Lightning crackled across the sky.
Cold winds began to sweep over the ground, but the place where Akuma stood felt strangely heavy. The scent of burnt incense lingered in the air, and for the first time—
fear was clearly visible on Akuma's face.
The members of his group noticed the change immediately.
Ever since the battle of Yukanda, everything had been different.
The Leader—who had never hidden his face—had started wearing a mask.
And Akuma—who once lived like a fearless, almost insane warrior—now looked broken from within.
Only one question echoed in everyone's mind—
What is going to happen now?
Meanwhile, inside Akuma's mind, a single thought kept repeating—
"This… can't be him."
At that moment, the door to his past opened.
At the age of twenty, Akuma was a completely different person.
One day, he had pinned a man to the ground—someone older than him, trembling in fear. His face was covered in wounds, yet Akuma didn't stop.
Because that man had said—
"You watch anime… that's why you don't deserve to live."
Later, Akuma realized that after the strange light fell upon Earth, the world had changed.
Countless people were killed.
Most of them… were dreamers.
And those who survived—
were no longer human.
They had become merciless.
"And… I was one of them,"
Akuma admitted to himself.
Then one day—
an unknown figure appeared.
His face was hidden behind a mysterious mask.
In a cold voice, he said—
"If you value your life, leave this place right now."
But Akuma's ego wouldn't let him step back.
Without thinking, he attacked.
The next moment…
changed everything.
The masked man stopped his strike as if it were nothing.
Akuma attacked again—
but every move was met with nothing but a warning.
"There's still time,"
the masked man said.
"Otherwise, you won't be able to bear the consequences."
Akuma smiled and replied—
"I'd rather die than run."
What happened after that became blurry with time.
He only remembered that he could no longer walk.
Yet there was no pain.
Because he had forgotten what pain even felt like.
When he regained consciousness, he was trapped inside a sealed chamber.
His body was weak, surrounded by strange devices.
The masked man watched him—
like an experiment nearing its final stage.
Days passed.
And for the first time…
the pain returned.
With each passing day, Akuma felt the weight of his existence growing heavier.
And then—
Before his eyes,
a message appeared, written in red light.
"You cannot die."
At that moment, another person arrived.
A radiant halo hovered above his head.
Akuma thought—
maybe someone had finally come to save him.
But he was wrong.
The masked man calmly said—
"The power you are searching for… has already been divided within you."
Hearing this, Akuma felt it for the first time—
escape was impossible.
Suddenly, unbearable pain surged through his head,
as if his soul itself was screaming.
And then—
a familiar voice echoed.
"Let him go."
It was no one else…
but their Leader.
The masked man burst into laughter.
"That will never happen."
The Leader replied in a calm yet firm voice—
"Then… a fight it is."
And in the very next moment—
he attacked.