I formed the strongest swordsman group

As the strategist of the Shinsengumi, Shannan Keisuke immediately understood what Aoto meant as soon as he finished speaking.

"Tachibana-kun, this is too risky! In my opinion, tonight's 'Yamaboko Parade' should be canceled no matter what! Otherwise, wouldn't it be putting the lives of the entire town in desperate danger?"

As soon as Shannan Keisuke finished speaking, Hijikata Toshizo shrugged:

"Shannan, unfortunately, I have the same opinion as Tachibana."

"Canceling tonight's 'Yamaboko Parade' is different from shouting at the top of your lungs to all the patriots in Kyoto: 'Pay attention! We, the Shinsengumi, are coming to arrest you.'"

"Although this is very risky... but as Tachibana said just now, tonight is not only a crisis of 'destruction of Kyoto', but also a good opportunity to 'severely inflict heavy damage on the Zunbo Sect'!"

After Shannan Jingzhu listened, he frowned in deep thought.

At this time, Qingdeng spoke again:

"Looking back at the past, we are always in the 'light' and the Zunhuang faction is always in the 'dark'."

"Now, the positions of both parties have finally reversed."

"The Zunhuang faction stood in the light, while we hid in the darkness."

"Miyabe Daizo, Katsura Kogoro and others still don't know that Kotaka Shuntaro has confessed everything."

"We already know that the Zunbang faction will hold a summit meeting tonight, but the latter knows nothing about it."

"If we don't make good use of this once-in-a-lifetime intelligence gap and miss the precious opportunity to severely damage the Zunbang Sect, wouldn't it be heartbreaking?"

"It is absolutely impossible to mobilize large forces to blockade Kyoto."

"Kyoto is too big. The best we can do is block the highway leaving Beijing."

"As for those remote and strange trails, we simply can't take care of them."

"Even if we invite the help of the Aizu Army and the Satsuma Army, we cannot completely blockade Kyoto. We will only let Miyabe Daizo, Katsura Kogoro and others slip away from under our noses."

"To sum up, I still stand by my opinion."

"Gather the best people in the Shinsengu group—that is, all the captains and vice-captains—to gather together! As a small force, we will raid the meeting site of the Zunbo faction!"

Qingden finished speaking.

His tone is sonorous and powerful, and his words reveal an undeniable toughness.

However, Shannan Keisuke also gave up his idea.

After thinking for a moment, he whispered:

"Having said that... if we only send out the captain and vice-captain, the number of people will be too small."

"Miss Sanako and Miss Mai are both nursing their babies and cannot participate in the war."

"Yamazaki-kun is not good at fighting."

"Even counting everyone here, the total combat strength is just over twenty people."

"We don't know the specific number of people on the other side or the number of experts."

"They might also carry hidden arrows, pistols and other weapons."

"Anyway, to surprise the Zunping sect's meeting with this number of people... I still think it's too risky."

Qingdeng smiled slightly:

"That's just right!"

"The small number of people means that they can move flexibly, hide easily, and be difficult to detect."

"Tonight's battle is all about 'strange'."

"Be fast, hide your whereabouts, and attack ruthlessly!"

"If we mobilize a hundred and eighty people, regardless of the fact that the movement will become slower, the huge noise alone will be enough to scare away Miyabe Daizo, Katsura Kogoro and others."

After hearing this, Shannan Keisuke pursed his lips.

After a while, he sighed silently and said no more words.

It seemed that he had agreed with Qingdeng's statement and no longer refuted it.

However, at this moment, Hijikata suddenly poured a basin of cold water on the scene.

"The only problem now is... we have not yet confirmed the venue and time of the meeting."

"If you don't even know the time and place where the enemy will appear, then a surprise attack is out of the question."

Qingdeng nodded lightly:

"We can only hope that Division 9 can find accurate and correct information as soon as possible."

"We don't have to deal with this kind of matter that tests our luck for the time being."

"We just need to do our best now and wait for destiny!"

Having said this, he raised his gaze and swept it across the faces of Hijikata Toizan and others.

"After summoning all captains and vice-captains, head to Kyoto in batches!"

"The meeting point is the Gion Club in Gion!"

After Aoshito finished speaking, Hijikata Toshizo, Kondo Isamu and Shannan Keisuke immediately sat upright and shouted in unison:

"yes!"

…

…

As soon as the military order is issued, everyone rushes up and down!

It is unknown how many spies from the Zunfaction faction are closely monitoring the Zhenfufu in Otsu and the Shinsengumi camp in Mibu Township in Kyoto.

In order to maintain confidentiality to the extreme, Qingdeng tried his best.

First, everyone, including Qingden, hid their identities, put on hats and cloaks, mounted fast horses, and headed for Kyoto in batches.

Since the people with lofty ideals have made a lot of fake actions to confuse their judgment, Qingdeng should also treat others in his own way.

He sent a large number of manpower, either towards Kanto, Osaka, or Nagasaki, all of them covering their bodies and faces, so that the spies of the Zunbo faction could not judge what the Shinsengumi was going to do, and what the details were. It is unclear who these people are who are traveling all over the world to hide their true intentions.

In addition, he deliberately released the news that "Nioh is going to watch tonight's 'Yamaboko Parade' and enjoy it with the people", creating the illusion that "Tachibana Aoden is careless and does not know that something big will happen tonight."

After Ayoto and others arrived in Kyoto secretly, they did not go to the camp in Mibu Township - where the largest number of Zunbo faction spies were located - but went straight to the Gion Club in Gion and completed the gathering there.

Naturally, it was impossible for Qingteng to bring all the elites to Kyoto. He always had to leave some people to guard Otsu in case of unexpected events.

Therefore, he asked Shannan Keisuke to stay in Otsu, and also kept Ito Koshitaro, Takeda Kanryusai and others.

Finally, the list of people who went to Kyoto and participated in tonight's battle is as follows——

General Tachibana Aoden.

Deputy Chief Hijikata Toshizo.

Director Isamu Kondo.

First team captain, deputy captain, Tachibanaji, Shimazaki Kui.

The captain and vice-captain of the second division, Shinpachi Nagakura and Noboru Nakajima.

The captain and vice-captain of the third division are Saito Ichi and Nakazawa Sadato.

The captain and vice-captain of the Fourth Division are Serizawa Kamo and Tani Sanjuro.

The captain and vice-captain of the fifth division are Nishiki Nimi and Mantaro Tani.

Captain and deputy captain of the 6th division, Genzaburo Inoue, and chief planner Souma.

The deputy captain of the seventh division, Qin Nakazawa.

The captain and deputy captain of the eighth division are Heisuke Toudo and Kanichiro Yoshimura.

The captain and deputy captain of the 10th division are Sanosuke Harada and Tadashi Matsubara.

20 people in total.

In addition to Captain Sanako of the 7th Division, Captains Tachibana Mai and Yamazaki Hao of the 9th Division, Juro Abe and Risaburo Nomura, the chief and deputy captains of the 11th Division, the captains and vice-captains of each division of the Shinsengumi all participated in tonight's event. Fight!

It is no exaggeration to say that this is undoubtedly the all-star lineup of the Shinsengumi!

Since the "August 18th coup", the Shinsengumi has never conducted a military operation of this scale!

The citizens of Kyoto who are celebrating the Gion Festival and the lofty ideals who are still kept in the dark probably never thought that today, the strongest and most skilled warrior in the Shinsengumi... Those who have come to Beijing quietly have gathered at the Gion Club!

Gion Club – The government agency responsible for overseeing Gion.

The club is located in front of the Jisei-in Gate, which is responsible for carrying out Gion society affairs and rituals. There are few pedestrians in this area.

Qingdeng specially chose this place as the launching point for his attack!

…

…

It's day, evening——

Kyoto, Gion, Gion Club——

Before anyone arrived, Nagakura Shinpachi’s loud and loud voice arrived first:

"The armor is here! Everyone, line up to get the armor!"

Nagakura Shinpachi, Shimada Kui and Nakajima Noboru each carried a large wooden box and ran into the Gion Club at speed.

Hearing three muffled sounds of "bang", "bang" and "bang", they put down the large wooden box on their shoulders in no particular order.

Open the box - it's filled with shiny pieces of armor.

Chain mail, hand armor, foot armor and forehead protector were all available, all of which had just been quietly taken from the Rensheng Township camp.

Everyone lined up in an orderly manner, received their armor, and dressed neatly one by one.

…

"Huh...huh...huh...huh...huh..."

The deputy captain of the 10th Squadron, Matsubara Tadashi, spread his legs and lowered his waist. He stood alone in an open place, waving the large naginata in his hand like a windmill. While moving his muscles and bones, he took deep breaths repeatedly to adjust his emotions and suppress them. A racing heart.

Harada Sanosuke noticed Matsubara Tadashi's nervousness, walked over with a smile, and said:

"Matsuhara, don't be nervous!"

"This task is very easy! There is no need to use your brain! Just kill the enemy when you encounter it, it's that simple!"

"Let's chat and relax."

"Do you know where this scar on my stomach came from? When I was still in the middle of the Iyo Matsuyama Domain, a bastard called me a 'little official who doesn't even know the etiquette of seppuku'..."

Matsubara Tadashi suddenly showed a bitter face:

"Captain, I've heard this story thousands of times..."

…

Saitoichi: "..."

Nakazawa Sadaki: "..."

The captain and deputy captain of the third division sat face to face, sharpening the blade in silence.

At this moment, Nakazawa Sada suddenly and rarely took the initiative to ask Saitoichi opposite:

"Mr. Saito, do you think tonight's battle will go smoothly?"

Faced with this question from Nakazawa Saduki, Saitoichi did not immediately answer, but said calmly:

"Nakazawa, don't talk when you are sharpening the blade. If you don't pay attention when sharpening the knife, you can easily hurt yourself. Besides, I don't want to see your spittle on my knife."

"Sorry...I was abrupt."

Nakazawa Sada only thought that this conversation would end there.

Unexpectedly, Saito Kazuo went on to say:

"Nakazawa, you think too much."

"Whether tonight's operation goes well or not - this is not something we should think about."

"We are swordsmen who wield swords to kill our enemies."

"In this case, the only thing we have to do is to listen to Mr. Tachibana's order and wave the sword without hesitation when we encounter the enemy."

"Everything other than that is beyond our consideration."

Nakazawa Sadao just looked at Saitoichi blankly.

In his mind, this was the first time that he heard Saitoichi speak so many words. Fortunately, no one heard his sentiments, otherwise the person would have sighed: In terms of reticence, you, Nakazawa Sada, It's not much better. Where do you have the confidence to laugh at a hundred steps at fifty steps?

About 5 seconds later, Nakazawa Sadao slowly recovered from the surprise of "Saito Ichi can actually say so many words" and nodded solemnly:

"Well, you're right."

…

Serizawa Kako and Niimi Nishiki leaned against the wall, drinking cool water to cool off and chatting casually.

"Serizawa, think about it carefully, the 'August 18th Coup' was almost a year ago."

"We have been doing nothing for the whole year, and there are no big battles to fight."

"I feel like my body is almost rusted."

"We can finally do a good job this time."

As he said this, Niimi Nishiki showed a look of deep emotion.

After hearing this, Serizawa Kako shrugged and sneered:

"Huh! That's hard to say!"

As he said this, he turned his head to look at the sky outside the window that was gradually dyed with ink.

"It's getting darker, but the meeting time and location have not been confirmed yet."

"Whether we can catch all those bastards is still a question."

"To put it bluntly, we may come up empty-handed tonight."

...

"I'm back!"

Fujido Heisuke, who was sweating all over, took off the Sojuro headscarf he used to disguise himself as soon as he returned to the club.

Inoue Genzaburo went up to him and asked:

"What's the situation outside?"

Fujido Heisuke smiled bitterly:

"There are more and more pedestrians on the street, people are everywhere, and it's almost impossible to walk in some places."

Inoue Genzaburo looked helpless:

"After all, today is the day of the 'Yamaboko Parade', and everyone is going to watch the Yamaboko."

After hearing the words "Yamaboko Parade", Fujido Heisuke's face fell immediately:

"Those crazy people in Choshu are planning to burn down Kyoto tonight... What a sin...!"

...

"Huh? Huh? Ah... Strange, strange..."

Nakazawa Koto stretched her hands behind her back, trying to pull at something - she couldn't button the buttons on the back of her chain mail.

Her hands fumbled behind her back, and her whole body was about to twist into a knot.

Suddenly, a gentle voice sounded from behind him:

"Ms. Nakazawa, let me help you."

Before he finished speaking, Souji had already moved behind Koto Nakazawa and helped her put on the chain mail.

Because the height difference between the two was quite large (Souji was 1.55 meters, Koto Nakazawa was 1.73 meters), Souji had to tiptoe slightly.

"Captain Okita?!"

Koto Nakazawa was shocked and said quickly:

"How can this be possible? How can I let you, the captain, help me put on the chain mail?"

After marrying Aoto, Souji changed his name to "Tachibana Tsukasa".

However, the name "Okita Souji" is too loud.

Just like "Niou·Tachibana Aoto", "Tenken·Okita Souji" has become the golden signboard of the Shinsengumi.

Compared to "Tachibana Tsukasa", both the enemy and the enemy are more accustomed to "Okita Souji".

Therefore, until now, most people still habitually call Souji "Captain Okita" or "Okita-kun".

Souji didn't mind it.

In her opinion, whether it was "Tachibana Tsukasa" or "Okita Souji", they all referred to her, so she welcomed it no matter which name was used to call her.

Facing Nakazawa Koto's shyness, Souji smiled:

"It's just a little help, you don't have to be so reserved. Okay, it's already put on."

While speaking, she had already helped the other person button up the back of the chain mail.

"Captain Okita, thank you very much!"

Nakazawa Koto stood straight, with a solemn expression, and bowed to Souji in a serious manner.

Souji smiled helplessly:

"I told you, don't be reserved...ah, Tachibana-kun!"

At this time, Souji, with his sharp eyes, keenly discovered the tall figure who was walking into the club in a hurry - it was Aoto who had just arrived in Kyoto.

Aoto was the last group of people to go to Kyoto.

Kondo Isami and Hijikata Toshizo followed closely on his left and right.

As soon as these words came out, everyone at the scene stopped what they were doing and turned to look at Qing Deng.

Qing Deng waved his hand:

"You guys continue to stand by."

Then, he, Hijikata Toshizo, and Kondo Isami walked into the depths of the clubhouse and disappeared in a short while.

Although Qing Deng and the others didn't say anything, based on their expressions and movements, everyone had vaguely guessed that the 9th Division had not yet found out the specific time and place of the meeting!

Seeing this, Serizawa Ya twisted her mouth:

"The situation is not optimistic..."

...

After entering the inner room of the clubhouse, Qing Deng and the others found a piece of open space at random and sat on the ground, forming a "品" shape.

Hijikata Toshizo took out a map of Kyoto from his bosom, spread it on the knees of the three people, and said:

"All the soldiers of the 9th Division lurking in Kyoto have been dispatched to try their best to find the whereabouts of Miyabe Teizo, Katsura Kogoro and others, as well as the meeting place and time tonight."

"But unfortunately... So far, no accurate information has been received."

"However, based on the various intelligence currently available, the meeting place can be basically determined to be in the northern area from Gion to Sanjo Avenue."

As he spoke, he stretched out his finger and drew the range on the map.

After reading it, Kondo Isami immediately changed to a solemn expression:

"Although the range has been narrowed, the area from Gion to Sanjo Avenue is still not small..."

He turned his head to look at the sky outside the window, and then said to Qing Deng:

"Tachibana-kun, it is dark and night has come... What should we do now?"

After the voice fell, he stared at Qing Deng.

Hijikata Toshizo also raised his eyes and looked straight at Aoto, waiting for Aoto's instructions.

Facing the gazes of the two, Aoto lowered his eyelids and looked at the map in front of his knees without blinking, looking thoughtful.

He had expected the 9th Division to find out the information, confirm the meeting place and time, or directly find out the specific whereabouts of Miyabe Teizo, Katsura Kogoro and others.

Unfortunately... Judging from the current situation, his expectations are going to be dashed.

It is now dark, the "Yamaboko Tour" is about to begin, and the Sonjo Faction's summit meeting must be held soon.

Should I continue to wait for news from the 9th Division?

Or...

Aoto fell into deep thought - the decision he makes next will largely determine the fate of Kyoto tonight, and may even directly affect the future!

Miyabe Teizo, Katsura Kogoro, Yoshida Minoru... These people are to the Sonjo Faction what Hijikata Toshizo, Nagakura Shinpachi, and Saito Ichi are to the Shinsengumi.

They are undoubtedly the backbone of the Sonnōjō faction!

If Qing Deng and others can successfully launch a surprise attack on the meeting site and catch all these people in one fell swoop... the impact on the Sonnōjō faction and the future will be immeasurable! Enough to change the course of history!

Qing Deng's current thinking and his next decision have such power!

Knowing this, Kondo Isami and Hijikata Toshizo both held their breath and dared not speak, wishing to eliminate their own existence directly to avoid disturbing Qing Deng.

About 10 seconds later, Qing Deng slowly raised his lowered eyelids, his eyes were firm, and his eyes were shining.

"It's come to this point, we won't wait for the news from the 9th Division."

"Since it has been determined that the meeting place is in the northern area from Gion to Sanjo Bridge, we will search this entire area directly!"

As he spoke, he stretched out his finger and swiped on the map.

"We will split into two groups."

"Issue will be in charge of the area west of the Kamogawa River, patrolling the Kiyamachi between the Shijo Bridge and the Sanjo Bridge."

"I will be in charge of the area east of the Kamogawa River, and I will search along the Nawate-dori all the way north."

"All the hotels and izakaya along the way must not be left out, check them one by one!"

After hearing this, Kondo Issume and Hijikata Toshizo's expressions suddenly became stern.

They did not say much, but said in unison:

"Yes!"

Qingdeng looked up at Kondo Issume and asked:

"Yong, how many people do you want?"

Kondo Issume slightly curved his lips and smiled confidently:

"7 people!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Hijikata Toshizo frowned.

"7? Are they enough?"

Kondo Issume replied:

"The area east of the Kamogawa River is very large, and Tachibana-kun needs more people than I do. For me, 7 people are enough!"

As he spoke, he cast a resolute look at Qingdeng.

Qing Deng was also looking at him, staring straight into his eyes.

After a moment, he slowly asked back:

"...Yong, which 7 people do you want?"

Kondo Yong answered without hesitation:

"I want Xiao Si and Shinpachi, the others are up to you."

"Just Xiao Si and Man Xin? No need for others?"

Kondo Yong smiled:

"If I'm a little greedy... I actually want Saito. But if Saito is taken away, the only person who can stand on his own under your command is A Sui."

Qing Deng smiled and didn't comment.

...

...

Qing Deng, Kondo Yong and Hijikata Toshizo walked out of the inner room of the club and appeared in front of everyone.

"Everyone listen!"

As soon as this was said, everyone stood up like a conditioned reflex and rushed to Qing Deng.

Qing Deng scanned the entire scene while loudly announcing the battle plan:

"We will split into two groups!"

"Director Kondo will lead Tachibana Tsukasa, Nagakura Shinpachi, Inoue Genzaburo, Soma Shukei, Fujido Heisuke, Yoshimura Kanichiro, and Nakazawa Koto, a total of 8 people, to search Kiyamachi west of the Kamo River."

"The rest of the people - Hijikata Toshizo, Saito Ichi, Nakazawa Sadaki, Serizawa Kamo, Tani Sanjuro, Niimi Nishiki, Tani Mantaro, Harada Sanosuke, Matsubara Tadashi, all follow me! We will search for Nawate-dori east of the Kamo River!"

"That's all!"

"Start checking the equipment now.

"In 5 minutes, we will go out to fight the enemy! ”

Please give me a monthly ticket! Please give me a recommendation ticket! (Leopard head crying.jpg)

PS: The Gion Club where the Shinsengumi secretly gathered is now a Lawson convenience store.

I don’t know if you have noticed that the people that Qing Deng transferred to Kondo Isami are all obedient children. As for troublemakers such as Serizawa Kame and Niimi Nishiki, Qing Deng kept them under his command.