Blood colored shockwaves rolled across the sky as overwhelming Conqueror's Haki surged outward like a raging river, pressing down on the ocean within a radius of ten thousand meters.
Imu felt the sudden spike in pressure multiply several times over. Her expression stiffened instantly as her body trembled for a brief moment. Without hesitation, her aura exploded outward in an attempt to resist Kaito's crushing presence.
What a pity.
With the Eight Inner Gates fully opened, Kaito's strength had completely stepped into a different realm. No matter how powerful Imu's aura was, it was no longer even close to Kaito's level.
The moment their pressures collided, Kaito's Conqueror's Haki crushed downward with absolute dominance.
Before Imu could even act, she was swallowed whole by the vast ocean like pressure bearing down on her.
Previously, when their auras clashed evenly, Imu had felt nothing unusual. But now, as Kaito unleashed his full power, the pressure felt like more than a hundred massive mountains crashing down at once. The air around her became thick and heavy, as if filled with liquid metal.
In this state, Imu could barely exert eighty percent of her combat strength. The remaining twenty percent was forcibly spent resisting the omnipresent pressure crushing her body.
"How is this possible?" Imu thought grimly. "How can he possess such terrifying power? If this is the case, why did he not use it from the very beginning?"
Just as her expression darkened further, the mercury like pressure suddenly eased.
Not far away, Kaito stood calmly. His hair fluttered wildly, his clothes snapped loudly in the wind, and blood red air waves surged around his body. His gaze toward Imu was indifferent and cold.
"Not using it earlier was simple," Kaito said calmly. "I did not know whether you were worth the effort. Now I am sure."
He took a slow step forward.
"Prepare yourself. I hope you are not destroyed by my first attack."
In the next instant, Kaito vanished.
He reappeared like a blood red meteor, dragging a blazing trail behind him as he appeared directly in front of Imu.
"Blood Requiem. First step."
With a sharp motion, Kaito drove his fist forward. The punch slammed into Imu's abdomen, and a colossal pillar of compressed air erupted alongside it.
Imu did not even have time to react. Her body was blasted away by the air pillar and vanished into the distance in the blink of an eye.
Whoosh.
Kaito followed immediately, appearing behind Imu as if teleporting.
At that moment, Imu was still struggling to break free from the violent force dragging her backward.
A cold voice sounded behind her, sending a chill through her spine.
"Second step."
A powerful kick followed. Another towering air column erupted, slamming directly into Imu's back.
Before Imu could recover, Kaito was already moving again. His voice echoed as his feet struck without pause, each movement creating another devastating shockwave.
"Third step."
"Rampage."
"Fivefold Strike."
From the front, the back, the left, the right, and above, five massive air pillars crashed into Imu simultaneously, leaving her completely without room to evade.
Crack. Crack.
Under the naked eye, fractures spread across the black and red armor covering Imu's body. Even her seemingly perfect form began to show visible damage.
Boom!
A deafening explosion shook the entire sea. A massive mushroom cloud surged into the sky, swallowing the heavens whole.
The aftermath spread for thousands of miles.
Towering waves roared across the ocean like enraged beasts, devouring everything in their path. It was as if the world itself was being overturned, plunging back into chaos.
Several minutes later, the power gradually subsided and the dust in the sky began to settle.
Kaito exhaled lightly. A powerful gust of wind surged outward, instantly dispersing the dust around Imu and revealing her battered figure.
The black and red armor was shattered. Blue blood streamed across her body. Her abdomen was deeply caved in, exposing the strange metallic structure beneath her skin.
The pale skin on the left side of her face cracked apart, peeling back to reveal cold metal underneath.
It was clear now. This body was not truly human.
Imu stared at Kaito expressionlessly. Black and red flames surged once more, and the injuries across her body began to heal at a visible pace. In just a few breaths, her body returned to its original state.
Her skin was once again fair and flawless, delicate enough to seem unreal.
With a flick of her hand, black and red flames wrapped around her, reconstructing the broken armor piece by piece.
Her scarlet eyes locked onto Kaito, icy and filled with killing intent.
"For so many years," Imu said coldly, "you are the first. The first to force me into this state."
"You are wrong," Kaito replied indifferently. "I am not just the first. I am the one who will kill you."
His blood red aura surged violently, rolling like a boundless sea.
With a single step, the air roared. Kaito appeared in front of Imu once again.
"That move again," Imu frowned, snorting coldly.
Black and red flames surged outward, forming a dense shield around her body.
"It is useless," Kaito said calmly. "Before absolute power, everything else is meaningless."
He lifted his leg and kicked forward like a falling meteor. The surrounding air compressed violently as a massive blood red tiger formed around his foot.
"Day Tiger."
The words were spoken without emotion.
Kaito's foot slammed directly into the flame shield.
Roar!
The blood red tiger roared, vivid and ferocious, as if it had crawled out of hell itself.
With that roar, it crashed into the flame shield.
Hum.
Invisible ripples spread outward in all directions. The terrifying shock distorted space itself. The sea water poured backward, and the environment warped violently.
Roar!
The tiger's roar shook the heavens.
The black and red flame shield shattered instantly.
Imu was hurled straight down into the sea.
Boom!
It was as if a nuclear weapon had detonated beneath the ocean. The sea churned violently as a colossal vortex spanning over a thousand meters formed instantly.
Countless massive waves surged outward in all directions. The surrounding sea level visibly dropped under the immense force.
A nearby island was completely swallowed by the waves, its massive landmass collapsing into the sea.
Fortunately, it was uninhabited. Otherwise, the casualties would have been unimaginable.
This was nothing short of a natural disaster.
Whoosh.
A battered figure burst out of the sea, breathing heavily. Her battle armor was shattered, blue lightning flickering across her body. Of the six pairs of wings, only two remained.
Cracks spread across her delicate facial features. Her crimson lips were torn apart, exposing the metal beneath.
From her chest to her abdomen, a deep cavity remained, clearly marked by the imprint of Kaito's shoe.
With injuries this severe, any ordinary being would have long since died. Only because Imu was an artificial human did she remain standing.
"Damn it," Imu growled, resentment burning in her scarlet eyes. "I have decided. If I die, I will drag you down with me."
Colorful light erupted around her as a radiant halo formed. Moments later, the holy Seraph form reappeared before Kaito.
"Healing," Imu said coldly.
Her entire body was wrapped in multicolored light as her damaged form began repairing itself automatically.
At the same time, a terrifying presence surged outward, rising like mountains and seas.
Waves of colorful ripples gathered rapidly, spreading until they covered the entire sky in dazzling brilliance.
"Goodbye," Imu sneered. "I am done fighting."
Kaito's aura exploded violently in response, like a volcano erupting. The blood red torrent surged forward, washing away the colorful ripples with overwhelming force.
"Pathetic."
With a thunderous roar, the red air waves around Kaito gathered tightly before him.
His figure blurred as he charged forward once more. Blood colored energy flooded the air, and a terrifying crimson beast shadow loomed around his body.