The Ninth || Chrollo x Reader

III. The Blood

    Machi approaches me, her hips sway with each step she takes. Her eyes are glowered, and her expression is nonchalant. Pink hair flows in the wind, and in her hand, it seems as if she is holding a small object.

    Activating Gyo, my faint aura appears over my eyes, so I can see needles and thread in her hand. Her transmutation ability allows her to mimic the properties of these objects with her aura.

    My jaw clenches as I attempt to predict her movements, however I draw a blank. The idea of bringing needles and thread to a battle seemed absurd. Her right hand begins to swing, and the thread is pulled into a spinning momentum. Her movements are flashes, and I am barely able to contain my focus on her. Her physique blurs against my vision, nothing but a streak of color.

    However, years of acting as a Blacklist Hunter allows me to follow her movements, even if barely. I turn my body to position from every angle of possible attacks, as she darts from the edges of the roof.

    The needle came too suddenly, targeted at my heart. It is the flash of silver in the sun, that allows me to twist my shoulders and avoid the attack. However, I'm unable to completely prevent damage as it tears through my jacket, and a glimmer of crimson blood appears on the outside of my arm.

    My instincts are on alert, and I sharply inhale, my eyes widened as I realize that she is approaching from my blind spot. When I realize that I cannot dodge, Ko appears on my right side, and I position my aura near my neck. Machi's attack is rebounded, and she lands abruptly, her hand on the ground.

    I still haven't used my Hatsu as a precaution. My Nen type and abilities are still most likely unknown to them, putting them at a disadvantage, if not for their physical attributes.

    It is now that I realize what I should do.

    In the records available of the Yorknew City Auction, the event in which the Phantom Troupe unleashed their malicious power upon innocents, only some of the Spiders' abilities were taken note of. Machi was not included, however I am now an alibi to her powers. She is a Transmuter, who is able to create Nen needles and thread. The needles do not seem to be her specialty, but rather the thread, which is most likely infused with Nen that enhances it's abilities.

Because there are no structures around us, as we are on the flat roof of a short building, she is unable to rebound threads around objects to use as weapons. In my situation, it would be the most logical to secure me in these threads, therefore, I need to keep a distance between us.

As she rises from the concrete, I take a deep breath and begin to concentrate, as I use En. It was a technique that had been difficult to master, allowing the Nen user to create a circle of aura as a boundary. My En stretches for approximately seven feet in both directions, it's height is barely enough for me to stand straight.

At most, I can hold my En for twenty minutes at full health. However, after the previous running and my injury, I will most likely only be able to sustain the boundary for fifteen minutes, perhaps less.

My aura shimmers around me, and Machi glares, her arms crossed as she stands directly before me.  For the first time since the fight began, she speaks,

"There's no point, you'll die anyway." Her voice commands a presence, easily heard despite the wind, and stable, despite the physical tolls we have taken thus far.

The woman is slugged over a desk, her head propped against up with her elbow, and her voice quiet. A telephone is held to her ear, yet she does not speak. There is food before her, yet she does not eat. Her heart is beating, yet she does not live.