Let Him Continue
Back at the central training grounds, the heavy rain drummed relentlessly against the wooden awning of the instructor's building. The old man who gave the introduction speech stood alone on the patio, hands folded behind his back, watching the water cascade from the roof.
From the pouring rain, an instructor stepped onto the patio, his boots squelching against the wooden planks.
"Sir Nakama, I have a report on Kurashi. He's...getting out of hand."
The old man didn't move a muscle, his expression unchanged by the news.
"How many?"
"Four, sir...All severely wounded. I'm afraid if this continues he'll—"
"Let him continue." Sir Nakama spoke over the instructor, his voice calm but filled with an undeniable weight. "Report to me again if anything else happens. But for now...let him be."
"But—"
Inside the forest, Kurashi pressed his back against a tree trunk, leaning out just enough to see. In front of him, two teams were locked in an intense battle. As the fight continued, both sides seemed to slow down, their movements slower with each passing moment.
Each step heavier.
Each punch weaker.
Until the last member of the losing team dropped to the ground.
Defeated
"Man that was rough," A boy with short brown hair muttered, his broad shoulders heavy with exhaustion. "I thought they had us there for a second."
"B-but we pulled through in the end." The girl next to him added, brushing damp strands of her dark-navy hair behind her ear. "That's all that matters, right?"
"Ugh, speak for yourself...My arms feel like they're about to fall off!" A girl resting at a nearby tree spoke up, letting out an exaggerated moan as she stretched. "I think I'll need at least a week to recover from this. Actually...make it two."
"Yeah?" The brown-haired boy smirked. "And what are you gonna do with all that time?"
The girl cracked a grin.
"Sleep...And snacks. Lots of snacks! Preferably the ones I don't have to move to get. And um..." The girl thought for a moment, scratching the top of her head. "Probably more sleep..."
The team laughed together at the girl's remark—a rare moment of relief in a tense situation.
But it didn't last.
A sudden blur of movement shattered the moment.
"Yuki, watch out!" The girl by the tree screamed, her voice full of panic.
Time slowed.
A cold glint of steel sliced through the rain, aimed straight for Yuki.
Yuki's droopy deep blue eyes widened, her fatigue overridden by a sudden burst of adrenaline. She took a step back just as the blade whistled past, missing her by just a hair.
Kurashi stood before them with empty eyes. The rain outlined his figure, but his expression remained unreadable in the blur.
She took a shaky step back, regrouping with her teammates.
"Are you okay?!" The broad-shouldered boy asked in worry.
Yuki's chest heaved, her fingers instinctively reaching up to her throat.
"I-I felt it. I felt it...cut through me." Yuki thought to herself.
There was no blood.
No wound.
Yet she felt it.
The cold edge of the blade.
The intent behind the attack.
"I'm...fine," Yuki managed, her shaky voice barely above a whisper.
The broad-shouldered boy then looked up to Kurashi, his face twisted in fury.
"What the hell is your problem?! You could have killed her with that!"
Kurashi met his gaze blankly, showing no reaction to the accusation.
Silence fell.
Something was gnawing at Yuki—a sense of familiarity.
Her breath hitched when she realized, a sudden chill shivering down her spine.
"It's him..." Yuki thought to herself. "Kurashi...Ito."
She had heard the stories about the Ito clan. The threat even one member alone could be.
And now, standing before her, calm and unfazed, was a boy who carried that very name.
She forced herself to meet his gaze.
"By any means..."
The team strained to hear him over the rain.
"Be the last one standing...By any means."
Kurashi lowered himself into a ready stance, tightening his grip on the katana.
Then, he dashed.
Yuki's panicked thoughts barely had time to register.
She raised her hand, trembling as her fingers extended. Shards of ice began to form at her will, launching them through the air toward Kurashi.
The ice flew with immense speed, forcing Kurashi to weave between them. Though it was inevitable that some shards would make contact, even the ones that struck him—cutting against his skin—didn't slow him down in the slightest.
Yuki's heart raced as she saw Kurashi bypass her attack, certain she was the main target.
But at the last moment, Kurashi turned his step, now aiming straight for the other girl.
"Chie!" The broad-shouldered boy yelled out.
His attempt was cut short as the ground trembled.
A rock wall erupted between them, forcing Kurashi to step back.
Kurashi looked over to his side, the broad-shouldered boy's palms against the ground.
"So it's you..." Kurashi whispered.
A new target.
Yuki didn't give him the chance to go on the offense, ice crystalizing around her left arm.
But she wasn't alone.
The others moved in at once, each one throwing themselves at him with desperate resolve.
The first boy swung with all his might, his fist a blur of motion.
But Kurashi was faster, blocking the punch with the back of his forearm.
His chest was exposed.
With a sharp pivot, Kurashi countered with a vicious backkick to the ribs, the force sending him into the ground.
Before the second boy could attempt to strike, Kurashi lifted his left hand, palm outstretched.
A mere gesture—but enough.
The boy's body seized mid-motion, locked in place by an invisible force.
Strangled sounds left his mouth, his eyes wide in horror as Kurashi's fingers curled into a fist. The boy gasped, a sharp pain blooming within his chest as his insides began to collapse.
Yuki's panic spiked.
She couldn't just stand there.
She had to make a move.
Now
That's when she finally unleashed her attack, a massive ice spike heading straight at Kurashi.
There was no way to escape.
No way to dodge.
Instead, he gripped his katana with both hands, the ice crashing into him like an avalanche. The sheer force pushed him back, but the momentum of Yuki's attack slowly faded.
Kurashi held out for long enough, pressing his sword against the dulling attack, cutting clean through it. The severed ice shattered apart under the rain, fragments falling across the ground like shards of broken glass.
Then—an opening.
Chie was already airborne, a gust of wind swirling around her fist. Her body twisted mid-air, gathering force as she drove her punch toward his jaw.
"Take this!" Chie yelled out as she closed in, the wind howling around her strike.
Kurashi leaned back just in time, but he was now off balance.
"Daigo!" Chie called out.
Daigo pressed his palms firmly to the ground, veins bulging along his forearms from the exertion of his technique.
Then, the earth beneath them began to shake.
Behind Kurashi, a jagged pillar of stone shot up, aimed directly at his right wrist.
Crack
Kurashi's fingers spasmed.
His grip weakened.
The katana slipped from his grasp, clattering against the ground.
For the first time—Kurashi was unarmed.
They didn't hesitate.
Daigo launched himself forward, his heavy footsteps pounding against the earth. He leaped into the air with a loaded punch, sending his fist down with intensity.
Seeing the attack, Kurashi jumped back in an instant, narrowly dodging as the ground cracked beneath the impact. Dust erupted into the air, obscuring visibility for a brief moment.
Before Kurashi could fully regain his footing, Chie was already at his side, cutting off any escape. She lunged in, sending a wind-enhanced punch to his chest.
Her fist tore through the air, the grueling impact launching him back.
Kurashi crashed onto one knee, his fingers digging into the ground as he skidded to a stop. He exhaled sharply, raising his right arm to the side.
And then—
The katana was gone.
No longer where it had fallen.
In the blink of an eye, the blade streaked through the air back to its master's grasp. The handle slapped against his palm, his fingers wrapping around it tightly.
A slow breath escaped his lips.
"The last one..."
The battle was far from over.