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Ruri's aggressive assault took Midorima by surprise. From the very beginning, she aimed straight for his throat, while simultaneously leaving herself wide open, exposing numerous vulnerabilities.
If Midorima were to greedily exploit these openings, Akimoto would trade her life for his in a desperate, all-or-nothing exchange—except compared to her, his losses would be far greater.
Weighing the pros and cons of each possible move, Midorima had no choice but to temporarily adopt a defensive stance, blocking Akimoto's relentless attacks.
Akimoto had anticipated Midorima's reaction. As someone determined to become one of the Seven Swordsmen, he wouldn't take reckless risks.
Capitalizing on her momentum, she forced Midorima into continuous retreat.
Most spectators, unaware of the intricate mental duel between the two, saw only Midorima's successive withdrawals and assumed Akimoto had gained the upper hand.
After all, Akimoto's previous opponent had crumbled under this very onslaught—after sustaining multiple joint injuries, they had been swiftly decapitated.
Her offensive grew fiercer, until finally, crackling lightning began enveloping her body. At that moment, she unleashed her strongest strike.
The blade's gleam, wrapped in electricity, seared the eyes. Worse still, since Midorima's weapon was forged from metal, the current could easily conduct into his body.
"Die!" Akimoto roared, the air itself seeming to tear apart from the thunderous force, emitting a piercing explosive sound.
Knowing evasion was impossible, Midorima channeled his chakra into his ninjato, forming a chakra blade, and forcefully intercepted her attack.
Akimoto hadn't expected Midorima to counter. The impact sent her reeling as if she'd crashed into a wall, stumbling back two steps before she could steady herself. The moment she looked up, Midorima's blade was already descending toward her.
Even Midorima was in pain.
Akimoto's strike had been delivered with terrifying speed. To withstand it, he'd been forced to commit nearly all his strength into defense.
While he'd successfully repelled her, the lightning chakra cloaking Akimoto's body left his limbs numb and unresponsive.
Recognizing that the opportunity was fleeting, Midorima gritted his teeth against the paralysis and launched his counterattack.
As Mei Terumi had observed, Akimoto's strengths lay in her speed and lethal offense—she aimed to shorten the battle, ending it as quickly as possible. The reason was simple: her stamina couldn't sustain prolonged high-intensity combat.
In the initial exchanges, Akimoto could still barely hold her ground. But the longer the fight dragged on, the heavier her arms became.
"Surrender! You've lost!" Midorima shouted, knocking her back once more.
"Asachi Midorima, remember this—if I lose today, I won't be walking away from this arena alive." Akimoto tightened her grip on her ninjato. "Unlike you, I have no path left behind me."
Who still has a path behind them?
Midorima laughed bitterly in his heart.
If not for the threat of Igawa, he wouldn't have stepped onto this battlefield either.
Perhaps spurred by Midorima's words, when their blades clashed again, he could feel Akimoto summoning a resurgence of strength.
Lightning chakra wreathed her sword, each strike flashing like a thunderbolt, the air itself crackling with faint peals of thunder.
But…
It still wasn't enough.
If Midorima wanted to end the match without seriously injuring Akimoto, his only option was to stall until her chakra was exhausted, forcing her to concede. Yet, time was also a factor he couldn't ignore.
Akimoto, resolved to clash head-on with Midorima, mustered every ounce of strength into a horizontal slash aimed at his torso. But instead of meeting her directly, Midorima dropped low with blinding speed, evading the strike—and in that instant, every vital point on Akimoto's body lay exposed before him.
"Forgive me… but I must win."
His fist drove into Akimoto's abdomen, and as her body lurched forward, he followed with a crushing elbow strike to her back.
In an instant, Akimoto collapsed onto the ground.
The spectators, who had been cheering for both fighters, fell into stunned silence.
Midorima's flurry of counterattacks… had been too fast.
No one could even track his movements.
"As expected, this bastard never misses an opening," Zabuza growled through clenched teeth.
Mei shot him a sidelong glance. The dark circles under his eyes were definitely from a fist.
Akimoto had barely made any mistakes throughout the entire fight. Yet Midorima had seized upon the tiniest flaw in her assault and flipped the tables in an instant.
There was no denying it—Midorima had grown far stronger than before.
"Look over there…" Zabuza muttered in warning.
Mei followed his gaze. Kisame Hoshigaki stood with arms crossed in the spectator aisle, staring down at the arena with a predatory focus.
Further away, a girl with reddish-brown hair stood watching, twin pigtails sticking up like rabbit ears on either side of her head.
"That's… Kisame and Ameyuri Ringo?" Mei's eyes widened. "But why are they here?"
"Idiot. Every contestant is a potential opponent. They're just scouting the competition," Zabuza said through gritted teeth.
Clearly, Midorima's performance had drawn their attention.
"Well, the match is over. Midorima won," Mei exhaled in relief, turning back to the arena.
The proctor stepped forward to announce the result.
"The winner of this match is—"
"W-Wait…!"
A hoarse voice interrupted him.
Akimoto, clutching her sword, forced herself to her feet. Blood trickled from her forehead and the corner of her mouth.
"You're in no condition to keep fighting," Midorima warned.
"I told you… I won't surrender…" Akimoto's eyes burned into him. "Not unless I'm dead!"
"And what happens to your family if you die?" Midorima asked, bewildered.
"If I can't even protect them, what's the point of living?!" Lightning chakra flickered back to life around her body.
Midorima sighed.
He understood her desperation. But he, too, had reasons to keep moving forward.
"One final exchange. Winner takes all," he declared.
"Perfect." Akimoto wiped the blood from her lips, never breaking eye contact. "One strike decides it. If I lose… you'll have to step over my corpse."
Midorima didn't respond. Instead, he distanced himself, allowing both of them to prepare. Without a signal, they charged at each other simultaneously.
The lightning around Akimoto intensified, her form blurring into a streak of light. At the moment of impact, she became a single, blinding point of radiance.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Lunge!"
The arena became the brightest spot in the entire stadium. Spectators averted their eyes to avoid being dazzled.
By the time they looked back, the battle was already decided—Akimoto had been sent flying, crashing to the ground, motionless.
Midorima stood frozen in a swordsman's stance, but the ninjato in his hand had shattered into fragments, scattered across the floor.
"Impressive," Zabuza murmured, uncharacteristically awed.
"You could see that?" Mei rubbed her eyes. She hadn't looked away, but the glare had been too intense to make out anything.
"Of course. I'm wearing sunglasses." A hint of smugness crept into Zabuza's voice.
*****
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