"Don't go down too quickly, alright?"
*WHOOSH!*
Having said that in a dismissive tone, Ren shot upward into the air. Her body rotated mid-flight, and in an instant she was inverted—head down, legs up. Without pause, she kicked.
*SWISH!*
A violet shockwave erupted from her kick and bore down toward Naoki at tremendous speed.
Of course, she had already reduced her output. Ren was well aware this was only a sparring match, not a real battle. Her destructive force was nothing close to what she could unleash when she genuinely shattered mountains. Even so, the shockwave was equivalent to dozens of grenades detonating simultaneously. Enough to incapacitate—not enough to kill. At least, by her standards.
*SHING!*
Faced with the attack, Naoki didn't panic. Calmly, he accessed «Night Storm» in the A'arab Zaraq slot on the Qliphoth Tree diagram within his mind. A faint light flickered in that slot.
"Huuu..."
Naoki drew a deep breath. His chest expanded, and within seconds he had gathered a massive volume of air into his lungs. Then he released it.
*FWHOOSH!*
Not a simple exhale—but a tornado-shaped detonation. The compressed air blasted from his mouth with ferocious force, spinning into a vortex that tore directly into Ren's shockwave.
*BOOM!*
The collision produced a deafening explosion. The violet shockwave and the air tornado tore into each other and cancelled out, creating a surging mass of energy that scattered in every direction. Ginna's barrier shimmered intensely, straining to contain the impact.
"Eh? Don't tell me—is that my Peach Blossom Blessing?" Yakumo's eyes went wide as she pointed toward Naoki in bewilderment.
"Yes. That's your «Night Storm»." Tenka confirmed without looking away from the fight.
"So it's true! When did he copy it? I don't remember ever meeting your boyfriend. By the way, what are the conditions for him to copy someone else's Peach Blossom Blessing?" Yakumo bombarded Tenka with questions, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"That's a secret~" Tenka smiled mysteriously, pressing a finger to her lips.
"Tsk. Stingy~" Yakumo pouted, but didn't push any further. She refocused on the sparring still unfolding in the circle, her eyes unblinking as she tracked every one of Naoki's movements.
Inside the barrier.
Ren was still hovering in the air, her position higher than Naoki. Her face showed a mixture of surprise and appreciation.
"Not bad. That was Yakumo's «Night Storm», wasn't it?"
"Yeah."
Naoki gave a light nod. Then he raised his right hand toward Ren.
"Let's test whether you can still look down on me after this."
"Of course—"
Suddenly, Ren's words stopped.
Her eyes went wide. Her mouth opened, but no sound came out. Her chest heaved rapidly—searching for air that wasn't there.
She couldn't breathe.
In a short window of time, this wasn't fatal. As the Supreme Commander, her body had been trained to endure without oxygen far longer than any ordinary person. But if it continued—if she kept being unable to breathe—she feared she would lose.
Contemplating that possibility—the possibility that she, Yamashiro Ren, might lose to a man—her expression darkened. The confidence that had defined her face crumbled, replaced by pure shock. Her violet eyes fixed on Naoki with a gripping intensity.
And so, she activated her Nullification ability.
The next instant, air flooded back into her lungs.
"Hah... Hah..." Her breath came in gasps—not from exhaustion, but from shock. "I didn't expect to have to use this ability so soon."
Ren gritted her teeth, irritation and disbelief churning together.
"What did you just do? Even Yakumo can't do something like that!"
Naoki didn't answer immediately. His dark red eyes glanced outside the barrier, toward the Chiefs, who were equally curious. Mira was leaning forward, Fubuki had narrowed her eyes, even Varvara showed a flicker of interest.
"To be honest, explaining the mechanics behind a technique to an enemy while fighting them is a foolish thing to do. Normally, I wouldn't do something so mindless. However, we are not enemies—I don't mind telling you."
"..."
Ren's full chest rose and fell rapidly. She held back the urge to immediately launch herself at that insufferable man. The barb was obviously aimed at her.
Pretending not to notice Ren's furious stare, Naoki explained what he had just done in a flat tone.
"The ability of «Night Storm» is not Wind Manipulation—it is Air Manipulation. I am able to create, shape, and control air and wind, including air currents, air pressure, and atmospheric forces."
Pausing briefly, Naoki glanced at Yakumo, who was watching him from outside the barrier with barely contained enthusiasm.
"Based on the experience and proficiency I gained when copying «Night Storm» from the Fifth Unit Chief, I noticed she has developed her Peach Blossom Blessing with an emphasis on wind-based attacks. To put it simply, she lacks creativity."
Hearing that, Yakumo pouted and protested with evident displeasure.
"Hey, that's really rude! Onee-san has developed «Night Storm» quite well, okay? If I wanted to, I could level an entire city!"
Naoki ignored the complaint entirely. His eyes remained on Ren.
"What I did just now was create a vacuum zone. I drew the air out of a specific area to suffocate my opponent. This technique can also be applied to extinguish fire instantly, or to silence sound—since sound requires air as a medium."
"Eh? Why did I never think of that?" Yakumo slapped her forehead with an expression of deep regret. "If I could do that, couldn't I defeat opponents really quickly? All this time I've just been using wind for straightforward attacks..."
On the other side, Kyouka, Riu, Fubuki, and the other Chiefs were updating their understanding of just how terrifying «Night Storm»'s potential could be when wielded in that manner.
"Perhaps this is what they mean when they say the same power yields different results in different hands." Riu remarked with appreciation. The old woman nodded slowly, her sharp eyes observing Naoki with a respect that was still freshly forming.
"Incredible..." Yuuki breathed out in awe from beside Kyouka. His eyes couldn't leave Naoki—his classmate, who had once been just as ordinary as himself, now standing inside the circle, facing the most powerful woman in the world, and not merely surviving but striking back.
Meanwhile, Ren could not help but inwardly acknowledge Naoki. But she showed none of it on the surface. Her cold expression re-formed.
"Not bad. You've shown remarkable results, Kamikawa Naoki. But... you've already lost."
She declared victory with a tone of finality.
"This has only just begun. How could you have already won?" Naoki asked calmly.
Assuming Naoki hadn't yet grasped his situation, Ren explained with her characteristic air of superiority.
"Listen. I just used my Nullification ability on you. Right now, you cannot access your Peach Blossom Blessing. Without it, what do you have left to fight me with? Not everyone is like Kyouka, capable of fighting Shuuki through physical conditioning and swordsmanship alone."
She wasn't the only one who thought so. When the other Chiefs heard that Ren had used Nullification on Naoki, they too concluded the man had already lost. Nullification was the perfect counter for any Peach Blossom Blessing user.
"Is that so?" Naoki smiled slightly. "Whoever celebrates too soon may very well end up in tears."
The Samael slot on the Qliphoth diagram in Naoki's mind blazed with blinding golden light.
"«Crazy Sheep», one minute!"
In an instant, Naoki's entire body was enveloped in a golden aura. The light resembled blazing fire—not burning, but radiating heat and pressure. His white hair stood on end, as though gravity had ceased to hold it. For a moment, he looked like a Super Saiyan from the legends of old manga.
«Crazy Sheep»—a Peach Blossom Blessing that enabled Physical Enhancement. To activate it, the user had to specify the desired duration, ranging from one minute to sixty minutes. The shorter the interval chosen, the stronger the enhancement for that duration.
And Naoki had chosen one minute. The minimum limit. Maximum power.
"What?! How are you able to use your Peach Blossom Blessing?!"
Ren's composure crumbled in an instant. Her eyes went wide with alarm. This was the first time her Nullification ability had ever failed. It was a blow to her pride, which stood as high as the heavens themselves.
Nullification was supposed to sever an opponent's access to their Peach Blossom Blessing—and yet Naoki had still been able to use one.
This time, Naoki offered no explanation. He simply looked at Ren with his dark red eyes shining behind his golden aura.
"Well then. This is where it actually begins."
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