With Kubinashi trapped, Masamori Sumimura turned his gaze to Rihan Nura.
As a kekkaishi, he knew of the Nura Clan and Rihan's status as the Lord of Tokyo's youkai.
He didn't fear Rihan but had no intention of killing Kubinashi or starting a war with the Nura Clan.
Rihan understood Masamori's intent. "Surrender isn't shameful, lose today, win tomorrow."
"I surrender," Kubinashi conceded.
Realizing Masamori's strength and heeding Rihan's advice, he yielded.
Masamori dispelled the barrier.
Kubinashi left the arena.
Rihan stepped forward, smiling at Masamori. "Shall I be your opponent now?"
Masamori shrugged. "The honor's mine, facing the Nura Clan's supreme commander."
Rihan grinned, then vanished.
The Nura Clan's signature technique: Kyoka Suigetsu.
A blade materialized behind Masamori, slashing at his back.
But a spherical barrier of dark purple, flame-like energy, roughly two meters wide, enveloped Masamori.
The ultimate technique of Hazama Tokimori, creator of barrier arts: Zekkai.
This barrier repelled all foreign entities, obliterating anything within its range, its destructive power rivaling Shinkai.
Rihan, too close, was caught in Zekkai's grasp.
Immense repulsive force crushed his body, threatening to erase him from existence.
Sensing danger, Rihan instinctively escaped the barrier's range.
But it cost him dearly.
Half his body was ravaged by Zekkai.
His abundant youkai energy allowed rapid recovery, but his face paled significantly.
"What a terrifying move," Rihan remarked, shaken but not enraged. His lack of intel on Masamori and barrier techniques had cost him.
The loss was expected.
More crucially, Rihan's strength lay not in solo combat but in Matoi—drawing power from his allies to amplify his own.
With Matoi, he'd led the Nura Clan to its peak, dominating Tokyo's youkai and commanding nationwide fear.
Without it, he was formidable but not invincible.
The earlier clash proved that.
Without his allies' strength, he couldn't overpower Masamori.
Masamori, unfazed by the praise, said, "If I didn't have this move, I'd be the one defeated."
When Rihan used Kyoka Suigetsu, Masamori had lost track of him entirely.
It was startling.
At the critical moment, he'd unleashed Zekkai to protect himself.
It worked, but only partially.
While he repelled Rihan, he didn't defeat him. The Lord of Youkai was no ordinary foe.
"Ketsu!" Masamori raised two fingers, summoning a barrier to trap Rihan.
But he sensed something off. It was too easy. The Nura Clan's leader shouldn't be this vulnerable.
"Metsu!" He collapsed the barrier, destroying the trapped Rihan.
His face fell.
Rihan's demise was too simple.
A being of his caliber, brimming with youkai energy, shouldn't fall to a single barrier. Even five might not suffice.
Yet this Rihan perished with the barrier.
Something was wrong.
The most likely explanation: the trapped Rihan was a fake, an illusion.
Masamori hadn't found the real Rihan from the start.
What a cunning Nura.
Realizing this, Masamori instantly raised Zekkai again, shielding himself.
Simultaneously, a powerful slash struck from his left, crashing into Zekkai.
It vanished without a trace.
Rihan reappeared. "That turtle shell of yours is tough."
Masamori eyed him warily, unsure if this Rihan was real or another illusion.
Rihan, meanwhile, found Masamori's defense daunting. He couldn't breach Zekkai.
One couldn't find his foe; the other couldn't break through.
The match stalled.
It was a rare spectacle.
As minutes ticked by, the crowd grew restless.
Morpheus, however, watched with fascination. Analyzing Zekkai's structure, he began to unravel barrier techniques, gradually mastering them.
Soon, he crafted his own barrier magic, surpassing Hazama's original in versatility and power.
Such was a Magic God's prowess.
After over thirty minutes of stalemate, Masamori spoke. "How about we call this a draw? Neither of us fights again, and we let the others decide the match."
Rihan considered, thEnnodded. "Agreed."
Both withdrew, leaving the outcome to their teams.
Unfortunately, the others paled in comparison.
Tsurara Oikawa faced Tokine Yukimura and dispatched her with ease, also eliminating Yoshimori Sumimura, who hadn't yet reached his full potential.
Yoshimori couldn't even best Tokine, let alone the battle-hardened Tsurara Oikawa.
In the end, the Team Nura's slight edge secured their victory, eliminating Yoshimori's group.
They advanced as one of the top sixteen.
***
Bonus Chapter:
100 Power Stones = 1 BC
300 Power Stones = 2 BC
500 Power Stones = 3 BC
700 Power Stones = 4 BC
1000 Power Stones = 5 BC
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