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With one hand, he blocked the Black Tiger boss's broadsword using a kunai. His other hand grabbed the man's collar. He hooked his foot forward—and BANG!—the Black Tiger boss was slammed headfirst into the ground by Hayata Hayato in a brutal suplex.
CRACK!
A sharp snap of bone echoed out. The boss of the Black Tiger Gang didn't even have time to react before Hayato smashed his head into the ground so hard, his neck snapped instantly. He was dead.
Yup. Just like that, the head honcho who ruled these streets was killed on the spot by Hayato.
"Boss!"
"Kill him! Kill that bastard!"
"The boss is dead!"
"Get that punk! Avenge the boss!"
The remaining Black Tiger gang members were stunned for a second, then snapped into action, screaming as they rushed Hayato from all sides. Whether they were truly loyal or just using the boss's death as an excuse to climb the ranks didn't matter. Everyone was charging at Hayato.
Hayato frowned slightly, but this reaction was exactly what he expected. No surprises here. He just tightened his grip on his kunai—and charged straight into the mob.
Ever since awakening the Hulk's bloodline, Hayato's strength and speed had increased dramatically. But what had improved the most were his stamina and healing ability. So facing this kind of group assault didn't scare or worry him one bit.
Every time he swung his kunai, someone dropped—and they stayed down for good.
But the truth was, Hayato's current combat power was still only about as strong as a genin (low-rank ninja). Sure, he outperformed them in some ways, but he didn't know any ninjutsu. So when it came to killing, he had to rely on pure hand-to-hand combat. And the enemy had numbers on their side.
No matter how good Hayato was, there were bound to be some hits he couldn't dodge.
Shlick!
Someone slashed his back. Blood immediately poured out and stained his shirt. But Hayato just flinched, turned around, and sliced his attacker's neck halfway through with a clean swing of his kunai.
Slash! Another cut, this time under his ribs. Gritting his teeth, Hayato grabbed the guy's arm before he could pull it back, yanked him in, and plunged his kunai deep into the man's chest with a sickening thunk.
One after another, people fell—and they weren't getting back up.
By now, Hayato looked like a walking corpse, drenched in blood from head to toe. His injuries looked brutal—but the truth was, most of his wounds were already healing.
They'd stopped bleeding. What looked deadly on the outside was actually a lot less serious. Hayato was still in fighting shape.
"A-A demon… This guy's a freakin' demon!"
"A monster! You can't kill him!"
Some of the gang members finally realized something wasn't right. Hayato looked hurt, but his movements hadn't slowed at all.
If anything, he was getting better at killing with each strike. Bodies littered the ground around him, scattered like broken dolls—every single one taken down by Hayato's hand.
Finally, some of the Black Tiger thugs started to panic.
"Running away? You think I'll let you run?" Hayato growled, a cold smile spreading across his blood-streaked face. His eyes were full of rage and cruelty.
Even though his wounds kept healing, the pain still gnawed at him, feeding his fury. If he hadn't already killed every person who hurt him and vented some of that anger, he'd have already transformed into the Hulk and gone on a full-blown rampage.
"Monster? Heh…"
Hayato tried to suppress the rage building up inside him, tried to let it out bit by bit—but it kept growing, boiling over.
"RRRAAAHHH!!!"
A furious, bestial roar tore from Hayato's throat—and in the blink of an eye, he transformed.
He became a towering green giant, over two meters tall. The kunai in his hand bent out of shape as he crushed it in his massive green fist.
BOOM!
One punch. Just one punch—and two gang members were sent flying, crashing hard into the ground.
They were dead before they hit the pavement. Their bodies were completely wrecked, twisted in unnatural shapes like they'd been hit by a speeding truck. Barely a bone left unbroken.
It was to be expected. Even a trained ninja might not survive a punch like that—these guys were just thugs, barely stronger than regular people.
"AAAAAH! Monster! Run!"
"Help! Somebody help!"
"Don't come any closer!"
At that moment, all the leftover thugs from the Black Tiger gang completely lost it. They dropped their weapons, turned tail, and ran like hell.
But it was useless.
Even full-blown jōnin (elite ninja) might not be able to escape from Hayato in this state. These small-time grunts? Not a chance.
"....."