The Sword Deity in Tokyo-Chapter 186: The Natsume Family

Among the Big Eight of Japanese Kendo, the Ito family was a tad special. 

This special characteristic was, of course, regarding the fact that the Ito family was not welcome among the ranks of the other Kendo families. This was an undeniable truth, as the Ito family would rely on their Ito Replication Style to observe the Kendo techniques of the other families when they were free, invoking dissatisfaction in the other families. Therefore, any sane person who valued their privacy would not be fond of them. 

Even so, the Ito family was not completely ostracized. This was probably because the Ito Imitation technique itself required one to be extremely gifted in Kendo, possess astounding observational skills, and a flexible way of thinking. 

Usually, if one was to be naturally gifted in Kendo, and was highly attuned to the sword power, then they would be recognized as geniuses. However, the Ito family required all three of those characteristics, not a single one could be missing. As such, the Ito family's standing among the eight Kenjutsu Japanese families was very low indeed, and their strength was too weak. Ikioi Ito was named the second-best prodigy because his natural talent was astounding. 

This was also the reason why when Ikioi Ito broke the rules at the Tokyo District Qualifiers, the Ito family still did not punish him for it. 

The future of the Ito family all depended on Ikioi Ito. Thus, the Ito family would rather pay compensation for the damages than punish Ikioi Ito. It would not be remiss to say that they were extremely indulgent of him. Luckily, Ikioi Ito did not grow up to be a spoiled brat and had a reasonably well-liked personality. 

Nevertheless, it was not surprising for him to grow up well-behaved, as he had been homeschooled by his family up until he started to attend high school. The Ito family naturally would not allow Ikioi Ito to grow up with an improper mentality. 

Since he was acknowledged by his kinsmen as the future Head of the Ito family, he was naturally let in on certain secrets that involved his family and the rest of the Kendo community. 

It was late at night, at 11 o'clock, to be exact. In Undae District, outside Yanaiba Park. 

Kimura Kazuki arrived according to the agreed time, and upon reaching the entrance of Yanaiba Park, he caught sight of Ikioi Ito almost immediately. 

He walked over to him without waiting for the other to greet him. Before Ikioi Ito could say a word, he immediately said, "Now you can tell me who I should be looking for, right?" Ikioi Ito had a decent personality, but occasionally he deserved a whack or two. Their daytime conversation had been cut short, and he was told to come to Yanaiba Park at night for a continuation. Even though he already had a plan in mind, but that plan required some degree of sacrifice, and it was not guaranteed to succeed. Thus he might as well see what Ikioi Ito had to offer. 

"I thought you wouldn't come," said Ikioi Ito. Noticing that Kimura Kazuki was looking doubtfully at himself, he then declared confidently, "Don't worry, it will definitely work." 

Ikioi Ito started to walk away with Kimura Kazuki following along beside him, as he began his explanation. 

The Ito family knew that their familial traditions were not accepted amongst the other Kendo families, but they still did not care to improve their relations with them. What they did was to lean toward the Deity Rising Palace, so the Ito family and Deity Rising Palace had not too bad of a relationship, and they were privy to certain noteworthy happenings. 

Of course, Ikioi Ito did not go directly to the Deity Rising Palace for help, because the minute the Deity Rising Palace became involved, even if the case was solved, it would definitely be credited to the Department of Mysteries. The Otake Police Department would surely be unable to take any credit for themselves, therefore as Ikioi Ito had mentioned, the person he was looking for should be an unaffiliated yet exceptional person. 

Very quickly, Kimura Kazuki was guided to an alleyway beside Yanaiba Park... 

At 11 o'clock, this alleyway was shrouded in complete darkness. However, the middle stretch along it was brightly lit, and with Kimura Kazuki's sharp vision, he could easily see that there was a street food stall set up right there. In front of this stall, there was a sizable queue of patrons waiting in line. 

He felt slightly surprised by this. 

Why were these people out and about in the middle of the night, not sleeping at home, but instead here to eat? 

It was obvious. Kimura Kazuki knew that the person Ikioi Ito was looking for should be among these people here. 

In no time at all, the two of them had walked to the middle of the alleyway. 

Coming next to the food stall, Kimura Kazuki noticed that the owner of the stall was a middle-aged man, with a terrifying scar that stretched from his forehead to his cheek, making him look threatening. Every time he smiled at a customer, it looked like he was snarling. However, it seemed that his customers were used to this, and were all quite happy to make small talk with this man. 

Next to the man, there was a young girl of about 13 to 14 years of age. She had a pair of crystal clear eyes that looked like the world's most precious jewels, pure as could be. Looking at this young girl, Kimura Kazuki hummed lightly, then fell into contemplation as he observed the wooden cart in front of him. 

As Ikioi Ito reached his destination, he pulled Kimura Kazuki along and joined the queue. Seeing this, Kimura Kazuki did not ask anything further and followed him in joining the queue. Ikioi Ito uttered softly, "Do you see that man with the scar? He is the one we're looking for, the owner of this food cart. His name is Mitsue Natsume...The young girl next to him is his daughter, Kumoko Natsume." 

Ikioi Ito was just about to continue when he realized that something about the atmosphere felt wrong. 

He looked up and almost jumped in shock. Without them realizing it, Mitsue Natsume had walked up to them. Right behind him was Kumoko Natsume, with her small head peeking out, looking curiously at them. Her pair of bright eyes were sparkling in the night, which was very adorable to look at. The rest of the customers, around 20 to 30 of them, were staring at the pair in curiosity as well. 

Mitsue Natsume stopped next to Kimura Kazuki. With a cautious countenance and a smile on his scarred face, he said, "Distinguished guests, there is no need for you to line up. Please follow me this way." 

Kimura Kazuki glanced at Ikioi Ito, noticing the other's blatant confusion. It was evident that he had never experienced something like this before. Looking over towards Mitsue Natsume, he nodded and followed him to the front of the food stall without saying anything. Since he got to skip the queue, he was now first in line. 

The man he cut in front of was obviously unhappy with this, but he lacked the courage to make a fuss, and so he could only swallow his discontent. The others at the back, including some regular customers, were not angered by this, only mildly curious. 

This was the first time they had ever seen Mitsue Natsume treat a customer this way. 

"What would you like to have?" Mitsue Natsume asked smilingly. 

Kimura Kazuki glanced at the plaque on the small food stall and noted that there were only three options. 

Okonomiyaki, takoyaki, and oden. 

He thought for a while before saying, "One oden and one takoyaki.""Sure." Mitsue Natsume nodded with a smile. 

"I'll get the same," shouted Ikioi Ito quickly, who was standing next to Kimura Kazuki. He was worried that the owner would want him to line up all over again. 

"No problem." Mitsue Natsume glanced at him and nodded in reply. 

After that, Kimura Kazuki and Ikioi Ito walked to the side and sat down at one of the small tables. 

The moment they sat down, Ikioi Ito looked long and hard at Kimura Kazuki. After receiving a glare for his trouble, he swallowed his saliva and said with awe, "How powerful are you?" 

"More than you!" Kimura Kazuki did not want to waste time talking to him, as he was actually extremely confused himself. 

"I already know that," Ikioi Ito said quietly while looking down. "You know, Mr. Natsume is a really formidable swordsman. When I was young, my father once brought me here before, and he was very respectful to Mr. Natsume. Since Mr. Natsume has acknowledged you as a distinguished guest, then you must be very powerful indeed." 

Kimura Kazuki looked at him and thought to himself: So that's why. 

He, of course, knew how powerful Mitsue Natsume was, attaining the Fourth Foundation State while Japan was in the Dharma Ending Age. That level of proficiency was enough for him to do whatever he wanted without fear of being taken down. However, seeing as that guy could sense his own level of attainment, it must be somehow related to that food cart. 

When he first arrived, he had noticed almost immediately that something was off. 

First, this small wooden food cart in front of them was actually a Tsukumogami, but its powers were unknown. 

As for Natsume Mitsue's daughter... she was not a human being, but actually a ghost. 

When dealing with spirits who had owners, Kimura Kazuki would not force their owners to hand them over for him to absorb their reiki. 

He was not such an unreasonable jerk.