My Gang of Swordsmen

Chapter 330 - 133: Aoto vs Man-Slayer Group! Copying the Deceiver Talent! [6800]_2

The girl, awakened by Mukiwa’s loud shout, opened her eyes in a daze.

As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw the Red-faced Brothers and others standing not far in front of her, weapons gleaming in their hands.

The little color on her face drained away in fear. Screaming in terror, she fled in the opposite direction from the Red-faced Brothers.

The shout from Mukiwa, along with the girl’s screams, thoroughly shattered the quietude of the surroundings.

The Hieda residing in the houses on both sides of the street, who were sleeping soundly, were awakened by the sudden noise. They curiously pressed their heads against windows or doors to see what had happened.

Upon seeing Aoto and the Red-faced Brothers confronting each other, and noticing the blades in their hands and at their waists, their expressions changed dramatically, and they quickly withdrew back indoors.

The houses, which had just become a bit noisy, instantly turned extremely quiet again.

No one dared to watch, let alone come out.

Hieda, who suffer intense discrimination and are regarded as less than human, typically have severe "anthropophobia."

When common folk see "two groups of Samurai confronting each other," the more daring might go to see what’s happening.

But rarely do Hieda dare to do such things.

Lives not valued by the world... are indeed so humble.

Regarding Mukiwa’s action of jumping out from behind the house and calling out to the Red-faced Brothers, Aoto showed no reaction—had Mukiwa not moved slightly faster, it would have been him calling out to stop these madmen intent on violence.

Aoto, having moved a bit slower than Mukiwa, was now standing beside her, his right hand resting cautiously on the hilt of the Orange Water Blade.

The Red-faced Brothers, no longer caring about the fleeing girl, frowned deeply, scrutinizing Aoto and Mukiwa with wary eyes.

"Who are you?!" Taichiro, the older brother, asked loudly in a voice as hoarse as iron scraping.

You don’t need to know—Aoto originally intended to reply in a false voice.

However... just as he opened his mouth, Mukiwa had already answered first—

Mukiwa spread out her hands, raising her arms above her head, palms upward, with her right leg lifted high.

"I am the Cat Monk!"

Aoto: "..."

The Red-faced Brothers and their group: "..."

Everyone, whether standing beside Mukiwa or in front of her, stared in silence at Mukiwa, who was standing firmly on one foot.

Mukiwa’s behavior, almost an act of performance art, left the Red-faced Brothers and their group looking bewildered, surprised, puzzled, and at a loss.

But the younger brother, Kojirō, reacted quickly.

He steadied himself swiftly, furrowing his brows: "Cat Monk... oh, oh, you’re that famous Phantom Thief lately..."

Kojirō pursed his lips thoughtfully.

He didn’t question who Aoto, wearing a Black Fox Mask beside Mukiwa, was.

Instead, after glancing at Aoto a few times, he displayed a benign smile that seemed harmless to humans and animals alike.

"Honorable Cat Monk, I’ve long admired your name!"

"I’ve heard of your deeds and have admired you for a long time."

With an impeccably sincere tone, Kojirō offered Mukiwa a few simple compliments before abruptly changing the subject.

"I wonder why you show up in a place like this?"

"Here, there shouldn’t be any notorious evildoers whose wealth is worth your stealing."

Mukiwa ignored Kojirō’s question.

Silently lowering her raised arms and right leg, she glared contemptuously at every person standing opposite her.

It must be said—Mukiwa’s black face scarf was truly useful.

After using it to cover most of her face, Mukiwa showed none of her usual timid and shy demeanor.

With infinite security granted by the scarf, Mukiwa righteously questioned Kojirō and others:

"Recently, this place has frequently seen miserable victims of Street Killing... you guys are the ones who killed them, aren’t you?"

"To think that you Red-faced Brothers, after wreaking havoc in Kansai, have come to Kantou to continue your misdeeds."

Kojirō remained expressionless.

But upon hearing Mukiwa accurately call out his nickname, the formerly benign smile on his face faded quickly.

Proud of catching the Red-faced Brothers red-handed in their attempt to approach the little girl with weapons, Mukiwa called out the frequent Street Killing Incidents here, identified their identities, and made it clear she wasn’t friendly... Kojirō realized it was unnecessary to play dumb any longer.

His brothers, as well as his brother Taichiro, trusted their "brains" considerably, continuing to hold their blades tightly while focusing their attention on Kojirō.

"...Honorable Cat Monk, what we do or intend to do should be none of your concern, right?"

Kojirō said with a sarcastic smirk.

"You’re a thief of people’s wealth, so technically, we’re birds of a feather."

"In the spirit of comrades, let’s each go our separate ways."

"You pretend you didn’t see us tonight, and we’ll leave immediately too."

As soon as Kojirō finished speaking, Mukiwa, whose eyes blazed with even more disgust, shouted loudly: