whispered while looking in all directions where the portals were moving.
One portal approached at great speed, so fast that Luca reacted too late. The portal took one of the carnivorous plants, making it disappear from its place.
Luca was left confused; his defenses were disappearing one by one. In a part of the island, far from the combat arena, the portals opened in the sky and dropped the plants down.
Back in the arena, Luca's plants were gone, and the portals kept moving.
A portal opened behind Luca. He turned around to block the attack, but another portal opened behind him again. Zento emerged from the second portal to attack with his katana in a vertical slash.
Luca managed to react in time to turn around again and block Zento's attack.
Their katanas clashed forcefully for a few seconds. Zento jumped backward, and a portal opened to make him disappear once more.
Zento's technique and Jack's were similar in one way: both could move across different parts of the arena quickly. But the difference was that Jack could only do it where he created his points. In contrast, with Zento's technique, portals could suddenly appear anywhere he wanted. It was impossible to know where he would emerge.
—Plant Technique: Carnivorous Mother.
Luca created a massive carnivorous plant behind him, approximately 7 meters tall. Zento came out of his portal, and the plant quickly bent down to attack him.
Zento opened another portal and entered to dodge the attack. The plant's mouth crashed against the ground, creating a crack.
Zento appeared again from a portal in a corner of the arena. The plant was recovering from the impact, and Zento took advantage of this to run swiftly toward his rival.
Luca noticed him quickly and raised the tip of his katana toward Zento.
—Plant Technique: Somniferous Angel's Trumpets.—His technique created three "Angel's Trumpet" plants in front of him. The plants began to release purple smoke.
Zento kept running, but before reaching him, he created a portal in front of himself to enter and disappear again.
—Stop hiding and fight!—Luca said angrily. The smoke began to spread across the combat zone. The plant is toxic, but in Luca's technique, it only causes his opponents to fall asleep.
The portal opened near Luca while his back was turned. Zento came out, but instead of attacking his rival, he sliced the plants with his katana.
Luca reacted and turned around just as his plants were being cut down. Without thinking, he moved his katana to attack, but Zento entered his portal again.
It was only for a second, but the smoke was already affecting Zento; his eyes were heavy, and his body was moving slower.
Arien watched the fight attentively. The arena barrier prevented the smoke from spreading to the stands.
—Zento is falling asleep. That's bad.
—Plus, he must be tired from opening so many portals. It's only a matter of time before he falls.—Said Rika.
The smoke began to fade little by little, but it still lingered in the arena, maintaining its effect.
Zento emerged from his portal, his breathing heavy and his eyes almost closing. Luca ran quickly, now taking the offensive.
—Dimensional Opening Technique—Zento whispered softly, trying to keep Luca from hearing.
Using his last strength, Zento also ran to attack. Both raised their katanas to strike; Zento with a thrust and Jack with a vertical blow.
—Transversal Thrust!—He shouted forcefully.
Luca opened his eyes in surprise; he hadn't heard when Zento activated his technique. A small portal appeared in front of Zento's thrust, and his blade passed through it.
Another portal of the same size appeared behind Luca. He turned quickly, but Zento's katana came out faster, piercing his arm.
Luca let out a small groan of pain, and both portals vanished. Zento approached his rival and delivered one final cut to Luca's chest to end the fight.
Due to exhaustion and his injuries, Luca fell to the ground. Zento could barely stand, worn out from his technique and the effects of the purple smoke.
TWENTY-FIRST MATCH ENDED.
WINNER: ZENTO.
Medics entered to attend to Luca and help Zento out of the combat zone.
Liang exhaled softly.
—It seems we aren't the only ones surprising in this generation; there are many other incredible guys.
—Yes, from what I know, very few stood out in the previous generation.—Said Zeik.
—Really, very few?—Asked Matteo curiously.
—Yes, the only one who really stood out was Arien's cousin, who was number one of that generation.
The following matches continued. On the other side of the arena, the prodigies were also talking about it.
—If I remember correctly, Arien, you told us your cousin was number one in the last generation, right?—Asked Kaien with a smile.
Arien nodded with pride for his family.
—Yes, just like my father, my grandfather, and my great-grandfather.
Haruki was surprised, opening his eyes wide and leaning toward him.
—Were all of them also number one of their generation?.
—Exactly, all of them are a pride to the Valkaen family—He clenched his fist with determination—And this time won't be the exception. I will be number one too!.
The prodigies smiled at his confidence, but then Arien looked away to the side.
—Well, or rather I'll try. Who knows, maybe someone is much stronger than me—He shrugged his shoulders.
—Like Kael?—Asked Rika.
Arien laughed.
—No, I accept losing against anyone, except against him... and the other marks.
From the balcony, Director Lion remained seated in his chair, stroking his beard.
—Mmm... The fights in this generation are very intense... And I love it.
Professor Elion rolled his eyes, knowing the director hid his excitement beneath his professional formality.
—Well, let's talk about something more important. What will you do with this generation after all the positions are defined?
—They will be divided into groups of eight and sent to help places in need.
—And why will the teams be of eight?.
—Because... I like the number.
Elion sighed.
—So the top eight will be one team?.
—Yes, it will be the most important team of all; they will be assigned the most important and difficult missions.
—I understand, they will have to push themselves to the limit.
The matches continued one after another, slowly reaching the end of the first round of fights.