The spring weather in Japan's central provinces is actually quite nice—no wind, and the air is crisp and fresh.
Harano took a few deep breaths of the fresh air, clearing the thick scent of blood from his nose, then glanced at the dejected Maeda Toshie and consoled him: "Victory and defeat are common in the art of war; no need to take it too hard."
"Sigh!" Maeda Toshie let out a sigh, apparently finding it hard to shake the psychological shadow, but he quickly pulled himself together and said, full of gratitude, "I really owe you this time. If it hadn't been for you taking down Toriyama Chouhei, we couldn't have gotten away so smoothly. At the time I was ready… I was ready to…"
At that moment, he was prepared to turn back and fight to the death, entangle Toriyama Chouhei and buy Oda Nobunaga a chance to escape—chances were, there'd be no survival for him. So in that sense, Harano had saved his life too, and he owed him thanks no matter what.
