With a loud bang, Fūgetsu Omusubi was sent flying by the enormous snake head, his feet plowing a deep gully in the ground before he finally stopped.
His chest felt tight, his blood and qi were in disarray, and his throat constricted, a trace of fresh blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.
"Sizzle, sizzle!" Fūgetsu Omusubi looked down and saw that as his long blade cut through the venom, it had also been stained with some purple venom.
The venom was clearly highly corrosive, having already subtly corroded the long blade in his hand, which had been forged by a master craftsman.
Fūgetsu Omusubi quickly flicked his long blade, shaking the venom off onto the weeds on the ground, which immediately withered and emitted thick black smoke.
His pupils contracted, and he looked up at the poisonous mist swirling around the colossal creature in the distance; the mist had already corroded half of the mountain where Bullet stood, loosening the rocks and soil, making it seem as if it could collapse at any moment.
Bullet stood on the mountaintop, laughing heartily, his tone mocking: "Samurai, look around you! While you were dodging my slashes, your subordinates didn't have your dodging skills!"
Fūgetsu Omusubi suddenly awoke from his daze, staring blankly at his surroundings.
Everywhere he looked, there were dismembered corpses, brutally cut down by slashes.
The bright red blood on the ground was dazzling, and the scattered limbs and internal organs in the valley emitted a strong, pungent smell of blood!
Fūgetsu Omusubi's eyes were about to burst, feeling somewhat dizzy and disoriented; he faintly heard the whispers of his retainers and samurai, and a few surviving samurai were anxiously looking at him.
The samurai's lips moved, as if speaking, but Fūgetsu Omusubi only saw distorted figures and heard an incessant buzzing in his ears.
"Lord Omisubi!"
The remaining retainers quickly pulled Fūgetsu Omusubi back several tens of meters, placing him at a ventilation point in the valley, and with a gust of wind,
Fūgetsu Omusubi felt much clearer, and the nausea in his chest gradually disappeared.
"Was I poisoned just now?"
Fūgetsu Omusubi, being a Daimyo, was well-traveled and immediately realized he had been exposed to neurotoxins.
Saigūe, a retainer, looked solemn as he gazed at the swirling poisonous mist on the high mountain: "If I'm not mistaken, once those poisonous mists are inhaled, they will paralyze the nerves and senses; if too much is inhaled, the consequences are unimaginable."
"Hmph—"
Bullet sneered, his voice like muffled thunder: "Did you notice? Very sharp, samurai. The poisonous mist I release not only has corrosive effects but can also paralyze nerves. If humans inhale too much, their internal organs will necrotize. Of course—this requires distance and sufficient time, but it's enough to deal with you."
Fūgetsu Omusubi looked mournfully at the samurai around him, most of whom were dead or injured, and grief welled up in him. He solemnly looked at Saigūe and said, "The outcome of this battle is unpredictable, Saigūe. Run now while you still can."
Saigūe's expression became stern: "I am Lord Omisubi's retainer; only a retainer delays time for his lord. Even if I die today, I will only die before Lord Omisubi."
Fūgetsu Omusubi was moved: "Saigūe!"
"Lord Omisubi!"
Saigūe's eyes were teary.
"Good, today you and I will fight these pirates together!"
Fūgetsu Omusubi said in a deep voice: "The opponent's strength cannot be underestimated. The tailbone sword can unleash terrifying long-range slashes. If we choose close combat, getting too close means we have to be careful of the poisonous mist—this battle is no small matter; perhaps you and I will perish here today."
Saigūe said earnestly: "Lord Omisubi, rest assured, I am prepared to die. This is the honor of being a samurai retainer. I will clear the way for Lord Omisubi!"
Saigūe helped Fūgetsu Omusubi to his feet.
Fūgetsu Omusubi took off a silk ribbon, tied it around his wrist and scabbard, and then, with his blood-stained index and middle fingers, smeared a bloodstain across his face.
Saigūe drew the two swords from his waist, his eyes narrowing, then he rushed forward at extreme speed, his sword-wielding hands spread wide, a faint glow passing from the tsuba to the tip of the blade.
Saigūe stared intently at Bullet above, but then heard a disdainful sneer from above: "Do you think two against one will make you win?
Today, I'll play with you!"
The poisonous mist swirling above suddenly contracted, and the huge body instantly shrank. When the poisonous mist dispersed, a snake-scaled monster nearly six meters tall stood on the mountaintop.
Its body was hard, and its tail strangely wriggled, transforming into a bone sword that landed in Bullet's hand.
Its name was Kusanagi Sword!
Bullet looked down with contempt, then suddenly leaped down, swinging the nearly four-meter-long bone sword in a full circle above his head, wrapped in black Haki, and then brought it down fiercely upon Saigūe below!
"Orochi: Innaraki!"
Boom!
The Kusanagi Sword's inherent slashing properties, when imbued with Haki, produced terrifying lightning gusts even when swung like a giant club!
Saigūe had no time to dodge and was directly smashed by Bullet, breaking both his swords. Even his head visibly caved into his neck, the soft flesh of his neck bulging out, and his entire head dropped into his chest, even bursting out from between his legs!"
Bang!
The Kusanagi Sword, its momentum unchecked, smashed Saigūe into a puddle of flesh.
Blood mixed with mangled flesh splattered onto the surrounding mottled grass, the ground covered in dazzling crimson.
Bullet's eyes flickered. This was the Innaraki technique he had seen Kaido use countless times. In his heart, Kaido was like his teacher and idol.
Bullet had secretly imitated it countless times and had long mastered this move.
He hadn't expected the first time he used it today, the effect would be so simple and brutal!
"Ah!" Fūgetsu Omusubi suddenly cried out, his eyes wide and bloodshot, his pupils trembling violently in the wind, blood vessels instantly covering the whites of his eyes.
His body swayed and staggered, almost falling to the ground.
"Saigūe!"
Fūgetsu Omusubi let out a choked roar, scenes of harmonious lord-retainer moments from the past flashing through his mind, only for the final warm image to be violently shattered by Bullet!
"I will kill you to avenge Saigūe!"
Fūgetsu Omusubi was furious and decisively used his secret technique, honed over many years. His long blade swirled with Ryuo, transforming into a crescent moon slash, a whirlwind of blades,
and he fiercely chopped at Bullet.
Bullet's expression hardened, and he likewise swung the Kusanagi Sword, fiercely slashing at Fūgetsu Omusubi.
Boom!
The clash of sword and blade instantly blew away the corpses within a hundred meters, and Fūgetsu Omusubi was forcefully repelled by Bullet.
"Anger can indeed turn into strength, but clearly, the level you can reach is only this much."
Bullet, in his Yamata no Orochi human-beast form, strode forward. There were dense small holes on both sides of his spine, which were where the poisonous mist was secreted. His chest and abdomen, covered by a black military uniform, contained pale white bones.
However, Fūgetsu Omusubi would not have the chance to break Bullet's uniform and see the full extent of Bullet's human-beast form.
Bullet delivered another slash, sending Fūgetsu Omusubi flying. His body flickered, using Soru, appearing before the falling Fūgetsu Omusubi, and swung the Kusanagi Sword in his hand, directly severing Fūgetsu Omusubi and one of his arms!