— Oh my god... — a certain chestnut-haired boy internally said, moving at a slow speed, accompanied by three more figures behind him, they seemed to be running away from something or someone.
Although the boy said nothing, he clearly expressed everything on his face. The entire so-called road to the shelter was littered with corpses, some dismembered, some beaten to death, or even without any wounds, but a clear death.
The forest was not deep, Tatsumi relatively quickly found the shed that Tanjiro was talking about and was already about to enter its territory, while remembering his newly acquired friend, he prayed again for his safety, while thinking about how he would introduce him to Sae and Ieyasu, thinking about this, he could not help but smile, but his smile was relatively quickly interrupted when he saw a fast something crawling between the trees directly towards them.
— Emergency plan B? Well, okay, all the goals have been achieved anyway, it's up to Sheele, but it seems that something happened that Night Raid didn't expect, — the long-haired girl thought to herself, quickly moving through the forest, also quickly noticing armed people who were escorting one person. — Target, — just one word and she instantly headed towards them, thinking about killing with one blow.
The group stopped for a second when the figure on the fly was about to attack them using all the force in his sword, he aimed it at the blonde girl and was about to make a horizontal blow, but his blade was stopped by the boy's heavy sword, blocking her blow with a subsequent unpleasant clang of clashing swords, both were thrown a few meters away from each other, standing in a stance, they began to study each other, threateningly pointing their blades at the opponent.
Their standoff, the battle of glances, the duel of glances was interrupted by a low male voice.
— Hold her back! I will go with Lady Aria to a safe place. — the soldier ordered in an imperious tone, took the girl's hand and tried to go deeper into the forest, but it seems that the black-haired girl had other ideas.
— You are not the target. — the girl said in a calm and monotonous voice and simply jumped over the guy, absolutely not paying any attention to him, continued to advance towards her target, but already faster, as she was afraid that the target might disappear from sight.
The boy was shocked by such an attitude towards himself from the girl, but did not ask any unnecessary questions and blocked the member of the "honest family" with himself, pointing his sword at the girl, ignoring her words that if he continued to protect her target, he would also become her target.
"I saw a leaflet with her portrait. She is terribly dangerous," the boy thought to himself, "but if I retreat now, I will betray the family that sheltered me and, more importantly..."
— In his eyes, I will appear even more of a coward. — the boy loudly declared, raising his sword to the sky, recalling the recent picture of his rescue. Those sword movements that saved his life.
— I hope you're okay, Tanjiro.
— Argh... Strong... — coughing up blood, Tanjiro forced out the words, barely dodging another deadly attack from the girl, all her attacks were full of precision and skillful mastery, as if she killed a hundred times every day, she handled those scissors like her own hands, completely controlling the situation, she was increasingly fiercely attacking the boy, finding gaps and weaknesses in her opponent, she immediately noticed that he was wounded, no matter how and by whom, but wounded, so she was quite confident in her victory.
His wounds would not allow him to fight for long, and he would not be able to escape, he needed to maintain his stance, any extra movement and he was a corpse, at least, he was sure, after his first and rather quick attack on the neck, she would not let him go so easily.
— Think... Think! — the boy said aloud, while increasing the speed and strength for retaliatory actions for the girl, his breathing quickened, and his eyes became less and less human, covering in a white ghostly color, this battle turned into a full-fledged battle for life, both figures were already tormenting the floor of the house, while breaking through one room after another.
— Sorry... Sorry, don't dodge, please! — her harmless tone and character shocked the boy, how can you be so harmless with such a maniacal face? With each subsequent attack, she apologized to him, but was not going to listen to him.
Tanjiro noticed that although she clearly had talent, she had no idea about mobility, she attacked and saw only the opponent's forehead.
"I haven't attacked once since that first attack on the neck, I've only parried and dodged, while retreating, if so, then you can use the element of surprise, be behind her back and hit her neck," the boy thought to himself, trying to find a gap in the girl's attack with his eyes.
After another barrage of scissor cuts, the boy shuddered, felt a cold stone wall behind his back, he was cornered, and the killer in front of him was ready to finish it all off. But at the same time, he was internally overjoyed, he saw the threads, the threads of life, this is what he needs. She is open and in addition confident in her victory, and should not in any way predict his attack, but the boy's thoughts were interrupted by the girl appearing right in front of his face, Tanjiro could hear only two words that made his body stiffen with fear.
— Anoo... Rest in Peace. — the girl's simple and rather shy character changed to a cold, terrifyingly high voice, completely suitable for her lifeless face, her eyes which knew neither mercy nor kindness. She will kill him without hesitation, and will not flinch, as she killed people before.
— Demon. — the boy said with some anger in his words, barely blocking her scissors which were at his neck, ready to cut off his head. The boy slipped down, depriving her of the opportunity to continue the frontal attack, he slipped between the girl's legs and found himself right behind her back.
— Second style! (Modification) Eastern Water Wheel! — a single full-circle strike from below, was inflicted during dives into the attack, using the hands as a full wheel.
The blow, like the attack in principle, was a shock for the girl, she froze on the spot, felt, she felt her neck was under attack, she was very lucky that luck was on her side today.
Unexpectedly for everyone, the blow was taken by a huge armored figure, shattering the glass to smithereens, allowing the moonlight to absorb everything that was happening.
What the figure saw was both terrible and frighteningly beautiful. Water, it moves so smoothly around his sword.
Initially, he was not going to interfere, but after watching from afar, he considered that his girlfriend was controlling everything and was already going to finish off another unfortunate Teigu wielder, but everything changed in an instant.
— I think we don't need to wait for Akame. — raising his hand, a certain green-haired guy expressed his opinion with a bored tone.
— Lubbock? — the blonde exclaimed, she wanted to know more about her partner's thoughts.
— Akame must have already completed the mission, things are short, in the end we have six Teigu wielders, let Bulat go to Sheele's aid, and you and Mine regroup with Akame, while destroying the rest and go to help, I just don't see any reason to delay everything so much, if you know what I mean. — the green-haired boy said, looking at his Teigu. He could only see the dubious face of the blonde, he did not see the face of the armored one, but he could feel the same aura, but he did not hear the words, except for the aggressive squeals of the pink-haired one about, "When did he imagine himself as the leader? Akame should be in charge, not you." and blah blah blah.
— Reinforcements are already coming here, all I can do is set traps delaying their arrival here, killing is killing, but noise it should not attract. — the guy said, still coldly looking at his Teigu, at the threads and his enemies.
— Leone, Lubbock is right, let's do everything quickly. — with the words, the man jumped quite strongly towards the mansion. Leaving the pink-haired one with her mouth open, she would like to say something to the departing figure, as her body was grabbed by something and began to drag.
— Come on Mine, you heard what Lubbock said. It's not so easy for him to spend days in books. Right? — with a cheerful tone, the blonde continued to drag the girl, ignoring her threats that if something happens to Sheele, she will personally pierce Lubbock's brains.
The battle was clearly not in Tatsumi's favor, he was constantly being pressured, and he should not give himself a blow, he saw what happened to several guards who came to his aid and were easily killed by small cuts from the girl's blades.
— Damn... I won't make it. — Tatsumi internally said, watching the girl aiming at his heart.
— Is that all? This, no, everything can't end like this. — Tatsumi said plaintively in his quiet, fearful voice, preparing to meet the blade of the red-eyed killer. From fear, the boy closed his eyes and closed his eyes and was already ready for death, but he was quickly interrupted by the sound of clashing blades, forcing the boy to open his eyes.
— I didn't think I would interfere, but it seems you would be a good body for the empire, first of all, know kid. — these words and further actions of a certain butler shocked both Tatsumi and the girl who was going to take his life.
— Never close your eyes, even in the face of unimaginable horror, look her in the face. — the butler turned his decorative stick into a sharp blade, blocking the girl's blow, with his foot he tried to throw her away, but was blocked by the girl's hands, but still he managed to distance her from himself.
— Don't stand like a pillar, snotty kid, go and save your life, I recommend not going to the shelter for this. Such young, virginal and most importantly potential bodies are needed by the empire. — the man in the top hat said with a self-confident tone, looking directly into the boy's eyes, without taking his eyes off him, making it clear that he was trash to him, while blocking the girl's attacks with his... stick?
— S-Stop... How can you?... Why are you?... What about Lady Aria?! — Tatsumi asked angrily, not intending to leave. He had just come here, and was already running away and running away.
— Is that the scumbag? I was hoping to meet the user of Incursio, to persuade the genius to return to the side of the empire, I don't need anything more. — dodging a head attack, the man continued.
— I can die for this. — all this time the man didn't make much movement, but simply used ridiculous flexibility to prevent contact with any contact of the blade. He seemed to be getting on the girl's nerves, and this guy was just sitting like a pillar... to lose another body?... No way.
— I will not run away. I will become great in the Empire without your guidance. — with an angry voice, Tatsumi simply blindly attacked the red-eyed killer.
— Idiot or brave? Hmm, I don't see much difference, — the man chuckled to himself. Seeing in those proud, full of determination eyes, a touch of self-satisfaction. — Another one for the empire.
— Suicide. — the girl quietly said, already fighting against two people at the same time. It is surprising that even the old man scared her to the point of imperturbability of a cold-blooded character.
— What? — the boy thought to himself, coughing with dust, trying to get to his feet while trying to see something through this dust. As soon as he was about to make a blow and cut the thread, instantly some large armor pushed him far away, forcing the boy to destroy the walls with his body.
— Looks like he took the blow on himself. — the boy thought when he realized that all the movements he performed correctly, only a little crooked, but he was sure that he touched both of them. He can't defeat them.
— I need to save Tatsumi. — with these words, Tanjiro found the strength in himself to go directly to the smell of fresh blood around the shed and quickly began to go there, that battle awakened his spiritual mode, he needed to make it before he fell asleep again.
Making sure that he was not being pursued, the boy at great speed headed towards the shed, while tying up his wounds with everything that was at hand, and preparing for a new battle.
— The famous owner of Murasame, I wonder what made you go over to the side of the separatists? — the man asked with complete calmness in his voice, Tatsumi would call their battle the most зрелищным that he had ever seen in his life, both did not give way to each other, but the superiority was noticeably held by the girl, it is not surprising, because the butler needed to fully concentrate on defense, any cut is equal to death.
Tatsumi himself tried to intervene, but he was struck by a flurry of blows and could not get close, and simply angrily looked at it all, cursing his weakness.
— Once I also owned Teigu, it's a pity that it's not with me now, I would give you a beautiful fight. — the man said with a smirk and shifted his gaze to the boy. — That's all, enough for you, you've seen enough. Now, if you don't run away, I will be forced to make you. — the man said and pulled out a second such club-like blade through the pocket and pointed it at Tatsumi, still parrying the girl's blows.
Suddenly for everyone, the man stopped fighting with the killer and fiercely began to pursue the boy, and he himself was pursued by Akame, who was also no less embarrassed by this picture.
And so they reached the shed. Tatsumi did not pay attention to the old man's words that he was running in the wrong direction, — "WHAT'S WRONG WITH HIM?!", — Tatsumi internally roared.
Reaching the shed, the first thing Tatsumi saw was...
— HEY! I won't confuse these tits anywhere! Thief! — Tatsumi angrily growled, pointing his sword at the blonde girl.
— That's right! The older sister is here, and what did you forget here? — the girl said with the same cheerful voice, not at all embarrassed for the show shown, how she is being pursued by some man in a cylinder, who was pursued by Akame.
— Tatsumi, you're alive! — a half-alive boy suddenly emerged from the forest, slightly rolling on the ground, he barely stood up and simply looked at his friend and was delighted...
— THEY ARE GOING TO KILL HIM! — the boy screamed, seeing the old man in the cylinder, who was pursuing his friend and immediately pulled out his blade, rather strangely intervening in the fight, he was simply trying to attack from behind.
— Iii, what should we do? — Mine asked incomprehensibly from her friend who gestured to Akame to come to them, she did not ask unnecessary questions and simply headed towards them, she would not be attacked anyway.
— Just trust the older sister. — with a wide smile, Leone said, enjoying the picture of the battle between the old man and the boy, she met this warrior, even being wounded, he continued to put his life on the line for his friends. This boy was becoming more and more interesting to her.
— Leone, what's the matter? Is the target changing? — with the same monotonous voice, the red-eyed girl asked her friend, who only smiled slightly and pointed her finger towards the desperately fighting Tanjiro and his friend Tatsumi, who intervened in the fight and both began to give a serious rebuff to the veteran.
— It seems they were never our target, they are not loyal to the empire. — with the same voice, Leone said, embracing the two members of the night raid and continued. — It seems that reinforcements are coming... — but she did not manage to finish as the newly arrived boy fiercely screamed and with chaotic attacks cut the opponent's defense, blood gushed from his body, unable to withstand the tension, and the scar on the boy's face suddenly began to intensify.
— If you block any of my blows, see through all my movements and consider each of them painfully банальными, then try to read what has no language! — a fierce voice was heard from the lips of the boy who took his blade tighter and inhaled so that the user of Incursio from the distance felt this aura of cold.
— Third style! Dance of the fleeting stream! — a series of jerks of a chaotic water strike completely shocked not only the old man, but also everyone present. Graceful, fragile, but at the same time frightening and жесткие movements of water flows, washed away any protection of the opponent, carrying him forward.
— What majesty, what power, what a great body? The Empire... The Empire has lost the greatest of all the great. — the old man said the last words with great disappointment in his voice, spitting out the last drops of blood in his life.
After the instant killing of his enemy, he pulled in a little more air, and slowly turned his gaze towards the three women, clearly making it clear what he wanted, the girls felt his pressure and immediately armed themselves, expecting any attack from the above-mentioned, from which in response received only the same action from the boy.
A bloodied, toned body, a large scar in the form of a flame on the face, cold emotionless eyes and a steadfast look with a tightly held blade. A warrior, absorbing all the beauty and radiance of the moon to himself.
— How cool you are. — Tatsumi said aloud, still amazed by his strength, he could not take his eyes off him, already dreaming of asking Tanjiro to train him, but then a small incident occurred - Tanjiro simply fell dead with a sigh, right face down in the mud, which made the pink-haired girl laugh heartily with mocking words like "Showed off in front of the girls? ahahaha".
Well, or not quite, slightly losing that aura of admiration, Tatsumi ran to his body and stupidly looked at the three women in front of him, this silent season did not last long, Leone interrupted it.
— If you think that this family is something good, then what will you say looking at this!? — the blonde said, approaching the shed and with a precise movement of her hands cut the lock, opening the gates to Hell, at least, that's what the chestnut-haired guy thought.
— Nezuko. Nezuko. Nezuko! — Tanjiro woke up quite loudly, all sweaty, wounded and in a strange bed. He habitually touched his back to check a certain box, but remembering that there was no box and could not be, Tanjiro simply lay back peacefully, breathing deeply, he checked the room when he came across a pair of red eyes in front of him.
Isn't it a wonderful meeting of a Killer and a Hunter?