"Run! Don't come any closer!"
A mournful roar echoed through the silent mountains and forests, like a desperate cry that shattered the tranquility of the night. The sound was filled with fear and despair, sending a shiver down the spine of anyone who heard it.
In the distant woods, a figure who had been rushing along suddenly stopped and turned to look in the direction from which the sound came.
Has something happened?
The figure quickly adjusted its direction, unleashing another burst of power from its feet, and sped off towards the direction from which the sound came.
On the field.
Shimada, who was rushing towards the battlefield, suddenly stopped and stared blankly at Takeuchi's head, which was still in the air and had not yet hit the ground.
The screams of his friend Takeuchi before his death still seem to echo in his ears.
Move! Get moving! Get moving, you piece of trash!
Charge forward and avenge Takeuchi!
Shimada's heart screamed incessantly as he gritted his teeth, his gaze fixed on the figure standing in the distance.
The anger surging from the depths of his heart repeatedly assaulted Shimada's reason, attempting to urge Shimada to rush forward and avenge his friend.
However, reason, like a mountain, firmly suppressed the anger within him.
Even if Takeuchi hadn't died, the three of them wouldn't have been able to defeat the Lower Rank, let alone now that Takeuchi is dead.
There's no way he and Iguro could win on their own.
Shimada took a deep breath, trying to suppress his anger. He turned to look at Iguro beside him, his voice trembling slightly:
" Iguro, let's run! We can't beat Lower Rank Three!"
Shimada thought that Iguro would immediately agree after he said those words, but instead he saw Iguro shaking his head. Shimada became a little excited.
"What? You want to go up and fight Lower Rank Three? How could we possibly defeat Lower Rank Three? Takeuchi is about the same strength as us, didn't you see him charge in and get killed by Lower Rank Three in just a couple of moves? What are you thinking of doing instead of running away?"
No, it's not that I don't want to escape.
Rather, it is.
"Does he look like he'd let us escape?"
Upon hearing this, Shimada looked in the direction Iguro was pointing.
The moonlight shone through the woods, illuminating them with exceptional clarity.
In the distance, a figure was slightly bent over, holding a handful of pebbles in one hand, with its arm and shoulder extending backward.
Upon seeing this, Shimada's pupils dilated slightly.
The scene before him was reflected in his pupils.
The demon swung its arm forward forcefully.
Unlike the previous few pebbles, dozens or even hundreds of pebbles flew towards the two of them like a meteor shower.
"I'm snapping out of it!"
A clear, crisp voice rang in his ears, and Shimada quickly snapped back to reality.
Without time to think about anything else, he began to swing his Nichirin Blade rapidly in front of him.
" Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Twisting Whirlpool "
" Serpent Breathing, Fifth Form: The Winding Serpent "
"Bang"
"Bang"
"Bang"
"Bang"
"Bang"
A series of loud crashing sounds echoed through the forest.
A few seconds later, the barrage of stones finally ended, and Shimada laboriously put down his Nichirin Blade, his gaze Teien the Lower Rank Three in the distance.
"Call--"
"Call--"
Shimada was breathing heavily.
Suddenly, Shimada's eyes widened involuntarily, his pupils contracted, and he stared intently at the movements of Lower Rank Three in the distance.
The figure approached the two, picking and choosing a stone from the ground. Then, it straightened up, wrapped its hands around the sides of the stone, and twisted it slightly.
Pebbles slipped through his fingers.
Then, the figure assumed the throwing posture again, slightly bent over, holding a handful of pebbles in one hand, extending the arm and shoulder backward, and then suddenly swinging it forward.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
A new round of pebbles rained down on the two of them like a meteor shower.
" Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Twisting Whirlpool "
" Serpent Breathing, Fifth Form: The Winding Serpent "
Shimada and Obanai Iguro simultaneously swung their Nichirin Blade, the light of water and snakes intertwining in the forest, colliding with the incoming stones.
"Bang"
"Bang"
"Bang"
"Bang"
"Uh-huh--"
A suppressed cry of pain rang in her ears. Shimada Obanai Iguro Shimada beside her, her brows furrowing slightly.
At this moment, Shimada was still holding his Nichirin Blade, constantly slashing to block the incoming stones, but a circle of blood was spreading around his abdomen.
Didn't it block everything out...?
Moments later, the attack ended.
Obanai Iguro quickly glanced at Shimada beside him. He saw that Shimada's body was uncontrollably bent over, his left hand clutching his abdomen, his right hand supporting him on the ground with his Nichirin Blade, and his right hand trembling uncontrollably.
Have they lost their fighting ability...?
After quickly assessing his teammates' situation, Obanai Iguro turned his gaze to the figure of Lower Rank Three in the distance.
Watching Lower Rank Three crushing rocks in the distance, Obanai Iguro quickly made a decision. He took a few steps to Shimada's side, grabbed his collar with his left hand, and dragged Shimada toward the nearest tree.
In an instant, a whooshing sound came from behind again.
Obanai didn't even need to look to realize that the pebbles were hurtling towards her. Seeing that the tree was only a few meters away, she pushed off the ground even harder.
The sound of pebbles whistling through the air grew closer and closer, as if they were right behind us.
Is it too late?
Having made the decision, Obanai quickly wrapped her arms around Shimada, lunged forward, and then rolled away, the two of them disappearing behind a tree trunk.
"Thump"
"Thump"
"Swoosh"
Hearing the sounds of pebbles hitting tree trunks and flying past her ears, Obanai a sigh of relief.
Have we finally made it...?
He helped Shimada lean against the tree trunk, looking at Shimada's pale face.
How are you?
"Cough... I'm alright, I won't die, but I probably won't be able to fight anymore..."
Although it was somewhat expected, Obanai's heart still sank when she actually heard the news.
He glanced at his thigh and saw blood gushing out from it.
" Iguro!"
"Hmm? What's wrong?"
"You run! I'm definitely not going to survive, but I can still hold on and fight a couple of times! I'll cover your retreat, that way you'll definitely be able to escape!"
"..."
"Thump"
"Thump"
"Thump"
"Swoosh"
"Swoosh"
Another round of stones came flying in.
"Hurry up! If I lose too much blood, I'll be even weaker, and you won't be able to run away!"
"Hmph, you don't need to tell me, I know what I'm supposed to do!"
"If you want to run away..."
Before Shimada could finish speaking, Obanai up.
Taking advantage of the moment after the initial barrage of stones, Obanai quickly moved Shimada behind another tree.
The tree had just been hit by two waves of stones and was already making a creaking sound. Obanai guessed that the tree wouldn't last much longer, so before going up to fight Lower Rank Three, he moved Shimada behind a new tree for safety.
After moving behind a new tree, Obanai breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Shimada leaning against the trunk.
"Alright, you can rest here."
Shimada sensed something was wrong. Why did you want to run away and find a new place? You even told yourself to get some rest.
What are you going to do?
"I'll go drag him away."
Having said that, before Shimada could continue trying to persuade her, she had already rushed out.