It is common sense that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. At around six o'clock in the afternoon, the sun reluctantly moved to the western horizon.
After using all its strength to cast out beams of sunset that still made people feel hot and humid, it finally slowly sank into the ground.
The sun sets and night falls.
It is a sunny night tonight, and the moonlight makes every street in Osaka as bright as day.
"Oh my." While stirring the soup in the big pot in front of him with a huge soup spoon, Ating turned his head to look at the moon outside the window and exclaimed, "Tonight is a full moon night, the moon is so beautiful."
"Ms. A-Ming." A-Zhu, who was sitting opposite A-Ming, said at this time, "The white radish has been cut."
"Okay." Ating turned his gaze back to the big pot in front of him, "Here, give me the white radish."
At this time, Ogata was sitting by the window, tidying up her slightly messy hair.
After tidying up his hair, he picked up the knife beside him and slowly stood up.
"Then I'll go get the swords." Ogata hung the two cheap swords that were used to temporarily replace Daishiten and Daishizai back on his left waist.
"Yes. Remember to come back soon." A-Ming said as she put the chopped white radish into the pot, "The hoe-seared pork will be ready in a while, don't make us wait too long."
"Don't worry. According to my estimation, your hoe fire might not be cooked yet when I got the knife back."
Hokkiyaki - one of the classic Japanese dishes.
It has a more well-known name: Sukiyaki.
The so-called hoe-yaki can be understood as Japanese hot pot.
This dish originated from the peasant class. In order to make eating easier, farmers often put food directly on the hoe and then roasted it, hence the .
As time passed, this crude dish, originally created by the peasant class, gradually spread and became popular. Until now, during the Kansei period, Hokkien has become a famous dish loved by all classes.
"You better be careful," Ogata said sternly, "Don't burn down other people's inns."
"Don't worry." A-Ming shook the big spoon in her hand, "We won't make this kind of mistake."
Tonight, Ogata and his friends decided to eat hoe-yaki in their hotel room.
Since arriving in Osaka, Ogata and his friends have eaten every meal at restaurants outside the hotel.
Although the food in each restaurant is delicious , for some reason, until today, Ogata and his friends have not come across a restaurant that serves hoe-grilled food that suits their taste.
Ogata's feelings towards hotpot are neither good nor bad. Whether or not he can eat delicious hotpot is just an insignificant matter to Ogata.
But A-Ming and A-Zhu don't think so.
Hokkiyaki is one of the two kunoichi's favorite foods. Especially A-Machi, she has a special feeling for Hokkiyaki.
A-Ming really likes the feeling of gathering around a big pot with friends, chatting happily while cooking food in the pot together.
Tomorrow morning, they will leave Osaka and head to Koyasan together with Genichi, Makimura and others.
Starting from tomorrow, and perhaps for a long time in the future, they will no longer have the conditions to sit together quietly and happily to eat chushao.
So at noon today, A-Ting suggested: Let's eat chu-shao together in the hotel tonight!
As soon as A-Ming made this suggestion, A-Zhu immediately spoke up to express his agreement.
Faced with such an enthusiastic Atachi, Ogata naturally couldn't find any reason to refute her. He was a person who was not particular about eating, so he also agreed.
In the afternoon, Ogata, A-machi and A-tsuku spent a long time to successfully persuade the hotel staff to allow them to set up a pot and cook shochu in the room.
Originally, they wanted to call Fengmo as well, so that the four of them could have a lively meal together.
But unfortunately - Fuma already has an appointment tonight. He is going to have dinner at the home of his old subordinate: Senbei.
When it comes to cooking, Ogata is a complete novice. He can only cook food so that it is edible, but he cannot make it delicious.
Therefore, knowing that he could not be of much help by staying in the hotel, Ogata decided to go to Master Yuer at this time to retrieve his Mahāśrīpa and Mahāśrīpa.
Today is the day he and Master Yu Er agreed to pick up the knife.
This day, Ogata had been waiting for a long time.
He couldn't wait to see how Master Yu Er was repairing his sword.
Ogata had originally planned to get the knife tonight, so the timing was perfect for him to get it while Atachi and Azuki were cooking.
When they took the knife back, Ating and the other two had probably almost finished cooking the hoe, making the most of their time.
Although he knew that Atachi was not the kind of fool who would set the house on fire while cooking, just to be on the safe side, Ogata still carefully reminded Atachi and Azuki to be careful with fire.
After giving the instructions, Ogata picked up his dark blue haori, hat, and face towel that were lying on the ground next to him.
"Then I'll be leaving." Ogata put on his haori, hat and face scarf.
"Is it really not necessary for Azhu or me to accompany you to get the knife?" asked A-Ming.
"No need." Ogata said in a sullen tone, "I'm not some kid who needs someone to accompany or watch over me when I do anything. I'll be back soon."
After saying that, Ogata didn't stay any longer. He tightened the haori around him and quickly left the room.
As soon as he walked out of the hotel, a breeze blew on Ogata's face one after another. Although it was a little cold, the breeze did not make him feel uncomfortable.
What a pleasant night...
Looking at the full moon hanging in the sky, a smile appeared on Ogata's cheeks.
The weather was clear, the moon was high in the sky, and there was a gentle breeze blowing on his face - Ogata hadn't experienced such a comfortable night for a long time.
It would take quite some time for Atachi and the others to cook the rice, so Ogata was not in a hurry and walked slowly towards Master Yuyi's residence at a leisurely pace.
In modern time units, it is about 6:30 in the afternoon.
The night did not completely deprive this "Japan's No. 1 Commercial Capital" of its vitality.
The air was filled with the faint aroma of food, and the streets were still bustling with people and cars. Many places that can only come alive at night, such as Shinmachi, showed off their dazzling prosperity.
Master Yoji's residence was located in a very remote place in Osaka.
Heading straight toward Master Yoji's residence, Ogata left behind one busy street after another.
Getting further and further away from the prosperous place.
Getting closer and closer to the deserted place.
Soon, the sounds of vendors' shouts and wheels turning were no longer heard by Ogata, and no tempting aroma lingered at his nose.
The only light shining around Ogata was moonlight.
It’s like coming to another world.
…
…
In Osaka, in a room on the top floor of a deserted hotel——
"Bai Xiang. How is it? Has the target appeared?" A handsome man with a stern expression asked a one-eyed man with a ferocious face who was sitting next to him.
The one-eyed man known as "Bai Xiang" had a horrifying hole in his left eye socket.
He held a monocular telescope with both hands and pressed his only eye tightly against the lens.
"Not yet." Bai Xiang curled his lips, "Ha... How boring... Sakuma, how long do we have to wait like this?"
"Wait until our target Shura appears." Toshio...also known as Sakuma said coldly.
"What a hassle..." Bai Xiang put down the telescope, then put his left index finger into his empty left eye socket and picked at the dust inside. "Didn't that Isshiki Naoshu say that Shura would go get the knife today?"
"We have been lying in ambush for so long at the place where Shura must pass when he takes the knife. How come there is no sign of Shura yet?"
"Didn't that Isshiki Naoshu give us false information?"
"Today isn't over yet." Sakuma's tone was still cold, "Keep waiting. Maybe Shura will come to get the knife in the evening."
"Tsk..." Bai Xiang curled his lips, "Fortunately it's sunny tonight with a full moon, so the view is good."
After complaining, Bai Xiang picked up the telescope again.
As soon as the camera was put back in front of his eyes, Bai Xiang's expression was stunned.
"Ha ha!"
A ferocious smile appeared on Bai Xiang's face.
"Sakuma, our waiting has finally paid off!"
Hearing Baixiang's words, Sakuma was stunned at first, then he quickly took out a telescope from his arms and looked at a street in the distance.
A figure wearing a dark blue haori, a bamboo hat and a turban on his face appeared in the camera.
"…The features match perfectly." Sakuma slowly put down the telescope, "Haigo, get ready to work."
…
…
Ogata looked around at the unusually desolate street he was currently on, and couldn't help but sigh:
——It’s so deserted here... As expected, no matter how developed a city is, there will always be a few desolate places in the city.
This is the only way to reach Master Yoji's residence, so Ogata has been here once before.
Before, Ogata was shocked by the desertedness of this place.
Even though he had witnessed the desertedness of this place once, Ogata still couldn't hide his emotions when he passed by here again.
However, at this moment, Ogata paused.
--wrong……
Ogata suddenly looked around with alert eyes.
He knew that this place was indeed deserted.
But at this time and place, it was really too "deserted".
It’s not that there are too few people or voices.
Instead, there was a strange chill in the air.
Ogata didn't know how to use words to describe the chill in the air at this moment.
This is the kind of coldness that only someone like him who has experienced many battles can feel.
Crash, crash, crash—!
Suddenly, hurried footsteps were heard behind Ogata.
Ogata immediately looked behind him——
He saw two groups of people pouring out from the left and right sides of the street corner behind him like a tide.
The two groups of people quickly ran to the center of the street and formed a tight three-row line.
The total number of people in these three columns is about 60.
They all wore katana and wakizashi around their waists.
In their hands, they all held weapons that reflected a chilling light under the moonlight.
Flintlock!
Looking at the more than 60 shining flintlock rifles, Ogata's pupils suddenly shrank.
And at the same moment when Ogata's pupils shrank——
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang…
The man standing in the first row held the flintlock in his hand flat, pointed the muzzle at Ogata, and pulled the trigger.
The musketeers moved in unison and at an extremely fast speed.
However, Ogata's 15-point reflexes allow him to react faster than the musketeers.
With his 15-point reflexes and 18-point agility working together, Ogata leaped into a dark alley nearby.
Bullets whizzed past like raindrops.
Although the flintlock rifles had poor accuracy, the distance between these gunners and Ogata was only more than 40 meters.
At such a close distance, there will always be a few shots that can hit the target.
And in fact, it is true.
If Ogata had just stood there stupidly, at least 5 bullets would have shot through his body.
As soon as he jumped into the alley, Obe immediately drew out the katana from his waist as if by reflex.
The sudden attack caused a chaotic stream of thoughts to flash through Ogata's mind one by one.
——Flintlock...They are not from the government...Then who are they?
Ogata's face was now gloomy.
He had just seen clearly that the weapons in these people's hands were not matchlock guns, but real flintlock rifles.
The muskets used by the Edo Shogunate were still matchlocks, so we could rule out the possibility that these people were government officials.
At a time when the Edo Shogunate was closing the country to the outside world and looking down on firearms, matchlock rifles were extremely rare, let alone flintlock rifles, and it was extremely difficult for private groups to even get hold of matchlock rifles.
And this group of people who suddenly attacked him were able to take out more than 60 flintlock rifles in one breath...
Not only that , judging from the actions of this group of people just now, they are not "just ordinary people with firearms."
Their uniform movements and neat formations just now showed that no matter how you looked at it, they were a well-trained, elite force.
Who are these people? Why did they attack him with such fanfare...
There are so many questions I want to ask clearly.
At the moment, the question that Ogata wants to figure out most is: Is he the only target of this group of people, or are A-Machi and A-Tsuki who are accompanying him also one of their targets.
Just before he went out, the scene of A-machi and A-tsuku happily cooking hoe-roasted vegetables flashed through Ogata's mind.
Ogata's face was now so gloomy that it looked as if water would drip out at any moment.
…
…
"As expected of Shura... He was able to dodge this." Bai Xiang, who was hiding in the distance and standing at the back of the gun array, grinned, "He hid in that alley. What a pity... We can't see the scene inside the alley from this perspective, otherwise, I really want to see the expression of the famous Shura."
"Lord Toyotomi is truly remarkable. His decision to invite English army instructors to train our warriors is truly wise."
"Sakuma, look at these exquisite movements of our warriors. They are no different from those of the Red Army of England."
"Shura is now fighting against the English Red Army rather than the Toyotomi Warriors."
Bai Xiang was talking there.
Sakuma did not respond immediately to what Baixiang said.
Instead, he waved his hand:
"go ahead."
As soon as Sakuma gave the order, the three rows of musketeers standing in front of him and Baixiang immediately held their guns and marched forward slowly in neat steps.
After ordering the musketeers to move forward, Sakuma said to Baixiang beside him:
"Under the training of the British Army instructors, the movements of our warriors are so exquisite that they are indeed comparable to those of the British Red Army."
"But in terms of strength, they are still far behind the Red Army in England."
"Let alone other things, our warriors are greatly lacking in actual combat experience alone."
…
…
——We have to get back to the hotel quickly...
Although he was worried about whether A-machi and A-tsuku might be attacked, Ogata did not lose his composure.
Even though he heard the enemies outside the alley approaching step by step, Ogata did not feel nervous or panicked at all.
This is the character developed after going through countless battles and storms.
——These two broken swords I carry with me now...if they are hit by a bullet, they will probably break.
Ogata glanced at the katana now in his right hand and the wakizashi still hanging at his waist.
Ogata was well aware of the poor quality of the two cheap swords he had bought to make up the number.
——Just relying on these two knives... it's a complete pipe dream to think that you can split the incoming bullets.
——So... the only way to deal with incoming bullets is to dodge...
Ogata listened attentively to the footsteps of the enemies outside the alley.
——The distance between them and me is about 30 meters...
——They walked very slowly... Did they know that the alley where I was hiding was a dead end and there was no way to escape ...
Ogata turned his head and looked towards the end of the alley not far away - the alley where he was currently hiding was very narrow and short, and he could see the sealed end of the alley at a glance.
——They are very familiar with the layout of the alleys on this street...which means they have scouted this place in advance...and came prepared.
Based on his current observations, Ogata quickly deduced that this group of enemies, whose details were still unknown, came well prepared.
These unaware guys knew that he would pass by this place today, so they conducted reconnaissance and set up an ambush in this place in advance.
Ogata withdrew his gaze from the end of the alley.
——The movements of these people are like those of an army...completely different from the Cossacks we encountered in Ezo before.
——The Cossacks who had previously fought in Ezo could only be regarded as guerrillas.
——First... let’s test it a little.
Ogata picked up an empty wine bottle at his feet and threw it hard out into the alley.
From the perspective of the Musketeers who could not see the situation in the alley, a wine bottle suddenly flew out from the alley.
When throwing the bottle out, Ogata clearly heard that the footsteps of the musketeers became noticeably disordered.
——The footsteps became disordered...They were startled by the bottle I threw.
——They are easily startled by sudden situations, and their nerves are highly tense.
Ogata said this in his heart with a firm tone.
——Although their movements are superb, their mentality is still lacking... This shows that their actual combat experience is quite insufficient.
——If that’s the case…they must be very bad at dealing with enemies that take them by surprise.
Ogata raised his head and looked at the eaves of the two wooden houses that sandwiched the alley where he was currently.
A plan that could quickly defeat this group of enemies quickly took shape in Ogata's mind.
However……
Right now——
“Hmm…!”
Ogata's eyes suddenly widened and he raised his hand to press on the left side of his neck.
There was a burst of pain in the left side of my neck.
The pain that originated from Ogata's left neck quickly spread throughout his body, making him feel as if he were being pricked by needles everywhere.
“Damn it…” Ogata gritted his teeth and growled, “Why… did you pull me back at this very moment…”