"I'm staying."
Even if she might be a burden, she had to see this through.
It all began because of her—so she had to be there when it ended.
Kaien gave a small nod.
"Alright."
He didn't mind. After all, he was about to beat the living crap out of Erza's ex—might as well do it with her permission.
"Hmph! You think you can beat me while dragging around dead weight?" Jellal sneered. "You're far too arrogant. I'm not just any mage. Even my thought-projection was enough to earn me a seat among the Ten Wizard Saints."
He flashed the silver badge hanging from his neck—the official insignia of the Ten Wizard Saints. Only ten of the most powerful mages in all of Fiore bore such an honor.
Kaien shrugged.
"Look, first of all—Erza's not dead weight. In fact, with a beautiful woman cheering me on, I fight at 120% capacity.
And as for the Ten Wizard Saints… eh. I beat one of you guys not long ago. Honestly? Bit overrated."
Jellal's smile twitched. Being insulted directly wasn't new, but having his title mocked stung more than he expected.
"What if I went for Erza first?" he challenged coldly. "What would you do then?"
Kaien's eyes narrowed.
"Obviously? I'd stop you.
And if you really try it, I'll rip this tower down and bury you in the rubble. Want to test that theory?"
Jellal flinched.
He had spent eight years building the Tower of Heaven. He didn't want to go through that again.
And judging from Kaien's tone, that threat was very real. That earlier display of raw power had nearly shattered the entire structure—it was no bluff.
"...Fine then," Jellal muttered. "Let's begin. I'll turn you to ash—with Heavenly Body Magic."
"Meteor!!"
Whoosh—!!
Golden light flared around him as he launched forward at terrifying speed, closing in on Kaien like a meteor crashing from the heavens.
Kaien calmly drew a kunai and slashed toward him.
Zing—!
But Jellal twisted mid-air, dodging around the blade, and reappeared behind Kaien in a blur.
"Got you—!"
But Kaien vanished.
All that remained was a single glowing kunai embedded in the ground.
"Tch—! Teleportation..."
Jellal's face twisted.
He'd forgotten—this form of Kaien's came with teleportation magic.
And in the split second it took for that thought to process—Kaien was already beside him.
The kunai in his grip surged forward toward Jellal's temple.
Jellal barely accelerated in time to avoid it, veering away and circling wide.
More kunai came flying his way.
One, two, three—Kaien kept throwing them like precision darts, embedding them in the walls and floor all around them.
Jellal's Meteor spell helped him dodge them all with ease.
"Futile!" he scoffed. "Your attacks can't hit me. I'm too fast. But mine? I only need one opening—and your teleportation magic has a cost, doesn't it? How many more times can you use it?"
On the ground, Erza watched with growing anxiety.
"He's fast—!"
Jellal's speed was overwhelming. Even her eyes struggled to keep track of him.
If this dragged on, Kaien's magic might really run out.
Kaien, however, wasn't worried.
He smirked.
"Speed, huh…"
He had, after all, received the form of the Fourth Hokage—the man once hailed as the Yellow Flash of Konoha.
In the world of shinobi, nobody dared challenge that title.
"Let's see you dodge this—!" Jellal shouted, diving toward him again to force another teleportation.
Kaien vanished instantly.
Just as Jellal predicted.
But—he reappeared right in front of him.
"What—?!"
BAM!!
A fist slammed straight into Jellal's jaw, sending him flying.
Before he could recover, Kaien reappeared at his side with an elbow strike to the spine.
"Gah!!"
Kaien's form flickered in and out of vision, teleporting faster than Jellal could react.
Punches, kicks, slams—
"ARGHHHHH!!!"
Jellal screamed as he was pummeled like a ball in a pinball machine.
Erza watched with wide eyes.
She could barely keep track of Jellal's speed before.
But Kaien?
Kaien was faster.
"Meteor!!"
Jellal howled, blasting his body with light to burst upward, breaking away.
Breathing hard, bruised and bloodied, he wiped blood from his mouth and glared down.
"This is impossible!! You—how can you teleport so many times?! And that speed—?!"
He was panicking.
Spatial magic was rare—especially teleportation of this caliber. It required insane precision and consumed massive amounts of energy.
Yet Kaien had been flitting around as if cost didn't exist.
Then Jellal noticed them—the kunai embedded earlier.
"...So that's it. Those kunai—they're your coordinates."
Kaien smiled.
"Ding ding ding~ Took you long enough."
Jellal clenched his fists.
"So what now? You just gonna keep playing tag?"
He narrowed his eyes.
"If you plan to keep that form, I won't be playing nice anymore."
He could destroy the kunai, yes—but even so, if Kaien could teleport Etherion across the ocean, there was no chance he'd be able to stop him if he decided to flee.
And if Kaien escaped…
Jellal would never sleep peacefully again.
"...Fair enough," Kaien nodded. "Let's switch it up."
With a shimmer of light, he released the Fourth Hokage form.
Jellal's eyes gleamed.
'Heh. Idiot. You just gave up your advantage.'
Big mistake.
But Kaien just grinned.
"Now…"
"Let me show you what real destructive magic looks like."