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Volume 4 Chapter 3 Part 3

「….Um….Ummm….Ummmm. 」

To not let any air leak out, her lips overlapped Yoshiharu’s tightly as she sent air to his lungs. Of course, though she really hated it, she did not forget to pinch Yoshiharu’s nose as well.

Mitsuhide’s breath had a mildly sweet scent, totally void of any stench of Takoyaki. But without any preparation, the stench of Yoshiharu’s mouth flew into Mitsuhide’s nostrils and Mitsuhide was struck dizzy by it on the spot.

Finally, she had sent all the air in her lungs into Yoshiharu’s mouth, but…

「….It…It didn’t work? You…don’t tell me that you still want more…? Uhh, Uhhh… how… how humiliating… I… I might die first…..! You bastard! Not just my first kiss, but you plan to take even my second kiss!? How much of a greedy pervert can you actually be?! 」

「…. 」

(No, at this rate, he might even take my third kiss….. )

「… 」

Uhhh, it’s the fourth time now. I Mitsuhide, am already sullied beyond any hope of cleansing myself. The way I am now, I won’t be able to show my face in front of Nobuna-sama ever again…)

「… 」

A total of five times, Mitsuhide did CPR to Yoshiharu while crying. Once she had decided on something, she would finish it earnestly. That at least was a good point of Akechi Juubei Mitsuhide.

After the 5 sessions of CPR ended:

「Uhh… *Cough* *Cough**Cough**Cough**Cough*! 」

Yoshiharu suddenly started coughing violently. His heart started beating again.

「I did it…. I did it! I knew it, there is nothing that this clever Akechi Juubei Mitsuhide can’t do! Just you wait, Nobuna-sama! I, Mitsuhide, will definitely bring Monkey back to you! Ahhh… hehe, My mind is full of Nobuna-sama giving me compliments and praises already! I am so happy now! 」

「*Cough* *Cough**Cough**Cough*!!!!! 」

「Anyway, Gorilla-senpai, hurry and get up, how long do you plan to dilly-dally!? 」

「…Uhh…Uhh…Uhh… 」

After she saw that he wasn’t getting up, Mitsuhide placed her wide forehead onto Yoshiharu’s forehead

「Ahh… it’s hot! 」

And then, she put her ears onto Yoshiharu’s chest again.

*Bathump!*

「His heartbeat… is weak, too weak! It’s almost like it will stop at any moment! Senpai must have exhausted himself too much when retreating… If this goes on…. 」

The season had completely shifted into winter now, and it was already deep in the night, and it was still raining in the forest.

The cold air of the mountains and rain droplets were slowly taking away the body temperature of the collapsed and exhausted Yoshiharu.

「Ahhh, enough, the situation is going from bad to worse, but this smart Mitsuhide is a super genius capable of anything! At this time, all we need to do is to use the same methods as those who have met with mishaps while climbing mountains! So as to say, all I need to do is to maintain Senpai’s body heat! 」

Though she said that, if she raised a fire, she might be discovered by those escapee hunting squads…. and to raise a fire in the rain isn’t a simple matter anyways.

Mitsuhide looked at her surroundings and discovered a narrow cave.

「If we hide in it, we can get shelter and it will definitely be warmer than outside. 」

Carrying the moaning Yoshiharu on her back, Mitsuhide walked towards the cave.

Though the opening was narrow, it was quite wide inside. With a high ceiling, countless rocks supported the cave

This was a work that would require thousands, tens of thousands of years.

There was a rumor of 「Life of 20 years」 in this chaotic Sengoku era, which meant that people in these times wouldn’t live all that long, but this cave was slowly formed through long ages, years that humans could never even hope to live through. In front of them, the quarrels between humans are minuscule.

Mitsuhide, who looked upon this wonder put her palms together and prayed:

「I wish that Nobuna-sama can end this chaotic era as soon as possible. 」

And then, she remembered:

「Oh my god, I’ve forgotten about Gorilla-senpai! Geez, what a troublesome senpai you are. 」
Saying it angrily, Mitsuhide allowed Yoshiharu to lie at her side as she gathered a few twigs to raise a fire.

「Hmph, with this, I have returned the debt from Kiyomizu-dera, senpai! This won’t be discovered easily, so hurry up and recover your strength! 」

But Yoshiharu, who had yet to wake up, moaned with tightly closed lips.

「….Cold…. 」

And then he kept on repeating this word. Mitsuhide, who was sitting beside Yoshiharu, sighed.

「Looks like just raising a fire isn’t going to be nearly enough, huh? W-Well, i-it can’t be helped! I have no choice but to use the method to revive a freezing companion during mountain mishaps! 」

Mitsuhide breathed in deeply as she started to strip off her armor.

「G…Geez, Gorilla-senpai, you sure are really lucky. You… If you had not met this clever Akechi Juubei Mitsuhide, you would definitely be pig’s food now. 」

Mitsuhide had stripped off all the clothes she was wearing. The moonlight that seeped into the cave revealed her naked, embarrassed body.

The young and beautiful body.

If this cave is a wonder that was born naturally, then the beautiful body of this girl is the real mystery of a miracle being born naturally.

This utterly beautiful girl lowered her head reflexively.

Mitsuhide was so embarrassed now that she wanted nothing more but to commit seppuku. But in order to save Yoshiharu now, she had to warm him up through direct skin contact.
(At Kiyomizu-dera, Sagara Yoshiharu and Nobuna-sama had saved my life…no, not just my life.)

Her heart, which had lost control and was only a puppet for Matsunaga Danjo Hisahide, had been saved as well.

「Please, Juubei. If you live through this but ever fear you are losing your way, think about this blood soaked Kiyomizu-dera! Burn into your memory Nobuna’s silhouette up there, firing shot after shot to save you…! 」

In that Kiyomizu-dera alight with flames, Sagara Yoshiharu’s tear-filled eyes seemed to want to transmit something to her as he shouted at her.

At that time, in the eyes of Yoshiharu, who was putting on a forced expression to looking at her, many emotions such as sadness, fury, and friendship have been mixed together; and she thought it to be strange. It made her constantly ask herself 「Why? Why would he go so far for me? 」That was also the first time she saw a normally cheerful Yoshiharu giving her such a sad expression.

(Why did Senpai look at me with such a sad expression?)

At that time, Mitsuhide’s heart was pierced by that sad expression, and the feelings that erupted from her heart were hard to suppress.

(Why? Just why? What is it that Senpai wanted to tell me….?)

Mitsuhide would never let Yoshiharu die before she solved that mystery. No, maybe…

(Maybe it’s not just that he didn’t want me to die, but he wanted me to live on properly…?)

「….Sagara-senpai, tonight, let Mitsuhide warm your body. 」

Mitsuhide stripped off Yoshiharu’s clothes and tightly hugged his shivering and naked chest.

* * *

It was cold. His skin that was so cold that it felt like that of a corpse. His back and hands had countless wounds on them.

Just what kind of a cruel and violent battle was that「Retreat at Kanegasaki」…?

「Always… Always pushing himself so hard and being reduced to tatters… Senpai… you really are unbelievable… 」

Massaging Yoshiharu’s back, Mitsuhide used her own thighs to overlap with Yoshiharu’s just a little bit more as she tried her best to transmit her own body heat to Yoshiharu through their skin.

「….Mom…? 」

Yoshiharu said in a daze. Mitsuhide looked at him and realized that he was dreaming.

「…..Good…. I, have finally returned home… mom… 」

Mitsuhide silently caressed Yoshiharu’s hair.

「….I had a terrible, terrible dream… I somehow slipped into the Sengoku era… Though I did have lots of fun, then in the end, I was tasked with protecting the rear of a defeated army… and was chased by those escapee hunting squads. .. and had died… alone… what a terrible dream that was! 」

He cried.

The man who always said, 「I am Sagara Yoshiharu, who loves all girls in the world! 」, and had always put on a strong front, never showing a weak side. That Yoshiharu was currently weeping in Mitsuhide’s bosom like a small child.

「….I, had tried my best… I did… I had someone I liked, and I wanted to protect her. For her, even if I was forcing it, I would do everything I could… But, I, wasn’t able to do it in the end… But, I’m just a high school student. Battles, I can’t fight them… When my comrades died one by one in front of me, and when I had to kill enemies I had no hatred for, and when bullets are flying… that was too much for me…! 」