Chapter 23: Acrimony

Wind swept through the grassy field, causing the thin blades to shimmer rhythmically in the harsh sun. Insects fluttered about, seeking sources of nutrition, while birds cut through the sky. This peaceful scene would soon be disturbed as two combatants stood 10 metres apart.

The shorter fighter squatted herself down to perform side lunges: each leg bent intermittently, whilst the other extended parallel to her body, still resting on the soft grassy battlefield. Tiona Hiryute finished by straightening herself up, and performed cross arm stretches. Her golden hair ornaments and necklaces sparkled just as brightly as the radiant smile she cast at her sparring partner. "Give me your best shot, Hit! I won't be going all out, so you don't have to worry!"

A tall, purple haired boy stared back at her, sternly. Scarlet eyes analysed her muscle movements for any weaknesses, or clues to her fighting style. He wore his usual dark grey trench coat and under armour; his refusal to take damage had not necessitated a replacement. In contrast, Hit hadn't performed any readying exercises; they were unnecessary for him. The teen's body was perpetually ready for battle, due to his eclectic exercises. "Don't underestimate me."

The girl's grin widened, and she picked up an enormous double-sided sword. Two rounded gold and adamantite blades, each over half the girl's height, were separated by a thin grip. Small hands made the multicoloured leather creak in excitement. "Are you sure I can use Urga II? I don't mind fighting you bare handed..."

Hit got into his serious stance, shocking the bystanders. The high-level adventurers were spectating from nearby, happy to take their minds off debts and dungeon mysteries. "Use your preferred fighting style. I need you to push me as far as possible."

The energetic girl swung the gargantuan sword around and held it to her side. "Alrighty! I'll be sure not to kill ya!"

Riveria was standing off to the side, holding her hand out. "Remember, this is a spar, you must respect your training partner. There will be no maiming."

At the two combatants' nod, the elf lifted her arm up to the sky, ruffling her grassy hair. "Begin!"

*CRACK*

Hit instantly dashed at Tiona, faltering slightly due to his recent awakening. 'So... this is the power of the falna.' The boy grinned and ran forward at greater speeds than ever before in this world.

"Wow!" Tiona was stupefied as Hit's fist approached far faster than expected, forcing her to weave to the side. Her heart beat: she would not need to hold back as much as she thought.

The girl's cloaked pursuer followed after her, relentlessly delivering a lightning-fast assortment of roundhouse kicks and jabs. Unfortunately, Tiona either parried them or allowed them to cut through thin air. "Heh, you're pretty fast, but ya can't catch m..."

*Shing*

*BAM*

A fist punched the girl's smug face through time and returned to its former position.

"Yaaa!" Black hair ruffled in the purple light, as the hyperactive girl startled and stepped back from shock, patting her nose. "W-What did you do?"

Her mysterious opponent smirked and flexed his fingers in a beckoning motion.

Tiona rubbed her nose and grinned, before running at her enemy. The giant-killing blade swung down like a cleaver. "Guess I'll have ta find out myself!"

Hit dodged the blunt sword swing and moved to Tiona's side. "Get serious".

*Shing* *BAM* *BAM* *BAM* *BAM*

Newfound speed allowed hit to deliver four quick jabs to the girl's chest, while time was stopped. He made sure to leave the last one at its mark, making it look like the hand had been teleported.

"Paah!" Tiona's svelte body was pushed backwards, and she gasped. Rather than the punch's force sending her back, it was Tiona's immense shock that startled her away; honed reflexes screamed at her to distance herself from any injurious stimuli. Of course, this was only natural for the high-level combat genius. A slightly annoyed look passed over the growling woman, and a thin leg rocketed at Hit's abdomen.

"Ghk!" The kick sent Hit sliding back, yet he did not fall. Hands came up in a triangular formation and purple mist radiated from him.

Riveria's ears twitched at the unusual effect, whilst the others were still stunned at his speed and odd 'teleportations'.

"Hmph" Hit cast the spell.

Tiona recognised the potential danger and tried to flee. However, her blade suddenly became immensely heavy, as if she was dragging it through tar.

"Huh!?" The girl was gobsmacked; her beautiful urga was shining purple and refused to move. Rather than targeting the flighty level 5 adventurer, Hit had ensnared her hulking slab of metal.

*BAM* The ground cratered.

Hit took advantage of the 'monkey trap' and ran at the girl, punching down at her; however, Tiona's high-level reflexes and speed allowed her to backflip out of the way and put some distance between them. The girl shouted, concerned about her weapon and wallet. "What have you done to my new Urga!?"

Her tricky adversary grasped at the sword, dispelling the time magic, and ran at its owner. "Catch!"

Hit flung the weapon, like a boomerang, and aimed for a space just above Tiona's reaching distance. Expectedly, she did a little hop.

Hit smirked. 'Got you.'

Tiona was about to be reunited with her most precious possession, when it glowed purple again, just 20 cm from her palm. "W-what!?" Her eyes popped out of her head in astonishment.

*Shing*

*BAM*

The genius that was Hit had used the weapon as camouflage, and matched his speed to its flight, perfectly. Hit activated his time skip during the final approach, just when Tiona became startled in midair, rendering it absolutely silent and instantaneous. He was not yet ready to move great distances, while time was stopped, but could use it to shorten distances while running. He made the most of his momentum, and finally landed a full power punch on Tiona's stomach, flooding the emerald field in amethyst light.

"Fuaa!" The girl was still not hurt, whatsoever; however, the daunting situation filled her with confusion, and exhilaration. Tiona marvelled at Hit's impossible abilities; they were on the high end of the scale between level 1 and 2. The jump in levels truly was staggering in this universe.

Purple light shimmered around Tiona as she danced around Hit's cacophony of unusual blows. The final one was accompanied by a deep shout from the boy. "HAAAA!"

Tiona's forearm blocked the roaring boy's fist. She smirked at him, playfully. "Hihi. Can't say I expected any a' that!"

The bystanders were standing, equally gobsmacked. Bete was especially surprised if his drooping ears and tail were any indication. Hit's speed, strength, and ingenuity were far beyond any level 1. How had the young boy become so experienced? What was this strange fighting style?

*clap* *clap* *clap*

"Woohoo, yeah!"

At least someone was happy. Loki was dancing around, clapping and cheering, simply enjoying the spectacle.

"GRAA!"

"HIIAA!"

The two powerful warriors disengaged and tussled, both shouting out battle cries as they traded blows.

"Huff. Huff. W-wait Miss Ais!"

Two new spectators ran to the sidelines: Ais and Lefiya had finished their shopping and were drawn behind the mansion by the shockwaves and bellows. Lefiya was goggle-eyed; whereas, Ais appeared transfixed, itching to fight.

One powerful punch forced Hit into a crouching position as he clutched a bruised side.

"Are ya okay? We can finish now, if you like." Tiona bit her lip; she was still fighting against a level 1, and had to hold back tremendously.

Hit chuckled and looked up, smirking. "Heh...No. Not when..."

*Shing*

**BAM**

"...I CAN JUMP EVEN FURTHER NOW!"

Tiona tensed as another punch 'teleported' itself onto her side. Somehow, the boy had managed to reach her over a greater distance than before. She had made sure to keep a precise distance from Hit, after getting accustomed to his attacks. This strategy was not out of fear; it was simply a way for her to practice and gain experience as well. In fact, maintaining a precise distance from Hit, out of reaching distance via his time skip, was the perfect means of combatting him. This would allow an opponent to predict where Hit would appear and either dodge, block, or counter the blow.

Hit had now evolved to jump 1.5 seconds into the future, just enough time to step to the side, allowing him to fully dodge an attack (that wasn't overly fast), or step to a nearby spot and launch a single quick jab. As Hit became stronger with the falna, his superhuman abilities would facilitate this.

His smirk and determined expression caused Tiona to become more serious as well, grinning wildly. "How about I start using some of my strength too."

The frenzied amazon launched an increasingly powerful barrage of attacks, forcing Hit to haphazardly parry them, with the aid of time skips. Still, he could barely even redirect the blows; red blood crept out from a few grazes that had begun to litter the boy's face. 'S-She's far too fast for my body. I'll have to go fully on the offensive. If I'm going to lose, I'm going down fighting, not cowering.'

"GRAAA!" Hit attempted to match her intensity and cast his defensive strategy aside; he gritted his teeth through the pain as the girl pelted him with attacks. Hit's new time skip evolution was pushed to its limit, allowing him to send out a myriad of strikes. Strangely, Tiona allowed them to strike at her body.

*Shing*

*BAM*

"What!?"

Hit's eyes widened, sweat drenching his face. His pupils reflected a giggly girl.

"Fufu. Got you!" Instead of a vital point, Hit's fist struck Tiona's open palm! The ability to see the level 1 boy's actions in slow motion, and subsequent analysis of the strikes and fighting style, had allowed her to predict the trajectory of Hit's final jab.

She held the taller boy's hand firmly, and yanked him towards her, giving Hit a good view of her innocent smile and sunny disposition. Emerald eyes twinkled a deadly beauty as she delivered a firm knee strike to his stomach.

*CRACK*

"Gah!?"

A brassy cracking sound burst from Hit's body, and he was sent flying tens of meters.

... All bystanders froze in worry as the rolling boy came to a stop. He did not get up.

Sunny disposition turned stormy, as terror gripped at Tiona's heart. She stared at her new friend's potential corpse in a cold sweat.

"TIONA! What have you done!?" Riveria screamed and ran to the boy, frantically, her staff waving at every stride. The royal elf's pale face relaxed a little as Hit twitched and got to his knees. "Can you hear me properly, Hit? Are you in any pain at all?"

Hit looked at her, a little bruised, but seemingly healthy. "Just winded. Although, my armour has been reduced to scrap metal."

Dark, metallic shards rained from Hit's coat as he stood back up, signifying the end of his star steel plate under armour. Byron did say it was less durable than regular steel.

The elf relaxed completely, ashen face regaining its colour. "So that explains the horrible cracking sound we heard. Huff... Thank goodness."

Dust and metal pieces properly wiped away, Hit walked back to the victorious sparring partner, looking quite harshly at her.

Tiona was still sweating, scratching at her hair and sticking out her tongue. "Heh, heh. I... I'm real sorry, Hit. I didn't mean to-"

The girl blinked as Hit extended an arm towards her, slight smirk on display. "That was a good match. Your strength is formidable. "

She shook it, gladly, and bounced up and down. "Hihi! I'm glad you had fun too! I thought you were dead for a second there..."

Hit shook his head in bewilderment and retracted the hand to his cloak. "It must be difficult for you to hold back to such a degree..."

The athletic girl raised her hands and held them behind her head. "Yeah, but I'm especially bad at it. Your skill makes you an amazing training partner though! I had a hard time predicting your moves, and I'm a level 5!"

Hit raised an eyebrow at her insinuation.

Tiona's twin hair ornaments jingled as she twirled around and clutched her hands behind her back. Blades of grass and flower petals whirled around her. "Fufu. It is a skill, isn't it? Why else would ya rip that part off your status?"

Hit closed his eyes and reflected on their short battle, perhaps the most exhilarating one he had had in this world. "Why indeed..."

'This girl may appear naïve, but she's a genius in combat. Even with the falna, to pinpoint my attack through time, after such a brief exchange, is incredible. And she did it without sensing ki.'

"You remind me of an old rival."

Tiona's eyes sparkled as the mysterious boy revealed a hint to his past. She ran up to him, invading his personal space. "Oooooh. Are they stronger than me?"

Hit smirked and turned around, before stepping away. "Stronger than any of you can imagine."

The hyperactive girl deflated as her newest curiosity walked off. She hopped up and down to get his attention. "Wait! Don't you wanna spend some more time with us?"

Hit stopped and glanced back, impatiently. "I've got a score to settle in the dungeon."

The teeny amazon pouted, using cuteness as her weapon this time. "You'll join us for dinner... won't you?"

Hit huffed and marched towards the exit gates. "If I have time."

'I suppose these people aren't all that bad.'

Immense grey towers surrounded Hit as he traipsed about the fifteenth floor. His eyes darted between nooks and crannies in the fractured obelisks, on the lookout for spawning monsters. Or ambush predators. Hit was getting a little paranoid. 'Don't tell me someone already killed it...'

It was quiet. Too quiet. It was if a monster beyond monsters had descended here, forcing any other creatures into hiding. On a positive note, this meant that Hit likely wouldn't be swarmed with lower rank level 2 monsters, which he had to fight one on one, at least for now. Also, no bad bats flew in the sky, which would have gleefully alerted any concealed monsters of his presence.

*...*

Hit's incredible hearing detected a faint swishing noise, like hair swaying in the wind. He skipped time.

*Shing*

His body contorted into a limbo pose, as he saw a shadow approaching from behind. A dodge to either side may have put him directly within grasping distance; whereas, leaning back would allow whatever it was to sail past.

*Whoosh*

Wispy purple strands flew in the air as Hit nearly lost his other eye; thankfully, no blood was drawn this time. A black and red blur shot past his body, clawed paws flailing in every direction; it was the correct decision not to step away. Hit used his position to flip back and assess the creature, a hefty one if the clamorous impact was any indication.

'There you are.'

Hit greeted his previous feline adversary, although it appeared quite different this time. Charred orange and grey fur was replaced with a black patchy body, streaked in red stripes. There was only one characteristic that designated this as the same enemy. It was the monster's eyes: they burned in a ferocity that only indignant fury could cause. It reared up on its hind legs and crashed back down.

*MRRAAAAAARRRR!*

Gale-force winds swept over Hit as the Ligerfang roared ruefully.

Hit narrowed his eyes at the creature: there were other notable differences too. Red stripes were accompanied by oozing bloody cuts, a tell-tale sign of sword lacerations. A litany of scars writhed on every inch of the thing, causing the poor beast to whine underneath its titanic shout.

Hit came to two conclusions: Someone had tortured the creature, over quite some time, and the beast had somehow been converted into an irregular monster: a more intelligent and powerful version of monsters that can sometimes spawn. He was certain the two phenomena were linked. A potential explanation was that someone had simply abused it for their own twisted amusement; however, Hit was sure this wasn't the case. It was too soon after his encounter; too coincidental. The eery atmosphere was definitely not normal.

There were times where Hit had felt like he was being watched, although this was to be expected when delving into a never-ending pit of monsters. It appears that this was perfect camouflage for a spy. 'Someone is targeting me. Who would have a motive? The serial killer elf? No, too weak. The gods I spied on? No, I'm certain they didn't notice me. It must be my... stalker. A pawn of hers must have been spying on me in the dungeon. Someone incredibly powerful.'

Hit gritted his teeth and shook in resentful fury. He killed monsters to grow stronger, not out of hate, nor for the joy of killing. To think that someone had tormented this creature, to such lengths, just to pit it against him, like this was all just a game. He had lured it into a fire trap, yes; however, the animal was only singed. This was different. Hit's trench coat fluttered as he walked towards the behemoth, unabated. The Ligerfang's eyes widened, and it stepped back slightly at Hit's truly furious demeanour. For the first time in hundreds of years, Hit felt rage.

ゴゴゴゴ "This will be your final battle. I'll send you to the otherworld myself." ゴゴゴゴ

This time, Hit would use no tricks, nor would he retreat. One of them would die today.

Hit blurred towards the tiger and the two engaged in a deadly dance. Claws and fangs came dangerously close to drawing blood. Strangely, the daredevil teen allowed them to touch his flesh.

This brief sensation replaced Hit's thought process, and became the stimulus to skip time, thereby, maximising his efficiency to its absolute limit.

Since the Ligerfang was even more engrossed in the attack, than if Hit had dodged it earlier in its swing, the creature had greater difficulty in adapting to Hit's already impossible movements. The glee that crept over the animal's pain, each time its prey was nearly caught, added to the confusion. Finally, allowing an attack to effectively strike its target also improved Hit's capacity to dodge approaching dangers.

Hit did not shout, not when dealing blows or receiving them. The assassin's terrifying visage remained fixed as he finished his job. Hit's movements were robotic, reactive, and far more akin to those during his assassination contracts. He took little joy in this kill.

Purple bruises blossomed on the Ligerfang's charcoal coat, although Hit's attacks still could not tear through its hide. The creature panted, hypnotic eyes having lost all focus, and gathered its remaining strength for a final lunge. Hit weaved behind the charging Ligerfang and delivered a rage-infused time skip tremor pulse to its back. A slight cracking sound followed the harsh kick, finally revealing the location of its magic stone.

**BAM**

*MRAAaaarrr*

The cat's rage bled away into acceptance as its prolonged agony was swept away by black smoke.

A patch of black and red fur remained on the ground, wafting in the dying wind. Hit collected the rare drop item and grasped it firmly. Adventuring was not so far removed from assassination as Hit thought.

Author's Notes (Read for Explanation)

Okay, I will admit that an irregular Ligerfang is quite strong for Hit, even with his newfound strength. However, this irregular is not conferred a level boost: instead, the upgrade focuses more on speed, something that Hit's new time skip technique (named next chapter) nullifies here, since the monster is attacking rather mindlessly. It was also alone, perfect for the technique. If he was being bothered by bad bats, it would not have worked, and he'd die.

This is also the first time Hit's genuinely furious at something here, and is not common for the man. I don't think we've seen him truly enraged in the show, which, as we all know, skyrockets character's powers in Dragon Ball. As I said, the Ligerfang is also covered in deep sword cuts, making its attacks sloppy, perfect for time skip. It seems that whoever dealt them had quite a lot of trouble holding back…

So, Hit has his 100% body usage, upgraded status (not as big a jump as Bell's canon increase), fine-tuned muscles, and strong rage/bloodlust boost.

Another thing about having Hit fight against a stronger opponent, is that I have to put myself in his shoes and come up with a new technique or strategy, rather than have him stagnate. I also want battles to be special and not feel repetitive. It's very fun, so it's worth it. The downside is that it is a fine line, and I can (and likely have) make him too strong by pitting him against successively stronger opponents.

This new technique is less like ultra instinct, and more like Killua's Whirlwind, where his aura detects hostility, and initiates a preprogrammed attack. Here, the preprogrammed attack is replaced with time skip activation, and Hit has to rush to act in the short amount of time that he has. I would say that it isn't inferior to whirlwind, but instead has different applications: it is not as potentially fast, but is more adaptable.

I really think there's so much more they could do with Hit, at least in terms of interesting techniques. Now that Akira Toriyama has sadly passed away, I severely doubt we'll see him again…

Also, he doesn't get much love in the manga. In the TOP, Hit's way of fighting against Jiren was to not rely on time skip at all… yay. So, instead of giving him a new interesting evolution, he goes to being a regular run of the mill fighter.