Furuta Nimura, wearing a clown mask, slowly walked to the investigator lying in a pool of blood.
He bent down and effortlessly snatched a katana-like Quinque from the investigator's stiff hand.
Even though the investigator in front of him had already lost all signs of life, Furuta Nimura still maintained his characteristic politeness and said softly,
"Sorry, I will borrow this for a moment."
At the same time, the priest quietly followed beside Furuta Nimura.
However, his gaze did not seem focused on the intense and bloody battlefield before him. His thoughts had already drifted far away.
Furuta Nimura held the seized Quinque in his hand and casually swung it a few times.
After examining it carefully for a moment, he turned to look at the priest beside him, Donato.
"Please go ahead and check the situation up front for me."
"In my opinion, there should not be any major problems."
Hearing this, Donato nodded.
Then he controlled a clone and walked in the direction where Mado Akira was.
After a while, he gently shook his head and said calmly,
"There are no investigators worth noting. You can go over."
As he spoke, he told Furuta Nimura the approximate location.
After finishing this, Donato turned and left.
"I will go find my son and catch up with him."
Furuta Nimura nodded, then with the katana in hand, his figure flashed as he rushed toward the direction indicated.
Under his mask, the corners of his mouth curved into an exaggerated arc, and a trace of resentment flashed in his eyes.
"Watch closely, Uesugi Ryu. Let you also experience the pain of having your beloved harmed."
"No matter how strong you are, in the end you will obediently become my dog."
...
Endless gunfire echoed across the battlefield.
As the squad assistant of the First Unit, Mado Akira led Takizawa Seidou and the others in dealing with ordinary ghouls on the perimeter.
She continuously swung the massive pale blue whip in her hand. Countless bits of flesh were stuck to the barbs along both sides of the whip.
After killing another Aogiri Tree fodder ghoul, Mado Akira looked at the Quinque in her hand with surprise.
For some reason, she felt that this Quinque had become lighter than before. It was extremely easy to wield.
Beside her, Takizawa Seidou curled his lips at the sight.
He thought to himself, "Was Mado always this strong? Damn it, I can't lose to her either."
As if injected with adrenaline, his previously exhausted state instantly became energized.
He used his Ukaku-type Quinque to continuously repel the Aogiri Tree ghouls rushing toward them.
"The Non-Killing Owl has been successfully driven off by Associate Special-Class Uesugi. Victory is right in front of us!"
"Press forward in one go and wipe out these trash here!"
A report came through the earpiece. The investigators' morale immediately rose.
Mado Akira's expression remained unchanged as she continued to confront the enemies in front of her.
"Damn it, this woman is too strong. Retreat!"
Seeing that they could not break through the defense line, the leading ghoul lost the will to fight and immediately retreated with a few close subordinates.
Before leaving, he glanced strangely at two figures at the edge of the battlefield.
They wore the red uniforms of Aogiri Tree, but their builds looked very small.
"Did my squad even have such weak ghouls?"
Without thinking further, he left as well. In a moment, only a few ghouls remained in this area.
Mado Akira wiped the sweat from her forehead and adjusted her slightly hurried breathing.
On the other side, Takizawa Seidou had been fully focused on the battle.
But inadvertently, his peripheral vision suddenly caught a rapidly moving shadow.
The absurd clown mask came into his sight.
His heart tightened, and a strong sense of alert surged up.
"Mado, be careful! Someone strange is coming!"
Takizawa Seidou did not have time to think.
He shouted loudly while quickly raising his Quinque and pulling the trigger.
In an instant, a large number of cone-shaped kagune projectiles rained down toward the mysterious figure.
Hearing Takizawa Seidou's warning, Mado Akira instinctively turned her head.
But before she could clearly see who it was, she felt a gust of cold wind rushing toward her.
Furuta Nimura held a sharp katana. The curved blade drew a fierce arc in the air and slashed straight toward Mado Akira.
Mado Akira flicked her wrist and quickly raised the tail of her whip, attempting to block in front of her.
Unfortunately, Furuta Nimura was faster. The blade cut through the air with a sharp wailing sound.
A trace of fear appeared on Mado Akira's face.
At this moment, the corners of Furuta Nimura's mouth lifted slightly, forming a satisfied smile.
In his eyes, Mado Akira's shocked and helpless expression was especially captivating, like a lamb trapped in a snare.
But at that moment, two crimson lights suddenly flashed from the shadows nearby.
In the next instant, Mephisto shot out from the darkness like lightning.
Its cold gleaming claws slashed mercilessly toward Furuta Nimura.
Caught off guard, although Furuta Nimura noticed Mephisto, the distance was too close. He could only twist his body as much as possible to avoid vital areas.
Two dull tearing sounds rang out.
Mephisto's claws raked across the lower ribs of Furuta Nimura.
Furuta Nimura let out a muffled groan. Two deep claw marks appeared on his side abdomen, the flesh torn open.
At the same time, the Yasuhisa sisters, who had been hiding nearby waiting for an opportunity, rushed forward.
From Yasuhisa Nashiro's left arm grew a bone-white long blade, its surface gleaming pale.
At the same time, Yasuhisa Kurona displayed the same ability, except her blade extended from her right arm and was an eerie black.
The two sisters charged from opposite directions, one from the left and one from the right.
Their movements were extremely fast, kicking up snowflakes.
The two blades thrust straight toward Furuta Nimura, aiming to pierce him through on the spot.
Furuta Nimura could no longer care about appearances. If he were pierced through, even as a half-human he would die.
He rolled sideways in a clumsy manner.
Yasuhisa Kurona's black blade swept past his face.
The nose of the clown mask and a tuft of black hair on his forehead were instantly cut off.
Blocked like this, Furuta Nimura's originally fierce attack completely dissipated.
Mado Akira immediately pushed off the ground and retreated, escaping danger.
Mephisto suddenly spread its wings. After several months of growth, its body had become much larger.
With its wings fully extended, the wingspan was nearly three meters, casting a massive shadow over the snow.
"Let me play with you, clown."
As he spoke, the Yasuhisa sisters tore off their Aogiri Tree uniforms.
Both wore their one-eyed black-and-white striped masks.
Two ghouls and one crow instantly surrounded Furuta Nimura, forming a pincer encirclement.
"What???"
Furuta Nimura's face filled with shock. When he clearly saw that the one who had injured him was just a crow, he froze for a moment.
Mado Akira suddenly recalled a joke Uesugi Ryu had once said.
Her expression changed slightly as she thought to herself, "A crow that flips tables, a one-eyed ghoul... is that Ryu?"