Akaza's eyes widened in shock at the sheer power and speed of Sanemi's attack.
He quickly calculated his next move and used his immense speed to sidestep Sanemi's attack, narrowly avoiding getting sliced by the wind.

Sanemi landed back onto the ground, already moving ahead with his arms raised, his sword pointing right at Akaza, a wild mixture of insanity and focus contours his face.
"Don't think you'll get away that easy!"
He shouted out.

Akaza let out a menacing laugh, his yellow eyes gleaming with excitement. He took a step forward, his own speed and power surging to match Sanemi's. He quickly dashed forward towards him.

Upon noticing Akaza dash towards him with a blinding speed, Sanemi took a step back, his grip on his sword tightening as he took a deep breath in.

"Wind Breathing, Third Form: Clear Storm Wind Tree!"
He unleashed a whirlwind of slashes around his body that defended him from any incoming attacks, slicing up his surroundings.

Akaza grinned, impressed by Sanemi's defenses. He continued to dash towards him, his eyes scanning for an opening. He saw the moment Sanemi's defenses faltered and took advantage, aiming a powerful punch straight for his stomach.

"ARGH!"
Sanemi grunted loudly as he felt the punch land right in the center of his stomach, doubled over in pain. He clutched his abdomen, gasping for breath, but didn't back down.

With a fierce determination, he swung his sword in a wide arc, hoping to catch Akaza off guard.

Akaza, anticipating Sanemi's counter, jumped back to avoid the swing. He took a moment to assess Sanemi, his expression turning stern and serious.

"You're not like them... You're different." He muttered under his breath before charging forward again.

Sanemi sensed Akaza's next move and quickly readjusted his stance, ready to defend against another attack.
"Don't patronize me!"

Akaza paused at the intensity in Sanemi's voice, surprised at his emotional response. He recovered quickly, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.

"You're too weak, it's pitiful."
He taunted, hoping to anger Sanemi further and throw off his focus.

Sanemi's face twisted in rage, his eyes flashing with fury. He took a step forward, his sword trembling in his hand as he struggled to maintain control.
"Pitiful?!"
He spat out, his voice low and menacing.

"You think you can toy with me, Akaza?
He shouted out.

Akaza could see the pure hatred burning in his eyes and he was intrigued. He had always dealt with easy prey, humans who cowered at the face of demons, but Sanemi was different. He grinned, enjoying the challenge.
"You won't back down, will you?"

Sanemi's grip on the sword tightened, the metal clinking ominously in the still air. With a loud grunt, Sanemi lunged forward, his movements wild and unpredictable.
He swung his sword in a wide, diagonal arc, aiming to knock Akaza off balance and catch him off guard.

Akaza's eyes widened as Sanemi lunged forward, swiftly dodging his swing. He could feel the power in his attack, it was clear that this human was not ordinary.

He jumped back, landing on a rooftop with grace. He grinned wickedly.
"Turn into a Demon already, Sanemi!"

"I'd rather die than turn into someone like you!"
Sanemi took a deep breath in.

"Wind Breathing, Eighth Form: Primary Gale Slash!"
He leapt up into the air, his sword swinging in a wide arc, aiming to slice up Akaza.

Akaza's grin didn't fade as he jumped again, narrowly avoiding the attack. He landed a few rooftops away, his eyes locked on Sanemi's.
"You're quite the fighter, Sanemi..."
He reached his hand out.

"There's still time, say yes."

Sanemi's eyes narrowed, his grip on the sword tightening. He could feel Akaza's words piercing his mind, tempting him with promises of power and strength. But he refused to give in, his pride and sense of self-worth screaming in protest.
"Like hell I would..."

Akaza's expression turned cold, his voice low and menacing.
"Very well, Sanemi. You've made your choice. You'll make a fine corpse."
He charged towards Sanemi, his body moving at an incredible speed.

"You're very weak..."
He said, provoking Sanemi even more.

Sanemi's eyes burned with rage, but he didn't let it get the best of him. He focused on Akaza's movements, anticipating his attacks. With a burst of speed, he lunged forward, aiming to meet Akaza head-on.
"Weak?"

Akaza laughed maniacally.
"You heard me!"
He smirked, dashing forward. For a second, his gaze shifted to the sky, which looked like it was about to be morning soon.

Realising he would die if sunlight touched his skin, he slowed down his attack, trying to make an escape.

Sanemi didn't let his guard down, even for a moment. He knew that Akaza was still a formidable opponent, and that the fight was far from over.
"Coward! Afraid of the sun?"
He taunted.

Akaza's expression changed to that of anger as he gritted his teeth.
"Shut up!"
He noticed the sun rising up slowly, he slowly hurried into the woods, where the darkness lied.

Sanemi watched Akaza flee into the woods, a mix of frustration and determination burning within him.

As his rage and anger got the best of him, he grunted out, pursuing himself into the shadows of the forest.
"THIS ISN'T OVER, COWARD!"

Akaza didn't stop running, his speed increased as he moved deeper into the forest. He knew Sanemi was behind him, but he refused to look back.

"Shut up, I've had enough of your voice!" He groaned, his voice echoing through the trees. Little did he know, the forest led to a mountain that went up, where sunlight was even stronger.

Sanemi's determination was unwavering, as he continued to pursue Akaza into the forest. He could hear his voice echoing through the trees, but he didn't engage in conversation.
His mind was focused on one thing and one thing only: taking down Akaza.

As Akaza continued his relentless run, he suddenly felt the ground shifting beneath his feet. He realized he had reached the base of the mountain and the forest was giving way to rocky terrain. Looking up, he saw the sun's rays illuminating the mountain.

He realised he messed up as soon as he saw the dead end.

If he ran, he'd burn and if he stayed, he'd be decapitated.

Sanemi burst into the clearing, his eyes widening as he took in the sight before him. Akaza, caught between a rock and a hard place, with no way out.

A twisted, sadistic grin spread across Sanemi's face as he approached his enemy. The rage, frustration, and the adrenaline rush made him run even faster towards Akaza.

Akaza's eyes widened as he saw Sanemi approach, he knew there was no escape now.
He tried to come up with a plan, but time was running out. He looked at the mountain in front of him, and then back at Sanemi, calculating his next move.

He decided to jump down the mountain, even if he burned for a few seconds... he could quickly find shadows somewhere down there.

Without knowing that there lied a dead end, Sanemi dashed forward, only to find Akaza jumping off the highest point of the mountain.

He realised he was going too fast, and would end up falling down the mountain too. But the adrenaline rushing through his veins told him to keep going, keep fighting till his last breath.

He knew he didn't have regeneration skills. But now that he was determined to kill Akaza off, he knew there was no going back.

Akaza's body swiftly descended towards the darkness below. He could feel the sun's rays burning his skin, but he endured the pain, knowing it was only temporary. As he was falling, he laughed maniacally mid-air, thinking he had outsmarted Sanemi.

"You don't have regeneration skills like I do, Sanemi!"

Sanemi jumped along, grunting as he held his sword out to decapitate him in the middle of the air.

Unable to move mid-air, Akaza panicked. As Sanemi's sword touched the skin of his neck, he stared at the green blade with fear.

Sanemi groaned loudly, releasing all his power and energy into the attack as he was slowly cutting through Akaza's neck.

"Just a little more..."
He grunted loudly. The sword was already halfway through.

Akaza's eyes widened in terror as he felt his life slipping away. He tried to move, to struggle, but it was too late.

His vision began to blur, and he could feel his consciousness fading. That's when he heard a sound, the sound he always wanted to hear.

The sound of a Biwa String.

He smiled like maniac at Sanemi.
"You really are pitiful!"
He disappeared out of thin air, into the Infinity Castle.

Sanemi's eyes widened in shock and rage as Akaza disappeared, his sword still stuck in the air where Akaza's neck used to be.

"WHAT THE!?"

He grunted loudly, unable to comprehend what just happened in front of him.
His head started to hurt as he couldn't believe that it was physically possible for Akaza to disappear into a place unknown.

As the adrenaline present in his body faded away, his eyes widened at the realisation of how high up he really was.

Fuck... This is way too high... I-I don't think I will.... Survive...

It was impossible to survive from a fall like that, and he knew it.

The realisation hit him like a sword piercing through his heart in the middle of battle.

Without knowing it, he had jumped down the mountain.
He had jumped to his death.

Gosh... It ended so easily...?

He had no choice but to accept his fate now. As his body slowly lost all energy, he closed his eyes, breathing out slowly.

He couldn't feel anything, even when his body hit the ground, his blood painting the rocks underneath a deep red colour as a huge pool of blood formed underneath him, he felt numb.

There was still ounce of life present in him. His eyes barely opened, his chest heaving with exertion.

"SANEMI! GET UP!"
Sorai flew to him, panicking as he landed near Sanemi's almost dead body.

S-Sorai...?

Sanemi chuckled softly.
"Sorai... I'm sorry... I couldn't finish my duty... Please tell Master... That I'm sorry... Will you...?"

Sorai's eyes filled up with tears.
"You need to get up Sanemi!"

He cawed so loudly, Sanemi chuckled in response.

"I don't think I have much time left... Just go and tell Master..."
Sanemi coughed out blood.

"Sanemi..."
Sorai's tears rolled down as he refused at first. But he finally decided to listen to him, turning around to fly away.

"Ah... Wait!"
Sanemi called out.

Sorai turned back.

"There's... There's a paper in my pocket... Give it to Tomioka..."
Sanemi coughed again, breathing heavily.

"T-Tell him that I... I.... Loved him..."
Sanemi felt like his body finally gave way.

Sorai nodded, picking up the note as he quickly flew to the headquarters.

During the last few seconds, he recalled Giyuu.

___________________________________________

Tomioka... I'm sorry I couldn't keep our promise... I'm sorry I couldn't come back to you...
A tear drop rolled down Sanemi's eyes that he thought, closed forever.

So my heart really was right, this is the end....

Thank you God, you chose me.... And not Tomioka...

Tomioka... My Tomioka....

Thank you, for loving me despite my flaws... Thank you.

But, I think I've done pretty much everything I could... Right?

I knew the time was ticking... And now it's clear... That my time's up...

Oh... How much I hate to admit this...
But I can't help but think about it,

Over and over...

How pathetic I was to be attached to you this way...

So...

I really hope I've done enough...

Because,

I surely will miss you, Tomioka...

And hey... Look how stupid I am!

I love you, Tomioka...

Heh... I'm such a coward, I couldn't tell you such a simple thing...

And I'm sorry I couldn't tell it to you straight...

While I was still alive...

I know you will hate me so much... But I'm sorry... I was too late to tell you,

How I really felt...

And.....

How much I really loved you.

Thank you for everything you've given me...

Thank you... Tomioka...

I will, always remember you.
For everything you've ever done.

I hope you will forgive me... For I can't see the future together with you...

I'm sorry, Tomioka...

With that, Sanemi lost all his energy.

___________________________________________

🍩💗