Kiyosuke picked up a tachi and gave his shoulder a tap with the back of the blade, then strode forward.
"What nerve! Breaking into the daimyō's residence at night—you must be tired of living!"
A man in armor appeared, holding a cross-shaped spear. Two swords hung from his waist.
Wait a second... that look...
Oh crap—don't tell me he's gonna pull out a musket mid-fight and shout 'Hesitation means defeat!'
Better strike first!
Kiyosuke didn't bother replying. He charged forward with the tachi, slashing down, but the armored man twisted his spear and blocked the blade, shouting,
"Don't underestimate a samurai!"
He lunged, pressing the spear against the tachi, trying to force Kiyosuke back—but realized Kiyosuke hadn't moved an inch.
How is he so strong?!
While the man was still stunned, Kiyosuke twisted past the spear, raised his tachi, and brought it down on the shaft.
The spear broke clean in two.
Tossing the broken weapon aside, the man drew the long and short swords from his waist.
"Take this!"
...
Damn. Just damn.
The man narrowed his eyes, his expression suddenly serious. Chakra surged along his blades, and with a sharp swing, two blades of chakra energy crossed through the air toward Kiyosuke.
Kiyosuke swung his tachi in response, cutting through both chakra strikes.
"This is getting interesting," he said softly.
Without hesitation, he dashed forward again. The man's swordsmanship was sharp, clashing directly with Kiyosuke's blows. The dual blades were giving him real trouble.
Block the long sword, and the short one would strike. Defend against the short one, and the long sword would follow. The two worked in perfect harmony—no gaps in his defense.
"Looks like samurai have their merits after all."
With the rise of the shinobi villages, samurai had started to fade into obsolescence. But still—he had to admit—their skill wasn't to be taken lightly. In terms of pure swordsmanship, this guy had Kiyosuke beat.
Kiyosuke hadn't trained extensively in kenjutsu, but thanks to the solid foundation Orochimaru had given him, along with years of combat experience, sharp reflexes, and excellent taijutsu, he could usually overwhelm any ordinary samurai.
But this guy… Without using his abilities, Kiyosuke couldn't suppress him. In fact, he was the one being pushed back.
"Name."
"Hinoya Genichirō!"
"Nice name. Sorry, but someone like me who lurks in the shadows can't reveal his. Of course, I'll tell you before you die."
"You really think you can kill me? Right now, I'm the stronger one!" Genichirō stood tall, swords in hand, overflowing with presence.
"Is that so? Man... who would've thought a backwater place like this would have someone like you? This mission's turning out tougher than expected. But still—my mission comes first. I'm taking you down."
Kiyosuke gripped his tachi and ran a hand along the blade. Flames burst into life.
"Watch this! Scorched Blade – Ryūjin Jakka!!!"
Bullshit. You're just cosplaying a possessed swordsman!
Genichirō's expression turned grim.
"So this is how shinobi fight... Impressive. In that case, I too—huh?"
Suddenly, the scorched blade in Kiyosuke's hand expanded, blazing brightly and illuminating Genichirō's face. The heat rushed out, roasting his armor.
"Take this—King's Ultimate Slash!!!"
Wait—weren't you just calling it Scorched Blade?!
You despicable ninja!
A massive flaming blade came crashing down. Genichirō hurriedly raised both swords to block, but the scorching heat made it unbearable. His armor seared his skin.
In an instant, the flames vanished. Just as Genichirō's hands relaxed from the pain, a figure rushed in and landed a heavy kick to his abdomen.
Boom!
Genichirō crashed into a wall. Kiyosuke glanced at him, then walked over with his blade in hand.
Unlike most samurai, this one was probably the daimyō's personal retainer. If the daimyō died, the man would likely commit seppuku. Might as well give him a cleaner death himself.
"What... what was that move called?!" Genichirō asked.
"'King's Ultimate Slash' is just something I made up. It's all regular attacks."
"I see... The gap between us is huge after all." He coughed, then asked, "Your name?"
"Asakawa Kiyosuke."
"I'll remember that."
"Mm."
Kiyosuke plunged the tachi into Genichirō's heart.
Without looking back, he let go of the sword and charged bare-handed at the remaining enemies.
There weren't many at Genichirō's level. The rest couldn't last a single exchange with Kiyosuke and were quickly taken down.
The entire daimyō's estate was in chaos. Screams, shouts, the clash of steel—it was a mess. Meanwhile, Anko slipped through the dark to the daimyō's room.
"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
Venomous snakes slithered from her sleeves, striking the daimyō's throat as he slept—along with the beauty lying in his arms.
Startled by the sudden pain, the daimyō jolted awake and let out a wail of agony.
"Daimyō-sama!"
Hearing his screams, a figure burst in. Seeing the snakes, he swung his sword and sliced them apart. His gaze turned toward the fleeing Anko, eyes blazing.
"You bastard!"
"Save me!"
The daimyō's voice rang out behind him, but with a heave of black blood, his head slumped to the side—poisoned.
"Damn you!"
Seeing their lord die, the samurai roared in fury and swarmed out, chasing after Anko.
Thap-thap-thap-thap-thap!
Running across rooftops, Anko sprinted with the samurai in hot pursuit. Sensing danger closing in, she shouted,
"Kiyosuke-san, save me!!!!"
"No one can save you now!!"
A samurai leapt up and raised his blade, ready to strike her down.
"Kiyosuke-san to the rescue!"
A long spear shot past Anko, skewering the samurai chasing her and pinning him to a wall.
Kiyosuke leapt up behind her, holding a spear he'd picked up along the way.
He slung it over his shoulder.
"I'm here. What do you think? Good timing?"
"You're one second late and I'd be dead!" Anko snapped.
"Still not getting enough training, huh."
Kiyosuke grinned, looking at the chasing crowd.
"Let's go. The mission's done."
He grabbed Anko and was about to take off when his foot slipped, almost sending them both tumbling.
He stared at the spear in his hand like it was cursed.
"No way... Is it true that spear-wielders really have bad luck?! Is 'Lancer-tier luck' real?!"
Tossing the spear away, he carried Anko and fled.
"Fire! Fire!!"
Below, the samurai let loose a hail of arrows.
"Fire Release: Flame Jet!"
Kiyosuke opened his mouth and spat out a pillar of flame, reducing the arrows to ash.
The two shadows—one tall, one small—disappeared swiftly into the night.