163 Hirata's Resolve - Part 1

"Second Young Master is back! Lady Yuka, Second Young Master is back!" An old maid barged into a room with tears on her face.

Inside the room, Lady in her early forties was sitting on tatami with a photo frame in her hand. When she heard the old maid said, she raised her head with a pleasantly surprised look.

Despite being in her early forties, the lady looked older than her age with wrinkles on her forehead, below her eyes, and her cheeks. Her serene look was broken by the information she received from her old maid, and a raspy voice flowed from the Lady's mouth, "Really?"

"Yes, Second Young Master is back. He just entered the residence, Lady Yuka~" The old maid nodded her head tearfully.

Lady Yuka responded excitedly as she immediately stood from the tatami. But as soon as she stood, her body was swayed, nearly falling again if not for the help of the old maid.

"Be Careful, Lady Yuka!" The old maid managed to catch the lady in time, but Lady Yuka seemed to be in a hurry as she tried to rush out, "Hirata! I want to meet my son… My son!"

"I know~ I know, but please be careful~" The old maid helped the lady to walk.

Lady Yuka, Musashi Kenzan's second wife who was also Musashi Hirata's biological mother. Born in a humble family in the outer city, she was blessed with an exquisite look and gentle personality.

On her 18th birthday, her family celebrated her birthday in a decent restaurant in the commerce region. It was the day she met the young Musashi Kenzan.

The young Musashi Kenzan fancied Yuka and a week after their first meeting, Musashi Kenzan married Yuka. Of course, it was a forceful approach where the young Musashi Kenzan used his connection with the people in the civil bureau.

Despite her unwillingness, the young Yuka could not reject what had been arranged by the Civil Bureau for her. The first five years of her marriage were good, Musashi Kenzan treated her well. They were blessed with a son in the second year of their marriage.

However, the happiness did not last long. When Musashi Kenzan was appointed as the main successor to the Musashi Clan, the time he spent with Yuka became fewer and fewer.

This was the start of everything. Musashi Kenzan's first wife, Musashi Aimi began targeting her. It was the start of Lady Yuka's misery and the start of Musashi Hirata's hatred of his clan.

*** ***

The return of Musashi Hirata caused a commotion in the Musashi Clan residence. The young master who wandered outside finally returned, the servants were busy reporting Hirata's return.

Musashi Hirata did not pay any of these servants' attention as he headed toward the main building, where his father usually stayed. However, before he could even enter the front yard, a man blocked his path.

The man wore a gray kimono with a sword on his waist and he looked about the same age as Hirata.

"Hehe… So do you still know the way to go home? I thought you are lost, for not coming home for three years, Ranker Hirata!" The man emphasized the words "Ranker Hirata" so the servants heard him.

Musashi Hirata was still having a casual look on his face and said, "A servant should not have blocked its Master!"

Yoneda Tamotsu was furious when he heard those words. He sheathed out his sword and yelled, "What do you say? I dare you to say it once again and I will make you reg…"

The words stopped halfway as Yoneda Tamotsu saw Musashi Hirata's figure blurred. He wanted to retreat, but then, he heard a voice from his back, "Dog is still a dog, you should know your place!"

It was what the last words Yoneda Tamotsu heard before his vision blackened out. In his unconscious state, an unbelievable expression plastered on his face. He could not believe that he was knocked out by Musashi Hirata.

Musashi Hirata proceeded toward the main residence under the servants' fervent gaze. The servants were also shocked by what happened. Gold Class Hero - Rank 15, Yoneda Tamotsu was knocked out in a flash.

When Hirata reached the main residence, a middle-aged man was guarding the door. He recognized the man. Yoneda Isamu, his father's assistant but also a bodyguard. He was not a Hero or a Ranker, but he had been serving his father since his youth.

"You are back, Young Master Hirata!" Yoneda Isamu greeted him with a nod despite his emotionless voice. He maintained a respectful stance compared to his junior.

"Hmm, I want to meet my father!" Musashi Hirata returned tonelessly.

"I am sorry, Young Master Hirata! Master Kenzan currently has a meeting with the Elder. I am afraid you can't meet him now!" Yoneda Isamu shook his head.

"Huhu… It is such a coincidence. I also want to meet with the Elders, there's something I want to talk with them too!" A smile crept up on Hirata's face.

Seeing the smile on Hirata's face, Yoneda Isamu furrowed his brow. He perceived the Second Young Master was about to make trouble for his Master. As Kenzan's aide, it was his job to prevent this kind of trouble.

"I am sorry, Young Master Hirata! You can't meet Master now! If you want to meet Master, you have to wait until the meeting is over!" Yoneda Isamu did not let Hirata pass easily.

"Then what if I insist on meeting my dear Father now?" Musashi Hirata also did not back down. He faced Yoneda Isamu with a cold gaze as killing intent began leaking out.

"Then I have to excuse my impudence for pointing my weapon to you, I have to stop you here with my sword, Young Master Hirata!" Yoneda Isamu's hand moved to the sword on his waist. He was prepared to make a move if Musashi Hirata insisted to enter the room.

"Good, you have stayed for years on my father's side, you must be strong enough for a warming up fight before I fight my dear brother!"

Shing! Shing!

Both sheathed out their swords.

*** ***

Meanwhile, inside the main residence, the Musashi Clan was holding a routine meeting under the lead of Musashi Kenzan. Next to Musashi Kenzan, Musashi Naizen sat with a solemn look plastered on his face.

As the successor of the Musashi Clan, attending the routine meeting was a must. Currently, one old man was reporting a discovery about the Xing District which did not have progress.

"They are hidden well, our men failed to find anything about their leader. However, we found that the Second Young Master stayed there quite a while and I suspect the masked man who fought against Huo Liang Xun in the footage is Young Master Hirata!"

A man with white hair reported his discoveries and added, "Young Master Hirata might be the part of the group. If we ask... Young Master Hirata, we might know the real mastermind behind the district!"

When the elder with white hair brought Hirata up, a frown appeared on his forehead. After a momentary silence, Musashi Kenzan shook his head, "Let's put this issue on hold…"

Bam!

The door collapsed and a body flew in. Musashi Naizen immediately stood and sheathed his sword up, "Who?"

Musashi Kenzan and the other elders also looked at the door direction. They found out the body was Yoneda Isamu who was supposed to be guarding the entrance. However, the current Yoneda Isamu was miserable.

The kimono he wore was cut here and there, from the cut they could see the cut wounds that were caused by a sword.

"Uncle Isamu!" Musashi Naizen rushed forward, checking Yoneda Isamu's condition.

"Don't worry, brother! There's no way I could bear to kill an uncle who has watched me grow! He's fine!" Musashi Hirata's calm voice flowed into the room.

Musashi Naizen raised his head in shock, the same for the elders. They were shocked the Young Master they just talked about was here. Musashi Kenzan frowned for a moment before he loosened his expression.

"What are you doing now? After violating the family's rules, do you want to rebel now!?" Musashi Kenzan rebuked his second son.

"Oh, Dear Father, you haven't changed a bit! I don't see any worries in your eyes even a friend that had accompanied you for years is knocked out like this in front of you? Even though he's fine now, if he lost too much blood, it's still dangerous!" Musashi Hirata replied with a smirk.

"Yuki! Toshiyuki!!!" Musashi Naizen called out loudly.

Not long after the call, a man that was similar to Musashi Naizen's age rushed in, "Your servant is here!"

"Bring Uncle Isamu to get a treatment!" Musashi Naizen ordered the young man called Toshiyuki.

Toshiyuki was shocked upon the sight of his uncle's condition. He did not ask what happened to his uncle. He picked his uncle up and brought him out. As he passed Musashi Hirata, he sent a sharp glare to him.

"That was because he's weak. That's the fate of a weakling!" Musashi Kenzan replied in a callous tone, and added, "But… Even though he is weakling, at least he is courageous weakling, not a coward weakling like you, my dear son!"

"Hahahaha…." Musashi Hirata laughed all of sudden. The laugh filled the room for a moment before he looked at his father with a strong determination, "It's relief that you haven't changed a bit, my Dear Father! It's a relief, so I won't feel guilty…" his voice was trailed off.

"Today, I, Musashi Hirata no longer has any ties with the Musashi Clan! From today onwards Musashi Hirata is no longer a part of the Musashi Clan! I am Xing…" Hirata's words stopped as a familiar voice entered his ears.

"Nooooooo!"

Hirata turned toward the voice and he saw the face he missed for years.