Leo felt the torrent of power surging within his body, almost tearing his muscles apart, and grinned, revealing his stark white teeth.
I hope you—
His figure vanished.
Appearing before—Nobunaga.
—can entertain me!
Nobunaga's pupils constricted to pinpricks.
He saw Leo's fist enlarging before his eyes; it was a plain, unadorned straight punch, devoid of any technique, possessing only pure speed and power.
But he couldn't dodge.
It was too fast.
So fast that he could only barely hold the blade of his broken sword across his chest—
Crack!
The refined steel blade shattered like glass.
The momentum of the punch remained undiminished.
Boom!
The crisp sound of Nobunaga's ribs breaking was clearly audible.
He spat out blood for the second time, and this time, the blood was mixed with fragments of his internal organs.
His body flew backward like a tattered sack, crashing through a wall, and was finally buried under a pile of rubble.
Nobunaga!!!
Franklin's eyes split with rage as the gun muzzles on his arms spun wildly, all his Nen Bullets changing direction, chasing Leo's figure with frantic fire!
But Leo was no longer in the same spot.
He appeared to Franklin's left, raised his right foot, and delivered a simple, extremely straightforward side kick.
Sorry, within seven steps, I'm faster than a gun!
Franklin didn't even have time to turn his head.
He only felt an irresistible, tremendous force strike his left waist, followed by a crisp 'crack' of bone breaking.
Then the whole world began to spin.
His massive body, as if hit head-on by a train, flew sideways, snapping two lampposts in succession, and finally embedded itself into the wall of the building across the street, with gravel falling in cascades.
At the same time, Leo swung his right leg back in a scorpion tail kick, accurately striking the Nen needles Machi had fired, shaking all those barely visible needles away.
Machi's pupils constricted as she quickly retreated, whipping out several Nen threads in the air to entangle Leo, intending to halt his advance.
Morex took the opportunity to increase the distance, looking at Leo in the heat of battle while panting heavily.
Leo said without turning his head, his voice carrying a strange resonance.
Your life is mine; no one else can take it.
Machi's net of Nen threads finally descended—but Leo merely raised his left hand, spread his fingers, and grabbed.
Zzzzz—!
A harsh, grinding sound.
The Nen threads, capable of cutting through steel, emitted a sound like a saw cutting through a steel plate in Leo's palm; sparks flew everywhere, but—they failed to break his skin.
What...
For the first time, Machi's expression wavered.
Leo tugged forcefully.
Machi was yanked into the air, thrown toward Leo!
But she was worthy of being one of the most agile members of the Phantom Troupe; she forcibly twisted her body in mid-air, her hands shaking repeatedly, firing dozens of Nen threads from all angles toward Leo's eyes, throat, joints, and other vulnerable areas.
But Leo didn't even dodge.
He closed his eyes.
The Nen threads stabbed at his eyelids—and were deflected.
They stabbed at his throat—and were deflected.
They stabbed at his joints—and were still deflected.
The physical defense while in his ultimate state had already surpassed the scope of understanding of conventional Nen Ability.
Leo opened his eyes, reached out with his right hand, and grabbed Machi's ankle.
Girls.
He said softly.
Shouldn't participate in such violent activities.
Then, like throwing a sandbag, he swung Machi around and hurled her at the charging Shalnark!
The 'Battle Cantabile: Jupiter' had advanced to within three meters of Leo; the wind pressure created by the sonic-speed rotating giant sphere was almost enough to tear skin.
But Machi's body came hurtling like a cannonball; if Shalnark wanted to continue the attack, he would have to crush his own comrade first.
He chose to retract his technique.
The giant sphere dissipated instantly; Shalnark forcibly twisted his body, using both hands to push Machi away, and the two fell toward the side of the street together, rolling into a heap.
Leo did not pursue, but turned around to face the last three enemies.
Omokage, and the two puppets he controlled.
Truly magnificent.
Omokage applauded, a morbid smile on his face.
Such a body, such power... too beautiful. I must turn you into a puppet, I must.
The two puppets lunged from left and right simultaneously, their hands transformed into sharp claws, aiming straight for Leo's eyes and heart.
Leo didn't even look at them.
He simply raised his right foot and stomped down heavily.
Boom—!!!
With him at the center, the ground within a five-meter radius collapsed entirely!
The shockwave exploded in a ring; the two puppets were hit as if by an invisible giant hammer, instantly shattering into pieces and dissipating into the air as fragments.
Omokage's smile froze on his face.
Leo's figure vanished again.
Omokage's pupils constricted, and he hurriedly activated his ability—the third, fourth, and fifth puppets emerged from the shadows behind him!
But it was too late.
Leo appeared before him, grabbed his neck with his right hand, and lifted him up.
Puppeteer.
Leo tilted his head.
Your ability is quite interesting. But the main body is too weak.
Omokage's feet left the ground, and he struggled to counterattack, but Leo's fingers were like iron pincers, gradually tightening.
Lack of oxygen made his vision blur, and his fingers hung limply.
Stop!
Pakunoda's roar.
Her pistol was aimed at Leo's temple, and she pulled the trigger.
Bang! The bullet fired.
Leo didn't even turn his head; he simply raised his left hand, and at the moment the bullet was about to hit his temple—pinched the bullet head between two fingers.
The bullet head deformed and heated up between his fingers.
He turned his head, looked at Pakunoda, and revealed a gentle smile.
Don't worry, you're next.
Pakunoda's hand was trembling.
As the Phantom Troupe's intelligence officer, she excelled in interrogation and memory reading; direct combat was not her strong suit.
But at this moment, watching Omokage gradually lose consciousness in Leo's grip, watching Nobunaga and Franklin in the distant ruins with their fates unknown, watching Machi and Shalnark struggling to rise by the roadside—she gritted her teeth and pulled the trigger again.
Bang bang bang bang bang!
Five consecutive bullets, all aimed at Leo's brow, throat, and heart.
Leo released his grip on Omokage—Omokage slumped to the ground, unconscious.
Leo took the opportunity to kick Omokage away like cleaning up trash.
Immediately after, his left hand swung five times in the air in succession.
Five crisp metallic clashing sounds. All five bullet heads were swatted away, embedding deeply into the surrounding walls.
Pakunoda's magazine was empty.
It's not over yet...
A low voice came from the ruins, and Shalnark stood up unsteadily.
His 'Battle Cantabile' had changed its tune, becoming more rapid, more wild.
Battle Cantabile: Finale!
Shalnark's body began to spin at high speed, and countless blades formed from Nen shot out in all directions.
This was not an attack targeting only Leo, but an indiscriminate area attack!
Shalnark, are you crazy!
Pakunoda was shocked and furious, hurriedly looking for cover.
Leo finally put away his smile, his expression becoming serious.
Now that's more like it.
He did not dodge, but rushed forward into the rain of blades.
Crimson Nen formed a protective shield around his body; when those Nen blades struck the shield, they emitted a harsh, grinding sound but could not break through.
Three seconds, Leo broke through the rain of blades.
Two seconds, he appeared before Shalnark.
One second, his fist struck Shalnark's abdomen.
There was no earth-shattering roar, only a dull sound of impact.
Shalnark's movements came to an abrupt halt, and he instantly flew backward, falling to the ground.
Not a bad dance.
Leo said softly, withdrawing his fist.
...
The entire scene fell into a brief silence.
From the moment Leo activated'Setsuna' until now, only two minutes had passed, but the Phantom Troupe's four combatants had all fallen.