The person leading the group to besiege Mishu was Kaguya Chūhei.
He was the same boy whose limbs Mishu had once broken.
Ever since that fateful day, Chūhei had suffered a massive physical and mental blow. Yet, compared to the lingering physical pain, the mental anguish tormented him far more.
The Kaguya Clan was aggressive and fierce, utterly despising the weak. Seeing Chūhei defeated by someone they considered bottom-tier, they didn't think Mishu was particularly strong. They only looked down on Chūhei for being pathetic.
The ridicule peaked after Chūhei's older brother, Kaguya Teppei, sought revenge against Mishu, only to be defeated as well.
The brothers became a complete laughingstock within the clan, enduring countless taunts and daily humiliations. Those insults were like sharp spears, piercing Chūhei's heart until it was riddled with holes.
Consequently, his resentment toward Mishu grew more intense by the day.
From then on, Chūhei engaged in masochistic training. Every night, he dreamed of hacking Mishu into a thousand pieces.
When he learned about this current training exercise, he exhausted every effort to prepare for Mishu's murder. Knowing he might not be a match for Mishu alone, he scraped together funds and equipment to recruit several companions.
Over the past few days, this makeshift group had been killing people everywhere.
People they usually disliked, or those with whom they had existing grudges, could now be dealt with openly. It was vengeance for old scores and petty grievances alike.
Now, with strength in numbers, their courage soared. As their kill count rose, they fully adapted to the act and sensation of taking a life—which was precisely the purpose and value of this training.
During the hunt these past few days, Chūhei had been constantly inquiring about Mishu's whereabouts. Eventually, he extracted Mishu's location from a captive.
Overjoyed, he immediately led his group to attack.
"Hahaha, all three of you are here! That saves me the trouble of hunting you down one by one," Chūhei sneered. "I'll settle everything right now. Especially you, Mishu—I'll pay you back a hundredfold for what you did to me!"
Looking at Mishu, Chūhei was incredibly agitated. Intense hatred, painful memories, and the thrill of imminent revenge intertwined, causing the flesh on his face to tremble.
"So he's Mishu? I heard several of you were beaten by him." One of Chūhei's accomplices stepped forward. "Tsk tsk, he looks quite ordinary. You guys really are weak."
Among Chūhei's accomplices were students from other classes who didn't know Mishu. Seeing that he wasn't particularly tall or imposing—nor did he have three heads and six arms—they began mocking those who had been taught a lesson by him.
One of Mishu's classmates, recalling that painful experience, couldn't help but rub his stomach. It felt as if the spot where Mishu had punched him was throbbing all over again. He cursed back at the mocker.
"Idiot, he's not like the weaklings we've encountered! He's a man-eating tiger. If you don't want to be killed, don't be careless."
This statement drew nods of agreement from many, especially Mishu's former classmates, who stood ready and alert.
"That's right, be careful. He was already brutal back at school. Now that killing is allowed, he definitely won't hold back."
"We must attack with everything we've got. Don't give him any chance to turn the tables."
"If we don't kill him, none of us will survive!"
Seeing how serious the survivors were, the others set aside their contempt, though their individual thoughts varied.
Some were arrogant. Seeing so many people fear Mishu made them indignant, and they planned to kill him themselves to prove their own strength.
Others had wandering eyes, observing the surroundings. They planned to slack off at first, letting the others fight while they adapted to the situation.
Some had no particular thoughts at all. They had simply become addicted to killing over the past few days and just wanted to see blood splatter.
Standing on a rock, Mishu's eyes darted around. He carefully observed the enemies' positions, expressions, and equipment.
He rapidly gathered and analyzed intelligence to formulate a suitable tactic, all while maintaining a deeply arrogant facade.
Facing the enemies ahead, Mishu raised his short sword and made a light horizontal cutting motion from left to right. With a look of pure joy, he spoke in a clear, bright voice.
"I was just looking to kill someone today, and here you are delivering your heads. I'm truly grateful, so I'll take them without ceremony."
As he spoke, Mishu pointedly glanced at Chūhei's limbs, intentionally triggering the boy's painful memories.
Enraged, Chūhei gritted his teeth and spat out two words: "Kill him!"
Immediately, Chūhei brandished his bone spurs and charged first, followed closely by the others.
Mishu saw the enemy's numbers. If he were surrounded and targeted by concentrated fire, it wouldn't end well for him. Instead of retreating, he advanced.
He charged toward the people on the enemy's left flank, completely ignoring the aggressive Chūhei.
Although the terrain here was relatively flat, it was still part of the hills. The undulating ground had plenty of rocks, trees, and bushes—all of which served as excellent cover and concealment.
Mishu intended to use the terrain to his advantage. He planned to split the battlefield into several smaller skirmishes through mobile warfare, preventing the enemies from encircling him and allowing him to take them down one by one.
This was a necessity born of insufficient strength. If he were powerful enough, he could just stand his ground and unleash his power. That would have been truly satisfying.
"We're going in too!"
Seeing Mishu move, Takano Hiroshi glanced at his younger brother. His eyes held worry and reluctance, but above all, determination.
Knowing his own strength was meager and that he wouldn't last long, Hiroshi nonetheless charged resolutely toward the center where the enemies were most concentrated.
He had already resolved to die. He wanted to stall as many enemies as possible to buy time for Mishu to kill, giving his brother a better chance of survival.
"Big Brother!"
Takano Ishi watched his brother's retreating back, immediately understanding his intentions. With tears welling in his eyes, he gripped his weapon and charged toward the enemy's right flank.
Some among the enemies recognized the Takano brothers and told those around them that they were weak and not worth worrying about. They didn't expect the two to be so fearless, fully willing to trade injuries for injuries and life for life.
Faced with such a suicidal fighting style, the enemies were momentarily thrown into confusion.
The Takano brothers successfully stalled four or five enemies, instantly easing the pressure on Mishu.
Mishu's fighting style was efficient and cold, with absolutely no wasted movements. Every strike aimed for a vital point.
In a flash, he killed three people in succession.
The first victim was a chubby boy who didn't quite understand Mishu's strength. Seeing Mishu charge at him, he figured that since his companions were nearby, stalling Mishu for just a few seconds would be enough to get support and secure the kill.
In short, the chubby boy felt the advantage was his. There was no need to be afraid.
Then, he felt Mishu's immense power.
The kunai in his hand was knocked flying instantly. Mishu gave his wrist a slight turn, and the blade swept in a half-arc, easily slicing the boy's throat.
The chubby boy clutched his neck with both hands as blood poured through his fingers, collapsing with his eyes wide open.
The second victim was right next to the chubby boy. He had intended to coordinate an attack, but was shocked when Mishu killed his partner in a single move.
At that moment, his right hand had already thrust out a kunai. It was too late to change his trajectory.
Mishu smoothly severed his right arm, followed instantly by his head.
The third victim, seeing Mishu slaughter two people in a row, was terrified. Not daring to engage in close combat, he turned to put some distance between them.
Mishu simply threw his short sword. The blade pierced directly through the boy's chest, and he slumped to the ground.