Ryuuji, gasping for breath and trembling uncontrollably, stared blankly at the air as he felt the immense power of the Incubus King, which had once surged through him, slowly dissipating. His chest heaved with a deep sense of dread, and his throat tightened as the realisation dawned upon him. The Incubus King, who had granted him unparalleled strength, was now withdrawing, leaving him in the midst of imminent destruction.
"N-No…! Please, don't leave me!" Ryuuji begged desperately, his knees trembling to the point of nearly collapsing. "I've done everything for you! All the sacrifices I made—my flesh, my blood! I can't be discarded like this! You can't just throw me away!"
But in Ryuuji's panic, the cold, disdainful voice of the Incubus King echoed in his mind, cutting through any remaining hope in his heart. "Tch, pathetic human." The tone was filled with scorn and disgust. "Do you think I care about your sacrifices? You thought your foolish actions in the human world made you special to me? Idiot. I was merely bored, that's all. Hell is tedious, so I decided to amuse myself in the human world."
Ryuuji was stunned, hearing such cold and indifferent words, as if his life had been nothing more than a plaything for this infernal being.
"But…!" Ryuuji tried to grasp for anything, something that might stop the impending catastrophe, but the voice of the Incubus King grew sharper, merciless.
"Silence!" The Incubus King's voice boomed in his mind, filled with venom. "Now, in the presence of that boy—in the face of the holy power that could destroy even my soul—you expect me to stay with you? Don't be ridiculous. Of course, I'm fleeing. I won't sacrifice myself for you!"
Ryuuji felt his heart nearly stop at those words. Fear consumed him, making him tremble uncontrollably. He desperately tried to cling to the power that was now slipping away like sand between his fingers.
"I—I can't face him alone…! Please! Don't abandon me, please!" Ryuuji cried out in his mind, his panic intensifying.
But the Incubus King merely chuckled, a sinister sound that echoed within Ryuuji's head. "Face it yourself, human. You were the one who invited me into your world, so now you must face the consequences alone. I have no further interest here. Don't try to drag me into it."
With one final surge of energy pulled from Ryuuji's body, the connection between them was severed completely. The Incubus King was gone, leaving Ryuuji utterly powerless, trapped in a deadly despair.
Ryuuji's body shook violently as he staggered backwards, his breath ragged, his eyes wide with fear. Before him, Kaoru stood tall, the holy aura radiating from his body growing ever stronger, like a light ready to burn away any darkness that dared to approach.
Ryuuji, now lying helpless, his body slowly withering and shrivelling, no longer resembled the once-proud figure he had been. His voice was hoarse, filled with despair, a sound that would pierce the heart of anyone who heard it.
"Y-You… you abandoned me…" he whispered, barely audible, as if his last hope had died along with the power he had once so heavily relied upon.
Kaoru gazed at him with cold, unyielding eyes, a faint smirk of contempt crossing his face. "Looks like someone's been left behind," he muttered indifferently, watching as the Incubus King fled to its lair, now out of reach in its energy form. Kaoru had intentionally let it go, no longer seeing the entity as a threat.
Now, only Ryuuji remained. The figure who had once been so arrogant and ambitious now looked so small and powerless. His body continued to wither, like a dry leaf being consumed by time. "No…" he murmured again, his voice barely a whisper in the darkness.
Kaoru sighed briefly, a hint of boredom in his breath. "Well, this is the end," he said in a cold tone, as if Ryuuji's death was an outcome he had foreseen from the very beginning.
However, Ryuuji still struggled, even with the last remnants of his fading strength. "This must be a dream! I… I was destined to rule this world!" he croaked with a voice full of bitterness and delusion, still clinging to the illusion of his grandeur.
Kaoru smirked, watching Ryuuji, lost in his delusions. "Hmm~ Wake up from your dream, you fool~," he said, his voice casual but laced with ridicule.
But Kaoru had no intention of granting Ryuuji a swift death, as he had mentioned before. Death, in Kaoru's eyes, was a privilege not worthy of someone like Ryuuji. Instead, he chose to inflict a far more cruel punishment—one far worse than mere death.
With a smooth yet powerful gesture, Kaoru activated a potent illusion spell. "You'll learn the true meaning of suffering, Ryuuji," he said, gazing at Ryuuji with an icy stare.
In an instant, Ryuuji was dragged into the illusory world Kaoru had created. Time flowed differently there—each second felt like years. In that illusion, Ryuuji experienced unimaginable mental and physical torture.
Kaoru, with sadistic precision, manipulated the illusion, creating all sorts of torment so real that Ryuuji's mind accepted each sensation with excruciating intensity. He endured 100 years of suffering in the blink of an eye—from his body being destroyed repeatedly, to his soul being crushed. Every moment was unbearably real; not a single second felt light.
"W-What is this?!! Stop it!!" Ryuuji screamed in the illusory world, his voice echoing in the endless void. But there was no response, save for the shadow of Kaoru, who continued to torment him mercilessly.
In the real world, Kaoru simply smiled faintly. "I hope you enjoy those long 100 years," he said, watching Ryuuji's body convulsing violently, unable to escape the unbearable pain. "I'm sure you'll learn that death is far too kind for someone like you."
While Ryuuji's poor body continued to convulse and tremble, trapped in an endless cycle of mental torment, Kaoru stepped forward slowly, dragging the helpless figure towards Yukikaze. Cold and unmerciful as she was, Kaoru knew that the young girl had unfinished business with the man who was now little more than a living corpse.
Meanwhile, down below, the battle between Yukikaze and the monster that had once been her father was nearing its conclusion. Yet, Yukikaze fought not because she lacked strength or skill, but because her heart still wavered, reluctant to hurt the man who once held her with love. Her father may have turned into a monster, but in Yukikaze's heart, a faint glimmer of hope remained, though it was fading fast.
On the other hand, Rinko faced her own struggles. Every slash she made, every wound she inflicted on the monster's body, seemed to be for nothing—the wounds healed quickly, and the creature's regeneration seemed unstoppable. To make matters worse, the monster appeared to have mastery over lightning ninja arts, increasing its speed and adding devastating power to each attack with deadly bolts of energy. Every time the lightning struck, Rinko had to leap back swiftly, but each attack was narrowing her escape routes.
Yukikaze and Rinko were both being cornered. They were panting, desperately seeking an opening in a creature that showed no signs of weakening. Sweat dripped from their brows, and despite their best efforts, hope was dwindling.
But just as all seemed bleak, and the shadow of defeat began to loom, something unexpected happened. From the darkness, a sound pierced the air—a spear flew at incredible speed, striking the hand of the monster that was about to crush Yukikaze. The creature roared in pain, withdrawing its hand in shock.
"What?! Who—" Yukikaze's eyes widened, almost unable to believe what she saw. Emerging from the shadows was a figure once thought to be the strongest of the previous generation—her own mother, Shiranui. With a cold smile and sharp gaze, Shiranui hurled her spear with perfect precision, cutting through the air with lightning speed and effortlessly stopping the monster's attack as though it were a child's toy.
However, Yukikaze's attention wasn't solely focused on her mother's lethal strike. Something deeper, more emotional, began to rise within her heart. Tears welled up as she looked at the woman she thought had been lost, now standing firm to protect her, even though half of her memories had been erased, leaving her no longer able to recognise Yukikaze. The question she had been holding back finally escaped her lips. "Why?"
Shiranui, clad in her gleaming taimanin uniform under the dim light of the battlefield, responded with a low yet firm voice, as though the question echoed within her as well. "I don't know either... I just felt something was wrong, a growing unease... until I found myself running here, for no clear reason. Just a bad feeling I couldn't ignore."
Confusion engulfed them both. Yukikaze felt a mix of joy and bewilderment, her heart torn in two—on one hand, her mother still cared for her, even though her memories were gone. Yet, on the other, there was a deep mystery surrounding her mother's feelings, seemingly beyond mere lost memories.
As the emotional reunion unfolded, a deafening roar shattered the moment of silence.
"Grooooowl!" The monster, which had been momentarily subdued, was now fully regenerated, its horrifying tentacles floating menacingly in the air, poised to strike at Shiranui, who was still lost in her emotions.
-Zraaash!
A sharp strike suddenly stopped the creature's movement. Its four tentacles were severed as if sliced by an invisible blade. Yukikaze turned, startled, and saw Asuka gracefully landing beside Shiranui, her face looking slightly irritated.
"Moo, don't go wandering off without backup!" Asuka grumbled, crossing the battlefield with a nonchalant attitude, even though danger still loomed.
Shiranui only offered a brief apology. "Sorry." Her tone was flat, but there was a faint warmth behind the words. Perhaps this was Shiranui's way of acknowledging Asuka's presence, though her mind was still consumed by emotional turmoil.
Shiranui's gaze slowly shifted towards the figure before her—or rather, the beast that had once been her husband. He was no longer a man, but the result of a cruel experiment that had robbed him of his humanity entirely. Though her memories had been erased, something remained deep within her heart, something far deeper than mere guilt or pity. The feelings stirring inside her caused her tears to fall, unstoppable. Shiranui didn't understand why, but those tears were the reflection of a buried emotion—a voiceless scream from her heart, calling out to the man she once loved. Now, that man was nothing more than a shadow of his former self, a soulless creature devoid of any trace of humanity.