I Was a Swordsman in Ancient Japan - Chapter 666

The latest website: In the Edo period, leaving the domain was a serious crime.

In order to maintain feudal rule, the Edo shogunate not only restricted class mobility, but also restricted population mobility.

Since the establishment of the Edo shogunate, regulations have been promulgated: samurai and commoners in each domain are not allowed to leave the domain to which they belong without authorization.

Those who leave the vassal state without authorization are regarded as “breakers”.

Once caught, those who escaped from the vassal would be immediately sent back to their original vassal state and sentenced to severe sentences.

That is to say, once he leaves the domain, he will immediately become a national wanted criminal.

Itagaki and the others did not hesitate to leave the domain, but they also came to hunt down Ogata and avenge Toyama—their determination made Ogata not know what to look like.

“…After I left the Hirose Domain, has there been any new changes in the Hirose Domain?” Ogata asked softly.

“After you killed Gennai Matsudaira, the new feudal lord’s abilities are not outstanding, but fortunately he is also a normal person.” Ishikawa said slowly, “Under his rule, the people of the Hirose Domain are not good enough. How good it is, but it is also much stronger than before.”

“Where’s the Sakakihara Sword Museum? Is the Sakakihara Sword Museum still there?” Ogata asked.

“The Sakakihara Sword Museum is still there.” Ishikawa continued, “Probably at the beginning of last year, the feudal government seemed to plan to tear down the Sakakihara Sword Museum.”

“But it was opposed by a lot of people in the clan.”

Having said that, Ishikawa smiled with a memory.

“Your act of killing the tyrant in Matsudaira Gennai has won a lot of hearts and minds in the Hirose Domain.”

“Those who support you are all over the countryside, cities and towns, business circles, and fiefdoms.”

“Under their concerted efforts, the feudal government canceled the plan to shovel Sakakihara Kenkan.”

“Is that so…” A smile gushed out from Ogata’s cheeks, “Just as long as the sword hall is still there…”

“The Sakakihara Sword Museum is not only still there, but it is also very well maintained. Many people spontaneously go to the Sakakihara Sword Museum to clean it up.”

“Especially the mother and daughter of a certain izakaya. The two of them will go to the Sakakihara Kenkan every 7 days to clean the inside and outside of the Kenkan.”

“Mother and daughter who open an izakaya?” Ogata was startled, and then quickly asked, “Are those mother and daughter called Asaki and Afu?”

This time Ishikawa was taken aback: “Yeah. Are they two acquaintances of you?”

“I have received a lot of care from the two of them before.” Ogata put on a look of relief, “Ha… It seems that the two of them are living a very peaceful life now…”

Ogata tilted his head back, leaning on the wall behind him.

“It’s obvious that I’ve only been away for more than a year, but just listening to your narrative has given me a feeling that something is wrong…”

“You can find an opportunity to return to the Hirose Domain in the future.” Ishikawa said, “Unlike those feudal kingdoms that are located in dangerous areas and difficult to climb into, if you want to infiltrate the Hirose Domain, there are still many ways and paths. “

“If I’m still alive, I’ll consider going back to my hometown.” Ogata responded in a half-joking tone.

Speaking of which, Ishikawa just finished dressing Ogata’s wound.

“Okay, the wound is wrapped, check if it is too tight.”

“Perfect. It’s neither too tight nor too loose.” Ogata raised his hand and stroked the thick sackcloth wrapped around his wound, then put on a joking tone, “Speaking of which – Ishikawa-sama, you The heart is really big enough.”

“Don’t ask me what happened to me just now, don’t ask how I got this injury, just help me bandage the wound and give me clothes.”

“Because I think these are stupid questions.” Ishikawa smiled at Ogata, “It’s just normal for someone of your identity to be attacked and hunted down by others suddenly, isn’t it?”

“Haha, that’s true. There is really no need to ask why a ‘the most wanted criminal in the country’ is so scarred.”

Ogata stood up slowly, holding on to the wall.

“Ishikawa-sama, thank you very much for your help. I will never forget your help.”

Once again, he thanked Ishikawa sincerely.

“you are welcome.”

Ishikawa stood up along with Ogata with a smile on his face.

“The reason why I lend a hand to you is to make amends.”

A faint feeling of guilt appeared in Ishikawa’s eyes.

“Ogata-kun, I have always felt guilty towards you and Yuanshan.”

“If I were a qualified teacher, if I could discipline Yuanshan and them well, maybe the series of tragedies that happened at the beginning would not have happened.”

“Secondly, it’s also to thank you.”

Ishikawa stretched out his finger and pointed at himself.

“I’m also one of the people who was moved by your act of killing the tyrant.”

“I’m also very resentful of that beast in Songpingyuan.”

“It’s just… I don’t have the courage and strength you have.”

“Three times… it’s also so that you can continue to live well.”

Ogata was taken aback: “Let me continue to live?”

Ogata can still understand the first two reasons Ishikawa just mentioned for helping him.

But for this third reason, Ogata didn’t quite understand it.

Ishikawa chuckled: “The news that you have conquered Nijo Castle in Kyoto was introduced to the Hirose Domain at the end of last summer.”

“I didn’t understand you at the time.”

“Killing Matsudaira Gennai is an undoubted righteous act in my eyes.”

“But I can’t link this matter with the ‘righteous deed’ in any way to break Erjo Castle.”

“I thought you had fallen and become a violent thug.”

“But after I left the Hirose Domain to find Itagaki and others, my mind changed.”

“This is the first time in my life that I have traveled far.”

“After I left the Hirose Domain, I saw with my own eyes how the people of Limin all over the country were struggling under the rule of the Edo Shogunate.”

“I can only say this to you, Ogata-kun: After witnessing this tragic scene, I began to doubt whether the current Edo shogunate is worthy of our following.”

“I also changed my original idea of ​​seeing you as a ‘fallen thug’.”

“After witnessing the incompetence of the Edo shogunate’s rule with my own eyes, I began to think that your attack on Nijo Castle in Kyoto and the smashing of the shogunate army in Ezo land were all acts of righteousness.”

“I’m so old, and I’m doomed until I die, and I won’t have any great achievements.”

“And Ogata-kun, you are different.”

“You’re still young, you have power. And it’s the kind of power that might change the world.”

“Your various actions may force some new changes in this world.”

Ishikawa’s eyes gradually became sharp, and his tone gradually became firm.

“So – I don’t want you to be killed by some unknown cat and dog, I want you to live.”

Ishikawa raised his hand and pressed the shoulders of Ogata, who was much taller than him.

“I don’t know if your existence will make the future world better or worse.”

“But I’d love to wait and see for myself.”

Sonorous and powerful——This idiom is probably the most suitable to describe what Ishikawa just said.

Looking at Ishikawa who was pressing his shoulders firmly in front of him, Ogata was surprised at first.

Then the surprise on his face turned into a helpless smile.

“Lord Ishikawa, thank you for your love.”

“But I’m actually not interested in changing the world.”

“What I have always done has not changed – whoever swings the knife at me and the people around me, I will swing the knife at whoever.”

“The only thing I can assure you is—”

Ogata put on a firm tone like Ishikawa just now.

“Even if it’s a disease, I won’t let it take my life easily.”

“As for whether the world will change because of my existence… Then let’s go. Anyway, I won’t take the initiative to get involved in the trouble of ‘changing the world’.”

Listening to Ogata’s words, Ishikawa didn’t show any dissatisfaction, displeasure or embarrassment on his face.

He just smiled and patted Ogata’s shoulders.

Ogata, who smiled along with Ishikawa, took a deep breath and slowly exhaled the air in his lungs.

“Ishikawa-sama, can you make a deal with me?”

As he spoke, Ogata stretched his hand into his arms.

After groping for a while, I took out 5 taels of gold.

This is all the money Ogata currently has with him.

“I want to use these 5 taels of gold, as well as my current knife, in exchange for your knife.”

“Although my current knife is a bit tattered, if I sell it, I can still sell it for some money.”

After saying that, Ogata gently pulled out the knife from his waist, revealing its blade with many notches.

The wakizashi that Ogata is now wearing on his waist is the one he took from Yuhachiro just after beheading Yuhachiro.

The weapon used by Yuhachiro was two wakizashi, so although the wakizashi was successfully replaced, Ogata’s sword was still the original tattered one.

Ishikawa raised his eyebrows, looked at the 5 taels of gold in Ogata’s hands, and the tattered knife at his waist, and laughed dumbly:

“Although my sword is not a famous sword or a treasure, it is not cheap either.”

After speaking, Ishikawa pursed his lips and looked at Ogata’s face with a thoughtful look on his face.

“…But that’s all. Change it.”

Ishikawa shrugged towards Ogata with a wry smile, then untied the knife from his left waist and handed it to Ogata.

“Thank you so much.” Ogata took Ishikawa’s sword, and then handed the money and the sword around his waist to Ishikawa, and said sternly, “Lord Ishikawa, there are a bunch of unidentified guys who are destroying Osaka right now.”

“If conditions permit, you should leave Osaka now.”

“At least get out of this block.”

Ogata put on a playful tone at this time.

“After tonight, this block… may become one of the famous ancient battlefields in the future. So you should leave here now, as far away as you want.”

Ishikawa didn’t quite understand what Ogata just said, but he nodded vigorously:

“I see. Then–Ogata-kun, let’s just say goodbye. I hope we will meet again in the future, and I wish you a prosperous martial arts.”

After speaking, Ishikawa bowed slightly to Ogata and turned to leave.

But as soon as he turned around, Ishikawa’s figure suddenly paused.

“…Ogata-kun, can you do me a favor?”

Ishikawa turned his body back.

“If I encounter Itagaki and the others in the future… Please help me with a word for them.”

“Tell them: I am a master, regardless of my age, I left my hometown alone, just to get them back, and I suffered a lot for this, even if it was for the sake of being a master, Hurry back to Hirose Domain.”

“If they don’t listen to you and still insist on taking your life…”

Ishikawa pursed his lips tightly.

“…I’ll leave it to you.”

Ogata: “…Understood. If I meet Itagaki and the others in the future, I will bring your words to them.”

“Um… I’m sorry…”

After Ishikawa bowed slightly to Ogata again, he left quickly.

After watching the old friend leave, Ogata closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Then he resisted the discomfort of his body and looked around with a scrutinizing gaze.

“It really is a good place…”

Ogata murmured.

“Every house is closely arranged, the roads are all narrow, and the lack of commanding heights makes it difficult to find my trace… Nothing is more suitable for my battlefield…”

Carrying the knife he just bought from Ishikawa, Ogata strolled through this “poor settlement” while looking at every street and every house.

After Ogata walked about half of the streets of this “poor settlement”—

clap clap…

Very light footsteps suddenly sounded not far from here.

Ogata, who caught the sound of footsteps in time, immediately turned his head to follow the sound…

“Finally… is someone here…”

…

…

——Damn, the houses here are too dense, how can I find this…

Kagenosuke, who was squatting on the roof of a private house, frowned and looked around.

In order to successfully find out Ogata, most of the Iga ninjas were dispatched to serve as the “eyes” of the entire army.

Kagenosuke is one of the ninjas sent to act as “eyes”.

Just now, he saw red fireworks appearing in the sky.

After rushing to the scene, they met Yuhachiro’s subordinates who were struggling to fish up Yuhachiro’s body on the river bank.

After inquiring in detail, they learned that they had successfully encountered Ogata, but they let Ogata dive and escape.

Not knowing which direction Ogata was fleeing along the river, Kagenosuke relied on his own intuition and followed the direction of the river to find it downstream of the canal.

After a while, he was down the canal and found an area that was clearly a “poor settlement”.

The houses in this area are all broken and long, and the houses are next to each other. If you look down from the sky, the density of the houses in this area can make the scalp of people with intensive phobia numb.

This kind of place where the houses are closely arranged is the most suitable for Tibetans.

So Kagenosuke walked into this neighborhood with the mentality of “trying your luck”.

Before entering this neighborhood, Kagenosuke knew that it would be difficult to find people in such a densely packed place, but he didn’t expect it to be so difficult.

It’s like looking for a copper coin in a utility room full of all kinds of sundries.

——Isn’t there any place with a higher height…

With an expression of impatience, Kagenosuke raised his head and looked around.

Just as he raised his head–

chap!

At a speed so fast that Kagenosuke couldn’t even react, a black shadow dodged behind Kagenosuke.

As soon as Kagenosuke noticed that someone was behind him, before he had time to react, a sharp pain suddenly came from his flank—the bottom of a knife scabbard hit his flank hard.

“Puff!”

The severe pain in his flank made Kagenosuke vomit out everything in his stomach.

He threw up and collapsed to the ground.

The intense pain caused Kagenosuke’s body to twitch directly, making it difficult for him to speak.

Kagenosuke turned his neck with difficulty, and moved his gaze to see who the attacker was.

After seeing who the person who attacked him just now was, Kagenosuke’s pupils shrank violently.

“Xu… Luo…”

It was Ogata who attacked him just now and knocked him down with one blow.

Ou Fang squatted down expressionlessly and groped in Kagenosuke’s arms.

After a while, he took out a small wooden tube.

“Is it this…” Looking at the wooden tube, Ogata murmured, “It’s really good luck… So soon there will be a man in black with this firework coming to the door.”

After whispering, Ogata smiled happily.

——Damn… I didn’t have time to set off fireworks…

The severe pain in his flank made Kagenosuke unable to speak for the time being, so he could only shout annoyed in his heart.

——If I could just set off fireworks in time and help others mark the location of Shura… Then even if I die, it is worth dying…

Looking at the smile on Ogata’s face, Kagenosuke felt a sense of anger.

——Laugh at the fart……!

——If I could just set off the fireworks in time, you would be able to laugh or not… eh?

Kagenosuke’s eyes slowly widened at this time.

Because he saw… Ogata slowly stood up.

He pointed the wooden tube he just took out from him to the sky.

Then, without hesitation, pull the rope at the bottom of the barrel.

laugh–!

A red firework shot up into the sky, blooming a gorgeous “red flower” in the air, illuminating Kagenosuke’s shocked face.

poof…

Ogata threw the empty wooden tube back to Kagenosuke.

“Let all the horses come here,” he said.

bass!

Ogata abruptly pulled out the knife he had just exchanged from Ishikawa, and the tip of the knife pierced Kagenosuke’s throat.

“Gu…!”

Kagenosuke’s body twitched violently for a while, and then his eyes twitched, completely silent.

He was going to set up the “battlefield” later, and he didn’t have time to slowly gather information from the mouth of Kagenosuke, so Ogata sent him on the road without hesitation.

While receiving treatment from Ishikawa just now, Ogata finally had a rare chance to breathe, allowing Ogata to calm down and think.

After carefully reviewing what happened tonight, Xu Fang was shocked: From the first attack tonight until now, every time he fought, he was too passive.

They were all found by the enemy first, and then the enemy swarmed up and launched a wheel battle against him, and he passively responded.

This gang of enemies has a flintlock gun, and even in his heyday, he would not dare to take firearms too lightly, not to mention now that his physical condition is extremely poor.

It was too unfavorable for him to passively meet the enemy’s invasion.

If I let myself fall into such a passive state, I am afraid that when I return to the hotel, I will only have half my life left.

If that’s the case, then turn the enemy into an army! Take the initiative to face the enemy, lead the enemy to the terrain that is preset by you and be extremely beneficial to yourself, and fight the enemy decisively! Take the initiative to fight into your own hands!

When he climbed out of the canal and came to this “poor settlement” just now, Ogata immediately noticed the advantages of this block.

The houses are closely arranged, there is no commanding height, the roads are narrow, and the widest road is only enough for three people to walk side by side.

There’s no more suitable terrain for dealing with Musketeers.

So Ogata decided to lead the enemy to this place, and before his body was so uncomfortable that he couldn’t even hold his sword tightly, he would start a decisive battle with the enemy here!

Kill the enemy completely, and no one will stop him from going back to the inn.

Ogata is not in a hurry to go back to the hotel now.

If these enemies are not killed, it is very likely that they will “lead wolves into the room”.

His perception ability is not as good as in his heyday, and there is no certainty that he will never be followed.

If they go back to the inn without killing the enemy, they might put A-cho and the others in danger.

And after calming down and thinking about it, Ogata found that the hotel he stayed in should be safe now, if nothing happened.

If the enemy knew Ogata’s residence~www.mtlnovel.com~ there was no need to ambush Ogata in the street.

In the middle of the night, when Ogata was sleeping, the success rate of rushing into the hotel to assassinate him was not higher than the success rate of assassinating him on the street?

Since the enemy did not use this obviously more effective method, it means that they do not know where Ogata lives.

He is only afraid of one thing now – seeing that he has not returned, A-ding ran out to find him, and then something happened…

blah blah blah…

On the northwest side of the block, there were dense footsteps at this time.

“It’s coming so soon… I’m still thinking about setting up the battlefield.”

Ogata swung the knife in his hand, and threw away the blood that had just pierced through Kagenosuke’s throat and remained on the tip of the knife.

“If you want to kill me so much, let’s see if I exhaust myself first, or if your people die first.”