The fate between himself and Hasegawa Heizo is truly amazing - this was the first thought that came to Ogata's mind when he saw the leader of the fire thief Kai in the casino just now.
Including last summer and this time, Ogata has only been to Kyoto twice in total.
As a result, he ran into Hasegawa both times... It was such a coincidence that Ogata began to wonder if there was some magic in Kyoto.
After whispering his identity to Hasegawa, Obe let go of Hasegawa's right arm, which he had been holding tightly.
After his right arm was released, Hasegawa rubbed his right shoulder while taking a few steps back to distance himself from Ogata.
"Ogata Ittosai...it's really you...No wonder I felt that the sword on the waist of that guy wearing a bamboo hat looked familiar...Why are you...in Kyoto? And why were you in that casino just now? Did you kill those people in the casino?"
Perhaps because he was too shocked, Hasegawa couldn't speak smoothly.
"The reason why I was in Kyoto was purely accidental. I just came to visit an old friend of mine who lives in Kyoto. As for why I was in that casino just now, that's a long story."
"This is not the right time or place to talk."
"Anyway - Mr. Hasegawa, can you temporarily withdraw your pursuit of me and my companion?"
"...You asked me to stop pursuing you without even telling me the whole story of why you were in that casino. This makes it very difficult for me." Hasegawa said in a deep voice.
"I also want to clear up your misunderstanding of us as soon as possible, but now is not the right time to talk. After all, the rest of your subordinates may come here at any time."
Ogata put the mask back on his face.
"In short, please temporarily withdraw your pursuit of me and my companions."
"Come back to this alley after 5pm tonight and I will meet you there and explain everything to you."
Hasegawa stared at Ogata's face for a long time, then nodded: "...I understand. I will come here again at 5 pm tonight, so don't break your promise."
"Don't worry." Ogata changed his tone to a joking one. "I am very eager to clear up your misunderstanding of me and my companion. After all, I don't want my companion's originally peaceful life to be ruined because of being targeted by the government."
After he finished speaking, Ogata leaped onto a nearby building and in the blink of an eye he disappeared into the night in the east.
After watching Ogata leave, Hasegawa quickly walked to the four subordinates who had just been knocked unconscious by Ogata and woke them up.
After they woke up slowly, they hurriedly asked Hasegawa what had happened just now.
Hasegawa said:
"You were knocked out by the man in the bamboo hat! I was almost knocked out by him too! When he realized he couldn't take me down quickly, he ran away again! He is now fleeing to the west! Go gather everyone and search to the west immediately!"
"Also, tell the people who are chasing that bald guy to stop pursuing him."
"Huh? Why?" asked a subordinate.
"Don't ask so many questions." Hasegawa said, "I have my own arrangements."
…
…
——Ah… my waist hurts…
At this moment, Feng Mo was lurking in an alley, rubbing his waist which had not hurt for a long time.
Feeling the constant waves of pain coming from his lower back, a helpless bitter smile appeared on Fengmo's face.
Each wave of pain told Feng Mo a cruel fact: he was already an old man whose back could no longer withstand the torture.
——Why do other elderly people still have thick hair and good health at my age, but I am losing my hair and in poor health...
While Fengmo was quietly complaining about the injustice of God in his heart, he was cautiously peeking out of the alley.
Outside the alley, a large number of police officers who had been transformed into fire thieves were slowly approaching this place.
"As expected, I'm no longer useful when I'm old..." Feng Mo murmured softly, "There are only a few pursuers, but I can't even shake them off..."
After sighing heavily, Fengmo pressed his lower back with his right hand, stood up, and prepared to continue escaping from the pursuit of the officials.
But at this moment, Fengmo suddenly heard a very noisy noise coming from outside the alley.
Looking outside the alley, I saw that the police officers who were originally approaching the alley where Fengmo was suddenly turned back for some reason.
"What's wrong?" Feng Mo looked at the officials who suddenly left with a puzzled look on his face.
Although I don’t know what happened, this is undoubtedly the best time to escape.
Fengmo continued to hold his waist with his right hand, quickly left the alley, and ran in the direction away from the officials.
…
…
Outside the Wisteria House, A-Machi and A-Tsuku were both shocked when they saw a large number of fire thieves and police officers rushing into the casino.
Then, they saw two figures believed to be Ogata and Fuma breaking out of the second-floor window of Wisteria House, followed by a large number of police officers chasing after them.
Azhu, who was young and not very clear about Ogata and Fuma's strength, was frightened by this sudden change and was at a loss.
Atachi, who knew that such a small number of officers could not do anything to Ogata and Fuma, was much calmer.
When Azhu asked A-Ming what to do now, A-Ming just said calmly: We can't help much now, just wait here quietly for them to come back, they will probably be back soon.
Atachi's judgment was very accurate - after successfully reaching an agreement with Hasegawa, Obe immediately returned to the Wisteria House and found Atachi and Azuki who had been waiting outside the Wisteria House.
After taking the two back to Fuma's home, he saw Fuma, who should have just returned home.
After the four people reunited, Obe told everyone about the series of things he had just reached with Hasegawa.
"No wonder those officers who were chasing me suddenly withdrew..." Feng Mo touched his shiny bald head.
"Master Ittosai, are you friends with the famous Hasegawa Heizo?"
The shogunate's most wanted criminal was friends with Hasegawa, who was feared by countless criminals and called "Onihei" - this was beyond Azuki's imagination.
As she spent more and more time with Ogata, Azhu found that this man was quite incredible. Not only was his swordsmanship unmatched, but his network of contacts was also amazing.
At this moment, Azhu couldn't help but cast a fangirl-like gaze at Ogata.
"Friends... huh..." Ogata scratched his hair, "The relationship between Mr. Hasegawa and I is very complicated. I don't know if I can use the simple word 'friends' to describe the relationship between Mr. Hasegawa and me... I guess we can just be considered special friends."
"Ayi, are you really going back to that alley to meet Hasegawa Heizo later?" A-Machi looked at Ogata with some worry in her eyes.
"Of course, after all, we have to clear up his misunderstanding of us." Ogata smiled and touched A-Ming's head. "After all, if he issues a wanted order for Master Feng, it will be troublesome."
"Don't worry. Nothing unexpected will happen."
"After all, Mr. Hasegawa is not a fool."
The smile on Ogata's face now had a more meaningful tone.
"Hasegawa-san must have realized by now that even if you put all your might to the fight, you can't do anything to me."
…
…
Around five in the evening, Ogata returned to the alley as agreed.
Before entering the alley, Ogata was particularly careful to see if there were any ambushes lurking around.
After making sure that there was no one else around, he strode into the alley.
As soon as he entered the alley, Obe immediately saw Hasegawa who seemed to be waiting there in advance.
There was no one else around Hasegawa, he was just standing alone in the alley.
Looking at Hasegawa who was waiting for him alone, Ogata's mouth corners subconsciously curled up slightly.
Although he had had some unpleasant experiences with him, he still had a good impression of "Gui Ping", who was willing to stand up for the people, was deeply loved by the people, and whom he had shared joys and sorrows with.
Looking at him after a long separation, a smile appeared on Ogata's face involuntarily.
"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Mr. Hasegawa." Ogata said as he pulled down the mask on his face.
"I didn't wait long," Hasegawa said, "I just got here."
After he finished speaking, Hasegawa looked at Ogata's face with the veil pulled down with a look that contained complex emotions.
"...Ogata Ittosai, we are so incredibly destined to each other... I thought that after we parted in Edo last year, I would never have the chance to meet you again."
"I didn't expect that we would meet again after only a few months of separation."
"When I saw you, Mr. Hasegawa, leading a large group of people rushing up the stairs in the casino just now, I was so frightened that my heart almost stopped beating." Ogata said in a joking tone.
After Hasegawa chuckled a few times, he looked up at Ogata in front of him again, and his expression gradually became complicated.
"...After not seeing you for a few months, you have done something unprecedented and will never be surpassed... You are really amazing. You have defeated the 10,000-strong coalition army of the shogunate and the northeastern feudal domains."
Hearing Hasegawa's words, Ogata was stunned, and the faint smile on his face froze.
"When I first met you, you weren't that great of a swordsman," Hasegawa continued, "but in less than a year, you've grown to this point... With your talent, I can't even muster the courage to be jealous of you..."
"Mr. Hasegawa, you indeed know what I did in Ezo..." The smile on Ogata's face turned into a bitter smile.
"I'm the chief of the Fire Thieves Kai, not some low-ranking official. It would be strange if I didn't know about this, right?"
Having said this, Hasegawa sighed and then said seriously:
"Okay, enough pleasantries. Let's get down to business. Why were you in the Wisteria House just now?"
"There's no special reason." Ogata said slowly, "I just want to kill the 'Great Buddha Clan'."
Ogata explained in the simplest terms possible why he was in the Wisteria House and what he had just experienced in the Wisteria House.
Then, Ogata asked Hasegawa:
"Mr. Hasegawa, what about you? Why are you in Kyoto? Are you here to catch thieves in Kyoto again?"
"As the leader of the Fire Thieves, what other reason could I have for coming here other than to catch thieves?" Hasegawa said in a self-deprecating tone, "I don't know if you know - among the people you killed in the casino just now, there was a guy named Shirakawa Shuichiro."
"He is the leader of a bandit gang called 'Blood Mist'. He is the target of my trip."
"It was to pursue him that I led my men to Kyoto."
"Oh...if I kill him...will that cause you trouble?" Ogata raised his hand and touched the back of his neck.
"That won't happen," Hasegawa said. "It would be best if we could catch him, but it doesn't matter if we just kill him. Even if we catch him, we can just kill him somewhere else."
"That Baichuan is no ordinary man. I was prepared to lose several of my men. Now that you have helped me kill him, it has saved me a lot of trouble."
"That's good." Ogata nodded gently. "In short - Mr. Hasegawa, this is the whole story of how my companion and I ended up in that casino."
"So, considering that I helped you in disguise, can you pretend that you didn't see me and my companion?"
Hasegawa did not answer Ogata immediately.
Instead, he looked at Ogata deeply for a while before finally nodding slowly:
"...I understand. This time...I will just pretend that I never saw you and your companion. I will also consider it as repaying the favor I owe you."
"You owe me a favor?" Ogata asked puzzledly.
"Last year, you helped resolve the Shiranui issue - I have yet to repay you for this favor."
"Now we are even between you and me."
After saying that, Hasegawa crossed his hands and put them into his sleeves on both sides, brushed past Ogata, and walked out of the alley.
"Well, goodbye then."
"Are you leaving?" Ogata asked back.
Hasegawa left so soon - this was somewhat unexpected for Ogata.
He thought that Hasegawa would have a lot of questions to ask him after they met again after such a long time.
He also wanted to chat with Hasegawa for a while and reminisce about the past.
"Yes. I still have a lot of things to deal with. Besides, it is better for the two of us to avoid meeting and contacting each other as much as possible, whether in public or in private."
Hasegawa stopped, then forced out a stiff smile that was difficult to describe in words, and turned to look at Ogata behind him.
"I told you something similar before in Edo - I am an official, and you are a gangster wanted by the shogunate."
"And now, since you defeated the shogunate's army, our positions have become more antagonistic."
"Let me tell you the truth, too."
"Our Hasegawa family has grown up on the salary from the shogunate for generations."
"So when I first learned that you defeated the 10,000-strong coalition force of the shogunate and the northeastern feudal domains... I felt bad."
"And you are mine..."
Hasegawa paused suddenly when he said this.
As if he was considering what to say next.
After a long pause, he uttered the remaining words.
“…He’s someone who fought alongside me.”
"So I am caught between the shogunate and you... I am very conflicted and embarrassed."
"So for your sake, and for mine, we should not even meet in private anymore."
Hasegawa now changed his tone and it was unclear whether he was joking or telling the truth.
"After all, I can't guarantee that every time I see you, I can suppress the urge to bring you to justice, even though the chances of catching you are extremely slim now."
"If I can arrest you now, it would be such a great achievement that my salary would instantly increase by 5 or 6 times... No, it's possible that it could even increase by 10 times, and I would also be able to go down in history as a famous person."
"To be honest, I am quite tempted by such a generous reward."
After finishing his words, Hasegawa silently added in his heart:
——Especially now that the old Chinese have a handle on me and I urgently need achievements to show my loyalty and that I am still useful...
Ogata has been staring at Hasegawa since a while ago.
He looked calm at first.
Then, the emotions hidden in his eyes slowly became complicated...
"...I understand." Ogata forced a smile at Hasegawa, "Then - let's say goodbye here, Mr. Hasegawa. I wish you good luck in martial arts."
"Yes." Hasegawa nodded gently and forced a smile towards Ogata, "I wish you good luck in martial arts, too."
After saying this "May your military fortunes prosper", Ogata turned away hesitantly with a complex look in his eyes.
At this time, Hasegawa also withdrew his gaze.
The thread is facing the alley entrance to the east.
Hasegawa faces the alley entrance to the west.
The two of them strode in completely opposite directions.
…
…
The sudden appearance of the "Big Buddha Clan" forced Ogata and his team to delay their plan to go to Osaka.
But fortunately, it wasn't delayed for long. We had originally planned to set off today, so it was only delayed for one day in total.
We were attacked last night, and tonight we successfully killed the mastermind, Dafoxun.
Without Dafo Kaoru, it is questionable whether the "Dafo Clan" can continue to exist. Fengma has finally achieved his revenge successfully and no longer has to worry about coming back from a trip and finding his house burned down.
Daibutsu Kaoru has been killed, and Hasegawa has agreed with Ogata to pretend that he had never seen him and Fuma, and the matter has finally come to an end.
Ogata considered that Fuma was old and thought that after a day of hard work, it would be fine to rest for a day before setting off for Osaka. However, Fuma said that due to his own reasons, the date of going to Osaka had been postponed by one day. If it was postponed for another day, he would feel embarrassed and insisted that they could set off tomorrow.
Ogata couldn't persuade Fuma, so after a good night's rest, the next morning, Ogata, Fuma, Atachi and Azuki carried their own luggage and stood in front of Fuma's house to do the final luggage check.
"Did you forget to take anything?" Fuma, who was carrying only a small package containing a few sets of clothes and some daily necessities, asked Ogata and others.
Ah-Ming nodded: "I've got them all."
"Then let's go." Fengma laughed, "Let's go to 'the world's kitchen' - Osaka!"
Fengmo walked at the front of the team, looking very excited.
"Master Feng." Azhu took a few quick steps and walked side by side with Fengma, "Why do you look so happy?"
"Because I am really happy now." Fengma smiled kindly at Azhu, "It has been a long time since I have traveled with so many people like now, and I have traveled with so many young people. I feel like I have become a few years younger now."
While Azhu and Fuma, who was as excited as if they were going on an autumn outing with friends for the first time, were chatting with each other, Ogata followed Fuma silently.
He lowered his head slightly, looking like he was worried.
"What's wrong with you? You look like you're in a bad mood."
At this moment, Ogata heard Atachi's voice coming from the side.
After turning his head to look at Atachi who was looking at him with concern, Ogata smiled:
“I’m not in a bad mood.”
"I just feel a little emotional..."
At this time, Ogata turned his head and looked towards the southeast - this was the direction of the alley where he and Hasegawa met and parted ways last night.
"…The executioner Ittosai, who is respected and admired by countless people…his life is not so glamorous…"
Ogata seemed to be talking to Atachi, but also seemed to be talking to himself.
A-Machi looked straight into Ogata's face.
She didn't say much.
He just quietly stretched out his right hand and grasped Ogata's calloused left palm.