Riverbank Race x Heart-Drop Fist-Listen

The old man, with a pair of Buddha-like ears, pulled out a volleyball from somewhere and said, "Young man, how about playing a the Game with this old man?"

"Bang... bang..." The old man was playing with the volleyball like a basketball, and judging from the training time, it was more than two and a half years.

Roy, who had stopped, started walking again, completely ignoring him. He brushed past him, just as the sun was rising, casting a colorful glow that draped the Sun-Earring Boy in a "Rosy Garment."

Netero chuckled... He'd been completely ignored. How long had it been since he'd felt this fresh? He showed no annoyance whatsoever. With a flick of his sleeve, he tucked the ball into his robe. Without making any move to start, he simply touched the ground with his toes and appeared beside Roy in the next second, jogging alongside him around the river.

Golden Crow perched on Roy's head, bobbing its head up and down with the Sun-Earring Boy, curiously watching Netero.

Netero squinted and smiled at it, recalling the Gilded Flame had burned nearly half of the Kiriko's encampment that day. He teased it with his finger, and the result...

Little Gold Jin spat out a tongue of fire that nearly set his hair on fire.

"Heh heh... this little thing has quite a temper." With a double entendre, the old man, braving the flames, vigorously stroked the little Golden Crow's head, seemingly referring to the bird, the person, or perhaps himself, the bird-man.

"Whoosh--" Roy quickened his pace, transforming into an arrow that shot out from under him, leaving Netero far behind.

Disturbing the peace and quiet so early in the morning, the old man has no sense of boundaries at all. What bad luck!

"Gah~" Golden Crow broke free from Netero's control, wiggling its rear end in a mocking gesture towards Netero.

Netero chuckled, leaving afterimages as he caught up, infuriating the Golden Crow which kicked and flapped its wings frantically at Roy, cawing and urging, "Caw... caaw..." "Faster... faster... faster..."

Unexpectedly, he stumbled and almost got thrown off by Roy's acceleration...

"Shadow Step?"

Netero only felt a blur before his eyes Sun-Earring Boy, using the "Mastered Shadow Step," suddenly darted forward a great distance. This time, he didn't rush to chase after him, but instead carefully observed the Sun-Earring Boy's back for a while, gradually recognizing it as the lively figure from years ago.

"So alike... No wonder he's your grandson, Jager..." (Note: For convenience, a great-grandson is also called a grandson.)

Aside from his hair color, a flash of memory crossed Netero's old eyes. He flicked his wide sleeves backward, and like a dragonfly, he touched the ground and reappeared beside Roy.

"Ga-"

-"

That wretched old man, why is he chasing us again!

Enraged, Golden Crow turned to Netero and spat out another tongue of fire.

But the old man swept his golden hand away, and it vanished without a trace.

Netero looked the Sun-Earring Boy over with interest and asked, "Can you go any faster?"

Roy remained silent, gazing at the rising sun on the horizon, and took a sip of its radiance. "The Total Concentration..."

His heart pounded, his heart rate doubled, his blood flow accelerated, his adrenaline surged, causing his body temperature to rise. He blushed for a moment, like a motorcycle starting up, and with a whoosh, two long plumes of hot air billowed from his nostrils. Then... he sped away again...

"Gah-"

This time, the Golden Crow learned its lesson. It folded its wings and tightly hugged Roy's head. The two of them, like a gust of wind, left a white trail along the river... leaving Netero far behind.

The Strongest Human, clearly stunned for a moment, then turned around, hands on hips, and burst into laughter. "Good lad, wait for me!"

A playful impulse seized him, Netero's eyes gleaming. He clasped his hands together with a "snap," and time seemed to stand still for a moment... Although Roy Yiren was still running forward, strangely... his body flew backward toward Netero, and he could only watch helplessly as the distance between them continued to shrink!

[Heart Drops · Fist Listening]

The highest realm of Martial Way!

When one's control over the body reaches its peak, one can listen to another's heartbeat, bewilder their mind, and drastically compress their perceived time, creating a fleeting illusion of time reversal. This manifests as "advancing" being "retreating," and "retreating" being "reversely backward"...

"Thump... thump..."

In that instant, the only sound in the world seemed to be the beating of a heart.

Pedestrians on the street, passing vehicles, egrets flying over the river... all disappeared, leaving only two points and a straight line, with Roy and Netero constantly closing the distance as this "line" contracts.

"Gah"

Golden Crow slumped atop Roy's head, its tiny eyes darting around, somewhat bewildered... How come its master disappeared while it was running, and that wretched old man was gone too... It felt as if it had been excluded from the realm of "fist listening," even though it could clearly feel itself being carried along...

"Wow... For Sun-Earring Boy of this age to have such a body is already quite remarkable, but..."

"When it comes to body control, kid... you're still a long way off."

A faint voice drifted over from afar... Roy had to admit that Netero was right; compared to him, he was inferior in both "physical constitution" and control over "power."

But... the old man seems to have been a little too happy too soon.

Opening champagne at halftime is a big no-no!

Two suns ignited in the Sun-Earring Boy's pupils with a "whoosh," and he unleashed the [Eyes of Truth] without hesitation!

See through the illusions and restore the most authentic world... Since the perception of time is distorted, then correct it... Since the mind is clouded, then dispel the fog... Since the world outside of oneself has been silenced, then let the world reappear...

"Beep beep..." The sound of a car horn rang out...

"Chirp--" The egret flapped its wings, skimmed across the river, and caught a river fish in its beak...

"Gah--" You scared me to death! I thought you were gone... The Golden Crow had found its loyal master again, and with a flap of its wings, it pressed against Roy's forehead...

"Pop~" "Heart Drop · Fist Listening", Break!

Netero stared into the Sun-Earring Boy's gaze as he looked back. Those two Great Sun, not just blazing suns, were even more dazzling, as if reminding him... that human power has its limits, and even if the world ceases to exist, the sun will still rise!

"Squeak!"

I'll make it 10 kilometers every day!

This took one minute and ten seconds.

Roy stopped in his tracks, took a deep breath, and with a high kick, propped his leg up against the railing to begin stretching.

"Thump... thump..." Netero caught up and stood beside him, watching the sunrise spill over into the river, creating shimmering ripples. It was just like their reunion on the Dark Continent with Jager, where one of them rode a flying dragon, fishing by the lake, silently enjoying the tranquility and peace of the moment...

After a long pause, he asked, "Why do you want to be Hunter?"

A gust of wind blew by, stirring up an old man, a young boy, and a Golden Crow, their feathers fluttering in the wind...

Netero tilted his head to look at the Sun-Earring Boy, just as he had looked at Jager back then, quietly waiting for the Sun-Earring Boy's answer.

In that instant, Roy thought of his father, Tanjuro, the intelligence network, and the various perks of the Hunter License. After a moment of contemplation, he truthfully replied, "At first it was to save people, but now... it's still about saving people, plus wanting to see more scenery."

Netero narrowed his eyes. "There's no end to the scenery."

"Then let's keep watching." Roy opened his arms to embrace the sunrise. "As long as the sun shines, I will keep going. I want to explore the farthest reaches of this world, to truly achieve..."

"I came, I saw, I conquered!"

You have a very big heart.

"There's nothing I can do, I was born big."

"Heh heh..." Netero raised an eyebrow and said teasingly, "Is that so? Then I'll tell your great-grandfather everything that happened today later."

"Let's see if he breaks your legs."

Roy:

Even more cunning Beyond!