The cave groaned like a living beast, every stone trembling as if it would collapse at any moment. The air was thick, suffocating, pressing down on their bodies like an unseen mountain. That weight wasn't random. It wasn't nature.
It was Waren's true power.
The oppressive force crushed against Hakari, Weller, and Nicolas, pressing down with the weight of a mountain, suffocating every breath. Their bones screamed under the pressure, every heartbeat fighting against collapse.
But somehow—Yushi was saved, By a butterfly..
In that suffocating darkness, just when his knees threatened to buckle, something delicate brushed past his vision,
A butterfly, Glowing in a energy (Almost Flames).
It saved him,guided him
And moments later yushi sees another light.
The light.
Faint, elusive, glowing in the far-off corridor of shadows.
"Wait…!" Yushi gasped, his voice breaking as he ran. Sweat poured down his face. His legs burned with every step, but he refused to stop. He threw himself forward, reaching with desperate hands.
But just as his fingers grazed it, the light slipped away. Again.
"No… not again!" Yushi's throat tore with his cry. His eyes stung with frustration. Every time he neared it, every time he believed he could finally grasp it, the light fled—always one step ahead. Always mocking.
Still, he ran. Even as his lungs screamed for air, even as the cavern threatened to bury him alive, he forced his body to move.
Behind him, Hakari staggered, his knees almost buckling beneath the crushing weight. The veins in his forehead bulged. His jaw locked tight.
He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move.
Yet… he refused to yield.
I'm a Shinzowa. For me, death is better than kneeling before anyone
His lips curled into a bitter grin. "Guess I've got no choice…"
He raised his trembling hand.
"HAI-KEY COMMAND—OUTSHINE!"
The instant the words left his mouth, the cavern itself froze.
The trembling halted. The groaning earth went silent. Even the oppressive weight pressing them into the floor seemed to pause.
Hakari's body convulsed violently. His feet glowed crimson, flames pulsing with every heartbeat. Blood dripped steadily from his hands, splattering against the stone floor. His right eye bulged open unnaturally wide, while his left streamed red—a streak of blood falling from his lashes down his cheek.
The very sight of him was terrifying.
Weller's jaw fell slack. Nicolas's breath hitched, his chest tightening as he stumbled back.
"What… what is that…?" Nicolas whispered, unable to take his eyes off him.
Outshine. A command without logic, without rules, without limits. Not strength, not speed, not flame or steel—something else entirely. Something that could not be named.
Hakari's whole body trembled, but his gaze never wavered.
"Move," he hissed, his voice low and sharp. "We're not done here."
Nicolas swallowed, forcing down his questions, and nodded. Together they pushed deeper into the darkness, step by step, Outshine's glow guiding them forward.
And ahead—
The fight raged.
Waren vs. Weller and Kage.
The cave walls cracked, echoing with every collision. Sparks of energy hissed in the air. Waren's monstrous figure loomed, his every movement crushing, overwhelming.
Weller's fists dripped with blood, his chest heaving. He refused to kneel. He forced his body to keep striking, to keep pushing against the monster before him.
But no matter how hard he fought, Waren's shadow towered above it all.
"Futile," Waren's voice boomed, heavy and suffocating. His aura pressed harder, forcing the very ground to crack beneath their feet.
Kage gritted his teeth, stepping beside Weller. "We're not done yet!" he roared, his body glowing faintly as he activated his command again.
Strike after strike, the two clashed with the monster. The cavern became a storm of blows and shattered stone.
But in the end—
Weller staggered. His knees buckled. His eyes blurred.
"No…" he whispered, blood spilling from his lips. "Not yet… I promised…"
His body collapsed, falling limp to the ground.
"WELLER!" Kage's cry tore through the cavern, but his voice seemed so small under Waren's crushing presence.
Meanwhile, Yushi—still chasing—saw the light grow brighter. His legs screamed, but he didn't stop. He reached again—this time with everything he had left.
And finally—
He stepped into it.
The light engulfed him, swallowing his form whole.
Back in the cavern, Waren stood over Weller's fallen body, his monstrous hand raised high. Energy sparked in his palm, black and suffocating, ready to end it all.
"Pathetic," he growled.
The hand descended.
But before it struck—
The cavern wall exploded.
Two figures burst forth from the stone, dust and rubble scattering in their wake—Hakari and Nicolas.
Their speed was unreal, their resolve unshaken.
Nicolas charged, aura blazing. Hakari's body glowed crimson, blood dripping as his eyes burned with fury.
Waren's hand froze mid-strike, his monstrous gaze locking onto them.
Then suddenly—his body lurched.
Without warning, without a visible strike, Waren was hurled backward. He smashed into the cavern wall with thunderous force, stone splintering under the impact.
Nicolas skidded to a halt, his eyes wide in disbelief.
"What…?" His voice trembled. "When…? I didn't see—"
His memory flicked back. There had been no kick, no punch. Just a blur. Just an instant.
He turned, his chest tight.
"When… Hakari… when did you move?"
And there he was.
Hakari stood tall before the fallen monster, his fists clenched so tight blood ran between his fingers. His eyes burned, raging with unshakable fury. The crimson glow of Outshine pulsed beneath his feet, flaring with every heartbeat.
He didn't need to answer. His very presence was enough.
The cavern fell into silence, the tension so sharp it cut like blades.
Waren pushed himself up from the rubble, dust falling from his twisted frame. His lips curled into a slow, monstrous grin.
"So… this is the power you've been hiding…"
Hakari's body trembled. His lungs heaved. But his fists clenched tighter, his glare burning holes into Waren's shadow.
Nicolas couldn't believe in his eyes. He had seen many fights, many powers. But this—this was something else.
This was different.
Waren laughed, the sound echoing through the cavern like thunder. "Then show me, Hakari! Show me if your rage can break the weight of my power!"
Hakari's bloodied fists shook, his voice sharp as steel.
"Waren…" His eyes blazed like fire. "You can't save them."
What now?
Is this the moment the tide finally turns… or just another trick in the endless shadows of the cave?
Can Hakari's Outshine truly stand against Waren's monstrous power?
Or will his fire, like all before, be swallowed whole by the abyss?
And what of Yushi—chasing that slipping light, only to vanish into its core?
Where has he gone? What truth lies beyond that blinding veil?
Did he escape… or did he step into something far darker than any of them could imagine?
The cavern trembled again. The fight had not ended. It had only just begun.