Chūya's body lasted longer than anyone could have anticipated.

In the case that he used corruption, and no one was there to nullify the ability, it was theorised that he would go on to wipe out everything in his path until his body destroyed itself. Chūya would lose himself.

He did everything to avoid relying on it, refusing to resort to it against the most formidable enemies. But he knew that one day, it would be unavoidable. He just hoped you would be far from him when it happened.

He didn't want his battered, scarred body to be the last thing you remember of him: red markings carving glowing paths across his body, eyes wild and utterly detached from the man he tried to be. No longer Chūya, but a monster. Arahabaki.

The battle may have been far from Yokohama, but it was doing a damn good job at mowing down the forest in its way. With one flick of its arm, Arahabaki sent trees flying into the ocean. It heard sounds around it, forces trying to contain it, but it did not care nor listen, only annihilated.

It spread its destruction like wildfire... until it reached a clearing. For the first time that night, its bloodthirsty grin settled into a thin line as it lifted its head to stare ahead.

Arahabaki was not sentient. It did not know who stood before it. But it did not once think to destroy them. Each footstep cracked the earth beneath it, but it stopped before it could reach the figure.