The black figure that Nobu had shot earlier leapt out of the cloud of smoke, then dashed away from the ruins at tremendous speed.
"Damn it!" Ritsuka cursed.
He quickly turned toward Mash, who was still shielding Rikka and Olga.
"Mash! Hold your position here! Protect Rikka and the Director! Nobu and I will chase it!"
"W-wait, Ritsuka! Don't go off alone—!" Olga shouted in panic.
But Ritsuka was no longer listening. He immediately burst forward in pursuit of the enemy, with Nobu flying behind him.
Seeing her brother leave, Rikka tried to run after him, but Mash immediately grabbed her hand.
"No, Master! Don't stray far from me!" Mash said firmly.
"But Mash! My brother went off on his own! We have to follow him! I can't just let him fight that thing alone!" Rikka protested, struggling to break free from Mash's grip.
Olga quickly grabbed Rikka's shoulder, stopping her from acting recklessly.
"You have to stay here! We'd only become a burden to him!" Olga snapped, even though her lips were trembling with worry.
"Don't forget—he's with a Servant. He still has a chance."
"But—!"
"There are no 'buts'!" Olga cut in sharply.
"What Ritsuka fought just now is most likely an Assassin-class Servant. That's a class specialized in killing. If we move carelessly, it will definitely target a weak point—meaning you or me! Do you want your brother to die because he has to protect us again?!"
Rikka fell silent. Those words struck home.
"O-okay…"
---
Meanwhile, Ritsuka continued running through the shattered streets. Nobu hovered above him, casually standing atop one of her matchlock rifles.
Ritsuka spotted an old building ahead—its foundation already half-destroyed—right along the enemy's escape route. A reckless idea formed in his mind.
"Nobu! Shoot the foundation of that building!" Ritsuka ordered, pointing forward.
Nobu grinned, instantly understanding his intent.
"Hoh? A fine choice. I like it!"
The Assassin running ahead suddenly heard gunfire. Strangely, the shots weren't aimed at him, but at the structure in front of him.
BOOM! BOOM!
Nobu's shots destroyed the last supporting pillars of the building.
KRAAAAK… BOOM!!!
The multi-story building collapsed instantly, crashing down right in front of the Assassin and cutting off the escape route with a massive pile of concrete.
The enemy was forced to stop abruptly.
This was the moment. Ritsuka gathered all his strength and Mana into his right arm, then charged forward without a shred of hesitation toward the cornered enemy.
"NOBU! FIRE! DON'T HOLD BACK! SHOOT ME ALONG WITH HIM!" Ritsuka shouted.
Nobu froze for a split second. Her eyes widened in shock—then a thunderous laugh burst from her mouth.
"WAHAHAHAHA! Interesting! Truly interesting! You really are a Master who doesn't fear death! Very well—I shall carry out your command!"
Dozens of matchlock rifles floated into the air, forming a semicircular formation behind Ritsuka, all aiming at the same point.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Hundreds of energy bullets were fired simultaneously.
Ritsuka leapt, surging through the air alongside Nobu's rain of bullets on both sides. He drove his fist forward at the exact moment the bullets struck the target.
KABOOM!!!
A massive explosion erupted. The Assassin had nowhere to escape. Trapped between the collapsing building and the combined "suicidal" assault of Ritsuka and Nobu, there was no way out.
Thick dust billowed, completely covering the area. Silence followed.
"Master… are you still alive?" Nobu called out from within the smoke, her tone slightly worried despite her usual arrogance.
"I truly didn't hold back just now."
---
In another dimension, the onlookers held their breath.
"Ritsuka! Are you okay?!" Kagaya shouted in panic.
"That kid is insane! That was way too much! He must be seriously injured after an explosion that close!" Koko exclaimed in horror.
L stared at Nobu on the screen and said,
"Be quiet. That Servant might be able to hear your voi—"
L's words were cut off by Nobu's confused voice.
"Hm? This thing can make sounds too? Is there someone inside it?"
Nobu floated closer to the mass of water communicator and tapped it with the tip of her rifle.
Koko's eyes went wide in shock. Kagaya nearly screamed but managed to hold it back. L was struck completely speechless.
"Hello? Is there a restless ghost in there?" Nobu asked again, about to poke the mass of water with her sharp finger.
CLUNK.
The heavy sound stopped Nobu's movement. She turned sharply.
"What was that sound?"
Nobu's red eyes widened. The smoke began to clear, revealing Ritsuka standing upright. His clothes were tattered and scorched in places—but his body itself was intact. Not a single scratch.
And above his head, a Dharma Wheel was spinning.
Seeing that symbol, Nobu's instincts reacted violently. Her face hardened, and in an instant, dozens of gun barrels were aimed straight at Ritsuka's head.
"Huh? Wait, Nobu! What's going on?! Why are you pointing your weapons at me?!" Ritsuka asked in confusion, raising both hands.
"Huh?! Why is she about to shoot Ritsuka?!" Koko shouted in confusion.
"Most likely because of that Dharma Wheel," L said quickly through the communicator.
"Oda Nobunaga has an extremely bad history with monks and Buddhism in general. Remember the Tragedy of Mount Hiei?"
"Ah… that massacre…" Kagaya murmured, pale.
"It looks like there's a misunderstanding here."
"Master," Nobu's voice was cold and deadly.
"Answer me. Is it possible… that you have some connection to those damned baldheads?"
"Damned baldheads?" Ritsuka repeated, confused.
"Don't play dumb! Those hypocritical bastards pretending to be holy! The scum who stood in the way of my ambitions!" Nobu snarled, her finger ready on the trigger.
"She means the Buddhist monks from your era!" L shouted through the communicator, desperately trying to save the situation.
Nobu flinched, her weapons shifting to aim at the mass of water.
"Another voice?! Just who are you people?!"
Ritsuka immediately jumped between Nobu and the mass of water, spreading his arms to shield the communicator.
"Wait, Nobu! Lower your weapons! I'll explain everything!" Ritsuka pleaded. He glanced slightly toward the communicator.
"It's okay, right, L? If I tell her?"
"Go ahead," L replied resignedly.
"It seems keeping the existence of this group secret from a Servant bound to you is impossible anyway."
"But Ritsuka, is it really okay? This will take time. You're in a hurry, aren't you?" Kagaya asked anxiously.
Ritsuka realized it.
"Ah… right."
Suddenly, a cheerful childlike voice rang out from the mass of water, cutting through their concern.
"It's fine! Just bring Nobu here! I'll stop time in Ritsuka's world for a while, so you can talk as much as you want without worrying!"
"Huh?!" Koko gaped.
"Y-you can even do something like that?!"
"Of course! As long as the world allows it, I can do anything! Well, I could force it, but I'm a good kid, so I asked the ruler of that world for permission first!" the voice replied casually.
"Are you sure you're not a god?" L asked sarcastically, though fear crept into his tone.
"Hahaha, you're so funny, L!" the voice laughed before disappearing.
Nobu frowned, confused by the absurd conversation, and looked at Ritsuka demanding an explanation.
"Who was that?"
Ritsuka smiled and extended his hand toward Nobu.
"I'll explain it over there. Trust me."
Nobu looked at the offered hand, then glanced at Ritsuka's head. The Dharma Wheel was gone. Her hostile aura slowly faded.
"Very well," Nobu snorted. She dismissed her weapons and took Ritsuka's hand.
A pitch-black void opened beneath their feet.
"You could say… this is the entrance to our secret headquarters," Ritsuka said.
In an instant, the two of them were swallowed by darkness and vanished from Fuyuki.
---
Nobu stood gracefully on a pristine white floor. She scanned the futuristic room, then looked at the four figures seated there.
"Hoh… I see," Nobu murmured after hearing Ritsuka's brief explanation.
"So you're a group of people from other worlds, and this place is a gap between dimensions?"
"Yes, exactly… Udaijin-sama," Kagaya greeted her with deep respect, bowing deeply while using one of Nobunaga's old aristocratic titles.
Hearing that, Nobu's face twisted in displeasure.
"Stop that. There's no need to call me by such stiff titles. Just call me Nobu, like my Master does."
Kagaya froze in confusion, cold sweat running down his temples.
"V-very well… if that is your wish… Nobu-dono."
Nobu nodded in satisfaction, then looked at them one by one with her sharp red eyes.
"So you really are from outside the Root? Not merely from another timeline or alternate history?"
"Timeline? Alternate history? What do you mean by that?" L asked, frowning.
"The technical explanation can wait," Ritsuka cut in quickly.
Suddenly, Koko Hekmatyar walked up to Nobu. Her eyes shone wildly, a wide, familiar grin spreading across her face. She leaned forward aggressively, ignoring the dangerous aura radiating from the Servant.
"Amazing! It's really Oda Nobunaga?! The revolutionary who overturned the Sengoku era with gunpowder and iron!" Koko exclaimed excitedly.
"Hey, hey, tell me! Those historical records are true, right? Your obsession with teppo (firearms), the massacre of the monks—tell me everything! And your campaign to unify Japan too! I'm extremely interested in your stories!
Nice to meet you—my name is Koko Hekmatyar! I'm an arms dealer from another world!"
Nobu stared at the strange woman for a moment. In the next instant, an equally unhinged grin spread across her face.
"WAHAHAHAHA! Interesting… You are a very interesting woman!"
Nobu's laughter echoed throughout the room.
"You have good eyes and a fine smile, Woman of Iron Trade! You can see beyond the morals of ordinary humans! You smell gunpowder as the scent of progress, do you not?"
She spread her arms wide, her cloak fluttering dramatically despite the lack of wind.
"Exactly so! I realized that swords and spears were nothing but outdated toys! I am the one who brought 'equal death' through iron barrels!"
She declared poetically,
"Listen well, soul bound to iron and fire! I am the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven! Oda Nobunaga!"
Nobu lowered her arms and extended her hand toward Koko.
"It seems we could become close friends, woman."
"Hahaha! I never imagined I'd conduct business with a legendary figure from Japan!" Koko replied joyfully, firmly shaking Nobu's hand.
Both of them grinned widely, their smiles resembling those of two demons who had just signed a contract to sell the world.
In the corner of the room, Amane—standing behind Kagaya—trembled violently. She could feel her master gripping the fabric of his trousers so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
"Oyakata-sama… i-is something wrong?" Amane whispered fearfully.
"Amane… never provoke her," Kagaya whispered back, his face deathly pale.
"We are not dealing with an ordinary former ruler of Japan… That aura… she is a true demon. Pure evil, far beyond Muzan."
Kagaya swallowed hard.
"Yes, Oyakata-sama…"
L remained silent as he watched the interaction between Nobu and Koko, but beads of cold sweat were clearly running down his cheeks.
Ritsuka rubbed his forehead as he watched the two weapons maniacs begin discussing bullet calibers.
"Hah… It seems I've just brought together the two people who should never have met," he muttered helplessly.
"The world might actually end if those two work together."