The moment that golden flame—seemingly fused with divinity and kingly aura—blazed in Cloud's palm, the entire world hit the pause button.
Time became thick and slow.
Inside and outside the Sydney Opera House, hundreds of thousands of spectators—whether present or watching via satellite broadcast—stared slack-jawed at this miracle on screen.
Their brains collectively crashed, losing the ability to think.
"G-golden... golden flames? What the hell is that?"
"Holy crap! What am I seeing? That Cloud guy can play with fire now too?!"
"This... this isn't scientific! I thought we were getting wuxia crossover, why did it suddenly turn into fantasy?!"
In the competitor spectator area, every elite fighter stood frozen as if petrified.
Beer dribbled from Terry's mouth down his chin, dripping onto his clothes—he didn't even notice.
Ryo's eternally frozen face showed, for the first time, an expression like he'd seen a ghost.
Mai Shiranui, Yuri Sakazaki, Athena... everyone who knew Cloud stared at the blood-soaked figure on stage, whose presence kept climbing, as if looking at an alien.
"This... this has to be fake, right?" Mai murmured. "When did that guy... secretly learn Kusanagi techniques?"
"No... that's not it..." Andy's eyes filled with gravity and confusion.
"That's not just imitation! That flame's essence... is almost... the same source as Kyo's!"
But in this moment, the most shocked, the most horrified, the one with the richest inner monologue was... Kyo Kusanagi himself, standing across from Cloud.
He looked at the flame in Cloud's palm—different in color but essentially connected to his own bloodline—and his mind went blank.
His brain, heated to the extreme by combat, was doused with liquid nitrogen at negative one hundred degrees, instantly cooling down.
Then... it began "running wild" with speculation at unprecedented speed.
Flames?
Kusanagi Flames?!
How could he possibly use Kusanagi Flames?!
Kyo's first reaction was "impossible."
He knew better than anyone—Kusanagi-style ancient martial arts and the accompanying "crimson flames" belonged exclusively to the Kusanagi clan, flowing in their blood!
This power was innate, couldn't be imitated, couldn't be learned!
Unless...
Unless...
An extremely absurd yet seemingly only logical thought struck Kyo's mind like lightning from a clear sky!
Unless this man called Cloud also had—Kusanagi blood flowing through him!!!
Once this thought emerged, it opened Pandora's box. Countless clues and "evidence" flooded his mind, connecting and combining!
"Why... does he have such similar [Absolute Domain] mastery to mine?"
"Why... is his fighting style, though encompassing all things, at its core sharing the same fierce dominance as our Kusanagi philosophy?"
"Why... from the first moment I saw him, did I feel this inexplicable, damn familiarity?!"
All those previously unanswerable questions suddenly had answers!
Then Kyo's mind conjured images of his unreliable old man—Saisyu Kusanagi—and his "glorious deeds" from his wild younger days.
He'd heard... Dad used to travel the world under the guise of "martial arts exchange."
He'd heard... Dad was very popular with women in his youth, leaving behind quite a few "romantic debts."
He'd heard... Dad apparently... visited China about twenty-plus years ago...
A terrible, melodramatic "truth" worthy of South Town tabloid headlines clicked into place in Kyo's mind like the final puzzle piece!
Could it be...
This man called Cloud, about the same age as him, also possessing Kusanagi Flames...
Was the illegitimate! Child! Dad left behind years ago?!
So we're half-brothers from different mothers!!!
KABOOM—!!!
This self-imagined "truth" struck Kyo's proud heart like a hundred-megaton Orochinagi, leaving him crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, his entire worldview shattered!
He looked at Cloud—wounded all over, clothes in tatters, eyes still filled with defiance and stubbornness—and his heart was instantly overwhelmed by incredibly complex emotions.
Shock, horror, disbelief, but more than anything...
A hint of guilt and an inexplicable... heartache?
No wonder... no wonder at such a young age, he ended up in a place like South Town, struggling alone!
No wonder... his eyes always carry a world-weariness and ruthlessness beyond his years!
So... he's suffered so much!
And I, Kyo Kusanagi, as his brother, not only failed to take any responsibility, but just now... I beat him into this condition?!
I'm... I'm simply not human!
Kyo's heart churned with massive waves.
For the first time, his kingly heart was thrown into chaos.
Meanwhile, Cloud on the stage knew nothing of this.
He was immersed in the ecstasy of his power surge, excitedly feeling the new golden Battle God Spirit fused with Kusanagi Flames inside him!
"Amazing! This is incredible!"
He felt like a war god now!
He looked at Kyo across from him, whose face was alternating between red and white, expression like he'd been constipated for a month, and grinned, revealing teeth stained red with blood.
"Kyo Kusanagi, the game... truly begins now!"
He slowly raised his hand, mimicking Kyo's gesture, drawing a circle before him.
Golden flames instantly formed a blazing wall of fire before him!
The technique was somewhat rough from first-time use, but the domineering essence was already taking shape!
"Style 100: Oniyaki!"
This move was the final straw that completely crushed Kyo Kusanagi's psychological defenses.
Confirmed!
Absolutely confirmed! He can even use "Oniyaki"!
If he's not from the Kusanagi clan, I'll eat this entire stage!
...
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