Completion X Nen Beast X Recovery

"Found you!"

Realizing it had been discovered, the real Rabbit Escape stopped pretending.

The rabbits, which had been hiding docilely, suddenly erupted with ferocious aggression.

It leaped out of the warren, stepped across the heads of the densely packed rabbit clones, and pounced at Jiang Ye like a bolt of white lightning.

Thousands upon thousands of clones surged after it like a tide. The rabbits throughout the enclosed space turned at once, their red eyes lighting up in unison.

At that moment, its urge to attack soared.

Jiang Ye's expression remained unchanged. He immediately gave an order.

"Black and White Divine Dogs, intercept the clones head-on!"

The next second, White Dog and Black Dog plunged into the heart of the rabbit tide together. Fangs clashed and claws tore as they held back the white flood swarming toward him from every direction.

But the real Rabbit Escape was astonishingly fast.

It slipped past the Divine Dogs' blockade, raced along the sheet-metal wall, and leaped down from a crossbeam straight at Jiang Ye's face.

Its red eyes glowed like two points of fire in the dim light.

Jiang Ye showed no intention of retreating from the oncoming attack.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest. Shadows instantly rose from beneath his feet, covered his arms, and condensed into a layer of pitch-black armor.

Boom!

Rabbit Escape slammed into his arms.

The force was far greater than Jiang Ye had expected. The rabbit looked no bigger than a fist, but its impact felt like a cannonball striking his chest.

The blow sent him two steps backward, and he only regained his balance when his heels met the sheet-metal wall.

Spiderweb cracks spread across the shadow armor, which had nearly been shattered.

But the instant Rabbit Escape struck, its belly was fully exposed to Jiang Ye.

Seeing this, Jiang Ye did not hesitate.

He manipulated the shadow beneath his feet, sending it snaking around the rabbit in an instant.

Pitch-black bands wrapped around Rabbit Escape's limbs, neck, and torso, trapping it firmly in midair.

The restrained Rabbit Escape struggled madly. The shadow bands creaked under the strain, but it could not break free.

"White Dog! Black Dog!"

Two dark shapes burst out of the rabbit tide at once, pouncing on the trapped Rabbit Escape from either side.

White Dog bit its left hind leg, while Black Dog bit its right foreleg, both bearing down at the same time.

Seizing the opening, Jiang Ye drew the rusty dagger hidden at his waist and stabbed it viciously toward the core.

Crack!

With a crisp snap, the core shattered.

Rabbit Escape's body instantly lost its strength and hung motionless in the air for half a second.

The next moment, its body turned into tiny fragments of white light. Like dandelion seeds scattered by the wind, they drifted down one by one and merged into the shadows on the ground.

The shadow walls covering the walls dissolved at the same time, and the rabbit clones receded like a tide, merging into the depths of the shadows.

The taming ritual... was complete!

Jiang Ye leaned against the wall, drained of strength and gasping for breath.

The shadow armor receded from his arms, revealing the reddened skin beneath.

The Aura inside him was almost exhausted, and even the strength to stand upright was rapidly draining away.

But he had no time to rest.

The sound of metal being pried open was coming from outside the entrance.

Someone was working at the piece of scrap metal he had used to seal it. An iron bar was being forced into the gap with a piercing creak.

"Over here! There's a space inside!"

"Pry it open, quick!"

Jiang Ye braced himself against the wall and stood up straight, looking down at the shadow on the ground, which had returned to stillness.

After recalling White Dog, he raised both hands and formed the shadow puppet for summoning Rabbit Escape, then called softly.

"Rabbit Escape."

The next second, the pitch-black shadow bulged violently.

Thousands upon thousands of black rabbits poured out of the shadows, darker, denser, and faster than the white version from before.

Like a black tide, they surged through the narrow gap at the entrance and pounced on the Rust Bone Gang members prying at the sheet metal outside.

The sudden turn of events threw everyone outside into an uproar.

"What is that?! What is this?!"

"Rabbits... black rabbits! Aah-!"

"Fuck, I can't see! They're covering my eyes!"

Chaotic shouts mixed with the sound of footsteps and people falling as the black rabbit tide scattered the Rust Bone Gang.

Jiang Ye did not look at the chaos outside.

He turned toward the other side of the space between the metal sheets. There was a gap there that he had spotted hours ago. It was too narrow for even an ordinary child to get through, but he, at twelve years old, could.

He glanced back toward the entrance. The black rabbits were still pouring out wildly.

"Time to go."

He ducked into the gap, and the Black Divine Dogs turned into a black shadow and returned to the shadow beneath his feet.

Behind him, the Rust Bone Gang's screams and curses rose one after another. Ahead was a dark passage unknown to anyone, leading deeper into the junkyard.

Jiang Ye climbed onward through the narrow gap between the metal sheets. Every muscle in his body trembled, and his breathing was as heavy as a bellows.

But at that moment, he felt utterly exhilarated.

The shikigami Rabbit Escape was his!

Deep inside the enclosed sheet-metal space where he had just fought, a figure slowly appeared.

The figure wore a long black leather coat, with white fur trimming the collar and cuffs and a huge inverted cross printed on the back.

His hair was slicked straight back, his complexion pale, and his gray-black eyes calm and deep. A purple inverted cross was tattooed in the center of his forehead, and silver ball-shaped earrings hung from both ears.

If Jiang Ye had been there, he would surely have recognized him.

It was the leader of the Phantom Troupe, Chrollo Lucilfer!

Chrollo bent down and casually picked up a Rabbit Escape clone, a thoughtful expression appearing on his face.

"A Nen Beast."

"Did that drifter awaken a Nen Ability?"

"Did he awaken it on his own, or did someone else guide him?"

"Does he use it to protect himself or to slaughter innocents, and has he joined another faction?"

Recalling everything he had just seen, Chrollo instantly had his answer.

He slowly put the Rabbit Escape clone on the ground and watched quietly, letting it leave.

Only when it had completely disappeared did Chrollo turn and head in the direction Jiang Ye had gone.

Elsewhere, Jiang Ye had used Rabbit Escape's sea-of-rabbits tactic as cover and successfully returned to his previous safe spot.

He could no longer hold himself up and lay down on the ground, panting as he breathed the stale air.

"I need to recover my Aura quickly."

Feeling the Aura inside him that had been almost completely drained, Jiang Ye muttered to himself.

He needed to recover as quickly as possible while it was still safe. He could not guarantee that the Rust Bone Gang would not catch up.

Without hesitation, Jiang Ye dragged his exhausted body into position and began using Zetsu.

The next moment, his entire body completely closed, and his presence vanished.

His Aura began to regenerate at an extremely fast rate, while also serving as a means of concealment.

But just as he was recovering, a figure appeared silently at his side.