Dragon's POV:
"Well then, that was easier than expected."
I looked around, admiring my good work, building set ablaze, smoke filling the lungs of anyone still in the process of dying. Blood and organs were strewn out along the floor, corpses everywhere.
"It's a wonder how no one has managed to achieve this until now," I said, brushing dust off of my arms and shoulders, calmly walking forward, not caring to step over the human corpses. "Don't you think?"
I smiled slightly, gaze landing on the only visible living person in this building, once highly secure and protected by powerful heroes, now reduced to shambles.
"You're quite the resilient one, Madam President," I continued, licking blood from my fingertips.
The blonde head of the HPSC didn't respond, only continuing to desperately crawl away, blood pooling out from her injuries, groaning in pain. She was obviously on the verge of death.
"I set off hundreds of my scales to fly rampant within the building. You should be mince meat right now. Perhaps you were protected or pushed aside just in time. Although, it would seem that it wasn't enough, was it?"
I watched as she bled and bled and bled, continuing to crawl away like a measly worm, reaching into her pocket, seemingly searching for something.
I raised an eyebrow at this. "A phone?" I mused, snapping my fingers.
A single scale shot out to her wrist, severing the hand holding the phone in an instant, blood spraying everywhere like a geyser.
"How idiotic."
She howled in pain and terror, arms and legs trembling, unable to take her any further.
"Wh-who are y-you...? This shouldn't be possible," she muttered, coughing up blood.
I only smiled. "For a human, it shouldn't be, you are correct. Of course, you shouldn't compare me to the lonesome villains you deal with. You clearly don't know what true power is."
"I've already destroyed Tartarus. The most secure prison on Earth is now flooded with seawater. Now that I've destroyed the HPSC, hero society will fall. It'll be quite entertaining to see the outcome of this chaos."
She only continued to cough up blood, dragging her hands along the blood-coated ground only to clench them into fists.
"You...you want to destroy Japan from the inside out... Why? What is the p-purpose of any of th-this...?" She questioned, face scrunching up into a frown.
I raised an eyebrow, folding my arms across my chest. "There is no purpose. I enjoy the untamable chaos. I do what I want, when I want. If I want to kill someone, I kill them. If I see a weakling, I crush them like the insect they are. And if I want to destroy an entire nation, then I will do so. There are very few things I value in this world, very few things that bring me more pleasure than causing chaos."
"There's not much else to it, President."
"If I gain the sudden urge to do something, or gain the desire to try something new, then I will."
I shrugged my shoulders. "It's really that simple."
"Tsk. You won't get away with this. No one's invincible. The heroes will sop you. You will p-p-pay for what you've d-done," she proclaimed, life slowly draining from her eyes.
"Trust me, I know full well of the flaws of all creatures. True invincibility is impossible, I know that. However, I can assure you that the heroes won't be able to do shit. The demon slayers won't be able to stop me in time either."
"Anyways, I think I've wasted enough time speaking to you," I said, snapping my fingers, summoning a multitude of floating scales. "Have fun in hell."
In the blink of an eye, all that was left of the dying HPSC President was blood, crushed bone, and lacerated organs.
"And that's that," I thought to myself, calling my scales back.
"Perhaps there's been enough chaos and destruction for one day..."
I turned around, beginning to step towards the large hole in the wall that led to outside. "I've had enough entertainment, besides, I wouldn't want to risk being caught in the sun. I have no doubt that sunrise is fast approaching."
I raised my head, placing a hand on the back of my head, the other by my side, eyes narrowing at a small silhouette of a human standing just in front of the hole in the wall.
"What?" I thought to myself, taking a single step back in shock. "Am I hallucinating?"
"I hope you didn't think this fight was over," The boy said, voice disturbingly calm and uncaring, nearly completely devoid of life. It wasn't something I ever expected to witness from the brat.
But that wasn't what I cared about. "How the hell are you still alive? How are some of your injuries healed?" I asked, controlling a dozen scales to float around my body.
"Has he—, no... He's still human. So how in the hell is he here right now?"
My gaze landed on a strange marking on his right cheek, covering up the diamond-shaped freckles. A green Chinese dragon wrapped around the Yin & Yang symbol. "That mark... it looks similar to a demon crest, just... a little different. What is this?"
I shook my head from side to side, cracking my knuckles while preparing to shoot the scales floating around me straight towards the brat. "No matter, I've beaten him in battle three times already, this will be no different!"
"Blood Demon Art—
Crack
Splat
"Huh?"
My body had instinctively dodged to the right, however, my instincts weren't fast enough to completely avoid injury. One of his katanas sliced through the majority of my neck like butter, blood spreading out from the injury before swiftly closing up.
My gaze slowly traveled over to Izuku, who had dashed past me in an instant, having come to a halt after his failed attempt at beheading me.
He may have failed, but that was far too close.
"Lucky dodge," Izuku said. "You would've lost your head."
I sharpened my gaze, letting out a low huff, smoke beginning to bellow out from the corners of my mouth, throat burning with intense heat.
"How the hell did you do that?" I demanded, scales on my arms rising up several centimeters, sharp edges slicing through the air as they hovered around my body.
The boy only shrugged, not saying a word in reply as he raised his katanas, not bothering to get into his usual fighting stance.
My eyes narrowed, continuing to glare at the strange marking on his face, contemplating on what it meant.
"Did that mark make him stronger, somehow?" I thought to myself, clenching my right hand into a tight fist. "It doesn't matter. I'll just have to avoid close combat for now. Once I take apart this new found power, he'll fall to my wrath, just like he always has."
"Blood Deon Art: Storm of Scales!"
In an instant, the entire room filled to the brim with razor-sharp scales, each and every single one moving past each other, slicing up everything caught in the attack's wake.
"Beast Breathing: Fifth Fang: Crazy Cutting!"
In a series of swift motions, Izuku spun his body around in the air, wildly slicing his dual katanas around in all directions, destroying every last one of the flying scales in a mere second or two, easily countering my blood demon art.
The shockwaves formed from the intense slicing expanded outwards, reaching me, gashes and lacerations spreading out all over my body, breaking through scales and flesh but failing to slice any of my limbs off.
I barely had enough time to react appropriately, the emerald prodigy blitzing towards me at breakneck speeds, both katanas at the ready.
My eyes narrowed, wings spreading out in preparation. My wings flapped several times, creating powerful gusts of air that worked to push the boy back, keeping him at bay for a few seconds, buying me a bit of time.
I summoned a condensed ball of scales coated in flames, quickly forcing each individual scale to move past each other, crunching up into a incredibly dense ball, ready to send it straight to Izuku and blow him to pieces.
However, the wind gusts weren't strong enough as Izuku practically teleported in front of me, swinging both his katanas down in an X motion.
I brought both arms up, protecting my neck from any serious injury, however, the momentum and strength behind his attack was enough to knock me back several meters, sending me crashing into a nearby wall.
I grunted, more in frustration than pain. Quickly regaining my composure, I worked to keep as much space between us as possible as he continued to expertly swing those damned katanas.
"Mist Breathing: Second Form: Eight-Layered Mist!"
Each swing was far more powerful, swift, and precise than they should've been, slicing through my arms like butter and leaving gashes on my chest that lingered for a few seconds longer than they should've.
Fortunately, when it came to strength, I could tell that I was still superior.
I took my chance, throwing a swift, powerful punch aimed straight for his gut, however, he managed to block, placing both katanas in front of his upper body.
However, the force behind my punch was still strong enough to push him through a nearby wall, sending him flying out of the building.
Of course, I wasn't about to assume he was dead, not after he survived all of those injuries.
I dashed after him, leaping out of the newly made hole in the wall, extending my claws out in preparation for an attack. However, as soon as my head poked out of the hole, eight slithering wires shot up at me at immense speeds, nearly wrapping around my head.
I managed to whip my head back just in time, narrowly avoiding instant death, but the eight wires instead wrapped around my right arm, pulling me down to the ground at concerning speeds.
However, my wings kept me afloat, and the arm that was ensnared exploded into a tsunami of blood as the incredibly sharp wires tore through it.
"Tsk."
It didn't take long for my arm to regenerate, but that only gave Izuku more time to prepare another attack, one of his katana piercing the exterior wall of the building we were in moments ago, standing on top of it with incredible balance.
"Hellfire!"
I let out a powerful wave of flames, aimed directly for him, flames wrapping around the entire building.
"Water Breathing: Fourth Form: Striking Tide."
Much to my surprise and dismay, he escaped from the flames, slicing through the intense heat, leaping towards me from his spot on the wall.
He managed to land a powerful blow onto my neck, slicing through half of it.
I shot a hand outwards, grabbing the brat by the top of his head, headbutting him a single time. I listened with satisfaction at the cracking sound that rang out like music to my ears. A wide smile spread across my face as dozens of scales surrounded the two of us, separating from my body.
"Storm of Scales!"
My satisfaction was quickly drained from me, instead, being replaced with confusion and nervousness.
Nervous? Why am I nervous? I shouldn't be feeling that way right now. Not against my own son.
I frowned slightly as our gazes met.
The amount of bloodlust in those eyes despite the seemingly apathetic expression on his face... It was unnerving, to say the least.
"Frost x Flame"
My eyes widened in shock, an admittedly imposing aura oozing from this boy. Despite the fact that I activated 'Storm of Scales', I began feeling something strange.
I felt an emotion I never thought I'd feel ever again, and it's being caused by my own flesh and blood, no less.
Fear.
"Thermal Breathing: Equilibrium."
I didn't even have enough time to think as every last one of the scales I had summoned simply bounced off of Izuku's body, falling straight down after their failed attempt of lacerating him.
"What? What is this? What just happened? I didn't even see him move! Did that technique somehow nullify my attack's strength and speed? Or... did it affect each individual scale's kinetic energy?" I contemplated in my head, creating a ten layered shield of scales around my upper body, barely managing to block the swift swing of both katanas.
"Don't tell me you forgot about the wires," Izuku said, eyes narrowed as he stared into my soul.
I frowned. "What?"
I tilted my head downwards, eyes shot wide open in shock.
I barely caught a glimpse of the wires that had wrapped around my left leg before it was severed, pulled cleanly off before exploding into a geyser of blood and grains of scales and bone.
Not even a second later, my wings were obliterated, both Izuku and I beginning to plummet straight down to the ground.
However, thanks to a well-placed and well-timed punch, I sent the brat flying off of me a few meters above the ground, giving me enough time to rearrange my position and perfectly land onto my feet.
A large crater formed beneath me from the force of the impact.
I let out a low sigh, reaching a hand out at nothing before a new Scaleblade appeared within my grasp.
Not even a second later, Izuku landed on his feet, a small crater forming underneath him as well.
However, as if he didn't just fall from the sky, he rose to full height, tilting his head upwards to stare at me from several meters away.
I listened closely. I watched closely.
"The boy's heartbeat is dangerously fast. Not only that, but every single breath he took was even more cautious than normal. It was almost as if his breathing techniques have been altered as well."
"Both altered and enhanced. I can't know this for sure, but... that mark must be the cause. Whatever it is, I can't let it be the reason for my downfall."
I didn't waste another second, dashing forward, twirling my Scaleblade around in my right hand.
"Dragon Breathing: Seventh Scale: Dragon Slasher!"
In an instant, I unleashed a chaotic 360° slash that split up and broke apart into several, smaller ring slashes that expanded outwards. Unfortunately, every last one of them missed, Izuku avoiding each one with fluid movements.
"Thunder Breathing: First Form: Thunderclap and Flash, Prime!"
I looked around, trying my hardest to follow the brats movements, failing miserably. I summoned more and more scales around myself. "Prime? Is this a modified version of the first form of Thunder Breathing? I've never encountered it before. Did he create this technique?"
My eyes could barely keep up, the brat vanished in and out of sight, moving with such strength and speed that the ground cracked and uprooted with each step he took, shooting up chunks of concrete and asphalt up into the air.
The sound of thunder and crackling electricity sounded throughout the area despite there being none.
He shot up into the air at blinding speeds, easily surpassing sonic speeds.
"This speed... no... He's moving as fast as a Hashira! Incredible!"
Much to my interest, Izuku began using the uprooted chunks of concrete and asphalt as platforms to bounce off of.
My eyes frantically searched for him in the air as he continued his pace, each chunk he jumped off of crumbling into tiny, broken pieces from the force.
None of this is going as to planned. This is becoming exceedingly more difficult.
Before I could even catch a solid glimpse of him, he appeared directly above me, a cacophony of sonic booms echoing over one another, again and again ad again.
I threw up a swift uppercut, however, all I managed to strike were my own scales that I had positioned to float around my body.
For a second, I felt nothing, as though he had missed his attack, failed to strike my neck.
However, I was wrong. So incredibly wrong.
The world around me seemed sideways, despite knowing for a fact that I was standing upright and looking straight ahead.
My eyes widened in shock as the brat approached me once again, seemingly rebounding himself smoothly after that previous attack.
"Thunder Breathing: Air Spin!"
My head was barely hanging on by a thread, continuing to be supported by a few of my scales.
I swiftly grabbed at my head that was barely attached to my neck, snapping it back into place with a single motion.
"Air Spin?" I thought to myself, narrowly evading the attack. "Using this as a rebound technique after the modified first form of Thunder Breathing is interesting. He was clearly going in for the kill and expected that attack to succeed. This rebound technique must have been an instinctual usage rather than by selection."
I leapt back, shooting out a compressed beam of scales out of my left palm, aiming it straight for him. However, it was instantly obliterated, scale shards shooting out in all directions.
I inhaled deeply, building up an intense amount of flames in my mouth, not allowing myself to lose concentration. "I'll have to analyze every last subtle movement, every last eye twitch. Everything."
"That is the only way I could possibly end this."
A manic grin spread across my face for a second, smoke escaping out from the corners of my mouth. "I can't remember the last time I've been pushed like this!"
"Hell's Gate!"
"Water Breathing: Third Form: Flowing Dance, Shadows of Dawn."
My powerful blast of fire was easily countered, a series of circular ring slashes flying towards me, pushing me back a bit upon impact.
I extended my claws out, overcome with n cathartic feeling of excitement.
"This little boost in power won't be enough, Izuku!"
<•------------•>
Izuku's POV:
I deflected a rogue scale that shot out at me from above, jumping to the right to avoid another compressed beam of scales.
My eyes flickered from each individual build-up of scales, a compressed beam and a compressed ball, both lit ablaze with scorching hot flames.
"The time in between attacks is becoming less and less. He's becoming more efficient with his scales..." I observed, slicing through the compressed beam of scales, leaping over the flaming ball of scales that continued on past me.
"Flame Breathing: Fifth Form: Flame Tiger!"
He just merely dodge to the side, avoiding my attack.
"His reaction time is faster than his speed. He's continually able to just barely dodge my attacks. Even when my attacks land, he's able to narrowly avoid decapitation," I thought to myself, raising both of my katana as I got into a fighting stance.
"Light Breathing: Fifteenth Form: Shadowless!"
"Dragon Breathing: Eight Scale: Ryūjin no ikari!"
My eyes slightly widened in shock, only to calm down a moment later.
I was in front of him, however...
Boom
I was sent flying back from the immense force of the attack. The attack sonic boom created by the attack sounded eerily similar to a dragon's roar, the ground around us cracking and exploding from the shockwave.
I brought both katanas in front of my chest, protecting myself from a majority of the attack's power.
I gracefully landed onto my feet as the shockwave continued rippling outwards throughout the entire city, buildings trembling all around us, a few of them falling straight down, an even greater amount threatening to.
"I feel as though this battle has awakened something within me as well," dad proclaimed, brushing dust from his legs, resting his Scaleblade on his shoulder, before getting into a fighting stance of his own.
I didn't respond, allowing for my actions to speak for themselves.
I dashed forward, stopping directly in front of him, swinging both of my katanas towards his neck, but he managed to just barely dodge my attack.
"Mist Breathing: Fifth Form: Sea of Clouds and Haze."
I charged him at blistering speeds in a zig-zag motion as he attempted to back away from me. I performed a barrage of continuous slashes in front of myself, breaking off dozens of scales from off of his body.
"Light Breathing: Second Form: Reflection!"
I finished my flurry of attacks off with a final, powerful slash that sent father flying several meters back, crashing into a nearby building that suffered greatly from that previous shockwave.
Almost instantly, he broke out of the rubble, leaping out from the base of the building, wings spreading outwards, beginning to fly away at high speeds.
I frowned at this, eyes narrowing as I rose to full height again, adjusting my grip on my dual katanas.
"Is he running away...?" I thought to myself, immediately pursuing him from the ground, spinning my eight nichirn wires in my free hand after transferring both katanas into my right.
"No. He has too much self respect, too much pride. He's planning something," I reasoned, continuing to chase after him from below, managing to keep up with his flight speed.
"Does he have a trap set up? No..."
My mind ran rampant with thoughts as I shot all eight wires up into the sky, grinning slightly as each one wrapped around both legs, holding him back.
"It doesn't matter. I won't let him get away."
I anchored myself to the ground, feet pushing down on the asphalt road using all of the strength in my arms to prevent him from flying away.
With a single powerful tug, I forced him back down onto the ground, destroying both of his legs in the process.
I watched as his body slammed into the ground. However, he got up, not even a second later.
He didn't say a word, and neither did I.
"I've nearly killed him multiple times in the past few minutes... so why isn't he more concerned?" I thought to myself as I dashed forward, only for him to take off into the sky, creating enough winds for my wires to fail to shoot back up.
"Blood Demon Art: Dragonic Replicas!"
Before I knew it, both my arms and legs were yanked back by cold, rough hands, dozens upon dozens, upon dozens of scale demons exploding out from dad's body, each and every one of them falling to the ground as he continued to fly away.
"Tsk."
I easily broke out of the scale demons' hold, tearing their arms off before swiftly decapitating the few who had held me back. I whipped my head around, watching as the scale demons continued to duplicate.
I frowned in disdain, moving my head to the side in order to avoid a scale lance that would've pierced my brain if I hadn't moved in time.
"Water Breathing; Eight Form: Waterfall Basin, Destruction!"
I blitzed a good ten scale demons in a spinning motion, slashing them as I flew past them. I wasted no time, turning around and leaping behind a good seven more scale demons, slashing them all with a single curved strike.
I ducked underneath a saw-like object made from scales, sending a scale demon flying dozens of meters int the air with a single uppercutting slash.
I leapt up into the air once again, destroying the free falling scale demon with a powerful overhead strike. Allowing myself to fall, I performed multiple gargantuan slashes, each and every one of them backed up by strong winds and shockwaves created by my strength, pulverizing daughter more scale demons with ease.
"Mist Breathing: Sixth Form: Lunar Dispersing Mist."
I performed a multitude of slashes in a somersaulting motion, decimating dozens of scale demons all at once. Of course, in response, they continued duplicating one after another from the ones that remained.
"The scale demons before weren't capable of duplication..." I observed, ducking under a punch, only to behead the scale demon that tried it.
"If this continues, I'll only be overwhelmed. I'll die from exhaustion."
My gaze flickered in all directions, attempting to catch a glimpse of the man I was adamant on killing today.
My eyes narrowed, gaze landing on its target, a small dot in the distance, barely visible thanks to the burning down buildings and light from lampposts.
He continued to fly away, barely even visible to me, the distance between us only becoming greater by the second.
I grunted in anger and frustration, performing a 360° circular slash, clearing a decent amount of area around me of scale demons.
"Wind x Thunder"
"Storm Breathing: Eye of the Storm!"
I dashed around the battlefield in a circular path, striking many, many scale demons at an immense pace, the time between strikes growing shorter and shorter. My speed was fast enough to create a multitude of tiny shockwaves, scale demons being decimated one after another.
It was impossible for me to destroy them all, especially when the ones that survived continued multiplying.
"I can't continue wasting my time here," I muttered, watching as the tiny spec far off in the distance continued growing smaller and smaller until it was no longer visible. "He's getting away, and fast."
"Thunder Breathing: First Form: Thunderclap and Flash: Godlike Speed!"
Crack
Boom
The way the loud sonic boom was delayed in reaching my ears clued me int just how fast I must've been moving.
I didn't blink once, my half-lidded eye defiant against the cold breeze that struck the.
My gaze was fixated on the silhouette of father who now appeared much larger than he was just a few seconds ago. I had quickly closed the gap between us.
As I ran, I quickly began wrapping my eight nichirin wires around one of my katanas, jumping up high into the air, fast approaching father.
I firmly clung onto the side of a nearby building, adjusting my grip on my nichirin wire-wrapped katana, stretching the arm holding the weapon.
I used all of my strength, shooting the wire-wrapped katana forward at intense speeds.
"Spider Breathing: Eighth Form: Web-headed Lance!"
I watched as the nichirin wires began to unravel the air cutting blade that pursued my father. The wires whipped around, spinning around the blade Ike a fan as it violently struck my fleeing father, every wire sawing through the reinforced scales on his body.
An explosion of blood lit up in the air, blood droplets raining down onto the ground.
"Lucky bastard," I muttered, frowning as I caught a glimpse of his completely intact upper body, watching as he regenerated every last injury in mere seconds.
Much to my confusion, he allowed himself to land on the ground, rather than continuing to fly away.
My eyes narrowed as I let go of the small ledge I was hanging onto, landing onto the ground without injury. "This must be it..."
Father turned around completely, arms folded n front of his chest, smiling at me. His fearless, imposing red eyes stared into my soul, but I felt nothing at the bloodlust.
"You've grown far beyond my expectations, Izuku," he said.
I didn't respond, only staring right back at him with narrowed eyes. My body began to ache again, but I ignored it. I ignored it all. It wasn't nearly enough to cause any concern.
"Why have you stopped flying away? Maybe you know you're going to die," I said, taking a few steps closer to him.
He only chuckled, shaking his head from side to side. "Heavens, no. I'm not going to make it easy for you," he responded with a wide grin. "And besides, even if I do die here..."
He stopped, paused for a moment or two, spreading his arms out while staring up into the completely covered sky, stars not visible.
"Just take a second to realize just what it is I've done here!" He shouted, voice echoing for miles in all directions.
"Japan's capital is completely encompassed by this dome made from my scales. Every single district of Tokyo is being decimated as we speak, other than the few you demon slayers have a managed to clear out. I'd estimated that a few million people have already been killed! I don't think you realize just what this means, not just for Japan, but for the world watching!"
I frowned, grip on my remaining katana tightening.
He brought his head back down to eye level, staring at me from several meters away.
"I've destroyed Tartarus, killed the HPSC government officials. My scale demons have killed millions. They've killed hundreds of you demon slayers. I've done all of this in just one night. The country housing the word's most powerful heroes is being destroyed from the inside out!"
"Why?" I interrupted, not wanting to hear anymore of this. I already knew how many lives must've been lost tonight. I didn't need to be reminded. "What's the purpose of all of this?"
Father only smile wider. "Oh Izuku, still naive I see," he said, scales hovering around his body.
"I find great pleasure in reminding individuals just how fragile and insignificant they really are. I always have enjoyed it. This? This is just a wide scale version of that."
My eyes narrowed at his reasoning, or lack there of.
"Humanity believes so dearly that they are the pinnacle of life, that they are at the top of the food chain, the apex predator. But the feeling I get when I prove otherwise is simply exhilarating," he explained, the scales hovering around his body now beginning to whirl around him in a circular motion at intense speeds.
Dad, in one swift motion, pointed a finger straight up into the sky, wings fully outstretched as he did so. A small orb of scales coated in flames began to form just at the tip of his finger.
I instantly dashed forward, not wanting to allow whatever this was to continue. However, I was a split second too late, his scale demons exploding out from his body, forcing me to retreat.
He laughed lowly, pupils shrinking as his smile widened to the point where it looked almost painful.
The orb of scales and flames shot up into the air at supersonic speeds, devastating winds wrapping around it, following the orb upwards as it traveled to the very top of the scale dome encompassing all of Tokyo.
"Blood Demon Art: Shattering Discharge!"
Almost on cue, as soon as those words fell from his mouth, a large, painfully loud sonic boom expanded outwards in midair.
Crack
Devastating winds shot out in all directions as I continued defending against the scale demons.
There were far less of them than there were mere minutes ago, so I didn't have much trouble dealing with them, especially since I didn't give any of them a chance to multiply.
Not even a second after I destroyed the final scale demon, something sharp and heavy hit to top of my head, nearly embedding itself into my skull, only to bounce off and land onto the ground.
I rubbed the top of my head, tilting my head upwards, staring into the sky.
It was far brighter out than it was before, and it didn't take long for me to realize why.
The entire scale dome encompassing all of Tokyo had been destroyed by dad and that powerful attack. It was completely gone, a decent amount of stars shining through. "It must be sunrise soon..."
The destroyed dome was now reduced to a heavy rainfall of scales, helicopters and fighter jets barely visible through it all in the sky.'
"Did you..." I wasn't able to finish my sentence, lowering my head back down, gaze meeting his red eyes.
I narrowed my gaze, frowning as I instantly got into a defensive stance, the scales that were raining down on us now beginning to wrap around him, spinning and rotating at incredible speeds.
He destroyed his own barrier. Was this why? Was he calling all of his scales back to him? It sure seemed like that was what was happening. But why? As a defensive mechanism? Or is it more complicated?
Yes. There was definitely something more to this, I just didn't know what.
Although, I was sure that I'd find out soon enough.
"You know son, I've always wanted to test out the limits of my abilities. I've always wanted to face an opponent equal to myself, an opponent capable of forcing me to grow in a fight, stronger than I ever could've become through normal training," he said, body now fully becoming enveloped in scales, layer after layers after layer.
I swallowed thickly, a sweat bead rolling down my forehead. I wasn't scared, no. But... whatever was happening would only make this more difficult.
"I see..." I muttered, scales forming themselves into a reptilian-like body around dad's main body.
A long line of scales shot out backwards, still connected to the main reptilian body, acting like some form of a tail. Giant wings sprouted out from the giant's back, head forming in tandem. Four legs grew from the bottom of the giant as it began floating upwards into the air, wings flapping intensely.
The unbearable sound of rough scales grinding and scraping against one another ran out through the air, assaulting my eardrums.
"So that's what's happening," I thought to myself, flames surrounding the giant's large claws.
The giant's eyes slowly opened, revealing large, glowing red eyes that stared at me with malice.
"A real dragon."
One of a size comparable to a large building.
I watched as the dragon, made out of nothing but scales, opened its giant maw, roaring an intense, primal screech, powerful enough to create shockwaves that forced me back several meters.
"Blood Demon Art: Cataclysm!"
<•------------•>
Author's Note: Hm. The cover art makes sense now.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The next chapter will be coming soon.