Akame ga Kill: Starting with Dual Kamui

From Najenda's perspective, this was a terrifying situation.

The Night Raid base was equipped with various detection systems designed to sense approaching enemies, allowing them to identify intruders in advance.

As soon as Blayn and Esdeath entered the perimeter, Najenda tensed up.

“Esdeath is here!”

Without hesitation, she gathered everyone in the base. “Blayn, Kurome, and Chelsea are with her, but this is Esdeath we’re talking about—we can’t afford to be careless.”

Akame and Mine were still on their way back, so the only ones present were Najenda, Leone, Bulat, Lubbock, and Sheele.

The moment they heard Esdeath had arrived, everyone’s expressions grew solemn.

“Could Blayn and the others have been captured? Maybe Esdeath forced them to guide her here—otherwise, why would she be with them?” Lubbock speculated.

“Chelsea isn’t the type to go along with something like that… Regardless, we should prepare for a fight,” Najenda said.

She had a bad feeling about this. With Akame and Mine absent, their chances of winning a battle against Esdeath were slim even if they all fought together.

Her original plan had always relied on Akame as the key to countering Esdeath. On top of that, they would need at least ten Teigu Users and fifty thousand elite soldiers to stand a real chance.

Given the circumstances, the most rational course of action would be to abandon the base entirely and avoid a direct confrontation.

Otherwise, not only would they have little hope of defeating Esdeath, but the losses would be devastating.

But Chelsea was still out there, and Najenda wasn’t about to leave one of her comrades behind.

And then there was Blayn and Kurome…

“It’s probably not the best thing to say right now, but… Blayn wouldn’t betray us, right?” Leone suddenly asked.

Najenda fell silent for a moment before responding.

“…I don’t think so. If he had, Chelsea wouldn’t still be with them.”

Still, she couldn’t completely rule out the possibility.

“How about this—I’ll hold Esdeath off while you guys find a way to get Chelsea and the others out of here,” Bulat suggested, leaning against the table with his arms crossed.

“No way. I’m not abandoning my comrades,” Lubbock said firmly, shaking his head.

“Then let’s see what happens,” Leone said, cracking her knuckles. “The boss always says Esdeath is strong, but I haven’t had the chance to see it for myself.”

“I’ll go check out the situation first.”

Without hesitation, Leone strode toward the exit, fearless.

If Esdeath had come to attack, there was no avoiding a fight. They might as well meet her head-on with confidence.

Najenda and the others followed closely behind.

…

Outside the base, Najenda and the others could see Esdeath and her group approaching from a distance.

“Why do I get the feeling that Esdeath isn’t here to attack us?” Leone muttered, finding the situation a bit strange.

She carefully observed the expressions and body language of Esdeath, Blayn, Kurome, and Chelsea. Something felt off.

“Stay on guard,” Najenda warned, refusing to let her vigilance drop.

Meanwhile, Esdeath, Blayn, and the others had also spotted Night Raid.

If Chelsea had simply waved at Najenda and the others, she could have cleared up some of the misunderstanding right away.

But the problem was… with her mischievous nature, she loved playing pranks.

“They came out to greet us directly? No… judging by their tense expressions, they probably think you’re here to start a fight,” Blayn remarked to Esdeath.

Esdeath smiled playfully. “Stay quiet for a bit. I’d like to have a nice little chat with Najenda.”

“Fine, just don’t take it too far,” Blayn replied, easily guessing that Esdeath intended to mess with Najenda a little.

As they got closer, Esdeath came to a stop.

With the air of an old friend reuniting, she said, “It’s been a while, Najenda.”

“Esdeath…”

Najenda’s expression was cold, and her tone was heavy with hostility.

Her gaze was filled with both animosity and hatred—it was Esdeath, after all, who had taken her right hand and right eye.

From Najenda’s perspective, the way Esdeath was smiling now was no different from when she was toying with her enemies before killing them.

It really did look like she had come here to attack them.

Chelsea, on the other hand, appeared completely at ease, even wearing a faint smile. She certainly didn’t look like someone who had been captured by Esdeath.

But since Chelsea wasn’t saying anything, it was easy to misinterpret the situation.

“Go on, take a guess. What do you think I’m here for?” Esdeath teased.

“Is there anything else you even know how to do besides killing?” Najenda shot back coldly.

“Blayn, Chelsea, what the hell is going on with you two?”

Leone couldn’t hold back any longer and turned to Blayn and Chelsea. “Did Esdeath really capture you? Or does she have something on you?”

Before Blayn or Chelsea could answer, Esdeath spoke first.

“Who says I can’t be here to help you?”

“If you’re looking for a fight, then—”

Najenda started to respond instinctively, but halfway through, she suddenly processed what Esdeath had actually said.

Her expression changed to one of utter shock.

“What did you just say?! You’re here to help us?”

Not just Najenda—Leone, Sheele, and the others were equally stunned.

They could hardly believe it.

Esdeath… joining them?

This was supposed to be their greatest enemy!

Esdeath took a step forward, closing the distance between herself and Najenda.

Najenda unconsciously stepped back half a pace.

The last time they had fought, Esdeath had completely overwhelmed her. Even now, some part of her still carried the psychological scars from that encounter.

“I don’t make jokes,” Esdeath said firmly. “But let’s be clear—only Blayn has the right to give me orders. No one else. That includes you.”

Najenda had worked alongside Esdeath before and knew she was never one to lie.

But for her to suddenly claim to be their ally? That was incomprehensible.

By all logic, Esdeath was the least likely person to ever side with the Revolutionary Army.

But then, Esdeath had just mentioned Blayn…

Najenda’s eyes immediately turned to him, filled with disbelief.

“Blayn… what the hell is going on here?”

Esdeath answered for him before he could speak.

“I fought Blayn in a duel and lost. So now, I follow his orders. Do you understand now, naïve Najenda?”

She even made sure to mock Najenda at the end.

Najenda’s lips twitched slightly.

“…Whether you’re really our ally or not, I can already tell I still won’t get along with you.”

“Wait, are you serious?! Blayn actually beat Esdeath?” Lubbock exclaimed in shock.

“That’s right. And in a one-on-one duel. I was utterly defeated,” Esdeath admitted without any shame—if anything, she almost sounded like she was bragging.

In fact, she even seemed a little happy about it.

After all, Blayn was her man. His strength was something to be proud of.

Blayn, however, felt the need to correct her.

“You’re exaggerating. It wasn’t exactly a flawless victory.”

Technically, it had been a decisive win, but Esdeath’s trump card—Mahapadma—had nearly turned the tide at the last moment.

Fortunately, Mahapadma only created relative freezing, not absolute freezing. If it had been the latter, things might have ended very differently.

Of course, that was just a hypothetical. An ability as absurd as absolute freezing probably wouldn’t even exist.

Either way, from a strict standpoint, Blayn didn’t consider it a complete victory over Esdeath.

“However, you weren’t using your full strength back then, were you?”

Esdeath suddenly asked.

“...”

Blayn was momentarily surprised. Did Esdeath actually think he had been holding back?

“No, I had already used everything I had at the time,” he denied.

And he wasn’t lying. During that fight, he had pushed himself to the limit, utilizing the second form of Susanoo and enchanting his weapons with the power of Kamui. That was practically the peak of his capabilities at that moment.

Of course, that was for now. With time and more system points, his stats would only continue to improve, and his strength would grow even further.

“Alright, let’s get back on track,” Blayn said, shifting the conversation back to the main topic. He turned to Najenda and the others. “As Esdeath just mentioned, she’s no longer part of Prime Minister Honest’s faction.”

Najenda and the others were still in shock. The idea that Blayn had actually defeated Esdeath was almost unbelievable.

If Esdeath hadn’t said it herself, they would have thought Blayn was bluffing.

After all, the Revolutionary Army had been preparing for years to build up enough strength to challenge Esdeath, and even now, they weren’t confident in their chances.

Yet Blayn had taken her down in a one-on-one fight—something they had always believed was impossible.

“So… Esdeath is going to fight alongside us to overthrow Honest?” Najenda asked, still finding it hard to believe.

“Yes. She’s no longer a general of the Empire,” Blayn confirmed with a nod.

“In that case… doesn’t this mean we practically can’t lose?” Leone said excitedly.

Previously, the Revolutionary Army’s biggest concerns about the Empire’s military were divided as follows—50% of their fear was because of Esdeath, 40% because of General Budo, and the remaining 10% was spread across everyone else.

Now, not only was Esdeath no longer an enemy, but she had also become their ally.

Victory was all but assured.

At that moment, Najenda, Leone, and the others suddenly recalled that Blayn had once told them he would deal with Esdeath by himself.

Back then, most of them had dismissed it as overconfident boasting.

Yet here they were...

“Maybe,” Blayn said. “But I actually came here for another important matter.”

His expression grew more serious.

“With Esdeath on our side, I have full confidence in winning. But once Honest falls… you haven’t forgotten the differences in our ideals, have you?”

Najenda nodded. “Yes, I remember. You don’t want to overthrow the Empire—you want to change it from within.”

As soon as she recalled this issue, she immediately understood its significance.

If things weren’t handled properly, the Revolutionary Army and Blayn’s Akatsuki could end up as enemies.

After witnessing Esdeath’s defection, Najenda had no choice but to reevaluate the strength of Akatsuki.

Not only was Blayn far stronger than she had originally thought, but now he had Esdeath as well.

The Revolutionary Army had already struggled with one Esdeath.

If Blayn—who had defeated her—became their enemy too, the consequences would be disastrous.

That was why Najenda took this matter extremely seriously.

It was clear that Blayn using Esdeath as leverage had been a smart move—otherwise, Najenda wouldn’t be treating this negotiation with such caution.

“How should I put this…” Najenda said thoughtfully. “We always believed that reforming the Empire from within was unrealistic. The officials in the Conscience Faction have never had the power to resist Honest’s tyranny.”

She paused before continuing in a more serious tone.

“But… if it’s you, I think it could work. After all, you’re strong enough.”

She took a deep breath.

“I can’t speak for the entire Revolutionary Army, but personally, I’m not completely set on the idea that the Empire must be overthrown.”

At this moment, Najenda embodied the phrase “cautious diplomacy” to perfection.

Esdeath’s unexpected shift had forced her to tread carefully.

...

Just then, a Danger Beast appeared in the sky.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.

While circling at low altitude, two figures leapt off its back.

“Perfect timing—Akame and Mine are back,” Chelsea said, recognizing them instantly.

“What’s going on here?”

Mine had just spoken when her gaze suddenly landed on Esdeath standing beside Blayn.

Even though she had never met Esdeath in person before, she had seen plenty of wanted posters and reports about her.

She recognized her instantly.

“Wait a second—that’s Esdeath?!”

Mine’s expression tensed up immediately.

“But… she doesn’t seem hostile,” Akame said, her crimson eyes locking onto Esdeath with a wary expression.

Najenda quickly explained everything that had just happened.

“I see…”

After hearing the full story, Mine looked at Blayn in astonishment.

“You actually defeated Esdeath…” she muttered.

She let out a breath before admitting, “I have to say, I seriously underestimated you before.”

Mine was willing to acknowledge her mistake.

Blayn simply shrugged. “It’s in the past. No big deal.”

“For now, let’s focus on what happens after we take down Honest,” Najenda said, bringing the conversation back to the main issue.

“I can go to the Revolutionary Army’s headquarters and try to convince the others, but I can’t guarantee how many will listen.”

“I have a plan for that,” Blayn said, using the opportunity to explain the strategy he had come up with.