Sendai Barrier, East Gate.
As the second battlefield, the intensity of combat here was no less than that of the North Gate.
The battle at the East Gate was just as fierce.
However, the greatest sacrifices were not the Jujutsu Sorcerers stationed there, but Rabbit Escape and the Dragon Tooth Soldiers.
With a constant stream of Rabbit Escape distracting the Cursed Spirits, the Jujutsu Sorcerers at the East Gate adjusted their fighting style.
They shifted from charging head-on against the Cursed Spirits to quietly retreating, then suddenly leaping out to deliver a single decisive strike when a Cursed Spirit's attention was drawn by the tempting rabbits, before immediately returning to the line to hide again.
One Grade 1 Cursed Spirit under Tamamo-no-Mae's control ignored Rabbit Escape entirely and led hundreds of Cursed Spirits in a direct charge toward the East Gate position.
What awaited it was Naobito's iron fist.
Naobito was a long-established Grade 1 powerhouse.
He had exorcised more than one Special Grade Cursed Spirit in his career.
A mere Grade 1 Cursed Spirit was no match for him.
Using Projection Sorcery, Naobito appeared like a phantom among the Cursed Spirits, striking again and again, crushing those charging the front line with overwhelming force.
While any means were acceptable on the battlefield, Naobito was the commander of the East Gate.
Others could rely on tricks or tactics.
But he could not.
He had to crush the enemy head-on with absolute strength.
Only then could morale be pushed to its peak.
"Hmm?"
Naobito's eyes caught sight of an incredibly fast figure.
A gust of wind swept past him, leaving a bloody mark on his body.
Naobito's Projection Sorcery was interrupted, plunging him into a one-second stun.
In the next instant, a massive mace swung toward him.
Bang.
Naobito was sent flying by the coordinated strike of two Cursed Spirits.
"Oh no, protect Naobito-sama!"
Several members of the Zen'in Family rushed forward instinctively.
"You don't need to come over. Leave this to me."
Naobito quickly returned to the front.
"That big one looks good."
The speaker had a rugged face, a large scar across his forehead, and a bare upper body revealing powerful muscles.
He was Zen'in Jinichi.
From his name alone, his relation to Toji was obvious.
In fact, Toji was also Naobito's nephew.
If not for Toji's parents being utterly unremarkable, and Toji himself possessing an extremely abnormal Heavenly Restriction, he might have lived the life of a young master, relying on his relationship with Naobito and Naoya.
Unfortunately, fate was cruel.
"Haha, don't steal my prey. That one over there looks good, but this one is mine."
Naobito laughed as he rejected Jinichi's suggestion.
Those two quasi-Special Grade Cursed Spirits had just sent him flying. If he did not take revenge himself, it would be too embarrassing.
"Is that so?"
Jinichi glanced at Naobito and did not object.
"That one over there also looks decent. If you can't find a suitable opponent, go play with it."
Naobito pointed toward a quasi-Special Grade Cursed Spirit that stood only two to three meters tall, its body packed with bulging muscles.
From its appearance, it was obvious that its origin was tied to violent gangs.
"A worthy opponent for a fistfight."
With that, Jinichi threw a punch at the quasi-Special Grade Cursed Spirit.
It was clear he was also a powerhouse who specialized in close combat.
"Now it's our turn."
Naobito looked toward the quasi-Special Grade Kamaitachi lurking among the Cursed Spirits, as well as the red demon wielding a mace that stood nearly five meters tall.
"A quasi-Special Grade Kamaitachi. It's been a long time since one of this level appeared."
As times changed, information spread more widely.
People became familiar with more and more yokai, and Kamaitachi gradually lost its mystique.
Fear toward Kamaitachi diminished, replaced by fear of even more terrifying beings.
As a result, Kamaitachi-type Cursed Spirits had grown much weaker over the past decades.
"An ancient Kamaitachi. Interesting."
Naobito watched the red demon and Kamaitachi with keen interest.
Even with his vast experience, the war had forced him to encounter many Cursed Spirits that previously existed only in ancient records.
Apparently, the Cursed Spirits found Naobito boring.
After waiting briefly and seeing that he was not attacking, they took the initiative and launched their assault.
Bang.
Fist and mace collided.
Naobito took the red demon's strike head-on.
"It's time to settle the score for that sneak attack earlier."
Naobito countered with a punch, shattering the mace outright.
A faint blue current of wind quietly formed behind him.
Whoosh.
The attack missed.
"Too slow!"
When it came to speed, Naobito had never feared anyone.
Meanwhile, high above the East Gate battlefield.
Takako was directing countless flying Cursed Spirits to surround Qiongqi.
Qiongqi responded by constantly whipping up violent winds, scattering them again and again.
'An opening.'
Under the pressure of the swarm, Takako finally broke free from Qiongqi's interference and flew straight toward Eichi.
Seeing this, Eichi stopped increasing the number of Rabbit Escape.
Shadows rose around him, then countless shadow projectiles shot toward Takako like bullets.
Sand Shower, modified, Shadow Shower.
As the shadows flew toward her, they began to coil and close in, attempting to envelop her completely.
Under Takako's Technique, space twisted like a hanging curtain.
She slid through the air, stepping against distorted space itself.
"Do you want to join a skateboarding competition?"
Eichi casually suggested.
"Huh? What's that?"
Takako clearly had no idea what skateboarding was.
"I'll take you to try it another day. Then you'll understand."
As he spoke, Eichi also manipulated the shadows to move.
With their support, he maintained his distance from Takako.
"Who wants to go play with you?"
Takako accelerated continuously.
"You keep running away. Are you even a man?"
Unable to catch up, she grew visibly irritated.
"No chance. You want me, a Shikigami user, to fight you with my fists?"
"But if you sincerely beg me, it's not like I couldn't consider it."
Eichi said, deliberately mimicking Satoru's tone.
After fighting for a while, Eichi had gained a rough understanding of Takako's personality.
She was straightforward, short-tempered, and easily provoked.
"Who's begging you? Die. Ugyo Rodan!"
Enraged, Takako grabbed a nearby Cursed Spirit and fired it like a cannonball.
"Orochi!"
A snake tail burst out from Eichi's shadow.
With a single swing, Orochi's tail detonated the Cursed Spirit midair.
The tail retracted, Orochi coiled its power, leaped, and lunged toward Takako.
Takako seized the space where Orochi was, twisted her body, and flung Orochi away.
Before it could strike Eichi, Orochi dissolved back into shadow.
At the same time, Eichi used the cover of the shadows to instantly swap places with a Clone.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)