I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 1195 A Bunch of Madmen

At the same time that Qingdeng met Yamata no Orochi—

The main camp of the Northern Expeditionary Army and the British Army—

"General! Run!"

"I've already brought the horse!"

"We will risk our lives to protect you and get you out of here!"

……

Tokugawa Yoshinobu sat upright on a stool with an air of authority.

Several die-hard supporters of the "Northern Shogunate" surrounded him, anxiously urging him to flee.

The shouts of battle outside are getting closer and closer... If we don't hurry, we won't be able to escape!
In contrast, Tokugawa Yoshinobu's reaction was much calmer.

He kept his head down, eyes downcast, seemingly lost in thought. After his die-hard followers finished speaking, he said softly, expressionless:

"...No, I'm not going anywhere."

The die-hard supporters were all stunned upon hearing this.

One of them said urgently:
"General, what makes you say that? We still have a chance to escape..."

Before the man could finish speaking, Tokugawa Yoshinobu twitched the corner of his mouth, letting out a self-deprecating laugh:

"Escape? Where can I escape to?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

Tokugawa Yoshinobu's words brought the scene back to deathly silence.

The die-hard supporters remained silent, speechless.

Tokugawa Yoshinobu, in a tone devoid of joy or sorrow, continued the conversation:
"Our war is over."

"Tachibana Aoto won, we lost."

"From this day forward, no force in the five regions, seven provinces, and sixty-six kingdoms will be able to withstand the military might of Tachibana Seidenō."

"Even if we can escape for a while, we can't escape forever."

"I don't want to put up any more futile resistance..."

"Go ahead and run if you want, just leave me alone."

"Let me quietly accept my fate..."

After speaking, Tokugawa Yoshinobu said no more, closed his eyes, and pretended to rest.

The die-hard supporters remained undeterred, clinging to the delusion that "Tokugawa Yoshinobu should flee this place and make a comeback someday."

After exchanging glances, they prepared to launch a new round of persuasion.

Unfortunately, they no longer have the chance.

Ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta!

In the blink of an eye, accompanied by hurried footsteps approaching from afar, a dozen Shinsengumi members burst into the tent and surrounded Tokugawa Yoshinobu and his men.

The leader was none other than Saito Hajime.

Saito Hajime, carrying a blood-dripping sword, strode toward Tokugawa Yoshinobu.

Seeing that this person was dressed in exquisite and gorgeous armor and had an extraordinary demeanor, it was clear at a glance that he was no ordinary person. Therefore, Saito Hajime asked with a serious expression:
"I am Saito Hajime, the captain of the third division of the Shinsengumi. May I ask who you are?"

Tokugawa Yoshinobu raised his head and met Saito's gaze with neither arrogance nor servility.

"Captain Saito, I have long admired your name. I am Tokugawa Yoshinobu. I surrender, and I beg you not to make things difficult for my men."

"You are Tokugawa Yoshinobu?"

Saito Hajime couldn't help but look Tokugawa Yoshinobu up and down, a look of surprise appearing on his face.

Even he, who was usually calm and collected, couldn't help but be astonished at catching such a big fish.

When Tokugawa Yoshinobu uttered the words "I surrender," his loyal followers around him seemed to have lost their souls, collapsing to the ground with lifeless eyes...

……

……

"Mr. Howell! Over here!"

"Huff...! Huff...! Huff...! Huff...!"

"Have you...shaken off your pursuers?"

Howell and Sadao, under the protection of several British soldiers, fled in a panic.

In order to survive, they all performed beyond their usual limits, demonstrating unprecedented speed and endurance.

However, a person's two legs can never outrun a horse's four hooves.

Da da da da da da da!

A cavalry unit led by Yamanami Keisuke and Todo Heisuke suddenly arrived.

In the blink of an eye, they caught up with and surrounded Howell and his men.

Seeing the blade so close at hand and feeling the murderous aura rushing towards them, Howell and the others were dominated by intense despair. Their legs went weak with fear, and they couldn't even stand up.

Just as the knights were about to swarm forward and send Howell and the others to meet their maker, Yamanami Keisuke preemptively stopped them:

"Wait, don't kill them."

As he spoke, he pointed at Howell and Sadaoyi.

"These two look like important figures in the British army. Letting them live might prove useful in the future."

Toudo Heisuke asked in confusion:

"What use could it be?"

Yamanami Keisuke smiled:

"These two are excellent witnesses to expose the ugly face of the British government's unauthorized interference in the internal affairs of other countries."

……

……

The camp where Qingdeng and Yamata no Orochi were located—

Qing Deng ignored the greeting from the Yamata no Orochi and quickly turned his gaze to scan the inside of the tent.

Apart from him and the Yamata no Orochi, there were no other living creatures at the scene.

Not far from the Yamata no Orochi, there lay the corpse of an old woman.

The old woman was kneeling on the ground in a standard posture, her hands tightly gripping a wakizashi that was deeply embedded in her heart, her upper body leaning forward due to the excruciating pain.

Judging from his age and appearance, this person must be Tamamo-no-Mae, who is in charge of intelligence work for the Fazhu Party.

As the Fa-Zhu Party was on the verge of destruction, she did not choose to live on, but instead stabbed herself in the heart with a knife to accompany it in death... Tamamo-no-Mae's fierceness made Aoto's heart tremble.

Suddenly, a violent coughing fit rang out, drawing Qingdeng's attention.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!!"

The Yamata no Orochi raised its hands, tightly covering its mouth and nose, coughing violently until its shoulders trembled, and drops of blood seeped from between its fingers.

Qing Deng withdrew his gaze from Tamamo-no-Mae and turned his attention to the Yamata no Orochi in front of him.

"...You're quite ill."

"Yes, it's an old ailment that's incurable... Even if you don't kill me today, I won't live much longer..."

Having said that, the Yamata no Orochi lowered its hands, raised its gaze again, and stared at Qing Deng, letting the thick blood smear all over its mouth and nose.

"Yamata no Orochi, I've always wanted to have a talk with you. Since you're already nearing your end, let's just be frank with each other."

Orochi nodded readily.

"Sure, I was just thinking of having a chat with you."

Qingdeng gets straight to the point:
"For a long time, I have been very curious about what exactly your Fa-killing Party is trying to achieve by causing chaos everywhere?"

The Yamata no Orochi smiled slightly.

"Our motives are very simple. We just want to cause trouble."

"destroy?"

"That's right, it's destruction."

Orochi adopted a more relaxed and unhurried tone, speaking eloquently.

"Most members of the Party that punishes the law have tragic pasts and have experienced pain and malice."

"At my call, they gathered together with deep grief and indignation, which ultimately led to the birth of the Law-Slaying Party."

“We do not share the ambition of ‘rebuilding the world’ like the Great Salt Party.”

"Our goal has always been very simple: to cause destruction."

"The reason for focusing on the Edo Shogunate is simply because the Edo Shogunate was the most powerful force in Japan at that time."

"If the Edo Shogunate falls, then we will turn our guns on Satsuma and Choshu."

"If even the Sa and Chang are destroyed, we will not stop here. We will keep searching for the next target."

"If there are no suitable targets domestically, then we will head overseas."

"Destroy, destroy, and destroy again, keep destroying until death, until annihilation."

"In short—we are the embodiment of 'anger,' and only by turning the world into hell can the endless rage in our hearts be calmed." Qing Deng concluded his remarks with calm words.

“I understand. Simply put, you are a bunch of twisted lunatics who are obsessed with cruel and immoral acts.”

Orochi chuckled to himself.

“King Ren, don’t you understand? Our existence is merely a response to the times.”

“The dark and chaotic world breeds ‘great good’ like the Great Salt Party, but it also breeds ‘extreme evil’ like us.”

"Therefore, as long as the world remains in chaos, the principle of 'punishing the party with the law' will never disappear."

“Your Majesty, remember what I just said—we are the embodiment of 'wrath'.”

"Since it is an incarnation, there will always be a possibility of it reappearing."

"So, you mustn't let your guard down."

"Perhaps ten years from now, or even tomorrow, a new 'Fighting Party' will appear before you."

After saying that, the Yamata no Orochi chuckled sinisterly a few times.

Qingdeng lowered his eyelids, as if deep in thought.

After a moment, he asked in a deep voice:
"You just said that most members of the Extermination Party have tragic pasts. So, are you one of them?"

The Yamata no Orochi fell silent.

When he spoke again, his tone became more profound.

"...I once had a son and a daughter."

"When my daughter was ten years old, she was abused to death by a government official."

"My fourteen-year-old son was furious and ran to Edo to report the magistrate's misdeeds to the Yashu Toshiyaku-yaku (Eight Provinces Governor).

"When I found him in the wild, he had been mauled beyond recognition by the vicious dogs kept by the magistrate."

[Note: Daikan: A low-ranking official in the Edo Shogunate, the type of official most frequently encountered by farmers during the Edo period.]

[Note: The Eight Provinces Control Officer was in charge of maintaining order, exercising administrative oversight, judicial power, and certain military command authority over the eight provinces of Bando (Musashi, Sagami, Awa, Kazusa, Shimosa, Hitachi, Shimotsuke, and Ueno).]

"That concludes my past."

The Yamata no Orochi paused for a moment, then curled the corners of its mouth into a meaningful smile.

“Niou, you may think that my past is nothing special.”

"But for ordinary people, such a tragic experience, which is not 'rare', is enough to turn even the most virtuous and gentlemen into heartless and tearless demons."

After saying that, he burst into loud laughter, as if he were mocking something.

The next moment, his laughter turned into coughing without any warning.

"Cough cough cough cough! Cough cough cough cough cough!!"

His cough this time was particularly violent, as if he were about to vomit out his lungs, and gushes of fresh blood spurted from his mouth.

It took him quite a while to gradually recover.

"Niou... is there anything else... you want to ask...?"

"That's all. I've asked everything I wanted to ask."

"Heh...I see...Very well...That's perfect...I don't have the energy to continue chatting now...What are you planning to do next...? Are you going to capture me alive...and then behead me and display my head to the public...?"

"You are already a candle flickering in the wind; even if we capture you alive, it will be meaningless."

As Qingdeng spoke, he raised the Vairocana sword in his palm, the tip of which pointed diagonally at the eight-headed serpent.

"If you could just stick your head out obediently, it would be much easier for both of us."

"Hehehe... stick your head out...? Who do you take me for..."

Orochi shrugged, a helpless expression on its face.

"I didn't expect... you to forget... what I just said so quickly..."

"I've made myself perfectly clear... We are the embodiment of 'wrath'..."

"We will continue to destroy...until we die...until we perish...!"

The moment he finished speaking, the eight-headed serpent suddenly sprang up, pulled a sword from its robes, and lunged at Qing Deng.

The sharp blade, carrying the momentum of its forward lunge, drew a bright arc in mid-air before slashing diagonally toward Qing Deng's face.

Although it was a desperate attack, the strike launched by someone struggling to survive was hardly worth mentioning.

However, Qing Deng, who had just defeated Ootakemaru, was still very weak, so his movements to dodge were a little slower.

As a result, the tip of Huai Jian grazed Qing Deng's left cheek, cutting a shallow wound that barely drew any blood.

In a flash, Qing Deng instinctively launched a counterattack—a dark purple blade of light flashed past, leaping from the lower right to the upper left, slashing from the right side of the Yamata no Orochi's belly to its left shoulder, almost cutting its body diagonally in two.

The severely wounded Yamata no Orochi collapsed heavily to the ground, spitting out blood, which gushed out and spread in all directions.

Perhaps due to his long-term illness and accustomed to pain, or for some other reason, the Yamata no Orochi still had some strength left.

He raised his eyes, staring intently at the small cut he had made on Qingdeng's face, and grinned, revealing two rows of teeth stained bright red with blood.

"Hahaha... I've got you... Hahahaha... Hahahaha... Hahahahaha..."

Amidst the increasingly faint laughter, the pupils of the Yamata no Orochi gradually dilated... Until the moment before he breathed his last, he was still laughing wildly.

It was clear that he was bracing himself on the ground with both arms, making a "struggling to get up" gesture... Even though he was about to die, he did not give up and still tried to get up and slash Qingdeng a second time!

Looking at the Yamata no Orochi, who had not died of illness but in battle, Aoto remained silent for a long time.

After a long while, a murmur, devoid of sorrow or joy, drifted out softly:
"What a bunch of lunatics..."

……

……

When Qingdeng lifted the tent flap, he was surprised to see a large crowd gathered outside.

Sanako, Mai, Kondo Isami, Kiryu, Kinoshita Rin... everyone came.

Their faces bore the marks of exhaustion from the fierce battle, as well as the joy of having utterly defeated the enemy.

Qing Deng turned his gaze and quickly scanned the area, soon finding the swordsmen of the Chiba family, the seniors of the Northern Frontier, and other old acquaintances.

Long-lost relatives and friends rushed to Otsu's aid despite their own safety... Even if all the words in human language were exhausted, they could not describe Aoto's emotions at that moment.

In the end, Qingdeng channeled his emotions into a heartfelt thank you and a deep bow.

"Thank you so much, everyone."

Upon seeing this, the crowd either hurriedly returned the greeting or stepped aside, not daring to accept it.

"Orange-kun".

Mr. Kiryu walked forward with a smile on his face as he spoke.

"This long war is finally over. As the commander-in-chief, you should have something to say, shouldn't you?"

Qing Deng Wan Er:

"Yeah, that makes sense."

After scanning the crowd once more, Qingdeng took a deep breath, gathered his strength, and then raised his right fist high, shouting at the loudest volume he could muster:

"This battle is our victory!"

The instant he finished shouting, the crowd, who had been waiting in advance, cheered in unison, creating a surging and enormous wave of sound that reached far beyond sight.

……

……

Toba, the garrison position—

"We win!"

"We've held off Otsu!"

"Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh!"

When the news of the victory, "The enemy has been defeated and Otsu is safe," arrived, the garrison in Toba instantly turned into a sea of ​​joy and excitement.

From captains Nagakura Shinpachi and Shinmi Nishiki to ordinary members, everyone was overjoyed, some embracing each other tightly, others shedding tears of excitement.

Hijikata Toshizo sat on a stool, gazing towards Ōtsu, and exclaimed excitedly:
"Well done, everyone!"

……

……

West of Toba, the Southern Army's main camp—

Coincidentally, at the same time on the same day, the Southern Army also received the final results from the Otsu side.

Ecstasy and grief, excitement and despair... two completely different emotions and two different scenes appeared in the two camps of Toba East and West respectively.

Katsura Kogoro, Goto Shojiro, and the others all lowered their heads, remaining silent and refusing to look at the others, as if they could detect evil in each other's faces.

After an unknown amount of time, Saigo Kinosuke, seated at the head of the table, finally broke the silence with a hoarse voice.

"So, in the end... I just can't defeat Tachibana Aoto...?"

After saying this to himself, Saigo Kinosuke let out a long sigh... At that moment, he seemed to have aged ten years.

"...retreat, a full retreat."

This time, no one objected to Saigo Kichinosuke's order.

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The next chapter, the final chapter.

Please be sure to check out the author's new book—"America: The Hunt for 1924"