Volume 5: Kyoto Summer Campaign Chapter 341: Shiranui’s new base—Edo!
Ever since Lin borrowed Heitaro away and Kondo learned the "Ogata Style" from Ogata, Ogata has been quietly recuperating in Fuma's home.
These days were very peaceful.
Since borrowing Heitaro away, Lin would occasionally send her companions to Fuma's house to report the results of the interrogation of Heitaro to Ogata and others.
Sometimes it was Asai who came, sometimes it was Shimada who came.
According to their report, Heitaro is very stubborn and it will take some time to pry some useful information out of him.
Ogata was not in a hurry, he just waited quietly, and while waiting, he slowly recovered from his injuries.
During this period, Kondo would occasionally visit Ogata with some supplements.
While delivering supplements to the door, he also asked Ogata some questions about swordsmanship.
For example: techniques for fighting one against many, techniques for saving energy...
Because every time Kondo came to visit, he would ask Ogata some questions about swordsmanship, which made Ogata and others wonder whether Kondo was using the name of visiting to ask for Ogata's swordsmanship guidance...
However, because the questions asked by Kondo were not difficult to answer, and they happened to be the questions that Ogata was good at answering, every time Kondo came to ask him questions about swordsmanship, Ogata was happy to answer them one by one.
Of course - Ogata didn't do nothing these days except recuperate and give some swordsmanship guidance to Kondo who occasionally visited him.
Under the effect of the "vitality" of more than 20 points, Ogata's injuries recovered at a speed that shocked Fuma and Atachi.
Eight days after the Battle of Nijo Castle, some of Ogata's shallow wounds had healed.
Those slightly deeper wounds are not far from healing.
After his wounds were almost healed, Ogata began to practice his newly acquired powers: the Breathing of Source, which was upgraded to "Master Level", and the newly unlocked sword skill "Cicada Rain".
…
…
Kyoto, Fuma's home, Ogata's room.
Today is the 15th day since I started recuperating at Fengma’s home.
Ogata, who had half of the sackcloth on his body untied, stood in the center of the room, holding two long branches in his right and left hands, and assumed the starting stance of his Muga Nito-ryu.
Although the room where Ogata was located was not spacious, it was large enough for him to practice sword skills.
After staring at the air ahead for a while...
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh…
Ogata began to wave the branch in his hand towards the air in front of him.
The ordinary and slender branches were danced by Ogata to produce one sharp and piercing wind-breaking sound after another.
Ogata swung his sword seven times at the air in front of him.
These seven swords were swung from different directions, with different speeds and rhythms.
When he swung the last knife, which was the 7th knife, Ogata grinned and let out a few gasps.
Because when he swung the last knife, Ogata accidentally pulled a wound on his left shoulder that had not yet fully healed.
Ogata quickly put down his left arm and raised his right hand to gently rub his left shoulder.
After the pain in his left shoulder gradually subsided, Ogata said to himself:
——This trick is really difficult to use.
After the Wuga Nisō-ryu was upgraded to the 9th level, a new sword skill finally appeared to be unlocked: "Cicada Rain".
The "Battle of Nijo Castle" earned Ogata 5 skill points.
Four of these five skill points were used to upgrade the Breathing of Source, and the remaining one was used by Ogata to unlock this new sword skill: "Cicada Rain".
Although Ogata had seen "Cicada Rain" once from Kinoshita Rin when they first met, it was only after he used "Cicada Rain" himself that he felt firsthand how difficult this move was.
Because the "Cicada Rain" continuous slashing technique consists of 7 consecutive slashes, the rhythm of swinging the sword is completely chaotic.
While ensuring that one's own rhythm will not be disrupted, performing such a chaotic series of attacks - you can imagine how difficult it is.
Although it is difficult to use, it is also very powerful.
This sword technique can easily affect one's own rhythm, and it can also easily affect the opponent's rhythm.
It can disrupt the opponent's rhythm - this is the most terrifying thing about this sword skill.
In order to test the power of this move, Ogata specially asked Atachi to be his sparring partner.
When practicing with Ating, Ating's performance fully demonstrated what it means to be "in a state of confusion".
Ating was able to perfectly avoid or block the first two attacks.
When it came to the third strike, Ating's own defensive and dodging rhythm began to be disrupted.
When it came to the 4th and 5th slashes, Ating's rhythm was completely messed up, whether it was defense or dodging, everything was messed up.
The last 6th and 7th blows were neither blocked nor avoided, so he took the last 2 blows hard.
Although this experiment to test the power of "Cicada Rain" was very successful, Ogata also paid a little... price...
Because he was not used to the new sword technique "Cicada Rain", when the last two strikes hit Atachi, Ogata was unable to control his strength well...
Although Ating was not seriously injured, the branch still left two red marks on his arm...
Fortunately, Ogata apologized in a timely manner, and because of Ogata's identity as a "wounded person", Atachi quickly calmed down.
As long as you have the identity of a "patient" or a "wounded person", it will be easy to gain forgiveness from others - this is one of the truths in this world.
In addition to practicing "Cicada Rain", Ogata is also practicing "Source Breathing" these days.
No, rather than practicing the upgraded "Breath of the Source", it would be more accurate to say that it is an experiment with the upgraded "Breath of the Source".
The "Master-level" Breath of the Source not only greatly improves Ogata's concentration and the amplification effect of his "reflexes", but also adds a new effect:
After entering... or being immersed in the state of Source Breathing for about 10 minutes, Ogata's concentration will continue to increase, and when it reaches its peak, he will be able to enter the state of selflessness.
This can be considered as obtaining the power that Ogata is most eager to obtain at the moment: the ability to enter the "state of no self" independently by his own will.
Although it is still not as good as Genichi's state of being able to freely enter the "state of no self".
In order to enter the "state of no self", Ogata must currently immerse himself in the state of Source Breathing for about 10 minutes.
After his injuries were almost healed and he began to experiment with his new ability, Ogata discovered that the time required to enter the "state of no self" varied.
In the shortest time, it only takes 8 minutes to enter.
The longest time it took was about 13 minutes.
But generally speaking, it fluctuates around 10 minutes.
The only two times I had experienced entering the "state of no self", the final way to release the "state of no self" was to wait for it to be released naturally.
Now that he can enter the "selfless state" with his own will, Ogata finally clearly discovered the two characteristics of the "selfless state":
The first characteristic: The "selfless state" that one enters with one's own will can be stopped midway. All one needs to do is stop the source of breathing.
The second characteristic: Entering the "selfless state" will rapidly consume one's physical strength.
To give an example, it's probably like this -
Ogata's body is a bathtub, and Ogata's physical strength is the water in the bathtub.
Entering the "selfless state" is equivalent to opening the drain, causing the water in the bathtub to drain out quickly.
If you intend to exit the state of "no self" midway , you only need to stop the breathing of the source, which is equivalent to blocking the drain again so that the water in the bathtub will no longer be drained out quickly.
Once the water in the bathtub is completely emptied, that is, when Ogata's physical strength is completely exhausted, he will no longer be able to enter the "state of no self" until his physical strength is restored again.
Yesterday, Ogata conducted an experiment of "using the 'state of no self' until physical strength is completely exhausted."
At the end of the experiment, when he exited the "selfless state", Xu Fang felt as if he had just finished a long-distance race of several thousand meters.
This kind of fatigue is not only physical fatigue, but also mental fatigue. It is a double fatigue of body and mind.
The feeling of being exhausted after running a long-distance race of several thousand meters and finishing dozens of test papers in one go.
Ogata had experienced the aftereffects of the "selfless state" twice before, which consumed his physical strength. When he came out of the "selfless state", he would feel a surge of exhaustion, almost suffocating him.
After blocking the bathtub drain, if you want to reopen the drain, just use the Breathing of Source again.
The process of reopening the drain will take less time.
Here is another vivid example:
The process from starting to use the Breathing of Source to entering the "state of no self" is a bit like sinking to the bottom of the sea.
As he gets closer to the seabed, Ogata's concentration gradually increases. When he reaches the seabed and his concentration reaches the highest level, he can enter the "state of no self".
Exiting the "selfless state" midway means leaving the seabed and starting to float up.
But when you are halfway up, if you want to enter the "selfless state" again, it will take less time because you are closer to the seabed.
…
…
The pain from the wound on my left shoulder that I accidentally pulled while practicing “Cicada Rain” just now gradually subsided.
After the pain completely subsided, Ogata raised the two branches in his hands again and prepared to practice "Cicada Rain" again to get more familiar with the feel of using this move.
However, just as Ogata put the branch back up, he suddenly heard the sound of a paper sliding door being opened.
Without knocking or informing anyone, Atachi casually opened the door of Ogata's room.
"Ah!" After seeing Ogata holding the branch, Atachi screamed, "Didn't I tell you not to move until your injuries are completely healed?"
Atachi could tell at a glance that Ogata was practicing sword again instead of resting in bed properly. He rushed forward angrily and snatched the two branches from Ogata's hands.
"A-Ming..." Ogata cast a helpless look at A-Ming, "Couldn't you knock on the door or inform me before entering the room..."
"What? Are you worried that I'll see you doing something when I come into the room? Okay, let's not talk about this anymore, let's get down to business. Ayi, Asai is here. He said he has something important to tell you."
Upon hearing the name Asai, Ogata raised his eyebrows.
"Okay, I'll be right down."
…
…
During the time of recuperation at Fuma's home, Ogata experienced the feeling of running around in just a thin kimono for the first time in a long time.
The last time I ran around in a thin kimono was before I left the Hirose Domain.
After leaving the Hirose Domain, Ogata had been wandering around and had always been properly dressed in kimono, hakama, tabi and other gear.
Asai was a guest, so since he was meeting a guest he naturally couldn't be too casual, so with the help of Atachi, Ogata quickly tidied up his kimono and combed his hair, then he quickly went downstairs and entered the living room.
When I entered the living room, I saw Asai sipping tea and waiting for Ogata to arrive.
Looking at the neatly dressed Ogata, Asai smiled slightly:
"Ittosai, there's no need to be so troublesome, just be casual."
"It's a habit." Ogata smiled slightly and knelt down opposite Asai.
These days, the person who most often comes to report to Ogata and others on the "results of Heitaro's torture" is Asai.
Asai's personal image is also particularly suitable for serving as a diplomat.
He is handsome, very graceful and well-spoken. He is simply a natural diplomat.
If Asai could have the aura of a "nobleman" like Shimada, it would be even more perfect.
After slowly putting down the teacup in his hand, Asai said softly:
"Ittosai, the torture of Heitaro has yielded results."
"He finally spilled the beans on their Shiranui."
"After cooperating with the shogunate, they really moved their base away from Shiranui."
After hearing what Asai said, Ogata and Atachi's expressions turned serious.
"Where did you move to?" Ogata asked.
"Edo." Asai said.
"Edo?" Ogata exclaimed.
"Yes." Asai nodded gently, "According to that Heitaro, they moved their base to Edo at the request of the shogunate."
"...I see." Ogata sneered, "Increase supervision on Shiranui..."
"That should be it." Asai sneered along with Ogata, "Moving a 'companion' that you don't trust to someone under your supervision for easier supervision - this kind of thing is not uncommon in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad."
"So where in Edo is this new base in Shiranui likely to be?" Ogata asked. "Edo is very big."
Edo was the largest city at that time, and even once became the largest city in the world.
In terms of area and prosperity, it can be said that it is far superior to Kyoto, which has not yet fully recovered from the "Morning Fire".
Hearing Ogata's question, Asai shook his head:
"That Heitaro said he didn't know exactly where in Edo their new base in Shiranui is."
