Chapter 6:
Blaze Borne
Riyaku: You... Will never make it out alive!
Hiroshi: We'll see about that!
Riyaku: BLOOD SPLATTER!
Riyaku extends his arm as many drops of blood are thrown towards Hiroshi.
Hiroshi dodges them, but the drops touch the floor of the arena and the place of contact is corroded as if acid touched it.
Hiroshi (in mind): I need to be careful. His blood can corrode my flesh.
Riyaku: [laughs] I see, someone is scared of my attacks.
Riyaku: BLOOD SPLATTER!
Hiroshi jumps in the air to avoid contact with the blood droplets.
Hiroshi: HUNTER RUSH!
Hiroshi dashes towards Riyaku mid-air and deals a cut to Riyaku's arm.
Riyaku: Aww, someone made me bleed. Don't worry, I won’t die unless each drop of my blood is taken out. And thanks to your blood that we Tyrants took long ago, I can heal my limbs back!
Riyaku's arm regenerates instantly.
Riyaku: BLOOD CLOT PRISON!
A wave of blood covers Hiroshi, forming a thick clot ball around him.
Inside, the acidic blood begins to seep in.
Hiroshi: RAPID DRILL!
He extends both his arms and spins his daggers rapidly, drilling through the clot.
He bursts out of it, panting lightly.
Riyaku: [grunts] BLOOD TSUNAMI!
A massive wave of blood races toward Hiroshi.
Hiroshi leaps high.
Hiroshi: HUNTER RUSH!
Riyaku: PLATELET CHAINS!
White chains made of platelets shoot up from the ground and grab Hiroshi mid-air.
Hiroshi: What the—? Chains? Made of platelets!?
He pulls them inward with force, shattering them.
Hiroshi: RAPID CLAW STRIKES!
He slashes Riyaku's chest multiple times with wolf-like precision.
Riyaku (in mind): What the... he attacks like a wild wolf. He's something extraordinary.
Riyaku: PLASMA TRAP!
A thick ball of plasma shoots from Riyaku, latching onto Hiroshi's hands and freezing them in place.
Hiroshi: Darn it! It's too sticky!
Hiroshi: RAPID DRILL!
He tries, but his arms won’t move. He grits his teeth.
Hiroshi (in mind): It’s no use... I can only use my legs.
He stands, despite the restriction.
Riyaku: FIBRIN WEB!
Riyaku launches a sharp web of fibrin. It slices the arena floor as it spreads.
Hiroshi lifts himself with a precise leg jump, narrowly avoiding it.
The web severs the sticky plasma.
Hiroshi: PREDATOR POUNCE!
He lunges and plunges both daggers into Riyaku’s shoulders.
Riyaku: [groans in pain] Why... you...!
Hiroshi jumps back quickly.
Riyaku: Why won't you just die!? WHY DON’T YOU DIE!!!
Riyaku forms a large sword of blood.
Hiroshi: A sword, huh? Let’s do some old-school combat!
They clash. Daggers vs. blood blade. Sparks fly. The clangs echo like thunder.
They move with blinding speed. Parry after parry. Strike after strike.
Hiroshi gets too close.
Riyaku: [smirks] Now's my chance.
Riyaku: BLOOD DECAY, TYPE: ANEMIA!
He stabs Hiroshi right in the chest.
Hiroshi: [screams in pain] ARGHH! IT HURTS SO MUCH!
Riyaku: Your blood will now decay. Your red blood cells will die. Slowly. Beautifully.
Riyaku: BLOOD DECAY, TYPE: ERYTHROBLASTOSIS!
He stabs again.
Hiroshi groans, collapsing.
Riyaku: Now you die in an even more beautiful way.
He walks away. Hiroshi lies silent.
Hiroshi: [weakly, softly] You... didn't win yet...
Riyaku: [turns, shocked] What!?
Hiroshi slowly stands up.
Hiroshi: [weakly, but with resolve] I said... you didn't win yet... I still have to kill you... and the others... to free humanity...
Riyaku: You brat! Poisoned twice and still talking!
Riyaku: BLOOD SPLATTER!
Hiroshi dodges, now faster.
Hiroshi: ILLUSION!
Ten clones of Hiroshi emerge, circling Riyaku.
Riyaku: Clones!? Which one’s real!?
He slashes, hitting only illusions.
The real Hiroshi appears behind him.
Hiroshi: FANG STAB!
He stabs into Riyaku’s heart.
Hiroshi: [breathing heavily] You can heal limbs... but not your heart.
Hiroshi: FLESH SLASH!
He slices Riyaku vertically and horizontally, splitting him into four.
Blood pours.
*A glowing pedestal rises. Atop it lies the Red Blaze Ember.
Riyaku: [laughs hysterically] Take that ember... and this place will fall! It will destroy the manor! Kill EVERYONE!! [maniacal laughter]
Hiroshi: [coldly] Shut up.
He slices Riyaku's tongue in half.
He takes the ember.
The Red Blaze Ember is absorbed. Hiroshi’s veins glow red.
A flame mark appears on his left hand, shaped like a horizontal S with dots.
Hiroshi: Huh? What’s this mark?
The entire arena starts shaking violently.
Hiroshi: I need to destroy this place before it crashes into the Ring!
He gathers all his flames into a huge sphere.
Hiroshi: FLAME COMET!
The attack blasts the arena into fine dust.
Hiroshi falls with debris.
Hiroshi: I need to land safely...
He extends both arms outward.
Hiroshi: BLAZING TORNADO!
He spins mid-air, forming a flaming tornado that cushions his fall.
He crashes through the manor roof.
Hiroshi: I need to check on the Blood Guards...
He finds them where he tied them.
They're human again.
Man 1: Hey! Help us!
Hiroshi frees them.
Man 2: Thank you.
Man 3: Weren't we in the prison?
Man 4: I only remember being covered in blood... then waking here.
Hiroshi: Riyaku controlled you with his blood. Now that he’s dead... you’re free.
They freeze in realization.
Man 1: Lord Hiroshi...
They all bow.
Hiroshi: Huh? How do you know me?
Man 2: Only you could defeat a Tyrant.
Man 3: We’re from the H.R.A. Hiroshi Rebel Army. Before capture, we heard you escaped jail.
Hiroshi: Oh... maybe the ones who attacked me thought I was a new guard...
Man 2: What?
Hiroshi: Shinzo and the others attacked me when I first arrived. But don’t worry, they’re safe.
Man 1: Let’s head back to HQ.
A stomach growls.
A man stares at Hiroshi with pleading eyes.
Hiroshi: Heh... alright, let’s eat first.
They exit the manor... only to see hundreds of new guards with hostages.
Guard: FREEZE, HIROSHI! Move, and we kill them!
Hiroshi grips his daggers. He whispers to a rebel.
Hiroshi: When I attack, tell everyone to duck.
Man 1: Got it.
Hiroshi takes a stance.
Hiroshi: INFERNAL SLASHES!
Man 1: EVERYONE DUCK!
All hostages duck. Flames slash across the air, incinerating every guard.
Cheers erupt.
Everyone: LONG LIVE HIROSHI! LONG LIVE HIROSHI!
Hiroshi: How do you all know me?
An old man steps forward.
Old Man: Your flames match the legends. It could only be you. Welcome, Lord Hiroshi.
Hiroshi: I have to leave... there are other Tyrants. But... can someone feed these men?
Three chefs run forward.
Chef 1: I will!
Chef 2: No, me!
Chef 3: I make the best food in the Ring!
They argue.
Hiroshi: Relax... all of you feed them your best.
They agree.
Hiroshi: The bill's on me.
Chef 3: We can’t charge you. You paid us by defeating Riyaku.
Hiroshi: Then I’ll take my leave. I’ll drop by... if I pass through again.
He walks off through the crowd.
Cheers echo behind him.
Everyone: LONG LIVE HIROSHI! LONG LIVE HIROSHI!
To be continued...
Next Chapter:-
Chapter 7: Rebel Army HQ, A New Companion.
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