Two Shins appeared on the battlefield at the same time. The mindless parademons didn't seem to notice, but Steppenwolf's face changed drastically.
After exchanging glances, the two Shins seemed to come to the same realization. They each formed hand signs, and one of them rushed toward the horde of parademons, unleashing a Super Almighty Push without hesitation.
The other Shin dashed toward Steppenwolf, lightning flickering in his hands as he simultaneously activated the Eight Inner Gates Formation, Six Paths Lightning Chakra Mode, and other buffs.
With a swift motion, Steppenwolf's giant axe was nearly cleaved in two by Shin's attack, forcing him to retreat.
Shin, having activated the Eight Gates, had increased his physical power and durability dozens of times, making him an equal match for Steppenwolf. On top of that, he had already prepared to risk his life and wielded the fearsome Kamui Shuriken, forcing Steppenwolf into a disadvantage. Even Wonder Woman and Aquaman found themselves unable to intervene.
After cutting down a large number of parademons, the other Shin didn't immediately seek out Cyborg. Instead, he teleported beside Wonder Woman and Aquaman.
First, black energy swirled around his hands as he healed most of Aquaman's wounds. While Aquaman wasn't suffering from visible wounds, the internal injuries he had sustained could be easily treated using the Munch-MunchFruit.
Then, without a word, Shin pulled out a small water gun and shot both Wonder Woman and Aquaman. Instantly, two Wonder Woman and two Aquaman materialized.
"What's going on?!" the two Wonder Women exclaimed in unison.
In addition to the sensation of looking into a mirror, both of them felt a strange telepathic connection—an awareness of each other's thoughts.
Aquaman experienced the same effect, exchanging glances with his duplicate in amazement.
"Don't just stand there like idiots—get back to fighting!" Shin snapped, rolling his eyes. His other self's life force was already burning away.
Realizing this, Wonder Woman and Aquaman sprang into action. Without hesitation, each Wonder Woman threw a Lasso of Truth, binding Steppenwolf's hands.
Steppenwolf struggled, but each of the two Aquaman grabbed one of his arms, completely immobilizing him.
Shin, his body nearly consumed by the fiery backlash of the Eight Gates, didn't hesitate. He hurled the Kamui Shuriken, which whirred through the air, slicing cleanly through Steppenwolf's armor with a sickening crunch.
A deafening howl tore from Steppenwolf's throat as he thrashed in agony, but against the combined power of two Wonder Women, two Aquamen, and Shin—who had activated the Eight Gates and was fighting without restraint—he had no way to escape.
Unlike a protagonist who could tap into hidden reserves of power at the last moment, Steppenwolf could only watch as Shin's arm plunged into his chest.
With a final, gut-wrenching scream, Steppenwolf's vision darkened, blood gushed from his mouth, and his body collapsed limply.
Shin, who had pushed the Eight Gates to the limit, let out a deep exhale. The flames consuming his body abruptly dimmed, his form crumbling into ashes that scattered with the wind.
"Shin!" Wonder Woman and Aquaman cried out in alarm. They had no idea what would happen if one of the twins perished.
But before panic could set in, the Revive-Revive Fruit's power activated. The ashes reformed, and in an instant, Shin stood before them, completely unharmed.
"Relax," he said, stretching his arms. "I'm not that easy to kill. Now hurry up and wipe out these parademons before more show up!"
There was something Shin didn't say out loud—now that Steppenwolf was dead, there was a real possibility that Darkseid would descend in a fit of rage. With Superman gone, Shin had little faith in the Justice League's ability to stop him.
The best course of action was to cut off the Boom Tube channels before Apokolips fully mobilized.
Wonder Woman and Aquaman wasted no time. With two of each of them and two Shins, the remaining demon horde didn't stand a chance.
Especially not against Shin, whose arsenal of large-scale attacks was now fully unleashed. With the manipulation of gravity alone, he cycled through techniques like Almighty Push, Planetary Devastation, Gold Wheel Reincarnation Explosion, and Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion—reducing the demons to nothing but ash and rubble.
As for the city itself? There was barely anything left standing in Metropolis. The Flash had already evacuated the civilians, and most of the city's infrastructure had been encased in floating stone spheres from Shin's earlier attack. There was no longer anything to protect.
As long as there were no casualties, none of the superheroes would complain.
Besides, this wasn't Shin's problem. He wouldn't be footing the bill for reconstruction. He couldn't help but wonder, though, if Superman would be upset—after all, he had only recently purchased a house in Metropolis, and then it had been obliterated in the battle against Doomsday.
He had only built the Fortress of Solitude because he had nowhere else to live.
And now, just as he had finally rebuilt his home, another alien invasion had arrived to flatten the city again…
Shin figured the insurance company would refuse to pay out this time. If anything, the company itself might go bankrupt.
With Shin's devastating techniques obliterating everything in their path, the remaining parademons quickly began retreating. In the end, even Cyborg vanished through a Boom Tube.
As the last of the demonic invaders fell, Metropolis was left a barren wasteland. A massive crater stretched across the city, the only remnants of the battle that had taken place.
"It's finally over," Wonder Woman sighed, wiping blood from her face. Without any concern for the filth, she plopped down onto a pile of rubble.
The two Wonder Woman did this at the same time, completely synchronized, making it look almost comical.
"This is so weird… am I going to have a twin brother now?"
"Yeah, but which one of us is the older brother?"
"I should be! You were split from me."
"Ridiculous! I'm the original—you were split from me!"
The two Aquaman immediately broke into an argument, shouting over each other like children.
Watching them, the two Wonder Women sighed in unison, covering their faces. "Did Arthur's IQ get cut in half when he was duplicated? He's not usually this stupid…"
Wonder Woman knew that their current state was only temporary. She had seen Shin transform Batman into a literal bat before, so she had little doubt that the duplicates would disappear soon.
Growing tired of the bickering, Shin strode over and conjured a large amount of water. With a burst of Fire Release, he heated it to the perfect temperature, then promptly dumped it on one of the Aquamen's heads.
In an instant, the two Aquaman merged back into one. The surviving Aquaman blinked in confusion as he absorbed the memories of his duplicate, feeling as if he had just finished arguing with himself.
Seeing this, the two Wonder Women exchanged knowing smiles. Without a word, they wandered over to a nearby underground pipe, where they gently heated a puddle of water with Phoenix Fire. Pouring the warm water over themselves, they too merged back into one.
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