Nobita's Time Heist

……

A broken roof, crumbling walls, and a dusty floor. A ray of light shone down from the gap, like a spotlight descended from the heavens, landing squarely on Nobita. He stood silently in the center of the dilapidated hall, with a silent Buddha statue not far behind him. This scene, combined with the surroundings, made Nobita stop in his tracks, looking around with some suspicion.

The reason was simple: the atmosphere was just too eerie, giving him the feeling of being in a boss's room.

Nobita watched him quietly, using silence to amplify his presence and successfully carrying out the grand performance.

……

"Are they really that into character...?" In the underground space created by the [exploded basement], everyone was observing every move on the ground through [X-ray glasses]. Narniadis couldn't help but exclaim, "Knowing that they are facing a great monster of the demon god level, they are not flustered at all. No wonder they are Ping Tianqi."

"He's known this trick for a long time. I remember it was... the Galaxy Train incident, right? This kid was just standing there nonchalantly, and I thought he was scared out of his wits, but it was all an act to lure the enemy out of the host. This kid has always had a bit of a talent for acting."

Looking back on Nobita's actions, he had taken the "pretending to be asleep" tactic to its extreme. Even Gian couldn't help but sigh, "Sometimes I don't understand. If he's really that bold, he can do something like this without even blinking. Why is he usually afraid of me?"

“Nobita has always considered Xiaowu and the others as friends. Friends, after all, bicker and tease each other, and it's normal for someone to get a little hurt or something. There's no need to take it too seriously. He'll show his courage when it really matters.” Shizuka murmured, adjusting the gadget Nobita had just told her to use. “Like now, he's making us hide while he faces the most dangerous mission alone…”

“He’s gone all out; he must have a plan. Besides Nobita, who else could come up with such a wicked idea in such a short time?” Gian, however, was full of confidence in his old friend. “Let’s just do as he says!”

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Human. You're the reinforcements Shuten-dōji brought, aren't you?" Ōtengu scanned him up and down, raised his hand to stop the restless army of yaksha and flying-headed barbarians, and said coldly, "I'm actually quite curious, what's so special about you that makes her place all her hopes on you alone?"

Why are you facing me alone?

……

"Controlling natural disasters isn't just your privilege." After building up the atmosphere to its peak, Da Xiong slowly uttered these words. He didn't use any gadgets to bolster his courage; he relied purely on his willpower to forcibly suppress the fear that made him want to turn and run away. "Your little tricks are only at this level in my eyes."

"Huh?" The Great Tengu was stunned for a moment, unsure whether to be angry or amused. "Human, are you scared out of your wits? Do you really know what you just said?"

"It might be hard for you to accept, right? That you're not unique..."

"boom------!!!"

Before he could finish speaking, the Great Tengu raised his right arm and slammed his fist into empty air.

Like a punch landing on tofu, the ground rippled violently. The seismic waves, powerful enough to shatter everything, instantly tore the temple apart. Debris and bricks collapsed in all directions, scattering like water droplets, and the rising dust completely obscured everything in sight. Even the earth itself bore a terrifying fissure, from which cracks spread outwards like a spiderweb. Walls, pillars, roof tiles… nothing that could be destroyed remained.

"Heh, what a boring little trick." The Great Tengu brushed the dust off his shoulder and sneered, "Humans are just like that—full of empty talk and pretentious posturing. This kind of cunning might work against your own kind. But once the power gap widens, trying to achieve your goals through sophistry becomes..."

The figure that appeared in the smoke and dust instantly put him on high alert. He spread his black wings, lowered his body, and prepared to charge up his attack again.

"It's no use." Da Xiong remained standing in the same spot, without moving an inch, completely unharmed, not even a speck of dust landed on his head.

It was this composure that made his words sound weighty and easy, leaving the Great Tengu momentarily bewildered and truly hesitant to act rashly.

……

"Thanks to [Softball], and I even used [Bad to Good Spray] to enhance it, I managed to defend against the shockwave at such close range." Shizuka was still a little scared. "If I hadn't been able to block it, that one hit would have been enough to tear his body to shreds."

"So, when are we going to start using the gadgets? Now?" Fat Tiger looked at the gadget in his hand, already eager to try it out. "That's a Great Tengu! If we manage to defeat the Great Tengu, won't we become a big celebrity?"

"It should be possible. Long ago, a man named Minamoto no Yorimitsu and I were evenly matched, which was enough to secure her a place in mythology. In later legends, she could also be summoned as a heroic spirit. However, that was during the Heian period. As for what would happen now, I'm not sure. Perhaps she would be regarded as a role model?"

"Regardless, let's wait for Nobita's signal first."

……

"How...how did you do that?" The Great Tengu was completely baffled. "That punch just now was enough to smash those self-proclaimed top-tier Onmyoji, along with their shikigami, into dust. I didn't sense any magical fluctuations, in other words, you didn't even use any magic, did you?"

To those unfamiliar with the field, technological advancements with excessively high technological content are no different from myths.

The Great Tengu, a self-proclaimed mythical creature, always looked down on humans. In his eyes, no matter how advanced humanity became, they were nothing more than insects that could be easily crushed. In a sense, this arrogance was similar to that of the Hundred-Eyed King, which explains why they eventually found common ground.

Realizing that his 22 technologies had greatly impressed him, Nobita was secretly delighted—his bluffing plan could now move to the next stage.

The most important thing is to get into character, get into character!

“I’ve already said, these little tricks won’t work on me.”

Chapter 309: The Soul Time Machine

“I am like you, a race that controls ‘disaster’. Your petty tricks are nothing but boring circus acts to me.”

Nobita casually raised his hand and said in a deep voice, "If you don't believe me, then I'll let you experience it for yourself..."

……

"Here I am, Shizuka!" Gian caught the signal and quickly said, "Let's begin!"

"[Disaster Training Device]!"

(Disaster Training Device: A machine that simulates disaster environments, utilizing advanced 22nd-century sensory experience technology to achieve near-perfect realism. It's designed to allow users to practice in simulated disaster scenarios, preparing them for real-world emergencies. Available modes include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, thunder, fires, etc. Activating the highest level "Doomsday" disaster mode creates a nearly realistic apocalyptic experience. Please note that this device can cause extremely strong sensory stimulation; those with heart disease or high blood pressure should use it with caution.)

"Let me adjust it. Let's set the time to five seconds later. Disaster type... hmm... earthquake... that's good, a magnitude 7 earthquake! Fat Tiger!"

"OK, I've been waiting for a long time..." Gian unscrewed the bottle cap he had been holding and released the catfish one after another. "[Earthquake Catfish]!"

(Earthquake Catfish: A strange catfish that can burrow underground and swim. Simply saying the word "earthquake" will cause a strong tremor.)

Immediately following was a series of tongue-twisting "earthquake" sounds, which nearly wore out my tongue. This double whammy of props manifested on the ground as layers upon layers of tremors, creating a completely realistic earthquake experience.

The shockwaves surged like ocean waves, and this all-encompassing, unobstructed experience was enough to intimidate the unsuspecting flying-headed demons and yakshas. The monsters were all selfish; their lives were paramount, and without even waiting for the Great Tengu's command, they immediately turned and fled, their movements far faster than when they had stormed in with such ferocity.

"This is just a small appetizer." Nobita tried his best to keep his voice from trembling, suppressing all his composure for the next sentence, "Hurricane!"

"【Eye of the Typhoon】—!!"

(Typhoon Eye: A cloud-shaped gadget, reminiscent of a classic Japanese lame joke, with an "eye" in the very center of the cloud and a wind-up spring on its back. Tightening the spring and then releasing it in one go generates a powerful typhoon. The more times the spring is wound, the stronger the wind it produces. It's one of the gadgets used in 22nd-century meteorological research, and this technology is widely used in clean energy, wind power generation, and other fields. Doraemon has many gadgets for creating typhoons, but this one is the most straightforward.)

"Thunderstorm!"

"[Thundercloud Gas] --!!"

(Thundercloud Gas: A special gas that, when compressed, can generate sheet-like thunderclouds. It is one of the tools used in 22nd-century research on meteorological sound fields. The thunderstorms produced by this device are quite dangerous, with the potential to generate lightning storms, and its principle is closer to that of weather weapons. In principle, it must be used by professional researchers under restricted conditions. This device appeared in the theatrical film "Nobita's Dream Three Musketeers" and was used to fight the Iron Spirit Army.)

……

If it were all special effects, Nobita feared he wouldn't be able to fool the disaster-generating machine on the other side. Therefore, in this high-stakes performance, he deliberately added some serious elements. Earthquake catfish, typhoon eyes, thunderclouds, and gas—all props capable of interacting with the real world. Combined with the disaster scenes generated by the disaster training device, the effect was completely indistinguishable from reality. It was undoubtedly enough to fool these naive monsters. Before long, Flying Head and Yaksha had both escaped completely. Ootengu, however, stood there, looking at his hands with some self-doubt, bewildered by the real disaster before him.

The wind and thunder filling the air do not lie; this human has indeed summoned disasters one after another in some way that he cannot understand.

"This...this...how is this possible? You should just be a mere human, you shouldn't possess such destructive power. If you were a hybrid of a great demon and a human, I should be able to sense the bloodline within you, but...there's absolutely no reaction?!"

He shook his head, his long red nose swaying from side to side, looking somewhat comical. "Could it be that you're a new species that's never appeared before?"

“Imagine whatever you want.” Nobita raised his right hand and said unhurriedly, “You could probably do those little tricks just now too, it’s really nothing to be surprised about. I should have said before, right? The ‘disaster’ I control is not some childish game you play with…”

"Let me show you the natural disaster that ended another race's demise long ago!"

This line was the final line decided during the rehearsal.

Upon hearing this, Shizuka immediately switched the disaster training device to its highest setting: the meteorite that wiped out the dinosaurs. Of all the disasters, this was the only one that was purely a simulation, because Nobita couldn't actually pull down a meteorite. But the groundwork laid by the previous three disasters was precisely for this moment. The mix of reality and illusion—first showing you the real thing, then suddenly presenting a sufficiently realistic fake—had already disrupted Ootengu's senses and logic. He genuinely believed Nobita's story and naturally, he also believed that the huge meteorite heading straight for him was real.

"boom--------"

The clouds tore apart, and a waterfall cascaded down from the sky.

A colossal object, defying all his understanding, plummeted from the clouds. A scorching smell filled the air, and a wave of intense heat swept over him, threatening to obliterate everything on the ground! This level of catastrophe left the Great Tengu feeling utterly helpless for the first time. Faced with this attack, he didn't know how to defend himself, and his wings instinctively folded up to protect his chest.

For a fleeting moment, his attention was completely focused on the fake meteorite, and all his senses around him were cut off.

All the foreplay, all the preparation, was for this one moment of opportunity.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Clap!"

A flexible tube was gently placed on the back of the Great Tengu's head.

(Soul Time Machine: Another type of time machine, a culmination of research in a different path in the 22nd century, and a crystallization of occultism. Its flexible tube connects to the machine itself, one end of which can connect to the brain. Once activated, the device extracts the user's soul and sends it to a preset age range, allowing an aged soul to re-enter a younger body. It is crucial to set the time carefully, otherwise, there is a risk of irreversible loss, becoming lost between the past and present. When the soul leaves the body, the physical body loses consciousness, even ceasing breathing and heartbeat, becoming a living dead. Care must be taken to preserve it.)

Nobita once used this gadget to travel back to his kindergarten days, successfully pretending to be a child prodigy for a while thanks to his fourth-grade intelligence. Finally, he returned to his own time to his mother's gentle singing, only to be carelessly abandoned by Doraemon at the warehouse door. His heart stopped beating and his breathing ceased, nearly scaring his mother to death.

Now, this tool, which should have contained endless possibilities and wonders, has been used by Nobita in the completely opposite way.

"boom----"

With a deafening roar, the Great Tengu's soul was extracted and sent to the past, a hundred years ago.

His body remained frozen in place, no longer moving.

Chapter 310: A Life for a Life

"It worked! Whew... After all that effort, it finally worked!" Seeing that the plan had been executed, a weight was finally lifted from Nobita's heart. He breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed from his tense acting state, his shoulders slumping. "Thanks to you for connecting the tube at the last minute, Hargunda, this invisibility magic is really useful."

"To be precise, it's a spell that weakens existence. He can still see me and hear my footsteps normally, but he doesn't care at all, as if I were just an insignificant pebble. As far as I know, Ping Tianqi has a similar item in that magical pocket, right?"

Hargunda waved his hand, but his gaze beneath the black robe burned with intense intensity as he fixed his eyes on the Soul Time Machine. He said softly, "In my opinion, this thing that can send souls to the past... is the real divine artifact. It can actually send a person back to their past body. Judging from the principle, it must use the human brain as a carrier to transfer consciousness to the brain in the past, like transferring software to hardware. Brilliant, truly brilliant."

"At the same time, the physical body, now devoid of consciousness, becomes an empty shell, at the mercy of others."

He poked the Great Tengu's forehead, but the other party did not react at all, still standing there like a statue.

“So, next… is…” Nobita gritted his teeth, took out the revolver Arthur had given him, and aimed it at the Great Tengu’s forehead, but his hand trembled slightly. Reason told him that he had to fire before his comrades came out to celebrate their victory. He didn’t want his comrades to take lives, and he didn’t want them to see him kill.

A simple trigger pull now feels so heavy. Perhaps it was his inner kindness that made him unable to be so ruthless when it came to taking a life.

A withered arm gently blocked his way.

“I know Ping Tianqi is unwilling to do it himself, which is perfect, the Eternal Temple still owes you a life…”

Hargunda opened his right hand and gently placed it on the Great Tengu's forehead, a dark torrent slowly gathering in his palm. This darkness, as if materialized from an abyss, made Nobita's heart tremble. This was the instinct etched into his body acting up, a fear stemming from his previous death. From this extremely dangerous aura, Nobita immediately recognized it as the magic that Hundred-Eyed King excelled at.

"Killing people with their eyes?!" Nobita exclaimed in surprise. "You guys... not only analyzed this spell, but you also learned it?"

"That's what reverse engineering is all about. In the Eternal Temple, there are often some lost ancient spells, and their casters are mostly long gone. We can only deduce clues from the traces left behind back then, a broken stone, or an ice crystal that has survived to this day. The immortals dedicate their lives to magic, and even under such harsh conditions, they can reconstruct many lost ancient spells, which have long been a complete system. Not to mention you, under the spell, right under my nose, allowing me to study you for forty minutes."

Hargunda smiled and waved his hand dismissively, "Narniadis still needs to practice, but she only needs a little more time, and she will definitely master this spell."

“Ping Tianqi, be our witness here. We are repaying you the life we ​​owe you.”

"boom----!!"

A torrent of darkness suddenly shot out, piercing through the Great Tengu's skull and creating a large hole in his brain.

His mask fell to the ground, and his body lost its support, collapsing helplessly to the ground.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Woo——————"

The long, resonant cry echoed from the valley, its tone long and powerful, like the lament of some creature at the foot of the mountain. It seemed to contain a multitude of emotions, including shock,感慨, regret, and sorrow, all mixed together in the winding melody, leaving the listener with a sense of melancholy.

Musashi stopped pruning the saplings, listened intently, and smiled. "See? I told you long ago, my master is no ordinary person. He doesn't even care about monsters."

The sound of wind whistling echoed through the valley.

"Haha... Senior, even if I'm stupid, I'm not so stupid as not to see this." Musashi chuckled and sheathed his sword. "Are you curious about how someone who can't even use a sword became my master, Miyamoto Musashi's master?"

"That's right. He doesn't know how to use a knife at all. All he relies on is a mysterious swallow sword, which can be called an external object. That sword is as fast as lightning. In my master's hands, it is both offensive and defensive. It seems to always be one step ahead of me and can read my thoughts. I have fought against him personally. I have to make my hand movements faster than my thoughts in order to have a chance of survival. Unfortunately, before the decisive battle on Ganryu Island, I had not reached that level yet, so I lost to him by one move."

In the open valley, the leaves rustled in the wind.

"It's not the real thing... So what if it's not the real thing? It's what taught me that even a cowardly and timid guy like me can achieve great things. He gave me a second life. Without him, there probably wouldn't be the famous Miyamoto Musashi, but only a timid country swordsman who wouldn't dare to take the first step..."

"Genuine or counterfeit, it doesn't matter. What matters is having the heart to overturn everything, the courage to draw your sword against the strong, and the wisdom to bring them down."

Musashi was actually quite eloquent. The once stammering young samurai, after witnessing a series of events, transformed into a grandmaster who founded his own school and even wrote several books. His writing and eloquence were both first-rate. With just a few simple words, supported by facts, he elevated Nobita to a very high position. Although he knew that defeating a demon like the Great Tengu was absolutely impossible for Nobita alone; his friends must have been involved.

But at this moment, he needed a clear reason to persuade this elusive figure before him.

"Based on my understanding of my master, he will never be satisfied. He will fight all the way to the White Bone Palace and completely annihilate the Hundred-Eyed King, who threatens both humans and demons, before he will stop. Once my master makes up his mind, he will definitely win in the end; it's just a matter of time. Killing the Great Tengu has already proven that he has the courage and ability to overcome powerful enemies."

"senior."

"You wouldn't want the demon realm to be controlled by an outsider, with all your fellow demons enslaved and turned into tools to satisfy his desires, would you?"

……

"Thump—!!"

After a long silence, the first rock collapsed from the Vicious Mountain Range. With the first, there was a second, a third… the rocks fell like rain, endlessly. Soon, the entire mountain range trembled violently, the forests were uprooted, and the ancient beings hidden within opened their eyes.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"??!"

The Hundred-Eyed King's expression suddenly changed. He looked into the distance, his face revealing a very obvious look of horror.

"His aura has vanished... Someone used my eye-killing technique?! How is this possible? What is this...?"

Overwhelmed by a multitude of perplexing matters, he was momentarily at a loss for what to focus on. He had assumed a two-pronged attack, allowing him to simply sit back and reap the rewards, but unexpectedly, just moments before, the Great Tengu's aura vanished. A demon of his extraordinary strength could be sensed by Hyakume no matter the distance. And what had claimed his life was none other than his unique, deadly technique.

In the blink of an eye, the once-stable victory turned into an unexpected and dire situation.

Chapter 311: The Counterattack Begins!