Kaito stepped toward the prisoner, hands in his pockets, the usual cocky grin on his face.

  Hyouma remained motionless.

  He looked beaten, bloodied—no real threat in his current state.

  But the second Kaito got close—

  The chains moved.

  —FAST.

  Faster than anyone expected.

  The steel rattled, the air snapped, and in that instant—

  Hyouma unged.

  It was a blur.

  Even beaten, even restrained, his movements were predatory—

  A wolf lunging for the throat.

  And instantly—

  Amano. Jiro. Tetsuo.

  Their Reiboku were at his throat.

  The reaction was instantaneous.

  Their Tamashkii fred as one, each bde inches from Hiyoma’s exposed skin.

  For the first time in the entire interrogation—

  The chains stopped.

  The chains caught, tightening in an instant, stopping him just short—but the shift in the room was already there.

  He didn’t flinch.

  Didn’t react.

  But his expression changed.

  Something about it—something about the dead silence that followed—

  Made the entire room feel different.

  A shift. A weight.

  Watari’s fingers twitched.

  He could feel it. The moment those chains moved, the moment those swords were drawn—

  The Tamashkii in the air changed.

  This wasn’t a training session.

  This wasn’t a battle of words.

  This was the natural instinct of warriors.

  Yumi exhaled sharply, watching the scene unfold.

  “…Damn,” she muttered.

  Ren, arms crossed, tilted his head. His gaze flickered between the Fifth Gate elites, then to Hyouma, then to the bdes positioned at his neck.

  “They didn’t even hesitate.”

  Watari nodded slowly.

  “Nope.”

  Silence.

  Yumi arched a brow. “Kaito, you’re not talking.”

  Kaito, arms crossed, exhaled. “Yeah. No jokes for this one.”

  Even Kaito, for once, didn’t crack a joke.

  Because this?

  This was something different.

  This was how warriors operated in the Fifth Gate.

  Amano, still holding his sword steady, exhaled slowly. His expression was unreadable, his grip unwavering.

  “…You felt that, right?” she murmured.

  Jiro, beside him, scoffed under his breath.

  “Of course.”

  Tetsuo, sharp-eyed and steady, tilted his head.

  “We all did.”

  Yumi exhaled, shaking her head. “The entire tone of the room just shifted.”

  She wasn’t wrong.

  It was like the temperature dropped.

  Like the entire battlefield was waiting for something to explode.

  Ren’s eyes narrowed slightly. “What do we do now?”

  Silence.

  Then—

  Kusunagi stepped forward, gaze dark, voice low.

  “We still have our orders.”

  His eyes flickered toward Watari.

  “You wanted to prove you can handle this without the Jūmonban?”

  A pause.

  “Then figure out how to make him talk.”

  Watari let out a slow breath, stepping closer. He wasn’t smiling anymore.

  “Alright, Hyouma.” His fingers twitched over the hilt of his Reibaku. “Let’s have a chat.”

  —CUT TO BLACK.