The world blurred.
Aiko gasped, the overwhelming force of Hisako's incantation ripping through her very soul. The seal beneath the ruins pulsed with ancient magic, a chasm opening between past and future, between who she was and who she must become.
And then—Ryou's voice.
"Aiko!"
She barely felt his arms catching her as she staggered back. Warmth. Steady hands. He was always there, always pulling her back from the edge. His grip on her tightened, as if he could feel the war raging inside her.
"You're stronger than this," he whispered, his forehead nearly touching hers. "Come back."
Her fingers curled into the fabric of his cloak. She wanted to stay there, in that moment, with him. But she couldn't.
Not yet.
Aiko lifted her gaze, meeting Takeshi's golden eyes—so much like hers, yet burdened with centuries of pain. Hisako's laughter filled the ruins, dark tendrils rising like a storm, threatening to consume them all.
The choice had already been made.
With a breath that felt like breaking and mending all at once, Aiko let go.
The Ninth Tail awakened.
With the battle reaching its climax, Aiko unlocked the final secret of the Kyūbi's power—the Ninth Tail, the embodiment of balance between destruction and creation. Light erupted from her, weaving through the battlefield, turning the tide in their favor.
The sheer force of her awakening sent waves of energy outward, obliterating the Onibane warriors who dared to stand against her. Ryou and Mei fell back, shielding themselves as the power expanded. Even Takeshi staggered, his blade trembling in his grip.
Lady Hisako screamed as her magic was consumed, her form disintegrating into the void. The ancient seal shattered, releasing a pulse of energy that sent the Onibane fleeing into the night. The war was over.
But Aiko's heart ached as she turned to Takeshi, who now knelt before her, his body weak, his spirit broken.
"I failed you," he said.
Aiko knelt beside him, pressing a hand to his shoulder. "No. They failed us both. But we still have a choice."
As dawn broke over the ruins, Aiko stood victorious yet changed. She had embraced her destiny, but at what cost? The world knew now that the Kyūbi had returned. And with its return, new dangers would rise.
She turned to Ryou and Mei, who watched her with quiet reverence. Takeshi, too, stood by her side, his path uncertain, yet no longer bound by darkness.
The Nine-Tailed Legacy was far from over.