Cold sweat is all over Danzo as more zombies coming to them from the sides while a lot further behind his skeletons are gradually decimated by the four rare ghouls. Besides the over fifty normal zombies, there are three, no, actually four rare ghouls including a short white haired male ghoul that just makes its appearance and is confronted by Dan. In other words, their advance is effectively stopped while the bigger danger is looming half kilometre from their back.
On the other side, Dan immediately rushes to engage the newly appearing short ghoul. Kurotsuchi is above him in abilities but Dan doesn't want to put her body at risk.
As the zombies are overwhelming the skeletons, groups of that unmentionables has been chasing towards the humans.
"Captain. Thank you for everything." Danzo says loudly that Dan who is busy fighting, understand that is Danzo's declaration of sacrificing himself.
Danzo runs towards the advancing zombies from behind while taking a glance at Kurotsuchi, wishes in hushed voice,
"Please be safe, Ojou-sama."
Danzo is immediately met with a group nearly twenty zombies and he no longer could summon any skeleton.
He takes a pack of oil received from Mirai last night and draws a Sooka mini bomb that ignitable with a scratch of nails. As another group of 8 zombies coming from further behind the previously mentioned group, he takes out another mini bomb.
He runs towards the smaller group while taunting the bigger group until he is sandwiched between the two groups.
The distance between him and each of the group is about the same, one on his left and another on his right side
After putting the two mini bombs on the ground covered by snow, he skillfully breaks the packet of oil into two before swiftly disperses it over each group with each of his hand.
He picks up the bombs, ignites them and throws them to the sides.
"This is a gift from Mirai-chan!" He bellows loud enough to draw the attention of the zombies nearby.
They turn to him and let loose their terrible roars, which are cut short by a violent, fiery explosion, as oil and bombs meet.
Suddenly engulfed, the undead creatures stagger about, flailing wildly, and screaming as they are roasted.
"Another two packets of oil and two small bombs, and one big bomb." He calculate the weapons at his disposal.
He repeats the same bombing tactic twice before being reduced to last resort, sword and daggers.
He purposely shouts to draws the zombies away from chasing his comrades at the front.
He then kills, kills and kills.
Being outnumbered, he gets several bites from the zombies but he keeps his taunting and killing.
"You freaks are coming down with me!" He bellows.
Out of sudden, he feels a brief but extreme pain from his belly.
He looks down. A hand with claws has pierced from his back and comes out from his abdomen.
A white haired ghoul hugs him with its left hand piercing Danzo's stomach while it's right hand holds his shoulder. It is on Danzo's right side.
Danzo slowly takes out a large bomb from the bag on his hip.
Before the ghoul bite him, he ignites the bomb.
Light gradually fills his vision, and for a moment he glimpses the forms of his wife and son amidst the light.
He knows it is an illusion. His son is old enough that he could choose his own path in life. Even so, the son he sees is still very young, and his wife who holds his son still looks very young.
"No, if I don’t say she’s still young now, she’ll probably kill me." He jokingly says his last words.
***
The humans are shocked by an explosion from their behind. As the sand and dirt thrown up by the shockwave of the explosion begin falling back to earth, the dust slowly begins to settle.
The humans aside from ninjas are dumbfounded. But anyone from Sooka hidden village knows its modus operandi of sacrificing themselves by suicide bombing.
Turning to the three girls, Hanabi, Mirai and Kurotsuchi, who have averted their eyes, Genma adds, "You see, girls.... God has no mercy. And neither must we." He then resumes fighting.
Hanabi only gazes slightly at Kurotsuchi while avoiding an attack. Though saddened by Danzo's sacrifice, she thinks better of saying anything on that matter, for she sees in Kurotsuchi's eyes a kind of darkness, a kind of absence, - as if her soul has taken leave, so that compassion and warmth cannot interfere.
Mirai, who has close relationship with Danzo, seems to be absent minded that she is pushed down by two rotten men.
She gets to her sense when her butt hit the ground but it is too late as the rotten faces are already close to her body.
Hanabi thinks she detects the slightest irritation on Kurotsuchi's small face. Hanabi watches as Kurotsuchi slips past several zombies and cut down the two bodies holding Mirai with savage but quick movement. A female zombie come from behind Mirai but Kurotsuchi makes a quick work of beheading it. The is no denying Kurotsuchi's talent as high class fighter.
"If only," Hanabi thinks, "Her demeanor as a lady is as good."
"If you are a ninja, behave like one. Ninja don't die by doing nothing." She scolds the smaller girl, looking down at her from her standing position.
Mirai just slaps her palms on her cheeks to regain her concentration. She quickly rises and confronts a zombie.
Hanabi is glad when both of the girls who she treats like her own sister, regain their usual composure.
"Damn. Not only their hands are hard, they are quick and smart enough to protect their heads." Clementine shouts as she and the other three are in stalemate with the ghouls.
Hiro looks further towards their behind. Remaining zombies are walking towards them while ghouls are finishing remaining skeletons.
His comrades also realize that. While fighting, the humans have their eyes trained on the tree line on the plain, ready for the herd of zombies that would appear at any moment.
The first is a young dead female in a white lace gown, which like her skin, is surprisingly white- almost shockingly so, save for the bright red rubbles, that are her mouth and lace covering her bosom. Sylvia put the creature down with a stab on its face. So violent that this stab that the broken pieces scattered everywhere.
"He looks between the trees for more but the wail of another zombie interrupts her. A male zombie comes behind a tree, its flowing white beard and half eaten face attached to a stout body, which us clad in a blood-crusted blacksmith apron. Sylvia's thrust finds one if its eyes, which is actually unnecessary as she should just cut its neck or face. Selene who is behind her, notices Sylvia's bloodthirsty look and becomes worried.
The stabbed zombie doesn't die and Sylvia pulls her rapier from its eye, and strikes its neck - cutting through the brittle flesh and separating head from its body.
The zombies are followed by a dozen more - each vanquished as quickly as the last.
"Let's figure a way to escape. There's no end to this!" Selene begs towards Hiro and Dan.
Everyone's mind is figuring plan while fighting.
But these plans are belated by a mist unusual noise from beyond the tree line. It is a shrill shrieking, neither human nor animal, yet unlike any other zombie wail they have ever heard.
It grows closer and once again, their hearts are prepared. But when the source of thus strange noise reveals itself, they are horrified.
A long dead female zombie stumbles out of the woods, her modest clothing slightly tattered, her brittle hair pulled back so tightly that it has begins to tear the skin of her forehead. The most repulsed is in her arms, she holds something exceedingly rare, something even Selene has never seen, a zombie infant!
The infant claws at the female's flesh, emitting a most unpleasant series of shrieks. Sylvia nonchalantly raises her rapier but Selene is quick to grab her hand.
"You mustn't." Selene forbids.
"That's zombie." Sylvia's tone is cold but full of anger.
"It's baby, I know the mother for many years." Selene pleads.
"She is dead. And zombie infant is no more alive than this rapier I mean to silence it with." Sylvia ignores the elven girl and just stares sharply at the approaching mother and child.
"Let me go " Sylvia raises her voice as the female dreadful is now merely a meter from them. Sylvia trains her sight on the mother's face, and Selene slowly putting down her hand.
Sylvia needlessly kicks it to the ground before kicking the baby away from its mother. She then inhumanely stabs the mother's body several times while smiling, making the elven girl freaked out.
Before she could scold her, Sylvia cut off its head.
She then grabs Selene's hand and pulls her to infant on the ground.
Sylvia closes her face to Selene's ear that looks like a leaf and whisper,
"It is a zombie that kills people. Step on it, kill it."
As if the deranged girl's voice possesses her, Selene turns daft and step on the baby repeatedly. The demented blond girl beside her just shows a cuckoo smile.
The infant zombie dies. Selene feels the stress she has been accumulating for several years has been unleashed. The cuckoo Sylvia smiles as her wavelength corresponds with Selene's.
Selene look to beyond the trees and is met with such a shock as to make her reaches her sword - for behind her group is fast approaching horde of zombies, no fewer than four hundred in number.
Selene, her composure regained, alerts her party to this horrifying development, although most of them are still busy fighting.
