In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

The situation suddenly turned into a bloody brawl.

Ii Naosuke finally realized what was happening and frantically tried to abandon the sedan chair and escape.

But at that moment, a figure suddenly rushed out from the woods on the side.

The newcomer held a scabbard and seemed to fly.

While Ii Naosuke was still sitting in the sedan chair, the person who flew out immediately brandished his sword.

Zheng—

The sedan chair split in two, revealing the astonished Ii Naosuke inside.

The man kicked the upper part of the sedan chair away and then casually chopped a soldier to death.

After sheathing the wakizashi, he drew a dagger from the scabbard in his chest.

"Wait—don't kill me!" Ii Naosuke cried out in fright.

The man had no expression.

“I’m not killing you out of hatred, but because of the stupid things you’ve done over the years that have ruined the future of this country.”

The person who arrived was none other than Zuocun Anuo, who had disappeared for two years.

Without hesitation, the dagger plunged down.

Samura cut off Ii Naosuke's head, threw it on the ground, and looked ahead at the still chaotic scene.

"The idea is clever, but unfortunately, the skills are lacking."

After saying this, Zuocun leaped up again and disappeared into the forest.

After breaking through the soldiers' defenses, the patriots finally arrived at Ii Naosuke's palanquin.

But what he saw before him left him dumbfounded.

Four or five corpses, split in two, lay on one side, while the palanquin itself was split in two. The key figure in their operation—Ii Naosuke—also lay dead inside the palanquin, his head severed from his body.

There was blood everywhere, and a foul, fishy smell lingered in the air.

Was there anyone else involved in this operation?

Without a second thought, he grabbed Ii Naosuke's head, which was glaring with rage, and shouted, "The traitor has been beheaded!"

Then he grabbed Ii Naosuke's head and ran away.

The soldiers finally managed to bring the situation under control, and when they turned around, they saw the person who was carrying Ii Naosuke and ran away, so they gave chase.

If the mission to protect his master fails and he can't even protect his body, he might as well commit seppuku!

Meanwhile, on the other side, Samura, who had swiftly killed Ii Naosuke, had arrived at a nearby village.

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Chapter 341 Heading to Edo: The Final Effort

Zuo Cun shook himself and walked into one of the rooms in the village without any apparent sign of anything amiss.

"Mr. Takeshi, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." Zuocun apologized to the man and sat down opposite him.

"It's alright. What did Mr. Samura go out to do?" The man sitting opposite Samura asked curiously.

He was one of the many people that Samura knew in Tosa. His name was Takechi Hanpeita, and he was one of the few people in the Tosa group who actually had some strength.

The whole country is now discussing the term "expelling the barbarians," and with Ii Naosuke's death, the situation will likely become even more chaotic.

But... Zuocun understood that this was just the final chaos before dawn.

The new era is not far off, and someone will eventually step forward to end the chaos.

Samura wanted to be that person, and Takeshi Hanpeita, who was sitting opposite Samura, also wanted to be that person.

Takechi Zuizan was a well-known swordsmanship teacher in Tosa, and the swordsmanship he learned and taught was "Ittō-ryū".

It wasn't the exquisite swordsmanship of the Hokushin Itto-ryu style, but Takechi Hanpeita had elevated the ordinary Itto-ryu to a level that even Samura admired.

He is a powerful person, and one of the few people Zuocun knows who can remain somewhat clear-headed in this chaotic world, instead of thinking about assassination and causing trouble all day long.

"I just went out to use the restroom, Mr. Takeshi, please don't mind." Zuocun pretended to clutch his stomach, acting as if he had an upset stomach.

Takechi Hanpeita smiled and said, "Samura-kun, you should also take care of your health. Our bodies are meant to be used to change and redeem this country."

“I understand.” Zuo Cun also smiled.

In the past two years, his sword has become even sharper, but some things have progressed even faster than his sword.

Zuocun learned to communicate with people instead of drawing his sword at the drop of a hat.

However, there were some reasons why he took the opportunity to kill Ii Naosuke while he was out using the restroom.

He had already investigated Ii Naosuke's route, but the key point was... this old man always went out with more than sixty armed men. It would be very difficult for Samura to kill Ii Naosuke without being noticed and then get away.

He doesn't want to reveal himself yet. Although the title "Feather Demon Slayer" is stupid, it can provide him with considerable convenience in a certain sense.

His purpose in killing Ii Naosuke was to plunge Japan into a certain degree of chaos.

Once things really get chaotic, it will be much easier for him to do many things.

Those patriots who had been lying in ambush there beforehand, pretending to file a complaint but actually carrying out assassinations, were also among those that Sadamura had anticipated.

Originally, Samura could have distanced himself from the assassination of Ii Naosuke and let the patriots do it. However, Samura was worried about whether these patriots could kill Ii Naosuke under the protection of sixty men, so he chose to take matters into his own hands.

He struck with lightning speed, killing Ii Naosuke instantly, then slaughtering all the soldiers who noticed him, before rushing back.

To avoid revealing his identity, he only carried the pheasant feather sword and the poisonous feather. He hid the crane feather and pheasant feather scabbard in one place and temporarily chose an ordinary-colored scabbard.

In less than half an hour, Zuocun completed the assassination and then returned to the scene as if nothing had happened, continuing his conversation with Takechi Hanpeita.

"Mr. Takechi, I have to go to Edo, so I won't stay here any longer." After exchanging words with Takechi Hanpeita for a while, Samura got up to say goodbye.

"Is that so? Well then, I wish you a safe journey." Takeshi Hanpeita didn't intend to try to persuade him to stay any longer.

Today, the two of them were mainly discussing how to unite and manage these so-called "patriots" who were like headless flies, thinking every day about assassinating this person or that person, burning down embassies in this country, and smashing offices in that country.

However, there isn't a good solution right now. Even if someone raises a call to action, there's no guarantee that anyone will respond. Zuo Cun might be able to, after all, he was officially certified as "Hagi-giri" many years ago, but there will still be no shortage of dissenting voices.

Therefore, the two of them could only draft a simple "faction establishment document", thinking they would make further plans after returning to Tosa.

Zuocun looked at Takechi Hanpeita, smiled, and walked out of the room. When he turned around, he had a worried look on his face and his brows were furrowed.

"Expel the barbarians..."

Zuo Cun scoffed at this topic that was being hotly debated by patriots across the country.

Expelling the barbarians is impossible. Japan's doors have already been opened, and if it wants to close them again, it will have to ask the Americans and Russians for their consent.

Samura's assessment of "expelling the barbarians" was that it was reckless and impulsive, a desire for reform but no clear direction, so they could only find a common enemy and use these foreigners as an outlet for the pent-up passion of these patriots.

However, these so-called "patriots" never really thought through the consequences of their policy of expelling foreigners.

In the past two years, Samura has learned a lot about navigation and, through various channels, has also come to understand just how terrifying military forces outside of Japan can be.

Japan is a weak country, and its military strength is nothing compared to these powerful nations. They don't attack you just because they don't think much of you. But if you really choose to provoke them, do you think our warships can handle you?

Samura was quite tolerant of foreigners. In 1859, he spent most of his time in the fields, doing manual labor to earn some money, and also found a Dutchman who spoke Japanese to teach him Dutch. He has now learned Dutch.

According to Samura, opening the country to the outside world and providing Japan with channels for communication with the outside world was one of the few correct decisions made by the shogunate in recent years, even though the shogunate was forced to make this decision by others.

Zuocun has never openly expressed his position, but going along with the choice is the best approach.

After all, the ultimate goal was... to destroy the shogunate.

A cold glint flashed in Zuo Cun's eyes.

After Ii Naosuke's death, the power that Tokugawa Iemochi had been sidelined with would return to him. Tokugawa Iemochi was said to be a respectable monarch, but this was not enough to be a stumbling block for Samura's determination to overthrow the shogunate.

In this chaotic world, the shogunate is beyond saving. Its image of incompetence and being manipulated by others, which it can never wash away, has become an obstacle to all progress.

This is... a choice made in history.

Samura's destination on this trip is Edo.

Many patriots gathered there, but that was not Zuocun's goal.

His target was merely an inconspicuous swordsmanship testing hall outside Edo Castle.

He didn't want to give up on his past relationship; he wanted to make one last effort.

At the very least, you need to make your goals clear to them.

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Chapter 342 The Clash Between Crane Feathers and Kashuu Kiyomitsu

Zuocun is now twenty years old.

At an age when he should be full of energy, his brows are furrowed.

People walking in twos and threes on the road looked on with fear when they saw the two knives hanging from Zuo Cun's waist.

During this period, the samurai class became even more unscrupulous than before, and the common people avoided samurai as if they were demons.

Samura no longer cared about such opinions; he hurried toward Edo.

......

Okita Souji held his sword, his eyes sharp.

"One step beyond the note..."

"Two steps without interruption...!"

"Three Steps—The Ultimate Blade!!!"

Disappear and then reappear.

With three flashes, Okita's famous sword "Kashuu Kiyomitsu" pierced through the straw doll in front of him.

Okita's eyes were clear. He flicked his wrist and sheathed Kashuu Kiyomitsu.

With a slight sigh, Okita didn't look at the broken straw doll on the ground. He turned and walked away, leaving the servants to clean up the mess.

Okita Souji has become increasingly agitated lately.