Six routes leading to the same destination, yet each facing a completely different fate.
It was like a game of Russian Roulette with their lives on the line… a revolver with six chambers, and Law was the single bullet loaded into one of them.
On the road, Shalnark sat in the passenger seat of a car, pressing buttons on his phone. Under his control, the puppet beside him demonstrated masterful racing skills.
'Seems like no one's chasing us anymore.'
Shalnark looked up. Through the rearview mirror, he could see thick smoke billowing in the distance behind them, the result of a chain reaction of explosions caused by mafia cars colliding with others.
The wreckage of vehicles completely blocked the main thoroughfare. Even if the pursuing mafia members took alternate routes, they wouldn't catch up anytime soon.
'Not sure about the others' situation. Anyway, I'll head to meet the Boss and the rest first,' Shalnark thought.
The road ahead began to clear, with noticeably fewer vehicles. As this road led to the city outskirts, it was seldom used.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, Shalnark's expression changed.
A dark figure descended diagonally from the clear night sky ahead.
Speed, distance, altitude...!
In an instant, Shalnark's mind calculated these variables, concluding that the falling figure would land precisely on his high-speed car.
Almost as soon as he reached this conclusion, he kicked the car door open and, at a speed of 150 kilometers per hour, leaped out without hesitation.
Simultaneously, the dark figure, wielding a sharp blade, smashed into the car's hood. The long sword pierced through the windshield, stabbing into the now-empty passenger seat.
Shalnark, having jumped from the car, protected his body with Aura. He bounced heavily off the ground, his body sent flying.
While still airborne, he pressed a button on his phone, issuing only a single command to the puppet: brake.
Screech!
As Shalnark remained airborne, an ear-piercing screech of brakes sounded. The car, its hood crushed, flipped over.
Sssshhk!
A sound almost too faint to hear. The flipping car was cleanly sliced in two, its momentum carrying the halves forward.
The figure, however, disregarded the forward momentum and remained firmly in place.
The newcomer was Law. His swift ambush had missed, and he was surprised by Shalnark's reaction and decisiveness.
Limited by the terrain, his ambush plan involved descending from the sky. Whether the target braked, slowed down, or attempted to swerve, Law could adapt and kill Shalnark on the spot.
However, he hadn't expected Shalnark to jump from the car at such high speed so decisively, and to command the puppet to brake immediately, cutting off Law's chance to press the advantage.
It was precisely this brake command that caused Law's next attack to be delayed by over a second… a crucial interval in a rapidly changing battle.
Shalnark finally managed to stop his momentum, now over a hundred meters away.
He looked at the figure standing imposingly on the wide road, his face paling.
"It's him."
He muttered in disbelief.
He had no time to ponder why Law was here, nor to feel relieved that his momentum after jumping had created distance. Just this single glance gave him the answer.
This was a premeditated action aimed at killing him.
'My winning condition is inserting the antenna into the target. But if it's him... there's no chance.'
Shalnark quickly pulled out a second antenna. As Law began to move, the same decisiveness he showed when jumping from the car resurfaced. Without hesitation, he stabbed the antenna into his own body.
[Black Voice]
The condition for completely controlling a target was inserting the antenna into their body, which also served as the endpoint to end a battle.
Compared to the straightforward Enhancers, Manipulators encompassed more categories, allowing for various tactical approaches.
When facing average opponents, achieving control ended the fight. When facing powerful enemies, it was best to avoid direct confrontation and fight by manipulating puppets.
Among the various tactical categories, Manipulators typically focused on controlling others or external objects. Few considered controlling themselves, but Shalnark was one of those few.
Instantly assessing the situation, Shalnark concluded that any tactic centered around the antenna would be like paper before Law. Therefore, he decisively activated the automatic control.
This was another application of Black Voice… inserting the antenna into oneself activated the [Autopilot Mode].
In this mode, Shalnark's Aura would temporarily break through its limits, and all his physical stats would multiply several times over. To some extent, it was truly unreasonable.
Simultaneously, upon activating Autopilot Mode, Shalnark would lose consciousness. His body's movements and thoughts would be entirely handled by the phone's automatic operation.
He only ever activated Autopilot Mode when in dire straits. But this time, he activated it before the battle had even properly begun.
Because the enemy was Law.
Whoosh!
A vast, powerful golden aura erupted from Shalnark's body. On the ground around him, a distinct golden ripple visibly rotated a meter away from him.
Billowing Aura surged upwards, creating an airflow that made Shalnark's hair stand on end. Rendered by the golden aura, he looked remarkably like a Super Saiyan.
This aura truly transcended human limits, surpassing even a fully powered Uvogin.
'Such decisiveness...'
Seeing Shalnark activate Autopilot Mode without a second thought, Law abruptly stopped, now less than twenty meters away from Shalnark.
If not for the car's sudden braking, he would have closed the distance by now and likely decapitated Shalnark with a single slash.
But there were no ifs.
He had to admit Shalnark indeed had remarkable qualities.
In that situation, any slight error in judgment, any hint of hesitation, would have denied him this breathing room.
[Ivory White General]
The phantom behind Law solidified. The Ivory White General manifested and, from twenty meters away, swung its long blade down towards Shalnark.
A thick sword energy tore through the road like it was rotten wood, striking Shalnark directly. The golden aura was compressed inward by the force, yet Shalnark only took a few steps back, completely unharmed, having directly blocked the sword energy.
"Autopilot Mode activated."
"Enemy confirmed."
A mechanical female voice came from the phone.
Shalnark's eyes were completely unfocused. He condensed the surging golden aura, covering his body like a solid substance.
"Tsk tsk."
Law couldn't help but express admiration. The amount of Aura Shalnark was currently manifesting surpassed any Nen User he had encountered, including himself.
The fact that he could directly withstand the Ivory White General's sword energy unscathed proved that this visually explosive golden Aura wasn't just for show.
'However...'
Law dismissed the Ivory White General.
Simultaneously, Shalnark stomped his foot, instantly cratering the hard concrete road.
His figure transformed into a fearsome golden beam, shooting towards Law like a comet. The concrete along his path was flung aside like scattered tiles.
'Just like fireworks...'
Law evaded Shalnark's attack, showing no intention to counter or attack.
From this moment on, this was Shalnark's period of unparalleled strength. Based on Manifested Aura alone, he could rank among the top three in the world.
But Law had three methods to kill Shalnark.
Given his personality, he naturally chose the easiest one.