Boom!
The brute crashed to the ground, unwilling and stunned.
He never expected things to turn out this way.
Worse yet, he hadn't even had the chance to unleash his true strength.
His weapon—a giant axe capable of cleaving through any defense—hadn't even scratched Natsu.
Natsu's agility far outclassed him.
On top of that, he'd been caught in Libra's gravity field and Blade's paralysis—slowing his movements to a crawl.
He died feeling bitter and wronged.
If he'd been allowed to fight at full strength, he wouldn't have minded dying. But this? This was humiliation.
"Damn it..."
...
Deep within the swirling fog, a middle-aged man hadn't noticed the brute's fate.
Or perhaps, he was more concerned with the woman's situation.
She had just spotted Kaizen approaching—her pupils shrank sharply.
Her rhythm quickened as she played her instrument.
A swarm of puppets surged forward, forming a dense wall in front of her.
She knew her own strengths and limits all too well.
Her ability let her control masses of ordinary people. In urban settings, she was deadly. But one-on-one, she was vulnerable.
Her direct combat ability was weak.
If someone got close even once... she was as good as dead.
And Kaizen? He was a nemesis-type user. A whole tier above her.
Sure, beast-type conjured Nen might not be physically overwhelming—but even "not too strong" was more than enough to overpower her.
...
The middle-aged man raced forward at breakneck speed.
When he saw the woman had completed the puppet wall, he sighed in relief.
But something felt... off.
"Why is it so hot...?"
Looking up, his eyes went wide.
A figure had soared above his position—high into the sky.
It was Natsu.
A blazing fireball burned in his hands.
"Flame of the Fire Dragon!"
A massive golden inferno hurtled toward the woman's location.
The middle-aged man's eyes widened in panic.
"No—!"
He conjured two torrents of water to intercept the fireball, but they were too slow.
The fireball slammed down.
The woman stared upward, frozen in horror.
The heat. The pressure. It was like the sun itself was falling on her.
BOOM!
The explosion roared.
Flames erupted in every direction.
The puppet wall was incinerated instantly.
It never stood a chance.
Puppets, corpses, debris—all blown apart. The woman at the center took the full blast. There was nowhere to run.
The entire hillside was scorched clean.
"No...!"
The middle-aged man's voice trembled as he stared toward the impact zone.
"Neil!"
...
Kaizen narrowed his eyes.
Natsu, Sasuke, and the Lantern Ghost all vanished.
A pink figure stepped out from the space beside Kaizen.
It was Killer Queen.
Killer Queen looked toward the middle-aged man high in the air.
A shimmering bomb formed and rocketed toward the middle-aged man.
He reacted just in time—dodging fast.
But the bomb tracked him.
Every direction he moved, it followed—relentless.
He frantically summoned jets of water to block it, rising higher and higher into the air.
But Bombs couldn't be blocked that easily.
Kaizen didn't waste time. He knelt beside the fallen woman.
She was still breathing—barely.
Without hesitation, he sent her into Sumas's space, locking her away.
...
Up above, the middle-aged man was still fleeing.
He kept gaining altitude, hoping it would be enough to shake the bomb.
But it wasn't.
It detonated without warning—silent, then sudden.
Boom.
He'd done everything he could to brace himself.
It saved his life—but barely.
He was now heavily injured, bleeding and gasping.
He didn't dare look back.
He just flew, full speed, in one direction.
Kaizen gave chase.
...
"He still has some ranged options," Kaizen muttered.
"Simple explosive-type Nen won't cut it alone."
"That's why I let Siper stay with the team, even if her potential isn't high."
Siper and Sally, working together, could still apply long-range pressure.
"Natsu can take to the skies for a bit, but that's not enough to threaten this guy alone."
"And I can't spam Bombs in rapid succession."
"But staying that high up will burn through his aura fast."
"And he's already injured."
"He'll crash eventually."
...
The middle-aged man still didn't dare glance back.
Only after gaining serious distance did he take a peek over his shoulder.
Kaizen wasn't there.
But he didn't let his guard down.
"Who the hell is this guy?" he muttered, seething.
"So strong. So damn tricky."
"All those Nen Beasts... what's going on?"
His brows furrowed.
"Killing Das wasn't easy."
"He had two A-rank Nen Beasts."
"And several B-ranks."
"One focused on offense—flames."
"One focused on defense—iron body."
"Where did this guy come from?"
He ran through the intel he'd been given.
"One of the Floor Masters at Heavens Arena."
"Took the Hunter Exam. Passed."
"Has some ties to Gogus."
"No way he's operating alone."
"He must be backed by some powerful force."
"But it doesn't matter."
"No matter what background he has..."
"He's dead."
The man's hands clenched in fury.
Das was his right-hand man—gone.
And the woman?
She'd meant more to him than anyone knew.
There'd been no official relationship between them. But they had shared a bed.
The loss cut deep.
"Damn it all..."
He hovered in the sky, bleeding and breathing heavily.
"I can't stay up here much longer."
"Did he catch up...?"
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