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He advised himself. He stepped amongst the branches, only allowing the most brief surges of irritation as the brambles opened wounds upon the skin of his shin. They tore at his kimono too, making it appear more fibrous that it otherwise would. There was not a straightforward path through this section of the forest, and he found himself having to bear with it.

The birds engaged in song, though they did so rapidly, as though they were having an argument with one another.

It was rather unpleasant to walk through a forested area after it had rained, and he found that his feet became soaked rather quickly, as did the lower part of his kimono. Discomfort, it seemed, was drawn to him.

But finally, as he skipped down one last hill – attempting to remain upright, without muddying his bottom too savagely – he was a mere step away from exiting the forest.

And then he emerged at a site that he had visited rather recently. It was the field in which they had slain Toda upon. The site of his very first battle. Yet he felt nothing.

Part of the reason he had come here was in the hopes of inspiring a change within his emotions. But there was nothing at all. Not even the slightest flicker. His thoughts had been so busy as of late, he had been unable to sleep. And when he did sleep, it was fitful, for he felt exposed and vulnerable, and his body kept reminding him that he needed to be doing something else.

Two systems collided on a constant basis. That of his primitive system, that sought to sate the desires of a normal functioning human body. And that of his modern system, which sought to succeed in the world.

And so he stood there, in that field, amongst the long grass, and he walked, allowing his mind to wander freely – for it would do that of its own accord anyway, even if he attempted to resist it.

The wet grass caused even more damp to his clothing, but by this point, it made barely any difference.

He wandered to the very position where he remembered having slain Toda. By now there was nothing that remained, for the bodies had been buried. It looked like any other place on the field might. Even the blood had long since been washed away.

"Mmm..."

He spun around, acknowledging the great size of the field. It was huge. A modern building firm would have a grand time if they were gifted such a plot of land. You could build an entire shopping district on it.

’An entire shopping district, eh?’

He mused to himself, trying to picture such a scene.

"Hoh..."

A sudden idea popped into his head, causing a glimmer of excitement. This was the first time since his return that he had felt anything pop into his head that was even remotely worthwhile.

"Rice fields..."

He thought, as his smile began to grow. It was a simple term, and to most, if they heard his thoughts, they would think it to be a simple idea. But the scale that he envisioned was far beyond that of what a normal man might.

He had been thinking relentlessly over the problem of how to attain more coin. He was a man that preferred to think of a better way of doing things rather than simply throwing more numbers at a problem in order to solve it.

But in this, it seemed, that more numbers would prove to be that different way of thinking. Rice fields, in themselves, would not serve to create an incredibly large amount of coin, though it was nothing to sniff at. The fields of Toyone would only create an annual income of about 200 gold, as they had to keep the majority of the grain to live off. And of that gold, the workers would have to be paid, so that left you with around 190. The same could be expected of Tobishima.

Yet this land here was most certainly fertile, and was large to the extreme. It had never been cultivated before, as it lay on the border between two territories, and the two villages likely never had the man power to cultivate it anyway.

He reasoned, that if they were to use the land to it’s fullest, then they could create a field ten times bigger than all the land around Toyone that had been put to farming use. That field, in turn, would generate around 2500 gold, because none of that grain would be used to live off. But certain things could be done to increase the price that grain would sell for, and his grin widened even further at that thought.

The only problem was, of course, time. They were fast nearing the end of planting season. Most farms would have sowed their seed by now, and be waiting to harvest the rice within September – October. But the benefits of them sowing that amount of seed would be immense – though they would have to wait a few months to gleen anything from it.

Still, he made a mental note to most certainly put that plan into motion given the opportunity.

"What are you smiling so creepily about?"

Came a woman’s voice from behind him. He turned, without showing a hint of being startled. He had, after all, been expecting her.

"Long time no see, Isabella. I trust you are well?"

Her beautiful face contorted to reveal her true emotions, as she let it became a mask of disgust.

"Ha. As if you care about that. I did your little job – where’s my money?"

She asked, straight to the point. She had been waiting here since three days ago, and had grown irritable.

He shrugged at her rude mannerisms, in too good a mood from his recent idea to let her sully it. He reached inside his kimono, retrieving a leather pouch. It weighed heavy in his palm as he laid it there.

Her focus immediately went to it, as her heartbeat quickened. This was the moment she had been waiting for. The grand reveal. It was her time to find out whether she had been played the fool or not.

He tossed it through the air carelessly, as if it mattered not to him, and she, in contrast, became fl.u.s.tered, flailing around as she struggled to stop it from hitting the floor.

"Nice catch."

He commented drilyly at her less-than-elegant display.

She shot him a dark look, but said nothing, as her attention returned entirely to the pouch. Not wishing to wait a moment longer, she pried it open, revealing the gold coins that sat inside. Her breath caught in her throat. She had never seen so much wealth – atleast, not in gold form. She had been able to dress in golden finery gifted by Toda, but none of it had ever truly been her own.

"You carried out your role remarkable well. There is 100 gold in there, as we discussed."

He began to walk away, satisfied that their business was complete.

"Wait!"

She called out to him. She herself was unsure why she had done so, and so her question was not what she truly wished to ask.

"...Why were you so early? I had expected to wait another 20 days atleast."

"Why indeed, eh? I suppose, like you, I crave a certain amount of freedom."

He answered cryptically with a smile.

"Is that all? I’ll be going then."

He made the effort to confirm with her, so that he wouldn’t be stopped again.

"Ah... What... What now?"

She asked a little hopelessly, embarrassed despite herself. She had lived her life as someone else’s slave for the longest time, and then, she had been set free with a goal which allowed her a sense of purpose. Now that such things were all done, she did not know quite what to do with herself.

"Hm... What now indeed? Well, that should last you until you grow old, should you spend it wisely. But if you ever need any more in future, come and visit me in Toyone. It’s just across that field. I have need of a woman with your sort of skills."

And then, he really did walk away, leaving her clutching her bag of gold, as she watched his back, with rain dripping from her face, and soaking her hair. Only one thought was present in her mind.

’What a strange man.’

They had only ever spoken briefly, and even then, it was discussing business, and trading information. But she found herself wishing to know more about him. He was an odd sought. He appeared to hold no interest for her beauty at all, yet it was not as though he didn’t acknowledge it.

And the prediction he had made: that the Oda army would charge at noon after a thunderstorm. That was terrifying to her. Almost prophetic. She had wished to ask him how he knew, but it was so hard to get a grasp on what he was thinking.

He was the first man that she had met whom she could not control freely. Even Toda, for all his maliciousness, he was an entirely predictable man – even his outbursts were rather predictable.

That excited her. And even with that bag of coin in front of her, the focus of her gaze was now entirely on him, as he wandered through the field of grass, as though he had not a care in the world.

And so her poor understanding of him was truly manifest. He was a man far from infalliable. Far from carefree. And he himself was beginning to understand that. The only thing he had truly believed in was his heart.

He believed that, if he fully applied himself, and used all the fire his body had to offer, that he would be able to over come any obstacle. But to do that meant to sacrifice. A fire did not burn without fuel. And he was already beginning to feel the consquences of such an action.

In strength, he found symoltaneous weakness. In his comrades, he had experienced warmth, and belonging, and had been happier than he had ever had been in his life. But now that they were snatched away, he had reached a point of vulnerability that he would never have allowed himself to hit before.

That was all he could promise himself. That was the only comfort he could offer. That no matter what had to be done, he would do it, even if it meant becoming a monster that all – even his loved ones – would fear. Even then, he was willing to do it.

And so, as he walked back to his people, with the world believing him to be strong, he allowed himself to be weak. Weak so that he would not succ.u.mb to any aggrogance. Weak so that he was aware of his weakness. Weak so that he always grow, seeking strength.

He was a man of such a chaotic state of mind, but with that as his philosophy, then such a man was likely invincible. He was likely able to overcome any obstacle. Yet he could not boast of such an ability, not yet, not ever. He sat so far at the bottom of the mountain that it was almost laughable. But the advantage he held above everyone else? He still retained his arms and legs.