He even reached out, carefully poking the frozen arrow. It didn't budge—hard as iron.
"An illusion... is it? Cough cough..."
"Not an illusion. It's science." Cloud's voice came from behind him.
Ukyo whirled around. Cloud had somehow passed through the frozen rain of arrows and was now standing beside him, casually "plucking" an arrow from the air and tapping it against his palm like a pointer.
"Hello, Mr. Tachibana Ukyo. Need me to call an ambulance? Oh wait, this era probably doesn't have those. How about... a bottle of kidney tonic? Good for you, good for me?" Cloud cracked a terrible joke.
Ukyo: "..."
Though he didn't understand what the other man was saying, he could sense that this black-clad stranger was unfathomably powerful.
"Time... you stopped it?" Ukyo's voice was hoarse.
"Who else? Did your Gate of Babylon activate on its own?" Cloud quipped while snapping his fingers.
Snap.
Time resumed flowing.
But those frozen arrows didn't continue forward. The instant flow resumed, they seemed to have lost all kinetic energy, clattering to the ground.
This precise, millimeter-perfect control shocked Ukyo even more than the time-stop itself.
"Who... exactly are you?"
"I'm the one you'll never have... ahem, wrong script. I'm Cloud, a passing martial artist." Cloud introduced himself.
By now, Haohmaru and Nakoruru had caught up.
"Ukyo! Are you okay?!" Haohmaru looked at Ukyo's pale face with concern. Clearly, these two rivals shared a good relationship—that kind of "frenemy" dynamic.
"Haohmaru?" Ukyo was also surprised to see him. "I'm fine... cough cough... thanks to this Lord Cloud."
"You bastards!" The samurai captain, seeing his cooked duck fly away, roared in frustration. "Two more busybodies! Get them all—kill them!"
The remaining ronin were terrified, but motivated by promised rewards, they steeled themselves and charged.
"A bunch of small fry daring to make noise in front of me?" Haohmaru had been holding in his anger and now had an outlet.
He drew Fugudoku, grinning fiercely: "Perfect timing—let me show you my newly improved technique!"
He took a deep breath, recalling Cloud's earlier guidance, concentrating all his power and conviction onto the blade's edge.
"Secret Art: Zantetsu Sengeki!"
A slash more concentrated and brilliant than any before flashed through!
The dozen-plus ronin at the front didn't even get to scream before being simultaneously bisected at the waist. The cuts were smooth as mirrors!
Such was the power of a single strike!
Haohmaru looked at his sword, then at Cloud, eyes filled with excitement: "Haha! Cloud! You were right! Concentrating power at a single point really does increase it more than tenfold!"
Cloud nodded approvingly: "Not bad. You're teachable."
The remaining ronin were scared out of their wits, dropping their weapons and fleeing in panic. The samurai captain ran fastest of all, disappearing in a blink.
Crisis resolved with ease.
Ukyo watched Haohmaru's dramatically enhanced strike, then looked at the calm black-clad man beside him. His expression grew infinitely complex.
He walked up to Cloud and bowed deeply.
"My thanks for saving my life. I am Tachibana Ukyo—I cannot repay this debt."
"Think nothing of it." Cloud waved dismissively, but his gaze fell on the blood seeping through the handkerchief Ukyo held to his mouth during his coughs. That blood was an abnormal dark red.
"Your illness... is serious." Cloud stated directly.
Ukyo's body stiffened, then he smiled bitterly: "Sharp eyes. I... suffer from a lung disease. My days are numbered."
"Tuberculosis?" Cloud asked.
Ukyo looked puzzled: "Tuber... culosis? I don't know what that is—only that it's an incurable condition, beyond medicine's reach."
"In my view, not necessarily." A mysterious smile curved Cloud's lips. "If you trust me, I can help temporarily suppress your condition—at least give you enough strength to find that Ultimate Flower you're seeking."
Ukyo's entire body trembled!
He looked up sharply, those eternally frozen eyes showing excitement and disbelief for the first time.
"Are you... serious?! How... how do you know about the Ultimate Flower?" This was the greatest secret in his heart!
"I not only know about the Ultimate Flower—I know you're searching for it because of a girl named Odagiri Kei." Cloud continued dropping bombshells. "I also know you like apples but can't eat too many because of your health. I also know that you..."
"Stop!" Ukyo was completely shaken. He felt utterly exposed before Cloud, without a single secret.
Was this man a god... or a demon?
[System: Host, this behavior is called "doxxing" in modern times. It's illegal.]
Cloud mentally flipped off the System: "Shut up. I'm building trust, understand? Look at his eyes now—aren't they filled with... okay, wanting to stab someone is hard to hide... no wait, filled with awe and faith?"
Indeed, Ukyo's gaze toward Cloud had transformed from initial wariness and confusion into deep reverence.
Someone who could reveal all his secrets at a glance, casually stop time, and see through his swordsmanship's mysteries... such an existence exceeded his comprehension.
"I... believe you!" Ukyo forced these words through gritted teeth.
As long as there was even a sliver of hope to find that flower for Kei, let alone trusting a man of unknown origin—even making a deal with the devil would be worth it!
"Excellent." Cloud nodded with satisfaction.
Got him! Samurai Shodown fan-favorite character, +1!
He redeemed an improved "Life Essence Pill" from the System shop—something he'd concocted in the KOF world using NESTS life science technology combined with Athena's psychic powers and alchemy, specifically designed to repair bodily functions.
While it couldn't cure Ukyo's lung disease (that was a world-rule-level setting), suppressing it for a year or two and restoring him to about eighty percent of his peak condition was no problem.
...
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