Struggle for Sagara Yoshiharu (Part 2)

After finally passing the skit challenge, Nobuna leads Frois into

Honbyo temple and can finally negotiate directly with Kennya.

With a forbearing presence Saika Magoichi is by Kennya's side,

wary of anything unexpected.

Right now, what's troubling is Sagara Yoshiharu who is being

sandwiched between the two of them.

"Nobuna, I'm not planning to revolt and be independent. If the Oda

clan wants to continue the quest of Tenka Fubu, we must never fight

with Honbyo temple. I have sacrificed myself for this goal...."

Yoshiharu defended himself. But Nobuna had already forgotten all

about the look when she was being a cat ear maid and started to

harshly kick at Yoshiharu's abdomen area.

Yoshiharu knew in his heart, "If he dodges it, there will definitely be

even harsher punishments." and so he didn't avoid any of Nobuna's

attacks.

So, he "Uhhhh" and collapsed onto the tatami while clutching onto

his stomach.

"Being surrounded by girls everyday and having such good

memories and now, you want to get out of it by acting suave, I'm

telling you now, NO WAY! You perverted revolting Saru!"

"But, to make you abandon me, I had no other choice."

"Ahh, dearuka. I will fulfill your wish, I don't want you anymore!!"

Like venting all the fury that she had suppressed till now, Nobuna

stomped onto Yoshiharu's head.

"Nobuna-sama. Let's end the punishment of Yoshiharu-san here....

This is the place for the peace talks."

"I got it, Frois. Saru, don't think this is over, prepare yourself

mentally!"

".....Anyway, peace first, peace. I've made such a big sacrifice, if

this talk doesn't go well, all my efforts will be for naught."

"Give us Sagara Yoshiharu as the hostage~nya. This is the

condition for peace~nya."

"You guys are still going on with that. Didn't I say already, return

Saru to us!"

Kennya and Nobuna faced each other as they sat in the seiza

position.

The aura emitting from both of their bodies are similar. Both are

head-strong types, and will always head forward towards their goal.

Nobuna who wants to use military strength to unify the world and

Kennya who wants to rely on the faith of Nekogami and skits to

persuade the people so as to return peace to the world.

As the saying goes, there can only be one top dog.

Yoshiharu is distracted, "Looks like they won't have peace so

easily."

"Ever since the Onin war, the nobles and warriors can't end the

unrest in Japan~nya. Mount Hiei isn't showing a good example too,

now is the time for I Kennya-sama whose believers are spread

throughout the whole of Japan to fulfill the wish of Tenka

Fubyo~nya."

"I'm totally different from those outdated samurai whose heads are

only thinking about territories. I will smash all these ancient rules and

common sense and fulfill my ambition of Tenka Fubu! No matter if it's

Christianity or Nekogami-sama, I will acknowledge the freedom of

religion, but you religious parties who are supposed to bring peace to

the people are now taking up arms and stirring up unrest, it's

ridiculous! If you guys just keep messing things up like this, this

unrest won't be over for another era."

"That's contrary to what we are doing~nya. It's you samurai who

have been fighting among yourselves and causing agony among the

people, so they have no choice but to gather at Honbyo temple for

help~nya. You samurai don't know at all, how much pain and

sacrifice these weak and powerless people have suffered till

now~nya."

"I have said it before, I will unify Japan and end the unrest to give

the people a peaceful life. As for the pain of the people, I will hand it

to people like Frois and you. Everyone has their job and knows what

their jobs are, isn't that good?"

"But once we disarm ourselves, who knows when someone will

attack us. In the past, Honbyo temple was still at Yamashina, but we

were chased out after suffering a sudden attack with our temple

being burned down. Everyone is already afraid of the samurai~nya."

"All of us have our reasons. No matter what, you clergies should

bring peace to the people's hearts, now that you have stirred up

everyone for war, that is a contradiction of your duty. I'm thinking that

you guys have stirred up all the unease in the people' hearts and

unleashed them. I don't like such a contradiction!"

"We Honbyo temple weren't armed from the start too~nya. It's

because that bunch of warriors keeps attacking us~nya! It's because

of this that we have totally abandoned Buddhism and are

worshipping Nekogami-sama~nya. The ancient Buddhism has too

many rules and bored the hell out of everyone, too

troublesome~nya."

"All in all, I've said it already, return Saru to us and we will have

peace with all of you."

"Yoshiharu is already the namban soccer god that has descended

upon Honbyo temple~nya. Magoichi has also taken a liking to him.

So nope~nya....."

"Return him to me already!"

"Nooooo~nya... Anyway, why are you so adamant about Yoshiharu

to this extent~nya?"

"Tha....That's because.... umm...."

"What, this is weird~nya...."

"Shut up! I should be the one asking, you guys giving hundreds of

bishoujos to serve Saru, what do you guys have planned!? It's to

shave off his determination and snatch him away, right!?"

"Gods are to be worshipped and well taken care of by believers,

that is the habit of the world.... It's at least better than you who is

always kicking and beating Yoshiharu up~nya."

"Uhhhhhhhh."

Nobuna had used up all her arguments as she became

speechless.

Frois said, "Takenaka-sama said that when the talk stagnated, we

are to open this bag." as she took out a mysterious small bag.

"Hanbei said that? Is that so? The paper in the bag, what's written

on it?"

"Because there's only one Yoshiharu-san, there is no way

negotiations can solve any problems. This time, we must fight for the

right to possess Yoshiharu-san outright. But not by having a war but

through a namban soccer match.... With this, no lives will be lost and

we can decide the victor in a day. That's what written on it."

"This match, I'm in~nya!"

"I'm in too!"

Kennya and Magoichi who are obsessed with namban soccer now

had become quite motivated after hearing Hanbei's suggestion. But,

it's extremely advantageous to Honbyo temple for a match of

namban soccer.

Of course, Nobuna isn't dumb too.

"We have never played namban soccer before, this is too unfair for

us."

As she pursed her lips showing her displeasure.

"What is this, trying to run away?"

"Who is running away!? Saika Magoichi! Aren't you the mercenary

head of Kii? Aren't you a fellow warrior too? Why are you on Honbyo

temple's side?"

"What, it's obviously because staying here is much more

interesting than being a warrior. Serving my lord and doing jobs for

my lord, I just can't take such a tough warrior community. Humans

only have one life, how can we not enjoy our life....? My dream is to

be joined with the world's best man, if I work under a daimyo, I will

most likely not be able to do even this, right? I will have to accept my

lord's arrangements for a political marriage. Something like that, I

don't like it at all. Ahahahaha."

Magoichi-nee-san, what a maiden-like dream.... If that's really the

case, then her character is wrong. I think she has to abstain her

revolting habit of eating butt skits, if not, I don't think she can get

married.... Yoshiharu started to worry for Magoichi's future and due

to this, Nobuna is once again gashing her teeth.

"Wait, black crow. Don't tell me, you like this Saru....."

"Eh? N....N...No such thing.... Yoshiharu-san might not look like it,

but he does have a big pair of balls, that's true. Aha...Ahahahaha...."

Nobuna is certain of it. Looking at that embarrassed look,

Magoichi likes Yoshiharu! I don't want to let Yoshiharu be stolen

away by some woman whose life is devoid of worries! Nobuna is

burning with jealousy and fighting spirit!

"I got it. I will accept this match. For this match, no hard feelings

no matter who loses!"

Magoichi cheered and opened her fan engraved with her clan's

insignia as Kennya stood up.

"Nyahoho. We are holding namban soccer matches everyday and

have been training ourselves~nya... I won't let you say that I'm

unfair, I will give you 3 days of training~nya. The date of the match

will be 3 days after and the location will be in this Honbyo

temple~nya."

"Fine by me! But, Saru has to join the Oda army's side!"

"Ohh. I don't mind lending Yoshiharu to you guys... Our namban

soccer team is very strong even without Yoshiharu~nya... There are

the five cat generals in the Saika clan that Magoichi is leading. And

there's this Kennya-sama who is as agile as a cat. There's lots of

talent~nya...."

"If we win, you guys will return Yoshiharu to us!"

"There's only 3 days of training, Honbyo temple will never lose to

you guys~nya. Nyahahaha."

At this time, Nobuna and Kennya, along with Magoichi's glare met

with each other and gave off lots of bright sparks.

In these three days, under Yoshiharu's guidance, the namban soccer

team that was chosen from the Oda army had concentrated fully on

this training.

Once Yoshiharu thought, "If I can go back to the Oda clan and still

have peace with Honbyo temple, this is the first and last chance!"

and became motivated, he insisted on hellish Spartan training. He

was holding a bamboo sword while shouting, "Wrong wrong, this is

totally wrong!" as he smacked it hard on Nobuna and the rest's butt.

Of course, during this period, Nobuna was also furiously shouting,

"Saru! It's all because of you that we have to do such a thing! Why

must you be so smug like this and hitting our butts with a bamboo

sword!?" as she rushed over at Yoshiharu. Mitsuhide is "Che,

bastard Sagara-senpai does not even understand this Juubei's

charm, I will not listen to his instructions." as she became defiant

against Yoshiharu too. While Hanbei started coughing non-stop and

had to keep resting, she didn't do anything. Katsuie herself was

roaring, "It's because of your lewd habits that my foot soldiers are all

using lewd stares on my breasts... Dieeeee" while she chases

Yoshiharu. Takigawa Kazumasu was instead "I hate it and I aren't

skilled at this dirt-ridden game" and propped up an umbrella,

elegantly slacking. All in all, there were numerous problems.

Because Yoshiharu's leadership skills "Actually, it's the trust of the

female warriors towards him being too low" are really a problem, so

Frois had to replace Yoshiharu as the couch halfway in.

Even so, the Oda clan's strength was still quite weak, in the end

even Mikawa's Matsudaira Motoyasu had to be called over.

"What's namban soccer~? Though Shingen had gone to Kanto,

but there is really no problem for Mikawa to be

empty.....*tremble*tremble*"

Pitiful, accompanied only by Hattori Hanzou, Motoyasu rushed

over to Nobuna's side at the fastest speed possible.

No matter how Motoyasu wanted to reject Nobuna's request, but

once she thought of Nobuna flaring up and saying, "I will turn you

into a Tanuki hotpot!" she became so scared that she couldn't refuse.

Those are Motoyasu's troubles.

Just to mention, after the peace talks end, both sides had decided

on very precise rules for the namban soccer match, the most

troubling was prohibiting shikigamis from entering the match. If Zenki

and the rest could be in the field, they could oppose Kennya's

absurd speed.... Yoshiharu thought, but the rules had been set,

there's no way around it now.

"In the end, Saru. Do you want to return to the Oda clan, or not?

Which is it?"

"If we can have peace with Honbyo temple and not have a

hostage, I want to come back too, isn't that uncalled for!?"

"Is that the truth? You have been served by a hundred cat ear

maids and were enjoying the life of a king with that lecherous look of

yours."

"That's all an act. There's only one girl I love. I'm satisfied even if

she's the only one by my side."

".....Hmph, who knows. If you really think so, then think of a way to

let us win."

"Ohh, ohh, leave it to me."

".....Ummm, Yoshiharu, are you really planning to love only me?"

"Shhhhhhh. Don't say this at such a place, it will be bad if people

overheard this!"

During the training, Nobuna and Yoshiharu had been talking about

such a topic secretly all the time. Mitsuhide looked at them from their

back,

"Somehow, their relationship seems a little weird.... It looks like

they are quarreling, but if I look closely, they are just like a couple."

The suspicions in her heart became deeper.

With all the fuss going on, the three days passed in a blink of an

eye as the Oda army finally challenged the Honbyo temple.

Before the match starts.

Kennya and Magoichi stand at a corner of the gathering, looking

on at the 50 thousand believers gathered there.

"Everyone looks to be very happy~nya. It's good that we can avoid

the war temporarily.... This is all thanks to that monkey face

guy~nya."

"Kennya, you are really soft in the heart but hard with your mouth.

But we can't just give the victory to our enemies. If we lose too badly,

the believers might wage a war due to being too disappointed."

"That goes without saying~nya. Yoshiharu is already the namban

soccer god, I won't let him go. And he is the world's best man in

Magoichi's heart~nya.... I believe Yoshiharu has feelings for Oda

Nobuna, but their statuses are far too different~nya. Even if

Yoshiharu returns to Nobuna, it will be a bad end for his love~nya.

It's better for him to be the husband of the perfect free-spirited lady,

Magoichi~nya."

"Oi, I didn't think that far ahead! Do...Don't say anymore!"

"Aren't you "Why don't you marry me?" seducing Yoshiharu like

this everyday, now you're trying to act dumb~nya?"

"E...Er... That's just... just a joke, a joke! Because that

dumbfounded look of Yoshiharu is quite interesting, I start teasing

him before I know it!"

"The face of Magoichi now is even more interesting~nya."

"Sh...Shut up!"

Who could have thought that Magoichi seems to be quite a shy

character when she's serious.

"....No matter what, I Kennya want to win this namban soccer

match, to give a perfect ending to the feud with the Oda clan~nya.

The believers in the temple are all like my daughters~nya, if

possible, I Kennya want them not to forsake the smile that they have

finally gotten back and live on happily~nya."

"Correct. If the Oda clan goes back on their promise, I will use this

Yatagarasu to end them, so Kennya, relax and go crazy on the field."

"Yeah~nya."

The elites that are chosen among the Saika clan and Nyankousou

believers are standing in a row behind them.

The Nyankousou executives who all have the same surname,

"The five cat generals", Shimotsuma Rantei, Shimotsuma Kakehu,

Shimotsuma Okada, Shimotsuma Mayumi and Shimotsuma

Kawatou, all of them having the same face without a hint of

difference.

On the Saika clan's side, the confident Kii girls that are

comparable with Magoichi in strength had all gathered, all of them

are called strange names like Hotaru, Kotsuzume or Tsurukubi.

Add to the fact that these girls all had an abundance of hands on

experience, in terms of experience, they had a tremendous

difference to the Nobuna team that was hastily gathered.

"Ok everyone, let's go~nya!"

"Ohhh, YEAH!"

"To protect the namban soccer god Yoshiharu-san, all of us will

fight to the end with our best. Hmmm. Anyway, to help with our

nutrients, I have prepared Okonomiyaki... I have successfully

invented a new product that is suitable with takoyaki, tell me what

you guys think about it."

"Such a thing, we can wait till the end of the soccer match. If we

have our stomachs full, we will be vomiting all of it out halfway into

the match."

At the thunderous cheers of the believers, the Honbyo temple

team walked onto the battlefield.

The fight for Sagara Yoshiharu had finally began.

Nobuna won in rock paper scissors and had the right to kickoff.

"Then you shall begin, Nobuna-sama."

As the referee, Frois "Piiiiiiiiii" let out the signal for the start of the

match with a loud whistle.

The nyankousou believers were all nyaaa nyaa nyaa being all

rowdy and noisy, causing the Nobuna team members to be unable to

totally concentrate on the match.

"Ahhh, how irritating, the loudness is causing my eardrums to ring.

I can't play properly...."

"I will be the goalkeeper! Hanbei, don't run around, stay at the

centre of the field and give commands to everyone!"

Yoshiharu passed over the role of the command tower to the

genius strategist Hanbei as he himself took on the burden of being

the goalkeeper.

"My nickname of "Dodgeball Yoshiharu" isn't for jokes. If this were

dodgeball, I could use this skill to play to my strengths, but now that

this is soccer, the only position that can make my strengths shine is

the goalkeeper! Because of my sensitive senses when dodging balls,

I can use it to detect the direction where the ball will fly in! I need

only to apply the dodgeball theory in reverse and run towards the

direction of the ball and all will be good."

That brisk shooting of Kennya and Magoichi's long distance shoot,

the one who can block all of them, looking at all of the Oda clan,

there's only Yoshiharu.

So, in this match that they cannot afford to lose, Yoshiharu

concentrated on defense. Being too obessed with defending and not

attacking, that was a bad habit of Japan in the world cup, but this

time, the stakes are just too high. Considering that this is a fight for

Yoshiharu, this match decides the right for the Oda clan or Honbyo

temple to obtain the world. And if the one who hates losing and was

extremely possessive, Nobuna, were to lose this match, chances

are, she will wage a full out war with Honbyo temple. If they lose this

namban soccer, what awaits was a showdown using swords and

arquebus.

"Nobuna's instincts are the best, what's unfortunate is that the

Owari army is just too weak. If the Saika clan that Magoichi-nee

were to guard this Honbyo temple with their 5000 arqurbues, the

Oda clan will definitely be in a stalemate. It will be like in history, the

end of the war will only come 10 years later. But in this war, before

that can happen, Katsuchiyo will head to the capital again, this is

really a time when I want to just throw this game away and not play

anymore."

If one were to think, a soccer match that can make people excited

to this extent, is there any in human history? No, there isn't,

Yoshiharu thinks to himself as he stood near the goalpost.

"My responsibilities are huge.... Is this the shiver before a battle?"

"Cough cough. Yoshiharu-san, our teammates aren't able to

coordinate properly, the ball was snatched away in an instant.

They're coming."

Hanbei who is standing in the so called midfield was giving him

eye signals and pointing as she passed Yoshiharu a warning

message.

"Already?"

"Nyaaaaaaa! What a bunch of losers~nya. You guys just suck too

much~nya."

"Wait, you cat burglar! Juubei, it's all your fault! Why did you let

Kennya just snatch the ball away so easily~!?"

"Relax, I won't snatch your ball, that's what she told me."

".....Being so worked up with you, I'm just so dumb. To actually

believe in this kind of thing, you are really easy to fool."

It seems that Mitsuhide was deceived by Kennya and thus, the ball

was snatched away.

"Juubei, you really don't suspect other people... There's no helping

it."

"Hmmm. Stay in defensive formation. Everyone, don't let the

enemy get near the goal."

"Roger! Leave it to me."

"Compared to us, the enemy's coordination is better. Our side 30

points."

"Sneeze sneeze. Really, all this dirt flying around, I can just

sneeze the whole day."

"If it's about agility, I'm not bad myself."

The Nobuna team panicked as they rushed full speed over to the

goalpost Yoshiharu is guarding.

On Honbyo temple's side, the teammates are passing the ball in

fluid motions as they gradually tear apart the defense line of the Oda

team. First is the powerful Shimotsuma Rantei! Next is the skillful

Shimotsuma Kakehu! And then, the ball is at the Ace Striker, Saika

Magoichi!

"Ok! Full speed ahead! The man that is slightly ugly although his

balls are the biggest in the world, he's now mine!"

Now, there's still a substantial amount of distance to the goalpost.

If it were others, they would definitely not shoot from there.

But Magoichi did not mind it at all, before the Oda troops

strengthened their defense, she raised her leg and gave a

spectacular shot.

*Dong*! The ground shakes.

The ball flew high across Nobuna and the rest and headed straight

to the left side of the goal post.

"You gotta be kidding!? How can it fly so high? That Yatagarasu is

like a monster!"

"And from the trajectory, it is totally accurate. As expected from the

best sniper. Hmmm..."

"It's all over, Saru won't be able to defend against such a ball!"

"Our side, 8 points."

"It's my turn!"

Dodgeball Yoshiharu will become the goalkeeper Yoshiharu today!

With his sensitive instincts, Yoshiharu launched himself at the

direction of the ball and gave it a powerful punch.

Bham!

At the last minute, Yoshiharu launched the ball outside the line.

"Ouch, it hurts! My fist is splitting apart...!"

How many more times must I defend against such a shot, I can't

recover at all.... Yoshiharu mumbled.

"Yoshiharu-san, what the hell are you doing!? You don't plan to

coordinate with me, is that what you want?"

"Because.... I... want to go back to Oda clan....!"

Magoichi is seething with anger as she berated Yoshiharu loudly,

"You bastard, go and eat butt!", the believers shouted, ""Eat butt"

has appeared again~nyaaaaa." Nobuna and Mitsuhide were

shocked, "Saying such a crude thing, if we give Saru over to such a

revolting woman, it will be the end." "So infuriating. I will definitely

win this match no matter what it takes."

Due to Yoshiharu punching the ball out of the line, it's now Honbyo

temple's ball.

Standing at the corner, Hotaru from the Saika clan sent the ball

flying with her hands.

"Don't let Magoichi-nee touch the ball. Two of you, no, three of you

guard her, seal off all her movements!"

"Hmmm. Though this will cause our attack abilities to drop, but

there's no other way around it."

"Roger."

"....Leave it to Inuchiyo."

"You really know how to order a miko around, Saru."

Goemon, Inuchiyo and Takigawa Kazumasu surrounded Magoichi

from three different directions as they formed a complete circle.

"Oi, what the hell are you doing!? Stop this, stop playing around

and scram!"

"Ninninnin. Not escaping."

"Guard Yoshiharu."

"I don't really care whether we win or lose, but my Iga ninja blood

is getting excited."

These three lolis blocked Magoichi's surroundings causing

Magoichi to not be able to move freely. If she's facing the big sized

Shibata Katsuie, she can still use body contact, but the target is too

small and agile, making her unable to move easily.

"I will kick all of you away, bastards!"

"If you do such a thing, I will give a yellow card, kicking one of

them will be a yellow card, kicking all three will make you be banned

from playing."

Due to Frois's prior warning, Magoichi cannot kick these three

mischievous brats away.

But, there are others attacking teammates at Honbyo temple's

side!

"Nyaaaaaaa! My partner is troubled now~nya, it's time for Kennyasama to show my true abilities~nya!"

A huge snatching contest occured with the ball that was flying

over.

Somehow Nobuna and Mitsuhide "Give me!" "No, to Juubei!" were

quarreling as they pushed each other. Using this lapse of judgement,

Kennya jumped with her cat ears shaking and gave a bicycle kick

right in the air!

"Did you see that, normal humans! Kneel to this Nekogamisama~nya!"

Looking at this jumping strength and agile movement seemingly

ignoring gravity, this can never happen with a normal human!

"How can this be!? To actually shoot with that stance!?"

"Impossible!"

The Nobuna team was totally stunned by the surprise shoot!

But only one, only Yoshiharu knew of Kennya's cat like abilities as

he roared, "I didn't let my guard down!", he once again jumped up

and received the ball that Kennya had shot.

"Nyaaa? Yo...Yoshiharu, what's this.... That's too much~nya!"

Just when Kennya was about to dance an elated cat dance, her

short lived joy was cut short and turned to naught as she kneeled

down in disappointment. Using this rare chance, Yoshiharu gave an

order, "Charge, charge!" and launched the ball once again.

"Right now! The Honbyo temple's defenses are empty!"

"Leave it to I Juubei!"

"I will shoot, pass the ball to me, Juubei!"

"No, I want to use this goal as a wedding gift to Sagara-senpai!"

"You again.....! Infuriating!"

Somehow, there is a violent clash between Nobuna and Mitsuhide.

This can't go on, the both of them had been dragging each other

back, with this, we can't score easily, 0 points. Nagahide panted

while chasing after the ball.

"I...I...I...I had been running around the field for so long already

and I have not touched the ball even once~! Am I useless?"

"If we don't pass the ball to the strongest of the Oda clan, Katsuiedono to shoot, we won't be able to score. But Hime and Akechi-dono

do not seem to have the intention to pass the ball over."

Exactly. The Oda team has poor teamwork. One has to say, the

decisiveness and the strength to score is part of Japan's soccer

tradition, but both Nobuna and Mitsuhide felt that "I'm the trump

card!" and had not cooperated with each other.

Once they returned to their senses, the arquebus 3 men team of

Saika clan, Hotaru, Kotsuzume and Tsurukubi had all rushed over.

"Damn!"

"Cough. Inuchiyo-san, please continue to block Saika Magoichisama like this. And Niwa-sama and Shibata-sama, please seal

Kennya-sama's movements. I think we can still hold on like this.

Hanbei who didn't run nor jump but was already in tatters once

again reestablished the formation. Even if this disappointing plan of

pulling back Kennya and Magoichi will greatly reduce their own

strength, but that extraordinary bicycle kick from Kennya is still fresh

in their mind, this plan can only be said to be necessary.

"Nyaaaaaahahahaha! What a tragedy, the Oda team is just so

weak! Do you think that you can win by just sealing me, the great

Kennya-sama?"

"She is running too fasttttttttt! Just what is with this Kennya, her

basic stamina is worlds apart from us! Damn Saru, you plan to

pledge your loyalty to Honbyo temple, right? If we lose, I will pull

your head off!"

"Shibata-dono, now is the time to hold on and endure, the time to

win will definitely come."

Katsuie and Nagahide had tried their best to match Kennya's swift

movements.

Magoichi had been surrounded by the 3 lolis and couldn't move an

inch, "Ahhh, this is annoying." as she started panicking.

"Cough. Our attitude might be too lacking, causing the believers to

be nyaaa nyaaa with anger, but we have finally managed to stagnate

the match. Before the match ends, we will decide the victor

instantly."

All in all, with this, they managed to make some time to maintain

the score. Hanbei who had relaxed told Yoshiharu this. But at this

moment,

"Don't underestimate us, the five cat generals!"

The ball has passed on to the Honbyo temple's five cat generals.

The opponent seemed to have some sort of a plan.

"Nobuna-sama, Matsudaira-sama, Akechi-sama! And everyone

else, hurry back to defend the goal!"

Just to mention, though Matsudaira Motoyasu was forced to join

the match, but this girl was too clumsy, and so she's always, "Please

wait~" "*pant*pant*" and was left behind.

Hattori Hanzou was instead trying his best. But considering that

Motoyasu was almost not in the match, they were one teammate

short, any effort that he put in was thus useless.

"Juubei, we must go back to defend first!"

"Roger!"

"*Pant*Pant*. Ahhh. I can't run anymore, my head feels dizzy~."

"If the war really erupts, Mikawa won't be unscathed. Hime, please

try even harder."

Among the retainers of Matsudaira clan, there are two factions,

one is the people who worship Matsudaira clan's tanukis and the

other is the people worshipping Nyankousou. Once Nyankousou

wages a war in Mikawa, the Matsudaira clan is bound to split into

two.

No matter what, the ball is currently spinning on the side of the five

cat generals.

"We shall show you. The special skill that we have mastered just

for today! The legendary Shimotsuma triple shot!"

After receiving the ball that Shimotsuma Mayumi passed over, the

azure eyed Shimotsuma Rantei used her left leg and aimed the ball

straight at the goalpost!

The audience were all shouting, "GOAL!"

But, when "Dodgeball Yoshiharu" faced the soccer ball, his

reflexes became abnormally good. Just like how Nobi Nobita is

skilled with string figures and shooting for some unknown reason,

there is a god given special skill in Yoshiharu's body, the instinct to

"dodge". His body will move without any command and dodge the

soccer ball unknowingly, as long as he consciously moves in the

opposite direction, he can interrupt the trajectory of the ball.

"Kyaaaaa!"

A flash like lightning, Yoshiharu with just his beast-like instincts

launched himself at the ball and managed to once again stop the

opponent from scoring!

Kang! Even if Yoshiharu launched himself head first at the pole, he

managed to avert the crisis!

Dong dong, the whole field was shaking.

The believers sitting at the audience seats were shrieking with lots

of nyaaaas as they stomp their feet on the ground.

"Fantastic, Saru!"

"Even if he ridiculed himself, but as expected from Senpai,

fabulous!"

But, the legendary Shimotsuma triple shot didn't end here!

The ball that was being blocked was soon followed by,

"Then, let me be the shooter. Sagara Yoshiharu-san has now lost

the best defensive stance, now is the absolute best chance for the

ball to be shot right at the centre. Lifting up my leg and using the

recoil to the greatest extent...."

As her mouth commentates, Shimotsuma Kakehu lifted up her left

leg and shoots at the goal.

Though her body size is small, but this shot was a fierce one with

all her body weight on it!

"Uwahhhhh!? There's more!?"

The knock on the pole caused Yoshiharu's forehead to bleed, but

Yoshiharu endured the dizziness and flew once again with his

instincts and finally sent the ball flying again with much difficulty.

The double shot without any rest in between, and a double save

that almost seems like God is helping him!

"He blocked it again! Saru is the best! You're really like a monkey!"

"As expected from Yoshiharu-san. But, your blood...

blood....cough."

"It...It's ok, Hanbei. Such a small wound... ahhhh, I'm going dizzy."

Having just blocked Rantei and Kakehu's shots, the Nobuna team

had immediately relaxed.

But, the one to end Shimotsuma triple shot is the still

unremarkable Shimotsuma Kawatou.

Though Shimotsuma Kawatou is one of the five cat generals, her

existence is often questioned. Using the chance that both armies

were "Uwahhh", Shimotsuma Kawatou lifted her right leg and shot

the reflected ball right at the goal again.

Just like this, the ordinary and devoid of presence Shimotsuma

Kawatou used this chance to launch a sudden assault, that was the

"Shimotsuma triple shot" crux!

And the ball, while accelerating, it was curving to one side, a curl!

The ball passed by the "human wall" formed by Nobuna and the

rest and went right into the centre of the goal.... No, it didn't go in!

"I'm sorry, everyone of Honbyo temple! In the end, I.... Still want to

go back to the Oda clan!"

The ball was hugged right in the chest of Yoshiharu who had stood

up silently.

The triple shots were all blocked by Yoshiharu!

"How can this be, the special skill that we had mastered for today,

the Shimotsuma triple shot was countered."

"In Sagara Yoshiharu-san's heart, there seems to be an abnormal

desire to return to the Oda clan no matter what. And this propels him

to do things that exceed the common sense of namban soccer,

hmmmm."

Yoshiharu wanted to throw the ball far away, but the dizziness in

his head became too much as the ball slipped away from

Yoshiharu's hands.

"....*pant* I'm sorry. I'm afraid... I'm too tired... I need to rest a

little...."

Looking at how hard Yoshiharu was pushing himself, in a rare

sight, Shibata Katsuie's heart trembled.

"Saru! You bastard, always having that lewd look of yours, but

once it's for the Oda clan, you become a brave man that will use his

life without any hesitation! Geez, it's the same in Kanegasaki! The

one being touched by your resolve and promised to let you touch my

breasts, wasn't that me!? But I had treated the loyal you like a lewd

breast rubbing monkey to bully, I have become a bad person, a petty

person~!!!"

With tears filling up her eyes, the touched Katsuie snatched the

ball.

"UWAHHHHHHHHHHH~! TO REDEEM MY SINS FOR SARU, I

WILL DEFINITELY SCORE THE DETERMINING POINT! DON'T

COME OVER, DON'T TOUCH ME, DON'T GET NEAR ME!"

With the demon Shibata image that scares all the guys, she

charged forward in the green field.

Though the Shimotsuma five cat generals used all their strength to

try to stop Katsuie's charge, but when Katsuie is serious, her

movements are unstoppable.

The three men team of Saika clan, Hotaru, Kotsuzume and

Tsurukubi formed the last defense line waiting for Katsuie.

"This path is blocked."

"Exactly."

"Wa...Wait a minute. It...It seems dangerous."

"Don't block my way if you don't want to get hurt! I will show you,

my special skill! Eat this, slash of broken vases.....!"

This isn't the usual pressure! We can't touch her at all cost!

The arquebus girls "Ahhh!" spread out in all directions.

The special skill of Shibata Katsuie had finally revealed itself!

The clumsy and basically not participating Matsudaira Motoyasu

used a commentator tone and explained:

"Slash of broken vases is a scary technique using a big vase to

smash it to hundred of small pieces, and then using all those small

pieces as mini bullets to defeat multiple enemies~ A long spear was

originally used to break the vase, but this time, it can be said to be a

modified version with the leg replacing the spear~"

And she nodded her head.

Slash of broken vases was displayed magnificently

The instant that Katsuie raise her leg, the ball,

"Booom!"

Released a huge exploding sound as it split apart and became

countless pieces.

Without any hesitation, Frois blew on the whistle.

"I'm sorry, destroying the ball is a huge offense. Shibata-sama, red

card."

"I've succeeded.....! Did you see it, Hime-samaaaa!" Katsuie

shouted and was about to do a victory dance as she received a red

card on her hand.

"Eh? Eh?"

"I've said already just now, destroying the ball is a huge offense.

Umm...I'm really very sorry. Shibata-dono, you are out of the match."

"EHHHHHHHHHHHHH!? Ahh, I remembered! I have to kick the

ball into the goal....!?"

The believers shouted, "Idiot~nya...." "Scram~nya...", numerous

merciless shouts were thrown at Katsuie.

"What are you doing, Riku? Did you forget all about the rules of

namban soccer?"

"Uwahhh, I'm being scolded by Hime! It's the end for me! I'm so

sorry!!!"

"Wait Riku, don't just commit seppuku like this!"

"This is really, should I say 0 points, or should I say that this isn't

even worth grading."

"Uwahhhhhh! Nagahide doesn't even want to grade me~!"

Shibata Katsuie weeped as she left the field.

With this, the Oda team became a total of 10. One is missing!

And the right to kickoff is obviously at Honbyo temple's side.

During this time, Yoshiharu who had been sitting all the time and

resting had recovered to the state of barely being able to stand up,

but since things had become like this, the Oda team is in an absolute

disadvantageous situation.

Matsudaira Motoyasu is already useless, Hanbei is weak and can't

even run, and now Oda team's strongest Katsuie is being sent

out.....!

And not just that, Nobuna and Juubei who were supposed to be

the Ace Strikers are fighting amongst themselves for the ball as their

relationship is in tension.

The time for the end of the match is close.

"I...I can't.... I'm afraid... I don't have any moves left."

"Cough. I Hanbei am out of ideas too."

"Leave the depressing words to later! We will be done for if we

give up now! You guys, aren't you still alive!?"

"Sigh... The way you are saying it is totally like a tyrant, Nobuna."

If I the genius Juubei become serious, soccer is nothing. With a

serious and stern face, Mitsuhide tried her best to snatch the ball but

Nobuna was like "I don't want the ball to go to you!" thus disturbing

her and her movement dulled due to that.

"Oi, what are you doing, Nobuna-sama?"

"Definitely...Definitely... I WILL DEFINITELY NOT LET THIS BALL

BE YOUR MARRIAGE GIFT!"

"Right now! The Oda team is having a fight amongst themselves!"

Embarrassing... Surprised by this scene, Shimotsuma Rantei used

her head to knock the ball up high and pass it to Magoichi. The three

girls who were surrounding Magoichi were lacking in height and size

and they can't do anything to Magoichi once it becomes an aerial

battle.

And, Kennya is currently in a state where no one is blocking her as

she is rushing over to the goalpost area that Yoshiharu is guarding

alone.

"Kennya! I'm passing it to you! Kick right on target!"

"Got it~nya.....! I will bring the best man of the world back for my

partner~nya!"

"Do....Do...Do....Don't mention that, that will make me nervous.....!"

Just when she was passing the ball to Kennya, Magoichi suddenly

became shy and at that moment, the trajectory of the ball was

slightly off target.

Right in front of the goalpost, a snatching struggle begins between

Yoshiharu and Kennya.

"I'm not letting you kick it!"

"That can't do~nya!"

"I'm sorry but the goalkeeper can use his hands, I have the

advantage!"

Kennya used many acrobatic stunts to try to kick the ball many

times, but Yoshiharu who was pushed to a corner sealed Kennya's

movements all the time with a monkey's agile movements.

"I'M! GOING TO! GO BACK TO NOBUNA'S SIDE!"

"Nya...Nyaaaaa. What tremendous pressure~nya!"

Yoshiharu seems to be winning against that Kennya?

Anyone would think of that.

But....

"Ahh! Yoshiharu! Look at the sky! There's a metal saucer flying in

the sky~nya!"

"Ehhh, there's a UFO in the sengoku era!?"

An opening!

The attention of almost everyone in the match was instantly

grabbed by the sky.

Using this chance, Kennya acts like she's innocent as she swings

her final weapon, the cat tail on her butt to swing the ball right into

the goalpost.

"I scored~nyaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

And she started dancing her cheerful cat dance!

A somersault! And a flip! Kennya rolled on the field as she danced!

The believers who were watching the match, though most of them

had noticed, "She used her tail~nya!" "Her tail~nya!" but all of them

"Ahhhhhhh! They won~!" firmly believed that they had won as they

cheered loudly.

In Nobuna's team, there's only Nobuna and Mitsuhide who were

"Don't mess things up!" "You too, Nobuna-sama, why must you

disturb Juubei's magnificent show?" about to have a fight as they

stared at Kennya's obvious foul.

"Wait, Frois! Isn't that a foul just now!?"

"Yeah. She used her tail! Using her tail is a foul!"

The two of them protested at their common enemy as they forgot

all about the previous quarrel they had among themselves.

But, Frois's attention was snatched away by that saucer and it was

at her blind spot, so she didn't witness Kennya using her tail.

"....I didn't see that at all. The score... is acknowledged."

"You gotta be joking!? That should not be the case, you're making

a mistake!"

"I'm really sorry. To foul her without having any definitive proof, it's

a little too.... I'm sorry."

Finally, the balance has been broken!

And the time for the end of the match is nearing!

In terms of the modern world, it's right when they go into stoppage

time, this is a time of despair!

"Did you see it~nya!? This is the final secret skill that only Kennyasama can use, "God's tail"~nya! Nyahahahahahaha!"

"Not bad at all, Kennya! This match is well worth it!"

"With this, Magoichi can claim the best man of the world as her

husband~nya. Nyahoho."

"D...Di...Di...Didn't I say already, don't talk about that...!"

God's tail! God's tail! A chorus broke out from the audience.

"As expected, Nekogami-sama is the messiah of this world~nya."

"Kennya-sama's god's tail can even surpassed namban soccer

god-sama's iron wall, that's worthy of respect~nya."

"Once again, we have witness a miracle with our own eyes~nya!"

"Nya.....Nya....Nya...!"

The excitement of the believers was at their highest peak.

If this match were held in Gifu, that score would most likely not be

recognized.

But, this is Honbyo temple.

All of the Nobuna team had an anguished expression on their

face.

".....It seems... We can't do it... But I must snatch Yoshiharu back

no matter what. Everyone, once we lose this match, we will start the

war with Honbyo temple, prepare yourself mentally."

"Hime, a war is of 0 points, we had agreed to fight it out with this

match... But if we are to lose to "God's tail", everyone of the Oda

clan will not take it lying down. We can't stop them."

"To prepare for the situation of war, I had prepared beforehand all

of the strategies and planning, leave it to me, Hanbei."

"Oioi, it will be bad if we fight the war, didn't I said so already!? For

what did we fight in this namban soccer match!?"

"Saru, shut up! I've lost to "God's tail", I can't face all of the world!

If you say such a thing again, I will treat you as a traitor!"

Outside the field, Katsuie was weeping, "Uhhhhhh, it's all my fault.

I'm sorry, let me commit seppuku, but please reconsider about this

war!" But right now, Nobuna can't seem to endure anymore.

Yoshiharu can't return and they had lost the match with a cheating

technique, "God's tail", those bunch of believers were cheering

loudly too.

"Saying things like namban soccer will bring us peace, isn't that

bullshit, Saru!? My hatred has increased even more with this!"

".....Uhhh, a war was incited because of a soccer match, and the

players were treated as war criminals and executed by their own

country, there is really such a thing... but that did not happen in

Japan though."

[33]

"When I return to Owari, I will be put to death by the people,

uwahhhhh!" Katsuie starts sobbing loudly.

Kennya and her Honbyo temple team who believed that they had

won,

"Do you submit~nya?"

"Want another shot....?"

They teased Nobuna and the rest.

"Of course! We won't give up without it ending!"

"Ohhh. Your courage is admirable~nya... But Yoshiharu already

belongs to us~nya, nyahohoho."

"Kukukuku."

The Nobuna team's situation is full of despair.

But at this moment, a hero appears on a sedan chair!

Correct.

Didn't the Oda clan have one themselves!?

A soccer specialist that had reached divine levels!

Her name is....!

"Oi, Nobuna? What do you plan on doing when you didn't call me

for this soccer event? I the Seii taishogun Imagawa Yoshimoto will

now enter this soccer match! Oh hohohohohoho!"

The puppet shogun who can't seem to move properly with her

Juunihitoe, Imagawa Yoshimoto!

Yoshimoto had been "It's too boring, how about we hold a soccer

event, Nobuna?" making a fuss, this time no one had called her over

but she had forced herself into Honbyo temple.

She had only one motive, that is to play to her heart's content in

this soccer match.

Frois agreed to Yoshimoto entering the match.

"Imagawa Yoshimoto? Now that you mention it, there seems to be

such a person~nya... But she is sastified with just being a puppet

shogun.... She might be more magnanimous than I thought~nya."

"I thought her head was off her neck in Okehazama... She's quite

resilient."

"Anyway, can you move with that attire~nya? That's quite a thick

attire~nya."

Kennya thought too, "She's just a hime-sama who plays this with

the nobles~nya." and accepted her joining in gracefully.

"Oh hohoho! Nobuna, leave it to this Seii Taishogun Imagawa

Yoshimoto! Watch and enjoy the elegant techniques of me."

"....Eh, since we have already lost, just do whatever you want."

You sure are devoid of any worries, this fellow. Nobuna stared at

Yoshimoto depressingly but she didn't mind at all.

"Then, the next to kickoff will be Nobuna-sama's side."

"Of course, I will be the one to kickoff. Oh hohohoho."

The ball was placed right in the middle.

The target goalpost was far head.

First someone of the Nobuna team will pass and from there, they

will gradually break through the Honbyo temple team's defense lines,

that is supposed to be the rule of namban soccer, but....

But on Imagawa Yoshimoto who is totally unskilled in fighting wars

but unparalleled in soccer, this rule means nothing!

"I'm going! Imagawa style ultimate, "Dancing wind of the white

bird"!!"

She started dancing elegantly with her juunihitoe as Yoshimoto

started spinning in high speed with a single leg.

With the times of the spin increasing and the centrifugal force on

Imagawa's right leg, bham, she kicked the ball!

Swoosh.....

The ball flew high up in the sky and over the heads of the honbyo

team "Nyah?", without even landing on the floor once, it went straight

into the goalpost of the Honbyo temple team!

Frois blew the whistle.

"Sc...Sc....Scored.... U...Un...Unbelievable?"

"With this, we have a draw! This is just the beginning, oh

hohohohoho!"

"EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?"

Everyone present is stunned speechless facing such a turn of

events.

Nobuna, Yoshiharu and Kennya can't utter a single sound.

They thought that she was just a freeloader, that Imagawa

Yoshimoto shouldn't.... be that strong in soccer, but the result is

totally unexpected.

There's only a little bit of time left to the end of the match.

Frois starts the namban clock that was placed on the field.

"Oh hohohoho! It will be the people of Honbyo temple that are

kicking off now! Nobuna, just leave everything to me. This is nothing

more than child's play to me, I will give you 5 more points before it

ends!"

".....I...Is...Is that so...."

There is nothing else Nobuna can say.

"Anyway, with how the ridiculous Imagawa Yoshimoto who

seemed to have come from another dimension entering the match,

there's a feeling that the match had become ridiculous too, but we

can win like this. Yoshiharu can come back too and the war can be

averted. But... is this really ok?" Nobuna thought to herself.

Kennya and her Honbyo temple team had already said they

agreed to Yoshimoto entering the match, now "We don't allow

Yoshimoto to enter" such a thing can't be said anymore. If they had

said it, there would be someone who will start to make a fuss over

"God's tail".

"W...Wh...Wh...Wh...What should we do~nya, Magoichi!? That girl

is too... I can't do anything about her~nya!"

"No, I don't know. How about we guard the goalpost with

everyone... No, no matter how we guard it, that puppet shogun will

kick the ball over our heads without any effort. We can't do anything!"

"I don't want to keep losing points like this~! The believers won't

take it lying down like this~nya!"

"Now this match has become unreasonable, the face of everyone

seems to be angry. If we continue like this, they might start the war!"

"If we do a thing like attacking the shogun, things will be really

bad~nya! That puppet shogun, control yourself a little~nya!"

Kennya and Magoichi can't help but panic.

In such a critically dangerous atmosphere, Kennya said, " No

matter what, we can't let the ball be passed to Imagawa

Yoshimoto~nya!" as she passed the ball to Magoichi and the match

started again.

The time left on the clock is not much.

"Oh yeah~nya. In the situation that both teams are at the same

score when the time ends, the home team which is Honbyo temple

will win. We set such a rule before the match! As long as we find a

way to hold on, it will be our victory if we draw with them~nya!"

"This isn't something we can choose, we can't win against that

shogun-san. There's no other way! We must hold on!"

But from Imagawa Yoshimoto's point of view, the instant that her

leg had contact with the ball, it meant a point for them, there wasn't

any difference in terms of the time limit.

The victorious Imagawa Yoshimoto proudly boasted, "Oh

hohohoho. I will accept this ball elegantly!" as she ran towards

Magoichi. Yoshimoto isn't as elegant as usual but her eyes were

sparkling as though she were like a beast locked on to her prey.

"Uwahhhh! Don't come here, don't come over to my side!"

"No can do, ohohoho... Ahhhh!"

She fell down!

She had stepped onto her own juunihitoe as Imagawa Yoshimoto

fell headfirst onto the ground!

"Ahhh.... my back... back....."

Imagawa Yoshimoto hurt her back and couldn't stand up as she

left the field with her sedan chair.

Appearing like the wind, and leaving like the wind again.

"What the hell is with her, that woman."

"But, thanks to her, we are on the same score. Think about the

help she has given us."

"Cough. There isn't any time left. As per the rules, we will lose if

we draw with them. We should give up guarding the goalpost and

attack them with Yoshiharu included."

"Correct, we must have a clear victor."

According to the namban time, there is just one minute to the end

of the match.

The Honbyo temple just has to hold on for another minute for a

draw, and they will win according to the rules.

But, since Imagawa Yoshimoto had left, Kennya and Magoichi

can't be contented with just a draw.

"The troublesome one has left~nya. It isn't perfect with a draw,

attack attack attack attack attack~nya!"

"Correct! The best man in the world is mine!"

Magoichi started the ball and the match began once again.

To both sides, no matter if it's guarding or attacking, this was the

last chance.

Yoshiharu had given up his goalpost and ran together with Nobuna

on the green field.

Like a wild panther, Saika Magoichi runs straight for the goalpost

without any hesitation nor restrictions and the one running along with

her and snatching the ball was the kumquat wearing Akechi

Mitsuhide.

Though Mitsuhide had been tussling with Nobuna all this while, but

now that Nobuna was moving with Yoshiharu who had given up on

his goalpost, she could use all her strength.

"Though Sagara-senpai is a lewd monkey who will flirt with other

girls once left out of sight, but I will never hand Sagara-senpai over

to you! Hey!"

"Uhhh!? You wide forehead snatched the ball away from me!?"

"How rude. I'm not wide forehead!"

As expected from Mitsuhide, her stance of snatching the ball is so

cute and elegant.

And then, she shouted, "The target is the enemy's goalpost" as

she started dribbling the ball.

Due to Goemon and the other lolis, Magoichi wasn't able to snatch

back the ball from Mitsuhide.

Mitsuhide shook off the five cat generals who were trying their best

to chase after her and rushed right into the deepest parts of the

enemy formation.

"Saru, go and receive Juubei's pass! Hurry!"

"No, I can't keep up!"

Nobuna and Yoshiharu tried their best to run to the area in front of

the goalpost, but the speed of Mitsuhide was too fast and they

couldn't keep up. As expected from Mitsuhide who doesn't notice the

atmosphere, she had entered the enemy formation herself without

any backup.

Hotaru, Kotsuzume and Tsuruhebi closed in on Mitsuhide.

"N...N...N...N...No! There aren't any teammates nearby! And it's

too far from here, it's too difficult to kick the ball into the goal!"

Has all come to the end?

No, there's one more person!

"My eyes are going in circles, or is it the world? I can't catch up~

*Pant*Pant*"

That is Matsudaira Motoyasu who had bent her back in front of the

enemy's goalpost as she tried her best to wipe the sweat off her

blurry glasses.

Seems that she can't see anything because of her blurry glasses.

It's right in the middle of a match, yet she did something like sitting

and not moving while wiping her glasses. But even the enemy had

forgotten her existence, it's fortunate for Nobuna's team!

Frois looked at the namban clock.

There's just a few seconds left to the end of the match!

Mitsuhide revealed a proud smile, "We've won!" as she passed the

ball right at Motoyasu!

But, Mitsuhide is too naive.

Motoyasu hadn't finish wiping her glasses.

Seeing that a ball came flying her way suddenly, she panicked.

"Uwahhhh!?"

The panicking Motoyasu dropped the glasses on her hands onto

the field.

Uhhh.... The ball is rolling right in front of Motoyasu as it rolled

right into the legs of Kennya who had ran over with godlike speed....

Everything is over!

"It's over~!"

Yoshiharu screamed as he ran.

"Yoshiharu! We can't give up till the end! Give me your hand!"

A panting Nobuna who was running at his side shouted.

Yoshiharu understands clearly the meaning of this sentence.

Even if they know in their hearts, the love between the two of them

will never have a good end. Even so, since this is what I want, let's

not hide it anymore. We mustn't give up till the end....

Nobuna..... meant that to me....

The blood in his body starts rushing.

Yoshiharu's legs seem to have thrusters on.

With all his might, he chased after the ball.

"Correct. We mustn't give up! I won't avoid Nobuna anymore!

Definitely, I must have her.....!"

But, just a little more, a little more before Kennya's legs reached

the ball.

We can't? In the end, we can't do it....?

Still, Yoshiharu and Nobuna didn't give up as they didn't stop.

And then....

Looking at the soon-ending match, at the time when Frois's lips

touched the whistle, a miracle happened.

The blind Motoyasu who had dropped the glasses kneeled onto

the grass floor and started searching the ground.

"Uwahhhh. My glasses, my glasses~"

As she shouted with a voice not unlike an abandoned kitty in the

middle of a rain.

Looking at her and listening to that lament, all of Honbyo temple

collapsed as they burst out laughing.

The whole gathering area seemed to shake under the impact of

the laughter.

That look of Motoyasu lamenting, "My glasses, my glasses" is a

little too retro for the modern Yoshiharu, as he can't understand

what's so interesting about it. But to the sengoku Osaka people who

loves such a comedy style, it seems to be right on target.

Magoichi and the rest who were in the middle of the match

laughed till they can't even stand as they sat down onto the ground.

Kennya couldn't help but "Nyahahahahaha!" burst out in laughter

and ended up not getting the ball.

Even Nobuna who is running together with Yoshiharu "Phew!"

can't control her laughter.　　

There are only two persons who didn't laugh.

Only the modern Yoshiharu who can't laugh over such a retro joke

and "Ahh, Hime... What humliation. This is even more cruel than

Mikatagahara, it's the insult of all of Matsudaira clan!" Hattori Hanzou

who didn't know what to do.

Though Nobuna is laughing, she didn't stop her legs and finally

reached the ball.

"Yoshiharu!!! Shoot, I leave it to you!!"

Yoshiharu received the ball that Nobuna passed over and with all

the energy in his body, he kicked the ball.

The ball landed right in the goalpost of the Honbyo temple.

And right after that, Frois sounded the whistle announcing, "Match

over."

We won.

I can return to the Oda clan.

The war and the killing won't happen.

Returning to his senses, he had been hugged tightly by Nobuna.

"WE WON! YOSHIHARU!"

Nobuna is elated as she snuggles his face.

"Ah, ahh, we won."

"We have a victor from the match with Honbyo temple! Yoshiharu

is back too! I'm so happy!"

"Oh,ohhh."

"You won't go anywhere from now on? You promised me, right?

Before fulfilling my dream, you will be right by my side."

"I won't. How can I go anywhere?"

Is it really ok for us to do this right in front of 50 thousand people?

This is what Yoshiharu wants to say, but after looking at the smiling

face of Nobuna, Yoshiharu can't stop the joy gushing out from his

own heart. Ever since the death of Saitou Dousan, it's the first time

that Yoshiharu sees Nobuna having such a joyful expresson on her

face. And this bright smile isn't for anyone else, but for me....

What is this. I'm such a happy man. Even if I gather hundreds or

thousands of girls to build a harem, they can't win this smile of

Nobuna's.

"With this, we have broken through the toughest ordeal! From now

on, we will head towards Tenka Fubu!"

"There's still much to do, work hard for me!"

"Ohh, leave it to me!"

Yoshiharu lifted Nobuna's waist up as he spins her around on the

field.

Such a delicate and light, but fiery hot body.

A captivating smile that is as bright as the sun.

In this world, how can there be such a cute person?

This is a princess that I won't give to anyone, a princess belonging

only to me! Yoshiharu declared in his heart.

What's really lucky is, everyone of Nyankousou thought that "After

winning the namban soccer match, the Hime of the Oda clan is just

really happy~nya." and did not notice the very abnormal relationship

between the two of them.

"We lost~nya. In the end, we lost to the Tanuki~nya.... How

refreshing~nya. Phew! "Glasses... My

glasses"....Nyahahahahahahaha! I'm laughing so much that I can't

move at all~nya!"

Kennya who should be feeling disgruntled by the loss was rolling

around and laughing on the grass field.

"Haha~ I can't... That is a princess that the whole of Japan will

love. My proud peach shaped butt will have to admit defeat to that

cute little lady."

The cheerful Magoichi is also a straightforward and honest person.

It's the same for the rest of the Honbyo temple, compared to the

victor of the match, something like "Glasses, my glasses" coming out

right in the middle of a tense situation before the end of a match is

just too funny no matter what as everyone "I'm suffering~nya" "They

wanna kill me~nya?" laugh to the point of tears coming out from their

eyes.

"So that thing about me committing seppuku is not needed

anymore? Yay, you're quite good, Saru!"

"I am still wondering how things will turn out, but full points."

"Hooo~ I'm having a chill run down my back."

"Cough. I laughed too much, I can't stop coughing. Cough Cough."

".....Bespectacled Tanuki... What a shame, but it's very interesting.

The path of a comedian is very hard."

In the end, Matsudaira Motoyasu (not Sagara Yoshiharu) who was

chosen to be "The best player" was thrown up to the air by both

teams and the namban soccer match officially came to a close.

Due to the request of the believers, Honbyo temple and the Oda

clan decided to hold an annual namban soccer event and use that

event to have a proper match. And this goes without saying, until the

next match, both armies will not exchange hostages and coexist

peacefully.

"Magoichi, we must defeat our rival Oda Nobuna next year and

grab Yoshiharu back~nya!"

Kennya hugged the shoulders of Magoichi who is shyly saying

"Don't talk about it~".

Just like this, after a period of around a month, Sagara Yoshiharu

finally returned to the Oda clan.

"It's about time we eliminate the Asai Asakura forces. There's still

the problem of keeping Asai Nagamasa alive and making her

surrender, but compared to that, the most difficult problem is still

Takeda Shingen. If Shingen heads to the capital again, not just Asai

Asakura coming back, the Mori clan of the Chuugoku region will

most likely heed the call too. Now that Honbyo temple has agreed to

be our middleman, it's the best chance for negotiation with Takeda

Shingen!"

Nobuna didn't have much rest after leaving Honbyo temple and

after going back to her main camp as she immediately summoned all

her retainers to hold a military meeting. It's true that there can be no

rest for Nobuna. After just winning in the namban soccer match with

Honbyo temple, she had started to work on the construction of

Azuchi castle and at the same time restarted the communications

with her strongest enemy, Takeda Shingen.

Among the frantically busy retainers, there is no sight of Yoshiharu

and Mitsuhide.

But Nobuna can't wait for the both of them as she starts the

meeting.

After a long and tedious wait, they finally had a good chance to

break the stagnant situation.

Now that they have peace with Honbyo temple, it's the best

opportunity to finish off Asai Asakura.

Nobuna values time right now.

To defeat Asai Asakura, it has become most important to seal off

Takeda Shingen's movements.

"Takeda Shingen is currently helping Houjou Ujiyasu of Odawara

castle. Oshu's "Jakigan" Date Masamune had surrounded Odawara

castle but Houjou Ujiyasu seems to not be making any responses to

Date Masamune's provocations and the situation stagnated.

The information gathering of Kanto is done by Hattori Hanzou who

leads the Iga ninjas.

"Allying with Date Masamune and attacking the weakened Takeda

territories like Kai, Shinano and Suruga isn't a bad idea too. There is

another choice, that is to ally with Takeda and chase Date

Masamune back to Oshu and as a reward, asking Takeda to

acknowledge the governance of the Oda clan in the areas

surrounding the capital. But will Takeda Shingen, who has always

aimed at heading to capital, agree?"

"Dearuka. There's a small chance of success for both of them.....

Hanbei, are there any good ideas from you?"

"Cough. Even if we can conquer Takeda-sama's territories in a

short time, with Owari army's manpower, it's extremely difficult for us

to maintain them for long, plus Takeda-sama is well liked by the

people there. Once Takeda-sama is infuriated, our side may suffer

even more damage. Once then, we can't even talk about defeating

the Asai clan and Asakura clan. So rather than attacking at their

weak points, it's a wiser choice to seek the path of peace with the

help of Honbyo temple, even if it's a temporary one. But....."

"But?"

"There's Uesugi Kenshin-sama in Echigo. As the rival of Takedasama, now that the snow has melted, she can freely maneuver her

troops. Takeda-sama and Uesugi-sama, no matter who we ally with,

we will naturally be the other side's enemy. Though their ways of

battle and armies are different, but both of them are terrifying

enemies to the Owari army. And in this war with Asai Asakura,

Uesugi-sama had declared to support Asai Asakura."

"Kenshin? During the battle last time, didn't she come to help me

before I even sent out a request? Why now...?"

"That person considers herself to be an ally of justice. She is

usually selfless and will support the weak parties and people who

seek her help."

"Hmmm... what a weird fellow..."

"If that's the case, if the Oda clan allies with the Takeda clan, we

can't avoid a battle with the Uesugi army."

"Takeda and Uesugi, no matter who we ally with, we can't avoid a

war and it will become a big battle that concerns the survival of the

Oda clan.... So that's how it will become, Hanbei." Nobuna chewed

on the Uiroumochi that Inuchiyo brought over as she nodded.

"Both clans are good at waging wars, if we fight both of them, the

Oda clan will definitely perish."

"Geez, the Owari army is too weak and we need more time for the

completion of the Azuchi castle. Hanbei, who should we send our

envoys to at this time?"

"Hmmm. Uesugi-sama, Takeda-sama, no matter which of them we

ally with, please send Yoshiharu-san to be the envoy."

After hearing what Hanbei said, not to mention Hanbei, all the

retainers with Katsuie included started voicing out.

"If we send Saru out, won't he start to make girls wear maid

uniforms and flirt around whole day? We should ask him to take care

of himself for now."

"Correct, since yesterday's matters are still vivid in our minds. It's

quite worrying if we consider such a scenerio, 40 points."

"Cough. Since that's the case, I Hanbei have a brilliant plan. But I

must talk about this alone with Nobuna-sama."

Please ask the others to leave, Hanbei smirked as she said. And

so Nobuna asked the others to retreat.

Just what is this secret plan of Hanbei's.... I can't tell everyone as

of now.

At this moment, Sagara Yoshiharu who finally returned to the Oda

clan with much difficulty is taking a stroll in the forest.

There seems to be a military meeting in the main camp but Akechi

Mitsuhide, with a rarely seen serious expression, "Just for a while,

please come with me alone" invited him so he had followed her here.

"Don't tell me, she wants to talk about marrying me..." Yoshiharu

feels a chill as he walks slowly along a path in the forest. But, that

plan of chasing Honbyo temple away and building a castle in Osaka

is now off, so a castle that can win Azuchi castle seems to be

impossible for now. And the thing about marrying her can be pushed

to a side for now... most likely.

"Sigh... Zenki said I've "Women troubles", isn't that too accurate?"

Though so....

Akechi Mitsuhide's lips were sealed tightly as she was gazing at

Yoshiharu like she is thinking about something, her whole look being

so beautiful like a goddess. The beauty of Nobuna is like a bright

light shined down by a sun; Different from hers, Mitsuhide has a

different kind of beauty. These two beauties can't be compared at all.

Eh. Tonight's Juubei seemed even more pretty... How shocking,

did something happen? Yoshiharu can't help but blink his eyes a few

times.

"Juubei. What do you want to talk about? There's still the military

meeting, keep it short."

"During the namban soccer match, suddenly, I have my doubts."

"Doubts? If you are talking about "God's tail", that's obviously a

mistake"

"Not that. The instant when the match was decided, Sagarasenpai and Nobuna-sama looked to be so elated as you hugged

each other. After Juubei looked at that, the deepest parts of my heart

seemed to hurt so much like it had been torn apart. Why was that, I

did not know myself. Though I'm not sure what had happened, but

after looking at the both of you, Juubei can't shake these doubts that

I have."

The serious gaze that Mitsuhide gave Yoshiharu is questioning.

It's an expression that "Wahhhh" she is about to cry already.

Looking at Yoshiharu's eyes directly, she asked like this.

"The one that Sagara-senpai likes, is it....Nobuna-sama?"

Calm as the water, cold as ice yet burning like flames, that is the

gaze of a maiden in love.

Though Mitsuhide is normally easy to be fooled, but once such a

thing is mixed in it, she will never believe lies nor deceit. No, I can't

deceive Juubei, Yoshiharu thought. Those present might not have

noticed. But, Mitsuhide had already fallen in love with Yoshiharu,

such a thing is totally obvious from anyone's eyes. Even so,

answering honestly is the..... No, but...

"....Th....That....."

"How is it? Sagara-senpai knows that these feelings of yours will

not have a good ending yet you still like Nobuna-sama? You know of

all this, that it's a tragedy that is waiting for you at the end.... Juubei

is asking you seriously now, please answer me."

Mitsuhide is trembling as tears slipped down her white cheeks

from the corner of her eyes.

Sagara Yoshiharu has no way to retreat.