After the two officers from the club grabbed Ishida's arms, Ishida's apprentice hurriedly shouted:
"master!"
In order to prevent Ishida's apprentice from causing trouble, Uesugi was keeping an eye on him the whole time .
Seeing that he now seemed to be showing signs of using force to take back his master, Uesugi silently raised his right hand and reached for the wooden sword inserted in his left waist.
"Hongzhi! Don't worry, I'll stay at their club for a few days and then come back. During my absence, you should concentrate on preparing for the 'Imperial Trial'!"
When Ishida shouted this, for some reason he still fixed his strange gaze on Ogata...
"Take him to the club quickly and lock him up." Guasheng ordered.
"yes!"
The two officers who held Ishida's arms respectively separated the crowd and escorted Ishida to their Shirobei Club.
After Ishida was taken away, although Ishida's apprentice looked resentful, he ultimately did not come forward to cause trouble.
After watching his master leave, Ishida's apprentice also carried his spear and quickly left the scene.
After being taken away, Ishida finally turned his gaze away from Ogata.
Looking at Ishida being taken away, Ogata frowned and muttered:
"Why was he looking at me like that just now..."
Although he wondered why Ishida looked at him with such a strange gaze just now, Ogata did not take it to heart and regarded what happened tonight as an ordinary daily episode.
Also taken away was the young warrior who had invited Ishida to a sparring match but was ultimately shot down by Ishida.
After successfully escorting the two people who had caused the dispute in Yoshiwara away, Ueyu breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to Ogata and said:
"Mashima-kun, your swordsmanship is amazing. You can defeat someone using a spear so easily."
There is a saying called "Three-stage Theory" in the modern Japanese martial arts world:
A person with 1st degree in swordsmanship can rival a person with 3rd degree in karate.
A person with 1st degree in spearmanship can rival a person with 3rd degree in swordmanship or 9th degree in karate.
This statement may not be rigorous, but the truth behind it is correct - people with weapons have more advantages than those without weapons, and people with long weapons have more advantages than those with short weapons.
The spear is mainly used for stabbing, and its attack range, attack speed, and destructive power are extremely terrifying.
Therefore, in the era of cold weapons, no matter which country, long weapons, headed by spears, will always be the absolute main weapons on the battlefield.
The competition between Uesugi and Ishida just now perfectly demonstrated how advantageous long weapons are in combat.
Ueoka had to exert great effort and seize the fleeting opportunity to get to the position where his sword could hit Ishida.
And Ishida's spear could easily pierce Guase.
So just now, when she saw Ogata defeat Ishida, whom she had tried her best to defeat, with just one move with just one hand, she was so shocked that her eyes widened and her mouth opened wide.
"This is... a technique that someone taught me." Ogata smiled helplessly, "Use brute force to shake off the enemy's weapon. It's best to make the enemy's hand numb, and then take advantage of the opportunity to get close to him."
The "certain guy" that Ogata was referring to was none other than the "evil monk" Ichijun who had given Ogata a hard fight on Chou Island.
Ichijun's amazing strength taught Ogata a good lesson.
Ogata realized this fighting technique while taking one of Ichijun's powerful blows.
This fighting skill is considered a "panacea" type of fighting skill.
Whether used against enemies using long weapons or enemies using short weapons, it can be very effective.
Of course - the prerequisite is that your strength must be high enough and the power of your moves must be strong enough.
"It's good to have enough strength..." Guasheng curled his lips and muttered, "It's good to be able to use skills that someone like me will never be able to use in my lifetime..."
After saying that, Guasheng stood on tiptoe, as if he wanted to make his body look bigger.
It’s a pity that even if he stood on tiptoe, Guasheng’s height was still less than 1.5 meters.
"Excuse me."
At this moment, a deep male voice suddenly sounded behind Ogata.
Ogata looked back and saw an old samurai he had never seen before standing not far behind him.
The old warrior had a clean, neatly shaved head.
He looked to be in his 50s, with many wrinkles on his face.
Although he is old, the old warrior still looks energetic, without any sign of aging, and his eyes are sparkling.
The old samurai, who looked old but still energetic, reminded Ogata of Genichi and Fuma, who always shouted "I'm old, I'm old" but didn't look like an old man no matter how he looked at him.
The same goes for Genichi and Fuma. They look quite old, but they are still in good spirits and don't look like old people at all.
The old warrior also had several followers, including six young warriors who followed closely behind him.
"Excuse me, is there anything I can help you with ?" Ogata asked in a calm tone.
"I am from Dewa, Nagano Shun."
The old samurai who called himself Nagano Shun showed a faint smile.
"I was watching the battle from the Tachibana house not far away, and was fortunate enough to see you destroy the gun with a single sword."
"I admire your superb skills. I didn't expect that Yoshiwara in Edo is also a place where hidden talents are hidden."
"May I know your name and what style of swordsmanship do you practice?"
"I am Goro Majima, a master of Komaki Ittoryu." Ogata said.
Komaki Ittoryu was just a name that Ogata made up to cover up the real name of his swordsmanship school, so Nagano was destined to have never heard of this school name.
However, although he had never heard of this Ancient Sword Style, Nagano did not care about it.
During the Edo period when swordsmanship flourished, various swordsmanship schools flourished. However, world were only a minority after all.
Many sword-fighting schools are not widely spread and are only spread in a small area.
Nagano only regarded the Komaki Ittoryu that Ogata mentioned as an unpopular sword technique that was only spread in a small area in a certain place.
"Mashima-kun, I am very impressed by your swordsmanship."
"I run an Ono Ittoryu dojo in my hometown of Dewa."
"I wonder if you would be interested in becoming my guest."
"I welcome people with superb skills like you to become guests of my dojo."
"Diners?" Ogata raised his eyebrows.
Recruiting diners - this was one of the customs of dojos during the Edo period.
Some wealthy dojo owners would recruit people with good swordsmanship to their dojo.
These people don't need to do anything on a normal day. If they wish, they can even sleep in the temple every day. The temple will also support them and provide them with food and drink.
But if the dojo encounters danger, for example, when someone comes to challenge the dojo, these people have to step forward to fight against the challenger and maintain the dignity of the dojo.
This group of people who do nothing but help when there is something to do, join in when there is quarrel and become accomplices in fights are called "parasites".
In the Edo period, the reason why the custom of recruiting patrons emerged in various dojos was mainly to prevent those who came to challenge the dojo.
If those who challenge the temple succeed, it would be a small matter of losing face, but the big problem would be that the reputation of the temple declines and no one would come to study there in the future.
Therefore, in order to prevent such things from happening, some wealthy temple owners would fund the support of some powerful patrons.
When someone comes to challenge the restaurant, these powerful diners will be allowed to step forward and fight.
Of course, many dojo owners have all sorts of strange reasons for keeping guests.
Some are to prevent challengers, and some are to enhance the reputation of the sword hall.
Some simply like to collect people with excellent swordsmanship.
As for what kind of person this Nagano was, Ogata didn't know.
But no matter what kind of person Nagano is, Ogata's answer is the same.
"Sorry." Ogata smiled and shook his head, "I have no intention of becoming a guest of any gym."
After receiving Ogata's rejection, Nagano did not show any frustration, but asked:
"Are you sure you won't consider it again?"
"No." Ogata said without hesitation, "I appreciate your kindness, but I really have no intention of becoming someone else's guest."
“…Okay then.” Only then did a trace of regret finally appear on Nagano’s face, and he let out a small sigh.
Ogata didn't even ask how much he would be paid as a guest, and refused directly - just from this point, Nagano knew that Ogata really had no intention of becoming a guest of his dojo.
"Well, I have another patrol mission in Yoshiwara, so I'll excuse myself for now."
After saying that, Ogata waved to Uesugi, indicating that it was time for him to leave.
However - just as Ogata turned around, Nagano called him again.
"Your Highness!"
"Is there anything else?" Ogata turned around again, a hint of impatience appearing on his face.
"To be honest, I went to Edo this time to look for someone."
"Since you work at the Shirobei Club in Yoshiwara, you should be familiar with the people who frequently come and go in Yoshiwara."
"So I want to ask: Do you know a person named Kinoshita Genichi?"
"He is an old man who should be over 60 years old."
"Old people are rare in Yoshiwara. I wonder if you have seen one."
"Genichi Kinoshita..." Ogata chewed the name several times in his mouth.
He raised his head slightly, as if recalling something.
Then——
"have no idea."
Ogata shook his head.
"I've never heard of this name. Miss Ueyoshi, you've been in Yoshiwara longer than I have. Do you know this person?"
"I don't know." Guasheng shook his head in confusion, "I haven't heard of this name either."
"Is that so..." Nagano's face showed regret again, "Sorry to bother you, thank you for your help."
After saying that, Nagano and the six young samurai behind him bowed to Ogata and Uesugi, then turned around and left quickly.
Looking at Nagano's departing back, Ogata narrowed his eyes slightly.
Last night, Lin gave Ogata a shot of prevention - many of Genichir's enemies came to Edo because they suspected that Genichir might come to participate in the "Imperial Examination", and based on Genichir's romantic characteristics, they frequently went in and out of Yoshiwara to look for him.
It was because Lin had given Ogata this vaccination in advance that Ogata was able to remain calm and use his acting skills to trick them away after learning that the person Nagano was looking for was Genichi.
——It seems that many of Genichirō’s enemies have come to Edo…
Ogata said silently in his heart.
——The current situation... is much more complicated than I imagined...
…
…
Edo, Yoshiwara, Miumeya, Furin-tayu's room.
"I'm back~~"
Shuntaro jumped down from the ceiling again and landed steadily on the tatami.
“It was a really good show.”
Shuntaro said.
"When did the Shirobei Club have such a powerful official?"
"That's not an official from the club." Fengling Taifu, who was still sitting by the window, replied, "As you know, the club is recruiting temporary staff recently."
"Mashima-kun is a temporary recruit. Today is his first day working in Yoshiwara."
"Mashima-kun?" Shuntaro asked, "Is that the man's name?"
"That's right. Izumo Ronin, Majima Goro-kun."
"You seem to know him very well."
"Not really. I only know his name and birthplace. Thanks to him, I was able to see a good view in the house today."
Furin Taifu summarized in brief sentences what happened in the house today, including how she had just invited Ogata to her room, and then she thanked Ogata and gave him a thank-you gift.
"I didn't expect that besides being an expert in swordsmanship, he also has such a high level of learning."
"I see... your name is Majima Goro... Goro... it's a bit similar to my old name..."
Shuntaro grinned and held the name "Mashima Goro" in his mouth and chewed it for a while.
As if to remember this name firmly in my mind.
"Why are you here again today?" Fengling Taifu frowned her beautiful eyebrows, "Don't you have a mission now?"
"I had a mission tonight." Shuntaro shrugged, "Ermano was planning to have me train a group of Chunins with potential tonight."
"But for some reason I really wanted to play karuta tonight, so I convinced Enma to give the task to someone else."
"A Chang, please take out the flower cards. I'm itching to play."
After listening to Shuntaro's explanation, Fuujiya sighed softly.
While taking out a deck of flower cards from the cabinet beside him, he said to Shuntaro with a worried tone:
"I remember that in the ninja rules of your Shiranui, the first rule is that the leader is supreme and you must never disobey the leader, right?"
"Is it really okay for you to bargain with your Fire Demon like this over and over again?"
"Don't worry, Chang." Shuntaro waved his hand, "Ever since our Shiranui was defeated by Ogata Ittosai at Nijo Castle in Kyoto, our combat power has been greatly reduced."
"Not only did many jonin and chunin die, but even the… who was that… oh, yes, Kotaro, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, died in the battle."
"If you don't take Enma into account, I am currently the strongest fighter among the Shiranui."
"The Flame Demon will not be willing nor dare to lose me, his strongest fighter, when his combat power is greatly reduced now."
"That's why he won't get angry with me because I shirk these unimportant tasks."
"As for the ninja rules you mentioned..."
A meaningful smile appeared on Shuntaro's face.
"I broke the ninja rules that night three years ago."
"Since that night, I have never cared about any rules again."
"The ninja rules have long lost their deterrent effect on me."
"Eren knows that the rules can't hold me back, so he never uses the rules to argue in front of me."
"Anyway, I think you'd better be low-key and cautious." Fuujiya pouted while fiddling with flower cards on the tatami.
"Maybe one day in the future, the Flame Demon will suddenly feel that he no longer needs your top combat power and wants to get rid of you directly."
"If that time comes, let's just make a big fuss like we did three years ago."
After saying that, Shuntaro showed a fearless and brilliant smile.
…
…
Today is Ogata's first day working in Yoshiwara.
Ogata never expected that he would encounter so many things on his first day at work...
First, she was invited into Furin Taifu's room.
Then he met a martial arts fanatic who used the Hozoin-style spear technique.
Finally, he ran into a guy who invited him to be a guest at the dojo, and this guy was one of Genichi's enemies who was looking for Genichi everywhere...
After settling these matters one by one, Ogata was finally able to get back to his main business - finding and monitoring Gokutaro.
After Nagano left, Obana said goodbye to Ueo.
Ueyu continued to patrol aimlessly throughout Yoshiwara.
Ogata returned to the front half of Nakanomachi and pretended to patrol the front half of Nakanomachi while monitoring the gate of Yoshiwara.
Ogata was also worried that Gokutaro might come to Yoshiwara during the time when he happened not to be near the gate of Yoshiwara.
But Ogata's worry now seems to be unnecessary.
Not long after Ogata returned to the front half of Nakanomachi, he saw a man swaggering through the gate of Yoshiwara.
Last night, after Atachi identified the man as Gokutaro, one of the "Four Heavenly Kings" in Shiranui, Oofang silently memorized his face.
So when this guy swaggered into Yoshiwara, Ogata immediately recognized him - this guy was Gokutaro!
Gokutaro did not come alone.
Just like last night, he was followed by a man who looked like a follower.
And Gokutaro's follower today is the same person as yesterday's follower.
Looking at Gokutaro walking with his followers in the center of Naka-no-Machi, Ogata whispered in a voice that only he could hear:
"I've been waiting for so long..."
Ogata did not take action immediately.
Instead, after Gokutaro and his followers passed in front of him and were more than ten steps away from him, Ogata tightened the special haori of the Shirobei Club on his body, raised the sword at his waist, and followed Gokutaro silently.