Art is Explosion X Poor Man's Rose

The knife in his hand would turn red, resembling Eclipse, then white, as white as snow, resembling Snow Walk, and then black, as black as ink, resembling Moon Wane... As it shimmered, Roy held it in his hand, slowly raising it, constantly changing its shape, with a faint halo around it, drawing attention.

"Buzz..."

Outside, an invisible torrent of sleepiness, like clouds, subtly spread out, steadily holding Silva and Roy in the sky...

The man and the Sun-Earring Boy closed their eyes together, like two little people emerging from Lilliput, cradled in the palm of Susanoo, their consciousness immersed in the Unconscious Realm. Suddenly, they stopped moving. Noticing this, the Zoldyck family's servants, including Zoldyck sister, stared blankly upwards, their expressions bewildered, not yet realizing what had happened. Beside the clear pool, Netero and Zeno simultaneously narrowed their eyes, their nostrils twitching as they detected an unusual aura... It wasn't [Heart-Drop Fist-Listen], nor [Heart-Drop Sword-Listen], but rather something more like a catalyst that forcibly draws others into the spiritual world, transcending the external world!

"A dream?" Netero's white beard and eyebrows swayed in the wind, his oversized Martial Way uniform billowing around him. He exchanged a glance with Zeno, and the two immediately closed their eyes, silently beginning to meditate. Then... they opened their minds, soaring upwards, actively engaging with Roy's [Forced Hypnosis] activated by the [Mangekyō] Sharingan. They felt the world spinning, and when they opened their eyes again, they slowly landed in a hazy, desolate place where time and space were indistinguishable!

"It seems this is Roy's dream world."

Netero squinted as he surveyed his surroundings. As far as the eye could see, all four elements were empty: time, Hell, physical existence, and dimensions. Only his and Zeno's spiritual bodies, along with two indistinct figures in front of them, stood silently facing each other.

"Buzz~" Slowly, another ray of light entered the dream space from the outside world.

Maha, with his bald head and hands in his pockets, slowly descended. Netero and Zeno's eyes flashed, and they quickly greeted the old man, "Grandpa/Old Master..."

"Hmm," the old man ignored the two, merely humming softly, and found a corner to sit cross-legged... Whoosh Whoosh Whoosh As he moved... the faces emanating from the top of his head leaped out eagerly, using dreams as their refuge, briefly settling behind Maha, revealing their true forms. The three leading figures, the most robust and tall, stood at the very front, none other than Maha's former favorites: Brook Sael, Severus, and Blake Shaw. Behind them, a dense mass of men and women, young and old, stretched for countless miles. If there were no concept of [space] here, perhaps even a single space couldn't contain the countless indomitable souls who had perished...

"Hiss..." As the last figure appeared, a wisp of smoke followed, and she appeared beside Maha. She was dressed simply, her blonde hair tied in braids and draped behind her head. Her lake-blue eyes, clear as a lake, sparkled as she appeared. Upon her arrival, she smiled and glanced at Zeno. Zeno was startled, and then, under Netero's surprised gaze, he respectfully bowed and said, "Grandson Zeno greets Grandmother."

Grandson?! Netero's eyes flickered slightly as he turned his head to look at Betty thoughtfully.

Betty Zoldyck glanced at Netero, her gaze sweeping around, and said gently, "I've come to bear witness for my fellow countrymen."

Upon hearing this, Zeno straightened his back and, together with Netero, looked at the countless tens of thousands behind Maha. After a moment of silence, he slowly uttered, "Yes."

Although the two did not know the specific names of these people, the word "compatriots" was enough to explain everything.

However, with the entire nation witnessing a battle, Netero and Zeno exchanged a silent glance, their hearts heavy. They could clearly feel that Maha and his subordinates and subjects were paying far more attention to Roy than they had imagined!

"Someone's coming," Silva said casually, his silver hair falling to his waist. He glanced around casually, seeing a vast expanse of shadowy figures stretching to the horizon like wild grass, with no end in sight. He then looked at Roy and said calmly.

Roy, holding the [Eclipse] symbol, spun it between [Snow Walk] and [Moon Wane], saying nonchalantly, "It doesn't matter."

Anyone who actively seeks out the [dream] can enter it... Roy sensed their arrival the instant Netero, Zeno, and Maha separated their thoughts, but what surprised him slightly was...

His great-grandfather had actually brought his subordinates and subjects along with him; this nationwide spectacle left him somewhat overwhelmed with gratitude...

Roy brandished his sword with a flourish, saying, "Father, have you ever heard that I reign supreme in dreams?"

The Sun-Earring Boy stepped forward with his right foot, his beautiful silver hair, the ends of which shimmered with a golden light, swaying wildly as he declared, "Here, I'm in charge!"

Silva narrowed his eyes, a glint of light flashing within them, and clenched his fist. "Then let me see... what kind of blade dares to call it a nuclear explosion!"

"Hehehe... let the old man open his eyes..." Maha's Youyou words drifted over from afar...

The old man's gaze was deep as he looked at Roy with a smile. Roy, holding his knife, bowed respectfully and said, "I'm sorry to have made you laugh, Great-Grandpa."

The man straightened up, raised his long sword, and slowly closed his eyes... "Buzz~" A hazy light slowly emerged from the Sun-Earring Boy's body... LV5 Swordsmanship activated!

Carrying Roy's spirit, it soared upwards, skimming over clouds, through the atmosphere, and into space, following... through numerous star ring orbits, heading straight for the very center of the nebula, where the sun relentlessly sprayed light and heat into the surrounding universe...

Just like when he sparred with Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni to comprehend the Dao, Roy emptied his mind and threw himself into the sun. Soon, he saw Solar Flare, Sunspot, Solar Wind... He then penetrated the Photosphere, venturing deeper into the sun, observing it at near-zero distance, and saw... countless streams of particles colliding and fusion, engulfing him...

In a flash, Roy opened his eyes again, and the two Great Sun that had been slowly burning in his pupils exploded into dazzling flames with a bang!

[Bankai] -- [Atomic Fusion Slash]!

"Thud~" The knife rose, raised high by the Sun-Earring Boy, and then swung down heavily!

The halo surrounding the blade suddenly shifted from gentle to ferocious, locking onto Silva in an instant. Before Silva's shrunken pupils, and in front of Netero, Zeno, Maha, Betty, and countless others who had stood by Maha in the face of national crisis, the Silva engulfed him completely...

"Hehehe... Hahaha..." So close, the man's silver hair flew wildly as he laughed unrestrainedly!

He roared menacingly, "You've come at the perfect time!"

With a "boom!" he unleashed all his Nen Qi, concentrating it in his right hand to form a blazing Nen fist. Without dodging or avoiding, he swung it fiercely at Roy's descending sword!

Boom! The fist arrived, the knife fell!

Boundless light swept out from the center of the collision, and a huge mushroom cloud rose into the sky, carrying an unparalleled shockwave that spread rapidly. In just an instant, it reached Maha, Betty, Netero, and Zeno!

[Hard]!

The four men's expressions changed, and they simultaneously activated their [Hard] ability, forming a shield in front of them!

But the impact of this explosion was simply too strong!

To pounce on them would be like being hit on the head by a mountain!

In the blink of an eye, everyone except Maha was blown away.

"Sizzle... sizzle..." Netero and Zeno were thrown backward, one shoved back a hundred meters, the other a hundred and twenty meters... When they finally managed to regain their footing and looked ahead, Arima had managed to hold Betty back, without retreating an inch. Everyone else, such as Brook Sael, Severus, Blake Shaw, and others, had all been thrown back dozens of meters. As for the others, apart from a few people standing in the second row behind Maha, the vast majority had been reduced to ashes in the impact, thankfully "slapped" out of their dreams by the explosion, becoming memories, and returning to Maha's body!

"This power is no less than... the Poor Man's Rose!"

High temperatures lingered in the air, and the aftershocks of the explosion spread out like ripples in waves.

Netero finally stopped in his tracks, staring intently at the epicenter of the explosion, his emotions a mix of shock and disbelief... In that instant, he was stunned by Roy's slash!

"Ring ring..." An alarm bell rang in his heart. The world's "Strongest Human" quietly touched his chest and took a deep breath... His gaze fell upon—

Two battered figures stood amidst the nuclear blast. One was missing half its body and could only barely support itself with a knife to keep from collapsing. The other, its body riddled with holes from the immense energy of the blast, stubbornly held on, its remaining eye fixed on Roy, its gaze filled with relief, satisfaction, and an unspeakable sense of liberation...

"As expected, it was Nuclear Explosion Slash..."

"Cough cough..." Silva coughed up blood, trembling like a leaf, finally unable to stand, spreading his arms and slowly falling backward...

The man seemed relieved, or perhaps freed from his stubbornness, and said Youyou, "You win, son..."

Blood trickled from Roy's mouth, and the remaining half of his face twitched as he staggered and fell to the ground. His Nen Qi, released with this single strike, was just as Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni had warned him: one strike, and all strength would be gone from the fight... He forced a smile and said, "I'm honored, Father."

Unable to maintain the Illusion Jutsu any longer, he deliberately broke free, causing the dream space to begin to collapse...

"Crack... crack... crack..." The dream, like a mirror, began to shatter...

Betty nestled against Maha and said, "Maha, you know what? Maybe he really can?"

"Tap... tap..."

"The Queen is right, Your Majesty, congratulations on having a worthy successor!"

In the collapsing dream, the old followers, led by Brook Sael, Severus, and Blake Shaw, along with a few remaining men, knelt behind Maha and loudly congratulated him.

Beside him, Netero and Zeno watched in silence...

Maha, his small body hunched over, was even shorter than Roy's neck. He didn't speak, but instead raised the corners of his mouth, widening them further and further until he burst into a hearty laugh...

"Hehehe... Hahaha..." Laughter pierced through space, soaring into the sky, lingering for a long time, until a "pop" sound shattered the dream, and everyone returned to reality from the dream, only then dissipating.

"Buzz..." The eye power that had lunged at Kukuroo Mountain dissipated, and the Sharingan slowly faded from Roy's eyes. When consciousness returned, his Nen Qi was completely drained, and his Susanoo could no longer be maintained. As Roy weakly opened his eyes, it immediately collapsed...

"Click... click... click..."

"Sister, that giant looks like it's about to shatter!"

On a large tree deep within Kukuroo Mountain, Kurapika, using Kurajing's [Condensation], looked up at the sky and noticed that [Susanoo] was beginning to disintegrate from head to toe. He then glanced at Kurajing.

The girl, with her high ponytail draped behind her head, watched silently, her beautiful eyes shimmering with a captivating light. As if unaware, she had her heart completely drawn to the sallow-faced Sun-Earring Boy.

"Tsubone, is the Young Master alright?"

"You don't care whether he wins or loses?" The old butler, with her two pink ponytails cascading down her back, looked down at Kurajing and reminded her, "If the Young Master loses, the position of family head might not be his anymore..."

"But I don't care~" Kurajing, "I just want Young Master to be well. Wherever he goes, I'll go."

Tsubone paused, then gently stroked the girl's forehead, smiling kindly, "Child, you're right."

"None of that matters. Young Master deserves better, and... he already has better..."

The old butler glanced at Kurajing with envy, then stole a glance at the Butler Villa.

Halfway up the mountain, in the Butler Villa, in Gotoh's bedroom, a sudden burst of intense crimson light erupted, illuminating the entire room with a breathtakingly beautiful, blood-red glow.

"Young Master,"

A soft murmur was swallowed by the wind.

Above the sky, under the Great Sun, at that moment, the clock struck the hour.

At nine o'clock in the morning, the red sun had already risen above the horizon and begun to scorch the earth.

Amidst the sweltering heat, Silva felt a wave of oppression. The man struggled to open his eyes from the dream space, and in a daze, he looked ahead to see a Sun-Earring Boy who looked almost exactly like him. The boy gave him a weak smile, then staggered and fell headfirst toward the ground!

Silva's figure flashed, his feet executing a perfect "Shadow Step," and in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Roy, extending an arm to hug him. For the first time in his life, he smiled at him, "Will this hug still be a source of amusement for you in the future?"

Despite his weakened state, Roy managed a weak smile, "Please allow me to deny it, I never intended to make fun of my father."

"Yeah?"

"Yes."

"Hmm," Silva without speaking, only smiling, as he carried Roy and spun towards the ground...

Soon after, upon entering the clear pool again, a head of black hair that reached down to the waist came into view, and with the agility of a rabbit and the swiftness of a falcon, it strolled over...

"Who won?" Illumi waded ashore and slowly approached Silva and Roy.

The father and son exchanged a glance and said in unison, "I lost."