Chapter 4: The Illusionist's Gambit
Abandoned Cathedral - Warped Battlefield
The world around them was a constantly shifting nightmare. Walls turned into floors, ceilings stretched into corridors, and gravity itself seemed to obey Shinobu Kuroda's whims.
Concrete Jungle wasn't just a Stand-it was an environment, a battlefield where Shinobu held all the cards.
Akira, Hiroshi, Daisuke, and Kenji had been tossed around like pawns on an ever-changing chessboard.
But now, they had a plan.
Their target wasn't Shinobu himself.
It was the hourglass.
---
The Weakness of Power
Akira's mind raced. If Shinobu had complete control, he wouldn't need to flip the hourglass at all-he'd just shift the battlefield at will. But every time he used his ability, he had to turn it.
That meant one thing:
The hourglass wasn't just symbolic. It was his Stand's trigger.
Kenji wiped blood from his lip, standing up despite the shifting gravity. "We get that thing away from him, we win."
Daisuke adjusted his sunglasses. "Gotta admit, that's a damn good plan."
Hiroshi twirled his katana. "I'll be the one to cut it from his hands."
Akira nodded. "I'll give you an opening."
They all turned toward Shinobu, who stood upside-down on a floating platform above them, still calm, still smirking.
"Discussing a strategy?" he mused, tapping the hourglass. "How cute."
With a flick of his fingers-
He flipped it again.
---
Phase One: Disrupt the Battlefield
WHAM!
The entire battlefield folded inward.
Stone blocks compressed, creating a labyrinth of twisting tunnels. The sky-if it could even be called that-cracked apart, revealing an abyss of shifting structures.
But this time, the team was ready.
"Gale Phantom!"
Daisuke kicked off a stone wall, his Stand generating a burst of wind that sent him rocketing toward Shinobu.
Shinobu barely raised an eyebrow before casually twisting his hand-
A wall slammed into Daisuke mid-air.
But instead of crashing, Daisuke twisted mid-flight, using the very wind he generated to push off the surface.
"Nice try." He vanished in a blur.
For the first time, Shinobu's smirk wavered.
Daisuke was too fast.
The moment Shinobu raised the hourglass to flip it again-
"Blazing Ronin!"
A katana flashed.
Hiroshi's blade clashed against the hourglass.
CRACK.
Shinobu's eyes widened. "You-"
---
Phase Two: Breaking Control
Before Shinobu could react, Akira activated his Stand.
"Echo Chamber!"
A pulse of sound blasted outward, disrupting the battlefield's shifting reality. The very structures Shinobu controlled wavered, their forms flickering between stability and distortion.
The hourglass shook in his hands.
Kenji took his shot.
"Titan Soul!"
With earth-shattering force, Kenji punched the platform beneath Shinobu.
The entire battlefield lurched.
Shinobu's footing slipped. His grip on the hourglass loosened-
Daisuke was already there.
"Got it!"
In a blur, he snatched the hourglass from Shinobu's grasp.
For the first time-
Shinobu staggered.
---
Phase Three: Turning the Tables
The second the hourglass left his hands-
The battlefield stopped shifting.
No more floating debris. No more inverted gravity.
The cathedral snapped back to its original, ruined state.
Shinobu, no longer in control, landed hard on the cracked marble floor. He let out a genuine laugh.
"...So, that's how it is." He wiped the blood from his lip. "You actually figured it out."
Akira caught his breath. "It's over."
Hiroshi pointed his katana at Shinobu. "You lost."
Shinobu's smirk returned. "Did I?"
A blade shot out from the shadows.