"Take a good look at your feet, JOJO. The one who set the barrier wasn't you... it was me, Esidisi!"
On the screen, as Esidisi's words fell, Joseph immediately looked down.
And he was shocked.
On the ground and on the pieces of his dress, countless wriggling blood vessels, like earthworms, had wrapped themselves around everything.
These blood vessels were emitting white smoke, radiating a dangerous aura like a volcano on the verge of eruption.
"How disgusting!!"
The veins extended from Esidisi's own body, carrying his blood and a foul stench, forcing Joseph to cover his nose and mouth.
Esidisi paid him no mind. He directly controlled the veins to shatter the barrier Joseph had laid.
The high temperature made contact with the flammable cloth, and it quickly burst into a raging inferno.
"JOJO, you said it before, didn't you? You said, 'The victor wins first and then seeks battle'."
"That's right! That's right! That's right!!!"
Crackle, crackle. Amidst his wild laughter, the flames began to spread along the street.
In the Taisho Era, although Japan already had some newer Western-style buildings, Yoshiwara, as a traditional district, was still filled with classic wooden architecture.
The wooden houses quickly turned the entire street into a sea of fire. If not controlled, all of Yoshiwara and its surroundings would be consumed by the blaze.
Joseph's expression turned grim. This Esidisi was proving to be a tough opponent.
He had looked like a brute at first, but the reality was the complete opposite.
Now he'd really done it. With a fire of this scale, given the firefighting capabilities of this era, it would likely take two or three days to put out.
"JOJO, are you scared? Hahaha! Of course you are! I'm going to inject my hot blood into your body!"
Esidisi continued to pump out his superheated blood with an astonishing volume, surrounding nearly all of Joseph's escape routes.
He was completely encircled by tentacle-like blood vessels. There seemed to be no way to escape, and Esidisi was now standing outside the range of Hermit Purple.
Without Hermit Purple to conduct his Hamon, Joseph had no way to defeat the man before him.
"Hahahaha~~~"
"You think I'm done for?"
"Nonono! This Joseph won't die so easily! Esidisi!!!"
Ssssizzle—!!! As he spoke, Joseph actually reached out and grabbed one of Esidisi's scorching veins that was spraying hot blood.
"Hermit Purple! I'm counting on you!! Don't you dare let me, JOJO, down—"
This almost suicidal act made Joseph shout at the top of his lungs. Hermit Purple wrapped tightly around his arm.
The intense heat made the Stand itself let out a 'hissing' sound, like a frog on a barbecue grill.
"HRAAAAGH—!!"
Crackle. Enduring the agony of being severely burned by the high temperature, Joseph coated Hermit Purple in golden Hamon, creating a standoff with the hot blood within the vein!
"Na... NANI!!" Esidisi was utterly shocked. Is JOJO insane? He actually grabbed my blood vessel and isn't letting go!
"Esidisi, looks like I won the bet this time! A Hamon-coated Hermit Purple can indeed withstand extreme heat!"
"This blood vessel... it extends directly from your body, doesn't it! Esidisi!!" Joseph said, a smile on his face. Esidisi, however, was stunned by what he thought Joseph was planning next.
"You bastard, don't tell me you're thinking of?"
His mouth hung open, his figure looking exceptionally powerful and terrifying amidst the flames.
Joseph cut him off first. "Esidisi, your next line is: 'Damn you! My blood vessels will pierce your body before your Hamon can reach mine!'"
"Damn you! My blood vessels will pierce your body before your Hamon can reach mine!" Esidisi roared, pushing his Flame Mode to its absolute limit.
Pfft! The blood vessel instantly elongated, trying to pierce through Joseph's body. As long as his blood entered Joseph's system, the intense heat would instantly melt him.
Suddenly, a golden arc of electricity shot from Joseph's body, through Hermit Purple, and with its 100% Hamon conductivity, was instantly channeled into the blood vessel.
"Take this! The rhythm of Hermit Purple Overdrive!!"
Like a golden lightning bolt, the yellow Hamon instantly exploded within Esidisi, traveling along his blood vessels and throughout his entire body.
"Aaargh—!!!"
Feeling his body being filled with Joseph's Hamon, Esidisi's face contorted. He couldn't help but roar, "How could this be?! I am a great being! How could I be defeated by a mere human!!"
With his last ounce of strength, he charged toward Joseph.
Joseph didn't panic in the slightest, simply increasing the output of his Hamon.
Esidisi's body began to glow with a brilliant golden light, and then, with a 'BOOM', he exploded.
With a clink, Esidisi's nose ring fell to the ground, making a crisp sound. And with that... one of the three Pillar Men, Esidisi, was on the brink of death!
---o---
An... an incredible duel. It was like a fight in the Colosseum of ancient Rome, or a cowboy duel in the American West.
Although the spectacle was far less grand than the Servant battles or the fight against the Outer God from the previous world, it was filled with twists and turns.
Unlike DIO's and Jotaro's battles against the Upper Ranks, where a power gap existed from the start, Joseph and Esidisi were, in a sense, on the same level. Their combat intelligence and strength were both top-tier.
[Light Curtain Commentary]
[Yukino Yukinoshita: "Is it over? Whew... That was a sweat-inducing battle."]
[General Esdeath: "Sweat-inducing? Shouldn't you be thrilled? This is getting more and more interesting! Joseph Joestar... I'd love to test my skills against such an opponent!"]
[Lord Boros: "Boring. So boring. A battle like this can't get my blood pumping at all. Joseph... can't he become any stronger? Only then would I have the desire to fight him!"]
[Conan Edogawa: "Wait, something doesn't seem right. The light curtain didn't say Esidisi is dead!"]
[Utaha Kasumigaoka: "It didn't? Didn't the screen say at the end that Esidisi was on the brink of death...?"]
[Otto Apocalypse: "On the brink of death, but not truly dead. Heh heh, the vitality of the Pillar Men is astonishing. If it were a vampire or an Upper Rank, they would have been long dead in that state."]
[Kars: "Esidisi... Masaka! Are you trying to..."]
---o---
[On Screen]
Joseph picked up the nose ring Esidisi had dropped. Although he didn't know what it was, as the only thing from the Pillar Man's body that hadn't disintegrated, it must have some special significance.
"Whew, enemy dealt with. Now to put out the fire... hmm, I'll leave this to Japan's firefighters."
Sensing the rescue personnel in the distance with his Hamon, Joseph quietly slipped away.
"Kars... that guy is a being like Esidisi. From the looks of it... he's an enemy too."
His expression grew solemn. Judging by Esidisi's reverence for Kars, and a subtle feeling from fate itself, Joseph felt a palpitation in his heart, as if he were about to face something terrifying.
"...Lord Kars..."
After Joseph left, a lump of flesh crawled out from the burning flames.
Esidisi, who should have been unconscious, was instantly roused when he heard Joseph say the name 'Kars'.
I... I absolutely cannot let this guy get near Lord Kars! Not before Lord Kars becomes the Ultimate Lifeform and conquers the sun! I cannot let any Hamon warrior get close...
"Cough, cough." A weak cough escaped him. The only reason Esidisi could still move in this state was purely due to his own willpower.
He struggled to catch up to Joseph, to stop him, but he could barely move an inch. This dark determination of Esidisi's moved countless viewers outside the light curtain.
As his vision blurred, a few figures of firefighters appeared before him. It seemed fate had not completely abandoned him.
Kars should be preparing to enter the Infinity Castle to get the red stone now, right? Yes... he is a genius. A space with an extradimensional structure like that cannot stop him.
"I'm sorry, Kars. I won't be able to become the Ultimate Lifeform with you. But... with Wamuu by your side, you won't be lonely in the end..."
Speaking lines that didn't belong to a villain, Esidisi used the last of his strength to attach himself to one of the firefighters. Then... with the resolve to face death, he pursued Joseph.
...
"Just... just like that? Th-This was an Upper Rank! Are you sure Upper Rank Six is dead?"
Inside a house, the lead kunoichi was shaking Joseph's shoulders, her tone filled with disbelief and surprise.
"This is great! We've performed a great service! We can finally go back to Lord Tengen!!" another kunoichi cried out, clearly fed up with her days in Yoshiwara.
"But we weren't the ones who killed the Upper Rank. This just puts Lord Tengen's retirement one step further away," said the calmest of the three, her voice tinged with melancholy.
Hearing her words, all three women sighed in unison, completely ignoring the dark-faced Joseph.
Damn it all! That guy named Tengen Uzui actually had three beautiful wives who cared so much for him.
Joseph ground his back teeth. If the Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui were here, the jealousy-fueled Joseph would have definitely dragged him out for a "spar."
Suddenly... as if sensing something, Joseph yanked the three women behind him.
"BOOM!!!" A violent impact sound came, completely demolishing the already flimsy wooden house.
"What happened?! Is it the enemy?!" The lead kunoichi pulled out a kunai, her expression serious.
Joseph, however, stared in shock at the reborn man before him.
"I've returned from hell, JOJO!!"
With those words, Esidisi sealed off all escape routes and prepared to attack Joseph.
Although possessing a human had weakened him, Esidisi still had the power to completely seal off the area.
Hamon once again appeared on Joseph's hands. He continuously blocked Esidisi's blood vessel attacks, his defense appearing effortless.
However, because Esidisi was possessing an ordinary person, Joseph couldn't go on the offensive. He could only remain on the defensive.
Using an innocent person as a shield—such a fighting style was undoubtedly despised by the audience and the three kunoichi behind Joseph.
However... if one were to look closely at Joseph's expression, they would see an unprecedented gravity and a heavy heart.
BAM— Blocking another of Esidisi's attacks, Joseph sighed. He looked at the rampaging Esidisi and unexpectedly lowered his Hamon-wreathed hands.
Just like that, like a woman disrobing, he stood "naked" before the enemy.
"Jo... Joseph!" the kunoichi behind him cried out in alarm. Esidisi's attack hadn't stopped; his blood vessels were about to entangle Joseph.
The audience outside the screen also held their breath. What was wrong with Joseph? Why had he given up resisting? Hadn't he been handling it with ease?
On screen, with an elegant turn, Joseph completely exposed his back to Esidisi.
The next moment... under the shocked gazes of the three kunoichi and the audience, the lump of flesh that was Esidisi was pulled directly out from inside the human body.
It was Hermit Purple. Hermit Purple had used its thorns to phase through the man's body and pull Esidisi out.
The power of a Stand could pass through an ordinary person's body to directly grab Esidisi's true form!
At this moment... after a whole night of fighting, the light of dawn had risen. The golden rays of the sun gradually spread across the land.
Sizzle! Like wood falling into lava, Esidisi's lump of flesh was completely burned away.
And with that, one of the three Pillar Men, Esidisi, was completely dead...
His back to the sun, Joseph's face was filled with a complex mix of emotions.
"To possess an ordinary human... how despicable!" said the kunoichi with disgust after checking the man's injuries.
But Joseph shook his head, his voice low. "No, that's not it."
"Setting aside good and evil... I think this guy... to stop me here for his comrade's sake, using any means necessary, even sacrificing himself to protect his companion..."
"That is something I, JOJO, have to respect..."