Lodem

Even a well-trained body still couldn't overcome its physiological instincts—at least, not yet.

When the eyes were irritated, they watered; when smoke was inhaled, it brought on fits of coughing...

So in a few seconds—when he took his next breath—Shiraki Uke would lose his ability to fight. Those few seconds were the all-in that would decide the outcome!

Could he do it?

With his sight gone, could he take out the four mercenaries around him using perception alone?

Shiraki Uke's brain was working at full tilt, his consciousness running wild. Time stretched enormously as he thought, and the darkness before his eyes twisted into ink and formed a phantom image of Ryu.

Swish! Swish! Swish...

Ryu punched, kicked, and turned, every move clean and crisp, as though conveying the intent behind his punches and kicks to Shiraki Uke.

What was strength?

Ever since Ryu was old enough to understand, he had trained under his master. Later, he traveled the world in search of powerful opponents and met many people in many countries.

The feeling of clashing with powerful opponents still lingered in Ryu's fists and feet to this day!

Ryu had also fought against "evil" and challenged organizations that sought to endanger the world. He himself had even been corrupted by evil thoughts, and it had taken him a long time to overcome himself.

At last—Ryu could deliver a blow that satisfied him.

But Ryu was still searching, walking the path of one who sought the Dao and pondering the answer to "What is strength?"

Thud!

Ryu threw his final punch, slow and heavy, striking Shiraki Uke in the chest.

Now!

Facing these "villains" who killed for pleasure, he would follow his heart, push his soul and body to their limits, and put everything he had into one blow—a blow that satisfied him!

Swish!

Shiraki Uke moved.

The instant he started, all four mercenaries turned at once, some raising their guns to aim, others defending with their gunstocks, each trying to respond however he could.

As long as they survived Shiraki Uke's all-in and waited for his next breath, victory would be theirs!

Whoosh!

Shiraki Uke stomped his left foot and leaped into the air. Pivoting on his spine, he twisted his waist counterclockwise and kicked his right foot forward, backward, left, and right in succession, sending his whole body spinning.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

[Ryu · Whirlwind Kick]!

Almost simultaneously, all four mercenaries were struck in the head by swift kicks.

One was kicked in the back of the head and fell unconscious on the spot. The other three had their gas masks and thermal imagers smashed, fragments scattering across the floor amid blood and teeth.

"Whew... cough, cough! Gah—!"

The three mercenaries breathed in instinctively, only to inhale huge mouthfuls of tear gas. They immediately broke into coughing fits, unable even to stand steady.

The one who had suffered the least damage—the tall mercenary—covered his mouth and nose with his sleeve in time. Squinting through tears, he raised his gun in one hand and aimed at Shiraki Uke.

"Fucking die—"

Before he could finish, Shiraki Uke met him with a mid-level front thrust kick between the legs.

With a bang, blood could just be seen bursting and oozing out from between his legs.

"?!"

The tall mercenary's eyes rolled back, and foam spilled from his mouth.

Shiraki Uke pressed forward, Fighting Spirit bursting forth.

Whoosh!

A heavy punch struck the tall mercenary in the face, smashing his entire head toward the floor. His whole face caved in under the fist, and thick red fluid clung to its knuckles.

"..."

With that, all four mercenaries had lost the ability to resist. Shiraki Uke finally stopped moving, the oxygen left in his body nearly exhausted and his face flushed red and purple from holding his breath.

But Shiraki Uke still couldn't hide his excitement.

Ryu was a grandmaster of his generation, after all. Earning his recognition meant Shiraki Uke could at least consider himself to have taken his first step on the path.

"Quick, find a way to ventilate the place!"

Not far away, Baku Madarame saw that the fight was over and hurriedly called Takaomi Kaji and Akagi Shigeru over. The three of them smashed the other windows one after another, letting fresh air rush in to disperse as much of the tear gas as possible.

Shiraki Uke could finally take a few breaths—though he still coughed repeatedly.

Before he could recover, Kure Fusui's voice came through his earpiece.

"Wow, Bai Mu-chan, there's so much smoke on the sixth floor where you guys are! You've dealt with your opponents, right? Then I'll help you air the place out~!"

At those words, Shiraki Uke's expression changed drastically.

He had no time to stop her before Kure Fusui fired a series of suppressed shots. The windows across the entire sixth floor shattered one after another, their crisp, crackling sound a pleasure to hear.

With no glass left to block it, a cross-breeze swept through, and the tear gas on the entire sixth floor quickly dispersed.

"..."

That should have been a good thing, but Shiraki Uke's expression was hard to describe. He even looked a little aggrieved.

The other three came closer, and seeing this, all couldn't help wondering why.

"The helper you brought in is amazing, Uke!"

Baku Madarame came forward with a grin. "Why the long face? We won this all-in by a landslide!"

"...Yeah."

Shiraki Uke nodded stiffly and explained helplessly, "This support job is billed by the bullet. One 'support bullet' costs a million yen. That burst just now probably cost ten million..."

Baku Madarame: "..."

Baku Madarame: "Haha!"

His laughter was genuine, with a hint of amusement.

Clever as Baku Madarame was, he could naturally tell from this that the relationship between that "Kure Clan supporter" and Shiraki Uke was no ordinary one.

If it were purely a business relationship, she clearly wouldn't joke like that.

To be fair, Baku Madarame actually liked this kind of atmosphere. Unlike the filthy, foul-smelling underworld, it had a very clean feel to it, letting people catch their breath for a moment amid the "malice" of gambling.

"Hehe! In any case, this round of all-in went very smoothly! Let's see if we can wake up one of the mercenaries. They might know exactly where the traps are..."

Baku Madarame began thinking about their next move.

Meanwhile, in the unfinished high-rise next door, Kure Fusui was joking around with Shiraki Uke.

"Don't worry, Bai Mu-chan. I already said I'd give you a discount, so let's call that burst ten million yen. You can even write me an IOU!"

"...Haha, thanks!" Shiraki Uke still had to thank her for it.

Joking aside, as the Kure Clan's firearms expert, Kure Fusui's professionalism was beyond question.

Even with all four mercenaries taken out, Kure Fusui didn't let down her guard.

Through her sniper rifle's scope, those unusual eyes, with their black sclera and white pupils, watched the entire Ninefold Tower, missing the slightest movement.

But for some reason, Kure Fusui suddenly felt that something wasn't quite right.

A strange sense of presence was building, drawing Kure Fusui's gaze and fixing it on the fifth floor of the Ninefold Tower—where Q Dalang's office was.

"Bai Mu-chan, this is strange..."

Kure Fusui tilted her face slightly toward her sniper rifle and murmured over the comms, "It seems there's still 'something' on the fifth floor?"

The office on the fifth floor of the tower.

Q Dalang sat upright, his forehead resting against his cane. A vicious grin spread across his face, a few drops of drool ran down the wrinkles at the corners of his mouth, and a hoarse whisper came from deep in his throat.

"Those idiots have all been taken out? Fine by me, hehe..."

The smile on his face grew even more twisted as he glanced behind him—at the Masked Man, who had remained motionless all this time.

"Lodem, haha, my Lodem! It's your turn to kill again..."

Chapter 26: Lodem

The office on the fifth floor of the tower.

Q Dalang was in the highest of spirits as he rose and went to the wall.

A skull hung on the wall there—not a decoration, but a real human skull!

"His name was Hojo Ryo..."

Q Dalang reached out and gently stroked the skull, panting as he introduced it to Yagyou. "He was a very fine man. To this day, he's the only one who let me enjoy an entire gambling match."

Clang!

Q Dalang suddenly drew his Shakujo, split the human skull with a single stroke, and threw it to the floor.

"Hahaha... hehe! A new record! Looks like I'll have to hang their skulls up here instead. I can hardly wait!"

"Speaking of which, Mr. Yagyou—"