Zack's scream, a sound of pure agony and denial, tore through the silence of the square. "COME TO ME, BLACK MOON!!!"
In the next instant, a black lightning bolt, dense and alive, descended from the blood-stained sky. Tobi, his hunter's instincts signaling a bad omen, leaped backward in a series of somersaults, narrowly dodging annihilation. The lightning struck Zack's hands, not as a punishment, but as an embrace.
The entire square was swallowed by the electrical discharge. The lightning spread across the ground, a tangle of crackling energy. The sound of the electricity mingled with the agonizing screams of the crowd. The sadistic smile on the faces of the Red City citizens twisted into a grimace of horror. They were receiving continuous doses of electricity, an energy strong enough to burn the skin and wrench cries of pain from them.
Zack slowly rose, his body interwoven with ebony stripes that looked like lightning bolts. The intense black emanated from his eyes and covered his skin, pulsing with power. The Hunter had awakened.
"What the hell is this?! According to the information I got, you were without the Black Moon!" Tobi shouted, his voice filled with disbelief and rage.
Zack merely looked at the sword in his hand. His old friend, the Black Moon, had heard his call of pain.
"I always hated this shit!" Tobi's gaze was one of anger and discomfort. "What worries me isn't the lightning, it's the sword. Bastard."
Zack's Hunter gaze was cold, like a snake's. His body emanated blood, not from wounds, but from power. "Tobi, I'm going to break all your bones. I will make you understand every detail of my suffering. You will feel the weight of the Black Moon."
What stood before Tobi was no ordinary enemy. The Black Moon was pointed at the heavens, absorbing lightning and summoning thunder. Deep down, the sensation of a black snake with red eyes was emerging from Zack's presence. It was him demanding blood, the desire to hunt fused with the will of the sword.
"I always wanted to fight you, but now I understand the difference between a fight and a hunt. I am the prey here!" Tobi smiled, realizing the situation was unique. He took a long drag from his cigarette, closed his eyes for an instant, and murmured: "Let's begin."
Zack's eyes fixed on Tobi.
**Level 1 Technique - El Thor!**
In seconds, a black lightning bolt ten meters in diameter fell in Tobi's direction. There was no time to react. The blow hit him squarely. The explosion was seen from afar; the heat of the lightning created a huge crater in the ground, and houses and buildings shook, shattering windows.
Tobi emerged from the dust, his clothes burned and torn, his long coat ablaze at the edges. His right arm was completely scorched, with raw flesh exposed.
He raised his left hand and made a two-finger sign.
**Level 1 Technique - Symbiotic Concealment.**
There were a thousand Tobis surrounding Zack. He had his own army, but he alone was enough.
"Do you think you'll make me retreat, Tobi? I won't go easy on you. Come!" Zack's voice was thick; he craved blood.
Several Tobis attacked Zack. It was two thousand punches, two thousand kicks, all aimed at him, but for Zack, it was easy. There was no challenge. He was too fast. The lightning protected him from the attacks, seeming to have a life of its own, defending his back, his sides, his world.
All of Tobi's clones were decimated in the blink of an eye.
"Where are you, Tobi? Don't hide in the shadows. I am the shadow. Remember? I am the one with the black eye that everyone hates."
Zack looked at the crowd, some fallen, others watching the fight with a macabre smile. The baby cried desperately.
Tobi, silently, without making a sound, emerged from Zack's shadow, attacking his neck directly. A small white knife struck a layer of electrical energy. Tobi's eyes widened. Zack was protected by the element itself. He had never seen that.
Tobi backed away, but he wasn't fast enough. A lightning bolt fell from the sky beside him. There was Zack, who had teleported through the lightning. Zack swung the Black Moon, which struck Tobi's burned arm directly.
"Aaaaaahh!!" A sharp cry of pain echoed throughout the area. The sound was so intense that it drowned out all other noise.
His arm was severed.
Tobi quickly retreated as blood gushed and fell all over the ground. He was at a disadvantage and knew he needed to change the situation quickly or he would die.
"I told you, Tobi! I'll show you why I'm feared. You will understand what it is to stand before death."
Zack was graceful, fast, and his spiritual energy mentally crushed his enemies. Seeing him consumed by the lightning, by the Black Moon, was a nightmare.
Tobi realized that Zack was not acting normally. He seemed to be enjoying himself, smiling with pleasure at every blow. He was treating him with disdain. It was the image of a Hunter torturing his prey.
Zack quickly appeared beside Tobi, but Tobi was faster. He used his coat, which was still catching fire at the edges, and threw it in Zack's direction, obstructing his vision. Then, Tobi kicked, driving through his coat and hitting Zack's stomach hard, sending him flying, crashing through walls and houses until he stopped in a pile of stone and wood rubble.
"Bastard, he's strong." Tobi, panting, used his left hand to grab a scroll with golden symbols and unusual letters, placing it over his severed arm. The wound healed, and the bleeding stopped.
"Alright, Zack. Then let's use everything!"
Again, Tobi grabbed a scroll and put it in his mouth. Using only his left hand, he released a green energy around his body.
**Seal Released, Soul for Soul.**
Tobi, with a confident look, gazed in the direction of Zack, who was rising from the rubble.
"Let's dance, friend. Let's relive the golden age."
The scroll disappeared from Tobi's mouth. Without pause, he pulled out another scroll, throwing it high and opening it in the air. He spun his entire body and slammed the palm of his left hand onto the scroll. A white smoke spread, and from it emerged Tobi with a two-meter golden scythe in his hand. He ran toward Zack.
He was fast, strong, and his spiritual energy had changed. Tobi laughed with pleasure.
"Then let's dance, old friend!"
Zack plunged his sword into the ground and used both hands to create a black dome around the baby, protecting it.
Immediately afterward, Zack used his breathing technique, forming a clone that possessed 50% of his power. It was not a common clone, but one that had its own life, thoughts, and choices, in addition to half of Zack's power.
The clone appeared beside Zack and ran toward Tobi.
"The bastard, besides having an element, knows how to fight!" A laugh of pleasure followed. "You know how to cause fear, Zack." Tobi was different. He had unleashed all his power, and now there was no turning back.
Zack's clone threw a punch toward Tobi's face, but it was slow and easily dodged. The clone did not have all of Zack's speed and strength. "Do you think you'll beat me with a clone, Zack?"
But Tobi didn't know that something would change his perception.
"Baron!" roared the clone, trading his strength for speed. The punch was faster, grazing Tobi's face. He did not expect this change in velocity.
Tobi counterattacked using the scythe, coming from above, but the Clone was quick. He kicked Tobi's left hand, preventing him from moving the scythe, destroying his base. Immediately afterward, he spun in the air, delivering a kick to Tobi's chest, pushing him back.
"Do you think increasing your speed will change anything? Your blows are weak!" Tobi said, confidently, as he put his scythe in defense mode. Then, a thunderbolt fell, and Zack emerged from it, swinging the Black Moon at Tobi's back. Tobi was fast and executed a flip, dodging the attack. Then, he spun his body like a top in the air and fell onto Zack. The scythe spun with him; it was an absurd attack power. Zack merely held the impact, and his clone came to his aid.
"Stench!" shouted the Clone. The world slowed down. Tobi's vital points became apparent; his internal organs were visible, and so were his weak spots.
The high concentration of the ability forced the clone's musculature, making his body rigid, but using the Baron technique, he managed to compensate for the stiffness with speed.
The Clone noticed that, even with Tobi spinning at an absurd speed, he had a weak point: his legs were left unprotected while forcing the rotation.
The Clone quickly used dark energy around his body, giving him a layer of protection and strength, leaping toward Tobi.
Tobi was fast and broke out of the top formation, jumping backward with several somersaults, moving away from Zack.
"You're good, Zack. Do you think I don't know your techniques? You use vital points. I remember well." Tobi placed his scythe on his shoulder and smiled.
"One minute, Zack. I need to smoke my cigarette, and right now I only have one hand."
Zack laughed at the situation, a funny joke for a cruel moment.
The clone stood in front of Zack while he laughed at the situation. "Tobi, let me light it for you."
Tobi plunged the scythe into the ground as he took the cigarette, putting it in his mouth.
"Do the honors, my friend." A sincere and cheerful smile from Tobi. From afar, the killer's gaze vanished and was replaced by Zack's joyful and gentle smile.
"I will." A spark of lightning fell onto Tobi's cigarette, lighting it.
"Thank you," Tobi replied, nodding and looking at the red moon.
"What a wonderful night. I feel alive. Lighting a cigarette with lightning should be an everyday custom." Tobi burst into laughter, and Zack did too.
The red moon illuminated the entire place. The weight of the choices, the weight of the environment, was felt.
In seconds, Zack disappeared, and Tobi did too. Both clashed, sword and scythe, in a loud metallic strike. A wave of red and dark energy swept through the entire Red City.
The duel had resumed. The final dance between betrayal and brotherhood.