"Hey, Exca. Found anything yet?"
Lyon's voice carried down from the treetop.
Sasaki stood at the base of the tree, his gaze sweeping across the forest. "Of course, partner. Our kid is getting closer. I can sense his Renshi aura just beyond the edge of this forest, across the border of the kingdom ahead."
He pointed toward the Kingdom of Eminence.
Lyon smirked. "Now things are getting interesting. What's your next move, Exca? I know you're watching through Sasaki's eyes..."
Meanwhile, deep inside the Kingdom of Guhan, Exca sat within a Renshical circle, looking visibly exhausted.
To keep himself awake, he had activated a spell known as Twenty-Four Hours. It was a special technique developed by a mage long before Exca became a Special Darkside Knight. The spell allowed its user to remain awake for extended periods without losing focus.
With his eyes closed, Exca continued recovering his Renshi. At the same time, he maintained a connection to Sasaki's eyes, allowing him to observe everything happening in the forest without having to leave his castle.
I don't know what you're planning, Lyon. But if you try to interfere, I won't hesitate to have Sasaki erase you, he thought coldly.
...
Meanwhile, at the border between the Kingdoms of Sunflower and Eminence...
Sasaki continued his patrol through the forest at a relaxed pace. He had deactivated Switch Mode and was moving normally between the trees.
Suddenly, his senses picked up something.
He tilted his head just as an arrow whistled past it.
Before he could straighten his neck, more than twenty arrows came flying from behind, filling the air around him.
Seriously? Is this how you're welcoming me?
With a quiet sigh, Sasaki activated Switch Mode.
His body flickered between locations as he evaded the incoming arrows. Several struck the surrounding trees, while others buried themselves in the earth. Not a single one touched him.
In an instant, he appeared behind the Shinra responsible for the attack.
The man barely had time to turn around before Sasaki drove a powerful kick into his back.
"Ugh..."
The impact sent the attacker flying off the treetop. He crashed into the ground below, leaving a deep hole in the dirt. His body lay motionless at its centre.
Sasaki glanced down at him before continuing his walk as though nothing had happened.
A sudden flash of light caught his attention.
He looked up and spotted a spear made of condensed energy shooting straight toward him from above.
Rather than dodge, Sasaki calmly raised one finger and touched its tip.
Crack!
The spear shattered into countless fragments of light before disappearing.
Sasaki lowered his hand and turned his gaze toward the surrounding trees.
"You'd better stop playing games," he said coldly. "I'm not here to waste my time on weaklings. Show yourselves, or get out of my way."
Five rogue Shinras emerged from the woods.
Three carried swords, while the remaining two wielded massive hammers. The hammer-wielders looked almost identical, making it obvious that they were probably twins.
Without hesitation, they charged at Sasaki from different directions.
A smile spread across his face.
"Much better."
The first swordsman swung at his neck, but Sasaki activated Switch Mode and vanished before the blade could reach him.
He reappeared behind another attacker, grabbed the man's hair, and yanked his head backward.
"Too slow."
BAM!
Sasaki's fist slammed into the man's face.
The force sent the Shinra crashing to the ground. Blood poured from his broken nose and mouth as he struggled to move.
"You bastard. What did you do to my brother?"
One of the remaining swordsmen roared in anger.
Dark Renshi spread across his body. Six shadowy hands suddenly burst from the ground around Sasaki, each gripping a blade. They immediately launched an attack from different directions.
Sasaki's grin widened.
"Now we're talking."
He activated Switch Mode, shifting through the narrow gaps between the incoming strikes. One blade sliced through the air above his head, another narrowly missed his side, and he twisted away from a third before teleporting behind its wielder.
However, the rogue Shinra had anticipated his movement.
He spun around and slashed at Sasaki's shoulder.
The blade connected.
Blood trickled down Sasaki's arm.
The attacker stared for a moment before his expression twisted into a cruel grin.
"Got you!"
He pressed forward, commanding the six shadowy hands to attack again.
This time, Sasaki stopped using Switch Mode.
The blades struck him from several directions, cutting across his arms, chest, and sides. He staggered beneath the assault but refused to fall.
"What's wrong?" the rogue Shinra taunted. "Can't dodge anymore?"
Sasaki remained silent.
Another slash tore across his chest, followed by a cut along his arm.
The rogue Shinra continued his relentless assault, growing more confident with every strike.
Eventually, he stepped back, breathing heavily.
Sasaki stood before him, his clothes torn and his body covered in deep cuts. Blood ran down his arms and dripped onto the ground.
Yet he remained standing, seemingly unfazed by the damage.
"Why...?" the rogue Shinra muttered.
Then he noticed something unusual.
The bleeding had stopped.
Before his eyes, Sasaki's wounds began to close. Torn flesh slowly repaired itself, and the cuts disappeared one after another.
Within moments, his body had returned to normal.
The remaining Shinras stared in disbelief.
"What the hell? He's healing..."
"That's impossible. No ordinary human can do that."
Sasaki glanced at his healed arm, flexed his fingers, and smiled.
"Ah, that's better."
He raised one hand toward the blood scattered across the ground.
The small pools began to tremble before rising into the air. They gathered in front of him, twisting and merging until they formed a long crimson blade.
Sasaki reached out and took hold of it.
The remaining Shinras instinctively stepped back.
"He's not human..." one of them shouted.
The swordsman who had been attacking Sasaki clenched his fists.
"I don't care what kind of monster he is. He killed my brother. I'm going to tear him apart."
He charged forward once more.
The six shadowy hands rose from the ground, their blades now considerably larger. They attacked Sasaki from the front and both sides, attempting to overwhelm him with their numbers.
Sasaki tightened his grip on the blood-forged sword.
"You're still making the same mistake."
As the blades closed in, he shifted his weight and swung his sword in one powerful horizontal arc.
SHING!
The crimson blade swept through the incoming weapons before continuing toward the rogue Shinra.
The man tried to retreat, but he was too slow.
The sword struck him across the waist.
His body split in two, and both halves collapsed onto the ground.
With their master's Renshi fading, the six shadowy hands vanished.
Sasaki stood among the fallen attackers, his blood-forged sword dripping onto the dirt.
He turned toward the three remaining Shinras.
"Who's next?"
The surviving swordsmen went pale.
One looked at his fallen companions, then at Sasaki's calm expression. Whatever courage he had left quickly disappeared.
"Back off! Retreat!"
He shouted at the two hammer-wielders.
Neither argued.
The three turned and fled into the dense forest, disappearing between the trees in the opposite direction.
Sasaki watched them go but made no attempt to pursue.
Instead, he rested the blood-forged sword against his shoulder and let out a quiet sigh.
"Honestly, I was hoping for something more interesting."