Anime: Fight Sukuna at the beginning?.

Chapter 347 Just entrust your wishes
An empty battlefield.

The moment this "Battlefield Ghost" observed his subordinates swinging their swords through his previous life experience, he captured the opponent's moves.

After experiencing Li Shuwen's extremely destructive [Divine Gun No. 2] that blew away a number of houses like paper products.

An extremely empty "desert" appeared around Hijikata Toshizo.

And this "desert" is exactly what he relies on to dare to let his subordinates in front of him "take the first step".

In this vast 'desert', any intention of the other party will become clear.

If you want to launch a surprise attack, before the opponent takes that proud step of shrinking the distance into an inch and brings the sharp blade in his hand close to your neck.

I noticed it myself and was able to respond calmly.

Therefore, when facing this knife attack from his subordinate, Hijikata Toshizo had absolute, even blind, confidence.

After pulling the trigger of the old musket in his hand, he spit out two bullets that reached the level of [B+] Noble Phantasm, which he had deliberately controlled his health and gained a huge increase in at low health.

After skillfully blocking some of the opponent's key points and slowing down the opponent's thrust speed.

His face became hideous and distorted again, and he stated an extremely accurate fact.

"I don't need a Noble Phantasm to counter your weak attack!!"

After enduring a blow from Li Shuwen, he vaguely sensed that the skill [Immortal Wound] given to him by the Master had changed.

In addition to [consuming a certain amount of blood to resist the damage that the immune body should bear], through 'adaptation' he has gained a new effect of [enhanced resistance to 'situation', 'environment' and piercing attacks].

The three almost simultaneous piercings of his subordinates' unique skill [Nameless Three-Stage Thrust] were naturally included.

Sure enough, the next moment, although he did not see the approaching figure of the other party.

But he felt a sharp blade piercing his chest, lower body, waist and abdomen.

As he expected, these three thrusts were "ineffective" due to the combination of [consuming a certain amount of blood to resist the damage that the immune body should bear] and [Type A Heroic Spirit Retribution Equipment] that absorbed earth magic to restore the body.

"Although your sword is fast, it's too weak."

However, the next moment, Hijikata Toshizo's eyes widened instantly.

Suddenly, his heartbeat accelerated and his body became heavier.

His intuition told him that he was in a state of crisis.

He looked at Okita Souji, who was standing in place, completing the swing of his sword and using the [Absolute Sword] to create a sword light that exuded a boundless, unobstructed, and immeasurable aura, as if it could illuminate all the worlds, and suddenly felt a little uneasy.

It’s just that it’s not because of the opponent’s knife that faintly exudes the meaning of expelling the world.

[I clearly saw her opening moves of [Shrinking the Earth] and [Nameless Three-Stage Thrust], and I also felt the touch of the blade touching her torso.]

But why is she still there?

Although he still had doubts in his heart, he was prepared.

After squeezing out the limited magical power of his Master, he once again activated the Shinsengumi: Eternal Sincerity, which had evolved into a B+ rank Noble Phantasm.

At the same time, he uttered words with a hint of fanaticism.

“Standing there cunningly?

"Then let me show you, my subordinate, my immortal Shinsengumi.

"【Shinsengumi】Follow me and attack!!!"

As the flag with the word "Sincerity" engraved on it appeared above his head, a more powerful effect of [Delaying damage settlement as long as the damage limit is not exceeded] was attached to his body.

As expected, he began to lose his mind gradually and faced the dazzling sword light that almost drove him out of the world, and drew his katana.

He led the Shinsengumi, which was originally composed of only him and was the only one left at the end, and launched a reckless surprise attack, just like he had stepped forward to charge at the muskets in his lifetime.

“Draw the sword—charge—Ouch!
"Here it is! My immortal new selection! Group!!!"

As his body collided with the dazzling blade light that faintly emitted a meaning of repelling the world, he staggered.

In fact, he was almost at the limit of the damage that the [Noble Phantasm] could withstand, and he just relied on his flesh to "swallow" the sword light.

Hijikata Toshizo, who had lost most of the flesh on his chest, pretended to be fine and roared to drive away the sensation called "pain" that was clinging to his body.

“The banner of sincerity is indestructible—slay!

"Forward! Kill! Forward!!

"I am! Shinsen!!! Group ahhhh!!!"

However, what surprised him was that despite his close attack, the opponent still did not make any move to dodge.

Instead, he swung the knife again, which was contrary to his knowledge.

It was clearly the moment to finish swinging the sword, but Hijikata Toshizo clearly felt as if a second pair of hands holding a sword appeared on the opponent's body, helping him to complete the swing of the sword.

【But what about the sword light? 】
-
The next moment, a vertical cut was completed in his eyes, and finally the world was split into two and turned into nothingness.

And the flag above his head disappeared because he could no longer maintain the [Eternal Sincerity] due to the death of the heroic spirit.

He had only taken a few steps before he felt that the shell had split into two pieces along the bridge of his nose and fell to the ground where the cracks were widening.

There was only a dull collision sound, and then the body that transformed into the spiritual essence of the Holy Grail told him a strange fact.

When the dazzling blade light touched his body, it had already cut him and killed him in advance.

However, the knife strike under the dazzling light seemed too silent, fast enough to deceive the human body's perception, and also came with a strange illusion.

This resulted in the fact that even though the sword had accomplished its goal of killing the enemy, it still violated physiological laws and made him think for a while longer in an illusion, like a 'brain in a jar'.

He had actually died seconds earlier.

"Has she become this strong? She's completely gotten rid of her weakness and become the person she dreamed she could be."

[This is completely different from the fragility she showed when we deceived her and hid the news of her comrades' deaths, allowing her to focus on recuperation.]

[She's so dazzling right now, it's hard to look at her directly. She doesn't need my help anymore.]

It was only at the very end, when he was about to return to the Throne of Heroes, that he got rid of the influence of [Frenzy].

Hijikata Toshizo still didn't want to lose to his subordinates.

Therefore, relying solely on his remaining willpower, he uttered the last rather tough words.

"Subordinate, please remember this.

“Although you won, it was just a fluke.

"If you give me a few more days, with the Master's power, I, Hijikata Toshizo, will never lose to you."
-
After uttering these words of 'unconvinced', the Servant seemed to lose its energy, gradually fading away and returning to the Throne of Heroes.

Only one sentence remained unfinished, but it inexplicably echoed in the swordsman lady's ears.

"Everyone should be happy for you that you can come out in such a perfect state.

"Don't feel sad about killing me. I won't die. As long as I'm here, the Shinsengumi will be immortal..."

The swordsman lady looked at Hijikata Toshizo who had already turned into spirit matter in front of her. Apart from the joy of obtaining the [Command Seal] for Fang Yi, she felt inexplicably heavy.

She spoke softly in a voice that only she could hear.

"Deputy Commander Hijikata, I'm not the only one who hasn't gotten out.

"The Shinsengumi is already destroyed, yet you still cling to it."

After expressing some confusion about her boss's thinking, she objectively evaluated herself.

"Besides, I haven't become the perfect person you described, and I don't know how to become that person."

"If I had to describe my current state in words, it would be, 'My fragile heart hasn't changed, I've just become stronger.'"

She just stared at the knife in her hand, feeling her body free from the effects of illness, and savoring the experience of borrowing the man's skills.

The swordsman lady, who never showed any other expressions during battle, smiled happily.

[But rather than becoming perfect, I want to become stronger and fight with him until the end.]

This is the simple wish I entrust to the Holy Grail, but I do not need the Holy Grail to realize it. I only need to entrust it to myself and realize it with my own hands.

She sheathed her sword, switched back into combat mode, and walked towards Kotomine Kirei, the only one still standing. At this moment, she was prepared to pretend to be a wild Heroic Spirit whose Master had not yet attended the meeting, and to consult this Master about the procedure for receiving additional Command Seals.

Good to give men a little extra boost.
-

After seeing the swordsman casually swing his sword and kill the Berserker who had left many "Agents" helpless and had also caused Li Shuwen and Wu Erda to return empty-handed, [Kotomine Kirei]'s first reaction was.

Did I see this wrongly?

The power of that Servant's sword strike, whose Noble Phantasm was only B, surpassed Master Li's!

He, who usually had no emotional fluctuations, rarely began to doubt whether his eyes were normal.

After confirming that his eyes were functioning normally, he immediately began to wonder whether everything happening before his eyes was real.

He even wondered if someone was using the same kind of illusion that the legendary Merlin had mastered, which was so realistic that it could be mistaken for the real thing.

But when Li Shuwen beside him took the fur-collared cloak from his hand, which was about to slip out of his hand, he realized something.

【Everything that just happened is real.】

Only then did he accept the fact that the [Immortal Servant] was killed by a weak female swordsman with just one blow.

Then, the thought came to his mind: "Is this swordsman in a period of weakness? Should I take this opportunity to eliminate her?"

After noticing the other party walking towards him, he felt a chill all over his body as soon as this thought came to his mind.

My feet couldn't help but shake like sieves.

[What is she going to do? Does she have the ability to read my mind and sense my thoughts? ]

【For safety reasons, I must keep my distance from her. 】

However, after his brain sent the command to "move" to his thighs several times, he still couldn't move his feet as his whole body was trembling.

At this moment, his entire body seemed to be stuck to the ground like a nail on a magnet, unable to move anymore.

Looking at the swordsman lady who was getting closer and closer to him, [Kotomine Kirei] couldn't help but feel a bit of despair in his eyes.
-
However, the next moment, the 'magnetic force' that bound him disappeared.

"Are you that old man's Master?

"What is the process for obtaining the Command Seals? I heard from an 'Agent' that one must possess the Command Seals to participate in the battle in order to slay this Servant."

Upon hearing these words, Kotomine Kirei was stunned at first, but then quickly reacted.

"She won't kill me?"

"She won't kill me!!"

After realizing this, he felt that his body was 'reborn'.

He can move.

Before he could respond, Li Shuwen, wearing a fur-collared cloak, walked up to him and uttered words that frightened Kotomine Kirei.

"Though your 'knife' was a bit cunning and a bit frivolous, even I have to say it was good.

"You are qualified to fight me, but you."

Before Li Shuwen could finish his words, the swordsman lady waved her hand as if to shoo away a fly, stopping him from speaking.

"Pause for a moment. I want to ask you a question, Master."

After ignoring [Li Shuwen], she asked [Kotomine Kirei] again in a very innocent manner.

"Can you tell me how to claim the Command Seals as a reward after killing the target of the Holy Church, Master?"

Looking at the swordsman lady with a cold expression on her face, her hand already touching the long sword at her waist.

Although he realized that with Li Shuwen by his side, he should not have to worry about his life.

But at this moment he still gave the answer very honestly.

"Just go to the church and ask Kotomine Risho."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Shuwen, who was standing beside him, put on the pose of a master and acted like a senior.

The swordsman lady moved and disappeared from everyone's sight, leaving behind only a few cold words.

"Not interested. I have no reason to fight you."

She couldn't wait to get that [Command Seal] for the man.
-
[Li Shuwen] looked at the swordsman lady who disappeared in front of him in just a moment, and first stretched his wrists.

Then he responded seriously to the other party's words.

"It doesn't matter, wait until I capture your Master.

"By then, whether or not to fight will be out of your control!"

[Li Shuwen] I feel that this plan is 90% sure.

[Servants are stronger than their Masters. This is common sense.]

[It's impossible that the opponent's Master is stronger than this Heroic Spirit! ]

The old man thought so.
-

midair.

Having witnessed the entire battle, [Tōsaka Tokiomi] sighed deeply in his heart.

The Tōsaka family's 'sacred land' finally stopped its 'decline' when it had shrunk to half of its original size.

It can only be said that it is a blessing in disguise.

He looked at the swordsman lady who disappeared from his sight, and the uneasiness that had been in his heart since Fang Yi appeared began to swell again.

[Another Servant who looks quite impressive. His strength is probably comparable to that of Li Shuwen.]

What kind of monsters have been attracted here during this Holy Grail War?

Thinking of this, [Tōsaka Tokiomi] secretly glanced at Gilgamesh beside him and made some rude comments.

[It is even possible that his strength could threaten the King.]

[This is an opponent that requires vigilance.]

He just recalled the words of that powerful female swordsman, who said that she killed the enemy only to obtain the [Command Seal].

At the same time, he was quite confused about this behavior of actively handing over the "reins" to the "Master" to control himself.

[Tosaka Tokiomi] also felt a faint sense of jealousy towards the unknown Master.

【Why isn't I the Master of such a powerful Servant? 】

If I were given such a loyal Servant, I would be able to fully utilize her abilities and obtain the Holy Grail.

Thinking of this, he suppressed the resentment in his heart and looked at Gilgamesh, who was sitting on the throne in deep thought, without leaving a trace.

If I had that heroic spirit, why would I have to kowtow to this 'Village Chief of Uruk' who only controls a small piece of land?! ! !

However, what [Tōsaka Tokiomi] didn't see was that when Gilgamesh, who was sitting on the throne, felt his Master looking at him, a smile full of sarcasm appeared on the corner of his mouth.

At this moment, the look in the eyes of the oldest king of mankind looking at [Tōsaka Tokiomi] was as if he was looking at a corpse.
-

At the same time, Fang Yi heard two puzzling prompt sounds in his ears.

[Affected by [Diligent Learning], the perfection of your skill [Moon in the Mirror] increases.]

[Influenced by [Diligent Learning], your understanding of the skill [Merge Matters] has deepened. Continuing to deepen your understanding, this skill will gradually become a space-recognized skill.]

Looking at this last tip about [Merging Matters], he scratched his head in confusion.

Since I haven't mastered this skill, I probably don't have the qualifications to "borrow" the skill from the swordsman lady through [Diligent Study and Improvement].

But he quickly suppressed his doubts and focused on dealing with the enemy in front of him.

At this moment, holding [Prometheus], ​​he hid and observed Cheng Xiang, looking for the opportunity to attack. He seemed to have returned to the night when he faced the [pseudo-human monster] on the Iron Fortress.

He needed to keep a distance from the enemy and had to use some 'outdated' methods to kill the man who was carrying the poisonous insect and was most likely acting as an 'anchor' to bring disaster to himself.

(End of this chapter)