Before ryo or shimoro could execute any attack, the giant fish suddenly dived into the depths of the water, leaving wide ripples on the surface of the Sea of Fireflies. ryo and shimoro exchanged a look of surprise.
ryo said, raising an eyebrow:
"Hah?!! It Escaped!? Is this a joke?!"
He had barely finished his sentence when a sound like an explosion split the surface, and the head of the fish emerged from the water with shocking speed, roaring powerfully, then firing a massive water jet like a spear.
shimoro moved without thinking… only his instinct decided:
"Ice Wall!"
A frozen blue barrier shot up before them, but it soon shattered into fragments under the violent pressure. Although the wall absorbed a large part of the force, the water current pushed shimoro and ryo backward violently, causing them to fall to the ground.
shimoro cried out while coughing:
"Aggh… it was too strong…!"
ryo stood up quickly, wiping the water from his face:
"That weak barrier saved us… no matter, that's my turn now!"
ryo lunged into the air, utilizing the wind to reduce gravity, holding his new sword which glowed with a faint light. He attacked powerfully toward the head of the fish with a sideways strike, but the creature struck him forcefully with its hard head before he could touch it.
"What the—?!"
ryo was hit mid-air and propelled aside. At the same moment, shimoro fired a sharp ice ball toward the fish, hitting it directly… but with no clear effect.
shimoro's face contorted with worry:
"Even the ice doesn't pierce…?!!"
ryo fell to the ground but stood up immediately, clutching his exhausted ribs:
"Aaaakh… no time for anger… think… think, ryo."
He stared at the fish, half of whose body had emerged from the water, its red eyes glowing sharply.
"Alright.… let's try something else!"
He lunged forward again, jumped high, then gripped his sword with both hands. When the fish swung its head to attack him again, ryo used the wind to change his path suddenly in the air, dodging the strike with amazing flexibility.
ryo shouted in a confident voice:
"Hah! You won't catch me that easily, little silly!"
He descended with his sword quickly, attacking the fish, leaving only a small scratch on its hard scales.
"Impossible… it's this tough?!!.."
He lifted himself again using the wind and lunged from above toward it with a powerful vertical strike. A larger scratch appeared this time, but the fish was not slow… it retaliated with its head with double the force.
BOOOOM!
It collided with ryo with a force that threw him to the ground again, water droplets scattering around him like arrows.
shimoro gasped as he watched his friend fall for the second time:
"ryo… how does he do this?!.. He thinks while fighting… and adapts to its movements…"
But that thought did not stop him from feeling bitterness.
"What can I do?! Why can't I help him with something useful…?"
"Why I'm useless like that?!....my ice is useless.. ryo fighting but I'm standing like that...like all I did go without a result..."
A drop of water falls on Shimoro's foot...
And The fish was roaring again… its voice like the groan of a giant shark, making the air and water tremble. Its massive head rose above the two, its eyes growing wilder, as if it were preparing for the next attack… an attack stronger than all that had come before.
In that moment, shimoro did not know if he should retreat… or stand if he wanted to stay alive.
To be continued...