Usagi's twin blades lowered slowly, their intense flames flickering like a blood-stained rabbit in the night. The searing heat caused the nearby steel beams to groan faintly, the air thick with the acrid stench of burning. She bent slightly, her legs taut like a hare ready to spring.
In the blink of an eye, Usagi vanished, leaving a fiery afterimage streaking through the air. The sound of her movement sliced the silence, and she reappeared directly in front of Akari. Her twin blades slashed down, their flames roaring like an inferno aimed at Akari's face.
The crimson-black fire swirled around her blades, the scorching energy threatening to devour everything in its path. Usagi's attacks were swift as lightning, each swing leaving a trail of blazing destruction. Yet, Akari evaded with unnerving ease, his movements precise and almost casual, as though he was dancing through her strikes. His eyes were wild, devoid of any emotion but madness.
Usagi's blades crossed in a sudden, sweeping arc, then halted abruptly. Her eyes narrowed, and she flipped backward just as a shadow lunged from behind the flames. Her instincts guided her; Hayato's dagger sliced the air where her chest had been moments before. At the same time, Akari ducked low, his blade grazing the space just past her back. The coordinated assault missed by inches, yet the pressure of their proximity lingered.
Leaping into the air with a twist, Usagi spun her body gracefully. Her twin blades carved through the air, creating a flaming vortex that burned with a deafening roar. The resulting heatwave surged outward, carving out a searing radius around her. The sky lit up with fire, and the crumbling buildings around them trembled in the intense waves.
Hayato crouched like a beast, his unsettling grin widening as he dodged her fiery onslaught. His crazed eyes gleamed, a predator relishing the hunt. Instead of pressing his attack, he retreated, his body language exuding a patience that only heightened his menace. His gaze never left Usagi, like a wolf savoring the chase.
Suddenly, Hayato lunged, closing the gap in the brief interval of Usagi's spin. He struck with feral intensity, pinning her to the ground with sheer force.
"Damn it!" Usagi prepared to counter, but Hayato anticipated her move, retreating just before she could strike. His movements were so swift and chaotic they seemed impossible to predict.
Usagi flipped to her feet, her eyes scanning for her assailants—only to realize her rabbit-themed coat was gone. A chill ran down her spine as she noticed the missing garment, the loss leaving her feeling exposed in both body and mind. The flickering flames around her seemed to accentuate the soft contours of her pale skin, her figure illuminated like a living silhouette.
"Give it back!" Usagi demanded sharply.
"Ha ha ha!" Hayato cackled, holding up the rabbit coat like a prize. His manic laughter echoed through the ruins as he draped it over himself, his expression an unsettling blend of triumph and madness.
Usagi's face darkened, a bead of sweat tracing down her temple. She fought to suppress the seething rage within her, her grip tightening on her blades. Hayato had demonstrated an ability to strike at her weakest moments—a terrifying realization that made her heart pound.
Meanwhile, Akari stood cloaked in shadows, his gaze distant. His lips moved faintly, his voice too low to hear clearly at first. Usagi caught snippets of his words as they carried through the still air.
"Akane... where are you? Why won't you answer me?" His tone was anguished, his trembling hands clutching a dagger so tightly that his knuckles turned white. His face was a mask of torment, as though his soul was tearing apart.
But the pain in Akari's voice abruptly shifted to hatred. His eyes snapped to Usagi, now alight with fury. "It's you! You're the one who took my sister away!"
A madman.
Usagi braced herself, her blades raised defensively as Akari's speed surged beyond comprehension. He appeared before her in an instant, his dagger slicing through a few strands of her hair, which floated to the ground like ash.
Even as Usagi evaded, Akari's blade seemed alive, pursuing her relentlessly. One strike nicked her shoulder before embedding itself into a nearby wall. Usagi noticed the blade trailed a thin, gleaming wire, which extended and tightened with her every movement. She had unknowingly stepped into a trap—a web spun with lethal precision.
Akari's daggers weren't merely tools of attack; they were extensions of his will. Like the scythe of a reaper, they moved with uncanny intelligence, leaving Usagi no room to breathe. Every step she took seemed to trigger another trap, forcing her to slash at the air with her blazing blades just to hold her ground.
Dashing between the ruins, Usagi vaulted onto a broken steel beam, her fiery trail illuminating the darkness. She hoped to gain higher ground, but Akari's pursuit was relentless. His daggers shot toward her as if guided by an unseen force, slicing through the steel wires stretched across the battlefield.
Gunfire erupted from an unseen direction, each bullet precisely tracking her movements. The storm of lead hemmed her in, leaving her no space to maneuver.
Usagi spun her blades in a desperate flourish, generating waves of flame that melted the incoming projectiles mid-flight. The fiery spectacle painted the ruins in hues of red and black, but the pressure mounted with every second. Akari's attacks grew more precise, his presence more oppressive, and his traps more intricate.
She glanced at her arm, where a shallow cut had begun to ooze blood. Following the steel wire attached to one of Akari's daggers, she saw a vast, intricate web woven throughout the battleground. Each strand of wire was nearly invisible, but together they formed a deadly labyrinth that hemmed her in. The entire battlefield had become Akari's domain.
"Damn it..." Usagi muttered under her breath, her forehead beading with sweat. Not only did she have to contend with Akari's relentless precision, but she also had to navigate his steel-wire traps. The oppressive rhythm of his attacks felt calculated to leave her no escape.
This is bad, she thought. The situation was spiraling out of control, and Usagi knew she had to find a way to break free.
Akari, devoid of his earlier fractured demeanor, was colder and more ruthless than ever. Usagi clenched her blades tighter, her determination flaring alongside the flames that enveloped her. She would find a way to escape this web, no matter the cost. Because in the face of an unbroken Akari, the true battle was only beginning.