The moment Kenta's words settled, whatever restraint remained in Hanko snapped completely.
Flames erupted from his body with a violent surge, far brighter than before, shifting in color as they intensified. The orange glow deepened into something harsher, tinged with a burning red that pulsed like a heartbeat. Heat flooded the already burning third floor, distorting the air so heavily it felt like the room itself was melting.
Hanko's breathing came out ragged and uneven. His remaining eye burned with fury. Then he charged. No precision this time. No restraint. Just raw, violent intent.
Kenta's eyes narrowed slightly as he reacted, his hands moving instinctively. Ice surged upward again, forming a thick wall between them as he pushed off the ground and leapt back, creating space.
Hanko didn't slow. Didn't adjust. He drove straight into it. His arm ignited brighter, flames condensing tightly around it before exploding outward in a concentrated blast. The red-tinted fire slammed into the ice wall with overwhelming force.
The wall didn't hold. It shattered instantly. Ice exploded outward in every direction, shards ripping through the air as the force of the blast tore through not just the barrier but also the weakened structure behind it. The back wall of the third floor collapsed completely.
Wood splintered. Debris flew outward into open air. For a moment, sunlight poured through the destruction, clashing against the smoke and fire inside. Kenta moved through it.
His arms surged with frost again, thicker this time, heavier. Ice layered over his fists in dense formations, growing larger, more concentrated. Without hesitation, he drove both fists upward.
The ceiling cracked. Then broke. Kenta punched a hole straight through it and launched himself upward, his body shooting through the final barrier of the brothel. Hanko's head snapped up. Rage twisted his features.
"RUNNING?!" he roared.
He thrust his arm upward, gathering another massive surge of that red-hot flame before unleashing it in a towering blast that shot straight through the roof. The top of the brothel exploded apart.
Wood and tiles shattered outward as the blast tore a massive opening into the sky. Kenta was already above it. But barely. The flames chased him upward, close enough that he could feel the heat biting at his back. His body twisted mid-air as he pulled from another source, a sudden burst of wind surging beneath him.
The air shifted. Boosted him higher. Just enough. The flames missed him by inches, roaring past and dissipating into the open sky.
For a brief moment, there was nothing but blue above him. Open sky and sunlight shining through.
Then, Hanko burst through. Flames erupted from beneath his feet, propelling him upward at terrifying speed. His ascent was explosive and chaotic, leaving a trail of heat and distortion in his wake as he shot toward Kenta like a missile.
They met in the air. Again. No ground beneath them now. No walls. No limits. Their clash echoed through the sky.
Kenta's ice-covered fists struck first, colliding against Hanko's blazing arms. The impact sent a shockwave outward, rippling through the air as frost and flame exploded on contact.
They didn't stop. They couldn't. Blow after blow came in rapid succession, their bodies moving at speeds that blurred their forms against the bright daylight.
From below Hemlock stood among the crowd, his eyes fixed upward. The evacuees had gathered in the street, along with others drawn in by the destruction. Workers, patrons, and passersby from nearby streets.
All of them stared. Some in awe. Others in fear. Even streets away, people stopped, looking up at the sky where the battle unfolded in flashes of movement and bursts of light.
It all happened so fast. Within seconds. Each clash sent shockwaves that rolled across rooftops, rattling windows and stirring dust through the streets.
Above, Hanko pressed harder. His flames burned brighter, larger, and wilder with each strike. But something had changed. His fury had overtaken him completely. His movements lost their precision. His strikes, once sharp and controlled, became erratic and sloppy.
Kenta noticed immediately and adapted. He moved cleaner. Each dodge is minimal. Each counter is direct. Hanko swung; Kenta slipped past and drove a fist into his ribs.
Hanko lashed out again; Kenta twisted, bringing his elbow down across Hanko's shoulder. Again. Again. Again. Hanko's attacks kept coming faster, louder, and more desperately. But they missed. Most of them. While Kenta's strikes landed. One after another.
The difference grew. Then Kenta shifted midair, using a subtle burst of wind beneath him to rise just slightly higher. Above Hanko. Just enough. Hanko lunged upward but proved too slow. Kenta struck.
A flurry of blows rained down on Hanko's midsection, each impact heavy, precise, and reinforced with dense ice. The strikes drove into his stomach, his ribs, forcing the air from his lungs in broken bursts.
Hanko's body jerked with each hit. His flames flickered. Kenta didn't stop. He brought both hands together. Then drove them down. A two-handed palm strike. Directly into Hanko's chest. The impact cracked through the air like thunder. Hanko's eyes widened—
Then his body dropped. Fast and uncontrolled.
Blood burst from his mouth as he was sent plummeting downward, his form tearing through the air before crashing back into the brothel below with a violent explosion of wood and debris.
The building couldn't take it. Not anymore. Kenta hovered for just a second longer. Breathing heavily now. His arms lowered slightly as the ice began to crack and melt away. He let out a long, exhausted sigh.
Then he fell. Back toward the shaky ground of the brothel below. The building finally gave way. The combined force of their impacts, the fire, the structural damage—
It all reached its limit. The building began to collapse in on itself. First the upper levels. Then the middle. Wood snapped. Beams gave out. The entire structure crumbled, folding inward before crashing down completely in a massive collapse. Dust exploded outward into the streets, a thick cloud swallowing the remains of the building.
The sound echoed through the city before a slow silence fell. The brothel was gone. Reduced to rubble. Debris scattered across the ground, smoke rising faintly from the remains as small fires flickered and died beneath the weight of the collapse.
From within the wreckage, a body lay still. It was Hanko. Impaled through the torso by a broken beam, his body slumped awkwardly against the debris. His face was bloodied, one eye gone, the other lifeless. Blood stained his mouth, his chest unmoving.
No breath. No movement. He was dead.
Outside the rubble, Hemlock stood, staring. The crowd remained frozen. Watching.
Then, from the highest pile of debris, something moved. Wood shifted. Then burst apart. Kenta emerged slowly. His body was battered, covered in blood and dust, his robes torn and scorched. He climbed out of the rubble with a strained motion, one arm pushing debris aside before he finally stepped free.
For a moment, he raised his arm. Then let it fall. His breathing was heavy but controlled. He looked out at the crowd. At Hemlock. Then his gaze shifted. Landing on Hanko's body. He stared at it for a moment. Then after a quiet moment he spoke.
"Looks like I didn't give you the quick death I promised."
His voice was calm and low.
"I'm alright with that."
Another moment passed as his eyes lingered on the corpse.
"This suits you better."