I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

He is like a merciless natural disaster, destroying everything in his path and repeatedly demonstrating his overwhelming destructive power!

The only samurai who could appear here and possess such strength is that man.

Before Kuroda Kiyotaka and the others could react, he rushed to the banner and swiftly slashed at the strongman carrying it with his robe, as well as the banner itself.

This scene caused Kuroda Kiyotaka's eyes to widen in horror.

In an instant, my mind was filled with countless "whys".

Why is he here?

He should still be quite a distance from the summit, right?

Even if he is an unparalleled martial arts genius, isn't this attack speed a bit too fast?

What are the people on the front lines doing? Can't they even delay for a moment?

What exactly did he just do? I don't think I blinked, so why couldn't I see his footsteps or the way he swung his knife?

My mind was filled with incomprehension and resentment, to the point that my thinking almost came to a standstill.

Nevertheless, he fulfilled his responsibilities immediately.

"Quickly raise the banner! Don't let it fall to the ground!"

After roaring, he drew his sword and charged forward without hesitation.

Although he knew it might be a futile effort, the heavy burden he bore and the deep-seated dignity within him did not allow him to falter.

The "flag guards" under his command were all top-notch soldiers rigorously selected from the Satsuma army.

Even the most elite soldiers are still mortals with blood and tears, and who feel fear.

Seeing the blood-stained black knife, most people either stood there dumbfounded or ran away as fast as they could.

Only a very few people mustered the courage to follow Kiyotaka Kuroda in the attack.

Kiyotaka Kuroda slowed down a beat and fell behind. He saw a large number of his subordinates rushing forward from all directions, like dense weeds, burying the enemy in them.

However, in just a moment, the pile of "weeds" was blown away.

The encirclement broke open instantly, and one after another, mangled bodies flew into the air like blooming flowers, scattering in all directions.

Without the "weeds" obscuring his view, the other person's figure reappeared before Kuroda Kiyotaka's eyes.

Only now could he finally see the other person's face clearly.

Unlike the martial arts masters he knew, the other party did not exude an intimidating aura.

The other party lacked all the characteristics he imagined a peerless master should possess.

His face was expressionless, his eyes were devoid of light... everything was "nothingness".

It is clearly "nothingness," yet it possesses a unique and soul-stirring power!

For some reason, a strong sense of powerlessness suddenly rose in Kiyotaka Kuroda's chest.

He suddenly recalled his childhood dream of trying to climb Sakurajima volcano.

At that moment, he stood at the foot of the mountain, looking up at the towering peaks that reached into the clouds. He stood there for a long time, feeling an indescribable shock and a sense of insignificance. His state of mind at that moment was just like it is now!

Suddenly, their eyes met.

In a split second, Kiyotaka Kuroda's heart began to pound as he sensed danger, sounding a fierce alarm bell.

Before his very eyes, the "strongest swordsman of the era" displayed a fleeting divine power—one moment he was several steps away, the next he was right in front of him, the distance perfect, and he raised his sword.

Kiyotaka Kuroda instinctively swung his sword in retaliation.

"Ya ya ya ya aa ...

His shout had barely begun when the swiftly descending black blade swept across his body.

The fierce wind generated by the swing of the knife spread out, blowing away droplets of blood and clumps of dust around it.

……

……

"Haa...haa...haa...haa..."

Hijikata Toshizo wiped the sweat from his face, took deep breaths of air through his parched throat, and tasted the iron with every sip of saliva.

Kondo Isami, standing to the side, quipped:

"Ah Sui, your strength has decreased a lot since you were shot in the stomach."

He was referring to an incident from a year ago—when Hijikata Toshizo led a thousand men from Hachioji to block the Faki coalition, he was hit in the stomach by a stray bullet and narrowly escaped death.

Although he survived, such severe injuries will naturally cause considerable damage to his physical strength, and it will take several years to recover.

As he spoke, Kondo Isami shifted his feet, standing closer to Hijikata Toshizo so that he could protect him at all times.

"I will go to Shimabara less often in the future and try to recover my health as soon as possible."

After responding in this half-joking manner, Hijikata Toshizo asked:

Where are we?

Without hesitation, Kondo Isami said:

"I don't know. Anyway, it's still quite a distance from the summit."

Hijikata Toshizo first glanced at the mountaintop—still over a hundred meters away as the crow flies—then looked up at the sky, or more precisely, at the sun overhead.

The sun is now setting in the west, and judging from its position, it is about 2 p.m.

It's springtime now, and the sun sets around 6 p.m., and it gets completely dark by 7 p.m.

No matter how brave and skilled the Shinsengumi members were, they could not continue fighting in the pitch-black mountains.

In other words, the Shinsengumi only had less than 4 hours left to launch their attack...

Upon realizing this, Hijikata Toshizo's face fell, and he looked grave.

They had just seen the "Southern Army" banner that had been moved backward.

They were well aware of the importance of the banner, so they fought desperately to reach the summit as soon as possible and intercept it.

Unfortunately... the closer they got to the summit, the more difficult and tenacious the resistance they encountered became.

Even with the combined efforts of Hijikata Toshizo and Kondo Isami, they were unable to reach the summit in time and could only helplessly watch the "Southern Army" banner disappear before their eyes.

It's unclear whether this banner has been moved to the western slope of Qiuzhi Mountain or somewhere else.

Time passed second by second... More than half a day had gone by, yet they still hadn't managed to capture the summit of Autumn Mountain.

If things continue like this, neither "recapturing Toba" nor "severely damaging the Southern Army" may be achieved today.

After quickly reviewing the current battle situation, Hijikata Toshizo calmly said to Kondo Isami beside him:

"Ah Sheng, time is running out, we need to step up our game..."

Just then, before Hijikata Toshizo could finish speaking, a messenger from the Ninth Division came running from the direction of the mountaintop.

Upon seeing Hijikata Toshizo and Kondo Isami, he couldn't contain his excitement and exclaimed quickly:

"Vice Commander Hijikata! Director Kondo! Our lord has successfully captured the summit of Mount Aki! And severed the 'Southern Army's' banner!"

To ensure that every team member could hear him, he repeated it three times in one breath before stopping.

An atmosphere of excitement immediately filled the air.

Kondo Isami's face was flushed, and he couldn't help but clench his fists.

In contrast, Hijikata Toshizo's reaction was relatively calm, with no major changes in his facial expression, but the joy in his eyes was no less than anyone else's.

As for the others, they were either relieved or overjoyed.

After a short while, Hijikata Toshizo was the first to recover.

"Tachibana... well done...!"

After muttering to himself, he hurriedly turned to look at a messenger behind him.

As the vice-commander of the Shinsengumi, he is always followed by a large number of messengers from the Ninth Division, so that he can receive and relay orders at any time.

"Send the order to the 11th Division in the rear! Bring the cannons over as quickly as possible! Even if it kills the slow horses pulling the cannons!"

Then he looked at the other messengers:

"Immediately send word to the entire army! To the enemy! To every corner of the battlefield that the 'Southern Army' banner has been cut down and that we have successfully recaptured Autumn Mountain! Run! Everyone, run!"

The messengers, their morale soaring, responded in unison and then scattered to different parts of the battlefield.

Hijikata Toshizo's words hadn't stopped.

"Ah Sheng, don't be careless! The battle isn't over yet! In fact, what follows is the most important part!"

He patted Kondo Isami on the shoulder, then scanned the group of soldiers present.

"With the mountaintop lost and the banner broken, the morale of the 'Southern Army' will surely suffer a severe blow!"

"Now is the crucial moment to severely cripple the 'Southern Army' and render them incapable of fighting us again!"

"Launch a general offensive against the 'Southern Army'! Spare no effort! Kill any enemy you encounter! No one is allowed to stop the attack until a halt is given!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a spirited roar erupted from Kondo Isami, spreading in all directions.

……

……

Hijikata Toshizo's decisive action allowed the news of victory to spread across the entire battlefield and throughout the entire Akiyama region at top speed.

On the north slope of Autumn Mountain, a messenger, enduring his aching legs and rapid breathing, eagerly relayed the news of victory to Sanako.

Sanako opened her beautiful almond-shaped eyes, appearing calm on the surface, but in reality, a raging storm was brewing inside her.

The soldiers around her all heard the messenger's report.

They don't have that kind of self-control.

The cheers grew louder and louder, deafeningly loud.

A-Mai threw herself into Sanako's arms, hugging her left waist, her cheeks flushed and her eyes slightly moist.

"Miss Sanako! That's wonderful! That's wonderful! That's wonderful!"