Chapter 928 The Eighth Prince’s offensive and defensive battle begins! 【4800】
Hijikata Toshizo did not hide the fact that "Edo was unable to send reinforcements."
On the day he learned of this, he spread the word and informed all members of Thousand People United: We must fight alone!
Hijikata Toshizo's sudden words attracted the attention of all the soldiers.
There is respect and awe in these gazes, but also vigilance and disgust...
In the eyes of thousands of soldiers with one heart, Hijikata Toshizo was a leader who suddenly "airborne".
Although the opponent was the famous "Deputy Commander of the Demon", this could not change the fact that the thousands of soldiers working together were not familiar with him at all.
In this way, many people will naturally have a strong sense of distrust towards him.
Hijikata Toshizo calmly endured the various gazes with different emotions.
After a brief pause, he continued to shout:
"Some of you may not know that I, Hijikata Toshizo, am a farmer from Tama!"
"Tama and Hachioji are close neighbors!"
"Therefore, although I am not a member of Thousands of People Together, I have deep feelings for Thousands of People Together!"
"I never imagined that one day I would be able to fight side by side with thousands of people!"
"Honestly, I am so impressed!"
"I know you are scared."
"There are no reinforcements, no geographical location to rely on, and we are facing the bandits who enjoy the advantage on a wide plain with no danger to defend... This is indeed an extremely difficult battle!"
"But we can't escape!"
"We must face it!"
"Behind us is Edo!"
"Edo has not yet completed preparations for the battle! There are still a large number of civilians who have not had time to evacuate!"
"If we just let the rebel army go eastward, Edo will fall! Countless lives will be ruined!"
"Our desperate fight is not only for the moral integrity of saving the world, but also for the integrity of our promise!"
"Two hundred and sixty years ago, your ancestors made an agreement with Dongzhao Daquanxian to guard the Eighth Prince from generation to generation."
[Note: The power of Tosho appears: the godly name of the first shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu]
"It is because of this agreement that you can have this fertile land under your feet!"
"This agreement was originally made to deal with the Toyotomi family two hundred and sixty years ago."
"Although the Toyotomi family has long been reduced to the smoke and dust of history, this agreement has not been wiped out!"
"Now, it's your turn to fulfill this promise!"
"Now, I, Hijikata Toshizo, order you - use the blood of thieves to honor this long-standing agreement! Use the blood of thieves to show your glory!"
Although he usually doesn't have the opportunity to express himself, there is no doubt that the deputy captain of Oni, who can impress countless girls with his words, is also a master of words that is good at inspiring people.
By the time he finished speaking, the atmosphere at the scene had changed drastically.
A generous and fierce aura circulated around the soldiers.
They have always been very proud of their status as the "Edo West Gate of the World".
Hijikata Toshizo's words completely aroused the arrogance in their hearts.
This "arrogance" overcame panic and fear.
Seeing that the fighting spirit of the soldiers was successfully ignited by him, Hijikata Toshizo immediately raised the Izumi Mori Kanesada in his right hand and pointed the tip of the sword diagonally at the sky.
"Eighth Prince, thousands of people are united! Go out into battle!"
The next breath, the mountain roars and the tsunami roars!
"Ohhhhhhhhh-!"
…
…
The unanimous shouts of thousands of people spread far away - even the French-Qich coalition forces 8 kilometers away could clearly hear it.
Shuten Doji and Katsura Kogoro walked side by side.
Katsura Kogoro said calmly while listening to the distant shouts:
"The morale on the other side is very high."
Shuten Doji responded without saltiness:
"It seems that the 'Deputy Commander of the Ghost' is quite capable."
Hijikata Toshizo fully took over the command of Thousand People Tongxin - they already knew about this.
"That's fine."
The Shuten boy curled up his lips and said slowly:
"I want to see how capable Hijikata Toshizo and this eighth prince are."
"Go down with the order, deploy the artillery team, prepare for bombardment!"
…
…
Gululululu... Gululululu... Gululululu...
The sound of adjusting the muzzle was loud.
One by one, the ferocious, black muzzles of the cannons were raised upwards, pointing diagonally at the sky, pointing at the distant position of thousands of people.
Among them are the cannons of the Raiders and the "Slavic Legion", totaling more than a hundred pieces - it is not difficult to imagine how terrifying this power is.
Shuten-doji, who was sitting in the main formation, raised the telescope in his hand, looked carefully at the position where thousands of people were united, and muttered:
"Hey...the trenches are quite well built."
At this time, Ru Nu moved to his side and said in a concentrated voice:
"All the guns are in place!"
After hearing this, Shuten Doji put down the telescope in his hand, twitched the corner of his mouth, showed an excited smile, and gave a cold command with a cheerful expression on his face:
In the blink of an eye, the position of thousands of people was covered by waves of flames.
Under the command of Hijikata Toshizo, the soldiers had taken refuge in the holes dug in advance.
Boom...boom...boom...boom...boom...
Shocking vibrations and terrifying sounds continued to spread into the pit, and the ground beneath his feet was as turbulent as the sea, rolling repeatedly.
The soldiers hiding in the pit waited silently for the rain of artillery fire to stop with different moods and postures.
Some people are eager to try and gear up.
Some people blocked their ears and looked annoyed.
Others clasped the miniature Buddha statues in their hands and chanted "Amitabha" incessantly.
"..."
Toshizo Hijikata sat calmly, observing a young man opposite him expressionlessly.
The man closed his eyes, curled up, tensed his shoulders, and hugged the gun in his arms tightly. His face was pale, and his teeth were gritting.
Abruptly, the man opened his eyes suddenly, then stood up and walked out with quick strides.
Hijikata Toshizo seemed to have expected it, and stood up first, stepped forward, and blocked the opponent's way.
"Wait a minute, where are you going?"
He has been paying attention to this person for a long time.
Hijikata Toshizo once heard the Shinsengumi's gunnery instructors—Calabash House's "Complex Man" Moriyasu Asai and "Thunder Slash" Kanichi Shimada—describe this symptom in detail.
Not everyone can bear the terrifying sound of cannon.
Hiding in dark and cramped potholes will greatly aggravate this fear.
In such an environment, some people with weak psychological endurance will directly collapse, and then stubbornly have the urge to "I want to go out."
Even if there is still rain of gunfire outside, even if someone persuades or blocks you, you will not be moved.
Sure enough, the man stared with cloudy eyes and said inarticulately:
"I want to go out...I want to go out...I can't stay here..."
Hijikata Toshizo patiently advised:
"Calm down, there's nothing scary about this shell. It will be over soon. As long as we hide here, we will be safe."
His words restored clarity to the other person's eyes - however, this was only temporary.
In just a moment, he returned to his original state, stared at his cloudy eyes again, and reached out to push the earth without saying a word.
I wonder if the mere militia is the role of the deputy commander of the ghost?
When talking about the "powerful swordsmen of the Shinsengumi", people will always mention Aoto, Souji, Nagakura Shinpachi, Saito Ichi and others.
Therefore, some people always forget that before displaying his military talents, Hijikata Toshizo showed himself as a brave and capable "thorny evil boy"!
Hijikata Toshizo stepped back, effortlessly dodged the opponent's hand, and then knocked him to the ground with a neat move.
"I told you, calm down."
"No! Let me out! I want to get out! Leave me alone!"
This man was spitting at the mouth and flapping his limbs vigorously, like a fish that landed on the beach, showing his madness.
In desperation, Hijikata Toizan punched him with his backhand and knocked him unconscious, using pure physical means to silence the opponent.
It's really too hard to let these militiamen who lack actual combat experience and military literacy face a powerful enemy like wolves and tigers...
At this thought, Hijikata Toshizo couldn't help but frown.
At this time, the sound of gunfire outside suddenly stopped.
The moment the world returned to silence, Hijikata Toshizo immediately gave an order:
"The artillery rain has stopped! The enemy is about to attack! Everyone get out! Hold on to the trenches!"
The soldiers, who had long been fed up with the darkness and confinement, couldn't wait to file out.
After a baptism of bombardment, the world outside the pit has changed.
There are burning flames everywhere, flying dust everywhere, and large and small potholes everywhere.
Fortunately, this level of shelling was not enough to fill the trenches.
Thousands of soldiers with one heart and one mind were in their respective positions, guarding key points in the trenches.
Looking to the west, I saw a large group of musketeers forming two long lines of tight and neat lines, walking slowly towards them with neat steps.
Without exception, these people all have Caucasian faces - they are the "Slavic Legion" secretly formed by the French Communist Party!
Hijikata Toshizo shouted loudly:
"Prepare to meet the enemy!"
Click, click, click, click, click, click...
The sound of gunshots rang out one after another.
A flintlock gun stretched forward and was placed on the trench, aiming directly at the approaching "Slav Legion".
"Calm down! Don't shoot until you receive my order!"
Hijikata Toizan stared at the enemy on the opposite side, carefully calculating the distance.
The chilling tension filled every corner inside and outside the trenches.
Although Hijikata Toizan earnestly said "Don't shoot without authorization", but...the soldiers under his command are not robots without thoughts and feelings, and will obey your orders 100%.
Suddenly, someone was too nervous and accidentally pulled the trigger——
Bang!
The harsh gunfire broke the silence and triggered a series of chain reactions!
Suddenly, gunfire broke out! Gunpowder smoke filled the air!
The soldiers were already very nervous, and their whole bodies were tense.
Suddenly there was a gunshot next to them... They were frightened and immediately subconsciously pulled the trigger!
The barrage swept past... but because the distance was too far, it failed to cause effective damage to the enemy troops. Only a few people were shot and fell to the ground.
Seeing this, Hijikata Toshizo gritted his teeth:
"Oops...! Hurry up and reload!"
Even without Hijikata Toshizo's instructions, the soldiers knew that something was wrong, so they hurriedly put away their muskets and reloaded their ammunition anxiously.
Taking advantage of this moment, the enemy troops advanced recklessly, closing the distance in one go.
"Stop! Raise your guns!" (Russian)
The enemy troops stopped...this time it was their side who raised their guns and fired loudly.
Thousands of guns were pointed at the trenches.
"Shoot!" (Russian)
The next moment, a storm of barrages covered the trenches!
The shortening of the distance, coupled with considerable military prowess... the combination of the two caused blood to rain!
"Uhhhhhhhhhhh...!"
"It hurts! I was shot!"
"Don't move! Don't let the mud get on your wound!"
Also flying together were screams.
Hijikata Toisho drank:
"Don't panic! Keep your eyes open! The enemy's shooting is not so terrible! We have trench protection! There are not so many people who have been shot! Fight back quickly!"
Hijikata Toshizo's voice slightly dispersed the chaos.
The soldiers stabilized the loaded muskets in their hands and pulled the triggers one after another.
Meanwhile, Elodie begins her battle.
She selected a group of people in advance to form a "medical team", responsible for transporting the wounded on the battlefield and taking them to the rear for treatment.
Timely transfer of the wounded will, firstly, allow those who have a chance to survive, and secondly, the wails and screams of the wounded will affect morale, so transferring them early is conducive to the battle.
Despite the unfavorable start, under the orderly command of Hijikata Toshizo, thousands of people worked together to gradually launch a counterattack.
In this way, one barrage after another filled the space between the two armies.
Anyone with long eyes can see which side has the advantage.
No matter how many people fall on the side of the "Slavic Legion", the people in the back row will immediately step forward to fill the empty seats, without panic and in good order.
On the other hand, thousands of people working together... to describe it as "overwhelmed" is not an exaggeration.
Faced with the suppression of the "Slavic Legion", the soldiers with thousands of people gradually panicked, and the order was obviously disordered.
The huge gap in military literacy cannot be made up by Hijikata Toshisan's roar.
At this moment——
"Charge!" (Russian)
An astonishing shout came from the enemy camp.
Hijikata Toshizo does not understand Russian.
But based on the current situation, he guessed the meaning of this Russian sentence.
Sure enough, the originally well-organized enemy formation suddenly spread out like a flood that broke a bank, and then rushed forward!
"Ula!"
Accompanied by shouts of unknown meaning, the "Slavic Legion" launched a charge!
In the blink of an eye, they rushed to the front of thousands of people - fierce hand-to-hand combat immediately began!
This group of Slavs are not only good at shooting, but their ability in close combat should not be underestimated.
In an instant, the white blade turned into a red bloody blade.
Just when a certain guy smiled ferociously and was about to plunge the bayonet in his palm into the chest of a young man——
Phew!
A black shadow shot out from the diagonal stab like a ghost, and the knife in its palm struck from the upper part, as fast as thunder, and struck the guy's neck.
In the next breath, blood spurted out, and the sound of flesh and bones being cut and the sound of the good man's head flying out sideways were heard simultaneously.
The young man stared blankly at the people who came to save him, and kept mumbling:
"Deputy, deputy chief..."
Hijikata Toizo shook the Izumi Mamoru in his hand, and while shaking off the remaining blood on the blade, he stretched out his hand towards the young man.
"Stand up quickly. There is no place for you to be in a daze on the battlefield."
The young man regained his composure, nodded vigorously, grabbed Hijikata Toshizo's extended hand, and stood up.
"The enemy is coming! This is exactly what we want!"
Toshizo Hijikata held his head high and shouted loudly:
"We are no match for them in shooting. How can we lose to them in hand-to-hand combat?"
His words immediately aroused the bloodshed of the soldiers.
Many of them have been dabbling with swords since they were young and are proud of being "good at swordsmanship". They often say things like "If the Westerners also use swords, we will definitely not lose" and the like.
In seconds, the counterattack began!
"Come on!"
"You white-skinned pig with lots of hair and a smelly body! Don't think you can take advantage in a hand-to-hand fight!"
"Let you see our swordsmanship!"
The soldiers drew their swords from their waists one after another and fought with the "Slavic Legion".
Hand-to-hand hand-to-hand combat... Not only were the soldiers able to use their strengths, Hijikata Toshizo was also able to fully demonstrate the power of the "Demon Vice-Commander"!
He spread his arms and danced Izumi Mamoru Kanesada.
One shake, another shake, three shakes - his body shook three times, dodging the thrusts of three enemy soldiers in a row.
At the same time - one flash, one flash, three flashes - the knife in his hand flashed three times, and every time it flashed, one of the three enemy soldiers who were coming towards him fell to the ground.
The hem of the long black trench coat was raised high, making him the most eye-catching presence on the battlefield.
At the same time, a petite pale golden figure also joined the chaos.
"Hey! Look! There's a white girl here!" (Russian)
"Hahaha! She is still a beautiful girl! Hurry! Capture her alive!" (Russian)
Two enemy soldiers, one on the left and one on the right, attacked Elodie.
Elodie quietly placed the Yamato Mamoru in her hand.
"They are just a bunch of Tatars in white skins. Just listening to you speak incomprehensible barbarian language gives me a headache. Stop talking nonsense and come over here." (French)
*******
*******
Please give me a monthly ticket! Please give me a recommendation vote! (Leopard Head Cries)
PS: I forgot which warlord in modern times hired a group of Russian mercenaries. Their shooting skills were not very high, but they were very brave. Whenever they picked up their bayonets and charged, they would always beat the enemy to pieces.
——This story is the inspiration for "Slavic Legion".