It is common sense in the world that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. It was about six o'clock in the afternoon, and the sun had half pushed and half moved to the western skyline.
After using all his strength to shine out strands of the sunset that still made people feel hot and humid, it finally slowly sank to the ground.
The sun goes down and the night falls.
It is a sunny day tonight, and the moonlight illuminates every street in Osaka as if it were daytime.
"Oh." As Mach stirred the soup in the large pot in front of him with a huge spoon, he turned to look at the moon outside the window and exclaimed, "Tonight is the night of the full moon. The moon is so beautiful."
"Miss A-Machi." A-Zhu, who was sitting opposite A-Machi, said at this time, "The radish has been cut."
"Okay." A-Machi returned his gaze to the cauldron in front of him, "Here, give me the white radish."
Ogata was sitting by the window at this time, arranging his slightly messy bun.
After arranging his hair neatly, he picked up the knife beside him and stood up slowly.
"Then I'm going to get the knife." Ogata hung the two cheap ones that were used to temporarily replace Da Shiten and Da Zi Zai back on his left waist.
"Yeah. Remember to go and come back soon." Amachi said as he put the daikon cut by Azuki into the pot. "The hoe-yaki will be ready in a while, but don't make us wait too long."
oh."
"Don't worry. According to my estimation, when I get the knife back, your hoe roast will probably not be cooked yet."
Hoe-yaki is one of Japan's classic dishes.
It has a more familiar name: Sukiyaki.
The so-called hoe-yaki can be understood as Japanese hot pot.
This dish first originated from the peasant class. For the convenience of eating, farmers often put the food directly on the hoe and then grilled it and eaten it, hence the name "hoe roast".
With the passage of time, this rough dish originally created by the peasant class gradually spread and became popular. Until today's Kanzheng period, Hoeyaki has become a famous dish loved by all classes.
"You should be careful," Ogata said sternly, "don't burn down other people's hotels."
"Don't worry." Ating shook the big spoon in her hand, "We won't make this kind of mistake."
Tonight, Ogata and the others decided to eat hoe-yaki in their hotel room.
Since arriving in Osaka, Ogata and the others have eaten every meal at various restaurants outside the hotel.
Although the food in each restaurant is delicious, for some reason, until today, Ogata and the others have not come across a restaurant that cooks hoe-yaki to their liking.
Ogata's feelings towards hot pot are neither good nor bad. Whether he eats delicious hoe-yaki or not is just an insignificant matter to Ogata.
But A-Machi and A-Zhu don't think so.
Hoe-yaki is one of the favorite foods of these two kunoichi. Especially Atachi, she has an unusual feeling for hoe-yaki.
Amachi really likes the feeling of gathering around a big pot with his friends, chatting happily while cooking food in the pot together.
Tomorrow morning, they will leave Osaka and head for Mount Koya with Genichi, Makimura and the others.
Starting from tomorrow, and probably for a long time in the future, they will no longer have the conditions to sit quietly and happily eat hoeshao together.
So at noon today, Atachi proposed: Tonight, let’s eat hoe yaki together in the hotel!
As soon as Atachi made this suggestion, Atzuki immediately expressed his agreement.
Faced with such an enthusiastic Atachi, Ogata naturally couldn't find any reason to refute her. He was a person who didn't pay much attention to eating, so he agreed.
In the afternoon, it took a long time for Ogata, Amachi, and Azuki to convince the people at the hotel to allow them to set up pots and cook hoe yaki in the room.
Originally, they wanted to call Feng Mo over, and the four of them would have a lively meal together.
But it's a pity that Fuma already has an appointment tonight. He will have dinner at the home of his old subordinate: Senbei tonight.
When it comes to cooking, Ogata is a complete dabbler. He can only cook food to make it edible, but cannot cook food to taste.
Therefore, Ogata, who knew that he could not help much by staying in the hotel, decided to go to the second master at this time to get his Great Release and Great Freedom back.
Today is the day he and Master Yu Er agreed to take out the sword.
Ogata had been waiting for this day for a long time.
He couldn't wait to see how well Master Yu Er had repaired his sword.
Ogata had originally planned to go get the knife tonight, so it was the right time to go get the knife while Azuki and the two were cooking Hoe-yaki in Atachi.
When they took the knife back, Atachi and the others had probably almost finished cooking the hoe, making the most of their time.
Although he knew that A-Machi was not the kind of fool who could set the house on fire just by cooking, but for the sake of caution, Ogata still seriously warned A-Machi and A-Zhu to be careful with the use of fire.
After finishing the instructions, Ogata took his own dark blue feather fabric, bamboo hat, and face towel that were placed on the ground next to him.
"Then I'm leaving." Ogata put on his haori, hat and face towel.
"Do you really don't need to ask Ashu or me to accompany you to get the knife?" Atachi asked.
"No need." Ogata said in an annoyed tone, "I don't need someone to accompany me for everything. Just keep an eye on the child. I'll be back soon."
After saying that, Ogata didn't stay any longer, tightened the haori draped around him, and quickly left the room.
As soon as he walked out of the hotel, although his buttocks were a little cold, the breeze blowing on his face did not make anyone feel uncomfortable, and the breeze hit Ogata's face one after another.
What a comfortable night...
Looking at the full moon hanging in the sky, a smile appeared on Ogata's cheeks.
The weather was clear, the full moon was in the sky, and there was a soft breeze blowing on his face. It had been a long time since Ogata had experienced such a comfortable night.
It would take quite some time for Atachi and the others to finish cooking the yakisoba, so Ogata was not in a hurry and walked slowly towards Master Yuichi's residence with a leisurely pace.
In modern time units, it's about half past six in the afternoon.
The darkness of night did not make this "Japan's No. 1 commercial capital" completely lose its vitality.
The air is filled with the faint fragrance of food, and the streets are still full of people and cars. Shinmachi and many other places that can only show their vitality at night are showing dazzling prosperity.
The residence of Master Yu Er is located in a very remote place in Osaka.
Ogata headed straight towards Master Yuji's residence, leaving one busy street after another.
Getting further and further away from the prosperous place.
Getting closer and closer to the deserted place.
Soon, no more shouts from vendors and the rumble of wheels turning reached Ogata's ears, and no alluring aroma lingered on the tip of his nose.
The light that shone around Ogata was only the moonlight.
It's like entering another world.
…
…
Osaka, in the top floor room of a deserted hotel
"Visiting my hometown. How about it? Has the target appeared?" A handsome man with a stern expression asked a ferocious one-eyed man sitting next to him.
The one-eyed man known as "Hometown Worshiper" has nothing but a shocking hole in his left eye socket.
He held a monocular telescope with both hands and pressed his only eye tightly against the lens.
"Not yet." Baigo curled his lips, "Ha... it's so boring... Sakuma, how long are we going to wait like this?"
"Wait until our target Shura appears." Toshio...that is, Sakuma said coldly.
"It's really troublesome..." Baixiang put down the telescope, then put his left index finger into his empty left eye socket, picking at the dust in his left eye socket, "Didn't Isshiki Naoshu say that Shura would go get the knife today?
?”
"We have been lying in wait for so long at the place where Shura must pass when he takes the sword. How come we still haven't seen Shura's figure?"
"Didn't that Isshiki Naoshu reveal false information to us?"
"Today is not over yet." Sakuma's tone was still cold, "Keep waiting. Maybe Shura will come to pick up the sword at night."
"Tsk..." Baixiang curled his lips, "Fortunately, it's a sunny day with a full moon tonight, so the view is good."
After complaining, Baixiang picked up the telescope again.
As soon as the camera came back to his eyes, Baixiang's expression was stunned.
"Ha ha!"
A ferocious smile appeared on Baixiang's face.
"Sakuma, our hard work has finally paid off!"
Hearing the words of Baixiang, Sakuma was stunned for a moment, then quickly took out the telescope from his arms and looked towards a certain street in the distance.
A figure wearing a dark blue feathered fabric, a bamboo hat on his head, and a face scarf appeared in the camera.
"...The characteristics are completely consistent." Sakuma slowly put down the telescope, "Baixiang, get ready to work."
…
…
Ogata looked around, looking at the extremely desolate street he was currently on, and couldn't help but sigh:
It's so deserted here... As expected, no matter how developed a city is, there will definitely be a few very desolate places in the city.
This is the only place to go to Master Yuji's residence, so Ogata has already been to this place once before.
Before, Ogata was shocked by the desertedness of this place.
Even though he had witnessed the desertedness of this place once, Ogata still couldn't hide the emotion in his heart when he passed by this place again.
However, at this moment, Ogata's footsteps stopped.
wrong……
Ogata suddenly looked around with alert eyes.
He knew that this place was indeed deserted.
But right now, this place is really too "deserted".
It’s not that there are too few people or too few voices.
Instead, there was a strange coldness in the air.
Ogata didn't know how to use words to describe the coldness in the air at this time.
This is the coldness that only a person like him who has experienced hundreds of battles can feel.
Blah blah blah!
Suddenly, the sound of rapid footsteps came from behind Ogata.
Ogata immediately looked behind him
He saw two groups of people pouring out from the left and right sides of the street behind him like a tide.
The two groups of people quickly ran to the center of the street and formed a tight three-row line formation.
The total number of people in these three columns is about 60.
They all wore katana and wakizashi on their waists.
In their hands, they all held weapons that reflected a chilling light under the moonlight.
Flintlock gun!
Looking at these more than 60 bright flintlock guns, Ogata's pupils shrank suddenly.
And at the same moment that Ogata's pupils expanded,
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang...
The person standing in the first row leveled the flintlock gun in his hand, pointed the muzzle at Ogata, and pulled the trigger.
The movements of these musketeers were uniform and extremely fast.
But Ogata's 15-point reflex nerve gives Ogata a faster reaction speed than the Musketeers' movements.
With 15 points of reflexes and 18 points of agility, Ogata jumped into a dark alley next to him.
Bullets whizzed by like raindrops.
Although the accuracy of the flintlock guns was poor, the distance between these gunners and Ogata was only more than 40 meters.
At such a close distance, there are always a few shots that can hit the target.
And in fact, it is indeed the case.
If Ogata had just stood there stupidly, at least 5 bullets would have penetrated his body.
As soon as he jumped into the alley, Xu Fang immediately pulled out the knife from his waist like a conditioned reflex.
The sudden attack caused chaotic thoughts to pass through Ogata's mind one by one.
Flintlock guns...they are not from the government...then who are they?
Ogata's face was as sinking as water now.
He had just seen clearly that the weapons held by these people were not matchlocks, but genuine flintlock guns.
The muskets used by the Edo shogunate are still matchlocks, so we can first rule out the possibility that this group of people are official servants of the government.
At a time when the Edo shogunate was closed to the country and looked down upon firearms, matchlocks, let alone flintlock guns, were very rare, and it was extremely difficult for private groups to even obtain matchlocks.
But this group of people who suddenly attacked him were able to take out more than sixty flintlock guns in one breath...
Not only that, judging from the actions of this group of people just now, they are not "just ordinary people holding firearms."
No matter how you look at their uniform movements and neat formation just now, they are all well-trained elites.
Who are these people? Why did they attack him with such fanfare...
There are too many questions to ask clearly.
At the moment, the question Ogata wants to find out most is: is he alone the target of this group of people, or is his companion A-Machi and A-Tsuku also one of their targets.
Before going out just now, the scene of Atachi and Asuki happily cooking Hoe Yaki flashed in Ogata's mind.
Ogata's face was now so gloomy that it looked as if water would drip out at any moment.
…
…
"As expected of Shura... He can actually hide from this." Hiding in the distance, Baixiang, standing at the back of the gun formation, grinned, "He hid in that alley. What a pity...
We can't see the scene in the alley from our perspective, otherwise, we really want to see what the famous Shura's expression is."
"Toyotomi-sama is indeed great. His decision to invite Army instructors from England to train our warriors is really wise."
"Sakuma, look at these superb movements of our warriors, they are no different from the red-coated troops of the British Empire."
"Asura, he is not so much fighting with our Toyotomi warriors now, as he is fighting against the English red-coated army."
Baixiang was chatting there.
Sakuma did not immediately respond to what Baigo said.
Instead, he waved his hand first:
"go ahead."
As soon as Sakuma gave this order, the three rows of musketeers standing in front of him and Baigo immediately held their guns and marched forward slowly with neat steps.
After ordering the musketeers to move forward, Sakuma calmly said to Bai Xiang beside him:
"Under the training of those British army instructors, the movements of our warriors are indeed as good as those of the British Red Army."
"But in terms of strength, it is still far behind the red-shirted troops in England."
"If nothing else, our warriors are extremely deficient in terms of actual combat experience."
…
…
I have to go back to the hotel quickly...
Although he was worried about whether Atachi and Aszuki would be attacked, Ogata did not lose his calm.
Even when he heard the sounds of enemies approaching from outside the alley, Ogata didn't feel the slightest bit nervous or panicked.
This is the character cultivated after going through hundreds of battles and going through storms.
The two broken knives I carry with me now...if they are hit by a bullet, they will probably break.
Ogata glanced at the katana currently held in his right hand and the wakizashi still hanging on his waist.
Ogata was quite aware of the poor quality of the two cheap ones he bought temporarily to replenish his stock.
Just using these two knives...it is completely idiotic to try to split the incoming bullets.
In other words...can you only dodge the bullets that are fired...
Ogata listened carefully to the footsteps of the enemies outside the alley.
The distance between them and me is still about 30 meters...
They walked very slowly... Do they know that the alley where I am currently hiding is a dead end and there is no way to escape...
Ogata turned to look at the end of the alley not far away. The alley he was currently hiding in was very narrow and short, and he could see the sealed bottom of the alley at a glance.
They are very familiar with the layout of this street...which means they have scouted this place in advance...and come prepared.
Based on his current observations, Ogata quickly deduced that this group of enemies who did not yet know the details were well prepared.
These guys who didn't know the details knew that he would pass through this place today, so they conducted reconnaissance at this place in advance and laid an ambush.
Ogata withdrew his gaze from the bottom of the alley.
The movements of this group of people were the same as those of the army... completely different from the Cossacks they had encountered in Ezo before.
The Cossacks who had fought against them in Ezo before could only be regarded as stragglers.
First...let's test it a little bit.
Ogata picked up an empty wine bottle at his feet and threw it forcefully out of the alley.
From the perspective of the musketeers who could not see the situation in the alley, a wine bottle suddenly flew out of the alley.
When Ogata threw the bottle out, he clearly heard the footsteps of the musketeers, which were very obviously messy.
The footsteps were chaotic... They were shocked by the wine bottle I threw out.
Being so easily surprised by emergencies makes their nerves highly tense.
Ogata said this in his heart with a firm tone.
Although their movements are superb, their character is still lacking... This shows that their actual combat experience is quite insufficient.
In this case... they must be very bad at dealing with enemies that surprise them.
Ogata raised his head and looked at the eaves of the two wooden houses sandwiching the alley where he was currently.
A plan that could quickly defeat this group of enemies quickly took shape in Ogata's mind.
However……
Just at this moment
"Well……!"
Ogata's eyes suddenly opened wide, and he raised his hand to hold his left neck.
There was... a burst of pain in the left side of my neck.
The waves of pain that emerged from Ogata's left neck quickly spread throughout Ogata's body, making Ogata feel like needles pricking everywhere in his body.
"Damn it..." Ogata gritted his teeth and growled, "Why...it just happened to be at this time...to hold me back..."
******
******
The author thought that only the three days from the 1st to the 3rd at the beginning of this month were the double monthly pass period, but unexpectedly it was not the case. This month's double monthly pass period lasted from the 1st to the 7th.
In other words, today is the double monthly pass time on the last day of the month.
Therefore... please vote for me! QAQ, please vote for this book!
PS: The author found a pirated figure with good workmanship a few days ago. The shape of this figure is quite in line with the setting of "bears can be stacked on the kimono belt" of Omachi and Isshikika. It is a good idea for everyone (only