"I haven't yet met a blow I couldn't recover from."
Sano explained that he was gradually working his way back into the shogun's good graces. Oddly enough, that had come about because Sano had humiliated and banished Joju. The shogun had summoned Sano to the palace to give him a tongue-lashing. Some fast talk by Sano had reversed much of the damage done him by Yoritomo and carried the day. "My new task is preparing my family for the future."
"I'll do whatever I can to help," Major Kumazawa said.
Sano's mother smiled and blinked away tears. Major Kumazawa wasn't just repaying a favor, Sano realized. Sano had taken the first step toward mending relations within their clan. Now Major Kumazawa had gone the rest of the distance, by voluntarily welcoming Sano's mother back into the clan. Sano was truly moved.
"Many thanks," he said.
"Just be careful next time," Major Kumazawa said, with a hint of his old, critical tone. "No more foolish heroics."
Sano felt the old offense, tempered with respect and amusement. "I'll try."
This wasn't ever going to be an easy relationship. He and his uncle were too different. Yet Major Kumazawa had taken what he himself probably deemed a foolish risk by allying himself with his unconventional, embattled nephew. They would manage.
Blood was blood.