I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Ōtsu was the de facto political center of the "Northern Court" and also the stronghold of Aoto.

Therefore, it has great political significance!

If they could successfully capture it, it would be an enormous blow to the morale and prestige of the "Northern Dynasty"!

More importantly, Otsu is located behind Toba and Fushimi.

In other words, if Fushimi falls, the Shinsengumi will be attacked from both sides!

A counterattack from a desperate situation where they are attacked from both sides... There may have been such armies in history, but the current Shinsengumi clearly does not belong to this category.

In conclusion—Otsu is absolutely essential! The loss of Otsu means the demise of the Shinsengumi!

After a brief silence, Keisuke Yamanami was the first to speak, offering his opinion:

"...The troops split into two groups, one to continue to hold Fushimi, and the other to return to Ōtsu to block the enemy outside the city."

Before he could finish speaking, Hijikata Toshizo retorted without hesitation:

"How should we deal with the 'Southern Army' before us?"

"Our forces were already small, and after splitting them up, can the remaining fighting force hold up against the 'Southern Army'?"

"The guy on the other side, Saigo Kinosuke, isn't stupid."

Even if it's an empty city ruse, it won't fool him.

"A single probing attack is enough to ascertain our strengths and weaknesses."

"At that time, Saigo Kichinosuke will surely launch a fierce attack."

"We lost Fushimi to protect Otsu... We will still lose this battle, and we will still be completely wiped out."

Upon hearing this, the people present looked at each other, their anxious gazes darting around in the air.

From the perspective of the Shinsengumi, both Fushimi and Otsu were important towns that could not be lost.

But now they are caught in the dilemma of "not being able to have their cake and eat it too"!

Because of insufficient troops, defending Fushimi might mean losing Otsu, and defending Otsu might mean losing Fushimi... It's a lose-lose situation.

Just as the scene fell silent again, Qing Deng suddenly spoke up:

"If that's the case, then let's first crush the 'Southern Army' in front of us! Then we'll return to Shidajin and fight the 'Northern Army' in a decisive battle!"

"Launch a general offensive against Toba at daybreak tomorrow!"

"Even if we cannot defeat the 'Southern Army,' we must at least weaken more than half of their forces! We must thoroughly cripple them, rendering them incapable of advancing eastward!"

*******

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Chapter 1155 Souji Awakens! Tomorrow is the day of the decisive battle!

In an instant, everyone's eyes were focused on Qing Deng.

Qingdeng hadn't finished speaking:

"It is clear that the combat power of the 'Northern Army' far exceeds our expectations."

"If we lose too many troops before we get back to Dajin, we may not be able to fight them."

"Therefore, while recovering the bird's feathers, we must minimize our own casualties."

Upon hearing this, Harada Sanosuke couldn't help but swallow hard.

He was straightforward and always said what he thought, so he spoke first:

"...Isn't this a bit too difficult?"

Through the battles of yesterday and today, everyone on the scene has a clear understanding of the fighting capabilities of the "Southern Army".

Without a doubt, the opponent was the most powerful adversary they had ever encountered!

Although they were able to fight the Shinsengumi to a standstill only with the support of the "Decisive Battle of Yodo" and their numerical superiority, their fighting spirit should not be underestimated.

Facing such a formidable enemy, defeating them is already difficult enough, let alone minimizing casualties while achieving victory.

No sooner had Harada Sanosuke finished speaking than Aoto smiled and replied in an unquestionable yet slightly teasing tone:

"Isn't this exactly what we do best?"

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter, as if amused.

Hijikata Toshizo, Serizawa Kamo, and others even struck small poses such as "crossing their arms over their chests," "raising their chins," and "puffing out their chests."

Such an expression, such actions, seem to say: That's right! Exactly!

Despite the differences in age, personality, and political views among the people present, one thing was common to them—they were all proud of the achievements of the Shinsengumi and full of confidence in its strength!

……

……

Toba, South Palace of the City—

At this moment, the atmosphere of joy and happiness was filled with the spirit of the "Southern Army".

Looking up, one could see that Katsura Kogoro, Goto Shojiro, and the others were all beaming with joy.

Even the usually taciturn Saigo Kinosuke showed a rare relaxed expression, his facial wrinkles smoothing out.

Despite their defeat today, instead of wailing and lamenting, they were as happy as if their wife had just given birth…

This was because they had just received definite news of victory from their allies in the north (the Northern Expeditionary Army): the Aizu army had been routed! The capture of Ōtsu was imminent!

To call this victory a "shot in the arm" to the soldiers of the "Southern Army" seems too mild and inappropriate!

Today they poured all their strength into it, used every means at their disposal, and committed all their troops, yet they still failed to capture Fushimi, suffering heavy casualties... Fushimi's defensive strength far exceeded their offensive strength.

Defeat is not terrible; what is terrible is losing despite giving it your all and having absolutely no hope of victory!

They were initially worried about what to do in the upcoming battles... but now, that worry has vanished!

They could almost see this scene: the Shinsengumi's top brass, including Qing Deng, were jumping up and down in anxiety because of the rapidly deteriorating battle situation!

Katsura Kogoro took a deep breath, then said to Saigo Kichinosuke with a face full of emotion:

“Mr. Saigo, that ‘army’ did not disappoint us.”

Saigo Kinosuke nodded and softly echoed:

"Although I am very disappointed that I was unable to defeat Tachibana Aoto head-on, my little 'ambition' is insignificant compared to the overall situation."

Regarding "how to defeat Tachibana Aoto", Saigo Kichinosuke and others prepared two plans.

One of them was that the "Southern Army" marched eastward in an orderly manner, treating the "army" as if it did not exist, and fought as it should.

Although that "army" was renowned worldwide, Saigo Kinosuke and the others had never personally witnessed its might, so they dared not place 100% trust in it.

Therefore, Saigo Kichinosuke did not place all his hopes for victory on it. He spared no effort in attacking Toba and Fushimi, acting entirely on the premise that "that 'army' is unreliable."

Of course, there was also some personal motive on Saigo Kinosuke's part—he was eager to confront Aoto head-on.

Secondly, the "Northern Shogunate Army," with the assistance of that "army," outflanked the Shinsengumi!

As things stand, the former has no chance of success, but fortunately the latter has been successfully implemented.

The Aizu army collapsed quickly, and the route from northern Omi to Ōtsu was now unimpeded!

In at most 3 or 4 days, the Northern Army will be at the gates of Dajin!

The day Otsu Castle falls will be the day the Shinsengumi perishes!

Upon realizing this, many people at the scene became even more excited.

At that moment, someone not far from Saigo Kinosuke could no longer contain his excitement and shouted:

"The Shinsengumi is finally doomed!"

His remarks were merely a spontaneous expression of his feelings.

However… as soon as he finished speaking, Saigo Kinosuke’s face darkened as if he had heard some unforgivable fallacy.

Immediately afterwards, he turned his head and gave the other person an incredibly terrifying look.

"...While we are happy, we should not be too optimistic. The Shinsengumi is only temporarily in trouble, and is far from being helpless."

The other party suddenly shuddered.

Overwhelmed by Saigo Kinosuke's aura, he quickly lowered his head and stammered an apology:

"I'm so sorry, I was too excited... I said something inappropriate... Please forgive me..."

Saigo Kichinosuke ignored him, raised his chin, and surveyed the crowd with a serious expression.

"Don't let your joy go to your head! The battle is not over yet!"

He adopted an extremely confident tone and continued, enunciating each word clearly.

"Tomorrow, the Shinsengumi will surely attack us with a death-defying spirit!"

……

……

After a pause, Qingdeng continued speaking slowly and deliberately:

"The more difficult the predicament, the more it can inspire our fighting spirit."

"Turning adversity into advantage and turning the tide in desperate situations—that's how we've come this far."

"Given the speed of the 'Northern Army's' advance, our time is extremely tight."

"We must retrieve the bird's feathers within one day tomorrow."

"Only in this way will we have enough time to set up defenses for Otsu."

"Presumably, Saigo Kichinosuke on the other side has already received intelligence about the 'successful southward advance of the Northern Expeditionary Army'."

"He will surely anticipate that we will launch a 'all-out attack' tomorrow."