Yashiro the Blind

Looking at the girl again, she was completely stunned.

……

Chapter Sixty: When three people walk together, I'm bound to be one of them...

Yes, she should have thought of that sooner.

In the Kanto region these days, there are very few sword masters who can truly be described as having "students all over the world," especially since a certain sword saint named Kamiizumi is now obediently serving as the lord of Dahu Castle, leaving even fewer options.

Tsukahara Bokuden was undoubtedly the most likely candidate.

I never expected that Ryuko would be the granddaughter of such an important person. Although it's not quite the right word, after learning about this, Yashiro felt a sense of astonishment, like discovering that the old man selling fried dough sticks on the street had once accompanied his neighbor, Old Chen, on a trip to India when he was young...

Well, it's not really that unbelievable.

After all, the Dragon Prince is usually very generous and always has a hunting falcon with him when he goes out, so he must be rich and noble. In contrast, ordinary people or swordsmen from small families, even if they have their own dojos, still live a miserable life. Just look at Shigang Yiyu, who is more or less a celebrity, but he fell ill in his old age and lived a miserable life with only two disciples to take care of him. This shows that most swordsmen who fail to become civil servants and receive a salary are like this.

As for those swordsmen who lived a comfortable life, they either had a family background or were appreciated by a daimyo. Among the latter, the most famous were Miyamoto Musashi to the Hosokawa family and Yagyu Munenori to the Tokugawa family.

As for the former, there are even more. As the saying goes, "the poor study literature, the rich study martial arts." Anyone who can spend a lot of time training their muscles and strength will not be poor, at least they can eat their fill.

Figures such as Kamiizumi Nobutsuna and Yagyu Muneyoshi were all from local powerful families. Tsukahara Bokuden's father, Urabe Yoshikawa Kakuken, was the priest of Kashima Shrine and a veteran samurai of Kashima Castle. His family was extremely wealthy, which gave him enough money to travel to various countries with three large eagles, three horses, and eighty attendants.

A person's name is like a tree's shadow. Without such an imposing presence, no matter how skilled the swordsman Kashima was, it would have been difficult to make the mighty Muromachi Shogun bow down and stand in the snow at Cheng's door.

Looking at it from another angle, if he hadn't been lucky enough to be born into such a family, given his appetite, he probably would have been abandoned in the mountains by his parents long ago to fend for himself...

"So, Yashiro, what do you think? Do you want to come back with me to see Grandpa, or come back with me to see Grandpa, or come back with me to see Grandpa, or something else?"

"Am I just imagining things? Although you seem to have given me a lot of options, they all sound like they mean the same thing..."

"Oh, don't worry about the details, just tell me whether you agree or not, or agree or not?"

"...Let me think it over."

Knowing that forced relationships are never sweet, Ryuko temporarily put the topic aside after hearing Yashiro's words. She just kept looking at him with her big, expectant eyes, her gaze burning as if it were real, making the girl extremely awkward, as if she suddenly understood what the badger in the melon patch felt...

To be honest, she wasn't against the proposal itself; on the contrary, she was quite eager to try it. After all, Tsukahara Bokuden's swordsmanship classes were highly regarded, and his legendary ultimate technique, the First Sword, was even listed alongside the Great Bird Spin in a certain game as the ultimate technique of the Eight-Segment Qi, capable of slaying gods and Buddhas alike. Its profound mystery, which could not be put into words, made Yashiro's heart flutter.

As for switching allegiances... reality isn't a martial arts novel. Which martial artist who has made a name for himself in history didn't learn from the strengths of many schools of thought? No one "stays with one school of thought until the end."

Tsukahara Bokuden himself practiced both the Kashima Koryu and Katori Shinto-ryu swordsmanship. Kamiizumi Nobutsuna also went to Kashima when he was young and is said to have learned both swordsmanship under the guidance of Tsukahara Bokuden. After adulthood, he became a disciple of Aizu Ikōsai to practice the Kage-ryu and created his own Shin-Kage-ryu on its basis, becoming the founder of a school.

Looking at Yagyu Muneyoshi, although his most famous achievement is founding the Yagyu Shinkage-ryu school, he was already thirty-six years old when he became a disciple of Kamiizumi Nobutsuna. Before that, he studied Toda Itto-ryu and Kashima Shinto-ryu under two different masters—yes, Shinto-ryu again. So, in a sense, Yagyu Muneyoshi can be considered a disciple of Tsukahara Bokuden—and with these two swordsmanship styles, he was invincible throughout Nara, once dominating the world, lonely and isolated, as if only the monk Inei from the neighboring Hozoin could rival him…

Then he was unexpectedly beaten up by a blind boy who suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

And so on, and so forth. Moreover, Master Guoxin himself has no prejudice against sectarianism, so he probably wouldn't mind if she enrolled in another training class to further her studies. Initially, Hachisuke didn't have this idea, not because he didn't want to, but simply because he never dared to dream of such a good thing. After all, they were not related, and he couldn't afford to give her a tuition fee, so why would the other party accept her as a disciple?

Because she is a time traveler, she possesses what is called the aura of a king or overlord?

Stop joking. Someone has always been very clear-headed about this. If she really had even a tiny bit of protagonist's destiny, she wouldn't have transmigrated to this day for a full fifteen years and not even become the ruler of a country or city, let alone a high-ranking general.

Even if it's just the lowest level, like being a foot soldier squad leader?

Despite her lowly position as a foot soldier corps leader, she could easily emulate some of her predecessors who were transmigrators, using the three thousand strings of Yongle coins entrusted to her by her master as her first pot of gold to start a bustling business of trading and rice speculation. She could easily earn tens or hundreds of thousands a month, effortlessly achieving financial freedom and leaping up the social ladder. After that, she could happily play coloring games...

How could things have come to this, where even drinking water has to be mixed with alcohol!

How could there be such a protagonist in the world!

Since she wasn't destined to be a protagonist, she naturally wouldn't have any unnecessary fantasies. But now that the Dragon Prince had brought it up, the girl's mind couldn't help but start to wander again. After all, with the Dragon Prince's introduction, she shouldn't be turned away, right?

The reason she didn't agree on the spot was simply to be a little more reserved, so as not to make Longzi feel like she really wanted to be the Sword Saint's apprentice... Wait, is this considered being tsundere?

Has she unknowingly developed a tendency to be arrogant?

Thinking of this, Yashiro was startled and quickly straightened his mind to prevent his persona from going too far astray—this trend must not be allowed to continue!

Even if the dragon prince hadn't suddenly mentioned it, she had originally planned to visit Kashima Shrine and take some photos. After all, it was a famous historical site. Even though the girl wasn't particularly devout in her faith in gods and Buddhas, she still carried over the simple habit from her previous life of worshipping mountains and gods whenever she saw them. It was always good to make a good connection by offering prayers now and then.

Now that Longzi has invited me, I absolutely have to go to Deer Island. However, before setting off, I need to arrange a few things. The most crucial thing, of course, is related to Xiaoqin.

The day after Inosuke and Shizu left, Chiyome finally returned.

But she wasn't the only one who came.

Besides the one-eyed, lame Yamamoto Kansuke, Chiyome also brought back a slightly overweight middle-aged man.

The latter had no beard, a round, fleshy face that squeezed his eyes into small slits, long ears, and a large mouth. He looked kind and benevolent, and when he smiled, he resembled a Buddhist monk named Maitreya.

He carried a medicine bag on his back, and his clothes were washed until they were faded and covered with patches. He looked like an ordinary commoner, except that ordinary people usually don't have this much "good fortune".

Following closely behind Yamamoto Kansuke, despite having both legs intact, he was not much faster than the lame man, perhaps due to a lack of exercise. Often, it would take Yamamoto Kansuke a step and then drag his other lame leg over before the other man could catch up in a few steps, walking and jogging.

It was only twenty or thirty steps from one end of the street to the front of the inn. Chiyome and Yamamoto Kansuke were both calm and not out of breath, but the stranger was already sweating slightly and trying to regulate his breathing.

"Look how tired you are... that's why I told Chiyo to carry you, but you wouldn't." Yamamoto Kansuke stopped in front of the inn, glanced at him sideways, and muttered.

“A real man should stand tall and upright. How can I let… let a young girl carry me? I can’t bear the shame…” The middle-aged man, panting, shook his head while carrying the medicine bag.

"There's no need for him to carry this medicine bag himself..."

"A sword is a warrior's second life, and so too... this thing is a healer's life and fortune, how can it be entrusted to... entrusted to others..." the middle-aged man insisted.

Yamamoto Kansuke rolled his one eye upwards: "Then you should consider losing weight."

"Hey, hey, hey... No rush, no rush..." the middle-aged man said slowly, starting to change the subject.

"Alright, alright, no rush, no rush. You're a doctor, you know more about this than I do." Seemingly unwilling to continue the topic, Yamamoto Kansuke waved his hand and turned to look at Chiyome. "Is this it?"

“It should be… this is the place.” Chiyome stroked her chin, took two steps back, and looked at the building in front of her, answering somewhat uncertainly.

Why are you speaking in this tone? Didn't you come here before?

"I have been here, but..."

"But what?"

“But we just climbed in through the window…” Chiyo said hesitantly, fidgeting with her fingers.

"..."

Yamamoto Kansuke couldn't help but take a deep breath, about to explode, when the chubby middle-aged man finally steadied his breathing and advised from the side, "Lord Yamamoto, Lady Mochizuki is always like this. Please don't get angry with her. In my opinion, if this place is real, then it can't be fake, and if it's fake, then it can't be real. As for whether it's real or fake, we'll know once we go in and ask..."

He spoke slowly and deliberately, while Chiyo nodded in agreement. Several passersby nearby overheard the conversation and turned to look. The veins on Yamamoto Kansuke's forehead throbbed, and after enduring it for a while, he finally waved his hand and limped into the inn, dragging his lame leg.

Seeing this, the middle-aged man nodded in satisfaction: "Good, good, that's exactly right. Actions speak louder than words. Lord Yamamoto is indeed a wise man, a senior retainer of the family... Lord Mochizuki, let's follow him."

"Let's go, let's go..." Chiyome waved her hand, the bell jingling, and stepped into the room. As she did so, she heard the middle-aged man ask with some confusion, "But... why did Lord Yamamoto still look angry at the end?"

"Oh dear, you don't understand, this is called having authority without being angry."

"I see, I've learned something new... I've learned something new."

One after the other, the two entered. Three footsteps of varying weights paused in the lobby. Yamamoto Kansuke's hoarse, raven-like voice inquired of the owner: "...I'm looking for someone. Is Master Mankisai here?"

"...Have they gone out yet? That other girl named Xiaoqin..."

Even though the other party was trying to hide it, Hachiro could still hear a hint of nervousness and unease deep in that hoarse voice.

She twirled the black chess piece she was holding a few times, then placed it on the chessboard with a "snap".

This is a rather simple wooden chessboard, with intersecting lines on it. The black and white pieces are entangled and fighting fiercely, neither giving way to the other. The battle is extremely dangerous, and there is no room for the slightest distraction.

Xiaoqin sat beside him, her hand supporting her cheek, her eyes fixed intently on the scene. When Yashiro placed the black pieces, she reached out and counted: "One, two, three, four... one, two, three... one, two, three, four... Hmm, none of them are five."

"Now it's the white piece's turn again, Xiaoqin, where do you think I should place it?"

"Let me think!"

When Yashiro asked this question, Kotori immediately frowned, stared at the chessboard, and began to think very seriously, occasionally making a few "hmm" sounds, clearly working hard to think.

Even if it's just a basic game of Gomoku.

She always had a feeling that Xiaoqin looked confused, but she wasn't really stupid. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to remember so much medical knowledge. In fact, after being influenced and guided by Wan Gui Zhai for the past few days, she was even able to help the old man.

This is enough to prove that she has no intellectual disability—at least not a major one. Although it is unclear whether she can recover to normal through hard work, it is always good to try.

So after a little thought and a discussion with Mankisai, Yashiro decided to start with a simple game like Gomoku. Considering the little girl's learning ability, moving too quickly might make her feel disappointed. So the girl didn't teach her how to play at the beginning, but instead played the game herself with the black and white pieces, letting Yashiro watch.

Xiaoqin always enjoyed being with her, and even if they did nothing, just sitting quietly was never boring. Now, seeing the two colors of round stones hitting each other on the square piece of wood, she became curious.

When Xiaoqin showed interest and asked questions, Ba Xun explained the rules and gameplay to her step by step. Gradually, she would try to deliberately place the pieces slightly off-center, or pretend not to notice when she had connected five pieces, waiting for Xiaoqin to remind her and correct her.

Now that the time is right, it's time to let the little girl think about the next step herself.

While she was deep in thought, Yashiro also turned her head to pay attention to the movements outside the room. The conversation downstairs had stopped, and three different footsteps came upstairs. The one with a limp walked the fastest, almost running up the stairs, but stopped abruptly when he reached the door.

Another light footstep was about to enter when it was suddenly pulled back and stopped. Finally, there was that somewhat unsteady footstep, creaking down the corridor. After a few hesitations, it finally reached out and gently knocked on the door.

"Please come in."

"Yashiro said loudly."

Kotori, who was deep in thought, was also pulled back by the sound. She blinked, looked at Hachiro, and then looked at the closed door.

The next moment, the door was slowly pulled open, and a gaze fell into the room. It first glanced at the girl and the chessboard, and then... finally made up its mind and looked at Xiaoqin in the center of the room.

Eyes facing each other.

Xiaoqin looked at the simply dressed middle-aged man, initially seeming puzzled, as if she remembered something but wasn't quite sure. After a while, her eyes gradually lit up, and a smile of immense joy appeared on her face. The words slipped out:

"father!"

……

Chapter Sixty-One: Whoosh! Waaah! Ah!

"father!"

With a call that overflowed with joy and surprise, Xiaoqin jumped up and down, flitting about like a butterfly flitting among flowers, and pounced on him—

"Ouch!"

As expected, the man was knocked to the ground, and the two rolled around in a heap.

"As expected..."

Upon hearing the word "Dad," the expressions of the people inside and outside the room varied. Yamamoto Kansuke had a strange expression that seemed to want to both cry and laugh. His one-eyed old face with a horizontal scar was almost completely wrinkled up, making him look quite terrifying.

Yashiro sat there, simply raising her hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. She felt little surprise, only a sense of relief that the answer had been revealed and everything had settled... and a complex feeling that she couldn't quite describe.

As for Chiyome...

"Hey, what happened? Why is she calling you 'Dad' out of the blue? Dr. Nagata, when did you get such a big daughter? Wait, don't you not have a wife yet?!"

It was as if a huge question mark had popped out from the top of his head, leaving him completely bewildered. In his barrage of questions, he inadvertently blurted out his local dialect.

"Daddy, daddy, daddy—"

There was chaos at the entrance. Xiaoqin seemed completely oblivious to the two other people standing nearby, focusing all her attention on the middle-aged man. She first gave him a big hug, then let go, and then expertly grabbed one of his clothes, lowering her head and smiling brightly: "Xiaoqin knew you would find me!"

His expression immediately became cautious again, as if he had finally remembered the wrong thing he had done and felt a little guilty. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have run around, but... the bugs in my stomach kept making noise, gurgling, gurgling, so... I know I was wrong. You can scold me, but please don't be angry, okay?"

"...Alright, I won't be angry."

The middle-aged man's expression was equally complex, a mixture of joy, surprise, worry, and anxiety. When his gaze swept over the lame man beside him, a subtle struggle emerged. But all these emotions melted away like spring snow in the face of Xiaoqin's words. He raised his hands, and after a moment, somewhat awkwardly patted the little girl's back.

"kindness!"

Xiaoqin then laughed again.

Sensing the strange atmosphere between the two... the three of them, Chiyome, who was full of questions, obediently shut her mouth. She looked around, then swayed and flashed into the room with a fragrant breeze. She leaned close to Yashiro and whispered in his ear, "Yashiro, give me an explanation."

The girl pinched her nose and moved to the side: "Why are you asking me?"

"Because we dare not ask others!" Chiyo said matter-of-factly.

"Alright..." Since she's been so frank, what could Yashiro say? He could only sigh. "Do you remember what we overheard before?"

Chiyome suddenly realized: "No, no, no, no... I don't remember!"

“If you don’t remember, then there’s nothing to say.” Yashiro shrugged.

"Mmm...mmm..."

Chiyo swayed from side to side, her bells jingling. After hesitating for a long time, she finally couldn't resist the urge to pique her curiosity and quietly leaned closer. "Although I really didn't put a single word into my head and forgot everything—just pretend that I still remember and tell me about it."

"You remember?" Yashiro asked in return.

"Just pretend we remember!" she said, somewhat exasperated.

"If you remember, then why are you asking me?"

"You! We've been so humble in asking for your advice, what's wrong with just answering your sister's question..."

“It’s not that I’m not going to answer you…” Yashiro hesitated, then subtly twitched her left hand, drawing Chiyome’s attention before pointing forward again, “But are you sure you want to be so explicit? I don’t really care…”