A clean breeze passed. Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) felt his clothes lift, revealing at his waist a Zecter belt that had appeared at some unknown moment. His expression unchanged, he slid the Kabuto Zecter from left to right and locked it into place.
[HenShin!]
From his waist, the Kabuto Zecter emitted a mechanical voice. Before the naked eye, a layer of hard, heavy armor formed over Chen Feng (Tendou Souji).
In that instant, Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) truly became Kamen Rider Kabuto in this world.
"Cast Off! (Explosive Shedding!)"
He nudged the Kabuto Zecter's horn slightly to the right. The heavy, masked armor on Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) seemed to loosen.
Then he pulled the device back to the left.
[Cast Off!]
With a metallic chime, the armor covering Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) blew apart in a blink, all of it slamming into the wary mutated crab ahead and blasting it away.
The force was so fierce that even after it hit the ground, it tumbled several times.
"Gururu?"
Struggling upright, the mutated crab blinked in bewilderment. It hadn't figured out what had suddenly slammed into it.
[Change Beetle!]
Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) paid it no mind. With the mechanical cue from his waist, the red horn rose to the top; blue compound eyes on either side flashed with arcs of electricity.
Compared to the earlier masked heavy-armor mode, Kabuto's current form had sacrificed some defense for vastly greater agility and speed.
Most importantly—the style factor was far, far higher.
"So cool!"
The boy stared, unable to hold back his awe at Chen Feng (Tendou Souji), now transformed into Kabuto.
Behind him, the girl looked on in a daze. A moment ago they had been prepared to die together—how had the whole scene turned so bizarre so fast?
Still… they should be safe now, right?
She hurried to the boy's side, helped him up, and guided him backward.
She didn't know how the fight would unfold, but even the aftershocks wouldn't be something two ordinary people could bear. They had to retreat and leave the battlefield to those who could fight.
"Gururu—gurururu!"
The mutated crab clambered up again and stared, baffled, at the figure now utterly different from before.
How had this human turned into something unrecognizable?
Was it still edible?
"You can't even speak human language—less than a Worm," Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) said coolly. "Seems there's no need to waste time."
He strode toward the mutated crab without haste.
"Gururu!"
The crab screeched. Gentle streams of water spiraled into being around its claws and then lashed toward Chen Feng (Tendou Souji).
He slipped his torso a fraction to the right, letting the water pass easily, then drove a fist into the crab's shell. The blow's violence shoved the creature back two steps.
Before it could react, Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) hammered two more punches into its carapace, then spun and snapped a whipping kick that sent it flying.
"So this is all your mutation amounts to?"
"How disappointing."
He approached, standing over the crab. Though his face was hidden by the helm, the pride and contempt that radiated from his very soul needed no human words to be understood.
The mutated crab felt them—clearly.
"Gururururu!!!"
It bellowed in fury. Two pairs of claws flailed like a child's fists. Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) took two light steps back as the crab surged upright and swung down.
He drew the Kabuto Kunai Gun in dagger mode and casually parried, then tapped the Kabuto Zecter at his waist.
[One!]
The digital chime sounded. The crab's agitation spiked; its strikes came faster. Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) was unruffled, idly catching each blow on the Kunai and, in the gaps, lacing in slashes across the shell.
"Boom!"
The attacks brought pain, but still failed to pierce the defense.
Not a single drop of blood had fallen yet.
Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) checked another flurry, flicked upward, tossed the Kunai aside, and drove a right-handed punch that staggered the crab two steps. His left hand tapped the belt twice.
[Two!]
[Three!]
As the sounds chimed, he turned, pushed the Zecter's horn to the left, and yanked it open. Blue electricity flared; terrible power coursed from the belt into his right leg.
The crab, seeing only his turning back, felt no fear—on the contrary, delight.
In its scant memory, any human who showed it their back died in its claws.
It lunged, heedless, claws raised.
Feeling it close in, Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) spoke, almost lazily:
"Rider Kick!"
He pivoted, raised his leg, and the charged right foot carved a perfect arc through the air, crashing down upon the crab's shell. He turned again, presenting his back once more.
The crab skidded away, pain blazing through its body. It assumed this would be just like before—pain, but no breach—forced itself up, and began to charge again—
When its whole body seized violently. The next instant, it burst from the inside out, a bloom of fire splashing against the night.
"My grandmother once said: there is only one name the world must remember—walk the path of heaven and rule over all: Tendou Souji."
With his index finger pointing skyward, Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) spoke in a level voice.
Sunlight poured over him, and in that moment he seemed almost sacred.
This victory, to him, was nothing more than the natural order of things.
Because he was Tendou Souji—he walked the path of heaven, the one who ruled over all.
By that name alone, he was fated to stand at the summit, looking down upon the myriad beings from above the clouds.
Without canceling the transformation, Chen Feng (Tendou Souji) walked to where the boy and girl stood.
"What do you plan to do next?"
(End of this chapter)