Days passed.
Or what Ethan assumed were days.
Time inside the facility did not move naturally. There were no windows. No sunrise. No night. Only cycles of instruction, silence, and isolation.
But his control improved.
Ten became natural.
Zetsu became effortless.
He could contain his aura.
He could erase it completely.
He could exist.
Or disappear.
The door opened.
He felt the man's presence before he saw him.
Ethan was already standing.
"Come," the man said.
Ethan followed him through the corridors. This time, they went deeper than before. The air felt heavier here, as if the walls themselves held something beneath their surface.
They entered a large, empty chamber.
The man stopped at the center.
"This is Ren," he said.
The word was familiar.
Expansion.
Power.
"With Ten, you contain your aura," the man continued. "With Zetsu, you erase it."
He turned to face Ethan.
"With Ren, you release it."
The man closed his eyes briefly.
Then—
Ethan felt it.
The aura erupted from him.
Not violently.
Not chaotically.
But completely.
It filled the room instantly. Dense. Heavy. Overwhelming. The air itself felt thicker, harder to breathe.
This was different from before.
Before, the pressure had been directed.
This was presence.
Pure existence.
Power made visible through feeling alone.
Ethan's instincts reacted immediately.
His body tensed.
His mind sharpened.
His Ten activated naturally, containing his own aura to protect himself.
The man watched him carefully.
"Ren is the expression of your existence," he said.
The aura around him intensified.
Stronger.
"Heavier."
Ethan felt it pressing against him.
Testing him.
Measuring him.
"To use Ren," the man said, "you must stop containing yourself."
He looked directly at Ethan.
"You must allow yourself to exist fully."
Silence followed.
Expectation filled the space.
Ethan understood.
Ten was control.
Zetsu was absence.
Ren was release.
He focused inward.
He felt his aura contained close to his skin.
Held.
Restricted.
Safe.
To use Ren—
He had to let it go.
Slowly, carefully, he loosened that control.
Not recklessly.
Intentionally.
At first, nothing happened.
Then—
He felt it.
His aura expanded outward.
Thin.
Unstable.
Weak.
But real.
It extended beyond his skin, into the space around him.
For the first time—
He wasn't just containing his existence.
He was expressing it.
The man noticed immediately.
His eyes sharpened.
"Good," he said.
Not impressed.
Not surprised.
Certain.
Ethan held it there.
His Ren.
Small.
Fragile.
But his.
The man stepped closer.
"Ren determines your strength," he said. "The greater your Ren, the greater your power."
He stopped in front of him.
"And the greater your power…"
He paused.
"…the greater your value."
Not humanity.
Not identity.
Value.
The man turned away.
"From this point forward," he said, "your survival will depend on it."
He began walking toward the exit.
"Most who awaken Nen never master Ren."
He stopped briefly.
"They lack the will."
Then he left.
The door closed behind him.
Ethan stood alone in the chamber.
His aura still extended around him.
Small.
But alive.
And for the first time—
He wasn't just surviving this world.
He was beginning to claim his place in it.