The instant Infinity Castle began to shake.
Upper Rank Four, Gyokko's first reaction.
Was neither to keep fighting Tanjuro nor to rush out of this alternate space that was about to collapse.
Instead, he turned straight around in a panic.
And lunged toward the pile of Ceramic Pots he had sculpted behind him.
"My pots! My pots!"
Screaming, he frantically used his Blood Demon Art, scrambling to gather up his finished and unfinished "art."
Across from him, Tanjuro hesitated for a moment.
He considered whether to step into that bizarre world, which kept shaking as though it might be utterly destroyed at any moment.
In the end.
In those brief moments he spent hesitating and weighing his options.
The paper door Nakime had created to connect to reality seemed to be crushed by an invisible giant hand.
It began to twist and warp where it stood.
And finally shattered.
The scene beyond the door, along with Gyokko's panicked figure, vanished from Tanjuro's sight.
"This newly appointed Upper Rank Four... doesn't seem as strong as I imagined."
He recalled Gyokko's earlier speed, strength, and even some of the Blood Demon Arts he had used.
The pressure he exerted had fallen far short of Tanjuro's expectations.
If his opponent had no more trump cards...
Tanjuro reckoned he had at least a ninety percent chance of killing him.
"Oh, right!"
The Charcoal Seller hurriedly pulled a new Blood Collector from inside his clothes.
And plunged it into the remains of the enormous tentacles on the ground, which were still twitching slightly.
Watching the thick, dark red blood flow steadily into the vessel, Tanjuro grew thoughtful.
"Come to think of it, the blood from these octopus tentacles... should count as part of an Upper Rank too, right? It should help Miss Tamayo?"
He recalled