Chapter 423: The Five Shadow Guardians vs. The Four Armored Warriors
Iwagakure.
Rin frowned as she looked up at the scientific ninja tool puppets patrolling the skies. Beside her stood the members of the Armored Warriors team—Tentō, Shinki, Kagura, and their newest member from Kumogakure, Omoi.
Their delayed arrival in Iwagakure was due to encountering a new Armored Warrior along the way.
Inside Iwagakure, Isshiki Ōtsutsuki suddenly looked up and said to his four companions, "You felt it too, didn't you? That disgusting presence."
"Mhm," Urashiki Ōtsutsuki nodded. "It's the Armored Warriors."
"And there are four of them," Momoshiki added from behind.
"The same Armored Warriors who gave Lord Kuro no end of trouble…"
Urashiki Ōtsutsuki rose to his feet from his seated position, nodding.
"Armored Warriors…" Kaguya Ōtsutsuki repeated the name she had just heard.
"Let's go. Since we've run into them, let's wipe out these accursed armored pests while we're at it," Isshiki said as he stood up. A swirl of black mist swept past, enveloping all five of them.
"Miss Carter, watch out!"
At Omoi's warning, a swirl of black mist appeared before the five of them, circling them briefly before summoning the Five Shadow Guardians from within.
"Well, well… Armored Warriors. It's been a while," Urashiki Ōtsutsuki spoke first as the Five Shadow Guardians surrounded the team.
"Mutant Beasts!" Tentō exclaimed. He exchanged a glance with his fellow Armored Warriors. The four of them nodded in unison, unrolled their summoning scrolls, and formed a hand seal.
With a puff of smoke, four light-shadow stones—red, blue, black, and white—appeared before Tentō, Shinki, Kagura, and Omoi.
Sensing the blood of descendants from the Village of Light and Shadow, the stones rose and floated above each summoner's head.
"Flame Dragon Armor!"
"Wind Eagle Armor!"
"Black Rhino Armor!"
"Snow Mastiff Armor!"
Red, blue, black, and white light flared around each of the four as their majestic armor manifested before the Five Shadow Guardians.
"Let's move!" Tentō, taking the lead, charged forward. After all, among the four, he was the true heir of the Village of Light and Shadow—the bloodline of the Daimyō.
"Mhm!"
The other three followed Tentō closely, charging toward the five Shadow Guardians ahead.
"We'll go too. Let's crush these repulsive suits of armor!" Isshiki Ōtsutsuki ordered.
"Mhm!"
Each of the Shadow Guardians picked their opponent: Evil Metal faced off against Wind Eagle Armor, Evil Water against Flame Dragon Armor, Evil Earth against Black Rhino Armor, Evil Flame against Snow Mastiff Armor. As for Evilmoku, he began a skirmish with Rin.
"Blazing Bow!"
With his right hand centered, Flame Dragon Armor unleashed a barrage of fire-element laser blasts at Evil Water. Though the blasts hit their target, erupting in sparks, they failed to inflict any visible damage.
"Shadowstep Barrage Kick!"
Using instantaneous movement, Wind Eagle Armor launched a flurry of kicks at Evil Metal from all directions. He finally landed behind his foe and pulled the two Wind Eagle Rings from his shoulders, attacking Evil Metal's back.
Yet, all it did was cause Evil Metal to stumble forward a few steps—completely unfazed.
"Aqua Shield!"
Black Rhino Armor summoned a rhino horn-shaped shield on his left arm. From the shield's eye-like feature, he fired repeatedly at Evil Earth, but the shots couldn't stop the enemy's steady advance.
Shadow energy surged in Evil Earth's hands and solidified into a massive dark blade, which he swung toward Black Rhino Armor.
"Hah!"
Black Rhino raised his left arm to block with the Aqua Shield, deflecting the blade, and countered with a powerful punch to Evil Earth's abdomen. But the opponent didn't even budge.
"Raging Torrent Burst!"
Black Rhino's clenched right fist glowed with water energy before it exploded forward, finally knocking Evil Earth back.
"Thunderstrike Rods!"
Snow Mastiff Armor wielded two white short rods, each bearing the emblem of a snow mastiff. As shadow energy gathered, Evil Flame formed a scythe-shaped dark weapon and swung it downward.
Snow Mastiff crossed his Thunderstrike Rods above him, blocking the strike and deflecting the attack. He then launched a rapid flurry of strikes at Evil Flame's head.
High in the air, Rin broke from her duel with Evilmoku, catching sight of several faint dark silhouettes approaching from the distance.
She shouted down to the others, "Finish the fight quickly! Reinforcements from the scientific ninja tool puppets are almost here!"
"Mhm!"
The four below responded. Seizing a brief opening, they pulled back and summoned their signature weapons.
"Flame Blade!"
"Wind Eagle Sword!"
"Meteor Spear!"
"Thunderstrike Axe!"
"Exorcise evil and purge monsters, melt in flame, vanish at dawn—Seal of Flame!"
"Banish demons, strike with gale, end in an instant—Piercing Wind Thrust!"
"Crush evil with storm, destroy with torrent, calm as still water—Torrent Pierce!"
"Cut through darkness, cleave with ease, scatter the chaos—Thunder Slash!"
Four distinct attacks surged toward the mutant beasts before them.
"Homage to Gatling Bodhisattva—Six Senses Cleansed by Depleted Uranium Rounds, Three Thousand Six Hundred Rounds in a Breath, Mercy and Compassion for All!"
In the skies, Rin pressed her palms together. Behind her, a radiant Bodhisattva with a Gatling gun manifested, pulled the trigger, and unleashed a relentless barrage upon Evilmoku.
Explosions rocked the area, clouds of smoke rising high.
But when the smoke cleared, standing before them—completely unharmed—were the Five Shadow Guardians. Only Evilmoku showed any damage, his body shrouded in a faint green glow.
"Damn…" Evilmoku staggered back, clutching his chest. If it had been any other mutant beast, Rin's overwhelming strike might've wiped them out.
"What?!"
The four Armored Warriors stared in disbelief at their untouched enemies.
The reason their attacks had failed was due to the interactions between elemental affinities—some attacks simply weren't effective.
But the four, clearly unfamiliar with these specific dynamics, had no way of understanding this.
Worse yet, reinforcements from the scientific ninja tool puppets had arrived. The sky above was now filled with puppets—leaving no room for escape.
"This is the end for you Armored Warriors!"
Severely wounded, Evilmoku retreated a few steps and glared at the four Armored Warriors with venom.
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