Ch 27 : The Price Of Power
The battlefield was silent.
The anomaly's corpse lay still, its grotesque form twisted and broken.
Renji staggered.
His breath came ragged. His body trembled.
The mutation had given him power.
But at what cost?
Something inside him still burned. Twisted.
Like he had crossed a threshold—and there was no going back.
He clenched his fists.
His claws had grown longer.
His skin felt thicker.
The ancient entity laughed in his mind.
"You are closer now. Closer than ever."
Renji gritted his teeth.
He had won.
But why did it feel like he had lost something?
---
Across the battlefield, Seijuro watched.
His eyes were sharp. Calculating.
Renji had gone further than expected.
He wasn't just an infected anymore.
He was something worse.
Seijuro's grip tightened on his blade.
This… could be a problem.
Dr. Yura's voice crackled through his earpiece.
"Seijuro. Do you see it now?"
Seijuro didn't answer immediately.
His eyes stayed locked on Renji.
Finally, he spoke.
"Yes."
"Then you know what needs to be done."
---
Renji tried to steady his breathing.
But something was wrong.
His vision blurred.
His heartbeat pounded too fast.
His mind—
Slipping.
A new hunger clawed at his thoughts.
Not just for battle.
For something more.
The anomaly's corpse twitched.
A pulse of dungeon energy leaked from it.
Renji's body reacted instantly.
His instincts screamed.
He needed to consume.
---
Renji stumbled forward.
His claws twitched.
The mutation wanted more.
More power.
More evolution.
No.
Renji clenched his jaw.
He couldn't give in.
If he did—he might never come back.
But the hunger didn't fade.
It only grew.
The ancient entity's voice slithered into his thoughts.
"Why do you resist? This is who you are now."
Renji shut his eyes.
Fought for control.
Fought for sanity.
He wasn't a monster.
He was still human.
Wasn't he?
---
Seijuro exhaled.
Renji was unstable.
This was the moment of weakness.
"All units—prepare to engage."
His soldiers, hidden in the ruins, moved into position.
Dr. Yura's voice was sharp.
"Kill him now, Seijuro."
Seijuro watched Renji tremble.
Watched him fight against himself.
He had fought countless hunters.
But this?
This was something new.
Something dangerous.
Yet—
Something far too valuable to kill.
Seijuro lifted his hand.
His soldiers froze.
Dr. Yura's voice snapped through his earpiece.
"What are you doing?"
Seijuro's eyes stayed on Renji.
He finally spoke.
"We take him alive."
Yura hissed.
"That's a mistake."
Seijuro ignored her.
This wasn't about orders.
This was about understanding.
Renji was evolving.
And if they didn't stop him now—
Then soon, no one would be able to.
---
Renji's claws hovered over the anomaly's corpse.
His body screamed to consume.
To absorb.
To evolve.
But he forced himself back.
Step by step.
Fighting every instinct, every whisper in his head.
And somehow—
Somehow—
He stopped.
He was still Renji.
For now.
But then—
"Tsk. Impressive, but unnecessary."
---
A new voice.
Smooth. Confident.
Renji's head snapped up.
A man stood on the crumbling rooftop above.
White hair. A smirk too calm for this battlefield.
And behind him—
A group of hunters.
But not the Organization.
Not Seijuro's men.
No—
Renji knew exactly who this was.
Shirogane Arata.
The rogue hunter.
And he wasn't here to help.
---
Seijuro's face darkened.
"Arata."
Shirogane's smirk widened.
"Did you really think I'd let you have all the fun, Commander?"
He spread his arms.
"You're not the only one interested in our little anomaly here."
His eyes locked onto Renji.
"You're coming with us."
Renji stiffened.
His body was already failing.
He couldn't fight Seijuro's forces.
And he definitely couldn't fight another faction.
But before he could respond—
Shirogane raised a hand.
"Boys. Bring him in."
And his hunters attacked.
Chaos exploded.
Shirogane's hunters rushed forward.
Seijuro's men opened fire.
The battlefield that had just settled—
Was now a warzone again.
Renji gritted his teeth.
Too many enemies.
Too little strength left.
He had pushed himself too far.
And now—
He had nowhere to run.
A hunter lunged.
Renji dodged—barely.
Another came from behind.
His instincts reacted first.
BAM!
Renji's fist shattered the hunter's ribs.
Another—
He slashed their throat.
Blood sprayed the ground.
His body moved on its own.
Faster. Stronger.
Deadlier.
The mutation was taking over again.
And this time—
Renji wasn't sure if he could stop it.
---
Seijuro frowned.
Shirogane laughed.
Renji was becoming exactly what they wanted.
A true anomaly.
A weapon.
A force neither side could fully control.
And if Renji didn't escape soon—
He'd be a pawn in someone else's game.
Forever.
Renji took a breath.
He had one choice.
One last move.
If he couldn't fight them all—
Then he had to disappear.
His dungeon energy flared.
The ground shook.
A massive burst of force sent everyone flying.
And in that moment—
Renji vanished into the ruins.
Seijuro cursed.
Shirogane sighed.
Renji was gone.
For now.
But both men knew—
This wasn't over.
Not by a long shot.
Because now—
The real hunt had begun.
And neither side was letting him go.
---
Renji's lungs burned.
His vision was blurry.
Every muscle in his body screamed.
But he kept running.
The ruins stretched before him—a maze of collapsed buildings, shattered roads, and twisted metal.
His heart pounded.
Behind him—they were coming.
Seijuro's men.
Shirogane's rogue hunters.
Both sides wanted him.
Neither for good reasons.
Renji's grip tightened.
He wasn't going to be anyone's prisoner.
---
Seijuro's voice crackled over a communication channel.
"Spread out. He won't get far."
His soldiers moved swiftly, methodically.
Thermal scanners. Motion detectors.
They weren't searching blindly.
They were hunting.
From another rooftop, Shirogane smirked.
His rogue hunters were faster.
Less predictable.
Unlike Seijuro's men, they had no rules.
"Fan out," Shirogane ordered.
"Whoever gets him first gets a bonus."
His men grinned.
Renji was just one man.
And soon—
He'd be trapped.
Renji ducked into a collapsed tunnel.
His breath came ragged.
His body ached.
The mutation was still unstable.
He could feel the energy twisting inside him.
If he let it take over—
He might be able to fight.
But if he lost control again…
He might never come back.
The ancient entity whispered.
"You are holding yourself back. Why?"
Renji clenched his fists.
"Because I don't trust you."
The entity laughed softly.
"Then trust yourself."
---
The tunnel shook.
A presence.
Close.
Too close.
Renji spun—just in time.
A blade sliced toward his throat.
He dodged—barely.
The attacker landed lightly.
A woman.
Black combat gear. Amber eyes that burned with focus.
Renji recognized her immediately.
One of Seijuro's elites.
Captain Asuka Fuyushima.
She raised her sword.
"You're fast."
Renji's muscles tensed.
"And you're in my way."
Asuka smiled coldly.
"Then make me move."
She attacked first.
Renji dodged left—
But she was already there.
Her blade whispered through the air—
Aimed straight for his heart.
Renji twisted.
The blade grazed his ribs.
Pain flared.
But he had no time to care.
He countered.
A clawed hand slashed toward her throat—
She leaned back—just in time.
Fast.
Too fast.
Renji wasn't fighting an ordinary soldier.
She was one of Seijuro's best.
And she wasn't here to capture him.
She was here to kill.
---
Asuka vanished.
Renji's instincts screamed.
He spun—blocked—barely.
A second blade came at him from the opposite side.
He wasn't fighting just her.
She was using the environment.
The darkness.
The ruins.
Her strikes were precise. Ruthless.
And Renji was losing ground.
His breathing was ragged.
His body—slower.
She wasn't tiring.
But he was.
Too much.
Too many battles.
Too much strain.
Renji stepped back.
A mistake.
Asuka moved in.
Fast.
Aimed to end it.
Her blade flashed forward—
And then—
A gunshot.
Asuka froze.
A bullet had just missed her head.
Renji whipped around.
On the opposite rooftop—
A figure in a white coat.
Shirogane.
And his rogue hunters.
He smirked.
"Sorry, sweetheart. He's ours."
Asuka's eyes narrowed.
Shirogane raised a hand.
His men opened fire.
---
Gunfire exploded.
Asuka vanished into the shadows.
Renji moved.
He wasn't waiting around.
His legs burned.
But he ran.
Through the ruins—dodging bullets.
Shirogane's hunters chased.
Asuka was somewhere in the darkness.
Seijuro's soldiers were closing in.
The walls were collapsing.
And Renji was running out of options.
---
He rounded a corner—
And stopped.
A dead end.
A ruined building blocked his path.
He turned—
Too late.
Shirogane's men were already there.
They raised their weapons.
Shirogane smiled.
"End of the road."
Renji gritted his teeth.
This was bad.
Really, really bad.
But then—
The ground shook.
And the world collapsed.
From beneath the rubble—
Something stirred.
Something huge.
A deep, guttural growl.
Shirogane's smirk faltered.
"What the hell—"
The ground erupted.
A monster emerged.
Not just any monster.
A Dungeon Beast.
Renji's stomach dropped.
This wasn't just an enemy.
This was a walking catastrophe.
And they had just woken it up.
---
The beast roared.
The sound shook the ruins.
Debris rained down.
Shirogane's hunters scattered.
Renji gritted his teeth.
Fighting each other was one thing.
Fighting this was another.
Shirogane cursed.
"Tsk. Change of plans."
He looked at Renji.
"Truce?"
Renji exhaled sharply.
Then cracked his knuckles.
"Fine. Let's kill this thing first.
The monster lunged.
Renji dodged left.
Shirogane's gun flared.
Bullets ripped into the beast's hide—but barely did anything.
Renji's mind raced.
Too big.
Too fast.
They needed a plan.
Or they were dead.
He clenched his fists.
The mutation stirred.
The hunger rose.
And this time—
Renji wasn't sure if he could fight it back.