Kushan Scouts (2)

Four Kushan scouts spring at once, blades bared. Rested and restored after his stay at Godot's, Guts sweeps the freshly repaired Dragon Slayer through all four in a single stroke, stunning the survivors and Isidro alike. Unsure whose banner the scouts serve, he merely asks them to let him pass, and takes the refusal when one drops from a roof at him, only to have his skull staved in by a punch from the prosthetic hand.

As Puck urges the boy to stay low, the scouts hurl their outlandish weapons, which Guts deflects with his iron arm before shearing the legs from two who circle behind him. When the whole force closes in for a united strike, he pole-vaults over them on the Dragon Slayer, lands, and cuts the entire party down, flowing from one kill to the next without effort.

Puck tries to talk Isidro into handing over his scavenged food as thanks for being spared, but the boy is far too dazzled by the swordsman's raw skill and showmanship to listen. Guts and Puck head off irritated at the delay, and Isidro, unable to find his voice, simply trails after his new idol.

From a distance the trio is observed by Silat and four identical Bakiraka, the Tapasa. The hulking warriors ask whether to strike, but Silat, who has crossed swords with Guts before, orders them to hold; even a group victory would cost them dearly, and their charge is to locate the Land of the Oracle. Consumed by worry, Guts breaks into a full run toward the Tower of Conviction and Casca.

The chapter runs twenty one pages within the Conviction Arc and first appeared in Young Animal issue 2 on January 8, 1999. It showcases the fighting prowess Guts has honed across two years as an apostle hunter.