As they watched the fireworks, she reached out, her hand trembling slightly—but could not touch him.
"We are so close… yet you feel so far away," she whispered, voice breaking.
And in that fleeting moment, she never saw Kael again. He was left alone, once more, with no warmth, no love. His chest ached with the emptiness of loss, but he forced himself to turn it into resolve.
Kael's thoughts burned inside him: If I can't be loved, that's fine… but I won't let anyone else feel this way. I'll protect them—even if it costs me everything.
{Back to Yura vs Hiroshima Toko}
Hiroshima laughed, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. His eyes gleamed with a wild, dangerous shine.
"Now this…" he said, a manic grin spreading across his face, "…is getting fun."
Yura lunged for another strike. Hiroshima twisted gracefully, evading, and countered with a precise, deadly blow.
"No! Yura, don't let him touch you!" Noctyre's scream tore through the chaos, echoing off the shattered walls.
Yura rolled back, circling, fists burning with red Vital Force. I just need to keep moving… constantly… harder than I thought, he thought, sweat dripping down his face.
Hiroshima roared, "Don't run!"
The tension thickened, palpable, almost suffocating. One touch from Hiroshima, and it could all be over. The wind whistled past their movements, debris from the battle rattling the streets, each strike sending tremors through the ground.