The entire field was flooded with Alpha Darkside Spirits.
The battle had been going on for almost an hour.
Hundreds of concentrated Renshi attacks continued raining down from above, forcing Alfie, Jackson, and Sasaki to constantly move.
BOOM!
Another attack struck the ground, leaving behind a large crater.
"Damn!"
Jackson jumped away from another blast.
The Darkside Spirits had slowly pushed the three of them closer together.
Now they were completely surrounded.
"This isn't looking good, Mr. Sasaki."
Jackson was breathing heavily after almost an hour of nonstop fighting.
"My stamina won't last much longer."
Sasaki glanced at him while still fighting.
"He's still fighting."
He looked toward Alfie.
"Hang in there, Jack."
Alfie was still moving with surprising energy.
He swung his sword and slid across the ground, narrowly avoiding another Renshi attack.
One Darkside Spirit attacked from his side.
Alfie intercepted it with his sword.
Another attacked immediately from behind.
He turned and blocked.
Then he pushed the creature away before moving again.
Sasaki suddenly stopped.
"Tornado Domain!"
WHOOSH!
A powerful red tornado erupted around the three of them.
The spinning force pushed the surrounding Alpha Darkside Spirits away.
Jackson dropped to the ground inside the domain, breathing heavily.
Alfie immediately ran toward him.
"Jack!"
Sasaki stood at the center of the tornado.
His Renshi controlled the spinning domain as several Darkside Spirit-like figures formed from the storm and rushed outward.
They attacked the Alpha Darkside Spirits surrounding them.
Sasaki looked at the two boys.
"I can't hold this for much longer."
He clenched his sword.
"You boys need to get it together."
Jackson slowly pushed himself up.
He took a deep breath.
"Alright…"
He wiped the sweat from his face.
"Alright. I'm alright."
He raised his head.
"Let's go kill that bunch of Darkside Spirits."
Sasaki deactivated the Tornado Domain.
The moment it disappeared...
The three charged forward again.
---
Deep… deep inside the mountains.
A dark cave rested between the giant rocks.
Four figures stood inside.
They were facing another figure who was more humanoid than them.
He sat calmly on a chair made entirely of bone.
Haaaaa…
A long exhale filled the cave.
Flames suddenly lit up in every corner.
The figure slowly opened his eyes.
"This…"
He paused.
"This… right there…"
His voice remained calm.
"I've felt it before."
The figure was an Ultra Witch Darkside Spirit.
One of the four Special Witch Darkside Spirits standing before him stepped forward.
"You mean the same Renshi that caused you to break through into the Ultra?"
The Ultra Darkside Spirit smiled.
"It's here."
He placed a hand against his chest.
"I'm certain. I can't be mistaken."
The Renshi inside his body reacted strongly.
"That's another jackpot, isn't it?"
He suddenly burst into laughter.
"Fortune just keeps coming to me, doesn't it?"
His laughter echoed through the cave.
"After finally suppressing and taking control of this Ultra form…"
He smiled.
"I'm getting another jackpot."
He calmly exhaled.
"Four of you, go back to HQ."
He looked at the four Special Darkside Spirits.
"I'll handle the rest."
One of them hesitated.
"Are you sure about that?"
He looked toward the cave entrance.
"For someone to possess such Renshi, they must be powerful."
He paused.
"And it seems there are two of them with that massive Renshi."
His expression became serious.
"Don't you think we should back you up?"
"NO!"
The Ultra Darkside Spirit suddenly barked.
The cave went silent.
"I can handle it."
He looked at the four Special Darkside Spirits.
"What help could you four possibly be?"
His voice became colder.
"I could end all four of you alone if I wanted to."
He turned toward the entrance.
"Those two out there shouldn't be a big deal."
The four Special Darkside Spirits exchanged glances.
Then they nodded.
WHOOSH!
All four disappeared from the cave.
The Ultra Darkside Spirit smiled.
"It's time to get my second jackpot."
He stood.
The bone chair beneath him suddenly moved.
The bones separated and rearranged themselves across his back, forming a bone cloak.
He wore a fancy green garment.
His bare feet touched the cave floor.
He slowly walked toward the entrance.
The only sound filling the cave was the soft rattling of bones from his cloak.
---
Back on the battlefield....
Jackson and Alfie were working perfectly together.
They moved through the remaining Alpha Darkside Spirits, taking them down one after another.
Sasaki was doing the same, using his Renshi shurikens to attack from a distance.
The number of Darkside Spirits had dropped dramatically.
"There are less than a hundred now."
Sasaki looked toward the boys.
"You two should head toward the forest."
He raised his voice.
"I'll clean this up."
"That's not going to happen."
Alfie immediately rejected the idea.
Jackson nodded.
"Yeah."
The three continued fighting together.
Suddenly....
BOOM!
Four Darkside Spirits burst from the ground.
They moved toward Jackson, attempting to catch him off guard.
But Alfie heard them before they could complete their attack.
SLASH!
Two were instantly beheaded.
Alfie released his sword.
It flew through the air.
THUD!
The blade pierced the third Darkside Spirit's head.
The creature fell.
Before Alfie grabbed his sword again he smashed the fourth Darkside Spirit's head into the ground with his hand.
But more Darkside Spirits continued appearing.
Alfie jumped away as two powerful Renshi attacks came down from above.
BOOM!
The impact sent him flying several meters.
Jackson was hit by the force as well.
Sasaki immediately switched toward them.
Switch Mode!
He caught both of them before they hit the ground.
But the attacks didn't stop.
More concentrated Renshi blasts continued raining down from above.
The Alpha Darkside Spirits had stopped engaging them at close range.
Instead, they stayed far away and attacked only with their concentrated Renshi attacks.
Sasaki kept switching from one location to another, avoiding the blasts while carrying Alfie and Jackson.
BOOM!
Another attack struck where they had just been.
Sasaki switched again.
Then again.
Alfie suddenly grabbed Sasaki's hand and pulled it away from him.
"I've got this."
He jumped down.
"Alfie, what are you doing?!"
Sasaki shouted.
"Those attacks are coming too fast!"
"He can handle it."
Jackson remained calm.
"Trust him."
Alfie rushed forward.
The attacks continued falling around him.
But he didn't panic.
His hearing became extremely focused.
He listened carefully.
Every movement.
Every shift in the air.
Every sound from the Darkside Spirits.
His ability allowed him to pinpoint where the next attack was forming before it was even released.
BOOM!
Alfie jumped.
The attack passed underneath him.
Another came from his right.
He slid across the ground.
Another came from above.
He rolled away.
He kept moving.
Jumping.
Sliding.
Dodging.
Every attack missed by only a small distance.
Finally....
He reached them.
Ten Alpha Darkside Spirits immediately attacked him at once.
Alfie didn't hesitate.
One swung its sword.
He heard it coming.
He stepped aside.
Another attacked from behind.
He turned and blocked it.
A third swung from the left.
Alfie intercepted the blade.
He immediately countered.
SLASH!
One fell.
Another attacked.
Alfie ducked.
He turned.
SLASH!
Another fell.
His hearing continued guiding his movements.
He anticipated every attack before it reached him.
Less than thirty seconds later, six of the ten Darkside Spirits had been eliminated.
Four remained.
One suddenly focused on Alfie's sword.
It reached out, trying to grab the blade.
Alfie saw it coming.
Instead of fighting for control of the sword, he released it.
The Darkside Spirit grabbed nothing but air.
Alfie's fist was already moving.
BAM!
He drove a Renshi-concentrated punch into the creature.
At the same time, he caught his sword with his other hand.
He immediately swung backward.
SLASH!
Two more Darkside Spirits fell.
Only one remained.
The final Alpha Darkside Spirit raised both hands.
A huge amount of concentrated Renshi gathered above it.
Alfie smiled.
"Too slow."
He rushed forward.
The attack had not even been released yet.
SLASH!
His sword cut straight through the Darkside Spirit.
It fell before it could fire.
Alfie turned around.
The battlefield had become strangely quiet.
Sasaki and Jackson had already eliminated every remaining Alpha Darkside Spirit.
The enormous field was empty.
Not a single Darkside Spirit remained.
Jackson dropped to the ground.
"Can we get the hell out of here now?!"
He was breathing heavily.
Alfie walked toward them.
"I agree with Jack."
He looked around.
"We can't waste any more time here."
"That's exactly what we were going to do."
Sasaki sheathed his sword.
"You kids should stop whining about what we're going to do anyway."
Jackson slowly stood.
The three began heading toward the forest road ahead.
For a moment, everything was quiet.
Then Jackson looked back.
"Those guys from earlier…"
He looked at Sasaki.
"Do you think they set all this up?"
"They did."
Sasaki answered without hesitation.
"I don't know why, but…"
He looked back at the empty field.
"We eliminated a lot of them."
He continued walking.
"That means more humans will be safe."
Alfie frowned.
"Why would they do it anyway?"
He looked toward Sasaki.
"They looked strong."
"If they were capable of doing this themselves, why did they want us to do it?"
Sasaki didn't answer.
A strange voice suddenly came from behind them.
"The answer is…"
The three stopped.
A quiet chuckle followed.
"They want you to die."
Their eyes widened.
The strange voice continued calmly from behind them.