Swallow Return

Liu Yun hadn't originally thought it was absolutely necessary to bring the man in black's head back.

If the tengu from Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei hadn't been so arrogant and domineering, but instead had humbly begged them, they might have been in a better mood and returned it to them.

After all, he had only just joined the Oda clan, and not of his own volition, so he had no loyalty whatsoever. He didn't care about the so-called grudges and feuds between the "Demon King" and the "Anti-Demon Ninja".

Moreover, we shouldn't hastily dismiss Asagi Igawa's claims of "exorcising demons and protecting the righteous path" as mere nonsense; what if they were true?

But now, it seems there's no turning back on the enemy-usual positions.

Taking all factors into consideration, Ryuun still leans more towards the Oda clan than towards the Buddhist sect represented by Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei.

Chapter 18: Turn in the Quest and Receive the Reward

When Liu Yun was talking to Jinghe Asagi, he had already anticipated that the other side might have more ambushes. He kept a close eye on the surrounding movements, always keeping some reserves in reserve, and was prepared to fight back while taking on other tasks.

Sure enough, two more people came out.

I just didn't expect them to be so obsessed with destroying the head of that man in black, but not to attack me.

The leader, Igawa Asagi, is extremely fast and can create clones.

The woman with the short bun wasn't particularly skilled in martial arts, but she could unleash lightning.

The woman with the single ponytail clearly possessed spatial escape techniques.

These demon ninjas all seem to be formidable opponents.

Moreover, it was a joint operation by three people.

Although Liu Yun had the upper hand, he knew in his heart that it was somewhat due to luck.

If the opponent's tactical coordination is slightly better and their attacks are slightly more ruthless, the outcome may be uncertain.

Being able to force these people away is already satisfactory; we can't expect to kill or capture them alive.

That was originally my idea.

However, Liu Yun soon realized another problem: although their secret techniques seemed very powerful, most of them had huge limitations or required a lot of physical strength.

Otherwise, the damage inflicted on the Oda clan by the Demon Ninja would have been several times greater than it is now. Why would they have resorted to merely ambushing and killing the logistics team?

The attack they suffered tonight may have already taken away most of their strength.

Going a step further, why were those women so determined to destroy their colleague's head?

Liu Yun speculated that the various secret techniques and supernatural abilities of the Demon Ninja were probably not acquired through diligent practice, but rather through some shortcuts.

If someone who understands the intricacies were to study it, they might be able to find a solution.

Now the logic makes sense.

Of course, speculation is still just speculation and needs to be verified by factual evidence.

Sheathed his sword and sat down; it was still late at night.

The rain outside was still pouring down.

The five peasant soldiers, still shaken, crouched in the corner of the dilapidated temple, thanking each other for surviving the ordeal.

Qingtianfang stood there rather dejectedly, seemingly upset that he couldn't help.

Liu Yun's mood did fluctuate, but over the years he had always presented himself as calm, habitually concealing his joys and sorrows, and maintaining a calm and unremarkable expression.

He only instructed that people take turns keeping watch and to call out if anything happened, then he lay down to rest.

Before going to sleep, a thought suddenly flashed through my mind: my subordinates don't seem to be in a good mood. Should I give a speech or something to boost morale?

If you close your eyes and think about it, isn't the fact that you can fall asleep peacefully in this situation the most powerful encouragement?

Why waste words? After all, I'm not good at this. What if it doesn't work or even backfires? That would be ridiculous.

Just as Liu Yun had predicted, the following night was peaceful, and no more uninvited guests arrived.

Then they returned to Yokoyama Castle in Omi Province, following the same route.

Thus, the mission to transport military funds was successfully completed without major incident.

……

Upon arriving at the gates of Yokoyama Castle, the five peasant soldiers were still somewhat dejected, but Aotabo had already composed himself and, head held high, addressed the guards: "We... our Lord Sasaki Ryūun has returned from transporting military funds from Mino-Gifu Castle. Please inform him, thank you!"

The guards, who were initially somewhat lazy and arrogant, stood crookedly without answering.

But after carefully observing and understanding, they immediately straightened their backs.

The leader bowed and said with a smile, "Lord Kinoshita specifically instructed that if Sasaki Ryūun returns with something, there is no need to announce it; just follow me inside."

Liu Yun nodded, dismounted, and followed them into the city.

After walking for a while, we saw that the city was much emptier than last time, with more than half the number of people.

Then, the sharp-mouthed and monkey-faced Kinoshita Tokichiro, the burly and strong Hachisuka Masakatsu, and the sallow-faced and lean Maeno Nagayasu all came out to greet them.

They probably received a message.

Kinoshita Tokichiro's eyes gleamed as he glanced at the wagons being pulled in by the peasant soldiers, then clapped his hands and laughed loudly, "Looks like good news has arrived!"

They quickly pulled him into the palace hall, where they sat down and discussed the details.

Liu Yun first had the peasant soldiers unload the heavy two hundred strings of Yongle coins, and then briefly recounted his experiences along the way.

Kinoshita, Hachisuka, and Maeno eagerly awaited the arrival of the three.

When the story of being ambushed by men in black on the way was told, everyone who heard it became serious.

When Maeno Nagayasu spoke of killing the man in black with a knife and cutting off his head, he was quite moved and murmured, "At least my dead brothers can rest in peace."

When it came to the tengu blocking the way, which was suspected to be Enryakuji Temple on Mount Hiei, the others were clueless and didn't take it seriously. Only Kinoshita Tokichiro's eyes darted around a few times, his expression somewhat complicated, but he quickly returned to normal.

Speaking of the appearance of the three female anti-demon ninjas and the lightning that destroyed the cloth bag, Hachisuka Masakatsu sighed with regret: "There must be an important secret hidden in that person's head. If we can bring it to Lord Takenaka for research, we might be able to find a way to completely eliminate the anti-demon ninjas."

But Kinoshita Tokichiro immediately stopped him, saying, "Lord Ryuun has successfully brought back the military funds, killed an anti-demon ninja, and fought against three others, ascertaining their strengths and weaknesses. This has already delighted me beyond measure. What more could I ask for? As for any important secrets behind this, I believe that with such a powerful samurai as Lord Ryuun in charge, there will be a great opportunity to find out in the future."

Upon hearing this, Hachisuka Masakatsu realized his mistake and quickly corrected himself: "That's right, that's right. Lord Ryūun has already made great contributions. How can we say anything more?"

At this moment, Liu Yun instructed Qing Tianfang to bring over the wooden box containing the gold and the cloth bag containing the heads.

The wooden crate looks very light and can be easily lifted.

The cloth bag, now charred, was surprisingly heavy; even with Aotabo's arm strength, it required considerable effort.

Kinoshita Tokichiro's eyes lit up immediately upon seeing this, and he hurriedly said, "You secretly switched them? The Demon Ninja only struck the gold with lightning, and the black-clad man's head is still intact, is that right?"

Liu Yun smiled and nodded.

Hachisuka Masakatsu then realized what was happening and quickly took it and untied it to take a look.

Inside the wooden box was the head of the man in black, preserved in lime and isolated from the air.

The bag, which had originally contained a pile of gold coins, had now become a twisted lump of gold.

Hachisuka Masakatsu was immediately horrified—the lightning summoned by that short-haired demon ninja could actually melt gold; just how powerful must he be!

At the same time, he was very pleased and muttered to himself, "Lord Takenaka will surely find something interesting in this."

Liu Yun deliberately said, "It's a pity that these two hundred taels of gold need to be reminted, which will be a lot of trouble."

In his excitement, Hachisuka Masakatsu didn't think much of it and waved his hand, saying, "It's alright! We don't need these two hundred taels of gold in Yokoyama Castle right now."

Liu Yun feigned surprise: "A few days ago, you seemed to tell me that this military funding was urgently needed."

Kinoshita Tokichiro coughed awkwardly, then chuckled, his weasel-faced features appearing even more lewd: "Lord Ryuun seems to be a smart man! He probably realized that I wasn't telling the truth back then. Otherwise, he wouldn't have switched the heads of the Golden Man and the Black Man... After all, it was our first time meeting, so I couldn't afford not to be careful! Now I know that you can be trusted!"

Liu Yun smiled without saying a word, then changed the subject and asked, "Who is this 'Lord Takenaka' that Lord Hachisuka mentioned earlier?"

Hachisuka Masakatsu immediately replied excitedly, "Have you heard of Takenaka Shigeharu, the 'Kirinji' of Mino? He's incredibly learned, knows everything, and can use hundreds of techniques! Our lord has sent him to Yokoyama Castle to serve as a retainer. Because he usually needs to train, he lives in seclusion in the mountains behind the castle, only coming out once every ten days. If Lord Ryūun wishes to meet him... well, you'll have to wait another three days."

"Therefore, we will not force it."

Liu Yun was curious about this historical figure who held an important place in Koei Tecmo's games. But not to the extent that he was curious enough that there was no need to wait for him.

He then recalled that he had arrived at Yokoyama Castle a few days earlier because Kinoshita Tokichiro had mobilized all the nearby families to prepare for the attack on the remnants of the Asai clan, so he asked, "How is the battle going?"

Speaking of this, Kinoshita Tokichiro smiled smugly: "Although the Asai clan is currently trapped in Odani Castle, they still have three thousand elite soldiers. If our lord's army doesn't arrive, I alone cannot take it down. This mobilization is just a feigned attack, intended to demoralize the enemy. Taking advantage of this opportunity, I've also turned two local lords against us, and now the Asai clan is even more isolated and helpless in Odani Castle!"

"I see." Liu Yun felt that this topic was not very relevant to him, so he didn't say anything more and prepared to take his leave.

I've been away for several days, it's time to go back to Sasaki Village for a visit.

I wonder how my uncle and junior brother are doing?

And then there's Lady Iori, who was originally the sister-in-law but is suddenly going to become the wife...

Thinking of her figure, a faint but real emotion welled up in Liu Yun's chest.

It's similar to homesickness, but with some differences.

No sooner had he expressed his intention to leave than Kinoshita Tokichiro immediately adopted a serious expression, stroking his chin and turning to ask, "How much territory does the Sasaki family currently possess?"

Hachisuka Masakatsu answered without hesitation, "Although the land survey hasn't started yet, I estimate it to be around 1,000 koku."

“One thousand koku…” Kinoshita Tokichiro pondered for a moment, then said decisively, “Given Ryuun-dono’s merits this time, he should be awarded an additional five hundred koku. If Takenaka-dono can find anything from the head of that man in black, then an additional five hundred koku will be awarded.”

"Understood." Hachisuka Masakatsu understood immediately: "I'll make arrangements right away and see if there are any suitable places nearby to serve as new territory for the Sasaki family."

Liu Yun thought to himself, "Sasaki Village has over two hundred households, totaling one thousand koku. So, if an additional one thousand koku is awarded, it must be another village with over two hundred households, right?"

Judging from Kinoshita and Hachisuka's expressions, this reward seems to be quite generous.

This will take time to understand in the future.

Liu Yun didn't pretend to refuse, but generously thanked him and accepted the gift without hesitation.

Then he took his leave with his entourage.

He didn't see what happened after he walked away.

Kinoshita Tokichiro watched Liu Yun's retreating figure disappear, a troubled and distressed expression on his face. His brows furrowed deeply as he shook his head and muttered to himself, "Although what he brought back was all good news, I didn't expect that behind it all was Enryakuji Temple of Mount Hiei! This is going to be difficult to deal with!"

Hachisuka Masakatsu was taken aback: "It's just a temple or shrine, is it really that powerful?"

Maeno Nagayasu was also puzzled: "Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei? How many monks does it have?"

Kinoshita Tokichiro sighed, rubbing his forehead, his eyes filled with helplessness. "Given your current status, you should know more about the outside world. It's a long story, this Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei..."

Chapter Nineteen: Feelings of Homecoming

In his past life, Liu Yun was a half-baked history enthusiast. Although he had never studied any formal academic knowledge, he could tell jokes with great ease, reciting anecdotes such as "Jing Luo Sheds Tears," "Guanyuan War God," and "Daily Nagging Method" from memory.