Hiroshi and his men are shocked to find that they have been followed by a group of eight masked men. Hiroshi's first reaction is that they must be enemies, but he quickly realizes that they are not easy to defeat. The men shake their heads in amazement at the sight of the masked men, who are next to the corpses of hikobe andjinbachir. Rensuke's reaction is even more shocking, as his head is next to that of the hannya mask. The group decides to take leave of the men and go back to the castle.