"Are you sure you want to go through with this, Master? You and I aren't so distant in terms of pure strength anymore," Ace flicked his finger forward, smirking while speaking at his pink-eyed enemy.
"Depends what you think we're exactly fighting for," Hana replied, her face entirely neutral while her snowy strands moved in tandem with the air's flow.
"Isn't it obvious? The continued survival of the Requiem Subjects race," He answered quickly.
"Don't give me that. I know more than anyone how selfishness is the trait that embodies the hearts of man," she carelessly informed, her pink eyes bored and impatient.
Ace's smirk fell. She was right, after all. He could lie to anyone else but her. Somehow, Hana wielded eyes that peered through all curtains that attempted hiding the truth. Even if that curtain resembled his very heart.
"I'm not stupid, Ace. This is your justice, isn't it?" Hana asked.
"You already know the answer to that question, Master," Ace apathetically answered.
The Master sighed. She upturned her head, averting her gaze from her former student's face to admire the gathering clouds surrounding the fiery-orange sky. The future was always changing. To her, nothing was set in stone. She remembered moments prior, when faced with the definition of death.
To think that she'd remember those youthful faces and take pride in what she taught them. It was despicable. Then again, identify that swelling sensation swirling within her bust was difficult. Yet separating her legs into a battle-like stance was harder.
"If that's the way things are and what's ongoing now is your justice incarnated then… this is mine. Even if it brings me to my death, I'll challenge your justice," the Master wholeheartedly declared with dead eyes.
Ace shrugged. He removed his hands from his white hoodie's pockets and shot his fists forward. The scarlet flare from his crimson eyes peeked over his shades, momentarily reflecting against Hana's fair-skinned face.
In the same instant, their bodies vanished and they exchanged an identical first blow that decimated the street they stood on. Both were blown back after the initial explosion destroyed the concrete, Ace recovering in mid-air to perch against an intact building. His pupils moved rapidly, scanning every inch of Eternal Sight's range until his eyes widened.
Right now, moving as slow as humanly possible, Hana's fist dove through the air and aimed at the back of the Scarlet King's head. His head turned ever so slightly. Milliseconds before she could smash the back of his skull, her bust received a thunderous punch. The imprint of his knuckles embedded into her outfit, she inadvertently spat out blood, stumbling backward.
'What?! When did he… hit me?'
But while Hana was considering the impossibility he'd outmatched her, Ace gave chase. His right arm raised, slamming another thunderous punch against her bust. The punch threw her from the rooftop, leaving the Scarlet King to sprint after her a second time. Running and jumping after the Master's flying build, he threw his arm forward, unraveling five golden ropes from the tips of his fingers. Some of them managed to cling onto her limbs, and once he was sure they did, he yanked on them with all his strength!
But Hana couldn't give in so easily. Instead of allowing her body to lifelessly fly toward him, she threw her legs forward and smashed her soles against his face. Just in time, his raised arms absorbed the attack and the Master flipped off of him, twirling backward through the air. Upon carefully landing, her palms clasped together.
'What's up with this increase in energy? Could it be…?'
If she really planned on using her all-or-nothing, then he had no other choice. Touching the tip of his index finger against the back of his middle one; the Scarlet King's dual pupils reflected two crimson flares.
"Inherited Technique: Shattered… Limit!"
He braced for impact, covering his face with X-crossed arms. Then… it never came. He felt air zip past him, brushing the side of his face every so gently. Removing his limbs from covering his face, he'd noticed the vine his torso was entangled by. He was too slow. Instead of being able to cut it off, he was dragged along through mid-air while Hana carried the vine, flying through the air atop a cherry blossom petal. The Scarlet King was carried through the heights of the city uncontrollably. Every so often, his body would smash against the edges of nearby rooftops or demolish the overlooking gargoyles still embedded into the many buildings inhabiting the flaming city.
'She plans on wearing me down by dragging and smashing me against every structure we bypass. By the time she releases me, I'll be so damaged I won't have any more strength to fight. I also can't invoke my Territory… especially after I just used it to save Alex. Looks like I'll have to use 'that' then.'
Hana had finished stringing Ace along. The cherry blossom she was flying against dissipated from under her soles, spinning the vine forward so the Scarlet King's body would follow soon thereafter. He carefully landed against a rooftop, tightening his grip against the rope he was entangled by and tearing it apart by the seams. He rolled away from the incoming fist, just watching as her knuckles smashed into the platform he was standing against. She stood upright, throwing another punch his way he immediately sidestepped away from. He grabbed at her arm, punching at her gut and then slamming his fist against her bust so she could go tumbling off the roof.
Hana landed against the street, stumbling backward until her rear met a parked automobile. Spotting the incoming lightning bolt descend from the heavens, she retreated from the vehicle, watching it explode beside her. Then, he landed against the flaming car, crouched against it with his legs spread apart. The Scarlet King emerged from the blackened mist, his glowing red eyes dissipating once revealing himself.
"I trained you well, huh? I don't even think Katie could manage to beat me. Looks like I was wrong," Hana commented.
Ace landed against the street before he responded. "Kay's always been more of the sentimental type. Me too but to a lesser extent, if that makes sense. Plus, I'm not trying to kill you, Master Saiai," he informed her.
"Really?" Hana raised an eyebrow, curious to what this statement implied. "What are you fighting for, then?" she asked.
"It's been a while since I've had to fight seriously. I want to display all of my new knowledge in my fight against you, dearest Master," Ace uncaringly responded.
A vein popped across Hana's temples. Her fists pointed forward. "We're done talking," she said.
"Did that tick you off? Hah! I managed to irritate Master Hana Saiai. I should get a reward. Don't you think so, too… ma'am?"
Wilder goaded the Master into making the first move. It worked. As far as Eternal Sight could see, Hana had vanished the second he finished speaking. He ducked, luckily dodging an entire kick aimed for his head. His raised arms blocked any incoming attacks slipping from her knuckles, swatting away any stray chops or punches. The Scarlet King watched as she kicked once again, flipping away twice before landing gracefully, sliding against his soles. Noticing a rock beside his foot, he infused it with his life energy, and hurled it over her head.
With the pebble still moving through the air, Hana was charging ever closer! Pushing his index and middle fingers together, he switched places with the Vita-infused pebble seconds prior to its landing.
'Bloody Individual,' he mentally invoked.
Before she knew it, Ace had vanished. Immediately turning around, her right leg raised; the limb guiding to his right cheek. Wilder grasped her leg with both hands, momentarily spinning against the ground and then throwing her into a nearby storefront. She crashed right through the establishment, skidding her fingers through its destroyed interior. Ace chased after her through the destroyed storefront, his eyes widening upon witnessing every corner of the inside growing cherry blossoms.
"Territory Envelopment: Beloved Flower!"
Hana had already imbued her soul's Territory with the condition that it didn't produce a separate space utilizing a barrier. However, she could use a spacious environment to constitute a barrier, thus entrapping the target easily. This destroyed storefront was, in a sense, her substitute for a barrier. Luckily for her, the binding vow that granted her such power was still in effect, as this was not a barrier she summoned herself. Meaning… if Ace was able to locate an escape route, he could easily retreat from the range of Master Saiai's guaranteed hit within her Territory. But—that was unnecessary. He didn't need to escape to negate the effects of the domain. Instead, he thought back to his training and relied only on the memories that were undoubtedly true.
Rizia's voice rang through his head.
"Territory Envelopment is the supreme art of Vita techniques. Without proper training, they can't be blocked and the ensnared target is often snuffed out the second they're pulled into the caster's domain. However, the First Requiem King got tired of this. It was boring if there was just a simple technique that annihilated the target no matter how hard they resisted. So, he developed a new technique. A technique weaker than Territory Envelopment but strong enough to negate the effects of the guaranteed hit. This technique, developed by the First Requiem King some thousand or so years ago was named…"
"Peace of Mind: Territory Negation!" Ace invoked in the present.
Those muffled words originating from within the storefront sent shivers down Hana's spine. Her body idle, fists aimed forward as she awaited her attack's outcome. Then, it hit her. If 100 seconds had passed since her Territory's remote activation and it hadn't fallen… not only did that mean Ace had escaped, but the soul's domain was actually—lowering! She could sense her distinct scent of Vita leaving the storefront.
'But how?!' She asked herself. 'How was he able to escape my Territory without so much of a scratch?!'
Exiting through the other side of the storefront Hana destroyed with her flailing body moments prior, Ace lowered his hand and deactivated the Requiem technique. The remaining flowers disintegrated, expressing steam while gradually vanishing.
"How were you able… to survive my Territory?" Hana asked.
"Rizia Kosuke taught me about Territory Negation. It's a rather handy technique, especially when you know about it beforehand." Ace waved his hand around and scratched behind his ear. "I was meaning to tell you this, Master Saiai. But ever since you fought the Founder in Riverton during our operation to rescue Alex… you've been slacking. Could it be you're incapable of fighting those who look like your allies you've come to love so much?" Ace asked.
Veins appeared from all over her face to point inward at her passive features. How could she respond to such blatant disrespect? Right now, she saw no other choice but to attack and make him pay for his words! So, she threw her arms forward, summoning vines from an instantaneously-growing flowerbed behind her. Ace threw one arm forward, mischievously smirking as his limb produced a shield of red lightning that immediately destroyed the imminent vines.
Hana gritted her teeth. She punched behind her, her fist flying into Ace's open palm. His free hand clasped together, chopping at her neck so she could uncontrollably spit blood onto his cheek. Even so, Hana persisted, grabbing onto both sides of his head and pulling him into a brutal head butt that cracked both of their skulls. It was like she wasn't damaged in the slightest, for as he stumbled back, obviously discombobulated, she threw her foot forward.
Ace's body smashed into a car, immediately regaining consciousness and rolling out of the way as Hana's oncoming fist sliced through the stationary vehicle. Crouched against the road while heavily panting, Ace watched as Master Saiai stepped closer, her knuckles expressing steam.
'Crap. I really pissed her off.'
In what seemed like no time at all, Hana's fist connected with Ace's face, sending him flying into the air. His body uncontrollably contorted through the air, before finally crashing onto a nearby freeway littered with burning cars. Crawling across the concrete streetway, he watched as blood dripped from his scarred forehead until he reached that distant destination. Nothing more than a pool of blood. Yet, there was something off about this puddle of gore. It was seemingly… glowing.
'This is—'
With this, he could finally gain the advantage he needed. After coursing his thumb through the glowing blood, he stood up and licked his finger. Seconds after, while licking away the taste of blood from his lips, Hana appeared behind him.
"We're not done yet. Turn around and face me, Ace," she ordered.
Ace turned around, interlocking his fingers to form the Karana Mudra. The Vita technique into Wilder's Territory wasn't his own, but rather stolen from Callum's diabolical alter-ego. Thanks to ingesting the angelic Emperor's twisted blood, he had been shown the way.
"Territory Envelopment: Heavenly Executioner!"
Hana was ensnared. Ace reigned supreme in this domain stolen from that which was once his enemy. His fingers still interlocked into the Karana Mudra, he leaned his head back and flashed an arrogant grin toward his stumped Master.
"And… now we're done."