"Fushiguro, what specific type of Shikigami does he command?"
Despite facing a four-on-one situation, Maki showed no complacency. She pressed toward Seiya with the Special Grade Cursed Tool Playful Cloud and simultaneously questioned Fushiguro, the only one who had any intelligence on Seiya.
Having been comrades for a long time, Maki understood the fighting styles of Inumaki and Panda without needing much communication, and their cooperation was seamless. Inumaki, as a Cursed Speech user, while not entirely lacking in physical ability, was far inferior to Maki and Panda. Given Seiya's demonstrated close-combat ability, which could easily overpower "Gorilla" Panda, any close proximity combat for Inumaki would be essentially suicidal.
Excluding the overpowered Yuta Okkotsu, Maki's trio usually fought powerful Curses with Maki creating diversions, Inumaki applying strong control with Cursed Speech, and Panda in his Gorilla state delivering the decisive, powerful blow.
The key problem now was that, apart from knowing Seiya's martial arts proficiency, they had no idea what kind of Shikigami he commanded. Not knowing his exact capabilities meant they couldn't formulate a proper battle plan, leaving them extremely vulnerable. After all, neither Maki nor Inumaki were Cursed Corpses like Panda; one was a Cursed Speech user with ordinary physical strength, and the other was a human without Cursed Energy or a Cursed Technique. If either of them took one of Seiya's heavy blows, they wouldn't get up after two or three hits.
"I've seen him command three Shikigami simultaneously: a long-horned Golden Dragon, a flaming Fierce Tiger, and a fox with a crescent-shaped tail. The Golden Dragon commands the wind, and the Tiger, with its flaming paws, should have considerable fire ability. As for the Fox, I haven't seen it use any power, so its abilities are unknown."
Fushiguro summoned his black and white Divine Dogs (Gyokken), who ran on either side of Maki, charging toward Seiya. As for Fushiguro himself, his primary role was to protect Inumaki-senpai, preventing Seiya from launching a sneak attack while Inumaki was using his Cursed Speech.
"Tch, he can command three Shikigami simultaneously, and each one sounds pretty strong." Maki clicked her tongue in surprise, though her figure was already right in front of Seiya. The Special Grade Cursed Tool Playful Cloud whooshed through the air with a sonic boom.
Facing the sweeping blow of the Playful Cloud, Seiya tilted his head, narrowly dodging the first section of the three-section staff. However, Maki, holding the other end of the staff, immediately spun her body, using the opposite end of the Playful Cloud to thrust toward Seiya's abdomen.
Confronted with the staff hurtling through the air again, Seiya had no choice but to raise his leg, blocking Maki's thrust with a charging knee.
"BOOM—!"
A powerful air current erupted between them. In the instant the dust was kicked up, Seiya, whose knee had just met the Playful Cloud head-on, felt a sharp pain in his knee. The immense impact sent his body flying backward in the next second.
Was the seemingly slender Maki stronger than "Gorilla" Panda?
No. The reason Seiya was so easily repelled was the Special Grade Cursed Tool, Playful Cloud, in Maki's hands. The Playful Cloud was the only Special Grade Cursed Tool not imbued with an innate technique, relying purely on raw physical power. Its incredible destructive force depended heavily on the wielder's arm strength. Maki's physical conditioning was already superb, and even if she couldn't utilize the Playful Cloud's full power, it was enough to send Seiya flying.
Before the airborne Seiya could react, Fushiguro's two Divine Dogs simultaneously leaped toward him.
"Shikigami Summoning: Azure Dragon — Tail-fire Tiger!"
A vast ritual array appeared out of thin air. As a surge of flame erupted, a ferocious tiger with a flaming tail and fire-treading paws roared into existence. Facing the pouncing Divine Dogs, the much larger Tail-fire Tiger suddenly roared and charged from behind Seiya, batting the white Divine Dog away with one claw and opening its bloody maw to bite the black Divine Dog. Sensing the life-threatening bite, the black Divine Dog reacted quickly, dissolving into a shadow and merging with the ground.
"Panda, he's yours!"
Hearing Maki's shout, Seiya suddenly felt an astonishing pressure bearing down on him from behind. Just as he was about to react, Panda's figure completely enveloped Seiya, and his two powerful arms wrapped around Seiya from behind, locking him in a hug.
"In terms of speed and martial arts, I might not be able to match you, but in pure strength, I, Panda, won't lose to you!"
Seiya, caught in the double arm lock, naturally struggled to break free, but no matter how hard he exerted his arms, he couldn't escape Panda's true "bear hug"! As Panda had said, while Seiya might excel in speed and technique, in terms of sheer power, "Gorilla" Panda was absolutely his equal.
"Panda Back-Suplex—!"
Panda, who had Seiya in a death grip from behind, began to exert force, lifting Seiya to attempt a back-suplex, intending to slam Seiya's head directly into the ground. This pure grappling maneuver had nothing to do with speed; the trapped Seiya simply couldn't dodge.
However, just as Panda was about to execute the perfect suplex to smash Seiya into the ground, his movement suddenly froze halfway.
The reason was simple: a large snake, which had appeared from nowhere, had tightly coiled around Panda's body. Panda wanted to suplex Seiya, but his body was completely immobilized by the snake's crushing constriction.
"That was very well-coordinated. The old me might have fallen for it and ended up being planted headfirst into the ground. But you seem to have forgotten that though I'm just one person, I can summon Shikigami to assist me in battle."
"Shikigami Summoning: Vermilion Bird — Winged Fire Serpent!"
"Hiss, hiss, hiss!"
The giant snake wrapped around Panda had red scales all over its body and a pair of wings. Its lantern-like eyes were full of oppressive intensity as it tightly constricted Panda's body, flicking its tongue at him.