I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

For this reason, the senior monks completely disregarded Takechi Hanpeita's dojo.

Thus, most of Takechi Hanpeita's apprentices were sons of lower-ranking officials.

In general, the position of corporal within the Tosa Domain was extremely awkward.

Although he was a samurai, he suffered from discrimination.

The unfair treatment suffered by corporals included, but was not limited to: not being allowed to use umbrellas in the rain, but only wearing raincoats; not being allowed to wear wooden clogs, but only straw sandals; and having to stand on the side of the road and give way to sergeants when they encountered them on the road...

In such an environment, there is a dojo that not only does not discriminate against you because you are a sergeant, but also carefully teaches you both literary and martial arts... It is conceivable that the sergeants are naturally very grateful to Takechi Hanpeita.

Even those who weren't his students would have great respect and affection for him.

After Takeichi Hanpeita formed the Tosa Loyalist Party, many of its core members were his top disciples.

Thus, following the "kindness of education," Takeshi Hanpeita's apprentices also received the "kindness of recognition."

Judging by the values ​​of the feudal era, such a great favor could not be repaid even if one were to risk one's life!

Those who called Takeshi Hanpeita "teacher" and followed him to conquer the world mostly regarded him as their lifelong faith! They worshipped him like a god!

This is why, although the Tosa Loyalist Party was not large in scale, it had a very high degree of cohesion.

At this moment, Takechi Hanpeita continued the conversation:

"I don't like to beg people for money."

"I like to take things that are rightfully mine, one by one!"

"If we can destroy the Shinsengumi, the benefits we can gain will far exceed a mere 10 taels of gold."

At this point, Takeshi Hanpeita narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

"Qinghe-kun, let's get back to the main topic."

"On behalf of the Tosa Loyalist Party, I hereby formally form an alliance with you!"

"From now on, we will help each other."

"We are in the same boat, sharing weal and woe."

"Let's unite our strength and overthrow the Shinsengumi!"

Kiyokawa Hachiro immediately responded:

"Of course! Lord Wu, to be honest, I have been waiting for this day for far too long!"

Takeshi Hanpeita nodded slightly:

"Then, let us strike the golden scepter and swear an oath!"

As he spoke, he picked up the sword beside him and drew half of it out with a clang.

Kiyokawa Hachiro immediately did the same thing—picking up his sword and drawing half of the blade.

The next moment, the two of them sheathed their swords without either of them taking turns.

The hilt of the sword struck the scabbard, producing a crisp clang that resonated through the air.

Then, as Takechi Hanpeita sheathed his sword, he said quietly:

"Qinghe-jun, now that we are allies, let me be frank as a sign of our sincerity in forming this alliance."

"While the Shinsengumi's current size is astonishing, in my opinion, it has quite a few hidden dangers."

"The biggest hidden danger is that Tachibana Aoto holds a unique and lofty position in the Shinsengumi."

"Juqingdeng is like a huge supporting pillar."

"He single-handedly maintained the survival and development of the new constellation."

"However, this also created the perilous situation that the Shinsengumi could not do without Tachibana Aoto."

"As long as Niou is here, the Shinsengumi will remain."

"If Niou is gone, the Shinsengumi will be in grave danger."

"The prestige and ability of the other generals under Tachibana Seito are insufficient to lead the large Shinsengumi."

"Therefore, the key to overthrowing the Shinsengumi lies in the life or death of Tachibana Aoto!"

"As long as we kill Tachibana Seito, the Shinsengumi will attack without a fight!"

"In my opinion, if we want to bring down Tachibana Seido, we must first clip his wings."

"Ju Qingdeng possesses the courage to defeat ten thousand men."

"To kill him head-on is simply wishful thinking."

"However, dealing with his close associates would be much easier."

"Without the support of his confidants, no matter how capable Tachibana Seiden is, he has nowhere to use his skills."

"Therefore, this is my plan: 'Pinch off its wings and leave it isolated and helpless'!"

"Use every means possible to eliminate all of Tachibana Seito's confidants! Then concentrate our forces to kill Tachibana Seito and wipe out the Shinsengumi!"

Kiyohachiro listened attentively.

After Takeshi Hanpeita finished speaking, he frowned slightly, as if deep in thought.

After a short while, he slowly began to speak:

“What you say is indeed insightful.”

"However... in my opinion, your plan is not easy."

"All of Tachibana Seito's confidants are nothing more than the 11 members of the 'Shieikan Faction'—Kondo Isami, Hijikata Toshizo, Yamanami Keisuke, Okita Souji, Nagakura Shinpachi, Saito Hajime, Inoue Genzaburo, Todo Heisuke, Harada Sanosuke, Chiba Sanako, and Kinoshita Mai."

"If these people can be eliminated, Tachibana Seiden's power and prestige will indeed suffer a serious blow."

"But...excuse me for speaking frankly, none of these 11 people are easy to deal with."

"Even women like Chiba Sanako and Kinoshita Mai possess extraordinary courage."

"Getting rid of them won't be that easy."

Takeshi Hanpeita nodded slightly.

"Qinghe-jun, I understand your concerns."

"However... since I dared to propose such a plan, I am naturally confident that I can accomplish it!"

As he spoke, he adopted a cold, emotionless tone.

“Tachibana Seiden’s cronies are very strong… So all I have to do is send someone even stronger than them, who is also very skilled at assassination, to eliminate them, right?”

……

……

The next day, at night—

Somewhere in Kyoto—

"Ugh, it's so hot...!"

Heisuke Todo wiped the fine sweat from his forehead, muttering complaints.

The air in summer is humid and sticky, without a breath of wind, and so muggy that it's hard to breathe.

In Japanese terms, tonight is a typical "tropical night".

Today happens to be the day the Eighth Division is on patrol in Kyoto.

As the captain of the 8th Division, Toudou Heisuke personally led his team to patrol the streets, fulfilling his duties as usual.

Just as Todo Heisuke was swaggering down a street in Kyoto, carrying a lantern and leading dozens of his men, a lone, thin, dark figure silently followed closely behind him…

*******

*******

Today is the last day of the month! Readers who have monthly passes, please be sure to vote for this book! (Crying leopard head.jpg)

Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

Chapter 716 The Shadow Assassin Strikes! Toudou Heisuke is targeted! [4300]

The core function of the Zhenfu Prefecture was to pacify the capital region.

Therefore, one of the daily tasks of the Shinsengumi was to patrol Kyoto and punish lawbreakers.

For ease of reference, the Shinsengumi soldiers called this place "Huncho".

Previously, due to the small size of the troops, each unit had to patrol the towns.

Now, the size of the new selection group is vastly different from what it used to be, and the specific functions of each team have been further refined.

As the 7th, 9th, and 10th Divisions of the ninja and cavalry units, they naturally do not need to get involved in this kind of mission.

Sending the elite First, Second, and Third Divisions, who are considered "heavyweights of the army," to patrol the town would be a waste of their talents.

Therefore, the heavy responsibility of patrolling the town fell on the shoulders of the four ordinary infantry squads of the Shinsengumi, namely the fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth squads.

The four squads rotate every seven days.

If you calculate it carefully, each team will be on duty once a month.

There are essentially two methods for patrolling the town.

Firstly, checkpoints were set up at key transportation hubs such as the three major bridges and the four major bridges.

Secondly, a large number of patrol teams were dispatched to guard the streets and alleys of Kyoto.

Since the large-scale rebellion movement broke out in the Kinai region, a large number of unclaimed ronin (masterless samurai) have been pouring into Kyoto under the banner of "every man has a responsibility for the fate of the nation."

Suddenly, a large group of unemployed, familyless young men appeared in the town, with gleaming swords hanging from their waists... Anyone could imagine what kind of consequences this would lead to.

These ronin who flocked to Kyoto were extremely polarized.

Some of them were indeed patriots with a deep concern for their country and its people, and were people of noble character.

However, the vast majority of them are just scum and villains who want to take this opportunity to make a killing.

Robbery, extortion, rape, blackmail... these beasts are utterly wicked.