The "ball" that suddenly flew out not only shocked Kingo Sakai and others, but also made Qingto stunned.

After the white smoke rose from the "ball", the confusion on Qingden's face instantly turned into shock.

——Smoke bomb!

Nowadays, in the mid-19th century when muskets and artillery dominate the seven continents and steam battleships roam the five oceans, it is not unusual for smoke bombs and other special weapons to appear.

I don’t know if the white smoke is tear-inducing, poisonous, or has some other effect. No matter what, you must be careful.

"You two! Watch out for the smoke! Stay back! Get out of here!"

While Aoto retreated violently, he held his breath, narrowed his eyes, and shouted a warning to Sanako and Souji behind him.

Qingdeng was far away from the smoke bomb's impact point, so he was lucky enough to avoid the most dangerous area.

On the contrary, Sakai Kingo and others who were closest to the smoke bomb were in dire straits.

"Ahhhhhhhh!"

"My eyes! Ooooooooooo!"

"Be careful! Don't let the smoke get into your eyes!"

…

In the thick smoke that filled everywhere, coughs and screams could be heard one after another.

Judging from the screams of Sakai Jingo and others, the white smoke should be non-toxic, but it is very irritating to people's eyes.

——There is a third party present...!

A look of solemnity swept across Qingdeng's eyebrows.

It is still unclear whether this "other force" that suddenly appeared is an enemy or a friend, so we must be cautious.

In such a situation where there is thick smoke, it is difficult to use your eyes.

Fortunately, after receiving special training from the new Yutingban and with the blessing of a certain talent, vision is no longer the sense Qingden is best at using.

He immediately closed his eyes and used his ears to identify the current situation.

"Sacred Brain +9", "Perceiver of Wind" activates!

These two talents are a perfect match.

The former enhances the brain's fatigue resistance, allowing the brain to process more information. With its cooperation, the latter's talent effect is significantly enhanced.

Although the hearing has not changed much, the ability to analyze the "sounds heard" has improved a lot.

All kinds of sounds flooded into Qingdeng's ears like a flood.

In the midst of this chaos, Qingdeng heard three unfamiliar hurried footsteps.

The owner of these three footsteps plunged into the white mist and ran straight towards Nishino and Phoenix House Yataro...

…

…

After about half a minute, the smoke finally dissipated.

"Cough! Cough! Cough! Cough!"

Sakai Kingo wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and slowly opened his bloodshot eyes.

Although my eyes are still very sore, I can barely see.

After his vision recovered, Kingo Sakai immediately scanned the scene to inspect the scene.

There was no one left behind, which made him feel a little relieved.

But after a while, his face became serious again.

"Where are Nishino Hoseijiro and Phoenix House Yataro?! Where are the three thieves wearing bamboo hats?!"

The vassal soldiers who had recovered their eyesight at this time were startled when they heard this, and then they looked up.

The white smoke that has not yet dissipated, the dilapidated formation, and fallen comrades on the ground... Qingdeng and others are nowhere to be seen.

Aoto, Sanako and Souji are missing... Nishino and Phoenix House Yataro are also missing...

"hateful……!"

Sakai Kingo gritted his teeth.

"Did you let them escape..."

As soon as this statement came out, everyone at the scene couldn't help but criticize.

Sakai Kingo said this as if they were almost able to subdue Ayoto and others, but accidentally let them escape.

However, judging from the actual battle situation, it is more likely that Qingdeng and others let them go...

In fact, Sakai Kingo thought so too.

He himself knows that his remarks just now are a bit flattering.

Aoto and others left, and the battle that was unilaterally defeated by Aoto was over... Faced with this situation, Sakai Kingo felt a little bit lucky while not being resigned to it.

In order to save his face, he pretended to say, "What a pity! We couldn't catch those thieves!" and stopped investigating the whereabouts of Qingdeng and others. Instead, he ordered his subordinates who could still move to quickly arrest them.

Pick up the injured and send them to heal.

While everyone at the scene was busy cleaning up the aftermath, there was one person who stood there stupidly, motionless.

At the moment of Bosui's eyes... no, it should be said that from the moment "Nishino picked up the sword again", he showed an extremely complicated expression. His eyes were straight, as if he was in a daze, but also as if he was thinking about something.

.

After a while, he raised his head, looked at the night sky above his head, and let out a long sigh.

"Nishino-kun...you are definitely not made to be a samurai..."

…

…

Edo, a deserted river beach——

"Huh...huh...huh...this dead fat pig...! It's so damn heavy!"

Akutsu threw Phoenix House Yataro off his back angrily. He completely ignored the other person's feelings, and his movements were as rough as throwing away garbage.

Phoenix House Yataro's fat body hit the ground heavily, making a dull sound like a rice bag falling to the ground.

Ebina turned to Ichinose beside him and asked:

"Ichinose, how is Nishino-kun's situation?"

Ichinose replied with a serious expression:

"It's very bad, abdominal injuries, lacerations, massive bleeding... To be honest, it's a miracle that Nishino-kun can survive until now."

"Can it be cured?"

Ebina asked.

"..."

Ichinose was silent...

His silence was equivalent to answering Ebina's question.

Ebina pursed her lips and then sighed:

"Ichinose, do your best..."

"Yeah...I will."

After that, Ichinose laid Nishino flat on the ground, and then took out linen cloth and several medicine bottles from his pocket.

"It's...you guys..."

Nishino struggled to open his eyes.

Opening your eyes - this is a simple action for ordinary people.

But Nishino at the moment couldn't even perform such a simple action...

He reluctantly opened his eyes halfway.

The trembling eyelids seemed ready to fall at any moment.

As of now, Nishino was quite energetic.

Until he saw Ebina and others arriving, his heart relaxed... In an instant, unprecedented fatigue and sleepiness surged through his body.

Ebina knelt down and gave Nishino a wry, apologetic smile.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. The guards in the Phoenix House are much more difficult to deal with than we thought."

"You... have found my grandson..."

Nishino moved his eyes and looked at my grandson's body on Ebina's back.
To be continued...