I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Saito Yakuro's "Long time no see" was indeed accurate.

The last time the two met was two years ago, during the Red and White Battle between Shieikan and Genbukan... that is, the battle in which Aoto and Souji cooperated and used their respective ultimate moves - "Flowing Light" and "Hira Seigan Sandan Tou" - to barely defeat Chiba Michizaburo.

Saito Yakuro first met Seito at the "Sword Tournament" held by the lord of the Aizu Domain.

At only 18 years old, he had already begun his "success"... This remarkable feat by Qing Deng aroused the strong interest of Saito Yakuro.

Therefore, when he heard that the Shiwei Hall and Xuanwu Temple were about to engage in a battle of red and white, and that Qing Deng was also going to participate, he rushed to watch the battle with great interest.

At that time, he also brought along the head of his dojo-juku—a samurai from the Choshu Domain named "Katsura Kogoro".

Time has passed, and Katsura Kogoro has left Edo and returned to his homeland, and has been out of contact ever since.

Saito Yakuro, on the other hand, remained unchanged, especially his eyes, which were still bright and spirited, showing no signs of aging.

Qing Deng realized that old people like Boss Kiryu, Grandpa Makimura, and Saito Yakuro, who were old in years but young at heart and strangely energetic, all had one thing in common—their eyes were very bright, as if an inextinguishable candle flame resided deep within them.

The vast majority of elderly people... especially in an era with inadequate diets, underdeveloped medical care, lack of hygiene awareness, and the fact that 40-year-olds could call themselves "old men," when people get older, they always have a kind of "contentment with their fate" in their eyes, which can be put nicely, but can be put bluntly, a "loss of drive" and a sense of weariness.

To be honest, Aoto greatly respects and admires Saito Yakuro's attitude towards life.

He hopes that when he gets old, he can be like Saito Yakuro, still working hard in his old age.

At 65 years old, Saito Yakuro is one of the oldest living great swordsmen in Edo.

Of the three top performers of the "Three Great Dojos"—Chiba Eijiro, the "Chiba of Techniques"; Saito Yakuro, the "Saito of Strength"; and Momoi Haruzou, the "Momoi of Position"—this old man is the most legendary.

In 1798, Saito Yakuro was born into a poor samurai family in Echigo Province.

At the age of 13, he worked as a helper in an oil workshop.

At the age of 15, I don't know what nerve in my brain went wrong, but I suddenly wanted to become a great scholar. I resolutely ran away from home and earned a living by carrying luggage for others. After a long journey, I finally arrived in Edo.

He went to work as a servant in the household of Yoshinobu Nobuyoshi, a member of the shogunate, where he worked during the day and studied at night.

Impressed by Saito Yakuro's diligence, Nose Yuujiro sponsors his sword learning.

And so, Saito Yakuro's life underwent a dramatic change.

Learning swordsmanship at nearly 20 years old, having never been exposed to martial arts before... Anyone with a little common sense knows that starting to learn martial arts at this age is already too late.

However... in just a few years, he became the instructor of the famous Shinto Munen-ryu dojo: the fencing hall.

In the ninth year of the Bunsei era (1826), he opened his own dojo—the training hall.

Many famous swordsmen are only skilled enough to dominate a region in swordsmanship, but their talents in other areas are mediocre and they are not worth mentioning.

Mikuro was completely different; he was hardworking and had excellent business acumen.

Starting from scratch, he used his outstanding business acumen to rapidly expand and strengthen the training hall, making it one of the three strongest dojos in Edo.

After the "Black Ships Incident" broke out, he realized profoundly: "What the world needs today is no longer swords, but cannons!"

Therefore, he resolutely handed over the training hall to his eldest son, Shintaro Saito.

He then bought another 3000 tsubo (9918 square meters) of land in Yoyogi and practiced building fortifications with his disciples, enthusiastically embarking on a new business—at this time, he was almost 60 years old.

The older people get, the more likely they are to develop habitual ways of thinking, and the harder it is for them to accept new things.

At that time, the vast majority of people—including today's enlightened people—believed that Westerners were uncivilized barbarians, that warships and cannons were nothing special, and that as long as one carried on the spirit of the samurai, there was no enemy that could not be defeated.

In such an environment, as an old man whose neck is almost buried in yellow earth, Saito Yakuro was able to keenly see that swordsmanship was outdated, and without hesitation abandoned the martial arts and career he had dedicated most of his life to, and switched to a new path he had never been on before... His open-mindedness and magnanimity are truly admirable.

What's even more admirable is that, after learning unfamiliar science and engineering knowledge and modern military science at such an advanced age, he was still able to develop this new career with great success!

In Yoyogi, one could hear Saito Yakuro leading his disciples in learning how to use, operate, and operate cannons every day, with remarkable results.

It is reported that the shogunate plans to build a fortified battery for the defense of Edo Bay in Shinagawa Odaiba, and will appoint Saito Yakuro to be in charge of surveying and supervision.

From swordsmanship to artillery, from swordsmanship schools to artillery ranges... he was less a warrior and more like a visionary and energetic industrialist.

When we prepare to establish gunnery units in the future, the training hall will be a good "talent market"... Qing Deng thought to himself.

The newly formed group currently has only a paltry 3000 taels of gold as start-up capital.

At present, Japan lacks the industrial capacity to manufacture advanced firearms, as well as the educational capacity to train modern military personnel.

If we want to buy guns and train soldiers, we can only turn to Westerners.

In that case, being exploited and fleeced is a foregone conclusion.

Unless at least two more zeros are added after the 3000 taels of gold, establishing a modern military force is simply a pipe dream.

It is regrettable, but the establishment of a modern army can only be planned and prepared slowly when we have more money in the future.

Under the leadership of Saito Yakuro, many of the trainees at the training hall are valuable talents who are proficient in both Japanese and Japanese styles... It would be a pity not to make good use of such a "talent market".

Although Aoto and Saito Yakuro were not particularly close, they had a good impression of each other, which laid a good foundation for future cooperation.

In terms of status, Saito Yakuro is already retired and "ignores everything else, only thinking about playing Runaway".

However, upon learning that Qing Deng would be visiting the training hall today, he made a rare appearance at the dojo.

His son, Shintaro Saito, who is also the current head of the training hall, stood respectfully by his side.

"Your Majesty, Prince Ren."

Saito Yakuro asked with a kind expression:

"I am a retired old man, and I should not meddle in the complicated affairs of the dojo, but... I will give you a chance—would you like to challenge me first, or my son?"

Qing Deng replied without hesitation:

"If possible... I'd like to challenge the renowned 'Saito of Power' first!"

Saito Yakuro nodded calmly.

"Alright, let's...begin!"

Having said that, Saito Yakuro picked up the bamboo sword beside his leg and slowly stood up.

"I am extremely grateful."

Qingdeng jumped back, creating space between them.

There were no formalities such as announcing names or performing the traditional squatting salute; the battle simply began.

The moment he gripped his bamboo sword and assumed a fighting stance, a fierce and piercing look appeared on Saito Yakuro's face.

That kind face disappeared.

That kind expression vanished.

All that's left are a pair of sharp, well-trained eyes!

He shouted and ran over in one breath, his feet gliding across the floor as if he were sliding.

The bamboo sword in the middle rose high diagonally upwards, then fell heavily, drawing a breathtaking arc in the air, heading straight for Qing Deng's face!

Qing Deng steadied his back foot, exerted force from his waist, and used his feet to drive his waist and then his waist to drive his arms, fiercely slashing back at Saito Yakuro's bamboo sword.

Snapped! !

Click, click.

Both of their bamboo swords simultaneously developed conspicuous cracks!

*******

*******

I wasn't feeling well last night, so I went to bed early. After sleeping for most of the day, I felt a little better, but I still felt heavy.

Despite not feeling well, I still tried my best to update and post again before daytime... Is it too much to ask for some monthly votes? (crying leopard head.jpg)

Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

Chapter 526 Copying a God-Level Talent! [Late Bloomer 7]! [5200]

Spiderweb-like fine cracks spread outwards from the point where the two bamboo swords intersected.

Bamboo swords are not as hard as wood or steel.

But no matter what, bamboo is not something that ordinary people can easily break.

However, the old man and the young man managed to split the bamboo sword with just one strike... which shows how much strength they used.

Logically speaking, "two bamboo swords shattering from striking each other"... such a thing would have caused a stir in other sword-fighting schools.

In contrast, the apprentices at the training hall remained calm and composed. Not a single one of them gasped or showed any surprise, as if they were already used to such things.

Saito Yakuro, with his bamboo swords pressed against each other, looked towards Aotodo across from him.

"...Not bad strength."

"You're not bad either, old man."

In the next instant, the two of them seemed to spring apart, leaping backwards at the same time and creating a gap of about 10 steps.

"It's so strong it's made my hands numb... It's a real shame that someone with your strength isn't in my training camp."

After saying that, Saito Yakuro casually threw away the broken blade in his hand, then tucked his arms into his sleeves, and then peeked out from his collar, swinging his kimono down to his waist.

What kind of body is this?

It was as if a completely unrelated head and body had been pieced together.

The upper part of the neck is typical of elderly people.

A silvery-white beard, a shiny bald head, a wrinkled face, and faintly visible age spots.

But below the neck, it transforms into the physique of a top-tier bodybuilder.

Biceps, triceps, pectoral muscles, back muscles, abdominal muscles... every muscle in the body is clearly visible, as solid as a rock.

Despite being 65 years old, her figure is still in great shape, with no signs of muscle laxity.

Although his physique is comparable to that of a modern bodybuilder, his muscles are not the kind of "useless muscles" that are only big and good-looking but have no other use.

Even with just the naked eye, Qing Deng could clearly feel that every muscle in the opponent's body concealed an extremely terrifying power!

"Shintaro, spread the sword."

"Yes!"

His eldest son, Shintaro Saito, led his students in throwing bundles of bamboo swords onto the dojo.