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Volume 4 Chapter 2 Part 11

「It’s a story from Tang. Long long ago, there was a man named Zhou Gong who dreamt that he turned into a butterfly flying in the air. He suddenly woke up and thought to himself, had he had a dream of turning into a butterfly, or did a butterfly have a dream of turning into a man named Zhou Gong? 」

「….Just which side… is the truth? 」

「Hmmm, no matter which side, both are true, both are illusions. No one knows what’s real or not in this world, so in actual fact, the world in our dreams is real and this world is just a dream. Things like happiness are just things from one’s heart. No matter if one attains happiness in a dream or in the real world, they are the same happiness. When you are feeling terrible, or like you want to cry, let me use my drugs to send you into the dream world. 」

「Yhm. 」

「I, Matsunaga Danjo Hisahide, no matter how many times takes, will let Nobuna-sama have a dream full of happiness. 」

「….Yhm. 」

「What a cute child you are, Nobuna-sama. 」

A non-stop feeling of dizziness, and a feeling of dropping washed over Nobuna.

Hisahide used her own chest to hold onto her as this feeling took hold of her. A little warm, the feeling of it wasn’t bad.

(A love from a mother, and love from Sagara Yoshiharu… both are the kinds of love that I could never feel. If so, then let me be doted on forever by Hisahide like this and just…)

The pain in her chest that almost threatens to tear her apart can’t seem to disappear. Why is that?

(As expected, this world is the real one.)

But in some corner of her heart, Nobuna who was being hugged by Hisahide didn’t seem to agree with that.

* * *

「…..Maeda Inuchiyo has returned. 」

Manase Belchior and Nene brought Inuchiyo who had returned hurriedly to Nobuna’s room.

「…..Inuchiyo…? Where did she go…? Where is Juubei and the rest? Where’s Monkey? 」

Nobuna, who had just woken up did not understand the current situation of the Oda army.

The incident that the Asai and Asakura allied forces were forced to stop at the streets of Wakasa due to Yoshiharu, and had moved from Lake Biwa to western Omi, and were currently at Mount Hiei.

The incident about that bastard who sniped Nobuna and escaped into Mount Hiei.

The incident about Shibata Katsuie and Niwa Nagahide leading the Oda army who had retreated back to Kyoto to surround Mount Hiei, but was unable to begin attacking due to Mount Hiei prohibiting females from entering.

The incident about Takigawa Kazumasu and Saito Dosan who was protecting Mino and Owari and were unable to send reinforcements due to anti-Nobuna forces appearing everywhere.

「….Where’s Monkey? Where is Monkey and Juubei? Where are they? Inuchiyo? 」

Seemingly drunk, Nobuna with misty eyes repeated the same words again like she was sleep-talking.

「…Hey, Inuchiyo, Monkey is alright, right? And where did Juubei run off to? 」

Inuchiyo, Manase and Nene, all of them couldn’t seem to muster the courage to tell the truth to this weak Nobuna.

At this moment, Matsunaga Hisahide said

「First, another sip of the medicine. 」

To not let Nobuna collapse, Hisahide let Nobuna drink a high potency drug.

「Danjo-chan, is that…. No, no, to let Nobuna-sama drink such a medicine… What if she ends up poisoned…? 」

Though Manase tried to stop her, Hisahide cut him off, saying 「Quiet, geezer!」 with a sharp stare, and he stammered to a stop.

「All I did was give Nobuna-sama a drug that can bring happiness to the heart. Isn’t that right, Nobuna-sama? 」

「….Yes….Danjo… 」

「Sagara Yoshiharu was chased by Wakasa’s Onmyouji, Tsuchimikado, and was blown to pieces at the end. Not even a single piece of him remains… To take revenge for Sagara Yoshiharu, Akechi Mitsuhide rushed towards him but dropped into a huge crack in the ground prepared by Tsuchimikado, and is currently missing. She is most likely dead. 」

「…De….Dearu… ka. 」

Nobuna’s vision suddenly blurred as she loses all her strength, her face lightly caressed by Hisahide. Manase was also shocked,

「You…Since you were staying here the entire time, why did you know the situation to such an extent, Danjo-chan? 」

Danjo laughed alluringly.

「I have many puppet spies at my disposal. 」

The expression that Nobuna had now was as if the world had already been destroyed.

(This world is a dream… It definitely is.The real me is currently having a wedding with Monkey with everyone’s blessing… Uhh, to marry such a lecherous Monkey, why must I marry such a monkey and have his child?)

「…..Nobuna-sama, please open your eyes! If you don’t take control of the situation, the Oda clan will be destroyed! 」

Inuchiyo reached out to her.

「Ahh? ….Don’t tell me… this Inuchiyo… is real? 」

Being shaken by Inuchiyo, Nobuna dreamingly said.

「….Inuchiyo… is real. 」

Inuchiyo who had made her resolve, nodded.

「….I… saw it… myself… Yoshiharu-san is already dead….Mitsuhide too… I’m afraid…. 」

Nene collapsed in an instant, and was howling on the tatami mat

「Onii-sama…. Onii-sama… Nene… is willing to replace Onii-sama to bring him back!… I had already tried my best to pray to God, Buddha and Nekogami-sama….! 」

Totally collapsed… In Nobuna’s heart, something had totally collapsed, and her grief vanished as if it wasn’t there to begin with.

In its place, the feeling that poured out… was fury…

Even if her body was burned to ashes by flames, that intense fury that will never disappear..

「Hmmm, Tsuchimikado had entered Mount Hiei and had joined with Asai and Asakura allied forces. What should we do, Nobuna-sama? 」

「…..Attack…. Mount Hiei….. 」

Manase said with panic:

「If we do such a blasphemous thing, all Buddhist factions in Japan will become our enemies!

But Matsunaga Hisahide continued to whisper in Nobuna’s ears.

「Nobuna-sama, though Mount Hiei is said to be a spiritual mountain guarding the Gate of Demons of Kyoto in actual fact, it is the real culprit of all the unrest in Kyoto. Commanding the monks and defying Kyoto’s Shogunate, they had recently even reduced Kyoto to a sea of fire during a recent war; even young children weren’t spared. They claim that ‘Women are unclean’, but the monks are all like hungry wolfs in man’s clothing. 」

Hisahide’s words were the last little push she needed. Nobuna forgot about the pain at her abdomen and stood up. Her vision was still blurry, and she still couldn’t see the things in the room properly, and her body was still weak.

But fury was radiating from both her eyes. And because of this immense fury that she had never experienced before… Nobuna’s weak body felt light as a feather.
(The me that thanked the gods after seeing such a dream was too dumb. Those monks at Owari too, after saying that they could cure Father by praying with gusto, they were just looking at Father dying day by day when they are reciting their incantations. And after that, they even shamelessly requested huge amount of compensation for their services. They went too far when they said ‘Your father had killed too many people, this is his retribution’ and had blamed father who had just passed away forbringing this upon himself. At that time, because of old man Hirate stopping me when I went berserk, those monks survived the fire. But this time…This time I must…Monkey …Juubei…Let me kill all those who took my dream away, those who killed my companions that shared my dream, those who claimed they are the protectors of the spiritual mountain yet said females are unclean. Kill them all…I have to let those bastards have a taste of their own medicine.)

But… as though she were still dreaming… her body didn’t have any strength left in it. Was this a continuation of the nightmare? Or….?

「….Riku and the rest won’t be able to do it, so I will command the army personally… Bring me to the base right now… Manchiyo. 」

At the support of Hisahide, Nobuna gave the order with difficulty.

This wasn’t the normal way Nobuna addressed Inuchiyo and Nagahide. Nobuna, though truly conscious, would never give such an order.

「….Those monks who use Buddhism as their shield and do whatever they like, Tsuchimikado, and the Azai-Asakura… kill all of them…… 」

Her voice was hollow, as if Nobuna had become Hisahide’s puppet. But, this was still an order given by Nobuna herself. And though her vision was blurry, the fury in her eyes was undoubtedly Nobuna’s.

Inuchiyo, simply said:

「Understood. 」

And bowed to her.