[Deep Jungle]
Silence. No birds, no insects. Just the sound of two predators facing off.
Illumi finally stopped walking.
Crack. Crack.
His neck bones ground together like rusty gears. He turned around slowly, his movements unnaturally stiff.
"I didn't want to fight you," Illumi said in his monotone voice. "But since you insisted, you can't blame me."
He pulled out a small tape recorder.
Click.
"OF COURSE! I CAME LOOKING FOR YOU!" Ryker's recorded voice shouted back at him.
Click.
Illumi pocketed the recorder.
Evidence secured. Now I can break him without Hisoka whining.
"You really care about Hisoka's opinion, huh?" Ryker grinned. "Even recording evidence?"
Illumi ignored the taunt. A handful of long, round-headed needles appeared between his fingers.
Name: Illumi Zoldyck (Gittarackur)
Traits: [Needle Manipulation] (Gold), [Zoldyck Assassination Arts] (Gold), [Taijutsu] (Gold), [Disguise] (Purple), [Poison Resistance] (Purple), [Control Freak] (Purple), [Burrowing] (Purple), [Masochism] (Blue)...
Gold mine.
Trait: [Needle Manipulation] (Gold)
Effect: Infused with Nen, these needles can manipulate living bodies, alter appearances, or brainwash targets.
The isekai version of the String-String Fruit, Ryker mused. Not bad.
"What kind of person do you want to become?" Illumi asked, his grotesque disguise twisting into a smile.
"I won't kill you. But I will let you experience a... different life."
With his needles, he could reshape flesh and bone. He planned to turn Ryker into something hideous. Maybe a woman. Maybe a dog.
He loved breaking "geniuses." Only broken minds could be rebuilt stronger. Like Killua.
"Are you asking to be my dad? Sorry, I can't give birth to an ugly kid like you," Ryker deadpanned.
Then he moved.
[Godspeed] (Gold)!
[Divine Strength] (Red)!
[Iron Tank] (Gold)!
[Spider Sense] (Purple)!
[Lethal Poison] (Gold)!
Ryker didn't hold back. He stacked every buff he had.
The air screamed as his fist ignited from friction.
Illumi's eyes widened behind the pins.
So fast!
And that pressure...
This wasn't a rookie. This was a monster on par with a top-tier assassin.
And Illumi was handicapped. His disguise limited his movement and perception.
Swoosh! Swoosh!
Illumi threw a volley of needles.
They were fast, infused with malicious aura.
But Ryker didn't dodge.
He charged straight through them.
A berserker? Illumi scoffed. Does he think he can tank Nen needles with just his body?
Fool.
Once a needle pierced the skin, his aura would flood the target's nervous system. Game over.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of metal hitting metal echoed through the clearing.
The needles bounced off Ryker's skin.
What?!
Illumi froze for a fraction of a second.
He didn't use Nen to block... his skin is just that hard?
That hesitation was fatal.
BOOM.
Ryker's fist—glowing like a meteor—slammed into Illumi's crossed arms.
A shockwave blasted outward, snapping nearby trees like twigs. The ground beneath Illumi exploded, dragging him backward ten meters and carving a deep trench in the earth.
Smoke rose from Illumi's arms.
There was a perfect, charred fist print on his forearms.
His disguise was ruined. The impact had shattered the needles holding his face together. His arms were twisted, revealing pale, elegant skin beneath the purple bruising.
And the smell of poison wafted from the wound.
One punch.
He broke my defense and my disguise with one punch.
Illumi felt no pain. Pain was just information.
Right ulna fractured. Muscle tissue damaged. Poison entering bloodstream.
"Phew... didn't kill you?" Ryker shook his smoking hand. Crack.
"You... are surprisingly strong," Illumi said, his voice now smooth and natural, though his face was a mess of pins and flesh. "Strength, speed, durability... all beyond human limits. But..."
Illumi stared at Ryker with dead, black eyes.
"You have already lost."
He raised a finger.
"My needles... are already inside you."
Despite the Iron Tank defense, a few microscopic aura-threads had pierced Ryker's pores during the impact.
Illumi didn't need to stab deep. He just needed a connection.
"Those with strong bodies often neglect the mind," Illumi lectured coldly. "My aura is now in your nerves. I control you."
"Is that so?"
Ryker smiled.
"I honestly don't know how I can lose."
His eyes flashed.
Trait: [Absolute Will] (Red).
Effect: Immunity to mental interference and control.
Snap.
Ryker flexed his aura. The invisible threads inside him shattered instantly.
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