—
The force of the clash sent both Hoshiro and Reiji sliding backward, boots skidding across the drenched rooftop. Lightning flickered above them like an omen, illuminating their determined eyes—one glowing blue, the other blood red.
"Still fast," Reiji muttered, flexing his blade. "But your heart wavers."
Hoshiro's fists tightened. "You killed innocent people. Burned cities. That's not justice."
Reiji chuckled. "Justice? I followed orders. Orders you used to follow too. Remember?"
For a second, the world slowed—memories bleeding in.
Training halls.
Secret missions.
A younger Reiji laughing beside Hoshiro.
Then blood. Fire. Betrayal.
The Syndicate had turned Reiji into something else. Something monstrous.
"I'm nothing like you," Hoshiro said, aura roaring. "Not anymore."
Reiji surged forward, blade carving through the air. Hoshiro countered, his aura shielding him as he leapt, delivering a spinning kick to Reiji's ribs. The assassin grunted, staggered, but smiled.
"You've grown strong."
"Stronger than you'll ever be."
Suddenly, the rooftop collapsed beneath them.
They tumbled into the floor below—a forgotten office flooded with rain and rubble. Reiji landed in a crouch, grinning. "I've always wondered, Hoshiro… if we hadn't been enemies—what could we have been?"
Hoshiro's mask cracked slightly at the side. He stood.
"I guess we'll never know."
He raised both hands—and for the first time, unleashed his dual aura: blue flames and lightning coiling together like dragons.
Reiji's grin faded. Just slightly.
"I see," he whispered. "You've awakened *it*."
The air grew dense. Their final duel had only just begun.
—