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Togiri tightened his grip on his weapon, his eyes locked onto Hanzo as they charged toward one another.
Sparks flew with the clash of their blades, and the impact reverberated through Togiri's arms. Hanzo's strength was undeniable, and while Togiri could match him in raw power, Hanzo's larger, adult frame granted him more leverage and precision.
Togiri disengaged, twisting his body to the side and swiftly repositioning himself. His thoughts raced. 'I can't fight him head-on like this. He's too stable, too grounded.'
He darted forward again, feinting a high strike to draw Hanzo's guard upward. In that fleeting moment, Togiri dipped low, aiming for Hanzo's legs.
His blade moved in a blur, but Hanzo was quicker than expected. He stepped back just out of range, countering with a powerful downward swing.
Togiri barely blocked the attack, the force of it sending a jolt through his entire body. His feet slid across the ground from the sheer power of the blow.
'He's controlling the pace, using his size to dominate every exchange' Togiri thought, frustration bubbling beneath the surface.
'I can't break his kunai, even though my weapon's stronger. I need to keep moving, keep him off balance, and look for an opening'
He pivoted to the side, slashing at Hanzo's exposed flank, but once again, Hanzo shifted, blocking the strike with ease. Togiri gritted his teeth. He was faster and more agile, but Hanzo's experience made him difficult to surprise.
Togiri backed up to create some distance, then launched into a flurry of rapid strikes. Each attack was precise and aimed at Hanzo's joints and weak points—anything that could slow him down. But Hanzo blocked or deflected every strike, absorbing the hits without losing his stance.
In the next clash, Togiri saw a small gap in Hanzo's defense and struck. Togiri's blade was knocked aside with such force that it almost flew from his hand.
Hanzo's follow-up swing came fast, and Togiri barely managed to dodge, the wind from the strike grazing his cheek. 'I'm losing control of this fight. I didn't think I could bleed here.' His breath quickened.
'I can't keep up with him like this.' Every movement was becoming more labored. Blood from a shallow cut on his arm dripped onto the ground, and his vision wavered slightly.
The simulation was pushing him to his limit. One more mistake, and Hanzo would end him. Desperation began to creep into Togiri's mind. There has to be an opening, a weakness. But none of his attempts were working. 'No... this isn't a fight I can win. Not like this.'
A voice cut through his thoughts. "Master, if you die in this fight, your consciousness will take huge damage, and you could end up in a coma for a day or two."
Togiri clenched his teeth, anger and frustration welling up. With a sharp breath, he threw up his hand. "Pause!"
The simulation froze. His heart pounded, his limbs trembling with exhaustion and defeat.
"Seven, why couldn't you tell me about that earlier?" Togiri sighed, trying to calm down. Seven appeared, bowing respectfully.
"I apologize, Master," Seven said, his blond hair falling over his eyes.
Togiri clenched his fist, debating whether to punch his AI companion in the face. After a moment, he clicked his tongue. "Tsk. Forget it. Just force me to sleep."
Seven bowed again. "Good night, Master."
Before Togiri could react, Seven snapped his fingers, and Togiri's consciousness slipped away. Seven sneered. "Sheesh. How is it my fault you lost? Time to get back to watching anime."
Six hours later, Togiri slowly opened his eyes, stretching like a cat that had just woken from a long nap.
'I slept great. I think Body Cultivation improved my sleep.' As he rubbed his eyes, still half-asleep, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in!" Togiri called, yawning.
The door creaked open, and a warm smile greeted him. A beautiful woman in her mid-forties entered, her bright yellow hair glowing in the morning light. She wore a flowery dress, and her gentle presence lit up the room.
"Son, breakfast is ready. I made pancakes just the way you like them," she said, her tone full of love.
Togiri couldn't help but smile—a rare, genuine smile. "Thanks, Mom." Julia smiled back and left the room.
@Master, your Existence Points have increased by nearly a hundred. You now have 731,802 EP.@
I spent a little over 300,000, but my body is still only at 10% of its previous strength, and my Nen is even less than that.
After washing his face, Togiri headed to the dining room. The family's house wasn't a mansion, but it had enough rooms for everyone and a yard where Togiri trained and practiced blacksmithing with Arthur.
As Togiri prepared to dig into his pancakes, he noticed a stern gaze aimed at him. "Togiri, I got a call this morning," Arthur said.
Arthur, a big, bulky man with a partial bald head and a thick red beard, looked more like a veteran general than a blacksmith.
"Oh?" Togiri said nonchalantly, taking a bite of his pancakes. "Who called?"
"My friend from the West Police Station," Arthur replied, his voice steady. "He said you did something you shouldn't have."
Togiri paused, then looked over at his mother and little sister, Lilia, with a blank expression. "No, I didn't. I helped someone."
Arthur's stare bore into him. "He's telling a different story."
"What's this about?" Julia asked, her voice full of concern.
Arthur's hostility quickly faded as he resumed eating. "It's nothing, honey. Don't worry about it."
But Julia's eyes were still full of worry as she turned to Togiri. He sighed, putting down his fork.
"To be honest, Mom… I helped a police officer who was beaten up by a gangster yesterday. After I knocked out the gangster, the officer killed him. He—he told me if I said anything, he'd come after our family. He threatened Lilia. I didn't know what to do..." Togiri's voice trembled, and tears began to fall onto his plate.
In an instant, Julia was at his side, wrapping her arms around him. "You didn't do anything wrong, my brave boy," she whispered, patting his head.
"Oni-chan, you're the best!" Lilia shouted, jumping down from her chair to hug Togiri. "The police are bad!"
Arthur's guilt weighed heavy on him as he realized his son wasn't the cold-blooded killer he had briefly feared. Togiri, meanwhile, smiled viciously inside, but cried outwardly.
'I didn't expect Dad to have a friend in the police. I gained so many points overnight. I bet Ryouchi already spread the story through the police station.
@You're quite the liar, aren't you?@ Seven teased.
The family continued their breakfast, and the warmth returned to the room. Togiri wiped his red eyes and said with a smile, "How about we go to the zoo today?"
Arthur smiled, trying to make amends. "Sure! Lilia, want to see the Emperor Duck and his family?"
Lilia excitedly gulped down the rest of her food, banging her hands on the table. "Yes, yes, yes! Emperor Duck!"
The tension from earlier quickly melted away, replaced by laughter and excitement.
----
After breakfast, Togiri returned to his room, contemplating what to do with the hour before they left.
His eyes landed on the weighed clothes lying on his bed. 'Why bother with these for training? Seven can increase the weight of regular clothes by up to 200 kilograms.'
Togiri grinned. 'No more hassle with washing those custom-made clothes.'He remained in his pajamas and ordered, 'Seven, increase the weight of my clothes by 25 kilograms.'
Immediately, his pants sagged to the floor. 'Right. No special belt that keeps my pants up.'
@Idiot,@ Seven scoffed. 'You know, I could summon you and beat the rudeness out of you, right?'
@Master would never do that! Master is the greatest, most majestic—@ "Enough with the flattery," Togiri muttered, rolling his eyes.
'System' he called out in his mind. A plain white system window appeared before him.
731,804 EP
12 SP
0 RP
'Another small increase. Not enough. I need to grow stronger faster. I've only restored 10% of my former strength.'
Togiri eyed the body-tempering pills in the shop. Each one cost 100 Shop Points or 1,000 converted EP. Without hesitation, he converted 31,800 EP into Shop Points and purchased 31 pills.
700,004 EP
92 SP
0 RP
Let's try breaking through the second layer of Skin Refinement.
Togiri swallowed a pill and began his workout, pushing his body to its limit under the 50 kg of extra weight his clothes now carried.
An hour later, he checked his status.
Name: Togiri
Age: 13
Strength: 2.99
Agility: 2.99
Vitality: 3.24
Aura: 10,400
Body Cultivation: First Layer of Body Refining (peak stage)
'Breaking through to a new level is tougher than I thought. But I'm close. I can feel it.'
Togiri stepped into the shower, letting the water wash away his sweat.' Each whole point in my stats represents a minor realm in body cultivation. If I reach the ninth layer, my stats should hit 10, not far from the 13 points I once had.'
Excitement filled him as he realized how fast his strength was increasing. 'One hour of training with a pill gives me more progress than a month of intense workouts ever did'
------
Later, at the zoo, Togiri's eyes wandered over the animals. His mind, however, was focused elsewhere. '21 points for an anaconda. 76 for a lion in captivity.' Togiri wrote in passing in his notebook.
He was so lost in thought that he barely noticed when a worker asked if he wanted to feed a dolphin.
"Little boy! Yes, you! Do you want to feed the dolphin a fish?" A worker who showed tricks with the dolphin pointed at Togiri and several other kids, asking if they wanted to feed the dolphin.
Togiri stood up and walked with the other kids to the woman. Each kid was given a fish. As soon as Togiri touched the fish, a system window appeared before him.
[Do you want to absorb the fish? SP: 0.01] Togiri's eyes widened. He went to the woman responsible for the dolphin show and asked, "How many fish are caught in this continent per year?"
The woman tilted her head at Togiri's random question but thought about it and answered, "Around 1 million tons of fish."
'Only one million tons of fish?' Togiri thought. 'A fish weighs around 2 kg. To buy an Aura-condensation pill, I would need 100 tons of fish, or 100,000 kg.'
Togiri threw the fish at the dolphin and returned to his place at the podium. Arthur, Julia, and Lilia observed the show, but while Togiri looked at the whales, he was deep in thought.
'What about chickens and pigs? I am sure that at least a few billion of them are bred every year. Killing them would let me gain more points, but it would take too much time. I need to ask Rika how many complete bodies of chickens and pigs she can buy from slaughterhouses and farmers.'
@There is a faster way, and you know it,@ Seven said, frustrated. He was referring to absorbing the energy of people when they died, as Togiri had done previously with the gangster he killed.
@By the way, I need to say you are really cold,@ Seven added. 'What do you mean?' Togiri asked.
Seven laughed. @Yesterday, after killing that gangster, you went home and acted like nothing happened, and today you are at the zoo acting like a filial son.@
'....' Togiri was speechless; he couldn't refute Seven. 'I don't know why, but killing felt like nothing special. I controlled my body and did it, but... it felt like I was watching a character in a manga do it. After killing him just for points, I didn't feel guilty but instead felt great, like an annoying side character in a story had disappeared.'
Togiri was surprised himself. He didn't feel any mental burden from his first kill and instead yearned for more. He looked at his little sister's childish behavior and smiled.
'Maybe it's better this way. I have long been burdened by cursed memories and new hellish memories from training. I want to be able to eliminate vermin like that gangster and still smile when I see Lilia.'
@Sure...@ A couple of hours later, Togiri and his family returned home and he made a plan to increase the profits of the Phantom Society.
'If I sell this Beauty Pill that makes someone look ten years younger for a month, I could make enough money for my new expenses and keep growing the Phantom Society.
This pill costs 10 Shop Points, the same as the Fasting Pill that eliminates your need for food for a month. Let me talk to Rika about this.'
Togiri said goodbye to his family and left the house. The bright sun hit his face. He opened his inventory and pulled out expensive sunglasses. He had only ten slots for items, but he put a few weapons and miscellaneous items in them.
---
After paying, Togiri left the taxi and stood before a tall building. The building was over 40 floors high and completely owned by him.
At the front of the building was a big sign: PS. The "P" was written in black, and the "S" in white, reflecting the purpose of the organization of working in the light and shadows.
Togiri entered the building, and soon a big, tall, and buff security man stopped him. "Are you lost, little kid?" Togiri took off his sunglasses.
"Nah. I need to see Rika." The security man scoffed, thinking, 'What a rude brat, calling even the CEO by her first name.'
Togiri saw the look on the big man's face and smiled cheekily. "She is already here." From afar, greetings could be heard.
Thud thud thud The sound of fast-walking heels reached the security man's ears. He turned around, and his jaw dropped. The CEO of PS was really coming.
"Boss!" said the security man as he quickly bowed toward Rika. She only nodded and then bowed, greeting Togiri.
"Ah~ I said you didn't need to bow every time you see me. Let's just go into your office." Togiri walked past her, ignoring the dumbfounded security man.
Togiri had never been to the headquarters except to meet and talk about specifics with the scientists of the weapon development department.
*Ding* They arrived at the highest floor. Both quickly sat down, and Togiri asked about how business was doing. After some idle chatter, Rika asked, "So what made you come all the way here? Even if you have new weapon designs, you always call me to go to you."
"Two things. I need you to buy as many chickens, pigs, and fish as possible. I need their whole bodies." To say Rika was surprised was an understatement.
She thought Togiri had hit his head or finally gone insane from all his training.
She quickly calmed herself down, like the professional businesswoman she was, and looked at Togiri with serious eyes to see if he was joking.
"Sigh~ What's the second thing?" she asked, defeated by Togiri's ridiculous request. Togiri smiled and pulled something out of his pocket.
"This," Togiri placed a pink pill on the table. Rika took the pill and analyzed it, but she only noticed it smelled a little like peaches.
"Swallow the pill, and you will thank me almost as much as when I saved your sister." Rika looked suspiciously at Togiri but decided to swallow it anyway.
She felt something strange happening in her body. "Now look in the mirror." ordered Togiri. Rika quickly pulled out a mirror from her desk and once she saw her face she dropped it in shock.
"This can't be," she said in utter shock. "Yes, it can. This pill can make someone's appearance ten years younger for a month. You just went from your early thirties to your early twenties."
Rika picked up the mirror and rubbed her face in disbelief. Togiri smiled and asked nonchalantly, "How much do you think we can sell this for?"
Rika, still in shock, quickly put away the mirror and returned to her serious demeanor. She coughed a few times and said, "I think at least 10 million per pill. How many do you have?"
Togiri chuckled. "As long as you deliver me those animal cadavers—enough for the whole continent." "What?" Rika was shocked by Togiri's words.
For Togiri, it was a useless pill since he didn't increase his strength, but for Rika and people all over the world it was a miracle pill.
She quickly saw an image of growing the Phantom Society into one of the top chambers of commerce, finally taking their organization to the next level.
Togiri stood up and pulled out of his pockets a hundred pills stored in ten jade bottles. He placed his inventory window inside his pocket and took out the pills.
"Without proper storage, the pills will quickly lose their effects. Hold an auction for these 100 pills and put as much money into marketing and getting those animal cadavers as you can.
Deliver them in a month to somewhere easily accessible, like a warehouse. I don't know, figure out the details yourself. Bye."
Without waiting for a response, Togiri left Rika's office. He went to a flea market, bought a few things, and then returned home.
Once at home, Togiri quickly entered his room and sat down on the floor. 'It's time to break through to the Second Layer of Skin Refinement.'
Togiri opened his inventory and took out two pills. He prepared his mentality and then took both pills at once.
"Ahh" Togiri felt a huge wave of energy assaulting his body. It felt like many needles pierced his skin, and the energy quickly rushed toward the outer part of his body.
Half an hour later, Togiri was sweating and out of breath. 'Breaking through hurts, but...'
Status:
Name: Togiri
Age: 13
Strength: 3.21
Agility: 3.21
Vitality: 3.35
Aura: 10,701
Body Cultivation - Second Layer of Skin Refining (early stage)
'But becoming stronger feels great. Hm? I directly broke the entry level and entered the early stage of the second layer. Hm? Now it's the Second Layer of Skin Refining, not Body Refining. My Aura also increased by 201; great.'
Togiri felt sticky from his sweat. 'My body expelled some waste. Once the effects from the body tempering pills reduce from 0.2 to 0.1, I will take the toxin-removing pill.'
Togiri looked at his remaining pills. 'I still have 29 pills remaining. Let's break through to the third layer before it gets dark. Seven, increase the weight of my clothes by 25 kg—no, 40 kg.'
A moment later, 80 kg of clothes weighed Togiri down, but he felt his newly gained strength. He immediately took out another pill from his inventory and swallowed it. He then began doing push-ups.
'I need more strength. It's not enough.' Togiri began to train like possessed until it was night time.
Status:
Name: Togiri
Age: 13
Strength: 4.53
Agility: 4.53
Vitality: 4.61
Aura: 12,003
Body Cultivation - Third Layer of Skin Refining (middle stage)
'In a couple of hours, I recovered a third of my physical strength and almost reached my previous amount of Aura by using less than ten pills.
Togiri used his Nen and felt how more smoothly his energy flowed. He concentrated and used Ko. His Ko was double the strength he usually could use.
He concentrated once again and summoned his Phantom Book. 'Open skill window.'
Skills:
Nen (entry-level)
Mastery:
Ten 8 %, Ren 5%, Ken 3%, Zetsu 6%,
Gyo 5%, In 2%, En 1%, Shu 4%, Ryu 1%
Ko 1%, Hatsu 3%
Phantom Pages (not learned)
'I unlocked Ko, but I didn't unlock Phantom Pages. Seems like I need to create a Phantom Page. To create a single page, I need six hours of hard work, but I just don't have the time for it now. It's time to leave.'
Togiri took a quick shower and put on some clothes and a strange item into his inventory. He put on a black hoodie and joggers.
He opened the window, climbed out of it, and closed it again. 'Oh, I forgot a spare pair of shoes.'
---
In a dimly lit room with smoke curling lazily in the air, several bulky men sat around a cluttered table.
The room was filled with the faint smell of cheap cigars and the clinking of chips as the men played cards. The light from a single flickering bulb cast eerie shadows on their faces.
One of the men, a burly figure with a rough face, slammed his hand down on the table. "I heard Tino got killed by some kid?" he said, his voice rough and edged with surprise.
Another man, wearing a stained vest and a scowl, responded, "Yeah. The kid is a Hunter and killed him for beating up that detective."
The man who had slammed the table now grinned widely as he collected the chips from the others. "I won!" he shouted, the triumph in his voice echoing around the room.
Bang The door was suddenly flung open, crashing against the wall with a deafening noise.
In the doorway stood a short figure cloaked in black, his presence commanding instant attention.
The figure wore a mask. His blue demon mask glinted in the dim light, its eyes hollow and menacing.
The gang members froze, their eyes wide with a mix of fear and confusion.
"Who are you!" a man shouted, rising from his seat and grabbing an axe from the corner.
The Blue Demon stood calmly, his dark eyes behind the mask scanning the room.
"Do you know about the Blue Demon and Red Demon?" The figure asked coolly. With a swift movement, he threw a dagger, which struck the man in the chest with deadly accuracy. The man crumpled to the floor, his eyes wide in shock as he gasped for breath and then closed his eyes
*You gained 13 Shop Points* The system notification rang in Togiri's ears, but he was already moving. 'Mute'
The Blue Demon stepped forward, his hand sliding into his hoodie pocket as he advanced with eerie calmness.
The masked man slowly spoke "To help the red demon make friends with the villagers, the blue demon pretend to be a villian"
The remaining five men scrambled in panic, grabbing weapons and tools from around the room. The room was filled with the sounds of clattering metal and frantic footsteps. But it was too late. Togiri, with a chilling precision, pulled out several more daggers from his hoodie.
Each throw was expertly aimed, and each dagger found its mark with ruthless efficiency. The gangsters fell one by one, their bodies hitting the floor with a series of loud thuds.
The once lively room was now eerily quiet, save for the soft, horrified gasps of the remaining gangster, who had managed to limp away from the chaos.
His face was pale and drenched in sweat, his left leg pinned by a dagger.
"Argh! Who are you?" he cried, clutching his injured leg and trying to back away. The Blue Demon approached him slowly, each step deliberate and filled with menace.
"So the red demon punched the blue demon and saved the villagers. The red demon was happy and so was the blue demon" Slow steps were echoing through the room.
"Please! If you want money, I can bring you money. How does 1 million sound?" The leader's voice trembled, his eyes darting around in panic.
The Blue Demon continued his slow, deliberate advance. "5 million! Ten million! How much do you want? Shit!" The leader's desperation was palpable as he attempted to flee, but his injuries slowed him down.
"But it didn't last for long. The blue demon was alone and his reputation was ruined while the red demon became a hero and friend of the villagers. So what do you think the blue demon would have done if he was real?"
"I- I don't know!" yelled the man in panic. Still trying to limp away with a dagger in his leg.
Slash The leader collapsed to the floor, a cry of agony escaping his lips as Togiri severed his Achilles' tendon. "Please, God! Please don't kill me," the leader begged, his voice a pitiful whimper.
The Blue Demon let out a chilling laugh that filled the room with an unsettling sound. "HAHAHAHAHAHA...." The laughter was cold, unfeeling and borderline insane. In a serious tone the blue demon said "Don't pray to these false gods. Those bastards enjoy your suffering. You should pray to me."
The gangster, in sheer terror, lost control and soiled himself. Togiri leaned in closer, his mask reflecting the flickering light as he held the dagger menacingly near the leader's vulnerable baby making area.
"Tell me about the other gangs," Togiri demanded, his voice a low, threatening murmur.
The leader's face drained of color, his fear evident as he began to spill what he knew, his voice quivering as he detailed the other gangs' operations.
Slash Thud The blue demon decapitated the leader and his flying head hit the floor. "If the blue demon was real, he would have become a real villian" he said to the lifeless bodies around him.
---
Several hours later Togiri entered his room through the window. 'Let me look at all my spoils.'
700 023 EP
809 SP
0 RP
'I previously had 92 Shop Points. I made a little over 710 by killing around 50 people and consisted of 6 or 8 per gang. They also were only average in strength. If I kill bigger gangs I should be able to make a thousand or two in Shop Points a night'
Togiri was very satisfied. Not only did he remove some vermin from his city, he also gained enough Shop Points for another 8 pills, but the most important thing was that his bloodlust and desire for revenge was a slightly satisfied.
Togiri didn't wait around and instantly opened his Shop and bought eight Aura-condensation pills. He swallowed one and a few minutes later the energy flowing to his heart and blood stream dissapeared.
Togiri continued to take the rest of the pills until he used them up. 'Status'
Name: Togiri
Age: 13
Strength: 4.61
Agility: 4.61
Vitality: 4.73
Aura: 13,003
Body Cultivation - Third Layer of Skin Refining (middle stage)
'My strength and agility increased by 0.08, my vitality by 0.12 which is less thsn previously. Previously it would increase 0.03 per pill. My Aura didn't only increase by 800 from the eight pills, but somehow I gained 200 Aura more.'
A thought flashed into Togiri's mind. 'When I take Aura-condensation pills my aura increases and my body becomes stronger which increases my Aura again. Or did simply potential in absorbing Aura increase? I guess it's the later. That would make more sence. So now my aura increases 125 per pill and not 100.'
Togiri walked into his shower and showered for the third time today. 'I hope the blood smell on my body dissapears quickly. I am so tired. I won't use the Training Simulator today.'