He emerged from the blaze, enshrouded in flame. Each footstep carried unwavering confidence. His pale sword gleamed beneath the moonlight, and his eyes seemed to swallow everything they gazed upon. Villagers and djinn alike stood frozen, unable to discern his intentions.
But for the girl, it was different.
Unlike the others, she did not feel consumed by his gaze. Instead, a faint, inexplicable hope stirred within her, something she could not fully understand.
He approached the injured boy and knelt beside him. Placing his index and middle fingers against the boy's chest, a soft blue light spread outward. As it faded, the boy's seemingly fatal wounds vanished as if they had never existed.
The boy gasped awake, shock flooding his face as he struggled to comprehend how he was still alive. He turned to his sister, tears streaming down her cheeks.
She threw her arms around him.
"Don't you ever die on me again!"
He let out a weak laugh.
"Don't worry… I'm not dead yet."
Before Tsushiro could rise, a djinn stepped up behind him.
"Didn't you hear what the boss said, you dumbass?" the djinn snarled. "Who the hell are you?"
Tsushiro stood slowly. Without turning around, he replied coldly,
"What, are you deaf? I already told you. I'm Tsushiro Yamada… and I'm the one who'll end your miserable lives, scum."
The enraged djinn thrust his hand forward, blood gathering at his fingertip.
"Don't think just because your sorry ass fell from the sky that you're some kind of hero!"
Tsushiro rested his hand on his sword's hilt.
"Do you know what your mistake was?"
He unsheathed the blade in a single smooth motion.
"Thinking I'm some hero."
The djinn fired the blood projectile. Tsushiro sidestepped effortlessly and, in the same instant, severed the djinn's arm with terrifying speed.
He leveled the tip of his blade toward the others.
"So there are five of you. Good. I can finish this without breaking a sweat."
The wounded djinn screamed in fury.
"Do you think it's over just because you caught me off guard?! Think again!"
Tsushiro turned his gaze back to him, eyes cold.
"Right. How could I forget about you? Go on. Show me all that power you're so proud of."
"You bastard! I'll show you what happens to stupid human brats who mess with us!"
The djinn charged recklessly. Tsushiro sensed something wrong and twisted aside just as two more djinn lunged from behind.
"All that trash talk," Tsushiro said calmly, "yet you let your friends do the dirty work."
The three djinn slammed their hands against the ground.
"Blood Manipulation: Blood Circuitry!"
The blood ignited with energy, forming intricate, glowing patterns that surged toward Tsushiro. He kicked a stone into the oncoming circuits. The moment it made contact, it detonated in a violent explosion.
As the smoke cleared, more blood circuits burst through from every direction.
Tsushiro leapt into the air. Mid-flight, he gripped his sword with both hands and shouted,
"Release—Shinka!"
The once ordinary blade turned pitch black with a pattern of crimson red f
flames licking along its edge. The blood circuits curved upward, chasing him into the sky.
Tsushiro swung his sword in a wide arc. From its path erupted a wave of searing fire that collided with the circuits, triggering another massive explosion.
When the smoke finally dispersed, Tsushiro landed between the three djinn. In a single, fluid motion, his red-hot blade sliced through all of them at the waist.
He turned, pointing his steaming sword at the remaining two.
"Get ready," he said quietly.
"You're next."