Hinata stared at Predro… then Ela.
She didn't even need to analyze deeply anymore.
Their gazes trembled.
Their breathing was irregular.
Their posture… broken.
They were disoriented.
Terrified.
Their perfect coordination had just collapsed. What made their strength no longer existed. From now on, each of their movements would be unstable, hesitant… predictable.
*I have to finish this quickly.*
Her green mana vibrated slightly around her, as if approving.
Hinata took a step forward.
Then—
A shiver.
Brutal.
Icy.
It ran up her spine like an instinctive, primal alert.
Her gaze hardened.
She didn't even have time to think.
Her mana reacted before her.
Her body was forced downward.
A sharp movement.
Uncontrollable.
And—
FWOOM.
A shockwave crossed the space just above her.
Violent.
Invisible.
But destructive.
Her hair was swept back, the ground behind her cracked slightly under the pressure of the passage.
Hinata remained crouched for a moment, her eyes slightly widened.
— What was that…?
She straightened up immediately.
Her gaze swept the area.
And what she saw… froze her.
Predro.
Ela.
On the ground.
Unconscious.
Their bodies inert, their gazes empty.
Out of the fight.
Hinata didn't move.
…She hadn't attacked them.
Her heart quickened slightly.
She turned around slowly.
And she saw him.
A man stood there.
Motionless.
As if he had always been present.
Red and black clothes, floating slightly under a residual breeze.
Hair like flames.
Red eyes… calm, but burning.
A smile stretched his lips.
— You dodged my attack?
His voice was calm. Almost amused.
— Well done.
Hinata remained silent.
Still surprised.
Still analyzing.
The man tilted his head slightly, casting a nonchalant glance toward the bodies on the ground.
— Too bad the other two clowns couldn't do the same.
He was talking about Predro and Ela.
As if they were nothing.
Hinata straightened up completely.
Her gaze fixed on him.
She got into position.
— You came to face me, didn't you?
A heavy tension settled in.
— Then come on.
Her words were simple.
Direct.
The boy shook his head gently.
— Yes… I want to face you.
A pause.
His smile widened slightly.
— But not alone.
Hinata's eyebrows furrowed.
A fleeting incomprehension crossed her gaze.
— What…?
The man raised his hand slightly.
— You see…
He looked her straight in the eyes.
— My name is Kert.
One second.
— Class S.
The silence seemed to grow heavier.
But Hinata didn't back down.
No visible fear.
Only understanding.
*So… this is it now.*
The serious stuff.
Kert observed the arena around them, as if still evaluating.
— I've been watching for a while…
His voice was calm, almost detached.
— Those who are capable of facing me.
Then—
His gaze became more intense.
— Look at this.
He rose into the air.
Slowly.
Naturally.
As if gravity had no hold on him.
His hand rose.
A strange energy concentrated around him.
Heavier.
More ancient.
The ruins of his Nemesis system seemed to manifest, like invisible fragments orbiting around his presence.
— Expulsion.
And—
BOOOOOOOOM.
A gigantic shockwave exploded across the entire arena.
Not a simple gust.
Not wind.
A force.
Absolute.
It swept everything away.
The fighters still standing were torn from the ground.
The already unconscious bodies were thrown out of the arena.
Even some Class A fighters were unable to resist.
Everything.
Was expelled.
Hinata planted her feet in the ground.
Her body trembled under the pressure.
This wind… wasn't normal.
There was something else.
Something deeper.
Something that made any opposition… almost impossible.
— So…
She gritted her teeth.
— This is… a Class S?
Her voice was low.
But lucid.
In the stands, panic rose.
The commentator screamed:
— INCREDIBLE!! The great Kert has decided to take action and do a little cleaning!!!
The sky itself reacted.
The clouds were torn in two.
The water below churned violently, creating gigantic waves threatening to crash onto the spectators.
The guardians intervened immediately.
Their powers activated.
An immense protective dome formed, blocking the impact of the tsunamis.
Meanwhile—
Hinata resisted.
Still.
Her feet dug into the ground.
Her green mana vibrated around her, opposing the pressure.
But even it… struggled.
The wind howled.
Then—
Suddenly.
Silence.
Total.
As if nothing had happened.
Hinata opened her eyes slowly.
Her breathing was slightly heavier.
She looked around her.
And understood.
The arena…
was empty.
Or almost.
Only a dozen people remained.
Standing.
Still present.
Still able to resist.
Kert descended slowly to the ground.
A satisfied smile on his face.
— All those who resisted this wind…
He swept his gaze over the survivors.
— Are worthy of facing me.
Then—
He turned his head toward Hinata.
His red eyes locked onto hers.
— Including you.
In the stands, silence had settled.
A heavy silence.
Oppressive.
The spectators, usually noisy, remained frozen, their eyes fixed on the nearly emptied arena. Some still struggled to understand what had just happened.
It was no longer just a tournament.
It was something else.
The guardians, for their part, did not relax their vigilance. The protective dome shone intensely, their powers maintained at full capacity.
They knew it.
What was to follow…
would be titanic.
Sally, for her part, hadn't moved.
Her eyes were fixed on the arena.
But it wasn't the fight itself that held all her attention.
Something else.
A sensation.
Diffuse.
Elusive.
She narrowed her eyes slightly.
*It's not yet…*
Her gaze slid toward Hinata, then toward Kert.
*The real moment hasn't arrived yet…*
Her intuition never failed her.
And there—
Something was preparing.
Elsewhere.
Far from the commotion.
In a closed room, isolated from the outside tumult, several men in jackets watched the scene through screens.
Data scrolled.
Energy flows were analyzed.
Then—
One of them turned toward a man sitting slightly back.
Calm.
Motionless.
Crushing presence.
— Mo-Zus…
His voice was respectful.
— It seems your little Kert has decided to take action.
A slight smile formed on his lips.
— I think this year again… no one will really be able to face you, except him.
Mo-Zus didn't respond immediately.
Then he shook his head gently.
— Kert doesn't dream of facing me.
His voice was calm.
Tired, almost.
— On the contrary…
He sighed slightly.
— What he likes is testing his power, dominating others… then coming to ask me for money rather than suffer a defeat against me.
A few discreet laughs crossed the room.
Mo-Zus stood up slowly, stretching his shoulders.
— And besides…
His gaze fell on the screen.
— Kert isn't even the most powerful of the Class S using the system.
Silence settled.
— The true Class S are rarely here.
He crossed his arms.
— They're busy tracking the most dangerous mutants.
His gaze hardened slightly.
— That's why in this arena… there are only two Class S.
A pause.
— And all the others are just Class A.
One of the men nodded.
— I understand, Mr. Mo-Zus…
Then he displayed an image on the screen.
Hinata.
In the middle of combat.
— But I'd like to know…
He narrowed his eyes.
— Who is this girl?
A slight silence.
— And above all… which group does she belong to?
Mo-Zus shrugged, almost annoyed.
— What a question.
He gestured vaguely toward the screen.
— Use the system parameters.
— It records all users, no matter where they are.
Another man spoke up, more hesitant.
— Precisely, sir…
A hesitation.
— She can't be found anywhere.
The silence dropped brutally.
— Neither Class A…
— Nor Class B…
— Nor Class S…
His voice grew more grave.
— Nor even Class C…
A pause.
— Which contains the largest number of users.
Mo-Zus stopped dead.
His eyes widened slightly.
— …What?
He extended his hand.
— Give me the tablet.
It was done immediately.
— And her name.
— Hinata… Sastujin Otoko.
Mo-Zus typed quickly.
Results scrolled.
Thousands.
Then millions.
— Hinata Kujiri…
— Hinata Yukto…
— Hinata Reika…
The names kept coming.
Again.
And again.
— Over five million Hinato registered…
But—
Not her.
None.
Hinata Sastujin Otoko…
did not exist.
Mo-Zus stopped.
His gaze froze.
His hand slowly rose to his chin.
Reflection.
Deep.
— A Sastujin Otoko…
His voice became lower.
— There are indeed modern Sastujin Otoko using the system…
His eyes narrowed.
— So why… doesn't she appear?
A discreet shiver ran through the room.
Then—
An idea.
Brutal.
Crossed his mind.
His eyes opened slightly more.
— No…
A murmur.
— Don't tell me that…
His gaze lifted back to the screen.
Zoom.
On Hinata.
Standing in the arena.
Facing Kert.
— She uses…
Silence.
— Her own magic.
Another man shrugged slightly behind him.
— I don't see what's impressive about that, sir…
Neutral tone.
— Magical power or system… what does it matter, right?
Mo-Zus turned around slowly.
His gaze changed.
Colder.
More serious.
— No.
One word.
Cutting.
— Think again.
A crushing silence settled.
— Cultivating one's own magical skills…
He crossed his arms.
— To reach a level close to Kert…
His voice became heavy.
— That takes years.
A pause.
— Dozens.
Then—
— Hundreds.
His eyes hardened.
— Even… thousands of years of training.
No one spoke.
— The system…
He pointed to the screen.
— Simplifies all that.
— It bypasses the steps.
— It allows surpassing the body's state…
A pause.
— Without truly understanding it.
His gaze settled back on Hinata.
— But without it…
His voice became even graver.
— Just surpassing physical limits can take an entire lifetime.
Silence.
— Then reaching the soul's state…
His eyes gleamed slightly.
— Or something even higher…
The entire room held its breath.
— That's no longer talent.
A pause.
— It's an aberration.
And on the screen—
Hinata faced Kert.
As if—
She had never needed the system.