I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Kondo, who was standing to Okita's side, noticed.

Seeing the hint of melancholy in Okita's eyes, Kondo pursed his lips and then clapped his hands forcefully a few times.

"Alright, alright! Stop talking!"

"Let's stop with the small talk for now!"

"Everyone, disperse quickly and continue your practice for today!"

"If we keep chatting like this, it'll be noon soon!"

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Chapter 50 Come on! Let me tie you up! (Part 1)

Although Shusuke, as the head of the Shieikan Academy, is present at the academy today, he has hardly participated in the teaching of his apprentices.

The teaching work was mostly handled by Kondo Isami. Shusuke would simply sit in the head seat of the dojo and watch the disciples practice. Only very occasionally would he step down to correct the disciples' movements or assist Kondo Isami in teaching sword techniques.

This was the first time Aoto had received instruction from Kondo.

Kondo and Okita, who was in charge of teaching Aoto last time, are completely different styles.

Okita's teaching style was "strict".

It tells you what to do and how to do it in a stern tone.

If you don't do a certain movement correctly, they will directly hit you with a bamboo sword on the spot where you didn't do it correctly—of course, the force is very light and won't hurt you.

Kondo's teaching style is "gentle".

They will teach you step by step with gentle words and actions.

Even if you don't do a certain movement correctly, they won't attack you with a bamboo sword like Okita would. They will patiently tell you what you didn't do correctly and then work with you to slowly correct the movement.

As the saying goes, strict teachers produce outstanding students. Kondo's "gentle teaching" may not seem suitable for cultivating students at first glance, but that is not the case.

Kondo was quite good at teaching; he could explain complex sword techniques in a very simple and easy-to-understand way with just a few words.

Under Kondo's guidance, Aoto finally learned something more advanced today—the stance for holding a sword, and officially began teaching Aoto swordsmanship!

There are three basic sword-holding stances: upper, middle, and lower.

The upper stance: The sword is raised high above the head, a stance primarily for attack. However, because the sword is raised high above the head, the body is wide open, making it a relatively weak defensive stance.

Mid-stance: Holding the sword in the middle of the body, with the tip pointing diagonally at the enemy and the hilt facing the abdomen, this is a versatile sword-holding posture that can be used for both offense and defense. It is considered the most commonly used sword-holding posture.

The next stance: lower the sword, with the tip pointing near the enemy's knee or even the ground. This is a defensive stance that excels in dodging but is weak in attacking.

In addition to these three basic stances, there are also variant stances such as the Eight Pairs and the Flat Blue Eyes.

Kondo told Aoto: The stances of the Tennen Rishin-ryu school mainly consist of four types—upper, middle, lower stances, and flat blue eye.

Kondo spent the morning teaching Aoto the four sword stances. In the afternoon, he began teaching Aoto what he was most eager to learn: sword techniques for attacking enemies!

Since joining the Shieikan, Aoto had been looking forward to learning specific sword techniques as soon as possible.

After all, one of his purposes in becoming a disciple of the Shiwei Hall was to improve his swordsmanship and enhance his ability to protect himself.

The attacks by the "radical anti-foreign faction" could come at any time, so it's best to learn "offensive" sword techniques as soon as possible to effectively counter them and protect oneself.

Seeing that Kondo was about to teach him swordsmanship, Aoto quickly focused his attention and listened carefully.

Kondo didn't teach Aoto too many moves at once.

Today he only taught Qingdeng one move—a thrusting technique called "Unknown Sword" or "Unknown Thrust".

Start with a mid-range stance, place the sword flat, and then thrust the sword forward while releasing your inner energy. This sword technique seems very simple at first glance, but the simpler the movement, the more intricacies it contains.

After teaching Aoto this move, Kondo had Aoto spend the entire afternoon practicing the "Mumeiken" (Unknown Sword).

Finally, he no longer had to learn basic movements like shojin and drawing and sheathing his sword, and could start learning specific sword techniques. Qingdeng's enthusiasm was ignited.

All afternoon, he stood in a corner of the dojo, practicing the "Unknown Sword" technique single-mindedly and attentively.

In his spare time, Qingdeng also made sure to replicate his talent.

Today, many unfamiliar faces came to the dojo, people they hadn't yet sparred with.

Qingdeng seized the opportunity and invited these newcomers to exchange ideas under various pretexts.

He was lucky today—perhaps because of his outstanding performance in his matches against Shusuke and Kondo, which earned him everyone's respect. Almost everyone he approached today gladly accepted his "invitation to spar."

Unfortunately... after battling with every unfamiliar face he'd ever met, that mechanical system voice never sounded in Qing Deng's mind again...

……

……

That day, in the evening—

Hatchobori, Aoto's home——

"Kyubei! I'm back!"

In high spirits, Qing Deng hummed a cheerful tune as he forcefully opened the door and announced his return to Jiu Bingwei inside.

Just like the day before yesterday, Qingdeng practiced swordsmanship at the Shiwei Hall until the evening glow was colorful before returning home in the twilight.

Today was another day of great success at the Shiwei Hall.

Qingdeng now increasingly feels that Shiweiguan is a place where hidden talents reside.

Although the sword club is not large, it has a steady stream of powerful individuals with exceptional talents.

Having only practiced swordsmanship at the Shiwei Hall for two days, he has already acquired three talents that are very suitable for Qing Deng, whose strength is still very weak.

The successive acquisition of powerful talents made Qingdeng so happy that he felt his physical strength had been greatly reduced.

However—just as Qingdeng happily opened the door and entered his home, preparing to take off his straw sandals, he suddenly froze.

He suddenly discovered that there were two unfamiliar pairs of shoes at his front door...

"Ah, young master, you're back?"

Kyubei, carrying a tea tray, rushed out of the inner room.

"Young Master, you've come back just in time! We have guests!"

Qingdeng frowned slightly: "Guest? Who?"

"Lord Arima, and a young man I don't recognize! They just arrived, saying they're here to see you!"

"Lord Arima and another young man?" Aoto, his face filled with barely suppressed astonishment, quickly took off his straw sandals and handed the sword at his waist to Kyubei. "Where are those two now?"

"I invited them all into the living room."

"it is good."

Qingdeng rushed towards the hall, which was not far from the door, taking three steps at a time.

As soon as the paper sliding door to the living room was opened, Aoto's eyes were drawn to Arima's figure, whose neck and back were always at a 90-degree angle to the ground, standing on the tatami like a statue.

Along with that, a strange figure was sitting cross-legged next to Arima...

"Tachibana-kun, you're back." Arima gave Aoto a faint smile as he entered through the sliding door.

"Lord Arima, I apologize for keeping you waiting."

"It's alright, we've only been here a short time. Tachibana-kun, I heard from Kyubei that you went to the sword school where you recently became an apprentice to practice swordsmanship today. You're very diligent. How's your swordsmanship training going?"

"Hmm...it's alright."

While exchanging brief pleasantries with Arima, Aoto slowly walked to the opposite side of his superior and knelt down on the ground.

"Uh... Lord Arima, and who is this?" As soon as he sat down and exchanged pleasantries with Arima, Qing Deng immediately gestured to the young man sitting next to Arima.

Qing Deng didn't recognize this young man who looked a year or two younger than him at all.

As soon as Qingdeng entered the hall, the unfamiliar young man immediately caught Qingdeng's attention.

The reason Qing Deng's gaze was drawn to him was not because this guy had a particularly striking appearance.

It was because of his sword.

The boy had two samurai swords, one long and one short, at his waist, indicating that he was a samurai.

Generally speaking, samurai wore their swords on their left hips, as this made it easier for right-handed samurai to draw their swords.

But this young man wore his sword at his right hip...

"Oh, him... Saito, why don't you introduce yourself?"

"...No outflow." The boy said softly in a cold tone, devoid of joy or sorrow, "Saito Hajime."

"Mr. Tachibana, this is the bodyguard that I, Ushiyama, and Inugani found for you to protect you."

"bodyguard?"

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Chapter 51 Hurry! Let me tie you up! (Part 2)

Upon hearing the word "bodyguard" from Arima, Aoto immediately shifted his gaze and scrutinized Saito closely.

This is a very young boy, probably only 16 or 7 years old.

He was very tall, even taller than Qingdeng who was 1.75 meters tall, about 1.8 meters.

He has fair skin, sharp facial features, and his hair isn't shaved into an ugly chonmage style, but rather has long hair like Aoto's. Overall, he can be considered somewhat handsome.