The bone forest was eerie, the lightning on the scorched earth had long since extinguished, leaving only the chilling smell of charred remains in the air.
Kanbe Hikaru stood in place, his crimson oni mask appearing exceptionally ferocious in the twilight.
He looked down at the Suruga Province lord before him, who was dressed in a twelve-layered kimono and wore an expectant expression.
Imagawa Yoshimoto's words just now could be described as full of sincerity. Offerings of the world.
If he were an ordinary ronin samurai or an ignorant wild demon, he would likely have bowed down immediately, wishing to rip out his own heart to repay her for her recognition.
But Kanbe Hikaru did not. He was very clear that this so-called "half of the world" was still just a pie drawn on paper.
Although Imagawa Yoshimoto possessed the three most prosperous provinces of the Tokaido and, even if she couldn't fully control all of them, she still held an absolute advantage in terms of pure military strength; even if the Takeda Clan or Uesugi Clan had Hime-mushas with the 'power of divine artifacts', they could not overwhelm her on an open battlefield.
However, the opposition could execute a decapitation strike. They could infiltrate with a single soldier, and even capture the king!
And Imagawa Yoshimoto, without a 'divine artifact', had no way to fight back against this. It could be said that Imagawa Yoshimoto's situation was even worse than he had imagined.
She lacked that 'one'; no matter how many 'zeros' followed, they were all empty. Thus, in this regard.
Imagawa Yoshimoto opened her mouth, still repeating her previous rhetoric. But.
"The 'world' and such that you mentioned just now is too far off."
Kanbe Hikaru's voice remained calm: "I don't care about those ethereal things, nor do I need you to draw me a pie."
Imagawa Yoshimoto's smile stiffened slightly.
"I won't beat around the bush either; I'll be direct—I can agree to become the protector of your Suruga Imagawa Clan, but there are two conditions."
Kanbe Hikaru held up two fingers. Upon hearing this, Imagawa Yoshimoto quickly adjusted her expression.
She tilted her head slightly, the folding fan painted with pines and cranes sliding out from her sleeve again, gently resting against her chin, her eyes shifting, a bright smile—a fake smile—on her face:
"Lord Kanbe Hikaru, please speak—as long as it is within my power, even if you want..."
"First." Kanbe Hikaru cut off her meaningless tone, crisp and decisive:
"The Imagawa Clan's army, whether it be the two thousand men you have now or the troops in your territory in the future, must unconditionally follow my command whenever encountering battles related to 'demons' or 'gods'."
He had not forgotten the threat of the demon-slaying legion under Uesugi Kenshin from the land of Echigo, north of Musashi Province. Those guys would definitely come back. When that time came, he would need such a unit to'support' him.
"You want military power?" Imagawa Yoshimoto's eyes narrowed. The flirtatious demeanor from before receded like a tide, replaced by the shrewdness and vigilance of a daimyo who ruled over several provinces.
Worshipping a god was one thing, but handing the hilt of her sword over to someone else was another. The former cost money; the latter could cost her life.
"Not entirely." Kanbe Hikaru did not back down: "I only manage wars against non-humans. As for how you fight those human daimyo, I won't interfere—unless the other side also uses non-human power, such as those so-called divine artifacts or Hime-mushas who possess special powers."
"I can guarantee that." Imagawa Yoshimoto pursed her lips, seemingly weighing the pros and cons.
"Second." Kanbe Hikaru did not give her time to think, pointing to the group of small demons huddled and shivering in the blood mist behind him. "Them."
"I want you to take them back to Suruga and settle them throughout your territory."
"And not just throwing them onto any random mountain."
"I want you to build shrines for them in an official capacity, fabricate legends, and let your subjects know of their existence, revere them, and worship them—whether as guardian deities or as malevolent spirits."
"I want them to become the legitimate 'Hundred Demons' on the land of Suruga."
When these words were spoken, Imagawa Yoshimoto was stunned. Even the Tanuki Spirit behind Kanbe Hikaru was dumbfounded, clutching that tattered flag, its mouth agape wide enough to fit an egg.
One had to know, they were just a bunch of the lowest-level trash demons! Build shrines for them? Receive worship? This kind of treatment was something they hadn't even dared to dream of before!
"This..." Imagawa Yoshimoto's brows knitted together, and a look of difficulty appeared on her exquisite face.
"The matter of military power is negotiable, but this group of... filthy things?" She glanced with disgust at the Hitotsume-kozo wearing a broken umbrella and the drooling Kappa.
"Lord Hikaru, are you serious? These kinds of things that can't be brought into the light—if they received the Imagawa Clan's official recognition, other daimyo would laugh their heads off if word got out. If you insist on settling them, I can assign them a few barren mountains..."
"Then there is nothing to talk about." Kanbe Hikaru withdrew his finger. There was no hesitation, and no room for bargaining.
He turned around, his gray robes billowing in the wind like wings spreading out, as if he were about to leave immediately.
"Let's go." He said a single word to the small demons behind him.
The blood mist surged open again with him as the center, instantly swallowing his silhouette and The Twenty-three Demons.
Imagawa Yoshimoto did not speak now, only covering her face with that paper fan, her eyes shifting. One second, two seconds...
Kanbe Hikaru's footsteps did not stop in the slightest. He knew what she was thinking. She was gambling. Gambling that he wouldn't really leave, gambling that he needed the Imagawa Clan's resources.
But she was wrong about one thing. Kanbe Hikaru did need a power base, but it didn't have to be the Imagawa Clan.
Although Hojo Ujiyasu had been captured, as long as he was willing to wait, or go directly to save her, the Hojo Clan remained a good choice.
And what about Imagawa Yoshimoto? She had no choice. That hammer strike from the red-haired woman of Takeda Clan had already smashed her pride and confidence to pieces.
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