**Chapter 1: The Ash Between Worlds**
The sky cracked open like shattered glass. From the tear above the forest, ash rained down — glowing faintly with an eerie blue light. **Aiki** stood beneath it, his sword drawn, eyes locked on the figure emerging from the smoke. The smell of burnt earth filled the air, and the silence before the storm made every heartbeat louder.
"Guess he's really here," **Enji** muttered beside him, spinning his staff and grinning despite the tension. "Seno, the Ash Reaper… the guy who turned half the capital into dust."
A dark laugh echoed. **Seno** stepped forward, cloak flickering like flame. "You make it sound so dramatic. I only wanted to see what happens when the world forgets what mercy looks like." His eyes found Aiki's. "And you… you're still pretending to be a hero?"
Aiki didn't answer. His hand tightened on the hilt of his blade — the **Spirit Edge**, humming softly with the trapped voice of a forgotten god. Behind him, **Sakura** knelt, sketching glowing runes in the dirt. "Barrier's almost ready," she said. "But if he moves faster than last time—"
"He won't," interrupted **Sen**, stepping forward, his chain blades rattling with each movement. "He's all talk. Watch me—"
Before Sen could finish, Seno vanished. The air itself twisted. A black claw tore through the ground, sending Sen flying back into a tree. Enji barely had time to raise a shield spell as the blast hit, cracking the ground like thunder.
Aiki's eyes flared gold. "Everyone—fall back!" He swung his sword, unleashing a wave of radiant energy that clashed against Seno's darkness midair. The impact sent a shockwave rippling through the clearing — light and shadow battling in silence for a moment that felt eternal.
When the dust settled, Seno stood smirking. "That's more like it, Aiki. Show me what the Spirit Edge can really do. Or… has it already started whispering to you too?"
For a second, Aiki hesitated — his hand trembling as the blade's glow dimmed. From deep inside the sword, a voice whispered, *Let me out…*
Sakura gasped. "Aiki—don't listen to it!"
Aiki gritted his teeth. "I'm not. Not yet." Then, with a faint grin toward his team, he said, "Enji, Sen, Sakura… let's show him that we're not the same kids from two years ago."
As the storm above reignited and Seno's dark aura thickened, the four of them rushed forward — blades, spells, and light colliding with shadow in a blur of chaos. And for the first time in a long while, Aiki smiled. Because even facing a monster like Seno… they were fighting *together.*