Bab 74: The Failure vs. The Victor
"A bold claim!" Warui remarked.
Val took a precautionary leap back. Although awakening her Ririsu did restore her Prana reserves, she had to use it sparingly as she did not have enormous amounts of Prana like Raijah and Teo.
She was familiar with Warui's skill as a martial artist. However, his Prana was unexplored territory. She had to figure out his abilities before she attempted any high-risk attacks.
Even then, Warui outmatched her severely. The only way to make up a lack of strength and speed is with skill, and the only way to make up a lack of all three is with Prana. Thus, Val planned to knead a constant flow of Prana into her katana and preserve the rest for large-scale attacks.
Her first course of action was determining Warui's Signature Prana abilities, but that was easier said than done.
The ground began shaking, indicating that Warui was on the move. Veins split along the moon, forced apart by huge spines of rock shooting up from below.
Val's sword flashed out in a desperate attempt to defend herself. She felt the strain of Warui's blow strike her blade. The vibrations reverberated through her arms and rattled her body, sending her into a frantic, out-of-control spin.
Luckily, Val stayed within the brown dwarf's gravitational field. Approaching another one of its orbiting moons, Val increased her speed. She wasn't going to run forever—just long enough for her to figure Warui out.
She bounded from moon to moon, carefully predicting the trajectory needed to reach the next and leaving a trail of violet Prana in her path. Within a millisecond, Val cleared her hundredth moon, creating a geometric structure of light that illuminated an entire region of space.
She peered over her shoulder, only to see Warui trailing her like a homing missile. He was simply jumping, just like Val was. However, with every leap, he left each moon crushed to bits, causing them to explode in a shower of debris and leaving their pieces to hurtle off into the blackness of space. He didn't even seem to be going all out—only applying himself enough to keep pace with Val.
Val noticed a streak of debris following behind Warui. It was as if Warui was unconsciously attracting them like a magnet would to metal.
"Looks like his Signature Prana grants him some sort of power over gravity," Val muttered under her breath. "That would explain why the air felt so heavy back at the Shi Mountains. He isn't even trying to control it either—he's just letting his aura run wild."
With this newly acquired knowledge, Val's battle preparations were complete. Closing in on a nearby moon, Val spun on her axis and landed on the moon. She pushed with all her might, propelling herself right at Warui.
Val moved with fluid grace, her sword a blur of violet that lit up the vicinity. Simultaneously, Warui's fist arched forward with whistling, deadly velocity. His unstable aura funneled into his fist, transforming his punch into a mass of dense gravity.
"Sealing Prana: Trinity Burst!"
"Doragonken: Dragon Fist!"
Warui's fist didn't make direct contact with Val's blade, as the gravity he emitted was far too great. The result was the creation of a dense, equatorial disc of energy between them.
Val's lungs began to burn as colorful streaks of raw Prana outflowed from the disc, outshining even the stars and forming a bipolar structure similar to an hourglass.
***
Raijah abruptly wakened into consciousness. He was on the ground while everyone around him was standing, eagerly watching the warm evening sky.
Teo and Cora helped Raijah to his feet. He wrapped his arms around each of their shoulders, balancing his weight so he could stand.
Just ahead, Raijah noticed Aziel and Ujinari standing side by side. Like always, Ujinari's encompassing black cloak was covering the arm he'd lost.
"What's going on?" Raijah asked as he joined them in looking toward the sky.
Deep in the evening sky, Raijah caught a glimpse of a purple streak of light. It danced across the starry sky, leaving what appeared to be a constellation.
Not even a second later, it was followed by a burst of color, resulting in a construct that resembled a planetary nebula. The sight reminded Raijah of the vibrant and ethereal wings of a butterfly.
Ujinari lifted his arm to point at the structure that lit up the sky. "My daughter. . ." he cleared his throat. ". . .Valerie Shi is out there engaging Warui in battle. The outcome of their fight will determine the fate of the Shi Mountains."
Perhaps he imagined it, but Raijah could sense something lingering within Ujinari's voice. He couldn't determine if it was fear or hopefulness for what was to come.
***
The impact sent Val whirling at the speed of an interstellar pinwheel, but she quickly gathered herself as she noticed Warui approaching. Accelerating further, they exchanged a multitude of clashes across space, creating an even denser structure of light.
Warui quickly gained the upper hand. Slipping past Val's defenses, he grabbed her by the throat and slammed her halfway through a series of asteroids.
Finally, he dragged her back-first through the surface of a large planetoid, painting a trail of dust and debris through the outer layer of the celestial body. Val lost her grip on Ame-no-Ohabari as she curled into a ball, tumbling and bouncing over the asteroid until she finally halted her skid at a protrusion of rock.
She stumbled to her feet, planning to make a break for Ame-no-Ohabari, which was only a ways away. However, she only made it about halfway before falling to her knees. She felt a faint sting on her back, and a thin red line trickled down from the corner of her mouth to her chin.
Frowning, Warui took a long, hard look at Val. "Why aren't you getting up?" he asked. "Such shallow wounds pale in comparison to what you did to me."
He removed his shirt, revealing an array of scars branded across his entire torso. Just then, Val noticed the marks weren't limited to his torso. Some were less noticeable than others, but from top to bottom, Warui's entire body was disfigured by countless scars and bruises.
Gently grazing his torso with his finger, Warui cringed at the pain. He cursed under his breath.
"Each and every scar you're seeing was inflicted at the hands of Saku. No one else during my time could match me in battle, let alone damage me. But Saku. . .she did it many times over.
"This is a much better sight than when I was alive. It seems Tensai tried to fix my body, but not even his hands nor brain could remedy the effects of Saku's Doragonken.
"Even now—a thousand years later, the pain these wounds cause me is no different than when I first received them."
Warui walked over and picked up Ame-no-Ohabari. He carefully examined the markings of the blade. "You have disappointed me, Saku. You haven't even managed to call upon the power imbued within your blade."
A look of surprise crossed Val's face, which Warui picked up on.
"Ah, so you don't know. Well, when Ame-no-Ohabari is utilized by a wearer of Yōkai earrings, it begins to synchronize with its user. Once this process is complete, the artifacts grant the user infinite power—akin to that of a god."
Warui brandished the blade at Val. "Ame-no-Ohabari is quite powerful on its own, though. However, its true power can only be wielded by those it deems worthy. In this case, the blade only recognizes those with incredible spirit and willpower. The fact that you lack that aspect means that you will not only be unable to utilize the true power of Ame-no-Ohabari, but you will never master Doragonken."
Val pressed her palm to her bleeding lips and wiped a streak of blood. She knew Warui was right. All her actions had been measly attempts to erase the doubts from her mind. But that was the least of her worries. Firstly, she had to find a workaround for Warui's Prana.
Since he wasn't controlling it, his Prana seemed to be operating according to his consciousness. When on guard and aware of his surroundings, Warui's Signature Prana is outputted, dramatically increasing the strength of gravity in the area around him and nullifying Val's ability to place seals directly on Warui by preventing the possibility of physical contact.
However, when off-guard, Warui's Prana becomes that of a celestial body, unconsciously allowing him to attract objects and bodies.
Val figured she could exploit this fact. But distracting Warui long enough to attack was no easy task. Instead, she opted to seal the aura he was emitting, which should buy her enough time to strike.
Val relaxed and lowered her center of gravity which such vigor that it felt like her skeleton outraced her muscles. She channeled Prana into her soles, unleashing a burst of speed that propelled her body forward and lifted her off the treacherous ground. Val pointed, her fingers forming a trident.
"Sealing Prana: Prana Seal!"
Val sent forth a snaking torrent of Prana that blew past Warui, temporarily sealing the heightened gravity around him.
In the brief moment Warui spent examining the blade, a battle cry caught him off guard. He turned to see Val charging him with her feet clattering over the asteroid.
Aiming at his wounds, she swung hard with a Prana-enhanced fist. But Warui cushioned the blow with his forearm, careful to prevent provoking the injuries that ached him beyond imagination.
Warui had fallen into a trap. With the extra space, Val turned her back to Warui and leaped into the air, a move she remembered Raijah doing. Channeling Prana into only one of her feet, propelling her into a backflip, pinwheeling her around with extra speed and force.
She took the opportunity to gracefully snatch Ame-no-Ohabari from Warui's grasp, and her blade came crashing down on Warui's head like a sledgehammer.
"Ririsu Prana: Shōkyo!"
Val struck something solid, and there was a burst of blinding light. Smoke and dust flew everywhere. The lethal ability of Val's Shōkyo, guided by a refined technique she'd learned from Raijah. In tandem, maybe she'd done it.
When the column of smoke cleared, Warui wasn't there. There was nothing where he stood, and for a second, Val gave into the suspense, thinking she'd slain Warui.
That is until she noticed a gap in the asteroid, one too symmetrical to have been carved out naturally. If Shōkyo had struck there, then where was Warui?
Val looked around frantically for Warui. She spotted him just a few paces away, noting that his aura had returned. "Not bad," Warui said half-heartedly. "But you should've let me finish talking."
Ame-no-Ohabari escaped Val's grip, instantly appearing within Warui's clutches. Warui grinned smugly. "Once you're acknowledged as its master, you can summon Ame-no-Ohabari from anywhere."
Val's body began to heave. She had wasted a considerable amount of Prana with that last attack and gained nothing of it. Annoyance began to set in, but she'd gained some hope from that encounter. Although it was just for a second, likely even less, she still managed to get the upper hand on Warui.
Additionally, the exchange helped Val notice a flaw in Warui's character. The wounds Saku had caused him were still hindering him, physically and mentally. Warui was likely aware of this weakness, but if she could just find a way to exploit it in time, she could stand a fair chance. Val sank into a deep stance, eager to exploit her advantage.
Warui continued, "Your impatience is just a testament to your arrogance. But very well, I'll spare you the details. I myself don't know much about the true power of Ame-no-Ohabari. However, Blue did explain the basics. This blade's ability is like none other. It ignores any physical resistance, allowing the user to cut directly at the target's spirit. Even with Elite cells, healing wounds caused by it is impossible through natural means."
Val tensed into a solid carving of herself. Her palms paled from how tight her fists grew.
Warui approached slowly. "It's a pity. You could be so much stronger, but you were too ignorant to draw out its real power. No matter, I will show you myself. . ."
". . .Observe."
Those were the last words Val heard before agony exploded in her left eye. She shrieked and fell to her knees, instinctively covering the open wound with her palm. A thin line of blood trickled down, running into the corner of her mouth.
Shooting pain rippled from the single point of contact, and only then did she process that she couldn't see out of her left. With her single functioning eye, she stared at Warui in stupefied disbelief.
Warui seemed to enjoy watching Val despair. "I've just done you a great favor, Saku," he said with curt eagerness. "Earlier, you said you wanted to be like your master. I figured the least I could do was help you look like him."
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone