"I'm exhausted, I'm exhausted—though if you're completely worn out, then your muscles should be at just the right softness, shouldn't they?"
"In other words, you're ready to eat."
"May I eat you, then?"
A playful smile appeared on her face as she asked Fujimaru Ritsuka.
Hearing Shuten Douji's words, Fujimaru Ritsuka's body trembled involuntarily.
That intense pain from before seemed to still linger in his abdomen.
Though this was definitely not the closest he had ever come to death, there was no doubt that, in terms of sheer pain, this was the greatest crisis he had ever faced.
He had never experienced anything like this—the sensation of his internal organs being churned about.
But... even if he felt fear, even if he felt pain, Fujimaru Ritsuka would never back down.
Splash—
Shuten Douji unscrewed her gourd and let a drop of liquor fall.
Then—
Rumble, rumble, rumble—
Amid violent tremors that shook the earth and mountains, a black giant serpent appeared in the limited space atop the mountain.
"Tch."
Miyamoto Musashi's expression darkened as she looked at the black serpent.
It was because of this black serpent that she had been held up, allowing Fujimaru Ritsuka to be abducted by the demon and suffer such pain.
It was hardly a pleasant memory.
"Come to think of it, haven't we fought far too many snakes here? There was more than one on Mochizuki Chiyome's side, and we even fought one wreathed head to toe in flames. This makes no sense at all."
Even as she said that, Musashi drew Myojin-giri Muramasa and the wakizashi she had temporarily brought along to make up the numbers.
Yet when faced with such a serpent—
Clang—
The one who drew his blade was Senji Muramasa.
A streak of blue sword-light flashed between Sakumura and Musashi,