After the explosive orgasm, Kenshin and Hitomi continued their caresses for a while, only returning to the break room half an hour later. Makoto looked like a boiled lobster, constantly averting her eyes from the loving couple, fearing a scolding.
To her surprise, however, Kenshin said nothing and continued discussing business while caressing Karin, who had climbed onto his lap. Even during family rest, he never stopped working, constantly analyzing the experience his sons had gained, while mentally communicating with them to resolve complex political and economic issues.
In a few weeks, a crucial economic-political treaty with Kazoku Ishimura was to be finalized, and preparations were in full swing. Kenshin tried to account for every aspect, preparing for fruitful cooperation with one of the hegemons of the Fire Country's western region.
The official owner of the Nakayama Family lands had surprisingly taken Kenshin's cooperation proposal coolly. Kazoku Watanabe saw it as a mere ploy to further lower the rent, and Kenshin didn't rush to convince him otherwise, letting things take their course so time would sort it out.
Day 470, outskirts of Shukuba city. Ogata Village.
"Make way, let me through!" an irritable wiry thirty-year-old man said, pushing through the crowd.
"Don't push!" a sturdy, unusually large man for a peasant declared in a heavy, low voice, his arms thick like young trees.
"K-Komamura-san, it's me, Mesaharo!" the man said with a joyful smile, recognizing his acquaintance in the giant.
"Hm? Decided to try your luck too?" Komamura said, softening a bit.
"Of course! It's an incredible opportunity, Komamura-san, and we can't miss it. Are you here for the same?" Mesaharo asked with a smile.
"Yes. They say the Nakayama settlement needs men who can work with their hands. I hope they need a blacksmith." Komamura replied steadily, glancing at his two sons standing a bit apart, whom he hoped to take with him.
"Yeah... I can't believe Lord Nakayama nearly slaughtered a Jonin like a pig for us common folk!" Mesaharo muttered with shining eyes, imagining this righteous man and ready to drop to his knees before him that instant.
"Don't believe everything you hear. No one in their right mind would clash with a Jonin for the likes of us," Komamura said skeptically, shaking his head.
"No, Komamura-san, it's true. My cousin saw it with his own eyes. Lord Nakayama nearly tore a team of five Jonin to pieces! They had to flee for their lives!" Mesaharo declared enthusiastically.
"It's the honest truth. My third daughter's husband said the same," confirmed a gray-haired man standing nearby, nodding.
"Hey, you there, move along, don't hold up the line!" the local village head's assistant shouted authoritatively.
Kenshin approached personnel policy very responsibly, ordering his sons to treat it with utmost seriousness, involving local administration in the selection process—bribing them with gifts or direct payoffs for the best results.
The village head was thrilled to help his "friends" from the Nakayama Family, especially for the hefty reward, plus gifts like canned meat and a box of chocolate.
Facing the young man seated at the table, Komamura behaved with utmost courtesy and meekness, knowing that neither his two-meter height nor his massive body meant anything to a strong shinobi. An ordinary Genin could likely beat him one-handed, and a Chunin tear him in two. He'd lived long enough to know how dangerous such young men were.
To his surprise, throughout the "interview," the young man asked nothing. A peasant asked all the questions, jotting down answers on paper. The same happened at the other two tables: trusted locals asked questions and recorded responses. The youth—Thirty-First—merely oversaw the process, preventing nepotism and corruption.
After answering all questions, Komamura went to the waiting room as instructed. Mesaharo was there too, nervously fidgeting, fearing rejection. This anxiety infected even the rock-solid blacksmith.
Finally, after an hour and a half when the interviews ended, over fifty men gathered in the room, and the important-looking youth entered and spoke for the first time.
"All of you qualify for relocation. However, the Nakayama settlement has its own laws. If you live righteously, you'll be protected, given work, and your children taught literacy and trades. If you're not sure of your righteousness, leave now—otherwise, inevitable justice will catch up sooner or later," Thirty-First said calmly.
The men exchanged glances, but none left. Then Thirty-First spent several minutes outlining the main rules and benefits of relocation.
The rules first seemed strange to Komamura, but the more he listened, the more his face smoothed. Promises to teach peasant children literacy, provide jobs and medical care were met with loud cheers and thanks.
The condition allowing any worker to bring his entire family and get enough pay to support them ignited joyful sparks in everyone's eyes. The provision for dependents, elders, and disabled was also key. Each worker could bring two extra people besides wife and kids.
All were skilled workers who had pondered if the venture was worth it, but after fifteen minutes, no one doubted—the terms were the best a common man could hope for.
The next morning, fifty-six people with their families were loaded into over twenty freight carriages. They were forbidden to bring any property except clothes and jewelry. Though considered well-off peasants, few could afford jewelry—great wealth without protection was a curse.
As a strong man in his prime, Komamura feared nothing. But his wife and kids were his Achilles' heel. As a father of many, he wanted above all to give his offspring a worthy life.
Even blacksmithing barely covered food and daily needs for his large family. The turning point was seeing neighbors get gifts from a relative who first tried working for the Nakayama Family.
When his youngest daughter eyed the neighbor girl eating exotic "chocolate" enviously, his heart broke. Later, he bought a small chocolate bar for a lot of money, divided it among the kids, then decided to trust the rumors of the Nakayama Family's decency and take the risk.