The simplest of thoughts entered his mind.
'Then I just have to crush myself.'
Nobody missed the switch.
Not the Martial Seniors.
Not the guardians.
Not Kane.
Certainly not Ieyasu.
'You...' His eyes narrowed.
"Hehe. Hahaha."
Chills crawled up the skin as innocent euphoric laughter contrasted with the intensity of the battle that unfolded before them.
A disturbing sight.
'If killing myself is the price of victory. Then so be it.'
If one looked into his eyes, one would see a glint of madness.
Yet if one looked deeper, something much darker could be seen.
An endless void.
Those eyes fixed on Ieyasu as he ruthlessly began picking apart his own Martial Art.
Every flaw.
Every inadequacy.
Every imperfection.
These patterns represented who he was. The culmination of the essence of his being manifested in war.
Yet he didn't care.
He tore them apart with cruelty.
The very act of doing so hurt him deeply.
Deeper than he ever imagined.
The void inside him threatened to consume his own Martial Path like it had done many others.
Yet he pushed forward.
He rushed forward.
For the first time in his life, he would be forming a predictive model of himself in real time.
It was something that could only work if Ieyasu fully copied Rui.
And now that he had, this course of action now became a real possibility.
'I can do it. I will do it. I will crush you and myself if that is the price to be paid!'
This was the realization that Rui had made a while ago. He couldn't use the pattern recognition system against someone who had no patterns. Yet the moment he copied Rui's movement decision-making, he was no longer an empty abyss. He was a reflection.
A reflection of Rui himself.
Then it was himself that he needed to become the counter to.
He had already confirmed that Ieyasu couldn't copy the core of his Martial Art. The VOID algorithm, among other things, was contained in the massive information database and processor that was the Mind Palace.
An abysmal amount of information flashed through the Mind Palace in ways that Ieyasu was unable to comprehend. Yet it did not strictly matter as long as he could continue copying Rui's movements.
His ability to read his mind allowed him to foresee his attacks in addition to borrowing his strength.
A Martial Art that not only replicated power but elevated it with his own innate physicality, while giving him the ability to read their minds.
A Martial Art that many would easily regard as the pinnacle.
BAM BAM BAM!
Ieyasu's expression sharpened as he exerted himself to blast Rui with powerful blows. Rui leaped away, looking to gain a moment of respite.
Yet it was not to be.
BOOM!
He blasted Rui with a powerful tier-five Transverse Resonance, inflicting massive wounds on Rui's body.
"I won't allow you to kill yourself."
One could feel the cruelty in his words.
"Your death... is reserved for my Martial Heart."
The battle soared in intensity as both Martial Artists fought for more than just the outcome of the battle.