Defeat × Farewell

Knocked flying like a baseball, Blackbra lay on the ground, propped himself up with his right hand, and spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Nearly all my left ribs and the bones in my left arm are broken..."

He felt as though his internal organs had been knocked out of place.

If that second punch had landed, his heart would probably have burst on the spot!

Severely wounded by almost a single blow, Blackbra had no thoughts of retaliation. His will to fight had crumbled almost as soon as they clashed.

The terrifying power to stop time had undoubtedly given Dio an enormous advantage!

"This guy... he's too strong... I can't beat him!"

The boy before him, who gave off no fluctuations of aura, was a formidable enemy unlike any he had ever encountered!

He was stronger than the Hunter Blackbra had killed with a surprise attack using the [Magic Ball].

That tremendous strength, coupled with that strange instantaneous movement-one more hit, and he would be finished!

Recalling those terrifying eyes, like a tiger poised to devour him, Blackbra immediately made his decision-run!

Running at the first sign of trouble was precisely how he had avoided capture all these years.

[Magic Ball], hold him off!

Blackbra roared inwardly. If the [Magic Ball] could keep Dio occupied for three minutes... no, just one minute!

Looking at the distant manhole cover, Blackbra gritted his teeth and desperately pushed himself up with one hand.

That place... if I can just reach that place!!

Out of the corner of his eye, Dio saw Blackbra limping away and instantly realized that he was trying to escape.

Bzzzt!!

Glowing with purple aura that Dio could not see, the [Magic Ball] sliced through the air, spinning with an earsplitting screech as it hurtled viciously toward Dio, who had just regained his balance.

It was faster and stronger than before. The baseball seemed to gain speed and power every time it doubled back.

"No, I can't chase him with this thing hounding me. I have to destroy it!"

Dio knew that if he wanted to kill the wanted criminal before he escaped, he first had to deal with this dangerous baseball.

He calmly calculated the cooldown and distance in his mind as crimson ripples gathered in his left hand.

Sometimes Dio dodged the baseball's charges; other times, he failed and could only block it with his hands. It hurt badly, but did little damage.

There were probably another ten-odd seconds left on the cooldown. Dio gritted his teeth and held on.

Now! [The World]!

The world before Dio's eyes instantly turned gray, and the [Magic Ball] abruptly stopped in midair.

The time stop lasted only half a second. Without hesitation, Dio reached out with his left hand and seized the baseball!

[Crimson Ripple Overdrive]!

Intense heat sprang from Dio's hand, instantly igniting the leather baseball. Its outer skin burned away almost in an instant!

Without making any other movement, Dio suddenly bent his knees, and the next moment-

Boom!

Like a spring compressed to its limit and suddenly released, Dio shot forward in a blur, the concrete beneath his feet exploding!

Outside the time stop.

Blackbra had already covered a considerable distance. With the manhole cover almost within reach, wild joy surged through him.

"I made it! I survived! Once my wounds heal, I'll come back and kill them all..."

Thud!

A fist crackling with golden electricity suddenly struck his skull from behind, reaching him from an impossible distance and instantly shattering more than half his head!

He dealt with my [Magic Ball]? In less than a minute? How did he do it?

Questions filled Blackbra's heart, but he would never have the chance to learn the truth.

Smack!

A corpse with half its head shattered fell to the ground. Behind it stood Dio, who had just withdrawn his fist.

Rain still poured through the pitch-black night, washing over the enemy's corpse before him.

Seeing the utterly lifeless body, Dio finally felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

He lowered his head and gulped down air, his hands still trembling from blocking the baseball's repeated impacts.

For the final punch that finished his enemy, he had used the secret technique Baron Zeppeli had taught him-Spring Fist!

By dislocating and extending his joints, he could temporarily increase the length of his arm.

In the end, he had managed to kill his enemy from behind before he could escape into the sewer.

Dio soon felt himself settling down.

He straightened up and raised his head, letting the pouring rain wash the blood from his body.

There had undoubtedly been an element of luck in that victory. His opponent was clearly no expert in Nen Abilities. Although he had some combat awareness and a little street-fighting cunning, he had immediately lost his courage when faced with the utterly incomprehensible ability to stop time.

If, after being knocked flying, he had struggled using his ability instead of being scared witless and thinking only of escape, he might not have died so quickly.

And if his use of Nen Abilities had been even a little more advanced, allowing him to turn ordinary [Ten] into the more defensive [Ken], Dio's punch during the first time stop might not have caused so much damage.

Even during that initial ambush, if he had possessed the courage to seize the moment when Dio froze and launch an attack, the outcome might have remained uncertain.

Ultimately, the Ripple Dio had learned was still far inferior to Nen Abilities in destructive power.

The world of Hunters had countless true powerhouses, and people far stronger than that man were everywhere. Relying on the Ripple alone, he would probably struggle even to break through the defenses of those Nen experts in the future!

If I want to establish myself in this world, I have to learn Nen Abilities as soon as possible.

It's time to leave this place.

So he thought.

As the rain gradually eased, Dio tossed the gruesome corpse into the sewer, disposed of his damaged raincoat, and quickly left the scene.