"Whoosh!"
The forest canopy had already dimmed the light above them, but in the blink of an eye, the sky over Haruki and the others plunged into darkness.
With their sharp senses, they immediately realized this wasn't due to clouds or a coming storm—it was a massive boulder, like a meteor, hurtling down straight at them.
Without hesitation, Haruki reached behind him and drew the demon blade Tessaiga from a swirling golden vortex.
Tessaiga—one of the three legendary swords from the anime Inuyasha, symbolizing the human realm—could slay a hundred demons in a single swing. For Haruki, its greatest strength lay in its ability to absorb his immense demonic energy, allowing him to unleash a wide array of powerful techniques.
It possessed base skills like Wind Scar, advanced moves such as Backlash Wave and Adamant Barrage, and even Meidō Zangetsuha from Tenseiga. It was, without question, a devastating weapon.
Until now, Haruki had only ever wielded Tenseiga in front of the girls. Tessaiga and Sō'unga, even in the past millennium, had been drawn only a handful of times. Haruki had always favored Tenseiga for its sleeker appearance, and more importantly, he hadn't encountered a situation that warranted the raw power of Tessaiga—until now.
Of course, if it were just Haruki, there'd be no need for all this. With his speed, he could teleport out of danger in an instant. And as a powerful vampire yokai, he could've even taken the impact head-on.
But he wasn't alone. While Gin and the others could handle themselves, Sayo wasn't much stronger than a regular person. So Haruki opted for the safest route.
As he gripped Tessaiga and poured his energy into it, the once battered and rusty blade transformed into a majestic fang-shaped sword.
The boulder loomed closer.
Raising Tessaiga, Haruki swung it toward the sky—unleashing the secret technique: Backlash Wave.
In that moment, towering vortexes of demonic energy burst forth from around him, spinning like tornadoes that scraped the clouds. (The abilities might differ slightly from the original source, but it's a necessary adaptation for the story—no need for nitpicking.)
When the tornadoes struck the descending boulder, there was no thunderous crash. It was like a high-speed drill cutting through tofu—the stone was instantly shredded. The debris was swept into the whirling vortexes and flung far away. In the wake of the storm, the once dense forest and scattered corpses were obliterated—completely erased by Haruki's unrelenting demonic power.
When the whirlwind finally subsided, the forest had vanished. As far as the eye could see—within a kilometer radius—only barren earth remained. Just Haruki and his companions stood amidst the wasteland, as if the earth itself had been scraped clean.
...
Even though the threat had passed, none of them relaxed. That massive boulder clearly hadn't fallen by chance—it was a deliberate attack. Their enemies were still lurking in the shadows.
And that realization ignited everyone's fury. After just surviving a brutal fight, and only barely letting their guard down, they'd been ambushed again. It was infuriating.
Given the timing, it was obvious this wasn't coincidence. Someone had orchestrated everything. The bandit leader was likely just a pawn. The idea of being manipulated enraged the women even more.
But they didn't have to wait long. Soon, a group of figures emerged in the distance, moving swiftly toward them.
To their surprise, aside from two unfamiliar faces leading the group, several familiar ones followed—members of Night Raid. Everyone was here except for Tatsumi, who still lacked a Teigu.
"Sister! Was that your doing just now?!"
Before Haruki or anyone else could speak, Kurome shouted out.
The moment she saw Akame, memories of her repeated attacks on both her and their brother overwhelmed her. Kurome couldn't hold back any longer and yelled directly at her sister.
"No! Kurome, please listen to me! I really didn't expect them to act like that… I didn't know they would go that far..."
Akame's heart twisted as she met Kurome's furious, hate-filled stare.
"Security Minister, we've heard that you possess a Teigu capable of resurrecting the dead. We suggest you hand it over to the Revolutionary Army. You may be strong, but with the two of us here, we've got eight Teigu users in total. You don't stand a chance."
Before Akame could say another word, the two unfamiliar men stepped forward, cutting her off. From the tone and confidence in their voices, it was clear—they were Teigu users as well.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / PinkSnake