Chapter 55: The Compassionate Heart of a Ninja
“…This is it…”
Following the direction pointed by the clerk, the wolf found the stairs that met the requirements with difficulty.
The wolf sniffed as he smelled the air filled with the smell of sulfur and heat, which made him sure that he had found the right place.
Stepping up the stairs and walking for a while, the road halfway up the mountain split into two. The closer to the hot spring, the stronger the smell of sulfur, making the wolf's sense of smell useless at this moment.
I felt a little confused as I looked at the two forks in the road.
…Go to the right first. If it’s not right, go back and try again.
This was the method the wolf often used when he was still in Ashina and got lost. However, he always went the wrong way, and this time was no exception.
I walked on the stairs on the right for a long time, until the stairs disappeared and the road turned into a mountain road, but I still didn't see any sign of the hot spring.
It was autumn now and all things were beginning to wither. Looking at the somewhat lonely scenery in front of him, the wolf stopped and muttered to himself.
Did I go the wrong way again?
Just as I was about to turn around, my keen hearing caught the sound of two people talking in the forest not far away.
"Huh~ It's finally fixed. Those swordsmen are so stupid. How could they not know how to take care of it?"
"Yeah, every time those bastards break the knives I forged, I want to kill them!"
"Ah no... I'm talking about this doll..."
Is there anyone still on the mountain so late?
With doubts, the wolf bent down and walked quietly to a tree behind the direction where the sound came from. He stared at the treetop and jumped lightly on the spot. Then he reached out and grabbed it, and the whole person was already on the treetop.
Looking down at the two people who were talking, they were two young men from the Swordsmith Village wearing Fire Man masks. One of them was burly, while the other was relatively thin.
tapping.
"Hey, what are you talking about? Every time this puppet's sword is broken, it asks me to reforge it."
"Don't worry about it. We are friends. Besides, don't you like sword forging the most?"
"Tsk..."
Doll?
He turned his eyes and looked at the doll they were talking about...
He was wearing a long blood-red wig, sun earrings on his ears, a loose red kendo uniform and black bloomers, and heavy arm armor on his arms. More importantly, he had no less than six wooden arms, and each hand held a sharp blade.
what is that?
Just as the wolf was curious, a familiar owl landed from the treetop beside him. It was the owl that Ubuyashiki had arranged for him.
Goo...
Why is it here?
He frowned slightly and waved his hands to try to scare the owl away, but unexpectedly he scared the stupid owl.
Goo!
After giving a terrified cry, it flapped its wings and flew away.
"Hmm? What's the sound?"
"Hey! There's someone up there!"
Hearing the sound coming from below, the wolf's face changed slightly and he realized that he had been discovered.
After thinking about it, there is no need to hide it. From what they said, this doll should not be a secret.
He jumped off the treetop and made no sound when he landed on the ground.
The two people watching on were stunned.
"Yes, is it the Lord of the Demon Slayer Corps?"
The relatively thin man spoke first, then realized something and quickly added.
"Ah, ah, I'm Toshisaburo Tetsuka, and the guy next to me is Hotaru Tetsuka."
Unlike Toshisaburo's respect, Hotaru Koutsuka was relatively easy-going towards the wolf who was suspected to be a pillar.
He just nodded slightly to greet the wolf, and then complained to his good friend Min Saburo with some dissatisfaction.
"Hey! Min Saburo, how many times have I told you not to add that word after my name? It's so disgusting!"
After saying this, he muttered through gritted teeth.
"Damn old man..."
Toshisaburo ignored Koutsuka's complaints and smiled at the wolf awkwardly.
"I'm sorry, this guy Tsukasa is a bit off."
"It's okay, I'm just not a pillar..."
Wolf shook his head slightly and clarified to Toshisaburo.
"Ah! How could you jump down from such a high place without making any sound? Even if you are not a pillar, you must be a great swordsman!"
“…Maybe.”
Upon hearing Toshisaburo say that Lang was a great swordsman, Koutsuka subconsciously looked at the wedge-shaped sword on Lang's waist, but after this look, he could not take his eyes away.
"This, this, this is!"
The huge body pounced towards the wolf's waist, specifically, towards the wedge-shaped part on the wolf's waist.
A sudden change occurred. Although the opponent's muscles were well-developed and his speed was extremely fast, he was ultimately no match for the wolf's reaction speed. He just took a step back and easily avoided the Steel Mound's pounce.
Lying on the ground, Tietiezhu was still unyielding and crawled towards the wolf using his hands and feet.
"It's a sword-forging technique I've never seen before. Please, let me see it, just one look!"
Before the wolf could react, Toshisaburo took the lead and punched Tietetsuka on the head with his neck thickened.
"Be normal, you bastard!"
"Take a look, take a look, take a look!!!"
After being punched on the head, a big bump appeared on it, but Tietiezhong continued to beg the wolf as if he didn't feel any pain.
"Damn it... If that's the case, don't blame me for being cruel!"
Seeing that Tietetsuka didn't respond, Toshisaburo's tone turned cold, and he moved his hands slowly to Tietetsuka's armpits.
"Geji, Geji."
"Wow!"
With a scream, Iron Tomb, which had not reacted even after being punched, squirmed violently as if encountering a powerful enemy, and collapsed with a scream.
At this moment, Toshisaburo also bowed to the wolf and apologized.
"I'm sorry, I'm rude! But please believe that he has no ill intentions!"
The "reckless" wolf facing the Iron Tomb was not angry. At this moment, he drew out the knife from his waist and looked at the black blade, which was covered with various scars. Those were the marks of his battles.
Kushimaru, the name of this katana, is the weapon given to Wolf by the current head of the Hirata family. The meaning contained in it was only fully understood in an instant when Wolf came to this world.
Even if you are a ninja who is destined to kill, can you not give up the last bit of compassion in your heart...
Master Jiulang... Have I really done what I have done now...
There was no response from the wolf, only the sound of the Kushimaru being unsheathed. Minshiro bent over and secretly looked up at the wolf, only to see the wolf staring at the Kushimaru in a daze.
Slowly standing up, Min Saburo hesitated for a moment, looked at the Iron Mound twitching on the ground, sighed, and then slowly walked towards the wolf.
The wolf naturally noticed Toshibaburo walking towards him and shifted his attention away from Kugimaru, wondering what Toshibaburo was going to do.
I saw Toshisaburo coming up to him, carefully taking out a key from his arms and handing it to the wolf.
"Here you go. Please lend me the knife to have a look!"
Toshisaburo took the key with some confusion, looked at it again and again, with a look of heartache on his face.
"What's this…"
"what?"