"SKREEEEOOOOAAAAR!"
The giant closed in. Eight serpent heads locked onto his position. Massive coils arched back. Jaws gaped wide. Lunged.
The size difference was obvious. One bite would mean death or crippling injury.
Eight heads attacked. No room to dodge.
Fighting me up close? Stupid decision.
"Got him!"
One head reached the giant. Mouth fully open. Wide enough to swallow him whole.
The giant moved faster. Raised his arms. Crossed them.
VWOOM!
Milliseconds. The Specium Beam erupted from his palm edge. Poured straight into the serpent's mouth. Over five hundred thousand degrees—an inferno inside its throat.
"ROOO—AAAAAAGH!"
The serpent writhed. Extreme heat scorched it from within. Flesh in its mouth melted. Liquefied. Even its tough hide couldn't last long. The blue beam entered through the mouth. Burst out the back of its neck.
Heat waves distorted the air. One serpent head collapsed toward the ground, crooked. The temperature radiating from it evaporated rain mid-fall.
"SKREEEEOOOOAAAAR!"
One head down. Seven remained. The moment the Specium Beam cut off, another head struck from behind. Bit down on the giant.
"The Specium Beam's power... impressive."
"But that's as far as you go!"
"An Ultraman fighting on Earth is only this strong!"
The serpent swallowed the giant whole. This sneak attack sealed victory.
"Natsuki-san!"
"Damn it, Reno, you guys guard the Kaiju cores. I'm going to help Natsuki-san!"
"Fighting that many enemies alone is too much!" Kaiju Kafka saw it happen. Panic surged through him. He couldn't just watch Natsuki-san fall into a disadvantage.
"Wait, senpai!"
"Natsuki-san's power can't possibly be just this much." Reno Ichikawa stopped him.
"Reno's right. Look there." Mina Ashiro—her vision exceptionally sharp—pointed at one serpent's belly. Irregular distortions appeared. It began swelling.
In the dark battlefield, that serpent's abdomen even started glowing faintly.
Vzzzzz! Vzzzzz!
If you were close enough, you'd hear it—a sawblade grinding through flesh. Like jamming a chainsaw into someone's gut.
"ROOO—AAAAAAGH!"
The serpent's body suddenly convulsed violently. As if enduring immense pain.
Inside its belly, the bright-eyed giant held two Ultra Slashes. Shredded the flesh inside. Cleared out the meat. Skin split open.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
The giant burst through the serpent's ruptured abdomen, Ultra Slashes in hand.
"Damn thing... so troublesome." The serpent's vertical pupils locked onto the giant below. After two brief exchanges, it realized this guy exceeded expectations.
Two of its heads destroyed. Its will to fight wavered. Retreat crossed its mind.
They had plenty of backup plans. No need to rush.
The bone dragon was expendable. But it couldn't die here.
Just as it decided to retreat—
The giant floated upward, an Ultra Slash blazing in each hand. Rose to eye level. Those bright eyes met its vertical pupils.
Spoke words it would never forget.
"I'm giving you two choices."
"Execution on the spot... or the Space Prison?"
Hearing that, the serpent froze.
What does that mean?
Here to arrest me?
Holy shit—Space Garrison!?
Official jurisdiction!
Even if I kill this guy, I'm screwed afterward!
Can the Traveler system protect me?
Wait—we're already discarded goods to the system...
"Wait!"
"Wait, wait, wait!"
The serpent realized the severity. Hurried to stop him.
What the hell is this!?
You should've said you were Space Garrison from the start!
"Can I ask one thing?" It tried, hoping Ultramen were as negotiable as the legends said.
"Speak." Natsuki gave it one sentence worth of opportunity.
If it was stalling for time, he'd switch to a more efficient approach. Hopefully it had some sense.
"If I surrender peacefully... can you spare my life?" All the serpent's heads spoke in unison. Its logic was simple: winning this fight was uncertain now. Staying alive was best.
"Yes. In the Space Prison, unless you're suicidal, no one can take your life." Natsuki could make that promise from the Space Garrison's perspective with full confidence.
Hiss!
Hearing that guarantee, the serpent sucked in a breath.
Still need to think about it?
The system treated it like a disposable pawn. Threw it into this world and forced it to fight a revival match. It had zero loyalty to the Traveler identity. Knew it was just a Space-Time Source Energy collector.
"I surrender!"
"Take me to the Space Prison!" It trusted Ultraman would keep his word. After all, their moral standards were well-established.
Never expected to encounter something like this.
Staying alive? That was good enough.
"Didn't expect you to be so sensible." Natsuki was somewhat surprised hearing it choose peaceful surrender. This thing had been so aggressive earlier—he'd thought it had pride like the previous Travelers.
Then he looked up and down at its massive body.
"Your size is inconvenient to transport. Shrink down. Preferably just the core."
"You doing it, or should I help?"
Natsuki remembered this world's Kaiju had cores inside them. As long as the core wasn't destroyed, flesh could regenerate anytime.
"Uh..." The serpent looked at the two Ultra Slashes in Natsuki's hands. They spun continuously. Surging energy sliced the air with a vzzzzz sound.
Getting shaved clean of flesh by those things? Probably worse than death.
"I'll do it myself!"
Underground. Dimensional Fault.
"Still no word?"
"None."
"They failed?"
"Impossible. Third Unit Defense Force doesn't have anyone capable of handling them this quickly... And other units need time to reach the area for support."
"Not even the messenger Kaiju returned. What exactly happened to them?"
"Can't guess. But even without them, it doesn't affect our Great Purge. Our stockpiled forces will reach target levels soon."
"Good."
Several massive voices discussed the plan they valued most.
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