The moment he saw the man in black on the tree, drops of cold sweat immediately broke out from Isekihana's forehead.
Thanks to the moonlight, Isshiki Ka clearly saw... the clothes worn by the man in black on the tree...
The attire of this person was exactly the same as the attire of the three men in black who had just seen attacking her and Ogata in the abandoned Buddhist temple...
Almost without any hesitation or thinking, the next moment cold sweat broke out on his forehead, Isshikihua gritted his teeth and lifted the person he was supporting. He couldn't even stand up straight at the moment. He obviously no longer had the strength to pursue the enemy.
Ogata placed it on the ground, then pulled out the sword from Ogata's waist, said to Ogata quickly, "Borrow it for a moment," and then ran straight towards the big tree where the man in black was with the sword in his hand.
No one needs to explain to Isshikika, she also knows: if the man in black who discovered her and Ogata's whereabouts is not killed as soon as possible, how much trouble will await her and Ogata in the future.
Looking at Isshiki Hana, who was killing him, the man in black on the tree smiled contemptuously, then jumped up to the trunk of another big tree behind him, and then jumped again, jumping to another tree farther away from Isshiki Hana.
On some trees.
The trees here are dense. For ninjas like them, this kind of place is simply a paradise. Whether it is chasing the enemy or escaping from the enemy, it is extremely convenient.
Stop! Stop!
Isshikika tried her best to catch up, shouting "stop" over and over again in her heart, hoping that some miraculous accident would happen and make the ninja stop. For example, this ninja accidentally stepped on the air and fell from the tree.
Or when jumping to the branch of a big tree, the branch suddenly breaks and falls to the ground with the branch.
She expected this with all her heart.
However... the miracle did not happen.
Even though she tried her best to catch up, 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, getting smaller and smaller within her field of vision, and finally disappeared completely.
.
"Haah...haah...haah...haah..." Isshikihua slowly stopped and looked ahead where no one could be seen. She wiped her face, which was covered in hot sweat and cold sweat.
Beads of sweat formed, and he bit his lower lip unwillingly, "Asshole...! What's wrong with me...!"
Since tonight...she has almost never encountered a good thing.
Bad things happen one after another.
The whereabouts of my family are unknown, my home was burned down, and I want to help the people I love escape, but I can't even do something as simple as catching up with the enemy...
A strong sense of helplessness hit Isshikika's heart, and turned into waves of heat wrapping around Isshikika's eyeballs.
Just when the tears were about to fall, Isshikika raised his left hand, wiped his eyes vigorously with the back of his left hand, held his breath, and forced back the tears, then turned around and hurried back to the place where Ogata had been put down just now.
place.
As soon as she returned to Ogata's side, Isshikika saw Ogata who was trying to get up with his hands on the ground. However, his body was so weak that it was the limit for Ogata to support his upper body. He was unable to let go anymore.
Stand up with your whole body.
Seeing Issekika coming back, he asked:
"What's going on? Are the pursuers coming..."
"Yes." Isshikihua nodded, then put the sword in his hand back into Ogata's sheath, and leaned over to hang Ogata's left arm around his neck again, "I'm sorry... I couldn't stop that
People...it's not safe here anymore, let's leave quickly."
After saying that, Isshikihua pulled Ogata involuntarily and ran forward in large strides.
"...Miss Isshiki."
"Um?"
Ogata raised his gaze and looked directly into Isshiki's eyes.
It was obvious that it was difficult for him to even speak now, but Ogata still looked into Isshikika's eyes in a serious tone and said seriously every 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..."
"At our... current speed... being caught up... is just... a matter of time..."
"You... didn't need to get into my... muddy waters..."
"You should leave here alone as soon as possible..."
"If you are alone... you will definitely be able to leave here..."
After saying that, Ogata was about to push Isshiki Hana away who was supporting him.
But who would have expected that when he tried to push Isshiki Ka away, Ogata was surprised to find that Isshiki Ka actually increased her strength on his shoulders.
"Should I leave alone? Your body is so weak now that you can't even stand still. What will you do if I abandon you and leave?" Isshiki Hana glared at Ogata with a hint of anger.
Eye.
"Do not worry about me……"
"'Don't worry about you'? Even you wouldn't believe this, right?"
"If I abandon you now and ignore you, who will I become?"
"When we fought against the pirates together, if you hadn't saved me in time, I would have died at the hands of the pirates."
"It was also thanks to your timely help that I was not injured by An Yun in the 'big trial' a few days ago."
"You helped me twice, one of which was life-saving."
"Although I am a girl, I am also a daughter of the Wu family from the Wu family."
"I would rather die than do such a thing as 'ignoring my savior', which is so humiliating to the Wu family."
After saying that, Isshikika tightened her hands on Ogata's shoulders again.
"We haven't reached the end of the road yet."
Isshikika forced a smile towards Ogata that was not very pretty.
"We are just letting people discover our location now."
"Waiting for the person who discovered our location to report it to the main force, and then waiting for the main force to chase us this way. This process will definitely take a lot of time."
"So we still have plenty of time to escape and hide..."
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The sound of footsteps, as dense as a swarm of flying bees, suddenly sounded from behind Ogata, Isshikika and the others.
The sound of footsteps one after another caused Isshikika's smile, which had been smiling just now to tell Ogata that they were not at the end of the road yet, to freeze instantly.
…
…
Ahh...it went really well!
Ichimon, who carried the large naginata on his shoulders, led the team forward with a triumphant smile.
Not long ago, after receiving the order from Yoshihisa "Ogata Ittosai or his gang was discovered in the northwest corner of Osaka, all divisions except divisions 9, 12, 13, and 15 should immediately assemble there."
Kadana immediately led his team and rushed to the northwest corner of Osaka where Ogata was said to have been discovered.
The battle that Jijiu created this time was not a big one.
Not only were most of the Musketeers troops mobilized, but a large number of Iga ninjas were also mobilized here to be responsible for tracking down the location of Ogata or Ogata's gang.
Originally, Zuemon thought that even if he knew that Ogata or his gang were in the northwest corner of Osaka, it would be extremely difficult to find them. After all, Ogata and the others were not puppets who could not move or escape.
How easy is it to find them?
However, things are always so unpredictable.
Just now, a famous Iga ninja brought a piece of news that left and right gates couldn't believe their ears. Ogata Ittosai was found in the suburbs northwest of Osaka!
His current physical condition seems to be very poor, and he is being supported by a very beautiful woman. The two of them are currently escaping outside Osaka.
When this news came, Zuemon was stunned for several seconds as if he had lost his soul.
Immediately afterwards, a joyful expression that could not be concealed appeared on his face at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Because there are still some teams that have not yet had time to arrive at the northwest corner of Osaka, there are only 8 teams gathered in the northwest corner of Osaka: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 11.
The number sounds like a lot, but in fact many of the groups are in a disabled state.
Teams 3 and 7 were severely damaged, and teams 4 and 5 had almost no people left.
Without exception, they were all beaten and disabled by Ogata in the series of battles they had just had.
In other words, there are 8 squads, which sounds like a lot of people, but 4 of them don't have many people left at all. The total strength of these 8 squads is just enough for 250 people.
We finally found Ogata, but we can't let him escape!
Therefore, in order not to waste the opportunity to fight, Zuemon immediately asked the eight teams that had successfully assembled in the northwest corner of Osaka to immediately follow him to pursue Ogata. At the same time, he asked the ninjas to rush to the place where Ogata was just discovered and continue to help.
They tracked and located Ogata's position.
In the suburbs of Osaka, there are no longer densely packed houses and narrow streets for Ogata to take advantage of in close combat.
What's more, according to the report of the Iga ninja who discovered Ogata's location, Ogata Ittosai is in a terrible physical condition for some unknown reason, and even needs a woman to help him walk.
Saemon didn't know why Ogata, who had been able to fight fiercely with him not long ago, suddenly became so weak. He didn't want to know the reason. He only wanted to know that Ogata was in a very bad state and was currently in a very bad state.
It's a good time to kill him!
In a terrain that is so favorable to them, using 8 divisions and 250 musketeers to deal with Ogata, who is now extremely weak... No matter how much Saemon thinks, he can't think of anything they can do if they have the advantage.
The reason for losing to Ogata!
250 musketeers, under the unified command of Left and Right Gate, attacked from all directions in the direction where Ogata was discovered just now.
"Sama-san!" An Iga male ninja suddenly jumped down from a tree, and then ran to Zuo-emon's side. In order not to be left behind by Zuo-emon, he kept his distance with Zuo-emon.
Running at the same speed, he quickly reported to the left and right guards, "Shura is running to the northeast! Shura is running to the northeast!"
"Northeast..." Zuoemon immediately adjusted his running direction and ran toward the northeast.
Not long after, a new ninja arrived and informed Zuoemon of Ogata's latest location, so Zuoemon corrected his pursuit direction again.
Uemon just kept repeating the steps of "the ninja notified Ogata of his latest position and corrected the pursuit direction".
Soon Soemon let out a low "hmm" sound, then held his breath and listened intently.
Under the transformation of the "power of immortality", Uemon is not only physically strong, but also has five senses far beyond those of ordinary people.
He keenly heard two very rapid footsteps not far in front of him.
A ferocious and proud smile filled the left and right gate's cheeks and eyes.
After a while, another ninja came and reported to Zuoemon the latest location of Ogata and others.
After listening to the ninja's new report, Zuemon stopped the ninja as he was about to leave.
"Hey, go tell all your ninja companions, whether it's shooting darts or shooting shuriken, you should do everything you can to stop the woman who is helping Shura escape!"
"Ah! But remember not to kill her!"
…
…
"Haah...! Haah...! Haah...! Haah...!"
Breathing through the mouth too frequently and violently made Isshikika feel that her throat was horribly dry.
Not only was her throat extremely uncomfortable, Isshikihua felt that her chest was also in terrible pain. Her chest felt like it was about to burst, and her lungs felt a little dull.
Since Isshiki Ka was born, she has never been so eager to sit down and have a good rest.
But she didn't dare to stop.
She didn't dare to rest.
The footsteps coming closer and closer behind her were like the footsteps of King Yama, which were black and white and impermanent to Isekika.
In addition to the footsteps, Isshiki Ka also heard the sound of "sashasa" leaves shaking from behind.
She knew that this was probably the sound of the men in black moving in the trees.
Those men in black should be constantly searching and confirming the positions of her and Ogata, and then orienting their large army.
Isshikika is very angry now.
She knew that if she didn't deal with these men in black quickly, she and Ogata would not be able to escape the pursuit of those behind them even if they ran out of strength.
But she couldn't think of any way to counter those men in black...
She was not that agile and could not walk on the ground in the trees like these men in black.
And she doesn't dare to stop now.
She felt that as long as she stopped now, the pursuers behind her and Ogata would immediately kill them.
Faced with this dilemma, Isshikika knew that the only thing she could do at the moment... was to run away.
Take Ogata... and run forward...
Isshikihua gritted her teeth, and then Momo tightened the strength of her hands that were supporting Ogata again.
This is the wonderful phenomenon she just discovered.
As long as she hugs Ogata tightly, she will feel new power pouring out of her body. This power suppresses the uneasiness and fear in Isshiki's heart and instills new strength into her legs.
Even though there were hundreds of pursuing soldiers behind him, and even though the pursuing footsteps behind him were like waves, Isshikika still supported Ogata with a firm face and did not let go.
It's a pity... God seems to be determined to play with them both.
"ah!"
Isshikihua suddenly felt a tearing pain coming from her right calf.
She screamed and fell forward together with Ogata.
While running fast, I suddenly fell to the ground and was in pain. No need to elaborate.
Isshikihua saw the dark mud rushing toward her, and then Venus flew in front of her eyes. Severe pain came from her forehead, bridge of nose, arms, and flanks.
"Ittosai-sama, are you okay?"
Isshikika went to check her own injuries, but endured the pain first and went to check whether Ogata, who had been thrown to the ground by her again, was injured.
"I'm fine..."
After confirming that Ogata was fine, Isshikika came to check on her injuries.
Although it hurt a lot from the fall just now, there were no injuries, just bruises on the forehead, bridge of the nose and other places.
The only severely injured part of Isshiki's body... was her right calf.
I saw a shuriken being sunk deeply into the calf of her right calf.
And this was also the main culprit that caused Isshikika to fall.
After receiving the order "Stop Isshikika" from Zuemon, the Iga ninjas who were chasing Ogata and the others have been looking for opportunities to stop Isshikika.
If Uemon's order was to "kill that woman", then this task would be much easier to handle, just throw the shuriken without thinking.
But Uemon's order was to "stop this woman."
How could the ninja not know this little thing in Saemon's heart? "Kill Ogata" and "Kill Ogata and his associates", obviously the latter's achievements are more dazzling.
It is obvious that these ninjas cannot have the courage to offend Zuemon, so they can only seriously follow Zuemon's orders and carefully look for someone who can stop Isshikika without killing Isshikika.
opportunity.
Finally, just now, a certain ninja who was good at throwing shurikens saw the right moment, threw the shuriken, and injured Isshikika's right leg, directly destroying Isshikika's ability to move.
Isshikihua's face now alternates between green and white.
She moved her right leg, and the heartbreaking pain made it extremely painful for her to even stand up.
Salsa salsa…
From the surrounding trees, there was the sound of dense "sashasha" leaves swaying.
Isshikika raised her head and saw a dozen men in black standing scattered on the big trees around her and Ogata.
Not close, not far away.
They just surrounded Ogata and Isshikika quietly.
Rumble, rumble...
A huge number of pursuing soldiers were close at hand, and their footsteps merged into a "rumbling" sound, like thunder.
how so……
Isshikihua was like a defeated rooster, slowly lowering her head, biting her lips tightly as if she wanted to bite them open.
at this time
"Eh……?"
Out of the corner of his eye, Isshiki caught a glimpse of a small stone statue standing under the roots of a big tree nearby. Even those who were not Buddhists 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 the Bodhisattva who gives priority to the weakest people and is the patron saint of children, travel, and traffic safety.
Isshiki Hana stared blankly at the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva with dull eyes as if she had lost her soul...
…
…
Is this... the end of it...
Ogata struggled to raise his upper body and slowly pulled out the tattered sword that he had exchanged from Ishikawa.
Unexpectedly... I, who was wanted nationwide by the Edo shogunate... ended up not being killed by the Tokugawa clan... but at the hands of... the Toyotomi clan...
No... maybe... before I can be killed by the Toyotomi clan... I will be killed by the "immortal poison" in my body first...
From now on, Ogata has been feeling very sleepy for some reason.
His eyelids were extremely heavy, so heavy that he could not open his eyes wide.
After experiencing tonight's series of events, Ogata no longer feels strange no matter what special changes occur in his body.
"Miss Isshiki...I will try my best to...find a way out later...you take the opportunity to escape..."
"I'm begging you... don't be stubborn... you still have a chance to live now..."
Snap! Snap!
Before Ogata could finish his words, he was interrupted by two rounds of applause.
Oufang turned his head with confusion and looked at Isekihana, closing his eyes tightly, clasping his hands together, and making a worship gesture to the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva in front of him.
Before Ogata could ask "why", Isshikika opened her eyes and smiled at Ogata.
"I have always believed in Buddhism."
"Every day I chant sutras seriously and pay homage to Buddha."
The corners of Isshikihua's mouth that were originally raised upwards were slowly pulled down.
The eye sockets also turned red very quickly.
Her voice... also began to tremble, turning into intermittent crying.
"So, so, no, no, there is no need to be afraid...!"
"Buddha and Bodhisattvas... will definitely listen to my wishes... bless you and my family..."
She was obviously facing Ogata, but the words she spoke... seemed to be speaking to herself.
Isshikika's look on the verge of tears and her words just now made Ogata's expression startled.
When he was about to say something
A fragrant wind rushed toward Ogata.
Ogata felt the touch of soft petals covering his lips.
"Master Ittousai...I like you."
Isshikika slowly separated her lips from Ogata's, and large tears rolled down from her eyes and down her cheeks.
"I'm afraid I won't have the chance to say these words to you again."
After speaking, Isshikika raised her hand to wipe the tears from her eyes vigorously, then pulled out the wakizashi from her waist, stood on one foot with her good left leg, and then jumped onto Ogata's body by jumping on one foot.
He stood in front of him, facing the direction from which the bursts of "thunder" came, and with a determined expression, he readied the knife.
"etc……"
Looking at the back of Isshikika standing in front of him, Ogata struggled to stand up.
But suddenly, he suddenly felt as if his head had been hit hard by a heavy hammer!
The pain, dizziness, and drowsiness were so intense that Ogata felt that his head was about to split into countless pieces.
It felt like inserting a water pipe into one's ear, and then pouring all the seawater in the ocean into Ogata's brain along the water pipe.
The heaviness of his eyelids also increased countless times in an instant.
He subconsciously wanted to raise his eyelids, but his weak "resistance" could not hold on for even a moment, and was instantly defeated.
Eyelids...closed uncontrollably.
The world in front of me...has returned to darkness like nothingness.
…
…
…
…
Am I... dead?
…
I actually wasn't killed by the Toyotomi clan, 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 better.
…
Thinking about it carefully... my death... seems to be a kind of relief...
…
Since time traveling, I have either been injured or on the road to injury...
…
Not to mention the bruises all over her body, she couldn't even live with A-Ting in her true colors. It didn't allow A-Ting to live a good life, and she was always separated from me...
…
I'm really sorry for Omachi...I can't even let her live a peaceful life...
…
Is this life of always being hurt and unable to show one's true face finally...over...
…
it's all over……
…
it's over……
…
…
…
…
"Um?"
Ogata blinked hard twice and glanced around with shocked eyes.
The surrounding scenery is extremely familiar.
It's so familiar that you can recognize where it is with just one glance.
This is the dojo of Sakakihara Kenkan.
The medium-sized dojo, the knife holders and wooden knives neatly placed on the side of the dojo, the few stains on the ceiling and floor that cannot be cleaned... everything is related to the Sakakibara sword in Ogata's memory.
The museum is no different.
Phew! Phew! Phew!
Ogata heard the sound of a wooden sword being swung behind him.
He turned his head and looked back.
Such a statement... may be strange, but Ogata did see himself.
It’s not about seeing yourself reflected in the mirror.
Instead, he really saw another version of himself, right in the center of the dojo behind him, meticulously practicing swinging a sword in the air in front of him.