CHAPTER 10: EYES OF FATE

The chaos within the Infinity Castle thickened as steel met steel, rage met silence, and legacy met defiance.

Sanemi's voice roared across the broken battlefield, his movements a blur.

"Wind Breathing: Third Form – Clean Storm Wind Tree!"

A violent storm of slashes spiraled toward Kokushibo.

Muichiro followed.

"Mist Breathing: Sixth Form – Lunar Mirage!"

He vanished, then reappeared from the mist behind Kokushibo with a deadly jab.

Genya, breathing heavily, reloaded and fired his blood-enhanced rounds with deadly precision.

But Kokushibo didn't flinch.

His voice was calm, absolute. "You are nothing like him. Not even close."

Moon Breathing: Tenth Form – Pale Moon, Endless Night.

The air ruptured.

A torrent of lunar arcs shredded the space before them. Sanemi was thrown into a wall. Muichiro skidded across the floor. Genya coughed blood.

The monster stood tall—unmoving, unbothered, unshaken.

As he stepped forward, Kokushibo raised his massive katana, the many eyes along its length pulsating.

He whispered like a god among corpses.

"This is the end—"

CRASH!

His blade met metal.

And then—

SNAP.

His sword shattered.

The impact came from above.

Gyomei Himejima, towering, thunderous, sacred in rage, descended like a divine punishment.

Chains swung.

"Stone Breathing: Fifth Form – Arcs of Justice!"

His flail, blinding in speed, clashed with Kokushibo's broken weapon, shattering the momentum of the demon's strike.

Sanemi wiped blood from his chin and stood beside him.

"'Bout time you showed up, monk."

Gyomei's face was stone. "I heard your voice in the wind."

Muichiro and Genya rose again, bruised but burning.

And then, together—

Gyomei unleashed another flail strike.

Sanemi roared with his Third Form again.

Muichiro struck with Mist Breathing: Third Form – Scattering Mist Splash.

Genya screamed and fired.

Kokushibo staggered.

But then—he changed.

His body convulsed.

His voice thundered.

"I will not die here!"

Dark veins burst along his skin. His katana reformed—twisted, longer, jagged with a hundred new arcs and curved blades. The eyes along its length multiplied and glowed.

His demon blood surged, centuries of rage and desperation flooding into form.

"Let me show you the depth of my resolve!" Kokushibo bellowed.

The castle shook.

The final battle of moons and pillars had begun.