Sasaki struggled to stand.
His entire body was covered in blood, and every breath felt heavier than the last. Yet somehow, he remained on his feet.
"There's something I've learned while feasting on Darkside Spirits for almost a decade…" Sasaki said, coughing as he wiped the blood from his mouth.
"No matter how strong a Darkside Spirit is, their soft spot is always their head. Cut it off, and the body dies."
He took another breath.
"I made my process of killing Darkside Spirits easier by avoiding long fights. I just… ripped out their throats with my teeth, then took off the rest of their heads with my hands."
Sasaki looked directly at the Ultra Darkside Spirit.
"And I learned a little extra along the way."
He tightened his grip.
"Injuries around the neck take longer to heal than injuries anywhere else."
Sasaki coughed again.
"So… I know I still have a shot at taking you down."
His eyes became sharper.
"And I'm not going to back down easily."
"Oh, Sasaki…"
The Ultra Darkside Spirit slowly raised his head.
"Oh, Sasaki…"
A grin appeared on his face.
"You really hit a nerve with that one, didn't you?"
The injury around his neck had already healed.
His expression completely changed.
"I'm not playing with you anymore, Sasaki."
His voice became cold.
"Whatever mystery lies inside you…"
He lowered his body slightly.
"…is going to die with you right here and right now."
In the next instant....
SWITCH MODE.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit disappeared.
He appeared directly in front of Sasaki.
His knee slammed into Sasaki's torso.
BOOM!
Sasaki was launched backward, smashing through the ground as he stumbled across the battlefield.
Before he could even recover....
The Ultra Darkside Spirit was already there.
BAM!
His fist struck Sasaki's face.
Then another.
And another.
Sasaki collapsed to the ground.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit climbed over him and continued punching.
Sasaki couldn't react.
He couldn't move.
His vision began fading.
The next punch stopped just before his face.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit looked down at him.
"You know what…"
He slowly pulled his fist back.
"I think I have a better idea than killing you instantly."
He stood up.
"I want to see if there's any fight left in you."
He turned away from Sasaki.
"Killing you right now would be less fun."
He began walking toward Alfie and Jackson.
"You see that helpless one right there?"
He pointed toward Jackson.
"The one with the broken knee."
His smile returned.
"I'm going to kill him right in front of you."
He looked back at Sasaki.
"And I'll show you exactly how powerless you are against me."
SWITCH MODE.
He appeared beside Jackson and grabbed him by the head, lifting him off the ground.
Jackson struggled desperately, grinding his teeth as he tried to free himself.
Sasaki remained on the ground.
Barely conscious.
He couldn't move.
But he could still see everything.
No…
No… don't hurt Jackson…
The words stayed trapped inside his mouth.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit laughed.
"I'm going to break every finger in his hand…"
He tightened his grip.
"…and let you hear him scream from all the way over there."
CRACK!
Jackson's middle finger was broken.
"AAAH!"
Jackson cried out in pain as tears rolled down his face.
Sasaki watched helplessly.
Pain filled his eyes.
"Little by little, I'll kill him, Sasaki."
The Ultra Darkside Spirit grabbed another finger.
"And then the other kid is next."
CRACK!
Jackson screamed again.
This time, tears flowed freely as he cried.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit laughed.
"Now I agree."
He looked at Sasaki.
"You really are useless."
"All those Darkside Spirits wasted their Renshi on you."
He shook his head.
"What else should I expect from a human?"
"They're all weaklings."
He grabbed Jackson's arm.
"Now....."
Before he could finish...
Something grabbed his hand.
CRUSH!
The force was so powerful that his hand was torn away from his body.
Jackson dropped to the ground.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit stared at his missing hand.
It regenerated almost immediately.
Slowly, he turned around.
"What…"
A fist made entirely of blood was already flying toward him.
BOOM!
The blood fist smashed directly into his face.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit was sent flying across the battlefield.
The fist was connected to Sasaki.
Blood was flowing around Sasaki's entire body.
It moved like it was alive.
Circling him.
Following his movements.
His injuries slowly began healing.
Sasaki stood.
He controlled the blood around him, forming several blood tendrils that grabbed Jackson and Alfie and pulled them toward him.
He immediately activated his....
Tornado Domain.
A massive tornado formed around them.
"You guys stay here…"
Sasaki looked toward the battlefield.
"I'll end this now."
Jackson was still crying from the pain.
Alfie remained unconscious, standing completely still.
Sasaki reached into his Storage Ring and threw a small vase toward Jackson.
"Put that on your injuries."
Jackson caught it,with his other hand.
"It's some kind of medicine. I don't know exactly what it is."
Sasaki glanced at the vase.
"I used one of these a while ago. I found it inside the Storage Ring."
Jackson immediately opened it.
He poured the liquid over his injured fingers and knee.
Slowly, the pain began to fade, and his injuries started healing.
Outside the domain....
Sasaki jumped out.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit was already walking toward him.
He looked at Sasaki with interest.
"I think something got triggered, Reaper."
He smiled.
"Show me what you can do now."
His eyes narrowed.
"If you're not still useless."
SWITCH MODE!
He appeared directly in front of Sasaki.
His sword came down immediately.
Sasaki created a sword from his own blood.
CLANG!
He blocked.
Another attack came.
CLANG!
Sasaki created another blood sword.
Then another.
Soon, multiple swords made entirely from blood surrounded his body all attached to his body.
They moved together with him.
One blocked.
Another attacked.
Another intercepted a strike from the side.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit attacked again.
Sasaki answered immediately.
Their swords began clashing faster and faster.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Neither gave the other time to breathe.
They disappeared and reappeared across the battlefield, exchanging sword strikes almost too quickly to follow.
Sasaki suddenly pulled the blood around him together.
A massive blood hand formed above the Ultra Darkside Spirit.
It slammed down.
BOOOOM!
The Ultra Darkside Spirit was crushed into the ground.
A massive crater formed beneath him.
Sasaki didn't give him a chance to recover.
The blood forming the giant hand rushed back toward Sasaki.
He immediately shaped it into two enormous swords.
He grabbed both.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit stood.
Sasaki attacked.
CLANG!
The Ultra blocked.
Sasaki swung again.
The Ultra dodged.
Sasaki's second sword came from the opposite side.
The Ultra blocked again.
They vanished.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Strike after strike.
They switched positions again and again, moving across the battlefield for minutes.
This time, Sasaki was matching the Ultra Darkside Spirit's speed.
He was matching his strength.
The battle was completely balanced.
Sasaki suddenly created dozens of shurikens from his blood.
They formed behind him.
Then....
They launched.
From every direction.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit was forced backward.
The blood shurikens came from above, below, and both sides.
He created multiple bone swords in mid-air.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The bone swords intercepted the shurikens one after another.
"Now you're making an impression, Sasaki!"
The Ultra Darkside Spirit laughed.
"I'm sooooo moved!"
SWITCH MODE!
He appeared closer.
Sasaki immediately continued attacking.
The Ultra created even more bone swords.
Blood shurikens and bone blades collided across the battlefield.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The Ultra suddenly disappeared.
He appeared behind Sasaki.
He swung his sword for a surprise attack.
Sasaki sensed him at the last moment.
SWITCH MODE!
Sasaki vanished.
He appeared several meters away in the direction the Ultra had just come from.
But.....
He didn't realize it was a trap.
The ground beneath him suddenly exploded.
A massive skeleton dragon burst out of the earth.
Its enormous jaws opened wide.
Sasaki immediately reacted.
Tiny tornadoes formed beneath both of his feet.
WHOOSH!
He shot upward.
The skeleton dragon chased him.
Its enormous body twisted through the air as it followed Sasaki with frightening speed.
Its jaws opened.
A massive concentrated Renshi attack blasted toward him.
BOOOOM!
Sasaki dodged.
The attack hit the ground below, creating a huge crater.
Another blast came.
Sasaki flew sideways.
Another.
He zigzagged through the air, avoiding each attack as the battlefield below was torn apart by the impacts.
Then....
The Ultra Darkside Spirit appeared directly in front of him.
He attacked.
Sasaki immediately created blood swords to intercept the incoming strikes.
But now he had two enemies attacking him at once.
He focused on the skeleton dragon.
He swung his sword repeatedly.
Concentrated Renshi slashes flew toward the dragon.
The dragon easily avoided them.
Then it opened its mouth again.
Another massive Renshi blast came straight toward Sasaki.
Sasaki was forced backward.
The Ultra attacked from the other side.
Sasaki blocked.
The dragon attacked.
Sasaki dodged.
The Ultra attacked again.
Sasaki blocked.
He was being pushed from both sides.
The skeleton dragon continued firing concentrated Renshi from its mouth while the Ultra kept attacking him at close range.
Sasaki flew around the battlefield, avoiding attack after attack.
Then....
An idea came to him.
He suddenly stopped running.
He turned toward the massive skeleton dragon.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit appeared on the opposite side.
His sword was already coming toward Sasaki's neck.
Sasaki remained completely still in mid-air.
His face became serious.
The skeleton dragon opened its massive mouth.
It was ready to swallow him.
The Ultra's sword came closer.
Closer.
Closer.
At the exact moment the sword was about to reach Sasaki.....
SWITCH MODE!
Sasaki disappeared.
The Ultra's sword continued forward.
SLASH!
It cut straight through the giant skeleton dragon.
The massive creature was sliced apart.
Sasaki immediately appeared beside the Ultra Darkside Spirit.
Tiny tornadoes formed beneath his feet.
He attacked.
The Ultra blocked.
Sasaki attacked again.
The Ultra countered.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
They exchanged swords at incredible speed once again.
"I really underestimated you, Sasaki."
The Ultra Darkside Spirit grinned as their swords continued clashing.
"Now you're proving your worth."
Sasaki didn't answer.
He suddenly threw one of his swords high into the sky.
The Ultra noticed it.
But he didn't care.
Sasaki continued fighting with his remaining sword.
Both hands gripped the weapon.
Every swing became stronger than the last.
The Ultra continued blocking.
He wasn't concerned about the sword Sasaki had thrown upward.
Then...
A massive shadow covered the last remaining sunlight.
The sun was already setting.
The Ultra slowly looked upward.
His eyes widened.
A gigantic red sword was falling from the sky.
It was enormous.
And it was coming straight toward him at incredible speed.
BOOOOM!
The Ultra immediately used Switch Mode.
He disappeared.
But the giant sword followed.
He switched again.
The sword followed him.
Again.
And again.
The Ultra kept switching across the battlefield, trying to escape the attack.
But the giant sword continued following him.
Finally....
It caught him.
BOOOOOOM!
The giant red sword slammed into the ground with tremendous force.
A massive shockwave spread across the entire battlefield.
The mountains shook.
The nearby forest trembled.
Dust and debris filled the air.
Sasaki remained levitating above the battlefield.
He stared down at the enormous cloud of dust.
He waited.
Then he looked toward his Tornado Domain.
It was still rotating.
Alfie and Jackson were safe inside.
Sasaki let out a quiet breath.
At least they're okay.
The battlefield became silent.
The sun had completely disappeared.
Darkness covered the land.
Only the moon illuminated the battlefield.
Then....
"Well… well…"
A calm voice echoed through the darkness.
Sasaki's eyes widened.
The dust slowly began to disappear.
A figure stood inside the crater.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit.
Still standing.
"Who could have thought…"
His voice remained calm.
"…a human would push me to my limit."
Sasaki stared at him.
Impossible…
How did he survive that attack?
The Ultra slowly raised his head.
His eyes locked onto Sasaki.
"You've been fighting with my outer self all this time."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"And now…"
His aura began to rise.
"…it's time to fight me, Sasaki."
He tightened his grip around his sword.
"Let me show you what an Ultra Darkside Spirit looks like…"
His smile disappeared.
"…when he's not holding anything back."