The ground beneath their feet trembled as Kael, Raizen, and Kaito stood side by side, facing Kurojin Tsukiro. Shadows swirled around the corrupted Wielder like a storm of malice, each step he took leaking dread into the air.
Kael's fingers tightened into a fist. His emotions were a battlefield of their own—rage, confusion, betrayal, sorrow. But through it all, he held to the one unshakable truth: Kurojin had to be stopped.
Kurojin grinned, dark veins pulsing beneath his skin. "So this is the grand reunion? The fallen grandfather. The traitor brother. And the boy chosen by fate."
He raised his hand, and a jagged black spear materialized from nothing. "Let's see if blood bonds can stop death."
Without another word, Kurojin surged forward, launching the spear straight at Kael. Raizen stepped in, his own Will bursting forth—a radiant white aura that collided with the darkness midair, shattering the spear with an explosive ripple.
Kael didn't hesitate. He voidstepped behind Kurojin in a blur of shadow, launching a roundhouse kick laced with Will energy. Kurojin caught it with one hand, eyes gleaming with unnatural strength.
"I trained your brother to be stronger than this," Kurojin snarled, throwing Kael backward.
Kaito didn't flinch. He dashed into the fray, his aura a fusion of corrupted Will and something purer breaking through. He clashed blades with Kurojin, the impact shaking the battlefield.
"You gave me strength," Kaito growled, "but you'll die by it."
Raizen joined next, his movements swift and calculated—every attack a reminder of why he was once the strongest. The three of them rotated with seamless coordination: Kael striking from behind with bursts of void, Kaito charging in with reckless power, Raizen acting as anchor and shield.
Kurojin was relentless. For every wound they landed, he responded with greater force. His corrupted Will wasn't just destructive—it was evolving, learning their moves, adapting.
Kael's mind raced. They couldn't overpower him with raw strength alone.
"Grandpa," Kael shouted, dodging a blast of shadow spikes, "what if we combine our Wills? Like we practiced!"
Raizen's eyes met his. "It's risky."
Kaito stood beside Kael, battered but burning with resolve. "Let's risk it."
The three of them closed in, and for a heartbeat, they touched palms—Kael's void energy swirling with Kaito's corrupted flame and Raizen's pure celestial Will.
The fusion wasn't stable. The ground cracked beneath them. Time itself seemed to slow. And then—
Boom.
A shockwave exploded outward. Kael emerged first, his body cloaked in a hybrid aura of shadow and light, eyes glowing violet and white. Kaito followed, darker energy coiling his arms like armor. Raizen glowed with godlike intensity.
Kurojin stared at them, something unreadable flashing in his eyes.
Kael spoke with calm fury. "This is for the lives you took. For the families you shattered. And for what you turned my brother into."
And then they charged—together.