When Saikyō struck Zazamo's neck, he expected the head to be severed completely; however, the exact opposite happened. As Saikyō attacked Zazamo's neck using a small amount of his aura—anticipating a clean decapitation—he suddenly heard the sound of his own hand snapping. He realized his hand was broken but couldn't comprehend how it had happened. Just then, he saw a terrifying black energy emanating from within Zazamo's body—an evil aura so potent that even Saikyō could feel its menacing presence. Saikyō immediately retreated, and his hand healed almost instantly—a feat made possible by Boron's power. Before Saikyō could even begin to make sense of the situation, Zazamo spoke...
You think you're some kind of hotshot, don't you? You believe there's no one stronger or smarter than you in this world. Well, you're absolutely right—you *are* incredibly strong and smart. But you're wrong about one thing: you aren't the strongest or smartest person alive. Wherever you look, you'll find someone better than you. Whether you like it or not, you might feel anger or jealousy toward them; you might even wish they were dead. But the truth remains unchanged: they were smarter and stronger than you. There are countless people in this world ready to leave you behind and move forward, but very few who will stay and grow alongside you. Fortunately, Momonosuke was one of those few in my life—he stayed by my side even when I didn't support him or treat him as one of my own. He never lost faith in me. And yet, today, when he needed me, what did I do? I just stood there silently—like an idiot, like a coward. Everyone was right; I am incredibly weak—so weak that I couldn't even save my own mother. Never mind; what's the point of knowing all this? There's no benefit in talking about it, because you wouldn't understand anyway. Meanwhile, Saikyō stood there casually; one of his feet was resting on Momonosuke's head, while the other was on the ground. He was toying with Momonosuke's head, tossing it up and down—it would fly into the air, fall back to land at Saikyō's feet, and then go right back up. Jata fell at Saikyō's feet; Saikyō was thoroughly enjoying himself—or rather, Boron was the one enjoying it, not Saikyō—but Zazamo was unaware of this fact.
When Zazamo sees Saikyo playing with Momonoshuke's severed head, he becomes enraged. He takes a deep breath, drawing the air into his body; the air travels through his system and spreads into both his hands. Zazamo stands motionless, yet his hands begin to enlarge on their own—as if air were being pumped into them—though that isn't actually the case. In reality, Zazamo has reached the second level of 'Shadow Power.' Just as Momonoshuke's 'Death Dream' had three levels, this power also has three stages, each with specific conditions Zazamo must meet. The first stage is 'Iron Body'; on its own, this stage grants no power whatsoever. To awaken the true power of Iron Body and advance to the second stage, one must witness someone dying right before their eyes. Upon reaching the second stage, you gain the ability to activate the power: you can draw external air—specifically oxygen—into your body and store it. When needed, you can shift this stored air to any part of your body; the skin in that area becomes incredibly hard—so hard that, if used correctly, it could even pierce rhinoceros hide. However, as the air gradually depletes from your body... If you use it, you will become weak and lose consciousness; however, there is a way to avoid this: you can utilize your power without relying on air by staking your own life force. For every second the technique is active, 0.67 seconds of your actual lifespan is consumed. Black energy—radiating immense aura—will emanate from your body. This "Third Stage" helps you reach your body's full potential and grants extra power, enabling one to easily win any battle. However, using the Third Stage of "Iron Body" is fatal; it consumes so much aura and life force that a person can die while merely using the power—it is that dangerous. Every second spent in this state reduces one's lifespan by a full day; consequently, some people die mid-battle because their life force runs out before the fight concludes.
Zazamo rushes furiously toward Saikyō. Seeing Zazamo charging at him, Saikyō hurls Momonosuke's severed head—which had been resting near his feet—straight at Zazamo. As the head flies toward him, Zazamo considers stopping to catch and set it aside; however, he realizes that by the time he does so, Saikyō would kill him. Even if he were to dodge it, a single moment of carelessness would still leave him vulnerable to a fatal strike from Saikyō. Consequently, Zazamo neither dodges nor catches the head; instead, he smashes it with his fist as it approaches. The impact shatters Momonosuke's head into pieces, splattering black blood onto Zazamo's face. Yet, Zazamo does not close his eyes for even a split second and continues to advance. When Zazamo finally reaches Saikyō...
Zazamo speaks angrily to Saikyō, asking, "Don't you have a heart?" Saikyō retorts, "If I do, why don't you rip it out and see for yourself—if you have the guts?" Hearing this, Zazamo flies into a rage; he climbs onto Saikyō and begins raining punches down on his head. He strikes with such ferocity that Saikyō collapses to the ground, with Zazamo falling right along with him. Even after hitting the ground, Zazamo doesn't stop; he switches from using one hand to both, pummeling Saikyō with the full force of his body. He punches relentlessly—over and over again—landing roughly four blows every second. The impact is so powerful that Saikyō's head is utterly crushed into the earth; the force of the blows gouges a massive hole in the ground—a hole deep enough to be half-filled with Saikyō's blood. Blood is everywhere. Zazamo's hands, face, and body are completely drenched in it—bright red blood. Finally, Zazamo stops punching and looks at his hands; tears stream from his eyes. He stands up—towering over Saikyō's body—and begins to stomp on him with tremendous force. Zazamo leaps, driving both his legs deep into Saikyo's body; after pulling them out, he jumps onto Saikyo again and again without stopping. When he finally ceases his assault, Saikyo's body is completely pulverized—crushed to the point where he is barely recognizable as human. Only his two legs and penis remain intact. Zazamo pauses and looks around, but sees nothing—nothing but Saikyo's red blood. This sight triggers a memory from his own past: back when he was human, his blood had been red too, not black. This realization infuriates Zazamo further, and in a fit of rage, he crushes Saikyo's penis.