I Was a Swordsman in Ancient Japan

The three of Ogata stared at Naosuke who hadn't seen him for a while, and the scene had a somewhat comical atmosphere for a while.

If it was discussed who had the most exaggerated expression among the people at the scene, it was Zhi Zhou.

Although Ogata is now wearing a face scarf and a bamboo hat, but Ogata's figure, the saber around his waist, and the two female ninjas standing on the left and right sides of him, let Naosuke recognize this person in the first place. The man who he wanted to break his head before, and also wanted him to join their "fading cause".

"O, Ogata..." Naosuke's tongue twisted stiffly as if paralyzed.

As soon as he uttered the surname "Ogata", Naoshu finally came to his senses and realized that this place was not a place where he could easily pronounce Ogata's name, so he quickly shut up and changed his name to Mashima.

"Mashima-sama, you, why are you here...?"

"I want to ask you this question too..."

——Is Osaka really a big city with a population of one million...

Ogata couldn't help complaining in his heart.

At this time, Ogata suddenly discovered that since he came to Osaka, he seemed to be frequently encountering acquaintances and acquaintances...

After suppressing the urge to continue complaining, Ogata raised his eyes and looked at the small house behind Naoshu: "Mr. Isshiki, I want to ask: Is this the residence of Master Yuer?"

Hearing Ogata's words, Naoshu suddenly realized the reason why Ogata would show up here, and hurriedly asked Ogata:

"Master Zhendao, are you here to find Master Yuer?"

"Yeah." Ogata didn't hide anything, after all, it's not something worth hiding, "I heard that Master Yu's knife repairing skills are at the peak, so I came here specially, and wanted to entrust Master Yu to repair my saber."

"Are you here to find Master Yu Er to repair the knife..." Zhi Zhou stood aside and made way for him, "Master Yu Er happens to be at home right now, please come in."

"Mr. Naoshu, are you friends with Master Yuer?" Ogata asked Naozou as he walked into the small shabby house along the path that Naocho left.

"It's an old friend for many years." Zhi Zhou chuckled, "Our Yishi family has always asked Master Yu Er to help us cast knives. When the knife is damaged, we entrust Master Yu Er to help repair it."

"I don't have anything important to do today, so I thought of coming to chat with this old friend, and take a look at the progress of the knife I entrusted him to repair."

"I didn't expect to meet you again here. The world is really unpredictable."

Feeling once again that Dasaka is a real queen, Ogata took off the big Shitian from his left waist and held it with his right hand, while roughly looking at the scene in this small dilapidated house.

The appearance of this small dilapidated house is dilapidated, but the inside is almost the same.

After passing through the gate of the house, it leads directly to a slightly cramped living room. There is almost no decent furniture in the living room, only a few worn and old cushions.

The corridor is still complete, but the ceiling is a bit horrible. Looking up - just the ceiling in the hall, there are 3 holes of various sizes.

However, although the interior of the house was simple and dilapidated, it was still clean. The corridors and the walls had been well cleaned.

Ogata sniffled. When he was outside the house, he smelled a very strong smell of iron, charcoal, and something burnt.

After entering the house, the smell became much heavier immediately.

Ogata noticed that the smell seemed to come from a room with a thick curtain in the back of the house.

In addition to this burst of peculiar smell, there was also the sound of sharpening knives from that room.

"Zao Zhou."

At this time, a hoarse middle-aged male voice came from that room.

"Who's here?"

"Master Yuer!" Zhi Zhou shouted in the direction from which the voice came from just now, "There is... my old friend wants to ask you to repair the knife! You should stop what you are doing first."

"Your old man? Bring him in.

"

This short conversation ended with this cold remark.

"Mashima-sama." Naosuke, who was old enough to be Ogata's grandfather, said "please" to Ogata respectfully. No matter how you look at this picture, it seems to be inconsistent, "Please come with me. I will take you to the The place where the second master works."

After finishing speaking, Zhizhou strode straight towards what he called "Master Yuer's workshop"—that is, the room that constantly smelled and made strange noises.

After following closely behind Naoshu and opening the door curtain of that room, the scene behind the door curtain made Ogata's eyes brighten up.

Behind the curtain is a blacksmith shop.

In the southeast corner of the blacksmith shop, there are pieces of unbeaten pig iron and a hill made of coal.

In the northeast corner is the smelting platform responsible for blacksmithing. There are facilities such as a dai (similar to a blower), a horizontal seat (a place where a swordsmith sits while forging iron), and a fire bed.

In the corner of the northwest corner, leaning on a stick, it feels like a single swing can smash an adult's head like a watermelon falling from a tall building.

The southwest corner of the room is the only place where tatami mats are laid. A middle-aged man with an extremely strong figure is squatting in this place, stepping on a whetstone with his feet, and sharpening the knife held in both hands with the whetstone under his feet in a specific rhythm.

This middle-aged man seemed to be around 40 years old, with dark skin, a cropped head that was extremely rare in this era, and his short hair stood up like steel needles.

Wearing only this thin gray bathrobe, his body is quite strong, especially his arms, the muscles of both arms are as tight as granite and full of strength.

The reason why Ogata's eyes lit up after entering this blacksmith's shop was precisely because of this middle-aged man... To be precise, it was because of the knife sharpened in this middle-aged man's hand.

The middle-aged man is now sharpening a badly broken knife.

Not only is the blade full of gaps, but the blade is bent directly to the right by nearly 10 degrees.

If such a broken knife is handed over to Ogata and asked Ogata to try to repair the knife, then even if Ogata racked his brains, he would not be able to think of any way to repair such a severely damaged knife.

However——the scene presented in front of Ogata at this time clearly told Ogata: Someone really has a way to repair this knife.

The broken knife is now in a very strange state.

This knife is bounded by the center of the blade. From the center of the blade to the tip, the blade is full of notches and bends.

As for the part from the center of the blade to the root of the blade, the blade is straight and has no gaps, just like a new knife with a handle.

A knife is both damaged and brand new... Its appearance is indescribably strange. To make a similar analogy...it's like grafting a branch of a peach blossom tree onto a banana tree.

And the reason - the reason why this knife is in such a strange state is because the middle-aged man started repairing it from the root of the blade.

At this time, the middle-aged man had been sharpening the base of the blade of the knife with a whetstone until Ogata and the others came in, and he did not put down his work or look up at Ogata and the others.

"Master Mashima." Naoki introduced to Ogata and the others in a timely manner, "This is Master Yuer."

"Master Yuer! This is my old friend - Goro Mashima."

"It's the first time we meet, Master Yuer." After Naoshu's voice fell, Ogata immediately bowed slightly, and introduced himself, "I'm Mashima Goro."

The sound of sharpening the knife finally stopped.

The middle-aged man... that is, Yu Er finally stopped the work of sharpening the knife at hand, and looked up at Ogata and the others.

"...Hello, I'm Yu Er. Just find a place to sit."

Yu Er's self-introduction was very brief, and he did not exchange too many pleasantries with Ogata.

After putting aside the half-trimmed knife in his hand, Yuji crossed his hands into the wide sleeves of his bathrobe.

"Let me see the knife you want to commission me to repair."

Yu Er's style of not talking too much nonsense and going straight to the point is quite to Ofang's liking.

Since Yu Er was so straightforward, Ogata didn't talk nonsense, pulled out Da Shitian and Da Zizai, and handed the two knives towards Yu Er.

"I would like to entrust you to repair these two knives."

Yu Er received the knife with both hands.

Looking at the notched blades of Da Shitian and Da Zizai, Yu Er seemed to be surprised, with a blank expression on his face.

He moved his eyes, looked at the back of the knife roughly, then raised his eyebrows vigorously, and whispered in a tone of surprise:

"This type of knife casting method...is this a knife cast by the monks of Tianxiangzong?"

Ogata was surprised and pleasantly surprised that Yu Er could recognize who made the two knives just by looking at the blades.

"Exactly." Ogata said.

"The works of monks from Tianxiangzong..." Yuer murmured, "I haven't seen the works of those bald donkeys for a long time... What are the names of these two knives?"

"Hit the knife and release the sky, and the threat is free..."

— Bald donkey?

After hearing the title "bald donkey" from Yu Er, Ogata, for some reason, had an ominous premonition in his heart...

"Did you use the Buddhist language to name the sword... Huh, it's indeed the style of those bald donkeys."

"These two knives seem to have used some of the Southern Man's casting skills...but they are mainly based on Tian Xiangzong's unique knife casting method."

Speaking of this, Yu Er glanced at the Da Shitian and Da Zizai held in his hands several times, and then nodded slightly.

"A good knife, both tough and sharp. I have seen countless kinds of precious swords, and there are only a handful of them that can surpass your two swords in terms of quality."

"Can these two knives be kept intact?" Ogata asked.

"...Have you seen this knife?" Yu Er did not directly respond to Ogata's question, but suddenly made an effort towards the half-repaired broken knife with a "side-curved blade" that he had just put aside. Nuzui said, "I can even repair a knife that has been damaged like this, let alone your knife?"

Yu Er looked at the saw-like blades of Da Shitian and Da Zizai that had been cut with holes.

"Although your knife is not badly damaged, it's not difficult to repair it intact."

Hearing Yu Er's words, Ogata couldn't help showing a happy smile on his face.

"Then, I'll leave it to you, the price..."

Before Ogata finished speaking, he suddenly saw Yu Er in front of him handing back the double swords he was holding in his hand.

Then he said something that made Ogata's expression froze.

"But I don't want to fix the knife for you."

As soon as Yu Er's words came out, the blacksmith shop was silent for several seconds.

A few seconds later, Azhu, who has always been active, broke the silence first. Valley

"Why?" Azhu asked anxiously, "Didn't you say that it would not be difficult to repair Master Mashima's sword?"

"Well, I did." Yu Er nodded solemnly.

"Will it be expensive to repair the knife?" At this time, A-Ming also asked, "If it's because we are worried that we won't be able to pay..."

Before Ah-cho finished speaking, Yuji interrupted:

"It's not about money. I just don't want to repair the knife for you. No matter how much money you give me, I won't repair it for you."

At this time, Ogata suddenly recalled that Yu Er called the monks of Tian Xiangzong "bald donkeys" just now.

"...Master Yuer." Ogata said in a deep voice, "Did you...have you ever had any trouble with the monks of Tianxiangzong?"

"...You are neither right nor wrong." Yu Er closed his eyes, raised his head, and took a deep breath, "I am not against the monks of Tianxiangzong, I am against all the monks in the world!"

After finishing speaking, Yu Er who had closed his eyes suddenly opened them.

His eyes were full of strong resentment.

He muttered:

"25 years ago, a girl I've always had a crush on eloped with a smelly monk."

"Since then, I have made up my mind - I am incompatible with Buddhism!"

"Your knife is made by a monk, which makes me feel uncomfortable. I don't want to touch a knife that was made by a monk."

"Please go back."

…quiet…

…quiet…

…quiet…

Ogata's brain stopped working for a while.

Not just Ogata.

A-Machi and A-Zhu also looked like their brains had stopped working.

As for Naoshu who was sitting behind Ogata and the others, he showed a helpless expression.

After a long while, Ogata's brain finally started working again.

After the brain recovered, the first words that came out of Ogata's mind were:

--what?

—Is it because of this? !

Yu Er, who had been expressionless just now and looked like a master, now folded his arms around his chest, showing resentment, like a little boy whose snacks were robbed.

Just because of this reason, he refused to help him repair the knife-this made Ogata not know what kind of expression to put on.

Yu Er's expression just now made Ogata think that there was some bloody feud between him and the monk...

It is useless to delve into why Yu Er refused to help him repair the knife. It is better to find a way to persuade Yu Er to help him repair the knife, so Ogata put aside his complaints about Yu Er and hurriedly said:

"Can you please accommodate me? I would like to pay double the price."

"I've said it all, it's not about money." Yu Er replied without thinking, "If I say I don't fix it, I don't fix it."

"And I'm still busy."

Yu Er pouted at the "curved" knife by his side.

"I'm busy repairing Zhi Zhou's knife right now. It will take at least another month for his knife to be completely repaired. I don't have time to repair your knife now."

"This knife belongs to my nephew." Naoki said while smiling at Ogata at this time, "My stupid nephew didn't know what was wrong with his head, and he suddenly yelled that he wanted to study something that could split stones. Swordsmanship."

"He took his own knife and slashed at a boulder, and then he chopped the knife like this."

Ogata's complexion couldn't help but sink at this moment.

Whether it is being able to restore a knife with such a serious "side bend" as new, or being able to tell at a glance that Ogata's saber was cast by a monk of the Tianxiang sect, all of these show that Yuer is an extremely skilled swordsmith .

It was so hard to find such a craftsman with such outstanding skills, Ogata really didn't want to just miss it.

If you miss Yu Er, God knows when you will find such a powerful swordsmith again.

And for the current Ogata, the best place to repair a knife at present is no different from Osaka.

Because it is the closest to Mount Koya, the straight-line distance between the two places is only 50 kilometers.

After repairing the knife, he could just go straight to Mount Koya to find a way to clear the "immortal poison" in his body.

No matter what, Ogata, who didn't want to leave in such a disappointing way, cleared his throat, and was about to continue trying to persuade Yuji.

But just then—

"To the second master."

Naoshu, who had been sitting behind Ogata and the others just now, spoke.

After everyone's puzzled eyes focused on Zhi Zhou, Zhi Zhou continued to speak loudly:

"Could you please see that we are old friends, and help Mashima-sama repair the knife?"

As soon as Zhi Zhou said this, Yu Er, who had a firm expression just now, finally changed his expression.

Yu Er: "Zhi Zhou?"

"The repair of my nephew's knife can be postponed." Naosuke glanced at the "scimitar", "You can give priority to repairing Mashima-sama's knife first."

"After Master Mashima's sword is repaired, it will not be too late to repair my nephew's sword."

"Zhi Zhou, are you serious?" Yu Er frowned.

"Of course I'm serious." Naosuke's tone became more serious at this time, "Mashima-sama is... my very important old friend, please, please take it as a way to save my face, make an exception once, and help Mashima. Mr. Dao, let him repair the knife."

After saying that, Naosuke bent down, kneeling on the ground, and bowed to Naosuke who was facing him.

"Mr. Isshiki..." Looking at Naoki who was helping him get a chance to repair the knife, Ogata's eyes shone with surprise and joy.

But Yu Er had a complicated expression at this time.

He looked at Ogata, and then at Yuji.

Finally—he let out a long sigh.

"...Since Yu Er, you have already mentioned this point... then it's fine."

Spread your hands to Niasao Ogata.

"Give me your knife."

Yu Er, who had been repulsed just now, finally changed his mind at this time, and Ogata, who couldn't hide the joy on his face, handed Da Shitian and Da Zizai to Yu Er again with the knife and sheath.

After receiving Da Shitian and Da Zizai, Yu Er said slowly:

"Your knife will take seven days to fix."

"Come back to me to pick up the knife in 7 days."

"The total cost of repairing your two knives is 12 taels. You have to pay me half of the money as a deposit first, and pay the rest after returning the repaired knives to you."

...

...

"Mr. Isshiki, thank you very much for your help."

After leaving Yu Er's workshop and returning to the empty living room of the dilapidated house, Ooja immediately bowed to Nao Zhou to thank him.

"Hahaha, it's all right." Zhi Zhou smiled, "It's just a matter of little effort."

After delivering Da Shitian and Da Zizai, Ogata's waist is now empty.

For a long time, Ogata has been used to the feeling of a heavy object hanging on his left waist, and he is also used to stepping on his left foot deeper and his right foot shallower when walking. .

Now there is no knife hanging from his left waist——this made Ogata extremely uncomfortable, even walking awkwardly.

"You really helped me a lot." Ogata continued to salute and thank Naoshu, "I really don't know how to thank you."

"You don't need to thank me, I also said it, but it's just a little effort." Naoki continued to laugh, "Mashima-sama, the reason why you came to Osaka is to find Master Yuer to repair his sword?"

"Well, that's about it." Ogata nodded, "If it wasn't for finding Master Yuer, who is said to be very powerful, to help me repair the knife, I probably wouldn't have come to Osaka."

At this moment, a pensive look appeared on Zhizhou's face.

"Mashima-sama, do you have time in the future?"

"The day after tomorrow? Well... until my knife is repaired, I should be quite free." Ogata replied honestly.

Ogata planned to accompany A-Machi and the others to play leisurely in this bustling Osaka city until the sword was repaired during the period of waiting for the sword to be repaired.

"That's it..."

At this time, Naoki's eyes flashed with the light of "Hua Ji Tong".

"In that case... Mashima-sama, I have a heartfelt request."

"I wonder if Mashima-sama can you come to my sword gym to watch the 'big test match' between my Yishi sword gym and other sword gyms?"

*****

*****

In fact, the author also really wants to know how those awesome knife smiths can repair such badly damaged knives to be as good as new ones... Just reading the book "Life on a Blade", I can't understand the principle at all ...