[Chapter Header]
ARC: Back Attack Land
Τhe confrontation began with a chilling silence.
Yuma smirked, glancing back at his gang. "Nobody move," he commanded. "Watch your leader work."
"I'm ready to destroy you," Yuma spat, but Reino only met his gaze with a cold, composed expression.
Without warning, Yuma lunged forward, swinging a heavy right hook.
Reino reacted instantly, parrying the blow with his right arm while driving a lightning-fast left fist directly into Yuma's throat. Thwack!
The impact echoed through the alley. Yuma's gang froze in shock.
Yuma wiped his mouth and grinned wider. "Now the real fight begins!"
He unleashed a barrage of punches toward Reino's face and midsection.
Reino stepped back, arms raised in a defensive guard, but Yuma's speed was overwhelming.
A sudden punch caught Reino square in the stomach. The air left his lungs as he skidded back, but Yuma didn't stop.
He followed up with a flurry of strikes, culminating in a heavy kick.
Just as the kick neared his ribs, Reino countered with a brutal uppercut to Yuma's jaw.
Blood sprayed from Yuma's lip as he stumbled back.
"You seem weaker than I remembered," Reino said calmly.
"Don't think a few hits will make me back down," Yuma laughed ironically.
Reino didn't answer. This time, he went on the offensive.
His fists moved like a blur, forcing Yuma to cover his face. In a split second, Reino shifted his weight and delivered a devastating hook to Yuma's ribs. Crack!
Yuma gasped in pain, but before he could recover, Reino's boot slammed into his nose, sending him crashing to the pavement.
Yuma coughed up blood, feeling the immense pressure of the last strike.
"What happened to our leader?" Yurezo whispered, his face pale with fear.
From the ground, Yuma looked up to see Reino staring down at him, his eyes still hauntingly calm.
With a desperate surge of energy, Yuma swept his legs across the ground to trip him, but Reino leaped over the attack.
Using the momentum of his rise, Yuma performed a rapid backflip, slamming both heels into Reino's face.
He followed the landing with a punch to the ribs, another to the face, and a final, crushing blow to Reino's jaw.
Reino staggered back, blood trickling down his chin.
Before he could reset, Yuma launched a kick at his stomach, which Reino barely blocked with both hands.
Panting, Reino wiped the blood from his eyes.
"Not bad," Yuma laughed. "What's the matter, Reino? The two years since the WAR OF SLASH changed you. You used to be a monster."
"I haven't grown weak," Reino replied. "I've just learned to keep my head."
"The role of 'Leader' has blinded you," Yuma cackled. "You don't even realize you're at your end."
"Never judge a man until the fight is over," Reino said.
"I don't need to judge you," Yuma roared. "I am the one who writes your future!"
Reino charged with a low kick, but Yuma dodged and countered with a three-hit combo: face, ribs, and jaw.
Yuma went for a finishing kick to the stomach, but Reino caught his leg mid-air.
With a roar of effort, Reino pulled him close and delivered a massive headbutt.
The collision was sickening. Both men's foreheads split open, blood pouring down their faces.
Before Yuma could react to the daze, Reino smashed a roundhouse kick into his temple, sending Yuma back to the ground.
Reino struggled to breathe, his vision blurring.
Yuma forced himself up, his entire face a mask of crimson. The smile was gone.
With everything he had left, Yuma threw a desperate, powerful kick.
Reino blocked it, but the force fractured the bone in his arm.
Simultaneously, both men threw one final, ultimate punch. CRACK!
Both fists landed at the exact same time.
Both Reino and Yuma collapsed onto the cold concrete, lying in their own blood as the BRAVO gang watched in deathly silence.
"I've never seen anything like this," Yurezo muttered, frozen in place. "That was pure savagery."
Reino and Yuma remained on the ground, staring at each other through the red haze.
Yuma stood up with difficulty, choking back his pain. He glanced to his right; Reino was already on his feet, ready for the next round.
Without delay, Yuma lunged forward again. He delivered a hard kick to the ribs and a punch to the face. Using his left hand, he targeted Reino's ribs once more, forcing him to retreat.
Reino attempted to counter-attack, using a specialized martial arts technique against Yuma's stomach. Yuma spat out blood, but before he could collapse, Reino landed another punch in the same spot.
Reino froze. "How did you endure that hit?" he whispered.
"Karate," Yuma replied with a sinister smile, before delivering a powerful kick to the legs that forced Reino to bend. Immediately after, a punch to the face sent Reino flying back.
The battle turned into a savage hand-to-hand struggle.
Yuma grabbed Reino by the throat, and Reino did the same. They began to choke each other with fury.
In a swift motion, Yuma threw Reino to the ground and fell on top of him, beginning to strike his face at random. Reino, from below, retaliated with equal ferocity. Both of their eyes filled with blood, preventing them from seeing clearly.
Finally, Reino managed to kick Yuma away and stood up with force. Using his karate style, he struck Yuma in the stomach, causing him to double over.
But, just as Reino was preparing for the final blow...
BAM!
A stranger appeared out of nowhere holding a Katana. With a lightning-fast movement, the sword found Reino's ribs. Thwack!
Reino was thrown back and hit the wall, clutching his wound. Before he could react, Yurezo kicked him hard in the exact same spot.
Reino remained standing out of pure stubbornness, his body covered in blood. He looked at the man with the sword in terror.
"Yakuza?" he whispered. "Kaito Dasgo?"
The shock grew even greater as Reino looked behind him. Dozens of Yakuza members with Katanas and knives had surrounded the area.
Along with them, a new group appeared, wielding bats. It was the BANIZ gang.
Their leader, holding a bat, approached him.
"Reino, did you think we forgot what happened at the WAR OF SLASH two years ago? Back then, you made alliances with 13 gangs against us, while we were only 4. But now... now you are all alone."
Reino grit his teeth, his nerves reaching their breaking point. "SHIRA ZEUS... I will kill you!"
"Show us then," SHIRA replied. "You will die, and then your stupid 'family' will be next. For two years, you hid behind the peace you created. But we... we will turn that peace into fire and chaos!"
Reino, fueled by raw nerves, finally lost the legendary calmness he had maintained for so long. He lunged at Shira with a barrage of relentless punches to the stomach and face. Shira was helpless to do anything against Reino's fierce and rapid-fire assault.
But suddenly, Yuma re-entered the fight with pure rage. "We aren't finished yet!" he roared, driving a powerful fist into Reino's face.
Reino stumbled back, dazed, but before he could recover—THWACK! Shira brought his bat down onto Reino's head with all his might.
The damage to his head was catastrophic. Reino lost control; his vision blurred, and he could no longer see his surroundings.
Amidst the confusion, Yurezo sent a flurry of punches directly into the wound left by the katana. Yurezo went to throw another punch, but Reino, operating on pure instinct, caught his fist and snapped his arm.
Yurezo screamed in agony as Reino buried a fist into his stomach, sending him crashing against the wall.
However, Reino's fate seemed sealed. BAM! Kaito appeared behind him, and with his katana, he delivered a deep slash across Reino's back. Reino froze in place from the shock and the agonizing pain of the attack.
Before he could even realize what had happened, Yuma gathered all his strength and landed a punch right in the center of Reino's face.
The force of the blow sent Reino flying into a pile of trash bins.
Reino forced his hand onto the rusted rim of a trash bin, his fingers slipping on the grime as he struggled to pull himself up.
Every muscle in his body screamed in protest; his blood was no longer just trickling, it was pouring from the deep gashes on his back and head, staining the concrete beneath him in a macabre pool of crimson.
Before him stood a wall of cold, unyielding flesh—125 men from the BRAVO, BANIZ, and Yakuza alliance, their eyes devoid of mercy.
Yuma stepped forward, a twisted smirk playing on his bloodied lips. "That's where you belong, Reino," he sneered, gesturing to the filth around them. "Right here in the trash."
Nearby, Kaito Dasgo remained eerily calm. He raised his katana, the steel glinting under the dim alley lights, and slowly wiped the thick blood from the blade with his bare hand.
The metallic scent of the war-torn city seemed to intensify as he stepped closer to the fallen leader.
"It's over, Reino," Kaito said, his voice as sharp as his weapon. "Do you have any last words before you die?"
Reino looked up, his chest heaving as he took ragged, agonizing breaths. Despite the trauma to his body, a spark of defiance flickered in his fading vision.
He spat out a mouthful of blood and spoke, his voice raspy but steady: "In this world... there are only a few who truly believe in themselves."
Kaito's expression darkened. He gripped the hilt of his katana with both hands, positioning the tip directly above Reino's heart. "Then die with that belief," Kaito hissed.
With a sudden, violent thrust, Kaito drove the blade downward. Reino didn't flinch; he simply watched the cold steel descend, the world slowing down to the beat of his failing heart as the shadow of the katana grew larger in his eyes.
CURRENT ALLIES & ENEMIES:
THE ENEMY ALLIANCE: BANIZ x BRAVO x YAKUZA
ENEMY LEADERS:
BRAVO LEADER: YUMA
BANIZ LEADER: SHIRA ZEUS
YAKUZA LEADER: KAITO DASGO