It was so intense that even from a distance, Abraão could feel its strange presence. The light flickered slightly, illuminating the surrounding rocks with an unsettling crimson glow.
He narrowed his eyes, trying to see what was hidden inside.
— What is that? — Abraão asked.
Liora stood beside him, carefully observing the cave entrance.
— It seems to be coming from somewhere deeper inside.
Abraão looked down at the phone in his hand. Its screen was still displaying the strange symbol they had been following. Suddenly, the device vibrated.
A new arrow appeared, pointing directly toward the cave.
The two exchanged glances.
— I guess we're supposed to go in — Abraão said.
— Looks like it.
Without wasting any more time, they stepped inside.
The cave was surprisingly deep.
At first, the red light was faint, barely illuminating the rocky walls. But as they continued walking, it gradually became brighter.
Their footsteps echoed through the narrow passage.
Abraão occasionally glanced behind them, making sure nothing was following them. Liora, on the other hand, seemed unusually calm, walking with his hands close to his body as he examined their surroundings.
— This place is strange — Abraão commented.
— What makes you say that?
— I don't know. It just feels... wrong.
Liora looked at him for a moment.
— You're probably right. We should be careful.
They continued forward until the passage finally opened into a large chamber.
The room was dark, yet illuminated by a mysterious red glow that seemed to come from the very center.
There was a massive pillar standing in the middle of the chamber.
Its surface was old and covered in strange marks. The red light seemed to emerge from underneath it, spreading across the floor and climbing along the walls.
However, something else caught their attention.
At the very top of the pillar was a lever.
Liora tilted his head slightly.
— A lever? What do you think it does?
Abraão approached the structure, studying it from a distance.
— I have no idea.
— Should we pull it?
— Maybe. But let's check what's underneath the pillar first.
Liora nodded.
Abraão slowly approached the structure.
The closer he got, the stronger the red light became. He could feel something strange coming from it, almost as if the light itself were alive.
He extended one finger, carefully reaching toward the pillar.
But before he could touch it—
Whoosh!
A small ice dagger flew past his hand.
Abraão immediately pulled his arm back.
The projectile struck the ground behind him and shattered into dozens of tiny fragments.
For a brief moment, neither of them moved.
Abraão slowly turned his head toward the direction from which the dagger had come.
Someone—or something—was standing there.
It had a humanoid shape, but there was nothing human about its appearance.
Its entire body was completely white.
No face. No clothes. No visible features.
It looked like an empty figure, as though someone had created a human body without giving it an identity.
Abraão's eyes widened.
— What... is that?
Liora stared at the creature.
— I don't know.
The figure began walking toward them.
Its movements were slow and strangely unnatural. It didn't seem to breathe, and its footsteps made almost no sound.
Then, something began to happen.
Its body started changing.
The smooth white surface shifted as new features slowly emerged. Its face began taking shape, its clothes appeared, and a sword materialized in its hand.
Abraão watched in disbelief.
The transformation continued until the creature's appearance became unmistakable.
— Impossible...!
He instinctively took a step backward.
— That has to be an illusion!
Abraão quickly raised his sword and assumed a fighting stance.
Liora glanced at him.
— Do you know that thing, Abraão?
Abraão tightened his grip around his weapon.
— That creature... it turned into Sasuke!
— Sasuke?
— He caused me a lot of trouble in the past. But he was killed by my mother!
Liora looked at the creature again.
— So, that's someone you know?
— Unfortunately.
Abraão didn't wait for another response.
He rushed forward.
His sword cut through the air as he launched the first attack.
The creature raised its own weapon and blocked it effortlessly.
CLANG!
Abraão immediately followed with another strike.
And another.
And another.
The sound of metal clashing echoed throughout the chamber.
He attacked from different angles, trying to find an opening in the creature's defense. But no matter how quickly he moved, the enemy seemed to anticipate every single strike.
Abraão gritted his teeth.
How is it blocking everything?
He increased his speed.
His movements became sharper, and his attacks came one after another, leaving almost no room for the creature to react.
Yet it continued defending itself.
Not even a single attack managed to reach its body.
Liora watched from a distance, his eyes following the movements of both fighters.
Abraão suddenly changed the direction of his sword, attempting to catch the creature off guard.
But the enemy reacted immediately.
Before Abraão could recover his stance, the creature raised its leg and delivered a powerful kick to his chin.
His head snapped backward.
Before he could regain his balance, a punch struck his stomach.
— Gah!
Abraão was sent crashing to the ground.
He rolled across the floor before finally stopping.
For a moment, he struggled to breathe.
The creature stood still, looking down at him.
Then, it slowly reached for its sword.
Abraão tried to get back up.
But the enemy was already preparing another attack.
The energy surrounding its weapon began to grow.
The air trembled.
Small rocks fell from the ceiling, and the entire chamber shook as the creature gathered more and more power.
Abraão's expression changed.
That attack...!
He quickly placed his feet against the ground and extended his arms.
— Barrier!
A protective barrier formed around his entire body.
It was the technique he had been practicing for so long.
For a brief moment, Abraão couldn't believe he had finally managed to create it.
But he didn't have time to celebrate.
The creature rushed toward him.
Its sword came crashing down.
BOOOOOOM!
The impact shook the entire chamber.
The force of the attack pushed Abraão backward, sending him flying toward the wall.
His barrier began cracking.
One fracture appeared.
Then another.
Within seconds, the entire structure shattered.
However, before the attack could completely overwhelm him, Abraão managed to redirect its trajectory.
The remaining force was pushed upward.
The creature's sword flew into the air and became stuck in the ceiling.
The enemy was left hanging from the weapon, gripping its handle tightly.
Abraão fell to the ground.
He was breathing heavily, his body aching from the impact.
The creature struggled for a moment before gathering enough strength to pull its sword out of the ceiling.
As soon as the weapon came free, it dropped to the floor.
Liora immediately rushed toward Abraão.
— Abraão!
He knelt beside him.
— Are you okay?
Abraão slowly tried to stand.
His legs trembled, and he nearly fell again.
— I'm fine! Completely fine!
Liora stared at him.
— You don't look fine at all.
Abraão looked at his hands, then at the place where his barrier had appeared.
A smile slowly formed on his face.
— I can't believe it...
— What?
— My technique! After all that training, I finally managed to create the barrier!
Liora blinked.
— And what if it hadn't worked?
Abraão looked at him.
— I could've died.
— WHAT?!
Liora's expression immediately changed.
— Are you crazy?! You used a technique without even knowing if it would work! You could have died!
Abraão gave an awkward smile.
— But I didn't.
Liora stared at him for a few seconds before giving him a light punch on the shoulder.
— You idiot!
Despite his frustration, Liora then pulled Abraão into a brief hug.
Abraão smiled slightly.
For a moment, the tension seemed to disappear.
But then, something caught his attention.
Behind Liora, the creature was still standing.
And it was preparing something.
A tremendous amount of energy was gathering around its body. Dark, demonic energy poured from its sword, spreading through the chamber like a storm.
Abraão's eyes widened.
When did it start charging that attack?
The energy continued accumulating.
The ground beneath the creature began cracking.
Abraão immediately grabbed Liora.
— Liora!
But Liora didn't turn around.
— What is it?
— Can't you see?! Run! That thing is going to kill us!
Abraão tried to pull him away.
But Liora held him tightly.
He slowly leaned closer to Abraão's ear.
— Don't move, Abraãozinho. Not even a millimeter.
Abraão froze.
— What are you talking about?
— Just trust me.
Liora gently caressed his head.
His voice remained calm, almost as if they weren't standing in front of an enemy capable of destroying the entire chamber.
Abraão's breathing gradually became steadier.
— I hope you have a plan...
— Don't worry. Just stay still.
Abraão swallowed nervously.
He didn't understand what Liora was planning, but he decided to trust him.
He remained completely motionless.
Not even his fingers moved.
Across the chamber, the creature finally finished gathering its energy.
Its expression twisted into a sinister smile.
Then it rushed toward them.
Its sword was surrounded by an enormous amount of demonic energy.
The creature raised its weapon and thrust it toward Liora's back with all its strength.
CLANG!
Or at least, that was what Abraão expected to hear.
But there was no explosion.
No blood.
No sign of injury.
The sword had touched Liora's back.
And nothing happened.
The creature's eyes widened.
Abraão couldn't believe what he was seeing.
What...?
The enemy pulled its sword away and attacked again.
And again.
And again.
Its movements became increasingly frantic.
It began striking Liora with such speed that it was delivering five attacks every second.
Each blow carried enough force to shake the chamber.
Yet Liora didn't even flinch.
He remained perfectly still, holding Abraão in place.
The creature's expression gradually changed.
Confusion turned into disbelief.
Disbelief turned into fear.
It delivered one final, desperate strike.
CRACK!
Its sword shattered.
The broken pieces fell to the ground.
The creature stepped backward.
Its body trembled.
Cold sweat ran down its face as it stared at Liora, unable to understand what had just happened.
Liora slowly released Abraão.
Then he turned toward the creature.
His expression was no longer gentle.
— Now you can leave it to me.
Liora began walking toward the enemy.
His footsteps echoed through the chamber.
The creature remained still, watching him approach.
Liora stopped a short distance away.
He raised one hand.
— Shi no Enkan.
A red circle appeared around him.
It expanded across the ground until it reached approximately the size of a fighting ring.
The creature immediately tried to move away.
But it was too late.
The circle began pulling it inward.
Its body was dragged toward the center, as though an invisible force had taken control of it.
The creature struggled.
It tried to resist with all its strength, but nothing worked.
Eventually, it was completely trapped inside the circle.
Liora clenched his fists.
His expression remained serious.
— That attack of yours...
He slowly approached the creature.
— It could have destroyed this entire cave.
He paused.
— Actually, not just the cave. It could have destroyed the city as well.
Energy began gathering in his hand.
A strange aura spread around his fingers, growing stronger with every passing second.
Liora looked directly at the creature.
— You ended up losing that attack, didn't you?
He stepped closer.
— Don't worry. I'll return it to you.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
— And I'll do you a favor. I'll return it twice as strong.
The creature suddenly began levitating.
Its body was pulled toward Liora's hand.
It struggled, but the force of the circle prevented it from escaping.
Liora grabbed it by its clothes.
He slowly pulled his arm backward.
The energy surrounding his hand intensified.
Then, in one swift movement, he brought his fist forward and struck the creature directly in the chin.
At the exact same moment, the accumulated attack was released.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
A gigantic explosion erupted inside the red circle.
The blast expanded violently, swallowing the creature and illuminating the entire chamber.
The ground shook.
The walls cracked.
The ceiling began collapsing as the explosion surged upward.
However, despite its enormous power, the blast remained confined within the boundaries of Liora's circle.
It didn't spread sideways.
Instead, all that destructive force was directed upward, tearing through a large portion of the cave's ceiling.
For several minutes, the red light and the explosion continued to dominate the chamber.
Then, slowly, the energy began to fade.
The shaking stopped.
The light disappeared.
And the explosion finally came to an end.