The collapse of the stage scaffolding destroyed most of the overhead lights, leaving the theater dimly lit.
His plan having failed, Saiyu steadied his breathing and did not summon the big-eared monkey Nen Beast, which is perched on the second-floor VIP balcony, to his side. Instead, he abruptly launched an attack toward Law.
Although the micro-bombs hadn't harmed Law, they hadn't injured the kid either. So before Law could move the boy away, Saiyu had to seize the opportunity to strike.
'I need to ensure Killua's safety, so until Kuro arrives, I can only focus on defense. Besides, the other gun-wielding Nen Beast is still hiding somewhere.'
As Saiyu charged straight at him, Law remained rooted in place, intending to counter his opponent's moves with stillness. At the same time, he noticed that the Nen Beast that had been on the VIP balcony had now disappeared.
Saiyu sprinted forward, kicking up eight scattered chairs in quick succession, sending them flying toward Law's position.
"The same old tricks."
Law's expression remained cold as he flicked his fingers eight times in rapid succession, firing marble-sized Nen Bullets that intercepted the airborne chairs mid-flight.
By then, Saiyu had already closed the distance to the base of the stage. Law glanced down slightly, his cold gaze fixed on Saiyu, making no move to attack and maintaining a purely defensive stance.
Suddenly, Saiyu raised his hand, pulling out a silver pistol from somewhere and immediately emptying the magazine.
The deafening gunshots echoed as flames spat from the barrel. Seven bullets crossed the less-than-ten-meter distance in an instant, aimed precisely at Law's vital points.
At such close range, Law expanded his Domain and halted the rapidly spinning bullets, dissipating their momentum almost instantly.
But just as quickly, he retracted his Domain, because Saiyu had already circled behind him.
A well-used modern firearm could sometimes be more effective than distracting Emission-Type Nen Bullets. Pulling a trigger required no extra focus, allowing the Nen User to maintain full control over their Nen Distribution. And with a high-caliber handgun, the firepower was more than sufficient.
Saiyu had closed the distance first, forcing Law to use his Nen Ability to defend against the gunfire, then circled behind him, creating the perfect moment to strike.
But Law wasn't so easily caught off guard. The moment he blocked the bullets, he had already anticipated Saiyu's next move, so he retracted his Domain as quickly as possible.
[Instant]
Holding Killua, Law instantly teleported thirty meters forward, landing amidst the chaotic rows of seats.
'An Emission-Type Teleportation Ability.'
Saiyu's swing met empty air, his eyes narrowing as he watched Law reappear in the seating area. He silently discarded the now-empty pistol.
From firing the gun to flanking for a sneak attack, he hadn't even spared the effort to drop the pistol, pouring all his focus into repositioning.
Yet Law's reaction had been so swift that his ambush failed… without even managing to harm the kid.
After this first exchange, their positions had reversed.
Unbeknownst to Saiyu, there was a critical issue: Law's tempo was a beat faster than his. When Saiyu had flanked him, had Law not prioritized Killua's safety, he could have easily countered instead of retreating.
'Killua's body is still weak… even a glancing hit from a Nen-Enhanced strike could damage his internal organs. Kuro will probably take another ten seconds to get here. Until then, I need to create as much distance as possible.'
Law crouched low, slamming a palm against the ground. With a dull thud, over a hundred nearby seats were sent flying into the air.
Still pressing his hand against the floor, Law peered through the gaps between the airborne chairs, his gaze locking onto Saiyu's expressionless face.
A surge of Nen erupted outward, the dispersed Aura clinging to the floating chairs like a single finger lighting up a hundred stars in one second.
[Conductor's Baton]
Before the chairs could even land, they swirled like clothes in a washing machine, forming a tornado-like formation that barreled toward Saiyu on the stage.
'Compressing the range increases individual power, but it also makes it easier to dodge.'
Saiyu let out a cold snort and sidestepped to the right, effortlessly evading the twisting tornado of chairs. However, the moment he dodged, the chair tornado suddenly dispersed.
'He mixed Manipulation into his Emission-Type Ability. The power is probably limited, so no need to bother with it.'
In an instant, Saiyu made his judgment. Instead of wasting effort dodging the scattered chairs, he reinforced his body with Ken and charged straight toward Law, who was still crouched thirty meters away.
Bang, bang, bang!
Chairs crashed against Saiyu's body, failing to even disrupt his posture or slow his momentum.
'Correct judgment and decision-making.'
Watching this, Law silently acknowledged.
Breaking through the chair barrage, Saiyu leaped from the stage, covering the thirty-meter distance in a single bound before descending like a collapsing mountain toward the crouching Law.
Seeing this, Law swiftly rose to his feet and lightly hopped backward, creating distance once more.
Saiyu's attack landed on empty air again. He lifted his head, sneering at Law, "All you know how to do is run, huh? Trash."
Law ignored the taunt. After steadying himself, he raised his free arm, shaping his hand into a gun gesture, index finger pointed skyward as if aiming down a barrel. Aura rapidly condensed at his fingertip.
The strange motion put Saiyu on guard. The next second, his expression abruptly changed, as an invisible shockwave erupted beneath his feet, sending him flying into the air before he could react.
'In? No… Divine Script! He knows Divine Script too?!'
Caught completely off guard, Saiyu was launched upward, his heart pounding. As he hung midair, he saw Law's index finger now compressed with a marble-sized Nen Bullet.
The shockwave itself posed little threat to a Nen User, but without consciously reinforcing his feet for stability, Saiyu had been sent airborne, and left unbalanced.
Law aimed at Saiyu's heart, but at this moment, there was a click, and all the lighting equipment above the audience seats suddenly blazed to life, flooding the entire space with blinding brightness.
Saiyu was above, Law below, so the abrupt illumination only affected Law's vision.
The moment the light seared his eyes, Law decisively fired the compressed Nen Bullet toward Saiyu's airborne figure.
But the sudden lighting threw off his aim.
'What a perfect timing!'
Saiyu's tense nerves eased in that instant.
Earlier, he had deliberately kept only the stage lights on to enhance the concealment of his Divine Script. But before the fight, he had ordered the listening monkey to activate all the lights… a measure meant to amplify another hidden card. Unexpectedly, it had now saved him at a critical moment.
'Even if it's not aimed at a vital spot, I need to defend with Ko.'
Saiyu's thoughts raced. Judging that the Nen Bullet would strike his right abdomen, he immediately focused his Nen there.
"Hoh? Skilled Ryu."
Law murmured to himself. Yet the Nen Bullet showed no mercy… piercing straight through Saiyu's Ko and blasting a hole through his right abdomen.
"Impossible!"
Saiyu's face twisted in shock.