Faster than thought, fire surged ahead of it. Smoke bit at his eyes while heat pressed close behind.
The swordsman didn't move.
Flames raced down the hall, a bright crimson wave suddenly still.
Folded into itself, the heat bent close to the swordsman, drawn as if by something hidden. Around him, sparks twisted downward, coiling ever smaller flames once loose now held back.
Compressed.
Inukami's eyes widened. "What… are you doing?"
The swordsman exhaled slowly.
"For twenty years," he said calmly, "I learned one thing."
A hush fell as the glow surrounding him softened, shrinking till it hugged his frame tight. Suddenly, the air in the hallway thickened - sharp and heavy, nearly dropping Zack to the floor.
"Anything is possible "
Torita staggered back, teeth clenched. "He's not releasing anything… he's condensing it."
Up went the swordsmans sword.
Faded now, its glow had dimmed.
This time the gold looked deeper thick, almost slow. Along the blade's edge, pressure sat tight, vibrating just under silence, so quiet it felt like walls were holding still.
"I do not fight loud," the swordsman continued. "I fight precise."
He stepped forward.
A hairline split spread under his boot, opened by weight without a sound. It gave way not because he struck it, rather because stillness pressed too hard.
Fangs bared, Inukami spat out words as fire surged along her plated shell. "You think tightening yourself makes you some god?"
Her eyes met The swordsman. The moment hung still.
"No," he replied.
"I think it makes this end faster."
Wind tore through the space behind him. Speed ripped silence apart.
Not fast.
Heavy.
A curve came up ahead. Fire roared out when Inukami stomped down hard.
Violence cracked through the flames wrapped tight around her shield, yanking them sideways so they slammed into stone then bent like wet cloth. Flame shapes wavered, reformed mid-air, refusing stillness.
Not beasts.
Hounds.
A shape appeared first, then another dogs built from red flame, their muzzles stretched thin, eyes lit like coals. Each moved forward, leaving sparks behind, landing with slow, hot thuds on the ground.
Five.
Then eight.
Then more.
Torita's breath caught. "You're summoning that many?"
Inukami's eyes burned through the flames. "You don't hunt a legend with restraint."
The hounds lunged.
They didn't run.
Faster than thought, their bodies surged forward, a rush of fire trailing behind them. Heat warped the air as mouths clamped down, missing by inches. Each step left bubbling trails where stone gave way under pressure. From corners, above, below they closed in without pause. Metal groaned beneath the weight of slashing limbs. One after another, they struck, relentless. The swordsman stood at the center, surrounded before he could turn.
Faster than most, the swordsman darted away still too slow.
A shape hit his flank fire erupted mid-air. Fire licked at his skin when teeth locked round his forearm, pulling hard. From behind, two bodies struck like falling stone, bursting the moment they touched. The ground shook under sudden heat.
Fires swallowed the hallway whole.
A blast of heat hit hard, catching Zack off guard. Up went his arm just in time to block the searing rush. The world cracked loud, ringing sharp in his skull. Blurry shapes swam where clear sight had been.
Sliding hard, the swordsman left a trail of sparks and glowing bits across the floor before dropping to one knee to stop.
Torita blinked. "…She actually pushed him."
The blaze kept moving. Dogs made of flame pressed forward without pause.
Foot by foot, the crowd pushed ahead, crashing into the swordsman in waves. Their forms burst apart on contact, loud blasts tearing through air. Every hit rattled the building deeper than before.
Fingers tightening, Inukami lifted her hand. "Set him on fire!."
The flames intensified.
There he went gone for just an instant under the blaze. The swordsman vanished into the fire's heart without warning.
Breath caught tight when the hallway air shivered.
Frowning, Torita shook her head slowly. Not possible… she thought
Then
The fire froze.
Not extinguished.
Compressed.
A sudden pull yanked the firehounds off balance, snapping them shut just as they leapt. Light clumped together where their heat vanished, forming tight orbs that floated near Kenshi's skin.
He stood.
A haze curled away from his skin, drifting like breath in cold air. Light, gold and sharp, beat beneath the surface not wild, but wound tight with anger.
Still standing," the swordsman remarked, smoke curling off his jacket, words calm like water after fire.
A blast burst loose when he moved ahead, smashing the hounds apart with a jagged wave ripping down the hall.
Footsteps scraped backward, Inukami's heels dragging hard on the tile. A grin stretched across her face even as she pulled away, shock flickering behind her stare.
"Good," she said. "Now you're worth killing."
Up went the sword once more.
Faint shadows crept into the gold, deepening its hue.
He answered, "Now your worth remembering " Through flames, the swordsman moved, his sword rising slow, steady, like breath before speech.
Frozen in place, Inukami's flaming suit burned hotter while shadowy dogs paced around, their snarls bouncing off stone walls.
Her voice was sharp when she spoke. The words came out slow, without warmth.
The swordsman moved.
Instantly past the line, the dogs sprang forward.
Teeth of fire clamped down on his limbs sudden heat pierced deeper than skin, cutting past bone into something unseen. A glow within him cracked under the pressure, raw and exposed.
His body jerked.
A scream tore loose before he could stop it white-hot, raw. The shock hit like a slammed door, leaving no room to think.
"…Tch."
A tremor ran through the glow on his sword. It flickered, uneven now, like breath in cold air.
Her breath caught. "Is he in pain?"
Teeth clenched, the swordsman raced when a hound struck hard against his flank. Flame erupted mid-impact, hurling him backward one uneven pace.
The corridor shook.
Inukami's smile sharpened. "They don't burn the body," she said. "They tear at what you're hiding underneath."
Breath dragged into the swordsman lungs, each one pulled under control while the hounds shifted closer. Their movements tightened into a ring without words. He held still, watching paws press damp earth. Silence stretched between growls. The air smelled of wet fur and iron.
Foot by foot, agony shot through his body, the strain splitting his energy apart. Each movement tore at him, light fracturing around his frame like glass hit by stone.
And yet
Up went the sword one more time
A dog sprang toward his neck.
Flinching sideways, the swordsman sliced into the ache just before it hit yet as steel met void, flames clawed up his limb, yanking breath hard from his lungs.
Her fingers rose into the air, Inukami moving slow.
A single cry rose from the rest of the dogs.
"Let's see," she said softly, flames roaring higher, "how long your restraint lasts."
A tremor ran through the swordsman as the gold glow sputtered like a dying flame.
He said it was sufficient time, his gaze igniting further. The warmth nearby grew heavy, fire surging along both sides of the passage.
Flickers of fire danced across her skin as Inukami's gaze tightened. A shout burst out - "He's up to something!" The blaze curled around her like a second layer, shaping itself into a fiery gown that clung close.
The blade sang under Torita's grip while he charged ahead. "Stop that man!"
Just then, Kenshi lifted his hand. From the flickering dark shapes sprang copies of himself swift, sharp reflections darting forward. These figures struck fast, mirroring his every motion. Inukami and Torita had to twist, block, shift all while being pushed back step by step.
What... how are they even reaching us"? Torita hissed mid-swing, ducking just before a ghostly punch grazed her cheek.
Fire burst from Inukami as he shouted, "They belong to him!" The copies moved like shadows, slipping through attacks, hitting fast each time they reappeared, holding both fighters back.
Flickering light caught Kenshi'sgaze, pulling it to Zack. Behind him, the air trembled uneven waves building a gap in space. A doorway took shape, humming at its borders.
Go! Kenshi shouted, driving every ounce of power into the force drawing at the gateway.
Down he went without hesitation. Fire snapped at his heels while duplicate figures clashed in close pursuit. Corridors smeared into glowing lines, flashes and ghost images swirling mid-fall. Space folded around him as the drop continued.
Teeth clenched, Kenshi stood stiff behind, surrounded by copies that fought in his place. "Keep going... stay alive," he whispered under his breath.
Flickering fire from Inukami brushed near his skin, yet Torita's blade cut deep into dark corners still, neither touch found true Kenshi before it slipped away.
A flash then nothing. The doorway shut.
Falling fast, Zack hit the roof with a thud, twisting midair to roll through the shock. Air rushed past his skin while breath pounded in his ribs.
Up high, smoke curled through the hall where flames licked at broken walls. Dark shapes darted, sparks flew, echoes cracked like whips yet Zack stood untouched. Still breathing. Ground solid beneath his boots.
That was the moment sound reached his ears
"You made it."
Fog rolled in as that steady voice broke the silence. Night air stilled, then carried each word clear. Not loud just certain. A presence shaped by quiet, speaking when everything else waited.
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