[Comprehensive] fleeting notebook

The Xinxuan Group's settlement, the dojo.

"Hahaha--!"

All the soldiers holding bamboo swords were performing the most basic sword swinging practice accompanied by vigorous roars.

Most of the people training in the dojo at the moment are grassroots soldiers with relatively weak swordsmanship, so they are also practicing basic skills collectively. From time to time, the captain of a certain team will come to inspect and supervise.

At the end of a group of old men, a figure who looked much thinner was also practicing sword swing with everyone.

He tied his long hair into a high ponytail, put on the same kendo uniform as everyone else, and swung the bamboo sword across the air with the sound of sharp winds.

Sweat dripped from her temples, and the pale-faced Irie girl said... Hey, hey, Mina-san, stop and rest, okay, just a little... She really can't hold on anymore!Is there anyone who can hear her inner voice, woo woo...

That day, she took over with Bai Lan, and after returning to the Shinsengumi, she thought a lot about herself...finally she decided to follow Bai Lan's advice and seek the minimum ability to protect herself in this troubled world.Not to mention how strong you can become, at least don't take advantage of it easily. After all, it's impossible to fool around by talking about everything.

Moreover, the outbreak of the Battle of Toba Fushimi is getting closer and closer.Although I know that guy Bailan is a genius, but this is a strange era after all, and it is difficult for that guy to be so powerful that he can do everything well.

So, she decided to entrust my life to the hilt of my sword... She wants to practice swordsmanship with these Mibu wolves!

At her level, of course she has to start from the basic class.Firstly, it is in line with her level, and secondly, it is a basic movement anyway, so it should not expose her fencing skills too much and cause the suspicion of the high-level members of the Shinsengumi.

As for how to join this "basic training camp"... Talking and acting skills are OK.Facing Director Kondo and Deputy Director Hijikata, he put on a painful expression, reviewing his previous irresponsible behavior of leaving the team without authorization and being ashamed of his responsibility as the captain of the fourth division.In short, I asked myself to go down to the grassroots, starting from the most grassroots soldiers, and practicing with the grassroots soldiers from the most basic skills of swinging swords, and rediscovering the way of swords that a samurai sticks to in his heart, balabala...

So, it became like this now...

Tsk, her arm is so sore... I have to say that when she picked up the bamboo sword in her hand and started practicing, she really realized the cruelty of this era.

In her era, those who learned kendo were mostly just adding a icing on the cake skill for themselves, more for exercising their bodies and honing their will.However, in this era, the sword held in the hand is to kill the enemy and protect oneself. It is a real sword of killing, and there is no room for innocence.

Now that I think about it, her training in the school's kendo club when she was a freshman was like a child's play compared to now.The temper that a real swordsman has to endure... She has only now begun to understand.

"Hey, why does Captain Matsubara practice sword swing with us..."

"do not know."

Several team members looked at Irijiang from time to time, whispering in low voices.

And Irie wanted to show a dead fish-eyed expression... Hey, hey, shouldn't whispers be whispered, please lower the volume, she can hear it all.

"Captain Matsubara's sword swing, why does it look a bit weak... I've seen Captain Matsubara fight against others before, and the sword swing is quite fierce..."

I'm really sorry, that's because I'm a counterfeit version of "Tadaji Matsubara"...Your real captain Matsubara doesn't know where he is wandering around to heal his emotional injuries.

"Maybe it's because the captain is not feeling well... The captain is a girl after all, ahem, you know..."

"Oh, yes, girls always have a few days every month...the body is not feeling well..."

I heard it all, I heard it all!You old men really know a lot!Ah, ah, but, I still want to thank you for helping me find an excellent excuse to cover up the uselessness of swordsmanship... You must remember that your Captain Songyuan is under the care of relatives every day of the month, so the state not good...

"Woo, I'm really touched. The captain is not in good health and she has to accompany us to do basic exercises."

"Okay, let's continue to work harder! We can't hold back the captain!"

Hey, hey, let me tell you... why are you so moved, why do you feel inspired!Your background is about to become a small universe erupting, hey!

Looking at the elders who swung their swords more vigorously, the girl Irie said that she wanted to cry without tears... She really wanted to take a break, her arm was almost broken, okay!

……

At noon, the sky felt a little gloomy.In the afternoon, as expected, it began to rain.

The rain was not too heavy, but it was falling so densely that it seemed as if a bead curtain had been connected between the sky and the earth.

The fine rain fell on the quaint Japanese-style streets and alleys full of Edo style, which added a bit of rare interest to this turbulent era.

Under the eaves of a tea house on the street, Bai Lan, who hid under the eaves to avoid the rain, reached out and brushed off the water droplets that had just stained her hair, and looked at the winter rain that seemed not to stop for a while: "It's really Yes~ Japan’s winter is the same as Italy’s, and it rains a lot.”

Ben was muttering to himself in Italian, but a male voice speaking Italian suddenly sounded beside him...

"Is your excellency also from Italy?"

Startled slightly, Bai Lan turned her head and slowly looked at the person who spoke.

When he heard someone speaking Italian to him in Japan, he subconsciously thought that it might be a businessman or missionary from Italy... After all, this era was when Western culture first poured into Japan.tide.

It's just that when I saw the person who spoke to me clearly... I felt... something was wrong.

The plain Japanese-style kimono looks no different from that of a Japanese countryman.He has a European face, but he feels more like an ordinary Japanese middle-aged man... He must have been in this country for a long time, and he has completely assimilated with it.

Blonde hair, orange-red eyes, age... looks to be over 40 years old.After all, the aging rate of Westerners in appearance is much higher than that of Easterners. Although this man's orange-red eyes are very beautiful, the crow's feet are obvious at the corners of the eyes, and his fair skin is also slack, all of which show this man Can't match the aging of the years.

But I feel... This man must have looked very good when he was young, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he was magnificent.

……

In the tea room, there seemed to be many people sheltering from the rain.

The two of them, who seem to be from the West at first glance, seem quite awkward, but most Japanese civilians still hold a respectful attitude towards Westerners, and the two of them sat opposite each other at a table in the corner, which was fine No one disturbed them, and the two of them spoke Italian that no one else could understand.

"I haven't talked to anyone in Italian for many years... I just heard you say something in Italian outside, I miss you very much... I even feel a little strange."

The man smiled softly, with a peace and indifference that seemed to be beyond the world.

Bai Lan, who was sitting opposite, looked at each other with interest: "Hi~ so you have lived in Japan for many years...and listen to the accent, senior, your Italian has the same Sicilian accent as mine."

The man also explained gently: "I'm from Alcamo, Sicily... It's been 16 years since I came to Japan. When I first arrived, Japan was still a very peaceful country. It took about two or three years. , more and more Westerners landed in Japan.”

"So, then, senior, are you doing business with the East and West now? Many people from the West have made a lot of money from it~" Bai Lan seemed to be very interested, and started talking.

The man just shook his head lightly: "No... I usually live in the country, and I just came to the city today because I happened to have something to do. To be honest, I didn't even care about the situation outside. Just living my little life in the countryside."

"Hmm~ Senior, you look like a fairy~" Bai Lan smiled innocently, her eyes narrowed.Just then slowly opened, the violet eyes contained an unpredictable look: "But I always feel that senior, you came to this place of Taoyuan Township... What are you trying to escape~"

"Maybe..." The man's expression was still calm, and he asked without any ups and downs, "So... what about you?"

"Me? Well~ It was actually an accident~ I was playing a game, but there was a small accident in the middle of the game, so I had to come here temporarily." Bai Lan felt that she seemed to have a special desire to confide in others today, with He said in a game-like tone: "I am actually a superpower who can predict the future~ I know that in the future, there will be a person who will betray me. That person used to be my best friend, and the time I was with that person I'm really happy. But...that person still betrayed me in the future. So, before everything happens, I want to change the future where I am a loser. That's right, start with that person, and that person People are playing this very interesting game... how should I put it, it actually contains the psychology of revenge~"

The man quietly listened to the joke-like words of the teenagers, without the slightest confusion or disdain, and his expression with a slight smile was still indifferent, without any waves.

"But you don't hate that man."

Bai Lan's eyes froze at the man's sudden and calm words, as if something that had been concealed all along had been exposed.

"From your words, I don't feel any hatred..." The man said calmly, while reaching for the teacup in front of him: "Betrayal... I have experienced it too. Didn't you say that I Did you come to this country to escape something... probably because of that."

"Then... Senior, who have you been betrayed by?" Bai Lan asked, tilting her head.

Quietly looking at the tea in the teacup in his hand, his golden-orange eyes were steady and unwavering: "My cousin who is connected by blood, my trusted friend, and... my beloved wife."

Ben also picked up the teacup and just took a sip of tea, Bai Lan almost spit out the tea in her mouth.

"Hey~ It's completely betrayal~ Senior, you sound really miserable~" That's what I said, but it sounded completely devoid of sympathy: "Senior, you were even betrayed by the wife who shared the bed with you ...Hmm~ As a man, I really failed a bit. Hey, hey, did that woman join forces with outsiders like your cousins ​​and friends to steal your property, and you were forced to leave? "

The man was stunned for a moment, but then chuckled, a little helpless and bitter, but not at all annoyed: "It seems... that's indeed the case."

"Senior, didn't you ever think about getting revenge...to change the ending of this loser, and make the person who betrayed you feel more pain than you." He said slowly, with a trace of cruelty at the corner of his mouth. smile.

"Never, because I never hated her. I can't even love her in time, how can I be willing to make her suffer...no matter what she does." Whispering softly, looking out the window slowly, the sky is hazy Xiaoyu: "In the first two years when I came to Japan, I dreamed of her and the past almost every night, and then woke up from the dream every night. It was only later... probably this is the magic of time, people The older you get, the more you will want to understand some things. Compared with the endless time, a person's life itself is too small and too short. And in this short time, the time spent together is even more There are so few... Why use stubborn hatred to torture the rare preciousness in your heart? This world is actually very fragile... The things and people you cherish are fleeting, and maybe they will be gone forever. In a second, you can no longer hug each other, and you can only leave memories to savor and savor alone in the years that belonged to one person. It is short and fragile, like cherry blossoms in spring... so why not cherish it and have it fully time, the most splendid moment."

Neither of them spoke anymore, only the patter of rain outside the window remained.

After being silent for a long while, Bai Lan finally said with a smile while scratching her white hair: "Really, what you said, senior, troubled me even more... because I found that I seem to like that person a little~"

……

"Father, so you are here!"

A voice sounded, and a young man who had just walked into the tea room was walking towards their table in the corner holding two umbrellas.

It was a young man of similar age, but when Bai Lan saw the young man's face clearly, Bai Lan was a little stunned for a moment... Tsunaki-kun!

No... Although the face looks a bit similar, this blond boy who inherited his father looks more like a Westerner, and he can only vaguely see the feeling of mixed blood.

coincidence...

"Father...the umbrella, you forgot to bring it when you went out." The boy seemed to be sending the umbrella specially for his father.

The man smiled and took the umbrella from his son. The smile on his face belonged to a father's pampering: "Thank you, Ji Zong."

Bai Lan looked at the father and son quietly... the conversation was entirely in Japanese.The father's Japanese can still hear a slight Italian accent, while the son's Japanese is so standard that it is no different from ordinary Japanese. It seems that he grew up in Japan, and he may not even speak his mother tongue Italian.

"Then, let's go first." The man stood up and said goodbye to Bai Lan with a smile.

"Well, it's a pleasure chatting with senior, let's meet again~"

……

After the father and son left, Bai Lan rested her chin in one hand and watched the rain outside the window quietly.

Ben was thinking about the man's words, thinking about his own thoughts, but suddenly... remembered something...

That man said he was from Alcamo in Sicily... Alcamo, isn't that where the Vengley family headquarters castle is located!

And that man's son looks so much like Tsunayoshi-kun...

Could it be that man...

He stood up abruptly and walked to the eaves of the tea room door.It's just that the father and son have long since disappeared on the street in the drizzle... They've gone far away...

Just turning a street, the man holding an umbrella slowly turned his head and looked back.

The look in the golden-orange eyes was calm and unpredictable.

That kid... he could feel, as he had been, something from the mafia world...

"Father, what's wrong with you?" Noticing his father's sudden stop, the boy turned sideways and asked.

"No, nothing. Jizong, let's go home."

I hope that child can have a different ending from him...

Hold on tight to what is dear to you.

……