The Eternal Swordsman
Chapter 7: Lightning and Madness
The night was alive with panic.
Setagaya Ward burned.
Windows shattered as Hollowkind poured through the streets, grotesque shapes with claws that ripped steel like paper, maws that shrieked like rusted blades. Civilians ran screaming, their cries mingling with the shrill roars of monsters. Cars flipped, lampposts crashed, and the air reeked of blood, smoke, and burning asphalt. Sirens wailed uselessly, fire alarms drowned by the endless cacophony of chaos.
A mother clutched her child, stumbling through broken glass, her sobs choking as a Hollowkind lunged. A sudden slash of light saved her the beast cleaved in half by a Division 4 swordsman. More swordsmen rushed in, blades sparking with karma Raiken, their battle cries echoing through the smoke.
But the ground still shook. The city was still drowning.
And above it all, on a rooftop blanketed in ash, two figures faced each other.
Juzou Sasesage.
Hayate Senju.
The air between them quivered, heavy with killing intent.
Juzou tilted his head, lips peeling into a crooked grin. His silver hair hung in wild strands across his face, his cracked katana twitching in his hand. Around him, blackened Hollowkind arms sprouted and coiled like serpents.
Hayate's crimson Raiken crackled with lightning, sparks dancing across his blade, across his fists. His eyes were sharp, locked onto Juzou's with unshaken resolve. His body twitched, lightning crawling beneath his skin.
The standoff ended in a heartbeat.
CRACK!
Both swordsmen blurred forward, blades colliding with a thunderclap that shattered nearby windows. Sparks of red lightning and twisted black karma erupted, tearing through the rooftop. Civilians below screamed as debris rained down.
Juzou laughed as he swung, his Hollowkind arms lashing out in grotesque waves. Dozens shot forward, claws snapping like whips, lunging to crush Hayate from all angles.
Hayate snarled. "Pathetic tricks!"
He swung once. Crimson lightning exploded outward, shredding the arms into ash. His Raiken cut through the air, every arc of lightning sharp enough to rip the sky itself.
Juzou's eyes widened not in fear, but in manic joy. "YES! More! Show me that Senju arrogance!"
Their blades clashed again, sparks igniting across the city. Juzou's corrupted swings tore through concrete, ripping the rooftop apart. Hayate met every strike, his Raiken searing hot, lightning bursting in violent storms that scorched the air.
They crashed through a building wall, rubble exploding around them. Civilians below screamed, scattering as glass and stone plummeted. Hayate twisted mid-air, his blade flashing, sparks streaking like meteors as he countered Juzou's grotesque arms once more.
No ground was gained. No ground was lost.
They were equals.
For a single second, they froze blades locked, lightning sparking across Juzou's twisted grin.
Then Hayate's mind whispered:
"I am Senju. I cannot lose. By right… I am destined to be strong."
His aura surged. Lightning erupted across his body, arcs of red and blue spiraling, his eyes burning with obsession. "I'll crush you!"
Juzou's laugh split the night, shrill and manic. "Try it!"
They collided again.
The battlefield below was chaos. Division 4 swordsmen were locked in desperate combat, their Raiken blades flashing in synchronized fury. But for every Hollowkind slain, three more poured through the cracks.
"Damn it!" one swordsman shouted, his blade shaking as another beast loomed over him.
Before death could strike, a golden flash split the street. The Hollowkind exploded in gore, its upper half severed clean.
Master Kanyko Ryoten landed like a meteor, his wild hair aflame in the golden aura radiating from his greatsword. He swung again, his slash releasing a wave of burning gold that obliterated three more Hollowkind at once.
"Division 4 stand firm!" he roared. "Behind me!"
The swordsmen obeyed instantly, their fear easing as their master carved through the horde like a raging storm.
Elsewhere, Master Heburai Omotski stood at the center of a collapsing street. His karma arms towered over him, massive, wielding phantom a blade that mirrored his own. One Hollowkind lunged and was crushed between two giant hands, blood spraying in every direction.
Heburai's muffled voice was calm, almost bored.
"There are a lot of them."
Another Hollowkind charged. He swung lazily, his phantom arms tearing it apart in a spray of gore. His pale eyes never blinked.
Meanwhile, in a small house far from the battlefield, Hide Kyotetsu sat frozen before his television. News reports blared: "Setagaya Ward under attack! Unknown creatures sighted civilians urged to evacuate"
The camera caught fire, screaming crowds, glimpses of monstrous shapes in the smoke. Hide's hand trembled around his cup of coffee. His lips pressed into a thin line.
"If Hiruko is there…"
His chest tightened.
Back in Setagaya, the rooftop war raged.
Hayate screamed, his Raiken exploding in crimson fury. "Lightning Art DISORDER!"
His blade vanished into a flurry of lightning arcs, each swing so fast it blurred into invisibility. The air itself cracked under the force, thunder bursting in every direction.
Juzou staggered under the onslaught, grotesque arms shredded by the storm of light. His coat ripped, blood spraying as a slash grazed his cheek. Hayate's blade spun faster, faster until one strike came within a hair's breadth of Juzou's throat.
Almost decapitation.
But it stopped.
A worm-like Hollowkind burst into existence across Juzou's neck, its fanged maw biting down on Hayate's blade with a metallic CLANG. Sparks flew as the sword held fast, trapped in the creature's jaws.
Hayate's eyes widened. "What?"
Juzou's voice dropped to a chilling whisper, his brown eyes gleaming with madness.
"Ryomen Tetsu… Aknkrai…"
The worm shrieked before Hayate cut it down, his blade ripping through the parasite. Ash exploded across the rooftop.
Hayate's chest tightened. He staggered back, blade trembling. His lips parted.
"Oh no…"
Juzou straightened. His grin widened psycho, unhinged, triumphant.
" SHADOW ART HOLLOWKIND ACTIVATION ART..."
His katana convulsed, warping in his hands. The blackened steel melted, reshaping into a short, broad blade, glowing with ominous purple and black. The weapon oozed corruption, purple karma dripping like venom, hissing as it touched the ground Energy melting as if poisen.
Juzou's eyes gleamed faintly violet. Black cracks spread across his skin like crawling veins, pulsing with sickly light.
His smile stretched wide, teeth bared. His voice rang through the night, manic and vile.
"…SPACE RIP HOLLOW ART!"
The rooftop shook. The city below stilled. Even the Hollowkind seemed to pause.
Hayate's breath hitched. His grip tightened on his blade as his eyes widened in dawning horror.
"That's… impossible…"
Juzou tilted his head, his cracked skin glowing faintly, purple light bleeding through. His psycho grin burned against the moonlight.
And then darkness swallowed the rooftop.
To be continued…