"Don't let its blood touch you!"
Red Wind shouted, but it was already too late.
A splash of blood from the blood-soaked bat landed on Renji Takahashi's arm.
The next moment, a sharp burning pain surged through Renji's arm. The bat's blood was like acid, corroding a layer of his skin within seconds!
Wincing, Renji quickly drew his dagger and kicked the creature's body aside.
"Are you alright? Let me heal you," Red Wind offered, reaching out with her wind energy.
Renji shook his head. "No—just keep supporting the others. I can handle it."
Before she could protest, a puff of white smoke hissed from his wound. The damaged skin visibly regenerated at an astonishing rate—fully healed in seconds.
Sage Art: Regeneration!
"This blood is seriously corrosive. We'll have to watch ourselves," Renji muttered.
"Screech!"
Two blood-soaked bats shrieked overhead, sending distorted sound waves hurtling toward them.
Renji's Sharingan flared to life. Instantly, he saw through the trajectory and sidestepped—both sound waves narrowly missed and slammed into the ground behind him.
Swish!
He hurled a kunai at them. The bats easily dodged and sneered—until a streak of light pierced through one of them.
Flying Thunder God Slash!
Renji appeared beside the mark where the kunai landed, blade coated in blood.
The second bat's wings froze—its last sight was Renji's blood-red eyes.
Illusion: Sharingan!
Boom!
Caught in the illusion, the bat plummeted. Monsters were even more vulnerable to illusions than humans. In Sage Mode, Renji's power had reached intermediate third-rank—it was no challenge to subdue a newly awakened third-rank bat.
While Renji swiftly cleaned up his side, Kanji, Red Wind, and the others were still locked in intense battle.
A dozen more blood-soaked bats swarmed above them.
Among them soared a massive figure: the Blood-Soaked Bat King—a fourth-rank beast with a two-meter wingspan. Renji's first time facing such a high-tier threat.
"Whoosh!"
The Bat King flapped its wings and sent a deep green gust sweeping toward Kanji's team—a net of slicing wind.
Boom!
The airborne wind walls that Red Wind had set up shattered instantly.
Seeing the Bat King take action, Kanji stepped forward, bracing himself with a crossed-armed guard.
Bang!
Gale Blades smashed into him from all directions, forcing him back over ten meters—but he didn't fall.
"Beneath him!"
Red Wind extended her palm and summoned a wind wall beneath Kanji, stabilizing him.
"Screeech!"
The Bat King, surprised that Kanji had withstood its wind net alone, changed its target—it was now gunning straight for Red Wind.
It knew that once the Wind User fell, the rest would be grounded.
"Protect Red Wind!"
Kanji and the others rushed forward, but the third-rank bats immediately surrounded and pinned them down.
"Cover her!"
From above, Ren and his companions provided backup. With a gust of wind, Ren launched two massive fireballs that crashed toward the Bat King.
"Whoosh!"
The Bat King roared and flapped again, splitting the fireballs apart—creating twin fire tornadoes that veered off in opposite directions.
They were too weak to stop it!
Renji stood in front of Red Wind, dagger drawn.
His job was to protect her—he wouldn't fail.
Boom!
The Bat King charged as Renji sprinted toward it.
Thinking it could crush him with ease, the beast casually sent out several massive wind blades.
"Sharingan!"
Thanks to the Sharingan's insight, Renji slipped through each one with inhuman agility—then lunged at the creature with his blade.
"Whoosh!"
But it was a fourth-rank beast—it merely sidestepped his strike.
"Now, Red Wind!"
On cue, she created a wind platform beneath Renji's feet.
Bang!
He leapt again—this time, right onto the beast's back!
"Scree!"
The Bat King thrashed wildly, flipping and spiraling to shake him off.
Renji's dagger flew out of his grip, but he clung to the Bat King's neck with raw strength—his Sage-enhanced body rivaling even beast-type users.
The Bat King soared higher, spinning 360 degrees at terrifying speed.
"Blood Moon!" Red Wind gasped, ready to give chase.
But Kanji couldn't afford to lose her support, and there was no one else airborne.
"Go after them. We'll handle this," Kanji ordered, finishing off a bat.
If anything happened to Renji, Professor Sumiya and Ryoji Takahashi would have their heads.
"Understood!"
Red Wind summoned her wind wings and took off.
The Bat King wasn't moving very fast—its priority was to shake off Renji. She spotted it near a cliff.
Suddenly, it flipped toward the rock face, trying to smash Renji against it.
"Oh no!"
Renji had only seconds to react—
BAM!
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