Anderson vs. AljiEmerging from the Capsule
There was no audience.
No stands filled with people waiting for one of the fighters to fall.
There were no cheers.
No sounds of betting.
Only...
A vast field of rocky ground.
A gray sky.
And a cold wind passing between the rocks, carrying with it the scent of rain that had not yet fallen.
Two men stood in the middle of the arena.
Dozens of meters separated them.
One of them held a long spear, standing firmly as if his body were a part of the earth itself.
As for the other...
He stood with his hands empty.
Long black hair moved slowly with the wind.
And calm eyes made the silence around them feel even heavier.
Alji.
On the opposite side...
Stood Anderson.
He did not know much about the man standing before him.
He had heard his name.
Seen a few reports.
And knew that he possessed the Sound Element.
But Anderson was not the kind of person who trusted reports.
In the world of fighters...
There was a difference between knowing your opponent's ability...
And standing in front of it.
Anderson gripped his spear tightly.
The spear was long, and its metallic blade reflected the gray light coming from the sky.
Neither of them moved.
One second passed.
Then two.
Each of them watched the other.
Alji did not change his expression.
But Anderson...
Noticed something strange.
His opponent was not looking at the spear.
He was not looking at his hands.
Instead, he was staring directly into his eyes.
As if...
He did not care about what Anderson was going to use.
But rather about what he was thinking.
Anderson raised an eyebrow slightly.
Then said:
"You're not going to attack?"
Alji did not answer.
The wind continued to pass between them.
Anderson spoke again:
"Or are you waiting for me to make the first move?"
This time...
Alji's lips moved.
And he answered calmly:
"You already have."
Anderson's expression changed.
"What?"
Alji did not answer.
And in the next moment...
The spear shot forward.
It was not a warning move.
Nor was it an attack meant to test his opponent.
The spear almost disappeared from Anderson's hand.
And flew through the air at tremendous speed.
The sound of it cutting through the wind came before its arrival.
But Alji...
Had already moved.
Just one step to the left.
The spear passed beside him.
And buried itself into the ground behind him with enough force to crack the surrounding rocks.
Anderson raised his eyes.
Alji stood calmly.
He did not look as though he had dodged an attack.
Rather...
He looked as though he had known beforehand...
Where the spear would go.
Anderson extended his hand.
The spear returned to his grip.
Then he smiled.
"Good."
Alji said:
"Was that a test?"
"Maybe."
"Then you failed."
The smile disappeared from Anderson's face.
This time...
He did not answer.
He pulled the spear back.
Then charged.
His body moved rapidly toward Alji.
He was a different kind of fighter from many others.
He did not rely on strength alone.
Nor on speed alone.
Every movement he made was calculated.
The spear in his hand moved continuously.
A strike toward the shoulder.
Alji dodged it.
A second strike toward the leg.
Alji stepped back.
A third strike.
A fourth.
A fifth.
The attacks came one after another at incredible speed.
But Alji did not attack.
He only moved.
One step backward.
A slight tilt.
A turn of the body.
A short leap.
And every time...
The blade of the spear passed beside him by only a tiny distance.
Anderson watched this.
At first, he thought his opponent was simply fast.
Then he thought he possessed excellent reflexes.
But after several attacks...
Something else began to bother him.
Alji was not reacting to the attacks.
He was moving before they were completed.
Before the spear arrived.
And before Anderson's intention became clear through his movement.
Anderson suddenly retreated.
Creating distance between them.
Alji did not follow.
He remained where he was.
Anderson said:
"You're annoying."
Alji did not respond.
"No."
Alji raised his eyes toward him.
"You're just slow."
Silence filled the arena.
In the next moment...
A bow appeared in Anderson's hand.
He pulled out an arrow.
Placed it on the string.
Alji did not move.
Anderson drew the bowstring.
Then released it.
The arrow shot forward.
And at the exact same moment...
Alji moved.
The arrow passed through the place where he had been standing.
But before his feet touched the ground...
The second arrow had already been released.
Alji moved through the air.
His body twisted in an unnatural way.
The second arrow passed close to his face.
Then he landed.
Anderson fell silent.
The second arrow had not been expected.
He had fired it at the moment when changing direction was almost impossible.
But Alji...
Had done exactly that.
Anderson stared at him for a long time.
Then said:
"So that's it."
Alji's expression did not change.
Anderson raised the third arrow.
But this time...
He did not release it.
The bowstring remained drawn.
One second passed.
Alji did not move.
Another second passed.
Then...
Anderson released the arrow.
But the arrow did not fly toward Alji.
It shot to his right.
Alji watched the arrow.
And at the moment it reached a certain point in the air...
Its direction changed.
It was not an ordinary arrow.
It had struck an invisible thread of energy, causing it to return from a different angle.
The arrow suddenly appeared in front of Alji.
And for the first time since the battle began...
His eyes changed.
He saw the arrow.
He saw his near future.
He saw his body moving.
But at the same moment, he realized something.
There would not be enough time.
Seeing the future did not always mean having the ability to change it.
The arrow was too fast for his body to dodge from its current position.
He raised his arm.
An aura spread around his body.
The arrow struck him.
A powerful sound echoed.
Alji was pushed several meters backward.
His feet came to a stop after leaving two long lines across the ground.
Part of his clothing fell away.
And a clear injury appeared on his arm.
Silence filled the arena.
Anderson looked at him.
And slowly lowered the bow.
"Finally."
Alji straightened his body.
He looked at his wound.
Then at Anderson.
He said:
"You were waiting for me to get hit."
Anderson answered:
"Anyone can get hurt."
He took a step forward.
"The only problem is that some people need to be reminded of that."
Alji smiled faintly.
It was a very small smile.
But it was not a smile of anger.
Nor one of mockery.
He said:
"That's true."
He raised his hand toward the wound.
Then ran his fingers across it.
"And that's why..."
He raised his head.
"I prefer to see the mistake before it happens."
Anderson's expression changed.
But before he could ask him anything...
Alji began walking.
One step.
Then he stopped.
He closed his eyes.
His lips began to move.
At first...
Anderson could not hear anything.
Alji was murmuring in an extremely low voice.
Words he could not distinguish.
Strange tones.
Short sounds.
Then a longer note.
Anderson narrowed his eyes slightly.
What was he doing?
Alji remained still.
He did not raise his hands.
Nor did he attack.
He simply continued...
Chanting.
Anderson remembered the information he had read.
The Sound Element.
Sound attacks.
Vibrations.
Frequencies.
But this was not an attack.
It was more like...
A chant.
Anderson said:
"Are you praying?"
He received no answer.
Alji continued chanting.
Anderson began to feel something.
It was not a sound he could hear.
But a faint vibration.
At first, he thought it was caused by the wind.
Then he felt it again.
In his feet.
The ground.
The small rocks near Alji began to move.
Anderson raised his gaze.
"So..."
The smile disappeared from his face.
"They aren't words."
He gripped his spear.
"It's a technique."
Alji's voice suddenly stopped.
Anderson expected the attack.
But it did not come.
The silence continued.
Then Alji resumed chanting.
This time...
The sound was slightly louder.
Anderson made his decision.
He did not know what would happen when the technique was completed.
And he had no intention of waiting to find out.
He charged.
His feet tore into the ground with force.
He moved rapidly.
The dozens of meters between them vanished.
The spear was in his hand.
He saw Alji standing before him.
Still.
Unmoving.
Anderson came closer.
Five meters.
Three.
Two.
He raised the spear.
And at the moment the blade was about to reach Alji's body...
The chanting stopped.
Alji opened his eyes.
Then...
He screamed.
It was not a normal scream.
In the first instant...
Anderson heard nothing.
Then the sound exploded.
The air shook.
The ground trembled.
A sound wave erupted from Alji's body.
It struck Anderson directly.
His movement stopped.
For one second.
Just one moment.
But his body lost its balance.
He felt as though dozens of sounds had exploded inside his head at the same time.
He stumbled backward.
Then tried to steady himself.
But he could not.
The ground beneath one of his feet collapsed.
He fell.
His back struck the ground.
He immediately opened his eyes.
But Alji had already reached him.
A punch.
It flew directly toward his stomach.
There was no scream.
No grand movement.
Just a punch.
But the moment it landed...
Anderson's body folded.
His eyes widened.
He felt the air leave his lungs.
Alji's strength was not ordinary.
Before he could catch his breath...
The second punch came.
This time...
It was stronger.
Pain exploded inside his stomach.
Anderson coughed.
And his body rolled across the ground.
Alji stopped.
He did not immediately follow him.
He stood there, watching him.
As for Anderson...
He lay on his back.
His eyes stared at the sky.
He tried to breathe.
Air entered his lungs.
But the pain remained.
He spoke in a broken voice:
"Your strength..."
He slowly sat up.
"...is greater than I expected."
Alji did not answer.
Anderson stood.
With difficulty.
His hands pressed against his stomach.
He looked at Alji.
The young man remained still.
Calm.
As though nothing important had happened.
But inside Anderson's mind...
Something else had begun.
He knew he was in a bad situation.
No.
Worse than bad.
His opponent possessed the ability to see the future.
At least for several seconds.
That was why he had been unable to touch him at the beginning.
And when he forced him to take the arrow...
He discovered that Alji possessed an aura strong enough to withstand the attack.
Then came the Sound Technique.
And the two punches.
Anderson lowered his head.
There was only one problem before him.
If the battle continued like this...
He would lose.
A small smile appeared on his face.
He said:
"I didn't expect..."
He raised his head.
"...to use it this soon."
The wind stopped.
Or at least...
That was how Alji felt.
Something changed within Anderson.
It was not an obvious change in his body.
No massive aura appeared.
Nor did the ground explode beneath his feet.
But...
The atmosphere itself became heavier.
Alji looked at him silently.
Anderson began breathing slowly.
Then he closed his eyes.
Deep inside his mind...
An image appeared.
A long corridor.
A place he knew well.
Then someone appeared.
Standing behind him.
Pushing him from behind.
A familiar voice.
A voice he had never forgotten.
Kyle.
Anderson did not see his face clearly.
But he heard his voice.
"Get up."
Anderson opened his eyes.
His body leaned forward slightly.
Then he stood straight.
At that moment...
His ability began.
An ability he had acquired from the Transparent World.
Pressure.
It was not an offensive ability.
It did not grant him doubled physical strength.
Nor did it give him supernatural speed.
Instead...
It was simpler than that.
And more dangerous.
The more pressure he faced during a confrontation...
The weaker the effect of his opponent's attacks became on him.
But only for a limited amount of time.
Ten seconds.
An automatic ability.
He did not need to activate it willingly.
The moment the pressure reached a certain level...
The clock began.
Anderson raised his head.
He looked at Alji.
And the seconds began.
The ten seconds.
As for Alji...
He felt that something had changed.
He did not know what it was.
But he saw something in the future.
One second.
Two seconds.
He saw Anderson charging toward him.
He saw himself striking him.
But the effect...
Was different.
Weaker.
Alji's expression changed slightly.
Anderson charged.
This time...
He was not advancing cautiously.
The distance between them vanished.
His fist arrived.
Alji dodged it.
The second came.
The third.
The fourth.
Anderson was not a random fighter.
His attacks came one after another without stopping.
Alji retreated.
Trying to see the future.
But he began to notice something.
Every second he saw into the future...
Anderson did not stop.
As if the man before him had become willing to endure any attack just to reach him.
Alji raised his hand.
A sound wave was released.
It struck Anderson.
But...
He did not retreat as he should have.
The effect of the attack had weakened.
Alji's eyes widened slightly.
"A defensive ability?"
Anderson did not answer.
He continued attacking.
One strike.
Then another.
Alji dodged the first.
But the second struck his shoulder.
The blow was not powerful enough to knock him down.
But he felt it.
He stepped back.
He saw the future once again.
The problem was not seeing Anderson.
The problem was something else.
He saw a point.
An ending.
After several seconds...
Anderson changed in the vision.
It was not clear.
But the pressure surrounding him disappeared.
Alji opened his eyes.
Why?
He had to know.
Anderson charged again.
Alji raised both arms.
And stepped backward.
Precise vibrations began spreading through the air in front of him.
A low sound.
Almost impossible to hear.
Then...
Something appeared between them.
It was not a wall of stone.
Nor was it a fully visible barrier.
The air itself was vibrating.
Sound Barrier.
Anderson stopped for a moment.
Then struck the barrier.
Sound waves spread outward.
He felt his fist vibrate.
But he did not stop.
Another strike.
Alji took one step back.
Then another.
He was seeing the future.
Watching Anderson.
And waiting.
For something.
Anything.
The seconds continued to decrease.
But Alji did not know that.
And he did not know that his opponent only had ten seconds.
He knew only one thing.
This state would not last.
There was no ability without a price.
And no power without a limit.
But the question was...
Where was the limit?
And at the moment Anderson struck the Sound Barrier for the final time...
Alji looked into the future.
Then he saw something.
A slight change.
One moment later...
The pressure dropped.
A smile widened across his face.
He understood.
He did not fully understand the ability.
But he understood enough.
There was a duration.
And that duration...
Was almost over.
Anderson looked at him.
For the first time since activating his ability...
His expression changed.
Alji noticed the smile.
And calmly said:
"Did the time run out?"
Silence filled the arena.
And for the first time...
Anderson did not answer.
Alji lowered his hand.
The frequencies in front of him stopped.
But his gaze...
Was no longer the same as it had been at the beginning of the battle.
He was no longer fighting a mysterious man.
He had begun to understand his opponent.
And somewhere inside his mind...
He saw the future again.
This time...
He did not see himself retreating.
He saw something else.
A sword.
A frequency.
And a single strike.
As for Anderson...
He clenched his fist.
And looked at him.
His ability had reached its end.
But he had no intention of surrendering.
He raised his spear.
Planted his feet firmly.
And said:
"I'm not finished yet."
Alji looked at him.
Then said:
"And I..."
He paused for a moment.
"Haven't even started yet."
Silence returned to the arena.
But this time...
The silence was different.
Anderson was no longer facing the Alji who had simply dodged his spear.
And Alji was no longer facing merely a fighter who used a spear.
Both of them...
Had begun to see each other.
And now...
The real part of the battle had begun.