Katakana and Jiren locked eyes for a long time, but neither made the first move.
Then, at that moment, Jiren suddenly spoke in a cold tone.
"This is it."
"Although you managed to perform well in our earlier exchanges, this is as far as you go."
As soon as he finished speaking, crimson energy surged from Jiren's body.
The sheer force of it was so intense that even Katakana felt a chill run through him.
Even though Vermut hadn't directly explained his intentions earlier, his meaning was clear.
Now, even if Jiren didn't intend to end the fight quickly, he had no choice but to defeat Katakana as soon as possible to uphold the pride of Universe 11.
Katakana, however, remained unfazed.
"Is that so?"
"Well, I don't see it that way."
Jiren ignored Katakana's response, instead stating in an icy voice:
"Final attack."
He clenched his arms tightly, and the crimson aura completely engulfed them.
Even the space around him began to warp under the sheer pressure of his energy.
It was clear, Jiren was holding nothing back.
His intention was obvious: to end this battle in a single blow.
Watching this, a dark smile crept across Vermut's face.
"Hmph, looks like Jiren understands me well. He's about to finish this guy off."
As someone who had fought Jiren before, Vermut knew this move better than anyone.
Every time Jiren used this technique, it meant he was finishing the fight.
And Vermut knew all too well just how powerful this attack was.
But Marcarita remained composed.
Leaning slightly toward Vermut, she whispered, "Not necessarily, Lord Vermut."
"Have you forgotten? I mentioned earlier that this boy has some hidden power inside him."
"I have a feeling… he just might survive Jiren's attack."
From the very beginning, Marcarita had sensed that there was something special about Katakana.
Though she couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was, her instincts told her this was no ordinary fighter.
In fact, she even suspected that Katakana might possess traces of Angelic energy.
Otherwise, why would she have this unshakable feeling about him?
Regardless, it wouldn't be long before the truth was revealed.
Against Jiren's strongest attack, Katakana would be forced to unleash his hidden power, of that, Marcarita was sure.
---
Jiren exhaled slightly, then spoke in a deep voice:
"You are strong. If there's a chance, I hope to fight you again."
"That is… if you survive this."
"This ends now."
With those words, Jiren threw his punch into the air.
"BOOM!!"
The crimson energy erupted like an enraged dragon, surging straight toward Katakana with devastating force.
Feeling the terrifying power of the attack, Katakana dared not hesitate.
Raising both hands into a cup formation, he roared:
"BIG,"
"BANG,"
" KAMEHAMEHA!!"
As the enormous crimson dragon roared toward him, Katakana unleashed every last ounce of divine power in his body.
Pouring all of his Godly energy into a single blast,
"BOOM!"
The moment the two attacks clashed, the entire planet beneath them disintegrated.
Reduced to dust.
The resulting shockwave obliterated the surrounding planets and meteorites.
Had Marcarita not quickly erected a barrier, the entire Universe 11 would have been shaken by the impact.
Jiren's brows twitched slightly.
For a brief moment, he froze.
"He… actually withstood my attack?"
But he had no time to be surprised.
His power surged once again.
In an instant, the crimson dragon grew several times larger, pushing Katakana's Big Bang Kamehameha back toward him!
Katakana gritted his teeth, his arms trembling as veins bulged across them.
Even though he had poured every bit of divine power he had into the attack,
He still couldn't stop Jiren's strongest move.
"Damn it… Is this Jiren's full strength?"
"Even my strongest attack… isn't enough?!"
His body was already reaching its absolute limit.
But then,
A sudden thought exploded in his mind.
"Jiren?! The strongest Mortal?!
"Don't make me laugh!!"
"The strongest Mortal will NEVER be Jiren!!"
"It will be ME!!"
Suddenly,
Katakana's energy surged explosively.
His power skyrocketed, forcing the two colliding energies back to the center of the battlefield!
"Wh-What?! He actually withstood Jiren's final attack?!"
Vermut's eyes widened in shock.
This was unbelievable.
Even he would need considerable effort to deal with Jiren's strongest move.
Yet this boy had managed to withstand it?!
"No way! Macarita, Jiren must have gone easy on him!"
But Marcarita shook her head.
Her gaze was serious.
"No, Lord Vermut."
She had expected Katakana to tap into his hidden power here.
But to her surprise, even at this critical moment,
He still hadn't used it.
Which meant…
Katakana was doing all of this on his own.
"Boom!"
Finally, after struggling against each other for several moments,
The two devastating energy waves exploded in midair!
The blast sent both Katakana and Jiren flying hundreds of meters backward.
Although Katakana was pushed back a bit farther,
The excited expression on his face made it clear,
He had won this exchange.
"This guy…!"
Toppo clenched his fists, staring at Katakana in disbelief.
The same guy he had once ignored…
Had now fought Jiren to a standstill.
Jiren steadied himself, breathing slightly heavier.
Though he had taken some damage, compared to Katakana, he was still in better shape.
"Your body has reached its limit."
"Just admit defeat."
"You can't beat me."
But Katakana didn't respond.
Because at that moment,
A voice echoed in his mind.
[Ding! Hidden mission completed. Ultimate potential unlocked.]
[Reward: 80% Rosè Purple Energy (Rainbow Energy)]