I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Aoto and Kinoshita Mai's expressions... were now exceptionally solemn, as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

Whether it was the speed at which this person approached Qingdeng, the fierce slash he delivered to Qingdeng, or the agility with which he dodged Kinoshita Mai's kick, it all pointed to one thing—this person was a formidable expert!

"Is he from the Exile Group?"—This thought had barely crossed Qing Deng's mind when he heard Jin Ye, who was staring blankly at the mysterious man, murmur in a shocked tone:

"Kama, Kama Itachi-sama...?"

--grown ups?

Aoto keenly noticed that Shinno was using honorifics to address this mysterious person, and his tone was also very humble.

For Kamino, the leader of the Extermination Group, to address him with such respect and honorifics...

—Aren't you a member of the Extermination Group...?

Qingdeng's eyelids drooped slightly, and the solemnity on his face deepened.

"..." The mysterious person... namely Kamaitachi glanced at the dying Kamano at his feet, then looked away.

He ignored Jinno's call.

He didn't look at Jinno again.

He chuckled softly to himself: "Is this the kind of person that Rakshasa wants me to protect?"

……

Although he was very reluctant to obey Rasetsu's orders, Kamaitachi was also someone who accepted his losses.

Since it had already been agreed that "if Rasetsu wins this battle, he will have to listen to Rasetsu," no matter how unwilling he was, Kamaitachi had no choice but to bite the bullet and accept the mission of "secretly protecting Kanna."

However—although he had agreed with Rakshasa that he would secretly protect Kamino, he did not agree to "do everything in his power to save Kamino".

Therefore, Kamaitachi, who had absolutely no enthusiasm for this mission, always maintained a "going through the motions" attitude. He didn't care at all about whether Jinno lived or died.

He had been hiding not far away, quietly watching the duel between Qing Deng and Jin Ye, and even thought, "I might as well just watch this guy get hacked to death."

However—after a fierce internal struggle, and seeing that Aoto was about to deliver the final blow to Kanna, Kamaitachi finally decided to show himself and save Kanna, whose life was hanging by a thread.

It wasn't because I suddenly became enthusiastic about this task.

Instead, he suddenly had a brilliant idea: he wanted to disgust the Rakshasa, whom he loathed!

You asked me to secretly protect this person, right? Sure, no problem. But unfortunately, the enemy this guy was facing was too strong. I couldn't rescue him in time. As you know, I don't have the strength of Lord Ōtakemaru. By the time I realized Kamino was in danger, it was too late. In the end, I only managed to save a corpse.

The injuries that Jinno is currently suffering... anyone with a little medical knowledge knows that he is beyond saving, even if the most advanced Western medical techniques of this era are used to save him.

If you were to throw Jinno's corpse in front of Rasetsu and then righteously say the words mentioned above to Rasetsu... Kamaitachi would be very much looking forward to seeing what kind of expression Rasetsu would make!

As long as he insists that "I really didn't have time to rescue him," then Rakshasa will certainly have no grounds for criticism.

Although his rank was much lower than that of Rakshasa, Kamaitachi was still one of the cadres of the Fazhu Party.

No matter how capable Rakshasa was, he couldn't launch a full-scale attack on him, who was also a cadre, without any concrete evidence.

This plan to disgust the Rakshasa is simply brilliant!

The Kamaitachi can't wait any longer...

He couldn't wait to use the plan he had just come up with to annoy the Rakshasa!

The success of this plan hinges on the fate of Shinno's body.

If Qing Deng, being an official, were to kill Jin Ye, he would inevitably retrieve Jin Ye's body.

Jinno was the leader of the Extermination Group, and the government officials would not allow him to be left to rot in the wilderness.

And so—in order to prevent Aoto and the others from taking Kanna away, Kamaitachi finally made up his mind to "draw his sword to help" Kanna.

……

—Although it may take a little time… let’s kill these two anyway.

Kamaitachi shrugged his shoulders, stretched his muscles and bones, and slowly raised his beloved, highly curved sword, assuming a fighting stance.

If Aoto and Kinoshita Mai are spared, and they later report to the authorities who kidnapped Kamino, then there might be an arrest warrant for him posted.

Kamaitachi didn't want to encounter such trouble.

After thinking it over... I'll just kill these two! It'll be easy and save me the trouble!

"Although I have no grudge against either of you..." Kamaitachi's tone was neither sad nor happy, "it's just that you two are so unlucky."

The words had barely left his mouth...

Snapped!

A tremendous stomping sound exploded!

Without a running start, the Kamaitachi leaped towards Aoto and Kinoshita Mai, using gravity to bring down the sword it had raised above its head.

There was no time or leisure to think about who this guy was... Qing Deng quickly slid to the left, leaving where he was standing, and Kinoshita Mai also moved and dodged in the same direction as Qing Deng.

After its attack missed, the Kamaitachi landed firmly on its feet and swiftly changed its orientation and movement, lunging at Aoto and Kinoshita Mai once more.

It appeared suddenly and slashed at them without saying a word... This guy was covered in a mysterious fog that left Qing Deng completely bewildered.

The only thing Qingdeng was certain about was that this guy was an extremely dangerous person with ill intentions!

Qing Deng smacked his lips, then gritted his teeth, enduring the discomfort in various parts of his body, and raised his sword to meet the Kamaitachi.

Rescuing Sanako, fighting 67 members of the Extermination Group alone, and battling Kanna—Aoto has already fought three fierce battles tonight.

In short, Qingdeng's current physical condition is basically at its limit!

Various parts of his body... especially his right arm and left leg, were now beginning to spasm uncontrollably, forcing Qing Deng to switch to using his left hand to grip the knife.

My energy was almost completely depleted, and my breathing was already erratic.

However, no matter how much pain he felt, Qingdeng had no choice but to grit his teeth and continue.

It was clear that the enemy in front of him would not show any mercy just because Qing Deng was in such a poor physical condition!

Qing Deng shifted his body to the side, dodging a kesa slash from the Kamaitachi, and in the next instant, launched a counterattack from the middle, swinging his sword across the Kamaitachi's chest, but the Kamaitachi easily dodged it.

Just then, Kinoshita Mai attacked from behind Aoto! Her bright red yukata billowed as her right leg, lashing out like a whip, swept towards Kamaitachi's lower body.

Kinoshita Mai's kick was incredibly powerful and imposing, leaving no doubt that it was a strike capable of easily breaking a person's bones.

But no matter how powerful the attack, it's useless if it misses the enemy.

With a simple step to the right, Kamaitachi broke Kinoshita Mai's attack.

In the blink of an eye, Kinoshita Mai skillfully retracted her foot after missing the target, then relentlessly moved forward, closing in on Kamaitachi, and threw a punch at Kamaitachi's face.

Without even asking any further questions, just one glance at Qingdeng's face and his uncontrollably convulsing limbs was enough to tell that Qingdeng's current physical condition was quite poor.

Asking Aoto in his current state to fight a powerhouse like Kamaitachi is too much to ask and too dangerous.

In order to alleviate Aoto's burden as much as possible, Kinoshita Mai adopted an extremely fierce offensive, wanting to help Aoto defeat the powerful enemy in front of him to the greatest extent possible.

Judging from the strength that Kamaitachi had previously displayed... Kinoshita Mai knew very well that even if she and Aoto cooperated, it would be very difficult to defeat Kamaitachi... but she did not expect that the actual situation would be much worse than she had anticipated!

The Kamaitachi was much stronger than she had anticipated!

In terms of overall strength... Kamaitachi is far stronger than Kamino! And by a significant margin!

Whoosh—! Whoosh—! Whoosh—! Whoosh—!

The sound of blades slicing through the air rose and fell in waves.

The Kamaitachi is extremely agile, not only in its movements but also in its sword-wielding speed!

His ultra-fast slashes continuously tore through the air, producing an extremely piercing sound.

This space was now completely under the control of his knife and his feet.

No matter how Aoto and Kinoshita Mai attacked, whether they attacked together, from the left and right, or from the front and back, he easily blocked or dodged them.

In contrast, Aoto and Kinoshita Mai... Kinoshita Mai still has plenty of physical strength and muscle power, and she can barely dodge the attacks of the Kamaitachi.

As for Qing Deng, who could barely stand... his eyes could still keep up with the speed of the Kamaitachi's sword, but his body couldn't.

The system determined that Kamaitachi was far stronger than Qingdeng at this moment, so at the very beginning of the battle, both of its talents, "Lone Wolf" and "Gathering Spirit," were activated.

But it was all in vain... his body no longer had the strength to dodge or swing the knife.

He struggled to defend against and dodge every attack from the Kamaitachi.

Constantly dodging would only exhaust his already limited stamina. Therefore, no matter how much pain his body felt, no matter how much his body parts protested, Qingdeng gritted his teeth and endured it, not letting go of any opportunity to fight back.

After dodging another attack from the Kamaitachi, Qing Deng assumed his most proficient stance: Kasumi Dan, with the tip of his sword aimed at the Kamaitachi's chest, and unleashed a thrusting technique from the Natural Rishin-ryu school: Mumeiken.

Qing Deng is now consciously using thrusting attacks.

Compared to slashing, thrusting is easier to generate power and allows one to channel all the strength of the body into the tip of the blade, making it perfect for Qing Deng, whose physical abilities are now at their limit.

"You look like you're having a hard time. Can you even hold a knife?"

Kamaitachi saw through Qing Deng's current physical condition, a cold smile appeared on his face, and his words were full of sarcasm.

He moved with the gait of someone strolling in their own backyard, and without even blinking, he stepped half a step to the side, thus dodging Qing Deng's thrust.

Just then, a whooshing sound came from behind the Kamaitachi—it was Kinoshita Mai kicking at it.

She stealthily crept up behind the Kamaitachi, intending to launch a surprise attack... Little did she know that her actions had already been seen through by the Kamaitachi.

"Her legs are quite beautiful, but her strength and speed are a bit lacking."

As Kamaitachi tilted its head to dodge Kinoshita Mai's slender foot, it launched a merciless taunt at her, just as it had mocked Aoto earlier.

"It seems that this battle will be much easier than I originally expected."

The Kamaitachi laughed triumphantly, then suddenly raised its sword high above its head! The gleaming blade was aimed directly at Qing Deng!

Seeing this, Qing Deng quickly stepped back to the left, trying to escape from directly in front of the Kamaitachi.

But at that moment, a sudden gust of wind swept up... it was the gust of wind generated by the rapid swing of the sword!

The Kamaitachi abruptly changed its stance, drawing the blade in a counter-clockwise arc. In a flash, it transformed the high-arm stance above its head into a stance resting on its left hip.

The moment the stance changed... a beam of light, like a beast unleashed from its cage, pounced on Qingdeng!

The sword, held at the left waist by the Kamaitachi, slashed horizontally at Qing Deng, who was trying to move to the left!

Caught off guard by Kamaitachi's incredibly fast change of tactics, Qing Deng's pupils constricted sharply.

There was no time to dodge... he could only take the Kamaitachi's strike head-on. Qing Deng held the Ding Gui Shen sword upright in front of him, hiding his body in the shadow of the blade.