"Boom!"
Dust flew, and weapons clashed.
On the rooftop of the Aogiri Tree stronghold, the four members of CCG were engaged in a fierce battle with the Manager.
Despite being surrounded and attacked by four people, the Manager remained calm and composed. The kagune on his arms, resembling two large blue swords, danced like a whirlwind, impenetrable.
In just a few rounds of combat, Hirako Take and Amon Koutarou were knocked away, collapsing in the distance with multiple soft tissue injuries.
The Manager had held back. If he had intended to kill, the two would already be corpses.
"The difference... is too big," Amon said dejectedly, sitting on the ground, watching the Manager fight with Shinohara Yukinori and Kuroiwa Iwao.
Neither Shinohara nor Kuroiwa could withstand the Manager's strength.
After just a few exchanges, the two were sent flying, rolling embarrassingly on the ground.
Shinohara, his whole body aching, sat up and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
"Kuroiwa, let's use 'that,'" Shinohara said.
"You mean to go all out?" Kuroiwa replied.
"Amon told us to hold out for five minutes, but it hasn't even been three yet."
Shinohara stared intently at Kuroiwa.
"Let's do it."
With that, the two activated their "Arata," bringing it back to its original form, a state closer to a kagune.
The "Arata" on their bodies began to surge, starting to absorb their blood.
Once the "Arata" was activated in its true form, it would only absorb blood for the first thirty seconds. After that, it would become frenzied and start tearing into the user's flesh.
"Come on, 'Arata,' eat up."
Within a few seconds, Shinohara and Kuroiwa stood up again, their upper body armor now a blood-red color, emanating a sense of madness and danger.
Their speed and strength increased dramatically as they rushed toward the Manager.
Noticing the change in them, the Manager became serious, quietly guessing that this must be a new weapon developed by his "old friends."
"What a crazy feeling," Shinohara said as he swung his quinque greatsword rapidly, coordinating with Kuroiwa's attacks. Surprisingly, the two managed to suppress the Manager, who could only defend.
But the good times didn't last. Not even twenty seconds had passed when Shinohara staggered back, unable to hold on any longer.
"Shinohara!" Kuroiwa called out, using his quinque to push the Manager back before running toward Shinohara.
"The 'Arata' is indeed powerful, but the side effects are too great," Shinohara said, his body severely injured in multiple places where the "Arata" had bitten into him.
Kuroiwa was in slightly better shape but had also lost a lot of blood to the "Arata," leaving him exhausted.
"This is bad, really bad," Hirako muttered, his face grim. At this rate, all four of them were going to die here.
Amon, leaning against a wall nearby, was filled with frustration and unwillingness.
"Don't give up. Your savior is here," Marude Itsuki's voice came through their Bluetooth earpieces, reviving the spirits of the four on the rooftop.
"Bang!"
An iron door in the corner of the rooftop was kicked open from the inside. Judging by the force, the person who kicked the door was quite strong—the iron door was bent into a U-shape, with a footprint in the center.
The door clanged as it landed near the Manager. He turned toward the dark doorway.
A wisp of smoke drifted out from the doorway, faintly revealing a spark of fire.
"Does the Aogiri Tree's ghoul have water in their brain? Why make this stronghold like a maze?" a voice said.
Su Xiao stepped out of the darkness, cigarette in his mouth, and walked onto the rooftop. After a brief rest following a frantic run, he would have arrived even later if not for the sounds of the battle.
The night wind blew, making his white coat flutter in the breeze.
Flicking away the cigarette butt, Su Xiao exhaled deeply and walked slowly toward the Manager.
Unlike his daughter, Takatsuki Sen, the Manager had far more combat experience.
But the Manager wasn't without his weaknesses. He hadn't eaten a living human for many years.
This had caused the Rc cell concentration in his body to drop, weakening his combat abilities.
"Are you planning to eat that thing?" Su Xiao asked, holding his Dragon Flash sword, its tip pointing to the ground.
The kagune on one of the Manager's arms had already retracted, and he was holding a large chunk of broken "Arata," which he had torn off during his fight with Shinohara.
The primary material for the "Arata" was the kagune of an SSS-rated ghoul, meaning its Rc cell concentration was thousands or even tens of thousands of times higher than human flesh.
"If I don't eat it, I won't be able to fight you," the Manager said as the kagune on his back opened a gaping maw and devoured the large piece of "Arata."
No sooner had the Manager swallowed the piece than Su Xiao charged forward.
He had run too fast on the way here, so after a brief rest on the rooftop, he would have already been fighting the Manager otherwise.
The Dragon Flash sword gleamed with a cold light as it slashed toward the Manager, and faint blue electric arcs appeared on the blade during the swing.
Su Xiao wasn't taking any chances in this fight. He immediately activated his Azure Steel Shadow ability.
The Manager raised his arm, the kagune covering it clashing with the Dragon Flash.
"Ding!" The sound of metal clashing rang out.
The Manager's kagune was tough, but a crack appeared on it, and the energy from the Azure Steel Shadow flowed into the Manager's body.
The Rc cells inside the Manager began to burn, and though he let out a muffled groan, a lifetime of battle experience allowed him to endure the excruciating pain without it affecting his performance.
"Sharp swordsmanship, but attacks of this level won't take my life," the Manager said, blocking the Dragon Flash with one arm while thrusting the other arm's blade-like kagune toward Su Xiao.
The angle of the thrust was incredibly tricky, but Su Xiao reacted quickly, dodging just in time as a few strands of his black hair fell to the ground, a testament to the sharpness of the Manager's kagune.
Su Xiao performed a quick dash, launching a series of slashes as he engaged the Manager head-on.
In terms of raw stats, Su Xiao was slightly inferior to the Manager, but his superb swordsmanship compensated for this difference.
"Clang, clang, clang..."
The sword and kagune clashed rapidly, sparks flying as the two exchanged blows in quick succession.
On the rooftop, the tall and short figures fought fiercely, while the four others watched from the sidelines.
"Incredible..." Amon muttered, staring in disbelief at the scene before him, his mind in turmoil.
The man before him, possibly younger than himself, was able to single-handedly fight against the One-Eyed Owl. The stark contrast left Amon's chest feeling tight.
"This is why headquarters transferred him to the 24th ward as a temporary member of Squad Zero. You've probably never seen him in action during the eradication of ghouls in the 14th ward," Shinohara said, sitting on the ground, covered in blood, watching the fight intently.
"Shinohara, should I go help him?" Kuroiwa asked. Though injured, he still had some energy left after using the "Arata."
"No. If we go in, we might disrupt his rhythm," Shinohara replied.
The four of them remained silent, sitting and continuing to watch.
Meanwhile, Marude Itsuki, back in the command vehicle, was smiling as he watched the screen.
"Indeed, transferring you here was the right decision," Marude thought, sitting back in relief.
On the rooftop, Su Xiao and the Manager's battle had reached a fever pitch.
The Manager gave Su Xiao the impression that he was growing stronger the longer they fought. It wasn't just a feeling; it was because the Manager had consumed that piece of "Arata."
The Rc cell concentration in the Manager's body was skyrocketing, and his kagune was steadily becoming more powerful.
The Manager's height had increased from his original 2.5 meters to an astounding 3 meters, and his kagune now gleamed with a blood-red hue.
The Manager had regained some of the glory of his youth. He was no longer the old man who could be chopped down by several Special Class Investigators.
"Bang!"
Su Xiao kicked the Manager in the side, sending him back several steps, though the Manager remained unscathed.
The intense fight had left Su Xiao somewhat breathless, but the Manager wasn't in great shape either. The kagune on his arms was full of dents, and in some places, it had even been torn open.
"Such a thrilling opponent," Su Xiao said, undeterred by the prolonged fight. In fact, it only heightened his fighting spirit. He hadn't faced such a formidable foe in a long time.
The fight with Nico had been entirely different. That had been tedious, while this was real combat, the kind that got his blood pumping.
"Let's continue."
(End of Chapter)
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Translator's Note :- I am Not that familiar with a lot of the fictional worlds mentioned in the story. So if I make a mistake naming something please correct me by writing a paragraph comment on the mistake. Thank you.