The saint's approach

The night was quiet, too quiet.

Ochi stood atop a cliff overlooking the valley below. The battlefield from earlier in the day was still, the echoes of war fading into silence. His wounds were gone—he had healed faster than he expected—but the ache of defeat still gnawed at him. The Eternal Saint had left no room for error, no openings to exploit. For the first time in centuries, Ochi had been outclassed.

But that feeling of defeat had sparked something deep within him. Anger. Frustration. Determination.

"The Saint isn't just my enemy. He's a door. A gateway to everything I've lost."

The wind shifted, brushing against his face. Ochi's sharp gaze swept across the horizon, knowing the woman's words were not just metaphorical. He could feel it now—he was being watched.

He turned sharply.

The woman—the one who had saved him—was standing a few feet away, her arms crossed. Her gaze was unreadable, but there was a knowing in her eyes that unsettled him.

"You feel it too," she said.

Ochi nodded, clenching his fists. "He's coming."

"You're sure?"

"I've been alive for far too long not to sense the shift in the air," Ochi muttered. "The Saint knows I'll come for him."

She studied him carefully. "Do you know what you're getting into?"

Ochi's eyes hardened. "I've been dead for a thousand years. I'm not afraid of death anymore."

Her lips quirked into a small smile. "Not death. What awaits you is much more than that."

Ochi stepped forward, unblinking. "Then I'll face it."

The woman exhaled slowly. "You're a stubborn one. Fine. I'll give you the truth you seek, but you may not like it."

She motioned for him to follow. Reluctantly, Ochi did.

They walked in silence for several minutes before the woman spoke again. "The Saint's immortality is not of this world. It was granted to him by forces beyond our understanding. Powers that have been watching over this world for millennia. Their reach extends to places where even the gods fear to tread."

Ochi's brows furrowed. "And they took my family?"

"Yes."

A strange tension filled the air as they reached the edge of the ruins. The woman turned to face him. "To understand the Saint, you must understand the one who gave him this power."

Ochi's eyes narrowed. "Who?"

"His name is Shirogami," she said, her voice steady but filled with something dark. "The Immortal God, a being who exists between worlds. He is neither alive nor dead, yet he has power over both. His intentions are unknown, but he has been manipulating mortal affairs for longer than you can comprehend. The Saint was his chosen vessel."

Ochi stood frozen. Shirogami. The name echoed in his mind. The words felt like a thunderclap in his chest, shaking something deep within him.

If Shirogami was behind the Saint's immortality, then perhaps he had been behind the death of his family too.

"A god."

The woman watched him carefully. "You won't face just a man, Ochi Nakagura. You will face something that should not exist. A power that is both your enemy and the key to your salvation."

Ochi clenched his fists tighter. "I don't care. I'll face whatever it takes. I'll kill the Saint. And then… I'll destroy Shirogami."

The woman's eyes softened for a brief moment, but she said nothing.

A shadow passed over the moon.

The ground trembled.

And then—the Saint appeared.

At the edge of the valley, the Eternal Saint stood, his white cloak glowing faintly under the moonlight. His golden eyes locked onto Ochi, and for the first time since their first battle, the Saint spoke.

"You're persistent." His voice was calm, almost disinterested.

Ochi's heart thundered in his chest. "I'm not here to talk."

The Saint smiled. "Then we shall skip the pleasantries."

With a single movement, he raised his hand. The soldiers of the Dominion, who had fallen in battle earlier, began to stir. Their bodies glowed with golden light as they rose again—reanimated, yet under his command.

Ochi's eyes widened.

"He controls death itself."

But he didn't flinch. Instead, he took a step forward, sword in hand.

"Come, then," Ochi said, his voice like a low growl. "Let's end this."

The Eternal Saint's smile never faded.

"You don't know what you're asking for."

And with that, the battle began.