I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

At this moment, Kinoshita Mai also noticed the old monk.

She couldn't care less about her "Osaka unofficial history lecture" and hurriedly said to Qing Deng:

"Qingdeng, look! That old monk seems a bit strange!"

Qingdeng nodded.

"Okay, let's go! Let's go see what's going on."

His statement was clearly superfluous.

Before he could finish speaking, Kinoshita Mai had already strode towards the old monk.

Although she has temporarily "taken a break" by joining the Shinsengumi, the righteous and vengeful "Nekozo" remains an inseparable "half-body" of Kinoshita Mai.

Seeing that someone needed help, how could she sit idly by?

She moved swiftly to the old monk's side, supporting his shoulder as she eagerly asked:

"My lord, what's wrong? Do you need help?"

Aoto arrived a beat late and, together with Kinoshita Mai, helped the old monk up.

"Ok?"

After seeing the old monk's face clearly, Qingdeng raised an eyebrow, looking surprised.

He knew this person.

It was on his very first day in Osaka that he met that "remnant of the Great Shio Party" by chance.

Qing registered his name as "Toukogoro".

Qingdeng still remembers his story clearly.

26 years ago, he participated in the "Ōshio Heihachirō Uprising" as a farmer.

As soon as the war began, the peasant army collapsed at the first sign of trouble due to its lack of organization, resulting in a complete loss of morale and a powerlessness to fight.

He felt deeply ashamed of his initial act of fleeing.

To atone for his sins, he shaved his head and became a monk, walking the streets of Osaka every day, chanting sutras to pray for the righteous men who bravely sacrificed their lives in the "Ōshio Heihachirō Uprising".

Because the story was so moving, Qingdeng remembered the old monk.

"Ho...! Ho...! Cough cough cough! Cough cough! Ho...! Ho...!"

Heavy breathing, interspersed with hoarse coughs.

His panting sounds, "hoarse, hoarse, hoarse," sounded as if he had thick phlegm stuck in his throat, which he couldn't cough up or swallow down.

After supporting the old monk... namely Toukorō's shoulders, Aoto was surprised by how thin his body was.

Because he was wearing a loose robe, it wasn't very noticeable on the surface.

When you actually touch them, you realize that there is no flesh on his shoulders at all, only hard bones that are very uncomfortable to the touch.

At that moment, Kinoshita Mai produced a bowl of water from somewhere and handed it to Togoro.

"Here, drink up. Drinking some water should make you feel better."

Without saying a word, Toukorō eagerly took the bowl of water from Kinoshita Mai and gulped it down.

In the blink of an eye, he had finished the entire bowl.

"Thank you so much...you've been a huge help..."

Toukorō put down his bowl, wiped his mouth, and let out a long sigh.

The wheezing stopped, the coughing stopped, and her complexion improved considerably.

"Huh? You are..."

Suddenly, he looked at Qingdeng with a surprised expression.

"Do you know me?"

While Qingdeng asked the question in a nonchalant manner, he silently lowered the brim of his straw hat.

"Of course I recognize it!"

Touko grinned.

“A few days ago, that brat vividly described the ‘Great Salt Uprising’ to you and shamelessly slandered Mr. Great Salt. At that time, I should thank you. It was thanks to you that you did not help that brat that I was able to teach that bastard a lesson.”

Qingdeng chuckled to himself.

"You have such a good memory. We were just strangers when we met, yet you still remember me."

"It was mainly because you were so muscular that you made a deep impression on me."

After saying that, he turned to look at Kinoshita Mai.

"Thank you for the water, benefactor. I feel much better now thanks to your water."

"You're welcome! It's just a bowl of water. How are you feeling now? You seemed to be in a lot of pain earlier. Do you need to go to the doctor?"

Toukorō waved his hand.

"No need, this is an old ailment of mine, and there is no cure for it."

"Besides... I don't have the money for medical treatment."

As he spoke, he stretched out his arms to "show" the two men his dirty and tattered robe.

While "showcasing," he thoughtfully turned his gaze back to Qing Deng.

"Sir, judging from your accent, you are from Edo?"

"Yes, I am from Edo."

"So, are you a traveler?"

"Well, I'm sorry, I can't answer that."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qingdeng couldn't help but pause for a moment—why did this kind of exchange seem so familiar?

It seems like this just happened once.

"Please forgive my bluntness, but I would like to ask you a question—have you ever seen a warrior with gruesome burn scars on his right abdomen who was skilled with a long spear?"

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng immediately turned his head away, subconsciously glancing at Kinoshita Mai beside him.

As luck would have it, Kinoshita Mai was also turning her head to look at him.

The two exchanged a glance, both seeing a deep sense of helplessness and surprise in each other's eyes.

What's wrong with me tonight?

It was just a spur-of-the-moment decision to go out and enjoy the night view of Osaka.

I didn't get to see much of the scenery, but I did help two people who were in trouble, and coincidentally, both of them were looking for someone.

Surprised as he was, Qingdeng quickly composed himself and replied calmly:

“I know many warriors who are skilled with spears, but I have never seen anyone with burn marks on their right abdomen.”

Kinoshita Mai followed suit, shaking her head.

"I've never seen it either."

The old monk pursed his lips, his mouth turned down, and his expression became gloomy.

"I see... Sorry for asking you such a strange question."

After hesitating for a moment, Kinoshita Mai finally couldn't suppress her curiosity and asked:

"Excuse me... who is this person to you? Is he your son?"

"son?"

Toukorō repeated the word with an exaggerated expression and flamboyant tone, then laughed loudly.

"You are quite the opposite!"

"He's not my son, he's my enemy!"

After laughing to his heart's content, he lowered his head expressionlessly and plopped down on the stone bricks next to him.

"...Gentlemen, are you familiar with 'Langhua's prodigy'?"

Nanika – the ancient name for Osaka.

Qilin'er refers to an exceptionally gifted child.

After exchanging another glance, Aoto and Kinoshita Mai shook their heads in unison.

"Ha... this name has indeed been forgotten..."

"That's fine too!"

"This villain's name doesn't deserve to be remembered!"

He took several deep breaths to calm his breathing, which had become disordered due to his emotional agitation.

After calming down a bit, he continued the conversation:

"'The prodigy of Naniwa' - Kazami Kazuma, a samurai who was once famous throughout Kyoto."

"At the young age of 13, he mastered the Hozoin-ryu spear technique, and then went on to master the Taneda-ryu, Shinten-ryu, and Kūgen-ryu spear techniques."

"He was born with superhuman strength. A spear that was difficult for ordinary people to wield was as thin as a lamp wick in his hands."

"In order to maximize his strength, he chose to use a large spear as his weapon."

Large-bladed spears – spears with massive blades. Generally speaking, spears with a blade length exceeding 30 centimeters are considered large-bladed spears.

“他的佩枪是专门定制的，全长9尺（2米7），光刃长就有惊人的3尺（90厘米）。”

"With his innate talent, he challenged renowned spear masters everywhere, becoming invincible in Kyoto and Saka, and was thus given the reputation of 'Kyoto and Saka Musou'."

"Because he was born in Osaka, he soon received a new title: 'Naniwa's Kirin'."

"To be honest, I admired him when I was younger."

"However... however..."

At this point, Touko clenched his fists tightly, his face flushed red, and veins popped out on his forehead.