I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Dragged onto the snow, Ii Naosuke exhausted the last bit of strength in his body and pulled out the wakizashi from his waist.

Arimura Tsujisaemon swung his sword in a high stance, aiming for Ii Naosuke's neck, but Ii Naosuke parried the blow with his wakizashi.

If Ii Naosuke were in his prime, a master of Iaido and skilled in jujutsu and other martial arts, he would not be afraid of Arimura Tsuizaemon, who had fought his way up to this point and was already quite exhausted.

However... his spine had been broken by a bullet, and he had completely lost sensation in his lower body, so he could only exert less than 10% of his strength.

Parrying Arimura Jizaemon's slash—this was the limit that Ii Naosuke could currently achieve.

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

"Cough, cough..." Ii Naosuke coughed up a few more smears of thick blood mixed with saliva.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Ii Naosuke… He suddenly laughed.

On this bloody battlefield, with his life hanging in the balance, he revealed a candid smile.

"So I really did... fall for... you bunch of fools... who thought they could usher in a new era just by swords and killing..."

"Foolish scoundrels...! Blindly believing in swords and killing... will only lead this country astray...!"

Ii Naosuke's words, spoken with his last breath, were ultimately a waste of breath.

At this moment, Arimura Tsuzuemon, who is extremely excited and agitated, can no longer hear any sound.

He raised the knife in his hand high again.

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

Ii Naosuke laughed a few more times, then tilted his head back and rested the back of his head on the thick snow.

His eyes, which were gradually losing their luster, gazed at the sky, where "dark clouds pressed down on the city, threatening to crush it."

"What should be done about the future of the shogunate...?"

He asked the sky a question.

Arimura Jizaemon's sharp blade swung down.

Blood spurted from Ii Naosuke's neck instantly.

The severed head fell to the ground.

Naosuke Ii's open and honest smile, tinged with regret and...apology, bloomed amidst a pool of blood.

Blood spurting from Ii Naosuke's severed head splattered all over Arimura Jizaemon's face.

After forcefully wiping the blood splattered on his face, Arimura Tsuzaemon reached out, grabbed Ii Naosuke's head, and held it high: "I've taken the head of the traitor—!!"

Looking at the head held high by Arimura Tsuzaemon, Seki Tetsunosuke, who was in charge of directing operations from the rear, had a flushed face from excitement: "Arimura, well done! Well done!"

This bloody battle lasted for about fifteen minutes, and they finally achieved a glorious victory!

Because they were ambushed in the middle of heavy snow, and because they didn't have time to remove the sheaths from their swords, many of the Ii guards were killed before they could even put up a proper fight.

Those who were still alive either fainted or their morale collapsed and they fled in panic after seeing Ii Naosuke's head taken away.

The battlefield, once filled with deafening shouts of battle, fell silent in an instant.

The patriots retreated in all directions as planned.

Arimura Tsuzaemon, who personally removed Ii Naosuke's head, bore the heavy responsibility of taking away this severed head.

He and Hirooka Kojiro, who had been stabbed in the forehead and was seriously injured, fled towards the Hibiya Gate.

The heat that had filled his body slowly receded... Arimura Jizaemon felt the pain returning to his body little by little.

Limbs, torso, head... there wasn't a single part of my body that wasn't aching.

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

My body was in pain, but I felt extremely happy.

Neither he nor his companion, Hirokako no Jiro, noticed that behind them, a seriously wounded man carrying a knife was limping through the snow, chasing after them.

The seriously injured person is named Hideyuki Ogawara.

He had just fought a bloody battle on the battlefield, fighting until he was wounded multiple times and fell unconscious.

When he awoke, he witnessed Ii Naosuke's head being severed and taken away.

His lord was killed, and his head was taken away... Such humiliation was something that Hideyuki Ogawara could not tolerate no matter what!

Driven by this grief and indignation, Hideyuki Ogawara felt a surge of new power within him.

Fueled by this newly emerging power, Hideyuki Ogawara, disregarding his own injuries, stubbornly pursued Arimura Jizaemon and Hirooka Kojiro.

His footsteps were drowned out by the wind and snow.

Furthermore, Arimura Jizaemon and his companions were all seriously injured and in extremely poor condition, so they were completely unaware of the pursuers behind them...

Hideyuki Ogawara successfully closed in on Arimura Jirozaemon from behind and, without hesitation, raised his sword and slashed!

The blade struck the back of Mura Jizaemon's head squarely, slicing a horrifying gash.

Fresh blood trickled from the large wound, and in the blink of an eye, it stained the entire back of Arimura Jizaemon's body with blood.

Upon discovering pursuers, Hirooka Kojiro swiftly turned around and with a single slash, felled Ogawara Hideyuki to the ground.

After struggling for a few moments while lying on his back, Hideyuki Ogahara stopped moving.

"Ugh...!" The intense dizziness and excruciating pain made Arimura Jizaemon feel as if his body was being twisted and torn apart.

After staggering forward a few steps, Arimura Tsujizaemon could no longer hold on and fell to the ground.

"Hirooka-kun...I think...I can't take it anymore..."

"Haha..." Hiroka Kojiro laughed bitterly a few times, "I can't take it anymore... I can't stand up much longer..."

Arimura Tsuzuemon looked up and found himself lying right in front of the gate of Endo Tajima-no-kami's mansion.

"I'll die right here...!"

Arimura Tsuzuemon forced himself to sit upright, maintaining his physical and mental strength.

He placed Ii Naosuke's head beside him, then pulled open the hem of his kimono, revealing his belly.

Seeing Arimura Jirozaemon's posture, Hirooka Kojiro grinned a few times, then swayed a few more steps forward, arriving at the gate of the Sakai family's mansion: "Then... I'll die here..."

Having said that, Hirooka Kojiro knelt on the ground, pulled open the collar of his kimono, and exposed his belly.

Arimura Tsujisaemon drew his wakizashi from his left waist and pointed the tip of the sword at his left abdomen.

He was about to die—but Arimura Jizaemon felt neither fear nor regret.

His face was filled with pride, and the corners of his mouth curled up in a proud and optimistic smile.

We have successfully defeated Ii Naosuke, that great traitor who brought disaster to the country and its people!

Once this traitor is gone, this country will surely get back on track and prosper!

Our sword—successfully ushered in a new era!

Filled with immense pride and glory, Arimura Tsujizaemon plunged the wakizashi into his left abdomen, then slashed it down to his right abdomen in one swift motion...

……

……

Ii Family Residence —

After seeing Ii Naosuke off, Aku returned to her and Ii Naosuke's bedroom.

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

Picking up the paper and looking at it, I saw it was the waka poem that Ii Naosuke had mentioned last night.

"Fallen cherry blossoms, crushed into dust... yet their fragrance still fills the universe..."

call……

A gentle breeze suddenly blew in from the window, ruffling the hair at Ajiu's temples.

As if sensing something, Ajiu put down the poem in her hand and stared blankly at the sky outside the window...

"Lord Ii..."

……

……

Edo, Koishikawa Kohinata Yanagi Town, Test Guard Hall——

The sudden heavy snowfall dampened Okita's enthusiasm for admiring the peach blossoms.

Since it was still early and the weather was bad, no students had come to the Shieikan to practice swordsmanship yet, so Aoto was able to share the spacious dojo with Okita.

While Aoto was focused on sparring with Okita in the dojo, Kondo suddenly entered the dojo.

"Mr. Tachibana, someone who claims to be a servant of the Northern Barbarians is looking for you. He's waiting for you at the gate right now."

"Servant of Beifan Institute?" Qingden raised his eyebrows.

—A servant from the Northern Barbarian Garrison? Looking for me?

Qing Deng put down the bamboo sword in his hand with a puzzled look on his face and hurried towards the gate of the Examination Hall.

Upon arriving at the gate, Qingdeng saw a young man in a hurry outside the gate.

"Ah, Lord Tachibana!" Upon seeing that Aoto had finally arrived, the young man hurried forward. "Lord Usui has issued an urgent summons, requiring all the yuki and doshin of the Sadamachi and Temporary Registries to immediately proceed to Sakuradamon!"

"Sakurada Gate?" Qing Deng was taken aback. "What happened? What's wrong?"

"I am unaware of the specifics..."

"I understand." Qingdeng nodded. "Thank you for bringing the news."

The only reason Aoto could think of for issuing an emergency summons during the holiday was that something had happened at Sakuradamon.

And this matter is probably quite significant...

The order demanded that all members of the local forces and allies immediately proceed to a certain location... In Aoto's memory, there had never been a summons of this caliber before...

Upon returning to the Shieikan, Aoto quickly changed his clothes, put on a snow hat and cloak, and then put on his jitte, inro, and the precious sword Tsutejin that Ii Naosuke had given him the day before. After saying goodbye to Kondo and Okita, he led Saito to Sakuradamon at breakneck speed.

After running up to an intersection a short distance from Sakurada Gate, Aoto saw a large crowd of citizens gathered ahead.