“So you’re not dressed like that for nothing. What a waste when the next generation is trash, though I suppose a diamond on a dunghill is still diamond.”
Unlike Michizane who let his guard down and looked down on her, these black-clothed men didn’t leave any openings.
They were weaker than her when it came to spirituality and jutsu proficiency, but they had the numerical advantage, and their accustomed movements suggested they were still a threat.
She had just dealt with the pathetic Katsuragi family, so the difference in skill was evident.
Indeed, this small army of ninjas have not been working at the Tsumori House for a long time for nothing.
“…I might as well ask, but I take it you have no intention of taking that guy and quietly leaving? I just beat him up since he attacked first anyway.”
She had to ask since it would have take her effort to deal with them, but unfortunately, they just kept quiet.
Either they knew that she’d twisted her testimony to suit her, or they were trained not to receive instructions from anyone other than those from the main family.
“D-Don’t mess with me! Get rid of that fake right this instant! Remove her from this world! Thoroughly beat into that body of hers the sin of hurting me!”
In any case, it was futile since she’d already pissed off their master, who grew bolder as the pain subsided and his allies grew in number.
None of the fear he had for Tomoe could be seen in his eyes, only a tinge of sa*ism.
But that was the stereotypical behavior of these small fries, so Tomoe just ignored him and formed a seal.
“T-Tomoe-sama, please run away!”
“Even Tomoe-sama won’t be able to deal with these many!”
“Ah, but it would be nice if you could take us along, Tomoe-sama.”
“I told you not to call me with a sama! And what a brazen thing to say, Miki!”
Voices of concern called out to her from behind, though that last line and the fact that they kept calling her with a sama broke her tension.
But neither her eyes nor the air about her wavered, and neither did anyone among the black-clothed men believe that she had let her guard down, but…
“Now! Attack!”
Michizane was truly on a different level.
And with the orders of someone from the main family absolute, they had no choice but to move.
One by one, they threw their talismans, while the rest leaped at Tomoe half a step slower.
They wielded either a hidden blade or a blade longer than the common variety.
With something akin to a curse enchanting them, a normal human would instantly die upon hit.
The talismans pouring down on her were plenty impressive too, what with the capturing jutsus and attributes imbued in them.
Their refined movements accustomed to working together was indeed something worthy of reference.
Yes, despite so many attacking her, Tomoe still had the leisure to observe them and be impressed.
Though these people moved better than those of the Katsuragi family, at the end of the day, they were merely beings of the earth, while she has already witnessed the heavens.
As the scope she could cover rapidly increased, she came to understand exactly the distance and speed she could handle.
She knew that even if she defeated all of these people, there was another group of attackers waiting just behind them.
But even that was adorable compared to her master’s mischief.
That was also why…
“Ah──？”
She noticed that before anyone else and frowned.
In the next moment, she took a step back purely because she didn’t want to get involved.
“────!!”
“─────Huh!?”
“─────!”
In the next moment, the light of spiritual power filled her vision. By that point, they of course noticed it too, but it was already too late.
Without even being able to scream or breathe, the lights swallowed the black-clothed men.
There were about 10 lights all in all and all the black-clothed men vanished within them.
“…”
“…Hah?”
Who was it that was flabbergasted when those lights literally cut in?
That was the light of spiritual power that anyone here should have been used to, but no one other than Tomoe had already seen the shape it took just now.
She looked sour as she watched that light past in front of her. It took just seven seconds all in all for that ridiculously huge lump of spiritual power to find its way and leave behind a group of unconscious black-clothed men.
“Yo, mind if I join the party too?”
A boy jumped down from the porch to land nimbly on the garden.
He was none other than Shinguuji Ryou, the other person that was kidnapped.
“Surprised?”
“…I’m going to tell him that you woke up later than me.”
“S-Stop!! I did my best, you know! I really did my best!”
After a moment of shock, Ryou desperately pleaded for her not to tell.
He had been paying attention to the other group of black-clothed men, but when Tomoe said that, of his attention turned to her.
“I had to force myself to wake up despite being forced to sleep, then all of the sudden, something exploded! Just when I was wondering what happened, I heard the disgusting groans of some guy, then suddenly, everything started to shake! I looked outside fearfully, and what do I see? An army of ninjas! I just couldn’t figure out how to make my entrance, you know!”
Ryou explained that he couldn’t make head or tails of what was happening. that’s why he didn’t reveal himself until he saw Tome getting attacked.
“If anything, you should be praising me for not doing anything unnecessary!”
“Perfect. Just tell him that then.”
Ryou wore a smug look on his face when he came to save her, but Tomoe just responded coldly.
Regardless of his agenda and whether there was a need for it or not, Tomoe was indeed grateful that he acted to save her, but the smug look he wore as though he had just made it in the nick of time pissed her off.
What was even more annoying was that bundle of spiritual power that required no ingenuity, coordination or knowledge on his part, even if it was originally her own idea.
As someone who had studied and trained for so long, him jumping through so many hoops without hesitation annoyed her to no end.
“Uu, b-but since we were both kidnapped, won’t we both get scolded anyway?”
Tomoe seemed hostile for some reason, so Ryou pleaded despite losing his nerves, but unfortunately, there was no overturning her displeasure.
“That’s exactly why. Since we both have to suffer, I might as well sell you out and shorten my own suffering.”
“You demon!”