Chapter 56: Status and Value

Adhering to Hitomi's orders, it took less than three minutes for a pair of kunoichi to arrive with both Midori and 100kgs of pure copper in tow.

Though she did her best to appear calm, Midori required the assistance of the blonde-haired kunoichi just to enter the room. She was in a state where she could only follow orders, and, for a brief moment, she didn't even register Nobu's presence as her hazy orange eyes fixed firmly on the silver-haired woman seated across from him.

Returning what could best be described as a grandmotherly smile, Hitomi surprised Midori by remarking, "Ah, Midori-chan. Your Master has reported that you possess quite the rare ability. I hope to confirm this by having you absorb the essence from this copper. Do your best, okay?"

Confused by the Matriarch's words, Midori meekly replied, "Master...?" before shifting her gaze towards Nobu.

With the corners of her smile curling upward, Hitomi nodded her head in affirmation before saying, "Of course. I don't believe you need a reminder regarding what might have happened if Nobunaga-sama hadn't come to your rescue. Do you mean to tell me you are apprehensive about serving him...?"

Shaking her head with enough force to smack herself in the face with her fringe bangs, Midori nervously exclaimed, "O-Of course not! It would be my honor to serve N-Nobunaga-sama...!"

Covering her mouth with her sleeve, Hitomi giggled in an ostensibly playful manner before adopting a marginally more serious expression and saying, "Good girl. Now, take a seat and prepare for the infusion process. Nobunaga-sama will be quite inconvenienced if you were to fail. Do not disappoint him."

After nodding her head like a frenzied chicken, Midori began to strip away her clothes with a fervor akin to someone who had just been set aflame. This caused Nobu's expression to sour until Hitomi dutifully explained, "The infusion process requires the user to take in the essence of metal through the pores. It is possible to do so whilst clothed, but it is far more efficient to remove your clothes."

"Whatever..."

Though he would be lying if he said he wasn't curious about the infusion process, Nobu had no desire to watch a little girl sit naked atop a slab of copper. Instead, he shifted his attention to the stone tablet, an action that caused Hitomi to squint, the red of her heterochromatic eyes glistening for a brief moment as she attempted to ascertain if there was something in his hand...

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After more than half an hour had passed, a subtle copper glow had begun to suffuse through Midori's previously transparent aura. This was an extremely good sign, yet, in spite of this, the look on Nobu's face had morphed into a discontent deadpan as the sound of the little girl's panting moans continued to echo throughout the room. The infusion process was apparently quite painful yet paradoxically relieving, so, after the first few minutes had passed, Midori had begun to writhe about on top of the copper slab, her face crimson as copper tendrils invaded her body through every available entrance...

Noticing Hitomi's amused smile, Nobu's expression morphed into a glare as he said, "I didn't need to be here for this..."

With the corners of her smile curling upward, Hitomi nodded her head before musing, "That may be. However, this kind of experience has its merits. Waka-sama is far too easily flustered in his current state. If an enemy state learned of this particular weakness of yours, they would specifically trait a group of kunoichi to exploit it. You should be able to-"

"You can take your advice and shove it up your ass..."

Tensing in response to Nobu's words, the two kunoichi watching over Midori motioned to grasp the hilts of their weapons before Hitomi raised her hand, stopping them mid-draw as she said, "This young man is our Lord Senken's first son, Oda Nobunaga-sama. The moment you draw your weapons, I'll be forced to either cut you down or punish you..."

Sheathing their weapons in an instant, both kunoichi immediately dropped into a dogeza, but, before either could apologize, Nobu preempted them, saying, "Just hurry up and fuck off. You aren't needed here."

Raising their heads, the two kunoichi looked towards Hitomi only to see her nod in return. This situation made them feel more than a little uncomfortable, but, without any obvious hesitation in their gazes, they quickly departed the room through the ceiling.

Waiting until she could no longer sense anyone, the obvious exception being Midori, Hitomi looked towards Nobu and said, "This is the last time I will show mercy. If you can't control your words and actions-"

Interrupting before Hitomi could finish, Nobu adopted a mocking smile as he asked, "What? You'll kill me?"

Without any change in expression whatsoever, Hitomi immediately replied, "No. I will kill the people around you. I'm sure Suzune-dono mentioned it, but hierarchies within the clans are regarded with the utmost importance. Behaving like that in front of my subordinates puts me in a position where the only solution is returning you to the Oda Clan and eliminating anyone who has been infected by your insubordinate behavior. That, however, is only a last resort. You have proven yourself to be invaluable to the clan's interests. Thus, for the time being, my only real option is to proactively eliminate those you have offended or been offended by..."

Though he wanted to call Hitomi out and say she was bullshitting him, the serious look in the woman's eyes compelled Nobu to remain silent. Even Yui, Yuriko, and Suzune had warned him about saying or doing anything that might compromise the existing status quo so it was pretty they were serious about adhering to their cultures and traditions...

"Fine...I get it, okay? Jeez..."

Shaking her head, Hitomi resisted the urge to say he clearly didn't get it. Were that the case, he wouldn't speak in such a roundabout or deflective manner. Now, she would either have to follow through on her threat or orchestrate a situation where a kunoichi who was already close to death was sacrificed to teach him a lesson...

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After a full hour of absorbing the copper's metal essence, Midori could be seen panting atop a pale of inert black ash that was once a metal slab. This caused her to become dirty beyond compare, but, after several minutes of regulating her breathing, tears began to pour from the teal-haired girl's eyes as she happily exhaled, "I did it..." in an audibly relieved tone.

Since Nobu kept his eyes firmly everywhere else, it was Hitomi who answered, "Indeed. Good job, Midori-chan. Now, put on your clothes and go wait outside. Your Master and I have a few things to discuss before you accompany him back to his room. After that, you will obediently follow his orders until he has either dismissed or discarded you. Understood?"

Though a fair amount of fear returned to her expression, Midori managed to push herself to a seated position before performing a naked dogeza and saying, "Yes. I understand. Thank you for this opportunity, Chōjo-sama, Nobunaga-sama..."

Waiting until Hitomi had given her permission, Midori gathered her clothes before dragging her feet towards the room's entrance. The excitement from her successful breakthrough was quickly wearing off, and, though she was sincerely grateful, she couldn't help fearing for her future. She hadn't heard Hitomi mentioning his true identity, so, from her perspective, he was a strange giant that had purchased her and two others after arbitrarily asking them to become his friends...

After watching Midori's departure with a ruminating gaze, Hitomi returned her attention to Nobu the moment the teal-haired girl had departed, asking, "What are your intentions with the girls you purchased? You don't have to tell me, but the more I know about your situation and your abilities, the more I can help. You clearly didn't know anything about them before heading down the mountain so there must have been some other reason behind your sudden interest in our clan's younger generation..."

Recalling Nobu's disgust from the previous day, combined with the fact he wouldn't even look towards the naked Midori, Hitomi doubted he had spontaneously overcome his aversions and developed a taste for unripe flesh. He wouldn't even lay hands on a girl as ripe for the picking as Shizune so he clearly had something else in mind when he decided to acquire the trio they were preparing to discard.

Since he wouldn't be able to keep it a secret once his cultivation base began fluctuating up and down, Nobu adopted a serious expression as he said, "Truth be told, I honestly have no fucking idea what's going to happen. All I know is that I can invest my aura into people who are weaker than me. I'm not really sure what'll happen after that, but I believe it will make me stronger in the long run. Other than that, I wanted to teach those girls something other than the Metal Infusion Technique. It isn't complete, but I have knowledge pertaining to a number of different cultivation techniques. Since metals are so hard to come by, I figured I might be able to contribute to the clan if I could teach cost-effective techniques to people who either lack talent or are incompatible with the Metal Infusion Technique..."

Genuinely surprised by Nobu's words, Hitomi found herself replaying his words in her mind for the better part of a minute before exhaling a sigh and muttering, "You really are cut from a different cloth than other people..."

Raising his brows, Nobu was about to ask what she meant when Hitomi adopted a strangely affectionate smile and said, "I will need to convene with the other Elders but I believe we can make arrangements to convert one of our fallback facilities into a reeducation center. It would have caused problems if I gave Yui permission to expand your room so we'll renovate one of our older facilities to serve as your private residence. A member of the Elder Council will need to watch over you, but, so long as you deliver the results you've promised, you'll have free rein to act at your discretion."

Contrary to Hitomi's expectations, Nobu didn't seem all that satisfied with the arrangement she was proposing. Fortunately, he was the type to speak his thoughts aloud so she didn't need to ask before he revealed, "It's going to be that Suzune woman, isn't it...?"

Understanding what he must be thinking, a light chuckle emanated from Hitomi's throat as she nodded her head and answered, "Most likely. She is, after all, the Information Elder. The only alternative would be the Elder in charge of interrogation and torture. I can't imagine you getting along particularly well with them so Suzune-dono is the best option."

Restraining the urge to massage his forehead, Nobu just released a sigh before shaking his head and muttering, "Whatever..." in an exasperated tone.

While giggling a second time, Hitomi began flaring her aura with the intent of informing the other Elders of an emergency meeting. There were only thirteen days remaining until Nobu's meeting with his parents so they needed to act quickly if they wanted to tie him to the clan. If he changed his mind and decided to return home now, they would lose one of the greatest assets the Yoshitsune Clan had ever acquired. Thus, while it had always been her intention to support him, Hitomi was currently thinking of ways to convince Nobu to stay even a few days longer. After all, it was only a matter of time before he spread his wings and soared to greater heights. The only question now was whether or not he would remember them fondly when he came into power...

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(A/N: At this rate, Hitomi is either going to give Yui a push or start targeting Nobu herself xD...)