That night, at Tsuchiura Castle.
"All of you! Get your spirits up! The enemy is just one person! A female ninja who can summon a giant snake! As long as we light up every lamp in the castle, she's nothing to fear! Illuminate our entire castle like it's daytime!"
Among the samurai scattered throughout Tsuchiura Castle, one who appeared to be their leader shouted loudly, directing the entire defensive setup.
Meanwhile, at the top of Tsuchiura Castle, Musashi, lying prone near the wall's edge while observing the defenses below, muttered softly, "Such tight defenses. It feels like even a swallow couldn't fly in."
"Judging by the timing, all the samurai present are elites who survived the Shimabara Rebellion. While their strength can't compare to a Heroic Spirit Swordsman, their discipline and organization are top-notch," Tomoe said. "If they prepare in advance, it's not impossible for them to hold off a Heroic Spirit Swordsman for a while… Of course, at the cost of their lives."
Ordinary humans could never match a Heroic Spirit Swordsman. Beyond their otherworldly strength, their immortality alone ensured that humans had no chance of fighting and winning against them. No matter how many people were sent against a Heroic Spirit Swordsman, they would ultimately be annihilated.
The best they could achieve was delaying the inevitable.
To face Mochizuki Chiyome, it still fell to Musashi and Tomoe. That was why they were at Tsuchiura Castle now. After all, having been asked by Naoki, both emotionally and rationally, they couldn't refuse to come.
Still…
"Haaah… Why isn't Naoki-sama here?"
Kiyohime leaned against a corner of the wall, her face full of worry—knowing that it wasn't Naoki but his two female friends who came made her deeply dissatisfied and regretful. She had wanted to spend the entire night with Naoki until dawn.
Though it was just instinct, Kiyohime felt that as long as Naoki was by her side, the samurai outside didn't matter.
It had to be said, her instinct was remarkably accurate.
"Come on, Princess Kiyohime. Naoki has his own matters to attend to," Musashi smiled. "And… Hmm, as Naoki put it, your retainers might not be too friendly toward him, so he wants to do something to make them fully accept him before visiting."
"Oh~~~ Is that so?"
"Yep. Even if he does stuff like that, a man's got his pride, right?"
Kiyohime sighed slightly. "He doesn't need to do things like this… Being a live-in husband at a Shogun's house wouldn't be bad…"
(She's already thinking that far, this Princess.)
Tomoe quietly admired the Princess. Wanting an ordinary man to marry into and live in a Shogun's household was impossible from any perspective.
(Sigh, Naoki-sama, when will you change this habit of attracting women everywhere?)
Tomoe thought, unaware that she herself was one of those drawn to him.
And at that moment—
*CRASH!*
A loud noise suddenly erupted from the main gate. Instantly, a massive pitch-black snake shot into the sky, appearing in Musashi and Tomoe's view!
The enemy had arrived!
"I'll leave this place to you, Tomoe-dono. Musashi's heading to meet the enemy at the front line!"
"Yes!"
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Katori Shrine.
Hearing the sounds coming from Tsuchiura Castle, Naoki glanced over. "It's started over there… Judging by the timing, it's about right."
Ninjas typically operated in the dead of night. Even as a Heroic Spirit Swordsman, Chiyome wouldn't break this habit. Now was indeed the time for her to act.
"With Musashi and Gozen there, I don't need to worry about the battle's progress. The worst-case scenario is Tsuchiura Castle being completely destroyed. As for me—"
Naoki gazed at Katori Shrine before him.
At the moment, it looked like an ordinary, deserted shrine with little sign of life. There were no traces of evil lurking within.
But Naoki could sense it—
"The disguise is pretty good, but the stench is too strong. If you want to hide completely, you should set up a barrier that conceals the smell too."
Placing his hand in empty air, grasping space with his fingers, Naoki tore it lightly. The space before him ripped open, creating a gap large enough for one person to pass through.
As he stepped through, the already pungent smell of blood, strong enough to make Naoki frown, intensified to an even higher degree.
"Blood Moon Night, huh…"
Glancing at the red moon above, Naoki smiled. "Looks like I hit the jackpot. Based on my senses… One, two, three, four—only four people here. Not all of them. Did someone leave?"
"Though it's a bit of a shame I can't take them all out in one go, still—"
Light gathered in Naoki's hand. Facing the shrine shrouded in blood-red mist, he swung a powerful clap. Golden light condensed into a massive crescent moon, slashing forward as if to pierce the sky!
And just before the attack reached the shrine…
*SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!* *SWOOSH!*
Three sword flashes streaked across Naoki's vision. Instantly, the golden crescent slashing toward the shrine was split in two, flying to either side and engulfing and destroying both edges of the shrine simultaneously!
"Tch, what a pity. I couldn't fully block it."
At the shrine's entrance steps, a figure in pale purple robes held a broken sword, their face showing slight resignation.
"I intended to draw my blade after Your Excellency stepped forward, but I didn't expect Your Excellency to unleash such a shocking attack without a word. I used all my strength, but I could only slightly deflect its trajectory. My beloved sword broke because of it."
"Do I need to apologize?" Naoki smiled. "Or, shall I replace it with a new sword?"
The elegant man gave a faint smile. "You're quite relaxed. Do you think even if I got a new sword, I still wouldn't be able to block a single strike from Your Excellency?"
*BOOMMMMM!*
Naoki's response was a second attack. Another crescent-shaped light slashed forward.
This wasn't a special technique—just gathering immense Mana in his hand and swinging it. It was the purest form of Overwhelming Power Defeating All.
This time, the elegant man, now weaponless, didn't block. The golden crescent passed through him, cleaving Katori Shrine in two!
Lowering his glowing hand, Naoki said, "I didn't come to fight you. Someone else will duel you, so I won't kill you here."
"The ones I'm here to kill are the three inside the shrine—Come out, Bateren Sorcerer, Kālasūtra Hell, Limbo."
"Or should I call you by your True Names to make you come out?"
"Amakusa Shirō, Minamoto no Raikōu, Ashiya Dōman."