[Note]: Japan’s “military strategist” and our “military strategist” do not mean the same thing.
Japan's "Art of War" can be understood as "the law of weapons."
So Japan’s “military strategists” are similar to our “martial artists”.
Japan's "military strategy", "military science" and "great military tactics" are equivalent to our "military tactics".
Although the term "military strategist" was only popular during the Warring States Period and the early Edo Period, in fact, until the middle and late Edo Period, many people still used "military strategist" to refer to those who were good at using weapons.
Because the term "art of war" is mentioned in this chapter, I would like to give you a brief introduction to it in advance to avoid misunderstanding.
…
Ninja sword - as the name suggests, it is a sword used exclusively by ninjas.
It is generally believed by the public that the length of a ninja sword is between that of a katana and a wakizashi, and it is usually a straight blade. Its quality is worse than that of the samurai's katana, and its blade is much blunter, because the ninja sword is not used for chopping, but mainly for stabbing.
This view is actually wrong.
The truth is: different people use different ninja swords.
Ninjas will modify their ninja swords according to their needs and the fighting methods they are good at.
For example: Some people who are good at both kusarigama and swordsmanship will connect a kusarigama to the bottom of the handle of the ninja sword, and then connect a sickle to the other end of the kusarigama.
Those who are good at "prop battles" will make major modifications to the handle of the knife, such as hollowing out the handle and placing small props or medicine inside it.
Some people's ninja swords are basically the same as the samurai swords used by samurai. They are precious swords that are hard, tough and sharp.
Shuntaro belongs to this category.
Shuntaro, who is good at using two swords, has two ninja swords.
Both of his ninja swords have straight blades and are shorter than ordinary katana. The blade length of the two swords is only about 55cm.
Although they are just two unmarked swords without even a blade inscription, their quality is not inferior to those of the precious swords of Izumi-no-kami Kanesada and Naga-sone Kotetsu.
In order to facilitate his movements in the dark, the blades of Shintaro's two swords were painted with special ink to become charcoal-black.
Unlike the samurai who basically hung their swords around their waists, Shuntaro carried his two ninja swords diagonally behind his back.
The handles of the two ninja swords protruded from Shuntaro's right shoulder, pointing diagonally at the sky.
Because their length is between that of a katana and a wakizashi, even if they are carried on his back, Shuntaro can easily pull out these two swords with his long arms.
After learning that a rare and interesting guest had arrived, Shuntaro quickened the pace of wiping his body.
After quickly wiping off the sweat on his body, changing his clothes, and carrying his two swords, Shuntaro and Shintaro walked side by side and ran towards the mansion where the flame demon lived at a quick pace.
Gokutaro went to Yoshiwara to have fun tonight as usual.
Therefore, among the Four Heavenly Kings, only Shuntaro and Shintaro can go to meet these guests.
The training ground reserved for Shuntaro is quite far from the mansion . Even if the two of them walk at a fast pace, it will take some time to reach their destination.
In order to kill time on the road, Shuntaro asked Shintaro beside him:
"Shintaro, how is your mission to capture the rebel ninja who fled to Edo going?"
Not long ago, another rebellious ninja emerged from their Shiranui clan.
Although "rebellious ninjas" are commonplace in Shiranui, the ninja who defected this time is not ordinary. The ninja who defected this time is a jonin.
After all, the jonin is the high-end combat force in their Shiranui. The seriousness of the defection of the jonin is far greater than the defection of the chuunin, genin and saka.
Once a jonin betrays Shiranui , Shiranui's pursuit of this traitor will often be more intense than that of other defecting chuunin and genin.
After relentless pursuit of this defecting jonin, they finally obtained reliable intelligence a while ago: he was hiding in Edo.
After obtaining this reliable information, Enma sent out Shintaro a few days ago, and asked Shintaro to lead a group of ninjas to chase the rebel ninja in Edo.
And Enma was also very generous. Even when Shiranui's combat power had greatly declined, Enma still sent two jonin, eight chuunin, and 14 genin to help Shintaro.
"Nothing." Whether it was Shintaro's expression or the tone of his voice, there was no emotion at all. "I'm just tracking according to the rules."
"Do you need my help?" Shuntaro asked jokingly.
"unnecessary."
Shintaro was still very frugal with his words, and looked like he didn't want to say another word to Shuntaro.
And Shuntaro was already used to Shintaro's cold attitude, so he didn't care.
Aside from Enma, Shintaro is quite cold towards everyone.
The type of person who can communicate with you using one word, will never use two words to talk to you.
Compared to this kind of taciturn person, Shuntaro still prefers people with cheerful personalities, so the relationship between Shuntaro and Shintaro is very ordinary, and can only be regarded as nodding acquaintances.
If he wasn't bored from the journey, Shuntaro wouldn't have taken the initiative to find topics to chat with Shintaro.
Another reason why the relationship between Shuntaro and Shintaro is average is that Shuntaro thinks Shintaro is weird.
I've never seen Shintaro have a close relationship with anyone. I wonder if he says more than 20 sentences a day. It's hard to guess what he's thinking.
This feeling of "I don't know what this person is thinking" makes Shuntaro feel very uncomfortable, so this is also one of the important reasons why Shuntaro doesn't interact much with Shintaro.
After chatting with Shintaro for a while, Enma's mansion finally appeared within their field of vision.
After quickly walking the last short distance and entering the Fire Demon's mansion, the two walked towards the room specially used to receive guests with ease.
The Flame Demon has a habit of receiving foreign visitors in the mansion where he lives.
Therefore, in the Fire Demon's mansion, there is a spacious room specially used to entertain guests.
Wow...
Shuntaro and Shintaro walked to the door of the guest room one after another and slowly opened it.
The light in the room was not bright, with only two candles for lighting.
Shuntaro was already tired of seeing all the decorations in the room, so after opening the door, his sight and attention were fixed on the large group of people kneeling on the tatami in the room.
Shuntaro counted and found that there were 27 people in total.
These 27 people were wearing ordinary kimonos and did not carry any weapons. They looked like a group of ordinary people.
This large group of people occupied nearly 80% of the space in this originally spacious room.
What is striking is that among these 27 people there are only 3 elderly people, and the other 24 are all young people who are probably only in their teens and twenties, with the oldest being less than 30 years old.
These three elderly people all have white hair and are probably around 50 or 60 years old. They should be of the same generation as the Flame Demon in Shiranui.
The dark complexions of the three men showed that they had been exposed to the sunlight outdoors for a long time. Their sharp, bright eyes were in stark contrast to their beards and hair, which had long been gray.
The arms of these three old guys instantly attracted the attention of Shuntaro, a warrior.
Although they were all wearing loose kimonos, some of their forearm muscles were still visible outside the clothes.
Without exception, they all had extremely strong forearms.
Not only them, the 24 young men behind the three of them were like this. Their arms and fingers were those of people who practiced military tactics.
——They must be the ninjas from Iga...
Shuntaro thought to himself.
In addition to these 27 people, there were 2 ninjas from their Shiranui group kneeling in a corner of the room.
These two people must be responsible for taking care of the guests before Enma and Shuntaro arrive.
Seeing Shuntaro and Shintaro coming, the two ninjas immediately bowed to them.
After Shuntaro and Shintaro opened the door and entered the room, the Iga ninjas, led by the three old guys, all turned their attention to the two of them.
"Nice to meet you." Shintaro was the first to greet the guests and introduce himself. "I'm Shintaro from Shiranui."
After Shintaro finished speaking, Shuntaro immediately followed suit:
"I'm Shuntaro."
As soon as Shuntaro finished speaking, low exclamations rang out among the Iga ninjas.
The Iga ninjas - especially the three old guys - looked at Shintaro with a hint of curiosity.
"Are you Shuntaro..." one of the three old guys said, "I've heard a lot about you. The famous Shuntaro is much younger than I thought."
"I don't deserve to be called famous." Shuntaro smiled.
Shuntaro and Shintaro sat in front of the Iga ninjas, sitting opposite them.
After sitting down, Shuntaro looked at the Iga ninjas in front of him with interest.
This was the first time that Shuntaro saw Iga's colleagues.
Because as far as Shuntaro knew, Iga Village was destroyed due to civil strife 40 years ago.
Iga-no-Sato was once an extremely beautiful place.
During the Warring States Period 200 years ago, in order to maintain development and strengthen themselves, most of the major ninjas would choose a main family to join.
The people of Fuma no Sato took refuge with the Hojo family, a daimyo of Kanto.
In the early period, Koga no Sato surrendered to the Rokkaku clan, Tsutsui clan, Hosokawa clan and other families near the Ki region, and in the later period, they surrendered to the great overlord Oda Nobunaga.
The master that they, Shiranui, relied on at that time was Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the "man of the world".
Shuntaro had learned a little bit of their history in Shiranui.
They didn't know that Huoli was a rootless tree at the beginning, and had no one to rely on, so its development was extremely slow, and it almost perished several times.
It was not until Oda Nobunaga was betrayed and killed by Akechi Mitsuhide and Toyotomi Hideyoshi took over most of Oda Nobunaga's political legacy that Shiranui decided to place her bets on Toyotomi Hideyoshi and join him.
With the support of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, their Shiranui finally ushered in its first period of rapid development.
Different ninjas serve different masters.
But only Iga no Sato really bet on the right horse.
During the Warring States Period, the people of Iga Village took refuge in Tokugawa Ieyasu.
The ninjas of Iga made great contributions to the establishment of Tokugawa Ieyasu's hegemony.
In order to thank Iga no Sato, Tokugawa Ieyasu established Iga no Sato as the official ninja of the Edo Shogunate after defeating the Toyotomi clan, stealing the fruits of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's victory, unifying Japan, and establishing the Edo Shogunate.
The Iga ninjas, who bet on the right horse, prospered until 40 years ago - when they were destroyed due to internal strife.
When Iga-no-Sato was destroyed by civil strife 40 years ago, Shuntaro was not even born yet.
Shuntaro never thought that he would be able to see living Iga ninjas in his lifetime, so he couldn't suppress his curiosity and kept looking at the group of Iga ninjas in front of him.
Different ninjas have different styles of doing things and fighting.
For example: In the Warring States Period, Koga no Sato, which was as famous as Iga no Sato, placed great emphasis on group action.
Other ninjas are divided into three levels: Jonin, Chunin, and Genin.
They are a little special among the Shiranui, as there is a level called "Ku" below the Genin.
However, there is no such class as Jonin in Koga-no-Sato, only Chunin and Genin.
The Chunin in Koga no Sato is similar to a commander, responsible for commanding Genin whose functions are similar to those of soldiers.
The Koga ninjas are not good at fighting or assassination, but they are good at infiltration and intelligence gathering.
Therefore - most of the Koga ninjas do not know any martial arts.
This is because if you practice martial arts, especially swordsmanship, gunmanship and other military techniques, your forearms and fingers will become thicker, and there will be a layer of calluses on your palms that only people who practice military techniques will have.
In this way, it will be easy for people who know the business to see that you are not an ordinary person, and you will not be able to disguise yourself as a monk, merchant, etc. to sneak into the enemy country to gather intelligence.
The style of Iga is completely different from that of Koga.
Iga focuses on personal combat ability and is a complete "military faction".
This is very similar to their Shiranui.
Like Shiranui and Iga, they focus on personal combat capabilities and are "fighting" ninjas.
Therefore, during the Warring States Period 200 years ago, countless fierce and bloody conflicts broke out between Shiranui Village and Iga Village, both of which were "military factions" and served different lords.
Now, after taking a closer look at the ninjas of Iga, Shuntaro found that the rumors were not wrong.
These Iga ninjas indeed all look like they are quite capable fighters.
"Mr. Shuntaro, Mr. Shintaro." One of the three old men asked, "When will Lord Enma arrive?"
"Your Excellency, please be patient." Shintaro responded politely, "Lord Enma will be here soon."
Shintaro's mouth seemed to be blessed. As soon as he finished speaking, footsteps were heard outside the room coming closer and closer.
Wow.
The door was opened.
The person who opened the door was none other than Flame Demon.
After briefly glancing at everyone in the room, Enma slowly walked towards Shuntaro and Shintaro, then sat down cross-legged.
Even without anyone's explanation, the three old guys could recognize from the expressions of Shuntaro and others, as well as the appearance of the Flame Demon they had heard of before, that this person was the current supreme ruler of Shiranui.
The three old guys led the young men behind them to salute the Fire Demon in unison.
"I have long heard of your name, Enma-sama. I am Hannosuke from Iga."
"I am Zennosuke of Iga."
"I'm Iga Shinnosuke."
The three old guys gave their names one by one.
The Flame Demon nodded slightly, and then said with full energy:
"I am the 17th Enma of Shiranui."
After announcing his home address, Enma glanced gently at the Iga ninjas in front of him.
Then there were a few chuckles.
"I never thought I would be able to see the ninja from Iga again before I die ."
"I've heard before that some remnants of Iga are still alive."
"It's a relief that you remnants of the party were able to find us here."
"We are in the same business after all." Hannosuke said expressionlessly, "It is much easier for a ninja to find another ninja than for an ordinary person to find a ninja."
"It wasn't easy for us to find, though. It took us two full months to finally find the location of your new base in Shiranui."
"Two months?... You took so long to come here, it seems like you have something important to tell us."
"We do have something very important to tell you." The person who spoke was still Hannosuke, "Lord Enma, could you please ask everyone else to leave?"
In response to Hannosuke's request, Enma nodded without any hesitation at the two ninjas who had been kneeling in a corner of the room and had been responsible for serving the guests.
The two ninjas who understood what Enma meant immediately stood up and left the room.
Hannosuke: "Lord Enma, and Mr. Shuntaro and Mr. Shintaro."
"We don't need them anymore." Enma waved his hand. "They are the four heavenly kings in our Shiranui. They are also my trusted followers. It doesn't matter if they are here."
Seeing what Enma said, Hannosuke and the others didn't force it.
"Come to think of it, we Shiranui-ri and Iga-no-sato are enemies."
The Flame Demon grinned and sneered.
"Two hundred years ago, the lord we served was Toyotomi, and the lord you served was Tokugawa."
"For this reason, we had many conflicts two hundred years ago when the world was still unsettled."
"When Toyotomi Hideyoshi was still alive and the Toyotomi family began to swallow up the world, we in Shiranui Village and you in Iga Village started a full-scale struggle."
"I never thought that Shiranui and Iga no Sato, who were once enemies, could still talk face to face and calmly now, two hundred years after the end of the Warring States Period."
“It’s really sad.”
Hearing what Enma said, Hannosuke smiled slightly:
"Shiranui and Iga-no-Sato were enemies - all of this is old news from two hundred years ago."
"Toyotomi has long since perished."
"We in Iga will no longer serve Tokugawa."
"How about we just forget about these old things?"
The Fire Demon laughed a few times.
"I don't intend to pursue those muddled accounts from two hundred years ago. It's been so long, and I don't know how to pursue them even if I want to. Well, let me hear why you, the remnants of Iga, have gone to such great lengths to find me."
"Master Flame Demon."
Hannosuke straightened his clothes.
"What we are asking for is quite simple."
"We hope Shiranui can lend us a hand."
"Help us find Genichi Kinoshita's whereabouts in Edo!"
As soon as the name Genichi Kinoshita came out of Hannosuke's mouth, Enma's brows immediately frowned and his eyes fixed.
As for Shuntaro standing aside, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows after hearing the name Genichi Kinoshita.
Shuntaro had often heard of the name Genichi Kinoshita.
As far as he knew, this Genichi Kinoshita seemed to be a great swordsman who had honed his swordsmanship to the pinnacle of perfection.
At the same time, he is also one of their enemies in Shiranui.
The left eye of their leader, Enma, was blinded by Kinoshita Genichirō.
Ten years ago, it was also because of Genichi Kinoshita's intervention that they in Shiranui were unable to completely wipe out Fuma-no-Sato and had to suffer the humiliation of having their base invaded for nothing.
"...What are you looking for Kinoshita Genichi for?" Enma asked in a deep voice, "Do you also have a grudge against Kinoshita Genichi?"
"It's more than just a grudge!" The person who spoke this time was no longer Hannosuke, but Zennosuke, "If it weren't for Kinoshita Genichi, our Iga Village wouldn't have collapsed so quickly 40 years ago!"
After saying this, Hannosuke clenched his fists until they creaked, his eyes turned red, and the hatred that flashed and emerged in his pupils was so intense that it was terrifying.
"…Wasn't the destruction of your Iga-no-sato due to civil strife?" Shuntaro, who had been silent from the beginning, spoke up at this moment, "Could it be that it wasn't due to civil strife, but because that Kinoshita Genichi tore down your Iga-no-sato alone?"
"No, it's not." Zennosuke said in a deep voice, "The reason why our Iga Village was destroyed 40 years ago... the main reason is very complicated."
" Among these many reasons, Kinoshita Genichi's intervention is one of the most important reasons."
"We will never forgive Kinoshita Genichi!" This time it was Shinnosuke who spoke, "Only after the destruction of Iga Village! The three of us have been hiding our identities for the past 40 years, practicing hard and accumulating strength!"
"All this is just for revenge against Kinoshita Genichi!"
The Enma glanced at the 24 young men behind the three old men and said, "Are these the forces you have accumulated to avenge Genichi Kinoshita?"
"That's right!" Hannosuke shouted, "These children are the new Iga ninjas that the three of us personally trained after the destruction of Iga-no-Sato. They are all death warriors! They have both strength and courage!"
"...Since you just said that you were going to ask us, Shiranui, to help you find Kinoshita Genichi in Edo..." Enma continued in a deep voice, "Could it be that you have received reliable information that Kinoshita Genichi is in Edo now?"
"No. We just guessed that Kinoshita Genichi might be in Edo now." Hannosuke said, "Lord Enma, from what I know, you seem to have some connection with Kinoshita Genichi."
"Then you should also know how much Kinoshita Genichi loves to stir up trouble and how much he loves to compete with others."
Hearing what Hannosuke said, Enma pursed his lips and did not comment on what Hannosuke had just said.
And Hannosuke continued:
"Before he integrated all schools and created that damn Wuwo Two-Sword Style, he traveled around the world and sparred with various masters."
"After he created the damned Muga Nito-ryu, he became even more lawless. In just a few years, he kicked out countless dojos. Just ask around and you'll know that Kinoshita Genichi is known as a 'battle maniac'."
"Whenever there is an opportunity to fight someone, Kinoshita Genichi will definitely go and join in the fun."
“Even if I can’t participate in the battle, I will definitely go to watch and observe.”
"Master Enma, a guy who loves to spar with others, what would you think when you learn that Edo is currently holding a large-scale competition called the 'Gozen Trial' where masters from many different schools will compete?"
"...I understand what you mean." Enma smiled a few times, "You think that Kinoshita Genichi will be attracted to Edo by the 'Gozen Trial', right?"
"That's right." Hannosuke nodded vigorously.
"Then you may be disappointed." Enma said, "I don't know if you know that the results of the 'Imperial Examination' have been announced."
"Genichi Kinoshita's name is not on it. Genichi Kinoshita did not participate in the 'Gozen Trial'."
"Also, as far as I know, there are no white-haired old men participating in the 'Imperial Trial' this time. The oldest one is only in his fifties."
"Master Enma." Enma's words just now did not shake Hannosuke's expression at all. "I just said that even if Kinoshita Genichi can't participate in the battle, he will definitely go to observe."
"Even if he didn't participate in the 'Imperial Trial', he would most likely come forward to observe the subsequent 'Imperial Trial' martial arts test."
"In short - as long as there is even the slightest possibility that 'Kinoshita Genichi is in Edo', we will not let it go!"
"...I understand." Enma sneered, "I never thought that Kinoshita Genichi not only had a grudge against us in Shiranui, but also against you in Iga no Sato."
"Master Enma." The stern expression on Hannosuke's face eased a little, "We have also heard about the dispute between you, Shiranui, and Kinoshita Genichi before."
“So this is a mutually beneficial collaboration for us.”
"We will work together to find Kinoshita Genichi in Edo, and then..."
Before Hannosuke could finish his words, Enma interrupted him:
"Master Hannosuke, it is indeed as you said. We have a grudge against Kinoshita Genichi."
“We are also happy to assist you.”
"but--"
The Fire Demon drawled out his tone.
"We in Shiranui are not in a hurry to kill Kinoshita Genichi."
"So if you want us, Shiranui, to lend you a helping hand, it's far from enough to just say 'We all have a grudge against Kinoshita Genichi'."
Having said this, the Flame Demon stopped talking abruptly and did not continue.
But it's enough.
What Enma said just now has already made a lot of things clear to Hannosuke and the others.
After being stunned for a moment, Hannosuke smiled bitterly and said:
"As expected of a ninja, I can't get your help without paying a price."
"You provide the money, and we provide the people." Enma said calmly, "This is a rule that has been agreed upon for hundreds of years. You are ninjas from Iga, and you should also understand this set of rules. We ninjas never do things for nothing."
Assistant Hanzhi adjusted his clothes and said, "I understand. After all, we are ninjas too. Before I came to you, Shiranui, I already knew that it would be impossible to get your help without paying any price."
"We have been prepared for this for a long time."
"Master Enma, if you are willing to help us find Kinoshita Genichi in Edo, we are willing to pay you a reward of 200 taels of gold. We will pay a deposit of 100 taels of gold first."
As soon as the number 200 came out of Hannosuke's mouth, Shuntaro couldn't help but let out a low exclamation.
After hearing the words "200 taels of gold", Yan Mo couldn't help but look surprised and said:
"You remnants of Iga are quite rich."
"In order to avenge Kinoshita Genichi, we have been keeping reserve funds for the past 40 years." Hannosuke said calmly, "It's just that it's not very 'clean' money. I hope you don't mind, Lord Enma."
"As for money, I don't care about whether it's clean or not. As long as it's money, it's fine." The Flame Demon grinned, "Since you can pay, then it's easy to talk about."
Hannosuke: "So, is this a deal?"
"Of course!" Enma raised his hand and touched the scar on his left eye, "Let us in Shiranui and your Iga no Sato cooperate well..."