Yashiro the Blind

This name may be little known outside the region, but in the Totomi area, especially the Ii-dani area, it is absolutely a household name, known to everyone from women to children.

The earliest related stories can be traced back more than 30 years ago—life back then was not much different from today. Ordinary people suffered from hunger and thirst, and even without the spread of war, they still had to face bandits and thieves who roamed around, burning, killing, and looting.

On a certain day in a certain month of a certain year, a village was attacked by bandits. Just when it seemed that the whole village, young and old, was about to be brutally killed, a kind-hearted person came to the rescue. He not only repelled the bandits, but also taught the villagers simple and practical fighting skills, enabling them to protect themselves and prevent them from being slaughtered like pigs and dogs.

From this point on, similar rumors began to circulate. Hungry poor people would find a bag of rice suddenly appearing by their bedside; commoners who had been cheated by unscrupulous merchants would inexplicably have their money returned; and a samurai in the area who used to kill for pleasure would have his head taken away silently one night.

It is said that the killer also wrote a line of text in blood on the samurai's body:

"Those who commit many unrighteous acts will surely perish. I pity you for being busy with worldly affairs and not having a moment of leisure for a long time. The boys of the Dragon Palace will do your work."

The truth of this statement remains unknown, but the name of the Dragon Palace Boy spread from then on. Since then, whenever something happens, whether good or bad, people speculate whether the Dragon Palace Boy was responsible.

As the saying goes, "three men can make a tiger," and the more the news spread, the more fantastical it became. Over time, this person almost became a symbol that was both true and false. People attributed all sorts of deeds, some real and some not, to him. But at the same time, not many people actually believed in the existence of the Dragon Palace Child.

It's just a way to put one's hopes on something; whether it's true or false doesn't matter.

About eight years ago, the Dragon Palace Treasure Token first appeared before the public. It is said that as long as you hold the token, you can make a wish to the Dragon Palace Child, and whatever the wish is, it will be granted.

At first glance, it seems unbelievable, yet people keep coming forward with unwavering conviction, claiming that the news is true, that the Dragon Palace Child truly exists, and how they obtained a precious divination slip by chance, and how they made a wish with some skepticism, only to have it come true soon after...

He described it so vividly that it filled listeners with longing, only regretting that they were not lucky enough to obtain the treasure slip and had no chance to receive help from the Dragon Palace attendant.

……

"...So that's all I've found out. I'm telling you, young lady, you're really lucky. Most people can't even find this piece of paper, let alone this precious divination slip, but you just casually got one. Tsk tsk tsk, you're truly the envy of everyone."

A gentle breeze blew by, and her cane clattered as she walked. Yashiro strolled forward, quietly listening to the incessant chatter around her that had been going on since the beginning—if judged by word count, without her uttering a sound or responding, the other person had probably rattled off over seven or eight hundred words.

It's a real shame that someone with such eloquence doesn't go into selling insurance or something.

"Ahem, young lady, I've gathered all this information for you, and I've been talking until my throat is dry. You can't even offer me a drink of water, but you should at least respond a couple of times. Otherwise, it'll just look like I'm putting on a one-man show—a one-man show is fine, but the problem is nobody watches. Nobody watches, nobody pays, and all that work is worthless. But it damages my dignity as a professional performer..."

"Oh."

"So, little girl, what...?"

"Didn't you tell me to respond a couple of times, Mr. Aota?" Yashiro tilted his head and answered with an innocent look.

"..."

My ears were instantly quiet.

The two had just exchanged names. The short, fat ronin called himself Aota Inosuke, a traveling street performer. A street performer is someone who mainly performs folk arts, magic, and tricks. According to Yashiro's understanding, he was probably someone who performed tricks under overpasses.

They were not originally going the same way. After the young girl finished eating her rice and gulping down a bellyful of tea, she had just left the tea shop when this Mr. Qingtian hurriedly caught up with her.

Although his purpose was obvious, he didn't get straight to the point. Instead, he rambled on and on for several tens of minutes, starting from the origin of the Dragon Palace Boy story and continuing to the present. This made Yashiro's scalp tingle, and it felt as if a thousand bees were buzzing around in her ears.

And the swarm of bees showed no signs of leaving anytime soon.

"Ahem, to put it simply, that's about it. I've inquired around for you, young lady, and although I don't know how reliable it is, according to others, the Dragon Palace Child will appear soon to ask for your wish and grant it. So I suggest you decide what you want to wish for now. This is a rare opportunity; you can't let it go to waste..."

He kept rambling on and on, but Yashiro didn't reply. He just kept walking forward, leaning on his cane.

As we traveled, dusk fell, and perhaps because we had strayed from the main road, the poorly maintained path became increasingly bumpy and uneven. The rustling wind grew louder as it approached, ringing around us—

It resembled a small grove of trees that could be found anywhere.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing I wanted to remind you of... Don't think I'm taking advantage of my age or anything, but in this world, people are more treacherous than tigers and wolves. Young lady, if you ever have anything valuable in the future, please don't take it out and let outsiders see it so easily, like you did just now. You might accidentally get yourself into trouble..."

Aota Inosuke abruptly changed the subject, stopped walking, turned around, and looked at the girl.

The forest breeze rustled.

Yashiro quietly grasped the tip of the cane with her left hand.

But his gaze only lingered on her face for a moment before turning to look behind her.

Inosuke shouted at the same time, "Hey guys who are trailing behind, you've been following us since noon, under the scorching sun. It must be really tough for you. I suggest we stop dawdling and make things more comfortable for everyone. Let's get straight to the point and talk things out face to face."

The sound carried far and wide.

The next moment, footsteps were heard, and several figures entered the woods, each drawing their swords. The gleaming blades surrounded them loosely.

Inosuke frowned upon seeing this, took two steps forward, and pretended to shield the girl behind him. Yashiro remained silent, took a few steps back, and hid herself under a tree in the shadows of the evening.

"You fatso, I advise you to mind your own business!"

In the increasingly tense atmosphere, someone spat out a mouthful of phlegm and cursed in a hoarse voice.

“That’s right, our target is that little blind boy. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll get lost and we can pretend nothing happened. Otherwise…” another person chimed in, “Believe me or not, we’ll chop you up and feed you to the dogs later!”

"This guy is so fat, even a dog wouldn't eat him."

As the jeers and laughter rang out, the encirclement tightened further. Several men, wielding sharp blades, with fierce expressions and an aura of murderous intent, sent chills down one's spine.

On the other side, the short, stout ronin was empty-handed, with only a square wooden box on his back, probably a tool he used for performing magic tricks. He had nothing else, and at first glance, he really looked like a lamb to the slaughter, completely powerless.

But he showed no fear whatsoever, even shaking his head as he spoke: "That's not right. You can call me Fatty, that's fine, since it's true, but why add the word 'dead' before it? As you can see, I'm standing here perfectly fine, able to talk and breathe... Of course, swords have no eyes, so let's say I'm going to be chopped into eight pieces later. At least I'm not dead yet, so calling me 'dead fat man' is clearly problematic..."

"You're rambling on and on, I think you're asking for it!"

"You're wrong again. If I were a fatso, then a dead person wouldn't seek death. But if I'm still alive, then human nature is to cling to life and fear death. People avoid death like the plague, so why would they actively seek it out... Ouch!"

Before he could finish the second half of his sentence, a sudden exclamation rang out. Someone had finally had enough of this incessant chatter and rushed over, raising their hand to deliver a slash!

Although their hasty attack inevitably resulted in some inaccuracy in terms of force, these men, who all appeared to be ruthless and desperate criminals, swung their swords with great force, determined to cleave the fat man in front of them from head to toe, along with his gaping mouth, in two to vent their hatred...

boom!

However, the expected scene of blood splattering did not appear. At the last moment, Aota Inosuke suddenly turned around, bent over, and handed out the wooden box he was carrying, which blocked the man's slash.

The man holding the knife was momentarily stunned, wondering what secrets this seemingly ordinary wooden box held. Despite taking the blow head-on, it didn't even leave a tiny nick.

It lasted only a moment.

Because in the next second, in just a blink or two, Inosuke's body had leaned forward to the extreme, raised his hands, and slammed them heavily on the ground. He and the box, like a ball, hurtled out!

A chilling sound of bones shattering suddenly rang out, growing fainter and fainter in the distance. The others watched helplessly as their companion was blasted into the air. Before he even hit the ground, the immense force had twisted and deformed him beyond recognition; he was clearly dead beyond any doubt.

"Sigh, they wouldn't listen to reason and insisted on fighting and killing, acting as if I was afraid of them. Now look what's happened, people have been killed... What a tragedy."

It wasn't until the inhuman body crashed deep into the forest that a muffled thud echoed from afar, and Inosuke finally descended from the sky and landed back on the ground.

He supported his body with one hand, head down and feet up, his center of gravity was very stable, he didn't sway at all, his two small eyes were narrowed into slits, looking like a roly-poly toy, cute and adorable.

The blood-stained wooden box followed, falling precisely to his left foot and spinning rapidly like a top.

This extraordinary scene, witnessed by the group, sent a chill down their spines. They realized that things might not be as easy as they had anticipated... But now that blood had been drawn, there was no turning back. Even if they regretted it, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and go on.

"Don't be afraid, everyone! Let's attack together... and chop this fat charlatan to pieces!"

"That's right, he's all alone! Kill him!"

As night fell and the shadows of the trees swayed, a loud shout rang out from who-knows-who, and the remaining few steeled their resolve and charged out together.

Aota Inosuke let out a sneer, maintaining his strange upside-down posture, tossed the wooden box aside, and took the initiative to meet the onslaught of sword shadows and blades!

……

On one side, several people were engaged in a lively fight, and even though he was blind, he could imagine the intensity and danger just from the sounds. Yashiro, however, tilted his head, completely bewildered, unable to understand what was happening...

Her hearing was always keen. She had already noticed that someone was following her when she left the tea shop. From the weight of their footsteps, their breathing rate and heartbeat, she quickly identified them as the people who had been sitting at the same table as the merchant in the tea shop.

Now that we know where these people come from, their purpose becomes obvious.

However, Yashiro initially thought that Aotainosuke was in cahoots with this group, and planned to work together to seize her so-called Dragon Palace Treasure Slip, or even go further and take her life as well as her wealth—that's how most well-rounded villains are.

So she remained on guard, ready to act at any moment. Who knew that a disagreement would escalate into a full-blown fight, and even worse, someone was killed in a single exchange. If this was all an act, it was a bit too much of a "show"...

The key point is that she herself, who should have been at the center of the vortex, was now completely excluded. Whether it was Shii-no-suke or the other merchants' companions, they were all busy fighting fiercely, and for a moment no one paid any attention to this side.

This gave Yashiro the illusion that she was isolated.

She shook her head. Although neither side in the battle had anything to do with her, she could have taken this opportunity to sneak away. However, Aota Inosuke seemed to be standing up for her. If she were to die here, she would feel a little uncomfortable looking back.

Listening closely, the battle remained deadlocked. Inosuke, true to his reputation as a street performer, displayed a variety of ingenious moves. He tossed, caught, smashed, and parried a wooden box, sometimes using it as a shield, and other times grasping one corner and swinging it like a hammer, his momentum fierce and astonishing.

But his opponents were no ordinary men either. They had caught him off guard and launched a surprise attack at close range, which was how they killed one of them. Now that the others were on guard, they cooperated with each other in offense and defense, and for a while, they were evenly matched, with neither side gaining the upper hand.

Her fingers gripped the cane, tightening and loosening repeatedly. Before Yashiro could decide whether to intervene in the battle, a strange noise suddenly appeared in the mountain wind swirling around her ears—when she looked up, she met a pair of condescending, scrutinizing eyes.

A little later, the two sides, who were in the midst of a fierce battle, also noticed the strange occurrence and simultaneously distanced themselves, all looking in the same direction.

It was a hazy figure, like a paper cutout, lightly perched on a slender branch. With the night breeze, it swayed up and down, gently moving along with the branch. At first glance, it looked somewhat like a pitch-black leaf dotted with a few white spots.

That white thing was actually a mask resembling that of a middle-aged man:

With short, thick, downturned eyebrows, one eye bigger than the other, a pouty mouth, a blue and white patterned headscarf, and a slightly comical expression, he is a typical Fire Man type seen in various places.

"Fire Man mask..."

Aota Inosuke spoke first. Having just gone through a fierce battle, he was still panting as he spoke, trying to regulate his breathing. His tone was full of surprise, "You...you are the legendary Dragon Palace Child?"

The masked man in black did not answer. Through the mask, his gaze seemed to sweep over everyone present before finally settling on the girl: "Are you the holder of this lot?" His voice was high-pitched and thin, like a ghost, extremely grating.

With his keen hearing and being closest to the man in black, Yashiro frowned as soon as he spoke, forcibly suppressing the urge to cover his ears. Just as he was about to speak, the merchants' companions exchanged glances, and one of them, who seemed to be the leader, suddenly stepped forward and shouted, "She's not, we are!"

"Oh?"

The person in the tree glanced at him and asked, "And where's your fortune slip?"

"She's on her." The leader pointed to Ba Xun, speaking with self-righteousness. "But she'll be ours soon! I've heard that the Dragon Palace attendants always recognize the lot, not the person. I hope they won't make an exception this time."

"really."

The person in the tree actually nodded, then crossed his arms and fell silent.

On the contrary, Inosuke was filled with rage and righteous indignation upon hearing this: "You bunch of bastards, you've practiced martial arts for decades, and all you dare to use is to bully a blind little girl! And you can even say it so openly, you are shameless! Today, even if I, Inosuke, risk my life, I will not let you succeed!"

"Ha, you fatso, don't worry, even if you stop barking and howling here, we still won't let you leave here alive."

"It's still uncertain who will live and who will die—"

The verbal exchange was destined to be fruitless. The leader brandished his blade, sending glints of cold light across the ground. Just as the two sides were about to start fighting again, a soft, gentle voice, completely out of place with the atmosphere, suddenly rang out: "Um... excuse me, if you are here for that Dragon Palace Treasure Token, it is no longer with me."

Not only were the people over there stunned, but even Inosuke was taken aback upon hearing this: "The lucky charm isn't on you? How is that possible..."

Before he finished speaking, his expression suddenly changed, as if he had thought of a certain possibility. He subconsciously reached into his sleeve and pulled out a square piece of paper.

Looking down at the fortune slip, then turning to glance at Yashiro, Inosuke's face was full of confusion: "When exactly..." In a flash, his mind went through the scenes along the way.

It wasn't until a fleeting image flashed through his mind that he suddenly realized what was happening.

"I see... It was just a fleeting moment when we passed each other, and I didn't even notice..."

After all, he was an entertainer who made a living by performing magic tricks. Inosuke immediately realized what was going on, but his feelings became more and more complicated. For a moment, almost everyone's eyes, including his and the black-clad man in the tree wearing the fire man mask, were on the lucky draw. There was covetousness, greed, confusion, and also a kind of pleasure like watching a show.

"But why did you put this on me...aren't you afraid I'll secretly keep it?"

"Isn't this exactly why Mr. Qingtian came?"

Yashiro smiled and asked in return, a gentle question that left Inosuke speechless.

"This……"

"It's alright, this thing is of no use to me. After all, I'm all alone and content with my lot. I don't have any urgent wishes at the moment. Since we've met by chance, and you want it, I'll give it to you."

The tense atmosphere suddenly became somewhat strange after the girl's action.

In the awkward atmosphere, Yashiro smiled slightly, nodded to the person in the tree, and said softly, "You all came for the fortune slip, but now that the slip is no longer in my hands, what happens afterward is naturally none of my business. It is late and the dew is heavy, so please forgive me for not staying any longer. Farewell."

As soon as she finished speaking, without waiting for anyone else to react, she turned around and left. Her slender figure, her cane tapping as she explored the path, walked step by step out of the woods.

From beginning to end, no one spoke or made a move to stop Yashiro from leaving. Several pairs of eyes simply watched the tattered clothes go further and further away until they completely disappeared into the night.

This time, he finally put it away and looked at the Dragon Palace Treasure Slip again.

"Interesting fellow... So, is the result decided? Who is the owner of the treasure lot, or do you want to compete for it again?"

The man in black wearing the fire mask remained perched in the tree, arms crossed, his voice sharp and piercing, like a needle pricking one's ears and causing a dull ache.

No one answered him.

Inosuke swallowed hard, his mouth feeling dry. His gaze at the fortune slip was unfocused, as if he were still wondering if it was real. But the cold blade before him was raised again, its killing intent palpable—

Swish!

The wind blows, and the leaves fall.

Having already walked some distance, Yashiro tightened his clothes and sneezed softly.

……

Chapter Five: Thunderous Relief

There's no such thing as a free lunch. Even if one did fall from the sky, it would most likely smash your head in before you could even eat it.