The street falls silent. Dust and blood hang in the air like smoke after a battlefield fire. Every eye shifts to the two figures standing at the center.
Renji narrows his eyes, his grin sharp as a blade.
Renji: "Reveal yourself, coward."
The mysterious figure reaches for his hood. Fingers curl around the edge, and with one fluid motion—he lets it fall.
Gasps explode through the RDX ranks.
RDX members (shouting): "Wait… what?! It's… Vamos?! No way…!"
RDX member (stunned): "Tch—our boss was fighting right beside us this whole time… and didn't say a word…"
The battlefield freezes. Vamos' eyes, calm yet merciless, cut through the chaos. His mere presence steadies his men, and his aura swells — oppressive, suffocating, like a tidal wave pressing against Renji's wildfire.
Vamos (cold, steady): "Enough games. I'm Vamos… head of RDX."
The declaration strikes like thunder. RDX fighters straighten despite their wounds, their morale surging.
Renji's grin stretches wider, fire dancing in his eyes, his aura flaring in response. The ground itself seems to vibrate between the two leaders.
Renji: "Heh… now that's more like it. Fighting someone hiding behind a hood was boring anyway."
The tension is unbearable. Fighters from both sides can barely breathe — the sheer clash of killing intent is enough to choke them. Just as the clash is about to ignite—
BZZZZT.
Renji's phone buzzes in his pocket. The sound slices through the suffocating silence. Without breaking eye contact with Vamos, he answers.
???: "Renji. Pull back. It's over. We've won this brawl already."
The voice is deep, commanding, dripping with authority. Even through the phone, the weight of it silences the Apex fighters around Renji. His grin falters—only for a heartbeat—then returns sharper than before.
Renji (grinning): "Heh… understood, boss."
He slips the phone back into his pocket, never breaking his stare.
Renji (to Vamos): "Guess this isn't the day. But next time… you won't walk away so easily."
Vamos (coldly): "…We'll see."
They turn away in unison. The oppressive pressure evaporates, leaving behind only battered fighters and broken pride.
Narration: The war drums had stopped… but the echoes promised only one thing—this was far from over.
Vamos (to RDX): "We retreat as well."
The wounded are gathered, carried on shoulders. RDX limps away, backs unbroken. The Apex Predators vanish into the shadows, their silence as menacing as their violence.
Narration (closing): And so, the first clash between RDX and Apex ended.
Not in victory.
Not in defeat.
But in a promise of destruction yet to come.