The sudden turn of events caught Mizuno off-guard for a moment.
Yet he quickly regained his composure.
Iruma Megumi had already spotted the warning alerts flashing on her computer.
She hurriedly pulled out her communicator.
"Attention everyone! Abnormal energy reactions detected in sectors F1, A2, and G3. There's still some time before detonation, so make sure to evacuate all civilians inside those zones."
Hearing Iruma Megumi's order, everyone looked troubled.
Standing before Daigo and Shinjo was Mitsuo Itabashi, still wearing his brown coat.
Yin Xi, meanwhile, was with Horie and Munakata,
facing Beniko Oda, whom Camilla had previously beaten back.
Exchanging glances, the group quickly made their decisions.
On Daigo's side, Shinjo went off to evacuate the civilians.
On Yin Xi's side, Horie was dispatched for the task.
Elsewhere, the moment she heard the order, Camilla told Rena to drive off.
The remaining members prepared to deal with the Gijera before them.
Four Gijera initiated the attack, pale blue humanoid silhouettes materializing behind each of them.
Camilla transformed her light whip into a light sword, moving through their combined assault with effortless grace.
Seizing a moment when Camilla wasn't looking, one of the Gijera slipped away from the battlefield.
Quietly gathering an energy sphere, it intended to launch a sneak attack from behind.
Noticing the energy fluctuations behind her, Camilla was momentarily distracted.
One of her arms was briefly restrained by a Gijera.
Camilla drove her knee straight into the creature's abdomen, forcing it back.
In an instant, the other three leaped away.
A crimson energy blast hurtled toward her, and Camilla had no time to dodge.
Boom!
The energy sphere exploded instantly, flames shooting into the sky as thick smoke filled the air.
"Got her!"
the Gijera that fired the blast shouted in triumph.
As the smoke gradually cleared, the four figures dimly made out a pair of bright yellow eyes.
Yet in a fraction of a second, the light in those eyes turned crimson.
A gray figure slowly stepped out from the smoke, adorned with noble golden streamlining.
Beneath its eyes were golden tear-like markings.
Ultraman Camilla had officially entered the battlefield.
Though still in humanoid form, Camilla drew her light whip once again, but this time, the four creatures could vividly feel the terrifying power humming within the weapon.
If being whipped before had merely hurt, taking another hit now might cause the human bodies they possessed to instantly rupture.
Shifting the perspective to Yin Xi:
"Gaia!!!"
Yin Xi yelled at the top of his lungs, launching a flying kick straight at Beniko Oda.
Beniko Oda tried to block it using Gijera powers.
Behind her, Munakata was clutching a GUTS Hyper Sniper rifle, ready to fire the moment an opening appeared.
Combined with Yin Xi's enhanced physical attributes stemming from his ultra-ancient genes,
Beniko Oda genuinely found herself on the defensive.
Over on Daigo's side, Mitsuo Itabashi was still trying to psychologically break him down.
"Tiga, you are an outsider. We Gijera arrived on Earth long before you."
"Humans are far too weak. Only under the rule of us Gijera can humanity achieve true purification of life."
Daigo was furious. Possessing ultra-ancient genes and serving as a GUTS officer, his combat prowess was not to be underestimated.
Yet Mitsuo Itabashi clearly had no desire to trade blows with Daigo, constantly dodging his attacks while rambling on with taunts.
"Rumble!!!"
Violent explosions erupted simultaneously in three distant locations.
The flames from the blasts surged high into the air.
The explosions seemed to act as a signal.
The four Gijera abruptly distanced themselves from Camilla.
Raising both hands high, they chanted something under their breath, and with a flash of blue light,
four giant Gijera manifested across the city.
Beniko Oda, already driven to fury by the beating she took, suffered yet another "Gaia Kick"
before rocketing straight up into the sky. Just as she was about to spit out a few harsh threats, a beam of light flashed toward her.
Beniko Oda hurriedly dodged, casting a venomous glare at Munakata.
Then, spreading her arms wide, her body instantly expanded.
The same thing happened on Daigo's side.
Six giant Gijera now stood tall amidst the city,
looking down with disdain upon the enemies at their feet.
Iruma Megumi leaped to her feet, startled by the imagery on the screen.
Though Camilla had also grown to giant size, facing the four Gijera before her, she too felt a twinge of difficulty.
Daigo pulled out his Spark Lens, transformed into Tiga, and took a stand in front of Mitsuo Itabashi.
A wave of wild elation washed over Beniko Oda as she completed her transformation.
"Damn humans, let's see you kick me now."
With that, she immediately lowered her head, eager to witness Yin Xi's terrified expression.
To her surprise, the ground below was completely empty.
The moment she had raised her hands, Yin Xi had grabbed Munakata, hopped onto a motorcycle, and fled.
The appearance of six giant Gijera instantly plunged the scene into utter chaos.
From the TPC director down to every department, everyone sprang into frantic action.
Shinjo piloted Guts Wing 1 solo, launching aerial attacks.
Horie assisted Rena in operating Guts Wing 2 for long-range, high-intensity artillery bombardments.
Several standard fighter jets circled overhead to cause disruptions.
On the ground, countless soldiers swarmed forward,
some evacuating civilians while others established defensive lines.
Yin Xi was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected TPC's armed forces to mobilize so swiftly.
Clearly, Director Sawai had made thorough preparations.
Prompted by Yin Xi's prior hints, Tiga's power had grown exponentially.
His dazzling array of techniques left Mitsuo Itabashi struggling to cope.
Camilla lived up to her title as the Dark Princess.
Even without fully recovering her strength, she appeared remarkably poised and at ease amidst the relentless attacks of four Gijera.
Realizing that Camilla could not finish them off instantly,
one of the Gijera chose to break away from Camilla's battlefield and turn to assist Mitsuo Itabashi.
Beniko Oda, meanwhile, was being endlessly harassed by Guts Wing 1 and Guts Wing 2,
while occasionally taking hits from Munakata's heavy sniper rifle on the ground.
With one less opponent, the pressure on Camilla lessened significantly.
She was practically single-handedly beating down three opponents.
Seeing Camilla's overwhelming dominance, two of the Gijera exchanged glances and made their choice.
One of them completely relaxed its body and gently fell backward.
Like a pool of liquid, it melted directly into its companion.
Empowered as if it had consumed a potent elixir, that Gijera's energy surged violently through its entire frame.
Immediately afterward, another Gijera attempted to merge as well.
Though Yin Xi had never witnessed such a spectacle, he knew nothing good would come of it,
and he hurriedly warned Camilla not to let them succeed.
Beniko Oda sneered.
"At a time like this, you'd better worry about yourself."
With that, she continuously fired micro-missiles at Yin Xi on the motorcycle.
Understanding the hint, Camilla whipped her light whip forward, ensnaring the target Gijera and violently dragging it toward herself.
Then, extending her delicate hand,
Camilla unleashed a barrage of sparks directly onto the creature.
The devastating attack blasted it apart in a massive explosion.
This marked the first casualty on the Gijera side.
The merged Gijera showed no grief for its fallen comrade; instead, it charged straight at Camilla.
To its surprise, however, Yin Xi's persistent provocation
finally pushed Beniko Oda past her breaking point.
Her next action shocked everyone present.
With a sudden leap, she landed right behind the Gijera fighting Camilla,
grabbed the back of its neck, and forced it directly into her own body.
Offering no resistance, the creature allowed Beniko Oda to consume it entirely.
Having absorbed the fused Gijera, Beniko Oda directly evolved into a Second-Generation Gijera—the Flame Demon Warrior.
Following her evolution into Gijera Gen-2, Beniko Oda's power increased exponentially.
A single Flame Demon blast struck Shinjo's aircraft.
Camilla and Tiga turned their heads simultaneously,
intending to rush to the rescue, but their respective opponents blocked their paths, leaving them unable to break away.
Beniko Oda prepared to deliver a finishing blow to completely eliminate Shinjo.
A thick green beam streaked directly toward her head,
successfully stopping Beniko Oda in her tracks.
The weapons of the ground forces and standard fighter jets in the air were utterly incapable of inflicting damage on the Gijera,
not even serving as a minor hindrance.
With mere casual swipes, the Gijera easily obliterated the defensive lines that had been set up.
Abandoning her attack on Shinjo,
Beniko Oda turned her attention back to Camilla.
Undaunted, Camilla transformed her whip into a sword, its frigid blade flashing
to signal the unyielding battle intent burning in her heart.
In contrast, facing the combined assault of Mitsuo Itabashi and another Gijera,
Daigo, still a novice, found himself completely overwhelmed.
Watching Tiga being pinned down, Camilla felt a wave of powerless emotion.
"Too weak."
She couldn't help but think of her two former comrades.
"Boom!!!"
Across the battlefield, Mitsuo Itabashi had successfully evolved into Gen-2 as well.
With a single blow, he knocked Tiga flying, sending him crashing heavily to the ground where he dissolved into particles of light.
On the ground, Yin Xi was initially agonizing over his inability to help Camilla,
but seeing Tiga vanish instantly re-energized him.
Ignoring Munakata, he twisted the throttle hard and raced his motorcycle toward the spot where Tiga had disappeared.
Elsewhere, Daigo struggled to his feet from a deep crater,
clutching his abdomen in agony.
A figure had quietly materialized behind him.