15 Chapter 15

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The next week flew by unnoticed. The young man and the girl enjoyed ordinary family life. On the fifth day, Kenshin finished drawing a huge formation, and relaxed a little, confident that the number of people walking around his house would decrease dramatically.

Aya's belly visibly enlarged, and the newlyweds decided to temporarily stop having sex, but the girl made Kenshin feel good from time to time, relieving the accumulated tension.

Several times they went out to the river, which was a few kilometers from their home, and had a great time enjoying the pristine beauty of nature, and solitude.

The young man built small fish traps on the river, killing half a day to find engineering solutions to put the right formation on the bottom of the river. As a result, the newlyweds always had fresh and nutritious fish on the table.

Kenshin and Aya sat at the table, drank coffee, and engaged in casual conversation.

- Kenshin, we're out of tea, and we're almost out of salt, and there's not much grits left... Maybe I should go to my aunt's shop? - Taking a sip of her gaffe, the girl asked.

- What? No! I won't let you go anywhere, much less to your own village. I'll go fetch the necessary things myself. - Kenshin said firmly, flatly refusing to let the girl leave the house.

- But... But why? Is it because I've become fat and ugly? Is that why you've fallen out of love with me? - Sobbing mumbled the girl, and cried.

Kenshin stood up from the table, put his arms around Aya, and pressed her to his chest: "Don't be silly, darling. I haven't fallen out of love with you, it's just that it's dangerous in your home village, and you shouldn't go long distances to pregnant women..." the young man whispered, kissing the girl on the back of her neck.

- And what happens when I'm old and not beautiful... Will you forget all about me? - The girl bellowed, refusing to calm down.

- God, what nonsense! First of all, I will not leave you. And secondly, as girls get older, they get prettier, like wine! - He said and was struck by a bolt of lightning.

- That's right, wine! Ha-ha-ha, yes, wine! - Suddenly Kenshin laughed sharply, making Aya instantly calm down.

- What's wrong with you, Kenshin? - Surprisedly asked the girl, whose mood had changed dramatically.

- I've just figured out how we can become rich! - Proudly proclaimed the young man, and kissed the tear-salted lips of the girl.

- How did you do it? - Aya asked, intrigued, unable to contain her curiosity.

- Accelerated aging! You and I, girl, we will age the wine, and sell it for a lot of money! - Kenshin proudly declared.

- What? How? - Again surprised asked the blue-eyed brunette.

- With an aging formation, of course! Well, the name is too loud, because this formation does not age organic things, but it is excellent for the disposal of inorganic substances, from radioactive elements to caustic chemical solutions. I can't make formations that big and powerful yet, but I have more than enough power for our purposes!

Aya froze in astonishment as she pondered the words. Kenshin had decided not long ago not to hide his ability to create formations, figuring that even if Inoichi Yamanaka got inside her mind, he would easily understand everything. He had no mental scanning formations at his disposal yet, but he planned to get one soon.

- Um, okay, whatever you say. Could you bring me some salted fish, please? - Aya said with a smile, completely forgetting how sad she had been a few minutes ago.

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Kenshin spent several days preparing for the foray outside. He studied the approximate locations of the surrounding villages, and several towns. One of the intended towns was the town of Shukuba, which the young man planned to go to. He took with him all the money Aya had been saving, hoping to move away from pesky Kaito. The young man had a total of 2,700 ryo in his hands. He had managed to figure out the approximate rates of this world, and knew that a kilo of rice cost 20 ryo, and a kilo of salt cost 400 ryo.

After loading his shoulder bag with everything he needed, the young man kissed the girl and ordered her not to leave the dwelling unless necessary, then he turned around and left in the direction of one of the villages located fifteen kilometers southwest of his dwelling.

After about four hours, the young man reached a small village, asked a scruffy-looking old man with a red face for the location of a shop, and staggered off in the right direction.

At the shop, Kenshin talked to a pleasant-looking woman of about forty, who evidently lacked companionship. She told him that the most "ancient," and at the same time frequently encountered, wine was called "Samurai Blade," costing 50 ryo per bottle.

Kenshin bought five bottles of wine, and filled the remaining space in his bag with necessities, spending a total of 700 ryo. The shopkeeper gave him a 10% discount. Kenshin, seeing the effect he was having on this woman, thought for a second about taking her into his harem, but instantly changed his mind.

A few days ago he had already thought about seducing more girls, and having a bunch of babies, only it was all, in his opinion, useless. The children born to ordinary girls would be extremely weak, and thus he would condemn them to suffering.

Kenshin decided that the next girl in the harem should be a kunoichi, but he had no idea what to interest, or how to seduce a woman trained in killing. He had no illusions about the gentleness and kindness of the local kunoichi, and although in the "anime" most of them looked like delicate flowers, he had already realized that reality was very different from what he had seen on screen. This world was far more violent than he had seen it on his television screen. The young man thought it was because it was aimed at a children's audience, and Masashi Kishimoto, knowing the history of this world - had hidden its bloodiness.

Kenshin had already heard stories from Aya about how Konoha's shinobi could sometimes rape an ordinary girl and get away with it. Sometimes they could be punished, but only disciplined. The girl explained that to the shinobi of Konoha, all people outside of it were like cattle, not worthy of mention.

The young man, loaded to the brim, left the shop, and headed for the exit of the village. After walking a few kilometers, he rested, and chose a place for a hiding place. Drawing a formation on the ground, he dropped his shoulder bag, and threw branches and leaves on top, then turned around, and headed in the direction of the town of Shukuba, ten kilometers from his present location.

After walking along the road between the woods for about an hour, he was startled when four silhouettes swept over his head, jumping from tree to tree. The four men didn't even look in his direction, and all he had to do was to follow them with his gaze.

"Konoha's protector? Perhaps it's the genii led by the chunin... What speed! Thirty kilometers per hour, no less!" - The young man thought, and shuddered as he imagined the consequences of a fight with even the weakest of this group.