"At that time, weren't you afraid that Brother Tadomaru might scoff at your request or do something humiliating to you?"
"To be honest—I was worried." Aoto smiled wryly, "But in front of so many people, he slandered the Shiwei Hall, which has been kind to me. No matter what, I could not pretend not to hear his words."
Putting aside the 'teacher-student bond' for teaching him Swordsmanship diligently, just the kindness of Kondo and others, who offered them shelter at Shiwei Hall when he and Saito had nowhere to go, was enough for Aoto to defend the honor of Shiwei Hall without hesitation.
"When I spoke up and told him to 'wait a moment,' I was actually prepared for an unpleasant confrontation... even ready to draw my sword against him."
"But fortunately—that person wasn't entirely unyielding."
Aoto attributed the main reason Chiba Domon Shiro softened to the fact that he was a sensible person, not someone who couldn't be reasoned with.
