I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 294 Niou vs. Fire-Bearing Tiger! Copy Talent [Divine Speed]! [6600]

Kinoshita Mai was dressed in her usual bright red dress. Because she was short, she stood on tiptoe to make herself stand out in the crowd. Her feet were covered with plain white socks and cute red clogs.

Kiryu's situation is very similar to that of Chiba Jutaro.

He accompanied Kinoshita Mai to see Aoto off, standing behind her with his arms slightly outstretched, like a solid stone statue or a loyal guard, blocking all the approaching crowds for her.

No one, regardless of who they were, could budge the old man's body even slightly.

Thanks to Kiryu's protection, Kinoshita Mai, despite being surrounded by a sea of ​​people, did not feel crowded, as there was a narrow "vacuum zone" around her.

Upon discovering Aoto, Kinoshita Mai's fair, round face immediately broke into a joyful smile.

"Qingdeng!"

She raised and waved her hands forcefully, trying to attract Qingdeng's attention as soon as possible.

However, before Qingdeng could even look over, a certain woman's gaze fell upon him first.

"..." Upon hearing Kinoshita Mai's voice, Sanako's eyes narrowed slightly, her lips pursed, and she slowly turned her face, taking advantage of her height to look down at Kinoshita Mai, who was only a few steps away from her.

At that moment, Kinoshita Mai suddenly felt an indescribable, sharp gaze fixed on her.

His body trembled slightly, and he quickly looked in the direction from which that sharp gaze was directed.

Two pairs of eyes, like two sharp blades, clashed fiercely in mid-air.

"Gurgle...!" Kinoshita Mai let out a short groan.

She almost once again felt inferior to Sanako because of her inferiority complex, thinking that her appearance, figure, and temperament were all inferior to Sanako's, and subconsciously wanted to avoid looking at Sanako.

But after thinking of something, she abruptly straightened her gaze, her small face tense, and adopted a defiant stance towards Sanako, her eyes wide open and unblinking as if she wanted to glare Sanako down. Deep within her pupils lay a complex mix of envy, jealousy, and hostility.

Unlike Kinoshita Mai, who openly displayed her hostility, Sanako remained calm, as if she were looking at some… insignificant nobody.

The only thing she had in common with Kinoshita Mai was the equally complex and indescribable look in her beautiful eyes.

Chiba Jutaro and Kiryu, the shopkeeper, noticed the unusual markings left by the two women one after the other. They wondered what had happened between the young master (Sanako) and Miss Chiba (Miss Kinoshita) that caused their relationship to break down.

If these two knew what had happened to the two women, they would probably immediately turn their murderous gazes toward Qingdeng.

The standoff between Kinoshita Mai and Sanako left Aoto feeling quite awkward.

He couldn't explain why, but the image that appeared before his eyes was this: a beautiful white fox with half-closed eyes, a calm gaze, and an elegant demeanor, staring at a short-legged cat that looked as if it were facing a formidable enemy, its back slightly hunched, and the fur on its entire tail standing on end.

As a man determined to marry both Kinoshita Mai and Sanako, Aoto naturally wanted to see the two women living in harmony and happiness.

But he also noticed that Kinoshita Mai and Sanako seemed to be somewhat incompatible...

Long before he confessed his feelings to them, the relationship between the two women was already quite strained. Whenever they came into contact, the atmosphere would immediately become extremely awkward, regardless of whether there were outsiders around.

To stop the two women from exchanging glances, Qingdeng quickly raised his arm and waved vigorously at them with a warm smile.

Upon discovering that Qingdeng was greeting them, the two women forgot all about their "fight".

As if they had agreed beforehand, they turned their beautiful eyes away at almost the same time and refocused their gaze on Qingdeng's face.

Sanako remained the same, with a solemn and dignified expression, looking like a valiant woman calmly watching her husband go off to war.

As for Kinoshita Mai... her emotional fluctuations are much greater.

Her lips drooped slightly, and she blinked frequently, her beautiful eyes glistening with moisture, making her appear pitiful.

His expression practically screamed "worry" and "reluctance."

The two women's contrasting expressions at that moment are a true reflection of their personalities.

Seeing this, Qing Deng couldn't help but smile helplessly.

The last time I saw Kinoshita Mai with that expression... was when we were saying goodbye to the Komaki couple.

Two months ago, just a few days after Kondo Isami and Matsui Tsune's wedding, the couple Komaki Goro and Komaki Machi left Edo, saying, "We should go back to Kyoto to continue selling wagashi."

Aoto quite liked Goro Komaki, a rather interesting older man, so he also participated in the farewell ceremony for the couple.

At that moment, Kinoshita Mai cried her heart out, clinging tightly to Atachi's waist, begging them to stay in Edo for a few more days.

Unfortunately, the Old Shepherds were determined to leave.

Apart from Kinoshita Mai crying her eyes out, the entire farewell ceremony, in both form and atmosphere, was very simple.

The only people who came to see the middle-aged couple off were Mr. Kiryu, Mai Kinoshita, and Aoto.

Goro Komaki and Kiryu exchanged only a simple "Take care"—the two seemed quite used to such farewells. Therefore, both remained calm and composed.

However, Goro Komaki gave Aoto quite a few farewell messages.

"Tachibana-kun, it's fate that we meet again. I have a feeling we'll meet again—in the not-too-distant future." —Goro Komaki said with a peaceful smile.

Strangely enough, Qing Deng also felt, deep down, that his connection with this middle-aged man who loved wearing light blue haori was not yet over.

I will see him again—that day is just around the corner.

Kinoshita Mai is a very emotional girl, so it's no wonder that she's showing her worry and reluctance without any attempt to hide it.

Although Kai is very close to Edo, a round trip would only take 7 or 8 days if traveling at a normal pace and avoiding extreme weather such as storms. However, Aoto's journey was not for tourism, but to risk his life and fight against vicious mountain bandits.

When will they return? Nobody knows. Nobody knows how long this war will last.

Moreover, to put it bluntly and to be extremely... after this parting, Qingdeng may never return—after all, Qingdeng doesn't have the talent of being "absolutely immortal".

Just then, Qingdeng spotted another group of familiar people on one side of the street ahead.

"Tachibana-kun! Tachibana-kun! Tachibana-kun!"

If Sanako is a white fox and Kinoshita Mai is a cat, then Souji is a warm, clingy little dog that likes to wag its tail at people.

At this moment, the little dog, who had just recovered from a serious illness and whose spirits had just returned to normal, was riding on Inoue Genzaburo's shoulder, laughing cheerfully and waving vigorously at Aoto.

Kondo, Matsui Tsune, Shusuke, Obi, Hijikata, Saito, Nagakura... all the people from Shieikan came.

Harada Sanosuke, this "big boss," ignored the strange looks from those around him, and waved a flag with a large "test" written on it vigorously—this flag was a "mansion flag" that Hijikata, Harada, and Nagakura had made out of boredom a while ago.

Apart from Kyubei, the old servant who had served the Tachibana family for most of his life and was full of worry, neither the passionate Souji nor the calm Saito showed any negative emotions such as sadness or worry to Aoto. On their faces and in their eyes, there was only pure encouragement and inspiration.

A very few individuals... such as Nagakura Shinpachi, who is very ambitious for fame, and Hijikata Toshizo, who usually enjoys fighting for entertainment, have a faint hint of envy in the depths of their eyes.

Not only the Chiba Sword Hall and the Senjiya, but even the Shieikan sent people to see him off... and the entire staff came. Feeling a warmth in his heart, Qing Deng belatedly realized that the corners of his lips were curving upwards.

"Orange-kun".

At that moment, my grandson, who was riding ahead of Qingdeng, suddenly turned around and smiled slightly at Qingdeng.

"You have such good interpersonal relationships, so many people came to see you off."

"Um……"

After nodding and smiling slightly, Qingdeng raised his face and looked up at the clear blue sky above.

"...Without realizing it, the number of people I want to protect has become so large that I can't even count them on two hands..."

He murmured softly, as if responding to my grandson, yet also as if pouring out his heart to himself and the heavens.

……

……

There is a very convenient "highway" from Edo to Kai, namely the Koshu Road, one of the "Five Roads".

Koshu Road: Starting from Naito Shinjuku in Nihonbashi, Edo, it passes through Hachioji and Kai, and finally merges with another of the "Five Roads": Nakayama Road, at Shimosu. There are a total of 43 post stations along the entire road.

Thanks to the smooth roads and relatively high morale, the expeditionary force advanced at a fairly fast pace.

They set off in the morning, stopping to rest several times along the way, and finally, by evening, the expeditionary force successfully arrived at their pre-set destination for the night: Hachioji-suke in Koshu City, before the sun had completely set.

Because the post stations in the "Five Streets" had the important function of "providing supplies and resting places for all travelers", they naturally attracted a large number of merchants to do business. They opened teahouses, izakayas, and brothels in the post stations to cater to travelers.

The convenient transportation of the "Five Streets" ensures a high flow of people, and the presence of merchants ensures economic development and exchanges. The two complement each other, making the post station an excellent "population gathering place".

Over time, many post stations grew larger and larger in size and population, becoming almost indistinguishable from castle towns—these castle towns that evolved from post stations are commonly referred to as "post station towns".

For example, Souji's older sister, Hikaru Okita, and her husband, Rintaro Okita, lived in Hino-juku, Koshu Kaido.

The place where Qing Deng and the others arrived tonight, Hachioji-juku, is one of the most prosperous post town in Koshu.

The head of the Hachioji-juku, who was in charge of managing the post station, had received prior notice that the army of the thieves Kai was scheduled to arrive that night. Therefore, he led a large group of men to wait outside the post station early in the morning to welcome the army.

The Five Roads were first built in 1601. Initially, Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Edo shogunate, had a very simple purpose in building the Five Roads: to strengthen the Edo shogunate's control over the Kanto region.

Kanto was the base of the Edo Shogunate... or rather, the Tokugawa family's territory.

The "Tenryo," directly under the control of the Edo Shogunate, as well as the daimyo and hereditary daimyo who were close to the Tokugawa family, were mostly located in the Kanto region.

However, with the formal establishment of the "Sankin-kotai" system in 1635, the "Five Roads" gained an additional significance in facilitating the arrival of the "Three Hundred Lords" in Edo.

In order to weaken the power of the various domains, the Edo Shogunate made a strict rule that the lords of each domain must go to Edo once a year to assist the Shogun in handling government affairs for a period of time before returning to their own domains. The travel expenses to and from the domains were to be borne by the domains themselves. This was called "Sankin-kotai".

The samurai class was a group that couldn't survive in the underworld without losing face.

Therefore, in order to demonstrate their wealth, many daimyo would make a grand show of themselves during their audiences and flaunt their riches despite the financial burden.

Just 19 years ago, in 1841, when the lord of the Kii Domain went to Edo for an audience, he mobilized 1639 samurai, 2337 workers, and 103 horses.

The mobilization of nearly 4000 people and countless supplies, all to make the lord of the domain look more impressive when he went to Edo... This became an excellent topic of conversation after dinner.

These daimyo, who loved to flaunt their wealth, greatly enhanced the supply capacity of each post station.

The daimyo's pilgrimage processions often numbered in the thousands, forcing each post station to "evolve itself" in order to handle the enormous logistical burden.

After nearly three hundred years of trials, each post station has become adept at arranging accommodations and providing timely and adequate supplies.

Simply put, every post station on the "Five Streets" is a well-tested, large-scale supply station.

It can handle a procession of thousands, let alone a mere 300 people, an army with no large number of warhorses, no heavy weapons such as artillery, and all of them wearing light equipment.

Thanks to the skilled operation of the Hachioji lodging area, the entire army completed all the procedures for entering the lodging area in less than half an hour.

The soldiers dispersed and checked into different hotels.

Compared to ordinary soldiers, Qingdeng, who had the privilege of riding horses, was undoubtedly fortunate, as he could use military horses for transportation during marches.

However, anyone with relevant experience knows that horseback riding is not an easy thing.

The hard saddle can rub your buttocks and the insides of your thighs until they're smoking.

This is the current state of Qingdeng.

Qingdeng, who rarely rides horses, spread his legs into an awkward "O" shape when he climbed down from the saddle—he simply couldn't walk without adopting this posture.