In this sea of grayish-white fog where not even a breeze had stirred, several terrifying tornadoes suddenly materialized out of thin air, stretching from the heavens to the earth!
These cyclones shimmered with a brilliant golden hue, harboring an incredibly high-density Reishi cutting power.
Like enraged dragons, they roared as they swept across the entire intersection!
Crack, crack, crack! The Reishi spears raining down from the sky were ground into dust the moment they touched the tornadoes.
As for the Blanks that had been lunging forward with bared fangs and brandished claws, the instant they were drawn into the storm, the fierce winds unleashed by Mirokumaru tore them apart into primordial motes of Reishi light.
With just a single strike!
Dozens of mutated Blanks that had proven troublesome for Yusuke Urameshi were completely wiped out by this teenage girl!
A massive empty space was instantly cleared out in the intersection, and even the dense grayish-white fog surrounding them was forcefully pushed back dozens of meters by the storm.
The storm subsided.
Leaning on Mirokumaru with one hand, the girl turned her head and flashed a slightly smug smile at a dumbfounded Yusuke Urameshi. "How was that? I'm not too shabby, am I?"
Yusuke maintained his defensive posture with his arms crossed, his jaw practically hitting the floor. "Holy crap! What kind of monster are you, kid? And what's the deal with that ringed staff?"
"Where did that tornado even come from? That's way more ridiculous than Kuwabara's Spirit Sword!"
Up in the sky, Botan covered her face with both hands, exclaiming repeatedly, "Incredible! The aura on this girl is so unique! She doesn't seem like a demon, nor does she feel like someone from our Spirit World!"
"Hehe, my name is Senna! Remember it, delinquent!" the girl laughed, twirling Mirokumaru.
Behind the newsstand, Asuka watched the girl who called herself Senna, his expression shifting slightly. 'Not only is she completely unaffected by the suppression of the Spiritual Energy field, but she can even release her Shikai this smoothly...'
'Is it because she is the Shinenju itself? Because she is the core that forms this Valley of Screams, the space here doesn't suppress her at all. Instead, it acts as her home turf?'
"Asuka, are we in trouble?" Shinobu Kocho's voice carried a hint of worry. "If she possesses this level of combat power and can freely use her Zanpakuto..."
Asuka nodded, understanding Shinobu's implication.
It seemed the issue was no longer whether he wanted to hold back or spare her life.
The real dilemma was whether he could successfully dispose of her without causing the space to collapse.
"Let's hold our ground for now and see what they do next," Asuka decided.
However, Asuka's caution was rendered entirely useless due to a certain trait of his own.
Ever since he absorbed that black mud to combat All the World's Evils during the Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City, the depths of his soul had been tainted by an indelible malice.
Although he could normally rely on his immense strength to perfectly suppress it within his body, under the adaptive assimilation of his power in this unique space, a sliver of that dark aura inevitably leaked out.
To an ordinary Soul Reaper or human, this slight leak might only cause a sudden, inexplicable chill.
But to a Spirit World Guide, it was like the most blinding beam of light in the dead of night!
Hovering in midair, Botan had been marveling at Senna's strength.
Suddenly, her body stiffened, and the ahoge on top of her head stood straight up like a radar antenna.
Her large eyes widened in sheer terror, her gaze instantly piercing through the grayish-white fog to lock onto the newsstand where Asuka and Shinobu were hiding.
"Kyaaaaaah!!!"
Botan let out an ear-piercing shriek, pointing tremblingly toward the newsstand. "Yu-Yu-Yusuke!!!"
"Over there! There's an extremely evil, utterly terrifying demonic aura over there! It's more horrifying than any demon I've ever seen!"
"It feels like a devil crawling straight out of the deepest pits of hell!!!"
"What?!"
Yusuke's nerves were already highly strung. Hearing Botan's warning, he immediately spun around and shielded Senna behind him.
His Spirit Detective senses told him that an incredibly dangerous individual was indeed lurking in the shadows over there.
"There's someone else lying in ambush? And a big shot, at that?"
The reckless, hot-blooded nature in Yusuke that thrived against strong opponents was instantly ignited. "I don't care if you're a devil or a demon! Don't even think about causing trouble on my turf at a time like this!"
With a loud roar, he gave Asuka absolutely no chance to explain or reveal himself.
Compressing the Spiritual Energy within his body into his right fist, he used the momentum of his sprint to throw a devastatingly heavy straight punch toward the newsstand!
"Take this!!!"
"Shinobu, step back," Asuka said calmly, and Shinobu immediately understood.
Tapping her toes lightly, she drifted back over a dozen meters like a butterfly, yielding the battlefield to Asuka.
Watching Yusuke suddenly charge at him, Asuka remained unhurried, merely tilting his body slightly to the side.
Whoosh!
The furious punch, laced with blue Spiritual Energy, grazed right past the tip of Asuka's nose. The wind from the blow whipped the black hair on his forehead backward.
'What?!' Yusuke thought, startled.
Even though he didn't use his Spirit Gun, with his fist cloaked in Spiritual Energy, the speed and power definitely weren't something an average guy could dodge—let alone dodge so effortlessly.
But Yusuke was a battle-hardened street brawler after all. Missing his first strike, he didn't pause for even a fraction of a second.
Using the momentum of his punch to twist his body, he whipped his left leg out like a steel rod, aiming an exceptionally vicious roundhouse kick squarely at Asuka's waist.
"Great explosive power, but you're full of openings."
Facing this heavy, sweeping kick, Asuka still didn't retreat.
He suddenly raised his left hand, fingers splayed, and slapped it precisely against Yusuke's incoming shinbone.
Thud!
A muffled sound echoed.
Yusuke felt as though his left leg had just kicked a solid steel plate.
The moment Asuka's palm made contact with his calf, he gave it a slight twist, gently guiding the leg along the trajectory of the kick.
Yusuke felt an irresistible force yank his left leg forward and to the side. His body, already suspended in midair, instantly lost its balance, and he pitched forward uncontrollably.
Hakuda・Flowing Water!
This was one of the Hakuda techniques Yoruichi Shihoin had taught Asuka, utilizing the enemy's own momentum to destroy their center of gravity.
"Damn it!"
Yusuke cursed under his breath. He thrust his hands toward the ground, attempting to stabilize himself in a handstand and use the opportunity to launch another attack with his feet.
However, there was no way Asuka would give him the chance to regroup.
In the split second before Yusuke's hands touched the ground, Asuka's right foot lashed out silently, kicking Yusuke squarely in the abdomen.
"Gah!"
Yusuke let out a cry of pain. His entire body instantly lost its strength, and he crashed heavily onto the ground.
It all happened too fast. From the moment Yusuke launched his attack to the moment he was knocked to the ground, the entire exchange took less than a few seconds.
In the eyes of the spectating Botan, it looked as though Yusuke had practically offered his own face up to be hit, leaving him in a completely miserable state.
"Sorry about that," Asuka said. "When it comes to street brawling, I'm a hundred years ahead of you."