In the most confident counter Hikari had witnessed in her lifetime, her most powerful attacks faded into the dark abyss of shadows, the sounds of impact lost to the night. The shadows continued to spread across the ground, like ink on a blank page, until the whole arena was consumed in darkness.The radius of the shadows spread until it reached the outer edges of her terrain, leaving Hikari in a world of darkness."Dark Echo," he christened his technique at its climax, floating in the air; basking in the glory of his creation.Behind him emerged a large dark blue coin that rotated infinitely to symbolize that even in the midst of Typhon's Wrath, the endless stream of every outcome of fate was in his hands.Hikari could not believe her eyes as her opponent was more than able to conjure the same technique upon the severe damage he had sustained.'Something's off about his Konkyuu,' she theorized. 'It's incomplete. It's as if he just laid the foundation of his technique rather than unlea

In the aftermath of the intense battle, Gaia lay defeated and bloodied on the unforgiving battlefield. The cheers of the audience echoed around her as Yoko emerged victorious.As the medical team rushed to attend to Gaia's injuries, Kai's gaze remained fixed on the fallen Daemon, a mix of emotions swirling within him."Man, she really took a brutal beating," Kai exhaled, his eyes meeting the understanding glances of Chiko, Kota, and Haku.“Yoko isn't your run-of-the-mill Daemon you can toy with,” Haku declared, his confidence unwavering. “She's laser-focused on proving her clan wrong. She's set on making them see that labeling Gaia as their ultimate weapon just because she was born with this crazy elemental power mix, the likes of which we haven't seen in centuries, is the elders' biggest blunder, and that’s a fact.”“She undoubtedly possesses potential. Having four elements in her arsenal makes her no lightweight,” Chiko deduced with a thoughtful nod. “It’s all about tapping into that

Chiyo KobayashiSign Out"I can't believe it! What did we just see? Has the prodigy fallen?!" Satoru announced."'Nimitsu,' 'Mochiimono,' 'Jitsuryoku.' He didn't use this technique in the previous year's tournament." Kota recalled."This must be the new technique Mirai's been working on for quite a while now," Haku explained."What does it do though?" Kai asked, curious to know more."Hmm… he really is pushing past the limitations of his Core." Chiko commended. "It feels incomplete, sadly, but it was enough to finish the job."'These new abilities this Mirai dude performed: the beam of light that created ethereal copies of the caster, the decoy image that was used to create the beam of light. Kage didn't attack him with any of these. So, why? How is he able to use the abilities of his opponent that hasn't even displayed such a feat?' Kai's thought process began analyzing the data he had received."'Nimitsu,' 'Mochiimono,' 'Jitsuryoku' These words weren't chanted at random." Kai theori

"Don't you hear their cries, buddy? What the hell's wrong with you?"Kai opened his eyes forcibly as he was welcomed into a dark abyss."Akira?" He called out, singling out the familiar voice. "Was that you, man?"He earnestly gazed around the deep shadow in the search of his friend, but to no avail."Something's off about you. Wanna tell us what's wrong?" Yua's voice echoed in the shadows."I don't know what's wrong with me, guys. I just… I'm just…""Scared?" Ash cut in, completing his words."Yes, yes I am scared," Kai resented.He sank into himself, cradling his head in his hands as if he was trying to physically contain his overwhelming thoughts. His elbows rested on his knees, and his body was hunched forward, as if the weight of the world was bearing down on him."But it's not wrong of me, is it? I wasn't built for this, you know? The fate of the populace lying in my hands, never would I have imagined." Kai yelled out, accepting his cowardice."You don't have to be scared, sweet

'Now, where are you, Ihann?’ Owari thoughts questioned with malicious intent.The scene switched up to Kai’s point of view, as he got tossed around by Ihann, who seemed to savor every moment he had toying with his prey. The former wasn’t given a moment to take a breather as he got bitch-slapped into a pointed rock.Not removing his foot from the gas pedal, Ihann landed a devastating roundhouse with a jump switch kick the moment Kai bounced off of the twenty-meter thick rock and smashed his head right through it, enjoying the onslaught.“Come on, kid! Show me what you got!” Ihann rallied his opponent, face slamming him to the hard ground to finish off the combo.“Kid? You pretty much look my age,” Kai mocked, unlocking a deeper depth of rage in his adversary’s heart.Ihann attempted digging his fingers into Kai’s eyes, but the latter understood the assignment and caught his hand point blank.Enhancing the physical strength of his arms, he ripped off his arm and monkey flipped Ihann hig