[ The very instant Kazahana Koyuki reappeared, Uchiha Hoshi's body tensed, stretching tight like a fully drawn greatbow.
Beside her, Star Eater's eyes widened. She had only just begun to shift her gaze when Koyuki reached out toward Hoshi's ear and then—
Snap!
A crisp snap of the fingers echoed by Hoshi's ear.
In that heartbeat, both Uchiha Hoshi and Star Eater stiffened, their bodies turning rigid. They found themselves unable to move. ]
Kurotsuchi: "What happened? Why aren't they moving? Did they get hit by an attack?"
Onoki: "I suspect so. From the looks of it, it appears to be some form of sonic attack."
A: "Then what about that previous move? No matter how you look at it, it was a Space-Time Ninjutsu. When she appeared next to the Herrscher of Reason, I couldn't see a single precursor. I could at least catch a glimpse of the Yellow Flash's shadow, but I saw no trace of Kazahana Koyuki—no, the Herrscher of the Void—activating a jutsu!"
Minato Namikaze: "I hate to admit it, but in terms of pure speed, she is indeed faster than me."
Orochimaru: "Don't you all understand yet? This isn't some ninjutsu. This is an 'Authority' that transcends ninjutsu and defies common logic. Mortals naturally cannot perceive it with the naked eye. If you want answers, you should ask a legendary figure like @Uchiha Madara."
Uchiha Madara: "This power does indeed exceed the norm. As far as speed is concerned, she is the fastest person I have ever seen!"
[ Honkai Energy continued to converge. Within the storm swirling above, a colossus had already taken shape after a brief gestation period.
Crack!
Suddenly, the sound of something shattering rang out.
A crack appeared on one of the horns atop Star Eater's head. It snapped in half, and more fragments splintered away from the break. This fractured horn seemed to trigger a chain reaction; instantly, Star Eater's entire body was covered in fissures, looking like a cracked porcelain vase that would shatter at the slightest touch.
Visible Honkai Energy leaked from these cracks as if she were truly about to disintegrate in the next moment.
Pfft!
While everyone's attention was fixed on the cracking Star Eater, the sound of someone coughing up blood drew their eyes to Uchiha Hoshi.
By now, Hoshi's relaxed demeanor had vanished. After spitting out blood, her body also began to break down.
Unlike Star Eater, however, Hoshi's skin began to dissolve at a cellular level. It looked as though she were about to scatter into dust. Yet, as the surface of her skin crumbled, it felt as though a shackle had been broken. Unnatural marks began to surface on her flesh.
Her skin turned deathly pale. Her hands and feet began to mutate, becoming encased in white armor. Not just her limbs—other parts of her body were also being covered by a shell resembling that of a Honkai Beast.
Unlike the heavy carapaces of typical Honkai Beasts, the suit on Hoshi was skin-tight, causing no hindrance to her movement and even serving to accentuate her figure.
"Cough, cough..." Forcing the blood out of her lungs, Uchiha Hoshi wiped her mouth with the back of her armored hand, a bitter smile playing on her lips.
"That move just now... if I'm guessing correctly, it was a space oscillation of some kind, wasn't it?" Though she phrased it as a question, her tone was certain. "Causing a violent tremor in a fixed area of space to strike the enemy's cells, or even smaller units, on a microscopic level. Truly..."
Hoshi suddenly lunged with her claws, but Kazahana Koyuki, who had been on guard since Hoshi started talking, dodged as expected.
Watching Koyuki stand on the opposite corner of the stone ledge, Hoshi spoke with a hint of lingering fear in her voice.
"...Truly, I was almost killed by you just now."
"That was a very close call."
Looking at the mutated Uchiha Hoshi, Koyuki was also surprised. She had guessed that a snap of her fingers might not kill the First Herrscher, but she hadn't expected this kind of transformation.
"A Honkai Beast? You've integrated Honkai Beast genes into your own body to obtain their constitution and power? How? Is it your Authority? Even for an Authority, such a thing shouldn't be possible. What exactly is your Authority?"
"What could it be? My Authority might be hard to guess, but yours is quite obvious. One look and it's clear it has to do with space."
Koyuki did not confirm it, but neither did she deny it.
Crack!
At that moment, Star Eater gave a violent shudder, shaking off the old carapace to reveal a brand-new body underneath. She glared at Kazahana Koyuki, her eyes full of wariness.
"Your companion Honkai Beast survived too. I'm not entirely surprised by that." After all, Honkai Beasts were notoriously resilient, and this one had been fed by Uchiha Hoshi until it reached the level of a Judgment-class Honkai Beast, making it even harder to kill.
Of course, if she had followed up her attack just now, she could have killed them. However, Uchiha Hoshi gave her an unsettling feeling, so she chose to play it safe and wait for her own companion Honkai Beast to be born.
Koyuki looked up at the sky, where her own companion was about to emerge.
Uchiha Hoshi sensed it too. No matter what, she had to strike first!
Hoshi stood up immediately, and Star Eater lunged toward Koyuki.
But as the Herrscher of the Void, as long as Koyuki didn't seek out her own death, it was very difficult for anyone to get close to her.
Before Star Eater could reach her, Hoshi felt her vision blur, and she suddenly found herself in a strange place.
There was no sun in the sky and no earth beneath her feet. The space was filled with dense Honkai Energy, giving the entire realm a deep purple hue. Within this space, meteorite-like matter floated aimlessly.
There was no sense of up, down, front, back, left, or right. Similarly, even gravity seemed non-existent.
"Welcome to the Imaginary Space. I control this entire realm. Here, I am a true god!"
While Uchiha Hoshi was still disoriented, Kazahana Koyuki appeared above her—if that direction was "up."
The meteorites around her exploded one by one, and a massive throne slowly formed beneath her. As she sat down, the throne solidified completely.
Atop the throne, Koyuki crossed her legs and rested her cheek on her hand, looking down at the two of them with an expression of cold indifference. ]