He had known this guy wouldn't be easy to deal with. How could Upper Rank Four be so easily handled?
Understanding this, Jigoro showed no discouragement. Looking at Karaku floating in mid-air, he unhesitatingly wielded his Nichirin Blade and charged again!
"Thunder Breathing, Fourth Form: Distant Thunder!"
It was this same technique again. Jigoro leaped, incredibly fast, transforming into lightning, launching a rapid series of attacks at Karaku in mid-air!
This demon clone named Karaku kept laughing merrily, as if he wasn't fighting at all, but rather toying around or playing.
He watched Jigoro's approaching attack, not at all anxious.
In the air, Karaku waved his fan a few more times, unleashing gusts of strong wind. Using the recoil, he drifted back and forth in the air like a deflating balloon, making him impossible to pinpoint.
Since he couldn't be pinpointed, his trajectory couldn't be determined, and thus, he couldn't be hit.
So, Jigoro's Distant Thunder once again failed to hit Karaku.
Sekido, on the other side, grew impatient. He leaped high, raised his shakujō, which pulsed with lightning, and brought it down heavily on Jigoro in mid-air!
Jigoro hurriedly held his blade horizontally to block. With a bang, he was struck down!
The force of that blow was too strong. Jigoro could barely withstand it, falling towards the ground like a meteorite!
Zenitsu, inside the house, was already frantic at this sight.
Just before hitting the ground, Jigoro forcefully twisted his body, finally managing to land on his feet first. With a loud boom, he landed on the ground, kicking up a huge cloud of smoke!
In the smoke, Jigoro nearly fell onto his backside.
Such a pathetic state was unavoidable.
Don't forget, Jigoro had a wooden prosthetic leg!
How much support could a wooden prosthetic leg provide? So when Jigoro landed, he was basically putting all his weight on his intact leg!
For one leg to bear the strength of two, it was already impressive that Jigoro didn't fall immediately!
The reason Jigoro now possessed less than sixty percent of his peak strength was largely due to this leg!
Thunder Breathing emphasized rapid and fierce attacks, relying on speed. Now, with one leg missing, how could he achieve that speed? How could he achieve that ferocity?
Jigoro landed, swayed a few times, but finally didn't fall. He stood firm, holding his Nichirin Blade, vigilantly watching his two enemies.
Over there, Sekido had already landed.
But Karaku was still floating here and there in the sky like a deflating balloon, having a blast.
The irritable Sekido simply couldn't stand this about Karaku. This guy never did what he was supposed to, always indulged in play, and instead of taking out the enemy quickly, he preferred to toy with them like a cat with a mouse. His personality could be described as quite vile.
Sometimes, just to prolong his own fun, Karaku even interfered with his comrades and teammates! It was infuriating!
Sekido couldn't stand it. He cursed at Karaku in the sky, "That's enough! Get serious right now! Capture this old man immediately so we can carry out our plan!"
Karaku still laughed heartily, drifting back and forth in the sky, completely unconcerned by Sekido's anger. Karaku's arrogant voice drifted down from above, "Hahahahaha... What does it matter? Anyway, this old man can't escape our grasp. Playing a bit longer won't cause any major harm."
Although Sekido and Karaku were Hantengu's first two clones, the relationship between them was like fire and water, completely incompatible.
Karaku's personality was that of an optimist who enjoyed finding fun in battle, even to the point of messing around.
Sekido, on the other hand, had an irritable personality. He utterly detested Karaku's demeanor and often hurled harsh words at him; it wasn't even impossible for them to clash because of it.
Jigoro saw this and wondered if he could exploit the contradiction between these two to provoke them, thereby gaining an advantage for himself.
Just as Jigoro thought this, the subsequent events plunged his heart into despair.
Sekido roared, lashing out at Karaku in the sky. "Get serious! Otherwise, I'll tear you to pieces and eat you! You know I can do that!"
Karaku, floating in the sky, heard these words, shot an annoyed glance at Sekido, stopped the strong winds caused by his fanning, and landed on the ground beside Sekido.
The reason for this was that Sekido was the leader among these clones. No matter how wild or cheerful Karaku was, at critical moments, he still had to listen to Sekido.
Seeing this scene, Jigoro thought, This is bad.
If these two clones had a hierarchical relationship, it would be very difficult to sow discord between them during battle.
There was truly no other option; he had to fight with all his might!
"Thunder Breathing, Fifth Form: Heat Lightning!"
Jigoro roared, blue lightning gathering around him. With a single strike, Jigoro unleashed a highly destructive, extremely hot lightning bolt at the two demon clones!
Karaku chuckled, holding his fan, and charged directly towards Jigoro's lightning. He fiercely waved his fan, and a large amount of strong wind condensed into a terrifying冲击, actually dispelling Jigoro's lightning in one go!
Jigoro was startled!
This demon clone was indeed not simple! He hadn't been serious until now. The strong winds he unleashed actually possessed such impact and lethality; it was terrifying!
After Karaku dispelled Jigoro's lightning, Sekido followed up his attack, waving his shakujō at Jigoro. A large amount of lightning burst forth from the shakujō, striking at Jigoro!
Jigoro raised his Nichirin Blade, using the lightning of Thunder Breathing to counter, struggling to resist.
Next, Jigoro fought the two demon clones again.
The battle was extremely fierce, with lightning and strong winds raging. The three figures rapidly moved past each other and clashed, completing countless rounds and techniques in an instant.
Only the howling winds could be seen, carving large pits into the earth.
Only the flickering lightning could be seen, leaving scorch marks wherever it struck.
The open space in front of Jigoro's small house was quickly damaged, becoming battered and messy due to the intense battle—truly a tragic sight.
Zenitsu had been hiding inside the house, clinging to the doorframe and watching this scene, watching the terrifying battle between the two sides.
He also had sufficient discernment. Although his current combat ability was lacking, he might not have eaten pork, but hadn't he seen pigs run? With Zenitsu's eyesight, he could tell that his grandpa was at a disadvantage.
Moreover, his grandpa had practically given his all, and it would likely be very difficult for him to gain the upper hand.
What did this mean? It meant that defeat was already apparent!
Was he really going to die today? Was there truly no hope today? Zenitsu thought desperately.
Recalling what his grandpa had just said to him, Zenitsu turned his head and saw the spare Nichirin Blade of his grandpa's resting there.
Zenitsu ran over and hugged the Nichirin Blade.
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