Battle X Doubt
"Master Silva, this is Wuto. Young Master Ryker has just launched an assault on the headquarters of the Solomon family.
At the moment, I see that he has created four identical clones of himself, each occupying one of the four external positions around the building."
"These clones are engaging the gang members emerging from the building as well as those rushing back from other locations to provide reinforcements.
Meanwhile, he himself has entered the building. I have refrained from following to avoid exposure."
"From my observations, the Solomon family's forces are already showing signs of collapse. I estimate that their casualties exceed 30%. So far, there are no signs of other ability users coming to support them."
"However, based on my analysis, the duration of Young Master Ryker's clones is already halfway through, and their aura is depleting without any signs of replenishment.
Therefore, I speculate that these clones are disposable constructs. Whether they can be reabsorbed remains uncertain with the current intel."
.........
The scene shifts to the battlefield inside the building. Having anticipated the possibility of an opponent with Manipulation-type abilities, Ryker decided to strike first.
After all, preemptive action was a fundamental tactic when dealing with Manipulators.
He launched a Nen Bullet straight at the Narcissist. In response, Binolt immediately dashed toward Ryker at full speed.
[AN: We will refer to the Blonde Gunman as 'Narcissist']
An Emitter, huh? Judging by the strength of that Nen Bullet, this brat is no pushover. But in the end, he's still just a kid. His undeveloped body is a fatal weakness.
Today, I'll get a taste of whatever hair is hiding beneath that black hood. Feels like opening a mystery box.
.........
So it really is an Emitter, huh? Damn, I was hoping for a Conjurer or a Manipulator. I had my suspicions when I saw those four clones outside, but I still held onto a sliver of hope.
Well, at least I lucked out with my temporary partner. He seems to be a close-combat fighter. But that means I'll have to adjust my aim constantly based on how their fight unfolds.
The Narcissist swiftly dodged the Nen Bullet and, instead of immediately retaliating, repositioned himself and continued to aim at Ryker.
Ryker instantly found his behavior suspicious.
Huh? After I attacked first, the logical response would've been for him to fire back. With his skill level, it's unlikely he was forced to dodge at the expense of returning fire.
Or… was his line of fire obstructed by Binolt's charge?
No, impossible. When Binolt started moving, he was still about ten meters away from me.
Given their initial positions, the angle from my perspective was at least forty-five degrees. There's no way he blocked the shot.
And even if his line of fire was momentarily blocked, he could have simply repositioned immediately to regain the best shooting angle. Yet, all he's done so far is aim his gun at me. No further action.
As Ryker analyzed the Narcissist's peculiar behavior, Binolt had already reached him, and the two engaged in close combat.
Ryker held no regard for this opponent. After all, in the original timeline, even without advanced Nen techniques—barely knowing Ren—this guy still got demolished by two kids.
Sure enough, Binolt brandished a pair of scissors in each hand, attacking Ryker with frenzied slashes. But after over a dozen strikes, he failed to land a single hit.
Just as expected. In the original timeline, even after ten more years, he got absolutely dominated—partially due to his injuries from Biscuit—but still. If he was that weak in the future, he's definitely worse now.
Ryker dodged effortlessly, not even bothering to counterattack. He saw no need. Instead, he treated this as extra training for his evasive maneuvers.
At the same time, he split his focus, keeping a close eye on the Narcissist.
The man still had his revolver trained on Ryker, adjusting his aim based on the movements in the fight.
Then, thanks to the enhanced perception of his Sharingan, Ryker noticed another irregularity.
A normal shooter would only reposition after their target moved. But this guy was different—he seemed to be predicting Ryker's movements in advance, shifting before the original shooting angle was even compromised.
More importantly, standard gunmen aimed for vital areas first. Yet, this guy didn't follow that logic. He simply targeted whatever part of Ryker's body was most exposed at any given moment.
With these clues, Ryker formed a preliminary conclusion: The activation requirement for this guy's conjured revolver involves prolonged aiming.
Given that he still had Kamui's intangibility as a trump card, Ryker decided to wait and observe. He wanted to figure out exactly what kind of ability he was dealing with.
Yes, he was getting cocky again.
..........
Meanwhile, in the hall, Binolt remained convinced he had the upper hand.
Heh, this brat's footwork is decent. But I've got him completely suppressed—he's so focused on dodging that he doesn't even have time to fire back with Nen Bullets.
The Narcissist, however, saw the situation more clearly from an outside perspective.
Didn't expect this kid to be so troublesome. His close combat skills are insane. If it were me fighting him hand-to-hand, I'd be dead in seconds. And to top it off, he's an Emitter.
Luckily, he's getting overconfident. As long as my partner can last another eight seconds, my Bloodhound ability will activate.
I might not be able to take him down, but I'll at least stall him long enough to make my escape.
Too bad for my temporary teammate, though. He's probably going to get killed. But, hey—better him than me. We're both just hired guns, after all. Nothing personal.
I'll make sure to collect his share of the payment and spend it for him. After all, the worst fate is dying with money unspent.
..........
With each passing second, the standoff approached its climax.
Then—
BANG!
The silence was shattered. A bullet wreathed in Nen flew straight toward Ryker.
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