**Chapter 7: The Predator's Plan (II)**
**Paras City – Central District, Twilight**
The sky bled crimson as the sun bled into the horizon, staining every rooftop and street in shades of fire and warning. Paras City—once gleaming, orderly—now trembled under the weight of impending violence. Smoke curled from distant fires. Sirens wailed like frightened animals. And in the heart of it all, three figures stood against a single predator.
Uren watched them—confident, almost amused. His red dragon tail swayed lazily behind him, scales catching the dying light like fresh blood. Blue armor gleamed, pristine despite the chaos. Crimson eyes burned with quiet certainty.
"Okay," he said softly, voice carrying over the crackle of flames. "Let's start now."
Blu moved first.
He rushed forward—cape snapping like thunder—blue energy trailing behind him in comet streaks.
"Take this!"
His fist lashed out—fast enough to crack sound itself.
Uren countered without looking—arm rising in a casual block. The impact rang like a gong. Blu teleported behind in a blink of blue light.
"Haha—see this!"
Long blue arms stretched impossibly—fingers wrapping around Uren's leg like steel cables. Blu slammed him downward.
Concrete exploded. Roads buckled. Uren's body carved a trench through asphalt, sparks flying.
Sai was already running.
He sprinted along the elevated metro tracks—eyes half-lidded with exhaustion, sword still sheathed at his side. Sweat dripped from his brow, but his grip never wavered.
"I'm not letting this go," he muttered—voice low, dangerous.
He leaped from the platform—sword flashing free in mid-air.
A massive water slash erupted—crescent of liquid steel hurtling toward Uren.
Uren twisted—dodged with impossible grace. The slash carved through a billboard, water exploding into mist.
He wiped a thin line of blood from his cheek—smiling wider.
"Huh… not bad."
Yuki appeared behind him in a flicker of shadow.
"Now—take this!"
Her fist drove forward—pure, raw power.
The impact buried Uren into the ground.
**BOOM.**
The street detonated. Trees uprooted. Cars flipped skyward. Roads shattered into floating chunks. A shockwave rolled outward—windows bursting for blocks.
Astra watched from the dojo courtyard—hiding behind a cherry tree, small hands clutching bark. His silver eyes were wide, terrified, but he didn't run.
Uren's voice roared from the crater.
"Now—this is enough!!! I will not let any of you destroy meeeee!!!"
The shout was seismic.
The city shook—buildings groaning, glass raining. Everyone clutched their ears—pain lancing through skulls.
Blu barked an order.
"Fire!"
Guards opened up—bullets raining in a storm.
They pinged harmlessly off Uren's armor—sparks flying like fireflies.
Sai's hands moved—fingers weaving signs.
"The Ocean Sealing!"
Five chains of pure water erupted from the cracked earth—thick, shimmering, unbreakable.
They snapped around Uren's wrists and ankles—binding him tight.
Uren's crimson eyes flared.
The chains hissed—then evaporated into steam.
"Now—take this!"
He began to power up.
Red flaming aura exploded outward—sky turning pure scarlet, burning. Heat melted street signs, warped metal, scorched the air itself. His tail lashed violently—whip-cracks splitting the atmosphere.
Yuki was hurled backward—crashing through a building facade. Glass exploded around her. She struggled to stand—breath ragged, blindfold askew.
"Tch… he's doing too much… more than I expected."
Blu rose into the sky—hands wide, cape billowing like storm clouds.
"Now!! Take this, you fire freak!"
Golden energy gathered in his palms—bright, searing.
He unleashed a barrage—blue blasting bullets streaking like meteors.
Explosions bloomed across the street—buildings crumbling, fire blooming in their wake.
Blu's eyes glowed brighter—he poured more power in.
The bullets intensified—glowing white-hot, stabbing into Uren's body from every angle.
Uren's power-up faltered.
He crashed backward—through the subway entrance, vanishing into darkness.
Blu teleported in front of him—hands blurring.
"The Ruthless Barrage!"
A dozen punches landed in milliseconds—each one a thunderclap.
Uren froze—blood spraying, eyes wide. His body warped under the onslaught—bones creaking, armor cracking.
Final punch.
Uren launched upward—crashing through the subway ceiling, through another station, debris raining like deadly hail.
He landed on the tracks—kneeling, breathing ragged.
"I am the strongest Inferno ever…" he rasped. "You can't beat me like this."
Yuki teleported before him.
Without a word—she stomped her heel down on his leg.
**CRACK.**
Uren screamed—voice raw, animal.
Yuki charged her fists—slowly, deliberately. A smirk curled her lips.
"Well… you think you're the strongest here? If you think that, babe… you're very wrong."
She unleashed.
Massive punches—each one shaking the earth.
**BOOM. BOOM. BOOOOOOM.**
Explosive impacts—shockwaves rolling outward, buildings trembling.
Uren's body jerked—fainting in slow motion—eyes rolling back.
Yuki lifted her heel—then ended the combo with a vicious uppercut.
Uren rocketed skyward—limbs limp.
Yuki gathered energy in both hands—voice low, lethal.
"The Demonic Hands."
From the sky—two massive red palms materialized—shadowy, clawed, demonic.
They slammed together—with Uren caught in the middle.
Sai leaped from a ruined building—sword flashing.
Yuki released the palms at the perfect moment.
Sai's blade descended in a perfect arc.
Water-infused slash.
It severed Uren's right hand cleanly.
Blood sprayed in a graceful arc.
Uren crashed into the nearby lake—water exploding upward in a geyser.
He floated—half-submerged, clutching the stump.
**Inner Monologue**
*No way… I lost… I actually lost… This can't be.*
He clenched his remaining fist—nails drawing blood.
*This really can't be… I even destroyed the Space Emperor Dano. That's unacceptable. Mere Earthlings can't destroy me! Neverrr!*
His eyes glowed darker red—almost black.
The lake began to smoke—water boiling away in seconds.
Yuki stood on the shore—arms clenched, blindfold hiding her eyes but not her tension.
"Something feels wrong now…"
Suddenly—
A massive fire sword erupted from the mist—streaking straight through Sai's chest.
Time slowed.
Sai's eyes widened—shock, pain, disbelief.
The blade protruded from his back—flames licking along steel.
Yuki's scream tore the air.
"Senseiiiiii!"
She ran—slow-motion desperation—hands reaching.
The ground cracked beneath her.
She vanished into an underground tunnel—swallowed by earth.
Uren rose from the boiling lake—stump cauterized by his own fire, eyes burning black-red.
The predator's plan had only just begun.