Haruki, Yuki, and Dante stood their ground, eyes locked on the mysterious figure before them—a man clad in deep blue and black armor, his presence exuding an aura of deadly calm. The air around them grew thick with tension as they prepared for the inevitable clash.
Suddenly, the man lunged at Yuki with an inhuman speed, his blade flashing like lightning. She barely managed to sidestep, but the tip of his sword still grazed her side. A sharp gasp left her lips as blood began to stain her clothing.
Before Yuki could react, the man spun, aiming at Haruki. The blade pierced his stomach with a sickening crunch. He staggered back, gasping for air as blood spilled from his wound. His vision blurred, and he coughed up a spray of blood, staining the ground beneath him.
Yuki rushed toward him, but the man wasn't done. He turned, his boot colliding with her chest, sending her sprawling to the ground with a grunt of pain. Haruki, barely holding himself together, gritted his teeth.
"This man… he's on a whole different level," Haruki whispered, barely able to stand.
As he spoke, the man's eyes locked onto Dante. With a wicked smirk, he moved toward the younger fighter, who tried to retaliate but found himself unable to keep up. Before Dante could react, the man's sword slashed through his shoulder, drawing a deep gash that sent a surge of pain through his body. He stumbled backward, clutching his bleeding shoulder.
"My name is Vedryn," the man declared coldly, his voice like ice.
"Vedryn?" Haruki managed to mutter, his face pale from blood loss.
"Yes. Vedryn," the man repeated with no hint of emotion.
In a blur of movement, Vedryn dashed forward, targeting Yuki. His sword cut across her arm, leaving a bloody trail as he sneered, "You're weak. Not even on the level of that boy… Haruki, was it?"
Yuki gritted her teeth and swung her wand at him, but Vedryn was too fast. He leaped into the air, evading her strike with ease, and kicked her in the back, sending her crashing to the ground.
"Pathetic," he sneered as he landed with a fluid grace.
Dante, despite the injury, struggled to rise. His movements were slow, heavy with pain, but his will to fight burned brightly. He lunged at Vedryn again, but the man was like a shadow, always one step ahead. With a flick of his wrist, Vedryn dodged Dante's attack and retaliated, cutting a deep gash along Dante's leg.
Dante let out a strangled cry, falling to his knees as blood poured from the wound.
Haruki, barely conscious, stumbled to his feet, his hands shaking from both pain and exhaustion. "I can't… I can't give up," he muttered through gritted teeth, his vision swimming.
Summoning the last reserves of his strength, Haruki focused on his Zetsu, drawing in what little energy he had left. He charged at Vedryn with a burst of speed, but before he could land a single strike, the man's blade slashed across his arm with terrifying precision.
Haruki cried out in agony as his arm was left mangled, the skin torn open and blood soaking through his clothing. He collapsed to his knees, barely able to keep himself upright. His breaths came in ragged gasps as blood poured from the wound, staining the ground around him.
"I… I can't… I can't keep going…" Haruki murmured, his vision dimming.
Yuki, still struggling to recover, crawled toward him, but Vedryn appeared before her in an instant, his presence like a looming shadow. He looked down at her, unfazed by her pain.
"You're not worth my time," Vedryn said coldly, his voice echoing in the quiet air.
Without another word, he raised his hand and disappeared in a flash, teleporting away.
In a heartbeat, both Yuki and Dante were ripped from the ground, their bodies being hurled into the air and teleported elsewhere. Yuki and Dante landed somewhere near the outskirts of the city, their bodies bruised, battered, and bloody. But at least they were alive.
Haruki, on the other hand, was not so lucky.
He found himself miles away, his body limp and broken, lying in a dense forest. Blood pooled beneath him, and his consciousness flickered like a dying flame. His vision swam, and the last thing he saw before everything went dark was the canopy above, the sunlight filtering through the leaves.
The chapter ends.