The Dawn of the Predator

Kazuto: "Whoa, they built an enormous tunnel underground... I'm starting to like this."

Tatsuya: "I sense multiple lifeforms ahead... But the signals are scattered across different locations."

Tatsuya suddenly stops, his expression sharpens.

Tatsuya: "Master!"

A light flickers and goes out ahead of them. Metallic creaks echo through the tunnel, followed by heavy, deliberate footsteps.

Tatsuya: "Two of those signals... they're heading straight for us!"

The breaking lights intensify as a hulking shadow emerges from the darkness. Kazuto stares at the giant figure, unflinching.

Prime Ravager (grinning maliciously): "Oh, there you are! So... which one is it?"

The scientist, bleeding and held by the head like a ragdoll, mutters weakly.

Scientist: "Guh… the one on the right..."

Prime Ravager: "Then we don't need the one on the left, do we?"

Before anyone can react, Prime Ravager feints a punch that slams Tatsuya into the wall with catastrophic force. The sound of the impact reverberates through the tunnel as cracks form around the cratered wall.

Kazuto: "TATSUYA?!"

Prime Ravager slides to a stop behind Kazuto, his predatory gaze locked onto him.

Kazuto (glancing back at Tatsuya, impaled in the wall): "...Eh? Hey…"

Prime Ravager: "Hi. Name's Prime Ravager. There's a special combat testing chamber nearby. Let's fight there, okay?"

Kazuto (clenching his fists): "You're gonna pay for making Tatsuya look like modern art! Let's go!"

The glint in Prime Ravager's eyes sharpens, his smile widening with a twisted glee. Moments later, they enter a massive, hollowed-out arena.

Prime Ravager: "Spacious, huh? It's the biggest chamber in this facility. They let us fight here to push our limits... AND TO KILL EACH OTHER!"

Tatsuya, barely standing with his fractured skull, suddenly unleashes a barrage of flames from his arm cannon. The fiery blast engulfs Prime Ravager... yet he steps forward unscathed.

Prime Ravager: "Duh, still alive, huh?"

With a speed that far surpasses sonic, Tatsuya rockets forward, activating his signature move: "Gatling Barrage." Hundreds of strikes rain down from all directions, each punch faster and stronger than the last.

Prime Ravager (grinning): "Idiot."

Amidst the chaos, Ravager's fist barrels through the assault and connects directly with Tatsuya's face, slamming him into the ground with earth-shattering force. The floor buckles, cracks spreading outward like a spider's web.

Kazuto rushes to catch Tatsuya, who is barely conscious, his face shattered and his systems failing.

Kazuto: "Man, he turned your face into abstract art."

Tatsuya (gasping): "It... didn't work..."

Kazuto places him gently on the ground, his expression hardening.

Kazuto: "Don't push yourself too hard."

Tatsuya, despite his injuries, powers up his upgraded plasma cannon—a desperate trump card he'd improved after his defeat against the Insect King. The cannon roars to life, firing a beam of devastating energy at Prime Ravager.

Prime Ravager (blowing air): "FOOSH."

With nothing but his breath, he dissipates the beam entirely.

Tatsuya: "HE JUST BLEW IT AWAY?! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE—!"

Tatsuya collapses, his body burned out, his hair disheveled as if scorched.

Kazuto: "Tatsuya, are you okay?!"

Tatsuya (barely whispering): "S…still... alive…"

Kazuto: "You call that okay? Your head looks like a smashed tin can!"

Prime Ravager (laughing maniacally): "HE HE HE HE... You little bastard. Pretending to be weak while raising my expectations!"

The scientist, bleeding heavily, stumbles closer, observing the battle from a distance.

Scientist (thinking): "The most savage and merciless monster within the 'Sanctuary of Evolution'... PRIME RAVAGER."

Prime Ravager: "Oh, I can feel it... I CAN FEEL IT! You're strong, aren't you?"

Kazuto: "Listen to me. Don't disappoint me. You're supposed to be the strongest here, right? Don't embarrass yourself."

Without warning, Prime Ravager moves—his body a blur of motion at massively hypersonic speeds. He appears behind Kazuto, his clawed hand ready to strike.

Tatsuya (watching in shock): "HE'S FAST!"

But before Ravager can land the blow, Prime Ravager leaps backward, breaking the floor beneath him in the process.

Scientist (stunned): "Did he... really back down?"

Kazuto (calmly): "What are you doing?"

Prime Ravager (pressed against the wall, eyes wide): "...!!"

Kazuto: "Well? Are you just going to stand there?"

Prime Ravager (thinking): *"If I had attacked then... I WOULD'VE DIED! What the hell is wrong with this guy?! He's full of openings, but…"If I had attacked then... I WOULD'VE DIED! What the hell is wrong with this guy?! He's full of openings, but… but…"

Prime Ravager's instincts scream at him.

Prime Ravager (yelling): "STAY AWAY FROM HIM! HE'S DANGEROUS!"

Prime Ravager: "You little shit! HOW DID YOU GET THIS STRONG?!"

The scientist freezes, Tatsuya struggles to lift his head, and Kazuto remains eerily calm, his eyes cold and unreadable.

Kazuto: "You want to know?"

He takes a step forward, his aura swelling like an unstoppable tidal wave.

Kazuto: "Fine. Listen closely."

The room grows deathly silent. Even Prime Ravager, the pinnacle of artificial evolution, finds himself paralyzed by an overwhelming sense of dread. The camera pans to the scientist, sweat dripping down his face as he watches Kazuto's terrifying composure.

Kazuto: "Tatsuya, you too. Pay attention."