As Tsutsumi left the blood-stained street behind him, the aftermath of the battle lingered heavily in the air. The bodies of the White Fang members he had just cut down remained scattered across the pavement, their weapons lying useless beside them, their masks cracked or thrown aside during the fight.
Smoke drifted slowly upward from shattered storefronts, and the quiet creak of damaged structures filled the empty space where moments ago screams and gunfire had echoed.
He didn't look back.
Instead, he simply followed the trail of destruction left behind by the massive robot.
The path it had carved through Vale was impossible to miss. Entire sections of road had been crushed under its weight, sidewalks torn apart where its metal legs had stepped through obstacles, and several buildings bore jagged holes where the machine had smashed through walls without slowing down.
The city that had once been lively only hours earlier now felt wounded, every street corner bearing scars of the sudden violence.
Tsutsumi swung onto his bike and started the engine. The low growl of the machine broke the uneasy silence as he accelerated down the road, the tires rolling across cracked pavement and scattered debris. He rode through the damaged district without hesitation, the wind brushing past his body as he moved deeper into the chaos the robot had left behind.
Along the way, he passed injured civilians who had been helped to the side of the road by other huntmen and huntdresses and emergency responders. Some sat leaning against broken walls while others clutched their wounds, their expressions filled with shock and fear after the sudden attack. Tsutsumi's gaze passed over them briefly, not slowing his speed as he continued forward.
At one point, his eyes shifted toward the side of the road where two bodies lay collapsed together among the rubble.
A man and a woman.
They had fallen beside each other, their hands still loosely touching as though one had tried to hold onto the other when the attack began. Their clothes were stained with dust and blood, their faces pale beneath the dim glow of the damaged streetlights.
Tsutsumi looked at them for a moment as his bike rolled past.
Then his gaze returned to the road ahead. The engine beneath him roared louder as he increased his speed.
Further down the street, he soon spotted three familiar figures engaged in battle.
Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora were fighting another group of White Fang members who had apparently arrived and weren't with the first group that had already been eliminated.
The clash of metal rang out across the street as Pyrrha's spear met an attacker's weapon, while Nora swung a metal stop sign with enough force to send another masked fighter crashing into a nearby car. Ren moved calmly through the chaos, disarming an opponent before striking him down with precise movements.
They were handling the situation well. Tsutsumi didn't slow down.
His bike shot past them along the center of the road, the sudden sound of the engine drawing Pyrrha's attention in the middle of her fight. For a brief moment her eyes lifted and met his as he passed by.
The look in his eyes caused her movements to falter slightly.
There was nothing in those eyes, just this dark emptiness.
Tsutsumi continued driving forward without stopping, heading straight toward the end of the road where the energy railing separating the street from the lower highway had already been destroyed.
The broken barrier leaned outward over the edge, twisted and bent from the force that had smashed through it earlier.
Tsutsumi twisted the throttle. The bike surged forward, the engine roaring loudly as he accelerated toward the gap without hesitation.
The moment he reached the edge, the motorcycle launched into the air.
For a brief second the world seemed to fall silent as the red bike flew past the shattered railing, suspended above the lower roadway beneath them. The wind rushed around him while the city lights blurred beneath his path.
The bike slammed down onto the lower highway with a heavy impact, the tires screeching briefly as they struck the pavement before regaining traction. The force of the landing sent a slight vibration through the vehicle, but Tsutsumi maintained control without difficulty as he continued riding forward.
The highway below had suffered even worse damage.
Several vehicles had been flipped completely upside down, their metal frames twisted where the robot had crushed or thrown them aside during its rampage.
Broken glass covered the asphalt like scattered crystals, reflecting the dim lights of the city above. Oil leaked from shattered engines and spread across the road in dark pools, mixing with streaks of blood left behind by earlier attacks.
The smell of burnt rubber, fuel, and iron hung thick in the air.
Tsutsumi drove straight through the wreckage, weaving between abandoned vehicles without slowing down.
His eyes remained fixed on the road ahead.
As he moved deeper along the damaged highway, something caught his attention.
A patch of ice spread across part of the pavement, the white frost standing out clearly against the dark asphalt. It was fresh, likely created during a recent fight.
Near the frozen area, the energy barrier meant to keep the highway lanes separated had been broken apart, leaving a jagged opening along the side of the road.
Tsutsumi immediately steered the bike toward it. Without slowing down, he drove straight through the gap.
As his bike went airborne again, his gaze tilted downward. Below the broken highway, the source of the chaos was still moving.
The massive military robot stood on the lower roadway, its towering metal frame dwarfing the vehicles around it. Sparks occasionally burst from its armored body where attacks had struck, yet the machine continued moving relentlessly as it fought against the four figures surrounding it.
Ruby darted around the battlefield in flashes of red petals, striking quickly before leaping away again. Weiss created bursts of ice beneath the machine's feet in an attempt to slow it down. Yang rushed forward with powerful punches, her gauntlets striking the robot's armor with explosive force. Blake moved more cautiously, using her shadow clones to evade the machine's heavy attacks while searching for openings.
Despite their teamwork, the robot was still dangerous.
One of its massive arms swung through the air, smashing through the remains of a car as Ruby barely avoided being crushed beneath it.
Tsutsumi's gaze remained fixed on the machine. He jumped off the falling bike.
His body flipped forward through the air while the motorcycle crashed down onto the roadway behind him. The bike faded away as Tsutsumi landed smoothly on the ground.
His boots touched the ground between the robot and Team RWBY.
The sudden arrival forced the four girls to halt their movements briefly.
Ruby blinked in surprise, lowering Crescent Rose slightly as she recognized the figure that had just appeared between them and the machine.
"Tsutsumi?"
Dust drifted slowly through the air around him while the damaged highway stretched out behind his back.
The aftermath of the previous chaos across the city lingered in the background, yet for a moment, the battlefield in front of him felt strangely quiet.
Tsutsumi slowly lifted his head. His cold, emotionless eyes locked onto the massive military robot towering in front of him.
Then Tsutsumi reached into his pocket and pulled out a card.
He didn't look back at the girls behind him. He simply activated it.
Attack Ride: Polarity!
The massive robot immediately reacted.
Missile compartments along its shoulders opened with sharp mechanical clicks, and a volley of missiles launched into the air with fiery trails streaking toward Tsutsumi. The weapons screamed through the sky, engines roaring as they rushed toward him with explosive force.
Ruby's eyes widened. "Look out!"
Tsutsumi didn't move. He simply lifted his hand slightly and waved it once. In the next instant, every missile froze in midair.
The projectiles halted completely as if the flow of time around them had suddenly stopped. They hung suspended above the battlefield, their engines still burning yet unable to move even an inch closer.
The force holding them in place was invisible, yet absolute.
Then the missiles began to twist.
Metal warped and bent under an unseen pressure as Tsutsumi's magnetic control gripped them tightly. One by one the missiles crumpled inward before detonating prematurely, exploding harmlessly in the air far above the road.
The blasts lit the sky with flashes of orange fire, but none of the explosions came anywhere near their intended target.
Smoke drifted downward slowly as the destroyed weapons scattered fragments across the ground.
Tsutsumi began walking forward. Each step toward the towering machine was slow and deliberate.
As he approached, he pulled out another card.
Attack Ride: One For All!
Magenta electricity burst across his body the moment the card's power activated. Energy crackled violently around him, surging through his muscles as his hair lifted slightly under the overwhelming power flowing through him.
Yet despite the violent energy surrounding his body, Tsutsumi's expression remained as calm and emotionless as ever.
He slowly raised one hand and the massive robot suddenly jerked.
A powerful invisible force grabbed hold of the machine's enormous body and lifted it straight off the ground. Its massive metal legs dangled in the air as the entire structure rose several meters above the highway.
Inside the cockpit, Roman Torchwick's voice could faintly be heard shouting in alarm.
The robot's mechanical arms flailed wildly as he attempted to regain control, the machine struggling violently against the invisible force holding it in place.
But the more it struggled, the tighter the pressure became.
From behind Tsutsumi, Yang placed her hands on her hips as she watched the robot helplessly floating above the ground.
"Huh," she said casually. "Well that was easy."
Ruby, Weiss, and Blake stared in disbelief at the sight.
They had spent several minutes desperately fighting that machine together, barely managing to slow it down. While Tsutsumi had subdued it in seconds.
Without saying a word, Tsutsumi slowly closed his raised hand. Then the machine began to compress.
The thick armored plating groaned loudly as it bent inward under immense pressure. Metal screamed as the robot's limbs were forced closer together, the entire structure slowly collapsing inward like an invisible hand was crushing it from every direction.
Inside the cockpit, Roman Torchwick's voice suddenly became frantic. He screamed in terror as the metal walls around him began folding inward. The crushing pressure continued increasing.
"You dunce! What are you doing!?" Weiss suddenly shouted, her voice filled with shock as she heard Roman's panicked screams from inside the machine.
"Tsutsumi! Stop that!" Ruby cried out, horrified as the robot continued collapsing inward. "He's already defeated!"
The metal groaned louder. The once towering machine was slowly being compressed into a twisted ball of scrap.
"That's not good," Blake said urgently, immediately realizing what he was doing. "We have to stop him!"
Without hesitation, she rushed forward. Drawing her weapon, Blake swung her sheath toward Tsutsumi's side in an attempt to knock him away and break his concentration.
Tsutsumi stepped slightly to the side, avoiding the strike effortlessly. Before Blake could even react, he spun around with frightening speed and drove a sharp kick directly into her back.
The impact landed with brutal force.
Blake's aura shattered instantly with a loud crack as the protective energy around her body collapsed under the blow. Her body was sent flying forward like a ragdoll, skidding violently across the ground before slamming into the pavement several meters away.
Ruby and Weiss gasped in horror as Blake's motionless body tumbled across the ground.
"Blake!"
Yang's eyes instantly ignited with rage.
Golden flames burst from her hair as her semblance activated, anger flooding through her body as she charged forward with explosive speed.
Her foot slammed against the pavement as she launched herself toward Tsutsumi, her metal gauntlet pulled back as she swung a devastating punch directly toward his head.
Yet, the punch never landed. Her fist stopped inches away from him. It was as if something invisible had caught it.
Yang froze for a moment, confused. Then she tried again. Her punches and kicks came faster and faster, striking toward Tsutsumi from every direction with explosive strength.
Each attack stopped before touching him. Every strike halted midair, blocked by an invisible barrier surrounding his body.
Tsutsumi didn't even look at her. His hand continued slowly tightening.
Yang's attacks became more desperate.
She screamed in frustration as her fists slammed repeatedly against the invisible force that kept her from reaching him. No matter how hard she struck, her blows never crossed that invisible boundary.
Polarity allowed him to control magnetic forces; he could manipulate large amounts of metal with ease, bending or destroying them at will.
Now, supercharged by One For All's overwhelming power, that ability had become something far more terrifying.
The magnetic field surrounding his body had become a defensive barrier, repelling anything metallic from touching him.
Even the iron within Yang's blood was enough to prevent her from crossing that invisible wall.
Yang continued attacking, tears forming in her crimson eyes as rage and desperation mixed together.
She swung again and again, her limbs shaking from the effort.
Yet she still couldn't reach him.
Tsutsumi suddenly turned his head slightly to the side.
He had sensed something. Though nothing was visible, the magnetic field surrounding his body had reacted to something entering it.
His free hand snapped outward.
Something invisible was violently thrown from the air before being lifted upward by an unseen force.
A girl suddenly appeared as the air shattered like a mirror.
Pink and brown hair framed her shocked face as she struggled helplessly in the air, her parasol slipping from her hand and clattering onto the pavement below.
Her mismatched eyes widened as the invisible pressure tightened around her body. Neopolitan, the partner of Roman Torchwick.
Tsutsumi glanced at her briefly. Then he looked back at the crushed machine floating nearby. His hand clenched tighter. The metal finally gave way.
With a horrific screech, the robot collapsed completely into a twisted sphere of crushed steel.
The screaming from inside suddenly stopped.
A moment later, dark blood began seeping through the cracks in the mangled metal.
Roman Torchwick's life ended inside the crushed wreckage.
Behind Tsutsumi, Ruby and Weiss both turned away and vomited at the sight. Yang's face had gone completely pale. She slowly fell backward onto the pavement, her body trembling as she stared at the horrifying scene in front of her.
Tsutsumi finally turned his attention back to the girl suspended in the air. Neo struggled violently against the invisible force holding her.
His cold gaze remained completely unchanged. He didn't know who she was. But she had tried to attack him.
That was enough.
The magnetic force tightened around her. As blood suddenly began spilling from her nose, her mouth, and the corners of her eyes.
Her body convulsed violently as the iron inside her blood was torn free by his power. Crimson streams poured from her ears and lips as the pressure increased.
Within seconds, her struggling stopped. And her body went limp.
The invisible force holding her disappeared, and her lifeless corpse dropped onto the pavement below with a dull thud.
Silence spread across the ruined arena.
Ruby and Weiss continued retching, unable to look at the scene. Yang sat frozen in place, backing away slowly from Tsutsumi in pure fear.
Tsutsumi walked forward calmly. He stopped beside the fallen body and knelt down. Without any visible emotion, he reached down and picked up the card that had appeared on her lifeless body.