The air around the Abyss Gate was still and Ketsu's Battle hasn't ended at this point.
Two Hunters on their way, had finally arrived.
Ryo stood with his blade lowered at his side, feet planted with quiet resolve.
Akechi leaned lazily on a wall of stone that he'd created from the torn earth on the ground, arms folded, his yellow eyes shining in the sunlight and his coat floating in the air.
"Why are you leaning back," Ryo asked.
Without a pause Akechi answered, "Where already here."
The Gate wasn't like someone would imagine it.
It wasn't a giant stone gate or anything.
There wasn't a physical Gate at all.
The wind stopped.
The subtle Aura that the Gate had emitted was overshadowed by something else.
"I didn't expect Tourists," a voice said, from afar, tho the presence seemed to be close.
A man in a coat.
Blonde almost gray short hair, stepped towards them from the air.
Walking in the Air as if he was walking down stairs.
The atmosphere thickened within his presence.
It wasn't loud or crushing—no harmless intimidation.
The feeling that was in the air, would be better to describe as "superior."
Ryo's grip tightened on his blade.
Akechi's eyes narrowed, faintly amused.
Neither moved.
They simply stood, calm and unreadable, blocking the path to the Gate.
Shinji halted a few steps before them.
The corner of his mouth twitched—not a smile, but a mark of judgment.
"…Guardians, are you?" His tone was even, flat. "Then I can proof, that I am worthy of the Abyss' power."
The ground burst beneath his feet.
A wave of aura detonated outward, sending shards of stone and dust flying.
Akechi moved instantly, vanishing from the impact zone, while Ryo raised his blade, whispering a word under his breath.
»"One sword Style"«
Ryo's sword was covered in aura, as he swung at Shinji.
»"Shishi sonson"«
The wave collapsed in on itself, stone imploding harmlessly at his feet.
But Shinji stood unfazed.
His hand extended, aura forming outward, snapping toward them and blocking the strike.
Akechi swatted them aside with Devil Amp speed, jumping around Shinji attacking occasionally.
Then the ground shifted.
Stone spears erupted upward, piercing Shinji's chest.
The spears shattered into dust, his posture unchanged.
He slowly healed his wounds.
"Annoying," Shinji murmured. And yet, his eyes sharpened faintly.
Ryo started to mov again—his step calm swinging his sword.
Shinji blocked with a hand covered in aura, the shockwave ripping fissures into the earth.
Akechi appeared from behind, his aura twisting and his Devil Amp swapping as he drove a punch toward Shinji's spine.
Shinji twisted, but couldn't dodge.
He created shields of aura, but Akechi kept leaping.
Akechi's fist blasted through the shield, Ryo's blade pierced another and in the same breath Shinji shattered his own defense and went into offense.
He gave Akechi a kick, with his right foot and in the motion unsheathed his sword and stabbed towards Ryo.
As the sword came right at Ryo, there came a sound in his mind, like a warning of a deadly attack (危), he didn't think much about it, as his body moved by instinct.
He lifted his right foot and stepped on the blade pushing it towards the ground holding shinji in place.
He swung at Shinji with his own sword, while holding Shinji's with his foot.
Shinji let go of his sword, spun and kicked Ryo in his Neck, pushing him to the ground.
As Ryo's face hit the ground, Akechi leaped to Shinji with immense speed.
With a single motion, Shinji reached his hand out towards his sword and it flew back into his hand, as he took a swing towards Ryo's throat.
In only seconds Akechi reconstructed the ground near them, to push Shinji off and block the strike.
Smoke was covering the area.
As the smoke cleared, the three reappeared—
The ground cratered as they clashed again.
Shinji cycled through stolen powers effortlessly—chains snapping, shockwaves blasting and aura shields.
Each one precise and controlled, as if he had years of mastery over every ability.
Akechi swapped between Devil Amp and Curse, pressure exploding and twisting with every strike.
And Ryo went into a Stance, »"Thunderbreathing: First form"«
»"Thunderclap and Flash"«
Shinji didn't even blink for a second and Ryo's blade was already point blank before his head.
It hit him directly but he reinforced the place where it hit, with aura, to avoid a deeper cut.
Shinjis forehead started bleeding.
"Finally," Ryo and Akechi said in full synch.
He turned his head backwards seeing Ryo stand in the air behind him.
Ryo turned his Katana upside down and let go of its hilt.
The blade was falling down to the ground, but instead of bouncing off, it went right through the floor.
»"Ban-kai"«
A thousand petals of leaves flew at Shinji who could barely hold up his defense and took some cuts.
Blood flowing down his hands, as he is about to use his next ability.
In a single motion, he created strings of steel on his fingers, throwing them at Ryo.
"That technique… that's," Akechi thought.
Ryo blocks with his left hand, enhancing his arm with aura.
But—
It cut right through his arm, severing it from his body.
The battlefield was ruined.
Craters yawned, stone warped, the air trembling with every exchange.
And still—still—They couldn't keep up with him.
Shinji paused, his gaze flicking between them with cold detachment.
"You're skilled," he admitted, his tone closer to an evaluation than praise. "But your are unfit for a throne."
The momentum didn't stop, as Shinji attacked with his sword again, lunging it at Ryo.
Ryo's eyes narrow, as he focuses solely on the strike, about to block Shinji's sword.
Before their swords could clash, Shinji stopped and kicked Ryo from the side.
"You focus too much on my sword."
"I know," Ryo answered.
Shinji didn't realize it, but Ryo had taken some hits on purpose.
Whilst fighting, he had passively used an ability that allows him to convert damage into power.
Ryo's blade gleamed, angled low, his eyes calm as water.
Akechi cracked his neck, devil-miasma curling along his arm.
Together, they lunged.
The rhythm was seamless: Akechi warped the terrain under Shinji's feet, his Curse twisting and bending the environment for a fraction of a second.
Ryo's blade cut across Shinji's chest, slicing deep enough to send blood spraying.
Shinji staggered—only for the wound to close instantly under Devil Amp.
His eyes narrowed, expression no longer detached but slightly sharpened.
"So he has one too," Akechi noted.
Then—
A faint vibration echoed in the chaos.
Ryo's phone, tucked deep into his coat, lit up with a trembling notification.
"Listen closely everyone, the crimson hunter won."
The world froze.
Akechi's head turned towards Ryo in an instant.
His focus shifted.
It wasn't even for a second, but—
Akechi suddenly felt a hand on his head, as Shinji threw him to the ground.
Ryo's eyes widened, as he was caught in shock.