8:30.
A fine drizzle began falling from the sky.
Rohan Kishibe glanced at his watch. It was almost the appointed time. Through the rearview mirror, he saw Jotaro Kujo and Koichi Hirose turning the corner.
Rohan pushed open the door, got out of the car, and greeted the two of them.
Jotaro gave him a slight nod, while Koichi waved his arm with a smile.
Just then, Rohan heard a scream of agony from Kira Yoshikage. He turned his head and happened to see a bloody half tooth fall to the ground.
Noticing Rohan's shocked expression, Jotaro and Koichi jogged over. Following his line of sight, the three of them saw,
Kira Yoshikage being mercilessly beaten by marble after marble.
In the original story, it was Rohan Kishibe and Jotaro who arrived at this intersection, one after another.
The more people there were, the more unfavorable it was for Ryosuke. He had thought he could, before Jotaro and Koichi arrived, force Kira Yoshikage to withdraw Killer Queen. But now it seemed…
"Luck" was still standing on Kira Yoshikage's side.
Marble after marble slammed into Kira Yoshikage. He curled up his body, and through the gaps of his arms, he looked at the approaching Jotaro and the others. His head was bloodied, yet he laughed wildly.
8:31.
Sensing something abnormal, and with two reliable companions by his side, Rohan Kishibe chose to activate Heaven's Door to read Ryosuke's memories.
The three of them learned Kira Yoshikage's identity together.
A soul-shattering explosion resounded.
Rohan Kishibe, Jotaro, and Koichi died.
Second cycle.
Ryosuke returned to 7:31.
He stood before the window, reviewing the process of the first loop.
"It's not just a matter of luck."
Ryosuke would not attribute everything to "fortune."
The logic of Plan One had no problem, it was the execution where flaws appeared.
If only this body were sturdier, if his arm strength were just a bit stronger, there was a chance he could have reached Rohan Kishibe in time, or killed Kira Yoshikage before Bites the Dust was activated.
Ryosuke looked up at the ceiling.
'What about using Stray Cat?'
After a moment of thought, Ryosuke slowly shook his head.
Stray Cat's killing power was indeed greater than the marbles Ryosuke threw.
But its speed was slower, and it carried too many uncontrollable variables.
Now that Rohan Kishibe, Jotaro, and Koichi had been hit, in the following cycles, according to the inevitability of fate, they would die at 8,31.
Which meant, they could no longer be used to set up the "gamble." Otherwise, at the crucial moment, these three would drop offline, leaving only Ryosuke and Kira Yoshikage staring at each other.
Once Kira Yoshikage withdrew Killer Queen, Ryosuke would be the one to die.
As for Josuke and the Great Genius, who would arrive half a step later…
Ryosuke couldn't easily "burn through" them.
They were the last trump cards and final line of defense.
If Josuke and the Great Genius were also killed by Bites the Dust, then the next to die would be Ryosuke.
"Let's try Plan Two."
After summarizing the situation of the first cycle, Ryosuke, under the call of Kawajiri Shinobu, pushed open the bedroom door and walked out.
Kira Yoshikage was still grooming himself before the mirror, humming a little tune, until, his eyes met Ryosuke's.
Kira Yoshikage remained as sharp as ever. The corners of his mouth curved into a smile as his wary gaze drew closer. He lowered his voice and said, "Did someone just get killed by Bites the Dust? Who was it? Was it..."
Before he could finish, Ryosuke slapped his hand away, grabbed the bread from the table, and ran out of the house.
Behind him echoed Kira Yoshikage's arrogant laughter.
Perhaps in his view, Bites the Dust was an invincible ability.
An ability that would, in each cycle, kill all enemies unfavorable to him.
But what Kira Yoshikage didn't expect was, Ryosuke hadn't gone far.
8:15.
At a street corner, Ryosuke found several bullies who were mugging students.
"You guys will do."
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Marbles flew. The bullies were knocked to the ground.
Ryosuke approached the children being mugged, then said to the bullies,
'My name is Hayato Kawajiri, I'm eleven years old, and there's a man named 'Kira Yoshikage' pretending to be my father, living in my house.'
This was the Plan Two Ryosuke envisioned.
Since Bites the Dust could rewind one hour, and since Kira Yoshikage had awakened this new ability just last night, did that mean Ryosuke could card the timing, keep rewinding back, until he reached the point before Kira Yoshikage was shot by the Arrow and gained Bites the Dust?
The theory held. The experiment began.
The big pink cat appeared again. With a thunderous boom, Bites the Dust activated.
A heavy pressure struck. Ryosuke felt as if he had fallen into an abyss. He closed his eyes, waited for the crushing weight to fade, then opened them to look at the alarm clock.
7:30.
Not the expected 7:15. Time had not rewound further.
Third cycle.
Ryosuke walked out of his room. First to the kitchen, where, under Shinobu Kawajiri's surprised gaze, he took the teapot, grabbed a cup, sat at the table, and poured himself hot tea.
Kira Yoshikage and Ryosuke locked eyes again. His smug expression quickly faded. He leaned closer, just about to say something snide.
Ryosuke pressed his index finger to his lips.
"Shhh~"
"Go away, I'm thinking."
Blue veins twitched on Kira Yoshikage's forehead. He wanted to slap this brat, but for some reason, every time he thought about raising his hand, his front tooth throbbed faintly with pain.
Plan One and Plan Two, these were the breaking methods Ryosuke had envisioned before, under the assumption of "what if I became Hayato."
But plans were, after all, just plans.
When designing them, Ryosuke had used Momoko's physical fitness as a template.
After all, the two were about the same age.
But actually becoming Hayato, he realized how exaggerated the physical abilities of kids in the Naruto world were. The gap between the two was just too big.
'Could it be there really is no way?'
Ryosuke sipped his tea, deep in thought. After breakfast, he shouldered his school bag as usual and stepped out the door.
As fate had already set, Kira Yoshikage put a hat on his head.
"Thanks," Ryosuke said.
Kira Yoshikage's mouth twitched as he once again followed behind Ryosuke. Only, seeing Ryosuke walking with his head lowered the whole way, Kira's hunched back slowly straightened again.
He thought he had bluffed the boy.
This kid clearly had experienced several time reversals, and his mindset had improved somewhat.
But the fact that he still couldn't find a breaking method, that's why he kept his head down, lost in thought.
Kira Yoshikage silently closed in behind Ryosuke, narrowing his eyes as he spoke, "This morning… has already repeated many times, hasn't it?"
"Let me guess, who did you blow up?"
"Rohan Kishibe? Jotaro Kujo? Or maybe…"
"All of them?"
Kira Yoshikage smiled. The laugh was neither loud nor arrogant, but it carried an undeniable smugness.
He glanced down at his watch.
8:22.
"How exciting. Let me see then, who exactly did you blow up?"
Suddenly, the long-silent Ryosuke lifted his head.
"You won't see it."
"What?"
"Because I've thought of a way to deal with you."
Ryosuke slowly raised his head, "As long as I find that person, it will be the key to breaking Bites the Dust."
Kira Yoshikage saw the certainty in Ryosuke's expression. His heart felt as though it had been gripped by a giant hand.
He was just about to speak, when he saw Ryosuke casually grab a passing woman, pointing with his small hand,
"He is Kira Yoshikage."
Bites the Dust activated.
Kira Yoshikage instantly realized what Ryosuke was doing, forcing the rewind.
As long as he killed some random passerby whom Kira Yoshikage didn't care about, Ryosuke could rewind to this same morning again and again.
Endless repetition meant endless chances for thought, planning, and experimentation.
They were both sucked into the abyss of Bites the Dust.
Kira Yoshikage roared in panic, "Bastard! What do you take human lives for?!"
"For the chips to take you down."
Ryosuke pointed at Kira Yoshikage, "Before all the deaths happen, I'll drag you into the deepest despair."
Fourth cycle, begin.
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