The moon hung heavy in the shattered night sky, casting its glow over the bloody stronghold. The air was thick with tension, laced with the scent of charred debris and blood. Bakugo stood at the center of the courtyard, his fists clenched, his body taut with exhaustion and adrenaline. In front of him, the ancient god inhabiting Tsuki's body floated effortlessly above the ground, her glowing white eyes locked onto him with eerie amusement.
"You seem nervous," she purred, the echo in her voice unnatural, unsettling.
Bakugo rolled his shoulders, ignoring the ache that had settled deep in his bones. "Don't gimme that smug crap," he snapped, his grin sharp. "I know you're just as trapped as she is."
Tsuki's possessed body tilted her head, studying him like a predator sizing up prey. Then, without warning, she lunged forward. Bakugo reacted instinctively, blasting himself backward with an explosion, the heat licking at his skin. The moment he landed, she was already closing the distance, her speed blurring in the moonlight. He barely managed to duck under her fist, the sheer force of it carving a crater into the stone wall behind him.
"I know her." He thought. "Her left is open."
Bakugo twisted, unleashing a concussive blast to her side. It connected—barely. She skidded back, feet hovering above the ground as a smirk spread across her lips.
"Hmm," she mused, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. "You've got quite the eye for gauging her strength."
Bakugo didn't answer. He lunged at her again, feinting left before driving his knee up toward her stomach. She caught it easily, her grip familiar and strong. Without hesitation, he fired off an explosion point-blank, forcing her to release him. He landed, immediately spinning into a low sweep aimed at her legs, but she floated above it effortlessly.
"Toooooo slow," she teased, darting forward and slamming her palm into his chest.
The force sent Bakugo sprawling backward, his back slamming into a crumbling pillar. He coughed, tasting copper in his mouth, but he pushed himself up with a wild grin. "Crap—my fight with that guy ... is really taking a toll on me." His chest heaved with exhaustion.
"SHUT THE HELL UP!" he spat, wiping the blood from his lips.
Akai merely smiled, lifting a hand and beckoning him forward. "Beg for mercy. I want to hear you cry and bleed while you beg."
"This guy is a horny freak." Bakugo thought, his left eyebrow twitching, unamused. He furrowed his brows, disgusted. "You damn masochist." He launched himself at her with renewed anger, unleashing a relentless barrage of explosions, his movements wild and chaotic—or at least, that's how he tried to make it look. "I can feel it now, the pattern in her dodges, the rhythm of her movements."
He sent an explosion wide to her right; predictably, she dodged left.
"Good." He thought. "He thinks he's got me."
In the blink of an eye, he twisted mid-air, planting his foot on the rubble and propelling himself forward with a precise blast. His fist connected hard with the side of her head. Bakugo's hands twitched, watching her stagger backward. He didn't stop. He planted his feet and blasted toward her again, landing a barrage of strikes—each explosion shaking her body, sending her flying backward into the courtyard floor.
Dust clouded the air as Bakugo stood over her, chest heaving. "You know nothing. How much I've been training while you've been away," he sneered, wiping sweat from his forehead. He watched her intently, his sharp eyes scanning every twitch of her body.
