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Volume 1 Chapter 2 Part 4

「Also, is that bamboo whisk bun of a hair like commoners also for efficiency? 」

「Yes, that’s correct. Isn’t it a waste of time if I tie it neatly? I am always busy, so wearing it like that is the most convenient for me. 」

While pointing towards the gourd Yoshiharu was carrying, Nobuna continued.

「Even the gourd on my waist has functionality and is useful. Without having to wait for my servants every time, I can immediately take out the necessary things that I need. Even the arquebus that I own is the same. Right now people may only see it as a simple toy used by the barbarians in the west, but I firmly believe that this toy will become the leading component in battles between armies instead of spears or swords! With them, even the warriors of the Owari province, who are being laughed at for being the weakest of entire Japan, will be able to become the strongest! 」

「I see. However, one or two guns aren’t that useful. 」

「That’s right. It’s the same as with bows and arrows: n order for them to be efficient and effective, they are required in large numbers. 」

「And they nned to be bought with a large sum of money. So tell me just how many of the scarce Arquebus were you able to buy with your limited funds and resources? 10, or is it 20? 」

「500 of them! 」

「500 guns!? How many times of my army’s does that make!? 」

Dosan groaned when he heard that. Yoshiharu then realized that Dosan’s handheld fan started shaking.

「And, how were you able to provide for that many arquebuses? Does Owari really have that much secret revenue? Or have you obtained the funds through some shady means? 」
「It’s true that the Oda clan’s fortune is small. However, you should know that I am in control of the trading port on the island of Tsushima, right? So I bought them by having the merchants
pay for the war funds. 」

「I see. You’re not a normal daimyo. You’re like a merchant. 」

「You were originally a merchant as well, right, Viper? In order to win battles, war funds are necessary! In order to raise war funds, you gather merchants and make trade prosper. This is the most important aspect of running your own domain! 」

The Fool of Owari and The Viper of Mino continued to probe each other while having a clash of their real intentions.

(Yup, I really came to the Sengoku era alright!)

Yoshiharu thought to himself while his body was shaking with excitement.

(….Are you scared of what you’re seeing right now?)

(Scared? No, you got that wrong. I’m not shaking with fear, but with excitement.)

He barely managed to say that to Inuchiyo who was gazing at him without any particular expression on her face at all.

「I see. In that case, I have to say that my eyes have been opened to the truth. You’re not just any ordinary fool, but an outrageously huge fool. There’s one more thing that I want to ask you then. 」

「Of course. What is it? 」

「Why did your father: the late Lord Oda Nobuhide, chose to attack the Mino province many times in the past despite knowing full well that he could not beat me and my army in battle? 」

Nobuna puffed her chest out again and replied.

「I don’t know what my father was thinking, but I do know one thing: if I had to choose one province to the east of Owari that I would have to attack, it would definitely be Mino! 」

「Hou hou?. And why would that be? 」

As if really enjoying it, Dosan was pursing his lips and leaned forward. As expected of a man of the Sengoku period, he seemed to really like this sort of conversations.

「Because of the very same reason why you originally targeted Min, Viper. 」

「Huh? 」

「Viper! The idiots of society right now call you a treacherous viper attacked Mino and claime dit for himself, but the truth is that you didn’t want to stop at just Mino, right? You wanted to conquer all of Japan, correct? 」

Conquer all of Japan. In other words, literally all of it, from Hokkaido in the north to Kyushu in the south, the whole nation.

The Ashikaga Shogunate had made its imperial palace in the capital in the Sengoku era, after the decline of the Ashikaga Shogunate in the Muromachi period. Sengoku era was a time where all the daimyos across Japan were quarreling and fighting between one another for power and influence, but even though it could be said that all of them were aiming for the capital, there was not a single daimyo until now who actually thought about going against the entire Ashikaga Shogunate in order to ckaim the country for themselves. That is this era’s, and this world’s most established fact.

「Nobuna-dono. How can you say that I was aiming to conquer Japan? 」

「Because the one who controls Mino ( Gifu prefecture in the present day), controls all of Japan! Mino is basically Japan’s centre! In the west, it connects to the capital city, in the east it is connected to the fertile plains rich with resources. If you build an impenetrable mountain castle in Mino and gather your soldiers there , and then have them lie in wait there to have them march out at the right time, you could repress all of the hostile daimyo of the country in one fell swoop, making Japan a peaceful country once more, and turn it into a country where merchants would be able to freely trade, making it ore bountiful than it was before. That was your ambition, right? 」

While shaking, Dosan nodded his head. His expression suddenly changed into a cheerful one.

「I am beaten… I am thoroughly and utterly beaten, Nobuna-dono! Even though you’re young, you saw through this old man’s strategy, which I hadn’t ever talked about with anyone, not even my closest retainers. Considering all of that, how can I be anything else than beaten by you? 」

While nodding, a cheerful laugh leaked from his throat.

(That Nobuna, she managed to turn The Viper of Mino from a potential enemy into an ally in no time flat!)

Yoshiharu thought while smacking his tongue with satisfaction.

However, even though Nobuna stated her intentions already, she still wasn’t done.

「You’re a magnificent strategist for having laid your eyes on Mino first, Viper. But unfortunately you were not a warrior, but a merchant back then. That’s why even though you had so much wisdom it took your entire life to completely take over just the Mino province. The heavens are unfair, that’s for sure. 」

「Yes, as much as I hate to admit it, it’s as you say. 」

「Viper. If there really is something like a heaven, then I myself must be the one loved by
the heavens. I have been a female daimyo ever since I was born. But in comparison to me, who is a high-class beauty, you really are just a baboon geezer. Also, I have been governing the province neighboring to Mino, Owari, since the age of 16, so I still have to improve and plan my own conquest! 」

「Yes. That may be true. 」

「That’s why, Viper, know that I’ll someday annex the Mino province for myself. Your life’s dream, the ambition of unifying Japan… I’ll fulfill it in your place! 」

「A country where merchants can trade freely… you will make sure that it won’t be little more than a pipe dream? 」

「Not just merchants! Farmers and samurais are going to be made equal as well! The old system which made Japan disorganized like it is today… we don’t need it anymore, so I’ll destroy it along with everyone who supports it, and I will turn Japan into an entirely new country that will be able to compete even with those barbarians from the west! But what I’m looking at is not just Japan itself! No, I’m looking at the entire world here! 」

Dosan let out a big laugh.

「I finally understand the reason why you’re called 「The Fool of Owari」. Even for someone wise like myself, conquering just the land of Japan was all that my intellect could comprehend. However, Nobuna-dono, you have already crossed Japan, and have set your eyes on 「The World」, which many would call a goal without a destination. 」

「Viper, for the time being, let’s stop the conversation here. It’s a conversation which only you and I can understand, after all. If it’s heard by others, you won’t just be called a fool, but a madman, you know? 」