"Takeru, are you okay?" Seeing Takeru appear somewhat weak, Leone immediately ran over and anxiously held him.
"I'm fine, just a bit tired. But he's no longer in critical danger. However, there are still remnants of the virus, and his injuries will need further treatment later." After speaking these words in a tired tone, Takeru said no more.
"I understand. Thank you so much. I will definitely take good care of him!" Hearing Takeru's words, Tatsumi immediately performed a formal kneeling bow to Takeru.
"Thank you," Ieyasu also thanked Takeru weakly.
"Alright, it's time for us to leave. Takeru, can you manage? I'll carry you on my back!" Seeing Takeru's state, Leone felt heartache and, without waiting for his reply, forcibly made him climb onto her back, then quickly left the spot with Akame.
As for taking Tatsumi with them, perhaps due to Takeru's presence, Leone currently didn't see much value in Tatsumi. Repaying that favor earlier was already going above and beyond.
Not to mention Takeru had also healed his companion, and the most important thing for Tatsumi now was to take Ieyasu to recuperate...
"Leone, put me down. I'm fine, just a little tired." Seeing himself being carried by Leone like this, Takeru showed a wry, helpless expression.
"No, I won't!" Leone stated directly.
"Give up. Once Leone says something, she won't listen to others' opinions." Seeing Takeru's expression, Akame commented flatly.
"You really are a good friend who knows me well!" Hearing Akame's words, Leone even had the mood to act cute with her.
"Mission concluded. Return now!" Finally, Akame gave the order to return, and everyone quickly withdrew towards the base.
Seeing that Leone clearly didn't intend to let him down, Takeru stopped resisting and simply rested quietly against her soft back...
No one noticed that, sensing Takeru's action, Leone's face slightly flushed red, though the smile on her lips never faded.
…
In the blink of an eye, it was already the next day. Because of Takeru's performance yesterday, everyone had fully accepted him.
Of course, the tsundere Mine, while accepting Takeru in her heart, wasn't so direct with her words.
"Hmph, your performance yesterday was passable, I guess. I'll tentatively acknowledge you." That was Mine's exact words to Takeru.
Today, Akame was going to hunt a Strange Bird Danger Beast, and she dragged Takeru along. After following her to an even more primitive area, Takeru saw the strange bird circling high in the sky.
"Hey, Takeru, that's the one. We need to kill it, then barbecue it!" Looking at the flying strange bird, a trace of saliva unconsciously dripped from the corner of Akame's mouth. Clearly, she was already craving it.
Seeing Akame's expression, Takeru found it amusing, then asked, "So, how do you plan to hunt it?"
"It's simple. Just lure them down, then kill them. I'll act as bait. Takeru, you wait for the right moment to kill them." Hearing Takeru's question, Akame quickly replied.
Then, without waiting for Takeru's response, she quickly ran to an open spot in the wilderness and just lay down.
The circling strange birds naturally spotted Akame lying exposed like that. Two strange birds let out odd cries and swooped down towards her.
The birds had tough beaks, and inside the beaks were rows of sharp teeth. Clearly, they weren't your ordinary birds...
Seeing Akame trust him so much, Takeru smiled slightly. His staff materialized in his hand. The moment the strange birds were less than a meter away from Akame, Takeru moved.
With a swing of his staff, he sent one bird's body flying towards a nearby tree.
Even after smashing through a large tree, the bird wasn't instantly killed. It struggled to get up, seemingly intending to attack Takeru.
Ignoring the bird's actions, Takeru flicked his staff again, easily sending the other bird flying. By then, Akame calmly opened her eyes, jumped up, and delivered the finishing blows to both birds.
"Mmm, good harvest. Takeru, let's go barbecue!" Dragging the two large strange bird carcasses, Akame looked at Takeru with innocent eyes.
"Alright," Looking at Akame before him, Takeru couldn't help but pat her head, revealing a gentle smile.
Feeling Takeru pat her head, Akame was momentarily stunned. Takeru also realized his action.
"Sorry about that, it was unintentional," Takeru said apologetically.
"It's fine. Let's hurry," hearing Takeru's words, Akame shook her head. Strangely, she felt no aversion at all… instead, she felt a bit of warmth. She didn't understand why, so she chose to distract herself with food.
Watching Akame lead the way, Takeru shook his head lightly. He indeed couldn't help but feel protective towards this girl, and his earlier action was truly unintentional.
Soon, following Akame, Takeru arrived at a small stream with extremely beautiful scenery.
"Takeru, let's barbecue here!" Placing the strange birds down, Akame called out to Takeru.
"Sure," Hearing this, Takeru went to her side and began helping quickly process the bird carcasses: plucking feathers, removing entrails, cleaning!
After finishing this, Akame quickly went to the side, cut down a large tree, and swiftly made two simple roasting spits...
Meanwhile, Takeru arranged two piles of stones beneath the spits. Then, Takeru and Akame each skewered a strange bird and began roasting them.
"Hey, Akame!" Just as Takeru and the others were roasting, a voice came from the distance. Takeru turned and saw a white-haired woman.
Besides her refined features, the most noticeable things were the black eye patch over her right eye and her right arm, which was mechanical...
Actually, while cleaning the birds, Takeru had already sensed her presence. But she seemed to have some reservations and didn't appear immediately, waiting until now to come forward.
"Boss!" Seeing the newcomer, Akame immediately nodded to her respectfully.
"And this is?" Najenda directly asked Akame.
"Nara Takeru. Recommended by Leone to join. Possesses very strong talent," Hearing Najenda's question, Akame quickly replied.
"Oh? The one Leone brought the day before yesterday, with strong talent?" Hearing Akame's words and her acknowledgment, Najenda looked at Takeru in surprise.
"Is that so? I understand. Hello, I'm Najenda, the boss of Night Raid. Welcome to Night Raid." After a moment's thought, Najenda directly extended her hand to Takeru.
"Hello," Seeing this, Takeru nodded to her and briefly shook her hand. Takeru was naturally not unfamiliar with Najenda.
As the leader, although not the strongest in combat, Najenda possessed strong command and organizational abilities.
A former Imperial General, she had once campaigned with Esdeath on the southwestern border. Later, during an operation to subjugate bandits, she defected from the Empire and joined the Revolutionary Army.
Finally, before reuniting with her troops, she encountered Esdeath, losing her right eye and right arm. It was also then that she gained a deep understanding of Esdeath's terrifying strength.
"By the way, Akame, tell me what's happened during the time I was away," After briefly greeting Takeru, she spoke seriously.
"Mmm," Hearing Najenda's words, Akame began her report.
It has to be said, although Akame usually seems a bit spacey, she handled this report very well. Through her account, Takeru also learned many things.
After a full narration, Najenda had a general understanding of the events during this period. The specifics could be discussed later in a meeting with everyone.
Meanwhile, as Akame finished her description, the two strange birds were also thoroughly cooked. Seeing this, Akame quickly added salt. After letting it slightly penetrate the meat, she swiftly divided one of the birds.
First giving Najenda a huge bird leg, then giving the other leg to Takeru, she herself tore off a wing and began to munch...
Watching the two of them eat heartily, Takeru smiled lightly and also began to eat in large bites.
Although only seasoned with salt, because the meat quality was excellent, Takeru found it truly delicious.
Noticing Takeru's actions, Najenda also gained a bit more recognition for him.