Bending over and walking in the trenches, Liu Quan always had difficulty controlling his gaze drifting in a certain direction.

Saito finally noticed the direction of her gaze, and glanced in that direction, and then withdrew his gaze and said lightly, "Ah, that's Takada." ”

Liu Quan silently took his gaze back from the body that looked quite young, but half of his face was stained with blood, and looked a little hideous and terrifying, and replied, "I'm sorry. ”

Saito's tone was rather flat.

"Nothing to regret. He did what he was supposed to do and gave his life for what he believed in. Maybe we'll do the same in a while, then."

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

Saito seemed to be a little stunned for a moment. His gaze stayed on her face, and after a moment he said, "You, indeed, are a strange person." ”

Liu Quan smiled and followed him, walking along the trench towards the area he was responsible for guarding.

At this time, it was already midnight, and it felt like it was the darkest time of the night, and the enemy might be waiting for the next attack, intending to kill the Shinsengumi in one blow, so there was a brief silence on the side of the ruined Rulai Hall.

Through the faint moonlight, Liu Quan could see clearly that there seemed to be a person lying on his stomach on a large tree nearby. There were also people in the small mounds in the distance and in the nearby trenches where it was easiest to observe the surrounding battle, while others took the time to hide in the trenches with their rifles in their hands and close their eyes to recuperate.

Yanagizumi looked around, but he didn't see the famous Chengzi flag of the Shinsengumi. This made her a little confused, and she couldn't help but stop and look again.

When she looked around for the second time, Saito noticed that she seemed to be searching for something. He paused, as if he had guessed what she was searching for, and he said in a deep voice, "If you want to find the Shinsengumi Shoji, I've ordered the standard-bearer to take it away." ”

Willow Springs "What"

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

"I have resolved to fight to the death here today. Saito also turned his face and said in an unusually calm, apparently determined tone.

"The Shinsengumi who stayed in Aizu have reached their final moments. Half of the flag had already been burned by artillery fire during the night's battle to the death, so I, as captain, ordered the standard-bearer to bring it back to Mr. Hijikata to express my final determination."

His gaze was awe-inspiring, like the sharpest sword, shooting out the brightest cold light.

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

After he briefly explained his reasoning, it seemed that for a moment he suddenly came to his senses, not knowing how to describe his deeper feelings, and not understanding why he would speak his inner thoughts in front of this young woman who claimed to be a member of the women's team, maybe it was because, at the last moment of the Shinsengumi, she was the only one who rushed towards the Shinsengumi and in his direction, wanting to support him.

He was silent for a moment for his rare words. Then, he flatly brushed his head and muttered, "So, I don't know why you're still here." Obviously, there is nothing here that can guarantee that something will happen except death."

Then, he heard the young woman who identified herself as "Kazuo Shinoda" laugh softly.

"Of course I know that even if you're the sharpest knife in the Shinsengumi, there's no guarantee that you'll be alive"

Cha. He heard her gently pull out a little of the sword at her waist. The blade slid through its sheath, causing a soft sound.

"I've been taken care of by the Shinsengumi in the past. So, no matter how many times, I'll rush to help. ”

Her smiling tail note, accompanied by the distant sound of enemy shells bombarding Aizu Castle, was as clear and real as thunder in his ears.

This is probably the faith and friendship that exists between human beings. ”

Saito

His eyes widened slightly in astonishment. The face that was always calm and lacked change seemed to fluctuate for a moment. However, the fluctuation was so short-lived that it disappeared in the blink of an eye, and the mouthless wolf of the Shinsengumi had returned.

"Oh. He said.

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

Probably moved by the heroic lines she just brushed up suddenly.

Yanagizumi didn't immediately take a step, but stood in place, pursing his lips and smiling slightly in the direction of Saito's back.

I've finally said it.

Those words that Aizu, who had been many years ago, had not had the opportunity to say when he left Aizu many years ago and embarked on a journey.

It's a pity that I couldn't come to support you at that time.

Now, at last, I have such an opportunity.

Although this is not the only purpose, there is only a limit to what I can do for you, and even the "you" in front of me is not the "you" left behind when I turned to leave

However, I still have the opportunity to stand on the land of Aizu and witness you wielding a sword for faith in the nearest place, which is already a rare experience.

In the distance, as the army continued to bombard Aizu Castle with the rumbling of cannons, Ryuzumi lowered his eyebrows and took a deep breath.

However, along with this burst of artillery fire, there seemed to be a distant, monotonous singing.

Your Excellency, Your Excellency, Your Excellency

Mr. Anomiya

The fluttering in front of your horse

What is it?

That was the splendid banner of our army when it conquered the national thieves

Willow Springs

She didn't know anything about this song, and when she heard it on this kind of killing battlefield and the tone was not very good, she couldn't help but feel dry and stunned for a moment.

And the lyrics sound as harsh as the key.

She suddenly remembered that a long, long time ago, when everyone found out that the camp of the army of Sa Chang had raised the banner of the Nishiki Imperial Banner, the voice of Hijikata was full of anger and helplessness.

Where is there any great righteousness here?

Now, these people who have written the Nishiki Imperial Banner into the lyrics and sang it triumphantly are those Sacho people, and they are their opponents

What do they want to do, to mentally crush and disintegrate the army loyal to the shogunate and shogun

Knock knock. In the camp of the army of the chief in the distance, the sound of neat drums sounded.

Ten thousand times a day, ten thousand times a day, ten thousand times the son of heaven

O bad guys who have a bad heart for him

Aim at them, aim at them

The samurai of the chief hit hard

Liu Quan's brows tightened unconsciously, and his eyebrows almost rose upside down. Undisguised anger welled up in her face.

Knock knock. The other side was still beating drums in the middle of the formation.

The battle of Fushimi, Toba, Yodo, Hashimoto, and Kudzuba

The Kanto samurai who heard the voice

Once I heard that any of them had escaped

Our city is in full swing

The momentum is invigorating

In this song, there are even unforgettable places

Those who followed their former companions, repeatedly failed, repeatedly retreated, and repeatedly separated.

"Hmph. ”

Liu Quan snorted coldly unconsciously.

"Don't talk about it, arrogant guys"

Suddenly, Saito's voice came from the side.

"You, the tone of your voice, is really similar to a person. ”

Yanagizumi raised his eyebrows slightly, and immediately turned in Saito's direction.

He had now returned from the trenches a little farther away to inspect the situation and arrange tasks, and he looked a little tattered with a knife and a scabbard at his waist, but he was carrying a rifle in his hand. He pressed the wooden butt against the ground and glanced at her a little strangely.

Liu Quan: "Oh, like what kind of person, I'm curious"

Saito suddenly turned his face away from hers.

"Nothing. He said perfunctorily.

Then, as if to avoid the topic, he tilted his head slightly and looked up at the night sky.

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

"What's going on, the sky is cracking?"

Willow Springs

She threw her head back sharply, and the movement was so great that it almost flashed to her neck.

In the dark night sky, huge black holes that were almost orange-red and round appeared one after another. From each hole, an orange light suddenly emitted and shot directly into the ground. When the light dissipated, monsters with twisted and hideous shapes appeared on the battlefield.

Ryuzumi heard several subconscious exclamations from the young Shinsengumi around him, words such as "Ahhh

Only their captain, Jiro Yamaguchi, No, Saitoichi regained that surprising composure after his expression moved slightly.

"Are these monsters again," he said to himself.

Then, he put down the rifle in his hand very calmly, and slowly pulled out the knife at his waist, but in Liu Quan's opinion, the knife was really tattered, and there were even several small gaps in the blade, I don't know how many fierce battles it had experienced, and it had not been repaired well in time

"Stand down. He said briefly.

"That's probably not an enemy you can deal with. Concentrate on getting ready to deal with those Chiefs, these monsters are up to me."

Before he could finish his sentence, he heard the young woman named "Shinoda Kazuo" chuckle again.

"Oh, how do you deal with these enemies that we can't deal with, Yamaguchi-kun"

She asked unceremoniously directly.

Saito ""

He had no idea how to answer her.

In fact, the last time he encountered such a monster, he didn't manage to kill it. Kill these monsters, yes

It was the opponent he had to clear out at the time, wasn't it?

He didn't really have much time to dig into his memories years ago and recall the details of the last time he faced such a monster before the mysterious, mighty, and invincible enemy struck, but the subtle sense of disobedience in his heart grew stronger.

"Captain Yamaguchi", the soldier who was lying on the tree and was in charge of observing the battlefield, suddenly screamed, interrupting his thoughts.

"The Pure Righteous have begun to retreat, and it seems that there are Satsuma infantry advancing towards their position."

Before Saito could speak, there was an almost broken shout from the small mound on the other side of the trench.

"Saito-kun, Saito-kun, the Changfu newspaper team is here to prepare to cross the river"

Saito understood his current situation in an instant.

Even the embattled is not too much.

And, 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, and swallowed back if he wanted to tell her to get out of here quickly.

There is no more chance.

She no longer had a chance to escape from Nuraido and return to Aizu Castle or her hometown.

He opened his mouth again, but only a few syllables could be squeezed out.

"Hey, Shinoda-kun"

But what else could he say to her?

Say "Your gratitude is reckless and stupid" or "I'm sorry because of my incompetence that made you die here with me today" or "Now is the time to sacrifice yourself for Aizu, I'll cover you later, and if you have the chance, you can get out of here and run to safety"

As a result, in the end, he stubbornly said something that he had not thought of beforehand.

"Your return is complete. He said in a stiff tone.

"You can come here, even if you have already repaid the favor. Now, let's go. ”

"Let's go. Get out of here and go anywhere safe."

Before he could finish his sentence, he heard a choking sound, the sound of her drawing her sword completely out of its scabbard.

Even in the middle of the night, he could see clearly that what she was holding in her hand was really a good knife.

"Nope. She rejected his offer very neatly.

"To repay the kindness, you have to repay it well to the end. This is the family motto of the Shinoda family. ”

For a moment, Saito was simply ridiculous.

Even he could hear that the Shinoda family's family motto was completely her excuse. Don't take him for a fool

But in the end he didn't say anything, but stared at the blade of the knife she held in her hand.

"That's a pretty good knife. He whispered, as if he had simply given up trying to persuade her to retreat.

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

"Of course. Have you ever 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 knives. He replied.

Perhaps because of the correct answer, the voice of the young woman who claimed to be named Kazuo Shinoda was even more pleasant.

"That's right. Then you must have heard that a period of a Zhen is the only knife in his life in the inscription, so the name of the knife is called a period of a Zhen , that is, there is only one treasure in his life"

Saito: "Yes. ”

Then, he saw her flick her wrist slightly, and her voice became more brisk.

"This is a vibrating issue. Not bad."

Saito ""

Ah, how could she be so confident. When I was buying a knife, I was deceived by the cunning boss of the knife house