The Blood Bridge

    "I'm not nearly done, you grizzled piece of trash. I'll show it to both of you!"

    Now recovered from the blow, the Saiyan began charging up his energy  to new heights. His power increased significantly and his hair spiked up.

    "You'll regret ever hitting me, Renegade!"

    Maxsuz flared his aura up around him as well, a dark fire surrounding his own body, as the crime lord came rushing at him for round two. Though Okura's moves were faster and carried a serious punch at that moment, they were still predictable, leading the Argin to continuedly parry and deflect them, dealing chip damage between them via jabs and torsions. The weak counter-attacks would deal more damage to the Red Claw's psyche than to his body, getting him increasingly angrier.

    "Stop being a coward and fight me!"

    The mercenary parried one more punch, but this time he landed an elbow right to the Saiyan's nose, then pulling him close by the arm and following it up with a knee strike to the chin. Okura went straight to the ground, stunned, placing one hand on his now bleeding nose and mouth, while Maxsuz would stare at him with disappointment. The crime lord stood back up with rage all over his face and shouted for everyone to hear.

    "I'm going to kill you!"

    As he screamed, the Red Claw's árula skyrocketed once again, this time making the Argin concerned. He quickly tried to rationalize the situation in his mind.

    "I had forgotten Saiyans keep growing  in power the longer a fight goes. I better finish this quickly. I cannot transform without my sword."

    The Himônus finally decided to take the offense, but Okura answered it by charging at his opponent as well. The two combatants would exchange blows in a savage bout. The floor below and around them would crack a bit more with each impact, and what looked like a one-sided fight had turned into a bloody duel. The bounty hunter's clothes would progressively get torn apart, while more and more bruises and cuts would appear on the Saiyan's upper body.

    After a few minutes of a non-stop action, both warriors were nearing their limits, both panting and having their sweat and blood drip across the bridge's floor. The Saiyan looked at Maxsuz with contempt and could not help himself but to ask.

    "Why... Why won't you die?"

    "You want the short... Or the long answer?"

    "Go... To Hell."

    "In short... Tt's because I'm, for once, fighting for someone other than myself... So try whatever you want to kill me. It's not going to work."

    The Red Claw roared in anger once more and ran at Maxsuz at full speed. The Himônus grabbed both his opponent's fists with his hands, and now the two were in a pure strength competition. In desperation, the Okura pulled his head back for a headbutt. Maxsuz immediately reacted to it and did the same. Both launched their heads at each other, but the Himônus was slightly faster, hitting his masked forehead right on the enemy's nose.

    The crime lord went down, barely being able to breathe through his bloody nose, while the bounty hunter's mask broke down, revealing the top left side of his face. The Saiyan's vision was blurred and his senses were all jeopardized, but he could see the mercenary above him, readying an árula sphere to finish him off. However, before the Argin acted, he looked back at Ward for some brief seconds. It was at that moment clear. The Renegade cancelled his attack and moved away from his adversary.

    "You've been defeated, Okura. The duel is over. You will follow my demands accordingly. - he turned around and started  walking to the Shinjin. - You can put the barrier down. Were done here."