After a blast that shattered the outer barrier—without even a second to mourn the unnamed dead—the ones who immediately arrived at the battlefield were: the Fujimori Makoto squad!
After days of tactical coordination, the squad now led by Fujimori Makoto didn't even need to exchange glances. They dispersed from their landing spot, each rushing into the vast Asakaedo clan territory, quickly searching for their assigned targets.
Fujimori Makoto was responsible for targeting the head of the Asakaedo clan, "Harada Asakaedo Izō," whose power was approximately at the Fifth-rank spiritual level!
Before the operation began, the Yuan Liu intelligence group had already thoroughly investigated this person's background.
Without much hesitation, Fujimori headed straight toward the memorized location using flash step.
However, just as he extended his senses out of habit, he suddenly detected a spiritual network response from a building to the side that was even stronger than the one coming from the clan leader's palace in the distance.
Another expert?!
Before he could react, he saw that guest room explode as enormous spiritual pressure erupted, shattering it into countless pieces that scattered in the wind. The figure standing amid the destruction had a determined expression, with faint light flickering at the corners of his eyes, his hand resting on his sword hilt.
With a deep, stern "Hmph," the chaotic spiritual pressure suddenly condensed, forming an intensely solid impact at Shiba Yataka's waist.
He swung!
The sword pressure that exploded forth seemed to dispel the deep darkness over the Asakaedo clan grounds. A brilliant spiritual light shot skyward, sweeping across hundreds of meters, with massive shock waves pulverizing buildings and earth along its path, raising clouds of dust.
A deep scar was left on what had been bare ground.
However, when that sword mark extended to Fujimori Makoto, it was easily split in two, dispersing to either side.
Fujimori exhaled softly.
This spiritual pressure... Fourth rank? Nearly Third rank!
"How dare you raid a noble house at night! Who are you people?" Shiba Yataka stood his ground, his expression grave.
Fujimori Makoto's face was serious: "We are—Night·Raid!"
"Huh?"
Shiba Yataka was obviously stunned for a moment, but quickly recovered:
"Still trying to deceive! Yuan Liu bandits!"
"You already knew, so why ask?"
Fujimori held his sword in one hand, narrowing his eyes slightly:
"Time to bury you!"
As the words fell, his figure abruptly vanished from where he stood. He moved like a flowing shadow toward Shiba Yataka, swinging his blade down.
"Clang!"
Metal collided, producing an extremely dull impact sound.
So heavy!
When the blade fell, Shiba Yataka was shocked—he hadn't expected this Yuan Liu bandit, who looked even younger than himself, to possess such terrifying strength. His hand sank slightly.
With their first exchange, Fujimori had roughly gauged his opponent's level.
No prompt appeared immediately.
He could win.
With this confidence, he no longer conserved his strength. His blade fell like raindrops, so fast that the afterimages were nearly invisible.
For most Soul Reapers, [Zanjutsu: Level 9] exceeded their natural talent ceiling. Only a few who specialized in this path and possessed exceptional determination could reach this level at their peak.
Now, displaying this before Shiba Yataka naturally gave him overwhelming sword dominance that felt incredibly oppressive.
Intense sparks formed a continuous stream during countless blade collisions, scattering into the air. Even someone with no knowledge of swordsmanship could clearly see the dynamic: one side launching rapid, powerful attacks while the other desperately defended.
In this situation, both sides were rapidly consuming physical strength, energy, and concentration. It became a test of whose willpower was stronger.
And willpower contests were what Fujimori feared least.
[Bond Trait - Wall of Sighs]
[Your will remains permanently fixed at your strongest moment until death]
Suddenly, the rising blade tore through the cloth at Shiba Yataka's left elbow. The intense pain immediately made him realize his arm had been cut open, but clear consciousness didn't mean he could control his body's reactions.
When the nerves in his wrist were severed, his hand trembled involuntarily, immediately creating a gap in his otherwise airtight defense.
Fujimiya's eyes narrowed slightly, and his blade thrust into the opening with machine-like precision.
A piercing sound of metal scraping filled their ears.
"Screech—Clang!"
Shiba Yataka's blade was forced aside by Fujimiya's sword.
As both their blades were deflected, Shiba instinctively relaxed for a moment, but then noticed in his peripheral vision that Fujimori had actually released his sword grip.
'This is bad—'
Before he could react, Fujimori had already stepped forward forcefully with a "Bang," creating spider web-like cracks where his foot landed. Enormous force channeled through his waist and back, supported by intensely reactive spiritual pressure, drove his shoulder and arm into Shiba Yataka's chest.
The force traveled through each vertebra of his spine until finally... striking out!
"First Bone!"
With a fierce shout, roaring spiritual pressure surged endlessly through his fist, exploding inside Shiba Yataka's body.
With just one strike, Shiba's body flew back like a broken kite, crashing through dozens of walls and raising clouds of dust.
Midair, the spinning sword fell back into Fujimiya's hand.
...
'What... terrifying martial arts.'
Shiba Yataka coughed up blood, slowly stepping out from the dented wall.
Originally, he hadn't activated his sword release just to have a fair duel with this bandit, but now found himself in this awkward situation.
'Ha, how embarrassing.'
Just as Shiba Yataka was thinking this, he suddenly saw two young bodies lying not far from him.
The larger one still maintained an embracing posture even in death.
Blood still flowed from the severed neck, pupils already beginning to dilate.
His body immediately tensed, his expression rigid.
The competitive spirit that had unconsciously formed in his heart instantly vanished.
These Yuan Liu bandits... even kill children?
In the distance, Fujimiya's figure appeared through the dust raised by the explosion.
The spiritual pressure around Shiba Yataka's body fluctuated with his emotional turmoil. For a moment, he seemed to forget the pain in his body, standing straight at his position.
Spiritual pressure began flowing around the sword in his hand.
"Pierce through the clouded heavens, Naoshiebana."
With the quiet release command, his spiritual pressure surged more violently, and the sword in his hand transformed into a jet-black spear two and a half meters long. His entire presence seemed to become more subdued.
He walked slowly toward Fujimiya.
When only a few steps separated them, Shiba Yataka suddenly looked at the young man before him.
His voice was hoarse with barely suppressed anger, or perhaps pure sorrow:
"You people..."
"Why did you start this war?"
Fujimori looked at him and found this naive fool's expression was actually serious. He couldn't help but burst into laughter—"Hahaha"—until his stomach cramped.
As if he'd heard the biggest joke ever.
This reaction further infuriated Shiba Yataka.
He widened his eyes, bloodshot, and questioned in a deep voice:
"What's so funny?!"
"What's amusing about this?!"
"You... what do you think human lives are?!"
Fujimori asked with a smile: "You, as a noble..."
As he continued, his smiling expression gradually became cold, with a hint of mockery.
"...are you qualified to say such things?"
Hearing this, violent air currents suddenly rose behind Shiba Yataka. His feet touched the ground as if floating, his speed clearly increasing by a level.
He held his spear level, pointing it sharply at Fujimiya!
The young man's sarcastic expression deeply disturbed Shiba Yataka, making him widen his eyes in fury and shout:
"Beyond redemption!"
The next second, a whirlwind kicked up dust clouds.
His figure vanished completely.