“I can hardly believe it. I’ve never seen anyone act that way,” Enatsu thought aloud, still hidden among the trees.

About ten meters away from his position, Yoichi seemed to communicate with the Inoshuma. With its neck raised upwards, the massive horse demon was much taller than him. Its yellow eyes glared at Kenji and its tamer. ​​

“I have no choice, my friend!” Yoichi repeated, advancing slowly. “The only way I can tame you is to kill you.”

As soon as the Inoshuma saw the human being in front of it stepping forward, it rose on its hind legs. The forehooves waved vigorously and, when they touched the ground, the horse started charging.

Exhaling air condensed in vapour from its bear nostrils, the horse-demon charged towards Yoichi. A moment before he was struck by its chipped fangs, the young tamer succeeded to dodge the hit.

He threw himself to the ground, moving away a few feet with a quick somersault. Until recently hidden behind his back, the dagger was now stationary in his right hand, pointed at the enemy.

“Hiiii!” the horse neighed angrily, starting again to run with its head pointed down. Kenji kept its distance, waiting for the right moment to help its tamer.

*swishh* – For the second time, the Inoshuma fangs lunge was deftly dodged by Yoichi. After the second dodge, the young tamer turned on himself and snapped at his opponent.

With a quick twist of his arm, he stabbed the back of the beast with the dagger. Using the weapon as a handhold to get on its back, Yoichi jumped.

After that blow, the nitrite of pain was so strong that the air vibrated: seeing that human being who was trying to climb on its back, the Inoshuma rose again on its hind legs.

It unbalanced Yoichi, who, fearing he would end up squashed by that massive lump of muscle, was forced to loosen his grip on the dagger.

Abandoning the weapon and rolling backwards, the young tamer returned at a safe distance, leaving the dagger stuck in the demon’s body.

Fuck! Its body is much more resilient than I thought. Although I hit it full-on with the dagger, its reflexes remained attentive and fast. Yoichi pondered, realizing that the one he was using was not the right tactic.

The small dagger ran away from its owner along with the Inoshuma, which returned to the charging position. The long-fanged horse began moving the soil again with hooves, keeping its neck down and focusing on its objective.

“Kenji! It’s your turn, bud!” Yoichi yelled, knowing that his little Nekage was just waiting for an order to activate its skill. The tamer spread his arms and closed his eyes for a moment.

The time between charges of the Inoshuma was sufficient for Kenji to enhance his arms: from the shoulders to the fingertips, the reptile scales wrapped every millimetre of his skin, wearing the incredulous power of the Nekage.

As Yoichi reopened his eyes, the Inoshuma was already running in his direction. Fast as lightning, Kenji intercepted its trajectory.

Growling wildly, the Nekage forced the horse demon to look in its direction for a moment, distracting it from Yoichi and causing it to lose speed at its charge.

Kenji stepped out of range of the pack leader’s fangs with a feline dash, letting it turn its head forward. A moment later, the unthinkable happened.

Taking advantage of the demon’s moment of distraction, Yoichi pulled an arm backwards, loading a mighty blow. Aiming undisturbed, the tamer punched directly, hitting the Inoshuma right on his head.

“Woooo!” Enatsu shouted when the shockwave between the horse’s hard skull and the scaled knuckles of Yoichi’s hand was unleashed on impact.

*boom* – a loud roar followed the blow. The heavy body of the horse, despite its bulk, crumpled on its neck. On contact with the fist, its head tilted downwards, acting as a lever for the rest of the body, which got off the ground.

As if it were a train derailed by the tracks, the Inoshuma flew above Yoichi’s head, waving its legs in the air and losing grip with the ground.

The demon’s parabolic flight ended with the impact of its back on the ground. Due to the violent trauma suffered by the spine, the horse’s muscles suddenly stiffened, preventing it from getting up further.

“Hii! Hiiiii! Hiii!”

With a desperate neighing, it tried to agitate, knowing that Yoichi was close. The Inoshuma’s back was visibly damaged, and two of its strong legs had stopped moving, crushed by the weight of its runner’s musculature.

“Oh, fuck! For fuck sake! Yoichi!” Enatsu yelled, popping up among the plants along with Sora.

*anf*anf* – The young tamer’s anxious breath began to regularize. His vision, after the shockwave unleashed by his fist, darkened slightly.

“Screek!” Kenij called, drawing his attention and trying to make him come to his senses.

Regardless of his friend’s yelling, Yoichi ran towards the horse. During the dash, the scales on his arms suddenly disappeared, entering the skin.

He grabbed the dagger stuck in its back and violently pulled it out. “Hiii!” the horse screamed, exasperated at the severe pain its was feeling.

Continuing to gasp, Yoichi rotated the dagger, placing the blood-tainting blade downwards. His feet stopped in front of the Inoshuma’s head.

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” he declared, closing his eyes and skewering his weapon on the demon’s forehead. A final rush of adrenaline ran into the steed’s body, and the muscle memory desperately attempted to reactivate the nerves of the legs, but without success.

Within seconds, the agony of the mighty Inoshuma was interrupted, as were his spasmodic movements.

“Yoichi, the Demon Tooth! Quickly!” Enatsu rushed.

Yoichi’s hands dug out the bloody dagger, dropping it to the ground. In a hurry, they opened the backpack and pulled out one of the Demon Teeth.

The centre of gravity is between its eyes, right where I just hit it. I hope to succeed… I have no choice! He thought with determination. The following moment, he knelt on the horse’s head and sank the sizeable black thorn inside the wound.