The deeper they descended into the Hollow Spine, the more the world decayed into madness. Gone were the flickering lights and crude underworld market stalls. Here, the air thickened with mold, heat, and something else—something ancient and wrong. The tunnels narrowed, walls etched with claw marks and half-burned sigils. The signs were clear.
They were in Black Crow territory now.
Kaito scanned the walls. "Smells like blood and burnt bone. We're close."
Mika nodded grimly. "And we're being followed. The echoes don't match our steps."
Suddenly, the corridor ahead twisted, and they stepped into an open chamber—a rusted train yard buried beneath the city. Steel carcasses of ancient trains lay broken, riddled with vines pulsing with dungeon energy. The tracks themselves had long since been warped by tremors or battles.
And waiting for them—five figures, each cloaked in dark feathered coats, their faces obscured by bone-white plague masks marked with the Black Crow emblem: a single obsidian feather pierced through a bloodshot eye.
One of them stepped forward. Taller than the others, arms crossed, aura calm but venomous.
"So. The rat-hunters finally reach the nest," he said, voice smooth, arrogant. "You have no idea what you're walking into, freaks."
Renji didn't flinch. His eyes locked onto the speaker, the subtle glow of mutation pulsing at his temples. "I know exactly where I am. You destroyed our home. Took our people. I'm here to collect."
A low chuckle came from another Crow—a woman with twin sickles strapped to her thighs. "Cute. You think you're owed something. Do you have any idea who we are?"
"I don't care," Renji said flatly. "But you're going to bleed."
That silenced them.
The tall leader tilted his head. "You've got guts, I'll admit. But guts aren't armor. This is Hollow territory. Our laws. Our blood. You walk into the nest and bark threats?"
He raised a hand. "Break them."
The battle exploded.
Two Crows surged forward. One blurred with sudden speed, dashing toward Kaito—only to be caught mid-motion by an arc of electricity that blasted through his chest and sent him flying into a broken rail.
"Too slow," Kaito growled.
The woman with sickles danced toward Yumi, slashing shadows as they coiled to block her path. "Pretty tricks won't save you!"
Yumi's eyes narrowed. "Neither will underestimating them."
Her shadows pulsed outward, forming a dark dome that swallowed both women in a swirling vortex of slicing tendrils.
Mika, meanwhile, clashed with a brute wielding a massive club wrapped in dungeon-forged iron. He charged at her like a juggernaut—but Mika stood her ground, eyes glowing.
Boom.
Her kinetic blast struck the ground, launching her upward. She twisted mid-air and landed behind him. Another blast—straight into his spine—drove him face-first into a wall of steel.
Takeshi roared, intercepting a twin-daggered Crow who tried to backstab Mika. The two exchanged brutal blows, fists against blades, flesh against flashing steel.
And at the center of it all—Renji faced the leader.
"You're strong," the Crow said, drawing two short blades coated in black venom. "But strength isn't enough down here. You're still just prey pretending to be a predator."
Renji's grin was cold and feral. "Then let me show you the difference."
The Crow lunged with surgical precision, blades slicing through the air—but Renji moved like a phantom, faster than human reflexes, swaying just enough to dodge, before countering with a bone-cracking elbow to the jaw. The leader stumbled back, snarling.
"You're one of them… a mutant. A real one."
Renji didn't answer. His veins glowed faintly as dungeon energy pulsed through his limbs. He closed the distance again, landing a blow to the leader's chest that sent him crashing into a rusted train car, warping the metal frame on impact.
Elsewhere—
Kaito's second bolt fried another attacker.
Yumi emerged from her shadow dome, bloodied but victorious. The sickle-wielder's limbs were bound in pitch-dark chains, unmoving.
Takeshi was panting, arms bleeding, but his opponent lay unconscious beneath a collapsed beam.
Mika blasted her brute through a train door, then followed it with another shockwave that sent debris flying in every direction.
Renji stood over the Black Crow leader, who was coughing blood.
"Tell me where the prisoners are," Renji demanded. "Now."
The man spat blood. "You think this ends with us? You think Asano doesn't know you're here? You're walking into your graves, mutants."
Renji raised a clawed hand—no longer fully human—and pressed it against the leader's throat.
"I didn't ask for a monologue."
Before he could crush the man's windpipe, Yumi touched his shoulder. "We need him alive. For now."
Renji hesitated. Then with a disgusted grunt, he dropped the man to the ground.
The Black Crow survivors groaned in pain. Renji's team stood victorious—but scarred, panting, drained.
Mika wiped her brow. "So… they know we're here now."
Takeshi glanced around. "Let them come. Let them all come."
Renji's gaze was locked ahead, into the rusted tunnels leading deeper into the Hollow. "We're close. They're scared. That means we're getting close to something important."
Kaito crackled his knuckles. "Then let's push harder."
Yumi's eyes narrowed as her shadows curled protectively around them. "We're already in the lion's mouth. We might as well aim for its throat."
Renji turned and began walking forward.
"To Asano."
---
From the safety of the shadows, nestled high among the ruined train carcasses, two figures watched the battle unfold below with keen, piercing eyes.
Iris, her silver hair gleaming in the fractured light, held the binoculars steady. Her unnervingly calm expression didn't match the chaos below. Draven, her partner, stood beside her, towering over her slight form, his dark, brooding presence contrasting against her almost ethereal appearance. His hand rested on the hilt of a sword that had seen too many battles.
"Interesting," Iris murmured, her voice lilting but tinged with a dangerous edge. "They're stronger than I expected. Mutants who have embraced their power fully."
Draven's eyes were locked onto Renji's group. His lip curled. "It won't be enough."
The battle below was chaotic, brutal—Renji's team, mutants in their own right, clashed with the Black Crow members, sending their assailants into retreat. But it was clear that the Black Crow's leader was no mere thug. His command was swift, calculated.
"There's more at play here," Iris murmured, more to herself than to Draven. "Renji's group will be useful. But first, they need to understand what the Crows truly are."
Draven grunted in agreement. "We'll let them tire themselves out. Then we move in."
As the last of the Black Crow members were either incapacitated or forced to retreat, the eerie silence settled. But Iris wasn't concerned. She knew what would come next.
---
The battle had barely settled when Renji's team stood at the precipice of their next challenge. Dust settled in the air, the scent of blood lingering like a foul reminder of what had transpired. The few surviving Black Crow members limped away into the shadows, disappearing into the dark recesses of their base.
Renji wiped blood from his lip and straightened, his eyes scanning the area. Something wasn't right. The echoes of the battle reverberated throughout the hollow, but there was a shift in the atmosphere.
Footsteps. Slow, deliberate, echoing against the cold walls of the underground train yard. Renji's muscles tensed, his hands still crackling with residual energy from the battle. He knew this wasn't over.
From the darkened shadows, a figure emerged—tall, cloaked, exuding an almost oppressive presence. His features were sharp, with eyes that gleamed under the hood of his robe. The leader of the Black Crow faction, Asano.
Behind him were two others—his elite echelon. One, a woman with crimson hair and a leather coat, her eyes hidden behind dark, circular glasses. The other, a man tall and imposing, his face scarred with deep, jagged lines, almost resembling a beast—something not entirely human.
Asano raised a hand, his voice cutting through the lingering tension. "I see you've made it this far."
Renji's team stiffened, their gazes locked on him.
"We have. And we're not here to play games," Renji responded, his tone cold and direct.
Asano's lips curled into a sly smile. "Ah. Straight to the point. I appreciate that. But I never said I was playing."
There was a brief moment of silence. Then Asano took a step forward, his voice smooth, almost too charming for someone surrounded by chaos.
"I'll get straight to the point as well," he said. "I've been watching you. Your potential is undeniable. You and your team, Renji Kuroya… you could be something far greater than just mere survivors."
Renji's brow furrowed. "What are you getting at?"
Asano's eyes glinted. "What I'm getting at is that I can offer you something. Something more than this senseless battle. You've proven yourselves strong. But you'll need power—real power—to stand against the coming storms."
Renji's fists clenched. "I'm not interested in your offers, Asano. I came here to settle my own debts."
The woman with the crimson hair behind Asano narrowed her eyes at Renji. "It's not about debts anymore. It's about survival."
The scarred man chuckled darkly. "You think you can take on the world alone? The Black Crow doesn't just survive. We dominate."
Renji stood his ground, unwavering. "I don't need your help to survive. I'll burn the world down myself if I have to."
Asano raised his hands, signaling for quiet. His voice was smooth, almost soothing. "You misunderstand me, Renji. I'm not offering you help. I'm offering you an opportunity. Join us. Join the Black Crow. Your power, your strength—it could be used for far greater things. Under my leadership, you'll have more than just survival."
Renji's eyes flickered with a mix of disdain and curiosity. "I don't care for your empty promises."
Asano's smile didn't falter. "Very well. But understand this: You've proven you can fight. But you'll never be strong enough to take down those who stand at the top… without help. Without us."
There was a long pause. Renji's teammates exchanged glances, weighing the implications of his words.
But before Renji could respond, Asano stepped closer, lowering his voice to a near whisper. "I can promise you one thing, though. We can make you the apex predator you crave to be. If you're willing to embrace your true nature."
Renji's eyes narrowed, his control slipping for just a moment. His hands flexed, the temptation to unleash the beast within him rising. But he shoved it down, knowing this was the manipulation that the Black Crow thrived on.
"I'm not interested in being anyone's puppet," Renji growled.
Asano's gaze sharpened, his smile turning colder. "So be it. But mark my words, Renji. Everything you fight for, everything you want to protect, will eventually come down to one truth: You will either join us or face the consequences."