BOOM.
A shockwave of air burst outward.
Dust, wood splinters, pebbles, and chunks of stone shot across the battlefield.
The five of them raised their arms instinctively as they pushed through the storm.
Sora's foot suddenly slipped.
"Aah—"
She caught herself before falling and glanced downward.
Her face tightened.
A severed arm, pitch black.
A few steps ahead lay another.
Then another.
A leg.
A hand.
A chunk of flesh.
The closer they got, the more pieces appeared.
The battlefield looked like a slaughterhouse.
Nobody spoke.
Not even Yamato.
They continued forward.
The tremors beneath their feet grew stronger.
The sound of metal, flesh, and force colliding echoed endlessly ahead.
Then they finally arrived.
And what they saw made all of them stop.
Ozaki was on one knee.
His scythe rested against the ground while his chest rose and fell heavily.
Blood stained his clothes.
Not his own.
Kaku's.
All around them were pieces of Kaku's body.
Arms.
Legs.
Chunks of flesh.
Organs.
Ozaki had been cutting him apart repeatedly.
Yet Kaku was still standing.
His regeneration continued restoring everything.
Slowly.
Painfully.
But it continued.
Kaku himself looked terrible.
His breathing was ragged.
His body was covered in cuts.
Several fresh limbs were still reforming.
Yet he smiled.
A dangerous smile.
"Phew..."
Ozaki coughed.
Blood slipped from his mouth.
Not from Kaku.
From Silver.
The backlash was tearing through him.
Kaku took another step forward.
"You are a strong one, Ozaki."
His voice carried genuine exhaustion.
"If I'd given you a few hours to recover after fighting Rujer..."
He laughed weakly.
"...you would've killed me."
He crouched slightly, meeting Ozaki's eyes.
"I know this wasn't fair."
A pause.
"Rujer did most of the damage."
Another step.
"But this is where it ends."
Yamato's fists tightened.
Something felt wrong.
Then he sensed it.
A faint pulse.
Tiny.
Almost invisible.
But present.
His eyes sharpened instantly.
"Kaku..."
Kaku slammed his hand into the ground.
CRACK.
Dark energy spread outward.
"Case Form."
Yamato stood immediately.
"If he reaches Form Four," he said calmly, "don't try blocking everything. Deflect what you can."
Nobody understood.
Then—
"Form Four."
The battlefield darkened.
"God's Copy."
BOOOOOOM.
A pulse erupted outward.
Kaku's body began changing.
His hand remained buried inside the earth.
Then—
"Bronze Golem Armor."
The ground exploded.
Golden-brown earth surged upward.
Unlike ordinary stone, this material looked refined.
Compressed.
Purified.
Layer after layer wrapped around Kaku's body.
His legs.
His torso.
His shoulders.
His arms.
Until a massive suit of armor stood around him.
The armor groaned heavily as it settled.
Yamato moved.
Instantly.
POOM.
He appeared before Kaku.
The blade in his hand swung.
PRRACK.
The sword shattered.
But the force behind it pushed Kaku backward several feet.
The armor creaked.
A dent appeared.
Small.
But visible.
Kaku's smile vanished.
"You again."
His armored fist shot forward.
BOOM.
Yamato ducked beneath it.
His own fist drove upward.
CRACK.
The punch landed directly against the dent.
Kaku slid backward.
The armor groaned again.
The dent deepened.
Then Kaku's backhand arrived.
BOOOOM.
Yamato crossed his arms.
The impact still launched him sideways.
He rolled.
Recovered.
And immediately kicked Ozaki backward.
"Sora!"
She understood instantly.
Leaping forward and catching Ozaki before he hit the ground.
She landed smoothly.
Kneeling beside him.
Checking his pulse.
"He's alive."
Relief.
Then concern.
"...but his internal injuries are bad."
Kaku raised both hands.
Darkness gathered around him.
"Shadows Drought."
The battlefield dimmed.
Black shadows twisted upward like smoke before transforming into dozens of floating fists.
Lumei's eyes widened.
"That's mine."
Shadows Drought.
A technique capable of altering almost any property.
Shape.
Speed.
Direction.
Structure.
It could weaken attacks.
Redirect attacks.
Or become an attack itself.
And now Kaku had perfected it.
The shadow fists launched.
BOOOOM.
BOOOOM.
BOOOOM.
The battlefield exploded.
Yamato dodged through the barrage.
One fist grazed his shoulder.
Another shattered the ground beside him.
A third detonated where he'd stood moments earlier.
Lumei stepped forward.
His hand rose.
"Shadows Demise."
Dark tendrils burst upward.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
Shadow collided with shadow.
The air filled with black mist.
Lumei gritted his teeth.
"They're stronger than mine."
More fists broke through.
His shadows slowed them.
Weakened them.
But couldn't stop them completely.
"Don't block directly!" Lumei shouted.
"I can dull them, but I can't cancel them!"
Then the others moved.
Chella exploded forward first.
"Bronze Golem Armor!"
The ground erupted.
Earth wrapped around her body.
Layer after layer.
Heavy.
Massive.
Powerful.
Every step left a crater behind.
Behind her came Ichiha.
Golden energy erupted around him.
"Calamity Shock!"
The aura spread across his entire body.
Not just his fists.
Everything.
Calamity Shock.
An ability that weakened every aspect of an attack.
Strength.
Durability.
Speed.
Magic.
Nothing escaped its effect.
Not complete cancellation.
But devastating reduction.
Ichiha clenched his fists.
"Kaku..."
His voice trembled.
"You ruined everything."
Then Sora stepped forward.
Water gathered around her fingertips.
Spinning.
Condensing.
Compressing.
Until a bow formed.
Then an arrow.
"Water God Arrow."
The atmosphere itself seemed drawn toward it.
Kaku watched.
Then laughed.
"Calamity Shock."
Golden energy covered him.
"Water God Arrow."
Water gathered above his palm.
A perfect arrow formed.
"Let me show you how they're really used."
The copied abilities stabilized.
Perfectly.
Not weaker.
Not stronger.
Perfect for the amount of magic he possessed.
Yamato's expression darkened.
Form Four was different.
It wasn't imitation.
It was replication.
Kaku released first.
SHOOOOOM.
The arrow crossed the battlefield instantly.
Sora fired hers.
BOOOOOOM.
The two arrows collided.
The explosion shattered the clouds.
Water rained across the battlefield.
Sora slid backward.
Blood ran from her nose.
Kaku grinned.
Then Chella arrived.
BOOM.
Her fist buried itself into his chest.
The armor shook violently.
Bronze Golem Armor.
A defensive technique capable of creating armor that rivaled metal while retaining stone's durability.
Ordinarily only someone on the same level could damage it.
But Chella wasn't attacking randomly.
She targeted Yamato's dent.
CRACK.
A fracture appeared.
Kaku frowned.
BOOM.
Another punch.
CRACK.
The fracture spread.
BOOM.
Again.
BOOM.
Again.
The crack widened.
A smile appeared on Chella's face.
"It's breaking."
Kaku growled.
Another Water God Arrow formed instantly.
This time aimed directly at her.
SHOOOOOM.
The projectile crossed the battlefield.
Chella couldn't dodge.
POOM.
Yamato appeared.
He grabbed her shoulder.
Pulled her away.
The arrow missed.
BOOOOOOOM.
The ground behind them vanished beneath an ocean of water.
Lumei moved.
His shadows erupted upward.
Wrapping around Kaku's legs.
"He can't move!"
Kaku immediately tried breaking free.
The shadows tightened.
Then tightened again.
Then again.
Veins bulged across Lumei's body.
Every muscle trembled.
But Kaku remained restrained.
For a moment.
That was enough.
"Chella!"
"Ichiha!"
Yamato shouted.
They moved instantly.
Chella arrived first.
BOOM.
Her fist struck the cracked armor.
CRACK.
Ichiha followed.
"CALAMITY SHOCK!"
His glowing fist slammed into the same point.
Golden energy spread through the fracture.
Weakening.
Draining.
Reducing.
The armor's durability plummeted.
CRACK.
The fracture widened.
BOOM.
Another punch.
CRACK.
Another.
BOOM.
Again.
Again.
Again.
The chest plate finally began collapsing inward.
Kaku's expression changed.
For the first time—
Concern.
Then Yamato moved.
He picked up Ozaki's scythe.
Spun once.
Twice.
Then—
WOOOOOOSH.
The blade carved upward.
CLANG!
The armor split open.
A massive gash tore across Kaku's chest.
Blood exploded from his mouth.
He screamed.
The shadows binding him shattered.
The armor cracked apart.
Everyone prepared to attack again.
Then—
WOOM.
The atmosphere changed.
The world seemed to freeze.
Not literally.
But everything felt slower.
Heavier.
Silent.
Even Kaku stopped moving.
Everyone turned.
Yamato's eyes widened.
"Master Ozaki..."
Ozaki stood.
Blood poured from his body.
His legs shook.
Yet he stood.
Silver light burned within his eyes.
Not the same Silver as before.
Something deeper.
Something colder.
"I wasn't ready."
His voice carried strange authority.
The wind stopped.
The battlefield listened.
"But now..."
Silver ash drifted upward.
"...I am."
He raised his head.
"Let me show you what my god's power truly looks like."
His gaze locked onto Kaku.
"Kowichi's Daylight."
POOOOF.
Silver smoke erupted behind him.
Ashes spiraled upward.
The sky darkened.
Then something appeared.
A silhouette.
Massive.
Ancient.
Impossible.
Nobody could understand what they were seeing.
A demon.
A beast.
A king.
A god.
None of them fit.
Only Kowichi understood.
The creator.
The one who made him.
The Entity.
The Saviour.
The origin of everything tied to his existence.
Ozaki smiled faintly.
"It seems..."
His eyes never left Kaku.
"...I've finally gained enough willpower."
The silver aura intensified.
"...to break your command over Kowichi."
For the first time—
Kaku stepped backward.
Fear entered his eyes.
"What... is that?"
Even Kaku didn't know.
He had never seen the Saviour.
Only served him.
Only felt his presence.
Ozaki extended his hand.
The scythe vibrated violently inside Yamato's grip.
Then shot away.
Ozaki caught it effortlessly.
And swung.
WOOOOOOM.
The pressure alone crushed the battlefield.
Yamato's knee struck the ground.
Sora collapsed flat.
Ichiha slammed face-first into the dirt.
Lumei's forehead struck the earth.
Even Chella's armor shattered completely.
CRACK.
The nearby village crumbled.
Buildings collapsed.
Walls exploded.
The land itself buckled.
This wasn't Prime Power.
This wasn't Ozaki's strongest state.
This was simply—
Auto Kill.
Then laughter echoed.
"Hahahahaha..."
Not Kaku's laughter.
Something else.
Something older.
Something far greater.
"Kowichi..."
The voice alone chilled the battlefield.
Inside Ozaki's realm—
Kowichi lay prostrated.
Face pressed against the ground.
Before a presence infinitely greater than himself.
"My greatest handiwork."
The voice sounded pleased.
"It is good to see you've found a vessel worthy of you."
Kowichi remained silent.
Motionless.
A creation before its creator.
Then the voice spoke again.
"I made a mistake wanting to extract you."
The tone softened.
"You can become greater within him."
A brief pause followed.
Then came the command.
"Kill this fool for me."
Ozaki's body jerked.
His silver eyes dimmed.
As though someone else had stepped inside.
The change was immediate.
His power exploded.
Doubled.
Tripled.
Beyond anything they had felt before.
The air screamed.
The ground cracked.
Reality itself seemed unable to endure his presence.
POOM.
He vanished.
SLASH.
The scythe entered Kaku's skull.
Like paper.
Kaku died instantly.
But Ozaki didn't stop.
SLASH.
The body split apart.
SLASH.
An arm flew away.
SLASH.
The torso collapsed.
SLASH.
The head rolled across the battlefield.
Still—
Ozaki continued.
The corpse exploded apart.
Yet the assault continued.
The scythe rose.
Fell.
Rose.
Fell.
Over and over.
Flesh became pulp.
Bone became powder.
Blood painted the battlefield.
Kaku had already died.
Yet Ozaki continued carving.
Destroying.
Erasing.
As though every trace of his existence needed to disappear.
SLASH.
SLASH.
SLASH.
The battlefield stood silent.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Only the sound of the scythe remained.
SLASH.
SLASH.
SLASH.
A storm of blood and silver.
Then Yamato sighed.
PHEW.
His eyes became pale.
Cold.
Emotionless.
Recovery Rank.
POOM.
He appeared before Ozaki.
The scythe descended, aiming straight to his head.