"Why are we running? If you hold off Gourd Baby, we have a good chance of winning. Even if we can't kill them, we can still take one of their scrolls..." Hatsumi watched her chance to show off her skills slip away, and couldn't help feeling disgruntled. She wanted Zi Xu and the others to see what her bugs could do, too.
"Gourd Baby still has its uses. We can't kill him just yet. You'll understand once I explain later."
"Hmph, acting all mysterious. What's so important you can't say it here?" Hatsumi was clearly unhappy with Zi Xu's answer. She pouted in protest.
"Objection overruled. This is serious. I don't mind, but if word gets out after I tell you here, you two could be in trouble." Seeing that he was getting farther and farther away from Gaara and the others, Zi Xu stopped carrying the two of them.
Chino smiled a little knowingly, a subtle expression on her face.
"You've changed. You're actually considering other people now. You're finally starting to act like a leader."
Chino's teasing didn't faze Zi Xu in the slightest. He showed no embarrassment.
"Not at all. I've always cared about my teammates and valued teamwork. Of course I'd put your safety first."
People changed, and Zi Xu admitted that much. But now wasn't the time to dwell on it. The scroll they'd just taken was the same type as their own, which meant they still needed to acquire a different type of scroll. They could also trade with a team that had multiple scrolls.
"Hm? What's that strange sound? It's awful~" Hatsumi paid no attention to their conversation. A huge number of the bugs she'd sent out had suddenly died, as if a large area had gone dark on a thermal map. According