My Soul card is a Reaper-Chapter 1054: The Interclan Tournament (Part-5)
They were:
Arjun
Rohan
Kiran
Dev
Ishaan
Minamoto Daichi
Their swords gleamed faintly under the sunlight, and their eyes carried a sharpness that made them look older than they were.
The two teams faced each other at the center of the arena, their mentors standing at the edges like judges of blood.
The referee's voice echoed.
"Team battle begins in ten seconds." 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
A faint barrier shimmered around the battlefield.
The air tightened.
And above them, on the balcony, the clan heads watched with expressions that held far more interest than they wanted to show.
*
Shuichi, the current clan head, leaned slightly toward Parikshit, the leader of the Kuru Clan. His expression remained calm, but his eyes gleamed with the sharpness of a swordsman who had already chosen his strike.
"What is the bet you are making, Lord Parikshit?" Shuichi asked, his voice polite.
Before Parikshit could respond, the Elven King, seated nearby with his calm elegance and ancient gaze, spoke with faint amusement.
"You forgot the rules, Shuichi."
Shuichi blinked.
The Elven King continued smoothly, "The ones who were challenged are the ones who put the bet. The challenging clan must match it. So you are the one who needs to put it forward."
A few clan heads smirked faintly.
Shuichi let out a low chuckle and nodded.
"My mistake," he said, then turned toward Parikshit again, his smile sharpening.
Then Shuichi leaned back in his chair slightly, his voice rising so the other leaders could hear.
"Kuru Clan is filled with secrets," Shuichi said, "techniques that everyone would want to see, especially with that strange ancient language of Sanskrit that your people speak. Those incantations… those divine arrows… those skill techniques."
His tone sounded appreciative.
But it was also a subtle provocation.
"However," Shuichi continued, "since this is only a rookie battle and the real clash will come later, I'm going to go light."
Several clan heads raised their brows.
Shuichi raised his hand.
A glowing card appeared above his palm, its edges framed in blue, the surface engraved with a picture of several burning spheres.
"This," Shuichi announced, "is a Rank-7 unique skill card developed by the Minamoto Clan."
He turned the card slightly so everyone could see it.
"Scorch Flames."
The name alone made several rookies in the stands inhale sharply.
"At Rank-7," Shuichi continued calmly, "this card allows the user to summon six flaming orbs and control them freely for five minutes."
Azzy's brows rose faintly.
He turned his head toward Shuichi, his tone casual but unmistakably amused.
"That's bold," Azzy said. "And you call that light?"
Shuichi laughed softly. "Trust me. It is light."
His eyes narrowed slightly as he added, "The next one will surprise you, brother."
Azzy's gaze flickered.
Brother.
That word, spoken casually, sounded like a challenge and a reminder at the same time.
Azzy turned his head toward Parikshit.
"Well then," Azzy said calmly, "Lord Parikshit, do you wish to put anything that matches the bet?"
Parikshit, leader of the Kuru Clan, finally moved.
He was a man with calm eyes and a dignified face, his presence steady like a mountain, and when he raised his hand, a golden card materialized, its surface engraved with the image of a colossal mountain being torn from the earth.
His voice was deep, controlled.
"This is the skill card of Parvathastra," Parikshit announced. "It allows the user to conjure a mountain and throw it upon the enemy."
A pause followed.
Then Parikshit added, almost casually, "It is classified as peak Rank-8."
"Woah…"
One of the clan heads muttered, unable to hide his shock.
Several others nodded slowly.
Even the Dragon Clan leader, who rarely showed emotion, narrowed his eyes with interest.
Azzy exhaled through his nose, then chuckled faintly.
"The first rookie battle," he commented, "and you're already putting such things on the table."
He leaned back slightly, one arm resting on his chair.
"I'm starting to feel pressured."
Shuichi scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Oh please, Azrael."
His tone carried familiarity, but also a faint edge.
"You have spirit cores," Shuichi said. "Tons of them. Everyone here will bring out their best treasures to bet against them. If you don't put those cores as bets, what are you planning to offer?"
Azzy's lips curved faintly.
"Well," he replied calmly, "I don't plan on betting spirit cores."
That alone caused subtle surprise.
Even the Elven King turned his head slightly.
Azzy continued, his gaze steady.
"I have something better for this occasion."
The balcony grew quieter.
Shuichi raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
Then his smile sharpened.
"You plan on betting your clan treasures?"
Azzy didn't answer directly.
Instead, he leaned forward slightly, his gaze drifting back down toward the battlefield where the rookies had already taken their stances, their auras beginning to rise like waves before a storm.
"You can wait until the duo round," Azzy said calmly. "Then you'll find out."
Shuichi's eyes narrowed, intrigued now.
The other clan heads exchanged glances, their curiosity rising like smoke.
Because if Azrael Garcia was saying he had something better than spirit cores…
Then whatever it was, it was something even the hidden clans had never seen.
Below, the referee raised his hand.
The moment the referee's hand dropped, the arena's air changed.
It wasn't the kind of change that came from shouting or excitement, but the kind that came from instinct, when warriors felt danger, and their bodies reacted before their minds could properly calculate it.
The barrier around the battlefield shimmered faintly, sealing the ten rookies inside, and the wind that passed over the arena floor suddenly felt sharper, colder, like it had learned how to cut.
The Minamoto rookies moved first.
They didn't rush blindly, nor did they scatter like amateurs. Instead, their five bodies shifted into position with smooth discipline, their feet sliding across the stone as if they had practiced this formation a thousand times.
Inverted V.
Shoto Haruki and Ao Renji took the front, blades angled outward like fangs. Uzumaki Takumi and Kujiwara Daichi stayed slightly behind, guarding the flanks, while Tachibana Shiro positioned himself in the center, his hands hovering near his waist as if he was waiting to draw something unseen.
It was clean.
Efficient.
Japanese sword doctrine turned into a living diagram.
The crowd in the stands, though limited, leaned forward, and even some of the mentors narrowed their eyes with approval.
But the Kuru Clan rookies…
They did nothing.
No formation.
No defensive circle.
No synchronized movement.
Instead, they stood there as if the match had not even begun, their posture relaxed, their breathing calm, their eyes almost indifferent. It wasn't arrogance, not exactly. It felt stranger than that.
It felt like they were simply certain.
Then the biggest among them stepped forward.
Dev.
He was broad-shouldered and tall for his age, his arms thick with muscle, his grip wrapped around a heavy mace that looked too large for a rookie to wield comfortably. The weapon's head was carved with sacred symbols, and faint lines of soul energy pulsed across it like veins.
He rolled his neck once, loosened his shoulders, and stared at the Minamoto formation as if it was a wall he intended to smash through.
Behind him, the others didn't move.
Arjun, Rohan, Kiran, and Ishaan remained still, watching quietly, as if Dev stepping forward was not a reckless decision.
It was the plan.
The referee's voice echoed.
"Begin!"
Dev vanished.
Not literally, but the speed of his movement made it feel like the air itself had been torn apart. His feet exploded off the ground, the stone cracking beneath his step, and he leapt upward like a beast launching itself into prey.
The Minamoto rookies reacted instantly.
Haruki's blade rose.
Renji shifted his stance.
Takumi's eyes sharpened.
They were prepared.
But what they weren't prepared for was the sheer brutality of Dev's approach.
Dev came down like a meteor.
His mace slammed into the ground with a sound that felt like thunder punching the arena floor, and the impact didn't just crack the stone, it sent a wave through it. A shockwave rippled outward, and the entire battlefield trembled as if an underground beast had awakened.
A mini earthquake.
The formation shattered instantly.
