Sword Art Online Crossover: They're all close friends, how did I become a player?

"Kitsune no Suke, is this machine even working properly? It's been so long, why hasn't it found the lord's location yet?"

Inside the citadel, a group of anxious spirits huddled together, their eyes all focused on Kitsunenosuke, who was clumsily operating a black, seemingly high-tech machine with its tiny paws.

"Of course, this was specially obtained by the Saniwa from the Time Government. It is said to be able to locate the Saniwa's position more quickly and accurately."

While operating the buttons on the machine with his two little paws, Kitsune-no-suke said defiantly.

The lord hasn't returned very late today, and the swords in the citadel are starting to worry.

You should know that the Saniwa (master) would not be late returning by midnight; even if they were a little late, they would send them a message.

Until the early hours of this morning, there was still no movement from the Saniwa, which made the Tsukumogami, who knew that the Saniwa had a transmigrated physique, anxious.

Has the lord traveled through time again?

Just as they were thinking this, the lord summoned Imaizumi, and soon after, Kitsunenosuke saw in the sword register that Imaizumi had polarized.

After asking through telepathy, I learned that my lord had actually fallen into hell through a hole, where he happened to meet the former master of the present sword: Minamoto no Yoshitsune.

The message said that the lord and Jin Jian were about to return, and it was expected to take less than 20 minutes.

However, those "twenty minutes" felt like an endless wait. Night faded, dawn broke, but the Saniwa and Imaizumi still hadn't returned. An ominous premonition hung over everyone's hearts like a dark cloud.

After Kitsune-no-suke took out a new instrument they had never seen before and began to test them, sure enough, their lord had time-traveled yet again!

Fortunately, the timeline our lord traveled to this time was relatively close, and the location was within the Sakura Country, so they quickly detected our lord's whereabouts.

The instrument quickly detected the faint trace of the Saniwa.

"Great! We've found our lord!"

The spirits breathed a sigh of relief and gathered around, watching expectantly as Kitsunenosuke prepared to activate the device to pull the Saniwa back.

"Huh? That's strange. I clearly sensed the Saniwa's location and activated the connection just now, so why can't I sense it anymore?"

Kitsune-no-Suke scratched his ear with his little paw, somewhat puzzled. The machine had just reacted and activated the spacetime connection, so how come it disappeared in the blink of an eye?

Could it be that the machine is broken? No way, this was just developed by the Time Government.

"Kitsune-no-suke, is this machine reliable or not?" Two Hasebe figures stood behind Kitsune-no-suke, glaring at him with death stares.

"No, don't rush, let me try again."

Feeling the intense pressure behind him, Kitsunenosuke broke out in a cold sweat.

It's also aggrieved. The Saniwa's constitution makes them prone to time travel. In other Honmaru, the Saniwa is always retrieving swords, but in their Honmaru, they're either retrieving the Saniwa or on their way to retrieve the Saniwa.

The tsukumogami in the citadel don't have much experience rescuing their companions, but rescuing the Saniwa? They're getting more and more skilled at it each time!

……

"here it is?"

When Yu Bai staggered out of the dizzying vortex of time and space, a towering building suddenly appeared before him. This building was now tightly surrounded by a dense array of police cars and heavily armed police officers, and the atmosphere was so tense that it almost seemed to freeze the air.

"Zzz... Master, Master Saniwa... Zzz... Master Saniwa, can you hear me?"

A virtual video frame flickering with an unstable light suddenly appeared in front of Yu Bai's eyes. In the video, Kitsune-no-Suke looked anxious, and his worried eyes seemed to pierce through the screen.

However, it seemed like the signal was bad; the screen kept flashing static, and Kitsune's voice came through intermittently, accompanied by harsh noise.

"Kitsune no Suke?"

"Waaaaah, Master! Finally... finally we've made contact with you! We're working hard to establish a spacetime connection, just hang in there a little longer, you'll be back soon!" Kitsune-no-suke's voice was choked with sobs as he searched for his Master, enduring the oppressive atmosphere from the group of tsukumogami behind him. Kitsune-no-suke felt like he was having a really tough time.

Waaaaah, this is so terrifying!

And then there's Ichigo Hitofuri, Kogarasumaru, and Yukiri—as expected of tsukumogami who emerged from a dark citadel on the verge of corruption? Their murderous aura made Kitsunenosuke think he was about to be skinned alive by the tsukumogami behind him.

"Haha, my lord, are you alright? Is Jin Jian with you?"

Before Kitsune-no-suke could finish speaking, a slender, white hand suddenly reached in from the edge of the screen. Then, the scene changed, and Kitsune-no-suke's position was replaced by a handsome tsukumogami, Mikazuki Munechika.

"It's Mikazuki. I'm fine. Imaizuki has turned back into his original form and is with me now."

"Haha, that's good. We expect to be able to connect to your location via time and space in about three minutes."

"okay, I get it."

As Yu Bai responded to Mikazuki's words, he narrowed his eyes and turned his gaze toward the spot where the police had been standing.

A police car sped up and came to a smooth stop in front of the building. The door opened, and a man wearing sunglasses and with slightly curly hair stepped out.

He was tall and imposing, with a cool and aloof demeanor; he was none other than Matsuda Jinpei, whom Yu Bai knew well. However, judging from his current physique and demeanor, he had clearly graduated from the police academy and officially become a member of the police force.

So, this is... where Kenji Hagiwara met his end?

Yu Bai's heart sank, and he quickly used his divine sense to probe the situation inside the building. Sure enough, on a certain floor, he saw Kenji Hagiwara sitting next to a bomb, not wearing protective clothing, and leisurely smoking.

Although his attitude was relaxed, Yu Bai could sense the tension and focus hidden beneath. But! When Yu Bai saw Hagiwara Kenji's seemingly nonchalant demeanor, he couldn't help but feel a surge of anger.

"Ha, this guy deserves to be taught a lesson!"

Finding that the protective suit he had given to Kenji Hagiwara was hanging right around the man's neck, Yu Bai felt a little relieved. He decided to teach this guy a lesson. He really dared to show off like this at any time. He would teach him to complain about the protective suit being too troublesome and not wear it next time he was defusing a bomb!

Downstairs, Jinpei Matsuda, who was talking to Kenji Hagiwara on the phone, heard him say, "If I die, you must avenge me," and his face darkened.

Looking up at the floor where Kenji Hagiwara was, she said, "Kenji, I'm getting angry!"

"Haha, just kidding, how could I make such a mistake?"

"No matter what, hurry up and finish dismantling it and come down. I'll be waiting for you at the usual spot."

"Don't worry, I'm full of energy right now."

Kenji Hagiwara said confidently, but this time he miscalculated.

"Di~"

"what!"

The bomb, which had been partially defused by Kenji Hagiwara, suddenly resumed its countdown, with red numbers flashing wildly on the screen.

00:06

00:05

"Everyone, run!"

Kenji Hagiwara also noticed this anomaly. Without thinking, he turned around and shouted loudly to his companion.

The others, who were standing further away, rushed towards the door upon hearing the order. However, Kenji Hagiwara, being closest to the bomb, was unable to escape in time.

The heat, carrying flames, rushed towards him, and the aura of death instantly enveloped Kenji Hagiwara: "Jinpei... it seems I'll have to break my promise."

In his final moments, Kenji Hagiwara was filled with regret and reluctance.

He seemed to see Matsuda Jinpei's anxious face and hear him calling his name, but it was all too late to turn back.