The next day, early morning——

Nangong Mountain, East Foot, Qibing Team’s Main Formation——

The sky has just turned white, and the pale yellow morning sun rises slowly from behind the mountains in the east, casting a faint light with difficulty.

The clouds were low and thick, casting dark shadows.

Since last night, the temperature in Sekigahara has plummeted, and translucent fog can be exhaled with just a breath.

Even the dawn of the morning sun could not dispel the oppressive chill.

If nothing else happens, it will probably snow today.

What is striking is that the current bad weather matches the atmosphere of the Rangers' camp quite well.

Inside and outside the camp, it was eerily quiet...

From the officers to the ordinary soldiers, they all had stiff expressions and looked numb.

Standing sentry, patrolling, wiping weapons... No one said anything, everyone was mechanically doing the work at hand.

If you look carefully, you can see that many of them have extremely ugly faces.

They are all people who took "Decisive Battle" yesterday.

Facts have proved that as amazing as the effectiveness of this pill is, its side effects are so terrifying!

There is no fixed number for the duration of the effect of "Decisive Battle Lake". Whether it is long or short depends entirely on personal physique.

No matter how long it lasts, after the effect of the medicine ends, all users, without exception, will feel extremely painful!

The first is muscle soreness, as if the limbs are filled with lead, and the pain is excruciating if you move even a little.

The next thing is dizziness and mental fatigue, as if I haven't slept for several days in a row.

In a word, there is no part of my body that is not uncomfortable. Even if I rest all night, I will not feel better.

Before distributing "Decisive Battle of Yodo", Takasugi Shinsaku did not conceal its side effects, and explained the truth to all the soldiers in the army without missing a beat. He also made it clear that whether to swallow this medicine in battle was entirely based on one's own will and would never be forced.

Knowing that this will cost a lot of money, there are still many people who resolutely swallow the "Decisive Battle of Yodo"! They vow to fight the Shinsengumi to the end!

The coup on August 18, the Ikedaya Incident, the Summer Battle of Kyoto... After experiencing so many battles, the conflict between the Shinsengumi and the Choshu clan has long since reached a point where it will never end.

There are many members of the Raid Team who have either direct or indirect hatred towards the Shinsengumi.

As long as they can gain the strength to fight the Shinsengumi, they are willing to take even poison... It is with this kind of consciousness that they swallow the "Decisive Battle" without hesitation!

…

…

Omura Masujiro stood with his hands behind his hands, staring expressionlessly at the top of Nangong Mountain in the distance - more precisely, at the sincere flag planted on the top of the mountain.

With the help of "Decisive Battle", they finally survived yesterday.

This is certainly gratifying, but... what about today?

They used the trump card of "Decisive Battle against Yodo" yesterday, but they failed to completely defeat the Shinsengumi and only slowed down their attack speed.

Under the fierce attack of the Shinsengumi, they were forced to abandon the top of the mountain and retreat to the eastern foothills.

Looking back at yesterday's battle, it is not difficult to find that yesterday was the same as the day before! Both were originally good battles, but fell short because of someone's bravery!

The crucial "high wall" was lost the day before yesterday.

We even lost our formation yesterday!

The guys who captured these two places are the same person!

Thinking of this, Masujiro Omura couldn't help but lower his face, clenched his fists, and yelled in his heart full of resentment:

——Tachibana Aoden...you monster...!

As a newcomer who had just joined the Raiders, Masujiro Omura knew all about Aoto through word of mouth.

Before the war, he thought that "I already think highly of him" and simply classified Qingdeng as "a person who needs to be wary of".

It was only now, after intuitively feeling Qingdeng's terrifying combat power, that he realized belatedly that he was terribly wrong.

Tachibana Aoden is not "an object that needs to be guarded against", but "an object that requires the mobilization of a thousand or more troops to barely block him"!

To describe Qingdeng using terms such as "one horse can equal a thousand" and "bravely championing three armies" seems to be too light and inappropriate.

This kind of swordsman who can turn the tide of a battle on his own... is probably only rivaled by the "Eternal Sword Master" Ogata Ittosai from 70 years ago!

At this thought, Masujiro Omura unconsciously felt heavy in his heart.

Although he was frustrated, he quickly adjusted himself, took several deep breaths, managed to calm down, and continued to think about tactics and strategies.

In fact, the current battle situation is quite clear.

To put it bluntly: There is no way to retreat! The only option is to fight with your back against the enemy!

Without the west foothills, there is still the top of the mountain; without the top of the mountain, there is still the east foothills; but without the east foothills... then there is nothing!

If even the eastern foothills were lost, they would no longer have the dangerous terrain to rely on, and the huge Sekigahara would be completely owned by the Shinsengumi.

By then, the Shinsengumi's road to the east to aid Edo will no longer be blocked!

Either defend the eastern foothills or be completely defeated... In other words, today is the day of the real decisive battle!

The soldiers who took "Decisive Battle of Yodo" yesterday were unable to fight anymore due to the side effects today.

At most they could barely pick up their weapons, and some couldn't even stand up.

There is a serious shortage of troops...the only card left on hand is the geographical advantage that is better than nothing...

A clever woman cannot make a meal without rice. No matter how resourceful Omura Masujiro is, there is nothing he can do without soldiers and generals.

——Is this the end...

Just when Omura Masujiro was thinking secretly, an anxious shout suddenly came from behind him:

"Master Takasugi! Why are you up? Please go back to bed and rest!"

"Stop being so verbose and get out of the way."

Omura Masujiro turned around and happened to meet Takasugi Shinsaku's eyes.

Omura Masujiro was stunned on the spot as he saw Takasugi Shinsaku walking towards him with a staggering step.

"Mr. Takasugi, why are you here?"

After regaining consciousness, he stepped forward to meet him, and stretched out his hands to support Takasugi Shinsaku's shoulders.

I saw that his body was covered with linen, his face was as pale as paper, and his face was blue and red.

A duel with Niou without dying on the spot... very few people in the world have achieved such an achievement.

To be honest, after bidding farewell to Takasugi Shinsaku yesterday, Omura Masujiro was mentally prepared to "never see Takasugi Shinsaku again for the rest of his life."

Unexpectedly, the comrade who was thought to be dead actually came back alive... This was really an unexpected surprise.

At this time, Omura Masujiro was so shocked that his jaw almost dropped to the ground.

However, although he was not dead, the injuries he suffered were not light.

Even without a doctor's diagnosis, anyone with eyesight could see that his injuries were serious.

The last two "meat bomb strikes" Aoto used caused Takasugi Shinsaku to suffer considerable internal injuries, and his spine almost cracked.

Last night, the doctor repeatedly warned: You must rest! Don’t stand if you can sit, don’t sit if you can lie down, and never do strenuous exercise!

However... it was obvious that Takasugi Shinsaku completely turned a deaf ear to the doctor's advice.

Faced with Omura Masujiro's inquiry, he twitched his lips:

"I'm still alive. Since I'm still alive, I naturally have to continue fighting."

Hearing this, Omura Masujiro didn't say much. He only looked at the other party deeply and then silently looked away without saying a word. He did not utter any advice such as "Please go back and rest quickly".

Takasugi Shinsaku twisted slightly, shook off Omura Masujiro's support, raised his gaze, and looked at the top of Nangong Mountain.

"Mr. Omura, how are you? Has anything happened that deserves reporting? Is there any movement in the Shinsengumi?"

Omura Masujiro shook his head gently:

"No movement yet."

Takasugi Shinsaku pondered, and while thinking, he took out his telescope, opened the barrel, looked at the scenery on the top of the mountain, and observed the movements of the Shinsengumi.

Suddenly, a small piece of white matter whirled and fell lightly into his field of vision.

Takasugi Shinsaku raised his eyebrows, put down the telescope in his hand, and looked up at the sky.

Masujiro Omura on the side also raised his head, looked at the sky, and murmured:

"It's snowing..."

There were scattered snowflakes at first, and then they turned into heavy snowflakes in a blink of an eye.

There are more and more snowflakes, and they are rolled up into a mess, like a dense white net, covering the earth directly.

Looking at the snow and wind in the sky, Takasugi Shinsaku subconsciously put his hands into his arms - this is a habit that experienced martial artists have.
To be continued...