Chapter 145: About the Black-Haired Giant Loli Who Is Both Literary and Martial, Actually Being

"Of course, Ii-sama, please look favourably upon it."

Uesugi Toru extended his right hand, slowly spreading his five fingers before the girl's eyes.

Then he held his breath and concentrated, causing a small red flame to flicker from his fingertip, and manipulated his spirit power to make it dance in midair, stretching and extending.

Finally, it became the characters "Ii" outlined in flames, square and upright, illuminating the girl's dark pupils.

Next, fine lightning spread, gilding the flame characters with a shimmering border of thunder.

Ii Naomori felt the faint warmth sweeping toward her, gazing at the name woven from thunder and fire, and subconsciously wanted to reach out her fingertip to touch it and feel whether it was real.

Slap.

Uesugi Toru tightened his fingers, making the "Ii" floating at his fingertip disappear before the girl's finger arrived,

"This fire is no different from ordinary flames; touching it rashly will burn your hand."

Ii Naomori then reacted.

She drew back her fingertip, and with an embarrassed smile used it to tuck the strand of hair falling onto her forehead, saying,

"My apologies, Lord Toru's Yin-Yang Technique is truly exquisite, seeing the truth in the details; I couldn't help but be captivated."

This Ii Naomori... could read, and her vision wasn't bad either.

Simultaneously manipulating Basic Onmyo Technique and Five Thunder Technique: Kiai to form such a complex shape with spirit power at his fingertip—even Uesugi Toru was trying this for the first time.

And if he were not currently in the state of Four-Tailed Fox Incarnation, he would probably fail.

Because if his spirit power attribute wasn't high enough, his control over spirit power wouldn't be fine enough, and the Yin-Yang Technique would dissipate before the character was half-written.

Uesugi Toru withdrew his slightly numb palm, glancing at Shiraishi beside him, who had looked only twice before withdrawing her gaze, her expression unchanged.

—This showed that Shiraishi was illiterate and didn't understand the importance of controlling her own power.

He probably still crudely believed that more was better and bigger was beautiful, thinking this little flame paled compared to that bolt of thunder from exorcising demons two days ago.

That was the normal phenomenon.

Uesugi Toru turned his gaze, looking at Ii Naomori, who was propping up her chest with one hand and her chin with the other, smiling and staring at him.

—And this "Ii Naomori" before him had an abnormally broad vision.

Because she was a warrior!

Being literate was one thing.

But spirit power was an energy almost no one in this era could perceive, yet she could recognize at a glance that his skill in this was profound...

Uesugi Toru thought to himself:

This "Ii Naomori" was definitely not simple.

Ii Naomori stared fixedly at Uesugi Toru—precisely, at the Chief Priest Robe on his body.

Because staring at someone's face and eyes for a long time without permission was a very impolite act.

"—No matter what, I must make him my Imagawa Yoshimoto, or a retainer of the Imagawa Clan!"

She hadn't even noticed her smile was more exaggerated than usual, merely thinking slowly in her heart: "If he is unwilling to become a retainer, then equal cooperation is not impossible."

Through that trick just now, Ii Naomori...

No, now she should be called the First Bow of Tokaido, the only Great Daimyo in all Japan holding a million koku, Imagawa Yoshimoto.

Imagawa Yoshimoto had confirmed that this "Toru" was undoubtedly the Onmyoji who had not appeared for a long time, and his attainment in Yin-Yang Technique was absolutely not low.

Such a rare talent should only be befriended, and even if he could not be used for herself, he must absolutely not be made an enemy.

And now, on her side, it could be said... the one near the water gets the moon first.

However, this Lord Toru must have heard false rumors about her from somewhere, so his impression of her seemed not very good.

That was normal, this was truly too normal.

Because those fellows called Daimyo but were actually weaklings, whether in politics, economy, military, or agriculture and people's livelihood, could not compare to her at all.

So they could only use this despicable method, using rumors to smear her, adding a trivial obstacle on her road to becoming Tenka-bito.

But rumors would be no match for reality.

She, Imagawa Yoshimoto, would use actual actions to explain to the Toru before her what kind of wise lord the true "Imagawa Yoshimoto" was!

Absolutely would not let you escape from my palm!

After sorting out her thoughts, Imagawa Yoshimoto, with the corners of her mouth smiling, opened her mouth: "Lord Toru is indeed formidable; I suppose my lord will certainly be very happy after seeing you."

Uesugi Toru replied with a formulaic sentence, then chuckled in his heart.

—Compared to following Imagawa Yoshimoto, he would rather follow this girl before him whose identity was unknown but who was full marks in every aspect.

But considering that the Walking Watch required him to cause a greater impact on history, this choice had to be postponed for now.

Seeing that Uesugi Toru was not very interested, Imagawa Yoshimoto was not anxious.

She looked at the vast stretches of uncultivated wasteland outside the window lattice, pondering future reclamation and tax strategies while thinking about how to make Uesugi Toru fall for her.

Yes, correct.

Fall for her.

Imagawa Yoshimoto believed that in the relationship between retainer and lord, apart from interests, whether her personal charm could win over the retainers was also a very important link.

If the relationship with retainers was maintained only through benefits such as fiefs, rewards, or Breathing Techniques, then such a relationship would absolutely not be stable and lasting.

After all, "Gekokujo" was a tradition of the late Muromachi period.

Of course, the reverse was the same.

"Ii-sama, I am still quite curious about this Takechiyo who has undergone Genpuku."

Uesugi Toru asked suddenly: "Although Takechiyo wandered here as a hostage of his house, yet Lord Imagawa personally performed his Genpuku for him; he must be a person of talent."

He asked: "Therefore Toru wishes to ask, Ii-sama, how do you view him?"

—First probe from his mouth the image of the young form of the old turtle Tokugawa, and speed up his understanding of him.

If Tokugawa Ieyasu was not bad at this time, then there would be one more path when choosing in the future.

By the way, he could also try to pry some information about the "Four Extremities Breathing Technique" from him.

Although the possibility was low, if he could steal and learn it, it would definitely be able to fuse with his own Corona Breathing Technique, creating a brand new, super-powerful breathing technique.

Uesugi Toru was still very interested in this.

"Takechiyo, huh."

Imagawa Yoshimoto blinked and smiled: "Although his features are ordinary, and many people secretly say he won't amount to a Daimyo."

"But he actually has courage and resolve, and at this age has already accumulated no small amount of knowledge and wisdom; perhaps in the future he might become a Daimyo contending for Tenka, it's not impossible."

Her eye for people is this accurate?

Hearing these words, Uesugi Toru once again raised his estimation of this "Ii Naomori" a notch in his heart.

Because, the current Tokugawa Old Turtle was only just twelve years old, and even by traditional counting had only reached twelve... and he was merely a hostage being escorted to their house, used to threaten his clan.

It could be said his future held no brightness.

For this young woman to perceive part of Tokugawa Ieyasu's potential right now was truly no simple matter.

Shiraishi, sitting in the corner, listened to the two's conversation and only felt exceptionally bored.

But he didn't dare move recklessly, so he could only silently pick at his fingernails, watching the withered grass outside change crop after crop, lamenting that winter was about to arrive.

Fortunately, this year he met the Boss, so he didn't have to lie on the streets freezing anymore.

……

In less than half an hour, Uesugi Toru could clearly hear the surroundings becoming lively and noisy.

This warhorse-drawn carriage was different from ordinary rabbit-horses or packhorses; even pulling a wooden carriage box, its speed was faster by a large margin, let alone with two warhorses!

So not much time was needed before the carriage arrived at the outskirts of Sunpu Castle — at the entrance of the "Shichiken-cho" commercial district specially chosen by Imagawa Yoshimoto.

Shichiken-cho was a free trade zone that Imagawa Yoshimoto had deliberately demarcated within Sunpu Castle and focused on cultivating.

Every day, countless merchants from Kinai, Kanto, and even Nankaido traded lacquerware, swords, silk, grain, alcohol, and countless other types of goods here.

Deliberately choosing to enter the city from here was also because Imagawa Yoshimoto wanted to let Uesugi Toru see Sunpu Castle's prosperity.

To let him know that "under the rule of Imagawa Yoshimoto, rumored to be guilty of ten evils, there is also such a prosperous region."

Uesugi Toru peeked his gaze out from the window lattice with slight curiosity, and could see dense crowds of heads surging in waves.

"Quite a lot of people..."

The population density here, although far from comparable to the crossroads of Shibuya and Shinjuku in Genjitsu, was already about the same as an ordinary street in Arakawa Ward.

He slightly shifted his gaze again, and could see neat shop signs (storefronts) lined up from one end of the street to the other, and also see cloth banners (billboards) written with different kanji suspended in midair, fluttering in the wind.

So the commercial form of the Warring States period was already this mature.

Somewhat unexpected.

Due to entering the city, the carriage's speed also slowed down, allowing Uesugi Toru to clearly and carefully look over every shop.

Among them, he also saw more than one blacksmith shop with rows of weapons hung openly.

However, at a glance they were all dusty, ordinary weapons, nothing rare; even if given to him he'd hate that they took up backpack slots, and selling them by the catty might not even get Katsumi to buy them back.

There were also small shops selling grain and daily necessities; most of these shops clustered open together, similar to real estate agencies in Genjitsu, probably wanting to create a "scale effect"?

As he watched, Uesugi Toru suddenly discovered a strange point.

"Ii-sama," he asked, "why do I find that the scales used in different shops are all the same type?"

Hearing this question, the corner of Imagawa Yoshimoto's lips rose without a trace: "This is naturally the merit of Lord Yoshimoto's personal inspection."

"For the convenience of merchants and guests from five lakes and four seas to trade, Lord Yoshimoto specially established the 'Suruga Hakarime', unifying weights and measures, preventing the phenomenon of shortchanging, guaranteeing fairness and justice, thereby promoting commercial development."

Shiraishi, who hadn't spoken in a long time, stared tightly at the restaurant they had already passed, swallowing saliva as he said: "Imagawa... Lord is indeed formidable in this aspect."

He reluctantly looked back: "I've been to many countries, and only Nagoya Castle can compare with this place."

Nagoya Castle?

That big idiot of the Oda Clan's territory?

Imagawa Yoshimoto immediately retorted upon hearing this: "Shichiken-cho is far more formidable than that big idiot's Nagoya Castle; in the future I... ah no, Lord Yoshimoto is preparing to lower commercial taxes by another twenty percent."

"At the same time."

She raised a finger: "Lord Yoshimoto also wants to consolidate those complex taxes as much as possible, greatly reducing complexity, to improve merchant liquidity."

Hah?

This is something Imagawa Yoshimoto could do?

Hearing these words, Uesugi Toru couldn't help but want to type out question marks; the encyclopedia says Imagawa Yoshimoto was a pleasure-seeking fellow, and moreover died because of it.

Since he sought pleasure, he must spend large amounts of money.

But now Imagawa Yoshimoto actually bears to let so much money slip through his fingers, this is too unrealistic.

Uesugi Toru gazed at the prosperous commercial district, unable to help falling into deep thought.

— Which side is real, I can't tell, really can't tell!

Touching on the matter of her own territory, Imagawa Yoshimoto subconsciously continued speaking along the lines of commerce and agriculture,

"As for agricultural tax, let's maintain the status quo.

Mm... this is also a helpless matter; recently Lord Yoshimoto discovered the surrounding regions are stirring restlessly; if agricultural tax is reduced, not only will military funds decrease, but the instability of many places will also increase.

Although there are benefits, the harms are greater."

After Imagawa Yoshimoto finished this long string of words, she discovered Uesugi Toru and Shiraishi both looked at her in unspoken agreement.

These gazes were respectively saying "How do you know so much"!?

"Ahaha... these were all things Lord Yoshimoto said in a meeting a few days ago."

Imagawa Yoshimoto lifted her chin, showing them a sincere smile: "I memorized these contents without missing a single word."

Hearing this, Uesugi Toru first sighed in admiration in his heart, then asked,

"Ii-sama, is it really okay to tell us these things?"

"Naturally unobstructed." Imagawa Yoshimoto held a finger to her lips with a faint smile. "These are all shallow thoughts; putting them into practice still requires who knows how many changes and overcoming how many obstacles."

Uesugi Toru nodded, but out of the corner of his eye he suddenly caught sight of several women dressed revealingly, exposing large patches of snow-white skin, standing at a shop doorway.

Such a shop operating openly on the main street? Surely not...

He was about to ask Imagawa Yoshimoto what the shop was for, but before he could speak, Uesugi Toru felt it might not be appropriate.

So he looked at Shiraishi.

Shiraishi raised his head, met Uesugi Toru's gaze for an instant and understood his meaning, so together they tilted their heads to look out the window lattice.

Then he turned back and said softly: "Kujira-ya, Kujira-ya, boss, it's a place selling alcohol at outrageous prices and doing that kind of thing..."

Shiraishi said, slightly changing his hand gesture, then gave Uesugi Toru a "you know what I mean" smile.

Imagawa Yoshimoto blinked, said nothing, and pretended not to see.

Uesugi Toru, at lightning speed, lightly struck Shiraishi's head with a hand chop, and sighed.

He almost said, "Kid, didn't you see there's someone else beside you!"

But this also reminded Uesugi Toru that similar industries in the Warring States period were not only legal but highly developed, and sometimes even many noble court gentlemen would go there to seek pleasure.

Shiraishi, having been struck on the head for no reason, naturally glared back angrily.

Uesugi Toru likewise understood his gaze—"It's because you, boss, told me to say it!"

"You two need not be like this; this is just a very ordinary entertainment venue."

Imagawa Yoshimoto's expression hardly changed, and she said calmly: "Most merchants arriving at Sunpu Castle have traveled long distances and earned quite a bit here; releasing a little pressure is normal, and not a topic that cannot be discussed."

The girl kicked Uesugi Toru's leg with her foot below and said softly: "Boss, look how generous she is, then look at you..."

Uesugi Toru had indeed not expected this reaction from the girl.

He had thought that Imagawa Yoshimoto, a young lady of such an obvious buke noble family, would at least be slightly angered upon hearing such things, or at worst put on a cold face.

Nodding toward Imagawa Yoshimoto, Uesugi Toru immediately saw several equally extraordinary warhorse carriages not far away heading in the same direction as them.

These people are all here to attend today's Genpuku Ceremony?

—I didn't expect Tokugawa the old turtle to still be underage and yet receive such attention.

The history of this Japanese Warring States period where everyone has a say is indeed not very believable!

Although the distance the carriage traveled within Sunpu Castle was short, the time spent was longer than before entering the city.

But no matter how slow, the carriage finally arrived at one of Imagawa Yoshimoto's current residences, the place where Takechiyo's Genpuku would be held today—the Imagawa Residence.

Imagawa Yoshimoto still pushed open the carriage door first, letting the two alight before she herself gracefully stepped down wearing geta.

Upon seeing her alight, the two armored samurai who had been specially stationed at the side gate and had already been informed bowed their heads to her,

"Adult Ii."

Hearing this title, Uesugi Toru turned back doubtfully to look at the girl.

Could she really be Ii Naomori?

Damn, it's too strange that in history a big, rough man of the five great and three coarse is actually accomplished in both literary and martial arts, and has maxed out the art of judging people, being a super beautiful black-haired giant loli.

"You two, please follow me."

Imagawa Yoshimoto nodded to the two who were slightly bowing, causing the faces of the strictly trained samurai on both sides to stiffen slightly.

Without another word, Uesugi Toru followed behind Imagawa Yoshimoto, entering this Imagawa Residence which was more grand and more exquisite than all other buildings he had seen since entering the Warring States period.

The picturesque gardens, the lifelike reliefs, and various clever design touches all showed that the Imagawa Residence was not the home of a nouveau riche, but the ancient manor of the Imagawa clan, passed down for a long time.

But if nothing unexpected happened, the Imagawa Residence should become Tokugawa Ieyasu's "Suruga Exorcism" within a few decades.

Shiraishi dared not say a word, and couldn't even force a smile.

He felt that everyone here was looking at him with strange eyes, as if they would draw their swords and chop off his head at the slightest disagreement.

Better to stick close to the boss...

The two followed behind Imagawa Yoshimoto to a relatively quiet Side Hall.

Imagawa Yoshimoto slid open the door, and upon seeing the tea utensils she had ordered prepared before going out already neatly arranged, she smiled faintly.

She made a gesture of invitation: "Please sit, both of you. There is still not a short time before Takechiyo's Genpuku Ceremony begins; please wait a moment."

The girl knelt before the tea utensils and said to the two sitting opposite at the small zitan wood table: "Before that, let me brew a cup of tea for both of you."

After speaking, Imagawa Yoshimoto pinched the tea scoop between her thumb and index finger, and skillfully took a spoonful of matcha of just the right amount from the antique tea jar beside her.

After precisely dividing it into two portions and pouring it into two tea bowls, the girl then ladled hot water, pouring the hot water like a shining oil pillar along the bowl wall into the tea bowls.

Next, Imagawa Yoshimoto picked up the chasen—a wooden brush-like tool for mixing matcha and hot water.

Then she stirred with the chasen, and within just a few seconds prepared two cups of rich, hot tea with even and enticing color, not a single bubble appearing.

The whole process was smooth and flowing, without the slightest hesitation or stagnation, perfectly interpreting to Uesugi Toru what the charm of the Tea Ceremony was.

If before today anyone had told him that flower arrangement or the Tea Ceremony had any reason to exist, Uesugi Toru would surely have laughed heartily and disbelieved it in his heart.

But now...

Uesugi Toru gazed at the serene and elegant girl before him, whose spirit was highly focused, smelled the rich fragrance of the matcha, and felt that the Tea Ceremony was not bad after all.

At least, if the "Ii Naomori" before him had even hesitated, or her hand had trembled for a moment, it would be absolutely impossible to prepare this matcha which in his view could be called perfect.

Uesugi Toru couldn't help but sigh: "The Tea Ceremony is also a form of cultivation."

Upon hearing this, Imagawa Yoshimoto was stunned for a moment, and her smile couldn't help but rise by two points: "What Lord Toru says is correct."

Moreover, during the entire tea-making process, Imagawa Yoshimoto did not fixedly follow the original complex steps of the Tea Ceremony.

Such as requiring the two to do certain things, using the tea bowl to rinse the water temperature, wiping the tea utensils with a cloth, and so on and so forth.

Imagawa Yoshimoto lifted her sleeve, pushed the two bowls of tea out evenly, withdrew her hand and lowered her head,

"Please."

"Then I shall not stand on ceremony."

Uesugi Toru nodded at her, reached out to grip the tea bowl, and after feeling the temperature was right, he directly tipped it into his mouth.

He drained it in one gulp!

In an instant, Uesugi Toru felt the rich tea fragrance rush straight to his crown, and the warm coolness made his five senses involuntarily sharpen.

If attributes below 1 point could trigger prompts, Uesugi Toru estimated such a prompt would appear before his eyes right now—

【Because you drank tea, Will Attribute +0.1】

He slammed the tea bowl onto the table and couldn't help but exclaim,

"Good tea!"

Shiraishi, who was preparing to teach Uesugi Toru how to drink tea, twitched his forehead and thought to himself, This is bad.

These noble samurai adults care most about etiquette, especially women... judging by his boss's bold drinking style, he was sure to make her furious!

But unexpectedly, when Shiraishi turned his gaze, he saw Imagawa Yoshimoto across the table cheerfully say,

"It is my honor."

Hah?!

Shiraishi stood frozen like stone until Imagawa Yoshimoto's gaze swept over, then he hurriedly picked up the tea bowl, wanting to send the tea into his mouth.

The girl saw his embarrassment and explained,

"—The so-called tea ceremony, at least fundamentally, is a way of brewing tea to please oneself and one's guests."

Imagawa Yoshimoto nodded at Shiraishi: "So please do not cling to those fixed etiquette and forms."

Shiraishi silently put down the tea bowl right before his eyes, lowered his gaze, and thought this beautiful woman was completely unlike the young lady in his impression.

Shouldn't it be like that?

At this moment, the shadow of a maid bowing toward the room appeared at the doorway.

Then a voice came: "Adult, the Genpuku Ceremony is about to begin."

Imagawa Yoshimoto stopped the motion of brewing a second bowl of tea for them, stood up, and slightly bowed: "Sorry, Lord Toru, I may have to leave first."

Uesugi Toru: "Understandable."

"Lord Toru, a specialist will come to notify you before the Genpuku Ceremony begins; please come to watch the ceremony then."

The girl twisted her waist and walked slowly toward the door, but just as she was about to open it, she turned back.

She raised her index finger before her vivid lips, revealing a sly and expectant smile: "Please be sure to come; there might be some unexpected surprise."

The words fell.

Without waiting for Uesugi Toru to think and answer, the figure of "Ii Naomori" disappeared from his sight.

End of Chapter