Chapter 20: Battle of the Unseen Blades – Kiyotaka Ayanokōji vs Tokuchi Toua Begins

The arena had transformed.

No longer a battleground of brute strength or cosmic powers—this space now resembled a psychological maze. A shifting structure of steel corridors, glass walls, observation chambers, and flickering holographic illusions. Cameras floated silently overhead. Every inch watched. Every move recorded.

This wasn't a battlefield.

It was a test chamber.

"Welcome," the voice boomed, "to the Mind Game Protocol—a space where intellect is the only weapon, and victory is measured in control, manipulation, and survival."

A heavy silence hung over the multiverse as both contenders took their places.

Kiyotaka Ayanokōji stood in a featureless grey chamber, hands in his pockets, eyes calm as glass. On the opposite side, Tokuchi Toua leaned against a wall, arms folded, that devilish smirk never leaving his face.

The duel had begun.

Round One: The Misdirection

Ten figures suddenly appeared on the battlefield—five for each side. Clones, perfect in appearance and movement, mixed into the maze. The objective was clear:

"Find your opponent. Defeat the real one. Avoid harming civilians. Expose a false identity, and you lose a piece of yourself."

Ayanokōji watched from a surveillance panel, barely blinking. His fingers tapped once on a screen, then stopped.

"Too obvious," he muttered, watching three Tokuchis walking in synchronized patterns. "He wants me to choose quickly."

Meanwhile, Tokuchi sat in a replica dugout, munching on a protein bar like it was just another baseball game.

"He'll overanalyze. His weakness? Predictability through perfection."

Toua whispered something into a headset and released false intel into the maze: "Target located in sector B7."

It was bait. It was always bait.

Round Two: The Psychological Trigger

Suddenly, the lights dimmed. A new simulation kicked in.

Both fighters were shown holograms of people from their pasts—manipulated to emotionally provoke them.

For Kiyotaka, it was Professor Ayanokoji from the White Room, his cold eyes glaring.

"You were always a tool. Nothing more."

For Toua, it was Kojima, standing in defeat, whispering:

"You used me, again and again… Why?"

The multiverse leaned in.

Would they break? Would they falter?

Kiyotaka's heart rate didn't even spike.

He looked at the hologram and whispered: "Irrelevant."

Toua stared at Kojima's image, expressionless. Then he said, "If you're surprised now, you never knew me."

"Emotional manipulation failed. Proceeding to next sequence."

Audience Across Universes

From Classroom of the Elite Universe:

Horikita watched with clenched fists. "He doesn't even flinch."

Ichika Amasawa: "That's why he's the masterpiece."

From One Outs Universe:

Kojima's hand trembled. "He's using even fake guilt to win. That's Toua."

From Naruto Universe:

Shikamaru murmured, "This fight's giving me a headache."

From Death Note Universe:

L from behind his cake: "Ayanokōji… resembles Light without ambition. Tokuchi? Closer to me... but more reckless."

From Detective Conan Universe:

Conan adjusted his glasses. "No... Tokuchi's using Liar Logic. He's trying to corner Ayanokōji into making the first mistake."

Round Three: Resource War

A third simulation began.

Ten keys. One escape route. Only one key worked.

Both players had five NPC teammates who would betray or obey based on persuasion.

"Win this round by convincing your opponent's team to join yours. Each betrayal shifts the balance of power."

Kiyotaka moved immediately. He isolated a member of Toua's squad—an AI named "Rikuto"—and whispered a single sentence.

"I know your programming. If he loses, you're deleted."

The AI hesitated.

Meanwhile, Toua called over one of Ayanokōji's units and offered a simple trade:

"A lie for a lie. Betray him now, and I'll save your memory core."

Two switches. A fake alliance. A sudden betrayal.

Kiyotaka smirked.

He expected it.

He allowed it.

Double betrayal.

Ayanokōji's turncoat turned back to him at the last second, feeding Toua misinformation.

The multiverse erupted:

"Did Kiyotaka just… manipulate a manipulator?"

"No—Toua let him do it. He's setting up something deeper!"

"Wait… are they BOTH faking losing?!"

From Wagerdome Prime:

Zip-Zap grinned wide. "This is my kind of game! I don't even know who I bet on anymore!"

From LogicSphere-22:

Nova the Whisperer whispered, "This is more than probability… this is manipulation of perception. Ayanokōji is painting reality with silence."

Final Simulation: The Mirror Match

Suddenly, the battlefield collapsed into a chamber of infinite reflections. Clones appeared again—but this time, both fighters saw themselves and each other multiplied endlessly.

Each clone moved. Spoke. Reacted differently.

Only one was the real opponent.

"Eliminate the real enemy. You have one shot."

Kiyotaka closed his eyes. Counted. Listened.

Toua grinned. Looked for a tell.

Ten seconds passed.

Toua acted first.

He launched a virtual knife—straight through the chest of one Ayanokōji copy.

But it dissolved.

Wrong one.

From behind, Ayanokōji stepped out.

"You always act with a smile to hide hesitation. That's what gave you away."

He raised a virtual command tablet—and tapped "Sim Terminate."

But it didn't activate.

Toua laughed. "You think I didn't expect you to find me? The knife wasn't to hit you. It was to delay you."

Kiyotaka looked around.

The mirrors were glitching.

Suddenly—the system turned against them both.

Announcer's Voice Returns

"Both contenders… have forced a stalemate in the mind realm.

Switching to final test:

Raw Truth."

A single room. No simulations. No illusions.

Just a chair in the middle.

One sits. The other must make them stand.

Simple rule. Impossible task.

"First one to make the other lose composure… wins."

Kiyotaka sat first. Calm. Unmoving.

Toua walked around him.

"You're not free. You think you are, but your silence is just a cage you built to avoid responsibility. You're scared."

Ayanokōji said nothing.

"You never escaped the White Room. It's in you. Forever."

Still… nothing.

Then Ayanokōji responded.

"You use people to feel powerful. Because when no one's around, you're just a bored man with no game left."

Toua's smile faltered—only a flicker.

The sensors picked it up.

"Toua: Micro-expression: 0.3 seconds.

Victory: Ayanokōji."

Final Lock

As the lights dimmed and the arena returned to silence, Kiyotaka stood up, expression unreadable.

Toua chuckled once.

"Damn. You're colder than I thought."

No cheers.

No explosions.

Just silence—and the terrifying realization that sometimes, the most dangerous weapons… are minds that never waver.