Ultimate Continuation

Season 16 Chapter 99

Yuri walked through the streets of Shibuya, the chaos of Kurai-Bots buzzing around her like insects. Sparks flickered from shattered streetlights. The air smelled faintly of ozone and burnt metal.

"Hmm... that guy just had to take over the country, huh?" she muttered, rubbing the back of her neck. Memories of her father flashing briefly—his last words, the way Kurai had ripped him apart—made her chest tighten, but she didn't falter.

Her eyes flared as she spotted a Kurai-Bot moving toward her.

"Hey, you," she said.

The robot scanned her face. "Target identified—Yuri Kentamo. Youngest daughter of Kurenai Kentamo. To be eliminated."

Yuri smirked faintly. "Been trying that for years, huh?" In a single motion, she grabbed its head and twisted it off, wires sparking.

"Tch. You piss me off." She continued walking, boots clicking against the cracked pavement, like walking through the echoes of a world that had already killed her inside.

Twenty minutes later, she reached school.

"Ms. Kentamo... haaa... what is it with the Kentamo lineage and being late?" Mr. Yashi muttered, eyes drooping.

Yuri plopped down at her desk, barely glancing up.

Xenovia leaned over. "Hey, Yuri. Why were you late?"

"Stupid Kurai-Bots wanna kill me," Yuri said flatly, resting her head on her hand. "Easy to dismantle though." Her voice carried no fear, only the emptiness of someone who had already survived worse than anyone she knew.

Xenovia chuckled nervously. "Yeah. They keep trying to kidnap me!"

Yuri raised an eyebrow. "Cute. But your life isn't mine."

⸻

The school day ended. Yuri walked home, stopping at the gas station.

"Again? You're always here, Yuri," the cashier said, eyebrows furrowed.

"Chronic disease," she said evenly, voice almost a whisper. "Got a problem with that?"

He shook his head, handing her a bottle of pills. "700 yen. Just... don't overdo it."

Yuri paid without a word. She held the pills in her hand, remembering—Kurenai... the screams... the fire, the blood, the impossible pain. Fifteen years. Fifteen years of carrying that weight. She felt the old pull, the quiet promise of nothingness.

At home, Shizune greeted her. "Good afternoon, Yuri! How was your day?"

Yuri's head stayed low. "Fine," she said. "I'm heading to my room. Don't check on me."

Shizune's eyes flickered with worry, but she nodded. "O-Ok."

Yuri slammed her bedroom door, shutting out the world.

She stripped off her jacket and shirt, leaving herself in a white sports bra and black pants. The bottle of pills sat heavy in her hand.

All the pain. All the loss. Every memory I've carried for fifteen years... She swallowed them without a drink.

Her body hit the bed, darkness creeping behind her eyelids.

"Ugh... fuck me, man... this sucks."

She stared at the ceiling, barely seeing. The silence of the room was loud. The shadows seemed to stretch toward her, whispering promises she knew she could almost trust. Almost.

And yet, beneath it all... a flicker of something stubborn, stubborn as hell. The world hadn't killed her, not yet. And maybe... maybe she'd make Kurai pay first.

TO BE CONTINUED...