"Makima-sama!"
Seeing the figure approaching from afar, the two girls who were barely supporting themselves cried out in joy.
Makima, having arrived on the battlefield, gave them a small nod, a reassuring smile on her lips.
"It seems neither of you met with any serious mishap. I'm glad."
Before either side could say more, however, Choso turned his gaze toward Makima, eyes blazing with fury.
"It was you… You dare to hurt my brothers?!"
Blood Manipulation Technique: Convergence • Piercing Blood!
Driven by the desire to avenge his brothers, Choso unleashed the strongest attack he could currently muster without hesitation.
Blood compressed by cursed energy shot forth like an arrow, surpassing the speed of sound as it streaked straight toward Makima.
At the same time, Eso spread his blood wings to their maximum extent, coordinating with his elder brother to launch a simultaneous assault.
Corrosion Technique: Ultimate Art • Wing King!
Countless streams of highly corrosive blood surged toward Makima, sealing off every possible route of evasion.
Yet in the face of such an attack, Makima showed no sign of panic. Several golden chains coiled around her, effortlessly blocking everything.
Whether it was the intensely corrosive blood or the lightning-fast Piercing Blood, all of it appeared astonishingly fragile before the golden chains—shattering the instant they made contact.
"So this is her technique…?"
Seeing that neither his nor his brother's attacks had any effect, Choso's expression darkened visibly.
Not only were those chains incredibly fast and flexible, they also carried a terrifying suppressive force.
Kechizu had lost consciousness after merely a few seconds of contact. One could only imagine how dangerous those golden chains truly were.
"We must be careful. Absolutely do not let those chains touch us!"
"I know, big brother."
Choso and Eso stared grimly at Makima. Moments later, four more golden chains shot toward them.
"Move!"
With prior preparation, the two narrowly avoided the chains' assault. While dodging, Choso counterattacked at the same time.
Blood Manipulation Technique: Slicing Exorcism!
Rapidly spinning blood formed into a whirling blade, flying toward Makima with tremendous cutting power—only to be intercepted midair by a single golden chain under Makima's control.
Then Makima casually raised her hand and gave a slight gesture.
Instantly, even more golden chains burst forth from behind her.
This time, there were sixteen of them.
"Damn it… Is her technique one of those with ridiculously low consumption?!"
Seeing Makima summon sixteen chains without so much as a change in expression, Choso ground his teeth and fled alongside Eso once more.
But this time, with the number of chains multiplied severalfold, although Choso was barely holding on, Eso was caught off guard and tightly bound by several chains.
"Big brother!"
Eso struggled desperately, but he could no longer mobilize even a shred of cursed energy. His body weakened at a terrifying rate.
In the end, he could only let out an unwilling cry before following Kechizu's path, collapsing unconscious.
"Eso!"
Seeing his brother fall just like Kechizu, Choso's face twisted in rage—but his feet did not dare slow for even an instant. If he stopped, he would be bound by more than a dozen chains immediately.
"To hurt my brothers like this… you monster… unforgivable!"
Placing one hand on his body, Choso accelerated the circulation of his blood through his technique, temporarily boosting his physical abilities severalfold.
Crimson Scale: Stack!
With his overdriven body, Choso's speed surged dramatically. Using this burst, he finally broke free from the chains' pursuit and charged toward Makima at extreme speed.
"At this speed, her chains can't catch up to me in the short term. If I can just get close, I still have a chance!"
The technique in his hands was already primed. As long as he could close the distance, he could unleash Piercing Blood at point-blank range.
No matter how strong she was, at this distance she wouldn't be able to react in time!
"Makima-sama, watch out!"
Choso's intent was so obvious that even Miwa Kasumi and Nishimiya Momo, watching from afar, sensed the danger.
Though they didn't understand why a curse could use the signature technique of the Kamo clan—one of the Three Great Families—remembering how their classmate Kamo Noritoshi fought made Choso's plan immediately clear to them.
But at this distance—
"It's already too late! Die, you damn woman!"
Choso brought his hands together. Blood compressed to the absolute limit burst forth, slipping through the gaps between the chains and reaching Makima in the blink of an eye.
Yet Makima's gaze did not waver in the slightest.
After all, while Piercing Blood had a high appearance rate in the original story, it was much like some other series' "grand fireball"—impressive-looking, yet rarely decisive.
Its one true highlight was during its debut, when used by Kamo Noritoshi to barely graze Hanami's surface and inflict minor damage.
An attack like that could be blocked by Makima with nothing more than her body and cursed energy defenses.
Still, her body ultimately belonged to her master. Considering he still needed to use it, getting injured would be inconvenient.
Thus, as she watched the attack approach, Makima spoke softly.
"Listen to me. Stop."
Her gentle voice echoed in the air—yet it carried boundless chill.
In an instant, an irresistible force swept over Choso's body. To his horror, he realized he could no longer control himself at all. The technique he was channeling was forcibly cut off.
As for the remaining attack, Makima merely tilted her head slightly and let it pass by.
What was happening? Why couldn't he control his body? Move—move already! He had to defeat her, take his brothers, and leave this place!
But no matter how desperately his remaining consciousness struggled, his body remained frozen in place. He could only watch as the woman approached calmly, golden chains wrapping tightly around him one by one.
Clink… clank… clink…
The sound of chains scraping echoed.
So this is what Eso and Kechizu felt…
Bound by all sixteen golden chains, Choso barely managed to form a single thought before his consciousness went dark.
Thud.
As the chains dispersed, Choso's body fell heavily to the ground.
Without a word, Makima activated her domination over the three Special Grade curses lying there.
Their abilities were nothing special—but at the very least, their strength was decent.
They would be able to help her contribute even more… for her master.
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