Natsu and the young man clashed.
There was no hesitation—only rapid, relentless blows exchanged.
They moved fast. Blindingly fast.
To any ordinary onlooker, it would have seemed like the air itself was cracking from the pressure. The fight was invisible—only the sharp, staccato thuds and cracks of impact could be heard.
So many, so quickly. A dozen strikes per second, at least.
Both fighters specialized in close combat. Their movements were crisp and lethal.
The young man had refined technique.
But Natsu brought overwhelming firepower—literal fire.
Blow after blow, they traded hits in perfect balance. No clear winner, no advantage gained.
But that equilibrium couldn't last.
All it took was one opening. One mistake.
Psychologically, Natsu had the edge. As a spiritual beast, he had no hesitation, no fear, no distraction. Kaizen's order was simple: fight with everything you have. So Natsu did.
Meanwhile, the young man couldn't completely shut out his concern—not for his teammates' lives, necessarily, but for how their deaths might affect him.
...
Kaizen gripped the hilt of the Rotten Knife tightly.
In Uchiha Sasuke's eyes, the black tomoe spun slowly—Genjutsu.
Illusion power spilled out, aimed at the woman ahead.
But her aura was formidable.
And Sasuke wasn't exactly a Genjutsu specialist.
Even so, the illusion worked for a heartbeat.
And that was enough.
Just like before, when Kaizen had used Sasuke's illusion to manipulate the Shadow Beasts inside the Sumas space.
"Rotten Knife," Kaizen murmured.
He slashed downward.
A gleam of eerie light streaked toward the woman—and hit.
Her body erupted in boils. Egg-like pods pulsed along her arms and legs.
Pop!
Pop!
Pop!
White maggots spilled out, writhing, crawling across her skin. They clung to her, sucking her aura like parasites.
No matter how she thrashed, she couldn't shake them off. They burrowed like they had fused with her nerves.
Her strength began to drain, her speed faltering.
Sasuke and Kaizen closed in.
The woman's eyes narrowed.
"Damn it…"
Unlike the other three members of the Four Beasts, she had been cautious from the start. As vice-captain, she had a more strategic mind.
She hadn't gone into Kaizen's fog blindly like the others.
She was fast. In her mind, even if things went sideways, she could escape with that speed.
But now… she realized escape was no longer an option.
"If you want to kill me… you'd better be ready to pay for it!"
She looked down at her own arm.
"My Nen... is ready."
A surge of aura burst from her body.
Something evaporated into the air—subtle, nearly invisible.
A faint mist spread through the battlefield.
It looked similar to the fog created by the Lantern Ghost technique, but thinner... and yet just as dangerous.
Toxic.
Kaizen held his breath.
Sasuke lunged forward.
The woman met him head-on, but at the last second—
Whoosh!
She twisted sharply, boosting her speed with terrifying acceleration.
She slipped past Sasuke before he could react and went straight for Kaizen.
Kaizen raised the Rotten Knife again.
A flicker of dark light shimmered along the blade's edge.
Too slow.
She was already past it.
"She's that fast?" Kaizen's eyes narrowed.
Just then, a thought struck him.
"Red Eyes!"
Chitong slashed out with his blade.
The woman's instincts screamed. She halted mid-charge and veered sharply, avoiding the strike—barely.
But the moment was lost. Her attack on Kaizen was interrupted.
Chitong didn't give her space to breathe. She pressed in.
Sasuke recovered and rejoined the fight.
Kaizen stepped back, observing carefully from outside the mist.
"She's not getting faster," Kaizen muttered. "Something else is going on."
He studied the battlefield.
Sasuke punched at the woman. She dodged. His fist crashed into the ground, flinging rocks in every direction.
Some landed in the mist. Some fell outside it.
"Time…"
Kaizen's gaze sharpened.
"Her real ability is time."
He watched the trajectory of the debris, noting the discrepancies.
"The same stone—one lands outside, one inside. But the timing doesn't match."
"In this mist, time flows differently."
"Anyone or anything other than her… experiences a delay. But she doesn't."
"That's why it looks like she's moving faster."
He exhaled slowly.
"It's a smart direction for a Nen ability."
"If she'd developed it further, it'd be nearly impossible to deal with."
"But right now? Still manageable."
"Still vulnerable."
"And the fact that this mist forms from her sweat... interesting."
Kaizen signaled to Chitong and Sasuke.
Chitong became the primary attacker.
Sasuke moved to a supporting position, hanging just behind the line.
The woman clearly feared Chitong's blade.
Meanwhile, Kaizen's projectiles—enhanced by Nen—created constant pressure.
The Rotten Blade's parasites drained her.
But most of all—her intentions were transparent.
She wanted to get to Kaizen.
That made her predictable.
Kaizen just needed to maintain his distance and time his counters. That was enough to keep her locked down.
She was fast, yes. But not enough.
She was skilled, yes. But not precise enough.
And worst of all—Kaizen was reading her like a book.
Every time she tried to break through, his responses cut her off at the root.
It wasn't like fighting an equal.
It felt like fighting someone far, far above her level.
Someone with sharper judgment.
More experience.
She couldn't find a rhythm.
Couldn't find a weakness.
She had strength. She had ability.
But no way to use it.
No way out.
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