History Main / FlashStep

* ''Videogame/{{ULTRAKILL}}:'' A favorite of the [[spoiler:Prime soul]] {{Super Boss}}es, who will ''constantly'' step right up to you within the instant to pummel you into scrap. [[spoiler:Minos Prime]] leaves a ''trail of debris on the ground'' every time, while [[spoiler:Sisyphus Prime]] moves so fast he doesn't even leave a trail.

* Subverted in ''Literature/{{Trigun}}'' where a villain who seemingly Flash Steps actually uses HypnoticEyes to create the illusion of teleporting. Vash figures this out and breaks this by causing pain to himself, which breaks the hypnosis long enough for him to counterattack.

* Subverted in ''Anime/{{Trigun}}'' where a villain who seemingly Flash Steps actually uses HypnoticEyes to create the illusion of teleporting. Vash figures this out and breaks this by causing pain to himself, which breaks the hypnosis long enough for him to counterattack.

* ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'': A lot of Pokémon do it when using moves like Agility.

* Several characters in ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'', but especially Saints, have incredible speed to move in the blink of an eye. [[TheHero Touma Kamijou]] can't do this and has a very difficult time fighting these kinds of opponents.

* Seems to be a generic [[OurSpiritsAreDifferent Spirit]] power in ''LightNovel/DateALive''; though a rarely used one. Tohka described it as "killing the distance in front of her eyes".

* Shizu of ''LightNovel/KinosJourney'' can charge fast enough to, along with his other ImplausibleFencingPowers, put up a serious challenge to normal gun users. The technique is deconstructed, though; even though the man can dodge bullets, he still relies on distractions like the flash of light from a firearm or his sword blade, and someone who is fast enough can still interrupt his attacks mid-Flash Step without disappearing themselves. Kino's quick draw ability could be seen as a modified version of the Flash Step, too, taking only a couple animation frames.

* ''LightNovel/TheTestamentOfSisterNewDevil'': Being a Speed Type fighter, Basara Toujou can close most gaps near-instantly.
* The main character of ''LightNovel/TheThirdTheGirlWithTheBlueEye'' uses this periodically to dodge gunfire and destroy mecha with a single cut.

* In ''Fanfic/TheNightUnfurls'', whenever the Good Hunter "blurs/blurred into motion", as per the narration, it's implied that he's doing this via the Art of Quickening, though this could be an ability that comes with [[spoiler:being an EldritchAbomination]] as well.

* Almost every boss from the ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' series, due to the grid-based combat, is shown to instantly teleport from panel to panel. It's the bosses who don't do this who are the problem, as that usually implies some gimmicky form of movement that makes it harder to hit them. [[BonusBoss Bass]] is the most notable example of this. Invoked with the Step chips (Step Sword, Step Cross, Evil Cut), which cause the user to appear two squares ahead, slash and then return to the initial position. Seeing as it's just a programming action, it's probably just teleporting.

This was originally invented as a [[NoBudget budget-saving technique]] on early anime, especially ShonenDemographic FightingSeries. It was easier to have a character just appear in a new location than to [[LimitedAnimation animate them moving]]. Over time, it became an accepted part of the genre, and continued to show up when technology advanced and animation became cheaper, or even showed up in places where animation simply wasn't an issue (such as manga or literature). Compare GhostlyGlide.

* ''VisualNovel/Danganronpa3KillingHarmony'': Ryoma Hoshi can do this, apparently because his tennis skills are just ''[[CharlesAtlasSuperpower that]]'' good.

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'''s Rogues can, if specced a certain way, gain one of two abilities: Shadowstep, through which a Rogue can teleport directly behind a target in line-of-sight within a certain distance, and Killing Spree, which allows them to do ''five Shadowsteps in succession'', but in a smaller area, with less control, and attacking twice each time. Mages have the Blink ability, which is a short-range teleport. Warlocks get a teleport as well, but it's tied to a beacon--the Warlock drops a green glowing point and can then teleport to that point from within 40 yards, regardless of line of sight.
** While it may technically not be considered a Flash Step, Feral druids have an ability called Feral Charge that acts the same way. This ability causes you to leap behind an enemy and daze them for a few seconds. Even if used when not stealthed, the player will still have a moment to attack before the enemy realizes the player is behind them.
*** As of ''Mists of Pandaria'', all specializations of druid have access to a talent that blinks them forward and shifts them into cat form at the same time (an early version of the talent even allowed them to stealth.)

** Warden heroes from ''Warcraft III'' can Blink as well. In fact, the highest level of said spell costs 10 mana and has a one second recharge time. TeleportSpam, anyone?
*** Against weaker enemies, Blinking into the middle of the mob, casting Fan of Knives and Blinking back out can be quite devastating.
* [[CutscenePowerToTheMax A feat only shown in a cutscene]], the character [[spoiler: Nagi]] of ''VideoGame/XenobladeChroniclesX'' is shown using this

* ''VideoGame/MonsterHunterRise'': Malzeno is able to do this in its SuperMode, covering itself with its wings and leaving a cloud of red dust where it once was. While at first it appears to be teleportation, it is actually moving extremely fast.

** The Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito, is able to move at speeds that make him appear to teleport, but will also often stagger his footwork to attack at much slower speeds than his movement would suggest. This is an important aspect of his ConfusionFu tactics, making his opponents react at the wrong moment and leave themselves vulnerable.

** The Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito, is able to move at speeds that make him appear to teleport, but will also often stagger his footwork to attack at much slower speeds than his movement would suggest. This is an important aspect of his ConfusionFu tactics, making his opponents react at the wrong moment and leave them vulnerable.

* In ''Anime/SwordArtOnline'', [[TheHero Kirito]], thanks to SuperReflexes, does this very often in the game world. He does one to Rosalia while [[BountyHunter apprehending]] [[ThievesGuild her and her guild]]. Justified in that his level and therefore stats (including speed) are way above theirs.

* The Mars Roaches in ''Manga/TerraForMARS'' can ''all'' do this, but special mention goes to the ones augmented with water skater physiology, who can go from beyond scanner range to NeckSnap range before any of the Annex crew even realise they're there. Marcos can do this as well, using his huntsman spider surgery.

* [[Wiki/SCPFoundation SCP-]][[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-173 173]] can only move when not in direct line of sight. And when he does, he moves 4 meters in the time it takes to ''blink''. Blink once more, and '''[[NeckSnap *CRUNCH*]]'''

* This [[https://notalwaysright.com/basic-chemistry-meets-advanced-physics/33665/ story]] from ''Not Always Learning'', where a chemistry teacher miraculously appears next to a student who's having trouble. When asked how it's possible, the teacher responds that one acquires the ability to teleport as a chemistry teacher.

* ''[[Franchise/LyricalNanoha'': Can be done by speedsters such as Fate and Signum, or with spells such as Sonic Move and Flash Move.

* The BonusBoss of ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}'', [[spoiler: Father Rodin]], starts doing similar movements to this when his health gets lower.

* The ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' DS games [[TropeNamer unsurprisingly]] have this as a gameplay mechanic, done by pressing the B button. It allows you not only to escape normal and non-[[EXSpecialAttack Reinforced special attacks]], but also extend a combo by zipping [[RightBehindYou right behind an opponent]] after hitting them with a standard Light-Medium-Heavy combo. They can also be used for "Guard Cancels" by flash-stepping right after successfully blocking a hit. They use the same meter as the [[EXSpecialAttack RF moves]], but replenish quicker.

* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' many melee-oriented classes have weaponskills that allow them to, in most cases, close the distance between themselves and their enemies, or otherwise move to another location in an instant. Such abilities include (but are not limited to) the Monk's "Shoulder Tackle", the Red Mage's "Corps-a-Corps", the Gunbreaker's "Rough Divide", and the Ninja's "Shukichi".

** Hell, Wesker's flash step is the basis of his whole moveset, and one of the reasons he is [[TierInducedScrappy so top tier]] in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3''. As if his combos weren't already the easiest to execute in the whole game, his flash step (Phantom Move) practically allows him to move about with ease, and with the right assists, the opponent is about a millisecond away from eating a mixup from him.

* In ''WesternAnimation/XMen'', in one episode Wolverine faces off against the Silver Samurai, whose mutant power is short-ranged flash stepping. The guy not only leaves a significant pause beneath flash appearance and attack, he is also highly uninventive with where he positions himself and the time during which he blinks out is quite long (even after you account for the fact that the show employs TalkingIsAFreeAction).

** As a ninja, Greninja uses this with its Shadow Sneak and Substitute special moves (the latter of which combines it with a NinjaLog). Its FinalSmash uses several consecutive flash steps to slice up the opponent.

** In ''VideoGame/TalesOfXillia'', if you're playing as Jude and dodge an enemy's attack by backstepping, you'll flash step behind them. It sort of makes sense if done at melee range, it looks like he circles around the enemy. It's less plausible when he does it by dodging a ranged attack however.

** Jasper Batt Jr. is capable of doing flash step punches in his second form, and when he's low on health he starts shooting tornados out of his fists as well. [[ThatOneAttack It's easily one of the most aggravating attacks in both games.]]

* ''VideoGame/PerfectWorld'' 's Assassin class has two skills that do this: Shadow Jump (instantly teleport to the target's location) and Shadow Teleport (same as Shadow Jump, but also stuns the opponent for 3 seconds).
** They can also have this effect when they [[OhCrap pop out of stealth right in front of you and hand a critical-hit Headhunt straight to your face]].

* ComicBook/TheHulk may be largest character who can pull off a Flash Step in comics.

* Franchise/SpiderMan [[https://i.imgur.com/mZQOoRp.jpg can]] do this when he wants, bullets going 1,126 feet per second at point blank range is nothing to the SpiderSense.

* Franchise/WonderWoman has been able to use this trick, and be fast enough to leave after images, since the Golden Age. Once in ''ComicBook/SensationComics'' she managed to convince ComicBook/SteveTrevor both Diana Prince and Wonder Woman were standing behind a panel with holes cut out for their faces at a fair just by using her speed to quickly run between the two portholes.