Yashiro the Blind

"Hahahaha!"

Amidst hearty laughter, a lone rider and his horse galloped on, arrows raining down like rain. The quiver, which held fifteen arrows, was emptied by the dragon prince in an instant, and each arrow shot took the life of a brave warrior who dared to show his face on the city wall.

In the blink of an eye, fifteen people perished!

During this time, some people mustered up their courage and fired a few arrows or threw down a few stones, but these scattered attacks not only failed to harm the dragon princess, but also gave her a few more arrows.

The woman on horseback drew her bow and nocked an arrow once more. The arrow pointed at the enemy soldiers on the city wall, who were so frightened that they trembled and fell to the ground with a thud!

Whoosh!

Another arrow was released, but this time it was not aimed at the defenders on the city wall. Instead, it flew straight into the air, and in the next instant, a bird plummeted down and landed right in front of the soldiers on the city wall.

Long Zi spurred his horse again, gradually slowing its pace. He wiped the sweat from his brow, raised his chin, and flashed a bright smile. Suddenly, he raised his voice and said:

"It is impolite not to reciprocate. You gave me an arrow, so I will return a bird to you. Take it back and present it to your lord!"

……

Chapter 416 One Against Ten

One man, one bow, single-handedly breaching the city walls.

The arrow was shot at noon, and around dusk, before it had completely darkened, the city's garrison commander, Nakamura Saburo, hurriedly sent an envoy out to discuss peace talks... or rather, surrender.

It wasn't that so many people in Osaka Castle were terrified of the Ryuko, but rather that behind the Ryuko, there were still hundreds of Iga soldiers standing ready.

The defending troops were already outnumbered, and those brave and daring warriors had been slaughtered by the dragon prince. The few who were still alive were all hastily mobilized common soldiers with almost no will to fight.

Now, all we see is the female warrior drawing her bow and nocking an arrow, each shot a fatal blow. Even seasoned warriors on the battlefield are no match for her and die on the spot, let alone farmers who usually work in the fields planting rice.

They were all terrified, trembling, and would rather be beaten, scolded, and threatened than go back to the city wall to their deaths.

In the end, Long Zi may have only killed a dozen or so people, but in reality, she had completely extinguished the fighting spirit and morale of the city's defenders. In particular, the soldiers in the city who witnessed this scene were as frightened as startled birds, and could hardly hold their weapons...

Seeing his subordinates so useless, Nakamura Saburo knew that his cause was doomed. From now on, the Iga army wouldn't even need to do anything else. Just letting that female warrior ride around the castle a few times a day would be enough to terrify the people inside the castle and make them lose all courage to resist.

The saying goes, "Those who understand the times are heroes; those who don't will only end up like his father-in-law, a cold, lifeless corpse."

Being alive is of course better.

Thus, Nakamura Saburo not only surrendered decisively, but when he arrived in front of Yashiro, he kept emphasizing: "Actually, I wanted to send troops to support Lord Kubo from the very beginning, but my father-in-law... oh, it's Lord Kataoka Shinjiro who is old and senile and dared not make a decision lightly, which is why it has been delayed all this time... Today, thanks to Lord Iga leading his troops, I was able to take this opportunity to abandon the darkness and embrace the light!"

His words were spoken with such conviction and deep affection that Yashiro almost believed them.

After Nakamura Saburo finished speaking, she nodded with a look of gratitude: "I see. Lord Nakamura is truly loyal and devoted, as clear as the sun and moon."

"I wouldn't dare, no..."

"Then I will have to trouble you, Lord Nakamura, to take care of the matter of pacifying Geshiga County."

"what……"

"is there a problem?"

"No problem, no problem!" Nakamura Saburo's face was full of bitterness, but he still forced himself to put on a happy smile—he had no choice, even if the blind girl in front of him couldn't see, there were still several other eyes watching them.

This was a necessary test, he sighed inwardly, and reluctantly agreed: "I have some influence in the vicinity of Kuzushima. I believe that as long as I reason with them and appeal to their emotions, there is no need for Lord Iga to mobilize a single soldier. The other local people will naturally come to submit to the shogunate and restore order!"

"Truly reliable. Rest assured, His Highness is always fair in rewarding and punishing. As long as you, Lord Nakamura, handle this matter well and reliably, His Highness will surely reward you handsomely afterward," Yashiro said with a smile.

"Leave it to me!"

Even though he knew in his heart that this was just a pie in the sky, as the saying goes, "something is better than nothing." Upon hearing this, Nakamura Saburo suddenly became more motivated and patted his chest to assure him.

……

This guy really wasn't exaggerating or lying.

At least in the Kazushita District, the title of Kataoka Shinjiro's son-in-law still had some use—especially since the latter had just launched a fierce attack, losing not only himself but also his two sons in the chaos of battle. And these two sons were useless, having been married for several years without having a single offspring.

Now that the entire family of three has perished, the Katakura family in Katsushika has lost its male heir. According to custom, in such cases, the son-in-law would usually be adopted into the family to continue the family line. Therefore, in the eyes of the other people in Katsushika District, Nakamura Saburo is almost a foregone conclusion that he will be the next head of the Kataoka family. Considering all the possible future circumstances, they should at least give him some face.

Not to mention that he has the formidable Iga army behind him. If he doesn't give Nakamura Saburo face, he might just have to test the sharpness of the Iga's swords and spears with his own neck.

With this in mind, the local tyrants of Kazushita District were quite cooperative. The first one or two families required Nakamura Saburo to personally persuade them, but when he finally convinced them with his silver tongue and returned to Kataoka Castle with a sense of accomplishment, he happened to run into the remaining five, six, seven or eight families.

They were all acquaintances, related by blood or marriage; their eyes met, and without a word, they understood each other perfectly.

"coincidence."

"What a coincidence, buddy, you're here to surrender too?"

"Even you've surrendered, so why can't your brother follow suit and see what happens? Besides, what's with all this talk about surrendering? You're being so rude. I've been a loyal retainer of the shogunate from the very beginning!"

"That's as if no one is above the law... I swore allegiance to His Highness Gongfang from the moment I was born!"

In this way, and in less than ten days, all the powerful clans in Gexia County had changed their allegiance and flocked to him.

During this time, Yashiro took stock of the supplies in Katakura Castle. After he had done most of the work, he ordered the brothers Saemon and Uemon to take two hundred soldiers to guard the castle in case of any unforeseen circumstances. He then led the others—including the newly surrendered guys from Kazushita County—to join forces with the Shimotsuke twins who were besieging Takayama Castle.

The garrison of Tatsuta Takayama Castle was initially putting up a stubborn resistance, but upon seeing familiar faces such as Nakamura Saburo and hearing the news of the deaths of Katakura Shinjiro and his family, they became disheartened. After receiving a guarantee from Yashiro that the castle would be opened and they would not be killed, they readily raised the white flag and surrendered obediently.

At this time, only half a month had passed since Ashikaga Yoshiteru led his army to besiege Shigiyama Castle. When he set out, Yashiro had a total of 1,100 troops. After pacifying the district, his number of troops not only did not decrease but increased, nearly doubling to more than 2,000.

The general was so pleased with the gift that he even gave the blind girl an extra teacup. Don't think this reward is too meager; according to Ashikaga Yoshiteru himself, the teacup was made by a famous craftsman. It's not worth a fortune, but in a certain Rise of Kingdoms game, it would be at least a level 5 tea set.

After being passed through the hands of the general, its collectible value has more than doubled.

In a sense, tea sets are similar to the watches, luxury cars, and designer bags that people compare themselves to in this day and age... or you could compare them to figurines. The more prestigious a family is, the more they need a presentable tea set to make a statement, otherwise they will inevitably be ridiculed.

Unfortunately, Yashiro was destined to be a vulgar person who didn't understand elegance. Over the years, he had been fed countless cups of tea by Naotora and Hatsume, but he still couldn't appreciate the so-called "quiet charm" and had little interest in the tea ceremony.

However, she certainly wouldn't mind a free gift, and besides, she could use the teacup to give to Chuya later to win the little girl's favor. Wouldn't that be wonderful? Thinking this, she immediately became happy again.

Ashikaga Yoshiteru noticed this change in expression and couldn't help but sigh that his talent had been wasted. After pondering for a moment, he finally couldn't help but remind her, "Miss Yashiro, although this teacup can't compare to a truly famous piece, it's still worth a little money."

"What does Your Highness mean..." Yashiro seemed to be thinking. Could this be an implication that she could sell the teacup for money?

"What I mean is, don't sell this teacup. Or if you really have to sell it, try to wait until I have a little more money and then buy it back from you."

"This..." Yashiro's expression turned somewhat strange upon hearing this. "I didn't expect Your Highness to cherish this item so much. Then perhaps..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Ashikaga Yoshiteru replied decisively, "No need! A gentleman's word is his bond. Since I said I would give it to you, this teacup is now yours, Miss Yashiro. You are free to do with it as you see fit. I... I have no objection!"

The last few words were practically spat out between his teeth. It was clear he genuinely loved the teacup; he wouldn't have parted with it if he hadn't had nothing else to admire.

Since that's the case, then this teacup should indeed be... given to Hatsume as a gift when we get back.

For Yashiro, making the little girl happy was the most important thing. Everything else could be put aside in the face of this matter. As for whether Ashikaga Yoshiteru could buy the tea bowl back from Hatsume, that was not her concern.

"...Okay, let's change the subject, let's not talk about this anymore."

One last deep look, Ashikaga Yoshiteru seemed to be cutting through his confusion as he quickly packed up the teacup, placed it aside, forced himself to look away, cleared his throat, and changed the subject, "Miss Yashiro, you did a very good job in pacifying Kuzushita County this time, even exceeding my expectations... Thank you for your hard work. For the next period of time, you can stay at the main camp and assist in the siege."

"Don't you need me to lead the army north to help... Lord Yagyu and the others?" Yashiro asked.

"What you really want to say isn't about Yagyu, is it?" Ashikaga Yoshiteru asked with a smile, noticing the suspicious pause in his words.

The blind woman coughed softly a few times, revealing a rare hint of embarrassment: "What do you mean by that, Your Highness? I don't understand."

"Hahaha!"

The general clapped his hands and laughed, "I know what you're worried about, but don't worry. That Lord Ii Naotora may seem gentle, but once he's on the battlefield, he's incredibly imposing. In terms of ability, he's in no way inferior to you, Miss Yashiro. Oh, I just happen to have a battle report that was just sent back from the front lines. Shall I read it to you?"

"Then... I'll have to trouble Your Highness."

After a moment's internal deliberation, Yashiro realized that rather than being teased, he was more interested in knowing the situation on Naotora's side.

Seeing this, Ashikaga Yoshiteru nodded, reached for a letter on the low table beside him, and his gaze fell on it, but he slowly put away the smile on his face—even if the person mentioned in the letter was not in front of him at the moment, as the commander of an army, he should still have a basic respect for him.

This is the proper etiquette for members of a martial arts family.

"This battle report was just sent back the day before yesterday..."

……

"Charge! Everyone, listen to my command, charge forward!"

"Shoot the arrow, shoot the arrow!"

The sounds of battle filled the fields, and shouts shook the heavens. Banners fluttered in the wind across the plains, and beneath the banners, two murderous armies clashed heavily, brandishing their weapons!

"Drink!"

With a single stroke, he slashed down two enemy soldiers who couldn't dodge in time, sending them sprawling to the ground. Blood splattered on his face and beard, making the already somewhat fierce-looking middle-aged man appear even more ferocious.

Yagyu Muneyoshi took a deep breath, switched the sword to his left hand, and took a few steps back. Once he rejoined his own soldiers, he raised his slightly trembling right hand, wiped his face, and cleaned away all the sweat and blood.

The battle began around noon and has been going on intermittently for about half an hour. The two sides are evenly matched in terms of strength and equipment. Although Yagyu Munehiro has charged forward several times with his strength, he has been forced to retreat in the end and has never been able to reach the enemy's main camp.

This time was no exception. He leaned on his sword and took a few breaths, then looked up and saw his senior brother, Hikita Toyogoro, and Hozoin Inei still fighting fiercely not far away.

Unlike Kamiizumi Nobutsuna, who was single-mindedly pursuing the pinnacle of swordsmanship, Hikita Toyogoro still harbored ambitions of achieving great deeds and accomplishments, so he naturally couldn't miss this opportunity. As for the monk Inei, although he had little interest in fame, fortune, or power, he possessed a noble heart dedicated to serving the world. After spending time with Ashikaga Yoshiteru, he came to believe that the latter was a wise ruler capable of pacifying the chaotic world, so he resolutely joined the cause with his disciples.

As for the Yagyu clan, there's no need to elaborate further.

The people of Yagyu Valley have long been known for their bravery rather than their wisdom. Even when faced with the overwhelming army of Tsutsui Junsho, the head of the Yagyu family at the time did not choose to use any strategies, but instead charged straight at them head-on.

Although the result was a crushing defeat, the average exchange rate of one to three made the people of Yamato realize once again the ferocity of Yagyu Valley.

Now, when Yagyu Muneyoshi was ordered to attack the nearby branch castles, he did not use a trick to lure the enemy out of the castle like the blind girl did. Instead, he cooperated with the ronin samurai led by Ii Naotora and directly attacked the castles one by one.

Logically speaking, unless one's forces outnumber the defenders several times over, few would choose such a self-destructive, head-on attack method—however, the existence of a certain individual has made this seemingly reckless and foolish siege tactic the optimal solution at present…

Boom!

dong dong!

Suddenly, a powerful drumbeat resounded across the plain, pulling Yagyu Muneyoshi back to reality. He paused for a moment, then turned his head and saw a flag with a well-shaped pattern fluttering in the wind gradually coming into view on the other side of the plain.

The thunderous sound of drums rose first, followed closely by the mournful sound of horns. As the well-beam banner appeared, a tall figure clad in armor quickly came into view of the battlefield.

Following closely behind that figure were a group of down-on-their-luck wanderers and outlaws, including some bandits. Normally, these mercenaries who risked their lives for money might have some skills, but their unruly nature caused all the lords great distress.

Disregarding military discipline is relatively mild in normal times—after all, even regular conscripts aren't always obedient these days—but in the worst-case scenario, if the situation turns unfavorable, these shameless guys might even turn on their former employers and betray them.

Similar situations occur frequently. The most recent instance was when Imagawa Yoshimoto specifically spent money to recruit several thousand scattered soldiers when he went to Kyoto. However, when he lost his head at Okehazama, these ronin turned against him on the spot, grabbed his luggage and military supplies, and scattered.

Some of the bolder ones even took up the trade of hunting down ronin, chasing down generals of the Imagawa clan and exchanging their kills for rewards for the Oda clan. They did this without any guilt, and because of this, when the shogun was to choose to accept these ronin who came to "borrow troops," many people, including Yagyu Muneyoshi and Tsutsui Junsei, were not in favor.

Especially when Ashikaga Yoshiteru decided to hand over such a ragtag army to a woman, the opposition grew even louder. But Yagyu Muneyoshi, who truly knew Ii Naotora, had no objections.

They were secretly laughing at others for being blind to their own good.

As it turns out, the general must have had his reasons for doing so.

In just over ten days, Naotora Ii's performance was enough to silence even the most stubborn opponents, leaving them speechless.

Such as this moment.

Those ronin, whether scattered or unruly, gathered under the Ii banner, yet they were perfectly aligned, surrounding the figure on horseback, and slowly entered the battlefield, driven by the sound of drums and horns.

Boom!

Boom!

The rhythmic drumbeats gradually quickened, and the figure on horseback also sped up, the clatter of hooves landing on the ground. A bright ray of light shone on the strangely shaped, curved serpent spear.

Fleeting.

In the next instant, Naotora Ii raised the spear in her hand high and pointed it forward. Before anyone else could make a move, she took the lead and charged straight into the enemy ranks like a thunderbolt!

At the same time, the woman still gripped the spear tightly in her right hand, but with her left hand she pulled out a wild katana about seven feet long. In a single move, with a swing and a sweep, five or six foot soldiers blocking the front line fell down with a "whoosh".

Blood splattered everywhere, and lives were lost in an instant. The other soldiers who were not affected were also terrified and dared not stop them. They screamed and threw down their weapons, scattering in panic. In just one round, the Matsunaga army, which had been fighting the Yagyu soldiers and was not at a disadvantage, was breached by Ii Naotora's attack.

She sat steadily on her horse, letting the demoralized soldiers flee in panic around her, only raising her head to stare at the direction of the main camp where the flags were fluttering.

It was like a giant rock sitting motionless in the middle of a river.

His gaze exudes an imposing aura without anger!

"Just like I expected..."

Seeing this from afar, Yagyu Muneyoshi couldn't help but shake his head with a wry smile. "I thought we could get ahead this time... Sigh, with her here, it's comfortable, but none of us can get any military merits."

……

Chapter 417 Basic Attack Combo with Cleave

"So, Lord Naotora, how is the Amazuma Spear? Are you finding it easy to use?"

"It's easy to use, but it feels... a little too light."

"Light? I can barely lift this thing. Wait, why did you suddenly pinch my arm... Don't look at me with that pitying look!"

How did you know what kind of look I was giving you?