Ren’s fingers idly traced the handle of his sword, eyes focused but distant.

  The st few months.

  Tenzan. The moment he realized that even with everything he had, he still wasn’t enough.

  Shigure. The way his bde cut through his opponent—his first real tag-team victory since stepping onto this battlefield.

  Mori. How close he had come to losing himself entirely.

  His grip tightened.

  The Chūkan. His thoughts flickered back to their training. To the moment he first caught a glimpse of what true power looked like. To the realization that power alone would never be enough—he had to understand it, had to wield it with absolute intent.

  But even now, he wondered.

  “Is it enough?”

  Would Tsukuyomi truly be enough to cut down Kuroda?

  The doubt sat heavy on his shoulders.

  But then—

  A voice. A memory.

  “The strongest door is not the one that cannot be broken, but the one that will never open for you.”

  Ren’s breath hitched slightly.

  Sato.

  He could still see him, standing in the office, his body failing him but his resolve unshaken. He could still hear those st words.

  At the time, he hadn’t fully understood them.

  But now—now they carried weight.

  The Chūkan was that door. Kuroda was that door.

  No matter how powerful Ren became, no matter how far he pushed himself—Kuroda wasn’t something that couldn’t just be cut down. Not by his strength alone.

  His fingers clenched tighter around his sword.

  “Then I won’t try to break through. I’ll make sure the damn thing never opens in the first pce.”

  No hesitation.

  No weakness.

  “I won’t stop. No matter what.”