Chanup had already anticipated that many of his tribesmen would block his door, so when he returned home and saw more than 20 people standing at his door with anxious faces, Chanup, who had been mentally prepared, looked calm and not panicked at all.
Seeing Chanup coming back, the twenty or so tribesmen immediately surrounded him, shouting and asking for help.
The questions they asked were always the same - either asking why the people called, or asking whether Chanup and the others had discussed any countermeasures.
After Chanup casually said something to get rid of them, he relied on his strong body to force his way back to his house.
"You're back."
As soon as Chanup returned home, he saw Tang Shen sitting cross-legged in a corner of the room, saying to Chanup in a calm tone, "You're back."
Tang Shen looked up at Chanup, who had an unfathomable expression, and let out a long sigh:
"Ah... I told you to make a decision earlier. Look - now the shogunate's army has arrived. There's no way to escape..."
Before Tang Shen finished speaking, he realized that his words were a bit too harsh, so he closed his mouth in time and did not continue.
Chanup turned around and looked around: "Where are Aizuma and Otunpuyi?"
"They haven't come back yet." Tang Shen said.
Chanup had just finished asking about the whereabouts of Aisuma and Otunpuyi, when Aisuma's voice suddenly rang out outside the house:
"Father! Father!"
As Chanup turned his head to look at the door, he saw Aisuma eagerly lifting the door curtain and rushing into the house.
"Father! Mr. U-Upanu seems to be giving a speech! Many people from the tribe have come to watch!"
…
…
Upanu stood on a large wooden barrel, looking down at the tribesmen who had come to visit him.
According to Upanu's estimation, there are now more than 100 tribesmen surrounding him.
Chanup has not yet made a statement.
The diehards, led by Reitannoe, were determined to fight to the death with the Japanese outsiders in order to fight for the slim chance of victory.
Upanu was unwilling to go crazy with these lunatics and fight a battle that had no chance of winning.
In order to defeat this group of "war factions", Upanu just thought of a strategy - that is to try to get as many residents as possible to support him and agree with his idea of ​​"surrender in exchange for survival".
So Upanu planned this speech to "explain to the residents the benefits of surrender."
He had just asked everyone he could to help with the publicity and get as many people as possible to hear his speech.
Now the residents of Heyezhe are already in fear and anxiety, and they are eager to know what their future will be like.
When they heard that Upanu was going to give a speech related to their survival, many people were attracted by it. In a blink of an eye, the number of residents gathered in front of Upanu reached more than 100 people.
Looking at the more than 100 tribesmen gathered in front of him, Upanu's consciousness suddenly began to blur. The scene in front of him reminded Upanu of three years ago...
I recalled the scene three years ago when the tribesmen were mobilized to resist the Japanese before the Battle of Kunasilimenasi...
The scene and everything from three years ago are very similar to this moment...
Three years ago, he was also standing on a wooden barrel.
That day, they faced nearly a hundred villagers in their Kapasi village and denounced the oppression they were subjected to.
That day, he ignited the fire of resistance in the hearts of almost all the young men in the village.
That day, almost all the young men in the village took up arms and followed him to the front line to resist the Japanese.
That day was also the day when most of the young people in the village said goodbye to their loved ones forever...
Upanu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and shook his head vigorously.
When he opened his eyes again, he could no longer see the scene from three years ago.
He cleared his throat and said loudly:
"Everyone, thank you for coming."
…
…
"Puccina, you're here too?"
"Yes. Let's listen to what Mr. Upanu has to say." Puccina nodded to his friend. "I was just looking for Asuma nearby. By the way, have you seen Asuma?"
Puccina, Retannoe's only son and also Asuma's childhood sweetheart, has been running around looking for Asuma.
He heard that Aisuma was now busy maintaining order in various places. Worried that Aisuma was tired, he took out his treasured dried deer and wanted to give it to Aisuma to eat and replenish his strength.
"You guy..." Puchina's friend showed a speechless expression, "I don't know whether to scold you for having only women in your mind... or to praise you for being so calm in this situation... I didn't see Asuma. I only heard that she is very busy now, maintaining order everywhere."
When Puchina was about to say something to respond to his friend, Upanu, who was standing on a wooden barrel not far away, suddenly said loudly:
"Everyone, thank you for coming."
Seeing that Upanu was finally about to speak, Puchina immediately closed his mouth, turned his head to look at Upanu, and prepared to listen to Upanu's speech attentively.
…
…
About 100 people came - this had already met Upanu's expectations.
Upanu did not expect all the residents to come and listen to his speech, nor did he have time to wait for more people to come and listen to his speech - if the time was delayed for too long, he might be obstructed and sabotaged by people like Retannoe.
"I believe you all know that there are thousands of Japanese troops outside."
Many people below nodded slowly.
"But you probably don't know that the Japanese army outside the city is only a part of their total force."
Upanu suddenly changed the subject and said something that made everyone present look pale.
"According to the intelligence we know so far, there are tens of thousands of Japanese soldiers attacking us. The army blocking our door is only a small part of their tens of thousands of troops."
As expected, the people below were in an uproar.
Upanu was in no hurry to continue speaking, but remained silent for a while, allowing the panic to slowly spread and brew among the crowd.
After a few breaths, Upanu continued:
"The Japanese have tens of thousands of troops, while we only have a few thousand people, including the elderly, the weak, women and children."
Because he wanted to spread his idea that "surrender is the only right way" before Retannoy and his people came to interfere, Upanu did not do any more preparation after successfully arousing the panic of the people in front of him, and went straight to the point:
"The numbers are too far apart. Although we have this solid fortress, we have no chance of winning against an onslaught of tens of thousands of troops."
"If we fight with the Japanese, we will only be defeated. We and our relatives and friends will be slaughtered, and the continuation of our race will be interrupted."
The panic and anxiety on some people's faces slowly turned into naked fear at this moment.
Seeing that the time was almost up, Upanu took a deep breath, gathered his strength, and shouted at the highest volume he could:
"So——let's surrender!!"
"As long as we surrender, we can avoid this losing battle! Everyone can live, and our tribe can survive!!"
When Upanu shouted this, Retannoe, who had heard the news, happened to arrive at the scene.
Looking at Upanu standing on the barrel and speaking passionately, Retannoe showed an exasperated expression and hurriedly said to several "war advocates" beside him who had also rushed over after hearing the news: "Let's go ! Let's drag that spineless guy down!"
After saying this, Retannoe took the lead and rushed towards Upanu.
At this time, Upanu also noticed Retannoe and others who were rushing towards him.
Looking at Retanoe and others rushing towards him, Upanu couldn't help but sneer with a smug look on his face.
Although Reitannoe and the others arrived earlier than he expected, it didn't matter - although time was urgent, he had said everything he wanted to say.
He has successfully planted the "seeds".
…
…
"Hey, Puchina. Your father is here." Puchina's friend poked Puchina with his elbow - but got no response.
"Puccina?" Puchina's friend looked at Puchina beside him with a puzzled look.
I saw that Puchina beside me seemed like a different person.
Usually, Puchina always looks silly and keeps saying Aisuma when he opens his mouth and Aisuma when he closes his mouth.
But at this moment, Puchina had a serious and cold face - this was the first time his friends saw Puchina like this.
After Puchina took a deep look at Upanu who was being dragged away by his father and others, he hugged the dried deer that he was going to give to Asuma without saying a word.
"…I need to go home and get something."
After saying this to his friend, Puchina no longer paid attention to his friend who was still full of doubts, and quickly left the crowd.
…
…
Red Moon Fortress, Kunoa's clinic—
Just now, although Kunoya said that she had guessed what Upanu would say in public, perhaps because she was bored, she still ran over to join in the fun.
Ogata had no interest in the speech of Upanu, whom he had never met.
Moreover, Atachi, who was anxious to come up with a way for the couple to escape from here, would certainly not allow Ogata to leave at this time.
So after Kunoya left with her cigarette in her mouth, Ogata and Atachi were the only ones left in the clinic again.
At this time, Ating seemed to have calmed down.
She lay quietly on the mat, looking at the roof made of dry grass and wood with calm eyes.
Atachi's overly quiet appearance made Ogata feel a little at a loss.
Atachi remained silent, and Ogata didn't know what to do - since neither of them spoke, the atmosphere between them fell into an eerie silence.
In order to break the strange silence, Ogata decided to talk to Atachi about something light-hearted first.
"Um... Ah-Machi. Would you like some water? You haven't had any water since a while ago, have you?"
Ating neither said "yes" nor "no".
Instead, after a moment of silence, he suddenly asked Ating:
"...Ayi. If we both ride on horses and you tie me to your back, can you take me out with you?"
Atachi suddenly turned to such a serious topic, which made Ogata subconsciously stunned.
After coming back to his senses, Ogata looked at the serious-looking Atachi, pursed his lips, and said slowly:
“Whether you can break out is another matter. Even if you can successfully break out, your injuries have not healed yet. Once you break out of the encirclement, your wounds will probably only split open due to the violent turbulence.”
"...I think so too..." Atachi smiled bitterly.
Ogata had thought about breaking out with Atachi directly - but this was simply not feasible.
The only way to break out with Ating, who could barely sit up, was on horseback.
However, Atachi is unable to sit steadily on the horse's back now, so if Ogata wants to lead Atachi to break out on horseback, in order to ensure that Atachi does not fall off the horse's back, he has to tie himself and Atachi together with a rope.
But doing so would inevitably have a huge impact on Ogata - no matter who it was, with someone tied behind their back, their movements would inevitably become sluggish.
Even though his swordsmanship had reached a level that ordinary people could hardly reach, with Atachi tied to his body, Ogata was still not sure he could get both him and Atachi away unscathed.
What's more, Ating's injury cannot withstand any violent movements or bumps.
Breaking out on horseback - just by imagining it, you can tell what a fierce battle this would be.
Even if he managed to break out, Ating would most likely become a bloody man - stained by the blood gushing out of his torn wounds.
"Then, then..." Ating asked anxiously, "How about asking the people from Red Moon Fortress to help?"
"Convince the people here, and then work together with them to repel the shogunate troops outside the city."
"...This may not work." Ogata said slowly, "Let's not talk about whether Chanup and the others are willing to fight to the death with the shogunate army outside the city."
"Even if they wanted to... they can't ride horses, they can only walk, and they are not good at field combat."
"Taking them to attack the shogunate army on foot and engage in a field battle with the shogunate army... I'm afraid that would be similar to me attacking the shogunate army alone - they can only walk, are not good at field battles, and are outnumbered, so they can't help much."
"Moreover - the shogunate army is now blocking the only gate of the Red Moon Fortress, monitoring its every move."
"If I leave the city alone, I can still stay hidden."
"But if we take a large group of people from the Red Moon Fortress out of the city, there will be no place to hide. The shogunate army will quickly monitor our movements and quickly prepare to meet the enemy."
"If we take the people from the Red Moon Fortress to attack the shogunate army that is ready to fight... I'm afraid we will be annihilated."
After listening to Ogata's calm statement, A-Machi pursed her lips.
His eyelids drooped and the expression on his face darkened at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"...Then...Ayi, you should run away by yourself."
"...Ah?" Ogata, wondering if he had heard it wrong, widened his eyes and looked at Atachi in surprise and shock.
"Since it's difficult to break out with me... then you should break out by yourself." A-Ming continued , "With your skills, if you break out by yourself, the chances of success should be very high..."
"Don't say such stupid things." Ogata put away the surprise and shock on his face and said seriously, "Do you think it's possible for me to abandon you and run away alone?"
"So what do you want to do?" Ating, who had been looking at the rooftop, suddenly turned his head and looked directly at Ogata with a slightly sad expression, "Are you really going to deal with the army outside the city alone?"
"You can assassinate someone in a military camp by yourself, but can you defeat an entire army by yourself?"
"How can an army be defeated if it does not inflict enough casualties on the army?"
"Don't do something that will lead to your own death... Run away alone..."
"Anyway... you are trapped in this desperate situation because of me."
Atachi forced a not-so-pretty smile towards Ogata:
"If I hadn't been injured and needed to return to the Red Moon Fortress for treatment, we could have fled far away and wouldn't have to face this desperate situation..."
"Since you are being dragged down by me, you should stop the loss as soon as possible... Don't continue to be in danger because of me..."
At first, when Ogata heard Atachi ask him to escape alone, there was a hint of anger on his face.
But gradually, the anger on Ogata's face slowly disappeared.
After hearing Atachi's words, "You are also dragged down by me," Ogata's expression completely calmed down.
After Ating finished speaking, Ogata looked at Ating deeply with a calm gaze.
"...A-Ming, let me tell you a little secret that I have hardly ever told anyone else."
He said something to Atachi abruptly that had nothing to do with the previous topic, leaving Atachi with a confused look on her face.
Before Atachi could reply, Obi continued to speak to himself:
"I like girls with big breasts."
"Huh?" The puzzled look on Ating's face became even more intense. "What are you doing? Why are you talking about such things for no reason?"
Ogata ignored Atachi and just smiled faintly.
"After I chopped Matsudaira Gennai into pieces and left the Hirose Domain, I lived in exile for a not-so-short period of time."
"My parents died young, and my master and fellow apprentices who were like my brothers were slaughtered overnight. At that time, I had no one to turn to, no place to go, and no one to rely on."
The color of memories slowly emerged from Ogata's eyes.
"After leaving Hirose Domain, I have been on guard every day against any bounty hunters who might be interested in my head."
"Every now and then a bounty hunter would rush towards me with a knife in hand, and I would have to draw my knife to fight him."
"Not long after I killed the 100 guards of Matsudaira Gennai, I started to live a life of being on guard every day, killing people, being on guard again, and killing people again."
"To be honest, my heart was already numb at that time."
"In the past, I would feel nervous when I drew a real sword."
"But after living a life of escape, I can now calmly draw the knife, calmly chop people, and calmly wipe the blood and flesh off the knife. To me, chopping people is like eating and drinking water."
"Like an inhumane 'executioner', like an extremely murderous 'Shura'."
"At that time... I really thought I might spend the rest of my life like this - until I met you by chance."
"I fell in love with you...at first sight. When I first met you, I had a good impression of you."
"When I realized that I had a crush on you, I realized that my heart had not been completely numb from all the killing."
"Whenever I think of your face, I feel that there is still a good part of humanity left in my heart. When I think of this, I feel redeemed. I am not an 'executioner' or a 'Shura', I am 'Ogata Yoshisei'."
"I haven't completely lost the name 'Ogata Yoshisei' yet."
"So don't say anything more about leaving you behind."
Ogata raised his hand to tidy up the messy hair on Atachi's forehead.
"I'm not as strong as you think. I depend on you far more than you think."
A-machi stared blankly at Ogata who was helping her fix her hair with a smile.
After Ogata finished speaking, Atachi bit her lower lip lightly, with mist in her eyes.
"I'm back!"
At this moment, Kunoya's shout suddenly sounded outside the house.
Hearing Kunoa's shout, Atachi quickly raised his hand to wipe the mist from his eyes.
As soon as Ating wiped the mist from her eyes, the smoking-addicted Kunoya bit her pipe, lifted the door curtain, and walked into the clinic in a hurry.
"Cunoya, you're back?" Because she was almost seen in an embarrassing state by Kunoya, Atachi took the initiative to talk to Kunoya in order to hide her embarrassment.
"Yeah. Upanu didn't say much before he was dragged away by Retannoe and the others." Kunoya nodded. "It's just as I expected. Upanu, who had been cut in the neck by someone, really has no fighting spirit at all."
Kunoya, holding her cigarette with the fire extinguished in her mouth, walked to the floor next to her and repeated to Ogata and A-Machi in brief sentences what Upanu had just said in public.
After sitting down on the ground, Kunoya looked around and said, "Young man, your big package is really getting in the way here. My clinic is not big, why don't you put your big package on top of my medicine cabinet?"
After saying that, Kunoya pointed to a large package placed in the corner of the clinic.
This big package is Ogata's luggage.
After Kunoya agreed to let Ogata and A-Machi stay in her clinic temporarily, Ogata moved all their luggage over.
"Oh, of course." As a dependent, Ogata would naturally not refuse such a reasonable request.
Ogata picked up his big package and was about to throw it on the medicine cabinet when Kunoya raised her eyebrows:
"Your package looks big, but it doesn't seem very heavy."
"Yes." Ogata nodded, "Because my package only contains some clothes, maps and other light things."
As soon as Ogata finished saying this, he suddenly stopped moving on to throw the large package onto the medicine cabinet - at the same time, the expression on Ogata's face froze.
He seemed to recall something and murmured softly: "Yes..."
Then, Ogata squatted down, opened his big package, and took out a map from it.
A map given to him by Skulucci.