The Deadly Cannon had been infused with Nen, but it hadn't been fully integrated with Shiba's [Fatal Bullet] technique. As a result, the move consumed more of her stamina than her Nen reserves.
"Die!!!"
After firing the cannon, Shiba's face went pale—her physical strength severely depleted.
But her Nen was still sufficient.
Instead of stopping, she locked onto Natalie (formerly No. 3), who had just been blasted skyward, and immediately opened fire with a barrage of Nen bullets.
Ratatatatatatatata...
Even though these were just standard Nen bullets, Shiba's enhanced manifesting ability and the development of her Nen made them deadly.
If Natalie had been in peak condition, she might have endured it—but after the Deadly Cannon, she was critically injured and likely unconscious. Her weakened state left her unable to properly defend or control her Nen.
The concentrated rain of Nen bullets shredded her mid-air body, tearing into her like a hailstorm.
Thud!
Natalie hit the ground with a sickening final thump. Her screams had long stopped—her body riddled with holes.
Shiba's firepower had turned her into a lifeless husk.
Elsewhere, portals flickered in and out of existence—some in the air, others on the ground.
If Shiba's fighting style was raw firepower, Mia's approach was the opposite: elusive, calculated, and deadly like an assassin.
Tyler (formerly No. 7) leapt to the side, narrowly dodging a pair of shadow soldiers and their Mitsubishi-style military spikes that had stabbed at him from behind.
He retaliated with a rapid burst of Nen needles, striking the shadow soldiers directly. As the foreign Nen disrupted them, the shadow soldiers collapsed and dissipated into thin air.
But Mia wasn't done.
As Tyler landed, a small portal appeared beneath him. A gleaming blade thrust upward from the ground, aiming to skewer him mid-fall.
Tyler had been through this pattern too many times. He never let his guard down. His "En" detection field gave him constant awareness within several meters.
The moment he sensed the portal, he twisted his body mid-air, narrowly avoiding the blade that burst upward.
He hit the ground hard, panting and drenched in sweat. Though he'd dodged again, he was clearly near his limit—his face pale, his movements slowing.
"I can't keep this up…"
Tyler's thoughts were panicked as he retreated.
Maintaining "En" drained Nen at a constant rate, and just surviving Mia's endless ambushes had already sapped his energy and focus.
Worse, he couldn't get a read on Mia's actual condition.
She never showed herself. Every time a portal opened—even for just a moment—it vanished just as fast, never giving him a chance to strike back.
He knew Mia had her own Yin Seal, like Shiba, so relying on her running out of energy first was futile.
He needed a strategy.
Zzzzip!
As Tyler bolted across the field, a razor-thin portal suddenly tore open in the air just ahead of him. From within, a blinding arc of sword light slashed outward.
"Crap!"
The moment the strike hit his "En," Tyler instinctively twisted his body in a wild, awkward motion.
He narrowly dodged—but at a cost. A searing pain shot through his ankle where he'd forced the movement.
He winced.
A muscle or tendon had torn from the sudden strain.
Zzzzip!
The moment one portal closed, another opened—this time behind his neck.
A second sword strike whipped out, targeting his most vulnerable spot.
Even with "En" active, Tyler had no time to avoid it.
"Flow!"
In desperation, he channeled all of his Nen into the back of his neck—enough to partially deflect the slash.
The blade still cut deep, slicing through his aura shield and biting into flesh.
Blood sprayed.
Tyler stumbled forward, nearly collapsing from the shock and pain. His neck throbbed—stiff, possibly paralyzed.
But he refused to fall.
"No more playing around!"
Tyler clenched his jaw and pulled out a sharp Nen needle. He plunged it into his own chest.
BOOM!!!
Instantly, a surge of power erupted from his aura nodes.
His entire body pulsed with renewed vigor. His fatigue vanished, and even the pain in his neck faded into numbness.
The effect was temporary, but devastatingly effective.
He flipped mid-air and landed like a gymnast.
Then—he attacked.
Both hands flung out Nen-infused needles at blazing speed, aiming directly for the portal Mia's sword had emerged from.
The needles shot forward like bullets, the strongest attack Tyler had launched yet.
🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 advance chapter in PATREON
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