Or so it was supposed to be. Ryuma unconsciously dodged the bullet within an inch of his life.
"Fuck, that caught me off guard!"
Barely having a breath or two, another bullet pierced through his heart.
"Ugh…"
Or it was supposed to be, Ryuma leaned his body to the side right before the bullet hit him. Another shot echoed through the cliff and pierced Ryuma's hand.
"Khk…"
Or it was supposed to be. The hand barely leaves any scratch marks. It was as if it knew if they were going to be hit. Ryuma came out of the tree and caught a glimpse of the sniper. Knowing that her shoulder was dislocated, there was no way she could have held the sniper rifle with one hand.
Instead, the sniper rifle itself attached to the unbroken arm. Meanwhile, she was using her leg to control the weight and aim. The bullet has been shot and pierced Ryuma's head. It looked like it, but Ryuma managed to dodge it, somehow....
("He moved before I shot... It was as if he knew the exact time I shot the sniper.")
Yes, Ryuma knew the exact time Zoey shot the rifle. But it's not that simple. Ryuma 'PREDICT' it. This story goes back to when Ryuma was in middle school. Ryuma had many whom he called Master. To Ryuma, his feelings towards his master were nothing but respect.
But, there was one among them who had made Ryuma look up to them…
…
"Oi, Old Hag! Why the fuck do you eat my bento, huh?!!"
"Damn you! I'm still in my youth you little shit! Also, what bento..."
"Don't play dumb!. Your face is literally full of rice right now."
The master quickly brushes off the rice on her face.
"It can't be helped you know. I haven't eaten anything for days."
"Huh?! What are you talking about?! You're not gonna explain that plastic you brought from the convenience store?!"
Ryuma pointed to the sum of plastic. Its inside was probably a food she bought. While Ryuma was squealing that she stole his bento, the twig on the tree snapped and fell on Master.
"Huh? The twig-"
Ryuma tried to warn his Master, but she was able to catch it right before it landed on her head.
"She caught it before it landed on the head... As expected, she had a fast reaction."
"Wrong! I caught it because I already predicted it. I knew that this twig was broken to begin with. And it'll fall sooner or later."
"Predict it? But you can't predict the exact time it will fall!"
"Exactly, but the key to this technique is 'knowledge'. For example, you will or already acknowledge that I have two hands and it can punch."
Master moves faster than Ryuma can react, the punch stops before it lands in front of his face directly.
"And right before it acts, that's when you act."
That's her last word… before bird poop falls on her head.
"And if you don't acknowledge it, it'll fall on you."
"Despite that, I'm surprised you're homeless even after all this. Nope, I don't even know how you're still alive to begin with."
…
Back to the present, the sniper shot multiple bullets from her sniper rifle, but none of them had even hit Ryuma. Even though every shot was really really close, it felt like it hit him.
("Damn, it seems like I can't predict fast enough! These bullets were really really fast! To be honest, I can't react to these bullets like Rio and Kiyo can. I use 'predict' which lets me see to see an opponent attack as soon as it acts. But I improvise it! Master uses it to predict what kind of attack they will come up with before they 'act'. But, I predict the attack as soon as they act!"
Ryuma closed his eyes. The darkness embraces him. The only thing that was in his vision was the opponent. Yes, the sniper. Holding a Sniper Rifle. Its barrels were pointed towards him. Ryuma can feel a slight movement inside the darkness.
*CLICK!*
("Yes! This is the sound I've been waiting for. The sound of the trigger! Once she pulls it, a terrifying attack will be released! An attack that could kill me in one hit! My brain has acknowledged it! The only thing to do is, let my body handle it. The very instinct of when my mind fuses with my body. It will do everything to avoid even an unseen attack. Because I can feel it. Because Ryuma Ochirou can feel it-")
Ryuma's 'Predict' is an ability that lets it predict as soon the opponent acts. Ryuma uses this technique against Zoey because he has no idea how to counter it otherwise. But it was supposed to be used for a long time. Since the 'Unpredictable' always comes at the worst time.
Yes, the 'Unpredictable...'
("Fuck! My foot is caught on the roots! Why at times like this?!")
At the same time, Ryuma saw a flash from her sniper rifle. At that moment, his life flashed before his eyes.
("I-It's no use... I can't block that shit head-on...")
This is what he thought inside his mind. But... his body acts differently. A soft movement, a blue aura overflowing on his body. Especially on his hand. While the mind is in despair, the body has yet to give up. It wants to live.
The distance between Ryuma and the bullet grew closer. The bullet moves at super speed. Until it touches his hand...
"Flowing River."
The bullet changes its direction, hitting a tree somewhere in his southeast direction. Also, leaving a huge hole in it.
"Huh, what just happened?"
Ryuma is oblivious. It seems his body hasn't been pierced through whatsoever. Except for his bleeding hand. It seems the speed of the bullet ripped the skin of his hand while it was deflecting it.
Meanwhile, for the people outside the Deathless World...
"D-did that guy just deflect the bullet... THE FUCKING SNIPER BULLET?!!"
Everybody else too, had a surprised face on them. And among them was the guy wearing the white lab coat. Rudy, had an eerie smile on his face.