Chapter 58: Investing in the Future

Though it knocked him down to Rank 2 Mortal Breath, Nobu didn't regret investing his Aura into Sachiko, Nariko, and Midori. The maximum amount of Aura he was able to accumulate in a single day was around 432 at Rank 5. With the trio of girls contributing to his base, he was earning approximately 427 without any additional effort. More importantly, the amount they could contribute wasn't affected by his Rank, so, even if his system did have a 'reset' function, he could drastically reduce the amount of time it took to recoup his losses.

When broken down to its most fundamental level, the stone tablet basically allowed Nobu to grow exponentially stronger based on the number and strength of people following him. Had he allowed himself to be reincarnated naturally, it wasn't an exaggeration to say that he would be earning upwards of a million Aura every single day from Yui alone. Instead, he now had to play catch up by quite literally relying on children, but, seeing how happy the trio was as they familiarized themselves with their stone tablets, Nobu couldn't help smiling until Kumiko took it upon herself to ask, "My Lord...it may be imprudent of me to ask, but can you please explain the current situation...?"

Having just spent the last two hours watching her Lord advise the three trainees in the use of an invisible device, Kumiko could no longer restrain her curiosity. She was a kunoichi who had been specifically trained to collect information in order to help her Lord make more informed decisions so it made her feel indescribably uncomfortable having no idea what was going on.

Shifting his attention away from the trio experimenting with their camera app, Nobu noticed the uncertainly visible in the face of Kumiko and several others. This caused his smile to turn slightly wry, but, having already decided there was no sense in doubting people who would readily lay down their lives to preserve his, he explained, "You'll have to wait until I'm stronger to experience it for yourself, but I basically have the ability to duplicate a stone tablet that has a variety of useful functions. For now, I'm trusting you girls with watching over and protecting these three squirts. They might not look like it, but they're the key to helping me grow strong in a short period of time."

Hearing their Master's remark, Sachiko and Midori appeared equal parts excited and nervous. Nariko, however, adopted a massive grin on her face as she enthusiastically exclaimed, "Just leave it to me, Nobunaga-sama! Nariko won't let you down~!"

Though it still felt awkward to hear a little girl address him with honorifics, Nobu managed to nod his head approvingly before returning his attention to Kumiko and saying, "If you can find me some paper and something to draw with, I'll make a user manual for you and the others to memorize I also want to draw up some clothing designs. Based on how complex some of your outfits are, I assume the village has its own tailors and artisans, correct?"

Nodding her head, Kumiko answered, "Though most of our cold weapons are manufactured within the Oda Clan, the majority of our clothes and ninja tools are produced by specialists within the village."

"Nice..."

Since it would be a pain in the ass to think about external trade at this point, Nobu was happy to hear he could rely on the clan's experts. He would still need to find a way to pay them, but, since Hitomi had basically gifted him the trio of Midori, Sachiko, and Nariko, he still had a fair amount of money. It would probably cost him an arm and a leg to have all his clothes custom tailored, but there was no way in hell he was going to spend the rest of his life walking around in traditional Nianese clothing...

As that thought crossed his mind, Nobu looked down at his lanky frame with a frown. He was practically just skin and bones right now, and, were it not for his unique cultivation technique, his stamina would be complete shit. This was unacceptable, so, while it would ultimately have to wait until later, he began to think about methods to improve his physique as Kumiko sent Chikako off to retrieve the supplies he had requested...

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After spending much of the morning uninstalling traps and gathering her things, Yui returned to Nobu's room to find that there was a considerable amount of noise emanating from within. This made it difficult to announce her presence, so, after flaring her aura, she waited until Aiko opened the door before peering inside to find three young girls gathered around her Lord as he hunched over a drawing table.

Frowning slightly, Yui made her way over to Kumiko before asking, "What happened while I was gone? Where did these three children come from...?" in a soft tone of voice.

Handing over the 'manual' their Lord had prepared, Kumiko began explaining everything that had transpired since Yui's departure. This left her feeling more than a little exasperated, but, at the very least, she had now confirmed that Nobu did, indeed, possess a Heavenly Treasure.

Heavenly Treasures came in all shapes and sizes, but, no matter what form they took, the one thing they had in common was that they allowed their users to achieve great things. It was the type of thing everyone coveted, but, unless you were chosen by the Heavens, even stealing a Heavenly Treasure was remarkably difficult. Their recipients were protected by fate, and, even if you did manage to kill or capture them, there was no guarantee you would be able to steal their treasure.

Though Nobu's was unlike anything she had ever seen or heard of, Yui was absolutely certain it was a Heavenly Treasure of the highest grade. The ability to empower themselves was quite common among Heavenly Treasures. Nobu's, however, allowed him to empower both himself and others. This made it exponentially more valuable than the majority of Heavenly Treasures, as, throughout history, nations had been built and brought to ruin by people possessing such objects.

Noticing Yui approaching, Nobu raised his hand in a casual manner, saying, "Yo. Welcome back." in a relaxed tone of voice. This caused the trio crowding around him to startle slightly, as, even among the younger generations, Yui was quite famous as an 'outcast' within the village. It didn't even cross their minds that they were technically outcasts themselves, but, fortunately for all parties involved, the trio had enough wherewithal to hold their tongues as Yui approached.

After waving the girls away, Yui took a seat next to Nobu before looking down to see what he was working on. It wasn't the best drawing she had ever seen but it was far from the worst. As for what the image contained, it appeared to depict a rather muscular man with a short-sleeved shirt, pants, greaves, gauntlets, and several other items of clothing that had been meticulously drawn to include details such as metal fasteners and how the pockets should be arranged.

Surprised by the amount of detail present within the image, Yui's brows perked up as she remarked, "This is remarkable. I don't think I've ever seen a belt quite like this one. My Lord appears to possess a talent for tailoring..."

Laughing dryly in response to Yui's remark, Nobu resisted the urge to explain how his mother tried to ease the tensions between him and his father by teaching him how to design cosplay props and costumes. He was remarkably bad at sewing and cutting fabrics but he enjoyed the design process more than he ever let on. He had even considered cosplaying as one of his favorite characters from a game called Drakengard, but, fearing it would be a gateway to becoming an Otaku, he ultimately scrapped the idea after producing a replica of the main character's sword from foam and acrylic.

Though the notion was a bit cringe, Nobu couldn't deny that the prospect of roaming around as a mysterious swordsman was a little enticing to him. He was a young man, and, while it was bound to bring him all kinds of troubles, who wouldn't want to be a badass if given the chance? At the very least, he didn't want to become some pansy-ass bitch who only sits around and gives orders. Sure, he would prefer a slow and easy life, but, knowing there were people whose lives depended on him, Nobu couldn't tolerate being a burden.

With that in mind, Nobu began to doodle the outline of an ax as he stated, "I don't like how baggy the clothes of Nian are. They're uncomfortable and they shift around too much when I'm trying to move around and exercise. Something more form-fitting and elastic like this would be much better. Besides, I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'm not particularly fond of the culture and traditions of Nian. This should make it pretty clear I'm not like other Nobles..."

Seeing the ax her Lord was outlining, a thoughtful glimmer flickered across Yui's eyes. The majority of Nobles used ceremonial swords such as katanas, and, though they were equally proficient in the use of polearms, spears, and bows, most duels were settled using the traditional Nianese weapon. It wouldn't be a problem if he was a simple soldier, but, as someone with the potential to become the next Daimyo, Nobu was bound to receive substantial criticism if he endeavored to walk around with such a 'barbaric' weapon in hand.

Though she wanted to caution him against such a thing, Yui ultimately just nodded her head with a supportive smile on her face. She could tell he was genuinely enjoying himself, perhaps for the first time since they met. Thus, rather than risk upsetting him, she just continued silently observing from the side until Cho arrived with lunch...

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Immediately following Nobu's departure, Hitomi retreated to the innermost chamber of the main estate to find five inordinately beautiful women waiting for her. This included the perennially pink Suzune, a fierce-looking warrior with gold and black horns protruding from her head, a woman with vaguely snake-like features, an overtly seductive beauty with tattoos covering much of her exposed flesh, and a deceptively youthful-looking girl with inordinately large vulpine ears and six black tails framing her petite figure.

In order, the women were Suzune, the Information Elder, Fumetsu, the Security Elder, Yumie, the Poison Elder, Koharu, the Torture and Interrogation Elder, and, last but not least, Inami, the High Priestess, Guardian, and Elder representing Inari Okami-sama. The latter was inarguably the oldest and most powerful member of the Yoshitsune Clan, but, due to her contract with the Goddess Inari, she was unable to become Matriarch and could never, ever, leave the mountain.

Wearing her characteristic smile, Hitomi made her way to the seat at the very head of the assembly before sitting down and saying, "I'm glad you were all able to attend on such short notice. I wonder if the arrival of our Young Lord has anything to do with your sudden availability~?"

Before any of the other Elders could speak, Inami took it upon herself to state, "Hitomi-sama. Why did you agree to let the Young Lord of the Oda Clan stay within the main estate without conferring with us? Do you truly believe it wise to allow a man to live within a domain blessed by Inari Okami-sama? If any of our people were to fall in love with him, the Goddess will not remain just sit idly by. You should be well aware of this. The Yoshitsune Clan is not allowed to love freely."

Though she wanted nothing more than to flick or pull Inami's inordinately large ears, Hitomi just nodded her head in understanding before proceeding to explain, "I have gathered everyone with the intent of informing you about certain truths regarding the Young Lord. Once you hear what I have to say, I believe most of your concerns will be allayed. Now, listen closely...the very survival of the Yoshitsune Clan may hinge upon the decisions we make today..."

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(A/N: Massive ears and six tails...that's a lot of fluff (O w O)...)