Huluwan, near the stern -
whoosh!
Ogata heard the sound of breaking wind coming from behind his right side, which he had become accustomed to after having experienced countless battles.
This is the sound of an arrow breaking through the wind when it is fired.
"Mucun! Someone is shooting arrows from behind!"
After shouting a warning to Makimura beside him, Ogata was the first to jump to the side and jump towards the obstacle next to him.
The next moment he jumped away, an arrow that was much thicker and longer than an ordinary arrow pierced deeply into the place where Ogata had just stood.
Ogata looked in the direction from which the arrow came—on the cross sail of the rear mast of Hulumaru, sat an archer holding a crossbow.
The size of the crossbow in this person's hand was quite astonishing. Ogata, who had no knowledge of crossbows, was stunned when he saw the crossbow in this person's hand:
——A crossbow of this size...is not used to shoot people, but to shoot at city walls, right...?
Makimura, who had just jumped behind an obstacle in response to Ogata's warning, was also observing the archer squatting on the mizzen sail.
"This guy is using a crossbow for whaling..." Makura curled his lips, "Using a crossbow on a rainy day... What a waste of money."
The principle of using bows and crossbows is to rely on the elasticity of the bowstring to shoot arrows.
The bowstrings of crossbows are made of animal tendons. Not to mention soaking in water, just being damp will greatly reduce the elasticity of the bowstrings.
In addition to greatly reducing the elasticity of the bowstring, rain will also cause the tail of the arrow to be wet, affecting its flight.
In short - although crossbows will not be useless on rainy days like flintlock rifles and matchlock rifles, using crossbows on rainy days is not a wise behavior.
Using a crossbow on a rainy day will not only greatly reduce its power, but also greatly shorten its service life.
——A crossbow for hunting whales? This crossbow is really not for shooting people...
Ogata poked his head slightly out from behind the obstacle where he was hiding and observed the shooter's position.
He was squatting on the lowest cross sail of the mizzen mast, about 7 or 8 meters above the deck, and the straight-line distance between him and Ogata and Makimura was about 20 meters.
"It seems that the archer is the only one still attacking us," said Makimura.
"Well, it seems so." Ogata glanced around at the enemy corpses lying all over the place.
Although the counterattack on Ogata and his men on this ship was fierce, "fierce counterattack" and "effective counterattack" are two different things after all.
With the vigorous efforts of Ogata and his men, the only enemy Ogata could see now was the archer who was squatting on the mizzen sail and shooting at him and Makimura with a whale hunting crossbow.
"How do we deal with that guy?" Makimura asked Ogata, "How about I cover you and you take the opportunity to get close to him?"
"No need." Ogata rejected Makimura's proposal without hesitation, "There's no need to go through so much trouble."
After saying that, Ogata picked up a hard lump the size of a fist that had fallen at his feet. Ogata didn't know what it was called or what it was used for.
After picking up the unidentified object, Ogata immediately flashed out from behind the obstacle where he was hiding at lightning speed.
Seeing Ogata suddenly rush out from behind the obstacle, the archer quickly raised his crossbow to shoot - but his action was still one step behind Ogata.
He had just time to raise the crossbow when Ogata threw the unknown object in his hand away.
The unidentified object drew a straight line and hit the man's stomach.
Unable to withstand this huge force, the archer fell headfirst from the cross sail like a kite with a broken string.
The shooter saw the deck, wet from the rain, rapidly "flying" towards him, and then a shattering pain spread from his face throughout his body, and countless golden stars danced in front of his eyes.
Although the pain was so severe that he could hardly even scream , he still struggled to get up quickly.
He got up hastily.
As soon as he stood up, he saw Ogata rushing towards him with a knife...
A flash of white blade - finishing blow completed.
After successfully finishing off the archer with a knife, Ogata saw Makimura walking slowly towards him with a look of emotion on his face.
"What a simple and direct solution. I'm impressed that you were able to throw that thing so far and so accurately."
"After enduring so much hardship, I finally absorbed this 'power of immortality'." Ogata smiled, pinched the hand that had just thrown the unknown object, and said in a joking tone with a hint of self-mockery, "If I don't make good use of this 'new body', it would be a loss."
"Okay, it seems that we don't have any enemies here."
"Let's go and see what's going on with Genichi and Mamiya..."
CRACK——!
Before Ogata could finish his words, he heard a huge cracking sound comparable to thunder in the sky coming from not far away.
Ogata and Makimura, startled by the sound, turned their heads quickly to look - the towering mainmast was now like a fragile reed flying in the wind. After shaking gently, it slowly fell towards the Hikari Maru not far away.
At the base of the mainmast was Mamiya, holding a sword that was gleaming purple in the wind and rain, still maintaining a sword-drawing posture.
The thick root of the mainmast, which is so huge that an adult may not be able to hug it with both hands, now has a smooth oblique cut.
The loud shattering sound that Ogata and the others had just heard was the sound of Mamiya cutting off the mainmast and the mainmast breaking.
Looking at the broken mainmast and Mamiya who had not yet retracted his sword, Ogata and Makimura instantly understood what had happened.
"You are amazing, Mamiya..." Makimura was stunned at first, then he smiled and expressed the same feeling he and Ogata shared at the moment, "You even managed to split this 'monster' in half...!"
…
…
Hikari Maru, stern——
"What exactly happened? What is the exact damage to the ship?"
After receiving the task of "inspecting the damage to the ship" from Toyotomi Nobuhide, Kasuga Bee immediately rushed to the stern and personally inspected the cause and current status of the damage to the ship.
"Master Kasugabee."
At the stern, an officer who had been directing his men to inspect and repair the damaged ship, upon seeing He Xufeng coming, hurriedly saluted and reported to him in a quick voice:
"Gunpowder exploded in the No. B ammunition magazine at the stern of the ship due to unknown reasons."
"The cause of the explosion is still under investigation."
"Ammunition depot No. B is almost completely destroyed. Currently, there are 36 known casualties. Since the statistics have not yet been completed, this number is expected to increase."
"Because the No. B ammunition magazine was located at the stern, the explosion of the No. B ammunition magazine caused a hole in the stern, implicated some gun positions near the stern, and caused damage to the stern rudder."
"I have sent people to repair the hole that was blown out."
"Since the hole is not big, the repair work has been basically completed. We are now draining the seawater that flowed into the ship through the hole."
"The stern rudder is more difficult... the damage is more serious and it will take at least a day to repair it."
After listening to the cadre's concise report, He Xufeng's face immediately darkened.
He quickly ran to the railing at the stern and looked down - the stern rudder used to control the ship's course was now covered with charred marks left by the explosion.
"Tsk... It's so damaged that it's totally unusable..."
"You should quickly organize a group of people to carry out emergency repairs on the stern rudder."
"Then organize a group of people to strengthen the guard of the No. 1 gunpowder warehouse."
"The gunpowder in No. 1 gunpowder storehouse could not have exploded for no reason. Someone must have deliberately ignited the gunpowder to cause the explosion."
"besides……"
After personally confirming the damage to the stern rudder of the ship, He Xufeng gave orders one after another to the cadre beside him with a serious face.
After giving one order after another to the cadres, He Xufeng turned around and left, running towards the upper artillery deck below.
Like Huluchuan Maru, Rihui Maru had two gun decks, with the upper gun deck adjacent to the No. B ammunition depot. Therefore, after the explosion of the No. B ammunition depot, the upper gun deck was the most severely damaged.
He Xufeng is now preparing to check the damage to the upper gun deck adjacent to the No. B gunpowder depot.
As soon as he arrived at the upper gun deck, He Xufeng smelled an extremely unpleasant odor mixed with gunpowder and blood, and saw a mess.
The dead and wounded affected by the explosion and the damaged artillery have basically been transported away, with only a few gunners still remaining at their posts.
After briefly comforting the gunners who were still sticking to their posts, He Xufeng began to carefully inspect the damage to the gun deck, and from time to time asked questions to those who had witnessed the explosion.
After confirming that about a quarter of the guns on the upper artillery deck were severely damaged and a third of the gunners had suffered varying degrees of casualties, He Xufeng couldn't help but twitch his lips out of heartache.
He felt sorry for both the gunners and the cannons.
As the "Governor of the Fleet", He Xufeng knows better than anyone how valuable people who can skillfully operate naval guns in rough seas are.
Each of these cannons is very expensive.
The purchase price of the damaged artillery pieces might have exceeded the total annual income of some of Japan's small feudal states.
——The situation is worse than I imagined... Not only was the stern rudder blown up and unusable, but the number of damaged artillery pieces is also far greater than I imagined...
——Let’s not talk about the cannons for now, the stern rudder is the most troublesome...
——Without the stern rudder, it is impossible to complete the delicate action of "pushing the boat towards the gourd ball"...
He Xufeng was calculating anxiously in his mind.
But at this moment——
"Hey! Look! Huluwan's mainmast has fallen!"
"It looks like it's coming this way!"
"Get out of the way! Everyone get out of the way! It's coming down!"
…
He Xufeng suddenly heard that the open deck above suddenly became extremely noisy, and also heard a strange "squeaking" sound.
While he was wondering what was going on, a gunner not far away pointed outward along the muzzle with a look of horror on his face.
"The main mast of the gourd has fallen down!"
"What?!" He Xufeng's pupils suddenly shrank and he quickly ran to the muzzle closest to him and looked out.
As soon as he stuck his head out of the muzzle, Kasu Feng saw that the mainmast of the Hulu Maru, which was about half a body length behind the Hikari Maru and had been moving parallel to the Hikari Maru, had been broken.
The thick, long, towering mainmast seemed to want to break free from all the restraints on it. It broke the ropes connecting the other two masts and tilted towards the Hikari Maru while making a creaking sound!
Looking at the falling mainmast of Asahi Teru Maru, Kasuga Bee's expression immediately changed dramatically.
However, despite being shocked, he still showed the quick reaction and composure that a "Governor of the Fleet" should have.
"The attack is coming!" He Xufeng hugged the muzzle in front of him and shouted to the people around him, "Stand still!"
Boom——!!
Just as He Xufeng finished speaking, a loud noise like an explosion was heard from the upper open deck!
The collapsed mainmast of Hulu Maru hits the Hikari Maru accurately!
The top of the mainmast, using gravity, smashed a large hole in the open deck near the stern of the Hikari Maru.
The huge impact caused the hull of the Hikari Maru to shake violently.
A lot of dust fell down, and He Xufeng's head was covered with dust.
Although he had issued a warning as quickly as possible, many people still failed to react in time and stumbled or fell flat on their faces under the huge shock, looking extremely miserable.
After the vibration of the Hikari Maru's hull subsided a little, Kasu Bee quickly stuck his head out of the muzzle again.
The collapsed mainmast was like a bridge, spanning between Hulumaru and Hikarimaru.
Looking at the extra "bridge", Kasu Bee clenched his teeth subconsciously: "Are you planning to kill me directly by stepping on the bridge...!"
…
…
"Ogata-kun! Makimura!" Mamiya covered his right arm and shouted to Ogata and Makimura in the distance, "Come on! Let's go to the other ship!"
Mamiya's shout was actually a little redundant - even without Mamiya's shout, Ogata and Makimura were now very consciously rushing to the "bridge entrance".
Ogata and Makimura are farther from the "bridge", while Genichi and Hatsumitsu are closer to the "bridge".
As soon as the mainmast fell and hit the Hikari Maru, the old man and the young man immediately rushed to the "bridge entrance" as fast as possible.
After a brief shock, the crew members on the Hikari Maru finally recovered.
After seeing Genichi and his group gathered at the "bridge entrance" of Hulucan, no matter how dumb they were, they knew what these uninvited guests were going to do.
The crew of the Hikari Maru rushed to the top of the mainmast of their ship, preparing to destroy this simple "bridge".
If these people were allowed to destroy it, the "bridge" that Mamiya had built with all his efforts might be destroyed.
"Mamiya." Genichi, who naturally couldn't stand by and watch the crew of the Hikari Maru destroy the "bridge", said to Mamiya in a serious tone, "I'll go to the other side to build a 'bridgehead' for you to catch up later. We'll meet at the Hikari Maru later."
After saying this, without waiting for Mamiya to respond, Genichi raised his sword and rushed onto the "bridge" first, rushing along the bridge towards Hikimaru at the other end.
Hatsumitsu arrived at the bridge entrance almost at the same time as Genichir, followed closely behind him, and rushed onto the bridge one after another.
The mainmast of Hulumaru is very wide. For a master like Genichi and a female ninja like Hatsumitsu, such terrain is no different from walking on flat ground.
After Genichi and Hatsumitsu rushed to Hikarimaru first, Mamiya stayed there with a knife in his hand, guarding against any villains from Hulucimaru who might come to destroy the "bridge".
…
…
Hikari Maru, upper gun deck——
"Load!" He Xufeng ordered the gunner beside him.
"He, Lord Hexufeng! It's impossible to hit such a small target!" the gunner shouted to Hexufeng in front of him.
At this moment, He Xufeng was lying on a cannon, slightly controlling the angle of the cannon along the muzzle.
The direction the muzzle of the artillery was pointing at... was exactly the "bridge" outside that spanned the two ships.
"Huh? Why not?"
He Xufeng laughed grimly.
"Who do you think I am? Reload for me!!"
"Before I was in charge of a ship, I was a gunner like you, strictly trained by foreign instructors! Loading!!"
Hearing He Xufeng's strong order, the gunner did not dare to delay any longer, and quickly loaded the shells into the muzzle together with his companions.
"Reloading completed!"
After hearing the crisp "Loading completed", He Xufeng put his face close to the muzzle again to confirm the firing angle.
This "bridge" is located right above the upper right side of the upper artillery deck where Kasu Bee is currently located.
As long as the angle of the artillery that Kasuga Bee is currently micro-managing is adjusted upwards, there is a chance that he can hit this "bridge".
Of course - it's just a chance...
Although the distance was very close, the difficulty of hitting such a small object with a naval gun was obviously great.
However - despite the difficulty, there was no fear on He Xufeng's face.
Not only was there no fear on his face - there was obvious excitement on his cheeks and in his pupils.
——Ahhh…
The corners of He Xufeng's mouth curled up slightly uncontrollably.
——It’s been a long time since I had sex...!
——As the governor of Lord Toyotomi's fleet, I cannot let you board our flagship like this!
He Xufeng grinned and pulled the fuse of the cannon——
…
…
"Mamiya." Ou, who arrived late at night because the distance from the "bridge entrance" was far, asked Mamiya, who was still hugging his right arm, "Is your right arm injured?"
"Injured... I guess so." Mamiya smiled casually, "In order to cut this thing off, I messed around a bit, and now my right arm hurts a lot, but I'll be fine after a short rest. All right, let's catch up with Master Genichi and the others. Master Genichi and Miss Hatsumitsu have already arrived there first."
"Yes." Ogata nodded vigorously, "Let's go..."
Boom!
Just as Ogata was about to put one foot onto the bridge, another deafening noise hit his eardrums.
Ogata, Mamiya, and Makimura, who were still on the gourd ball, stared blankly at the middle of the "bridge" that was now engulfed in flames.
The middle of the "bridge" is now engulfed in flames and thick black smoke.
Less than half a breath after the loud noise, the "bridge" engulfed in flames and black smoke began to "groan" in pain, while breaking from the middle part where the flames were burning most fiercely, and then the two broken parts of the "bridge" slowly slid into the sea between the two ships...
…
…
“Someone is coming!”
"Prepare to meet the enemy! Prepare to meet the enemy!"
…
Genichir and Hatsumitsu, who chose to lead the charge and build a "bridgehead" for everyone else, saw the crew of the Hikari Maru getting agitated when they saw them.
On the open deck in the wind and rain, flintlock rifles could not be used, so they now picked up the "whaling crossbows" which could still be used although their power would be greatly reduced in rainy days.
On a "bridge" where there is only one way to go and no way to avoid it, you are almost a sitting duck when facing long-range weapons - of course, this is for ordinary people.
After seeing the crew members on the Hikari Maru raising their crossbows, Genichi leaped up like a bird, leaping across the "bridge" to the last bit of distance to the Hikari Maru in one breath, and jumped into the enemy group before the archers started shooting.
The next moment after leaping into the enemy group, blood and raindrops flew everywhere.
Genichi's bold attack successfully helped Chuguang, who was following behind him, clear the obstacles to landing.
After climbing up the bridge and onto the Hikari Maru step by step, Hatsumitsu immediately drew her shuriken and began to support Genichi.
But just when the first light landed successfully——
Boom!
Yuan Yi heard the sound of an explosion behind him...
An ominous premonition came over Genichi's heart.
He was about to turn his head to see what happened -
"Oh? Carrying two swords, and quite old... If I'm not mistaken, you should be my great uncle, right?"
A young male voice sounded, which stunned Yuan for a moment.