Chapter 648 - 6: Blade in Hand! Strike Down Aoto! Seize Sazanoko!

Chapter 648: Chapter 6: Blade in Hand! Strike Down Aoto! Seize Sazanoko!

Sure, here’s the translated text:

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The young swordsman, who was barely in his twenties, raised his eyebrows and then glanced at Aoto with an expressionless face.

"Are you here... to visit the big black bull you foster here again?"

"Yes." Aoto smiled lightly, "Mr. Chiba, long time no see."

"Hmm... long time no see." Chiba Domon Shiro hesitated for a moment, then gently nodded in response to Aoto’s greeting.

Chiba Shigetarou had to continue to teach swordsmanship, and Yamanaka also needed to keep practicing, so they couldn’t chat with Aoto for long.

Thus, after exchanging a few simple greetings with Aoto, they turned their attention back to their tasks, each busy with their own matter.

So Aoto could only stand at the edge of the dojo chatting aimlessly with Sazanoko, who currently didn’t have any important matters, and Chiba Domon Shiro, who was equally idle.

"... Mr. Tachibana,"

In the middle of the idle chat, Chiba Domon Shiro suddenly spoke to Aoto with a serious expression.

"For the Red and White Battle in 8 days... how well prepared is your Shiwei Hall?"

"We’ve gathered our greatest strength." Aoto replied half-jokingly, "Uncle Gen... oh no, Inoue Genzaburō returned to Edo a few days ago."

"As long as nothing unexpected happens, all the experts of Shiwei Hall can take the stage in 8 days."

"Inoue Genzaburō is back?" Chiba Domon Shiro’s eyes twitched slightly as he pondered, "It seems... the battle in 8 days will be harder than I imagined."

Today is already August 12th.

Only 8 days left until August 20th... the day of the Red and White Battle jointly held by Shiwei Hall and Xuanwu Hall!

This Red and White Battle is of large scale—each side sending out 20 people, a massive 20vs20 brawl.

Just the other day, after much deliberation, Zhouzhu finally decided on the list of 20 representatives for Shiwei Hall in this Red and White Battle.

Aoto, whose body had fully recovered, was among them.

The four main forces of Shiwei Hall: Kondo, Hijikata, Chokata, and the recently returned Inoue were all on the list.

Nagakura, Saito, and Harada were all guests at Shiwei Hall, not apprentices, so they could not participate in this grand event exclusive to the dojo’s apprentices.

They could only stand on the sidelines as "cheerleaders" to cheer Aoto and others on.

Simply put—Aoto wasn’t lying; Shiwei Hall truly gathered its greatest strength.

Except for Zhouzhu, who was too old to participate in such high-intensity swordsmanship competitions, all the experts of Shiwei Hall would take the stage in 8 days!

At a glance, the "participants list" is rather luxurious; all the experts Shiwei Hall could send were sent out.

However... everyone at Shiwei Hall, including Aoto, had no idea what outcome this impending fierce battle could achieve.

Because a few days ago, they heard the rumor—Chiba Daisaburo would personally participate in this Red and White Battle!

Chiba Daisaburo... upon hearing this name, upon realizing there was a high chance of facing this person in the Red and White Battle, many at Shiwei Hall felt a shiver.

Before this, in the previous Red and White Battles between Shiwei Hall and Xuanwu Hall, there had never been a precedent of Chiba Daisaburo participating personally.

The renowned Chiba Daisaburo, who could wield two blades at once, was going to participate, we’re doomed—some directly voiced defeatist views that boosted others while undermining us.

Some directly claimed "unbeatable"... which wasn’t the scariest part.

The scariest part was that quite a few people did not refute these negative statements.

Recalling the rumor that caused Shiwei Hall’s recent atmosphere to be very suppressive, Aoto, after pondering for a moment, turned to Chiba Domon Shiro and asked softly:

"... Mr. Chiba. I heard that your older brother Chiba Daisaburo is going to personally participate in this Red and White Battle, is that true?"

"Hmm? Oh, you’re talking about that..."

Chiba Domon Shiro’s lips curved slightly, almost imperceptibly.

"It’s true. My third brother is indeed determined to participate in this Red and White Battle."

"That’s really surprising..." Aoto murmured, "Even though in previous Red and White Battles between Shiwei Hall and your Xuanwu Hall, he never participated, why is there a sudden exception this time?"

"... Mr. Tachibana." Chiba Domon Shiro remained silent for a while, then turned his gaze, fixing on Aoto, "It’s rare to run into you here today... I’ll be honest with you."

"My third brother is making an exception to participate in this Red and White Battle all because of you."

"Because of me?" Aoto was taken aback.

"Anyone can see that half a year ago at the Plum Blossom Festival, Shiwei Hall won against Little Chiba Sword Dojo largely because of you."

"My third brother has long wanted to personally test how strong Shiwei Hall has become since you joined."

"And your performance and achievements in the battle against the Anti-foreigner Group over two months ago... further increased my third brother’s interest in you."

"My third brother is determined this time—to fiercely battle with Shiwei Hall in the Red and White Battle in 8 days."

"Ha..." Understanding the reasons, Aoto laughed wryly, "Then I am truly flattered."

"Be well prepared." Chiba Domon Shiro withdrew his gaze from Aoto, "My third brother is really strong."