Mr. Toquitilow!　Mr. Tochiro!
Shut up. What the f*ck?
It's Cambei-dono!

　In the innermost part of the Daikoku dojo, in the Iemoto's room.
　A short, middle-aged man with a big belly, called Toukichirou, listens to his student's words with a loud scowl on his face.

'What about Kanbei?'
We have been defeated!　To the dojo-breaking!
Tell me more at .......

　Toukichirou's expression changed to one of sharpness when he heard that Kanbei had been defeated.

　The gatekeepers explained the situation one by one, starting with the scene where the second appeared in the dojo.


　Then, after a few moments of silence, Toukichirou reacted in surprise.

''Gahahahaha!''
!

　Oh my God, he laughed.

　The strongest Kanbei in his dojo had been so cruelly defeated, and yet he was laughing. His students didn't understand and couldn't help but open their mouths.

'Thanks for the report. You can go back.
'Ha, but ......'
He says I can come back.
Yes, sir.

　Toukichirou forced his student out of the room and, in a good mood, leaned his weight against the back of the chair.


''Can't you get your teeth out of your mouth at Kanbei? Gahaha!　Good, keep up the good work and reap the craps out of your way, too.

　'I've been waiting for you,' he says, laughing merrily.

As I suspected. The monsters from the mainland are just right for the job. Need to give the fisherman his due?

　The laughter was hard to stop.

　Toukichirou's plan seemed to be working so well.



　　* * * *



Next up: Benzai Style.
My dear sir. This is a somewhat unique school.
"Special?
There are only girls in that dojo.
Seriously?

　I'm getting a little excited.

The new school was founded nine years ago by Masamune, the acclaimed master of the sword, for the benefit of the narrow-minded girls on the island. Considering that he was sixteen years old at the time, it is easy to understand how talented Masamune is.
'You started your school when you were sixteen years old. So you must be twenty-five years old now. Well, you're an Iemoto at the age of twenty-five.
I'm still young compared to the other Iemotos, but I can't underestimate his strength.
Who's stronger, Cambei or Cambei?
That's a tough question. The two men have opposite sword fighting techniques. Kanbei is rough and aggressive, but Masamune is so fluid and delicate that it's not easy to compare.
It doesn't matter. Who's winning more fights?
Exactly... you're ......, I believe, Master Masamune.
Thank you. That's good to hear.

　If you say you're weaker than Kanbei, there's no point in going there.

　No, but the women-only dojo is quite interesting, but .......


Here we are. It's time to be quiet for once.
f*ck it.
I have no idea what's going on at ......
What?

　What does that mean: ......?


Excuse me!　Akaneko, of the Kabuto style, I'm here to say hello!

　As I was puzzled, Akaneko stood in front of the gate and raised her voice.

　It's a small gate. The money doesn't look too good.



'--Oh, well, this is a lovely visitor.


　After a moment's wait, a tall, thin, short, dark-haired beauty appeared from inside the dojo.


　............ hmm?

　No, wait, ...... Now, this guy is not a man.

　I've seen Mine and Angolmore and Raspberry Belle up close and personal and I can tell you that. This guy is probably, no, he's definitely a woman. I see, so-called "beauty in men's clothing".

　But why dress up as a man again?

'Ooh, there's a beautiful brother beside me. Hello, brother. I've heard a lot about you.
A second. And you?
Thank you for introducing yourself, Mr. Second. My name is Masamune. Can you identify me as the head of the Benzai school?
Yeah, I just heard from this guy.
It's him!　Haha, this is the first time I've ever seen someone call a red cat girl this guy. That's funny.
'I hope you are not amused, Master Masamune. It would be a nuisance to me.
'Oh, dear, don't be so angry. You look very nice in that dress. It's a gift from Mr. Second, isn't it?　Truly amazing!
...... praise doesn't get you anywhere.
I just wanted to compliment you. I don't expect anything else. Come here. Come on, you two.

　With a sweet word, Masamune winked at Akaneko and led us into the dojo.

　Her first impression is not a bad one.
　However, she seems somehow unnatural. I'm not sure if it's an act or not.

　At first I thought it was because she loves women that she plays a man, but Masamune doesn't give off any of that "womanizing" vibe. But I don't get a hint of "womanizing" from Masamune.

　If so, the mystery continues to deepen. She is so beautiful, so she should dress like a woman. You are losing money.

　Well, maybe there is some unavoidable reason.


So, what do you want today?　Unfortunately, I can't spend too much time with you guys because we're too busy training--

'Yes!　You can't keep Masamune-sama all to yourself, you know!
Masamune doesn't have time to talk to you people!
I want you to get the hell out of here!

　............ What are these guys?

　As soon as Masamune began to speak, more than a dozen women who seemed to be his students suddenly came out and interrupted him with a terrible show of force.

...... haha ......

　The red cat next to me lets out a small sigh.
　I see, he was talking about this. This is definitely a pain in the ass.

I'm sorry, my kitties. I'm sorry, my kittens, but this is a necessary part of the dojo.

　Masamune stared somewhere in the distance, made a sad expression and muttered with a sigh. Then the women of the students who were crowded behind Masamune said, "Kyah! And it's a lot of fun.

　What the hell is this?

Is it always like this?

　When I secretly asked Akaneko about it, she nodded with a gesture and whispered back, "It's better to leave early before it gets nasty.

　Oh no, I agree with you on the quicksand.

　But ...... so are squid balls.


'Do you accept dojo-busting here?'

Huh?
Phew!

　As soon as I said that, Akaneko and Masamune blurted out.

"Well, that's no way to ask, jerk!

　I chuckle as Akaneko bashes me in the face.

　The students behind Masamune started to squeal and scream. They're all saying things like, "Know your place", "Get lost", "Go away", or simply "Die".

"Hahahaha!　Interesting!　It's really funny, you: ......

　Masamune, who had been laughing for a while, turned to her students and gave them a wave of her hand as she said this. The girls, who had been buzzing about the situation, instantly became quiet.

　And then Masamune turned to me again and broke the silence.


''-- I'll take it.


　There was no longer a shadow of the false expression on her face that had been false until then.
　A woman with a sharp-edged gaze, a samurai of sorts, was staring at us.

　Her eyes are reminiscent of the first time I met Akaneko, eyes that are ready to trade lives.

　I'm sure Masamune is one of those people who lives by the sword.

　I responded to her resolve with a big smile.



　　* * * *



　A game is won in an instant.
Less than a second after the command to begin.

　Immediately after Masamune drew his sword, a thrust by the second "Kakugyo Battoujutsu" caught the center of the blade.

　It's a good idea to be able to use your own personal computer to make sure that you have the right information to make the best use of it.

　I was astonished at how crazy this man was.


　...... As a result, there is a high-pitched sound, and Masamune's sword is deflected wide to the side.

　Too big an opening. "The second taiji decides" - a moment after I thought that, the second surprisingly invoked (・・・・・・) the 《Kinshou Battoujutsu》 while delivering the sword.

　Why would he do such a thing, I wondered. Before he could wonder, the reason was immediately apparent.


　I was reading ...... Masamne-dono's, flanking blow (・・・・・).


　In a split-second decision, Masamne-dono let go of his sword and was about to switch to another small sword, the Wakizashi.

　Tenbei!　I must say. It's a brilliant man who became an Iemoto at the age of sixteen to be able to make that kind of decision in that split second.


　...... However, there was someone who went above and beyond that. Hateful, lightly.

　Perhaps the second saw through the slightest difference in the response of the blow he gave to the sword to Masamne-dono's next aim. The special strike by Masamne-dono's Wakizashi, the extension of which was lightly placed by Masamne-dono's Wakizashi, he was preparing a counterattack of the 《King General Battoujutsu》.


''Sono, nah--!

　Masamne-dono slashes into the second "Golden General Battoujutsu" without any way to accomplish it. You can't stop throwing the stone in the air.


I'm sorry, it hurts!

　The Second muttered a word.

　Immediately after, he spun his sword around and delivered a powerful counterattack.
　To the raggedy, Masamne-dono's heartbeat .......



　　* * * *



　Mine-uchi.

　Bam!　And then there was a painful sound, and Masamune screamed in agony.

　A talent that was too good to ...... kill. She also has something to shine with, worthy of being a title challenger.

　In the first place, there is no purpose in killing her. First of all, the goal is to enjoy her skills, and if the opponent is lukewarm, then the goal is to light it up and pour gasoline into it.

　And the purpose was served.

　Masamune still seemed to be stunned, and he was still lying on the floor, not moving.

　I had expected the students of the gate to be in a tizzy again, but the result was the exact opposite. The whole dojo was silent. All of the women of the gate students remained silent and never moved from the spot. Not even to interfere with Masamune or to come at me.

　That's fine. I don't have time for these cowards.


"Tell Masamune I'll see her again. "Tell Masamune I'll see her again.

　After saying one thing, me and Akaneko left the Bensai-Ryu dojo.





　Five minutes, or maybe enough, we walked in silence.

　It's about to get dark. We knew that this was the way back, as we were heading back the way we came. That would mean that today's guide would end at these two dojos.

'You are a student of Bensai-ryu, more skilled than Daikoku-ryu. Maybe Masamune has a talent for education as well.
............
'How's your dojo?　The standard of his students.
............
Hey. Hey. You hear me?
............

　No, no response.

　The Akaneko is just walking ahead of me, looking ahead and stuttering, as if she's thinking about something.


　...... or so I thought. A few minutes later, Akaneko suddenly turned around and looked at me, breaking the silence.

'I'm afraid of you,'
What's going on?
Have you come to destroy Touhachinochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochnochno?

　A serious look. Apparently it's not a blur.

　Hmmm. I'm here to crush it, hey .......

No.
'Then what are you doing here? Today alone, we destroyed the faces of two schools. I'm sure you will go around crushing them again tomorrow. It would be a lie to say that we haven't crushed them now.
What face did you have to lose to be crushed by ......?
"...... You are still a detriment to the island. I was wrong to bring you in, even though it was a promise.

　The air froze.
　That cold air emanated from the red cat. It's a killer atmosphere.

"Hey, hey, don't try to pull it out. Trying to do that is boring.

　When you try me without a sword, it's still boring.

............

　Even Akaneko understood this, and after a silence, she quietly removed her hand from the sword.


'You already know that too, don't you?'
What?
This whole Battoujutsu thing is so interesting, isn't it?
What about it?

You can't wait to watch ....... My game.

Huh!


　I had a hint of it.

　I'm sure that Akaneko is one of those who have been fascinated by the Battoujutsu.


　We all are. I want to know what's ahead. The real, ultimate, future--.


"Don't worry, we're going to show you how it ends.
"...... nonsense. I'm not interested in you in the slightest. Of course, I'm not dying to see you.
So why did you lend me your sword when you fought Masamune?
It's .......
I see that now. You have a tendency to say and do things that are contrary to your intentions from time to time. Has anyone ever told you that?
What? No!　Absolutely not!
You're right. You're so predictable, Cat.
''~~~!　Shut up!　I'll go first!


　Oh, I'm sorry I pissed you off.

　But I've learned something good. You know, it's one thing to be disgusted with something, but it's another to be disgusted with it. Well, I guess it depends on the time and place.


　So, unsurprisingly, I mean it: .......

"See you tomorrow!

　...... Maybe they want this island to go down?