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Running up a long staircase, there were many soldiers fighting fiercely along the way. Someone shouted generously: "I think everyone should know very well in their hearts that this is a crucial battle for the survival of the reed!" For the sake of Yoshitaka and the people of Ashina, let us lay down our lives to fight! ”

"Oh!" The soldiers of the Satake Domain responded one after another, and their morale soared.

The battle doesn't look like it's going to end so easily for a while.

At this time, there was no need to get involved in a pointless battle, Nan Xiao shot a hook, grabbed the castle tower next to the stairs, and took Rin to the roof with him.

The ridge of the roof was not very peaceful, and there were many guys in robes and scythes in their hands chasing after them all the way. It's not fun to entangle with them, just run all the way. These people are very rigid and only guard the roof where they are. As soon as they ran away, they would no longer chase them, but would only whistle to inform the other rooftops.

As I ran, I suddenly saw an open window and quickly flipped into it.

And it worked! The scythe-bearer did not dare to come in, but only lingered on the ridge outside the window. They seem to have been strictly ordered not to enter the room. Mud bombardment people are so brainless, they can't say that they can't enter, that is, they don't dare to enter even if they die.

There are other enemies in the house.

The sound of slight footsteps, the sound of inaudible breathing, and at least two or more people patrolling the corridors outside. They are calm, breathe evenly, and know that they are masters when they hear it.

Nan Xiao patiently waited for the footsteps to go away, and then quietly walked out.

Rin followed, as light as a cat.

Of course, both of them knocked over the moon hidden sugar. I don't know how much this thing is hidden in his sleeve, and there are two of them when I touch it.

The phantom of the human figure swayed slightly in the light of the candlelight. In fact, if you look closely, you can still be noticed.

The samurai patrolling the building are deaf and clear-sighted, and their swords are unusually stable, making them difficult to deal with at first glance. In order to avoid a pointless battle, Nan Xiao and Rin quietly lurked, slipping through the wall from a place where the candlelight could not be seen.

All the way up to the top floor, the room was empty.

Rin looked around and said, "Young Master Xing must have lived here, and there are secrets she left everywhere. ”

Indeed, there are hidden words on the walls, on the screens, and even on the tatami mats, in inconspicuous corners. It seems to be a meaningless scratch, but in fact, when taken together, it seems that there is a deep meaning in it.

"What was written?" Nan Xiao asked.

"It's a diary," Rin said, pointing to one of them, "and it says that today's meal is sweet potatoes." ”

Well, at this point, I just want to eat it.

Continuing to decipher, it seems to be some daily recipes. Is Saeki really idle, why do you write recipes in secret texts?

No, it doesn't make sense.

Rin translated all the secret texts she could find in the room, and all of them were messages like "Today's Recipe".

Nan Xiao thought quickly. Saeki must have known some secret and wanted to tell the people who came to her rescue. However, she couldn't say it explicitly, so she had to leave a secret message. But she is being watched all the time, and it is impossible for the other party not to know that she is secretly leaving a message. So the only way is for the other person to think that they have a complete grasp of what she is writing, but in fact they are hiding the real meaning in it.

Well...... What secrets are hidden in sweet potato wowotou, miso soup, grilled fish, sashimi, dried radish, etc.?

Thinking about it, there is no way of thinking.

Rin couldn't wait any longer, and urged, "Let's hurry up and find Young Master Xing." ”

Nan Xiao sniffed the smell in the room and said, "They should have gone out from the balcony, walked through the roof, and went over there." ”

There is a pavilion not far away, which is the highest place in the entire reed city. It's not far from the attic where the two of them are, and it's only a few minutes to run all the way from the roof. It is open on all sides, and there is a place for a roof on it. It's huge, about 1,000 square meters. Because the place is large, it seems that the two people sitting in the center are very small.

A handsome, even feminine samurai sat in the center of the watchtower, holding a large sword in his hand. The knife was similar to the Black Immortal Slash, but the scabbard was vermilion. It seems that it is the red immortal chop "Worship Tears" snatched from the hands of the son of Change.

Saeki sat on her knees next to the samurai, her eyes blindfolded, and her hands tied behind her back.

Rin gritted her teeth, drew her short knife, and walked up step by step. "Let go of the young master of Xing!" She glared at the samurai, "Sokuro Takida, it's you?" ”

The warrior smiled slightly: "It turned out to be a dog raised by A-Xing, yes, very loyal, and he chased it here." I thought you were dead that night, but I didn't expect you to have a long life. ”

"It was Young Master Xing who gave me her blood and brought me back from the dead."

"That's right, that's it," said Takida Sokuro, "I want the power of apricots, and I want to control the power of the dragon in my hands." ”

"Go dream," Rin scolded angrily, "don't think about it! ”

"Hmph, look what this is!" Sokuro Takida suddenly took out a pitch-black short knife, "Rin, do you recognize this?" ”

Rin's face changed drastically: "This—This is ...... A token of the head of the Saeki family that has been passed down from generation to generation. ”

"That's right, now I'm the head of the Saeki clan, and I've been unanimously approved by the whole clan. The A-Xing you desperately protected is just a remnant of a rebel. Rin! What is the first rule of the Saeki ninja precepts? Tell me! ”

Rin's face turned pale, and she replied with great difficulty, "...... Must be absolutely obedient to the orders of the head of the house. ”

"That's right, the head of the house's orders are above all else. I will command you now to abandon A-Xing! From now on, apricots are no longer your masters. Get down on your knees and swear allegiance to me! ”

"Give up...... Apricot apricots? ”

"That's right, this is the order of the head of the house to you, this is the commandment!"

“…… It can't be done. ”

"You say...... Can't do it? Ninjas are actually swayed by emotions, have you fed all the training you received since childhood? Where are the ninja precepts? You have to remember who you are! ”

Rin's hand trembled slightly: "I am the ninja of the young master of Apricot." One day is, always will be. The precepts I should keep are up to me! ”

Takida Sokuro stood up, leaned forward slightly, and made a gesture of drawing a knife: "It's a pity, then I have to kill you here." ”

Rin also put on a posture of fighting, and the two of them were on the verge of breaking out.

However, Takida suddenly laughed: "Actually, I don't need to do it myself. I'm standing right here, do you dare to knife me? How can I say that I am also a famous swordsman in the Western Kingdom, at this distance, do you think it was Xing's head that fell first, or did you cut me first? ”

He placed his hand on the hilt of the Immortal Slash, keeping the appearance of drawing the sword. This look is a posture that has been tempered thousands of times, and the drawing of the knife must be extremely smooth. It's really not bragging, to cut off Saeki Xing's head, it probably only takes a blink of an eye.

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