I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 928: Eight Princes Attack and Defense, the battle begins! [4800]

Hijikata Toshizo did not hide the fact that "Edo was unable to send reinforcements."

On the day he learned about this, he announced it to all members of Thousands of United: We must fight alone!

Hijikata Toshizo's sudden words attracted the attention of all the soldiers.

There is respect and awe in these glances, but also vigilance and disgust...

In the eyes of thousands of united soldiers, Hijikata Toshizo was just a leader who suddenly "dropped in" from the sky.

Although the opponent is the famous "Deputy Captain of Devil", this cannot change the fact that the thousands of soldiers who are united are completely unfamiliar with him.

As such, naturally many people will have a strong sense of distrust towards him.

Hijikata Toshizo calmly endured all the different gazes with different emotions.

After a brief pause, he continued:

"Some of you may not know this, but 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 with One Heart, I have deep feelings for Thousands of People with One Heart!”

"I never imagined that one day I would be able to fight alongside a thousand people!"

“To be honest, I’m really impressed!”

"I know you're scared."

"Without reinforcements, without a favorable terrain to rely on, facing the enemy army that enjoys all the advantages on a vast plain with no strategic locations to defend... This is indeed an extremely difficult battle!"

"But we can't escape!"

“We have to face it!”

"Edo is behind us!"

"Edo has not yet completed its preparations for the battle! A large number of civilians have not yet been able to evacuate!"

"If we let the enemy army go east, Edo will be lost! Countless lives will be lost!"

"We fight to the death not only for the moral principle of saving the world and bringing peace to the people, but also for the trustworthiness of our promises!"

"Two hundred and sixty years ago, your ancestors made a pact with Tosho Daigongen to guard the Eight Princes for generations."

[Note: Tosho Daigongen: the divine title of the first shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu]

"It is because of this agreement that you can own this fertile land under your feet!"

"This agreement was originally intended to deal with the Toyotomi family 260 years ago."

"Although the Toyotomi family has long since become a thing of the past, this promise has not been lost!"

"Now, it's your turn to fulfill this promise!"

"Now, I, Hijikata Toshizo, command you to use the blood of the thieves to fulfill this long-standing promise! Use the blood of the thieves to demonstrate your glory!"

Although he usually doesn't have the opportunity to show off, there is no doubt that the Ghost Deputy Captain, who can convince countless girls with his eloquence, is also a master of language who is good at inspiring people.

When he finished speaking, the atmosphere on the scene changed dramatically.

A generous and passionate aura lingered around the soldiers.

They have always been very proud of their identity as the "Western Gate of Edo Town".

Hijikata Toshizo's words completely aroused the pride in their hearts.

This "pride" overwhelms panic and fear.

Seeing that he had successfully ignited the fighting spirit of the soldiers, Hijikata Toshizo immediately raised Izumi-no-kami Kanesada in his right hand, with the tip of the sword pointing diagonally to the sky.

"Eighth Prince, thousands of people are united! Go out into battle!"

The next moment, there was a roar from the mountains and the sea!

“Oooooohh ...

……

……

The shouts of thousands of people echoed far away - even the French coalition forces 8 kilometers away could hear it clearly.

Shuten-doji and Katsura Kogoro walked side by side.

Katsura Kogoro listened to the distant shouts and said calmly:

"The morale of the other side is very high."

Shuten-doji responded indifferently:
"It seems that the 'Demon Deputy Captain' is quite capable."

Hijikata Toshizo took over the full command of the Thousand People's Unity - they already knew about this.

"fair enough."

Shuten-doji curled up the corners of his mouth and said slowly:

"I want to see how capable Hijikata Toshizo and Hachioji are."

"Pass the order down, deploy the artillery team and prepare for bombardment!"

……

……

Bone rolling...bone rolling...bone rolling...

The sound of adjusting the muzzle of the gun was heard everywhere.

The hideous, black muzzles of the guns were raised upwards, pointing obliquely towards the sky, towards the position in the distance where thousands of people were united.

Among them were cannons from both the Special Forces and the "Slavic Legion", totaling more than a hundred pieces - it is not difficult to imagine how terrifying this power was.

Shuten-doji, who was in charge of the main camp, raised his telescope and carefully observed the battlefield where thousands of people were united, muttering:
"Wow... this trench is built quite well."

At this time, Nu Nu moved to his side and said in a serious tone:
"All guns are in place!"

After hearing this, Shuten-doji put down the telescope in his hand, pulled up the corners of his mouth, revealed an excited smile, and gave a cold order with a joyful look on his face:
"Fire! Blow up Hachioji!"

After a while——

boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom!
The shells rose high and fell heavily!
In the blink of an eye, the position of thousands of people united was covered by waves of flames.

Under the command of Hijikata Toshizo, the soldiers had taken shelter in the pits that had been dug in advance.

Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom... Boom...

Terrifying vibrations and terrifying noises continued to spread into the pit, and the ground beneath the feet was as turbulent as the sea, rolling repeatedly.

The soldiers hiding in the pits waited silently for the artillery rain to stop with different moods and postures.

Some people are eager to try and are ready to give it a try.

Some people covered their ears and looked annoyed.

Others held the miniature Buddha statues tightly in their hands and chanted "Amitabha" continuously.

"..."

Hijikata Toshizo sat quietly, observing the young man opposite him with an expressionless face.

The man closed his eyes, curled up his body, tensed his shoulders, and held the rifle tightly in his arms. His face was pale and his teeth were grinding.

Suddenly, the man opened his eyes abruptly, stood up, and walked out with big strides.

Hijikata Toshizo seemed to have anticipated this and stood up and took a step forward to block the opponent's way.

"Wait, where are you going?"

He has been watching this man for a long time.

Hijikata Toshizo had heard about this symptom in detail from the Shinsengumi's gunnery instructors - the "dual-talented man" Asai Moriyasu and the "thunder slasher" Shimada Kanichi from Gorokuya.

Not everyone can withstand the terrifying sound of a cannon.

Hiding in a dark and cramped pit will greatly intensify this fear.

In this kind of environment, some people with weaker psychological endurance will collapse directly, and then stubbornly have the urge to "I want to go out".

Even though there was still artillery fire outside, and even though people tried to persuade and stop him, he remained unmoved.

Sure enough, the man stared with cloudy eyes and said incoherently:

"I want to go out... I want to go out... I can't stay here..."

Hijikata Toshizo patiently advised:
"Calm down, this shell is nothing to be afraid of, it will be over soon. As long as we hide here, we will be safe."

His words cleared the other person's eyes - however, it was only temporary.

In just a moment, he returned to normal, staring with his cloudy eyes again, and without saying a word, he reached out to push Doumang Suizo.

It's easy to imagine that a mere militiaman is not the role of a ghost's deputy chief.
When talking about the "powerful swordsmen of the Shinsengumi", people always mention Aoto, Souji, Nagakura Shinpachi, Saito Hajime and others.

Therefore, some people always forget that before showing his military talent, Hijikata Toshizo was known as a brave and warlike "thorny evil boy"!

Hijikata Toshizo took a step back, dodged the opponent's hand effortlessly, and then pinned him to the ground with a neat move.

"I told you to calm down."

"No! Let me out! I want to go out! Leave me alone!" The man was spitting and flapping his limbs hard, like a fish that has come ashore, revealing his madness.

In desperation, Hijikata Toshizo punched him back and knocked him out, using pure physical means to make him quiet down.

Seeing the big picture from the small details... It is really too much of a stretch to let these militiamen who lack practical combat experience and military literacy face the powerful enemy like wolves and tigers...

Thinking of this, Hijikata Toshizo couldn't help but frown.

At this moment, the sound of artillery fire outside suddenly stopped.

The next moment the world returned to silence, Hijikata Toshizo immediately gave the order:

"The artillery rain has stopped! The enemy is coming soon! Everyone, get out! Defend the trenches!"

The soldiers, who had long been fed up with the darkness and cramped conditions, could not wait to file out.

After the baptism of artillery rain, the world outside the pit has changed.

There were burning flames everywhere, flying dust everywhere, and holes of all sizes everywhere.

Fortunately, this level of shelling was not enough to fill the trenches.

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

Thousands of soldiers, united as one, took their positions and guarded key points in the trenches.

Looking to the west, they saw a large group of musketeers formed into two tight and orderly rows, marching slowly towards them in neat steps.

Without exception, all of these people had white faces—they were the "Slavic Legion" secretly formed by the French and French parties!
Hijikata Toshisaka shouted:
"Get ready to meet the enemy!"

Click, click, click, click, click, click, click…

The sound of gunfire rang out one after another.

Flintlock rifles were extended forward, placed on the trenches, and aimed directly at the approaching "Slavic Legion".

"Keep calm! Don't shoot until you receive my order!"

Hijikata Toshizo stared at the enemy opposite him and calculated the distance carefully.

The hair-raising tension filled every corner inside and outside the trenches.

Although Hijikata Toshizo earnestly told them not to shoot without permission, the soldiers under his command were not robots without thoughts and feelings who would obey his orders 100%.

Suddenly, someone accidentally pulled the trigger because he was too nervous -

boom!
The sharp gunshots broke the silence and triggered a series of chain reactions!
boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom!
Suddenly, gunshots rang out and the air was filled with smoke!

The soldiers were already very nervous, with their nerves on edge.

Suddenly, gunshots were heard beside them... They were frightened and immediately pulled the trigger subconsciously!
The barrage of bullets swept past... but because the distance was too far, it failed to cause effective casualties to the enemy. Only a few people were shot and fell to the ground.

Hijikata Toshizo saw this and gritted his teeth:
"Oh no! Reload now!"

Even without Hijikata Toshizo's instructions, the soldiers knew that things were going badly, so they quickly put away their muskets and frantically reloaded their ammunition.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, the enemy advanced recklessly, closing the distance in one breath.

"Stop! Raise your guns!" (Russian)

The enemy stopped...now it was their turn to raise their guns.

Thousands of guns were pointed obliquely at the trenches.

"Shoot!" (Russian)

The next moment, a storm of barrages covered the trenches!

The shortened distance, coupled with the considerable military proficiency... the combination of the two caused a bloody rain!
"Uhhhhhhhhhhh...!"

"It hurts! I was shot!"

"Don't move! Don't let the mud get on your wound!"

Screams were also flying everywhere.

Hijikata Toshisai drank:

"Don't panic! Open your eyes and watch! The enemy's shooting is not that scary! We have trenches to protect us! Not so many people were shot! Fight back quickly!"

Hijikata Toshizo's voice dispelled the confusion a little.

The soldiers held the loaded muskets steady in their hands and pulled the triggers one after another.

Meanwhile, Elodie begins her fight.

She selected a group of people in advance to form a "medical team" who were specifically responsible for carrying the wounded on the battlefield and taking them to the rear for treatment.

Transferring the wounded in time will, firstly, allow those who have a chance to survive to survive, and secondly, the wailing and screaming of the wounded will affect morale, so transferring them early will be beneficial to the battle.

Despite the unfavorable start, under the orderly command of Hijikata Toshizo, thousands of people worked together and gradually launched a counterattack.

Just like that, barrage after barrage filled the space between the two armies.

Anyone with eyes can see which side has the advantage.

No matter how many people fell on the "Slavic Legion" side, the people in the back row would immediately step forward to fill the vacancies, without panic or confusion, and in an orderly manner.

On the other hand, with thousands of people working together...it is not an exaggeration to describe it as "overwhelmed".

Faced with the suppression of the "Slavic Legion", the thousands of united soldiers gradually became panicked and the order was obviously disrupted.

The huge gap in military quality cannot be made up by Hijikata Toshizo's shouting.

Just at this time--

"Charge!" (Russian)

A terrifying roar came from the enemy camp.

Hijikata Toshizo did not understand Russian.

But based on the current situation, he guessed the meaning of this Russian sentence.

As expected, the originally well-organized enemy formation suddenly dispersed like a flood that broke through a dam, and then rushed forward!
"Ula!"

Accompanied by ambiguous shouts, the "Slavic Legion" launched a charge!
In just a blink of an eye, they rushed to the front of the thousand people - fierce hand-to-hand combat began immediately!
This group of Slavs are not only good at shooting, but their close combat skills are also not to be underestimated.

In an instant, the white blades turned into blood-red blades.

Just when a guy was about to stab a young man's chest with a bayonet in his hand with a ferocious smile on his face -

Phew!

A black shadow rushed out from the side like a ghost, and the knife in its hand attacked from the upper part, as fast as thunder, chopping towards the guy's neck.

The next moment, blood spurted out, the sound of flesh being cut and bones being broken, and the sound of a good man's head flying sideways, all rang out together.

The young man stared blankly at the person who came to rescue him, muttering:

"Deputy, Deputy Chief..."

Hijikata Toshizo shook the Izumi-no-kami Yasunari in his hand, wiped off the blood remaining on the blade, and reached out his hand to the young man.

"Hurry up and stand up. The battlefield won't allow you to be dazed."

The young man recovered, nodded vigorously, grabbed the hand that Hijikata Toshizo extended to him, and stood up.

"The enemy is coming! This is exactly what we want!"

Hijikata Toshizo held his head high and shouted:
"We are no match for them in shooting, so are we going to lose to them in hand-to-hand combat?"

His words immediately aroused the bloodiness of the soldiers.

Many of them have been using swords since childhood and are proud of their "sword skills". They often say things like "If the Western barbarians also use swords, we will definitely not lose" and so on.

In a split second, a fierce counterattack began!

"Go on!"

"You hairy, smelly white pigs! Don't think you can gain an advantage in a hand-to-hand fight!"

"Let me show you our swordsmanship!"

The soldiers drew their swords from their waists and fought together with the "Slavic Legion".

In the close hand-to-hand combat... not only can the soldiers display their strengths, but Hijikata Toshizo can also fully display the power of the "Demon's Vice-Captain"!

He spread his arms and danced with Izumi-no-Kami Kanesada.

Shake once, shake again, shake three times - his body shook three times, dodging the stabs of three enemy soldiers in succession.

At the same time - flash once, flash again, flash three times - the knife in his hand flashed three times, and each time it flashed, one of the three enemy soldiers who were rushing towards him fell to the ground.

The hem of his long black trench coat was lifted high, making him the most eye-catching presence on the battlefield.

At the same time, a petite figure in pale golden color also joined the chaos.

"Hey! Look! There's a white girl over here!" (Russian)

"Hahaha! She's a pretty girl! Quick! Capture her alive!" (Russian)

Two enemy soldiers attacked Elodi from the left and right.

Elodie calmly positioned the Yamato-no-Kami Yasutane in her hand.

"You are just a bunch of Tatars in white skin. Just listening to you speak your incomprehensible barbarian language gives me a headache. Stop talking nonsense and come over here." (French)

*******
*******
Asking for a monthly ticket! Please vote for recommendation! (Leopard head crying.jpg)

PS: I forgot which warlord in modern times hired a group of Russian mercenaries. Their shooting skills were not very good, but they were very brave. Whenever they raised their bayonets and launched a charge, they would always cause the enemy to collapse - this story is the inspiration for the "Slavic Legion".