Kisara's swordsmanship had long since reached perfection, and her resolve was as unyielding as steel. With her greatest enemies standing before her, there was no room for distractions in her mind. Every thought was focused on one thing: killing her opponent and avenging her parents.
Kazumitsu Tendo, however, was completely different.
Ever since he had risen to a position of power, he'd neglected his training. At this point, he was nowhere near Kisara's level.
What's more, he'd agreed to this duel solely because he wanted to survive. He was trying to buy himself time, and his heart was filled with fear and distractions. There was no way he could devote himself completely to the fight.
The two of them were fighting for entirely different reasons. One was driven by revenge and willing to risk everything, while the other was desperately clinging to life.
Under those circumstances, the outcome of the battle was obvious.
Sure enough, the fight was over in less than ten minutes.
Kazumitsu was completely outmatched by Kisara. Every technique he used was effortlessly deflected, his movements growing clumsy and stiff as fear filled his eyes. The arrogance and conceit he'd once displayed were nowhere to be seen.
Kisara's swordsmanship was fierce and precise. Every strike was aimed at Kazumitsu's vital points, yet she deliberately held back instead of killing him immediately.
Again and again, she opened new wounds across his body. Some were deep, others shallow, but blood poured from all of them, soaking his clothes until they were completely red.
She wasn't in a hurry to kill him, nor was she in a hurry to claim her revenge.
She wanted to torture him slowly this way. She wanted him to experience the pain she'd felt when she lost her parents, to understand the suffering and torment she'd endured all these years, and to make him walk toward death one agonizing step at a time, consumed by pain and fear.
Kazumitsu was driven back again and again, his body covered in wounds and his entire body wracked with pain. His strength was rapidly draining away, and his eyes were growing unfocused. He wanted to run, but he soon realized there was nowhere to escape. Kisara's blade remained fixed on him, giving him no opportunity to flee.
He began to regret everything.
He regretted what he'd done all those years ago. He regretted failing to cherish his own life. Most of all, he regretted joining Kikunojou Tendo in murdering Kisara's parents.
But it was too late for regret now.
At last, Kisara looked at Kazumitsu, who was already on the verge of death and completely incapable of fighting back. A cold resolve flashed through her eyes as she suddenly thrust her long sword forward, driving the blade straight through his heart.
"Shk!"
The sound of the blade piercing his heart rang out clearly. Scalding blood erupted from the wound, splashing across Kisara's face and body until she was drenched in blood.
Kazumitsu's body suddenly stiffened.
He lowered his head and stared at the sword buried in his chest before raising his gaze toward Kisara's cold eyes. His lips moved as though he wanted to say something, but in the end, no words came out. He merely coughed up a mouthful of blood before slowly collapsing to the ground, his breathing ceasing completely.
Kazumitsu Tendo was dead.
Just like Kikunojou, he'd paid for his crimes with his life.
Breathing heavily, Kisara slowly pulled her long sword from his body. Blood trickled down the blade and dripped onto the ground, producing faint metallic taps.
She stared at Kazumitsu's corpse, then turned her gaze toward Kikunojou's head lying some distance away. At first, a trace of relief appeared on her bloodstained face.
Then that relief gradually turned into a smile.
Against her face smeared with blood, that smile was almost painfully striking, yet there was something deeply moving about it.
The smile spread across her face, growing wider and brighter until it finally became unrestrained laughter.
"Hahahahahahahaha..."
Her laughter echoed through the empty school entrance, carrying endless relief, joy, and sorrow. All the emotions she'd suppressed for years finally erupted in that moment.
After enduring for so many years, after countless hours of effort and sweat, after suffering through so much pain and torment, she had finally avenged her parents with her own hands.
At last, she could finally rest assured that her parents could rest in peace.
"Father, Mother, I've avenged you!"
Kisara's voice was hoarse as she spoke. Tears finally broke free, slowly sliding from the corners of her eyes and running down her blood-covered cheeks before dripping onto the ground and mixing with the bloodstains beneath her.
Those tears carried grief, resentment, suffering, and pain. But more than anything else, they carried relief and joy.
"Kisara."
Seeing her like this, Rentaro Satomi sighed. His emotions were complicated, and his heart ached for her. He slowly approached and reached out, wanting to support her and offer some comfort.
He knew that although Kisara had succeeded in taking her revenge, she must still be carrying immense pain inside. He wanted to stay by her side, to give her even the smallest measure of warmth and comfort.
Yet when Kisara saw Rentaro approaching, she slowly raised her head and silently stared at the boy before her.
His face and voice were both so familiar. They had grown up together as childhood friends, and once upon a time, they had been incredibly close.
But now, everything was different.
When she'd needed his support and encouragement most, when she was on the verge of finally achieving her revenge, Rentaro had stepped forward to stop her. He had even placed her on the same level as the people she'd sworn to destroy.
That had left her heart completely cold.
"Are you going to turn me over to the law?"
Kisara's voice was soft, but there was a trace of coldness and disappointment in it. There wasn't the slightest expectation in her eyes, only a calm, icy stillness, as though she'd already anticipated Rentaro's answer.
Rentaro stopped in his tracks.
The hand he'd extended remained frozen in midair. He looked at the coldness in Kisara's eyes, then at the blood and tears covering her face. Guilt and helplessness filled his heart, but when he opened his mouth, he found himself unable to say anything.
"Kisara, I..."
He wanted to explain. He wanted to tell her that he wasn't trying to have her punished by the law. He simply didn't want her to become a bloodstained murderer. He wanted her to turn back and live a normal life.
But before he could finish, Kisara interrupted him.
She looked at Rentaro sadly, disappointment and determination filling her eyes.
"If you don't agree with what I've done, then there's nothing left for us to say."
She knew that she and Rentaro no longer belonged to the same world. The divide between them had finally appeared, and there was no way to bridge it anymore.
"I'll continue taking revenge against the Tendo Family. That's something I won't give up on."
Her voice was firm and unwavering. Kikunojou and Kazumitsu might be dead, but there were still other members of the Tendo Family, as well as the people who had participated in her parents' murder.
She wouldn't give up so easily.
She would send every one of her enemies to the afterlife.
"If you want to stop me, then come and try."
Her choice was made.
"Even if it's you, I won't change my mind."
Kisara's voice rang out with absolute conviction, leaving no room for doubt.
Yet in the middle of this tense atmosphere, Betty's sudden voice shattered the seriousness of the moment.
"This sounds like the kind of cheesy morning soap opera housewives would watch."
Her single remark immediately drew everyone's attention. Every pair of eyes turned toward Gojo and Betty.
Gojo scratched his cheek and gave an awkward laugh.
"If you put it that way, I can't exactly say you're wrong."
"Still, I think you could pay a little more attention to how the people involved are feeling."
"After all, saying something like that right in front of them is bound to make things a little awkward."
"It's fine, Gojo."
Kisara raised the back of her hand and forcefully wiped the tears from her face, her fingers brushing across her cheeks and leaving faint trails of moisture behind.
She took a deep breath, forcing down the lump in her throat, then smiled at Gojo. The bitterness hadn't completely faded from her smile, but neither had her unwavering resolve.
"There's nothing to be embarrassed about."
"Betty's right. I'm not interested in this kind of ridiculous melodrama either."
As she spoke, Kisara slowly turned her head. Her gaze passed over Gojo and landed precisely on Rentaro in the distance.
Her eyes were as calm as a bottomless lake. The affection she'd once shown him was gone, and there was no hesitation left either.
"Since we don't see things the same way, then let's leave it at that."
"From now on, I'll continue with my revenge. Don't come looking for me again."
Kisara had spent her entire life working toward revenge, holding onto that goal until it had become carved into her very bones and mixed into her blood.
Even though indescribable grief churned inside her, even though her heart felt as if an invisible hand were squeezing it so tightly that she could barely breathe, she knew exactly what she had to do.
Just as she was doing now.
Without hesitation or unnecessary entanglement, she made her final decision clear to Rentaro. She left no room for either of them to reconsider or turn back.
She cut their relationship off cleanly and completely, without the slightest hesitation, as though the tearful girl from moments ago had merely been a shared illusion.
Rentaro stood rooted to the spot, staring at Kisara with wide eyes. His body was so rigid that he looked like a statue.
He had never imagined that those words would one day come from the childhood friend he'd protected for so long.
All those years they'd grown up together, all those moments they'd fought side by side, all those bonds he'd believed were unbreakable seemed to shatter completely under a single sentence from Kisara, breaking into pieces beyond repair.
"Kisara..."
Rentaro opened his mouth, his throat tight and his voice hoarse. He still wanted to say something. He wanted to explain, to make things right, to tell her that everything he'd done had been for her sake.
But Kisara had already turned away, no longer sparing him a glance. Her straight back stood like an invisible barrier, making it unmistakably clear through her actions that she had no desire to continue the conversation.
Rentaro didn't know how to react.
He frowned and repeatedly went over everything in his mind, convinced that he hadn't done anything wrong or done anything to hurt Kisara.
Everything he'd done had been for her sake.
After all, there were better and safer ways to handle this. Why should she have to stain her hands with blood and turn herself into a murderer? He simply didn't want to watch her fall into an irreversible abyss. He wanted her to live a good life and escape the vortex of hatred.
Unfortunately, it seemed Kisara didn't understand his good intentions at all. Instead, she'd treated them as an obstacle standing in her way.
Rentaro shook his head gently, suppressing the bitterness and helplessness in his heart. His voice remained calm, as though he were comforting Kisara, or perhaps himself.
"It's okay, Kisara."
"I believe that someday you'll understand me and realize why I did this."
"I'm leaving now. If anything happens, call me."
With that, Rentaro slowly raised his head and looked toward Gojo, Betty, and the others. There was a trace of apology on his face, along with a loneliness he couldn't quite hide.
"Sorry. I still feel that we see things differently..."
Before he could finish, Betty's crisp voice cut him off, carrying a hint of mockery.
"His pride seems a little hurt. Is he getting ready to slink away with his tail between his legs?"
Gojo's mouth twitched when he heard that.
Sometimes, he genuinely wanted to cover Betty's mouth and make her stop talking.
The girl was always so blunt, never showing the slightest mercy. Somehow, she also had a remarkable talent for hitting people exactly where it hurt.
Betty's words made Rentaro's cheeks turn slightly red, and a faint flush spread across his ears as embarrassment and indignation surged through him.
He opened his mouth, wanting to explain himself and refute her, but then he reconsidered. If he tried to explain himself now, it would only make him look even more bothered and pathetic.
So he merely shook his head and said nothing more.
He reached out, took Enju Aihara's hand, and turned toward the school entrance. His footsteps were hurried, almost as though he were trying to escape from something.
Watching Rentaro and Enju's figures gradually disappear into the distance, Betty curled her lip, her voice still carrying a hint of disdain.
"What a strange guy. Would you call that being a sanctimonious do-gooder?"
Gojo raised an eyebrow. He had no idea when Betty had learned the strange term "sanctimonious do-gooder," but after thinking about it for a moment, he slowly nodded.
"It's not exactly a perfect description, but you're not wrong."
"Rentaro really is a sanctimonious do-gooder."
Betty's face lit up with a smug smile, as though she'd just received official confirmation. She continued criticizing him without hesitation.
"People like that are really annoying. They haven't experienced the suffering themselves, yet they generously expect everyone else to forgive. Then they stand on some imaginary moral high ground and lecture everyone about what they should do."