"Argh!!!" Myotismon's triumphant laughter cut off, twisting into a scream of pain and disbelief!
He looked down at the hole burned clean through his chest, its edges charred black. Then he whipped around, scarlet eyes fixed on Ao's cold expression.
"You... you dared...!"
Ao slowly withdrew his smoking hand. His voice emerged from beneath the bandages, icy and mocking.
"My body may be broken, and I may have these mechanical limbs, but my judgment is still sound!"
"You thought you could exploit my injuries to seize control of Kirigakure? Coming to me was your biggest mistake!"
He turned to Kagura and the others, who had yet to fully grasp the stunning reversal, and barked:
"Kagura! Well done! You lived up to Chojuro's trust! Now get these children out of here. Quickly!"
"Elder Ao! So you were..." Kagura understood at once. Shock and guilt surged through him. Elder Ao had only pretended to cooperate so he could investigate and eliminate the traitor!
"We can fight too! Let us stay and help you!"
"Don't be foolish!" Ao cut him off sharply. "He's after Jade! With you here, I can't fight freely! Go!"
"Heh, heh, heh... Old man... You've really made me angry!!!"
Myotismon's voice rang out, thick with malice and madness. No blood flowed from the terrible hole in his chest. Instead, viscous Dark Energy and countless tiny bats poured out!
His body burst apart into a vast swarm of vampire bats that wheeled wildly through the air before drawing together again!
In the blink of an eye, Myotismon re-formed in midair. His face was paler and his aura more violent. A charred mark remained on his chest, but the wound had "healed." The red glow in his eyes looked ready to drip blood!
"I'll drain every last one of you and