Two days later, at night——
Because there was almost no entertainment to do, after nightfall, Xu Fang lay down on his bed and closed his eyes to pass the time.
"Ogata-kun, are you there?"
Just then——Lin's voice suddenly came from outside the room.
Ogata quickly sat up from the bed and cast a puzzled look toward the door.
"Ms. Lin?"
"Ogata-kun, is it convenient for me to come in now?"
At this moment, Ogata was the only one in his room.
"Ah, please come in," Ogata said.
After obtaining Ogata's permission to enter, Lin slowly opened the door and entered the room.
"After resting for so many days, how is your health recovering?" After entering the room, Lin, who was also wrapped in a lot of rags, smiled and greeted Ogata.
"It's OK." Ogata smiled. "The only flaw now is that I've been lying in bed for too long. I feel like my body is going moldy."
Ogata was exchanging casual pleasantries with Lin, who was kneeling beside his bed.
It was not until half a while later that Lin cleared her throat.
"Ogata-kun, I came to see you this time mainly to tell you two important things."
Ogata raised an eyebrow: "Please go ahead."
"First thing: I intend to entrust the heads of the eight hundred bhikkhunis to you for safekeeping."
"Leave it to me for safekeeping?" A look of surprise appeared on Ogata's face.
Lin nodded slightly, and then said seriously:
"I have pondered over how to deal with the heads of the eight hundred bhikkhunis for a long time these days."
"I think that the most suitable person to take care of the heads of the eight hundred nuns is none other than you, Ogata-kun."
"First of all - Yaobikuni's head was taken back from Toyotomi Nobuhide after you defeated him."
"So, from a legal point of view, the heads of the eight hundred nuns belong to you."
"Secondly... I think you, Ogata-kun, should have a deep understanding of how terrifying the head of Yaobikuni is."
Lin sighed softly.
"If some evildoers get hold of this thing... I really don't know what will happen."
"Therefore, it would be best if the head of the Eight Hundred Bhikkhunis was handed over to someone who is trustworthy and strong enough to protect it from being taken away by others."
"After considering this, the only person who is suitable to be entrusted with this item is... Ogata-kun."
After saying that, Lin raised a sharp gaze towards Ogata.
"Ogata-kun, what do you think? Are you willing to...keep Yaobikuni's head?"
Lin always speaks concisely and directly.
After briefly explaining to Ogata the reason why he wanted him to keep the head of Yaobikuni, he directly asked "Are you willing?"
Hearing Lin's question, Ogata, who looked slightly stunned, raised his hand and scratched his hair with a wry smile.
"The heads of eight hundred nuns? This thing is indeed something that needs to be kept properly..."
Ogata pursed his lips.
After a long silence, he raised his determined gaze and looked at Lin.
"...I understand. Leave Yaobikuni's head to me."
Hearing Ogata's firm reply, Lin's face showed a relieved smile: "It's good that you are willing to keep it. This way, I can also rest assured."
"So, what's the second thing?" Ogata asked, "What's the second thing you want to tell me?"
"The second thing... is an invitation to you."
"invite?"
"These days, I have been asking Makimura to interrogate Soemon's gang and Gensho."
Lin said calmly.
"After being subjected to water torture for nearly half a month, the people captured by us, such as Soemon, finally revealed all the information they knew about the Toyotomi clan."
"Combined with the information provided by Gensho who is determined to bring down the Toyotomi clan, it can now be determined that the Toyotomi clan's headquarters is located in the Osumi Islands of Ryukyu."
"Although Toyotomi Nobuhide is dead, his remnants still exist."
"It's not surprising that the power formed by that madman Toyotomi Nobuhide would do something sensational later."
"Besides that, there is another thing that worries me."
"That was the 'Human Pillar' that Toyotomi threw into the river for his experiments on Choujima."
"There must be many people with ulterior motives in the Edo Shogunate."
"If they find out that the 'Human Pillar' is the culprit for the tragedy on Choujima, then no one can say for sure what the Edo Shogunate will do with the 'Human Pillar' salvaged from Choujima."
"Therefore, to be on the safe side, I think we should first try to recover the 'Human Pillar' on Butterfly Island."
"Genzheng is a guy who only wants to see the Toyotomi clan, who have wronged him, suffer misfortune, so he is willing to help us unconditionally."
"And Soemon and his men also submitted to our punishment and were willing to provide us with all the help they could on the condition that we 'stop torturing them'."
"So, I decided—"
After Lin said this, she paused, took a deep breath, and then spoke word by word in a sonorous and powerful voice:
"After everyone's injuries have almost healed, try to recover the 'Human Pillar' on Butterfly Island!"
"After successfully recovering the 'Human Pillar', we will go to Ryukyu and completely destroy the remaining forces of the Toyotomi clan!"
"And was thrown into the river of Diedao as a 'human pillar' for recovery."
"This afternoon, I have already asked Ms. Azuki, Shibata, and Hatsumitsu... Oh, no, I should call her Ms. Aju now."
"I asked them yesterday if they were willing to go with us."
"The sisters' parents, who were held hostage by Yoshihisa in order to control Aju, are still being held somewhere in the Ryukyu base, so they are willing to follow us to Ryukyu to pursue the remaining forces of Toyotomi."
"Now... the only ones left are you and Ms. Atachi."
Lin once again raised her sharp gaze towards Ogata.
"Ogata-kun, what do you think?"
"Are you willing to continue to cooperate with us to recover the 'Human Pillar' on Chou Island and go to Ryukyu to destroy the remaining forces of the Toyotomi clan?"
Facing Lintou's sharp gaze, Ogata did not respond immediately.
Instead... he smiled first, and then said in a half-joking tone:
"Ms. Lin, you are indeed a very selfless person."
"I am willing to sacrifice myself for something that does not benefit me, but benefits all people."
"...I'm a businessman." Lin turned her head slightly and stopped looking at Ogata. "Having a stable and peaceful environment is particularly important for a businessman like me."
"I just want to be able to have a stable business environment - that's all."
After that, Lin coughed softly a few times, then looked straight in the eyes again.
"Okay, let's get back to the topic."
"Ogata-kun, are you and Ms. Atachi willing to go and make a scene with us again?"
After asking, a slight smile appeared at the corner of Lin's mouth.
"..." Ogata pondered.
After a long time, his lips slowly parted.
…
…
Five months later
…
…
Kii, the small island where the shogunate placed the survivors of Chou Island -
"Master Zong Hai! Master Zong Hai!"
"Tan Taro, what's wrong?" Zong Hai showed a gentle smile to the boy who was running towards him quickly.
"Master Sokai! I heard that the shogunate asked us to settle on this island from now on. Is this true?"
"This..." Zong Hai's expression changed slightly.
Zong Hai thought for a while before finally coming to the conclusion that "he will know sooner or later, and I can't hide it for long." He said softly to the boy in front of him:
"Yes, it is true. The shogunate requires us who come from Chou Island to settle on this island from now on."
"There's nothing wrong with this. After all, we are lucky to be alive."
Zong Hai tried to comfort the boy.
But no matter how much he was comforted, the boy's expression gradually fell.
“I still want to go back to my hometown…”
Looking at the boy with tears in his eyes, Zong Hai pursed his lips.
"Taro, don't cry." Zong Hai showed the boy a gentle smile again, "How about this, I will tell you the story of 'Ittosai's Brave Fight against the Demon Monk'. After listening to the story, don't cry anymore."
As soon as Zong Hai finished speaking, the boy's face immediately turned from cloudy to bright:
"Story? Really?"
"Really." Zong Hai nodded with a smile, "Okay, if you want to hear the story, stop crying quickly."
…
…
Kyoto, the home of Fuma——
"Master Feng! Here we go again!"
"Huh?" Feng Mo, whose back became even more hunched, walked slowly out of the living room and looked towards the door.
Looking at the three girls, all around 8 years old, standing at the door, Feng Mo smiled bitterly and said:
"Why are you here again..."
"Didn't you say that before, Feng Ye? You can come back anytime you want. Okay, Feng Ye, hurry up and continue telling us stories! As a reward, the three of us will help you clean up your home!"
"What I told you are not stories!" Feng Mo pretended to be angry, "These are all history! They are real history that happened to me in the past!"
As soon as Feng Mo finished speaking, the three girls burst into laughter.
"Master Feng! You are not the one to brag like that. Could it be that what you said a few days ago, 'bravely breaking into the bandit camp and killing more than 30 bandits by yourself', is it true that it happened to you?"
"That's right." Feng Mo straightened his chest and said, "Don't look at me like this now. I used to be very powerful."
After saying that, Fengmo turned around and went back to the living room.
"Well, if you want to hear me talk about history, then come in quickly. I happen to be free today and have too much time to spend."
"Hahaha, that's perfect! With the three of us often coming to listen to your stories, you won't feel lonely, Master Feng!"
Looking at these three smart little girls, Fengmo's face showed a smile of helplessness but also a bit of relief and joy.
…
…
Edo, Yoshiwara——
"Why are you so brave?"
Guasheng was playing with the wooden sword in his hand and looking contemptuously at a middle-aged man in front of him who was tied up and had a terrified face.
"He dared to steal money in Yoshiwara in broad daylight, and the money he stole was from prostitutes."
"I, I, I won't dare to do it again!" The middle-aged man kowtowed to Guasheng in fear and admitted his mistake. "I, I, I, I will never steal anything again! Please let me go! Let me go!"
As for the middle-aged man's request for mercy, Guasheng naturally ignored it.
"First, take him to the guild hall and lock him up there," Guasheng said to his companions. "When the officials from the magistrate's office arrive, we'll hand him over to the magistrate's office."
The several officers of the Shirobei Club standing next to Uesugi shouted "Yes" in unison, then rushed forward and escorted the middle-aged man, who looked as pale as death, to the club.
After the middle-aged man who committed the crime was taken away, Guasheng let out a sigh of relief and raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his face.
"It's so hot... Why is it still so hot even though it's already September..." Guasheng raised his head and stared at the blue sky above his head with an indignant expression.
"I really don't want to patrol in this weather..."
Uesugi sighed heavily, then silently put the wooden sword in his hand back to his waist, and prepared to patrol Yoshiwara again.
But at this moment, a very unfamiliar deep male voice sounded from behind Guasheng:
"Good morning! Are you Miss Guasheng?"
"Huh?" Guasheng turned his head in confusion.
The person who called her just now was a sturdy man who seemed to have a very free and easy personality.
Next to the sturdy man stood a thin young man.
Guasheng didn't recognize either the sturdy man or the young man standing next to him.
"Excuse me, who are you?"
"My name is Hirasaka!" the sturdy man said loudly, "I'm trying to write a puppet show based on Majima Goro with my friends recently!"
"I heard that you were close friends with Majima Goro when he was working at the Shirobei Club in Yoshiwara, so we thought of interviewing you! To collect materials for our writing!"
"Mashima Goro? Puppet show?" Ueyu's beautiful eyes widened in surprise. "...If it's convenient, can you tell me why you want to write a puppet show based on O...ah, no, Mashima Goro?"
"Oh, of course!"
Hizaka briefly told Uesugi the whole story of their experience of fighting bandits in Northeast China together with Majima Goro, and why they decided to write a puppet show based on Majima Goro.
After knowing the reason, Guasheng's expression gradually became strange.
"A puppet show based on Majima Goro..."
"Then you...really asked the right person!"
The strange expression on Guasheng's face gradually turned into a brilliant smile.
"I know a lot about Majima Goro!"
"If you have any questions, just ask! I will tell you everything I know!"
…
…
Edo, Yoshiwara, Meiwuya——
"Isn't the pay for working at the Shirobei Club in Yoshiwara too low? At this rate, how long will it take me to raise enough money to start my martial arts training..."
Fuu Ling Taifu jokingly said to the young man who was complaining behind her:
"Five Six, if you can't save enough money, then just stay here and work. I think you are quite suitable for the job of guarding Yoshiwara."
"Don't be ridiculous. Do you think I'm the kind of person who would stay in a small place like Yoshiwara for the rest of my life?"
…
…
In an ordinary house in Edo——
Uncle Qing sat cross-legged in the living room, his deft hands assembling one birdcage after another.
"Hey! Keitaro! There's a letter for you!" At this time, a neighbor's loud shout came from outside the house.
Hearing the loud shout, Uncle Qing jumped up from the ground as if he had been electrocuted and ran quickly to the door.
When he came back, Uncle Qing was holding a simple letter with a silly smile on his face.
He opened the envelope, took out the letter inside, and looked at the extremely awkward Chinese characters on the letter. Uncle Qing smiled dumbly:
"Has Komachi started learning to write kanji? They're so ugly..."
Although every Chinese character written by Ating was so ugly that it was unbearable to look at, Uncle Qing still read it slowly, word by word, with relish.
After finally reading the last word, he reluctantly folded the letter and put it away.
"It seems that Komachi is doing well recently..."
Uncle Qing sat back on the ground, humming a cheerful tune while continuing to make bird cages to be sold tomorrow.
…
…
Edo, the base of the fire thief Kai——
Hasegawa has been so busy lately that he wishes he could split his body in two.
After returning to Edo, he immediately fulfilled his duties as an official of the shogunate and reported to his immediate superior, Matsudaira Sadanobu, the whole process of his capture by the Toyotomi clan and all the information about the Toyotomi clan.
Of course – it’s selective.
He deleted all the content related to Ogata.
Hasegawa originally thought that after listening to his report, Matsudaira Sadanobu would be quite shocked. After all, the news that "the Toyotomi family's bloodline has not been cut off and is trying to fight for the world again after two hundred years" sounded sensational and unbelievable no matter how you sounded it.
But who would have known - after finishing the report, Matsudaira Sadanobu's performance was... quite calm.
As if he had known about the existence and ambitions of the Toyotomi clan for a long time...
This made Hasegawa quite surprised and depressed...
He had originally thought that after finishing this report that would "definitely scare Matsudaira Sadanobu", he would like to see some interesting expressions on the usually expressionless face of Matsudaira Sadanobu...
After being given a small reward and hearing Matsudaira Sadanobu's words "Thank you for your hard work in reporting", Hasegawa returned to his original identity and life - the leader of the fire thieves Kai and the manager of the Hitoshiyome field.
He was only the chief of the Fire Thief Kai and had no power to interfere in the pursuit of the Toyotomi clan, so after reporting to Matsudaira Sadanobu and doing everything he could, Hasegawa gathered his mind and devoted himself to the work of the Fire Thief Kai as before.
In recent days, in order to track down a group of thieves who fled from the Northeast to Kanto, Hasegawa has not slept for two consecutive days.
While Hasegawa was bent over his desk, processing various documents—
"Master Hasegawa! Someone sent you a letter!"
"Huh?" Hasegawa lifted his face, which had dark circles under his eyes due to long days of hard work, from the table, "...Bring it here."
"yes!"
After a while, a letter was presented to Hasegawa's desk.
After tearing open the envelope, pulling out the letter, and glancing at the letter, Hasegawa's brows raised slightly involuntarily.
"So he did write me a letter..." Hasegawa murmured with a strange look on his face, "He wrote to thank me for helping him in Koyasan..."
Hasegawa glanced over the letter, folded it and put it away.
For some reason, he always felt that the fate between him and that young man had not yet ended...
One day in the future, maybe I can meet him somewhere again.
…
…
Edo, Edo Castle, the meeting room——
"Mrs. Matsudaira, why do you look so worried?"
Ruonian Ji Kitagawa walked towards Matsudaira Sadanobu who was leaning against the window and looking at the scenery outside with a smile on his face.
[Note: Ruonianji: an official position below Laozhong, specifically responsible for assisting Laozhong]
Matsudaira Sadanobu glanced at Kitagawa who was walking towards him and smiled slightly.
"…Nothing. I'm just worried that I haven't found any young people worth training recently."
After saying that, Matsudaira Sadanobu let out a long sigh toward the window.
"Well... we have rested enough. Let's go back and discuss how to strengthen our military and investigate the movements of the Toyotomi clan."
…
…
In Edo, Kitafuya, a shop that specializes in selling Ezo goods——
Kondo Kuransuke leaned against the wall, sat cross-legged, and carefully examined the sword in his hand.
"Kondo."
Chiba Yukiemon, who was sitting next to Kondo and working in the shop with Kondo, was wiping the "Niou statue" that his boss had bought and placed in the shop to ward off evil spirits, and asked Kondo softly:
"What are you sitting there for?"
"Nothing. I was just thinking about my master." Kondo sighed heavily, "I don't know how my master is doing now..."
"I thought you were thinking about opening a sword gym again." Qianye said lightly.
"Ah, I was thinking about this as well." Kondo grinned, "As expected, if I want to develop my Tennen Rishin-ryu, it's impossible without opening a sword gym."
"Otherwise, if there are no disciples to inherit my swordsmanship, it will be useless no matter how famous I am for promoting my Tennen Rishin-ryu."
"I don't want my sword skills to be lost after only being passed down to my generation."
"Also, after having apprentices, they can also help promote the natural rational flow."
Having said that, Kondo glanced at the "Nio Statue" that Chiba was wiping and grinned again:
"It would be great if I could produce some disciples with powerful titles like 'Nioh' and accomplish countless feats."
"In this way, my natural Rishin Flow will become famous all over the world in one go."
"...I think that instead of fantasizing about having a 'Nio' among your disciples, you might as well try to become the 'Nio' who can make your swordsmanship famous all over the world." Qianye complained silently.
"Chiba, you are still as sharp as ever when you speak." Kondo laughed. "Chiba, I plan to work here for another two months, then leave Edo and start my warrior journey again. Do you want to come with me?"
"...I'll think about it."
…
…
Oshu, Nishikino Town——
"Hello, are you Jiro Nishino?"
Jiro Nishino blinked a few times at the old man in front of him in confusion: "I am Jiro Nishino, may I ask who you are?"
"I am Hansuke from Kyoto's Shinmi-ya." The old man bowed to Nishino Jiro, "Some time ago, I had the honor of watching the Kabuki play "Ittosai" written by you."
"I am very interested in the play 'Ittosai' that you edited, and I intend to bring it to the stage in Kyoto, so I came here specially to discuss this matter with you. I wonder if you are free now?"
Jiro Nishino stood there frozen in place, as if petrified.
Only after a while did he come to his senses and nodded happily:
"Of course I am free! Please follow me!"
…
…
Sendai Domain, somewhere——
Akizuki Toshizen, one of the "Seven Spears of Xianzhou" who luckily survived the war to conquer Red Moon Fortress almost half a year ago, was working hard to hone his spear skills in his own courtyard.
——If I meet Ogata Ittosai again next time, I will definitely defeat him!
Qiuyue, with fighting spirit burning in his eyes, raised the wooden spear in his hand again.
…
…
Ezo, Red Moon Fortress——
The leader of the Red Moon Fortress: Chanup is pushing a huge log with the young men in the fortress.
Their goal was to repair the outer city wall, which had been hit by artillery fire in the previous war, as much as they could before the winter of this year.
When Chanup was standing aside wiping the sweat off his face and giving his waist a rest, he saw his only son, Aotongpuyi, silently carrying wood.
Seeing that Aotongpuyi no longer blindly worshipped the "world of Japanese people" as before, but started to do useful things for his people in a down-to-earth manner, Chanup's mouth curled up with a trace of relief.
…
…
Somewhere in Ezo—
"Skulucci! Wake up! Wake up!"
Skulucci removed the scarf from his face.
"Boss Alexander, what's wrong?"
During this period, Skulucci and his boss, Alexander, had such a good relationship that they almost wanted to wear the same pants.
The reason was simple - after Skulucci piled the huge reward given by the Red Moon Fortress in front of Alexander's eyes, Alexander's eyes narrowed with laughter.
Whether it was Skulucci who stole his treasured armor or led the troops without authorization and participated in the war at Red Moon Fortress, all of this was forgiven.
"Nothing, I just want to inform you: the situation in Europe seems to be getting more and more tense, and the revolutionary movement in France is getting bigger and bigger. In order to strengthen our military strength and prepare for changes in Europe, we may be recalled."
"Recalling me back to my country..." Sculucci put the scarf in his hand back on his face, "What a pity... I still want to explore this land for a while longer..."
…
…
Ezochi, Matsumae Domain, inside a certain hotel——
Lin Ziping, who had just finished his solo trip in Ezo, was crouching over the table, writing something on a thick stack of paper.
In the corner of the table was a piece of paper that looked like a book cover, with four big characters written on it: Haiguo Bingtan.
…
…
Kii, somewhere——
Han Jing Zongxuan has been very depressed recently.
As a doctor sent by Matsudaira Sadanobu to study the "cannibal ghosts" on Choujima, he has been working diligently on his research.
He recently got some good news, and some bad news.
The good news is: after his research, he found that although the "cannibals" on Butterfly Island cannot be killed, their internal organs are aging and failing at a rate ten times faster than that of ordinary people.
In this way, theoretically speaking: in just one or two years, all these "cannibal ghosts" on Butterfly Island will die of organ failure.
The weakness of the "Ghosts" has been discovered. They are not immortal - this is naturally great news.
Not long after receiving this good news, bad news suddenly arrived...
A few months ago, they salvaged a female corpse from the upper reaches of the Linong River, on which the people of Die Island depended for their survival.
This female corpse was quite strange and decomposed very slowly.
Hanai Sogen was vaguely aware that there was something strange about the female corpse, so he temporarily deposited it in the castle of the Kii domain, intending to slowly study it when he had time.
But no one would have thought that more than a month ago, a group of mysterious people suddenly appeared and attacked the castle of Kii Domain.
The thieves didn't steal anything - they only took the female corpse.
Who on earth stole such a valuable research subject?
Until now, no one has figured out the reason...
…
…
Kii, Koyasan——
Perhaps this is what is called a blessing in disguise.
More than three months ago, a large-scale wildfire suddenly broke out, making the monks in the mountain believe that this thousand-year-old wildfire would be destroyed by this wildfire.
Fortunately, not long after the wildfire broke out, heavy rain fell as if the entire sea was turned upside down, and the wildfire was put out.
Although some buildings, cultural relics and books were destroyed by the wildfire, most of Koyasan's collections were successfully spared thanks to the timely heavy rain.
Many monks believed that this was the Buddha appearing to protect the holy land.
The monks of Koyasan recently felt that there was something strange about their abbot of Kongobuji Temple, Qingyan Shangren.
Almost everyone believed that the fire that nearly destroyed the entire Koyasan was caused by Ogata, but Qingyan Shangren insisted that there was not enough evidence to prove that it was Ogata Ittosai who set the fire! It is too arbitrary to rashly say that Ogata Ittosai deliberately destroyed Koyasan!
This isn’t the weirdest thing.
The strangest thing is that when the shogunate later sent people to Koyasan to investigate the cause of the fire, they also believed that there was "insufficient evidence" to prove that the occurrence of the wildfire had any inevitable connection with Ogata Ittosai.
Therefore, the "Koyasan Fire" was determined by the shogunate to be "an intentional act by others and had nothing to do with Ogata Ittosai."
According to some monks who are close to Master Qingyan, Master Qingyan has been making strange remarks from time to time recently, saying that "Ogata Itosai may not be an ordinary person."
While making strange remarks, he often went in and out of the library where books were collected, looking up books related to "Buddha's Spirit Appearance" and "Heavenly Thunder"...
…
…
Omi, somewhere——
"Alas... where are my stupid disciples..."
The owner of Ishikawa Sword Hall: Ishikawa Heima looked at the mountain road in front of him that seemed to have no end and let out a long sigh.
…
…
Osaka, Isshiki Sword Hall——
Unfortunately, Isshiki Sword Hall was burned down to ruins during the night when the Toyotomi army attacked Osaka, but after more than three months of reconstruction, Isshiki Sword Hall has been restored to its original appearance and has started teaching swordsmanship again.
Compared with the past, there is only one difference - in a room on the second floor of Isshiki Sword Hall, a beautiful figure can often be seen sitting by the window, looking at the sky.
Seems to be missing something.
Final Chapter: The Legend of Shura - The End!
Izumo, Hirose Domain——
I know! I know! I know!
The sounds of cicadas chirping and birds singing mixed together, as if they were far away, yet as if they were nearby, vague and clear.
A winding path winds around a spacious plain.
At a certain intersection on the trail, there is a simple tea house.
Makimura, Asai and Shimada were seen sitting neatly on a bench outside the tea house, each holding a glass of cold water in their hands.
"Is this the hometown of Ittosai..." Asai looked around, "It feels no different from Satsuma... In the summer, it's so hot that it makes people want to peel off their skin."
After saying that, Asai drank all the cold water in the bowl in one breath.
"This is my first time in Izumo." Shimada fanned himself with his hands. "I heard that Izumo soba is very famous. I wonder if I will have a chance to try it."
"Izumo soba is just so-so." Makimura said, "I've tried it once, and it doesn't taste that great. But you can definitely try Izumo's sake."
"Ah, I have no money..." Asai took out an empty purse from his pocket, "Makumura, please treat me to a bunch of glutinous rice dumplings."
"Why can you be so righteous and let others treat you to food..." Although Mucun complained like this, he still silently took out his purse.
"Shimada, do you want to eat?"
"Okay, okay."
"Mamiya! Master Genichi!" Makimura asked loudly to the two people who were standing together under a big tree not far away to enjoy the coolness, "Do you want to eat glutinous rice dumplings?"
Mamiya and Genichi both shook their heads.
After seeing the two men shaking their heads, Makimura took out the money to buy three glutinous rice dumplings and bought one each for himself, Asai, and Shimada.
While the three people from Makimura were munching on dumplings, Mamiya, who was standing under a tree not far away to enjoy the cool air, continued to chat with Genichirō beside him.
"How is it, Master Genichi?" Mamiya asked with a smile, "Have you successfully entered the state of being one with the heaven and earth again recently?"
"No." Genichi chuckled a few times and shook his head. "No matter how hard I try, I can't get back to the state I was in. What a pity... That state is probably what you can only encounter once in a while."
During this period, Ogata, Genichi and others often got together to discuss this magical state of "being in harmony with heaven and earth."
Thanks to the discussion of Ogata and others, Mamiya and others learned that such a strange realm existed in this world.
"But - it's a good thing that I haven't been able to enter that magical state again." Genichi grinned and laughed happily, "This shows that - I still have a long way to go. On the road of kendo, there are still many 'scenery' that I haven't seen yet."
"I still need to practice more."
With his hands on his hips, Yuan Yi is obviously an old man with white hair and beard, but his eyes still sparkle with high fighting spirit that is not inferior to any young man.
"I don't know how long an old man like me can live."
Genichi laughed heartily.
"It would be nice if I could live to be over a hundred years old."
"This way, I can practice swordsmanship for a while longer, hahahahaha."
"When I was 64 years old, I met Ogata-kun, a swordsman who surpassed me."
"If I can really live to be 100 years old... maybe I will have the chance to see some interesting people or things again."
"For example... a swordsman who has reached a level that neither Ogata nor I have reached."
"I think this is unlikely." Mamiya smiled, "A swordsman who can surpass you and Ogata-kun... such a person is unlikely to appear, right?"
"Mamiya, this world is huge." Genichi laughed again. "Perhaps in a few years, or even decades, a swordsman who can surpass me and Ogata-kun will be born."
"By then, I just hope that I can still be alive and have the honor of meeting that person. Hahahaha!"
"Okay, have you all rested enough?"
At this time, Lin's cold voice pierced everyone.
Following the sound, Lin led Azhu, Hatsumitsu, and Shibata, and walked slowly towards Mamiya and others.
"It's time to go." Lin said, "Everyone, get up quickly."
"My lord." Shimada patted his butt and stood up from the bench, "How long are we going to stay here in Izumo?"
"We won't stay long." Lin replied, "After all - we are just at Ogata-kun's request. Before we go to Nagasaki to take a ship to Ryukyu, we are here to visit his hometown that he has not returned to for a long time."
"Ogata-kun and Ms. A-machi should be waiting for us out front. Don't dawdle any more and hurry up and get going."
Mamiya, Genichi and the others stood up and gathered behind Lin.
The people from Huluwu, as well as Azhu, Chuguang and others walked together in the midsummer sun, going further and further away.
Genichi suddenly stopped and seemed to be saying something to Lin.
I just saw him raising his hand and pointing at the teahouse they had just come from, as if begging Lin to let him get a pot of wine before leaving.
Lin ignored Yuan Yi.
After just waving to Lin, he continued walking forward along the path under his feet with big strides.
Yuan hurriedly caught up with a bitter look on his face.
Laughter lingered around everyone.
Everyone headed straight towards the distant horizon, their figures gradually sinking into the blurred horizon under the scorching sun.
…
…
Izumo, Hirose Domain, Nagaya——
"Afu! Please help clear the dishes from that table!"
"Okay!" After casually wiping the sweat from his forehead, Ah Fu took small steps and ran to the table where the guest had just left and took away the dishes and chopsticks on it.
Liuwu's business is very good today.
Many guests arrived before noon.
As a result, A's and A's hands and feet have not stopped since then, and they are so busy that they often don't even have time to wipe the sweat off their heads.
As Ah Fu was meticulously putting away the dishes on the dining table and wiping the table with a rag, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a... very familiar figure passing by outside the house.
"Huh?" Ah Fu's eyes widened in shock. He quickly stopped wiping the table and turned to look outside the store.
Outside the store...there was nothing but wind and sunshine.
"Yes...did I see it wrong..." Ah Fu blinked hard a few times and muttered.
"Afuku!" Mother Asaki's voice came again, "What are you doing? Clean up the table! The guests are still waiting!"
"Oh, okay!" Ah Fu responded quickly, then gathered his thoughts and focused his attention back on the work at hand. He returned to the kitchen with the cleaned up dishes.
…
…
"Is this okay?" A-Machi asked Ogata, who was walking beside her, "Why don't we go in and see the mother and daughter?"
"No need." Ogata smiled slightly, "It's enough to see that they are living well."
Wearing a bamboo hat with a brim deep enough to cover his entire face, Ogata came to the gate of Ishikawa Sword Hall according to his memory.
The door of Ishikawa Sword Hall was closed because Ishikawa Heima was out looking for Itagaki and others.
The reason why Ogata came here was to tell Ishikawa Heima: Itagaki is dead...
Because he had anticipated that Ishikawa Heima might not have returned yet, he took out the envelope he had prepared in advance. The letter inside contained the general details of how he met and killed Itagaki, who ultimately chose not to let go of his hatred.
After Ogata threw the envelope into the crack of the door of Ishikawa Sword Hall, A-machi, who had been looking at Ogata's hometown with curious eyes since entering the Hirose Domain, asked:
"Ayi, is there anywhere else you want to go?"
"...Well, there is one more place...I must go."
After saying that, Ogata took a deep breath and led Atachi to a familiar path... one he had walked countless times before.
Following this path to the end, a sword hall gradually came into view of Ogata and A-Machi.
Sakakibara Sword Hall.
Looking at the plaque hanging at the entrance of the museum, nostalgia, regret, annoyance...all kinds of emotions climbed into Ogata's eyes.
Atachi, who knew what Sakakibara Sword Hall meant to Ogata, took a look at Ogata's expression at the moment, then raised his left hand to cover Ogata's clenched right fist.
He closed his eyes, took several deep breaths, opened his right fist, held Ating's left hand, then raised his left palm and pushed open the heavy door.
Behind the gate...all the scenery was exactly the same as in Ogata's memory.
As Ogata walked into the museum, he carefully looked at everything around him, as if he wanted to engrave everything he saw in his mind.
After a while, the couple holding hands arrived at the spotlessly cleaned dojo.
When he met Ishikawa Heima by chance in Osaka before, Ishikawa Heima told Ogata that the Sakakibara Sword Hall was still there and was being carefully taken care of by Asaki, Afu and others.
Now it seems that it is true.
Compared to the past, the only difference in the dojo is... the lack of wooden swords placed on the edge of the dojo and the absence of the people who should be practicing sword skills in the dojo.
Looking at the dojo that had been cleaned spotlessly, voices that could only exist in Ogata's mind echoed in his mind.
(Ogata-senpai! They are fighting with swords! Why are you just standing there in a daze?)
(Ogata, please accept the certificate of Menkyo Kaiden with peace of mind.)
(Congratulations, Ogata-kun!)
(After I get to the underworld... I don't know what kind of expression I should use to face everyone...)
…
With the corners of his mouth drooping, Ogata let go of Atachi's hand and walked slowly to the center of the dojo alone.
Atachi did not follow, but just stood silently at the edge of the dojo, watching Ogata return to the place where he used to practice sword.
Standing in the center of the dojo, Ogata held his sword and looked around.
"Here... is the starting point of a long journey..."
With an unpleasant smile on his face, Ogata slowly pulled out the Daishakuten.
He held the knife with both hands and assumed a mid-section stance.
At this moment, Ogata's figure overlapped with the carefree young figure who was practicing swordsmanship with a wooden sword.
Two figures standing in the same position slowly raised their swords above their heads at the same time, then slashed forward with force, performing the most basic swordsmanship training: Su Zhen.
Ogata, who no longer holds the wooden sword, is alone in the dojo, practicing swordsmanship as usual.
A gentle breeze blows.
The sound of the wind accompanies the solitary sound of swords swinging in the dojo.
…
…
Holding hands with Atachi, Ogata strolled along a wide country dirt road.
Looking at the dirt road under his feet, that ugly smile appeared on Ogata's face again.
At the beginning... he left the Hirose Domain along this road, seeing off his family elder Kuranaga.
After a while, he recognized the place where he had said goodbye to Kuranaga.
At that time, Kuranaga was standing on the roadside watching him go, and he no longer saw the figure of this loyal minister who sacrificed his life for the Hirose domain.
After a long time, he once again set foot on the dirt road leaving Hirose Domain.
But compared to last time, he was no longer the only one listening alone.
He now has a partner who can share his joys and sorrows.
Ahead of him, there are many friends who have shared life and death with him waiting for him.
The ugly smile on his face slowly turned into a plain smile. Ogata silently tightened the hand of Atachi in his right palm, then raised his left hand and placed his left palm on the Dashiten sword guard on his left waist.
"The journey is still long..."
Ogata grumbled once again.
This time, his tone was no longer filled with sadness like it was just now in the sword hall, but rather with a hint of excitement and anticipation.
After reuniting with Lin and others, they will go to Nagasaki in Kyushu to take a ship to Ryukyu.
It's another long journey.
And from now on, there should be countless journeys waiting for him.
Ogata had no idea when his journey would end.
All he knew was: just keep moving forward.
As long as he has the knife on his waist and A-Ting is by his side, he is not afraid of any danger.
Ogata slightly raised the edge of his hat and looked into the distance.
Ogata's steps gradually became lighter, and his eyes sparkled with the same drive that had once flashed in his pupils when he left the Hirose Domain.
Atachi, who had been watching Ogata's expression intently for a while, bit her lower lip.
"Ayi..."
As if he had made up his mind, Ating took several deep breaths.
"Hmm? What's wrong?"
"Well... I haven't been feeling well for a while. I found a doctor to check me out, and the doctor said that I... said that I..."
Having said this, Ating suddenly stopped talking.
With two blushes on her cheeks, Ating lowered her eyes and looked at her slender waist and abdomen.
"What did I say to you?" Ogata, who didn't notice Atachi's little action, asked in confusion.
"...We can now think about what to name our child..."
Ating's cheeks were as red as if blood was about to drip out, and her voice was as soft as a mosquito's hum.
But Ogata still heard it clearly.
On the winding country dirt road, rays of sunlight poured down from the sky, shining on Ogata who was frozen in place, and Atachi who was giving him a gentle smile.
The weather is sunny and windy.
The sky is cloudless.
…
…
The final volume of "Ittosai"——The end!
The legend of Shura - the end!
(End of the book)