Kanzaki Rin and Wakamatsu Kazuki had already flown high into the sky, looking down at the battle below.
But they weren't up there to watch the show. They were searching for Shambhala's core.
That was where Wakamatsu Kazuki came in.
The Blood Eagle clutched his overweight body in its talons. The altitude sent his blood pressure soaring and left his hands and feet trembling.
"Hurry up and find it!"
Kanzaki Rin called down from above, standing on the Blood Eagle's back. "If you can't find it, we can run at any time. You, on the other hand, are finished."
"I'm already looking! Stop rushing me!"
Wakamatsu Kazuki shouted. He didn't need Kanzaki Rin to remind him that he was in the same boat as the two of them.
If they failed, Kitaryu Shingen would kill him, no question.
Fighting through the dizziness brought on by the height, Wakamatsu Kazuki scanned the ground below, trying to work out where Shambhala's core might be.
Kanzaki Rin was still watching the battle between Fang Cheng and Kitaryu Shingen when she suddenly heard a faint whistling sound behind her.
She whipped around, raised her gun, took aim, and pulled the trigger in one fluid motion.
Two Birdmen clad in armor and wielding spears swooped down behind her.
Two gunshots rang out. Both Birdmen's heads burst open, and their bodies fell toward the ground like lumps of mud.
But more appeared in the sky, launching an attack on Kanzaki Rin.
Crouched on the Blood Eagle's back, she kept firing. Her aim was true, and she took down every Birdman that swooped at her.
"Ahhh! They're coming for me!"
Wakamatsu Kazuki shrieked as several Birdmen began sneaking up on him from below.
Clutched in the Blood Eagle's talons, he had no way to dodge.
Bang! Bang!