The sight of the face of that damn man was enough to set Seiji’s blood on fire. Everything in his body tensed up with shitty images of their st enter fshing through his mind. He couldn’t stop thinking about what he did to Nerine. “She’s missing her damn arms because of what you did?!” Seiji threw his fists into a barrage against the swords ag in defense of as.

  “ed over your new friend?” A devious look sifted through as’ eyes at the mention of Nerine. “She’ll be dead soon after yourself. So you won’t o worry for long!”

  Such words only made Seiji more enraged. He threw his fists at the bastard as wildly without any focus. Another hand stretched out and grabbed his bandaged right arm, stopping him in mid-swing. Seiji tried to break free, but they were strong. Turning his head to the right, it surprised him for a moment to see her. “Saki?!”

  Breathing slowly and her face covered in blood, her eyes still had the same fieress to be uo back down on anything. Her blood soaked hand dripped over his baaining them red. “What do you think you’re doing here, Seiji?” Despite her steady words aermination, she still appeared ready to colpse.

  “You’re all sliced up! Why the hell are you standing?”

  “I asked you a question first,” she snapped. “You shouldn’t be here.” Her voice wavered a little from the even tone.

  “This one’s mine!” he shouted, ripping his arm free. Seiji shoved Saki away from him. His eyes locked ba as. The ends of his fingers felt on fire just staring at him. He ground his teeth trying to withstand it.

  Saki blinked a little surprised to see Seiji ag in such a manner. She appeared in front of him, betweewo men. “Damn it, Seiji! I don’t his right now! You’re supposed to be helping Chiharu with the others! Get going n—“

  He heard enough of her voibsp; Seiji grabbed her by her damn tunid smmed Saki into the ground, shattering the earth. “NO!” His voice erupted from his mouth with enough volume and iy to shake the trees in the distanbsp; Seiji struggled with his words, his jaw shaking. “He’s mine! Don’t interfere!”

  The impact made Saki cough, but most of her stun came from sho seeing Seiji’s fabsp; She had never seen him look so wild before. ‘Even when he was a random kid in junih looking like a gang leader, he never looked like that. It’s like he’s an animal…’ Saki didn’t know what was going on. She knew she didn’t have time to deal with him. “You leave me no choice, Seiji!” Her body suddenly disappeared from Seiji’s hold.

  Reappearing, she came in from Seiji’s right fnk with a bloody kick ready to y him out. Seiji turned into her attad stretched out his arm before she reached him. His hand ed around her nebsp; “I told you!” Seiji dragged her close to his fabsp; “Don’t interfere! I owe him for what he did to her!”

  It took her a moment, but Saki figured out what Seiji was going on about. “This is about revenge?! Seiji!”

  “NO!” he screamed. Everythi silent. His face twisted into a more and more wild depi. “This isn’t about revenge!” Seiji’s hand shook violently. His hold tightened around Saki’s nebsp; “I’m going to kill him!

  Her eyes went wide at his response. ‘This isn’t the Seiji I know! What’s happeo him?!’ Saki grappled with his arm trying to break free. She put everything she had into it, yet nothing seemed to work. Seiji’s already inhuman strength seemed to have increased. “Do you hear what you’re saying, Seiji?! Kill?”

  “YES!”

  “Fihen!” Saki ed her whole body around his arm. Using everything to twist, she threw Seiji down to the ground. On the ground, she quickly switched to a submission hold fighting against his strength. “Seiji! You will not murder anyone, no matter the justification! This isn’t who you are! Seiji!” The animalistic look in his eyes only seemed to be growing worse.

  Smmed into the ground, Seiji’s wrinkled face broke for a sed. The iy remained, but there was a moment of lucidity crag through. He turned his head over to Saki. “…please…Saki…I o…do this…for myself…”

  A faint sense of his self seemed to break through. Saki found her hold on him loosening. However, the moment of weakness she showed him he took advantage of her. Seiji threw her off him with ease, casting her aside. “Seiji!”

  Breathing heavily, he gnced over at her. Fshes of different parts of him went through his fabsp; “…Saki…” His arms shook at his side.

  ‘He’s struggling… What’s going on Seiji?’ Saki slowly stood up. Pieces fell a little bit into pce for her. Most of it still didn’t make a lot of seo her. She didn’t know the whole story, but still felt she uood enough. “Alright, Seiji. He’s all yours.”

  “Thanks!”

  as started ughing, previously only watg the se with great i. “So you’ve suddenly decided to support killing, girl?” he teased with a mog tone. “I do love the taste of hypocrisy.”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

  Smirking widely, he nodded slowly in a mahat only made him seem creepier. “Oh I do, little girl. I saw it in your eyes. Yours are different from his.” as enjoyed every moment deeply, especially the ging look on Seiji. “You didn’t know, did you?” He ughed loudly. “Oh this is great! I love it!”

  Seiji looked over at Saki in fusion. “What’s he talking about, Saki? You wouldn’t…Saki.”

  Guilt surfaced in her face, as she wao look away from him. She knew what she did. It was something she had to do. “Seiji, this isn’t the time for such things.” Saki began to walk away from the field. “If you really want to know. Ask me after this is all over.”

  “Saki! Wait!” Seiji stretched out his arm towards her even though he was nowhere in range.

  She tio walk away, uerred. “Sometimes there are just things you must do eve is wrong.”

  “Saki?” He still wasn’t sure of what happened. Something huge was missing. Suddenly, Saki wasn’t the same person he knew. She was missing.

  as cpped loudly. He slowly walked towards Seiji. “This is so much more than I could have hoped for by just simply killing the two of you.”

  “Shut the hell up, you bastard! What do you know?!”

  “More than a child like you. She’s an adult.”

  He threw up a fist in as’ dire. “Killing doesn’t make you an adult!”

  “I wasn’t talking about that. Nothing is simple in this world. She uands better than you what must be done. I like her.” The look in his eyes as he gnced in her dire almost seemed filled with lust. He drowned ioxig atmosphere.

  Seiji’s teeth ground together and bared a little. “Stay away from her! This is between us!”

  Swords materialized up around os ready to strike. “You’re right. I do have a traitor and a child to kill.”

  “I’d rather be a child than an adult!” The air thied almost instantly with the killing i increasing. He smmed down his feet, setting himself into a damn fighting stance.

  Two swords appeared in as’ hands st, as a final sign of his readiness. “You’ll die a child with that sort of thinking. You’ll always be immature!”

  “Fine by me!” Seiji charged forward. The life or death csh began.

  Chapter 233 – Death’s Bet

  The two forewent any sort of warm-up round. The battle was a tinuation of their previous enter. as immediately started out with es and tossed around his swords in all dires. A frantice pyed out with Seiji dodging and breaking down the es. His fists had greater power behind them than before. Each punch that destroyed a e bsted out a wide e of wind kig up dirt across the entire Field.

  A few nicks came from swords during the opening of the fight. He could tell the swords’ sharpness was the same as he remembered. During the few punches he threw, Seiji kept watg how everythied. ‘Dammit! I’m seeing more disruptions. It’s not like st time. I’m not going to be able to find him the same way. Hiding bastard!’ Seiji jumped into the air and smmed his fist into the shitty earth breaking it up into a cracked crater. Tossed debris wiped out several of the crappy es.

  “You’re using your same tricks. So na?ve, child!” One of as’ es looked down at Seiji in the crater. An array of swords appeared around Seiji. “Did you really think I wouldn’t analyze the fight?”

  Seiji bared his teeth in annoyanbsp; “You bastard! Always hiding behind tricks and copies!” He threw up his fist at the e. “You’re a coward!”

  “If you’re dead, it doesn’t really matter the means to which I achieve it.” He ughed again, but it didn’t hold up the attabsp; Several es came sliding doworh as the floating swords came in for Seiji.

  A faint glow came off Seiji’s bandage arm as he went to take the blow. The sword deflected off him spinning away into the earth, leaving him unharmed. He grabbed the sed with his teeth using it to parry several crap swords before as saw what he did. When it vanished, Seiji grabbed up another shit sword, swiping away the rest just in time.

  The es reached him. He still had the shitty sword. Enough force swung through the metal that he shattered both ons immediately. Shards of metal flew past him scraping his fa thin lines before he finished off the shit e. tinuing to move, he lifted a hel rge k of ro one hand to smash the other bastard es in a siion.

  Once finished, Seiji leapt bato the air. Swords followed him up. He blocked some with his arm and the rest he deflected away with temporary ons before they disappeared. ‘There you are!’ Seiji’s body fell back down to the earth with no trol over his nding.

  Landing on the edge of the crater, Seiji found himself surrounded again. es were everywhere. He fought through the few immediately in front of him. The st he grabbed and charged with using as a shield against the others ing for him.

  At the end of his charge, he met the one he wanted. He grabbed onto the invisible as, the real one. “Found you! You bastard! This time you’re not getting away from me!” His hand shook a little as the temptation to snap his neck was unbearable.

  as smirked, as he appeared to Seiji, not seemingly affected by being caught. “So you’ve learned a little.”

  Seiji ground his teeth not liking the way he looked. ‘I have him! Why does he look like he’s the one in trol?’ The arrogant look in his shitty eyes just made his emotion boil more. “I’ve gotten more practice dealing with your crappy kind. This isn’t going to py out the way you think.” His body started to shake more and more.

  “You’re right this isn’t going to be the same.” The smirk widened further across as lips. He lifted up his hand to rest on Seiji’s bandaged arm. “Oh you’re shaking badly.” His lips thinned a little with excitement. “It’s finally starting to affect you.”

  Suddenly, Seiji’s left arm went numb. He lost hold of as as the shaking in his right overwhelmed him. Everything in his body seemed to be cold in one moment and burning the . He staggered around swiping at whatever was near him. “What did you do to me, you bastard?!”

  as walked casually up to Seiji. He grabbed a hold of his right arm at the wrist. It was the only support Seiji had when his legs buckled. “I poisoned you, naturally.”

  Seiji gasped for air. “You—“

  “Oh don’t worry. It’s not deadly. No, it just paralyzes you and gives you a few other fun side effects that I decided to toss in for my eai.” as lifted up a sword in his free hand, pg it against Seiji’s ed hand. “ you feel that? The cold steel.” He grinned maniacally. “You 't, you? It numbs your ability to seemperature.”

  Sweat dripped down Seiji’s fabsp; He couldn’t move his body. Nothing responded. “B-bast-ard!”

  “Yes, keep that attitude! It’ll be so much better when I do this!” The sword in his hand ly cut through Seiji’s pinkie. as held up the severed finger for Seiji to see the blood dripping out.

  It took him a moment, but a massive wave of pain attacked all of his se onbsp; As much as he wao hold it in, nothing could keep his lips sealed. Seiji released a blood-curdling scream. He felt as though every part of his skin was being peeled off millimeter by millimeter and they plucked his muscles like an instrument. It made his head want to explode before wanting to pass out.

  “Oh no, you ’t faint on me. The poison won’t allow you.” The devilish grinned seemed to curl up. “No, I’ll make you feel new heights of pain enhanced by this poison until I’m finished with you.” as leaned in only timeters away from Seiji’s fabsp; “I too learned some things about you. You aren’t like us. Meaning I have greater trol over your own body than you do. You’ll suffer greatly before you die!”