It had been several days since the last clash with Kazumi Sawatari (Grease) and the Three Crows, and the conflict between the two sides had only escalated.
While Kazumi claimed he was there to reclaim the Full Bottles, it was evident his true motive was far more personal: revenge.
"That guy sucker-punched me!" Kazumi insisted every day. "I couldn't even show my real power!"
And so, he returned again and again, each time challenging Ryuga—each time hoping to land a proper fight. Ryuga didn't mind. He saw it as free sparring practice and a way to stay sharp.
Meanwhile, Sento (War Rabbit) was left to face the Three Crows. Although the numbers worked against him, his intellect and shifting combat styles kept him afloat—especially when Ryuga occasionally intervened to tip the scales.
The latest skirmish between the two sides was reaching a climax. Blows had been exchanged, Full Bottles had rattled on belts, and both sides were preparing for their final attacks when—
A beam of red light crashed from the sky, slamming into the space between them and halting the battle.
Rising from one knee, brushing imaginary dust from his shoulders, was the ever-unwelcome Stalk.
"Hehehe… Sorry to interrupt your little brawl."
Ryuga scowled. "What's with the dramatic landing, Terminator?"
"I'm here to assess your danger levels," Stalk declared.
In a flash of crimson light, he zipped between everyone on the battlefield, sliding like a snake at their feet. He patted Ryuga's leg in the process.
"Hey! Hands off!" Ryuga snapped. "You're lucky I'm suppressing my energy."
Unbothered, Stalk smirked and read the results:
Akabane: 3.7
Lan Yu: 3.7
Huang Yu: 3.6
Grease: 4.2
Sento (Build): 3.9
Ryuga (Cross-Z): 4.4
"This is your current strength level," Stalk announced."Sento, looks like you've been overtaken—again!"
Sento gave a dry glare. "I've always been behind Ryuga. Thanks for the reminder."
Without another word, Stalk motioned for the Four from the Northern Capital to follow him.
"Back to the North. That's an order."
"Says who?" Kazumi snapped.
"My orders are Prime Minister-level," Stalk said smugly, and with that, they had no choice but to follow.
Northern Capital – Experimental Base
Inside the North's subterranean facility, Prime Minister Junya Kiko, calm and cunning, addressed Kazumi directly.
"Pandora's Box and the Full Bottles are becoming difficult to retrieve. We need stronger methods."
Kazumi nodded. "Fine. Upgrade my body. I'll handle it."
Stalk intervened. "Unfortunately, you're already near max optimization. But—" He held up a red Trigger Module. "—this will upgrade your Three Crows into HazardSmash."
"HazardSmash?!" Kazumi's face hardened. "That tech destroys the host if they're defeated!"
"True. But if you order them…" Stalk left the implication hanging.
"I'd never ask them to do that!"
The Prime Minister, with cold precision, struck the blow.
"If you don't retrieve the Full Bottles, you'll be fired. Your village will starve. I'm sure they'd understand."
Kazumi stormed out, teeth clenched, saying nothing.
Outside, the Three Crows waited, having overheard everything. They stepped forward.
"The boss sacrificed his body for us before," said Akabane, deadly serious.
"Now it's our turn to repay him," Lan Yu added.
"Even if it kills us," Huang Yu finished.
Stalk, behind the mask, smiled.
"Perfect."
Meanwhile, Sento was deep in Katsuragi's research, searching for Build Boosters, when an alert from the ever-honest Gentoku rang out.
"Grease has been spotted near the Cleaning Center! Go!"
Arriving quickly, Sento intercepted Kazumi near the hidden stash.
"How did you know they were here?! Only a few people knew!"
Kazumi tightened his grip on the belt.
"Beat me and I'll tell you."
They transformed. Though Kazumi had the higher danger level, Sento's mastery of Build's versatile forms and well-timed invincibility transitions allowed him to hold his ground.
"You've got more than just numbers," Kazumi admitted. "Maybe there's more to power than danger level…"
Before the fight could escalate, the Three Crows arrived.
"Big bro! Sorry to keep you waiting!" Akabane called out, their movements unusually sharp.
Ryuga, still en route, had just finished mopping up Smash and was speeding back on his motorcycle.
"Where the hell were you?!" Sento shouted through comms.
"Don't worry about it! On my way!"
The Three Crows stepped forward. Akabane, Lan Yu, and Huang Yu each took out a modified Full Bottle.
"You didn't…" Kazumi's voice cracked.
They answered by transforming, this time into HazardSmash—their colors turned black, oozing with unbalanced power.
"From HardSmash... to HazardSmash," Akabane declared.
"What did you do to yourselves?!" Kazumi shouted.
"We'll win. For your sake."
They attacked. The transformation gave them an absurd boost—too fast, too strong for Sento to counter. He was overwhelmed, slammed into the ground before he could react.
"Hah! We're not the same as before!" Akabane shouted.
Ryuga finally arrived, revving his bike and stepping off casually.
"What, you just painted yourselves black and expected to beat me?"
Akabane charged him. Ryuga caught his punch one-handed.
"Whoa! So scary!" Ryuga mocked. "I forgot to transform!"
Akabane struggled but couldn't free himself.
"Let go!"
"Okay!"
Ryuga released him—only to kick him across the street, sending him crashing through a fence.
Lan Yu and Huang Yu froze, watching their leader fly nearly twenty meters.
"Uh… weren't we supposed to be stronger now?"
"That's what I thought…"
Ryuga cracked his knuckles.
"So… whose turn is it next?"
The Three Crows, once again, were reminded of a very specific feeling.
The fear of being absolutely dominated by the Silver Dragon.