The sun was just beginning to rise, and the sounds of chickens crowing and dogs barking filled the air.
With the arrival of spring, the small village had returned to its usual liveliness.
In the village square, after the security team's routine morning practice, Captain Okihira began his address.
"The weather has warmed up now. Everyone, please go out hunting in your usual teams. The village's stores are running low. Let's all work hard and make sure every household can have meat on the table."
"Yes, sir!"
"Does anyone have any other questions?"
"Um..." Uncle Beard raised his hand. "Shouldn't we still be looking for the Kaito kid? He's one of ours, after all."
Someone sighed. "It's been four months..."
In a blizzard like that, never mind four months; even ten days would have been a struggle.
Captain Okihira was silent for a moment before saying, "There's no need. Life and death are decided by fate. If he can come back, he will come back on his own."
"Well, if you say so, Captain. Alright." Uncle Beard suppressed the tightness in his chest and shouted, "What are you lot still standing around for? You don't want to eat meat? Get a move on and follow me!"
"Oh, oh!"
"The rest of you are dismissed." Captain Okihira waved his hand and turned to leave, returning to his small house. He sat on his bed and took out a small booklet from under his pillow.
It was the swordsmanship guide he had given to Kaito, which Kaito had left behind in his own house. Okihira had retrieved it.
Looking at the booklet, Okihira sighed softly. "What a pity."
Just then, a commotion erupted outside his door, causing him to frown. He pushed the door open and saw a fresh-faced, youthful boy walking toward him, surrounded by villagers.
"Yo, Captain, I'm back!"
"Heh. Welcome home." A rare smile appeared on Okihira's face.
"...Mm, so that's pretty much what happened."
Kaito gave a rough account of the events of the past few months.
"I see. So you drifted to the Land of Iron." Okihira had a nostalgic look on his face. "It's very cold there. Your journey must not have been easy."
"Not easy is an understatement." He and Tetsuren had gone through hell and back, taking many wrong turns before finally making it back to the small village. He couldn't bear to recall the process.
The moment they arrived in the village, they had come straight here.
"By the way, Captain, your junior brother Mifune misses you a lot. He asked me to send his regards. And that old man Goshin, he's drinking hot tea all day and is in great shape." Seeing that the captain was too embarrassed to ask, the considerate Kaito brought it up himself.
"Is that so? That's good." Okihira lowered his gaze, hiding the emotion in his eyes.
The small hut fell into silence.
After a long moment, Kaito broke the quiet. "Captain, a war is about to break out soon. Why don't you and the villagers move to the Land of Iron? Even if the war doesn't reach here, the fleeing bandits and rogue ninja will threaten the villagers' safety."
"Mm, you have a point. But a matter this big must be decided by all the villagers together," Okihira nodded. "I will go and explain it to the village chief later."
"Ha, I thought you would never go back to the Land of Iron."
"My personal affairs are insignificant compared to the safety of all the villagers. To be honest, I should have let it go long ago. It was just my pride getting in the way."
"Good. Spoken like a true captain. Your awareness is on another level. I'll leave this matter to you, then. I'm going to go back and pack up my house." With that, Kaito stood up.
"Wait a moment. This is for you," Okihira said, taking out the small booklet and handing it to him. "Although you received stronger swordsmanship instruction in the Land of Iron, this should still be able to offer you some inspiration. When you are out in the world, if you meet a suitable person, feel free to pass this swordsmanship on. Consider it my only lingering obsession."
"Captain, I..." Kaito paused, surprised. He hadn't even mentioned his intention to leave yet.
"When you grow up, you have to go out and see the world. You don't need to feel bad about it, nor do you need to worry about the villagers. We will live on just fine. You must do the same."
"I will!" Kaito nodded emphatically, accepting the booklet with both hands.
"Finished chatting?"
Tetsuren, who had been waiting outside, greeted Kaito as if he were her savior. The enthusiastic villagers were making her extremely uncomfortable.
"Mm." Kaito smiled and shooed away the curious onlookers. "Let's go. We'll check out my place."
Navigating the narrow paths with practiced ease, the two of them arrived at a corner of the village where a simple wooden hut stood, piles of earth stacked beside it.
"This is the house you live in?" Tetsuren asked in surprise.
"Yep. It doesn't look like much has changed." Kaito excitedly pushed open the door, only to see someone inside.
"Sister Koharu?"
"Kaito, you're done talking with the captain so soon? I was just thinking of helping you tidy up the house," Koharu said, holding a stack of straw and smiling sweetly.
"You're the best, Sister Koharu." Kaito went over to help. "It doesn't have to be perfect, really. Just a quick touch-up is fine. I'm not that picky."
"How could I do that?! A home should be comfortable, of course."
"Alright, alright..."
Tetsuren leaned against the doorway, quietly watching them talk, until Kaito scolded her. "What are you just standing there for? Come and help, or I'll give you a bad review."
"..." Tetsuren rolled her eyes and reluctantly walked over.
"And she is?"
"Oh, she's Tetsuren, the bodyguard I hired. She's not much of a talker, so you don't have to mind her."
"I see." Koharu tilted her head and smiled at Tetsuren. "Hello, my name is Koharu. I'm his older sister. Thank you for taking care of him these past few days."
"It was nothing. I didn't do anything special," Tetsuren replied flatly.
In front of strangers, she really wasn't very talkative.
With three people cleaning the small house, it only took half an hour to get everything in order.
"Thank you for your hard work, Sister Koharu," Kaito said gratefully.
"Why are you being so polite with me?" Koharu smiled, looked around the room, and suggested, "Your place is too small. Why don't you let Tetsuren stay at my house with me?"
"Is that okay?"
"Of course it is." Koharu took Tetsuren's hand and said, "Besides, it's more convenient for us two girls to sleep together, right, Tetsuren?"
"...Mm." Tetsuren nodded stiffly.
"That's great! Then I won't have to worry about my safety at night," Kaito said, patting his chest in relief.
"???"
"Have you two eaten lunch yet?" Koharu asked.
"We have, we have."
"It's still a while until dinner. You two can get settled in. When it gets dark, come to my house for dinner. Kaito, you have to bring Tetsuren over. Mom and Dad have been talking about you for a long time."
"Okay, definitely."
After giving her instructions, Koharu left the house.
Instantly, Tetsuren's entire body relaxed. "Is she always like this?"
"Uh-huh. Why?"
"Nothing. I'm just not used to it."
Having always been around a bunch of boys, she had never experienced anything like this before.
"Well, you can enjoy it tonight." Kaito gave her a thumbs-up. "Good luck!"
"..."