Seven days later, the ship reached a port somewhere in the East without incident, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi quietly disembarked and blended in with the crowd to leave.
He was not in a good position in the East, so he did not intend to disembark openly with the others.
But even if he was not in a good position, there were still people to pick him up.
At the entrance to an alleyway, a samurai dressed as a ronin bowed slightly to Toyotomi Hideyoshi and followed him.
“Where is Lord Oda now?” Toyotomi Hideyoshi asked as he walked.
His dry, thin body was hardened to a majestic aura. At this moment, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was not a surrendered man grovelling before Kiyoharu, but the second-in-command to Oda Nobunaga, a man of great stature in Eastern Japan.
“Ten days ago, Master Renshu hurried back to the temple from his teachings outside, and Lord Oda must have been at Master Renshu’s place.” The samurai returned.
Master Ren Sheng was a high priest of the Tantric sect and was of the same generation as Sujang Naruto before he was reincarnated. His strength had declined severely due to his old age, so the Eastern side did not count him as an available warrior.
After he was reborn as Oda Nobunaga, he was taken under the tutelage of Master Renshu and taught by him, and they were very close.
“Honnoji? ——” muttered Toyotomi Hideyoshi in a low voice as he stepped a little faster.
“Hideyoshi-sama,” the samurai followed a few steps faster, “we inquired about Lord Oda’s whereabouts, didn’t we ——”
Toyotomi Hideyoshi turned abruptly, his sinister gaze causing the samurai to swallow the words “not so good” that followed.
Sugan Naruto, also known as Oda Nobunaga, had not returned to the East publicly, not even informing his subordinates, obviously not wanting others to know of his whereabouts. Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s summons to his men to search for his lord’s whereabouts would probably have disgusted Sujamatsu.
In the present situation, if even Sujang Naruto had given up on Toyotomi Hideyoshi, those who were targeting him would not have minded at all if he had been beaten into oblivion.
The samurai was in fact looking out for Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and this was said to be a word of advice.
But unfortunately, he did not know the real situation that Toyotomi Hideyoshi was in.
“It is not that I am deliberately inquiring about Lord Oda’s whereabouts, but Lord Oda is in a bad situation. Akechi Mitsuhide was sent by Amaterasu to a*sist Lord Oda. If Amaterasu dies and Lord Oda returns to the East alone, Akechi Mitsuhide will be displeased with him, do you understand?” Toyotomi Hideyoshi said in a stern voice.
The Akechi Mitsuhide he was referring to was another of Nobunaga Oda’s lieutenants, who, together with Toyotomi Hideyoshi, was known as Oda Nobunaga’s right-hand man.
But Akechi Mitsuhide’s allegiance was to Amaterasu, and his loyalty to Amaterasu was greater than that to Nobunaga Oda.
If Oda Nobunaga had not been suspected of being involved in Amaterasu’s death, Akechi would still be his right-hand man. But the situation now was such that Nobunaga was a strong suspect in Amaterasu’s death, and there were numerous suspicions that he had abandoned Amaterasu and was resentful of him.
It should be said that at least 80% of those who know in the East think so, and they all distrust Oda Nobunaga and Sujang Naruto.
After all, the languishing Sujamatsu did not have much of a following compared to Amaterasu, who had always been a saint in front of the people, because he had no business running a business when his own survival was in question.
It was only after his transformation into Oda Nobunaga that he gathered a considerable force. But how many of these men were truly loyal to him and how many were planted by Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi is a matter of opinion and wisdom.
“My subordinate ——” the samurai swallowed and said in a heavy voice, “Understood.”
“How has Akechi Mitsuhide been doing lately?” Toyotomi Hideyoshi asked again.
“Lord Mitsuhide has been in contact with Amaterasu Omikami’s men of late, often talking late into the night, even to the point of holding a candle completely.” The samurai bowed his head and said.
‘It seems that Mitsuhide is also displeased with Sujamaru Naruto,’ Toyotomi Hideyoshi thought as he sniffed, ‘but he has not gone so far as to do anything about it directly.’
If he really wanted to do something big like rebel against Sujang Naritsugu, he would surely have to do it quietly. To be so blatant, and even to be discovered on a couple of occasions when he had a thoroughly long talk by candlelight, if he really wanted to make a move, he was afraid he was not looking for death.
This is the basic principle of planning for great things.
As a wise general, Akechi Mitsuhide would not be unaware of the fact that the culture of Japan was brought by the Tantric sect from the Middle Kingdom and that he was familiar with the culture of the Middle Kingdom.
So now Akechi Mitsuhide is just putting on a show, hoping that Sujang Naruto will come forward to give an explanation.
Of course, even though he knew, Toyotomi Hideyoshi said, “It seems that Mitsuhide is very unhappy with Lord Oda, as he has been in contact with others.
Keep an eye on Mitsuhide, and we must keep his foundation intact for Lord Oda. Although Lord Tsukuyomi is also a strong man, he is a woman, so he is not a concern.
Given the current situation, the future of Japan will in all likelihood be in Lord Oda’s hands, and we must pave the way for him.”
“Haj.” The samurai answered in a respectful voice.
Akechi Mitsuhide had bad intentions, and Lord Oda would certainly not reappoint him, but when Lord Oda took control of Japan in the future, he would certainly entrust Lord Hideyoshi with important responsibilities.
Although the samurai did not know this saying, they knew the truth and were overwhelmed with enthusiasm.
“Go on.” Toyotomi Hideyoshi thrust his hands into his sleeves and walked forward.
“Haj.” The samurai left quickly.
“The Future of East Japan ——”
Toyotomi Hideyoshi looked up at today’s gloomy sky, “Where is the future of eastern Japan!” Dogs
Just like this gloomy sky, the future of this extreme east of Japan is a gloomy one, there is no future anymore.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi snorted, slowed his pace, and strolled around like an idle man shaking his head.
————————
Near Kyoto, in the middle of Honnoji Temple.
Sitting casually by the lotus pond in just a bathing suit, Sujang Naruto looked at the letter that had just arrived in his hand and said with a low laugh, “Mitsuhide is expressing his displeasure with me.”
He casually tossed the letter into the pool and let it float slowly under the shelter of the lotus leaves.
Opposite Sujang Mingzun, a thin old monk plucked his rosary beads, his white eyebrows covering his eyes twitching gently as he said, “Brother Nasu, now that the situation in the East is becoming chaotic, you should be presiding over affairs and not idle here.”
Nasu was the name that Sujen Mingzun used to be known by, but this name was not used hundreds of years ago. The only person who knows this name nowadays is probably Master Lian Sheng, who is his disciple, but not even Amaterasu or Tsukuyomi.
“O Lian Sheng, you don’t understand.”
For the past two hundred years, Eastern Japan has long forgotten me, Sujan Naruto. They have forgotten who killed the Yagyu Orochi for them.
The present situation is not possible without the help of those who have a mind to help them, who want to break away from us, the gods, to achieve their ambitions. How foolish is that?”
Sujang Mingzun shook his head and laughed at the stupidity of those people.
Ambition needs strength to support it, and even he, Sujang Mingzun, dare not claim to be able to protect himself nowadays.
What is this if not stupidity?
“You want to cleanse?” Master Lian Sheng sighed softly, “But today’s Eastern Japan cannot afford to be tossed about.”
Today’s East Japan is afraid that it will fall apart after a few more tosses and turns.
“It is indeed not the right time to purge, so let them be removed from their position and put under house arrest,” Sujang Naruto gulped down his wine, “and Mitsuhide will find those who are discontented for me.”
With his eyes, Sujang Naruto could see that Akechi Mitsuhide was only expressing his discontent and did not intend to betray him sincerely.
Therefore, Sujang Naruto could tolerate him, Akechi Mitsuhide.
“Amaterasu’s forces need to be taken over, and Mitsuhide would be an excellent breakthrough.” Sujang Naruto said to himself.
His clothes were soaked with wine and he looked extraordinarily loose, as if he were one of those ronin who only drank. At the same time as he was spontaneous, he was vaguely showing a few hints of despondency.
In fact, he stayed at the Temple of Instinct, not just to let those opponents jump out, but also to meditate and recuperate.
The scene of Amaterasu being crushed to death was still vivid in his mind, and Sujang Naruto could still remember that feeling of despair at this time.
Had he not still been of use to the Supreme Master, he would have been crushed to death along with Amaterasu at that time.
“Power, status, and power ——”
“In front of that man, it’s all a joke.”
SuZhanMingZun’s face seemed to reappear in front of his eyes as that person’s face once again, his qi energy unconsciously leaking out of his body, his fierce aura eroding the ground.
“A deep demon in the heart.”
Lian Sheng glanced at Su Zhan Ming Zun and sighed softly in a low voice.
Looking at this situation of Sujamming Zun, there was no doubt that he had the appearance of a heart demon invasion, but who could allow a supreme being to be invaded by a heart demon?
For no apparent reason, Lian Sheng was curious about the Qing Yu Daoist monarch whom he had only heard of, and also about the current situation in the Central Plains.
‘The Middle Kingdom, the distant and unreachable homeland, ah ——‘
Hundreds of years ago, as a child, Lian Sheng followed his mentor’s predecessors eastward to this foreign barbarian land. Since then, he has never returned to the Middle Kingdom.
The memories of my childhood have long since blurred and even faded with the pa*sage of time, but the older I get, the more I miss my former hometown.
It was as if the centuries of life in the East were a step down from the less than ten years of life in the Middle Kingdom.
‘I’m afraid I won’t be able to return in my lifetime ——‘
Lian Sheng shook his head gently, plucked the rosary once again and murmured: ‘He who is a good man, who cultivates samsara and thinks of the end of the yin. This is the person whose dreams normally die out, who is constantly awake and asleep. ——”
It was as if the sutra was carrying some kind of extinguishing power, suppressing Sujamming Zun’s mind demons and clearing his mind for him.
Although Lian Sheng is also at the Tong Shen realm, he is not good at fighting, but specializes in Buddhism and has made extraordinary achievements in Buddhist teachings.
A large part of the reason why Sujang Mingzun has remained at Honeng Temple is for this effect of suppressing the demons in his mind. It was because of the presence of Lian Sheng that he was able to gradually suppress his demons and attempt to begin to recover his mind.
