CHAPTER 167: NEUTRON STYLE: PULSAR

Neutron Style

’By loosening and stretching his joints...’ Ellie thought as Peter closed the distance again.

’He can increase his speed exponentially!’

Bang!

A loud sound erupted as Peter swung his arm again, the speed so extreme that an audible sonic boom was released.

Osho raised his guard to block and did so, but the force still sent him sliding back, the muscles on that part of his arm torn.

"Was... was that a sonic boom???" Irene asked with exasperation. Sure, the two of them were at the Apprentice rank, but still...

"Yeah, no. This fight has long since left the realm of ordinary, and even extraordinary humans." Sam shook her head as Peter rushed forward again. He sent out several swings, all of which Osho blocked, but not at the cost of getting more and more parts of his arms slowly destroyed. That said...

"The damage isn’t as much as I thought, given the speed," Ellie noted with a touch of surprise. Considering each swing Peter let out created a sonic boom, the damage to Osho’s arms should have been far more. In fact, if Ellie had tried to block such an onslaught, she doubted her bones would remain intact even after the first hit.

"It’s due to how he’s blocking." Kurt pointed out. "He is tensing his muscles to the limit. Moreover, there is no space between his arms and torso, so his arms aren’t the only thing receiving the shock, making the damage more dispersed." He explained as he listened intently to everything that was happening, reminding everyone just how extreme his ears were.

"That said, Osho is still at a disadvantage. I doubt he could dodge even if he wanted to." Sam shook her head.

Peter’s barrage of attacks didn’t let up for a second, his eyes wide and red as he swung relentlessly. No matter what angle he swung from, Osho was always able to block, but it was only a matter of time until his arms were too damaged to keep blocking.

’How’s that, Isaac! Is this entertaining enough for you?!’ Peter shouted inwardly as he spun his body and swung his arm again, putting his body into it.

The strike sent Osho stumbling back, but Peter was still on his case.

’Come on! Surely you weren’t all talk!’ He swung even harder this time, and despite Osho blocking, some skin on his face got shaved off.

"He didn’t block it?!" Kurt exclaimed, and the others grimaced.

"The strikes aren’t just faster, they’re probably stronger too. The sheer force behind them is enough to break past Osho’s guard." Sam said while running a hand through her hair, this situation was truly too nerve-wracking.

"What’s more... He’s still speeding up." Irene covered her mouth. Right now, it looked like Osho was going up against a hurricane with just how absurd the attacks were. Blood kept on flying, and it was a wonder how Osho hadn’t collapsed from blood loss yet.

"You’re surprised?! Right!?" Peter yelled as he once more did a downwards swing with all his weight behind it, nearly making Osho fall face-first.

’Haha! This is fun!’ Peter thought with glee as he followed up with an upwards swing, making Osho stumble back again.

’How many people can face me like this without dying after the first few strikes? This... Stars this is Liberating!’ At this point, Osho suddenly shot forward and threw a punch, but before it could reach Peter, he swung his arm down and swatted the attack downwards.

"You’re gonna have to do better than that!" He yelled as he used the same arm and actually caught Osho in the face, wholly unguarded.

"Osho!" Ellie shouted with panic as Osho was sent reeling, blood oozing from the part of his face that had been hit.

"Two rights in a row with the same arm? How??" Sam was baffled.

"He used the recoil to set himself back into position, which is insane to think about," Ellie said through gritted teeth.

’Seriously, is this even normal? How? Just how can a human move their arms like that?’ She resisted the urge to run in and stop the fight.

"Shouldn’t we stop them?!" Irene shouted, but Kurt shook his head.

"Unless one is about to die, I don’t think we should. And that’s under the assumption we can for that matter." He said grimly.

Meanwhile, Peter was staring at Kurt with pure madness in his eyes, his black pupils filled with nothing else.

’Well, Isaac?’ He thought as he gave another wide swing.

’Can you resist this? My bloodlust?’ The swing was about to make contact with Osho’s head again, and then.

"Heh."

CRACK.

"Oh shit!" Kurt visibly recoiled while the others flinched.

’Peter faltered for a moment as a flash of pain shot through his hand, specifically, his wrist.

’Isaac you...’ He stared at Osho who had one arm out, a single knuckle made with his middle finger which had struck his wrist joint with pinpoint accuracy.

And yet.

BANG

"He swung that same arm! Has he lost it?!" Irene put her hands on her head in disbelief. Despite the damage to his wrist, Peter had swung out that same arm with even more force, aiming to catch Osho off guard.

"Well, it was worth it. That hit managed to...!" Kurt trailed off as the aftermath became clear.

CRACK

Peter stood there in shock as the radius bone in his left arm was snapped in two.

"Oh. Did I break it?" Osho asked with a faintly amused smile on his face, his elbow held in position while being braced against him. It was clear that Peter had swung his arm right into the sharp edge.

"And elbow guard?? How did he get that up in time?!" Ellie was barely stopping herself from jumping around in panic and excitement.

’I couldn’t even see that swing. Yet he defended it so smoothly. What the heck?!’ She thought with wide eyes.

However, Peter didn’t seem to care as he continued swinging both arms like crazy, the pain of having one broken seeming to be nothing but an afterthought.

"That kid is insane." Sam shook her head.

Osho continued blocking for a few seconds before he suddenly planted his feet, and in the next second, he was up close and personal.

A powerful kick was sent into Peter’s gut, sending his smaller frame flying back as he coughed up blood. And yet, he still smiled.

’Heh, that’s just like you. You still saw the trajectory, didn’t you?’ He thought as he doubled over.

’Even though it got faster and stronger, the trajectory is still the same. But had it been anyone else, it would have overwhelmed them. But not you. That’s just like you, Isaac.’

"Hehe. In that case, how about this?" He brought his good arm close to his body and it bulged like before. A series of wet pops sounded from it, like wood being broken under water before it relaxed again, and Peter straightened.

"Okay... that’s just grotesque." Sam grimaced as Peter’s arm had now gotten long enough to reach his calf.

’I’ll stretch my joints to their absolute limit.’ He thought, and one could see the veins in his arms straining from such stress, but Peter didn’t seem to care.

’Like this, it’ll be too fast to dodge, regardless of trajectory.’ He grinned despite the blood leaking from his lips.

"Flare Style: Helios. How about that?" He asked, his voice slightly gurgling from the blood.

"Sounds good," Osho said with a genuine smile, right before an arm came at him far too fast and sent him flying.

"He’s gotten even faster! That hit was dead on!" Sam gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, but Kurt and Ellie’s eyes were wide.

’Wait, no...’ Ellie thought as Osho landed on his teeth, conveniently in a stance.

"It didn’t land properly." Kurt echoed her thoughts as Osho exhaled and slowly opened his eyes.

"Alright, got the timing." He stated as he grinned while Peter charged him.

’That’s just like you! Of course, you saw right through me.’ He pulled his arm back to give the biggest swing yet.

’Come on Wanderer! More, more! Show me everything!’ He swung his arm in a wide arc.

’Show me the strength you used to extricate yourself! Show me what you did to prove you were worthy! Show me-’

Osho timed his run perfectly as he paused, making Peter’s swing go just inches over his head, then he clenched his fist tightly.

In his arm, his muscles tensed, and the tendons in his arm coiled and compressed impossibly, like a high-pressure spring.

’Neutron Style...’ His fist shot forward like a round released from a railgun, and the others felt like they saw a star explode as Osho’s fist collided with Peter’s face.

’... Pulsar.’

BANG

The sheer recoil made his fist kick back almost immediately, smoke literally wafting off it.

"Wh-What happened?" Irene asked tentatively as they saw Oeter standing there, his eyes blank.

And then, blood spilled from his eyes, nose, ears, and mouth, as his pupils rolled back and he collapsed.

Everyone’s jaws dropped as they watched Osho roll the arm he’d just used to throw that devastating punch.

"Well, that was fun."