Battle Royale Arena

Lou Shisui stood at the left edge of the fighting cage. The match had yet to begin, but the atmosphere was already tense.

The confrontation, however, had little effect on him.

He simply observed the people in the cage while slowly circulating a portion of the spiritual energy and Rc Cells in his body, skillfully suppressing his restless Kagune.

"Everyone," the giant standing in the middle of the cage suddenly said, drawing everyone's attention, "there's still time to withdraw before we start!"

"You young rookies should get a couple more years of experience before stepping into the arena!"

The giant was contestant number six, Bedrock. He was notorious for being loud and talkative, oblivious to the occasion, and unable to resist spouting trash talk in every match.

If he hadn't been tough, able to take a beating, and quite capable, the bloodthirsty lunatics in the fighting arena would have thrown a sack over his head and butchered him long ago.

Bedrock swept a contemptuous gaze around the cage. There were a few too many newcomers in this match for his liking.

Although this was his first time entering the seasonal tournament too, he had at least spent three years in the melee arena. By seniority, he was the most seasoned veteran present.

As he saw it, everyone else in the arena was an inexperienced bean sprout. Only number seven, Calm the Storm, had some reputation and made him want to fight.

Gouzhua, whose body was covered in feathers, bared his teeth and snapped, "What? Do you humans compete based on age?"

The young, hot-blooded grey falcon clearly felt his opponent's contempt.

His sharp gaze immediately locked onto Bedrock. He intended to kill the bastard first!

"Bedrock, this is a battle royale. Don't judge it by those one-on-one fights you usually take part in."

Hostile gazes converged on Bedrock. He had plainly become everyone's target.

"Begin!"

The female host's words fell.

"Tap!"

The faint sound of a footstep rang out, immediately breaking the stalemate.

The contestant called Phantom was the first to move.

He excelled at using body language and cues from his surroundings to mislead his opponents.

The longer he remained in place, the easier it would be to detect his true location.

So he refused to keep playing statues and made the first move.

Phantom lived up to his reputation as a technical fighter in the eyes of most spectators. His feet shifted from side to side, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished from where he stood.

Not far away, Lightning was unwilling to fall behind. He pushed off and vanished in an instant as well.

"Pop!"

His high-speed movement produced a faint burst in the air, but it only revealed where Lightning had passed.

After all, thunder always came a step behind lightning, didn't it?

Lightning headed straight for Bedrock in the center of the arena. He too was a rising star who had emerged in recent months, and now that someone had looked down on him for no reason, he naturally had to get even!

Several others shared Lightning's intention to kill Bedrock first.

Number ten, Heavy Hammer, charged Bedrock head-on, while Gouzhua, the grey falcon, swooped down at him from above.

Number one, Luo Dan, and number eight, Red-Eyes, both beastfolk as well, attacked from the sides. Phantom had already slipped behind Bedrock.

"Bam!"

A dazzling barrage of attacks struck Bedrock, erupting in a thunderous crash.

Surrounded, Bedrock had nowhere to dodge and could only endure the blows raining down on him.

But he was "Bedrock." His thick, hard metallic skin gave him tremendous defense.

He absorbed every attack, yet remained standing like a bottomless pit that could never be filled.

"See? Getting worked up again! Six against one, and you still can't break my defense. How are you not trash?"

Bedrock swaggered and taunted them in the middle of the arena, tying down well over half the contestants.

The fierce contest in the arena also drew the attention of a large number of spectators.

"This Bedrock's pretty good! I thought he was just a punching bag who couldn't run fast, so I didn't bet on him at all. I lost out this time!"

"Hey! Guess what? I put everything on Bedrock! That old hand's been running his filthy mouth in the melee arena for years without getting killed. He's bound to survive this match too!"

"That makes perfect sense!"

"You're a genius, sir. I'm going to increase my bet right now!"

Only a few people noticed that things were heating up at the edge of the fighting cage as well.

Lou Shisui concealed his aura and moved swiftly. He intended to eliminate the two cautious, experienced opponents on the outskirts first.

Number three, Diamond, and number seven, Calm the Storm, had given nothing away from start to finish. Like Lou Shisui, they stood quietly at the edge of the arena, making themselves less noticeable.

Precisely because he had deliberately concealed himself, Calm the Storm, the favorite to win and originally the most likely to be ganged up on, had now even slipped from the view of most spectators.

Unlike the idiot who couldn't read the situation, they understood perfectly well that stepping into the arena meant life or death. Only the one who survived to the end would be the winner.

No matter how many stunts they pulled or how much attention they attracted, if they died, they would be nothing but clowns.

"Clang!"

It sounded like metal striking metal.

The three outsiders looked at one another and instantly fell into a deadly fight.

High-density muscles collided with the sound of blades and spears clashing. The three fought at extreme speed, often breaking apart as soon as they touched, probing attacks interspersed with concealed killing moves.

Diamond was adept at using his hands as blades, cutting open an enemy's flesh wherever his palm swept;

Calm the Storm was an accomplished boxer, and his observation of his opponents was meticulous. Every blow landed on a vulnerable spot.

Caught between the two, Shisui dodged to the side and raised a hand to deflect Diamond's thrust. In that instant, he darted past Diamond and switched places with him.

The next moment, Diamond, who had been in front of him, met Calm the Storm, who had been behind him, and the battle shifted once more.

Shisui had to admit that this was the most exhilarating fight he had ever watched with his Kakugan.

The two men's use of spiritual energy was masterful, far beyond anything the assorted weaklings in ordinary matches could compare to.

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

The familiar sound of bones breaking rang out again.

Having finished learning from them on the sly, Shisui relied on his fast recovery and ignored both men's attacks, launching a side kick faster than they could react.

The full-force kick instantly snapped Diamond's neck, then continued on with undiminished force and broke Calm the Storm's left arm.

Shisui had completely settled the fight: one enemy was dead, the other gravely wounded!

Calm the Storm quickly retreated, staring in lingering shock at Shisui, whose ribs had also been smashed.

If Diamond's body hadn't blocked the blow for half a second, he might have been killed by that sudden strike too.

He looked closely and saw Shisui stretch lazily on the spot, looking nothing like someone who had just taken two punches head-on.

"Owl, let's make a deal. How about we work together and take out the trash in the middle first?"

"Sure."

Calm the Storm was taken aback, somewhat surprised by his decisiveness.

An unusually young voice had come from beneath the pitch-black hood, and he couldn't help wondering: Is that a disguise? How could someone with such seasoned fighting skills be so young?

Detecting no killing intent, nor even any hostility, Calm the Storm did not stop Shisui from approaching.

One step, two steps, ...

Now!

Calm the Storm clenched his fist, ready to launch a sneak attack.

All's fair in war. Sorry, Owl.

"Pfft!"

Blood spattered as the tip of a black-gloved hand pierced Calm the Storm's chest.

Calm the Storm's fist had barely risen before it fell again, his face full of astonishment.

"Pleasure working with you~"

Lou Shisui calmly stepped over the fallen body. After making himself less noticeable, he sped toward the battle in the center.

At that moment, exactly two minutes had passed since the match began.