"Your blood! It belongs to me!"
The sheer audacity behind such a direct, reckless charge was staggering.
But for DIO, it was the only move left on the board.
Becoming a Heroic Spirit offered many benefits, yet it also meant bearing the weight of one's own established "Destiny."
Engaging Jotaro Kujo in a fair trial of strength would only end in the same humiliating defeat he had suffered in Cairo a decade ago.
Furthermore, within this prolonged [Time Stop], DIO's own window of operation was strictly limited.
While he was alive, he could only move for two seconds in another's stilled time. As a Servant, that limit had initially increased to five.
But after consuming Diavolo's blood, he had pushed his threshold to a full nine seconds.
DIO had to manufacture a miracle within those nine seconds.
He was a man of supreme arrogance, consumed by the belief that he could succeed where everyone else would fail. And so, he had launched himself at Rohan Kishibe.
"[HEAVEN'S DOOR]!!"
Rohan was momentarily stunned by the vampire's boldness, yet the artist's instincts remained sharp. He shouted the name of his Stand, calling forth the manuscript-bodied figure to defend him.
"Out of my way!"
Faced with the small, fragile-looking Stand, DIO didn't even break his stride.
'!'
A blur of incredible speed flashed past. [The World] seized [Heaven's Door] by the throat, hoisting the Stand into the air before slamming it violently into the rooftop.
"Urgh!"
Shared damage translated the impact directly to Rohan, who was sent sprawling across the concrete.
"Weak! Pathetic!!"
What did a few clever tricks matter in the face of absolute power?
[The World] might be unable to match [Star Platinum] in a direct clash, but that didn't mean it was made of "Plastic." Against any other opponent, it was an engine of destruction.
"I have you now!"
DIO's hand, tipped with wickedly long, needle-sharp claws, lunged directly for Rohan's neck.
THUD!
At the critical moment, Amber threw herself forward, her body slamming into DIO's heavy arm and forcing the strike wide.
The sharp claws buried themselves into the rooftop mere inches from Rohan's throat.
"Tch!"
Seeing his strike miss its mark, a wave of incandescent rage washed over DIO.
Jotaro was already closing in from behind, and his remaining time in the stilled world was less than three seconds.
'I will not...'
In that moment of desperation, DIO made a perilous gamble.
He reached out with his free hand, his target the girl who had dared to interfere.
SQUELCH!
"ORA!!"
As his claws tore into Amber's shoulder and her blood sprayed into the air, Jotaro finally reached him. [Star Platinum]'s fist slammed into DIO's side with enough force to shatter stone.
"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!!!"
A relentless barrage of punches followed, each strike systematically deforming the vampire's body.
Limbs were shattered, organs were pulverized, and DIO was sent tumbling across the roof like a discarded doll.
Snap!
In that same instant, the temporal suspension broke, and the world resumed its natural flow.
"Assassin!"
Rohan scrambled to his feet, his voice urgent as he saw DIO's severed hand still embedded in Amber's shoulder.
"I'm fine... the claws just caught me..."
Amber gritted her teeth, shaking her head as she manually pulled the grisly remain from her flesh.
Compared to the physical powerhouses she was currently surrounded by, a [Contractor] like her was effectively just a "Normal Human."
A man of DIO's stature possessed a fist that could nearly swallow her entire head.
CRACKLE!
Drip... drip...
DIO's body began to make a series of sickening, explosive sounds, similar to firecrackers going off under skin.
He was missing more than half of his torso and both arms, and the remaining form was a horrific mess of mangled muscle and bone.
The sight was all too familiar to Jotaro Kujo.
"I see..."
"The power of... stopping time..."
"It was you... wasn't it?!"
Despite the catastrophic damage, DIO was still clinging to his manifestation.
The blood he had just tasted had given him the answer he sought.
Amber was a temporal manipulator!
'What a waste!'
If he had only realized it sooner and secured her life force, he would have achieved a power beyond even his wildest dreams.
Instead, the damnable Jotaro had intervened at the perfect moment once again.
BOOM!!
Even as the thought crossed his mind, the remnants of his body began to disintegrate.
With a final, explosive burst, everything but a single severed leg vanished into a cloud of spiritual dust on the roof.
"It seems my previous theory was correct."
"DIO became a Heroic Spirit, but the cause of his original 'Death' was the damage I inflicted upon him in Egypt."
"Therefore, whenever he faces me, his body reflexively seeks to avoid the confrontation in order to hide that reality."
Jotaro looked at the severed limb on the ground, a sight he had seen before.
He had a feeling that even if he hadn't used his full strength, even a few casual strikes would have triggered DIO's "Self-destruction" once the connection was made.
"Is this the true gap in our power and speed?"
"When Jotaro said his Stand was weaker than yours, I assumed I could afford to take him lightly. I was a fool."
Rohan stood up, his heart still racing from the near brush with death.
It was staggering.
The raw force and velocity of the attacks...
Even though he had witnessed the power of [Star Platinum], DIO's [The World] was no slouch.
Rohan had overestimated his own ability to react.
Even among those with 'A' rank stats in Power and Speed, there were tiers of mastery that a man like him couldn't begin to fathom.
[The World] couldn't beat [Star Platinum], but it could certainly slaughter almost any other Stand in Morioh before they could even manifest.
If Amber hadn't intervened at the last second, it would have been the end for him.
"No, to be honest, he is an incredibly cunning snake."
"If I had known he would pull a stunt like that, I wouldn't have strayed so far from your side."
"I thought I was protecting you by keeping the engagement away from the group, but it only served to create an opening for him."
Jotaro wiped a smear of blood from his glove, his voice heavy with self-reproach.
The cold anger that had filled his mind had dissipated, replaced by a strange sense of growth, as if the trial had clarified his resolve.
'DIO's transformation...'
'Surely... that's not possible.'
Jotaro stared at the spot where the vampire had vanished, lost in thought for a moment.
"At least we've neutralized one major threat. Now all that's left is to find that bastard's Master."
"Dammit! How could this happen..."
"Rider is already dead?!"
Diavolo used the power of [King Crimson] to sprint through the shadows of the streets, putting as much distance as possible between himself and the rooftop. His mind was in a state of pure turmoil.
He didn't know the exact details of the clash, but the severing of the link left him in no doubt. He was now "Isolated and Alone."
Lose?
Impossible.
He was Diavolo! He was the Boss! He wouldn't allow himself to fall in a place like this!
He didn't have a Servant anymore?
It didn't matter. As long as he could secure the seven Dragon Balls, his victory would be absolute!
There were ways to win this war that didn't involve a test of physical strength!
Sizz!
"Hey, Okuyasu! Are you okay?!"
"What the hell is wrong with that guy?! Why can he breathe fire out of his mouth?!"
On the other side of town, Josuke and his group had already engaged Yoshikage Kira.
"It seems the [Time Stop] from the Saber's group didn't affect you. I suppose I have Rohan Kishibe's Stand to thank for that."
"Well, it's a minor nuisance in the grand scheme of things."
"As long as I can neutralize the three of you, there won't be a problem."
"Once you're all dead... those peaceful, quiet days I cherish so much will finally return."
Yoshikage Kira stood on the rooftop of his company building, looking down at Josuke with a calm, practiced composure.
"Dammit... this guy's Servant is a freak!"
Josuke glared at Itachi Uchiha, his mind racing through the events of the last few minutes.
They had acted during Amber's [Time Stop], closing the distance to Kira and delivering what should have been a devastating series of strikes.
But when time resumed, the "Yoshikage Kira" they had been hitting simply dissolved into a cloud of white smoke.
They had finally tracked the real one down to this rooftop.
There was no doubt about it. The "Kira" they had encountered downstairs was an illusion manufactured by the Servant.
"Caster! Let's take him down together! We'll wipe that smug look right off his face!"
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika_Kagura]