Chapter 225: The Hunter and the Prey

At the end of the highway, the night deepened. The roar of a motorcycle engine echoed through the empty roads. Under the flickering shadows of the streetlights, Kanto and Lixy sped like phantoms. Behind them, the city lights receded, painting their silhouettes with stark clarity.

Kanto's voice abruptly cut through the engine's roar.

"Full stop…"

The sudden remark made Lixy, who had been inspecting her sniper rifle, look up in confusion.

"The power of words," Kanto said, his tone calm. "A full stop signifies an end. But…" He tilted his head slightly, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. "If it can't truly end something, then it's just a comma."

Lixy furrowed her brows. Kanto's cryptic words were hard to decipher, but a faint understanding stirred within her. It felt like a warning, or perhaps guidance. Kanto himself was an enigma, a riddle without an answer. She knew she was far from his standard—in skill, in mentality. Not long ago, she had even entertained the idea of capturing him to claim the bounty and buy herself a top-tier sniper rifle.

"I'm just a novice," she muttered under her breath, gripping her rifle tighter.

Kanto chuckled, a mix of mockery and encouragement in his eyes.

"The rifle in your hands? It's far from its ultimate form. What you have is a black-market scrap, barely worth looking at."

Lixy's lips tightened, her brows knitting. This rifle was the best she could find, yet Kanto dismissed it so casually.

"If this is trash," she mumbled, "then what counts as the best? A weapon from the gods?"

Kanto laughed—a chilling, almost feral sound. His eyes gleamed as he stared at her.

"Wait until I rebuild your rifle. When I'm done, you'll understand what true terror on the battlefield looks like."

Lixy's heartbeat quickened. His words carried an arrogance so absolute it was terrifying. She clutched the cold metal of her rifle tighter, its chill now feeling oddly reassuring.

But just then, Kanto's demeanor shifted. His gaze snapped forward, sharp as a blade, his expression instantly serious. His ears twitched.

"Engines," he muttered.

The motorcycle's front wheel lifted as he yanked it into a wheelie. Ahead, a sleek black GTA supercar burst from the darkness, speeding toward them like a predator. Kanto's eyes glinted. With a sharp twist of the handlebar, he launched the motorcycle into the air. It soared over the supercar, the tires screeching as they grazed its roof. Using the impact as leverage, Kanto vaulted the bike once more, carving an arc in the night sky.

"Think that's enough to stop me?" Kanto roared with laughter, his voice feral.

Yet just as the motorcycle was about to land, a loud pop shattered the moment. The front tire deflated in an instant.

Kanto's grin vanished, replaced by a cold, calculating expression. With a sharp tug, he steadied the bike on its rear wheel, continuing forward at breakneck speed.

"Hold on tight, Lixy!" he barked.

Lixy's heart raced as she clung to him, her arms wrapped tightly around his waist. She glanced at the dark cliffs lining the road, her scalp tingling with fear. At this speed, even the slightest misstep would mean certain death.

Kanto's sharp eyes darted to the punctured tire. His lips pressed into a thin line.

"A bullet…"

"When did it happen?" he muttered, his mind racing through the sequence of events. Yet no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't pinpoint the moment the shot had been fired.

Behind them, the GTA supercar executed a flawless 180-degree drift, locking onto their trail once more. Kanto's gaze flicked to his side mirror, catching sight of the approaching vehicle. Its sleek body glided effortlessly, even at high speeds.

Kanto's voice dropped to a low growl.

"Sudou… Yuyou… "

Inside the GTA, Yuyou's face was calm, his hands steady on the wheel. His sharp eyes glinted like a predator's. As he shifted gears and pressed the accelerator, his voice was low and confident.

"Yamamoto Kanto… no matter how fast you run, you can't escape. Your hands are tied. You can't assemble your rifle or draw a weapon. And as for the girl behind you…" His gaze flicked briefly to Lixy, his tone tinged with disdain. "She's nothing but dead weight in this chase."

Yuyou smirked, his voice cold as ice.

"Checkmate."

Kanto's fists clenched. Recognizing the voice, his pupils contracted.

"SUDOU—!!!"

The chase had turned into a deadly game of hunter and prey.

Kanto's mind raced. He still couldn't figure out how Yuyou had managed such a precise shot without detection, but one thing was clear: if Yuyou had wanted him dead, he would already be.

The realization brought a twisted smile to Kanto's face.

"Heh… You think you can take me down with your pathetic rules? You're dreaming!"

Ahead, the road narrowed. Two massive trucks drove side by side, leaving barely enough space between them. Kanto's eyes flicked to his unstable front tire, then to Lixy clinging desperately to his back. She was completely off balance, unable to even aim her rifle. Yet Kanto's gaze held no blame.

"Don't let go!" he barked, twisting the throttle.

The motorcycle surged forward, darting into the narrow gap between the trucks.

The wind roared past, threatening to topple them, but Kanto's grip was unyielding. His bike slid between the vehicles, scraping through by a hair's breadth before emerging on the other side.

With a sharp brake and a spin, Kanto brought the bike to a halt in the middle of the road. He turned, forcing the trucks into an abrupt stop. The drivers swerved, the screech of brakes and the groan of metal filling the air as the two vehicles collided, blocking the highway completely.

Kanto turned to the chaos behind him, a triumphant grin splitting his face.

"Sudou, even if you were a god, you'd have to follow my lead!"

But his smugness was short-lived.

Through his mirror, Kanto saw the GTA supercar. It wasn't slowing down. Instead, it hurtled toward the blockade with unrelenting speed.

At the last moment, Yuyou twisted the wheel. The car tilted onto two wheels, its body scraping perilously close to the guardrail. Sparks flew as it skidded past the trucks, narrowly avoiding disaster.

When the car landed back on all fours, it was once again right behind them.

"No way…" Kanto's voice was a growl, his grin morphing into a grimace.

Lixy's eyes widened in disbelief.

"That guy… What is he?!"

"Shut up and hold on!" Kanto snapped, sweat beading on his forehead.

He knew now—this wasn't just a chase. It was a hunt. And he was the prey.

From the GTA, Yuyou's voice echoed, cold and resolute:

"Yamamoto… You can't escape."