Su Shuang's world is collapsing [Comprehensive]

Bending over and walking in the trenches, Liu Quan couldn't control his eyes to drift in a certain direction.

Saito finally noticed the direction of her gaze, and glanced in that direction, then retracted his gaze, and said lightly: "Ah, that's Takata."

Liu Quan silently looked away from the rather young looking corpse, but half of its face was covered with blood, which looked a bit hideous and terrifying, and replied: "...I'm very sorry."

Saito's tone was rather flat.

"Nothing to regret. He did what he was supposed to do and died for what he believed in.  …Maybe we will too in a while, when—"

"...When the time comes, I hope this Takata-kun will scout the way for us in advance." Liu Quan said with a smile.

Saito seemed to be stunned for a moment.His eyes stayed on her face, and after a while he said: "...you are indeed a strange person."

Liu Quan followed behind him with a smile, and walked along the trench to the area he was in charge of guarding.

It's already past midnight, and it feels like it's the darkest time of night, and the enemy may be waiting for the next attack, planning to kill the Shinsengumi with one blow, so the Tathagata Hall, which is now in ruins, There was a brief silence.

With the help of the faint moonlight, Liu Quan saw clearly that there seemed to be a person crouching on a nearby big tree.On the small mound in the distance and in the nearby trenches, there were also people who held good positions where it was easiest to observe the surrounding battle situation, while others took the time to hold their rifles/guns and hide in the trenches with their eyes closed.

Liu Quan looked around, but he didn't see the famous Shinsengumi flag with the character "Cheng".This made her a little confused, so she couldn't help but stop and look around again.

When she looked around for the second time, Saito also noticed that she seemed to be searching for something.So he also stopped, as if he had already guessed the target of her search, he said in a deep voice: "... If you want to find the Shinsengumi's sincerity flag... I have ordered the flag bearer to bring it gone."

Liu Quan: "...What?!"

She couldn't believe her ears and stared at Saito's calm face with wide eyes in shock.

"I've made up my mind to fight to the death here today." Saito also turned his face and said in an unusually calm tone, clearly determined.

"The Shinsengumi staying in Aizu has come to the last moment. . . . The honest character flag was half burned by artillery fire in the all-night deadly battle; therefore, as the captain, I ordered the flag bearer to take it back To Hijikata-san, express my final decision—"

His eyes were awe-inspiring, like the sharpest sword, shooting out the brightest cold light.

"I can't let the Chengzi flag fall into the hands of those Sachang people. Even if it has been taken away from this battlefield, it will always exist in my heart."

After he briefly explained his reasons, he seemed to suddenly wake up for a moment, not knowing how to describe his deeper feelings, and why he would express his heart in front of this young woman who claimed to be a member of the women's team Thoughts—maybe, it was because, at the last moment of the Shinsengumi, she was the only one who rushed towards the Shinsengumi and towards him, wanting to support him.

He was silent for a moment because of his rare talkativeness.Then, he resolutely turned his head away, and muttered: "...So, I don't know why you came here. Obviously, there is nothing that can be guaranteed to happen here except death..."

Then, he heard the young woman who called herself "Kazuo Shinoda" chuckle softly.

"Of course I know that even you—even the sharpest knife of the Shinsengumi cannot guarantee that you can live..."

crack.He heard the sound of her gently pulling out the sword from her waist.The blade slid through the sheath, making a soft sound.

"I was taken care of by the Shinsengumi in the past. Therefore, no matter how many times, I will rush to support."

Her smiling ending, accompanied by the sound of shells bombarded by the enemy in the distance, was as clear and real as thunder in his ears.

"This is probably the faith and friendship that exist between human beings."

Saito:? !

He opened his eyes slightly in astonishment.There seemed to be a wave of fluctuations on the face that was always calm and lacking in changes for a moment.However, that fluctuation was too short, and it disappeared in the blink of an eye; the mouthless wolf of the Shinsengumi returned.

"... oh," he said.

Then, he walked away, but Liu Quan always felt that his limbs were a little stiff.

...Maybe she was moved by the heroic lines she just swiped out of the blue.

Liu Quan didn't step forward immediately, but stood where he was, and smiled slightly with his lips pursed in the direction of Saito's back.

...Finally it came out.

Those words that I didn't have the chance to say in Aizu many years ago... when I left Aizu and embarked on a journey many years ago.

It is my regret that I was not able to come to support you at that time.

Now, I finally have such an opportunity.

Although this is not the only purpose, what I can do for you is limited; even the "you" in front of me is not the "you" I left behind when I turned around and left——

However, I still have the opportunity to stand on the ground of Aizu and witness you swinging a knife for your belief in the nearest place, which is already a rare experience.

Amidst the sound of the rumbling guns continuously bombarding Aizu City from Sa Chang's army in the distance, Liu Quan lowered his eyebrows and took a deep breath.

However, accompanied by the artillery fire, there seemed to be distant and monotonous singing.

[Your Excellency, Your Excellency

Mr. Gong

that fluttering in front of your horse

what is it?

That is the splendid flag that our army used to fight against the national traitors.]

Liu Quan:? !

She didn't know anything about this song, and when she heard it on this kind of killing battlefield—and the tune wasn't very pleasant, it felt dry—she couldn't help but froze for a moment.

And... the lyrics sounded as harsh as the tune.

She suddenly recalled Hijikata's voice full of anger and helplessness a long time ago when everyone found out that the Royal Banner of Brocade had been unleashed in the camp of the shaman's army.

[What is the righteousness here? 】

Now, these people who wrote the Royal Banner of Brocade into the lyrics and sang triumphantly are those Sa Changs, their opponents, right?

What are they trying to do?Want to mentally break down and disintegrate the army loyal to the shogun and shogun?

Boom boom boom.In the camp of Sa Chang's army in the distance, there was a neat drumbeat.

[One day, ten thousand rides, one day, ten thousand rides, the Son of Heaven

Those bad guys who have a plan for him

target them target them

Sha Chang's warriors beat him hard]

Liu Quan's brows were unconsciously frowned, and they almost stood upright.Undisguised anger flooded her face.

Boom boom boom.The opponent's formation is still beating drums.

【Fushimi, Toba, Yodo, Hashimoto, Kuzuha battle

The Kanto warrior who heard the voice

Once I heard that any of them ran away

My city is booming

Great momentum]

There are even those unforgettable places in this song!

...Those places where, following my former companions, I failed again and again, retreated again and again, and separated again and again.

"Humph."

Liu Quan snorted unknowingly.

"Stop boasting, arrogant guys—!"

Suddenly, Saito's voice came from the side.

"...You, the tone of your speech, really resembles a person."

Liu Quan raised his eyebrows slightly, and immediately turned to Saito's direction.

At this moment, he has returned from checking the battle situation and assigning missions in the trenches a little further away. He has a somewhat tattered knife with a scabbard in his waist, but he is holding a rifle/gun in his hand.He put the wooden gun butt against the ground to support it, and looked at her a little more curiously.

Liu Quan: "Oh? Who do you look like? I'm curious—"

Saito suddenly turned his face away, avoiding her gaze.

"...It's nothing." He said perfunctorily.

Then, as if to avoid the subject, he raised his head slightly and looked at the night sky.

The next moment, Liu Quan heard his slightly startled voice.

"This, is... what's going on?! The sky... cracked?!"

Liu Quan:! ! !

She jerked her head up, the movement was too big, and it almost hit her neck.

In the dark night sky, one after another, nearly orange-red, round huge black holes appeared one after another.From each hole, a flash of orange light suddenly shot out, directly hitting the ground.When the light dissipated, a monster with distorted and hideous appearance and black air all over appeared on the battlefield.

Liu Quan heard the young Xinxuan team members around him subconsciously exclaim, such as "Ah!", "What's going on?!", "What kind of monster is that?!" Words like that came out of their mouths.

Only their captain, Jiro Yamaguchi—no, Saito Kazu—had regained his amazing composure after a slight movement in his expression.

"Are... these monsters again...?" He said as if talking to himself.

Then, he calmly put down the rifle/gun in his hand, and slowly pulled out the knife at his waist—but in Liu Quan's view, the knife was really broken, and there were even several small spots on the blade. I don’t know how many times I have experienced fierce battles, and I haven’t been able to get a good repair in time——

"...Back off," he said briefly.

"That's probably not an enemy you can deal with. Concentrate on dealing with those shamans. I will leave these monsters to—"

Before he finished speaking, he heard the young woman named "Kazuo Shinoda" chuckle again.

"Heh... how do you deal with these 'enemies we can't handle', Yamaguchi-kun?"

She asked directly without hesitation.

Saito: "..."

He had no idea how to answer her.

In fact, the last time he met this kind of monster, he failed to kill him.The one who killed these monsters was——

It was... the opponent he had to eliminate at the time, wasn't it?

Before the mysterious, powerful and invincible enemy came, he didn't have much time to dig deep into his memory many years ago, recalling the details of the last time he faced this monster; The subtle sense of disobedience is getting stronger and stronger.

"Captain Yamaguchi!" The team member lying on the tree responsible for observing the battlefield suddenly exclaimed, interrupting his thoughts.

"The Chunyi team... has begun to retreat! It seems... It seems that Satsuma's infantry is advancing towards their position!!"

Saito hadn't spoken yet, and there were almost broken shouts from the small mound on the other side of the trench.

"Saito-kun!! Saito-kun!! The Changfu national service team is here to cross the river!!"

Saito understood his current situation in an instant.

Even if it is described as besieged on all sides, it is not too much.

Moreover, you have to face the monsters that descend from the big hole in the sky——

He quickly glanced at the young woman standing beside him, opened his mouth, wanted to tell her to get out of here and escape, but swallowed it back.

...there is no chance.

... She has no chance to escape Tathagata Hall and return to Aizu Castle or her hometown.

He opened his mouth again, but only managed to squeeze out a few syllables.

"Hey, Shinoda-kun..."

But what else could he say to her?

Saying "Your repayment was imprudent and foolish"?Or do you say "Sorry, because of my incompetence, you are going to die here with me today"?Or be more serious, saying "Now is the time to sacrifice yourself for Aizu, I will cover you later, if you have the chance, you should leave here and flee to a safe place"? ...

As a result, at the end, he uttered a sentence that he hadn't thought of at all beforehand.

"...Your repayment is complete." He said bluntly.

"You can come here, even if you have repaid your kindness well....Now, leave."

"You go. Get out of here, go to any safe place..."

Before he could finish his sentence, he heard a clang, the sound of her completely pulling out her sword from its sheath.

Even in such a late night, he could clearly see that what she held in her hand was really a good knife.

"No." She rejected his proposal very simply.

"Repaying a debt of gratitude means repaying it well to the end.... This is the family motto of the Shinoda family."

Saitoichi was dumbfounded for a moment.

Even he could tell that the family motto of the Shinoda family was entirely her excuse. ...Don't take him for a fool! !

But in the end, he didn't say anything, he just cast his eyes on the knife she was holding in her hand bluntly.

"...This is really a good knife." He whispered, as if he had given up trying to persuade her to retreat so simply.

Then, the voice of this stubborn woman rose again.At this moment when a powerful enemy was present, there was no tremor or hesitation in her voice, only a slight smile.

"Of course....Have you heard of Yoshimitsu Awataguchi?"

Saito was silent for a moment.

"He was a famous swordsmith in the Kamakura period, and he was good at making short swords." He replied.

Perhaps because of getting the correct answer, the voice of the young woman who claimed to be Kazuo Shinoda became more pleasant.

"That's right....Then you must have heard that 'Ichiki Yishin' is the only Taidao inscribed in his life, so the name of the sword is 'Ichiki Yishin', which is the only treasure in his life -"

Saito: "...Yes."

Then, he saw her flick her wrist slightly, and her tone became lighter.

"...This is the 'one phase, one strike'. Not bad, right?"

Saito: "..."

...Ah, how could she speak so confidently.When buying a knife, he was cheated by the cunning owner of the knife shop, right? !

The author has something to say:

February 1:

There is another update before 12 o'clock tonight.Because I still have 5555555 words to complete the list [-]

However, I had a lot of fun writing the elementary school in Aizu w

PS.1. The song mentioned in this chapter is called "Mr. A Gong".It is said that during the Boshin War, Prince Chiren of Arisugawa Palace sang this song in front of the Royal Banner of Nishiki when he was advancing. The time was the first year of Meiji, and it was the first military song of Neon.

2. The Chunyi team is a friendly army. It is on the east side of the Tathagata Hall. However, when the Tathagata Hall was attacked, they quickly retreated and fled, and did not come to support the Shinsengumi.

3. The Changfu patriotic team is on the side of Sa Chang's army.

4. In this chapter, Mr. Yi actually wants to say that the tone of the girl's speech is a bit like that of the deputy chief hhh

5. The member of the Shinsengumi who died at the beginning of this chapter was Takada Bunjiro, who was indeed killed in the Tathagata Hall in history.