The Choice in the Shadows
The rooftop figures didn't move right away.
They just stood there, silver masks gleaming under the moon, cloaks rippling in the cold wind. Their shadows stretched long and sharp over the Lower Edge District.
Akarui counted at least twelve Vein Hunters—maybe more in the darkness.
Each one carried a Vein Scythe, blades carved from ancient spirit steel. They weren't here for capture.
They were here for extraction.
"Akarui." Kaguro's voice whispered, sharp in his mind. "They'll rip your Veins out while you're still breathing if they catch you. Don't let them."
"I know," Akarui muttered back, his grip tightening on the crumpled note from his mother.
Jin Kazama stood beside him, calm as ever. His blade rested against his shoulder, eyes locked on the rooftops.
"They're going to strike in exactly three seconds," Jin said softly.
"How do you know?" Akarui whispered.
Jin's eyes narrowed.
"Because if I was them, that's what I'd do."
Three.
The Vein Hunters crouched low, scythes humming with energy.
Two.
Akarui's shadow twitched beneath him, moving like a second body.
One.
The first Vein Hunter leapt.
They came from all sides, like silent lightning, cloaks cutting through the wind. Their scythes gleamed silver as they aimed for Akarui's throat, his chest, his back.
Death from twelve angles.
Akarui's body moved before his mind caught up.
His Shadow Veins pulsed under his skin, flooding his muscles with power.
He dropped low, spinning under the first slash, his feet sliding across the frost-covered floor. His shadow flickered, rising behind him like smoke.
A Vein Hunter came from the left.
Akarui's fist shot out, wrapped in black light. His punch connected with the Hunter's mask, cracking it in half.
The man's body flew backward, crashing through the wall.
But the others were faster.
Too fast.
Akarui barely dodged the next attack. A scythe grazed his shoulder, slicing through cloth and skin. Warm blood ran down his arm.
He gritted his teeth, forcing his legs to keep moving.
Jin Kazama fought beside him, a blur of black and silver.
His sword danced, cutting through the Vein Hunters with brutal precision. For every step Akarui took back, Jin cut down another attacker.
But there were too many.
Even for Jin.
"This isn't a fight we can win!" Akarui shouted, ducking another scythe strike.
"I know!" Jin growled, spinning to block a double-bladed attack. Sparks flew as metal clashed.
"Then why are we still here?!"
Jin's eyes flashed.
"Because the moment you run, they'll send the Specters."
Akarui's stomach dropped.
The Specters.
The Warlords' silent assassins. No Veins. No heartbeat. Just pure death.
If the Vein Hunters failed, the Specters would finish the job.
Kaguro's voice whispered in Akarui's mind.
"You have one choice left, boy."
"What choice?" Akarui snapped, blocking a kick with his forearm.
"Unseal your second Crest."
Akarui's eyes widened.
"But you said I wasn't ready!"
"You're not. But ready or not, you'll die if you don't."
A Vein Hunter's scythe slashed toward his throat.
Akarui's hands moved on instinct, crossing over his chest.
His Black Crest burned beneath his hoodie, veins lighting up like wildfire.
"Fine!" he shouted. "Let's do it!"
The air shattered.
Akarui's shadow exploded outward, stretching across the room like a living creature. It wrapped around the attacking Hunters, binding their legs, pulling at their bodies.
For a split second, the world turned black and white.
Light and shadow twisted together, swirling around Akarui like a storm.
Then his second crest unlocked.
Vein Art: Shadow-Light Burst!
A pulse of raw energy slammed out from his body, knocking every Vein Hunter back.
Masks cracked. Weapons flew.
Some of the Hunters crashed into walls, others flew off the rooftops, landing in the snow-covered streets below.
When the dust cleared, Akarui stood in the center of the ruin, panting.
His hands glowed faintly, one black, one white. His eyes flickered between colors—dark and light—just like his Veins.
Jin Kazama sheathed his sword, stepping over a fallen Hunter.
"You weren't supposed to be able to do that yet," he muttered, eyes sharp.
Akarui wiped the blood from his chin.
"Guess I'm not great at following the rules."
Kaguro whispered in his mind again.
"You just unlocked part of your true Vein path, Akarui. But every time you use that power, something wakes up inside you."
"What do you mean?" Akarui asked, heart pounding.
"There's a cost. Shadow and Light together were never meant to exist in one body. The more you use both, the closer you get to becoming something… else."
Akarui's fists tightened.
"I don't care."
"You will."
Outside the shattered building, the city bells rang out.
But this time, it wasn't a warning.
It was an announcement.
A loud, booming voice echoed through every street in Kagetsu:
"By order of the Seven Warlords, Akarui Rin is now the most wanted Vein user in Kyokai. A bounty of ten million crystals has been placed on his head. Dead or alive."
Akarui's stomach dropped.
Jin glanced at him, cold eyes narrowing.
"Congratulations, kid," he muttered. "You're officially the most hunted person in the continent."
Akarui's mind raced.
The Vein Hunters wouldn't stop now. The mercenaries would come next. Then the Specters. Maybe even the Warlords themselves.
He was out of time.
Kaguro whispered softly, almost like a warning:
"Run, Akarui. Run now. Or watch the whole world burn with you."
Akarui closed his fists, feeling the hum of his Shadow Veins still burning in his arms.
His mother's note was still in his pocket.
Her last words echoed in his head.
"Don't trust anyone."
And yet, Jin stood beside him, silent.
Helping him. For now.
But for how long?
As the night grew colder and the city of Kagetsu turned against him, Akarui made a silent promise:
I won't die here.
I won't die like this.
Not before I find out the truth.
Somewhere beyond the mountains, deep in the Vein Rift, something ancient shifted.
Eyes opened in the darkness.
And a voice whispered—not in his mind, but across the whole continent:
"The Shadow-Light Lineage has awakened. Let the Vein Wars begin."