The moment he saw the man in black on the tree, drops of cold sweat immediately broke out on Isiseka's forehead.
Thanks to the moonlight, Isshiki could clearly see...the clothes worn by the man in black on the tree.
The outfit of this person was exactly the same as the outfit of the three men in black who attacked her and Ogata in the abandoned Buddhist temple just now...
Almost without any hesitation or thinking - the next moment when cold sweat broke out on her forehead, Isshikika gritted her teeth, put Ogata, who was being supported but could not even stand up straight and obviously had no strength to chase the enemy, to the ground, then pulled out the katana from Ogata's waist, said to Ogata quickly "borrow it for a moment", and ran straight towards the big tree where the man in black was with the knife in hand.
Isshiki Kaha knew without anyone explaining to her that if she didn't kill the man in black who had discovered her and Ogata's whereabouts as soon as possible, she and Ogata would be in great trouble.
Looking at Isshikihua who was rushing towards him, the man in black on the tree sneered - then he leaped and jumped onto the trunk of another big tree behind him, and then jumped again and jumped onto another tree that was farther away from Isshikihua.
There are dense trees and bushes here. For ninjas like them, this place is simply a paradise. It is extremely convenient whether they are chasing the enemy or escaping from the enemy.
—Stop! Stop!
Isshikika tried her best to catch up, and repeatedly shouted "Stop" in her heart, hoping that some miracle-like accident would happen to make the ninja stop. For example, the ninja accidentally stepped on the air and fell from the tree, or when jumping onto a branch of a big tree, the branch suddenly broke and fell to the ground with it.
She hoped so with all her heart.
However...the miracle did not happen.
Even though she tried her best to chase him, even though she prayed over and over in her heart for a miracle to happen, the ninja was still getting farther and farther away from her, smaller and smaller in her field of vision, and finally - disappeared completely.
“Haa…haa…haa…haa…haa…” Isshikika slowly stopped and looked ahead where there was no one in sight. She wiped the sweat from her face, a mixture of hot and cold sweat, and bit her lower lip unwillingly, “Asshole…! What’s wrong with me…!”
Since tonight...hardly anything good has happened to her.
Bad things happen one after another.
My family is missing, my house is on fire, I want to help the person I love escape, but I can't even do something as simple as catching up with the enemy...
A strong feeling of helplessness struck Isshikika's heart and turned into hot currents that enveloped her eyeballs.
Just when tears were about to fall, Isshikika raised her left hand, wiped her eyes vigorously with the back of her left hand, held her breath, and forced back the tears. Then she turned around and quickly walked back to the place where she had dropped Ogata.
As soon as she returned to Ogata's side, Isshikika saw Ogata supporting himself with his hands on the ground, trying to get up. However, due to his weak body, Ogata was already at his limit in supporting his upper body, and he was unable to stand up his entire body.
Seeing Isshikika coming back, he asked:
"What's going on? Are there pursuers coming?"
"Yes." Isshiki nodded, then put the katana in her hand back into Ogata's sheath, leaned over and put Ogata's left arm around her neck again, "I'm sorry... I couldn't stop that person... It's not safe here, let's go."
After saying that, Isshikika pulled Ogata without saying anything and ran forward.
"…Ms. Isshiki."
"Um?"
Ogata raised his gaze and looked directly into Isshiki's eyes.
Although it was difficult for him to speak now, Ogata still looked into Isshikika's eyes in a serious tone and spoke seriously, word by word.
"That's...enough...thank you for all your help tonight..."
"Since...our location...has been discovered..."
"Then it won't be long... there should be many pursuers... coming to kill us..."
"At our current speed, it is only a matter of time before we are caught up..."
"You don't need to get involved in this mess..."
"You should leave here alone..."
"If you are alone... you will definitely be able to leave here..."
After saying this, Ogata prepared to push away Isshikika who was supporting him.
But who would have thought, when trying to push Isshikika away, Ogata was surprised to find that Isshikika actually increased the strength with which she held his shoulders.
"I leave alone? You are so weak now that you can't even stand. What will you do if I abandon you and leave?" Isshikika glared at Ogata with a somewhat angry look.
"Don't worry about me..."
"'Don't worry about you'? You don't even believe that, do you ?"
"If I abandon you as you are now, who would I be?"
"If you hadn't saved me in time when we were fighting the pirates together, I would have died at the hands of the pirates."
"During the 'big test' a few days ago, it was thanks to your timely help that I was not injured by that Anyin."
"You helped me twice, one of which was my life-saving grace."
"Although I am a girl, I am also a daughter of a Wu family."
"I would rather die than do something that would bring disgrace to the Wu family, such as 'abandoning the person who saved my life'."
After saying that, Isshikika tightened her hands on Ogata's shoulders again.
“We are not at the end of our rope yet.”
Isshiki Hanaasao forced a not-so-pretty smile.
"We are just being discovered by others."
"We need to wait for the person who discovered our location to report to the main force, and then wait for the main force to chase us. This process will definitely take a lot of time."
"So we still have plenty of time to escape and hide..."
Crack, crack, crack, crack, crack!
The sound of footsteps, as dense as a swarm of flying bees, suddenly came from behind Ogata, Isshikika and the others.
The sound of footsteps froze Isshikika's smile, as she had just told Ogata that they were not at the end of the road yet.
…
…
——Ahhh…it went so smoothly!
Soemon, carrying a large naginata on his shoulder, led the team forward with a smug smile on his face.
Not long ago, after receiving Yoshihisa's order that "Ogata Ittosai or his gang has been spotted in the northwest corner of Osaka, all groups except the 9th, 12th, 13th, and 15th groups should gather there immediately", Soemon immediately led his first group and rushed to the northwest corner of Osaka where Ogata was said to have been spotted.
The commotion that Yoshihisa made this time was quite big.
Not only were most of the musketeer troops mobilized, but a large number of Iga ninjas were also transferred here to track down the location of Ogata or Ogata's gang.
Originally, Soemon thought that even if he knew that Ogata or his gang was in the northwest corner of Osaka, it would be extremely difficult to find them. After all, Ogata and his gang were not puppets that could not move or escape. How could it be easy to find them?
However, things in the world are always so unpredictable.
Just now, a famous Iga ninja brought a piece of news that even Soemon couldn't believe his ears - Ogata Ittosai was found in the suburbs northwest of Osaka!
He currently looks in very poor physical condition and is being supported by a very beautiful woman. The two are currently fleeing out of Osaka.
When this news came, Zuoemon was stunned for several seconds as if he had lost his soul.
Then, an expression of joy that could not be concealed appeared on his face at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Because some programs have not yet arrived at the northwest corner of Osaka, currently there are only 8 programs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 11 in the northwest corner of Osaka.
The number sounds like a lot, but in reality many of them are in a disabled state.
Groups 3 and 7 were badly damaged, and there were almost no people left in groups 4 and 5.
Without exception, they were all crippled and disabled by Ogata in the series of battles they had just had.
In other words - there are 8 groups, which sounds like there are a lot of people, but there are not many people left in 4 of them. The total strength of these 8 groups is just 250 people.
We finally found Ogata, we can’t let him escape!
Therefore, in order not to miss the opportunity to fight, Zuoemon immediately asked the eight teams that had successfully assembled in the northwest corner of Osaka to follow him to pursue Ogata. At the same time, he asked the ninjas to rush to the place where Ogata was just found to continue to help them track and locate Ogata's position.
In the suburbs of Osaka, there are no more densely packed houses and narrow streets for Ogata to take advantage of in close combat.
Moreover, according to the report from the Iga ninja who discovered Ogata's location, Ogata Ittosai was in a terrible physical condition for some reason and even needed a woman's support to walk.
Soemon didn't know why Ogata, who had been able to fight him fiercely not long ago, suddenly became so weak. He didn't want to know the reason. He only needed to know that Ogata was in a very bad condition and now was a good time to kill him!
In such a favorable terrain for them, using 8 teams and 250 musketeers to deal with the extremely weak Ogata... No matter how hard Soemon thought, he couldn't think of any reason why they, who had all the advantages, could lose to Ogata!
250 musketeers, under the unified command of Soemon, surrounded Ogata from all directions.
“Lord Soemon!” An Iga ninja suddenly jumped down from a tree and ran to Soemon’s side. In order not to be left behind by Soemon, he maintained the same running speed as Soemon while reporting to him quickly, “Shura is running to the northeast! Shura is running to the northeast!”
"Northeast?" Zuoemon immediately adjusted his running direction and ran towards the northeast.
Not long after, a new ninja came and informed Soemon of Ogata's latest location, so Soemon corrected the direction of pursuit again.
Soemon kept repeating the steps of "being informed of Ogata's latest location by the ninja and correcting the direction of pursuit".
Soon, Zuoemon uttered a low “hmm” and then held his breath, listening attentively.
Under the transformation of the "power of immortality", Zuoemon not only has strong physical strength, but his five senses are also far superior to those of ordinary people.
He keenly heard - not far in front of him, there were two very hurried footsteps.
A ferocious and complacent smile filled Soemon's cheeks and eyes.
After a while, another ninja came and reported Ogata and his men's latest location to Zuoemon.
After listening to the ninja's new report, Zuoemon stopped the ninja when he was about to leave.
"Hey, tell all your fellow ninjas to use darts or shurikens to stop the woman who is helping Shura escape!"
"Ah! But remember—don't kill her!"
…
…
“Haaa…! Haaa…! Haaa…! Haaa…!”
Because of breathing too frequently and vigorously through her mouth, Isshikika now felt her throat was terribly dry.
Not only did her throat feel uncomfortable, Isshikika also felt that her chest was in great pain. It felt like her chest was about to split apart, and her lungs ached slightly.
Since she was born, Isshikika has never been so eager to sit down and have a good rest as she is now.
But she didn't dare stop.
She didn't dare to rest.
The footsteps coming from behind her that were getting closer and closer sounded to Isshika like the footsteps of the Black and White Impermanence and the King of Hell.
In addition to the sound of footsteps, Isshiki also heard the rustling sound of leaves swaying behind her.
She knew - it was probably the sound of the men in black moving in the trees.
Those men in black should now be constantly searching for and confirming her and Ogata's locations, and then determining the direction for their large force.
Isshikika is now very annoyed.
She knew that if she didn't find a way to get rid of these men in black quickly, she and Ogata would not be able to escape from the pursuit of those people behind them even if they ran until they were exhausted.
But she couldn't think of any way to counter those men in black...
She wasn't as agile as those men in black and couldn't walk on the trees as easily as they could.
And she didn't dare stop now.
She felt that if she stopped now, the pursuers behind her and Ogata would immediately kill them.
Faced with this dilemma, the only thing Isshikika knew she could do right now was... run away.
Leading Ogata...running forward...
Isshikika gritted her teeth, then silently tightened the hands that were supporting Ogata.
This was the wonderful phenomenon she had just discovered.
All she had to do was hug Ogata tightly and she would feel a new power surging from her body. This power suppressed the uneasiness and fear in Isshiki's heart and infused her legs with new strength.
Even though there were hundreds of pursuers behind her, and even though the sound of their footsteps was like waves, Isshikika still held on to Ogata with a firm face and refused to let go.
It's a pity...it seems like God is determined to play tricks on them.
"ah--!"
Isshikika suddenly felt a tearing pain in her right calf.
She screamed and fell forward together with Ogata.
When running fast, you suddenly fall to the ground - the pain is needless to describe.
Isshikika saw the pitch-black mud rushing towards her, and then golden stars danced in front of her eyes. Severe pain came from her forehead, nose, arms, and sides.
" Master Ittosai, are you okay?"
Isshiki Ka went to check on her own injuries, but instead she endured the pain and went to check if Ogata, who had fallen to the ground because of her, was injured.
"I'm fine..."
After confirming that Ogata was fine, Isshiki came to check her own injuries.
Although it was very painful from the fall, I was not injured. I just scraped the skin on my forehead and nose.
The only serious injury on Isshikika's body... was her right calf.
I saw a shuriken deeply embedded in the calf of her right calf.
And this was also the culprit that caused Isshikika to fall.
After receiving the order from Soemon to "stop Isshiki Ka", the Iga ninjas who were chasing Ogata and the other man kept looking for an opportunity to stop Isshiki Ka.
If the order given by Soemon was "Kill that woman", then the task would be much easier to accomplish. Just throw the shuriken without thinking.
But the order given by Soemon was "Stop this woman."
How could the ninjas not know what Soemon was thinking - "kill Ogata" and "kill Ogata and his accomplices", it is obvious that the latter's achievement is more dazzling.
It was obvious that these ninjas did not have the courage to offend Soemon, so they could only follow Soemon's orders seriously and carefully look for an opportunity to stop Isshiki Hana without killing her.
Finally - just now, a ninja who was good at throwing shuriken seized the opportunity and threw the shuriken, piercing Isshikika's right leg and directly crippling Isshikika's ability to move.
The flower's face now turned blue and white.
She moved her right leg and felt such excruciating pain that even standing up was extremely painful.
Sasha Sasha…
At this time, the surrounding trees were all making the sound of leaves swaying.
Isshikika looked up—more than a dozen men in black were standing on the big trees around her and Ogata.
Not too close, nor too far.
It just quietly surrounded Ogata and Isshikika.
Boom boom boom…
A large number of pursuers were approaching, and the sounds of their footsteps merged into a rumbling sound, like thunder.
--how so……
Isshikika lowered her head slowly like a defeated rooster and bit her lips tightly with such force that it seemed as if she wanted to break them.
Just then—
“Huh…?”
Isshika caught a glimpse of a small stone statue at the root of a nearby tree out of the corner of her eye. Even if you were not a Buddhist, you would definitely know its name.
"Ksitigarbha...Bodhisattva..."
Stone statues of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva can be seen everywhere on the streets of Japan, because in Japan, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is considered to be a Bodhisattva who gives priority to helping the weakest people and is the patron saint of children, travel, and traffic safety.
Isshikika stared at the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva with a dull look as if she had lost her soul...
…
…
——Is this the end...?
Ogata struggled to raise his upper body and slowly pulled out the katana that he had exchanged from Ishikawa but which was now worn out by use.
——I never thought that… I was wanted by the Edo Shogunate… but in the end, I was not killed by the Tokugawa clan… but died at the hands of… the Toyotomi clan…
——No... Maybe... before I am killed by the Toyotomi clan... I will be killed by the "immortal poison" in my body...
For some reason, Ogata had been feeling very sleepy since a while ago.
My eyelids felt extremely heavy, so heavy that I couldn't open my eyes wide.
After experiencing the series of events tonight, Ogata no longer feels strange no matter what special changes occur in his body.
"Ms. Isshiki... I will try my best to fight my way out... You can take this opportunity to escape..."
"I beg you... Stop being stubborn... You still have a chance to live..."
Snap! Snap!
Before Ogata could finish his words, he was interrupted by two rounds of applause.
Osamu turned around with a puzzled look - Isshikika closed her eyes tightly, put her hands together, and bowed to the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva in front of her.
Before Ogata could ask "why", Isshikika opened her eyes and smiled at Ogata.
“I have always been a great believer in Buddhism.”
"I recite the sutras and worship Buddha seriously every day."
The corners of Isshikika's mouth, which were originally raised, slowly pulled down.
The eye sockets also turned red at a very fast speed.
Her voice...also began to tremble and turned into intermittent crying.
“So, no no, there’s no need to be afraid…!”
"The Buddha and the Bodhisattva...will definitely listen to my wishes...and bless you and my family..."
She was clearly facing Ogata, but the words she spoke... seemed to be spoken to herself.
Isshikika's tearful look and her words just now made Ogata stunned.
Just when he was about to say something——
A fragrant breeze blew towards Ogata.
Ogata felt the touch of soft petals covering his lips.
"Master Ittosai... I like you."
Isshikika slowly separated her lips from Ogata's lips, and big tears rolled down her eyes and flowed down her cheeks.
"I'm afraid I won't have the chance to say this to you again."
After she finished speaking, Isshikika raised her hand and vigorously wiped the tears from her eyes. She then pulled out the wakizashi from her waist, stood on one leg with her intact left leg, and then hopped in front of Ogata, facing the direction where the "thunder" came from, and with a resolute face, she raised her sword.
"etc……"
Looking at the back of Isshikika standing in front of him, Ogata struggled to stand up.
But suddenly, he felt as if his head was hit hard by a sledgehammer!
The pain, dizziness, and drowsiness were so strong that Ogata felt like his head was about to split apart.
It felt like inserting a water pipe into his ear, and then pouring all the water in the ocean into Ogata's brain through the pipe in one breath.
The heaviness of my eyelids increased countless times in an instant.
He subconsciously tried to lift his eyelids, but his weak "resistance" did not last even for a moment and was instantly defeated.
Eyelids...closed uncontrollably.
The world before my eyes...returned to a darkness like nothingness.
…
…
…
…
Am I... dead?
…
I was not killed by Toyotomi, but by the "Immortal Poison"...
…
What a ridiculous way to die...
…
I can’t see anything… Is this the world after death…
…
I don’t feel any pain, I don’t feel dizzy… I finally feel much better.
…
Thinking about it carefully...my death...seems to be a kind of relief...
…
Since crossing over, I have either been injured or on the way to being injured...
…
Not to mention the bruises all over my body, I couldn't even live with Ah-ting in my true identity. Ah-ting never had a good day, and she had to wander around with me...
…
I'm so sorry for Atachi... I don't even have the ability to let her live a peaceful life...
…
This life of always being hurt and unable to show one's true self to others, is it finally... over...
…
it's all over……
…
it's over……
…
…
…
…
"Um?"
Ogata blinked twice and looked around in astonishment.
The surrounding scenery is extremely familiar.
It was so familiar that I recognized where it was at a glance.
This is the dojo of Sakakibara Sword Hall.
The dojo was neither too big nor too small, with the sword racks and wooden swords neatly placed on the side, and the stains on the ceiling and floor that could never be swept clean... Everything was exactly the same as the Sakakibara Sword Hall in Ogata's memory.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Ogata heard the sound of a wooden sword swinging behind him.
He turned his head and looked back.
It might be strange to say this, but Ogata did see himself.
It's not about seeing yourself reflected in the mirror.
Instead, he actually saw another self who was standing in the center of the dojo behind him, practicing meticulously swinging the sword at the air in front of him.