The space between them vanished.
Kairo felt it before he saw it the air thinning, the ground beneath his feet turning into something unreliable. His body reacted on instinct, pushing off the last piece of solid earth as the spot he had been standing on disappeared into nothing.
"Don't stop!" Yura's voice cut through the chaos again, steady even as the battlefield collapsed around them.
Kairo landed hard on a tilted slab of stone, sliding before catching himself. His chest rose and fell faster now, his mind racing just as hard as his body. Every second, something was gone. Every second, the world shrank.
Yoshiro stood in the center like a fixed point in a broken reality.
Untouched.
Unshaken.
"…You're running out of places to stand," he said quietly.
Tyouro wiped sweat from his forehead, flames flickering weaker but still alive around his arm. "Yeah? Then we'll just make our own."
He slammed his foot down, releasing a burst of heat that pushed him upward, using the force to reposition midair. The fire bent unnaturally, keeping him suspended for a moment longer than it should.
Kairo noticed again.
That fire wasn't normal.
But there was no time to ask.
"Focus!" Yura snapped. "He's forcing us into mistakes."
Kimimaru stepped forward slightly, his eyes fixed, calculating. "Then we force him into one first."
Yura glanced at him. "…You have something?"
Kimimaru didn't answer immediately. His hand tightened on his weapon, his breathing slowing down instead of speeding up.
"…A reversal."
Yura's eyes narrowed. "…You're serious?"
"It might work."
"Might?" Tyouro muttered.
Kimimaru ignored him.
"…If his energy erases," he continued, "then I reverse the interaction."
Kairo frowned. "…Reverse… erasure?"
Kimimaru nodded once.
"Gyakuun."
The name alone made the air feel heavier.
Yura hesitated for a brief moment. That was rare.
"…You're not fully stable with that yet."
"I know."
"…Then don't miss."
Kimimaru stepped forward.
Yoshiro watched him now, more focused than before.
"…You again."
Kimimaru didn't respond. His energy shifted not explosive, not overwhelming, but… inverted. The space around him felt strange, like it was folding inward on itself.
Kairo felt it immediately.
"…That's different."
Yura's gaze sharpened.
"…Be ready."
Kimimaru moved.
Faster than before.
Cleaner.
He closed the distance in a single motion, his blade moving in a controlled arc, but this time it wasn't aimed at Yoshiro's body.
It was aimed at his energy.
Yoshiro raised his hand.
The moment their abilities met
Something broke.
Not physically.
Conceptually.
For a split second, the erasure didn't erase.
It reflected.
The space behind Yoshiro flickered
Then vanished.
A chunk of the village behind him disappeared instantly.
Silence.
Everyone froze.
Kairo's eyes widened.
"…What did you just"
Yoshiro looked behind him, then back at Kimimaru.
For the first time
There was confusion.
"…You…"
Kimimaru's grip tightened.
"…I reversed it."
But something was wrong.
The distortion didn't stop.
The air around them started tearing unpredictably, erasing random parts of the environment walls, ground, even distant structures collapsing into nothing without control.
Yura's eyes widened slightly.
"…No."
Kimimaru's expression shifted.
"…It's not stabilizing."
The reversal wasn't clean.
It wasn't controlled.
It was feeding into the erasure.
Amplifying it.
Kairo stepped back as another section of ground vanished beside him.
"…You're erasing everything!"
Kimimaru tried to pull back his energy, but the feedback loop had already started. His ability was clashing directly with Yoshiro's and losing control.
"…Tch!"
Yura moved instantly.
"Stop it now!"
Kimimaru clenched his teeth, forcing his energy to collapse inward. The distortion snapped violently before fading, leaving behind an even more broken battlefield.
What remained of the village…
Was barely anything.
Kairo looked around.
"…We just… erased half of it ourselves."
Tyouro let out a low whistle. "…That's messed up."
Kimimaru lowered his weapon slightly.
"…It didn't work."
Yura shook her head.
"No. It worked."
They looked at her.
"…But not the way we needed."
Her eyes returned to Yoshiro.
"…He can be affected. That's the important part."
Yoshiro stood still.
Looking at the destruction.
Not angry.
Not surprised.
Just… thinking.
"…So you can interfere with it," he said quietly.
Then he looked back at them.
"…Good."
The air shifted again.
But this time
It wasn't just erasure.
It was faster.
Sharper.
More aggressive.
Kairo exhaled slowly.
His body hurt.
His energy felt unstable.
His thoughts were messy.
They were improving.
But so was Yoshiro.
"…Damn it…"
He clenched his fist.
"…There has to be a way."
His eyes shifted toward Yura, then Tyouro, then Kimimaru.
They were all pushing.
All trying.
All close to their limit.
And him?
He felt like he was still behind.
Still reacting.
Still not enough.
"…No."
His grip tightened.
"…I'm not staying like this."
A faint glow started to form around his hand.
Subtle.
Unstable.
But real.
Yura noticed immediately.
"…Kairo?"
He didn't answer.
His breathing slowed down, his focus narrowing. The chaotic battlefield faded slightly in his mind as he concentrated on one thing.
Energy.
Not just using it.
Understanding it.
Reikou.
He had always used it naturally.
But never properly.
Never fully.
"…Balance…"
He muttered quietly.
"…Not force… not speed…"
The glow around his hand stabilized slightly.
"…Flow."
Tyouro blinked. "…Yo, what is he doing?"
Yura didn't take her eyes off Kairo.
"…He's learning."
Yoshiro moved again.
This time, straight toward them.
Faster than before.
More aggressive.
He wasn't testing anymore.
He was ending it.
"Focus!" Yura shouted.
Tyouro stepped forward, flames bursting again despite his fatigue. "Yeah, yeah I got it!"
Kimimaru raised his weapon again, his stance tightening.
Yoshiro appeared in front of them instantly.
His hand moved
But this time
Kairo stepped in.
"Not happening."
His voice was steady.
For the first time.
His hand moved forward, Reikou Energy flowing not exploding, not bursting but aligning.
Yoshiro's hand met it.
Instead of disappearing instantly
It resisted.
A shockwave burst outward.
Yoshiro's eyes widened slightly.
"…You changed."
Kairo smirked faintly.
"…Yeah."
His body shook from the strain, but he held it.
"…I finally get it."
Yura moved immediately.
"Now!"
Tyouro followed, flames surging again.
Kimimaru stepped in from the side, his movements sharper than before.
For a brief moment
They were perfectly in sync.
Kairo pushed forward, his energy holding just long enough to disrupt Yoshiro's timing.
Yura struck from the side, her movement clean and precise.
Tyouro unleashed another burst of fire, forcing Yoshiro to divide his focus.
Kimimaru closed in
Not for a full reversal
But a controlled strike.
Yoshiro stepped back.
Just once.
But it happened.
Silence hit for a split second.
Kairo's eyes widened.
"…We pushed him."
Yura's expression didn't change.
"…Don't stop."
Yoshiro looked at them again.
This time
Different.
"…So this is your answer."
The emptiness in his eyes deepened again.
"…Then I'll erase it properly."
The air around him collapsed violently.
Faster.
Stronger.
More unstable than before.
Kairo steadied himself.
His energy flickered but didn't break.
"…We're not done."
And for the first time
The fight felt even.
Not equal.
But close enough to matter.