The wind outside howled as Ryo's breath steadied. Dust floated midair. Across the shattered terrain, Akechi stood, a devilish calm in his posture, cloak fluttering against the wind, eyes sharp and unreadable. Kagami crouched beside Ryo, her stance tense, eyes locked on their opponent.
"You have seven seconds," Ryo said quietly, his voice barely audible beneath the wind. "Once I move, give it everything."
Kagami nodded.
Ryo closed his eyes. His fingers curled slowly, forming a stance that crackled with power drawn deep from within. The atmosphere vibrated, the air trembled, and then—
»"The World."«
Reality cracked.
Time shattered.
The entire battlefield froze. Dust and debris halted midair. Akechi's coat stiffened mid-sway. The silence was deafening—so complete it seemed like sound itself had been severed from existence.
Kagami was already moving.
Not a word was shared. She launched forward, the ground under her feet scattering frozen dust as she sprinted toward Akechi, weaving through suspended rubble. Her steps were silent, determined. A straight line to her goal.
For Ryo, everything slowed.
His body ached. The aura needed to maintain this space was unbearable—every breath strained, his lungs burning, sweat dripping in slow orbs down his brow. He could feel his vision darkening at the edges.
"Her ability is really scary," he thought, watching her close in. "Even in stopped time, she can't be stopped."
As he stood frozen in place, every heartbeat pounding in his ears, his thoughts drifted.
"Kouji… That boy… he held out longer than I expected. Against Akechi, no less. His growth is terrifying. I only hope he understands how rare that is…"
Kagami leapt over a fallen beam, just a few meters from her target.
"And Akechi…" Ryo's gaze shifted. "No matter how often we clashed, no matter how suspicious I was… I never truly hated him. Maybe he's not purely evil. Just…"
He couldn't finish the thought.
Two seconds remained.
Kagami pressed forward, her breath measured, body aligned for a final dash.
In Ryo's thoughts, "One second—"
CRACK.
Time resumed.
Dust exploded forward. Wind roared. Akechi blinked.
Kagami was behind him.
Her hand gripped his shoulder firmly.
Akechi tensed. His aura surged—and then—nothing.
He felt nothing.
He couldn't use his power.
He turned his head slowly, lips parting in quiet realization. She touched me.
For the first time in the entire battle, his composure wavered.
"…So I lost, huh," he said with a short exhale. "What a pity."
Kagami remained still, her hand still on his shoulder. "Why aren't you resisting?"
He smiled faintly—crooked and unreadable. "You won, so I was in the wrong".
"The world moves forward… even when you're not ready to follow it," he added.
The ground beneath his feet no longer bent to his will. No rebar curled. No concrete twisted. His aura—silenced.
Maybe this was exactly what he needed: Silence.
Ryo watched from a short distance, every breath heavy, his body on the edge of collapse. He kept his eyes on Akechi, but said nothing.
From the south side of the warehouse, a small Hunter backup team arrived. Their boots crunched across shattered stone as they entered cautiously, but Kagami simply nodded. They knew what to do.
Two of them moved in and took hold of Akechi, who made no effort to resist. He allowed the restraints to clamp around his wrists, the aura-suppressing cuffs sparking once before dimming.
As they led him away, Akechi tilted his head slightly, casting a final glance toward the dark sky.
Ryo stood silent and still, breathing shallow. The world spun around him.
"Even when time stops," he thought faintly, "some things never do."
His knees gave out.
The air felt distant.
And Ryo fell to the ground.