Looking at the purple-haired beauty in a suit with a single ponytail and sunglasses perched atop her head standing before him, alongside Blade who stood by her side, Takatsuki brought his footsteps to a halt.
"Bailu, stand behind me."
Although he didn't know the woman's identity, upon seeing Blade, Takatsuki could roughly guess who this person was.
Wasn't she captured?
Takatsuki looked at the woman before him who was suspected to be Kafka. Though he had heard her name brought up multiple times, this was his first actual meeting with her. Gazing at the immaculate suit she wore, her purple gloves—one of which was patterned with a spider and a spiderweb—as well as her beautiful facial features and meticulously styled hair, Takatsuki was reminded of a certain character.
Makima, the Control Devil...
"Takatsuki, is it~"
Carrying a gentle cadence, Kafka, who had been waiting here for a long time, raised her head. Her pink pupils swept over Bailu, who was hiding behind Takatsuki's back, before shifting onto Takatsuki and locking onto him.
"Are you here for me? I wonder what business the Stellaron Hunters have with me?" Looking at Kafka across from him, Takatsuki placed his left hand on Bailu's head to shield her behind his back, while his right hand loosely curled, as if gripping onto something.
"Takatsuki, do you... believe in destiny?"
She proved to be a classic riddler right from the opening sentence. The Stellaron Hunter named Blade merely held his sword, leaning against the side wall with his eyes closed to rest, while Kafka showed no immediate intention to fight either. Even so, Takatsuki did not lower his guard, but rather looked toward Kafka and stated, "The so-called destiny is merely a predetermined future established by things that have already occurred."
"Mm~"
Neither affirming nor denying his words, Kafka continued her inquiry, "Then do you think destiny is absolute?"
"When the past occurred, it was already decided. As for future events... they have not yet arrived. But I believe it possesses infinite possibilities, because I believe that human effort can achieve anything."
Hearing Takatsuki's response, Kafka let out a soft chuckle, which seemed to be neither mockery nor total agreement.
"Human effort can achieve anything. A very fine answer. Then do you believe someone can foresee the future?"
Three consecutive questions, all related to destiny and the future, forced Takatsuki to ponder the exact purpose of her visit.
"If you are referring to calculating the possibilities of the future, then of course someone can achieve that." Takatsuki thought of the theory once mentioned by the mathematician Pierre, the Laplace's Demon—knowing the precise position and momentum of every single atom. Although the foundational basis of this theory had been challenged, the concept itself was preserved, and similar things had been derived from it in other worlds.
Indeed, it was precisely the Piece of Laplace that Takatsuki held in his hand.
"If a person, or rather an entity, can discern every single thing that has already occurred in the world and possesses almost infinite calculating capacity, using that as a foundation to deduce future events within their own mind... this could perhaps be considered foreseeing the future."
"Truly an intriguing perspective. Then what kind of role do you think we play within this destiny?" Kafka asked a question that seemed to have been posed before, yet carried a subtle difference.
What kind of role?
It was truly difficult for Takatsuki to answer. After all, he was neither an entity like Laplace's Demon nor did he possess destiny-related abilities. But if he had to say...
"We are all slaves to destiny..."
A quote originating from Jojo, and also a line Takatsuki used to like very much. It was this phrase that had given him the courage to launch a challenge against his own fate in his past world.
"However, destiny is a sleeping slave. We might have no way to alter the conclusion, but we can determine our own process."
Takatsuki's words seemed to touch a chord within Kafka. She opened her mouth slightly in mild surprise, which subsequently dissolved into a smile.
"Arriving at the destination relying on one's own volition... It seems you possess true free will." Kafka's expression carried a hint of relief, but also a trace of regret. "But why do you not exist within Elio's script?"
Kafka seemed to have a certain objective as she spoke to Takatsuki, "Just as you said, in this world, there truly is someone who can discern everything and deduce the future. In the future selected by Elio, individuals who are not mentioned should be entirely inconsequential. But Takatsuki, you... you broke Elio's planning for the future, causing everything to head toward an unknown path."
"Therefore~ to guarantee that future which is best for everyone, your existence... is redundant."
Clang!
A resounding clash of metal echoed within the alleyway. The moment Kafka's words fell, Blade's silhouette had already arrived right before Takatsuki. The blade in his hand hacked down toward Takatsuki, who instantly projected a sword of his own to block Blade's cleave.
"Waaaaah!"
Bailu was thoroughly startled by this sudden assault. But in the next split second, she was pushed by Takatsuki into a corridor that had been opened instantly. With a shift in scenery, Bailu discovered she had already departed from that alleyway, appearing inside a room with absolutely no one around her.
"Where... is this? Takatsuki! Where are you!"
Kafka did not obstruct Takatsuki's action of sending Bailu away. Instead, she watched Takatsuki locking weapons with Blade with a look of great interest. "Quite an intriguing ability. But you actually aren't fleeing yourself?"
"Fleeing? There's no need. After all, I am quite interested in what you just said, and..." After Bailu departed, the gaze Takatsuki directed toward the two individuals changed as well. "As for who is fleeing... that remains to be seen."
Hearing the abrupt shift in Takatsuki's tone, Kafka seemed to sense something amiss and instantly shouted to Blade, "Bladie, watch out!"
However, Blade seemed to be incredibly sensitive to danger. Even before Kafka could voice her warning, he instantly vacated his original position.
The exact moment he left, a torrent of fierce flames instantaneously blanketed the spot where Blade had been standing just a moment prior.
The ground of the alleyway was even melted into flowing magma. The alleyway was saturated with scorching air.
Even Kafka, who had maintained her composure throughout, had a bead of sweat roll down her forehead, though it was unclear whether it was from the heat or some other reason.
A black longsword suddenly materialized in Takatsuki's left hand.
"Forget it, using this to deal with you guys is going a bit too far." The Hestia's Edge in his left hand vanished once more, replaced by a projected replica of a similar longsword.
"Judging by your words just now, it seems your Stellaron Hunters have a specific objective? And you treat everyone on the Express crew and the Xianzhou as mere pawns in your script?"
He raised a sword to point at the solemn duo across from him. "I will give you one opportunity. State the objective of your Stellaron Hunters."
Takatsuki fully mobilized the two feathers of Fenghuang Down within his sea of consciousness.
Although they weren't the actual main body of Fenghuang Down and Takatsuki couldn't unleash its original capabilities, as long as he infused sufficient energy, it could function as a lie detector, even if it couldn't achieve true mind-reading.
"Is that so? This is truly unexpected." Seemingly astonished by Takatsuki's capabilities, Kafka was momentarily dazed for a brief second, but she quickly recovered her composure.
"Listen to me—"
It was merely three simple words, yet when uttered from Kafka's mouth, they seemed to carry an entirely different sort of magic, causing a brief fluctuation to appear in Takatsuki's consciousness.
The Fenghuang Down inside his mind reacted instantly. At the same time, Heaven's Stairway materialized autonomously before Takatsuki. A massive wave of Imaginary energy saturated Takatsuki's mind, instantaneously dispelling the negative influence brought about by Kafka's Spirit Whisper.
"A psychic ability? It seems you've already answered through your actions." Takatsuki instantly realized what had just occurred.
What he hadn't expected was that the Heaven's Stairway would automatically protect its master, though now was not the time to study such things. Takatsuki looked toward the two individuals before him and stated with an unfriendly expression, "Is this the answer of your Stellaron Hunters? Kafka..."
Watching Kafka, who didn't continue speaking, pitch-black Armament Haki enveloped the dual swords in Takatsuki's hands.
"Answer me, Kafka! Next, it will no longer be an interrogation, but a torture session!"
As his words fell, Conqueror's Haki erupted without any reservation. For ordinary people, this Conqueror's Haki would be enough to pin them down or even knock them unconscious, yet it merely made the air feel somewhat viscous to Blade and Kafka.
"It seems a battle is unavoidable."
Takatsuki couldn't comprehend it no matter how he thought about it. Although it was a two-on-one scenario, the disparity in strength between the two sides was already glaringly obvious. Did the other party still possess some sort of trump card?
"Listen to me—"
The moment Kafka opened her mouth, Takatsuki instantly became alert, raising the blades in his hands to slash toward the duo.
"Release your constraints, Blade."
Spirit Whisper can even be used like this?! Takatsuki had originally thought Kafka merely intended to use Spirit Whisper to cause a disruption, but he hadn't expected her to use it to buff her own ally instead.
Blade's speed surged drastically in an instant, instantly blocking the path right before Takatsuki. Facing the blades enveloped in Armament Haki, the divine weapon in Blade's hand was actually capable of blocking it.
Kafka also immediately raised the submachine guns in her hands, pouring bullets toward Takatsuki. The discharged bullets precisely grazed past Blade's silhouette and flew toward Takatsuki, only to be entirely deflected away by his Haki.
"In that case, I won't hold back either."
Although he didn't know why things had turned out this way, there was no anyone else in this vicinity. Perhaps they had been dispersed in advance by Kafka and her partner; after all, with her Spirit Whisper, it would be an absolute breeze for Kafka to drive away ordinary folks. Thus, Takatsuki could completely unleash his full strength without any misgivings.
Scorching demonic flames erupted outward. But unlike his prior evasions, Blade did not dodge Takatsuki's attacks in the slightest right now.
Abundant Imaginary energy enveloped his body and sword, not only enhancing his offenses but also bolstering his defenses, keeping the demonic flames outside his body. Although it wasn't completely blocked out, his own exaggerated regenerative capabilities ensured this small amount of fire could not cause any irreversible impact.
Under the torment of the flames, Blade not only failed to fall into a state of exhaustion, but grew increasingly exhilarated the more he fought.
The speed of his sword strikes grew faster and faster, to the point where he alone held back both Takatsuki and the Heaven's Stairway simultaneously. Though a portion of the reason for this was because Takatsuki was holding back significantly, it was still enough to surprise Takatsuki.
Meanwhile, Kafka also abandoned her firearms, pulling her hands—which bore ten rings—through the air.
"This web is so fragile, it breaks at a single touch. The only things it can shred are things even more fragile."
With one hand wielding his sword to continuously tangle with Blade—whose task was incredibly simple, to keep Takatsuki pinned down—the blade in Takatsuki's other hand continuously severed the purple threads around him. These threads seemed to be energy constructs, and they possessed the ability to disrupt the mind.
After a brief exchange of blows, Takatsuki roughly understood the capabilities of the two individuals.
"If it's merely to this extent, it won't be enough to hold me back."
With a single strike forcing Blade back, Takatsuki slashed his sword toward the duo across the distance.
"Gate of Babylon!"
Golden ripples instantly unfolded in midair, as countless blades shot toward the two individuals before him. Kafka raised her hands, and her twin guns instantly discharged countless bullets. Every single bullet precisely struck a sword, knocking it off course and causing them to rain down around the duo.
Boom!!!
A violent explosion resounded within the alleyway. The explosion of a double-staged Broken Phantasm engulfed the silhouettes of the two Stellaron Hunters.
Dense smoke and dust swallowed the alleyway, but Takatsuki was deeply aware of the rule that smoke guarantees no casualties. Furthermore, it was merely a Broken Phantasm; Takatsuki didn't believe such a minor trick could kill the world-renowned Stellaron Hunters.
A emerald-green sword slash sliced through the smoke, slashing toward Takatsuki, only to be cleaved apart by a single strike from him.
"Where do you think you're escaping!"
Within his sensory perception, Takatsuki discovered that the two individuals seemed to be distancing themselves, and he immediately gave chase into the smoke.
It's strange... truly very strange...
Takatsuki consistently felt that Kafka was concealing something, as if she still possessed some sort of trump card.
Even during the combat just now, apart from her initial brief moment of astonishment due to some of the methods Takatsuki displayed, she had maintained a composed mindset throughout, even when her Spirit Whisper proved ineffective against Takatsuki.
Furthermore, the two of them clearly should have realized they were not his match, yet they displayed no panic whatsoever. It felt as if... everything was within their calculations...
The trio dashed through the Exalting Sanctum. Fascinatingly, Kafka seemed to be intentionally avoiding the ordinary residents of the Exalting Sanctum, as not a single ordinary citizen appeared along their escape route.
Upon realizing that the other party seemed to be planning something, Takatsuki did not use the power of the Rabbit Talisman to accelerate, but simply followed closely behind them, wanting to see what the objective of the two individuals was.
"This is the spot." Kafka suddenly brought her footsteps to a halt and spoke to Blade, "Blade, listen to me. Unleash your full strength."
The words fell and transformed into a powerful Spirit Whisper, causing a massive surge of Imaginary energy to erupt from Blade's body.
Running this far just to unleash an ultimate?
This was Takatsuki's instinctive reaction. Upon noticing the energy erupting from Blade's body, Takatsuki didn't dare to be conceited either. Haki resembling red and black electrical arcs crackled along his sword blades.
Conqueror's Haki Infusion!
"Death Sentence!" Emerald-green sword energy erupted from the edge of Blade's sword.
"Divine Departure!"
The Conqueror's Haki and swordsmanship he had spent many years learning from Shanks finally displayed its strongest technique for the first time in this world.
However, the exact moment he slashed down, Takatsuki discovered something was amiss, because Kafka displayed a smile that looked like she had succeeded in a trick.
"Blade, listen to me. Take me away from here."
Following Kafka's Spirit Whisper, Blade—who was completely unleashed—erupted with a speed he was entirely unable to display previously, instantly fleeing the scene with Kafka in a split second.
Meanwhile, this strike of Divine Departure, having lost its intended target, straight up decimated the area where the two had been standing just a moment prior. At the same time, a miserable shriek echoed from within that very spot.
"What... there's someone there?!"