In the Sand Village, the clones are everywhere, and the Arkham game begins

Chapter 444 Abdominal Cutting
Shimizu is quite curious about how the weirdo was formed.

Sometimes, an ordinary person can suddenly become a monster with great power due to unexpected events and life's influences.

If we could master the method of creating monsters, wouldn't that allow us to mass-produce biological weapons?

The people of this world haven't figured it out, but maybe we can figure it out using technology from other worlds?

"Generally speaking, the association will send people to clean up the battlefield after the battle and buy back the monsters' corpses at high prices. Wolf-level monsters are basically worth more than 500,000 yen, Tiger-level monsters are worth at least several million yen, and Demon-level monsters are said to be worth tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of yen. If they are captured alive, the price can be even higher."

Rai Genji removed his mask, revealing a young, baby-faced man, and laughed heartily.

"I see. Then it seems we can try to capture the monster alive next time."

Shimizu sheathed the now-cooled metal longsword and looked at the corpse on the ground.

"You even dared to capture a Tiger-level monster alive? Impressive, newbie. How about we team up for a mission next time? We can split the reward and loot 50/50."

Rai Genji chuckled and patted Shimizu on the shoulder.

He might invite other B-rank heroes to team up, but he would never suggest splitting the loot 50/50.

He believed that Shimizu would eventually become an A-class hero, so he was willing to treat him as an equal.

"Oh, want to team up? Sure, but I have something to do tomorrow, so let's schedule another time."

Shimizu nodded slightly to Rai Genji.

With an experienced player guiding me, I should be able to get familiar with the process faster and also be able to take on some missions that only A-rank heroes are qualified to take on.

Once you reach rank A, you can take on missions independently, which will be more efficient.

"Okay, let's team up and we'll definitely dominate. Here, what's your guild hero number? Let's add each other as friends and arrange a time later."

Rai Genji, acting all familiar, put his arm around Shimizu's shoulder, like two buddies, and took out his phone to add Shimizu as a friend.

Just then, the pineapple-headed warrior finished bandaging the mourning overalls, carried them over, and thanked Shimizu.

Not far away, the other heroes who had been notified to come here to provide assistance also arrived late.

"Phew, I've finally arrived. Eh? Shimizu-senpai, you're here too. Has the monster been defeated?"

Lily held the three-section staff in one hand, took a couple of shallow breaths, and looked around curiously.

"It's a pity. If I could have made it in time, I might have been able to earn some credit and wouldn't have had to patrol this week."

Kawada also walked over from the other side, carrying a scalpel, and looked at the corpse of the rampaging deliveryman on the ground with regret.

"Mr. Rai Genji, Mr. Shimizu, and everyone else, now that the monster has been dealt with, I shall take my leave. I need to go home and maintain my armor."

A hero clad in metal armor and wearing a horned helmet spoke.

This is Wild Horn, ranked 9th in Class B, currently sitting on a motorcycle that is about to be crushed.

Wild Horn has decent strength and defense, but its movement speed is too slow, so it was the last to arrive.

Of course, there are other heroes in City D, but only a few can arrive here in such a short time.

One A-class hero, two or three B-class heroes, and several C-class heroes—this lineup is actually enough to handle most disasters. If a Demon-level monster appears, it can also buy them a little time until an S-class hero arrives to deal with it.

As for Dragon-level monsters, let alone A-class monsters, even the weaker S-class monsters might not be able to handle them.

Soon, the association's logistics personnel arrived at the scene and, based on data such as the strength, size, and muscle strength of this tiger-level monster, began to settle the purchase price on the spot.

Even among Tiger-level monsters, the rampaging deliveryman is considered a top-tier existence, and the association offered 860 million yen for him.

The price of a dead Tiger-level monster is equivalent to the income that the original owner would have saved up over three or four years of hard work and overtime.

This is already quite good. The original owner's profession was a high-income technical job, and the income in three or four years was already a lot. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to save enough money to lie down and do nothing after working for more than ten years.

Since the Pineapple Head Warrior and the Mourning Overalls also played a role in blocking monsters in the early stages, 10% of the 8.6 million yen went to the Mourning Overalls and 20% to the Pineapple Head Warrior. In addition, the association would reimburse the combat heroes for medical expenses and equipment wear and tear during the war, so the two of them would also make a profit.

The remaining bulk of the money is naturally from Shimizu, amounting to a little over six million yen.

It seems that if one or two more Tiger-level monsters were to appear, they should be able to complete the half-finished Black Warrior and upgrade him.

By then, they should have the strength to contend with Demon-level monsters, and advancing to S-class shouldn't be a problem.

After the rampaging deliveryman was sent away, Shimizu exchanged a few more words with Rai Genji and a few other heroes, added them as friends on the association's official app, and then left. He returned home, disguised himself using a ninja's disguise technique, and headed to a brothel for a bubble bath.

I didn't get enough fun this afternoon, and it's not good to hold back my anger.

However, now that he is a public figure, it would be inappropriate for him to appear in such places directly. He should change his attire and appearance so that people cannot recognize him.

Shortly after Shimizu, Rai Genji, and the others left, the alarm on the radio was officially lifted.

An elderly man with sharp features and long white hair, carrying a sword, arrived at the battlefield surrounded by several young people.

"The weirdo has been dealt with? What a pity. If the teacher could have dealt with such a strong weirdo, it would have greatly helped to improve the reputation of our kendo dojo."

A bespectacled man in a kendo uniform, holding a camera, said with a regretful expression.

He was already prepared to record the video.

"The association acted very quickly this time. They took down a Tiger-level monster in such a short time. Did an S-class monster make a move?"

A girl with a high ponytail looked at the signs of battle all over the ground and asked curiously.

A tall, burly man with stubble next to him shook his head.

"Not necessarily. If it's one of the top-ranked A-class monsters, like Atomic Samurai's three disciples, or Hellfire, who is ranked number one in B-class, they should all have the ability to kill a Tiger-level monster in a short time."

“Master, look here! These marks are clearly made with an extremely sharp weapon. But generally speaking, a normal swordsman couldn’t possibly make such a large cut with a single strike. Only a master of this art could do it. And there too. In my opinion, the hero who killed the monster must also be a master swordsman with a very high level of skill!”

A middle-aged man stood by the wall, pointing to several sword marks on a distant building, which had been slashed by Qing Shui with his sword energy.

His straight white eyebrows twitched, and a curious look appeared on his blooper-covered face. In a flash, he stood on a flat, collapsed wall and touched the marks on it.

He turned his head again, surveying the entire battlefield. Using his extensive experience, he simulated and recreated part of the battle's sequence of events. Finally, glancing at the bloodstains splattered on the ground where the rampaging deliveryman had fallen, he made his judgment: the monster ultimately died from the hero's decapitating strike, and died swiftly.

He was also very skilled at using the draw-and-slash technique, decapitating his enemies with lightning speed.

"It's hard to say exactly how good that hero's swordsmanship is, after all, he's just a Tiger-level monster, so there's limited information we can glean, but he should at least be no worse than Kamikaze's three disciples."

He flashed back to his original position and spoke calmly.

Kamikaze is Atomic Samurai's real name, and he and Fukukiri are both members of the Sword Saint Association.

"At the level of Iai Tsuyoshi? I didn't know when such a swordsmanship master appeared in D City. What should we do with this newly emerged master? Will he...?"

The bearded man looked slightly doubtful and asked the man with the stubble.

"He's already become a professional hero in the Hero Association, just like Kamikaze and Bang. We don't have to worry about him coming to steal our kendo dojo's business. It's a pity. If any of you could become successful, like Kamikaze and Hinowa's apprentices, and have the ability to achieve an A-rank hero in the Hero Association, I wonder how much advertising money the kendo dojo could save."

Fukukiri shook his head regretfully and turned to leave.

He was getting old, and it was difficult for him to make any further progress in either swordsmanship or physical fitness. Although he still had the will to improve, he was helpless and could only watch as Atomic Samurai, who was twenty years younger than him, surpassed him and left him far behind.

Aside from Nichirin and Kamikaze, Tensei and Remnant Plum were in similar situations to him in the Sword Saint Association. However, the juniors they trained were all more outstanding than the disciples trained by Fukiri, and they had already become accomplished. Perhaps in a few more years, they would surpass him, their senior.

That's a bit of a blow.

Fukiri was naturally unconvinced, but he also knew what kind of disciple he had trained, so he simply started to slack off, using his own strength and fame to make money and enjoy life.

He opened his doors wide and operated the kendo dojo commercially. Anyone who was willing to pay could learn. The more money you paid, the more real skills he would teach you during his seppuku. Over the years, he has naturally made a lot of money.

But he still craved more wealth, greater fame, and a higher level of enjoyment.

Because his strength could no longer be improved, he had no choice but to shift his pursuit from swordsmanship to other areas.

However, Fukiri never expected that the swordsman who had intrigued him would actually visit his swordsmanship school the very next afternoon.

"Are you sure it's the same association hero who killed the monster yesterday?"

He knelt on the futon with his legs cut off, smelling the aroma of the tea brewed from the expensive tea leaves, and asked the disciple at the door.

"It should be. This morning's newspapers and TV news both reported on this newly promoted B-rank hero, and the association also released some footage of the battle as promotional material."

The bespectacled man replied to the seppuku from the doorway.

"Only B-level?"

"He was previously ranked 10th in B-rank, and now he is ranked 4th in B-rank. This may be because his current record is temporarily lower than the top two, but with his strength, he may be promoted to A-rank in a few days."

"That's what the man with glasses said."

Because the top spot in Rank B is occupied by Fubuki, who possesses strength comparable to that of a top-tier Rank A, the association generally considers the second-ranked Rank B to be the first-ranked Rank B.

The current B-class second place is the eyelashes of the Fubuki group, and the third place is also from the Fubuki group, called Mountain Monkey.

However, the association is well aware that while Eyelashes and Mountain Ape are quite strong in the B-rank, they are not yet up to the A-rank standard. They only have enough achievements to rank among the top in the B-rank because they follow the powerful Fubuki.

Therefore, the association's current assessment of A-class monsters is relatively easy. One is that they must surpass Eyelash and Mountain Ape in terms of hard combat record—the monsters they have defeated must be stronger than the strongest one in Eyelash and Mountain Ape's combat record.

Alternatively, one could be strong enough to withstand the forced recruitment by Fubuki herself and the Fubuki Group. If either of these conditions is met, one can almost certainly be promoted to Rank A.

Fubuki possesses combat strength ranking among the top A-rank, and the ability to protect oneself under her command is sufficient proof that she has the potential to reach A-rank status.

"Senpai, I'm Shimizu. It's nice to meet you."

Shimizu, wearing a black casual outfit and a polite smile, extended his hand to Fukukiri.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Black Whirlwind Warrior.”

Fukiri nodded slightly and shook hands with Shimizu.

Shimizu's expression remained unchanged, but he couldn't help but want to complain inside.

Who the hell gave him such a heroic name?

Isn't this just running into Li Kui, the Black Whirlwind?
This is completely different from my art style!
"May I ask what business you have at my kendo dojo, Lord Black Whirlwind Warrior?"

Fukiri scrutinized the waterway, wondering if there was anything he could do to take advantage of the other party.

A sure thing, guaranteed to become a top-tier A-level professional hero. If played well, he can become a living advertisement.

"You don't have to call me by my hero name, Abakiri-senpai. Just call me by my real name. I'm here to exchange sword techniques."

"Exchange swordsmanship?"

I was a little disappointed with the seppuku procedure.

It turns out they didn't come here to become students and apprentices.

"Yes, this is a divine weapon that I spent a lot of money to create using ancient methods combined with modern technology. It is not only incredibly sturdy and can cut through iron like mud, but it can also enhance killing intent and create illusions for the enemy."

Shimizu took out a long sword with an intimidating appearance from a box he carried with him and handed it, scabbard and all, to Fukukiri.

He had already found out that everything at the seppuku swordplay school was about making money.

However, he didn't have enough money for himself, so naturally he wouldn't give money to the seppuku.

Fortunately, there are other options.

For example, this magical longsword was forged by Qing Shui using divine craftsmanship and expedited processing.

Although the weapon's level isn't very high, its strength lies in the excellent materials. It's made of a high-performance alloy steel that's a specialty of the One-Punch Man world, making it sturdy and extremely tough.

After being transformed into a magical artifact, it is already a masterpiece in terms of sharpness and toughness. In addition, with the special ability of using killing intent to cause mental interference to the enemy, which was deliberately added by Shimizu, it is fully worthy of the name of a divine weapon.

(End of this chapter)