The battlefield was chaos.

  Ayase stood at the center—bloodied, cut, breathing hard.

  Daisuke circled him, a wild grin across his face.

  “You have a good Yūhō, but true speed comes from surpassing that.”

  He stomped forward, and his body blurred.

  “Come Forth, Hermes.”

  Wings of golden light fred from his heels.

  A staff-like Reibaku formed in his hands, shaped like a jagged courier’s baton with shifting spirals of light.

  The god of speed made flesh.

  He moved faster than thought—then faster than memory.

  Ayase turned—just barely—

  SLASH.

  A shallow cut across his ribs.

  Another. His leg.

  Uta joined from above, her cws now elongated with shadowy tendrils wrapping her arms.

  “Gekirin, Come forth!”

  The manifestation of wrath—Her Reibaku morphed into jagged cws that flickered between substance and smoke.

  Ayase vanished. Reappeared. Struck Daisuke—

  But Uta caught him mid-move, dragging cws across his back.

  SLASH.

  He grunted.

  YuYu crashed in next—“Sounds like it’s my turn. Ibara come on out, it’s time to do what we do best!”

  His Reibaku glowed faint purple, a wide crescent-bde now built into a bracer that extended past his elbow.

  Every swing radiated with barbed Tamashkii, smming against Ayase’s guard.

  YuYu cackled.

  “Thought you were fast. Guess you’re just fast at bleeding out.”

  Ayase vanished again.

  Daisuke blinked—

  Blood spilled from his thigh.

  “You haven’t surpassed my Yūhō yet.”

  He reappeared behind YuYu, palm glowing—

  “You first.”

  BOOM.

  YuYu flew backward, crashing into a tree. Bark shattered.

  But Subaru moved without a word.

  Ayase spun, eyes widening.

  Subaru’s Reibaku had changed completely—now a bde wrapped in sealed ribbons, with runes glowing along the spine.

  He had silently called upon his form Naga.

  Each swing didn’t just strike—it echoed. Each move triggered a shadow aftershock of Tamashkii behind it.

  Ayase blocked—then staggered.

  The second bde hit him, even though the swing was over.

  “What…?”

  Subaru’s mouth barely moved.

  “You’ve all only talked about speed.”

  “No one’s talked about tempo.”

  Ayase clutched his ribs.

  Then charged.

  They cshed—again and again.

  Each time, Ayase got in closer. Sharper. Reading the rhythm.

  YuYu rejoined—ughing.

  Uta lunged, fangs bared.

  Daisuke fred gold.

  Ayase exhaled—Reibaku glowing.

  “Crimson Fade.”

  A wave of deyed sshes exploded around him.

  Blood erupted from three of the Phantoms at once.

  They fell back—panting, wounded.

  But still standing.

  Ayase dropped to a knee, panting.

  Subaru stared at him.

  “I don’t think I like you very much.”

  Ayase didn’t respond.

  He looked around.

  They were wounded.

  Still standing.

  Still ready.

  But all of them bleeding.

  All of them… mortal.