I formed the strongest swordsman group

"Yimura-kun." Kurosawa Tadasaburo let out a mouthful of white mist, "Are you nervous...?"

"It's a bit embarrassing to say." Arimura Jizaemon showed his right hand to Kurosawa Chusaburo with a wry smile, "I'm so nervous...Look, my hand keeps shaking."

Arimura Jizaemon's right hand trembled violently as if convulsed.

He raised his left hand and squeezed his right hand tightly, trying to stop the shaking of his right hand.

But because his left hand was also shaking, after his left hand grasped his right wrist, the two palms moved each other, and both palms trembled more violently.

"I see... I'm nervous too." Kurosawa Tadasaburo also showed his two palms to Arimura Jizaemon—his hands were also trembling.

Although their hands and feet were shaking violently due to tension and fear, the firmness and determination in their eyes did not fade at all.

call!

The wind and snow were blowing harder.

Jing Yi's team has almost marched to their scheduled battle location.

Kurosawa Tadasaburo, who was in charge of their left-wing vanguard, breathed out another breath of white mist, put his right hand into his arms, and pulled out a revolver with a shiny barrel...

...

...

"Sakuro Okabe is responsible for staying behind. He must witness the successful beheading of Ii Naosuke with his own eyes, so he will not participate in the assassination."

"After the assassination was successful, Saito Kanmono handed over the "Letter of Execution of Traitors" to the old middle-aged man, so he stayed behind with Sankuro Okabe and did not participate in the assassination."

After all, Guan Tetsunosuke opened a brocade box beside him.

Inside the brocade box, lay five brand new revolvers quietly.

"These five short guns were given to me by Mr. Jin Zi."

"I'm in charge of holding one pole, and the other four—"

Guan Tetsunosuke took out a pistol from the brocade box.

"Saito Superintendent."

"Yes!" Saito Kanmono respectfully took the pistol from Guan Tetsunosuke with both hands.

"Inada Shigezo." Guan Tetsunosuke took out another pistol from the brocade box.

"Yes!" Inada Shigezo imitated Saito Kanmono's action just now, and took the gun from Guan Tetsunosuke's hand with both hands.

"Gorokuro Mori."

"yes!"

"Tadasaburo Kurosawa."

"yes!"

After distributing the four pistols to the four people headed by Saito Kanmono one by one, Seki Tetsunosuke returned to his serious sitting posture.

"After Mori-kun beheaded the leader of Ii's team, taking advantage of the weak defense around the sedan chair..."

Guan Tetsunosuke turned his gaze to Kurosawa Chusaburo.

"Kurosawa-kun, you are in charge of shooting the sedan chair with a short gun."

"Shoot at Ii Naosuke's sedan chair?"

"Yes." Guan Tetsunosuke nodded solemnly, "It would be best if he could be shot to death with a pistol on the spot."

"If you can't kill him directly, at least you should injure him."

"Naosuke Ii is a master of Iaido who created the 'new heart and new flow'."

"In terms of personal strength, he might be stronger than most of his guards."

"If we can injure him before the battle officially begins, it will undoubtedly greatly increase our chances of winning."

"...I understand!" Kurosawa Chusaburo nodded his head vigorously, clenched the pistol he was holding tightly, "Leave it to me!"

Guan Tetsunosuke moved his eyes and scanned the comrades around him.

"Everyone, the day we have been looking forward to has finally arrived!"

"Ii Naosuke's numerous crimes are beyond description."

"He disrespected His Majesty the Emperor. Without waiting for His Majesty's consent, he arbitrarily signed unequal treaties with the United States, France and other five countries that humiliated and humiliated the country."

"He has brought disaster to the country and the people. He bowed his knees to the outside world, tried to completely open the door to the country, abolished the "lock-down order" that had been practiced for two hundred years, and signed one after another unequal treaty with the Western barbarians; domestic cruel persecution with the ambition to destroy the barbarians patriots, countless people with lofty ideals were killed by him."

"He insulted our lord. My lord, he devoted himself to the country and the people, and devoted himself to the great cause of eliminating barbarians, but he was treated unfairly by Ii Naosuke."

"If such a national thief is allowed to continue doing evil, the country will be ruined!"

Guan Tetsunosuke stood up with a "huh", and while getting up, grabbed the saber resting on his right side.

"The day after tomorrow, with the sound of the gunshot as an excuse, after hearing Kurosawa-kun's gunshot, the two wings rushed out together and took down the head of Ii Naosuke!"

Guan Tetsunosuke held his saber horizontally in front of him.

"Use our swords to punish rebellious officials and thieves!"

"Use our swords to usher in a new era!"

"Heavenly Punishment Country Thief!"

Everyone who was infected by Guan Tetsunosuke's words grabbed their sabers and stood up excitedly.

"The traitor of Heavenly Punishment—! The traitor of Heavenly Punishment—! The traitor of Heavenly Punishment—!"

They held their knives high and kept shouting in unison.

...

...

"Tianzhu country thief... Tianzhu... country thief...!" Arimura Jizaemon kept repeating this sentence, trying to draw strength from these simple words.

Gorokuro Mori, who was in charge of beheading the vanguard of Ii's platoon, stood by the side of the street.

Dressed up as a ronin, he kept patting the "grievance complaint" that was in his arms and was going to pretend to be a grievance later.

Inada Shigezo and others who were in charge of launching the attack on the right wing are now sitting around a tea stand.

They pretended to be a group of country samurai who came to Edo for sightseeing, and while drinking hot tea bought from a tea shop, they pretended to discuss in low voices the Jingyi queue that had appeared outside the Sakurada Gate.

"Orange patterns are engraved on the sedan chair... this should be the queue of the Ii family, right?"

"Well, yes. The orange pattern is the family crest of the Ii family."

"As far as the family pattern is concerned, I still think the platycodon pattern and the gentian leaf pattern are the most beautiful."

When these big men came to the city, it was very common for country warriors to come to meet the world and see what the queues of these world-famous big families looked like, and no one would be suspicious when they saw them.

In order to act more naturally and make people less suspicious, someone even approached the young girl working in this tea stand with humorous words, which caused the girl to smile frequently.

Guan Tetsunosuke, who was in charge of the commander-in-chief, and Sankuro Okabe, who was in charge of witnessing the death of Ii Naosuke, and Saito Kanmono, who was in charge of handing the "Book of Beheading" to the old middle-aged man after the war, held up oil-paper umbrellas, wore cloaks, and pretended to be Passers-by followed Jing Yi far away at the end of the queue.

The wind blew harder.

More and more cold silver grains were rolled down.

...

...

Inside the sedan chair, Jing Yi Naobi breathed out into his cold hands.

At this time, a gust of wind flowed along the window of the sedan chair, and sent a crystal snowflake to the inside of the sedan chair.

Looking at this snowflake flying in front of his eyes like a firefly, Jingyi Naobi suddenly recalled the thing he had promised Ajiu just now—that he would draw inspiration from today's rare heavy snow, and write the song with snow as soon as possible. Waka on the theme.

"Heavy snow that is out of season..." Jing Yi Naobi tilted his head, looking at the cloudy sky outside the window, "Heh... it's quite artistic..."

Ii Naosuke focused on the snow scene outside the window.

Thinking about the content of the waka.

From time to time, he sang a satisfied song in a low voice.

...

...

"Arimura-kun, haven't you adjusted your state yet?" Kurosawa Tadasaburo glanced at Arimura Jizaemon's trembling hands.

Arimura Jizaemon smiled awkwardly: "Sorry..."

"...Don't think too much." Kurosawa Tadasaburo comforted softly, "When the war starts, you just need to move forward."

"Aim at the direction of Ii Naosuke's sedan chair, and stride forward."

"There is no need to think about all things and thoughts except 'forward'."

After finishing speaking, Kurosawa Chusaburo turned his gaze back to the street beyond the dark alley.

His gaze suddenly focused: "Here we come...!"

Jing Yi's queue...has finally arrived at their scheduled battle location!

Seeing this, Gorokuro Mori, who had been standing on the inconspicuous side of the road and shouldering the heavy responsibility of the first attack, raised his hands to his lips, breathed heavily into his palms, kicked the snow on the ground, and ran towards Ii Front of the queue.

"Young people, please play! Little people, please play!" Mori Gorokuro took out the "grievance petition" from his arms, "Please redress the villain's grievances, my lord! "

Ii's line was forced to stop abruptly by Mori Gorokuro who suddenly stood in front of them.

"Huh?" Jing Yizhi frowned, and asked outside the sedan chair, "What happened?"

"My lord." The deputy captain of the guards guarding the sedan chair: Kawanishi Chuzaemon responded in a deep voice, "There is a ronin standing in front of the team, and he said he has a grievance, please play."

"Resentment?" Jing Yi Naosuke frowned even tighter.

It is not uncommon for a samurai or a commoner to suddenly stop in front of the car or queue of a high-ranking official and ask the lord to avenge them.

In the Ii queue, the "priest" Kusakabe Saburoemon, who was in charge of handling such matters, hurried out of the queue and rushed to Mori Gorokuro, who was kneeling right in front of the queue.

"What's wrong with you..."

Before Kusakabe Saburoemon finished speaking, Mori Gorokuro threw the "grievance petition" in his hand to the sky.

At the same time, the bamboo hat on his head and the haori on his body were thrown to the sky.

Under the haori, there are clothes that have tied the sleeves on both sides with cuffs!

In the blink of an eye, when everyone in the Jingyi team didn't react, the red and fierce light in Mori Gorokuro's eyes popped out together with the icy cold light of the blade!

Mori Gorokuro, who is proficient in drawing swords, drew his sword suddenly, and the light of the sword cut a long and thin gap in the snow curtain, cutting off the throat of Kusakabe Saburoemon, and Kusakabe Saburoemon's body shook a few times. Down, fell heavily to the ground.

Hot blood splashed out along the tip of Mori Gorokuro's knife, splashed to the ground, and turned into blossoming red plums on the snow.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

"Hurry up and protect the adults!"

...

The originally orderly queue suddenly became chaotic.

Mori Gorokuro rushed to the nearest guard and smashed his chest with a cassock cut.

Inside the sedan chair, until just now, Naosuke Ii, who was still admiring the snowy scenery outside the sedan chair and thinking about the lyrics of Xinhe, was stunned when he heard the urgent voice of "enemy attack".

Immediately afterwards, his brows and eyes slowly emerged...a color that is difficult to describe in words...

Looking at Gorokuro Mori who had accomplished the task of "attracting attention", Kurosawa Chusaburo could only feel the blood rushing to his head.

He gritted his teeth, raised the revolver in his hand, pointed at the sedan chair not far away, and frantically tapped the trigger.

boom! boom! boom! boom……

All the bullets in the gun chamber were emptied by Kurosawa Chusaburo in one go.

Of the projectiles whizzing by, only two successfully hit Ii Naosuke in the sedan chair.

The only two bullets that hit Jing Yi Naosuke... one hit Jing Yi Naosuke's thigh, and the other hit Jing Yi Naobi's waist.

"Hmm!" Naosuke Ii, who felt a sharp pain in his waist and spine, felt a sweetness in his throat.

His mouth opened, and drops of blood flowed out from the corner of his mouth.

He tried to move his feet, but his lower body was completely numb...

The wind is blowing!

Goose feathers and heavy snow flew, and the sky and the earth merged into one color.

His vision was blocked by snow, and everything around him disappeared into a white snow curtain.

Kurosawa Chuzaburo threw away the revolver that was empty in his hand, and drew the Pegawanishi Chuemon sword from his waist.

"Heavenly Punishment!" Kurosawa Chusaburo yelled, and then took the lead and rushed to the battlefield!

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" His own sword followed Kurosawa Tadasaburo.

All the patriots on the left and right wings moved.

Members of the right wing who had been sitting around the tea stand pretending to be country warriors threw down their teacups one after another, pulled out their waist knives, and joined the battle.

"Heavenly punishment! Heavenly punishment!"

"Kill the national traitor!"

"Kill ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

...

The owner of the tea stand and the girl who worked at the tea stand were so frightened by the sudden change in front of them that their faces lost all color, and they didn't bother to clean up the stall, and hurriedly fled from the battlefield that had turned into a blood mill.

Because of the heavy snowfall, the guards of the Jingyi family all tied a handle on the handle of the knife, and the scabbard was wrapped in a sheath bag made of oiled paper, and a very strict snow prevention work was done. If it is opened, the knife cannot be pulled out.

Many people were hacked to death by the soldiers with lofty ideals in a daze when they hurriedly untied the handles.

Some guards simply didn't know how to remove the handle because they were anxious, and directly pulled out the knife with the sheath from their waists, using it as a stick.

The vice-captain Chuanishi Chuemon, who was guarding the sedan chair, hurriedly unhooked the handles of the two knives around his waist, and at the same time shouted sharply to the bearers in charge of carrying the sedan chair, "Take your lord back to the mansion!"

Shouting and killing shook the sky, blood and broken limbs were scattered in all directions.

The patriots frantically launched an assault, beheading all Jingyi guards who stood in front of them.

Liyuan dignitaries in charge of the follow-up, Goro Hasuda and others witnessed this increasingly fierce battle to the death, and they could only see their blood boiling.

Li Yuan asked someone to throw away the oiled paper umbrella in his hand, tore off the feathers on his body, drew out his knife, and joined the battle.

"Heavenly Punishment!" Li Yuan slashed the back of the head of a guard who was fighting with his companion from behind.

However, just after he beheaded a Jingyi guard, his forehead was accidentally attacked by the person beside him, and a big cut was cut on his forehead.

(When the battle starts, you just need to move forward. Aim in the direction of Ii Naosuke's sedan chair and stride forward.)

The words Kurosawa Chusaburo said to him just now flashed through Arimura Jizaemon's mind at this moment.

"Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! He hit the head of a guard standing in front of him.

--forward……

After breaking through the resistance of the two, Arimura Jizaemon felt as if someone had chopped off his left shoulder.

He was obviously stabbed, but strangely, he didn't feel any pain at all.

The tension and fear that had been bothering him just now, for some reason, after the battle started, he couldn't feel it at all.

At this moment, there is only one thought left in his mind.

Aim at the direction of Ii Naosuke's sedan chair, and stride forward.

forward!

Arimuraji Saemon turned his sword back and cut down another guard who was standing in front of him.

--forward……!

He galloped forward with a gale of wind and raging waves, killing with a flash of a knife! Dodge and kill again! Blood instantly stained his knife and clothes red.

A splash of hot blood splashed on Arimurajizaemon's left eye, but he couldn't spare his hand to wipe it off, so he continued to kill the enemy with the only remaining right eye.

--forward!

A bodyguard cut Arimura Jizaemon's right cheek.

Arimurajizaemon, who didn't feel the slightest pain, let the blood gurgle from the wound on his right cheek, and beheaded the guard who disfigured him with his backhand.

--forward! ! !

Gathering all his energy and rushing forward, Arimura Tsuzaemon realized that he had rushed very deep into Ii's formation.

Ii Naosuke's sedan chair... is just 3 meters away from him!

Chuzaemon Kawanishi, the deputy team leader who is a master of two swords, is like a door god at this time, holding two swords in his hand, and guarding the sedan chair behind him.

The bearers who were in charge of carrying the sedan chair had either been killed or fled, and the sedan chair had fallen on the snow.

The first one to break through the defensive lines and break into the vicinity of the sedan chair was Shigeno Shigeno on the right wing.

Inada Shigezo slashed at Kawanishi Chuzaemon, but his slash was blocked by Kawanishi Chuzaemon with his left hand. After controlling Inada Shigezo's sword, Kawanishi Chuzaemon swung The saber in the right hits the vital point of Paddy Shigezo.

Inada Shigezo's body shook a few times, then he leaned back and lay down on the ground, lifeless.

Kawanishi Chuzaemon, who can serve as the deputy captain of the Ii Guards, is naturally quite superb in swordsmanship.

However... there is no shortage of warriors with outstanding swordsmanship.

The second one to break through the line of defense and get to the side of the sedan chair was Jiro Hirokako.

His sword drew a sharp arc, approaching Kawanishi Chuzaemon's neck, Kawanishi Chuzaemon raised his sword to intercept.

At this time, Arimura Jizaemon came!

He seized the gap, took advantage of the fact that Kawanishi Chuzaemon was fighting with Hirooka Konojiro, and rushed forward, cutting towards Kawanishi Chuzaemon's vitals.

Kawanishi Chuzaemon narrowly avoided the fatal attack, but his left shoulder was accidentally cut by Arimurajizaemon.

The fourth person with lofty ideals to kill the sedan chair - Kurosawa Chusaburo was killed at this moment.

Three people including Murasawa Chuzaemon, Kurosawa Chuzaemon, and Hirokako Nojiro attacked Kawanishi Chuzaemon from three different directions.

Kawanishi Chuzaemon, who was hard to beat with six hands, finally got a fatal blow.

But before dying, he used the remaining strength in his body to carry out the last counterattack before he died. He slashed vertically, from the forehead of Hirokako Jiro to the corner of his mouth, which made people feel that his teeth were sour. There was the sound of bones breaking.

Jiro Hirokako uttered a scream, and fell to the ground, his body convulsing uncontrollably.

Arimura Jizaemon no longer cared about checking on his companions.

After finally beheading Kawanishi Chuzaemon, Arimura Jizaemon gritted his teeth, stomped his feet on the ground, and rushed towards the sedan chair like an arrow!

"Heavenly Punishment—!"

Arimura Jizaemon put all his strength on the sword in his hand, and stabbed the sword into the sedan chair.

The sharp point of the sword pierced Ii Naosuke's body, which was covered in cold sweat and unable to move due to the damage to the waist.

"Cough, cough cough!" The blood flowing from Jing Yi Naobi's mouth and nose has already stained most of Jing Yi Naobi's body, "It's over...is it..."

"Get out! Country thief!"

Arimura Jizaemon made a big move, reached into the sedan chair, grabbed Ii Naosuke by the skirt, and dragged Ii Naosuke out of the sedan chair.

Ii Naosuke who was dragged to the snow ground squeezed out the last bit of strength left in his body, and pulled out the wakizasa around his waist.

Arimura Jizaemon swung his sword in a posture above, and slashed at Ii Naosuke's neck, but Ii Naosuke blocked him with the wakizashi in his hand.

If it is in its prime, Naosuke Ii, who is proficient in Iaido, and also has good attainments in martial arts such as jujitsu, is not afraid to fight all the way so far, and Ari Murjizaemon is quite tired.

However... his waist and spine had been broken by bullets, his lower body was completely numb, and he could display less than 10% of his strength.

Parrying Arimura Tsuzaemon's slash—this was the limit of what Ii Naosuke could do so far.

He was already powerless to defend against Arimura Jizaemon's second attack.

"Cough, cough cough..." Jing Yi Naobi coughed up some sticky blood mixed with saliva.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Ii Naosuke...he suddenly laughed.

On this bloody battlefield, when he was about to lose his life, he showed a frank smile.

"I really... fell into the hands of... you guys... who think that only swords and killing... can usher in a new era..."

"Stupid rats...! Superstitious belief in swords and killing... will only lead this country to evil ways...!"

Jingyi Naosuke's words, which were uttered with the last strength, were playing the piano to the cow after all.

Arimura Jizaemon, who was in high spirits and extremely excited, could no longer hear any sound.

He raised the knife in his hand high again.

The shadow cast by the blade blocked Ii Naosuke's vision.

Jingyi Naobi laughed a few more times, tilted his head back, and rested the back of his head on the thick snow.

His eyes, which were gradually losing their vitality, looked at the sky where "the black clouds overwhelmed the city."

"The future of the shogunate...what should we do...?"

He asked the sky.

Arimura Jizaemon's sharp blade swung down.

In an instant, Ii Naosuke's neck spurted blood.

The head fell to the ground.

Jing Yi Naobi's magnanimity was mixed with a bit of regret and... an apologetic smile, blooming in a pool of blood.

The blood spurted from Ii Naosuke's severed head splashed Arimura Jizaemon all over his face.

After wiping the blood splattered on his face, Arimura Jizaemon vigorously reached out, grabbed Ii Naosuke's head and held it up high: "The head of the national thief was taken off——!"

Looking at the head held high by Arimura Jizaemon, the cheeks of Seki Tetsunosuke, who was in charge of staying behind and directing the scene, glowed rosy with excitement: "Arimura, well done ! Well done!"

This bloody fight lasted for about a quarter of an hour, and they finally won a brilliant victory!

Due to the surprise attack in the heavy snow and the fact that it was too late to remove the sheath from the knife handle, a large number of Jingyi guards were killed before they even had time to make a decent resistance.

Those who were still alive either passed out, or their morale collapsed after seeing Jingyi Naosuke's head being taken away, and they fled in despair.

The battlefield that screamed to kill the sky suddenly returned to silence.

The patriots retreated in all directions as planned.

Arimura Tsuzaemon, who took down the head of Ii Naosuke himself, shouldered the important task of taking the head away.

He fled in the direction of Hibiya Gate with Hirokako Konojiro, who was badly wounded by the sword in his forehead.

The warm blood that had been flooding all over the body slowly faded away... Arimura Tsuzaemon felt the pain returning to his body little by little.

Limbs, torso, head... There is no place on the whole body that does not ache.

Looking down, the number of wounds on his body was already shocking.

The body hurts, but the mood is extremely carefree.

Neither he nor Jiro Hirokako next to him noticed at this time—behind them, there was a seriously injured man holding a knife, limping on the snow, chasing them both.

The seriously injured man was named Ogawara Hidenojo.

He fought desperately on the battlefield just now, and fought until he suffered several wounds and passed out.

When he woke up, he happened to see the scene where Jingyi Naobi's head was beheaded and taken away.

His lord was killed, and his head was taken away... This kind of humiliation, Hidenoko Ogawara couldn't bear it no matter what!

Driven by this grief and indignation, Hidenojo Ogawara felt new power pouring out of his body.

With this new surge of power, Hidenojo Ogawara stubbornly pursued Arimura Jizaemon and Hirokako Jiro regardless of his own injuries.

His footsteps were muffled by the wind and snow.

In addition, Arimura Jizaemon and the others were all seriously injured and in extremely poor condition, so they didn't notice the pursuers behind them at all...

Hidenojo Ogawara smoothly approached behind Arimura Jirozaemon, and without hesitation raised his sword and struck!

The blade hit the back of Mururajizaemon's head, and cut a huge and terrifying cut.

Blood trickled out from this large wound, and in the blink of an eye, all the cloth on the back of Arimurajizaemon's body was stained red.

Seeing the pursuers, Jiro Hirooka quickly turned around and cut Ogawara Hidenojo to the ground.

Hidenojo Ogawara, who was lying on his back, struggled a few times...and stopped moving.

"Hmm...!" The extremely intense dizziness and severe pain made Arimura Jizaemon feel as if his body was about to be twisted and torn apart.

After taking a few unsteady steps forward, Arimurajizaemon couldn't hold on any longer and fell to the ground.

"Hirooka-kun...I seem to...can't do it..."

"Haha..." Hirokako Jiro laughed a few times, "I can't do it anymore... I can't stand anymore..."

Arimura Jizaemon raised his head, and found that he had just fallen in front of the gate of Wakenyo: Endo Tajimamori's mansion.

"I'm right here... let's kill myself...!"

Arimura Jizaemon braced his body and mind, and sat upright.

He placed Ii Naosuke's head by his side, and pulled open the skirt of the kimono, exposing his belly.

Seeing the posture of Arimura Jiro Zaemon, Hirokako Jiro grinned a few times, then walked forward a few more steps unsteadily, and came to the gate of the residence of the princes: the Sakai family: " Then I... let me be a benevolent person here..."

After finishing speaking, Jiro Hirokako knelt down on the ground and pulled open the skirt of the kimono to reveal his belly.

Arimuraji Zaemon pulled out the Wakizashi from his left waist, and aimed the knife point at his left abdomen.

He was about to die—but Arimura Jizaemon felt no fear or regret.

His face was full of pride, and the corners of his mouth curled into a proud and optimistic arc.

We have successfully defeated Jingyi Naobi, a big country thief who has brought disaster to the country and the people!

As long as there is no such national thief, this country will be able to get on the right track and prosper!

Our sword - successfully ushered in a new era!

With this supreme sense of pride and honor, Arimuraji Zaemon stabbed Wakisashi into his left abdomen, and then pulled it to the right abdomen in one breath...

...

...

Ii's mansion——

After sending Jing Yi Naobi away from home, Ajiu returned to her and Jing Yi Naobi's bedroom.

Suddenly, she found a piece of paper floating alone in the corner of Ii Naosuke's desk.

Picking up this piece of paper and looking at it—it was the waka that Jingyi Naosuke said last night.

"Scattered cherry blossoms are crushed into dust...still full of fragrance..."

call……

A gust of wind suddenly poured in from the window at this moment, messing up the hair on Ajiu's temples.

Ajiu seemed to have sensed it, put down the poem in his hand, and stared blankly at the sky outside the window...

"Master Ii..."

...

...

Edo, Koishikawa Kohinata Yanagi-cho, Shouweikan——

The sudden heavy snow made Okita no longer interested in watching the peach blossoms.

Due to the early time and the bad weather today, no apprentices have come to practice swords in the Weiwei Hall until now, so Qingdeng and Chong Tian were able to share the spacious dojo.

While Qingdeng was concentrating on training with Okita in the dojo, Kondo-kun suddenly entered the dojo.

"Mr. Ju, there is a man who claims to be a slave of Bei Fan looking for you, and he is waiting for you at the gate now."

"A servant from Beifan?" Qing Deng raised his eyebrows.

——A servant of the Beifan Office? Find me?

Qingdeng put down the bamboo sword in his hand with a puzzled face, and hurried to the gate of the testing hall.

After arriving at the gate, Qingdeng saw a hurried young man outside the gate.

"Ah, Master Tachibana!" Seeing that Qingdeng had finally arrived, the young man hurriedly rushed forward, "Master Susuki issued an emergency order, requesting Dingcho Hui and Temporary Hui to rush to Sakurada Gate immediately !"

"Sakura Tian Gate?" Qing Deng was taken aback, "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"I don't know the specific matters..."

"I see." Qingdeng nodded, "Thank you for reporting."

Suddenly issued an emergency order during the holiday... The only reason Qingdeng could think of was that something happened at the Sakurada Gate.

And it shouldn't be too small...

Asking to go back to the town, temporarily return all the power, and go to a certain place immediately... In Qingdeng's memory, there has never been an order of this level...

After entering the test hall, Qingdeng quickly changed his clothes, put on the snowproof hat and cloak, put on the ten hands, seal cage, and the treasured sword that Ii Naosuke had given him the day before yesterday, and then fought with Kondo and Okita After saying hello, he hurried to Sakurada Gate with Saito.

After rushing to an intersection a short distance away from Yingtian Gate, Qingdeng saw a large number of citizens gathered in front of him.

They gathered outside the cordon formed by the bodies of the executioners and their own servants, stretched their necks, and kept looking inside the cordon.

"Hey! What happened at the Sakurada Gate?" A citizen asked.

"I don't know!" A guard who formed the cordon shouted impatiently, "I don't know what happened! It's all gone! It's gone! There's nothing to see!"

Seeing this, Qingdeng immediately frowned.

The cordon... stretched so far? There is still a long distance from Sakurada Gate...

Bad premonitions began to emerge from Qingdeng's heart continuously...

"I'm Tongxin from Beifan's Dingchohui! Give way!" Qingdeng drove away the citizens standing in front of him, checked the identities of the guards who formed the cordon, and entered the cordon with Saito Inside.

After running a certain distance in the direction of Sakurada Gate, the expression on Qingdeng's face became uncontrollably serious.

He slowly smelled the smell of blood in the air.

The closer you get to the Sakurada Gate, the stronger the disgusting smell of blood becomes...

Finally—Qingdeng finally arrived at the gate of Sakura Field.

Qingdeng couldn't help being stunned for a moment by the extreme shock at the scene outside the Sakura Field Gate.

The blood-stained dark red and black snow, the scattered missing limbs, the unrepentant dead, the broken blade...

Quite a few familiar faces of Qingdeng were shuttling back and forth on this bloody battlefield with extremely ugly expressions.

"Master Arima! Mr. Inoya! Mr. Ushiyama!" Qingdeng quickly ran towards the three seniors who were standing not far from him.

"Tachibana-kun, you're here..." Arima, who was wearing a grand gown that hadn't been changed yet, had a gloomy expression, as if black water was about to drip.

Qing Deng asked anxiously, "What happened?"

"...The team of Ii's family was assassinated when they were going to Edo Castle." Arima said, taking deep breaths to keep himself calm, "Old Ii...has been killed..."

"What...?!" Qingdeng opened his eyes suddenly.

He raised his head quickly and glanced around.

After a while, he found a headless corpse next to a sedan chair with Jing Yi's "orange pattern" on the roof not far from him.

Even though the corpse had lost its head, Qingdeng could still recognize it at a glance just by looking at its torso—it was Jingyi Naobi who was talking and laughing with him the day before yesterday...

The feeling of trance that had just disappeared, came back again.

Looking at the dead body of Ii Naosuke, Qingdeng felt dizzy and unreal...

The day before yesterday, Jingyi Naosuke was still joking with him.

Around his waist, there is still hanging the treasured sword handed to him by Jingyi Naobi...

died?

That Elder Jingyi... died just like that?

(Old Jingyi is like breaking a magic arrow, suppressing countless demons and ghosts)

For some reason, the words that Shannan casually said to him yesterday surfaced in Qingdeng's mind.

Qingdeng, who couldn't stop the shock in his eyes, looked at his colleagues who were shuttling outside the Sakurada Gate with a slightly numb expression, at the corpses all over the ground, at the still cloudy sky, at the Like the snow that never stops...

Qingdeng can't help murmuring in a volume that only he himself can hear clearly:

"The ghosts and monsters are about to run out..."

...

...

Edo Castle, Oku——

"What did you say?!"

Tianzhangyuan, who usually speaks in a soft voice, rarely uttered sharp shouts.

Kneeling in front of her, the trembling female officer repeated what she had just said.

After repeated confirmation with the female officer, Tianzhangyuan's body seemed to have lost its bone support, and it staggered back a few steps, almost falling to the ground.

...

...

Tokugawa Iemo learned the news of "Ii Naosuke's murder" almost at the same time as Tenzhangin.

"Ii...is dead...?" Tokugawa Iemo's pale face made Feixue outside the hall pale by comparison.

...

...

Edo, in a dilapidated house on the outskirts——

"Everyone! You should already know it?!"

The leader of the barbarian group: Shen Ye, said loudly to the dozen or so cadres of the barbarian group who were sitting in front of him, who were also in high spirits.

"More than a dozen Mito feudal vassals successfully punished that traitor Ii Naosuke!"

"This is the fate of bowing to the barbarians and forcing the founding of the country!"

Kanno untied the saber from his waist and swung it forward.

"We also have knives in our hands!"

"Our swords are no duller than the swords of the Mito feudal vassals!"

"What the Mito feudal vassals can do, we Kuizu can do too!"

"Our swords can protect this country just like the swords of the Mito feudal vassals!"

As soon as Kanno's words fell, the members of the extermination team whose morale was unprecedentedly high due to the "Changes Outside the Sakurada Gate" shouted loudly in unison——

"Oh oh oh oh--!"

...

...

Mito Domain, somewhere——

"Ii Naobi is dead..."

With his upper body bare, the Rakshasa, who exposed the "Raksha Ghost" tattoo covering his entire back, stood by the window with his hands behind his back, looking at the scenery outside the window.

"Yes." A young man kneeling behind Raksha said loudly, "It's confirmed. The vassals of the Mito Domain asked for the head of Ii Naosuke outside the Sakurada Gate."

"...You did a great job! Mito feudal vassals." Raksha grinned, "Is that Ii Naosuke dead... Ha... ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha...!"

Raksha looked up to the sky and laughed wildly, both palms caressing each other ceaselessly.

"Okay... this annoying guy is finally dead..."

"The world is about to become interesting!"

"Hahaha... I really want to know how Lord Orochi reacted after he learned about this..."

"The era of our law-killing party has come!"

A ferocious red light emerged from Rakshasa's pupils.

...

...

Edo, Senjiya——

Kiryu silently threw the piece of paper he had been looking at just now into the stove beside him.

On the piece of paper that Kiryu had looked at for a long time just now, there was actually only a simple sentence written - Naosuke Ii was killed.

Looking at the pieces of paper gradually reduced to ashes in the stove, Kiryu sighed heavily.

"The real chaos is coming..."

*****

*****

Today is a rare 10,000-word chapter!

This chapter, the author is quite satisfied with the writing. Whether it's rhythm, content, or concept.

For this chapter, the author has checked a lot, a lot of historical materials. For the sake of the author's conscience, please give me a monthly ticket! (Leopard Head Crying.jpg)