Inside a sealed cave, Akaza trained furiously as usual. Every strike of his fists, imbued with fighting spirit, dealt almost explosive damage to the rock walls.
Under this bombardment, the entire cave soon began to teeter on the verge of collapse.
Boom!
When his final punch landed, even the cave formed of solid rock could no longer withstand Akaza's relentless blows. With the sound of cracks spreading under the unbearable strain, the entire cavern collapsed, even bringing down a small section of the mountain range.
Countless rocks crashed down, smashing everything around them deep into the ground.
Stone fragments flew, and clouds of dust rose everywhere.
"Ptoo, ptoo-"
Amid the flying dust and stones, Akaza burst out of the sunken cavern, spitting out the dirt he had accidentally inhaled.
Suddenly, as though sensing something, Akaza jerked his head up.
A tall, pale young man with black hair and plum-blossom eyes, dressed in close-fitting black clothes, appeared a short distance away.
"My lord."
Akaza immediately dropped to one knee, but there was not the slightest trace of respect in his tone.
"After all these years, as Upper Rank Three of the Twelve Kizuki, you still haven't completely wiped out the Ubuyashiki family. You haven't even killed a single Hashira in recent years. How very disappointing."
As he spoke, the young man's eyes turned scarlet, filled with savagery and cruelty. "Do you want me to take back the blood I gave you?"
"I have failed in my duties. But the Ubuyashiki family is truly difficult to find, and not a single one of those Hashira-"
Akaza immediately explained himself. He might not have cared about anything else, but having his blood taken back was unacceptable. Once that blood was taken back, his strength would decline, and for Akaza, who pursued power, that