Jinishi stared at his hands, breathing heavily as his body pulsed with newfound power. His wounds were closing before his eyes, even the deepest ones sealing shut, leaving behind only faint scars.
"What the hell is this..?" he muttered, struggling to process the situation. This wasn't normal. This wasn't human. Before he could piece it all together, the thugs who had attacked him weren't done yet. Two rushed forward again with knives, but one stayed back—this time drawing a pistol.
Jinishi didn't want to test the limits of his healing. He knew he could recover from wounds, but how much? How fast? He couldn't afford to take a bullet to find out. So, he did the only thing that made sense to him. He ran straight at them. It seemed like he didn't exactly plan on what to do, but his mind was racing. His only instinct was to run at them, and he couldn't resist that instinct.
The gun fired, but something was off. The moment the trigger was pulled…Jinishi could see the bullet coming. It was slow…almost like it was moving through water. His brain processed it all too quickly, his body reacting instinctively. He twisted his torso to the side, dodging it by a hair.
One of the thugs lunged with a knife. Jinishi's body moved on its own, and he swiped downward—intending to just knock him back. Instead, his claws ripped through the man's skull, cleaving his body down the middle in one clean motion. Blood pooled onto the ground—flowing onto the streets of the alleyway like a water faucet that was left on for too long flooding the area in water until everything was washed away.
Jinishi stumbled back, his eyes wide. "What The Hell?!" He hadn't expected that. His strength… It was monstrous. He could cut through bone like a pair of scissors cutting right through paper. The remaining thugs hesitated but still attacked. A twisted grin crept onto Jinishi's face as he charged forward. He tore through them, feeling their blades cut into his body, but each wound closed almost as fast as it was made. But then, a problem made itself known again—the Gunman.
Jinishi managed to dodge another bullet, but his body was getting sluggish. He was getting tired. His healing was slowing down. "Tch—can't keep this up forever..." He mumbled to himself. He sprinted toward the shooter, raising his gauntlet-clad arms in defense. Bullets ricocheted off the magical metal as he closed the distance. Then, as he got within range—
BOOM!
Jinishi clapped his arms together, and a shockwave of magical force erupted from his body. The sheer impact blasted the thug backward, slamming him into a brick wall—his body bursting like an overfilled water balloon. "Damn…" Jinishi exhaled, his gauntlets flickering before vanishing entirely. His aura faded. A sudden wave of exhaustion hit him like a truck, and he dropped to his knees.
His vision blurred. Shadows crept at the edges of his sight. And then—darkness.
Shortly after, a distant noise became louder and louder—sirens. Police sirens.
Jinishi's eyes shot open. "Shit—cops!" He forced himself up, legs wobbling beneath him. His body ached, but he could move. He scanned the unconscious and dead thugs, rummaging through their pockets. Wallets. Some had IDs. Cash. A lot of it. More importantly, one of them had a shiesty mask.
Jinishi took what he could and ran, slipping through the alleyways before the cops could close in. He zigzagged through Takuro City, distancing himself from the scene. By the time he stopped, he'd made it halfway across town. He adjusted his hair, making it more wild, then he threw his hood up to cover his head. Just in case.
Now, with some stolen cash in hand, he decided to restock on essentials. He bought fresh clothes, specifically; a black tank top shirt, black baggy sweatpants, white and black sneakers, with a white hooded zip-up jacket that had a black Japanese symbol standing for "Truth" on the back of it. something simple but clean. Then, he grabbed food, sitting outside a restaurant while he processed everything. His mind was racing. "What the hell happened to me? Two months ago, I was nearly dead. Now, I can tear people apart like paper? What changed?"
He replayed the events over and over. First, he activated the power when he was on the verge of death. Then, he activated it again when he was fighting for his life. He desired to live. He hoped to live. Was it based on desire? Was it based on hope?
A deep, burning feeling had ignited both times. Back in the alley, he had wanted to live. Against the thugs, he had wanted to fight for people like him—people who couldn't defend themselves. He wanted to give others hope. He wanted to give himself hope. "Maybe… that's the trigger."
Jinishi clenched his fists. "If that's the case, I need to learn to control it." As he ate, he noticed something else. The exhaustion was fading. His energy was returning. More than that—he felt stronger than before. His body wasn't just recovering. It was adapting.
As Jinishi finished his meal, he overheard something that made his blood run cold. "Did you hear about Sukayu City?" A man spoke as he walked by. "Some kind of creature attacked earlier today. Half the people there went missing. The police can't do shit—officers disappear the second they try looking for them."
Jinishi froze. His mind immediately went back two months ago. "The thing that attacked me… could it be the same one?" It didn't matter. People were in danger. But how could he get there? "Eighteen hours on foot. Four by car." He didn't have a license. He didn't have time. His eyes darted around until they landed on a man about to enter his car. "Perfect."
Jinishi pulled the stolen shiesty mask over his face and approached. The moment the driver got inside, Jinishi slipped into the backseat. Before the man could react, Jinishi's claws pressed against his throat. "Drive to Sukayu City." were the only words to leave Jinishi's mouth at that moment.
The man stilled, breath hitching. Jinishi leaned in closer. "You have two choices. You can be scared of the thing that might kill you four hours from now… or you can be scared of me, who will definitely kill you…Right Now." The man's hands trembled on the wheel. Then, with a slow, hesitant nod, he started the car.
As they drove off, Jinishi felt something strange. His exhaustion had completely vanished. His energy was surging. Unbeknownst to him, his powers were absorbing the man's hopes—his desperate hopes of making it back to his family. Jinishi wasn't just recovering anymore…He was getting stronger.
From a distance, just around the corner, a figure watched silently. A young woman with long black hair and piercing red eyes.She had seen everything—from the moment Jinishi awakened his powers to the second he forced the man to drive. Without a word, she turned and straddled a sleek black motorcycle. The engine purred to life as she sped off, following the car from a distance.
Who was she? And more importantly—What did she want with Jinishi?