A purple hilt, accompanied by a clap of thunder, emerged from the fluorescence. The sky above the Tenshukaku resonated, gathering layers of unceasing thunderclouds. She gripped it and drew. Silvery-white heavenly might crashed down from the sky onto the blade pointed towards it, honing its edge one last time for the coming punishment.
"Is that that woman's ideal?" Muramasa watched the sword, making no move, letting his long mantle whip about in the oncoming gust. Just by standing nearby, one could feel the restless elements in the air.
"..." Seated behind, receiving treatment, Kujou Sara closed her eyes. It was impossible to tell if she couldn't bear to watch or if she was just resting due to her injuries.
Kujou Takayuki's eyes were filled with fanaticism. He was on the verge of bowing down in thanks to the Shogun for displaying her power. The drumming had stopped. The remaining Tenryou Commission soldiers had also retreated to a safe distance.
"It's coming." The chestnut-haired youth looked at the silent Shogun, thinking that this final ceremony was even quieter than he had imagined. His heart was pounding, his survival instinct raging within him, but he had no time to calm himself.
He watched as the 'Raiden Shogun, ruler of Narukami' walked towards him, sword in hand. She did not take his insignificant strength into consideration, and like a machine, she swung her blade down with the might of thunder.
CLANG—!!
A deafening clash of metal echoed through the Tenshukaku, even drowning out the rolling thunder in the sky. Then, a flood of elements submerged everything beneath the blade.
The Musou no Hitotachi would sever all thoughts. Even if he had broken his limits through some unorthodox means just now, no one could survive this strike.
"Heh… at least the Kujou clan's honor is preserved." Seeing the youth's figure engulfed in the lightning, Kujou Takayuki's agitated heart calmed down. All that was left was to wait for the Shogun to sheathe her sword and then clean up the scene.
One second… two seconds…
The lightning did not dissipate. The Raiden Shogun continued to output the pinnacle of her martial arts. What's going on? The expected scene of swift, clean destruction did not occur. The strike had not fully landed. The lightning, symbolizing absolute authority, had not destroyed everything beneath it. The demon blade, neither trembling nor retreating, had caught the heavenly radiance.
The stone slabs beneath the youth's feet were instantly pulverized by the pressure. A massive, circular shockwave exploded outwards from him, sending the few remaining onlookers stumbling back. Even Kazuha had to cover his face with his sleeve to steady himself. The aftershock alone had destroyed the entire square, but the speck of chestnut in the center was still shining brightly.
In Kazuha's eyes, his friend, almost completely enveloped in the surging lightning, had not retreated a single step. The raging, violent energy was rampaging around him, but it was being blocked by something, flowing into a spherical shape that completely covered his friend's figure.
Muramasa took a step forward, shielding Kazuha. The boy was about to say something but felt the Shogun's power surge further. The remaining people were almost all unable to stand and had collapsed, including the elite soldiers like Kujou Sara, who had been pushed back to the wall. So Kazuha stopped looking at the scene and instead focused on the feeling in the wind. He couldn't help but murmur, "The Shogun's power has stopped rising. To be able to withstand this 'one strike'…" This was a feat that no one had ever accomplished since the establishment of the 'duel before the throne'.
To this, the now-prostrate Kujou Takayuki gritted his teeth. "He's already a dead man. Why is he still so persistent?" Even if he could take it, he would surely die. But this unattainable strike was, in his eyes, the foundation of Inazuma. This was a challenge to the Shogun's authority!
A dead man? Muramasa sensed the aura in the distance. Looking at the last sliver of hope in the boy's eyes behind him, he didn't say it out loud: This guy is already dead. The man under the demon blade's pupils had long since scattered. The moment their blades crossed, he had already died from the aftershock. In his previous assault on Sara, the first strike had failed to break her weapon, and the fifth had been forced to parry her arrow. It was unclear which strike had gone wrong, but the result was that a gap had appeared in the 'Yaegaki's' supposedly perfect defense—and his dying body could not withstand the aftershock of the 'Musou no Hitotachi' that had seeped through.
The fragile balance did not last long. The tiny crack was instantly widened, and all that remained of the chestnut-haired youth was swallowed by the lightning, along with the last of Kazuha's hope.
The manifestation of thunder turned and walked back into the Tenshukaku that symbolized supreme authority. Having carried out the judgment, she had no reason to stay.
After the cataclysmic strike, the Vision with the triple tomoe within it fell to the ground with a thud. The demon blade, under the thunder, was left with only its blade.
Kujou Takayuki, still lying on the ground, wanted to get up immediately, but the body of an ordinary human was too weak. He could only shout, "The transgressor who sought to overthrow the 'Vision Hunt Decree' has been executed! His Vision will become a cornerstone of eternity!"
After speaking, he snapped his head up, only to see the white-haired figure catch the still-shining Vision and then turn and leap into the air. "Someone dares to steal a Vision?!" The moment the Raiden Shogun's power had slightly waned, Kazuha had instinctively rushed forward. Muramasa, at his side, did not stop him.
Kujou Takayuki looked around. The Shogun had already disappeared behind the gates of the Tenshukaku, giving him a chance to 'take responsibility'. Kujou Sara and the elites were too injured to get up, and the remaining troops had no hope of catching the white shadow. "All units—longbows, ready!" he shrieked. This was his last chance to redeem his failure.
At his command, all soldiers who could still move raised their longbows—
"Stop!" A rare look of anger appeared on Kujou Sara's face as she looked at the fallen, helpless civilians.
"Fire!" The roared command overrode the tengu's.
The bowstrings sang in unison, a rain of arrows!
"Reinforce." Muramasa's whisper was drowned out by the shriek of the arrows. He raised his arm slightly. The cerulean magic circuits suddenly lit up, the light spreading like living roots along the fabric's texture until it covered the entire surface. With a swing of his arm, the long mantle became like a steel wing, drawing a semi-circle in the air. The gust of wind it created formed a screen, blocking the entire arrow rain over the scorched earth.
"Hey, hey, that was dangerous," he said. After a brief flicker, the mantle fell back onto his shoulder like ordinary fabric, completely losing its ability to create a gale. "But it seems the Shogun doesn't support your reckless actions either~ To specifically send a gust of wind down, that's just cheating, isn't it?"
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