CHAPTER 89: CHICKEN? [250PS]

Having learned her lesson, she adjusted her playstyle.

This time, Natalie crouched low, darting across the rooftops. Dropping down like a shadow, she drove her blade clean through the first soldier she found. His body crumpled without a sound.

No alarm. No reinforcements.

"Perfect." She smirked. Slipping into the tall grass, she crept forward. Another soldier appeared, back turned. One swift strike, another silent kill.

The thrill of assassination made her grin. "Yes... this is it. No brute force, no reckless charging. A single blade, a single kill... this is the true way to play."

But soon, the path ahead grew more complicated. Some soldiers stood guard on the road, others patrolled a higher slope further away. Worse, there was no grass nearby to hide in.

Taking a step too far, Natalie froze as an exclamation mark popped above a distant soldier’s head, the color rapidly shifting red.

"Crap, I’ve been spotted!" She panicked and retreated at once. "There are enemies everywhere, no cover to hide in! I can’t sneak past like this!"

The chat quickly advised her.

"Climb to higher ground! Get a better view before rushing in!"

"Good idea!" Natalie agreed immediately. With a flick of her wrist, her grappling hook latched onto a nearby cliffside. She soared upward, scaling one ledge after another until she reached the highest hilltop in the area.

"Alright... let’s see what we’re working with-"

She stopped.

Standing right in front of her... was a chicken.

"COCK-A-DOODLE-DOOO!!!"

The rooster crowed.

Natalie’s face froze.

Immediately, red exclamation marks lit up over every soldier in the area. "Enemy sighted!"

"Up there, on the hill!"

"Don’t let her escape!"

The soldiers rushed forward, encircling her position.

Her jaw dropped. "...Wait. Did that chicken just... call for backup?!"

The realization hit, this rooster wasn’t just decoration. It was a living alarm system, trained by Ashina’s soldiers to expose intruders.

Looking down at the soldiers swarming below, Natalie wasn’t nervous. In fact, she chuckled. "Heh, too bad you can’t fly, losers. Without a grappling hook, you’re all just flailing around down there."

She leaned on her sword, smiling smugly. "Look at this pack of cripples, stomping around uselessly, and they think they can catch me?"

The chat went wild.

And then.

"GUGUGUGU!!!"

The rooster spread its wings again...

A rooster’s shrill crow rang out behind her.

The next instant, Natalie felt an icy chill across her back, her health bar plummeted in an instant!

Startled, she spun around. The massive rooster had spread its wings wide, leaping into the air like an eagle. Its talons gleamed coldly under the sunlight as they raked toward her.

Pfft!

One strike, her health was already down to a third.

"Damn! That much damage?!"

"What the hell is with this chicken!"

"One more hit and Natalie’s cooked!"

"This thing’s scarier than those Ashina soldiers!"

Natalie herself was dumbfounded. Who would’ve thought a rooster could attack with such strength? She had assumed it was just some kind of living alarm bell!

Recovering quickly, she drew her blade and slashed. The giant rooster had no defense and instantly lost half its HP.

"Aha! High attack, low defense, that’s its weakness!" Natalie muttered, immediately swinging for another strike.

Bang!

Her body lurched violently, something had slammed into her waist mid swing, staggering her. Her health plummeted further.

Before she could recover, the rooster clawed her again.

Pfft!

Her HP hit zero. She crumpled to the ground.

Two options appeared before her eyes: [Die Here][Resurrect]

Natalie wailed, "What the hell just happened? I just got killed... by a chicken?!"

"Hahaha! I can’t breathe!"

"Natalie, that’s what you get for underestimating the chicken lord!"

"That chicken... what the hell!"

The audience was rolling with laughter while Natalie’s face darkened. To die to a chicken... she’d be roasted online for years!

She gritted her teeth and slammed [Resurrect]. Instantly, her body surged back to life.

"You dare sing and dance in front of me?!"

Her blade lashed out at the rooster the moment she stood.

"Guaaak!" With a final screech, the giant bird collapsed.

Boom!

But before she could celebrate, another heavy blow smashed into her back. Her freshly restored health dropped by a third.

Whipping her head around, Natalie froze. One of the soldiers below wasn’t holding a sword, he had a firearm!

"So that’s how I died before! It wasn’t the chicken hitting me, it was these bastards with guns!"

She nearly collapsed on the spot.

"This... this is gunpowder! Are we not in a cold-weapon era?!"

"Hahaha! Didn’t see that one coming!"

"Ashina’s already entered the age of firearms!"

"Times have changed, my lord!"

The audience was ecstatic, but Natalie felt only despair. This world was already brutal enough, did they really have to throw muskets into the mix?!

Luckily, only one soldier was carrying a firearm. Natalie immediately dropped flat on the ground, crawling out of his line of sight.

Just then, something glimmered on the ground nearby.

"Oh? That’s definitely a loot drop!" Natalie’s eyes lit up. She wanted to rush over, but knowing the gunner was still watching, she stayed prone, crawling on all fours like some gecko toward the glowing object.

The audience lost it.

"Natalie, you’re supposed to be a master level ninja! Why are you crawling like a lizard?!"

"LMAO! You’re supposed to be the Wolf, but you’re playing him like a dog!"

"Earlier you were so cool, now you’re pathetic!"

"The Wolf is weeping, his dignity’s gone!"

"What do you know? Great men don’t fuss over appearances!" Natalie declared shamelessly. In truth, she hated looking like this, but dying to a musket just to look cool? Not happening.

Finally, she reached the glowing object and picked it up. A system prompt appeared.

[Shuriken: A ninja tool forged by a Master. Can be installed in the prosthetic hand and used as a concealed weapon.]

[Note: Ninja tools cannot be used directly. Must be brought to the Sculptor for installation.]

"Ohhh, shuriken! Now that’s what I’m talking about!" Natalie laughed. "What kind of ninja doesn’t carry hidden weapons?"

"Hidden weapons too?!"

"This is the ultimate ninja simulator!"

The chat was full of praise. Natalie, however, was in a tough spot, surrounded on all sides atop this hillside, with nowhere safe to retreat.

"Forget it! This isn’t working, time to fight!" Natalie muttered, then quickly aimed her grappling hook at a crooked tree below and launched it.

Swish!

Like a flash, Natalie soared through the air!

"Whoo! I’m flying, haha! Eat my dust, losers."

Bang!!!

Before she could finish her sentence, a gunshot rang out!

Midair, she took a direct hit. Her body went stiff, lost momentum, and plummeted to the ground.

"Damn it! I can get shot even in the air?!" she shouted, panicking. But instead of crashing, the game kicked in, assisting he in stabilizing her mid descent. She struck a cool pose and landed cleanly.

Still, her HP bar was almost empty. Without hesitation, she pulled out a healing gourd and took a quick swig.

Just as her health recovered a bit, she saw five or six armed soldiers charging at her with blades. One sniper stood in the distance, his rifle already trained on her.

A second later, her screen flashed with bright blood-red letters.

[DEATH]

Respawn initiated.

Natalie reappeared at the Ghost Buddha statue outside town.

"Tsk, how many times has Natalie died now? Even with two lives, she’s still getting wrecked!"

"This game is no joke, getting wrecked by NPCs with chickens and knives..."

"Kuro: My resurrection ability is wasted on Natalie!!"

The viewers erupted in chat. Natalie herself was speechless. The game Tony designed was insanely immersive, but also brutally hard.

"Forget it, no more chatter. I’m heading back to the temple to grab the Lily Sword and reset."

1298 Words.