By the cliff at the Kamisato Estate.
Kamisato Ayato lay half-reclined on a wooden chair prepared in advance, his face etched with utter exhaustion.
Gazing distantly at Inazuma City and Tenshukaku across the strait, he felt that even lifting a hand was an impossible luxury.
"Kobayashi, I think my Haran Geppaku Futsu has fallen in the grass," his voice sounded terribly weak, as if this single sentence had drained all his remaining strength.
"Lord Kamisato, please rest properly for now. I will go and retrieve it for you. Tomorrow... no, I will later go and invite Lady Yae of the Grand Narukami Shrine. She will surely be able to heal you."
The face of the Shuumatsuban ninja named Kobayashi was filled with remorse.
For the Shuumatsuban, the Clan Head was everything.
When the Clan Head decided to try that thing, he should have stopped him, even if it cost him his life!
"It's fine, there's no need to trouble the Guuji with such a minor matter. Has there been any news of the child, Sayu?"
Compared to that, Kamisato Ayato was actually more concerned about Sayu.
That child was the last successor of the Yoohoo Art style. If something happened to her...
"Reporting, Clan Head. Regarding the child Sayu, we have already discovered her traces and confirmed that she is still alive. It's just..." Kobayashi looked at the weakened Kamisato Ayato, uncertain whether he should tell his Clan Head this news.
Because he was afraid the Clan Head couldn't handle it.
"Speak."
How could Kamisato Ayato not see through his thoughts? As the youngest head of the Kamisato Clan, he certainly had the capacity to bear this.
"Yes! After we realized the child Sayu might have been taken by someone, we focused our efforts on the rebel army camp, as they were the most likely to have captured her. So, we infiltrated it."
The so-called infiltration was, in the truest sense, using ninjutsu to sneak into the enemy camp. Because of the mole situation, the rebel army's screening of new members had recently become stricter than usual, making it extremely difficult to penetrate in a short time.
"And within the rebel army camp, we discovered Sayu's figure. At the time, she... was standing together with a masked man in red attire. That person's dress was very similar to the rumored Battousai."
"..."
After hearing his subordinate's report, Kamisato Ayato fell silent.
Battousai, huh?
He had personally witnessed the rise of the man the world called Battousai.
He had even been on the receiving end of one of his slashes.
If the Guuji hadn't intervened and saved him in time, he might have been separated from his sister by life and death.
That slash was truly ruthless!
But if Sayu was with him, it might not be such a bad thing.
At least in Kamisato Ayato's impression, this person called Battousai, aside from slashing the Raiden Shogun, hadn't committed any other heinous acts.
Judging by his action of saving that Kaedehara boy, he might even be a chivalrous individual.
As for why he was with the rebel army, Kamisato Ayato wasn't surprised either.
After offending the Raiden Shogun, he had almost nowhere in Inazuma to take refuge except with the rebels.
And the rebel army would absolutely welcome a powerful individual like him.
"Sir, do we need to rescue the child Sayu from the Battousai's hands?" Kobayashi asked tentatively.
In a direct fight, the Shuumatsuban might not be a match for that Battousai.
But when it came to assassination and intelligence... aside from that Instructor among the Fatui, their Shuumatsuban feared no one!
"No, avoid disturbing that person as much as possible. For Sayu, staying by his side might be the safest option (rip sayu). Leave two people to monitor their movements. As for the others... do your best to compile the situation on Yashiori Island. I will present it later."
From his subordinate's description, it seemed Sayu had been getting along reasonably well with that Battousai lately (i'm not sure about that). Perhaps this was also an opportunity for their Yashiro Commission to get close to that Battousai.
"But will the Tenryou Commission really allow this information to reach the Shogun's presence? They have a history of this sort of thing." Kobayashi voiced his concern regarding the Clan Head's plan.
If he were part of the Tenryou Commission, he would absolutely not let the Shogun see this information.
"Who said I'm sending it to the Shogun? Guuji Yae's Yae Publishing House has been a bit short on material lately. Would it be so wrong for me to send the Guuji some novel material?" Kamisato Ayato still sat weakly in his chair, but his calm smile and the confidence at the corner of his mouth gave him a distinct charm.
This was the charm of the esteemed elder brother.
"Ah, right. Regarding that special milk tea... send a portion to Thoma as well. Consider it a reward for his hard work. Being toiling day and night in Ritou must be quite taxing. (what a good clan leader😭)"
"Ah? Yes, sir, I understand!"
...
What is deep sleep?
Sayu always thought she slept well, but after last night's events, she realized what true deep sleep really felt like.
It was truly miraculous.
After waking up, she only remembered that Bai Luo wanted her to listen to some kind of tune. As for the content of the tune, she couldn't remember it at all.
She just felt like she closed her eyes and opened them, and the whole night was over.
And now she felt refreshed and clear-headed. Even the mood affected by the Tatarigami after staying too long on Yashiori Island had improved considerably.
Was the tune very pleasant to listen to?
Probably... right? (not)
Having forgotten the entire process, she didn't know how to describe it either.
She just didn't understand why, whenever she thought about asking Bai Luo to play it again, her body instinctively prevented her from saying it out loud.
Weird...
After crossing Nazuchi Beach, Bai Luo switched back to the 'Hei' profession, because on the Shogunate army's side, the identity of 'Hei' was clearly more suitable. It was a return to his original identity.
As for Sayu, she was once again lifted by the scruff of her neck by Bai Luo and started dozing off, occasionally making soft smacking sounds with her mouth.
Bai Luo had actually been aware for a while that he was being followed, but he ignored them after noticing they were dressed as Shuumatsuban.
These people were probably here because of the little tanuki in his grasp.
However, Bai Luo didn't switch to 'Hei' in front of them. He only switched after shaking them off.
After switching professions, Bai Luo directly entered a stealth state while carrying the little tanuki, only after completely evading the pursuing ninjas did he dispel his stealth.
But the moment his figure reappeared, a frightened meow sounded beside him.
Was it Sayu?
No, she was a little tanuki, but she couldn't make that sound.
Bai Luo looked down and saw a pure white cat crouching at his feet, all its fur standing on end.
In its sapphire-blue eyes, besides surprise and fear, there was actually a trace of... grievance?
"Huh? Could it be you?"
Seeing it, a figure long sealed away in his heart slowly emerged.
Ah, it's the cat I forgot at the training ground... Holy crap! It's actually still alive?!
TN: Here is one chapter, take it and leave muhahaha. back to hiatus (being lazy).