I formed the strongest swordsman group

The author reminds: Chiba Eijiro appeared in the form of a narration in the previous article, but some book friends should have forgotten who Chiba Eijiro is and what is the relationship with Chiba Sadakichi, so I will help everyone quickly review.

Chiba Eijiro is the second son of the late Chiba Shusaku (the founder of Beichen Yidao Liu, the elder brother of Chiba Singkichi), so Chiba Eijiro is the second nephew of Chiba Singkichi, and the second brother of Chiba Tamon Shiro , Chiba Shigetaro, Sanako and their cousins.

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"Oh?" Chiba Singkichi raised his eyebrows, his eyes lit up, and his tone was excited: "Eijiro, have you... touched this legendary realm?"

Chiba Eijiro nodded, and then said softly as if he was talking about something trivial:

"Just over half a month ago... that is, the eve of my long-lost return to Edo, when I went hunting alone in a certain mountain, I accidentally encountered a black bear."

"Black bear?" Chiba Dingkichi raised his eyebrows again, and the "excitement" that had just appeared on his pupils turned into "surprise".

"Well, a black bear about the size of 2 of me."

Chiba Eijiro, still with a soft smile on his lips, opened his arms and compared the size of the black bear he encountered.

"Maybe I accidentally entered the territory of that black bear, so that black bear is extraordinarily fierce."

"After seeing me, he immediately attacked me without any explanation."

"An animal like a bear, which can even slap a wild boar to death, is really quite scary."

"Suddenly sprang out from the grass and rushed towards me. If I had reacted a little slower at that time, my head would have been smashed."

"However—although I successfully avoided the first blow of the black bear, the bow in my hand accidentally fell into a deep ditch that my hand couldn't grasp."

"In desperation, I can only draw out the saber at my waist to fight."

"This is the toughest battle I've ever experienced in my life."

Speaking of this, Chiba Eijiro smiled freely.

"This is the first time I have encountered an enemy with such terrifying strength, speed, and physical strength."

"The black bear's paw waved casually, and it smashed a big hole in a tree with a trunk as thick as the mouth of a bowl."

"No matter how hard you stare and look at it, your eyes can hardly keep up with the speed of the bear's paw waving, and you can only see afterimages."

"In order not to be crushed by the bear's paw that is bigger than my head, I dare not even blink my eyes. Every time I have to blink, I am afraid."

At this time, Chiba Eijiro's eyebrows showed a bit of reminiscence.

His appearance... as if he was recalling some good memory...

"It's been a long time since I've seen it... This feeling of dying if you win or die, going all out."

"In the beginning, I played very hard."

"Not only was it too late to get close to the black bear, and to effectively kill the black bear, it almost died several times."

"But... suddenly, I entered a rather 'mysterious' state."

Chiba Eijiro's voice suddenly stopped at this moment, as if he was thinking about words.

After a while, he went on to say:

"I actually don't remember exactly what happened at that time."

"I just remember that in order to defeat the black bear, I held my breath and concentrated on it, and there was no other thought in my mind except 'defeat it'."

"At...a certain moment, my mood suddenly became very peaceful."

"The whole person is like standing on a pool of very quiet water."

"My head is empty, and there are hardly any distracting thoughts."

"In my eyes, I only see the knife in my hand and the big black bear in front of me."

"Because there are no distracting thoughts in my mind, my reaction speed has become much faster in the face of every attack launched by the black bear."

"The sword in my hand has become extraordinarily fast and fierce."

"After I entered this mysterious state, the situation of the battle turned around in an instant."

"The movement of the big black bear is no longer so fast that it can only keep up with the afterimage in my eyes."

"My footsteps have become easily within the distance that my sword can cut this big black bear."

Chiba Eijiro raised his right hand, made a gesture of cutting his nose with his right hand as if he was using a knife.

"I aimed at a flaw that the big black bear showed, approached its blind spot, cut off its big nose with a knife, and successfully repelled it."

"The mood has become extraordinarily calm, there are no redundant distracting thoughts in my mind, and my own strength has been exaggerated due to the lack of other distractions... These changes are all what my father and Uncle Dingji said after entering the 'Non-Self Realm' Will have the same state."

"So I'm guessing—the mysterious state I entered to defeat that big black bear...should be the legendary 'Selfless Realm'."

Since Chiba Eijiro began to tell the whole story of his entry into the "Non-Self Realm", Chiba Singkichi, who has been quietly listening to the audience, stared straight at Chiba Eijiro.

After a while, Chiba Singkichi squeezed out a dumbfounding expression:

"Defeated a bear with his own strength and retreated... Heh, if this matter gets out, there will be another legend of 'Chiba of Skill'."

"I don't think it's such a big deal." Eijiro Chiba smiled slightly, "Didn't the legendary 'Wonderful Hero': Goro Mashima also try to hunt and kill a bear with just one knife? The bear he hunted was the big brown bear from Ezo.”

"That's just a rumor." Chiba Sadakichi waved his hand, "There are still different opinions on whether the 'Wonderful Hero' Mashima Goro has ever singled out a bear."

Chiba Singkichi didn't care much about the feat of "Chiba Eijiro repelled the black bear with only one sword".

After talking about the matter in one sentence, I saw Chiba Dingkichi put down the teacup he had been holding in his hand, and let out a sigh of relief:

"Listen to your description... Eijiro, you really entered the 'Non-Self Realm' at that time!"

"My father and I have both entered this state of 'everything is empty'."

"Eijiro, have you ever tried to re-enact the 'Non-Self Realm' afterward?"

Chiba Eijiro nodded:

"After the battle with that big black bear, I tried to enter the 'Non-Self Realm' again."

"But it's a pity... no matter how I try, the results all end in failure, and I can't return to the state where I don't have any distracting thoughts in my heart."

"Well, this is all normal." Qianye Dingji nodded, "'Selfless Realm' is the pinnacle of martial arts, and it's something that can't be met."

"Eijiro, take your time, don't be impatient."

Chiba Singkichi grinned, and showed an encouraging smile to Chiba Eijiro.

"You have already entered the 'Non-Self Realm' once at this age... This is an extraordinary achievement."

"Your father and I both touched this supreme realm for the first time when we were in our thirties. Countless martial artists have never been able to see its beauty... Uh! Hiss!"

Before Chiba Dingkichi finished speaking, he suddenly let out a low cry of pain.

"Uncle Singkichi?" Chiba Eijiro was startled, and quickly got up and moved forward, supporting Chiba Singkichi, "What's wrong with you?"

"Ah, it's all right." Qianye Dingkichi waved his hand with a wry smile, "It's just that my waist hurts again..."

"Last night, my old waist disease suddenly relapsed, no matter how much I rested... oh..."

"Uncle Dingji, do you want me to give you a massage? After I became an official in the Mito Domain, I learned a massage technique from a colleague that can effectively relieve people's joint pain."

"No, no, no." Chiba Singkichi waved his hand again, "I asked Shigetaro to help me grab the medicine just now."

"The medicine I asked Shigetaro to grab for me is very effective. As long as I apply the medicine to my waist, my old waist disease will be relieved immediately."

"Calculating the time, Shigetaro should be back soon with the medicine."

...

...

Edo, Barrel Town, somewhere——

"Huh? Mr. Shigetaro? What a coincidence, good afternoon." An old lady with a basket of vegetables in her hand greeted Chiba Shigetaro warmly, who was walking towards her.

"Ah, Granny Le, good afternoon." Chiba Shigetaro responded to the old lady with the same enthusiasm.

This old lady, whom Chiba Shigetaro called "Grandma Le", was the owner of a certain Yabaiya in Barekimachi.

The so-called "eight hundred houses" are vegetable shops.

In the early Edo period, vendors selling vegetables were initially divided into: "appetizer stalls" that only sold one or two types of vegetables such as eggplant or green leafy vegetables, and "Yaobaiya" that sold a variety of vegetables.

But with the passage of time, such distinctions are gradually no longer made, and all shops selling vegetables are collectively referred to as "Eight Hundred Houses".

The Eight Hundred Houses run by this Granny Le is adjacent to the Little Chiba Sword Hall, so Chiba Shigetaro and his family have always been regular customers of this Granny Le's shop.

So after going back and forth, the two sides forged a not-so-shallow friendship.

Granny Le and Chiba Shigetaro exchanged a few simple greetings, then cast a curious look at a large paper bag in Chiba Shigetaro's hand.

"Mr. Shigetaro, what is this paper bag in your hand?"

"Oh, this." Shigetaro glanced at the paper bag in his right hand, and let out a helpless smile, "This is the medicine I just went to the pharmacy to help my father grab."

"Medicine?" Grandma Le was taken aback, and then asked anxiously, "Mr. Shigetaro, what's wrong with your father?"

"No need to worry, nothing serious happened." Shigetaro replied, "It's just back pain again."

"Since last night, father's waist suddenly started to hurt."

"I thought that the pain would be relieved by just resting for a while, but who knows that until noon today, the condition has not improved."

"I have no choice but to go to the pharmacy and get my father the medicine that can effectively treat his back injury."

"Mr. Dingji's back problem has happened again..." Granny Le showed worry, "It shouldn't be serious, right?"

"It's not serious, it's not serious." Shigetaro put away the wry smile on his face and waved his hands, "Grandma Le, you know, this is my father's old problem."

"His waist hurts every now and then."

Chiba Shigetaro shook the large paper bag containing the medicine in his hand.

"Just apply this medicine, and then lie quietly on the bed for an hour or two, and my father's old problem can be suppressed again."

After all, Chiba Shigetaro raised his head, looked at the sky above his head, and smiled wryly at Granny Le with an apologetic expression:

"Grandma Le, I have to go back quickly to apply medicine to my father, so I have to go first."

"Well, good." Granny Le nodded vigorously, "Hurry up and go home, and say hello to your father and Miss Zanazi for me."

"Okay." Chiba Shigetaro grinned, "I will."

After waving goodbye to Granny Le, Chiba Shigetaro tightened the medicine bag in his hand, and continued to stride on the way back to Little Chiba Sword Gym.

However, suddenly—a young voice with a slightly shrill voice sounded from Chiba Shigetaro's side:

"Huh? Mr. Chiba?"

The next moment after hearing this high-pitched voice... Chiba Shigetaro's expression changed slightly and he stopped, turning his head to look at the owner of this high-pitched voice.

The owner of this high-pitched voice was a young warrior with a rather handsome appearance.

He was filled with a warm smile that almost cracked the corners of his mouth to the ears, and rushed to Chiba Shigetaro in three steps at a time.

"Mr. Chiba, what a coincidence! I can meet you here!"

"New Wife-kun." Chiba Shigetaro responded in a flat tone without sadness or joy, "Why are you here?"

The young samurai smiled, and then said softly: "...I'm here to prepare for tomorrow's Marquis of Aizu's swordsmanship competition."

New Wife Hiroshi - the name of the young warrior.

If you are a person who has been paying close attention to the swordsmanship circle in Edo, you will not feel unfamiliar after hearing the name "New Wife Hiroshi".

After all, the new wife is one of the "Three Heroes" who have become famous recently!

The Xuanwu Hall that teaches Beichen's one-sword style.

The scholar's school that teaches the wisdom of mirroring the mind.

A training hall for teaching Shinto Wunian style.

The above three sword halls are collectively called the "Three Great Sword Halls in Edo" because of the scale of the sword halls, the strength of teachers and other factors that are the best among all the sword halls in Edo.

With the most famous reputation, naturally also has the most attention.

Who in the three major sword halls has been "exempted from passing on", what powerful old people have left the sword hall because they have left the sword hall, and what newcomers have emerged... These are the swordsmanship lovers in Edo Topics they like to talk about the most.

Just the year before last, there was a very interesting coincidence—the three major sword gyms all came out at almost the same time, and each had a newcomer with outstanding talent and strength.

The three newcomers are——

Osaki Hirayuki of Xuanwukan.

Totaro Morishita of the Scholars Academy.

And the young man standing in front of Chiba Shigetaro now: Hiroshi, the new wife of the military training hall.

All three of them started learning swords in the fifth year of Ansei (1858). After putting on protective gear and lifting bamboo swords, they quickly showed their dazzling talent in swordsmanship!

...

On the first day that Zhui Qi entered the Xuanwu Hall, his talent was highly praised by the owner and fellow seniors...

After Morishita practiced sword for two months, he defeated a brother who had practiced sword for many years...

When the new wife just passed the first year of entry, in a certain sparring, she faced three senior brothers who had been steeped in swordsmanship for many years with one against three at the same time, and finally succeeded in defeating all three senior brothers...

...

The three of them seemed to be competing with each other, and they kept producing one piece of big news after another that made the swordsmanship lovers in Edo feel extremely surprised and envious.

In less than 2 years, the three of them have gradually gained fame by relying on their brilliant performances again and again.

As the reputation of these three people became more and more obvious, those with good intentions collectively referred to these three people as the "Three Heroes of the Three Great Sword Gyms".

This title was originally only circulated in a small area among certain people, but gradually, this title gradually became widely known.

Chiba Shigetaro got acquainted with his new wife Hiroshi, one of the "Three Heroes" by chance.

If you talk about who is the most enviable among the "Three Heroes"... then of course it must be the new wife.

Although both Kaisaki and Morishita are as famous as their new wives, each of them has one aspect that is far inferior to their new wives.

Morishita has a face... at best it's ugly, at worst it's a "pig turned into a human" face.

Oisaki is from a poor background, he is a lower-ranking vassal of the Sano Clan.

Sano Fan is a poor small feudal kingdom with a total stone height of only 16,000 shi. As a lower-level feudal official of this poor small feudal state, Oishaki is naturally so poor that he can use the idiom "shocking" to describe his situation.

He borrowed money from all his family members and friends, and finally managed to cobble together the tuition and travel expenses for him to study abroad in Edo and practice swordsmanship.

Compared with Mei Qi and Morishita, the new wife has the most excellent and comprehensive conditions-he comes from a banner family with 700 Shijialu, and has a handsome face.

Excellent appearance and family background, coupled with excellent swordsmanship talent... As long as she continues to practice steadily, the future of the new wife will be bright!

However—such an outstanding talent... Chiba Shigetaro just couldn't like him at all.

Chiba Shigetaro always felt that the new wife...was a little too arrogant.

Although the new wife always looks polite and courteous on weekdays, but in his speech, there is always a kind of... a sense of superiority.

Chiba Shigetaro has always disliked the kind of people who are not humble enough in life, so when getting along with his new wife, his attitude has always been lukewarm.

In normal times, Chiba Shigetaro would never take the initiative to communicate with his new wife who is not familiar with him and who doesn't like him very much.

But what the new wife said just now aroused some interest in Chiba Shigetaro, making Chiba Shigetaro take the initiative to ask the new wife very rarely:

"Preparing for tomorrow's game...?" Chiba Shigetaro glanced up and down at his new wife several times, "Preparing for what? Take a walk on the street to relax?"

The famous Marquis of Aizu is going to hold a swordsmanship competition for newcomers from various sword gyms... This is a rare event.

Such a level of competition is naturally extremely attractive to those who are interested in swordsmanship.

As far as Chiba Shigetaro knew: almost all the slightly famous sword gyms in Edo signed up for this swordsmanship competition, and there were nearly a hundred contestants.

On this long list of personnel, there are many names that are extremely familiar to swordsmanship enthusiasts.

For example—Ju Qingdeng, who has recently been hailed as "the strongest fighter in the North".

Another example - "Three Heroes"!

Zhui Qi, Morishita, and the new wife, all of them have been studying swordsmanship for less than three years, and they all have the qualifications to participate in this competition.

When he first learned that the "Three Heroes" would participate in this competition, Chiba Shigetaro couldn't help but let out a low exclamation.

This competition...it looks like it will be extraordinarily lively.

Asked by Chiba Shigetaro, "What preparations are you here for?", the new wife was silent for a moment, and then smiled:

"Well... please forgive me for being inconvenient to say more."

After all, the new wife glanced at the medicine bag in Chiba Shigetaro's hand.

"Mr. Chiba, I saw you walking in a hurry just now, are you in a hurry to go somewhere?"

"Ah, my father's back disease has recurred." Chiba Shigetaro shook the medicine bag in his hand, "I'm rushing home, and I'm going to apply the medicine I just grabbed to my father."

"Master Chiba Dingji's back disease has recurred?" The new wife showed surprise, and then the surprise on her face turned into apology, "I'm so sorry... I came to bother you when you were in a hurry."

As the new wife spoke, she took a step sideways.

"Mr. Chiba, then I won't bother you anymore, you can go home quickly."

"Yes." Chiba Shigetaro nodded, and then said politely, "New wife, see you later."

Although he couldn't ask his new wife what he meant by "preparing for tomorrow's game" just now, Chiba Shigetaro didn't particularly care about this question.

After saying goodbye to his new wife, Chiba Shigetaro quickly gathered his mind and passed by his new wife.

The new wife stopped where she was, silently watching Chiba Shigetaro leave.

After the figure of Chiba Shigetaro was about to disappear from his field of vision, his lips moved——

"It's such a pity... I just happened to be in a hurry... and I wanted to chat more with Mr. Chiba and get closer to him..."

The new wife's murmur was full of regret.

...

...

After bidding farewell to his new wife, Chiba Shigetaro never met anyone who would greet him on the road, and went back to his home smoothly all the way.

As soon as he stepped into the gate of Little Chiba Sword Gym, Chiba Shigetaro shouted in his loud voice:

"I'm back!"

After entering the Little Chiba Sword Gym, you will first pass through the "No. C Dojo" for apprentices who are still lacking in strength.

Walking along the corridor and passing through the gate of the C court, Chiba Shigetaro saw a familiar figure in the C court.

"Sanako!" Chiba Shigetaro greeted his sister loudly, and strode into the third arena.

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Thanks to the administrator [Nyoga Yan] for the information on Eijiro Chiba!

Chiba Eijiro is a historical figure, one of the strongest swordsmen at the end of the Tokugawa period, with rich, powerful and exaggerated actual combat records.

The administrator [female Jiayan] sorted out part of Chiba Eijiro's resume in the book review area of ​​the starting point, and everyone who is interested can go and have a look.