At this moment, even Uvogin, who was usually quick to retort to Phinks, uncharacteristically fell silent, instead pondering seriously about the idea of a secret base.
He normally had no particular requirements for his living space, so his house was neither small nor large; it was generally average.
However...
"If you're talking about a relatively large house..."
Uvogin suddenly seemed to remember something, and a grin slowly spread across his face.
"Then I really do know one."
There was a relatively clean area in Meteor City, far from the garbage dumps.
The houses there were noticeably cleaner and larger than those scattered throughout the scrap mountains.
As the saying goes, where there are people there are disputes, and where there are disputes there is Jianghu... In short, even in Meteor City there were still subtle social strata.
Clearly, the people who lived in that district either possessed a certain status, or...
They were individuals others simply did not dare to provoke.
Inside a house located at the very edge of that district.
A young man around fifteen or sixteen years old, with messy hair, a gaunt face, and drooping eyes, was washing his face with a basin of clean water.
"I guess I'll be moving out of here soon."
His tone sounded lazy, as if he didn't care much about his current situation.
After all, he used to live among the garbage heaps.
If it hadn't been for a chance encounter while scavenging through the trash—where he met a sick man holding a knife—
The medicine he had found was snatched away by that man, and he himself was dragged back here to clean the house and brew medicine.
If the man hadn't already been half-dead and too weak to worry about anything else...
Then with the caution typical of Meteor City residents, he would never have been brought here or allowed to stay.
Later on, the man who had brought him here inevitably died from illness.
Aside from leaving behind a sword and this house, nothing else remained.
"Not even a single hot meal..."
He muttered to himself while combing his messy hair with his fingers.
"I'd better leave this place soon. If other bastards discover it and come looking, I might not be able to leave anymore."
Bang! Bang! Bang!!!
No sooner had he finished speaking than a loud knocking suddenly sounded at the door.
"Huh?!!"
The gaunt young man's body stiffened immediately.
A sharp glint flashed through his eyes as he instinctively grabbed the katana left behind by the previous owner of the house.
But before he could even tuck the sword at his waist and prepare himself—
"Nobunaga! Are you still alive, you bastard?! We've come to see you!!"
The familiar shout from outside the door made the young man's tense expression relax slightly.
"How could I die when you bastards are still alive?!"
Nobunaga Hazama responded irritably as his lazy demeanor returned.
He stepped forward and pulled open the door.
"Uvogin, you— Huh?!!"
Before he could mock the big idiot Uvogin as usual, the scene before him left him momentarily stunned.
"Yo, looks like you're still alive and kicking."
Uvogin greeted him casually while pushing his way inside the house.
"How about it? Didn't I say this house was big enough?"
"It's quite spacious."
Phinks followed right behind, glancing around the interior before nodding in satisfaction.
"As a secret base, it's actually perfect."
Feitan entered behind him and muttered quietly,
"Enough space."
Machi said nothing.
She simply stepped inside, calmly looked around, and nodded slightly.
That small gesture clearly showed her approval.
"No, wait... you guys..."
Nobunaga Hazama stared at the scene in front of him, looking rather confused.
He had thought Uvogin was just stopping by to chat like usual.
He didn't expect so many people to suddenly show up.
"First time visiting, a small gift. It's nothing special, but please accept it."
Before Nobunaga could say anything else, a black coconut fruit was suddenly handed to him.
"Hm?!"
Nobunaga subconsciously looked over and saw Moge smiling at him.
Nobunaga: "?"
Who are you?
He knew Uvogin and Machi well enough, and the notorious duo Feitan and Phinks were also quite famous among the children of Meteor City.
Although Nobunaga was surprised that these four had come together, he at least recognized them.
But this one... this unfamiliar person...
Wait?
Suddenly, while still looking confused, Nobunaga's nose twitched.
Then his gaze slowly shifted to the black coconut fruit in his hands.
His eyes gradually lit up.
"Your name is Moge? Welcome! Welcome!!"
"Oh, so you want to use this place as a secret base?"
"I have no problem with that. This house wasn't mine to begin with anyway."
"Using it as a secret base is fine, but there might be some trouble later..."
While quickly devouring the fried rice inside the black coconut fruit, Nobunaga explained the background of the house to everyone present.
At the same time, he became acquainted with Moge.
He already had a very good impression of this newcomer who had brought such a delicious gift upon visiting.
And Moge, in turn, met the future Phantom Troupe member.
Nobunaga Hazama.
Future Phantom Troupe member, number No.1.
An Enhancer whose physical arm strength ranked ninth among the members of the Phantom Troupe.
Born and raised in Meteor City, he would later become one of the original founding members of the Phantom Troupe and one of the seven senior members during its early formation.
A master of Iaijutsu sword drawing, he was considered one of the close-combat specialists of the Phantom Troupe, much like Uvogin.
The two had similar personalities and were already close companions long before the Phantom Troupe was ever established.
After the Phantom Troupe was formed, Nobunaga and Uvogin would even volunteer to act as suicide squad members—also known as the "vanguard."
They were essentially the front-line fighters who would risk their lives in battle to protect other members with more specialized abilities.
When Nobunaga first appeared in the original timeline, he usually dressed like a wandering samurai, with a high ponytail tied behind his head.
When relaxing, he sometimes wore casual clothes and let his hair hang loose, giving him the impression of someone cold on the outside but warm on the inside.
Gaunt face, pointed mouth, monkey-like cheeks, drooping eyes, and a scruffy beard...
No wonder he and Uvogin became close friends.
They really were kindred spirits.
The current Nobunaga, however, was still only a fifteen or sixteen-year-old youth.
At most, he just had messy hair and a somewhat lazy attitude.
"If anyone dares come looking for trouble, we'll kick them all out!"
Uvogin confidently waved his fist as he spoke.
"With me, Grandpa Uvogin, here, who would dare act arrogant?!"
"Besides, with so many of us gathered here, anyone who wants to cause trouble will have to think twice."
For once, Phinks didn't argue with Uvogin.
For the sake of securing this spacious house, he decided to let it slide.
After all, both of them were very satisfied with this place.
"With so many people here, it's true that no one would easily cause trouble..."
After finishing his meal, Nobunaga wiped his mouth and raised what he considered a more practical problem.
"But now that there are so many people here, food is one issue. And even though this house is relatively spacious, it's still not enough for all of us to live comfortably."
This was a very realistic problem.
People in Meteor City understood well that gathering together could help them resist outsiders.
However, the biggest problem with this method was the distribution of resources.
In Meteor City, the main resources were simply food and shelter.
Take the people gathered here as an example.
Uvogin had a massive build and needed to eat a lot, while Machi ate very little.
But food couldn't be distributed according to appetite.
Even those who didn't eat much still wanted to accumulate food for the future.
Then there was the problem of living space.
Although the house was fairly large, accommodating so many people would still become an issue over time.
A house like this might be perfectly fine for one person, or perhaps even two or three people living together.