Ren didn't believe a word of it.
A curse would never honor a deal with a human. To Jogo, humans were nothing but monkeys. The offer was just another game—an excuse to toy with them before burning them alive.
Still, the conversation bought a few extra seconds.
Ren lowered his center of gravity into a clean Zen'in combat stance. His eyes flicked toward the pitch-black blade in his hands as he recalled Jogo's earlier comment.
"First," Ren said calmly, "it's a katana. Not a sword."
He raised Nightfall and pointed the tip directly at Jogo's chest.
"Second… deal."
The ground beneath his feet exploded.
Ren crossed the clearing in an instant and swung Nightfall in a vicious horizontal slash aimed at Jogo's neck.
Jogo barely moved.
He leaned back just enough for the black steel to cut through empty air.
"Too slow," Jogo mocked.
Ren pressed forward without hesitation.
He chained one strike into the next, turning his momentum into a relentless series of Zen'in sword techniques. Slashes flowed into thrusts, thrusts into sweeping cuts, each attack aimed at a vital point.
None of them landed.
Jogo slipped through the assault with lazy movements, his hands still resting at his sides. He moved like someone casually stepping around rainwater instead of fighting for his life.
"Seriously?" Jogo sighed as he avoided another downward slash. "This is the trick that took my arm? I'm embarrassed for myself."
Ren narrowed his eyes.
Now.
He deliberately broke his rhythm.
His breathing grew rough. Frustration flashed across his face as he slammed his foot into the dirt and committed fully to a massive overhead strike.
The attack was strong.
And painfully obvious.
Jogo grinned.
Instead of dodging, he raised one hand and poured volcanic cursed energy into his palm, hardening it to catch the blade barehanded.
His fingers closed around Nightfall.
"Got you," Ren whispered.
The moment Jogo's cursed energy touched the katana, Nightfall reacted violently.
Purple static detonated from the blade with a deafening crack.
BZZZT-CRACK!
"GAHH!"
Jogo screamed as the shockwave ripped through the cursed energy coating his hand and tore into the rocky flesh beneath it. The blast forced his grip open and threw his balance off completely.
For the first time since the fight started, the Disaster Curse staggered.
Ren moved instantly.
He ripped the blade free, stepped inside Jogo's guard, and twisted his hips into a brutal diagonal slash across the curse's chest.
Black steel tore through the spotted yukata and carved deep into stone-like flesh.
Purple blood sprayed across the scorched ground.
Jogo stumbled backward and immediately tried to heal the wound, but Nightfall's anti-regeneration effect flared again. Purple static hissed across the gash, violently rejecting his cursed energy.
Ren flicked the blood from his blade and settled back into stance.
"That's one hit," he said evenly. "You mentioned a ten-second head start."
Jogo slowly lowered his hand from the wound across his chest.
He stared at the blood coating his fingers.
The amusement vanished from his face.
The crater atop his head erupted.
Black smoke and molten lava burst into the sky as the temperature in the forest spiked hard enough to reduce nearby trees to ash.
"You…" Jogo growled, his voice shaking the clearing. The ground beneath his feet softened into glowing magma. "You deceitful monkey!!."
His gaze dropped toward the sparking wound on his chest.
This time, he didn't even try to force regeneration through it.
Instead, white-hot flames ignited across his hand. Without hesitation, he dragged the burning palm directly across the wound, melting away the infected flesh.
Charred pieces of rock and skin hit the ash-covered ground.
Fresh cursed energy surged into the exposed area, rebuilding his chest almost instantly.
"Ten seconds," Jogo rumbled, heat distorting the air around him. "Was that the promise?"
He vanished.
Ren's instincts screamed.
This wasn't movement anymore. It felt like distance itself had disappeared.
Before Ren could react, Jogo was already in front of him.
A rock-hard fist slammed into his stomach.
The impact felt like a train collision.
Ren's ribs cracked instantly as every bit of air exploded from his lungs. His body launched backward, smashing through the burned remains of an oak tree before crashing into the dirt fifty feet away.
"Ren!"
Maki broke formation immediately.
She sprinted toward him, ripping her tactical blade free as fury twisted across her face.