Fūre inhaled deeply, feeling the weight of the saturated air fill his lungs. He pressed his palm firmly against the shell, fingers splayed.
"Forty percent. Shank."
The mist above the dome collapsed inward, droplets coalescing and surging downward. The shell's surface turned slick under his hand, then soft, then suddenly transformed into thick mud. His arm plunged through with almost no resistance, driving toward the figure within.
A jagged spear of stone erupted through Fūre's torso, bursting upward with the desperate force of a cornered animal—Takumi's confident gambit, defensively aggressive. But where flesh and bone should have yielded, the stone passed harmlessly through swirling tendrils of vapor. Fūre's form rippled like disturbed water, then reformed, his extended arm never wavering from its lethal trajectory. His entire forearm, strengthened to that of a spear, found it's mark with surgical accuracy, sliding between Takumi's ribs and puncturing deep into the tissue and innards beneath.
Fūregen felt the resistance of Takumi's cocoon yield to the pressure of his mist, the water content well above 45%. The guard's eyes widened in shock, mouth open in a silent gasp. Fūregen watched impassively as Takumi's fingers scrabbled at the arm impaling him, the once-confident stone shell now a crumbling prison.
Takumi convulsed, pain etching his features, the fight draining from his eyes. Fūregen felt a flicker of respect, but it was quickly extinguished. This was no time for sentiment.
The earthen cocoon collapsed with a wet thud, mud splattering across the obsidian floor. For a moment, only the soft drip of water and the hiss of settling mist filled the arena.
Then, with desperate speed, Takumi twisted away and burrowed into the ground, disappearing beneath the arena floor. Fūre's hand remained briefly lodged in the earth, trapped by the sudden shift.
Resilient, at least. But so— unremarkable.
Fūre stood immobilized, his arm caught in suddenly hardening mud, left only waiting for what would come next.
___
"The men and women in charge of this world FEAR our strength. " Haruto's voice was stained with a certain bit of disappointment. Pinning Kamo and Nagitsu to the ground, Haruto took it as the perfect time for a lecture. "What do you think you idiot rebels do by executing such classless operations? Other than proving them right. Proving that such power, without regulation and direction, is nothing more than a threat to society."
Kamo glared at Haruto with gritted teeth. But he did not respond
So what? We're just supposed to be slaves for their amusement, so they can feel safe. Why the hell should their comfort matter more than my life?
It wouldn't be the most difficult task to summon a soldier and free kamo from this oppressive pressure. But Kamo didn't want to think so linear.
If this keeps up, we're dead. Both of us.Even with his recent growth, the ability to fully control up to two shadow clones, down to the motor function, was near useless against such an ability. The current fight required range. It required probing.
He didn't believe in that equal-strength must have an equal-weakness agenda. But he didn't despair enough to call this hopeless either. He couldn't see it as hopeless. If I can't handle someone like Haruto, I have no business aiming higher.
"You aren't the first rebel group," Haruto continued, increasing the pressure just enough to make Kamo wince. "I doubt you're even the strongest—maybe the boldest. But your boldness comes from him." He jerked his chin toward Fūregen, who was still engaged with Takumi across the arena. "Not even your own ability."
Kamo's muscles strained against the invisible force pinning him down. The weight felt uneven, concentrated on his chest and shoulders while his legs remained relatively free.
"But even then, this rebellion doesn't scare our kings. I can regrettably admit, it reassures them—they're needed." Haruto's voice dropped lower, almost conversational. "Right now, there are Kynenn that aren't under neither our regulation, nor yours. Purposeless, just trying to survive. Robbing, killing, scaring the public and wearing our police force thin."
"But they're less than your group, they have no unified goal, no selfless hill to die for." Haruto's lip curled with disgust. "Which is even worse than this pitiful, cowardly group you've brought to me... in attempt to assassinate our kings."
Kamo listened intently, surveying the room even still. None of team B dared to move, their numbers hadn't thinned any more in the short time of the sequence. But fear still seemed to paralyze him. Kamo was however, curious about what possibly made Haruto feel so high and mighty so convicted to 'teach' him anything.
"You're not a liberator," Haruto continued, his eyes boring into Kamo's. "Just another reckless pawn who makes things worse for everyone."
He took yet another seemingly deliberate pause, as if he were planning as he spoke instead of simply speaking freely.
"Real change would demand more than violence and rage," Haruto said, his voice suddenly heavy with what sounded almost like genuine regret. "It would demand discipline, vision, and sacrifice you and your leader clearly lack."
The guard sighed, shaking his head. "I'm tired of watching fools like you play at hero and martyr, while the world gets worse for it. Because every wasted potential, every rebel who thinks breaking things is enough, is another excuse for our kings to hold tighter."
The constant mentions of Fure made Kamo nearly roll his eyes behind his mask. You wouldn't run your mouth like that if he was standing here.
Something in Haruto's tone shifted, becoming strangely personal. "But I will say this, boy. You have potential. I wouldn't lie and claim that I would nurture it, but I'm almost disappointed. In a sense, I can see myself in you."
Kamo's eyes narrowed at this unexpected turn.
"Can't exactly put my finger on the reason for that, but I can tell we think somewhat alike. I know you agree with me to an extent." Haruto's expression softened fractionally. "And not that this fact will change any outcome of this battle, but I must admit I have taken a certain level of this personally. Unusual as that is for me."
Kamo agreed with that statement. while they had differing outlooks, the core beliefs were in fact similar. A system that respected power, the ability to inflict violence. No concept, more or less, had any similar significance.
" I regret what I have to—" Haruto peaked over to his subordinate's fight with Kamo's leader, after hearing the wrenching yelp that Fure'd invoked from the man. Fure's arm seemingly had driven directly through his side. Haruto, Kamo, and Nagitsu paused any thought movement, and even breath. Squinting to make sure they'd seen properly through the thick mist.
Kamo had little hesitation before his confidence in circumstance skyrocketed.
"People like you, like that delude themselves, thinking they're important. But against someone like… it's pointless." Kamo had a thick smirk on his face, though he couldn't prove himself in the sense he wanted.
He felt nothing but pride in his leader, his master. His lord. Of course, he'd cut that man down like nothing. It's obvious what he is, even to those who've never met him: a force beyond reproach. Only fools defy the inevitable. The world bends to Furegen's will.
"Please, don't compare me to Takumi"
Those were the only words Haruto muttered back, before almost ignoring Kamo, and Nagitsu's existence, he revered them similarly to that of squashed insects. While from where Kamo lay, Furegen's arm seemed to be struck in the ground.
The pressure on his body lightened. Dramatically, but only for a short time, in the next instant Fure's body had been sprawled across the lobby.
"Bingo." The white-haired guard let out.