Chapter 151: Otherworlder Toru, Famous for a Time Along the Tokaido, Oboro Moon Hall's Probe (6.8k)

The next moment, the entries and pages that popped up were no different from before Uesugi Toru entered the Warring States Period.

Looking from the outside, of course, nothing could be seen, after all, there was only a mere 0.5% History Change Degree.

Uesugi Toru clicked on the top entry, entered the detailed encyclopedia page, and silently scanned it word by word.

As soon as he entered, Uesugi Toru could see that Imagawa Yoshimoto still suffered defeat at Okehazama, defeated by Oda Nobunaga's army.

Afterwards, the Imagawa Clan was destroyed, divided by former allies and subordinates, and then replaced by Tokugawa Ieyasu's Tokugawa clan.

After the Battle of Okehazama, history seemed to have changed nothing.

"Hongzhi Year 2..."

Uesugi Toru muttered this time, then found his target.

There were only two lines of text.

【1556 (Hongzhi Year 2), Imagawa Yoshimoto held a Genpuku Ceremony for Takechiyo (the later Tokugawa Ieyasu) at Sunpu Castle, when an Otherworlder named Toru used Thunder Technique to exorcise demons, becoming famous throughout the Tokaido for a time.】

【11】【Afterward, Otherworlder Toru suddenly disappeared, and Imagawa Yoshimoto shut himself away for half a month without coming out.】

After the outsider Toru vanished abruptly, Imagawa Yoshimoto shut himself away for half a month and did not emerge.

Afterwards, it was again unchanged history such as Imagawa Yoshimoto suppressing the Mikawa rebellion and Taigen Sessai dying.

Uesugi Toru stared at the four words "suddenly disappeared" for a while.

If he really vanished without reason before Imagawa Yoshimoto's eyes, she would indeed be troubled for a while, then send people to search for him.

Uesugi Toru flipped through the encyclopedia for a good while, and after confirming there were no third changes, closed his mobile phone and looked at the blood-colored History Key still awaiting use in his Storage Backpack.

Fortunately, the story was only paused, far from over.

And once the various affairs of the present world were temporarily settled, presumably he would become even stronger than now.

Uesugi Toru slightly composed his mood, listening to the mechanical female voice repeating the broadcast beside his ear, then stood up and summoned Big Hand Adult to the train door.

Yokohama City, they had arrived.

Uesugi Toru and Big Hand Adult, who carried no luggage and were not overly modest, were still the first to get off the train.

Almost only after they reached the escalator did the Shinkansen behind them silently and slowly surge out a crowd of people.

Uesugi Toru withdrew his gaze, thinking that this escalator area would probably be packed to bursting soon.

He had just brought Big Hand Adult out of the station hall with huge foot traffic, intending to ask Shizuma Manatsu on Line where Oboro Moon Hall was located.

Then Uesugi Toru actually saw Nanjo Ai at the station exit, leaning against the doorway smoking.

Even though the other person was over a hundred meters away and hadn't even turned around, Uesugi Toru could recognize her at a glance.

Because this back view was simply too familiar to him.

As for why Nanjo Ai could smoke in broad daylight without passersby noticing, it was naturally because she used Yin-Yang Technique capable of "Life Hack" effects.

Previously, Nanjo Ai had boldly sat in a barbecue restaurant eating barbecue without being recognized, also using Yin-Yang Technique regarding cognitive obstruction.

Only, although this kind of Yin-Yang Technique could do all sorts of strange things, its effects were usually weak and only worked on ordinary people.

"I remember Manatsu said earlier that Nanjo Sister was sleeping on the train, right?"

Uesugi Toru pulled Big Hand Adult, who was licking the ice cream just bought at the station, and blinked puzzledly: "They arrived so fast? And they can even lock onto my position?"

On the way over, Uesugi Toru couldn't figure it out, and could only attribute it to the Special Affairs Division's big hand exerting influence.

After all, for Nanjo Ai, these materials were at most a matter of moving a finger or flapping her lips.

Leading Big Hand Adult out of the station, Uesugi Toru's footsteps paused slightly, looking at Nanjo Ai who had just finished smoking a cigarette.

He suddenly closed his mouth, swallowing the words he had originally wanted to say.

The latter, however, raised her head and responded to him indifferently: "Long time no see, Uesugi-kun."

Uesugi Toru did not reply, but first pretended to take out Demon Essence from his pocket, preparing to hand it to Big Hand Adult.

——This was also why he had previously agreed to let her eat such expensive ice cream at the station.

"It's strawberry-flavored?"

Uesugi Toru exclaimed in surprise, never expecting that a meat ball with such an indescribable appearance could emit a faint strawberry fragrance.

He placed the sticky meat ball in the hands of the girl who clearly showed a resistant expression: "Big Hand, this is for you to eat; eating it all can speed up your promotion."

"Mm..."

Big Hand Adult first hurriedly moved her hand away.

If Toru-sama hadn't just said those words, she would have unhesitatingly thrown this thing into the roadside grass, sewer, or trash can.

But soon, Big Hand Adult strangely discovered that the meat ball in her hand had not a hint of fishy smell.

Instead, it was like the strawberry jelly she had just eaten—the only difference being that the jelly was room temperature, while the meat ball in her hand was chilled.

Uesugi Toru saw Big Hand Adult move the Demon Essence in front of her and begin preparing herself mentally to eat it, then turned back, placing his gaze on Nanjo Ai before his eyes.

More precisely, it was "Nanjo Ai".

Because standing before his eyes was a disguise who looked exactly like Nanjo Ai, wore her work uniform exactly the same, and even faked her daily small movements exactly the same.

He just silently stared at "Nanjo Ai", saying nothing, ready to draw his sword at any moment.

The latter really couldn't stand being stared at by him, clicked her tongue, and threw the remaining box of mint cigarettes from her pocket over: "How did you discover it?"

Uesugi Toru heard this tone that was neither nervous nor murderous, narrowed his eyes, searched his memory for a while, and confirmed a name.

——"Kuzuha Chihaya".

Oboro Moon Hall's second disciple, and also his strongest opponent on paper in this Shinken Shiai, especially skilled in transformation, disguise, stealth, and assassination.

"——Because you don't have the aura of a strong person."

Uesugi Toru replied lightly: "If you disguised yourself as someone else, such as Shizuma Manatsu or an ordinary staff member, you might be able to deceive me, but Nanjo Ai cannot."

He gazed at the woman lost in thought and pointed out: "Such an obvious matter, you would understand if you contacted her in person for ten days or half a month."

"Rushed into battle without proper research... this is truly, losing face for an adult~"

Kuzuha Chihaya sighed, and using some unknown method, suddenly changed from the appearance of "Nanjo Ai" back to herself before Uesugi Toru's eyes.

Golden, silky hair fell onto the eye-catching evening gown.

Kuzuha Chihaya smiled cheerfully, curving her lips at him: "I take back what I said earlier, Uesugi-kun, you're actually kind of interesting."

As her words fell, a slender white snake flicked its tongue, slowly slithering out from a seam in the gown at her chest, staring coldly at Uesugi Toru with those scarlet vertical pupils.

"Hmph!"

The two-shaku-tall adult, cheeks stuffed full, stepped in front of Uesugi Toru, glaring back at the white snake without the slightest intention of backing down.

Seeing her like this, Kuzuha Chihaya laughed until she shook, unable to help clutching her abdomen: "Hahaha, is this your shikigami, Uesugi-kun? So small and cute?"

"I'll return those words to you."

Uesugi Toru raised his eyes slightly, revealing no extra expression.

This woman... there was no doubt she had come to probe and intimidate before the duel.

Although he didn't know how Kuzuha Chihaya had learned his schedule, regardless, he had no need to give her any extra pleasantries.

Even.

Uesugi Toru recalled Nanjo Ai's previous warning.

— If Kuzuha Chihaya confirmed he truly had no strength, she might attempt to act early and end the Shinken Shiai outside the arena.

Perhaps her turning into Nanjo Ai just now was for this purpose.

Kuzuha Chihaya didn't care at all about Uesugi Toru's cold face.

"Uesugi-kun, actually I quite like your face and build."

She licked her lips, bent at the waist to reveal her deep, pale cleavage, and waved the Line QR code on her phone at Uesugi Toru, asking softly,

"So, want to add Line now, and before the match find a place to open a battle and have some deep communication?"

Uesugi Toru felt the surface of his Mirror of the Mind mental state ripple faintly, and waved his hand flatly: "No need."

Wanting to bewitch me with this bit of third-rate charm arts, who do you look down on.

Kuzuha Chihaya froze slightly, not expecting Uesugi Toru to refuse so cleanly and decisively... looks like his mental cultivation isn't weak.

And to possess such a mental state at this age.

She silently raised Uesugi Toru's danger rating another notch in her heart.

Then Kuzuha Chihaya, as if performing magic, produced a car key that looked expensive at a glance and waved it before Uesugi Toru's eyes,

"Uesugi-kun, want to come with me? Oboro Moon Hall's location isn't easy to find, you know."

Facing Kuzuha Chihaya's repeated pestering, Uesugi Toru finally couldn't help pulling out his phone, opening the location Shizuma Manatsu had just sent, and frowned:

"— Don't underestimate the power of technology, Big Sister!"

B-Big Sister?!

Kuzuha Chihaya's eyebrow twitched, and she snorted at him: "I'm only twenty-six, you brat! What Big Sister!"

"I'm eighteen, isn't it normal to call a twenty-six-year-old Big Sister?"

Uesugi Toru countered: "Or do you think I should call you Auntie or Grandma?"

Kuzuha Chihaya's chest heaved with anger, and even the white snake's eyes turned fierce.

She laughed coldly twice: "Good, very good, Uesugi Toru. I want to see if you can still say such things when I'm stepping on you in the arena."

With that, Kuzuha Chihaya gave a cold snort, turned with the car key, and walked away.

Before long, a bright red supercar deliberately drifted past Uesugi Toru, kicking up a cloud of dust, and roared off into the distance.

Uesugi Toru, who knew nothing about cars, didn't pay it much mind; instead he looked at the top of the two-shaku adult's head, wanting to see what changes occurred after she ate the yokai essence.

Uesugi Toru's eyes brightened.

A shiny buff had actually appeared on top of the two-shaku adult's head.

【Promotion Acceleration: For the next one month, in this promotion, the Eight Shaku Figure's promotion speed is additionally increased by 30%.】

Directly cutting off roughly one-third of the promotion time, this yokai essence's effect is indeed not bad.

And the two-shaku adult was still sucking her fingers after eating, showing this meat-ball-like yokai essence tastes quite good.

The two-shaku adult likewise watched the red supercar disappear in an instant, lifted her hat brim to look at the sun in the sky for a while, and asked: "Toru-sama, then how do we get there?"

She pointed at the phone showing a full forty to fifty kilometers of distance.

"That's obviously subway plus bus." Uesugi Toru patted her head, saying earnestly, "Although we don't have to worry about money for now, we still need to understand frugality, okay, two-shaku adult."

The two-shaku adult understood — this meant he wasn't willing to spend extra meters on a taxi.

"Mhm! Toru-sama is awesome!"

She gave Uesugi Toru a big thumbs up, then with a whoosh dove back into the Jizo statue to cool off.

Seeing the two-shaku adult who agreed verbally but whose body was very honest vanish in a flash, Uesugi Toru shook his head helplessly.

He glanced at the crows standing on the pitch-black power lines in the distance, and walked toward the nearest subway station on the map.

Meanwhile, in front of the Oboro Moon Hall Dojo.

A bread van that had undergone who knows how many repairs and modifications came to a slow stop, inching into the empty parking lot where only a few cars were parked, and after a strange rumbling sound, the engine died.

Car doors opened one after another, and everyone jumped down from the overloaded bread van.

Shizuma Manatsu, who had driven for several hours, yawned, stuffed the car key into her inner lining pocket, confirmed her zipper was up, then got out to open the passenger seat door.

Shigemitsu Yusuke gazed at the huge dojo towering before him, subconsciously let out an exclamation of admiration, hand on the sword hilt at his waist feeling a bit itchy.

Shizuku, wearing a hood and mask, got out silently.

She first unobtrusively scanned the abnormally numerous crows in the surroundings with her peripheral vision, then raised her head and silently looked at the sky, eyes narrowing slightly.

Maki Hitomi got out with the nervous Hattori Ayako.

He likewise didn't speak, merely observing the environment for a moment before silently staring at those crows.

The latter looked very honest, head down aimlessly scrolling on her phone, seeming very nervous.

Only Nure in the trunk and the three Special Affairs Bureau staff were still holding their phones, oblivious to the world outside the windows, all four expressions quite serious.

Nanjo Ai, just awake and still rubbing her eyes, had barely opened the trunk when the "serious" chatter spilled out:

"Two-second circle shrink! I said two-second circle shrink, are you deaf! Stop getting poisoned and losing health!"

"Quiet, quiet! This is critical! Don't make noise!"

"Nure, where's your lightning, throw lightning to force their positioning! Do you know how to play!"

"Don't call... bro, one down, I'm telling you to sprint! Sprint! Rush them hard!"

Nanjo Ai: "..."

The four's energetic chatter instantly woke her up.

Shizuma Manatsu stood behind her, looked at Nanjo Ai's face full of black lines, then at the four completely immersed in the final circle, and wisely shut her mouth.

Until all four let out incomparably satisfied English screams, Nanjo Ai, who had stood watching at the back for a good while, finally spoke:

"Nure, you still had so many items in your hand just now, you shouldn't have taken that gunfight, if you'd died I'd be getting an earful."

Nure, who had just screenshotted a picture, propped her hands on her knees and sneered: "We fucking won and you're still reviewing! Review my ass!"

But after a good while, Nure discovered no one around was picking up her line, and her vision suddenly brightened more than once.

This meant the other three guys were no longer sitting beside her.

Nure shivered hard, immediately closed her phone and turned back prayerfully, only to still discover Nanjo Ai smiling at her.

And the Special Affairs Bureau staff in black suits, standing in a row behind her like markers, unsmiling.

"M... Master."

Nure used her black hair to self-deceivingly block her own vision, then revealed a bitter melon crying face underneath.

Done for, this is bad.

— Watching Nanjo Ai put Nure from the van's trunk away, Akatsuki Ran, who had also waited a good while, took the lollipop from her mouth and asked lightly,

"Nanjo Daimyo, did they finish that game?"

Nanjo Ai lowered her head to the dark-circled girl still wearing the weird color-block hoodie: "Sorry to have kept Akatsuki-sama waiting."

Akatsuki Ran waved a hand: "Not at all. Though I rarely play games, I know this type of game can't just be paused."

"Since that's the case, let me lead everyone to settle in first."

She spoke, deliberately waiting until Nanjo Ai had gathered everyone before walking toward the dojo interior.

Naturally, taking this time Akatsuki Ran also deliberately observed the others besides Nanjo Ai.

Among them, the boy with a sword at his waist had a decent breathing technique, could barely last a few exchanges; the other, who should be Kitano Runa, was asleep with a niche new anime playing on her phone, interesting.

Beyond that, there didn't seem to be anyone else needing her attention.

"Speaking of, Tokugawa Ririko didn't come? I'm really a bit curious about her."

Akatsuki Ran muttered in her heart, gaze sweeping past that ordinary person in a hood and mask beside her, then scanning the main group several times, finding nothing.

Everyone entered the dojo's outer area, hung with the ancient "Oboro Moon Hall" plaque.

The dojo was extremely spacious, even the weapon racks in the corners held various cold weapons of different sizes and lengths, provided for anyone to use freely.

And besides the basic dojo, the supporting facilities were all present, one could see Oboro Moon Hall must once have had countless disciples, incomparably glorious.

Now it was deserted, not a single figure to be seen besides the guide Akatsuki Ran.

Akechi Yusuke sighed "so big" a few more times, then asked puzzled: "Akatsuki-san, may I ask where we'll be staying?"

Akatsuki Ran answered concisely: "Underground."

Just as she opened the dojo's hidden door intending to lead the Arakawa Ward group toward the underground, a sports car's drifting tire screech came from outside.

Then Kuzuha Chihaya, with her full head of eye-catching blonde hair, came rushing in energetically.

Akatsuki Ran poked her head out, and upon discovering only she had returned, asked puzzled: "Second Senior Sister, where's Uesugi Toru?"

She frowned slightly: "Master told you to go bring him back, we have to fulfill the host's duty at least, right?"

Slap.

Kuzuha Chihaya pressed her palms together, bowed her head to her: "Sorry Ran-chan, I saw that Uesugi Toru and thought he was pretty good, so I couldn't help but play with him a little."

Kuzuha Chihaya seemed to recall something, so her expression turned cold.

She sighed casually,

"Result was, when I tried to bring him over later, he sternly refused."

Akatsuki Ran's brows furrowed tight, sensing several gazes from behind: "Then where is Uesugi Toru now?"

"No need to worry about that." Kuzuha Chihaya's gaze unconsciously paused on Nanjo Ai for a moment, "He said he has positioning, he'll make his way over."

Seeing Akatsuki Ran about to flare up in front of so many people, Kuzuha Chihaya simply put an arm around her and walked toward the underground passage, then waved at the Arakawa Ward group to follow.

"Second Senior Sister I won't let you brush it off..."

"Ran-chan, that Uesugi Toru doesn't seem as weak as everyone imagines, so be careful when you go up first, don't get flipped in one move."

Crack.

Akatsuki Ran bit the lollipop in her mouth to pieces, her dead fish eyes wrapped in dark circles shifting slightly,

"Second Senior Sister, you and Little Crow don't need to set an alarm that day, just watch whether I beat him until he kneels on the ground and can't get up."

"Hehe, I'm looking forward to it."

Kuzuha Chihaya rubbed her face with her chest, then continued: "Also, the Referee and Audience have already arrived some, so you better not pull those underhanded little tricks before going on stage."

"Those words should be me saying them to you, Second Senior Sister."

Akatsuki Ran broke free from her senior sister's embrace.

Standing at the end of the long corridor, she turned back slightly in greeting: "Nanjo Daimyo, please follow me."

Kuzuha Chihaya laughed and walked the other way, blowing a flying kiss at the expressionless Akatsuki Ran: "Then I'll go change first, see you tonight Ran-chan!"

Akatsuki Ran was unmoved, simply leading the way ahead.

"The dojo's underground... can it really be made this big?"

Shigemitsu Yusuke, coming down from the mountain for the first time, opened his mouth wide and looked toward the signpost beside him: "Arena, Training Ground, Guest House, Dormitory, Water Prison..."

"Huh?"

He paused for a moment, then subconsciously asked, "Miss Akatsuki, why are there prison cells here?"

"——To imprison yokai that still have temporary value for use."

Akatsuki Ran's weak voice came faintly: "Our Oboro Moon Hall has been a dojo that lives by hunting yokai from the very beginning."

"Oh, oh!"

Shigemitsu Yusuke quickly nodded his head, unable to help but exclaim, "It sounds truly great!"

Akatsuki Ran did not respond to this, merely explaining to them where they could go and where they could not go as guests.

In the line behind, Hattori Ayako touched the mark on her neck and murmured puzzledly, "Why does Isohime seem to have no vitality at all since she came in..."

"——That's normal."

Shizuku, who happened to be walking beside her, replied, "Because Isohime's sensing ability is very powerful, and she can sense that there are existences far more powerful and more evil than her in this dojo."

Hattori Ayako, who had not expected anyone to answer her, was startled, and then she quickly nodded toward Shizuku,

"Um, thank you for the answer!"

Seeing her like that, Shizuku glanced again at Nanjo Ai at the front who was even in the mood to drink Coca-Cola: "But you don't need to worry, with Nanjo Sister around, no accidents will happen."

"Huh?" Hattori Ayako blinked, leaned over and asked in a low voice, "By the way, is Nanjo Major Officer really as formidable as the rumors say? I feel she's quite like an ordinary person..."

Hearing this, Shizuku couldn't help but curl the corners of her lips beneath her mask.

Who would have thought it was already May, and yet someone would still doubt Nanjo Ai's strength.

Shizuku retorted, "On the day of the Red Tide, you weren't there, were you?"

"I happened to leave Arakawa Ward that day..."

"Then you were truly lucky." Shizuku explained, "Actually, Arakawa Ward was not destroyed because Nanjo Sister was there."

"Is it that serious!?"

Hattori Ayako couldn't help but exclaim aloud, drawing Akatsuki Ran's curiosity at the front.

——Indeed, is Nanjo Ai really that strong?

Although she felt absurdly strong, capable of slapping herself to death, Akatsuki Ran felt Nanjo Ai was at best evenly matched with her own master.

Slaying Ai Parting Li alone... her master probably couldn't do that either.

While listening, she kept muttering in her heart, and after arranging accommodations for everyone in Arakawa Ward, she took out her mobile phone and sent a message to her junior disciple Crow Takes Time Rain.

【Ran: When is that Uesugi Toru arriving? If he's any later, I won't wait anymore, he'll be disturbing my post-meal exercise.】

【When it rains, the sky is weeping: Arrived.】

"You have reached your destination."

Uesugi Toru, nearly addled by the artificial intelligence navigation, raised his head and finally saw this dojo covering a vast area before him.

Oboro Moon Hall, it should be here.

He continued to leave the two-foot Adult used to deceive opponents by his side, then began circling around the outer area of the dojo, looking for the entrance.

As a result, Uesugi Toru circled several times but could not find the entrance.

It was all walls, which completely baffled him.

He stopped his steps, causing the two-foot Adult behind to bump straight into his thigh.

——He always felt that this dojo was like a living creature.

"There's really no good way..."

After all, as a guest coming for friendly martial arts exchange, he couldn't smash through someone else's walls; that would be far too uncultured.

Uesugi Toru thought it over and over, and still looked toward the distant rows of crows that were perched on the power lines, staring fixedly at him.

"You've been tailing me all the way, really taking others for blind."

He narrowed his eyes, and his figure vanished from the spot in an instant.

And when Uesugi Toru returned to the spot a few seconds later, he had already grabbed a crow that was cawing, desperately flapping its wings, trying to fly away from his palm.

Uesugi Toru gazed into the crow's pitch-black pupils, slowly curled the corners of his mouth toward it, and revealed a kind smile,

"Hello."

End of Chapter