I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian".

"Oh, the Records of the Grand Historian is wonderful. Sima Qian was an unparalleled literary master who could write history as excitingly as a novel. When I first read the Records of the Grand Historian, I couldn't put it down and even forgot to sleep."

"Ah."

"..."

"..."

An awkward atmosphere spread...

Todo Heisuke opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but he couldn't come up with anything to say, so he could only sigh and give up regretfully.

He wasn't the only one worried about Saito Hajime.

Lately, everyone—especially the "Shieikan faction" members—has been racking their brains over Saito Hajime.

According to Todo Heisuke, after that unpleasant "team meeting", Saito Hajime approached Aoto many times, stubbornly trying to persuade him to adopt his suggestion to "let the shrine maiden wa Kazuya return the sacred artifacts".

Everyone was puzzled by this.

Some say that Saito Kazuya became arrogant because of Aoto's favoritism and repeatedly offended Aoto without any scruples.

Some say that Saito Ichika is "Wei Zheng reincarnated," speaking frankly and not backing down despite Seido's strong stance.

In short, there are all sorts of opinions.

Despite differing opinions, everyone agrees on Saito Hajime's actions: he went too far!

The depth of Qing Deng's friendship with the "Shiweiguan faction" goes without saying.

No matter how deep the feelings or how strong the relationship, it is always fragile in the face of "power".

The members of the "Shie-e-kan faction" are not stupid; they all know what to say and what not to say, what to do and what not to do.

In private, they could joke and play around with Qingdeng as freely as ever over trivial matters.

However, in public settings and on matters of national importance, they must recognize the gap between their own status and that of Qingdeng!

As long as they remain in the Shinsengumi, they must maintain the proper respect due to Aoto—this is an absolute imperative.

The "Shiekan faction" has always done a good job and has never done anything out of line.

Even the dim-witted Harada Sanosuke maintained a high level of sensitivity on this issue.

Until this time... Saito Hajime's "rushing forward" disrupted this tacit understanding.

Saito Hajime's repeated insubordination has already violated Seito's authority—a major taboo in all dynasties!

If it were a suspicious and cruel monarch, he would probably have ordered Saito Hajime's execution long ago.

Although Saito Hajime's taciturn personality was not very likable, his reliable and unwavering work style was always highly praised. Many people in the Shinsengumi had received his help, so he was always well-liked.

In order to "protect" Saito Hajime and prevent his relationship with Aoto from deteriorating further, everyone used their own abilities.

Nagakura Shinpachi, Harada Sanosuke, and others took Aoto out for drinks, using the opportunity to speak well of Saito Hajime.

Sanako and Ama tried their best to whisper sweet nothings in Aoto's ear.

Everyone really did their best, but unfortunately... Saito repeatedly "speaks his mind," completely exhausting Aoto's patience.

Things have developed to this point, and even with the strong support of many people, it's all in vain.

Not long after that "team meeting" ended, Aoto relieved the Third Division of its "stationing in Kyoto" duty and reassigned Nagakura Shinpachi's Second Division to Kyoto.

Saito Hajime was transferred back to Otsu and has been unemployed at home ever since.

That's why he was able to never miss a class at the "Ito Juku".

To merely be neglected, rather than subjected to severe punishment, was undoubtedly an extraordinary act of mercy from Qingdeng.

However, it is still heartbreaking to see two once close friends and partners deteriorate to this extent.

Kyoto has not yet returned to peace, yet the Third Division has been suddenly transferred away... Such an unusual scene could not possibly be hidden from the eyes of the world.

The outside world—especially the various factions associated with Qingdeng—sharply noticed this change and made some speculative guesses, suspecting that some shady power struggle had taken place within the Shinsengumi.

For a time, the dust settled and the noise was immense.

Those who despise Qingdeng gloat over his misfortune.

Those who love Qingdeng are filled with worry.

Because they were classmates at the "Ito Juku", Todo Heisuke became one of the people who had the most frequent contact with Saito Hajime recently.

Driven by a special sense of "mission", he tried many times to persuade Saito Hajime to mend the relationship between him and Aoto.

However, it seems that Saito Hajime is determined to stick to his own opinion and refuses to bow down to Aoto!

Thus, Todo Heisuke was at a loss...

Thinking of this, he sighed deeply again.

Just then, footsteps approached from the direction of the corridor.

Heisuke Todo was so familiar with Kashitaro Ito that he could recognize him by his footsteps.

Therefore, he knew immediately that his beloved master had arrived.

He subconsciously straightened his back, cleared his mind of all distractions, and prepared to concentrate fully on the lesson.

However, at that moment, he belatedly noticed that there were two sets of footsteps approaching the "Ito Juku"!

The footsteps of the other person besides Ito Kashitaro... were also very familiar to Todo Heisuke!

Before he could remember who the other person was, he heard a "whoosh"—Ito Kashitaro pushed open the door and walked into the room unhurriedly.

Behind him followed a burly warrior.

Todo Heisuke stared in utter astonishment, his mouth agape, blinking involuntarily as if to confirm if there was something wrong with his vision:

"Huh? Director Kondo?"

The burly man who followed Ito Kashitaro into the "Ito Juku" was none other than Kondo Isami.

Kondo Isami's sudden appearance surprised everyone in the room.

Even Saito Hajime, who rarely shows any expression, revealed a rare look of surprise at this moment.

Ignoring everyone's reactions, Ito Kashitaro and Kondo Isami sat side by side in the main seats.

But Ito Kashitaro stood tall with his head held high, a rare solemn expression on his face.

"Gentlemen, please listen to me."

All eyes naturally focused on Ito Kashitaro, awaiting his next remarks.

"I ask you, can you still tolerate this?"

His clear and resonant voice carried throughout the venue.

"Ju Qingdeng will stop at nothing to achieve his goals!"

"To realize his personal ambitions, he arbitrarily installed an innocent prince as emperor!"

"I absolutely cannot condone such despicable behavior!"

"I can no longer tolerate his perverse actions!"

"Therefore, I have made my decision! I will leave the Shinsengumi! I will form a completely new organization! I will govern the country and bring peace to the world based on my own ideals!"

Heisuke Todo could no longer hear what Kashitaro Ito said next.

For a moment, he felt as if he were in the deep sea, surrounded by layers of water, and all the sounds of the outside world were far away, and he could not hear anything clearly.

One can only vaguely discern that Ito Kashitaro seems to be recounting Aoto's "crimes" and explaining how great his own ideals are.

When he came to his senses, he saw Ito Kashitaro stretch out his right hand towards the front and towards everyone in the room, palm up, fingers pointing upwards... This gesture seemed as if he wanted to grasp everyone present in his hand.

"All of you here are outstanding individuals whom I have carefully selected."

“Each of you has the ability to take on a hundred men.”

"I sincerely invite you all! Follow me! Support me! Join me in creating an ideal world!"

Ito Kashitaro finished speaking.

In an instant, a deathly silence enveloped the entire venue.

Most people, including Heisuke Todo, were dumbfounded, stunned by this unexpected "declaration of rebellion".

However, some people remained calm, not even flinching, as if they had expected it all along.

In this deathly silence, the first person to break the silence was Todo Heisuke.

"Master, what are you doing?"

Because of his intense emotions, his body was trembling uncontrollably, and even his voice was shaking.

"According to the Shinsengumi Law, such behavior is punishable by death!"

At this moment, the area around Ito Kashitaro was exceptionally dark due to the lack of light, and the heavy shadows cleverly concealed his face.

From Todo Heisuke's perspective, all he could see were two scarlet lips, swaying slightly like poppy petals:

"Heisuke, now that things have come to this, let's not talk about the Shinsengumi Law anymore."

As Lao Tzu said, "The people do not fear death, so why threaten them with death?"

"I have made up my mind to fight Ju Qingdeng to the death, how could I be afraid of mere laws?"

Todo Heisuke was choked.

At this moment, a loud voice suddenly rang out:

"I support Mr. Ito!"

The speaker was Takeo Hattori.

He shouted as he jumped to his feet.

His booming voice, combined with his towering physique, exuded an extraordinary sense of oppression.

He is a die-hard fan of Kashitaro Ito and one of the Shinsengumi's most skilled martial artists, proficient in jujitsu, swordsmanship, and spear fighting.

Because he keeps a low profile, he is not very famous, but his strength is beyond doubt.

Within the Shinsengumi, there are many rumors that his martial arts skills have reached the "captain level".