Eventually, after Cloud physically grabbed Haohmaru by the collar and corrected his direction N times, the three finally stumbled onto the right path.
Along the way, through Haohmaru's scattered storytelling, Cloud gained a clearer picture of the current situation.
"So you're saying this Amakusa Shiro Tokisada guy was originally a cult leader from decades ago who got executed by the Shogunate. Now somehow he's crawled out of his grave, calling himself the Son of God, set up headquarters at Shimabara, and is spreading Mizuki demons everywhere?" Cloud summarized.
"Exactly!" Haohmaru took a swig of sake and wiped his mouth. "That bastard's thrown the whole country into chaos—people starving everywhere. All the way here, I've seen too many villages destroyed, corpses lining the roads. I'm no champion of justice, but scum like him pisses me off, so I've gotta cut him down!"
Nakoruru's expression grew solemn: "Nature is crying out to me as well. Amakusa's power comes from the demon realm—his very existence pollutes this world. If we don't stop him, all of Japan will become a dead land."
Cloud nodded. The System's [Dimensional Correction] quest had a clear objective: eliminate this Amakusa and fix the "world bug" he'd created.
Looks like the main quest was officially accepted.
Just as they were about to reach a small town to rest and resupply, urgent commotion and the clash of weapons came from the town entrance.
"Quick! Surround him! Don't let him escape!"
"This guy's tough! Brothers, rush him together!"
"He looks like he's almost done—push harder! The magistrate will reward us generously!"
The three exchanged glances and quickened their pace.
At the town's entrance, a group of fierce-looking samurai and ronin had a blue-clad swordsman completely surrounded. Seven or eight men already lay on the ground groaning, but the encirclement remained tight.
The man trapped in the center was tall and slender, wearing a faded blue kimono. His long blue hair was tied back with a ribbon.
His features were almost excessively handsome, skin pale to the point of translucence, lips bloodless—his entire being radiating a sickly beauty.
He held a slender katana, its blade stained with blood.
His stance was unsteady, breathing labored, chest heaving violently, punctuated by occasional suppressed coughs.
"Him?!" Haohmaru exclaimed in surprise upon seeing the man.
"Tachibana Ukyo!"
"Oh? Another famous face?" Cloud studied the sickly pretty-boy swordsman with interest.
Tachibana Ukyo—another high-popularity character from the Samurai Shodown series. A master of iaijutsu, a lovesick swordsman who dragged his illness-wracked body across the land searching for the "Ultimate Flower" for his beloved.
Right now, this lovesick swordsman was clearly in trouble.
"Tachibana Ukyo! How dare you openly oppose us and defy the magistrate's orders!" the lead samurai captain bellowed, though his voice betrayed his fear.
Ukyo didn't speak, only watching them with icy eyes, gripping his sword tighter.
He coughed violently several times, a trace of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth, adding a touch of tragic beauty to his pale face.
"Cough cough... You serve as tigers' henchmen... forcing innocent women... cough... Heaven won't tolerate this." His voice was soft, but his resolve was sharper than any blade.
"Enough talk! Get him! Wear him down!" The samurai captain waved his hand, and the ronin surged forward again.
"Courting death."
Ukyo's eyes turned cold as frost. His body sank slightly into an iaijutsu stance.
The instant one ronin swung his blade at him, Ukyo moved.
No one saw him draw his sword.
All they saw was a silver flash moving at extreme speed, tracing a beautiful yet deadly arc through the air like a returning swallow.
"Hidden Blade: Tsubame Gaeshi!"
Splurt!
The three ronin at the front froze mid-motion. Thin red lines appeared simultaneously across their necks. The next second, the lines widened, blood gushing forth as all three collapsed.
One strike—three instant kills!
However, this single move seemed to have exhausted what little strength he had left. Ukyo's form wavered, his face growing even paler, coughs intensifying.
Seeing this, the samurai captain's eyes gleamed with vicious delight: "Now's our chance! He's at the end of his rope! Archers—fire!"
Before he finished speaking, archers hidden on surrounding rooftops loosed their arrows simultaneously. Dozens of arrows rained down like a storm upon the exhausted Ukyo!
"Cowards!" Haohmaru roared, about to draw his sword and charge, but Cloud held his shoulder.
"Easy. Watch the show." A playful smile curved Cloud's lips.
Facing this certain death, a flash of resignation crossed Ukyo's eyes. He seemed to have given up resistance, slowly closing his eyes, softly murmuring a name: "...Kei..."
In the second before the arrows could turn him into a pincushion—
Everything changed!
Everyone witnessed an inconceivable sight.
The arrows flying through the air seemed to have hit a pause button, stopping abruptly—frozen in defiance of all physical laws!
Time within three meters of Ukyo seemed to have solidified.
"Wh-what kind of sorcery is this?!" The samurai captain's eyes nearly popped out of his skull.
Not just him—Haohmaru and Nakoruru were equally stupefied.
"This is...?" Haohmaru rubbed his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing.
Nakoruru looked at Cloud in shock. She could feel that an intangible yet infinitely mysterious power was emanating from him.
"Just time-stop. Small stuff, don't mind me." Cloud shrugged as if he'd done something trivial.
Indeed, this was one application of the space-time power within him.
In the KOF world, he'd used this technique to seize the initiative in the final battle. Using it now against some grunts was like using a nuclear bomb to kill mosquitoes—a "quantum speed-reading dragon-slaying saber."
Ukyo slowly opened his eyes. He stared at the arrow hovering before him, its tip mere centimeters from his nose, and for the first time, that eternally frozen face showed an expression called "utter bewilderment."
...
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