Dancing with Souls?

Aoba raised her head, suppressing the discomfort in her heart, and took out a handkerchief to wipe away the blood flowing from her eyes.

She forced a gentle smile.

"The clone's memories are too fragmented. I'm having a little trouble adapting to them all at once. I'll be fine after resting for a while."

Seeing this, Kosuke quickly turned around, brought in a basin of clean water from outside, and placed it beside his mother.

Aoba took the towel from his hand and dipped it into the water.

"Kosuke, let me do it. By the way, what was it you said you wanted to build there?"

Having the towel forcibly taken from him by his mother, Kosuke replied helplessly, "Mom, it's the forest behind the Ancestral Hall. I want to build an Academic Research Lab."

"Behind the Ancestral Hall? That's the clan cemetery."

"Huh? A cemetery?"

"Yes, Little Kosuke."

After wiping the blood from her face, Aoba set the faintly red towel beside the blood-stained water. Smiling, she looked at the dumbfounded Kosuke. "How about the left side of the Ancestral Hall? There happens to be an open space there. We can use it to build your Academic Research Lab."

Dancing with souls?

Holy shit!

Was that really so crazy?!

Thinking this, Kosuke kept his expression unchanged, looked at his mother, and nodded. "Then we'll do as you say, Mom. We'll build it on the left side of the Ancestral Hall."

He stood up, bent down, and reached out.

He tossed the towel into the clean water, picked up the wooden basin, and walked outside.

Watching his slightly unnatural retreating figure, the smile in Aoba's eyes deepened.

"Arrange for a builder to coordinate with Kosuke. Once the clan grounds have been restored, my family will fund the purchase of that plot beside the Ancestral Hall, then build according to Kosuke's wishes."

Aoba's stern voice echoed through the empty room.

At that moment, a reply sounded. It came from one of the remaining two guards, the one responsible for relaying Aoba's orders.

After dealing with the bloody water, Kosuke was bent over the desk, his charcoal pencil constantly gliding across the rough paper.

A square, orderly building gradually took shape on the page.

He set down the charcoal pencil and looked at the stack of sketches on the table, densely covered in all kinds of annotations.

Knock, knock, knock. A brief knock sounded at the door.

"Is Captain Kosuke here? I am the builder Lady Aoba arranged for you."

Kosuke turned toward the wooden door being knocked on, greatly surprised. "Mom's arrangements are already done?"

He got up and walked to the door. Pulling it open, he saw an elderly man nearing fifty standing before him.

In this Warring States Period, frequent warfare and poor medical conditions meant that both ninjas and civilians generally lived only around thirty years. Anyone over forty could be considered elderly, much less the man before him, who was nearly fifty.

"Captain Kosuke, I'm here to discuss the construction on the left side of the Ancestral Hall with you."

The builder looked at the child before him. Though young, Kosuke had played an indispensable role in the clan's development, and his prestige had grown day by day. The builder's eyes were filled with undisguised reverence.

"Alright. The blueprints are on the low table in my room. Please wait a moment."

Kosuke turned back into the room, picked up the blueprints from the low table, arranged them in order, and returned to the doorway.

"These are the construction blueprints. All the annotations are on them. If you encounter anything you don't understand during construction, bring it to me."

The builder's gaze swiftly swept across the blueprints. His fingers trembled slightly, his pupils suddenly contracted, and a storm of shock rose in his heart.

"This... this... Captain, you can draw such exquisite structures?"

"What? Is there something strange about them?"

Seeing the builder's trembling fingertips and his nearly stunned expression, Kosuke immediately asked.

"Captain Kosuke, there is nothing strange. The blueprints are very detailed. Once the clan grounds have been repaired, this building should soon be standing beside the Ancestral Hall."

Hearing the builder's reply, Kosuke let out a breath, as though setting aside a worry in his heart.

He then took out another blueprint depicting a complete Eight Immortals Table set. "While building it, make this set of table and chairs as well. Have someone deliver it to my home. The cost will be calculated separately."

The builder had just put away the blueprints when he looked up and saw Kosuke take out another one.

A table and chairs?

He could have just told this old man directly. Why had the captain drawn a separate blueprint for a set of furniture?

Could it be...

The builder's throat moved as he suddenly recalled how completely different the earlier blueprint had been from this one.

Trembling, the builder reached out and shakily accepted the blueprint.

He looked closely.

Sure enough!

It was another design completely different from traditional styles!

Captain Kosuke really was something!!

"Uh, are you alright?" His voice trembled, and his fingertips nearly crumpled the blueprint.

Seeing the fifty-year-old man in front of him suddenly start shaking all over, five-year-old Kosuke seemed as though he had witnessed something terrifying. His young heart leaped into his throat, and his muscles tensed abruptly.

Sir!!

Please don't fall over!

I'm only five!

I don't have money to compensate you!

And we're two meters apart right now!!!

This definitely can't be blamed on me, right?!

He stared fixedly at the other man, his feet unconsciously retreating half a step.

The craftsman holding the blueprint lowered his head to study it for a moment. After putting it away, he looked up, only to see Kosuke two meters away staring at him with a face full of terror. He could not help but wonder: Since when had Captain Kosuke been standing so far away from me?

Seeing that it was getting late, the craftsman wanted to greet Kosuke before heading back to continue coordinating the repair work.

Who would have thought that just after greeting him, as he raised his foot to leave, his body suddenly toppled to one side...

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

He fell!

From two meters away!

He just fell over stiff as a board!

The craftsman's sudden movement frightened Kosuke into backing away repeatedly. He only came to an abrupt stop when his heel bumped into a low table.

At the same time, one hand gripped the edge of the table tightly while the finger of his other trembling hand pointed at the fallen craftsman. He shouted in disbelief.

The commotion instantly drew the attention of Aoba inside the room, as well as the guards hidden nearby.

Bang!

Aoba threw open the door. Just as she was about to ask Kosuke what had happened, she saw an elderly man curled up at the doorway, facing sideways and clutching his calf with both hands, hissing in pain.

At the sight, Aoba's pupils contracted sharply. Her Sharingan spun wildly as she activated the Body Flicker Technique!

In the blink of an eye, she appeared beside Kosuke. At the same time, she fully activated her sensory abilities, radiating frigid killing intent.

"Lady Aoba, no trace of any enemy has been found. Should we notify the entire clan?"

The guard appeared at the doorway. His gaze swept over the craftsman curled on the ground, rubbing his leg, before vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

"Enemy?"

Kosuke looked at his mother, whose face was icy as killing intent poured from her body, then at the guard standing ready at the door. He immediately understood what was happening.

He hurriedly waved his hands. "No, no, no, Mom, don't do this! It's a misunderstanding! This is all a misunderstanding! There are no enemies!"

If his mother really gave the order to notify the entire clan, things would become troublesome.

When the time came, in order to calm the panicked clansmen, even if there were no enemies, one would be forcibly produced for them to see.

Thus, Kosuke selectively explained what had just happened, inevitably stumbling over his words.

No one knew a son better than his mother!

Seeing Kosuke's shifty eyes, Aoba knew that the matter was probably as he said, though he had hidden something.

But although she was curious about her son's secret, Aoba chose to respect it and did not press him further.