One after another, bullets were sliced clean in half.
A sharp, resonant hum echoed through the air.
Yukibashiri seemed to sense Roy's inner turmoil, its snow-white blade flaring with a furious, crimson hue. Even without Roy's conscious command, the sword acted as if it had eyes of its own, effortlessly severing every bullet flying toward him.
Nearby, Sister Lotus, hidden behind a tree, narrowed her eyes as she watched the display.
'This guy's swordsmanship is incredible! Did we find out where he actually came from?'
The bullets were split so precisely that their surfaces were as smooth as mirrors. A few stray fragments nearly hit the observers lurking in the shadows, giving them a start.
Sister Lotus glanced sideways and recognized several figures. A man with a deep-set gaze and an aquiline nose sharp enough to pierce bone stood dressed in a dark suit. He was Mark Wayne, the top enforcer under the Fourth Elder—the "Human Body Collector," George Wood. His nickname was the Executioner.
Beside him was a woman with cascading red hair that reached her waist. Her voluptuous figure was showcased by her S-curve silhouette, yet her face held a strange, youthful innocence. Seeing Sister Lotus look over, she blew a kiss and offered a flirtatious smile.
Sister Lotus frowned. 'Eve Valentine. I didn't expect that slut to show up too.'
"My, Sister Lotus, how is the Bishop doing lately?" A light chuckle rang out from behind her before she could even smooth her brow.
A new figure had appeared on the thick branch of the tree. He looked to be about fourteen or fifteen years old, wearing a kimono and clogs, with a shimenawa rope tied around his waist like a wandering ronin. However, he carried no sword. He squatted loosely beside Sister Lotus, his hands dangling.
Sister Lotus's pupils shrank as she uttered the name. "Otsuka Yu!"
She moved away from him without a word. "If you want to know how he is, why don't you go ask him yourself?"
The young ronin smiled but said nothing. He glanced casually at the man in the suit and the woman with the red hair. Mark Wayne and Eve Valentine both bowed to him in unison. They hadn't expected a member of the Council of Elders to investigate the North District in person.
"Simply wonderful..." Otsuka Yu watched Roy stroll through the hail of bullets, closing in on Guzman's villa at a leisurely pace thanks to Yukibashiri's protection. He ignored Sister Lotus's coldness and smiled. "I'm actually in need of a new blade. What do you think of the one in his hand?"
The ronin pointed toward Yukibashiri. Suddenly, a flash of sword light swept across—whether intentional or not—and sliced the tree they were on in two. The massive trunk collapsed with a loud crack.
"Gahahaha! Father, it was just a joke. No need to be so serious."
The ronin landed lightly on the ground, tucked his hands into his sleeves, and squinted at Roy. The boy had his back to the crowd, gently stroking Yukibashiri as if comforting it.
"Don't be angry," Roy whispered to the blade. "I promise I'll cut him down sooner or later."
The sword hummed again—Bankai!
Yukibashiri turned blood-red and ignited, erupting with towering, ferocious flames. Roy gripped the hilt and delivered a light, horizontal slash.
A thin, pitch-black line that seemed to swallow light and heat formed instantly. In the blink of an eye, it passed through the guards at the gate, severing them and their rifles cleanly.
Dozens of heads flew into the air and rolled across the ground. What made the observers' skin crawl was that the bodies remained standing for a moment even as life flickered out. Not a single drop of blood sprayed; the wounds had been instantly cauterized by the extreme heat.
[SYSTEM: Life Energy +5, +7, +4, +10, +12, +15...]
The system notifications sang a dirge of blood.
The sound of sharp intakes of breath echoed from every dark corner.
Otsuka Yu's smile vanished. Mark Wayne's brow furrowed, and even Eve Valentine looked startled, patting her chest as she exhaled toward Sister Lotus. "Darling, come and comfort me, I'm scared."
Sister Lotus stepped away to avoid Eve's forced proximity. She looked back at Otsuka Yu, a cold sneer playing on her lips.
"Bolton and Elijah weren't useless. If they could die, then certain other people can die too!"
"Shh... don't let Guzman hear that, or he'll be quite unhappy." The ronin played dumb, gesturing for her to be quiet.
Sister Lotus turned her face away in disgust, focusing her gaze forward.
Having lost their brain functions, the headless guards finally seemed to realize they were dead. As Roy strolled past them, they collapsed one after another like wheat stalks broken by a summer storm.
"Kastro."
"Present."
"Guard the entrance. No one goes out, and no one comes in."
"Understood!"
Kastro watched Roy step into the villa. He then turned around, his white hair fluttering in the wind. Facing the group of spies lurking nearby, he stood like a monolith at the villa gates. Surrounded by dozens of corpses, he stood his ground against Mark Wayne, Eve Valentine, and Otsuka Yu. A gust of wind lifted his bangs, simultaneously suppressing the prying hearts of the onlookers.
"How overbearing." Otsuka Yu shook his wide kimono sleeves. "But I like it. Children, it's time to eat!"
A rustling sound filled the air.
Thousands of flying insects suddenly swarmed from his sleeves, forming dozens of pitch-black clouds that surged toward the headless corpses at Kastro's feet. The ronin smiled at Kastro. "Don't misunderstand. I figured you wouldn't have any use for the bodies, so I thought I'd let my children have them."
The insects descended, extending long proboscises to pierce the flesh.
Kastro frowned. He sensed a trace of Nen from the tiny creatures. He clenched his right fist, manifesting his Ten in preparation.
'Otsuka Yu. Suspected Manipulation-type user. Ability: Parasite. He controls mosquito-like Nen insects to nest in targets and drain their aura to strengthen himself.'
Back at the Zoldyck estate on Kukuroo Mountain, Roy had tossed the intelligence gathered by Tsubone onto Silva's desk. One page had been left open, showing a photo of the young ronin smiling while playing with his insects. Below the photo was a note of a quote he once told his subordinates: "The insect is me, and I am the insect. So-called humans are nothing more than hosts for parasites."
The insects' mouthparts pierced the skin and delved into the flesh to feed.
Outside Guzman's villa, Kastro remained vigilant as he watched the scene. However, he soon noticed something bizarre about the tiny insects.
No substance was flowing through their long proboscises. Not a drop of blood, not a scrap of flesh, and not even a sliver of the "life force" hidden deep within the bodies was being extracted. Otsuka Yu, who was even more sensitive to his insects than Kastro, froze.
'They're empty... my insects found nothing... these people have been completely drained of their physical energy!'
As expected, the thousands of insects became confused after failing to capture any prey. They began to scatter. They couldn't understand why the corpses contained zero life energy. As they buzzed around aimlessly, Otsuka Yu waved his hand and recalled them into his sleeves.
"That 'Father' is ruthless... he squeezed every last drop out of them!" The playful ease on his face vanished, replaced by a dark gloom.
Otsuka Yu stared past Kastro at Roy, who had already entered the villa. Along with Sister Lotus and Mark Wayne, he instinctively released his [En] to scout the interior. Spherical Nen barriers expanded outward. Eve Valentine, unable to use [En], stamped her foot in frustration, her body swaying with suppressed annoyance.
Tap... tap...
Fire burned, and the sword hummed. Having left Kastro outside, Roy walked alone through the spacious hall of the villa. At a glance, he saw a green-haired youth leaning back on a leather sofa, watching him with casual interest—the "Psychic Morphine" Guzman!
"You're here..."
"You shouldn't have come..."
"I didn't invite you. I suppose this counts as being an uninvited guest, doesn't it?"
Guzman dropped his relaxed posture and poured himself a glass of red wine. He peered through the crimson liquid at the boy approaching with the sword. Squinting, he asked, "Father, we just separated. Did you miss me already?"
"Or perhaps... you missed my candy."
Nen surged from Guzman's palm, and dozens of candies clattered onto the floor.
Hearing the noise, several "zombies" emerged from the corners of the living room. They were skin and bones, their bodies twisted and barely human, yet the moment they saw the candy, a rare spark appeared in their hollow eyes. They crawled and rolled toward the sweets, fighting over them like dogs over a bone.
"Mine... they're all mine! I want the candy! Give it to me!"
They scrambled to shove the candy into their mouths. The aura rising from the tops of their heads became visibly thinner and thinner. Finally, one small boy was knocked down by a man lunging from behind. His head slammed into the corner of a coffee table, and blood sprayed.
His body gave a final twitch. As the aura above his head dissipated, his life flickered out.
"What a shame... why were you in such a hurry?" Guzman sat on the sofa right in front of the boy, smiling at Roy. He stood up slowly and, as the zombies continued their frantic feeding, he accidentally stepped on and crushed the boy's head. He took a sip of his wine. "Summer is coming, Father. Aren't you hot?"
A surge of flames erupted from Roy. After his Bankai, Yukibashiri had lost its white color and was stained a deep crimson—redder than even a Crimson Sword.
"Hot?"
Roy pointed his sword downward. The luxurious marble floor instantly scorched and melted. He looked at Guzman calmly. "Just wait. You won't be hot in a moment."
He raised his hand and sent a flying flame slash, trailing a long tail of fire straight for Guzman's heart.
The green-haired youth drank his wine elegantly, as if drinking blood. He chuckled, his shoulders shaking, then looked up and pointed a finger at Roy. "Bind!"
A stainless steel zip tie shot from his fingertip. In an instant, it wrapped around Roy's right hand, binding him and his sword in place!
[Stainless Steel Zip Tie]: A Conjuration ability. The ties are stamped from stainless steel and possess incredible binding strength.
This was an ability "contributed" by one of the zombies at Guzman's feet years ago.
"Magic Shadow, hurry. You know what to do."
The zip tie, infused with [Ken], held Roy firmly. However, facing those flames and that intense heat, Guzman felt his Nen being consumed at a terrifying rate. He frowned, realizing he had underestimated the ferocity of the fire erupting from Roy's sword.
"Leave it to me, Master Guzman..."
The firelight cast Guzman's shadow long across the floor.
As a raspy voice drifted through the room, a shadow suddenly detached itself from Guzman's own. it sped across the ground to Roy's feet. Along the way, it picked up a piece of candy from the floor. The shadow then emerged from Roy's own shadow, manifesting as a gaunt Nen user draped in a black robe. He lunged for Roy's neck, intending to pry his mouth open and force the candy inside.
However, to the shock of both Guzman and the shadow assassin, a loud bang rang out. Before they could even act, Roy's body simply exploded!
The assassin froze, not understanding what had happened.
"Idiot! Get out of there!" Guzman roared.
The assassin felt a sudden coldness in his chest. He looked down to see a brilliant sword tip protruding from his heart. It had pierced through his back and out his chest, skewering him completely.
"You..."
"I..."
Magic Shadow coughed up blood and turned his head stiffly. He met Roy's calm eyes and saw a hint of crimson, adorned with three pitch-black tomoe. His head slumped, and his life vanished.
Faint, flickering memories emerged as his consciousness faded. In his final moments, he heard the boy whisper, and he finally understood.
Roy flicked his sword, tossing Magic Shadow aside like trash. He looked up at Guzman, his eyes cold.
"Shadows? I'm sorry... I happen to know a bit about the Shadow Clone Jutsu as well."
'Shadow Clone Jutsu... So... your shadow was the real one, and mine... wasn't...'
[SYSTEM: Life Energy +37]
Another corpse hit the floor.
Roy's shoulder-length black hair swayed. He brought his sword around in a half-circle, pointing it straight at Guzman. "Your turn."
@@@@!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Discount-Discount-Discount!!!!!!!!!!@@@@
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