Holding back my breath.
Although she was not in the water, Isshikika was holding her breath as if she was diving.
Plop, plop, plop, plop…
Hear your heart beating extremely strongly.
Her heart was beating so fast that Isshikika couldn't help but wonder if the three uninvited guests could hear her heartbeat.
I felt streams of warm air at the crown of my head - that was Ogata's breath.
At this moment, Isshiki Ka was curled up in Ogata's arms with her back against him.
Although the postures of the two were now quite ambiguous, Isshikika did not have any thoughts related to matters between men and women in her mind.
The sound of footsteps outside was like heavy hammers hitting Issekhua's heart, leaving her without any distracting thoughts.
——Is it really okay to hide here...
Isshikika looked around the cramped environment she was currently in with a worried look.
This abandoned Buddhist temple has no furniture at all.
The only two objects are the solid Buddhist altar against the north wall and the wooden Buddha statue placed on the altar.
Ogata and Isshikika are now hiding in the gap between the Buddha statue and the wall behind it.
The gap between the Buddha statue and the wall was extremely narrow, but fortunately Ogata was a slender person, and Isshikika was slim except that her buttocks and bear area had a little more flesh than that of ordinary people, so if the two of them tried hard, they could still squeeze into the gap.
Standing on the Buddhist platform and hiding behind the Buddha statue - as a devout Buddhist, Isshikika is still quite resistant to this kind of thing.
But the situation was urgent and she couldn't care less.
Although Zang was successfully hidden, Isshikika did not feel relaxed at all.
After all, the place where they were hiding was not very hidden.
As long as you run to the two sides of the Buddha statue, you can see the two people squeezed behind the statue.
The footsteps are approaching.
Through the Buddha statue, Isseka heard three footsteps coming from different directions, from the south side of the temple, slowly approaching the Buddha statue on the north side of the temple, and approaching them.
Even without Ogata's introduction to her, Isshiki could guess that the three people who broke into the temple without any explanation must be the ones who had been chasing Ogata tonight.
And they... were also the ones who kidnapped her grandfather, parents.
Isshikika pressed one hand against her chest, trying to slow down her heartbeat which was accelerating due to nervousness and anger, while she raised her head to follow Ogata's face.
When people feel nervous and uneasy, they often subconsciously look at people who can give them a sense of security.
My sight caught up with Ogata's face - what I saw was a face with half-closed eyes and a calm expression.
His expression seemed to be saying: This situation is just a minor one, nothing to be afraid of.
For some reason, seeing Ogata's calm and composed expression, Isshikika was surprised, but her originally rapid heartbeat slowly slowed down.
If Isshiki could hear what Ogata is thinking right now, she might be even more surprised.
Because Ogata is more than just a calm person.
Beneath his calm and composed appearance, his brain was working and thinking rapidly.
Ever since the three Iga male ninjas broke in, Ogata has been thinking: If something unexpected happens, how to kill all three of them as quickly as possible.
…
…
——The person on the left takes 7 steps, the person in the middle takes 7 steps, and the person on the right takes 6 steps...
With his eyes half closed, Ogata concentrated most of his energy and attention on his ears, listening carefully to the position of the three Iga male ninjas and the distance between them and the Buddha statue...which was the current hiding place of Ogata and Isshikika.
——It seems that it is probably impossible to hope that they will not come to check behind the Buddha statue.
——The person on the right is walking the fastest now... He should be the first person to reach the side of the Buddha statue.
Ogata clenched the katana in his hand and faced his right hand.
It was exactly as Ogata had guessed.
The person on Ogata's right is the one walking the fastest.
The other two were moving in the temple with such gentle steps that they couldn't even step on an ant to death, but he was the only one who walked very fast.
In just two breaths, this person had arrived...in front of the side of the Buddha statue.
There were only less than 2 steps left to Ogata and Isshikika who were hiding behind the Buddha statue.
At this time, Isshikika also tightly grasped the wakizashi that Hatsumitsu gave her, and swallowed hard, ready to stab with the knife in her hand at any time if she saw someone appear in front of her.
Ogata and Isshikika had both clenched their swords, ready to attack at any time.
Just as the ninja who was closest to the statue and could see Ogata and his companions if he took one or two steps forward was about to take a step forward——
"etc."
The silence in the Buddhist hall was suddenly broken.
This was the voice of the ninja farthest from the Buddha statue.
After saying "wait", the man continued :
"It's too dangerous for you to just approach like that. You must learn how to use ninja weapons."
As soon as he finished speaking , Xu Fang heard a very slight strange noise above his head.
When he looked up, he saw that a noose made of hemp rope was placed on the top of the Buddha statue in front of him.
Ogata's pupils shrank slightly.
He instantly realized what the ninja was trying to do.
And the scene that happened next also perfectly confirmed Ogata's conjecture -
Boom!
After the rope was put around the Buddha statue's head, the ninja who was farthest away from the statue immediately pulled back.
Wooden Buddha statues are not very heavy.
As he pulled, the Buddha statue seemed to fall down and fell forward heavily.
The Buddha statue collapsed, and Ogata and Isshikika, who were hiding behind it, were naturally exposed to everyone.
The sudden change stunned Isseka, who had rarely seen the wind and waves.
And while she was still stunned in the same place——
call!
Wind pressure blew on her side.
Ogata has already started moving.
At the same moment the Buddha statue was pulled down, Ogata reacted quickly and fought back.
Ogata leaped towards the ninja who was farthest away from him and Isshikika and had pulled down the Buddha statue without even a running start, and used gravity to chop down the katana that was raised above his head.
The ninja's expression changed, and he quickly drew out the wakizashi from his waist and rushed to meet the enemy.
After Ogata "flew" out, Isshikika finally realized what was happening and, as if waking up from a dream, she clutched the wakizashi in her hand and rushed towards the ninja closest to the Buddha statue.
Even if it is a sick flying dragon, it is still a dragon.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
Ogata swung his sword three times in a row and broke through the ninja's frontal defense, then stabbed the man's throat with a sword.
Bang bang bang!
There were hurried footsteps beside me.
Looking sideways, they saw another ninja running towards the windows not far away that they had just kicked broken, intending to escape .
Ogata did not chase after him immediately. Instead, he reached into his arms, took out something with a metallic luster, and threw it hard at the back of the fleeing ninja.
The object thrown by Ogata was his pistol, Meizen.
Umezen and Kasumi are now useless due to water infiltration, but their hard shells can still be used as hidden weapons.
Meiren accurately hit the fleeing ninja's back, causing the fleeing ninja to pause.
Ogata also seized this opportunity, rushed forward, and slashed the fleeing ninja hard on the back. After staggering forward a few steps, he followed the fate of the first ninja stabbed to death by Ogata, collapsed to the ground, and did not move.
Isshiki Ka is not as strong as Ogata, and she is not good at using wakizashi, so after Ogata had taken care of two ninjas with clean and neat moves, Isshiki Ka was still fighting with the enemy in front of her.
However, Isshikika's fight with her enemy can now be declared over.
After seeing his two companions being killed by Ogata, the morale and fighting spirit of the remaining ninja not only did not decrease, but a fierce light flashed in his eyes.
The speed of his sword swinging increased a lot in one go, suppressing Isshikika, who was originally evenly matched with him.
This person was only so powerful for a short while.
laugh!
The sound of the knife cutting into flesh was heard again.
After dealing with the fleeing ninja, Ogata immediately rushed over and chopped the last enemy to the ground.
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Ogata leaned his sword on the ground with one hand, half-knelt on the ground, and gasped for breath, trying to regulate his breathing.
His extremely ugly expression made Isshikika run to Ogata's side and squat down as if by reflex.
"Master Ittosai. Are you alright?"
"It's okay... I'm just... a little too tired..."
With such a weak body, he managed to kill three people in a row... Ogata could no longer think of any words to describe his current physical condition.
After taking several deep breaths and finally breathing more smoothly, Ogata supported his thighs with his hands and slowly stood up.
"...Ms. Isshiki, please leave here immediately."
"Leave here?"
"Well. Since someone has already found this place, it means that this place is no longer safe." Ogata said softly, "It's only a matter of time before a second wave of enemies finds this place."
"So get out of here and don't stay with me anymore."
"If you stay with me any longer, you'll be hunted down like just now."
"Leave quickly. It's best to leave Osaka directly, or at least escape to the suburbs of Osaka."
"Thank you for the food and water."
"I will definitely fulfill my promise to you and bring your family back, and make those who kidnapped your family pay the price."
After saying that, Ogata used his katana as a crutch and walked slowly with a shaky step towards the window that had just been broken by the three ninjas.
"Master Ittosai, where are you going?"
"I just said that this place is no longer safe. I have to find a new hiding place." He said, "You should leave in the opposite direction from me."
After hearing what Ogata said, Isshikika was stunned at first out of surprise.
Then he rushed forward without thinking, came to Ogata's side and supported Ogata.
"Ms. Isshiki?" Ogata cast a surprised look at Isshikika.
"Do you want me to be the kind of villain who turns a blind eye to a friend in danger?" Isshikika, who was supporting Ogata, looked straight ahead, her tone firm and unquestionable.
"…It's very dangerous to stay with me. The next enemy attack might not be just three people, but a whole army."
Isshikika ignored Ogata's words.
She didn't respond at all, but just continued to support Ogata silently and walked straight forward.
Seeing this, Ogata pursed his lips and showed a helpless expression.
Then he said nothing more and let Isshika support him.
…
…
After some time had passed——
Somewhere not too far from the Buddhist temple where Ogata and the others were hiding—
hiss……
The incense burned out, a wisp of green smoke floated out, a slight "hissing" sound was made, and the last bit of fire disappeared into the darkness.
The ninja glanced at the burnt incense in his hand, and then looked at the direction where his three companions had left with a complicated look...
…
…
Time goes back to just now——
"We can't go looking for them together. If that big bear woman is really Shura's wife, then Shura or his companions are very likely hiding in that direction. If we go looking for them together, we might all be killed. So we need to take some corresponding precautions."
"Precaution?"
"That's right. We'll leave one person here, and the other three will go look for Shura and his accomplices. The one who stays here will hold this incense stick."
"...I understand what you mean. If the three people who went to search for Shura and his accomplices didn't return before the incense burned out, it means that Shura or his accomplices are really hiding in that direction. Am I right?"
"That's right. There can be no other reason for the three people who went to search to be unable to return, except that they encountered Shura or Shura's accomplices. If the three people who went to search did not return before the incense burned out, then the person who was responsible for holding this incense and staying here would immediately report what happened here to the people above."
"That's a good idea. Then who should stay here?"
"Let the one with the family stay."
…
…
The ninja who stayed behind looked at the direction his three companions left with a complicated look, and then looked at the burnt incense in his hand.
After a moment's silence, he flicked his fingers, threw the incense in his hand to his feet, then jumped up and disappeared into the darkness.
…
…
Osaka, Ryusuji Temple——
At this time, Yoshihisa was sitting at a large table, concentrating on the map of Osaka on the table.
"Osaka Castle...Official Office...Dojima Rice Market..."
Every time he read out a facility of the shogunate, he would use a brush dipped in red ink to draw a small red cross at the location of the facility on the map.
In a short while, red crosses appeared all over the huge map.
"All the shogunate facilities have been successfully destroyed, and the administrative capacity of Osaka Prefecture has been paralyzed..." Yoshihisa murmured, and then let out a breath.
"The goal of the 'Spring Campaign of Osaka' has been basically accomplished."
Yoshihisa put down the brush in his hand, then stood up with his hands behind his back.
"Now... there is only Ogata Ittosai who has not been dealt with..."
When the name "Ogata Ittosai" was mentioned, a trace of annoyance appeared between Yoshihisa's brows.
"Not only is his swordsmanship superb, but his knack for dodging pursuit is also superb..."
Jijiu closed his eyes and raised his hand to rub his eyebrows vigorously.
"No wonder the shogunate hasn't caught him until now..."
"Master Jiku!"
At this time, a "messenger" ran quickly to Yoshihisa's side.
"What is it?"
"Someone has discovered information related to Ogata Ittosai's hideout."
"Oh?" Jijiu stopped rubbing his brow and said, "Tell me in detail."
"yes!"
What this "messenger" described was, of course, the details of how the four male ninjas adopted the strategy of "three to search, one to stay behind with the incense".
After quietly listening to the information reported by the "messenger", Yoshihisa turned his gaze and looked at the Osaka map next to him.
He stared at the map for a long time, then said in a quiet voice:
"Send a message to all the team leaders except for Team 9, Team 12, Team 13, and Team 15—"