I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Page 1696

"It doesn't seem like it... Ah! It's Mr. Takasugi!"

"Mr. Takasugi has personally led the elite force to meet us!"

"Really? That's great!"

"Waaah... I'm saved... I'm saved..."

……

Instantly, a deafening cheer erupted.

"Mr. Takasugi is here, the Special Forces are here"—this was a long-awaited piece of good news for the Choshu soldiers who had just suffered an epic defeat, and it slightly dispelled the gloom in their hearts.

Although we are still quite a distance from our hometown, with the protection of the special forces, those petty scoundrels will surely not dare to cause trouble!

The Special Forces – an independent armed force established by Shinsaku Takasugi, with a total strength of nearly two thousand.

Like the Shinsengumi, the Kiheitai also adopted a recruitment system of "no regard for background, meritocracy" to attract many lower-ranking samurai, ronin and commoners to join.

As Takasugi Shinsaku gradually came to recognize the immense power of the Western powers, he slowly transformed from a radical who opposed everything Western into a moderate like Katsura Kogoro.

In order to enhance the combat power of the Special Forces and make it a formidable force capable of directly confronting Western armies, he vigorously introduced advanced Western firearms and tactics, ultimately successfully transforming the Special Forces into the undisputed "strongest army in Choshu".

Ironically, due to their discord with Kusaka Genzui, this "strongest army in Choshu" and Takasugi Shinsaku himself did not participate in this eastern expedition.

In this way, the Kiheitai (Special Forces) were able to preserve their strength and become the last remaining organized and combat-capable force within the Choshu Domain.

Katsura Kogoro dismounted and rushed towards Takasugi Shinsaku.

Looking at the well-organized elite troops behind the enemy, he immediately felt relieved, his facial features relaxed, and he looked as if a great burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

Swords, spears, muskets, chainmail, warhorses—everything was available.

Anyone who sees the weaponry and military bearing of the elite troops cannot help but exclaim in admiration or gasp in astonishment.

Katsura Kogoro was in a good mood, but then... when he saw the person standing next to Takasugi Shinsaku, his face immediately fell.

"Mr. Gui, it's truly a joyous occasion that you've returned alive."

Shuten-dōji spoke with a peaceful smile.

Katsura Kogoro blinked blankly, then turned to Takasugi Shinsaku with a look that seemed to ask, "What's this guy doing here?"

Shinsaku Takasugi shrugged, a bitter expression on his face, and answered silently with his eyes: This guy insisted on coming with me, and I really couldn't do anything about it.

"...Shuten-dōji, thanks to you, I have survived again."

In response to Shuten-dōji's enthusiastic greeting, Katsura Kogoro gave a lukewarm reply and then turned to Takasugi Shinsaku, saying:

"Takasugi, thank you for coming. You've been a great help."

"Gui, we are both patriots from Changzhou, so don't be so formal."

Upon hearing this, a strange light flashed in Katsura Kogoro's eyes, as if they were both patriots of Choshu.

On the eve of the Eastern Expedition, Takasugi Shinsaku's words, "Let Kusaka Genzui die," still echoed in Katsura Kogoro's ears.

Despite his complex emotions, he could not bring himself to blame Shinsaku Takasugi.

After all... he had seriously considered killing Kusaka Genzui.

If Kusaka Genzui hadn't chosen to die on the battlefield, Katsura Kogoro really didn't know how he would have gotten along with his former classmate in the future.

Therefore, he really had no valid grounds to blame Takasugi Shinsaku for his ruthlessness.

At this moment, Shinsaku Takasugi's praise pulled him back to reality:

"Gui, well done. Thanks to you, many people were able to save their lives and return home."

Upon hearing this, Katsura Kogoro gave a wry smile and said self-deprecatingly:

"Who told me I'm 'Kogoro the Runaway'?"

"I may not have any other skills, but I am first-rate at escaping."

"This is the third time I have successfully escaped from the battlefield, following the 'August 18th Coup' and the 'Ikedaya Incident'."

Takasugi Shinsaku retorted irritably:

"What nonsense are you talking about? 'Good at running away' is just another way of saying 'good at preserving power'."

At this point, he changed the subject:

"I know you will abandon a lot of supplies in order to shake off the enemy's pursuit, so I brought a batch of provisions with me."

"Now that my elite troops are escorting you, the vassal states along the way will certainly not dare to plot against you again."

"So you should take a short rest now and fill your stomachs first."

Katsura Kogoro nodded vigorously.

"Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking."

Just then, out of the blue, a helpless voice cut in:

"Hey, hey, hey, don't ignore me."

Shuten-dōji shrugged and sighed dramatically:

“I know I’m unpopular, but this kind of ‘treating me like I’m not there’ still hurts me.”

Katsura Kogoro and Takasugi Shinsaku both turned their heads and cast cold glances at Shuten-dōji.

Katsura Kogoro disliked Shuten-dōji, as did Takasugi Shinsaku.

In fact, Shuten-dōji didn't care about their indifference at all.

Even though he was being met with indifference, he continued speaking on his own:

"Mr. Gui, to be honest, I have come here today to discuss an important matter with you."

Before Shuten-dōji could finish speaking, Katsura Kogoro coldly interrupted:

"Let's talk about it during dinner."

……

"Waaah...at least I don't have to gnaw on tree bark anymore..."

"Don't grab! Don't grab! There are plenty of rice balls!"

"Hey! Don't push! Anyone who tries to loot will not get any food!"

"I'm finally alive...!"

"I'd rather be a ronin for life than go to war!"

……

Under the direction of the special forces team, rice balls were distributed systematically to all the soldiers.

They had long been ravaged by hunger and were no longer recognizable as human beings.

After receiving the rice ball, they didn't care about their image or the risk of choking. They hurriedly stuffed it into their mouths, afraid that someone else would snatch it away.

While the entire army was enjoying their meal, under a large, secluded tree, Katsura Kogoro, Takasugi Shinsaku, and Shuten-dōji gathered together.

The three of them sat in a "品" (pin) shape.

Looking at Shuten-dōji so close at hand, Katsura Kogoro couldn't help but feel depressed.

To be honest, if it weren't for the circumstances, he really wouldn't want to have any dealings with the Party that seeks to punish the law.

Firstly, he simply could not agree with the ruthless and brutal approach of punishing party members without regard for human life.

Secondly, the method of punishing the party through law is too mysterious, so mysterious that people only want to keep their distance.

He has been involved in the fight against organized crime for over a year.

Of the three major cadres of the Fazhu Party, he had only met Shuten-dōji in all this time.

Katsura Kogoro had never even met the other two high-ranking officials who were on par with Shuten-dōji—Ōtakemaru and Tamamo-no-Mae—as well as their leader, Yamata no Orochi, and didn't even know their gender or age.

Furthermore, the organizational goals of the Fazhu Party are also very vague.

Katsura Kogoro still doesn't know why the Party was fighting and running around for the sake of the law's punishment.

The only thing he can be sure of right now is that the Fazhu Party is extremely hostile to the shogunate and sees overthrowing the shogunate as their own mission.

On the level of "overthrowing the Edo Shogunate", Choshu and the Hoju Party did indeed share the same goal and had a very broad prospect for cooperation.

However... although it was just a personal intuition, Katsura Kogoro always believed that behind the Fa-ju Party's efforts to overthrow the shogunate, there was a... much grander goal hidden!

He once bluntly asked Shuten-dōji what the organizational goal of their Faju Party was.

At that moment, Shuten-dōji smiled mysteriously and said in a low voice:

“Mr. Katsura, now is not the right time to be frank with you. If I were to tell you our ultimate goal of the Law Extermination Party rashly, I'm afraid it would frighten you. All I can tell you now is that we hate the shogunate to the bone, and we will stop at nothing to destroy the Edo shogunate.”

In conclusion, for all the reasons mentioned above, Katsura Kogoro has always maintained an ambiguous attitude towards the Fa-ju-dang (a term used to describe a woman who is unfaithful and clings to a man who is unfaithful) – neither accepting it openly nor rejecting it outright.

Shuten-dōji and the others didn't mind Katsura Kogoro's attitude at all.

Not only did they leisurely wait for Katsura Kogoro to change his mind, but they also sent Hannya to serve as his personal bodyguard.

"Speaking of which, what about Prajna?"

After the three met, Shuten-dōji didn't rush to get to the point. Instead, he first cast a puzzled look at Katsura Kogoro:

"Mr. Gui, where is Prajna? Isn't he with you?"

Katsura Kogoro replied calmly:

“While I was busy organizing the ‘Arashiyama Defense Line,’ he suddenly ran off, saying he was going to see an old friend.”

"Old friend?"

Shuten-dōji raised an eyebrow, then seemed to realize something, and gave a helpless, bitter smile.

"I see... then I think I know where he went..."

Katsura Kogoro dislikes Hannya very much.

Therefore, he didn't care about Prajna at all.