Previously On Unknown: Hisashi and Shiden engage in a fierce battle on the second floor, with Hisashi revealing his mysterious Voidborne power. Meanwhile, Akishima faces off against Kaori on the stairway to the third floor, enduring her relentless attacks. As Shiden unleashes his powerful Purple Lightning Magic against Hisashi, he is left astounded by the unexpected turn of events.
(Continuing)
*Back To The Stairway, Akishima VS Kaori…*
Kaori is in her battle stance preparing for her next attack. Blue mana slowly emanates from her body; her eyes turn a fierce yellow color, her hair slowly rises, her canines become longer and sharper, and the ground beneath her feet cracks and crackles, and sparks of blue, yellow, and green lightning flash around her.
Pinned against the ceiling with a pale face, due to blood loss, and heavy breathing, Akishima watches on in sheer disbelief at the power he's witnessing. "I'm dead if I get hit by whatever she's charging. I have to find a way to escape this predicament." Akishima brooded.
With a desperate desire for survival and eyes filled with determination, Akishima stretches his neck, opens his mouth, and bites the dagger in his shoulder, gripping it. He closes his eyes and braces for the agonizing pain he's about to feel. He groans and shakes violently as he slowly drags the dagger out of his shoulder.
Kaori looks up at him and sees his futile attempt to survive. She grins and then declares "Ancient Shadow Arts! Beast Demon Art Technique…!" she dashes to the wall in front of her with electrifying speed and beast-like movements.
At the same moment, Akishima finally removes the dagger from his shoulder which gives him a chance to remove the other dagger that pierced through his knee and escape. But as he thought of his next move it was already too late because Kaori was right in front of him after she had run up the wall due to her fast, beast-like agility.
With bloodlust eyes, that of a predator who hasn't eaten for days, and a devious grin, Kaori yells, "Wolf Fang Fist: Tempestuous… Wolf… Rampage!!!"As if she lost all sense of herself, Kaori goes on a mindless spree and launches a flurry of wild beast-like attacks at Akishima.
Akishima is getting pummeled every second and doesn't even have the chance to take a breath. He loses consciousness mid-attack and is buried deeper and deeper into the ceiling. At this rate, the ceiling might collapse and trap both of them in the stairway.
With one final roar, Kaori drags Akishima off the ceiling and slams him down the stairs. A loud crashing sound reverberated through the stairway.
A small crater was formed and within that crater lies Akishima in a horrific state, completely and utterly defeated.
*The Second Floor, Hisashi VS Shiden…*
Shiden had just thrown the bolt of purple lightning at Hisashi thinking that he would now win, however, at this very moment he was utterly flabbergasted at the sight he was seeing. Hisashi has caught the
lightning bolt with his bare hand.
"Uh..huh? How did… How did you do that?" Shiden inquires, still trying to process the unusual event.
With a calm and collected demeanor along with an emotionless stare, Hisashi began absorbing the lightning into his palm.
This only proved to further puzzle Shiden. He watched in pure bewilderment along with a shocking realization. "Wait a sec. A while ago when my energy was being drained…it was him… he was… Absorbing my element." Shiden reflected.
Hisashi just continued to gaze at Shiden as he had now fully absorbed the lightning bolt. Abruptly, Hisashi spoke, his voice cutting through the silence. "Hey, Shiden," he called. His tone is ever so corresponding to his demeanor as he continues, "Have you ever… 'gotten a taste of your own medicine'?" he inquires with a cheeky grin.
This question left Shiden in a state of even more confusion. Something was about to happen, something that Shiden would've never expected, and all the while Matsumoto was on the sidelines spectating with a satisfactory smile playing on his face.
*On The Stairway That Leads To The Third Floor…*
Akishima lies in the crater left behind by the previous impact, unconscious; bloodied, and bruised, he's practically half-dead. Kaori gazes at her defeated adversary, a look of contentment washes over her as she catches her breath.
But just a few seconds later an ominous mix of black and red auras began to emanate from Akishima and it was an aura Kaori knew all too well, the aura that killed her companion Koji just a few moments back.
This angered Kaori remembering what Akishima did but it also made her weary that the fight wasn't over yet. She stood her ground in a wolf-like stance preparing for whatever was about to come.
Suddenly a voice chuckled throughout the stairway. This voice sounded very similar to that of the devil whom Akishima had inside his subconscious.
The suddenness and maliciousness of the voice caught Kaori off guard. Her eyes darted around scouting the area to find this mysterious newcomer.
The voice realized her desire to find its location so it teasingly stated, "𝔚𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔢 𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔰𝔢𝔞𝔯𝔠𝔥𝔦𝔫𝔤? ℑ'𝔪 𝔯𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱 𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔢, 𝔯𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱 𝔦𝔫𝔣𝔯𝔬𝔫𝔱 𝔬𝔣 𝔶𝔬𝔲."
This left Kaori bewildered as the only person in front of her was Akishima. But then it dawned on her as she saw an ominous shadow-like face with two horns and a grin so ugly, distorted, and maniac that it left shivers down her spine.
At the same moment, Akishima slowly stands on his feet, now conscious. Blood is dripping from his body and his clothes are torn and ragged but the same devilish aura captivates his body.
Kaori was both scared and dumbfounded. "W-What the hell?" She was awestruck at the aura Akishima was emitting but at the same time a little scared and nervous because that aura was nothing ordinary.
Akishima, now on his feet, stood in a position oddly similar to how Hisashi stood when he first activated his element; he looked as if he had a hangover.
Kaori, still shocked, caught her composure. She didn't know what was happening but didn't want to look weak in a fight. She thought to herself, "Why am I so tense? There's nothing to be afraid of. After all, he stood no chance against me before, so this will be the same. No matter what tricks he uses, the outcome will not differ." she asserted.
As Kaori's confidence grew, she began taunting Akishima. "Why are you so desperate? Why are you so hellbent on fighting Yuji?" She inquired and then continued, "It doesn't make any sense to want to fight someone like Yuji if you can't even beat me." She exclaimed.
With his head down and his body swinging left to right, Akishima looked as if he had no more energy left to fight. However, similar to what happened to Hisashi, Akishima slowly raised his head and his right eye started glowing with that same devilish color. At the same moment, he uttered, "So you think you're stronger than me? Do you think I stand no chance?... Well then… I guess it's time… To show you a glimpse of my true power."
Kaori was startled at this unexpected declaration. "'Glimpse of my true power'?" she mused, "What does he mean by that? Is he saying that all this time he wasn't going all out? No it can't be. I mean why would he let himself get beat up so much if he had the power to defeat me?" she wondered, "Well it doesn't matter if he's strong or not, he's going down either way." she asserted in her mind.
Akishima's iris is a deep reddish color and his pupil is as thin and sharp as that of a needle. Abruptly his aura intensified, and as if in sync with his devil-like aura he began transitioning into a battle stance.
He clenches his right fist, bends his knees, and places his fist into the palm of his left hand. His aura grew more and more intense and the stairway began to shake violently along with cracks forming all around.
Kaori, still in a daze, catches her composure, "Now isn't the time to daze." she thinks as she also begins her final attack. Just like before, blue mana slowly emanates from her body; her eyes turn a fierce yellow color, her hair slowly rises, her canines become longer and sharper, and the ground beneath her feet cracks and crackles and sparks of blue, yellow and green lightning flashes around her.
Their aura clashes against each other, the shockwave cracking the walls around them as the fierce struggle of deep red and turquoise colors continues.
As their charge of mana reached its climax, Akishima's right hand, which was placed fist down in his left palm, began glowing a blinding blue that pierced through the dark red. Along this very right arm, his veins popped up shaped like a twisted vine swirling around his right arm and steam started to emit from his fist. But that wasn't the only thing, his right arm began growing in size due to how much mana was being concentrated within it.
On the other hand, Kaori's once fierce yellow eyes slowly darkened until they were a deep red similar to that of Akishima's right eye. Her hair spiked upwards and her canine became sharper. By every passing second she seemed as if she was transforming into a werewolf.
In a sudden instant, Kaori dashes towards Akishima now much faster than she previously was. She swings her arms back showing her claw-like fingers and with an unveiling howl that of an alpha she yells, "Wolf Fang Fist: Alpha Strike!!!".
In retaliation, Akishima declares, "Akishima's…"
(To Be Continued)