Chapter 12: The Fall of Rin and Yumi!?

Rin’s body remained frozen in Shadow’s grip, every muscle refusing to respond as the oppressive force of darkness pinched at her mind and chest. The city below was a wasteland of fire and chaos—heroes falling, buildings crumbling, villains either scattering or collapsing under other heroes’ counterattacks—but here, in the middle of the battlefield, it was all her against him. Her black flames had flickered out, her Karyu Cloak gone, and even the residual hum of lightning in her veins had dulled to faint sparks. All she had left was her lightning core—and Shadow’s void manipulation was suppressing even that. “You’re slowing… weakening,” Shadow said softly, almost taunting, his voice hollow and chilling. “The more you struggle, the more you feed my control.” Rin gasped, her mind racing. I can’t… I can’t stay like this… Her claws scraped at the invisible chains of energy he’d wrapped around her, lightning sparking faintly, but her body didn’t obey. Every attempt to break free was countered before it began, as if Shadow could read the movements before they even happened. Shadow tightened his grip, lifting her effortlessly off the fractured rooftop. The wind howled around them, debris swirling, black void energy wrapping them like a cocoon. “So defiant… so stubborn,” he murmured. “But even the strongest flame can be snuffed out.” Rin’s chest heaved, and beads of sweat rolled down her temples. Her eyes, bright crimson, scanned for anything—any advantage—but her senses were clouded by his control. She tried to summon lightning through sheer will, focusing every ounce of energy, but the black void sapped it before it could manifest fully. “Think carefully, Rin,” Shadow said, tilting his head, almost mockingly. “Struggle too much, and you’ll break before I even strike.” A sudden burst of desperation surged through her chest. She harnessed the faint sparks of her core, trying to channel it not through her body, but purely through her mind—an attempt to bypass Shadow’s physical suppression. Black lightning flared faintly along her eyes, trembling with effort. Shadow’s eyes narrowed. “Ah… trying to fight with your mind. Clever, but insufficient.” He raised a hand, and the invisible chains tightened further, constricting her. Pain shot through Rin’s body as she felt herself slipping, slowly being crushed under the weight of his power. Rin gritted her teeth, black lightning flickering along her temples in a desperate pulse. She felt her core straining, energy leaking in every direction—but it wasn’t enough. Every breath was a fight, every heartbeat a battle against the paralyzing void. And then… a crackling surge of darkness erupted from Shadow. His eyes, pools of absolute black, glimmered with merciless intent. Rin’s vision blurred as the crushing force reached its peak. Her legs buckled, her arms flailed uselessly, and for the first time in the battle, a cold, terrifying thought gripped her mind: I might… actually lose. Her black lightning sputtered weakly, her aura nothing more than faint sparks, and the sense of hopelessness pressed in from every direction. Rin’s mind screamed, every instinct and every memory of training crying out—but her body was failing her. Shadow leaned closer, the oppressive void around him thickening, suffocating. “Rin Shimizu… the light flickers, and darkness prevails.” The world seemed to slow. The roar of destruction, the crackle of distant lightning, the screams of fallen heroes—all faded into a single pulse of pressure, a single undeniable truth: she was at the edge. Suddenly, a flurry of motion appeared from the distance—half of Class 1-C, Yumi among them, sprinting toward the battlefield. Their faces were etched with determination and fear, cores humming faintly as they tried to ascend, to reach Rin. But without the ability to fly, every leap and jump only brought them closer to imminent danger. Shadow’s head tilted slightly, his hollow black eyes sweeping over them. A slow, mocking smile curved his lips. “Oh… look,” he said, his voice hollow and echoing like the void itself. “It’s your friends… they came to see you die.” Rin’s chest heaved as she struggled against the lingering force of his grip. Her eyes darted to her classmates, widening with panic. “You guys… RUN! It’s not safe! Get away!” she shouted, voice cracking with urgency. But Class 1-C did not falter. Hana, Chloe, Yumi, and the others glared at Shadow, fists clenched, determination burning in their cores. “We’re not leaving you, Rin!” Yumi called, her voice unwavering despite the danger. Shadow let out a soft, almost amused chuckle. “So brave… so foolish.” He raised his left arm, and from the cracks in the fractured ground, dark, writhing tentacles erupted like black serpents. They twisted and lashed, wrapping around each student with terrifying speed. Screams of shock and terror echoed as half of Class 1-C were yanked to the ground, immobilized, their cores pulsing uselessly against the crushing hold of the tentacles. Rin’s eyes widened in horror, black flames flickering weakly along her limbs. Even now, she tried to reach out to her friends, but the dark energy pulling at them was unstoppable. Before she could react further, Shadow twisted backward with unnerving speed, the void tentacle he had hidden from sight shooting forward like a living spear. It wrapped around Rin’s waist, yanking her toward him with crushing force, the black aura pressing against her body, nullifying her movements once again. Rin thrashed against it, sparks of black lightning struggling to flare, but Shadow’s hold was absolute. He raised his arm once more, forming the faint outline of the void beam he had tried on her earlier, the energy coalescing into a blinding, destructive force. The beam hummed ominously, radiating sheer annihilation. “You shouldn’t have come,” Shadow whispered, his voice cold, hollow, and merciless. “No one can save you now… not your friends, not your lightning, not even your courage.” Rin’s vision flickered between Shadow’s glowing void energy and her trapped classmates, her chest heaving. Desperation surged through her, black flames weak but flickering in defiance. “You… won’t… take me…!” she gasped, though deep inside, she knew the true battle was about to push her beyond every limit she had faced before. “Say goodbye to your dear friends, Rin Shimizu!” Shadow hissed, his voice echoing like the collapse of the void itself. The tip of his finger crackled with concentrated darkness, a pulsating orb of annihilation growing larger with every heartbeat. Shadow’s finger unleashed the void beam, a concentrated spear of darkness that struck Rin squarely in the head. The force was absolute. The moment it connected, the tentacle that had held her released, and she tumbled from the sky like a broken marionette. Her body went limp, arms and legs flailing as she plummeted toward the burning city below. Her black flames, her Karyu Cloak, even the faint sparks of her lightning core—all vanished, leaving no trace of energy or life. Half of Class 1-C, still trapped by the writhing dark tentacles, screamed in horror. “Rin!” Yumi’s voice tore through the chaos, but even she could not move. The grip of Shadow’s darkness was total; no one could reach her, no one could save her. She hit the fractured rooftops with a sickening crash, debris scattering in every direction. Dust and smoke rose, but no sign of movement came from her. No pulse, no flicker of energy—nothing. Shadow hovered above, eyes dark voids, expression unreadable. “Futile,” he murmured. “No matter how strong, no matter how defiant… this world bows to the void.” A silence fell over the battlefield. Even the chaos of collapsing buildings and clashing heroes seemed muted compared to the stillness surrounding Rin. Class 1-C, heroes, and villains alike could feel it—a void where her presence had been, as though she had been erased. Yumi’s eyes widened, tears streaming down her cheeks. She struggled against the black tentacles, shouting Rin’s name over and over, but the energy suppressing her was unrelenting. The realization hit—Rin was gone. The first fall of hope in the battle had occurred, and the world seemed a little darker for it. Yumi’s knees buckled as she watched Rin’s lifeless body crash onto the rooftops below. Her chest heaved, every breath sharp and ragged, and the world seemed to slow—the chaos around her, the screams, the destruction, all fading into a silent, unbearable void. “No… no, Rin!” she screamed, her voice cracking, trembling with raw emotion. Her hands clenched, fingers digging into the black tentacles holding her, but she couldn’t reach her. The sight of Rin, the girl she had cared for, lying motionless in the midst of ruin, ignited a fire inside her core. Her Abstract Core, normally focused and controlled, shuddered violently, resonating with every ounce of grief, fear, and love she had buried inside herself. A brilliant silver-blue light began to radiate from her chest, pulses of sonic energy thrumming like a heartbeat amplified a thousandfold. The very air around her quaked as if acknowledging the surge of emotion. Her pupils dilated, eyes blazing with an intensity that matched the raw power coursing through her. The tentacles constricting her groaned, quivering under the resonance of her awakened core. With a guttural cry that shattered the silence, Yumi’s energy erupted outward in a wave of sound and emotion, tearing apart the restraints and shaking the battlefield. She fell to her knees but no longer weak—every tremor of her body radiated power. Her voice, now steady and charged, cut through the chaos like a blade: “I won’t… let you… take her!” The sound wasn’t just sound anymore—it was pure energy, tangible and lethal. It blasted outward, knocking back nearby villains and disrupting the forces Shadow had set in place. Her Core had evolved in that instant, transforming from abstract manipulation of sound into a new, awakened state, where her emotions shaped her power directly. The silver-blue aura around her pulsed violently, expanding, a visible manifestation of her rage, grief, and love. It was a warrior’s cry made flesh, a declaration to the world that she would not allow Rin to be lost. Through the trembling air and chaos, Yumi lifted her head, eyes locking onto Shadow with unflinching determination. “Rin… I’ll bring you back! No matter what it takes…” And in that moment, the battlefield itself seemed to recognize a shift—the awakening of a hero born from love and desperation, ready to defy the darkness. The black tentacles that had bound Yumi quivered violently, then shattered completely under the force of her awakened core. With a surge of power, she leapt upward, propelled by pulses of silver-blue energy that left streaks of light in the air. Her hair whipped wildly around her face, eyes blazing with unyielding determination. “Rin… hold on!” she screamed, her voice echoing like a resonant wave that rippled across the ruins of the city. The air itself seemed to bend around her as she surged forward, faster than anyone could track, every movement precise yet fueled by raw emotion. She passed over crumbling rooftops and shattered streets, dodging falling debris and bursts of Shadow’s residual attacks. The chaos of battle seemed to part for her, her core’s resonance pushing aside anything that dared obstruct her path. Below her, Rin lay motionless, black flames and the faint traces of her Karyu Cloak having vanished entirely. Yumi’s heart twisted at the sight, but the pain fueled her further, transforming grief into unstoppable momentum. As she neared Rin, her aura flared, enveloping them both in a shimmering silver-blue light. The air crackled and hummed with the sheer force of Yumi’s awakened power, and even Shadow, hovering above, paused. His dark eyes flicked toward her, a trace of unease in his cold gaze. Yumi landed beside Rin with a powerful stomp that sent shards of rooftop scattering, immediately crouching beside her fallen friend. Her hands glowed with her core’s energy as she pressed them over Rin’s chest, sending pulses of revitalizing sonic energy deep into her body. “Come on… wake up, Rin! You’re not done yet!” Yumi’s voice trembled but was unwavering, every syllable a mixture of command and desperate plea. The silver-blue waves from her core flowed into Rin, resonating with the remnants of her lightning and Karyu energy. Above them, Shadow clenched his fists, fury flickering in his eyes. “So… this is the power of attachment. Foolish girl…” he growled, preparing to strike again, but Yumi’s aura flared higher, forming a protective barrier around both of them, driven by emotion and newfound strength. For the first time, the tide began to shift—Yumi, fueled by love and loss, refused to let Rin’s light be extinguished, standing as both shield and catalyst for the next turn in the battle. Yumi’s aura blazed brighter than ever, silver-blue energy crackling violently around her. Her chest heaved with every breath, heart pounding in a rhythm fueled by rage and love, and her eyes locked onto Shadow with unshakable focus. “No more… NO MORE!” she screamed, her voice a sonic hammer that reverberated through the air. With a sudden, explosive burst of her Core, she propelled herself forward at impossible speed, streaks of light trailing behind her. Shadow’s eyes narrowed, dark voids assessing the incoming threat, but for the first time, he was caught off guard by the sheer ferocity of her assault. Yumi collided with him head-on, fists and body slamming into the darkness surrounding him. For the first time, her blows connected, each strike sending shockwaves through Shadow’s barrier, cracking the aura of void around him. His form staggered back slightly, ripples of darkness dispersing with each hit. The sound of Yumi’s fists striking Shadow was deafening, amplified by her awakened Core. Each punch carried not only kinetic force but the raw emotional energy of her grief and love for Rin, translating her heartache into unrelenting strength. Shadow’s expression remained calm for a moment, but a flicker of surprise passed through his eyes as he staggered under the barrage. “Impossible…!” he hissed, dark energy flickering around his form as he struggled to maintain his defenses. Yumi didn’t relent. She unleashed a flurry of rapid, head-on blows, her fists moving faster than the eye could follow, her body a silver-blue blur of fury and precision. Each strike forced Shadow backward, shattering cracks in his void energy, his normally untouchable defenses bending under the relentless assault. Even the surrounding chaos—the collapsing buildings, the fighting heroes, the storms of destruction—seemed to pause in acknowledgment of her momentum. The air itself was charged with her Core’s resonance, vibrating with pure emotional force. “Rin… I will protect you… I will not lose you!” Yumi roared, hammering a final, devastating strike into Shadow’s chest. A ripple of energy exploded outward, throwing him backward, his form flickering, just for a moment, as Yumi’s determination shattered the first real barrier of his defenses. For the first time in the battle, Shadow was truly on the defensive, reeling under a human—or rather, a hero—whose love and rage had manifested into unstoppable, tangible power. Shadow’s dark eyes widened for the first time as Yumi’s aura exploded further, energy flaring into an intensity that seemed to warp reality around her. Her sonic waves combined with pure kinetic force, bending sound and air itself into weapons that could strike before thought could process them. “Impossible… how can one Core achieve this speed?” Shadow muttered, his normally cold voice trembling slightly. He raised his arms, forming an impenetrable void barrier, attempting to nullify the assault. Shadows rippled across the battlefield, stretching and folding into walls of darkness, orbs, and tendrils, all converging to defend against the onslaught. But Yumi wasn’t just fast—she was beyond fast. Every movement blurred into a streak of silver-blue light. She darted around his defenses, manipulating the energy of her Core to split her attacks into multiple waves, creating illusions of her strikes across the sky. Every blow seemed to arrive from multiple directions simultaneously, making Shadow stagger repeatedly, barely able to react. Her fists became pure energy, compressing her sonic waves into concentrated, lethal punches, each strike reverberating across the city. With each impact, the void barrier flickered, bending under her relentless assault. Shadow’s defenses held, but only barely, and the strain was showing. “Your Core… it’s… transcending…” he whispered, almost awe-struck, yet his body moved instinctively to counter, sending blasts of void energy outward. But Yumi’s new speed made him constantly react a step behind, her manipulation of sonic and kinetic energy allowing her to redirect attacks midair, turning his own void beams into harmless dispersions. She zipped around him, a streak of living light, striking from above, below, and every side at once. The ground quaked with each pulse, debris lifted into the air, and the city itself seemed to hum with the resonance of her Core. Shadow’s dark aura flickered under the strain. “So… this is the power born of desperation and love… incredible, yet still… insufficient,” he growled, retreating backward in rare caution, his defensive formations expanding to keep pace. But Yumi’s eyes burned with unwavering determination. “I don’t care if you’re darkness itself!” she shouted. “I’m not letting you win!” In a flash, she manipulated the very air and sound, sending dozens of sonic-kinetic slashes tearing through the void around him, forcing Shadow into the first moment of real vulnerability since the battle began. He staggered, eyes darting, the cracks in his defense growing. For the first time, the tide was shifting—the hero’s overwhelming speed, precision, and Core manipulation had begun to dictate the flow of battle. Yumi’s aura surged higher, her light bending the chaos itself around her, preparing for the next, decisive wave that could break Shadow’s void completely. Yumi’s silver-blue aura exploded to its absolute limit, flaring so brightly it seemed to carve streaks of light across the sky. The air rippled violently around her, bending and snapping as her Core’s energy accelerated her to near-light speed. Shadow barely had time to react as she vanished and reappeared in multiple locations in a single heartbeat. Each strike she unleashed was a perfectly calculated combination of sonic and kinetic energy, smashing into Shadow’s defenses with relentless force. The air around him shattered with every hit, his void barriers trembling and flickering as if they were glass under a hammer. “Not…possible!” Shadow hissed, but his words were drowned by the roar of sonic waves amplified by Yumi’s emotion, reverberating across the battlefield like a hurricane of light and sound. She struck from above, below, the sides, every angle at once. Her fists collided with his defenses, then morphed into bursts of pure energy, tearing at his void barrier before he could react. Each impact sent shockwaves outward, ripping the ground, shattering rooftops, and distorting the air itself. Yumi’s Core manipulation allowed her to redirect his own energy attacks against him, every void blast Shadow tried to muster being torn apart midair and turned into fragments of harmless light. He had no opening to counter, no chance to breathe, and no safe space to retreat. “Rin… I won’t let this end like this!” Yumi screamed, tears streaking her face as the sheer force of her love and determination fueled every strike. Her Core pulsed wildly, unleashing waves of energy so fast they bent the perception of time around her, making it impossible for Shadow to even track her movements. With a sudden burst, Yumi surrounded Shadow in a tornado of kinetic-sound energy, spinning around him in a perfect sphere of blinding light and deafening sound. Every angle of his defense was struck simultaneously. Every pulse of her Core punched through his void, shaking him in ways he had never experienced before. Shadow staggered backward, flickers of doubt crossing his eyes for the first time. The once untouchable master of darkness was on the defensive, fully overwhelmed, and Yumi wasn’t slowing down. Not even for a second. Her fists, feet, and pure sonic waves pounded him relentlessly, each hit faster than the last, leaving him reeling and unable to form any counterattack. The city around them quaked, but she didn’t care—her focus was singular, her goal unrelenting: destroy Shadow’s defenses and buy Rin a chance to rise. The battlefield was entirely hers now. Yumi’s speed, precision, and emotion-driven Core manipulation left Shadow cornered, battered, and gasping, a master finally meeting a force he could not stop. Yumi’s aura flared even higher, the silver-blue energy now blinding in its intensity, whipping across the skyline like lightning unleashed. Her Core pulsed with pure emotion—rage, love, grief—all funneled into attacks that Shadow couldn’t begin to block. She struck again and again, each punch a blur of sonic-kinetic force, crashing into his void barriers with earth-shattering power. Shadow staggered, barely maintaining the form of his defenses, his tendrils flickering and snapping under the relentless assault. Her movements were faster than thought itself. She split her attacks, appearing in multiple places at once, striking from every angle, her fists colliding with Shadow’s void like hammers on steel, cracking but never fully breaking. “You… can’t… win!” she shouted, voice echoing like thunder, each word carrying weight and fury that bent the very air around them. Her Core amplified her speed and power even further, warping the battlefield as debris, energy, and sound tore through the cityscape. Shadow’s eyes, dark as void, flickered with a rare trace of alarm. He lashed out with dark energy, trying to push her back, but Yumi anticipated every move, manipulating sound and kinetic energy to dissolve his attacks before they even reached her. Each counterstrike from Shadow was met with instant retaliation, a perfect storm of emotion and precision. Yumi’s fists struck with the speed of light, her Core surging with waves of destructive energy. The surrounding air shimmered with every pulse, her sonic attacks resonating through the ground, through rubble, through the void itself. Shadow had no room to breathe, no time to think, no chance to retaliate. She screamed again, eyes blazing, every strike a promise to Rin, every blow an oath to protect the one she loved. “I… won’t… let you hurt her!” Her Core intensified, pulling her faster, stronger, more unstoppable than she ever had been, a whirlwind of silver-blue energy consuming the battlefield. Shadow staggered, cracks forming across his void defenses. For the first time, he was being overwhelmed, driven purely by Yumi’s wrath and unyielding will. And all the while, Yumi’s mind focused on Rin—imagining her standing beside her, fighting alongside her, giving her that spark of strength that now, unknowingly, was gone. Yet she didn’t stop. She couldn’t stop. Her Core, now beyond anything even she had imagined, blazed brighter than the sun, battering Shadow relentlessly, tearing through darkness, and shaking the city with the raw power of a heart unwilling to accept loss. Shadow’s dark eyes blazed, veins of void energy crackling across his body as he gritted his teeth. The relentless assault from Yumi—faster than anything he had ever faced, more precise than any strike he could anticipate—was pushing him to his breaking point. With a guttural roar, Shadow slammed his hands together, forcing his Core to surge beyond its limits, the void energy within him spiraling uncontrollably. A massive wave of darkness erupted outward in all directions, shattering nearby rubble, tossing debris like leaves in a storm, and distorting the very air around him. “Enough…!” he bellowed, his voice echoing like a hollow scream through the city. The explosion of energy blinded the skyline, a black void with streaks of dark purple and violet erupting violently as Shadow’s Core strained under the overload. The shockwave pushed Yumi back, though she didn’t falter, her Core flaring brighter, bending her trajectory midair to resist the force. The ground beneath him cracked and split as energy erupted from the crater, sending pillars of destruction skyward. Buildings shook, debris rained down, and even the heroes who had survived so far were forced to cover their eyes against the sheer intensity of the release. Yet Yumi didn’t stop. Her awakened Core cut through the shockwave, lightning-fast, turning the destructive void energy into fragments she could manipulate. She dodged effortlessly, her every strike synchronized with the turbulent waves of Shadow’s exploding Core, keeping him on the defensive despite his desperate surge. Shadow’s body flickered, a dangerous combination of strain and sheer destructive will manifesting across his form. The dark energy flared around him like a sun of shadow, tendrils lashing outward uncontrollably, threatening to consume everything within dozens of meters. But every attempt to strike Yumi was countered with blinding speed and devastating force, the kinetic-sound energy of her Core slicing, redirecting, and neutralizing his attacks. “Impossible… she’s… still moving… still fighting…” Shadow muttered, shock breaking through his cold composure. His Core shuddered violently, energy cascading in waves that threatened to tear him apart from the inside. The explosion had left him vulnerable—staggering, panting, pushed to the absolute brink. Yumi’s eyes burned with unrelenting determination. Every strike, every pulse, was fueled by the belief that Rin was still fighting beside her, even if she wasn’t. The energy around her pulsed brighter than ever, cutting through the chaos Shadow had unleashed, turning his overcharged Core against him, and finally creating the first true opening in his defenses. The battlefield quaked. The city trembled. Shadow, for the first time, stood on the precipice of being overpowered. And Yumi, fully embracing her awakened Core, was the storm that refused to break. For a moment, the battlefield seemed frozen—Yumi’s assault had kept Shadow on the defensive, but even the strongest defenses have cracks. Shadow’s dark eyes narrowed, calculating, as he sensed the tiniest weakness in the storm of energy surrounding her. With a speed even Yumi struggled to track, Shadow dashed forward, his void energy condensing around his arm like a blade of pure darkness. In one seamless motion, he thrust his entire hand through Yumi’s chest, piercing through the brimming aura of her awakened Core. The world seemed to explode around her. Yumi gasped, her body jerking as pain and disbelief ripped through her. Her Core flickered violently, the silver-blue energy bursting outward in chaotic waves, sending shockwaves in every direction, tearing through buildings, air, and debris. “Y-Yumi!” the thought of Rin—or what she believed was Rin—flashed in her mind, fueling her panic. Her speed faltered, her attacks stuttering, and the first cracks in her previously unstoppable assault became undeniable. Shadow’s grip held firm, his face calm, eyes cold, his aura undisturbed as he kept his arm embedded in her chest, nullifying her Core’s full power at the source. The tentacles of void energy around him shimmered with dominance, pulsing as if to remind the world who controlled the fight. Yumi’s vision blurred, yet her fists clenched, trying desperately to channel the pain into another strike. Sparks of energy erupted uncontrollably, her speed wavering but still defiant, her Core flickering as she struggled against Shadow’s crushing hold. “Impossible… you… are strong…” she gasped through gritted teeth, her body trembling from the effort and pain. Shadow leaned slightly, voice hollow but triumphant. “This… is what happens when you overreach,” he whispered, the tip of his fingers still buried in her chest, cutting off the lifeblood of her Core, leaving her almost paralyzed in both body and power. Even as the pain surged, Yumi’s eyes burned with fury, her love for Rin and her determination refusing to let her fall silently. She pushed against the darkness threatening to consume her, every ounce of energy fighting to stay alive, to protect, to strike back. The city trembled around them, the chaos of battle echoing through the skyline. But here, in the sky above the crater, it was Rin’s friend and the embodiment of her resolve facing the true terror of Shadow’s power—a desperate stand at the edge of impossible odds. Yumi’s body shook violently, silver-blue energy flickering and sputtering as her Core strained against Shadow’s unrelenting grip. Pain tore through her, yet her mind refused to let go of Rin, the thought of her friend fueling a final flicker of resistance. But Shadow was merciless. His hollow eyes glimmered with calculated coldness, void energy coiling around him like living darkness. “This ends… now,” he whispered, voice a hollow echo that cut through the chaos of the battlefield. With a sudden, violent motion, Shadow drove his void-infused hand fully through Yumi’s chest, crushing her Core at its source. The silver-blue light exploded violently, scattering shards of sonic energy into the air, shaking the surrounding ruins like thunder. Yumi’s scream pierced the skies, a raw, desperate sound, but the pain was too great, her body too overwhelmed. She slumped, her Core sputtering and dying, the last vestiges of her speed, her attacks, her consciousness flickering out like a candle in the wind. Shadow released her body, letting her fall limp from the sky. She tumbled through the air, weightless, lifeless, no energy radiating, no trace of Core active—just a body crumpling toward the city below. The destruction around them paused for a heartbeat as the magnitude of what had just happened registered. Heroes and villains alike who had been watching from afar staggered back in shock, unable to comprehend the swiftness and brutality of the attack. Shadow hovered above, the void around him settling, his gaze flicking toward the falling form. “No more… distractions,” he murmured, his voice calm, hollow, and final. The city trembled, fires raging, rubble tumbling, and yet in that moment, two of the most powerful forces of hope—Rin’s presence in Yumi’s heart, and Yumi herself—had been extinguished, leaving only darkness and Shadow’s overwhelming dominance looming over Japan.