Chapter 365: Egg Yolk and Egg White Have Not Yet Separated
[Not good!]
After hearing Sawai Yoshio’s last sentence, Sato Shinichi’s heart sank. He stomped his right foot on the ground, completely disregarding the metal blade already at his neck, and rushed towards the opponent’s left hand like a streaking arrow.
Perhaps it was due to concern causing confusion, or perhaps it was because unprofessional individuals always had oversights, the young man’s plan was still too wishful.
Although from his own perspective, all his actions were beneficial to the kidnapper’s escape, and the other party would not be able to perceive his abilities from the level of energy fluctuation.
But negotiation is never about offering some benefits or spewing empty platitudes. A hostage rescue negotiation requires meticulous attention to detail, from investigating background, personal history, and preferences to controlling speech, demeanor, and actions at the scene.
This is because everyone is an individual with a different personality, and you never know when a seemingly ordinary word might hit a nerve, causing the kidnapper to lose emotional control and leading to the hostage’s injury.
Of course, reflecting on these things now is of little use. When the other party showed signs of attacking Kazumi, the young man decisively dropped his disguise and reacted in the most appropriate way.
“Crunch—”
The sharp, metallic gleam of the blade and the smooth, tender skin collided unceremoniously, but the result was that the blade, capable of piercing armor, shattered as if it had hit a steel plate.
The direct shattering of the right-hand blade even stunned Sawai Yoshio for a moment, followed by a deafening sound of air breaking and a fierce wind appearing around him.
[Little Black!]
Kazumi could also hear Sawai Yoshio’s words. Although the young girl had been cautious not to expose her abilities, at the brink of life and death, hesitating to hide her trump card would be foolish, not cautious.
Moreover, compared to the fact that her neck hadn’t been pierced and she was still alive, the excuse of suddenly awakening abilities to resist the attack seemed more plausible.
Little Black’s speed was extraordinary. Having parasitized within the girl’s body, he could appear at any part of her body instantly with Kazumi’s thoughts.
But at this moment, someone was faster!
A black shadow was even faster than Little Black within the girl’s body. Just as the blade, which was at close range, was about to stab into the girl’s body, a robust arm was inserted from the side, directly blocking between the two.
The silver-white blade passed directly through the arm, the tip piercing out from the inside and firmly stuck by the solid muscle, unable to move forward any further.
But the owner of the arm seemed oblivious to the pain. One hand held the arm in mid-air, while the other gently pulled the stunned girl into his embrace, patting her back with the gentlest tone to comfort her.
“It’s okay, Kazumi.”
“You…”
The sudden turn of events made Kazumi forget to control Little Black within her body, and she stumbled incredulously into the familiar and broad embrace of the young man.
A fresh, sunny scent with a hint of masculine aroma filled the girl’s nostrils, inescapable. But that damn sense of security gradually welled up in Kazumi’s heart, occupying her inner self, even in this situation.
The original tension and sense of crisis vanished at this moment, as if as long as she lay in this embrace, she wouldn’t have to worry about anything. Only the sense of security, peace, and attachment surrounded her.
“Shinichi, behind you!”
But soon, the girl broke free from the moment of tenderness. Her half-undead thoughts firmly suppressed the intense emotional fluctuations of her body. Kazumi looked up, her gaze passing over the young man’s injured arm to the several silver-white blades continuing to attack them both.
Sato Shinichi did not reply. Or rather, with his perception significantly higher than Kazumi’s, he had already noticed when the other party launched the attack. He cleanly kicked out with his right foot, knocking down the flying light blades.
However, his casual beachwear clearly couldn’t withstand such a powerful impact. The slippers on his feet shattered into pieces in an instant, and his foot skin was pierced by metal fragments, oozing bright red blood.
“Shinichi!”
“Let go of me.”
The girl’s pupils constricted sharply, and the hand gripping the young man’s clothes clenched tightly, as if the metal fragments were piercing her own body.
After a brief moment of worry, Kazumi quickly realized the problem and struggled to break free from the young man’s embrace.
It was obvious that Sato Shinichi, who was protecting her, couldn’t dodge the opponent’s attacks. And even if the young man usually had combat training, how could his mortal body contend with the metal abilities of a vicious criminal, let alone be a living target staying in place because of her?
The best solution now was for them to separate. With her undead body and Little Black, she wouldn’t die from non-shattering damage. Moreover, as the weaker female, the kidnapper Sawai Yoshio’s primary target for hostage would definitely be herself, which would allow this fool who would even risk his life to be a little safer.
[If all else fails…]
“No!”
“Kazumi, trust me, it’ll be okay.”
Resolutely rejecting his girlfriend’s somewhat reckless suggestion, the astonishment in the young man’s eyes was quickly replaced by tenderness. How could Sato Shinichi not know what the frail girl in his arms was thinking? This idea of her willingly putting herself in danger for him was truly naive. But what the girl didn’t know was that the situation was much more dangerous than it appeared.
Although the opponent’s attack had only scratched his skin, which he hadn’t had time to gather Qi in, it was likely due to a potion enhancement. Such continuous attacks were almost at the level of Shun Muto’s normal slashes. Even in his normal state, he could get injured, let alone Kazumi, who was a civilian.
Feeling the embrace around her tighten, the girl’s face showed a hint of anxiety. Just as she was about to explain further to this incorrigible fool, a series of harsh and chilling metallic collisions came from the distance.
“Creak— Creak—”
She abruptly looked up and saw Sawai Yoshio, whom Sato Shinichi had kicked away, with bloodshot eyes, looking at them as if he had gone mad. Before him, silver-white blades scattered across the entire sky, falling like a waterfall.
[Not good!] [Not good!]
In this instant, the young girl and boy’s thoughts were surprisingly consistent, but they made their own different choices at the same time.
Looking at the dense light blades, like swarms of mosquitoes, Sato Shinichi quickly made his decision. If he used his full strength, even with Kazumi in his arms, he could still escape easily under such an attack. However, such dense attacks could still affect the girl to some extent. If Kazumi were to be harmed because of him, Sato Shinichi would never forgive himself.
With this thought, a hint of determination flashed in the young man’s eyes. Completely ignoring the terrifying blades covering the sky, he slowly turned around, and then forcefully hugged the frail girl tightly into his embrace.
“Shinichi, what are you doing?!”
Kazumi felt something was wrong with the suddenly strengthened embrace, and was even more stunned when she felt the young man’s somewhat familiar action. Then she desperately tried to break free from his robust arms.
“Protecting you.”
Feeling the girl struggle in his arms, Sato Shinichi shook his head, then hid her even tighter within his body. He leaned his mouth to the girl’s ear and said with his still gentle and firm voice those simplest yet most promising words.
“Are you crazy!!”
The resolute three words sounded so jarring to the girl’s ears at this moment. This fool, no, she should say madman. In this situation, his first thought wasn’t to escape, but to use his own body to block the terrifying metallic roar.
Just like last time.
She tried to pull her hands out of the young man’s arms, but the usually obedient young man was exceptionally stubborn this time. His long-term training gave Kazumi the strength, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t pull free, as if she were surrounded by a thick city wall.
The blades poured down from his peripheral vision, the dense blade formation seeming to block out the sun. The piercing sound of air breaking seemed to ring in her ears.
Looking at the young man with unwavering eyes plastered on her face, the girl’s urgency slowly receded, finally turning into a helpless smile of resignation. The black skull mark on her wrist, clasped in front of her chest, suddenly appeared. A strange dark magic array slowly unfolded beneath the sand, and a giant coffin radiating a death aura emerged from the sand and rose upwards.
[Little Black!]
“Hu—” “Mio—”
At this very moment, a bone-chilling wind howled through, followed by a series of piercing, ear-splitting sounds. The world in front of the girl’s eyes seemed to slow down, until it gradually froze, covered by spreading transparent blue ice crystals, finally forming a giant iceberg comparable to the distant mountain peak.
And at the origin of this iceberg, Kitahara Itoru, whose eyebrows and hair were entirely covered by ice shards, looked up. His frozen, stuck-together lips slowly opened, and a cold aura, like a sharp sword, was exhaled from his mouth, its torn wound so severe that not even blood could be seen. He turned to look at the responding police officers behind him.
“Go, rescue the injured hostages first.”
…….
Meanwhile, four thousand meters above the sea surface on the beach, two men in suits inexplicably floated in mid-air.
“It’s over, Master Kiki.”
The man wearing special eye equipment adjusted his device and turned to report respectfully to the man floating in the air behind him.
“Mm, has all the data been collected?”
Picking up the lighter by his side and igniting his cigar, Kiki Rin’an leaned back on a non-existent sofa and continued to ask.
“Yes, the memories have been extracted. Sawai Yoshio obtained the data, but the detailed content requires further analysis with abilities.”
“It’s fine, as long as it’s obtained.”
Kiki Rin’an nodded, checked his watch, and casually flicked the high-end cigar he had just taken a puff from to the side. He then stood up from the “sofa.”
“Let’s go. We have guests coming soon, prepare for them in advance.”
“Master, is it the one from last time?”
His subordinate nodded, took off the device from his head, and put it into the metal box beside him, asking.
“Mm, it’s someone from [Shadow].”
