Asking a three-year-old child to make a life-or-death decision might seem absurd, but it was genuinely happening now.
Megumai's stance was unconditionally based on her son, Seiya's, preference.
Once again, the safety of Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana hinged on Seiya's single thought.
The mother and daughter looked at him with hopeful anticipation, making themselves as kind and approachable as possible to earn his good favor.
As a nameless hero passing by, Seiya naturally didn't mind helping them to the end. He nodded decisively, "Let's go together!"
"Thank you! Thank you!"
Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana were visibly relieved, offering endless thanks. How comforting it was to travel with a powerful Shinobi out in this wilderness!
Furthermore, their benefactor was a woman, so there was no need to worry about lust or ill intent. She was a perfect bodyguard!
With the safety issue resolved, the tension in Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana immediately eased.
They then suddenly felt the minor scrapes on their faces and hands throbbing with unbearable pain-pain they hadn't noticed moments ago!
Seeing the distressed expressions of the mother and daughter, Megumai understood.
The fear of death had suppressed their perception of pain. Now that the fear was gone, the pain took over.
With this in mind, emerald green chakra emanated from Megumai's hand, drifting towards Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana.
In an instant, the wounds of the mother and daughter healed completely, without leaving a single scar.
"Thank you, Madam!" Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana said in unison.
Megumai waved her hand. "I am now your guard. This is simply my duty. There's no need for thanks."
Seiya, meanwhile, exclaimed, "Mama is so amazing!"
As he spoke, he reached for his mother's hand. He was immensely fascinated that this green substance floating from her hand could heal people and cure illnesses!
Megumai smiled faintly, letting her son play with her fingers.
In fact, the technique she had used was not Medical Ninjutsu but 'Kaido'-the healing Kido (demon art) from Bleach.
As a transmigrator, she possessed the ever-popular 'cheat' ability. 'Kaido' was one of them. The 'Shikai: Shinso' (Initial Release: God Spear) was another.
Traveling with ordinary people meant Megumai could no longer leap through the forests as before; she had to walk normally, which significantly slowed their pace.
As for the fallen samurai, they were quietly left in the forest.
Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana were defenseless and unable to carry anything, so even if they wanted to retrieve the bodies, they couldn't.
Megumai had no interest in collecting corpses.
Therefore, Matsudaira Nai planned to notify the authorities in the nearest city to send people to retrieve and bury the deceased.
"I need to state clearly: if we encounter danger, I will prioritize protecting my son, and I will decide whether to protect you based on the risk. Can you accept this?" Megumai asked.
"We can!" Matsudaira Nai replied without hesitation, smiling. "A mother's love for her child is only natural. I am a mother myself and fully understand your feelings."
Matsudaira Tachibana nodded in agreement.
Megumai mentally approved, highly satisfied with the mother and daughter's reaction. They were sensible and clever, which would make the journey less exhausting.
"My name is Megumai, call me Megumai. This is my son, Seiya."
After a brief introduction, Megumai officially began escorting the mother and daughter back to the capital.
It took three days to finally get from the suburbs to the nearest small town.
Along the way, they were trailed by a small group of bandits.
These were remnants of the group that had attacked Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana.
After a deadly fight that eliminated the rearguard samurai, the bandits had followed the trail.
Megumai effortlessly took their lives.
Matsudaira Nai and Matsudaira Tachibana were reassured by this.
Dispatching a group of vicious thugs in an instant demonstrated the benefactor's extraordinary strength! Surely the rest of their journey would be safe!
However, the mother and daughter were accustomed to a life of luxury, and this journey on foot had left them with countless blisters.
Had Megumai not treated them with Kaido, they likely would not have made it to the town.
The slow pace and the increased number of people had severely depleted Megumai's dry rations, forcing her to hunt for survival.
And the nearly two hundred li (approx. 100 km) of walking had been miserable for the spoiled mother and daughter.
Therefore, upon reaching the town, after notifying the authorities to arrange the burial of the fallen samurai, Matsudaira Nai specifically requested a carriage.
Megumai was happy with this development; traveling by carriage was certainly better than walking.
Matsudaira Nai had planned to add a few teams of samurai as guards, but Megumai refused.
A large group of people traveling together inevitably creates noise.
Megumai preferred quiet and disliked crowds.
Given the choice between Megumai as a solo guard or over a hundred samurai guards, Matsudaira Nai didn't need to think twice.
She decisively chose Megumai. After all, it was clear to anyone that Megumai's strength far surpassed that of a group of samurai!
However, Matsudaira Nai was not rigid.
She flexibly ordered the samurai units to follow far behind, acting as a deterrent without disturbing the carriage-effectively adding an extra layer of security.
Megumai approved of Matsudaira Nai's arrangement.
The journey was long, and the carriage rumbled toward the capital.
After several days of traveling, the four had grown familiar with each other.
Except for Seiya, the carriage compartment was entirely occupied by women.
Thus, Seiya could drink his milk without having to be discreet, which was very convenient.
Matsudaira Nai was surprised the little boy was still nursing at age three. She then used parenting as a topic to converse with Megumai, quickly drawing them closer.
Considering her benefactor's candid nature, Matsudaira Nai openly inquired about Megumai's background.
She was concerned about Megumai's earlier comment, "I myself am a danger."
For safety's sake, Matsudaira Nai wanted to understand the potential risks they might encounter.
Megumai simply mentioned her enemies-Iwagakure, Kirigakure, Amegakure...
In short, they were grudges rooted in the deaths of other shinobi.
Surviving to this day after incurring the wrath of so many hidden villages attested to her considerable strength.
Matsudaira Nai was reassured and gained a deeper understanding of Megumai's caliber.
While the two adults chatted, the two children moved from being strangers to being good friends.
Although Matsudaira Tachibana was a princess, noble and reserved, she could not put on airs in front of her rescuer.
With her pleasing looks, approachable manner, and keen intelligence, she quickly bonded with Seiya, earning the affectionate title 'Sister Tachibana'.
Seiya, still nursing, was excessively adorable, innocent, kind, and though somewhat spoiled, he knew his limits.
Matsudaira Tachibana genuinely loved their little savior. The boy was simply too endearing!
From Seiya's perspective, Matsudaira Tachibana was the person closest to his own age he had interacted with in his short three years of life. Of course, they were still seven or eight years apart.
Nevertheless, this did not stop Seiya from feeling a 'peer'-like closeness to Matsudaira Tachibana, and he was willing to share his cherished toys with her.
Unfortunately, Matsudaira Tachibana was not interested in boy's toys.
Besides, she was already an eleven-year-old young lady, past the age of playing with toys.
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