I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

The enemy's offensive remained fierce... and they did not retreat for a long time.

At that moment, a familiar shout caught Nagakura Shinpachi's attention.

"Go for it! Whoever hesitates first will lose!"

But Inoue Genzaburo took the lead, charging headlong into the enemy ranks with only a few men.

Nagakura Shinpachi was taken aback.

"Uncle Yuan? What's he doing here?"

Nakajima Noboru answered quickly:

"Captain Inoue has temporarily handed over command of the Sixth Division to Ando-kun (Sixth Division Vice-Captain Ando Hayataro)!"

"Because the battle had reached a stalemate, he decided to come and help!"

"With Captain Inoue's assistance, we are as strong as a hundred men!"

Upon hearing this, Nagakura Shinpachi murmured, half relieved and half worried:

"It's really unacceptable that I couldn't repel the enemy even though I was here."

In terms of fame, Inoue Genzaburo is not as famous as Souji or Nagakura Shinpachi.

In terms of strength, he was even less noticeable in the Shinsengumi, a group full of powerful individuals.

But in terms of reliability, he has always been a senior figure worthy of our utmost trust!

Whether it was the Battle of Ikedaya, the Second Battle of Sekigahara, or any other fierce battle, he never backed down.

In this bloody melee, the sudden entry of a highly skilled and experienced swordsman is destined to have a huge impact on the battle!

As expected, the battle situation changed dramatically after Inoue Genzaburo went into battle.

To counter Inoue Genzaburo, a large number of troops must be diverted... This would greatly alleviate the pressure on the Second Division.

Nagakura Shinpachi swallowed hard, licking his parched throat, then drew his sword from the ground and straightened his body.

"Alright, you've rested enough... Nakajima, let's go!"

Nakajima nodded vigorously:

"understand!"

The two were eager to return to the front lines.

However, before they could take a step, an unexpected situation occurred.

Nakajima pointed forward, having discovered something:

"Captain Yongcang! Look!"

Nagakura Shinpachi hurriedly looked in the direction he was pointing.

Suddenly, the enemy's offensive stopped.

They seemed to have received instructions and slowly retreated, withdrawing from the chaotic battle.

Seeing this, Nakajima Noboru murmured:

"The enemy has retreated..."

Nagakura Shinpachi immediately realized what was happening and shouted back:

"No need to pursue them! Just drive them back!"

Their mission was singular: "defend Xiaozhi Bridge to the death"—a point that Yongcang Xinba always kept in mind.

If you want to counterattack, you'll have plenty of opportunities once the enemy's morale is worn down.

Upon hearing this order, some of the soldiers who were originally itching to move quickly stopped in their tracks and watched the enemy troops disappear into the distance.

Only the members of the Sixth Division continued to fight, firing round after round, forcing the enemy to leave behind a large number of corpses.

The gunfire gradually ceased after the enemy troops had completely fled.

The battlefield, which had been bustling with activity just minutes before, has now fallen silent.

With the withdrawal of the "Southern Army," only the Shinsengumi members, clad in light blue haori, remained in the same place.

After a brief moment of awkward silence, suddenly, someone shouted:

"The enemy has been defeated!"

"The enemy is nothing special!"

"Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh!"

"Damn those southern bandits! Have you seen how powerful the Shinsengumi are?!"

The members of the Second and Sixth Division cheered loudly, celebrating their victory in the first battle.

Finally, the enemy has been defeated... Nagakura Shinpachi couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief.

Suddenly, he turned his head to look around, thinking of something.

Looking up, the members of the Second Division were all covered in blood and looked exhausted.

The Second Division is the elite force of the Shinsengumi, bringing together a large number of skilled swordsmen.

Even the formidable Second Division is finding it so difficult... The "Final Battle at Lake" is indeed not to be underestimated.

What truly worried Nagakura Shinpachi was that he had no idea whether the enemy force he had just faced was a regular unit of the "Southern Army" or its elite troops.

If it's the latter, then so be it.

But if it were the former... Upon thinking of this, Nagakura Shinpachi suddenly felt his heart skip a beat.

The next moment, without hesitation, he turned to Nakajima Noboru beside him and said:

"Nakajima, go ask Mr. Hijikata for help! Send another squad over!"

A hint of surprise flashed in Nakajima Noboru's eyes.

He felt the current battle situation was good and there was no need to appeal to the Turks.

Despite his surprise, his reaction was swift.

From the moment Nagakura Shinpachi spoke to the moment he received the order, only a moment had passed.

"Yes, I understand!"

As the vice-captain of the Second Division, Noboru Nakajima would naturally not make the foolish mistake of "giving an order from his superior and then stupidly asking why".

No matter what your superior says, get your hands and feet moving before you start thinking!

Nakajima turned around, preparing to relay Nagakura Shinpachi's request to the main camp.

But at this moment—

woo woo woo...

A sharp, rapidly approaching whooshing sound came from afar.

The Shinsengumi members were already used to this sound on the training ground—it was the sound of cannonballs flying!

Shinpachi Nagakura reacted the fastest, his pupils shrinking to pinpoints, and he reflexively leaped into Nakajima Noboru's arms, knocking him to the ground.

"Get down!"

boom!

The instant Nagakura Shinpachi finished speaking, a shell landed in a mud pit not far away, splashing up countless mud sparks.

The sudden shelling caused a tense atmosphere to permeate Xiaozhi Bridge again, which had just calmed down!

This shell is like the prelude to a grand musical piece.

next moment--

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Shells rained down like meteors, covering the defense zones of the Second and Sixth Divisions!

Without any orders from Shinpachi Nagakura or Genzaburo Inoue, the soldiers all consciously took cover in the nearest bunker.

"Captain! Come over here quickly!"

To thank Nagakura Shinpachi for his earlier assistance, Nakajima Toru dragged him into a sturdy bunker not far away.

The decision to designate Toba and Fushimi as a defensive line to block the enemy was made several months ago.

Therefore, the civil engineering veterans of the Shinsengumi (the General Affairs Department) had long been building various fortifications along the "Toba Defense Line".

Thanks to this, the area around Xiaozhi Bridge is covered with bulletproof shelters.

This intense barrage of artillery fire did not last long.

About ten minutes later, the shelling stopped.

Instead, there was the sound of thunderous footsteps!

Nakajima Noboru peeked out from his bunker to survey the battlefield—he saw a large number of enemy troops pouring out from the opposite bank of the small bridge! There were swordsmen and musketeers, capable of both close and long-range attacks! Roughly speaking, there were at least two thousand of them!

"Captain! The enemy is attacking again! Their numbers exceed two thousand!"

He hurriedly reported the military situation to Yongcang Xinba beside him.

When his gaze fell upon Nagakura Shinpachi, he was horrified to see a sight that sent chills down his spine: Nagakura Shinpachi's forehead was stained with blood, and bright red blood droplets were streaming down his cheeks.

"Captain! Your...your head..."

Upon hearing this, Nagakura Shinpachi belatedly raised his hand to touch his forehead, then calmly stared at his reddened palm.

"I'm fine..."

"Just as the shells were falling, a piece of gravel flew by and hit me right on the head..."

"This happens all the time on the battlefield. It's just a minor scrape, no need to panic."

After saying that, Nagakura Shinpachi casually tore off a clean strip of cloth, wrapped it tightly around the wound on his head, then used the crook of his left arm to hold the blade of the knife in his right hand, and used the clothes in the crook of his left arm to wipe the blood off the blade.

"Alright... Stop dawdling, hurry up and engage the enemy!"

As he spoke, Nagakura Shinpachi rolled over and rushed out of the cover.

At this moment, the Sixth Division had already taken the lead in launching an attack.