He was going to leave for the next town tomorrow.

If I can come back in the future, it will be a few months or even half a year at the earliest. At that time, maybe she was already married.

Then, her funny conversation and occasional sly eyes will gradually disappear into the dull years of housework, serving her husband, and having children.

...... But either way, those weren't the things he had to worry about.

Recently, he has been thinking about whether to end this ancestral pharmacist business altogether, join the trial guard hall inherited by Kondo-kun, and officially start practicing kendo in order to become a dignified samurai.

...... Well, let's talk to Kondo-kun when I go back to Tama.

With this in mind, Hijikata ushered in the experience of the third and final day of his time in this town.

He didn't expect the day to become so memorable.

The streets of the town were calm as usual that day. He and his uncle's drug sales also went very smoothly. Towards noon, they were satisfied with their stalls, intending to rush to the next town after their meal.

The uncle said that he had almost bought everything he wanted to buy, and he was embarrassed to leave Hijikata alone for two consecutive days, and insisted that he must have dinner with Hijikata.

Hijikata didn't think it was okay, so the two of them packed up the medicine box and money bag, planning to find a noodle stall to eat soba noodles.

On this day, it seems that the townto girl who feels a little subtle did not appear.

After packing up his things and walking to a clearing under the city, the uncle was talking to Hijikata with a smile on his eyebrows and saying that he had just counted the money he had made in this town, and that "the amount of money makes people very energetic," when suddenly a group of people gathered around without warning.

Hijikata was a little surprised at first. But when he looked around quickly, he knew in his heart that he had met a local ruffian or a bastard like a ronin who had come to blackmail. Fortunately, the money bag is well tucked in the uncle's arms, as long as the uncle escapes.

Hijikata untied the medicine box behind him and put it on the ground, pulling the wooden knife from his belt.

The wooden knife in the test guard hall seems to be a little heavier than the wooden knife in the ordinary dojo, and it feels a little heavy in the hand.

The bad fellows seemed to have about ten men in all—maybe a little more?—and in short, they had a clear division of labor, and were quickly divided into two teams, one of which surrounded the earthwork with a large number of people, and the other of about two or three people, but each of them had a wooden knife in his hand, and walked over to the already frightened uncle with a sinister smile.

Hijikata didn't have time to think about it, and shouted: "Uncle, run away!" and waved his wooden knife and preemptively rushed towards the closest guy in front of him.

The scuffle began almost instantaneously. Hijikata tried his best to move his body, expanding the encirclement of the melee, trying to draw everyone to his side, so as to cover the uncle's escape.

With a few clicks, his wooden knife intersected with the blade of the other party. Although his swordsmanship is a little more proficient, two fists are no match for four hands, not to mention that he now has to face far more than four hands.

Hijikata knew that the wooden knife in his hand would not last long, and if he wanted to support it for a long time, he had to do his best to defeat the other party and gain the upper hand. He gritted his teeth and swung the wooden knife harder, his swordsmanship was solid, and he slashed at his opponent in one fell swoop.

After he had been in a bitter battle for a long time, suddenly, the uncle on the side let out a miserable scream.

Hijikata had no time - and no time - to see what was going on on the uncle's side. He mustered up a force, scrambled a few times, and kicked the medicine box on the ground at his opponent - this was not at all what he had learned in swordsmanship - and then he had time to quickly glance in the direction of the uncle.

At this glance, he was stunned for a moment, and almost immediately his opponent grabbed the flaw, and was kicked from behind in the crook of the knee. His legs went limp, and he almost fell to the ground.

What a loss...... Is this what these samurai who can legitimately carry swords for? Snatch other people's hard-earned money and harm innocent people's lives for it...... In their hearts, where is the shido, where is the faith, and where is the honor of being a samurai?!

He stumbled, and immediately hit several more moves.

The uncle has been knocked to the ground. It seems that the money bag in his arms has also been snatched away. The uncle's face was covered in blood, and he rolled on the ground in the merciless kicks and beatings of those people, and let out a scream like begging for mercy.

"Gentlemen...... Gentlemen...... Samurai lords...... I beg you to ......"

An unprecedented anger, mixed with resentment and reluctance to be so weak and useless for such a self, rose in Hijikata's chest.

His sanity finally snapped and snapped.

...... What happens to civilians who kill and injure samurai without permission?

He didn't think about these questions anymore, just shook his head and swung his wooden knife, slashing forward with one fell swoop. He was hit by a lot of punches, kicks, and knives, and his opponent probably got more hits - but unfortunately he could only swing a wooden knife, and no matter how many hits he made with such a weapon, it would be impossible to put the opponent to death!

He was finally knocked to the ground. Raindrops of punches and kicks poured down.

As his body began to become numb from pain and discouragement, suddenly, there was a sound of rushing water.

Several men not far away almost immediately let out curses and curses.

“...... Damn!Who poured water on Lao Tzu?!"

"Who else dares to meddle with the gossip of Lao Tzu?!"

“...... I saw it! In the alley over there, it looked like a teenager!"

“...... Go after it!"

Before the men could finish their shouting, some of the men who were kicking and beating around Hijikata let out another scream.

“...... Bastard!!Who stoned me......!"

"He's going to chase ...... quickly! Dare to make trouble here......

There was a chaotic sound of kicking, and the men seemed to have lost interest in the bruised Hijikata and the uncle, and took the snatched money bags and went after the "young man" who dared to throw water and stones at them to provoke.

Hijikata didn't know how long he had been lying on the ground. He just gasped for air, letting his heart beat hambly, his ears and head buzzing, and his vision seemed to be intertwined with many jumble lines. The pain all over his body welled up, and he spread out his limbs and lay on the ground, the trampled grass under him emitting a smell mixed with the smell of earth, and stared blankly at the noon clear sky above him, which was a little dazzling and white by the sun.

Suddenly, a shadow fell over his head.

He didn't even bother to roll his eyes to see who it was.

The wooden knife lay on the ground not far from his hand, broken in two.

The medicine box didn't know where it had been left - but even if he found it, it wouldn't be of much use, and he didn't believe that the unsold Ishida powder inside could have the miraculous effects he boasted of.

The owner of the shadow was silent for a moment, then spoke.

“...... Mr. Hijikata, are you alright? How are you hurting?

He jerked his head away.

Xiaomei squatted beside him. It's still the kind of ordinary eyebrows and eyes, ordinary clothes. Squatting so close to him, he could even clearly see the freckles on either side of her nose and the light-colored tear mole under the corner of her left eye.

Her expression was full of worry, and her slender eyes were as wide as possible to keep them fixed on his face. When their eyes met, she blinked, as if a layer of water had suddenly appeared in her sockets, and she had to quickly turn her gaze elsewhere to avoid further contact with his eyes.

This outpouring of unconventional feelings surprised him a little.

He thought the girl didn't think anything special about him. Or rather, he thought she seemed to approach him with a mood as ordinary as she looked. Until this moment.

That expression was genuinely caring. This makes her ordinary face even give people the illusion of beauty. Although her voice was still so steady, he didn't know when she appeared here or how she found him here, but he suddenly had a mistaken feeling of confusion -

He chuckled softly.

"Really...... Such a wolf bèi is useless...... You've seen it......" he whispered, no resentment or anger in his voice.

“...... Mr. Hijikata's skills are very good. She paused for a moment before replying.

"With a wooden knife, one person against a dozen people...... Even this can't defeat Mr. Hijikata, and it's them who should be ashamed. ”

This sentence surprised him a little. There was a buzzing in his head, and his eyes were wide fixed on her face, as if she had just spoken something she didn't understand.

“...... It's ridiculous. Are you comforting me?" he asked bluntly.

She seemed to choke for a moment, and then a faint smile appeared on her face.

"I'm complimenting you, Mr. Hijikata. She replied in the same candid tone, "...... I think I can understand a little bit about the reason why Mr. Hijikata is so popular. ”

This was the first time since their brief acquaintance that she had mentioned this side of him as a beautiful man in such an extraordinarily frank and ordinary tone. Obviously, with his appearance, he would attract admirers wherever he went, and she knew that very well, and seemed to joke about it without hesitation.

This kind of inappropriate joke made Hijikata suddenly grin.

If it were a normal day, he would probably immediately raise his eyebrows and stare at him, and rebuke this unpleasant girl in the coldest tone. But now, he inexplicably felt that this girl was really interesting.

It's always been so much fun.

“...... You just threw water on those bastards?" he asked abruptly and bluntly.

She raised her eyebrows slightly, as if she wasn't surprised that he could guess this, and a smile appeared on the corner of her lips that seemed to be smug and narrow.

"Hmm. I also asked Jiro-kun to throw a stone at them. This led them away, which was really natural. ”

He frowned slightly.

A young girl throws water and stones at a group of vicious and vicious scoundrels with bright knives?!What kind of brains can come up with such a dangerous idea?!If he is her important person, it would be okay, but they have only met twice, and they can't be called friends at all...... To take the risk for such a person is completely unworthy, completely incomprehensible!

He wanted to take an objective standpoint, to give a little preaching in a caring manner, to make her change her reckless character, which was completely different from her appearance, but instead he opened his mouth and asked a ridiculous question that had nothing to do with the moment. Even he himself was taken aback.

“...... Who is Jiro-kun?"

As soon as he said the words, he choked and almost bit his tongue.

She seemed stunned for a moment, her eyes flashing slightly.

"Ah...... Jiro-kun is my neighbor, and he's a very nice man......" she replied in a perfunctory tone.

For some reason, this tone made him feel even more subtle unpleasant in his heart. But reason told him that continuing the topic would only make people laugh in vain. He swerved his words in a different direction.

"Why are you here to save me?" he asked in a s** tone.

"Don't you know that those people are dangerous, what if they catch you?Have you thought about the consequences of being discovered or caught up by them?!"

She was stunned for a moment.

"Of course, I've thought about all of this. I'm not stupid. She pouted slightly—a gesture that was hardly touching on her ordinary face—and continued: "I have already taken a good route to escape. Not to mention that I was a girl, and they would never have thought that a girl would have the audacity to provoke them - that was my best disguise. ”

Hijikata couldn't help but roll his eyes at the sky.

Although the wounds all over his body and the overexerted muscles were still painful, the resentment he was full of just now had somehow been inexplicably alleviated a lot, and only a certain determination appeared in his heart the moment he pulled out the wooden knife.

...... Give up the pharmacist business that my ancestors were engaged in.,Join the trial guard hall and Kondo-kun's disciples.,Strive to become an upright samurai.,Strive to help Kondo-kun achieve a career-

At that time, everyone will no longer insult and take away the qi ē he has earned so lightly with a mocking aura, right?

At that time, the dignity and ambition he pursued, as well as the honors and dreams of those who did not belong to the class from which he came, could all be realized?

...... Until then, he won't be allowed to stop, right?

Even the slightest hesitation cannot be tolerated. Until this qiē is realized, all other qiē is just a stumbling block and is not allowed to appear in his world.

The expression on his face seemed to freeze slowly.

He stared at her, and for the first time since they had known her, he looked frankly and unabashedly into those slender eyes.

He saw that the faint, warm smile on the corner of her lips slowly disappeared.

...... The girl was smarter than he had ever imagined, he thought.

Without saying a word, it was as if she had understood what he was trying to say.

There seemed to be some kind of light that shimmered slightly in those long, narrow and dexterous eyes with tears under the corner of one eye.

Then she straightened up, and watched with a restrained stance as he struggled to prop himself up from the ground, and sat there, patting the dust and grass clippings on his clothes.

"I think I'll repeat what I said to you when I first met Mr. Hijikata. ”

She spoke abruptly, her voice calm and steady.

"Please take care. ”

"Maybe we won't see each other again. But it's nice to be able to get to know Mr. Hijikata. ”

"Your ambitions will all come true one day. I believe so. ”

She stood up, ignoring the dust from under the hem of her coat, and her gaze flicked over his head to look into the distance.

I guess I don't want to give him the impression of looking down on him condescendingly.

Unlike ordinary women, her thoughtfulness always seems to be reflected in this wonderful place.

Her voice seemed to choke slightly, and then, she uttered the last words in his memory.

"I'm sure you'll be an amazing person. ”

"I want your light to last for a long, long time, just like your life. ”

"Farewell, Mr. Hijikata. ”

As abrupt as she had appeared, she turned away. He didn't look back, he didn't look at him again, he was so neat that it didn't look like a woman would do anything.

...... It's like she hadn't been hiding in the alley and throwing water and stones at the villains.

It wasn't until her back disappeared from his field of vision that Hijikata withdrew his gaze and whispered to himself with a wry smile.

"I don't know what kind of neighbor it is...... Willing to risk her life to throw stones at those bastards......"

When he said this, he himself was taken aback.

...... I can't think of it at all.

Speaking of which, the daughter of the shamisen house in the countryside of Tama is much more beautiful than Mei. In a small place like the countryside, the family background is also very good.

For the young son of a medicine merchant who has long been in the middle of the family and cannot inherit any family property, a girl like A Qin is already the most ideal candidate for a wife.

As for Xiaomei, who will not see each other again in the future......

What kind of man will she marry in the future?