"The fox spirits lose…? The shrine spirits couldn't even deal with this Cursed Spirit?"
Miko's heart beat faster and faster.
"Eh?! This lighting and shadow look so good, I feel like the photos will turn out amazing!"
"Miko, let's take a picture."
Hana, with her usual bold heart, had completely forgotten about the sudden gust of wind from earlier. She pulled Miko along to take a photo with their backs to the Torii Gate.
But through Hana's phone, Miko saw a colossal figure even more terrifying than the Cursed Spirit appear behind it.
"That's..."
*Click!*
The frame froze, and Hana looked at her phone excitedly.
However, she suddenly noticed something strange.
Why were there so many strange patterns appearing on Miko's face?
Hana turned her head, only to hear Miko cry out in alarm.
"Hana, hide, quickly!"
As the words fell, incantations completely crawled up Miko's cheeks, and a second pair of eyes slowly opened.
*Crack, crack, crack...*
Akuto cracked his neck and grinned with a cruel smile.
"I finally caught you."
*Boom!*
Air currents surged. Hana didn't even have time to wonder why Miko's voice had suddenly changed, because two air currents collided, nearly knocking her over.
Hana looked forward suspiciously.
From all directions, a pale yellow transparent barrier was slowly closing, eventually forming a hemispherical dome in the air, enveloping the entire mountain.
Then, Hana looked forward in shock.
An ugly monster, a giant hairless fox, and the incantations on Miko's face.
"This... what is going on..."
No matter how thick-skinned Hana was, she couldn't ignore this scene that defied common sense.
"Let me see what's hidden in this filthy place."
Akuto completely ignored the two Cursed Spirits, turning to size up the shrine before stepping towards its interior.
*Hiss!!*
The hairless fox let out a screech, its head suddenly splitting into several parts. It bit the Cursed Spirit in one mouthful and tossed its head, tearing it to shreds.
Then, ignoring the Cursed Spirit, it charged toward Akuto like it had gone mad.
"Miko, watch out!"
Hana's warning was purely out of instinct.
By now, the giant fox was already beside Akuto. It held its hands out as palms in front of it, and a bright light condensed in its palms.
*Whoosh!*
Air currents surged as energy light whistled toward Akuto like a bullet leaving a barrel.
Akuto didn't even turn his head; he just reached out a hand behind him.
*Boom!!!*
A terrifying heatwave caused the trees within a kilometer to shake violently.
But Akuto blocked it with just one hand.
The next moment, two Fox-manikins appeared at Akuto's side. One delivered a whip kick while the other threw a straight punch, moving so fast they were mere afterimages.
Akuto remained calm, merely extending one hand.
*Thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack...*
The sound of dense punches and kicks echoed.
With just one hand, Akuto's defense was impenetrable.
"How boring."
*Whoosh!*
Akuto's figure suddenly vanished.
The big fox looked around in terror, trying to find Akuto's position.
The next instant, Akuto appeared behind the big fox's head and brought down a violent whip kick.
*Bang!*
The big fox's head instantly exploded!
But in just a flash, the big fox's head grew back again.
The two Fox-manikins seemed stunned, only reacting now. They raised their hands simultaneously and clenched them into fists.
Akuto felt a terrifying gravity manifest around his body.
*Boom!*
Spiderweb-like cracks were smashed into the ground.
The dust cleared.
Akuto stood in the center of the cracks.
"Does it have a suppression effect on Cursed Spirits?" Akuto clenched his fists and grinned. "Now this is getting interesting."
The shrine fell into a dead silence; no insects chirped, and no birds sang.
Suddenly!
The big fox smashed a heavy punch toward Akuto.
*Rumble!!!*
Akuto raised his arm to parry. The ground fractured layer by layer like ice, and the terrifying gale snapped all the nearby trees.
Just then, a bright light surfaced on the big fox's fist.
"Hmm?"
*Whoosh!*
Akuto's figure vanished abruptly. The next moment, the bright light exploded, vaporizing the stone pavement entirely.
The big fox was just about to look for Akuto when he appeared beside its head, holding his index and middle fingers up toward it.
"Dismantle!"
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!*
*Slash!*
Several slashes sliced through the big fox's body.
But immediately after, following a burst of golden light, the big fox recovered visibly to the naked eye.
Then, the big fox reached out toward Akuto.
Akuto also threw a heavy punch.
*Boom! Boom!*
Two completely different attacks roared. The big fox was sent flying backward like a cannonball by Akuto's punch.
Akuto was also sent flying as a blur by a force similar to an air cannon.
*Boom, boom, boom, boom!!*
The two monsters crashed into the forest, kicking up clouds of dust and toppling countless trees.
Akuto bounced off the ground several times, his body continuously bursting and being repaired by the Reverse Cursed Technique.
After a second of dead silence.
The next moment, Akuto and the big fox charged at each other simultaneously.
Two black shadows collided violently!
*Boom!*
Their fists met, and the resulting air current made Akuto's clothes flutter loudly.
The two separated briefly. Akuto stood on the tip of a tree and made a slight motion with his finger.
*Slash, slash, slash!*
The big fox, along with the little foxes and the surrounding trees, was all sliced cleanly.
The big fox recovered quickly, but the little foxes and the trees were not spared.
*Whoosh!*
The big fox erupted with extreme speed, reaching out to grab Akuto as if to crush him to death.
Akuto performed a series of backflips, his agile figure moving too fast for the naked eye to track.
*Whoosh!*
The big fox suddenly appeared above Akuto, clenching its hands into fists and smashing them down toward him.
*Rumble!!!*
The entire mountain began to tremble.
Amidst the dust, Akuto's figure flew out like a sharp arrow. He pressed one hand against the big fox's arm, flipped upside down, and kicked the big fox away.
However, the big fox charged again the moment it hit the ground.
"Dismantle!"
Akuto released another slash, cutting off the big fox's fists and legs.
But the big fox didn't care at all, still swinging its arms to strike.
In mid-air, the big fox's fist regenerated and smashed heavily toward Akuto.
Akuto parried repeatedly and soon realized that this big fox simply couldn't be killed.
Akuto jumped high, only then gaining a moment's breathing room in the air.
"Is its recovery speed that astonishing?"
"No."
"It's not getting hurt at all."
Just then, the big fox's figure appeared above Akuto. Its head suddenly split open, lunging down to envelop him.
It seemed to want to swallow Akuto whole.
Akuto immediately rotated in mid-air, bracing his feet against the Cursed Spirit's teeth, and then released a 'Dismantle' right at the big fox's head!
*Slash, slash, slash!*
The big fox's head was sliced open. Akuto tried to pull away, but the big fox suddenly appeared in front of him again.
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!*
The big fox's fists were like cannonballs, striking continuously as afterimages.
While Akuto parried, the ground also began to collapse.
With a punch from the big fox, the ground exploded, creating a deep pit five or six meters deep and over ten meters wide!
Dust rose everywhere.
"Miko!!"
Hana cried out in terror, her eyes turning red.
She finally understood why Miko's expression had suddenly changed earlier; it must have been because Miko saw her possessed by a Cursed Spirit and came to the shrine for her.
It was all because of her that Miko was in danger.