Inside a world devoid of light, a trail of crimson radiance carved its way through the endless darkness, becoming the sole source of illumination.
One slash flowed into the next.
Then another.
And another.
The sequence never ceased, continuing without the slightest hint of slowing.
It was Kagerou.
His eyes remained closed as his hands moved in perfect rhythm with the steady beating of his heart.
Rather than slowing, his movements only grew faster.
Sharper.
More precise.
Every swing of his blade carried purpose.
Whenever his ears caught the faintest disturbance in the oppressive silence, his blade was already there.
Whenever the smoke drifting around him rippled unnaturally, he moved before the attack could fully reveal itself.
And when neither sound nor smoke offered an answer, he entrusted everything to his instinct.
There wasn't a single wasted movement.
Every step was measured.
Every turn of his body minimized the smallest opening.
When he sensed an attack approaching, he intercepted it with flawless precision.
When he felt even the slightest opportunity, his blade flashed forward without hesitation.
The crimson edge of his Nichirin Sword painted brilliant arcs through the darkness, each strike briefly illuminating the battlefield before being swallowed once more by the endless black.
Yet even movements that bordered on perfection could not overcome a simple truth.
A human possessed only two hands.
He could block one attack.
Perhaps two.
Even three in rapid succession.
But the assaults came from every direction at once.
Above.
Below.
Behind.
From angles no ordinary human could ever defend against simultaneously.
Soon, the inevitable began to happen.
A claw slipped past his guard, carving a thin line across his shoulder.
A heartbeat later, another sliced across his ribs.
Then another pierced his thigh before vanishing back into the darkness.
One wound became five.
Five became ten.
Thin cuts.
Deep gashes.
Fresh blood seeped through his uniform, staining the once-dark fabric crimson as more injuries accumulated with every passing moment.
Even so...
His breathing never faltered.
His heartbeat never lost its rhythm.
His eyes remained closed.
And his crimson blade... Never stopped moving.
---
*Clang*
Kagerou intercepted another strike with his ninjato.
*Swoosh!*
The smoke beneath his feet rippled.
Without hesitation, he leaped away.
*Whoosh!*
Another attack came from his left.
*Clang!*
His blade met it instantly.
Above.
Below.
Behind.
The attacks never ceased.
They came relentlessly from every direction, giving him not even a heartbeat to breathe.
Yet Kagerou continued to evade or deflect nearly every strike with movements so precise they bordered on instinct.
"...Fifth Form: Vanishing Ember"
He released a long, steady breath.
A stream of pale smoke poured from his mouth, rapidly enveloping his body before spreading throughout the darkness.
Within moments... He vanished.
"...Third Form: Shrouded Shadow"
In the next instant, several Kagerous emerged from the smoke, each rushing in a different direction.
"Useless," Tsukikage's voice echoed throughout the Domain.
The darkness exploded into motion.
One after another, every clone was obliterated, bursting into clouds of smoke almost the moment they appeared.
It happened so quickly that the entire exchange lasted less than a heartbeat.
But...
That single heartbeat was enough.
While Tsukikage's attention focused on destroying the clones, the real Kagerou had already reached the very edge of the Domain.
He lowered his stance.
His breathing slowed.
His now crimson-glowing blade rested quietly at his side.
"...Sixth Form..."
At once, every strand of smoke drifting throughout the Domain responded.
From every corner of the endless darkness, the pale smoke surged toward Kagerou, spiraling around him like countless rivers returning to the sea.
It wrapped around his body.
Around his blade.
The Domain fell unnaturally still.
Even the relentless attacks ceased for a single heartbeat.
Kagerou slowly opened his eyes.
For the first time since entering the Domain...
He looked forward.
Not with sight.
But with absolute certainty.
"...One Line"
He stepped forward.
*Slash*
There was no explosive burst of power.
No earth-shaking impact.
No deafening roar.
Only a single draw of the blade.
So simple.
So quiet.
So impossibly fast that the slash seemed to arrive before the ninjato had even finished moving.
A lone crimson line appeared in the darkness.
Thin enough to resemble the stroke of a calligrapher's brush.
Perfectly straight.
Perfectly still.
Then it continued forward.
Nothing could stop it.
The endless darkness parted without resistance.
The countless shadows dissolved the instant they touched it.
Every clone split apart before they even realized they had been cut.
Even the invisible walls of the Domain yielded, opening silently before the advancing crimson line.
"...What...?"
Tsukikage's voice trembled for the first time.
The crimson line was already before him.
Instinct exploded through every fiber of his body.
Danger.
Death.
Without a moment's hesitation, he threw himself backward with all his strength.
*Shhk!*
The crimson line passed before him.
Silence.
For one heartbeat...
Nothing happened.
"...I dodged..."
Then-
A thin crimson line slowly appeared across his chest.
Black blood seeped from the wound.
His eyes widened.
"...Impossible..."
He had reacted.
He knew he had reacted.
He had moved before the slash reached him.
Then why...
Why had he still been cut?
Before he could find the answer-
*Crack*
A tiny sound echoed through the Domain.
Tsukikage looked up.
A crimson fracture spread across the endless darkness.
Then another.
And another.
Like shattered glass, countless glowing cracks raced across the black sky, through the ground, and over the invisible walls surrounding the Domain.
Everywhere.
The darkness itself had been severed.
Kagerou slowly lowered his crimson Nichirin.
"... I said I'd be the first to cut through your darkness"
His voice remained calm.
"So I did"
For a single heartbeat...
The entire Domain stood frozen.
Then...
*CRAAASH!!*
The endless darkness shattered into countless fragments, collapsing like broken glass.
Moonlight flooded the forest.
The trees returned.
The wind returned.
The night returned.
At the center of the ruined battlefield stood Kagerou.
His Nichirin hung loosely at his side.
Blood dripped steadily from the countless wounds covering his body, pattering softly onto the forest floor.
Across from him, Tsukikage remained rooted in place.
His crimson eyes stared blankly at the world around him.
His greatest weapon...
The place where no one had ever escaped...
Had been split apart...
By a single slash.
*Thud*
Kagerou dropped to one knee.
The countless wounds covering his body had already pushed him beyond his limits. Blood continued to drip from deep gashes and shallow cuts alike, staining the forest floor beneath him.
And that final technique...
It had consumed nearly every ounce of strength he had left.
At the same time, the crimson glow along his Nichirin Blade slowly faded, the fiery radiance dimming little by little until the sword returned to its natural color.
It was like an engine that had been pushed far beyond its limits, finally falling silent after exhausting every last reserve.
Yet even then...
Kagerou refused to rest.
Every breath burned his lungs.
Every slight movement sent searing pain coursing through his battered body.
Even so, he slowly raised his head.
His eyes searched the battlefield.
They found Kanae.
She wasn't in much better condition than he was. Her uniform was torn, her body bore numerous injuries, and exhaustion was written across her face.
But she was alive.
She was still breathing.
A quiet sense of relief washed over him.
"...Thank goodness..."
Only after confirming her safety did his gaze shift once more.
This time...
Toward Tsukikage.
The massive wound across the demon's chest was already knitting itself back together, black flesh writhing as it regenerated at an astonishing pace.
Yet Tsukikage remained frozen in place.
His crimson eyes stared blankly ahead.
Not because of the wound.
But because of the impossible reality before him.
His Domain...
The absolute darkness he had believed could never be broken...
Had been cut apart.
The shock was so overwhelming that his mind had gone completely blank.
Kagerou slowly tightened his grip around the hilt of his Nichirin.
"...It's not over..."
Using his sword as support, he forced himself back to his feet.
His legs trembled violently.
Pain screamed through every muscle in his body.
His vision blurred for a moment.
Even so...
He took a step forward.
Then another.
No matter how battered he was...
No matter how exhausted...
He would end this long night with his own hands.