Episode 5 - Trial

The dawn bled crimson across the sky, casting molten light over the Maoshinara estate's courtyard. A circle of scorched earth marked the ancient arena, ringed with torii gates and dragonstone lanterns flickering with ethereal flame.

Genji stood in the center, heart hammering, the red pendant cold against his chest. Across from him, Asumi tightened the bindings around her wrists. Her short black hair danced in the wind, and her gaze was ice-sharp.

"Don't hold back," she warned, stretching one arm behind her. "This is your trial."

"I wasn't planning to," Genji replied, trying to still his nerves.

Zakachi Maoshinara stepped to the edge of the courtyard, raising his cane.

"The Trial of Embers will begin. You will fight until one yields… or is unable to rise."

A heavy silence.

Then—

"Begin."

Asumi vanished in a burst of speed.

"焔舞突 (Enbu Totsu) — Flame Dance Thrust!"

Her fist blazed forward like a spear of fire. Genji blocked it with crossed arms but skidded back, the heat singeing through his shirt.

He countered with a spinning kick—"灰翔脚 (Haishōkyaku) — Ash Soaring Kick"—but Asumi ducked low and launched an upward elbow into his gut. He gasped, stumbling back.

"She's reading me too easily," he thought.

Asumi didn't let up. She whirled around with a twin heel drop, flames wreathing her legs.

"火鳳連脚 (Kahōrenkyaku) — Fire Phoenix Combo Kick!"

Genji grunted, barely ducking the last strike. He clenched his fists, inhaled sharply, and surged forward.

"火魂撃 (Kakongeki) — Flame Soul Strike!"

His right palm burst into red fire, slamming toward her chest—but Asumi turned her body, guiding his momentum past her. With a grunt, she slammed a palm into his shoulder and knocked him to the ground.

"Get up," she barked. "That all your flame's got?"

Genji pushed himself up, teeth gritted. "No…"

But his body ached. His head swam. Her strikes weren't just strong—they were precise. Surgical.

Asumi charged again, leg arcing in a diagonal strike.

"鳳断斬 (Hōdanzan) — Phoenix Severing Slash!"

He tried to block, but the impact launched him across the courtyard. Blood painted the stones beneath him. The pendant flickered against his chest, faintly pulsing.

His breath grew ragged.

I'm not strong enough…

He raised his head—and froze.

Asumi stood above him, ready to end the fight. But then—something cracked inside his mind.

A flicker. A soundless roar. The world tilted sideways.

And his eyes turned green.

Asumi's eyes widened. "What…?"

Genji stood, but not fully himself. The air around him shimmered with unnatural energy. The pendant blazed red-hot, veins of lightning crawling up his leg.

The ground beneath him cracked.

"紅雷蹴り (Kōrai Geri)!"

Red Thunder Kick!

His leg blurred with crimson lightning as he vanished in a blink and reappeared behind Asumi—striking her with a thunderous kick that echoed like a divine hammer.

She flew.

Her body slammed into the stone wall, and dust exploded around her. Silence followed.

Zakachi took a step forward. Kazuya held his breath.

Genji stood in the smoke, chest rising and falling. The red in his eyes flickered—but the green remained.

And then, his expression twisted.

A growl escaped his throat. His aura warped—no longer fiery, but wild, chaotic, serpentine.

"G-Genji…?" Asumi coughed, trying to sit up.

He walked toward her, slow and lethal, the pendant pulsing wildly. His hands crackled—not with fire, but sickly green flame.

He raised a hand over her, fury in his gaze.

"You… looked down on me."

A sphere of energy began to form in his palm.

"業焔掌 (Gōenshō)… Death Flame Palm…"

"Genji, STOP!" Kazuya shouted, rushing forward.

But he didn't stop.

Zakachi's cane moved in a blur.

"封心破 (Fūshinpa) — Seal of the Breaking Heart."

The elder struck Genji in the abdomen.

A shockwave of spiritual energy erupted.

Genji's eyes widened. The green light faded. His body shook… then collapsed.

Kazuya caught him before his head hit the stone.

"His power… it almost took over," Asumi said, breathless.

Zakachi frowned, staring down at the unconscious boy. "That was not the Phoenix Flame. That was something else."

Kazuya glanced up. "Do you think it's from his father?"

"No," Zakachi muttered. "It's older. Deeper. Something sealed long ago… is waking."

---

That Night — In Genji's Dream

He floated in blackness.

Cold winds howled. Distant roars echoed. Mist curled around his limbs like fingers.

A voice whispered from the dark:

"You burn too bright for their chains."

He turned—floating in nothingness—and saw it.

A colossal shadow. Coiled. Majestic. Wings folded. Horns like twisted obsidian. Eyes—glowing green—pierced through the void.

A dragon.

Its voice rumbled like thunder inside his skull.

"You carry more than her flame. You carry my blood."

Genji's breath caught. "Who… are you?"

The beast's snout drew close, eyes the size of moons narrowing.

"I am the one they sealed away. The Hollow Flame. The Forbidden Fang.

You are my vessel, Genji Takashima."

Genji backed away, heart racing.

"No… I'm not a monster."

The dragon growled, smoke curling from its maw.

"You are fire given form. And fire does not ask permission to burn."

A vortex of green flame engulfed Genji as the dragon roared—

And he screamed—

---

To Be Continued…