Volume 5: Kyoto Summer Campaign Chapter 272: Unrivaled in the world, nothing more than this!
Regarding Genichi who was now as happy as a little kid, Mamiya and Makimura just looked at each other and smiled bitterly, without making any response, and continued to do their own things silently.
After showing off to Mamiya and Makimura with a proud look on his face, Genichi then asked Ogata:
"Have you learned all the moves in the secret book?"
Ogata shook his head.
"I'm still learning the two moves of Cicada Rain and Starfall, and I haven't mastered them yet."
There are only two moves left in Ogata's Muga Nissō Style that have not been unlocked yet - the 7-hit combo Cicada Rain, and the 13-hit combo Starfall.
" You don't know these two moves yet... What a pity, I'm old now and my energy is running low. I don't want to teach anyone other than Xiaolin how to practice swordsmanship anymore..." Yuan Yi said with a wry smile, "You can only slowly comprehend these two moves by yourself according to the secret manual..."
"It doesn't matter." Ogata smiled slightly, "I have a general grasp of these two moves now, and I should be able to fully master them after a while."
Ogata's words were half true and half false. Only the sentence "I should be able to master it after a while" was true - when the level of Muga's two-sword style is raised a little more, he will be able to unlock these two major skills.
At this time, Genichi asked a new question:
"So - Ogata-kun, have you...ever entered the state of no self?"
"...Yes." Ogata nodded solemnly, "But I've only been there once..."
"Oh?" Yuan Yi's eyes narrowed. "You have entered the state of no self... Not bad, can you tell me in detail the whole process of your entry into the state of no self?"
Ogata briefly told Genichi about his famous battle - the Hundred-Man Killing Battle at Hirose Domain, and described in detail the moment when he entered the state of no self.
After briefly outlining to Genichi the process of his entry into the state of no self, a hint of hesitation flashed across Ogata's face.
After hesitating for a while, Ogata seemed to have made up his mind, gritted his teeth and said to Genichi:
"Master Kinoshita..."
"You can just call me 'Master Genichi'." Genichi smiled slightly, "Compared to my surname, it's more pleasant to call me by my first name."
"Then... Master Genichi, I have a question I want to ask you."
"Go ahead," Genichi said readily, "If I can answer your question, I will tell you everything I know."
"Master Genichi...is there any way to freely enter the state of no self?"
After entering the state of no self once and tasting a little of its sweetness, Ogata has actually become fascinated by this state of no self.
It’s a pity that after the Battle of Hundred-Man Killing, Xu Fang has never entered the state of selflessness again.
This was the main reason why Ogata agreed to Mamiya's invitation and came to visit Karaoke House - he intended to ask Kinoshita Genichi in person whether there was a way to freely enter the state of no self.
Ogata came all the way to Owari for this purpose.
After hearing Ogata's question, Genichi was slightly stunned.
Then he twirled his goatee and smiled:
"Is there a way to freely enter the state of no self...? It really exists."
"Can you tell me?" Ogata suppressed his inner excitement.
"The method is..." Genichi raised his finger and touched Ogata's chest, "Gen's Breathing."
"Breath of the Origin?" Ogata asked doubtfully.
"It's written in the secret book, right? 'Origin Breathing is the shortcut to the state of no self.'"
"When you practice the Source Breathing to the highest level, you will be able to freely enter the state of selflessness."
"Origin's Breathing is the most amazing achievement of my life."
As he spoke of this, a strong look of pride appeared on Genichi's face.
"Origin of Breathing is a breathing technique I created for the purpose of freely entering the state of selflessness."
"After successfully creating this breathing technique, I took the word 'source' from my name as the name of this breathing technique."
"Original Breathing is a shortcut to entering the state of selflessness. The principle is to focus your attention by changing the rhythm of your breathing."
“When the concentration of attention reaches its peak, one can enter the state of no self.”
"When you practice the Breath of the Source to perfection, you will be able to freely enter the state of selflessness."
"But the origin breathing is not that easy to practice."
"Whether you can practice the Breath of the Source to perfection, both hard work and talent are indispensable."
"There is no shortcut to practicing the Breath of the Source. You can only practice hard."
"It was not until 10 years ago that I finally mastered the Source Breathing to perfection."
Ogata raised his eyebrows after hearing Genichi's last words.
"Master Genichi... since you said that you had already mastered the Breathing of the Source to its peak 10 years ago, doesn't this mean... that you can now freely enter the state of selflessness?"
In response to Ogata's question, Genichi smiled and said nothing.
On the contrary, Mamiya, who was concentrating on making porridge, chuckled a few times:
"Ogata-kun, why do you think Master Genichi is still unrivaled even at such an old age?"
"..." After a moment of silence, Ogata slowly stood up and bowed to Genichi, "Master Genichi, I have a humble request."
"If you want me to tell you the trick to practice the Breath of the Origin, please forgive me for rejecting you." Yuan Yi smiled and said, "There is no trick to practice the Breath of the Origin. The only trick is to use it more."
"No... I don't want to ask you for the secret of practicing the Source Breathing." Ogata shook his head, "I want to ask you for advice!"
"Oh?" Genichi's eyes flashed with surprise, "You want to ask me for advice?"
"I want to experience for myself what it means to be 'unparalleled in the world'!" Ogata said word by word in a sonorous and powerful voice.
Ogata's words made Mamiya and Makimura both stop what they were doing and cast different glances at Ogata with different emotions.
Genichi did not immediately agree to Ogata's request for advice.
Instead, he first looked at Ogata with a meaningful look.
"Experience for yourself what it means to be truly 'unparalleled in the world'?" Genichi repeated what Ogata had just said. "Ogata-kun, I understand that you want to see how strong the man who is called 'unparalleled in the world' is, right?"
"That's right." Ogata nodded vigorously, "I want to... see with my own eyes how big the gap is between me and the strongest person in the world!"
"Why do you want to see how big the gap is between you and the strongest person in the world?" Genichi asked.
"…Since I started learning sword skills, I have fought countless powerful enemies."
A hint of reminiscence appeared on Ogata's face.
"We've been through countless death battles."
"Each enemy I encountered was stronger than the last..."
"The more I fight, the more I feel that my practice is inadequate..."
"A while ago on Butterfly Island, I witnessed with my own eyes the miserable end of the weak. They had to find a way to survive on their own..."
After hearing Ogata's words, the expressions on Mamiya and Makimura's faces changed slightly.
The two of them naturally knew that the "weak people" that Ogata had just mentioned were naturally referring to the islanders of Choujima who had finally found a way out by negotiating with the shogunate.
"I... don't want to be in this kind of predicament of groveling and begging for a living one day in the future."
"So - I want to become as strong as you, Master Genichi."
"Too strong to not need to bow down, to live proudly with only the sword in hand."
"Therefore, I want to see with my own eyes how big the gap is between me and the man who is known as 'unparalleled in the world'!"
"That..." Mamiya said softly with an embarrassed look on his face, "Ogata-kun, what I told you at that time, 'As long as you are unrivaled in the world, you can ignore the shogunate'... This sentence was actually just a casual remark... Don't take it seriously..."
"No." Ogata shook his head. "Mamiya, I think what you said to me at that time made sense."
"...I see." Genichi nodded gently at this time, "So - Ogata-kun, you want to take me as your goal and become an unparalleled existence like me, right?"
"...I guess so." Ogata nodded vigorously.
"So - Ogata-kun, what do you think is unrivaled?"
"Huh?" Ogata was confused by Genichi's strange question.
After hesitating for a while, he replied:
"He who is invincible and no one can match him is unrivaled in the world."
"Is this your understanding of the unrivaled one in the world..."
After nodding gently once more, Genichi slowly stood up.
Ogata, who thought that Genichi was going to engage in battle, slowly lowered his body's center of gravity and placed his left hand on the sheath of Daishikuten.
"Master Genichi." Mamiya said softly, "Do you need me to lend you my sword?"
"No." Genichi smiled and shook his head, "No need."
"No need?" Ogata asked doubtfully.
Whether it was Ogata, Mamiya, or Makimura, they all looked confused at this moment.
Just when Ogata was about to ask Genichi how he could fight him without Mamiya's sword, Genichi suddenly spread out his right palm and waved to Ogata.
"Ogata-kun, can you lend me your katana?"
"Eh?" If the emotion of "confusion" was in liquid form, then the "confusion" on Ogata's face was so much that it could drip from his face.
"Master Genichi, why?" Ogata couldn't help but ask Genichi.
"You'll know after you lend me the knife."
"……I see."
After Ogata slowly pulled out the Daishakuten, he held the hilt out towards Genichi.
After taking over the Daishikatsu, Genichi looked at the blade of the Daishikatsu with interest.
After carefully observing the blade of Daishiten, Yuan Yi let out a low exclamation:
"This sword pattern... Ogata-kun, your sword is the work of a monk from the Tensho sect - am I right?"
Ogata couldn't help but raise his eyebrows in surprise: "Exactly."
"What a good sword." Genichi praised, "Compared to Xiaolin's 'Yanma' and 'Zhinkishen', it is not inferior at all."
"Yan Mo? Zhen Gui Shen?"
"The names of Korin's katana and wakizashi. Korin's Enma is also the work of the Tenkyo clan, but the Enma is an ancient sword with a history of more than 200 years. Ogata-kun, can you show me your wakizashi as well?"
"Can."
After handing Daishizai to Genichi, Genichi held up Daishiten and Daishizai and observed the two swords alternately.
"Your wakizashi is also made by the Amago clan. Do your two swords have names?"
"Yes. When you hit the sword, you will be able to release the heavens, and when you use the sword, you will be at ease."
"They are all Buddhist terms... As expected, this is a sword made by a monk from the Tianxiang sect... The monks from the Tianxiang sect always like to use Buddhist terms to name the swords they make."
"But... your two swords are somewhat different from the traditional Tianxiang Sect swords."
"These two swords of yours... seem to have been mixed with some Western casting techniques..."
After admiring Ogata's two swords, Genichi returned the Great Freedom to Ogata.
"Ogata-kun," Genichi said, holding Daishiten tightly , "Watch me, I will now show you the unparalleled fighting power of Genichi Kinoshita, who is known as the 'Sword Saint' and 'Unrivaled in the World'!"
Genichi raised his head and looked at the sky above his head.
"I will... split the sky in half for you to see!"
"What?!" Ogata exclaimed.
“Watch out!!”
After saying that, Genichi raised his upper body and slowly raised the Daishikuten in his hand above his head.
This posture seemed as if it was really going to cut the sky in half.
Ogata's mind was also working rapidly at this time.
——Split the sky? Is such a thing really possible?
Genichi's serious look made Ogata doubt himself.
——Could it be possible that he could... really split the sky apart...? !
Under this self-doubt, Ogata's breathing couldn't help but slow down.
Not only Ogata, but even Mamiya and Makimura on the side were shocked by Genichi's attempt to split the sky with one sword.
The three of them couldn't help but slow down their breathing, not daring to blink, not daring to miss any of Yuanyi's next moves.
Genichi seemed to be gathering strength.
After closing his eyes and taking several deep breaths, Yuan Yi suddenly opened his eyes!
“Drink aa ...
While emitting an astonishing amount of energy, Yuan Yi aimed at the sky above his head and suddenly chopped down the Great Shitian in his hand!
The wind pressure created by the swing of the blade stabbed straight into the sky above Genichi's head!
Ogata and others hurriedly looked over Genichi's head.
The sky above Yuan Yi's head was suddenly——!
…
…
Nothing happened...
…
…
A few white clouds are still floating there lazily.
Not to mention the sky, even these soft white clouds were not broken into pieces.
Just as Ogata, Mamiya and Makimura looked up at the unharmed sky in confusion, wondering what Genichi was doing, Genichi put down the Daishakuten in his hand.
Then he let out a self-deprecating chuckle.
"Ogata-kun, did you see that? This is the strength of Genichi Kinoshita, who is known as 'unparalleled in the world'."
"I can't even cut through the soft white clouds."
"The sky is ten thousand miles wide, but the sword is only three feet long. Even if you have the power to control gods and generals, you can only cut things within three feet."
After saying that, Genichi threw the Daishakuten in his hand back to Ogata.
"Fighting a master who is unrivaled in the world is actually no different from fighting a 3-year-old child. They are just fighting ordinary people who can only cut things within 3 feet. Unrivaled in the world - that's all!"
After saying this, Genichi returned to his previous seat, rubbing his hands and saying to Mamiya:
"Mamiya-kun, is the porridge ready? I just used the 'Heaven Slash' and I'm even hungrier now."
“It’s ready to eat…”
"Master Genichi..." Makimura at the side smiled helplessly, "Although you just said a lot of impressive words, you are actually just too lazy to spar with Brother Ogata - am I right?"
"Hahahaha!" Yuan Yi laughed a few times in response to Makino's question.
Just when Genichi was about to say something—
"My sparring with Master Genichi has just begun... and has ended..."
Ogata, who had been standing there, spoke softly at this moment.
"I have already... profoundly realized the gap between me and Tian Xia Wushuang..."
"The realm...is too far apart..."
"Hahahahaha!" Genichi laughed heartily again, "Sit back, Ogata-kun."
"Mamiya-kun has already cooked the porridge, let's have some ."
"yes……"
After sitting back next to Genichi, Ogata handed the bamboo tube that he always carried around his waist to Mamiya.
Mamiya knew that Ogata had already had breakfast, so he didn't give Ogata too much.
But Ogata had no appetite to eat at this time.
The words that Genichi had just said to him were still echoing over and over in Ogata's mind.
"Try your best, Ogata-kun."
Genichi, who was sitting next to Ogata and eating porridge, spoke softly at this time.
"To aim to be the best in the world - there is no point in doing that."
“Don’t pursue being the best in the world. Just work hard and enjoy the process.”
“Although the sky is ten thousand miles wide and the sword is only three feet long, even if you spend your whole life you still cannot cut through the sky, but you can still experience the joy of becoming stronger in this small three-foot space.”
"...Hmm." Ogata's originally solemn eyes now brightened up a little, "Master Genichi, thank you for your guidance...!"
