"Heh... interesting!"
"To think such a force existed among these Servants!"
Kirinmaru laughed, a sharp, joyful sound as he leaped backward, narrowly avoiding a flurry of strikes from a crimson spear. It had been years--since his last duel with the Great Dog Demon--that he had felt this kind of exhilarating pressure in a close-quarters exchange.
The man before him was a master of the battlefield, a true warrior in every sense of the word.
"HAA!"
Kirinmaru caught the spear's shaft with the flat of his blade, the impact vibrating up his arm. He heaved the weapon aside and lunged forward, the tip of his sword tracing a lethal arc toward the man's throat.
Cu Chulainn merely tilted his head, the blade whistling past his ear. In the same motion, he spun the spear around, the blunt end sweeping toward Kirinmaru's ribs like a wrecking ball.
WHOOSH!
Kirinmaru went airborne, the spear passing inches beneath his feet. The moment he touched the ground, he didn't reset his stance; instead, he funneled a concentrated sphere of violet demonic energy into his palm and slammed it forward.
BOOM!!!
The eruption shattered the earth, a massive cloud of dust and debris swallowing the clearing.
"They're both... monsters..."
Rikuo, still in his human form, watched the exchange with a focus that didn't allow for a single blink.
Cu Chulainn's combat awareness was on a level he and Akame couldn't touch. Every movement was a masterpiece of efficiency, every strike a calculated risk that paid off.
If Rikuo had to describe the man, there was only one phrase for it.
A perfected warrior.
Stripped of his magical legends and divine weapons, Cu Chulainn was still a titan of technique. Kagome had shared his history with them--the hero of Celtic myth, the demi-god who stood against armies alone.
'A demi-god... a true legend.'
Compared to those who merely called themselves "gods," this was the real thing. Cu Chulainn belonged to an era so distant it made the current youkai age feel like a newborn.
Rikuo felt a chill of realization. He had actually dared to challenge this man to a spar earlier? He was lucky to have survived with his head on his shoulders.
This war... it was the greatest training ground he could have ever asked for. The experience he was gaining here--watching these legends trade blows--was worth more than a decade of solitary meditation back home.
"Hahaha..."
"My name is Kirinmaru!"
"Anonymous warrior! Give me your name!"
Kirinmaru swept his blade through the air to clear the dust, his eyes burning with a sudden, fierce respect.
"Heh... let's save the introductions for after the dance!"
Cu Chulainn didn't slow down. He charged back into the fray, a predatory grin on his face. This was exactly what he had been craving--a head-on clash of pure instinct and muscle, devoid of Naraku's oily shadow or the Jewel's metaphysical nonsense.
"Very well!"
Kirinmaru wasn't offended. For a man who lived for the thrill of the fight, such "insolence" was merely proof of a kindred spirit.
CLANG-GA!!
Koga raised his [Five Elements Claw], trying to parry a downward slash from Toga. The moment they connected, his feet were driven inches into the earth, his muscles screaming under the weight of the blow.
"Nngh..."
"Get out of the way, wolf-boy!"
"Adamant Barrage!!"
Inuyasha leaped from the side, launching a barrage of diamond shards from the [Tessaiga]. The diamond needles forced Toga to release his pressure on Koga, his blade spinning to deflect the projectiles.
TING-TING-TING!!
'As I thought... Toga's sword pressure is even heavier than Sesshomaru's. If that hits clean, it's over.'
Inuyasha panted, his heart hammering in his chest. He could tell his father was fighting the Command Seal--that every swing was a fraction slower than it should be--but even a "stalling" Toga was a catastrophe.
"Young Wolf, Inuyasha... fall back," Toga said, his voice a low oratory over the sound of clashing steel.
"Take your positions and support Moroha. Don't let me get close to any of you."
Even as he lectured them, Toga was forced to lunge forward, his body a puppet of the [Command Seal]. If he was going to be a sword, he would at least be a sword that taught its enemies how to parry.
"Grandpa! I'm coming for you!!"
Moroha, her lips painted a deep, sacred red, summoned the massive spectral silhouette of her heritage and roared.
"Come!!"
BOOM!
Further back, the rest of the group watched the dual-front battle with bated breath.
"Are you all right?"
Kagome leaned down toward Kikyo, who was resting against a gnarled tree trunk. The priestess looked paler than usual, her movements stiff and mechanical.
"..."
Kikyo didn't answer. She looked at her hand, where the [Command Seal] had vanished, then glanced at Moroha and Inuyasha.
She had transferred the "Master" link to Kagome. Her final duty to the child was fulfilled.
She had done what she could. But now, she was running on fumes.
The miasma from the summit was eating her from the inside out, and without a steady supply of souls, her porcelain skin was beginning to crack.
'I'm reaching the limit...'
She didn't allow the pain to show on her face. To anyone watching, she was still the untouchable, serene priestess.
Kagome looked at her, remembering Kikyo's final, heavy warning.
'If it comes down to it... don't die near the Jewel.'
'The reach of its soul-harvesting is not absolute.'
The advice was as practical as it was grim. If they were to fall, they had to ensure their souls escaped the Jewel's gravity.
"Aaaah! When is Lord Sesshomaru going to get here?" Jaken wailed, hopping from foot to foot as he watched the chaos.
"This is getting way too intense!"
Even with the group's numbers, the tide could turn in a heartbeat. All it would take was one slip, one moment of fatigue.
"Look!"
Kohaku pointed toward the clearing where Cu and Kirinmaru were fighting.
The air around the two had begun to distort, a visible pressure wave expanding outward. It wasn't just demonic energy--it was a clash of mana and myth.
K-ZZZZT!!
The earth was groaning as the two prepared for their final exchange.
"BRING IT!!"
Cu Chulainn leaped high into the air, his body twisting with a violent, coiled power. He reached the apex of his jump and pivoted his hips, his arm blurring as he brought the [Gae Bolg] back. The spear began to emit a terrifying, blood-red luminescence.
[Soaring Spear that Strikes with Death]!!
"HAAAGH!!"
Kirinmaru roared, a vortex of violet demonic energy erupting around him. He funneled it all into a single, massive blade-strike, the energy condensing into a purple moon that screamed toward the sky.
"EVERYONE! GET BEHIND THE TREES!!" Miroku bellowed.
K-BOOM!!!!
The collision was deafening.
A supernova of red and purple light blinded everyone on the field, a shockwave tearing through the camp and flattening the surrounding trees like grass.
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika_Kagura]