Female Swordsman Training Dojo

"Who wants to challenge us?" Qingxin scanned the crowd and then locked onto a man hiding among them, who was radiating a strong mental aura. "Is it you? Even your thoughts are so filthy, no wonder you would do such a thing."

This man's thoughts were the most disgusting they had ever seen. At first glance, they seemed like sweet honey, but upon closer contact, one would discover their disgusting and sticky nature, like snot. The so-called sweetness was nothing more than a disguise.

However, it's quite effective at inciting ordinary people who have no moral compass.

Harunobu strode forward and drew his Asauchi. A pure killing intent surged forth, stinging the man like steel needles. When releasing one's mental energy, the five senses become much sharper, and with Harunobu's unwavering stride, the man almost immediately turned and fled.

"You don't even have the courage to draw your sword, yet you dare to challenge others?"

Harunobu stomped his foot, smashing through the crowd blocking his path, and stabbed the man in the thigh with his knife, knocking him to the ground. A piercing scream of pain rang out, instantly filling the crowd, who had been calmed down by their thoughts, with fear.

"Speak, who sent you?" Harunobu twisted his shallow wound, widening it. "Or are you going to confess in the Special Higher Police's black cell?"

The Special Higher Police's infamy was still very effective. When Harunobu said the first part, the man on the ground was still trying to dodge with groans, but by the second part, he was already shouting, "I only got this mission through someone else! I really don't know who gave it to me!"

As he uttered these words, a righteous shout rang out from behind the crowd: "Stop! How can samurai commit such atrocities against ordinary people—"

Neither sentence is inherently wrong, but when put together, they create a somewhat humorous effect.

The crowd, having calmed down, tactfully parted under Harunobu's gaze, revealing a group of people still awkwardly standing behind them. They were all wearing kendo uniforms, with blooming vines embroidered on their chests.

Harunobu recognized the family crest; it was nine vines.

"I see. So it was the Kujo clan elders who were giving instructions behind the scenes." Harunobu drew his katana and tossed the man a sentence, "Go and turn yourself in, or I'll come find you later."

The man limped away quickly.

The man who had just spoken, whose voice was impeccably upright, forced himself to say, "What are you saying? Master Ping, we were just passing by..."

"Ah, right, right, right." Qingxin nodded, seemingly in agreement, but the undisguised sarcasm in her tone made the man naturally stop talking nonsense.

Harunobu then seized the opportunity to launch another attack: "Besides, since you're just passing by, you probably don't have any intention of sparring or giving me pointers, right?"

Qingxin's barbed and pointed words, effectively blocking both sides, left the man opposite him speechless. The timing was simply too perfect. A single sentence that should have given them the moral high ground instantly transformed them into suspected masterminds.

Although they were indeed the masterminds behind it all.

After struggling for a while and unable to come up with a rebuttal, the group simply started talking to themselves and changed the subject: "Master Hei, we are disciples of the Kujo Dojo, and my name is Kujo Kage. We are here on the orders of our Master Kujo, and we hope that you can explain in public the recent public opinion that your Aozora Dojo is involved in match-fixing."

Qingxin tilted his head and said politely, "Who do you think you are, ordering me around?"

Being so directly insulted, Kujo Kage and his disciples were clearly losing their composure, their faces showing obvious anger: "Master Taira, please stop insulting the image of samurai! Our master is a hatamoto—"

“Ah, I remember now, Lord Kujo Hidekichi.” Harunobu casually flicked his asagi. “So? When did he become my daimyo? Or does he think he’s a shogun? Does His Majesty the Emperor know how powerful he is? And if that’s the case, shouldn’t he change his surname to Tokugawa first?”

"you--"

Kujo Kage opened his mouth angrily, but stopped after uttering only one syllable.

Because Harunobu's knife was already at his neck, the sharp blade and killing intent proclaiming Harunobu's will, making him wisely listen to Harunobu's words: "For the sake of you, you idiot, not swearing."

Chapter 289

I won't let you leave anything behind as a souvenir. Now, go back to your gym and tell that idiot gym leader in your family who wants to be the shogun, if he's got the guts, come and challenge me to a duel—oh, by the way, I'll go and challenge him to a duel when I have time.”

Harunobu patted Kujo Kage's flushed face and pushed him into the group of Kujo Dojo disciples, then glanced around.

The crowd suddenly dispersed.

A challenge? What kind of challenge?

Shiranui Ran, carrying Fujiwara Kaguya, walked up to Harunobu: "Aren't you a little too excited?"

"These people are obviously here to cause trouble. Do you think they'll stop causing trouble if we speak nicely to them?" Although Harunobu was a good person, he didn't like being held at gunpoint. "By the way, what level is that Kujo Hideki?"

Shiranui Ran shook her head helplessly and replied, "Kujou Hidekiri, forty-two years old, one of the three hatamoto samurai of Tokyo, in charge of five wards. Moreover, he has a record of slaying a king-level yokai."

Then, she shook the Fujiwara Kaguya in her hand: "She's still Princess Kaguya's uncle."

"I don't like him!" Fujiwara Kaguya shouted. "Teacher, I support you in beating him up!"

The author says:

Author's Note: It feels so good to write at work! I hope I have another great opportunity tomorrow, hehe. Of course, I should clarify that no job has ever escaped my clutches ( ). Anyway, I successfully wrote four chapters today, and happily conquered Little Loneliness~ In short, this is also a daily 10,000-word chapter, so please give me your votes (￣︶￣*)).

Chapter 267: Public Outrage and a New Mission

The next day, news of what happened at the entrance of the Aozora-kan still spread, since Harunobu couldn't possibly kill everyone present. Although the major newspapers didn't cause any trouble, various tabloids and information brokers quickly disseminated the story.

That's really Japanese speed!

Naturally, Harunobu's "arrogant and domineering" behavior was amplified through various skillful writing techniques, instantly arousing the indignation of readers from all walks of life. Although there were also loyal supporters of Aozorakan who tried to fight back, their numbers were too small, and they only had an advantage in Asakusa Ward.

Kujo Hideki didn't come over to challenge Harunobu to a duel.

However, many self-important individuals came to cause trouble and challenge the organizers, implying that Harunobu had used his power as the head of the Special Higher Police to fix the match in the Tenran Trial.

This is right.

Harunobu thought they were just jealous of Aozorakan's fame, so this match-fixing accusation made perfect sense. It was nothing more than the lament of a loser... no, it was more like both.

With Kujo Hidekichi spearheading the media frenzy created using the name of the Kujo clan (one of the Five Regents), Aozorakan is clearly in a very unfavorable position. Why wouldn't they kick them while they're down?

Even if they can't win, they can still gain a reputation for standing up for justice and speaking out against injustice. And if they're lucky enough to defeat a disciple of the Azure Sky Pavilion, they'll become famous!

So, during this period, the area in front of the Aozora Pavilion was almost always busy, with people constantly coming to challenge the disciples. Although Harunobu didn't want to deal with them, they were seriously affecting the operation of the Bracer Guild. This made Harunobu a little, no, very angry.

In this situation, the system, which had been slacking off for a long time, finally gave Qingxin two new side quests.

Side Quest: Counterattack from Off the Field

[Mission Description: There are always fools trying to challenge the reputation of the world's number one dojo. Use your strength to shut them up!]

[Mission Reward: 500 Diligence Points for each gym that completely surrenders]

[Challenge Reward: Only disciples can participate in the battle. For each dojo that a disciple completely defeats, the disciple will receive an additional 500 Diligence Points]

Side Quest: Undisputed Number One

[Mission Description: As the number one dojo in the world, we will perfectly fulfill even the baseless accusations of mediocre individuals and take the undisputed first place in the Heavenly Tournament!]

[Mission Reward: Special Gym Facility Blueprint *1]

[Challenge Rewards: Sweep the top three spots and upgrade the blueprint to level three; sweep the top ten spots and upgrade the blueprint to the maximum level]

After reviewing the new side quests again, Harunobu switched to the main quests and opened one of them.

Main Quest: Transcendence

[Mission Description: As the number one dojo in the world, we cannot always be treated like ordinary people. Please complete a great feat that is "absolutely impossible for ordinary people" and spread the word.]

[Task Reward: 1000 Study Points]

[Challenge Reward: Completing a major achievement exceeding the city level will grant you one chance to draw items from the in-game store (guaranteed swordsmanship skill, guaranteed SR-rank or higher quality)]

His original goal was to win the championship of the Tianlan Trial, which would be a great achievement for a samurai, and the difficulty of a national competition should be higher than that of a city-level competition.

But wouldn't it be a great achievement to simply defeat all the dojos from all over the country? And the difficulty level seems to be more impressive than just winning a championship, right?

The only question now is whether they can win? Old Deng, Kujo Eiju, has a proven track record of slaying a king-level monster! As for Vortigern, although he is a demonic dragon, he was severely injured at the time, with only a newly formed spirit body left. Apart from his strange dragon fire, the rest of his body was completely lacking the level that a king-level monster should have.

Judging solely from their battle records, Harunobu was no match for Kujo Hidekichi. Although Harunobu's strength had improved considerably since defeating Vortigern, having absorbed much of Vortigern's memories, he was well aware of the combat power of a King-level yokai. That was combat power capable of directly clashing with an army.

Even though samurai can't possess the superhuman physical strength and magical abilities of demons, that's precisely what makes a samurai capable of slaying a king-level demon so terrifying. Just how resolute is that guy's willpower, and what effect does it have?

Qingxin let out a soft breath, caught the kitten that trotted over, and rubbed his chin against her hair: "You found them all?"

“Found it.” The kitten adjusted her position so that Haruno could hold her while looking at the intelligence she brought. “The addresses of all the dojos that came to provoke us before, including where those guys from out of town are staying now, are all here. And we’re all ready to go at any time.”

The kittens stared excitedly, their eyes wide with excitement. These past few days, they'd been even more anxious and angry than Qingxin. Just as Qingxin cared more about being insulted, they cared more about being insulted by Qingxin. It was a two-way love.

"Then go and notify everyone to set off, in the order you arranged, and try to get these things sorted out before the main competition begins."

Qingxin sat up straight and stretched.

That's right, he's not absolutely certain of victory against Kujo Hideyoshi right now, but things might change once he takes down those twenty or so dojos on the list.

At least you get ten consecutive pulls, so you're bound to get something useful, right?

Even if they can't deliver some incredible swordsmanship, some weapons or tools would be fine too.

Enma Blade, Tensa Zangetsu, or even Tessaiga if those don't work. Or some ancient elixir or pure Sakura Dragon Blood would also be acceptable.

He's not picky.

Once again, he could always go to the shrine maiden to see if she had any good stuff worth 100,000 yen, and let Old Deng see what the power of money was.

Capitalism, old Deng!

As for whether Kujo no Utsugi would take the initiative to come knocking on his door, considering his behavior and Fujiwara Kaguya's introduction, Harunobu felt it was unlikely.

In Fujiwara Kaguya's words, Kujo Hidekichi was an old stubborn man who liked to rely on his seniority and always interfered in other people's affairs, still managing things according to the conditions and rules of the shogunate era.

And after so many days, he's still sitting on the sidelines, clearly too proud to take the initiative against this "junior," hoping Qingxin will come to him to apologize. Or perhaps someone overestimates their abilities and challenges him, forcing him to intervene.

Chapter 290

He defeated Harunobu with his bare hands.

That way he'll have both face and substance.

Hopefully, he can maintain this mindset for a while.

Harunobu stood up, took the sword from Hirako and tucked it into his waistband. The disciples who had already assembled looked at him, their pupils flashing with furious flames.

It's March 28th now, and there are six days left until the main competition.

Chapter 268: You're not worthy?

Hiramura Daitetsuke was a samurai from Shizuoka Prefecture. In his early thirties, he had already mastered his family's Jingshin-ryu martial art to perfection, developing his mental acuity. Therefore, he considered himself a genius and was indeed among the top students in his hometown. So when news of the Tokyo Dojo's preliminary rounds came, he naturally passed the local selection and even brought a dozen or so disciples from his dojo with him to Tokyo.

However, all of his disciples, on whom he had placed high hopes, were defeated in the preliminary rounds, and most of them lost to the same dojo—the Azure Sky Dojo.

This made him very resentful.

Since he had only watched his favorite disciple's matches at the time, he chose to believe and join the fray when the overwhelming public opinion came his way.

It must be said that after giving interviews to several newspapers and magazines and making a lot of rants in front of the Aozora Museum, the resentment that had been building up in his heart was indeed relieved a lot.

So it's already 8 a.m., and he's still soundly asleep on the bed, embracing the courtesan he brought back from Yoshiwara yesterday.

Until a loud bang was heard.

"All you trash from the Hiramura Dojo, get out here!!"

The arrogant shouts echoed throughout the hotel, attracting attention from all directions, but these gazes immediately recoiled when they fell upon the women in kendo uniforms below.

This hotel is right next to Yoshiwara, which is in Shitaya Ward. Anyone who frequents this area knows the people from Aozorakan, and even more so, the Guerrilla.

In fact, some people are already eager to help.

For example, the hotel owner, very understandingly, approached Harunobu, who had kicked open her door, with the registration form in hand: "Master Ping, the person you are looking for is in room 205, and his companions are in rooms 201, 202, 204, and 206 respectively."

She had received help from the guerrillas more than once or twice. After all, running a hotel meant encountering all sorts of people and being vulnerable to harassment from thugs. But since the guerrillas came along, aside from those troublesome guests, just driving away the Yakuza had saved her a considerable amount of protection money.

"Oh, Miss Hua Zi, right? Someone will contact you about the compensation later." Qingxin nodded to the proprietress. "I'm sorry to have troubled you this time."

"No, no, no..." The middle-aged Miss Hua covered her mouth demurely and laughed, "I am usually grateful for your care, this is nothing."

“…Let’s talk later.” Harunobu patted the proprietress on the shoulder, and she also saw Hiramura Daitsu coming down from upstairs, and knowingly retreated behind the front desk.

"Who are you! How dare you insult a samurai like me—" Hiramura Daitetsu tried to intimidate him with his status, but his face turned ugly before he could finish his sentence.

One was that his hangover-induced brain finally recognized Harunobu, and the other was that he sensed a naked and terrifying killing intent.

Does this guy want to kill me?!

Here? At this time?!

Hiramura Daitsu began to feel grateful that he had brought his sword with him when he came down. He quickly gripped the hilt and focused his mind. The calm, deep lake of his heart soothed his tension and fear, allowing him to once again display the demeanor befitting a samurai.

"Hira Harunobu, are you trying to bully others by abusing your power?"

Seeing the dozens of people behind Harunobu, Hiramura Daitetsu cleverly chose to intimidate them first to avoid being ganged up on. After all, Harunobu should have been mindful of his image in front of a large crowd.

Harunobu shook his head. Although he had chosen to start as an easy target, he was still so cowardly when he put his mind to it... It was a disgrace to the samurai.

Too lazy to waste any more words with this guy, Qingxin said directly, "I'm here to challenge you, you piece of trash. Should I let your disciple go first, or skip over the worst of the worst and send in the piece of trash like you?"

"Or, you can just kneel down and beg for mercy, hand over the signboard of your Hiramura Dojo, and we can finish this quickly."

Qingxin spoke very loudly, and the other guests who were watching the commotion, as well as passersby, could hear him clearly.

In Japan, where the language style tends to be more sarcastic and insinuating, Harunobu's blunt and direct approach, which involved pointing fingers and cursing, not only enraged Hiramura Daitsu but also left him with no way out.