[166] The City Center
Chapter 166: The City Center
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[Present Time]
Wings flapped vigorously at my back as I navigated the expanse above the city, my allies Tsunade, Vivi, Mikita, and Marianne in tow.
Karoo and Robin were not with us, they were resting, and Nami was with their to protect them.
Vivi ran in the sky with Moon Walk, she seemed to have learned it in the last… two years. It still shook me a little to accept it’s been that long. I decided to take her into my arms to preserve her strength.
“Save your strength.”
“Alright…”
She agreed, and I folded her into my embrace to ease her burden.
The silent calmness of our departure point sharply contrasted with our current flight path—a direct course to the city's turbulent heart. We were moving fast. Below us, the green-tinged shadows cast an otherworldly vibe over deserted streets, a silent prelude to the conflict that awaited us.
After minutes of flying, the city's center drew near, and the distant sounds of machines and robots grew increasingly defined.
No, there was a fight going on. Nothing like a serious battle, but more of a dummy test. I frowned.
"...Looks like we're expected," Tsunade quipped, eyeing the area with a mix of anxiousness and anticipation.
Mikita clenched her fists. "I'd rather have us wait this out, but whatever, we're here anyway. Let them come, for one last time," she declared, and honestly, the fierce determination in her voice bolstered even my spirits.
I knew as much as them how dangerous this was. I didn't even have half my chakra, just 40%. It's not little, but I'm surely not in my best condition.
But the city square was right ahead of us, and I wasn't going to back out now.
The central plaza of this underground city was an architectural marvel, a vast expanse that seemed to stretch endlessly beneath a canopy of glowing green light. Its surface was made with gleaming emerald tiles, reflecting the soft luminescence of the city's heart, casting our shadows long and eerie across its breadth.
The massive building below was shaped like a pentagon with a dome above. It was made with ancient yet futuristic designs that soared towards the sky, their facades adorned with intricate carvings that told stories of a civilization lost to time.
In the center of the plaza, a magnificent fountain, now silent and still, stood as a testament to the city's former glory.
The plaza was bathed in a perpetual soft glow, turning the air into a canvas of light and shadow. It wasn't unintentional, the dome's surface was alive with the dance of holographic constellations.
“How unsettling.”
Yet, for all its beauty, the plaza was eerily devoid of life, save for the patrol of robot defenders that emerged to challenge our presence. The lack of any humane sound was quite unsettling, proof of the city's abandonment.
“Let's go.” Tsunade took the lead.
As soon as we descended into the central plaza, a squadron of tall and bulky robot defenders emerged from the shadows, their metallic forms glinting menacingly. These were no mere sentinels; they even looked more advanced than the samurai, if much smaller.
[Uncertified Humans Detected…]
[Enemies Detected.]
[Erasure Protocol has been activated.]
“Well, shit,” I raised my hands in the air, and a dozen thin hands peeked out. In the tip of their thin hands, a dozen miniature ramen rasengans spun. “I'll take them out.”
I waved my hands ahead, and orb-sized rasengans rushed forward.
They flew towards the cores of the robots at a terrible speed. Some dodged, but most failed to, or didn't bother to. The rasengans pierced through, and their bodies blew up in a light of explosion.
None of us celebrated, however.
Their lost numbers were replaced, no, doubled in an instant.
"Here I thought tin cans can't be that hard to take care of," I muttered, assessing the threat.
Tsunade, as our strategist, took command. "If you can't hit the core, then focus on their joints; it's their weakest point. Mikita, and Vivi, flank them from the sides. I'll take the front," she instructed, her confidence unwavering despite the odds.
“Marianne, stick by my side,” I looked at my cousin. “I’ll hide behind you for the most part, you clean the route.”
“Alright,” the girl nodded.
Here, she had the largest chakra reserve after me. In fact, hers might be larger now that it's been two years. She purposefully didn't transform into her tailed beast form since it cost her a lot of energy, and there was a chance she might lose her mind.
But she had enough chakra to act as my shield.
Our assailants, seemingly endless in number, rushed toward us with chilling precision. Vivi, now on the ground and revitalized from her brief respite in my arms, darted between the robots with grace, her MoonWalk technique leaving trails of blurred afterimages in her wake.
"This is for Karoo," she whispered, the strikes of her nunchucks as swift as her resolve.
Mikita, undeterred by the mechanical horde, unleashed a barrage of blows, each punctuated with a snarl. "Stupid robots, you'll have to do better than that to take us down!" she roared.
Then there was Tsunade, using her fists to leave holes in the robots’ chest. She wasn't using her chakra, just pure strength, to tear the metallic fools apart.
I stood behind Marianne, who grew claws of orange aura and tore apart three robots at a time.
Yet, for all our valor and skill, the tide of battle seemed insurmountable. With each robot we dismantled, another promptly took its place, their relentless assault testing the very limits of our endurance.
It made me think. This will be a waste of time if we're unable to advance further.
We weren't even inside the center of the pentagon yet. Our energy will end fast if we keep at this.
It was amidst this relentless onslaught that luck, or perhaps fate, unveiled a glimmer of hope—an unnoticed trapdoor, concealed beneath the detritus of battle.
I noticed it with an odd sixth sense that I didn't recall having before. What's this?
The feeling went away as soon as it came, whatever I was about to tap into failed. But it gave me a glimpse of my surroundings.
"There! A way in," I exclaimed, pointing to the newly discovered avenue. "It could lead to the heart of their command center,” I surmised, my voice catching everyone's attention.
They looked at the ‘door’ I mentioned, but it looked like any other wall. I threw small rasengans at a hidden button, and the wall parted just slightly. The girls blinked and then rushed at it. The robots followed.
Without hesitation, we rallied to the trapdoor, our efforts concentrated on this unexpected boon.
"Cover me; I'll get it open," Tsunade declared, descending toward the slightly parted door. Vivi and Mikita formed a protective perimeter, repelling the robotic assailants with renewed vigor, while Mari and I stood in the rear. We waited for Tsunade, who grabbed the two parts of the door and shouted at the top of her lungs.
"On three!” Tsunade bellowed, and with a heave, she yanked the door wide. It made a loud screeching sound that made the robots skip for a bit.
“Rush in!” I ordered, and everyone went in. When inside, Tsunade began to close the door with her strength again, but I slammed my hand on a button nearby, and the door closed right away.
“Ah.”
“Yeah, work smart.”
We let out a sigh. We were in a hallway with pristine white walls. There were no enemies nearby. Our descent was swift, a calculated risk in the chaos of battle, and it was a good choice.
"Well let's see what's inside then," I murmured, gazing into the shadows ahead.
The girls and I slowly walked inside.
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