Volume 4: The Undead Chapter 220 Scenery Inside the Wall
After making sure that there was no one on the other side of the wooden wall, A-machi nodded to Ogata, then pulled out her wakizashi, stood on tiptoes, and forcefully inserted the wakizashi into the wooden wall above her head.
He pulled it downwards and made sure that the wakizashi was firmly inserted into the wooden wall. Then he grasped the handle of the sword with both hands and pulled himself up like a single pole, standing on the blade of the wakizashi.
A-machi's wakizashi is a specially made wakizashi.
There was a thick circle of black cloth tied around the handle of the knife.
On the one hand, this circle of black cloth prevents slipping due to sweaty hands, and on the other hand, it allows Atachi to use this wakizashi to climb tall buildings like the wooden wall of Toyoma Village.
Atachi used the blade of the wakizashi as a foothold and stood on it, then untied the thick black cloth wrapped around the handle of the wakizashi and bit the bottom of the black cloth with his mouth.
He raised his head to glance at the top of the wooden wall, confirmed the distance between them and the approximate amount of strength he would need to exert, then bit the black cloth connected to the handle of the wakizashi sword, exerted force with both feet, and pushed upwards suddenly, grabbing towards the top of the wooden wall.
The tops of the wooden walls in Fenghe Village are not sharpened, so they are very easy to grip.
After easily grabbing the top of the wooden wall, Ating did not rush to pull himself up, but first stuck his head out of the top of the wall to check if there was anyone nearby.
"Lucky..." Ating mumbled incoherently while biting the black cloth, "No one..."
After confirming that there was no one near the wall, Atachi pulled himself to the top of the wall with both arms, then waved to Ogata below, indicating that Ogata could come up.
Seeing that Atachi had successfully climbed up the city wall and indicated that he should climb up as well, Ogata did not hesitate and began to repeat Atachi's actions.
The movements that Ating just performed to climb up the city wall seemed quite simple, but in fact, there were many small tricks involved.
For example, there are many techniques involved in how to stand firmly on the wakizashi inserted into the wall.
If he had not already mastered the elementary "Shiranui Stealth Technique", Ogata would not have been sure of standing firm on such a small foothold.
If Atachi, who is only 1.55 meters tall, can jump to the top of the wooden wall, then Ogata, who is much taller than Atachi, will naturally have no problem doing so.
Relying on the Shiranui-style stealth technique and his own advantages of height and long arms, he easily climbed to the top of the wooden wall. Then, Atachi released the black cloth in his mouth, grasped the black cloth tightly with both hands, and retrieved his wakizashi little by little.
This is the purpose of this black cloth - after using the blade to climb to a high place, you can use it to retrieve your own sword.
"I'll go down first."
After saying these words in the ear of Atachi who was collecting the swords, Ogata held the two swords at his waist tightly to prevent the sheaths of the two swords from colliding with each other and making too much noise when they fell.
Then he jumped down lightly, pressed his back against the wooden wall, and slid down the wall to the ground in a posture that was almost like "sliding".
As soon as Ogata landed, Atachi successfully used the black cloth to retrieve her knife.
Following closely behind Ogata, after jumping down and landing, Atachi looked around.
"It's so dark... so quiet... "
"And the atmosphere feels a bit strange..." Ogata added.
The world inside the wall and the world outside the wall - although there is only a wall between them, Ogata feels that the air between the two is as different as heaven and earth.
It’s not that the air inside the wall is filled with any unpleasant stench, but rather - the atmosphere in the air is a little... weird.
There should clearly be some humans living behind this wooden wall, but the air inside the wall is filled with a dead silence, and there is no sense of life.
"Let's go in deeper and take a look first." Ogata said.
"Um."
…
…
Ogata and Atachi crouched low and moved forward bit by bit in the darkness.
It was a cloudy night, so most areas were in darkness, which made it very convenient for Ogata and his companions to sneak around.
After going forward for a distance, the two found a field of crops .
At the same time, the villagers of Fenghe Village were finally discovered.
This piece of farmland is just an ordinary paddy field. Several young men are standing in various corners of the paddy field, seemingly guarding it.
These young men and women included, and although the light was dim and visibility was not good, Ogata could still vaguely see that the complexion and physical condition of these young men were extremely poor.
He was all skin and bones, with a pale face and deeply sunken cheeks - you could tell at a glance that he hadn't eaten properly for a long time .
Ogata suspected that if a strong wind blew, these young men might not even be able to stand steadily.
Looking at the young men standing guard in the paddy fields, Ogata and Atachi both felt relieved.
Before sneaking into Fenghe Village, Ogata and others had prepared for the worst-case scenario, which was that all the villagers in Fenghe Village would die.
Ever since Fenghe Village used a wooden wall to isolate itself from the outside world, Zong Hai has never communicated with the islanders hiding behind the wooden wall, so Zong Hai doesn't know whether there are any living people behind the wooden wall.
The fact that there are still people standing guard on this paddy field means that there are still many people alive inside the wooden wall.
After carefully avoiding the paddy field and the young men on it, Ogata and Atachi continued to move forward cautiously.
"I say... Atachi." Ogata, who was following closely behind Atachi, smiled wryly at Atachi and said softly, "Is the cannon behind you really not in the way..."
Because Atachi was walking in front of Ogata, Ogata could clearly see the iron cannon behind Atachi, which was shaking slightly because Atachi was moving.
Ogata felt that the cannon was quite a nuisance, so he couldn't help but ask Atachi this.
In response to Ogata's question, Atachi answered without hesitation:
"It's okay, it's okay. I'm used to carrying a cannon. It won't hinder me from doing anything... Ah, Ayi, look, I can see the village."
Ogata looked forward in the direction that Atachi's finger pointed.
They saw a few flickering lights in the darkness in front of them.
With the help of the firelight, Ogata could barely see the shadows of the buildings and the human figures swaying in the firelight.
"Here." A-Machi threw a black handkerchief to Ogata.
Ogata took a closer look - the black handkerchief looked very familiar. It was the handkerchief that Atachi had lent him to cover his mouth and nose when they were searching the deserted village the day before.
"Cover your mouth and nose like me." As Ating said this, he took out a black handkerchief and covered his face below the eyes.
"Why do I have to cover my mouth and nose..." Although Ogata was very confused, he still followed what Atachi said. He picked up the handkerchief that Atachi had just handed him and wrapped his mouth and nose properly.
"This will reduce the sound of your breathing... But the most important reason is because this is the rule in our Shiranui - when sneaking into the destination, you must be careful to protect your identity. Let's go, Ayi."
Following the dim shadows, Ogata and Atachi approached Fenghe Village little by little.
Just as they were close enough to clearly see the outermost houses of Toyowa Village, Ogata and the others heard a loud shout from inside Toyowa Village:
"Everyone! It's time to distribute tomorrow's breakfast! Please come and gather!"
