Machi couldn't possibly let Ronin escape just like that—especially since there were four of them involved from the start.
Rat-a-tat-tat! Gunfire erupted from the stands.
A dense storm of rifle rounds poured down toward Ronin's position.
The one firing was an ordinary-looking man, and even his shooting was eerily calm.
Ronin recognized at a glance that the man was being controlled by Shalnark.
He reached into the custom ninja-tool pouch at his waist and produced a kunai, then sent it spinning outward in a rapid throw.
As for the bullets aimed at him—under the Sharingan's terrifying kinetic vision, none of them could touch him.
Even the trajectories that were hard to dodge were blocked by stone slabs raised by his shadow clone's Earth Style: Earth Shore Return.
So Ronin's movement toward the corridor was almost completely unhindered.
On the ring, the flames were gradually dying down.
A hand suddenly thrust up from the ground at the ring's center, and then Uvogin—wretched and scorched—climbed out from beneath the ruined floor.
Half his body was charred black. One arm dragged against the ground as he crawled out, leaving a dark streak behind.
That was the mark of carbonization.
"RONIN!"
A howl filled with bottomless killing intent and fury tore from Uvogin's mouth as he forced himself upright.
At that moment, Uvogin looked like a demon clawing its way out of hell.
Ronin's heart flicked. When he turned to look at Uvogin, their eyes met in midair.
In that instant, Uvogin could no longer hear the noise of the arena. He only felt a burning heat spreading upward from his legs.
He looked down—and saw flames burning up his legs from nowhere.
Agony surged up from his legs, and for the first time in his life, the fearless Uvogin felt fear.
Ronin didn't look back again.
He turned away from the Uvogin who was slowly collapsing and strode into the fighters' corridor.
Great Fire Annihilation hadn't killed Uvogin—surprising, yet also understandable.
The only real feeling was… what a pity.
Uvogin's reaction speed in the moment had been truly insane. There was only one way to avoid being annihilated by Great Fire Annihilation:
Dive underground immediately.
But even underground, he would still be cooked by the blazing heat radiating through the ring.
The fact that Uvogin hadn't been roasted alive proved how monstrous he was.
Still, even if he endured the heat, crawling out afterward meant he was at the end of his strength.
If Ronin hadn't been worried about the other Troupe members surrounding him, he wouldn't have minded finishing Uvogin off right then.
What Ronin hadn't expected was that even in that state, Uvogin still dared to meet his gaze.
When Uvogin was fully in Ken, genjutsu's effect would be obstructed.
But now?
So Ronin triggered Sharingan Genjutsu: Shiranui without hesitation.
A visual-based illusion—one Itachi had once used on Kakashi (though back then the victim had only been a clone, so the full power never manifested).
This time, the one caught was Uvogin's real body.
Hope you enjoy it, Ronin thought.
He slowed to a stop—because someone was already waiting ahead in the corridor.
Short pale-blond hair. A phone idly turning in his hand.
It was Shalnark—the Phantom Troupe's "brain," second only to Chrollo.
But seeing only Shalnark, Ronin actually felt relieved.
The one he'd truly been worried about wasn't Shalnark, but the Troupe leader—Chrollo—who might come if he became interested in Ronin's abilities.
Now that Shalnark was here alone, it likely meant Chrollo hadn't come.
Besides, Ronin had given descriptions of Chrollo and those around him. If Chrollo appeared, he should have been spotted by the network Milia had assembled.
With Chrollo absent, Ronin wouldn't have to spend his biggest pile of money.
Outside the corridor, gunfire rang out again.
But this time, it wasn't aimed at Ronin's shadow clone guarding the corridor entrance.
Instead, someone else was firing at Machi, who was sprinting toward Ronin's corridor.
As for the man Shalnark had been controlling—the shooter—he was already down, killed by Ronin's thrown kunai.
These newly appeared gunmen all had one thing in common:
They wore tactical combat gear.
It was as if they'd been waiting for Machi and the others to jump out and attack from the start.
They were the mercenaries Ronin had hired.
The bullets from their submachine guns were all Nen bullets. They weren't trying to kill Machi—only to seal off her route forward with suppressive fire.
Machi's anger flared. When she tried to angle closer, a bullet grazed past her thigh and struck the ground.
A warning.
Machi looked up—and saw a tall figure at the very top of the stands, holding a sniper rifle.
The figure had striking, elf-like pointed ears.
When Machi looked over, the sniper even lifted the rifle slightly, almost like a greeting.
But Machi knew it was still a warning.
She stopped.
She didn't care about the rifle-wielding fodder—if she got close, she could kill them in seconds.
But the one with the sniper rifle gave her real danger.
If she moved recklessly, she might be the one who died.
While Machi hesitated, Nobunaga finally broke free from the Earth Flow River's bind.
But he didn't run toward the corridor.
He jumped up onto the ring—still radiating intense heat—and dashed to Uvogin's side.
Uvogin was still alive.
But he was in terrible condition. Nobunaga hoisted him up and, in a few quick bounds, carried him off the ring and back to Machi.
"Get Uvogin treated first!" Nobunaga's face was grim.
Machi didn't move. Her eyes stayed locked on the corridor.
She was worried whether Shalnark, alone, could handle Ronin. This Kurta kid's methods were making her feel genuine threat.
"Go first," Machi added. "Take Franklin with you. I don't think they'll bother chasing you if you're leaving."
Nobunaga didn't argue. With Uvogin on his shoulder, he sprinted toward Franklin's position.
Inside the corridor, Ronin kept his hands poised to form seals at any moment, while he steadily advanced toward Shalnark.
Shalnark wasn't a frontline fighter.
As a Manipulator, his strongest move was stabbing an antenna into his own body to enter "Autopilot Mode."
That mode was extremely dangerous—it could let him burst out combat power like an Enhancer, and it fought in a relentless, suicidal way.
To Ronin, that was a huge problem.
And he didn't have much chakra left.
After chaining ninjutsu—and even creating a shadow clone—he'd already burned through the borrowed aura entirely.
Even his own aura was nearly half depleted.
So his next choice was simple:
Run.
He could not let Shalnark enter Autopilot Mode and trap him inside this corridor.
~~~
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— Currently You can Read 70 Chapters Ahead of Others!