Chapter 87: Unexpected Encounter

After a short rest that included tea and a light snack, Nobu found himself hiking down the Northern face of the mountain with a listless look on his face. Alongside him were Yui, Onihime, Kumiko, and, as could be expected, Hitomi and Inami. He could have brought more people with him, but, feeling it would only complicate things, he asked everyone else to patiently await his return.

"I'm getting real tired of walking up and down mountains..."

Chuckling at Nobu's expense, Hitomi used her aura to casually sweep aside brush as she stated, "It's good for you. If you want to strengthen your foundation quickly, scaling the mountain a few times a day is a step in the right direction."

"Yeah, yeah..."

Since he apparently no longer had to put a filter on the things he said, Nobu didn't even pretend to be courteous towards Hitomi. This earned him a disproving look from the heterochromatic woman, but, instead of saying anything to correct him, she just continued smiling as a thin branch managed to slip through her hazy, bluish-green aura.

Not expecting her Grandmother to perform such an act, Yui didn't immediately react to the branch whizzing towards Nobu's face. Fortunately for the latter, a remarkably thin blue line immediately cut the branch into tiny pieces as Inami plainly stated, "Never drop your guard, even amongst allies."

Furrowing her brows, Yui was about to thank Inami for the lesson when the latter simply stated, "No need. From this moment onward, the only person you lower your head to is your Lord. If he refuses to bow, you shall stand with him. If you can't do that, you have no right to stand in that spot..."

With Yui walking beside rather than behind Nobu, Inami intended to put as much pressure on the young woman as possible. After all, that position was supposed to be reserved for Nobu's partner, or, more specifically, his wife. If Yui was going to occupy such a position, she would need to adapt to the scorn and resentment directed her way. If she couldn't, she needed to vacate the spot so that someone more competent could whether the trials and tribulations that would invariably follow.

Tensing up in response to Inami's words, Yui was at a loss for words until Nobu grabbed her hand and said, "Relax..." in an awkward yet soothing tone. In truth, he wanted to say more, but, with the eyes of several people focusing on him, he refused to say anything cheesy or embarassing.

Fortunately, the tensions in Yui's body eased the moment Nobu grabbed her hand. His words also helped, but, compared to his actions, they were supplemental at best.

Noticing her Granddaughter's slight yet sincere smile, the corner's of Hitomi's curled upward as she softly mused, "How enviable it is to be young..."

Since Hitomi's words weren't exactly discreet, even Nobu was able to hear them. This caused a look of mock disdain to appear on his face as he asked, "Aren't you like fifty or something? Compared to the two chibis, you might as well be a brat. Don't go talking like you're about to kick the bucket..."

Raising her brows, Hitomi's smile became ostensibly more sincere as she asked, "Oh? Is Waka-chan worried about me~?"

Rolling his eyes, Nobu elected to ignore Hitomi's question since they were already nearing the base of the mountain. A few footpaths had started to appear, and, though it was still rough terrain, it was a lot easier to walk compared to the unmanaged terrain further up the forested slope.

Clicking her tongue in a playful manner, Hitomi briefly exchanged glances with Inami before waving her hand to sweep aside another layer of the underbrush. This would leave an easy trail for anyone tracking them to follow, but, considering where they were, she wasn't particularly concerned about the possibility of an ambush. Her own skills were nothing to scoff at, but, so long as she was on the mountain, Inami may as well be invincible...

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"We're here."

After reaching the base of the mountain and separating from Inami, Hitomi led the group along the edge of a river until they reached a series of Jizo statues lining a relatively clean dirt road. It wasn't uncommon for patrols to pass through the region, so, while there were no official roads, there were quite a number of paths present in the forests surrounding the walled city looming in the distance.

Just as Nobu was about to ask, Hitomi casually twisted the heads of each Jizo statue. Immediately thereafter, a path that hadn't been present before appeared off to the side. It stood out from the rest of the forest because it was almost like a tunnel formed from hundreds of trees that had been grown in such a way they block out most of the sun's light.

"One can never be too safe. Even if they were especially careful during their departure, the forces that oppose Lord Senken would invariably take notice of his absence. Though it isn't too likely, you should always be prepared for a potential skirmish. That goes doubly for the three of you. There is no greater shame for a warrior or a kunoichi to outlive their Lord..."

Though Nobu couldn't help frowning, Yui, Kumiko, and Onihime nodded their heads with serious expressions on their faces.

What none of the girls expected, Hitomi being the obvious exception, was for a raspy yet masculine voice to immediately respond, "Well said. It would appear your long life hasn't been entirely wasted, Hitomi-kacho..."

Appearing like a phantom, a muscular man with clothes that screamed 'samurai' appeared with a platinum-hued aura lingering around his body. He was attired in a loose yukata, a pair of hakama-style pants, black-plated tassets, and a blue haori with a dragon pattern and the symbol of the Oda Clan plastered at numerous locations across his body. Even the guard of his white-handled katana resembled the flower-like pattern of the Oda Clan, and, based on the aura exuding from his body, he bore the symbol with tremendous pride.

"Ara ara~? This isn't a face I expected to see any time soon. Weren't you protecting the Eastern border, Hiashi-dono~?"

Snorting through his nose, Hiashi cast his gaze over everyone present before setting his pitch-black eyes on Nobu. Then, with a loud 'pa', he brought his hands together in a respectful yet unyielding manner as he firmly stated, "Hyuudou Hiashi greets the Young Lord of the Oda Clan."

Taken aback by the short yet muscular man's obeisance, Nobu's expression hardened as he replied, "Yeah...nice to meet you..."

Though he was briefly confused by Nobu's excessively casual response, Hiashi just lowered his head even further before rising to cast a disdainful glare at everyone else. Onihime, in particular, seemed to have earned his ire, as, for a brief moment, the thumb he had resting on the guard of his katana twitched. Half-Oni were considered abominations by most people, but, as a proud warrior of Nian, Hiashi was offended by her mere presence at Nobu's side.

Fortunately, Hitomi managed to adequately deter him by flaring her aura and asking, "Hiashi-dono...are you disobeying our Lord? I cannot imagine Lord Senken asking you to come here to cause trouble..."

After sending another quick glare Hitomi's way, Hiashi seemed to have reached the conclusion that he should simply ignore everyone else's existence as he supplied another polite bow towards Nobu and stated, "Nobunaga-sama. Please, follow me. Your father, Lord Senken, has ordered that I escort you to your destination..."

"..."

Staring at the man's bushy ponytail with a frown, Nobu waited until Hiashi raised his head before shaking his own and saying, "Yeah, that's not gonna happen. We've never met before and I'm not going to just follow someone I just met to a destination I've never been to. These four are coming with me. If you've got a problem with that, please inform my parents that I couldn't meet with them because you decided to behave like a bigot towards your own allies."

Not expecting such a response, Hiashi was at a genuine loss for words as he stared at Nobu with a completely blank expression on his face. Moments later, however, a slight smile developed across his face as he mused, "You really are Lord Senken's child..."

Leaving Nobu at a loss this time, Hitomi began to giggle into her sleeve as the tensions that had been building spontaneously relaxed. Then, with a significantly less hostile expression on his face, Hiashi gestured behind him, stating, "You really should hurry. If you delay any longer, Lady Suzuki might not be able to restrain herself. She has been sick for a long time. It isn't good for her to move around too much."

Confused by the sudden change, Nobu blinked several times before looking towards Hitomi to find her staring back at him with an amused smile on her face. It was at that moment that he realized he had been played, a hint of red bleeding into his cheeks as he cleared his throat and said, "Lead the way..."

Nodding his head in affirmation, Hiashi turned to do just that when a silvery crimson blur pushed him aside, shouting, "My baby...!" in a feminine, audibly stressed tone. In the next moment, Nobu felt as though he had been hit by a truck as a petite woman wearing a crimson kimono tackled him with enough force to send them both crashing into the river.

"Nobu...!"

"Suzuki-sama...!"

Fortunately, unlike the river Nobu had trained in, the one running adjacent to the forest path was shallow enough to cross without issue. Thus, while everyone else was panicking, Nobu had turned statuesque as a woman who had only appeared in his memories clung to him, tears pouring from the corners of her ruby-red eyes as she cupped his face and asked, "Am I imagining things? I have dreamt of this day for so long that it doesn't feel real. You are my son, my beloved Nobu-chan, are you not...?"

Not really sure what he should say, Nobu just swallowed hard before slowly nodding his head in affirmation. If he were being honest, his mother was a lot more beautiful than his memories gave credit. He was grateful for the frigid water, as, despite being related by blood, he was genuinely afraid that his body might react due to her fragrant aroma and the warmth transmitting from her body...

Further exacerbating Nobu's difficulties, a loving smile developed across Nana's face as she gently kneaded his cheeks with her thumbs. This was something mothers and old grannies did with young children. Combined with the fact she was currently lying on top of him, the awkwardness Nobu was experienced built to the point that a part of him wanted to throw her away from him. He just didn't have the heart to actually do it...

As if finally realizing how awkward of a position they were in, Nana took a moment to sweep aside Nobu's bangs before moving away from him, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding water as she sat properly and said, "This is something I've wanted to do for a very long time..."

Just as Nobu was on the verge of recovering some semblance of his mental faculties, Nana caused him to nearly allow the current to take him away as she suddenly performed a low dogeza, her nose touching the top of the water as she tearfully exclaimed, "I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! I know my actions were beyond reprehensible. I know I don't deserve forgiveness, but...but...!"

Though he would like to say he went forth to grab Nana to assure her that everything was okay, the truth of the matter was that Nobu's brain had stalled the moment he saw the remarkably beautiful woman lower her head. Her words impacted his heart and mind like a hammer, but, despite hearing each and every word she said, the only thing his mind was currently able to process was the fact her kimono was gradually being pulled open by the river's current...

Fortunately, just as Nana's obi was whisked away, Nobu recovered enough of his senses to grab her shoulders, forcing her to rise before promptly closing her kimono and saying, "I forgive you..." with a complexion similar to someone who had gone to the beach without sunscreen...

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(A/N: Spoiler alert: Nana is a bit of an idiot.)