A Battle Beyond Limits
Akaima stood majestically amidst the flames surrounding him, the energy emanating from him causing the shattered mountain to tremble, with corpses scattered everywhere.
Yosuko's Perspective: So it was real… My prediction was correct. From the start, it was clear that the one before me was not human, but why does he pretend to be one? My body began to sweat heavily, as the more I thought about it, the more complicated it became.
Akaima: It seems I should get serious about this fight. He wonders: How can someone with the power of a ruler disguise themselves as human?
Akaima smirked cunningly and thought to himself: "It's simple, I'm not a ruler, I'm the embodiment of death and destruction. But there's no need for the dead to know that."
I looked at Yosuko, who was sweating, and said:
"Now, let's continue the fight."
Yosuko grabbed his large sword and decided to use his power. He summoned a massive block of ice, large enough to destroy an entire village, and threw it towards me.
When it neared me, I decided to show him a fraction of my power. I drew my sword from its sheath, and with a single slash, I split the block of ice in half.
Yosuko ran at me with all his speed and tried to strike me with his massive sword. I realized immediately that it was a plan: Yosuko intended to throw the ice block to make me cut it, then he would surprise me with a sword strike.
Yosuko was close to hitting me, but with lightning speed, I managed to dodge it narrowly.
The fight became interesting; I started getting serious. The flames began to surround me once more. I returned my sword to its sheath, and flames erupted from my hands, with Yosuko standing before me. I said:
"Playtime is over."
With one strike, the flames covered the area, and the ice began to melt.
Yosuko summoned his element again, trying to freeze the area once more, but with another fiery strike, the place exploded in a massive fireball.
Yosuko began attacking with everything he had, knowing that any mistake could be his end.
Akaima appeared in front of Yosuko with a speed that left Yosuko no time to think, and flames began to surround the area. Due to Akaima's terrifying speed, the ground was destroyed, and it seemed like the mountain might collapse.
Yosuko thought to himself: "If I don't block that strike, I may really die."
Yosuko tried to block Akaima's strike, but an explosion caused him to lose consciousness, and the mountain collapsed entirely. Rocks began falling everywhere.
At the same time, as the mountain collapsed and Yosuko lost consciousness, a flash of memories started playing before his eyes...
---
Memories from the Past
Sixty years ago, Yosuko was ten years old... The war between humans and yokai was at its peak. The empire was on the brink of destruction, with cities and villages being wiped out.
In one city, there was a child with white hair and many scars on his hand. It was Yosuko.
Yosuko thought and whispered to himself:
"I need to get home, it's late. The yokai appear at night, so I need to return."
A sound of movement...
I began to feel truly uneasy. Yosuko shouted:
"Who are you?! Show yourself!"
An old man appeared, his body frail and injured in his chest, bleeding heavily. With every step he took, he bled more. He seemed like he was going to die any moment.
Yosuko ran quickly to help him, grabbing his shoulders and trying to help him walk.
The old man smiled weakly and said:
"You're really a kind-hearted child, thank you. I thought you'd leave me and go."
Yosuko smiled and felt warmth from the old man's words, but he was worried because if he didn't hurry, the old man might die any moment.
Yosuko managed to get to the city, helping the old man.
He went to his house, but when he entered, his father slapped him and shouted:
"How could you come back at this time?! What if a yokai killed you? Do you think this is a joke? What if the city gates are closed?! Also, why are your clothes covered in blood?!"
Yosuko said to his father:
"I'm sorry, Dad, I found an old man who was about to die, so I tried to save him. I promise I won't do it again."
Yosuko's father calmed down, placed his left hand on Yosuko's shoulder, and said:
"The thing is, I didn't want to lose you. Sometimes we must sacrifice, but what would have happened if you were late and the city gates were closed?! Do you know what would have happened? Also, what if the old man was a yokai disguised as a human? Did you think of that?"
Yosuko replied:
"No, I didn't think of that."
His father said:
"Then, go to your room now."
---
One Week Later
Yosuko visited the old man, telling him everything he was doing.
Yosuko had already become attached to the old man, considering him like a grandfather, and the old man told him stories of his adventures.
After a few days, Yosuko's father became worried that his son was late, so he went looking for him. He was shocked by what he saw.
His eyes widened, and he screamed at his son in horror:
"Stay away before you die!"
Yosuko looked behind him and was stunned to see the old man transforming into a yokai!
It turned out that the old man was a yokai all along.
Terrifying claws appeared from his hands, his teeth became sharp, and his body grew taller.
He wasn't an ordinary yokai, but a powerful one, as he took the form of the human he consumed.
He tried to attack Yosuko, who froze from fear, but Yosuko's father jumped in front of him, sacrificing himself to save his son.
His body was split in half by the yokai's strike.
The townspeople began to flee, and Yosuko was stunned, trying to hide as he heard the screams of people.
He heard the sound of destruction, the city was being destroyed by the yokai, and they were everywhere, causing a terrifying massacre.
Yosuko cried in fear as he witnessed his father's death, feeling responsible for everything happening.
After a few minutes, the city was annihilated, and everyone in it was killed.
The yokai were about to leave, but they heard movement and saw a child jumping in front of them, carrying a sword, as if he had awakened his powers, with ice flowing from him.
The yokai tried to kill him, but the sword pierced his skin, and began to slowly tear him apart, causing the yokai to scream in pain.
Yosuko watched as the yokai's body was gradually torn apart until he died.
This child was Yosuko.
After avenging his father's death by killing the yokai, Yosuko saw a group of yokai, but he fled as he was injured.
Yosuko arrived at the capital after enduring extreme hardships.
He lost everything in an instant. He began training as a child, trying to control his powers.
---
Ten Years Later
Yosuko became a young man and joined the samurai.
He had many scars, especially on his face, and he killed anyone before him without mercy, eventually becoming one of the three leaders.
But one day, while fighting yokai and monsters, a ruler appeared before him.
His face was mysterious, and he had a terrifying aura.
Yosuko tried to fight him, but ended up being defeated soundly.
---
Twenty Years Later
All the yokai in the empire were killed, and Yosuko was one of the major contributors to this war, cleansing ten cities from yokai on his own.
But when Yosuko went to the emperor and asked him to continue the war, the emperor's response was a refusal.
Yosuko felt that the empire had betrayed him after he gave his life for it, so he decided to leave the samurai.
He realized that the rulers were not saviors, but the cause of the war, so he decided to prepare to fight them, and he would never forget what happened when he fought one of the rulers.
---
Yosuko regained consciousness, finding the mountain collapsed, and standing before Akaima, a terrifying aura emanated from him. He said coldly:
"Now, I'm ready to fight you with everything I've got."