"Damn it!!!"
Ken's face flushed with shame as he looked at Takeshi, who was clutching his abdomen but still managed a smirk.
How could it be that, with the power of 'Armament Haki' and mastery of the Six Powers, he had been wounded by a regular high school student who had never even set foot in the underground world?!
Slowly, Ken removed his hand from his neck.
Beneath his palm, a purplish-black bruise had formed, as if his collarbone had been fractured. Within the dented area, faint streaks of blood could still be seen.
"Hiss~" He sucked in a breath through clenched teeth at the sight of the injury.
Fortunately, he had noticed something was off just in time and reinforced the area with 'Armament Haki', bolstering his defense. Otherwise, Takeshi's strike might have been fatal.
"I can't underestimate you..." Ken muttered to himself.
At that moment, he finally understood why Ace had placed so much faith in this kids.
---
On the other side, Takeshi, holding his customized baseball bat, was equally astonished.
The weapon had been specially modified by Reborn for him, a baseball enthusiast. At speeds over 300 kilometers per hour, the bat transformed into a deadly sharp blade.
Takeshi was certain that the swing he had just executed had been strong enough to trigger the transformation. Yet, the enemy had only sustained minor injuries.
Clearly, this opponent was no pushover.
After only two brief exchanges, both Ken and Takeshi had come to the same realization—they had drastically underestimated each other.
——
Seeing Takeshi injured, Tsuna and Hayato shouted in alarm.
"Takeshi-kun!"
"That bastard!" Hayato's temper flared. He swiftly pulled out several bombs from his jacket, turning to Tsuna.
"Jūdaime, stay back! I'm going to help Takeshi!"
Without waiting for a response, Hayato's bombs ignited, flying toward Ken like missiles.
But before they could reach him, a chilling voice rang out from the shadows.
"Who said you could interrupt their fight?"
Swish, swish, swish!
A red flash streaked through the sky as hundreds of steel needles shot out, intercepting every bomb Hayato had thrown. The explosives crashed into the ruins of a nearby staircase, detonating with a thunderous boom. Smoke and dust filled the air, but the attack had no effect on the battle.
"You...!" Hayato's eyes locked onto the new figure that had appeared, surprise flickering across his face. "You're still alive?!"
He had assumed Chikusa hadn't survived after their previous fight. That explosion should have been fatal, especially for someone of Chikusa's level. But here he was, standing before them, very much alive.
Chikusa emerged from the shadows, his expression calm. "Ah, I nearly died that time," he said coolly. "But for the sake of revenge... I came back from hell!"
——
'Whoosh! Whoosh!'
Before Chikusa's words had fully registered, two yo-yos shot out from his hands, firing a barrage of razor-sharp steel needles in the direction of Tsuna and Hayato.
"Jūdaime, look out!!!"
Hayato, familiar with Chikusa's fighting style, was ready. The moment he saw the rain of needles, he hurled several explosive bombs into the air to counter them.
'Boom!'
In the blink of an eye, the bombs exploded, creating a violent shockwave that dispersed the needle storm.
'Clatter...' The sound of steel needles falling harmlessly to the ground echoed through the air.
"Heh..." Hayato grinned triumphantly. "The same tricks won't work on me!"
"You should give up, you bastard. I've beaten you once, and I'll do it again!"
Now that he had grown more familiar with Chikusa's tactics, Hayato was confident. The last time, he had been caught off-guard. This time, he wouldn't make the same mistake.
Feeling the weight of Tsuna's eyes on him, Hayato's determination flared. 'This is my chance to redeem myself... to show Jūdaime why I'm his right-hand man!'
In one swift motion, he pulled out more bombs, ready to charge.
Though he couldn't tap into the immense power of his 'Dying Will Flames' due to his emotional state, he still surged forward with explosive speed, bombs ignited and poised to strike.
——
But Chikusa simply adjusted his glasses, unfazed.
"Same move?" Chikusa's voice cut through the air like a blade. His eyes locked onto Hayato's. "I should return those words to you."
"The same move... won't work on me!"
"Shave!"
'Whoosh!'
Just as Hayato was about to land his attack, Chikusa's figure blurred and disappeared from sight.
"He's gone!" Hayato exclaimed, his eyes widening in disbelief. Without hesitation, he tossed his bombs where Chikusa had been standing, but there was no target.
Then, Tsuna's frantic voice broke through the tension. "Hayato-kun!!! Behind you!!!"
"Jūdaime!"
Hearing Tsuna's warning, Hayato reacted instinctively. He rolled forward in a clumsy but effective dodge.
'Bababababam!'
Hundreds of tiny needles rained down like bullets, striking the ground where Hayato had stood just moments before.
It was clear—if Tsuna hadn't called out in time, Hayato would've been riddled with needles.
"Huh?"
Chikusa's attention snapped to Tsuna after being noticed. Under that icy gaze, Tsuna, who was about to rush to help Hayato, felt a shiver down his spine and froze in place.
At that moment, Chikusa's face reflected deep thought.
'10th generation boss of Vongola, the one Sir Ace is keeping an eye on?'
Though he didn't possess the power of Observation Haki, Tsuna had instantly detected his position and even warned of the attack.
'So, it's true... this weak-looking guy isn't as simple as he appears.'
"Hey! You bastard! Where are you looking?!"
Hayato, noticing Chikusa's attention shift to Tsuna, shouted angrily. In an instant, several bombs arced through the air toward Chikusa, as if scattered by the hand of a goddess.
Seeing Hayato's assault, Chikusa quickly refocused, pushing up his glasses with an indifferent expression.
"Didn't I already tell you? The same tricks won't work on me!"
"Shave!"
'Whoosh!'
A sudden gust sliced through the air as Chikusa's figure vanished again.
Before Hayato could react, Tsuna's urgent voice rang out once more:
"On your right!"
'Right!'
Hayato's instincts kicked in, and he trusted Tsuna's call without hesitation. Several primed bombs flew instantly toward the spot Tsuna had indicated.
Then...
"What the—!?"
Chikusa, just after completing his Shave technique, materialized exactly where Tsuna had warned. He was now caught in the trap laid by Hayato's bombs.
'Bah—'
The sizzle of igniting fuses sounded in Chikusa's ears like a death knell. He instinctively tried to retreat, but...
It was too late.
'BOOM!'
A massive explosion erupted, sending a blistering wave of heat directly into Chikusa's path.
"No… impossible…!"
Blasted backward by the explosion, Chikusa endured the searing pain as the force threw him off balance.
'How is this happening!?'
In the script he envisioned, he was supposed to overpower everyone with his newfound abilities, not get blown up within minutes of showing up! And now, less than two minutes after appearing, he was enduring yet another explosion.
'It's not fair!'
He still had so many powerful techniques left! The ability to predict movements with Observation Haki, Moon Walk for flying through the air, Paper Art for dodging any attack...
But none of it mattered now, as he was so easily overpowered!
Mid-air, his glasses reflected the blurry image of a figure rushing toward him.
'Vongola Jūdaime...'
BOOM!
A second wave of explosions hit, raising a towering dust cloud over the shattered ruins of the school. Chikusa, unable to regain control, was blasted into the sky again, flying through the smoke before crashing to the ground with a thud.
No one could have anticipated that this sudden battle would end so abruptly.
...
...
"That idiot…"
From the sidelines, Ken, who had stood still after Chikusa's arrival, watched the scene unfold. A fleeting hint of concern flashed across his face when Chikusa was caught in the explosion. But in the next instant, his eyes blazed red, like those of a feral beast baring its fangs.
"I won't end up in the same sorry state as that fool Chikusa!"
Before his opponents could launch another attack, he had to make his move.
Otherwise, everything they had done so far would be in vain!
That thought flashed through his mind as Ken's arm hardened with a black sheen of Armament Haki. Without hesitation, he lunged at Takeshi.
The sound of metal clashing echoed from within the smoke.
...
...
Meanwhile, in the thick of the dust cloud, Tsuna rushed toward Hayato, calling out in concern:
"Hayato-kun, are you okay?!"
"I'm fine, Jūdaime!"
Despite the battle, Hayato stood at attention like a loyal dog in front of his boss, even though he was much taller than Tsuna. Anyone observing could see the deep respect Hayato had for him.
In that moment, only one thought crossed Hayato's mind:
'My boss is truly incredible!'
Though the enemy's speed was too fast for the naked eye to follow — almost as if he were teleporting — Tsuna had not only tracked him but also predicted his movements.
'As expected of the man I, Hayato Gokudera, respected!'
On the sidelines, Reborn, observing the scene, allowed a faint smile to creep across his face as he watched Tsuna check on Hayato.
"Could it be the legendary hyper intuition inherited from the First Vongola boss? It seems Tsuna's potential is even greater than the Ninth Boss anticipated."
His gaze then shifted back to Hayato.
"Not only does he lack extensive combat experience, but he also has the ability to make his subordinates trust his judgment and act on it instantly. That's a rare talent for leadership in this world."
Reborn pulled his hat lower, hiding his smile, but he thought to himself:
"Tsuna, you truly are the 10th Vongola... perfect successor."
...
...
"Tsk, tsk, tsk... what a shame."
Within the only building left standing at Kokuyo Junior High School, Ace watched the scene with disappointment.
'Chikusa's foundation is too weak.'
Even though he learned the Marine Six Powers, he couldn't freely alternate between techniques. If he had used Iron Body when he detected the explosives, he wouldn't have been taken down so easily.
The truth is, Chikusa wasn't suited for hand-to-hand combat, and his compatibility with the Six Powers was low. He would have been better off bonding with an elemental Pokémon and evolving as a mage-type fighter.
But unfortunately, there were too few points to achieve that.
Plus, Tsuna's hyper intuition was too powerful. In the world of pirates, only someone with fully developed Observation Haki could do what Tsuna just did — essentially predicting the future.
In the end, everything came together by chance. Chikusa used Shave to attack Hayato twice, and because Tsuna didn't want his friends to get hurt, he awakened his hyper intuition.
Compared to Chikusa, Ken was much better suited for Armament Haki and the Six Powers. He was already able to overpower Takeshi with ease.
However, with the dust settling and Tsuna, Hayato, and Takeshi about to team up, Ken's defeat was inevitable.
"I didn't expect Tsuna and his friends to grow so quickly..."
"But now, Mukuro might have to make his move sooner."
Ace gazed toward the battlefield with anticipation gleaming in his eyes.
"I wonder if Tsuna and the others can withstand the pressure Mukuro is about to bring."