"Hey! Yu Jin, if you have nowhere to go in the future, you can come to me!" It was a new day, and Washizu shouted loudly as Yu Jin walked further away.
Although Yu Jin had been here for a short time, he had helped Hidamura a lot.
"Oh! Don't cut down the tree I planted; I'll be back to see it later," Yu Jin replied, hearing the shout from behind him.
Washizu heard Yu Jin's words and looked at a newly tilled patch of land in the center of the village. A tender green sprout had already emerged from the soil there.
Besides its green color, what was even more striking about the newborn sprout was the faint golden-red hue emanating from its stem, making it look quite captivating.
Yu Jin had been tinkering with this plot of land all night yesterday, and when he left, a new sprout had appeared there.
Could it be that he truly lived up to his title as an Adventurer? He always had some unexpected and rare trinkets on him.
If this tree grew beautifully, perhaps after the war ended, it could be used as a gimmick to develop tourism?
Just as Washizu was envisioning a beautiful future, Yu Jin had already disappeared.
At this moment, he had once again run to Nazuchi Beach.
On Nazuchi Beach, broken banners and tattered armor were discarded haphazardly. Only the faint scent of blood in the air hinted at the skirmishes that had taken place on this land.
Yu Jin could only sigh at this; he was still a smuggler, and probably still on a wanted poster.
Yu Jin thought about it and decided this wouldn't do; people would pursue him wherever he went.
So, for the first time in a while, Yu Jin took off his Knight's armor and put on a set of Eastern Country samurai armor.
He looked at himself; though still strange, it at least matched the atmosphere of Inazuma.
Moreover, Yu Jin was now wearing a wooden mask on his face. Although made of wood, it looked incredibly lifelike.
Old Man Mask — A wooden mask crafted in the image of a grimacing old man, the origin of the great swordsman of the Reed Lands' nickname.
When one's mind is honed to its limit, one sees uninteresting things. After discarding those things, the "Old Man" is born — only the sword and oneself need to reach their peak.
From then on, the "Old Man" transformed into a Shura.
A Shura is one who kills for the sake of killing.
Unfortunately, the Old Man met Yu Jin. The martial arts perfected through countless corpses ultimately could not surpass the technique of cutting through the world with death.
The Old Man was also a major source of Yu Jin's stubborn impression of Eastern Country samurai; that someone could live in a state where killing was all they saw, awake or asleep, was incomprehensible to Yu Jin.
Although he was similar, Yu Jin was passive, forced into it. The Undead were unwelcome everywhere; even dogs would bite them.
Yu Jin, having assumed the guise of the Old Man, began to wander around.
Yashiori Island and Kannazuka, being the front lines of the resistance against the Shogunate, saw very few civilians coming and going.
Unbeknownst to him, Yu Jin eventually spotted vast tents and dense watchtowers in a distant valley—this was the Shogunate Army's main camp, the Kujou Encampment.
Yu Jin considered the current situation; if he entered rashly, he probably wouldn't fare well.
Thus, he became invisible!
You thought I was a samurai? Actually, I'm a ninja!
Yu Jin silently infiltrated the Kujou Encampment. He didn't want to hear any military secrets; he just couldn't find anyone and wanted to hear some interesting news.
"Sigh~, why can't I go back to Inazuma City? A Duel before the Emperor, you don't see one of those in decades."
"Who told us we were unlucky? We came, barely fought any battles, and now we're guarding the gates every day."
"By the way, who initiated the Duel before the Emperor? Do any of you know?"
"It seems to be a guy named Kaede? Anyway, he's definitely going to lose; General Kujou is so strong."
...Yu Jin perked his ears, as if he had heard something interesting. A Duel before the Emperor? He didn't know what it was, but it should be lively.
So Yu Jin immediately took a great leap and landed on a high vantage point. He pulled out his map and compared it; if Inazuma City, as the main city of Inazuma, wasn't on the map, Yu Jin would have to question the integrity of the Mondstadt merchants.
Fortunately, the integrity of the Mondstadt merchants could still be trusted. Yu Jin pinpointed his location and then quickly advanced with large leaps.
You ask him why he likes to jump? The answer is habit, a habit formed in elden ring.
In his haste, Yu Jin quickly bypassed the Kujou Encampment, crossed the sea, and arrived at a vast plain.
Byakko Plain, Inazuma's famous fox-petting grassland. Across the boundless plain, foxes of various fur colors ran about.
They seemed accustomed to humans; many foxes, seeing Yu Jin appear on the grassland, not only didn't avoid him but even rubbed against him.
Yu Jin stroked the fox at his feet, but his mind was entirely captivated by the city in the distance.
At the end of Byakko Plain, a city built against a mountain stood before Yu Jin. Especially the massive Tenshukaku built on the mountaintop immediately caught Yu Jin's attention.
"Hahaha! Inazuma City, here I come!" Yu Jin burst out laughing and ran towards Inazuma City.
As Yu Jin drew closer to Inazuma City, the number of pedestrians on the road increased. They all looked more or less excited.
From their casual chatter, it seemed these people had gathered from afar to witness the Duel before the Emperor, an event that happened once every few decades.
The Duel before the Emperor was generally not open to the public, but for some unknown reason this time, both parties in the duel agreed to make it public, thus creating this grand spectacle.
However, most people were there to pay homage to the Shogun and the legendary Divine Punishment; they almost certainly believed that the fellow named Kaede would lose.
"I'll find an opportunity to ask him his thoughts!" Yu Jin thought to himself.
Due to the Duel before the Emperor, the number of warriors gathered in Inazuma City was at an all-time high, so Yu Jin's armored and sword-wielding attire did not attract too much attention.
"Hey, young man, do you know where that fellow named Kaede is?" Yu Jin casually stopped someone and asked.
Upon seeing Yu Jin's samurai attire, the person immediately reacted and said, "You want to spar with him too, don't you? If so, you're going to be disappointed; he's not seeing anyone right now."
"No, I'm here to ask a question," Yu Jin shook his head.
"That's really rare. He's a celebrity now. He lives at…" The person, seeing that Yu Jin was still unwilling to give up, told Yu Jin where Kaede lived.
"Where is it? Oh! Found it!" Yu Jin looked at the houses along the road and finally saw a house surrounded by Ashigaru in a secluded corner.
Outside the Ashigaru, many people were still lingering, but as soon as they tried to approach, they would be politely turned away by the Ashigaru.
"What's this for?" Yu Jin grabbed another onlooker and asked.
"Nothing much. Lady Kujou is kind-hearted. Seeing that too many people were bothering him, and he wasn't seeing anyone, she sent people to guard his door to prevent some people from disturbing him and affecting his condition."
Yu Jin nodded. It seemed this Kujou Sara was quite honorable. But it looked like trying to talk to him would be a bit troublesome.
Yu Jin scratched his head. What should he do?
Infiltrate, of course!
He walked to a deserted spot and once again made his body invisible. Then he directly climbed over the courtyard wall.
All Yu Jin saw before him was a small courtyard. In the courtyard, a handsome man in a red robe and a purple and white scarf was playing with a white cat.
"Your Excellency's movement technique is truly miraculous, able to even conceal your presence?" Kaede asked curiously.
He had only just deduced that someone had entered from the indentations on the courtyard lawn.
Seeing that he had been discovered, Yu Jin no longer concealed himself. He revealed his form and sat down opposite Kaede.
"I just have some questions for you," Yu Jin showed no embarrassment at being exposed, but instead asked curiously.
"Tell me. If I can answer your questions, it would be my honor," Kaede smiled and agreed, seeing Yu Jin in his samurai attire and with an aged face.
"I think you're going to lose. Why are you still stepping forward?" Yu Jin's question was quite blunt, directly causing Kaede to pause.
"Heh heh, senior is truly direct." Kaede looked at Yu Jin, thinking this old man was indeed outspoken, but he didn't pay too much attention to it. After a moment of thought, he asked:
"Has senior ever heard of 'Musou no Hitotachi'?"
"Never heard of it."
"…"