Volume 2 The Executioner Chapter 76: Cang Yong's Invitation
Why was Kuranaga, the patriarch of Hirose Domain, so kind to him?
After the festival competition, Kuranaga came to Ogata in person, patted him on the shoulder with a smile, and praised his performance in the competition.
Afterwards, he sent Doctor Xuan'an, who was one of the best medical skills in Hirose Domain, to treat Ogata.
He also paid for all the expenses for Ogata's treatment out of his own pocket.
Not only that, Kuranaga also gave Ogata a paid leave - during the period of recuperation, he no longer had to go to the domain office to do his work as a warehouse officer, and he could still receive his salary during this period of recuperation, and his salary would not be deducted just because he worked less for a period of time.
Ogata was puzzled as to why Kuranaga took such good care of him.
Ogata dared to swear on his life that he had absolutely no connection with Kuranaga before.
Ogata couldn't understand why Kuranaga, who had never met him before, would be so nice to him?
When Xuan'an was giving Ogata the first day of treatment, Ogata asked Xuan'an this question.
However, the only answer Ogata received was Gen'an's vague response.
Afterwards, Ogata continued to ask Xuan'an this question, either explicitly or implicitly.
But no matter how Ogata asked, Xuan'an kept his mouth tightly shut and refused to utter a word.
Ogata's treatment has now ended.
For a long time in the future, Ogata felt that he would not be able to see Xuan'an again.
After hesitating for a long time, Ogata decided to take advantage of this last chance to once again ask Xuan'an the question that had been bothering him for more than a month.
Originally, Ogata was prepared to be treated perfunctorily by Xuan'an again.
But unexpectedly, after hearing Ogata's question, Xuan'an pursed his lips and fell silent.
And Ogata also followed Xuan'an quietly in silence, waiting for Xuan'an's answer.
After a long while, Xuan An opened his lips and said faintly:
"...I actually don't quite understand why Lord Kuranaga is so nice to you."
"but I know--"
Xuan An changed the subject.
"Lord Kuranaga must have a reason for being so nice to you. And it's not an ordinary reason."
"Lord Kuranaga and I are old acquaintances, so I have some understanding of his character."
"Lord Kuranaga is a man of great determination."
"No matter how great the difficulties are, Cangyong will bite the bullet and rise to the challenge."
"At the same time, he is also a... very cruel person."
"He would never waste his time on useless people or people he was not interested in."
Xuan An stopped talking here and did not continue.
Although Xuan'an only said this much, the amount of information contained in what he just said was enough for Ogata to slowly understand and digest.
"...Anyway, I've told you everything I know."
Kerala.
Xuan'an opened the door of the Ogata family's house.
"See you later, Ogata-kun."
bump.
The door of Ogata's house was closed.
In the small and shabby house, the only thing left to accompany Ogata was the silence.
"Forget it." Ogata sighed softly, "If all the kindness Kuranaga showed me needs to be repaid... then let's wait for him to come and collect the 'debt'..."
…
…
"It's almost time..."
Ogata muttered as he looked out the window at the sky.
At this time, Ogata was already dressed.
Tonight he is going to have a banquet with his master and fellow apprentices. In order to match this banquet that Ogata has been looking forward to for a long time, Ogata specially changed into the newest and cleanest clothes in his wardrobe.
I also washed my hair, body and everything else thoroughly.
Looking at the sky outside, Ogata kept hesitating whether to go out now or later.
At this moment, a strange shout suddenly sounded outside the door:
"Is Ogata Issei-kun home?"
--Um?
Ogata frowned slightly and looked towards his own door following the sound.
——Is it someone from Ishikawa Sword Hall who is seeking revenge on me?
Ogata quickly grabbed the knife beside him and tiptoed towards the door...
However, the person outside the door seemed to have a pair of clairvoyant eyes that could see clearly what Ogata was doing inside the house, and shouted:
"Ogata Issei-kun! Please don't worry! We are not from Ishikawa Sword Hall!"
——Isn’t it Ishikawa Sword Hall?
Although the person outside the door said so, Ogata still did not let his guard down.
Although the person outside said so, Ogata would not be so foolish as to let his guard down just because of the one-sided words of the person outside.
Ogata, who was standing two steps behind the door, drew his katana and inserted the blade into the gap between the door and the door frame.
Because Ogata's door is the most common sliding door, you can push it to the right and the door will open.
After inserting the blade into the gap between the door and the door frame, Ogata pushed the door horizontally to the right and opened it.
The door opened, and two young warriors with extremely unfamiliar faces that he had never seen before appeared in Ogata's field of vision.
The two young warriors stood there normally with their hands hanging naturally at their sides, without drawing their swords or assuming any fighting stance.
No hostility at all - this was the current state of these two young warriors.
But Ogata still did not let his guard down.
Ogata silently took two steps back, increasing the distance between himself and the two young warriors, raised the sword in his hand, and used the sharp blade to separate himself from the two warriors.
"You are Ogata Issei-kun, right?"
The leader of the two young warriors spoke.
Although the sentence structure he used was a question, the tone was that of an affirmative sentence.
"Yes...it's me. Who are you? Why are you looking for me all of a sudden?"
"We are retainers of the family elder, Kuranaga Saemon. We have come here with the temerity to ask you to come to my lord's residence."
"Kurasaga...Saemon...?"
A look of surprise appeared uncontrollably on Ogata's face.
…
…
Hirose Domain, Sakakibara Sword School.
Sakakibara Sword Hall was quite lively at this time.
There were just enough tables on the wooden floor of the dojo for Hanbei and all the disciples of Sakakibara Kenkan to sit.
Because it was almost time for the banquet to start , half of the people had already arrived at the dojo.
Those who arrived at the temple in advance each had their own duties.
Some are responsible for placing drinks and food on the tables.
Some are responsible for cleaning certain spots on the floor that were not cleaned.
Some people just get together and chat, killing the boring time by chatting.
Makino was one of those people who had nothing to do and sat around chatting with other brothers.
Makino and several of his fellow disciples, with whom he had a close relationship, chatted about all the topics they could think of.
"By the way..." Makino said in a long tone, "I recently heard some very interesting news from a friend. Are you interested in knowing it?"
"News? Senior Makino, what news?" The person who spoke was the youngest and most senior apprentice in their Sakakibara Sword Hall - Goro Sawamura, who was only 15 years old this year.
