TRAITOR OF JAPAN, HERO OF EDO.
Hours later...
...
Countless bodies of soldiers were forming mountains inside and outside the walls, as the firing of cannons overwhelmed the once silent night. Eiji frantically ran around the walls, shouting commands to the best of his abilities. "Fire!" He yelled everywhere. The battle was going strong, as hundreds fell every minute. In his view, he couldn't see any of the Three Brothers. "Where are they? Are they not gonna fight as well?" Countless thoughts swirled through his mind, as he continued to shout commands to the soldiers in the city.
As he was running around across the city walls, waves of soldiers kept charging towards the city walls. The thousands of charging enemy soldiers were too much for the few cannons the Emperor left for them. Some of them managed to plant ladders on the walls, leading to enemies managing to scale them. Clashes of swords rang out, as thousands upon thousands fought on the walls. Hundreds of archers are dying every second as the soldiers who managed to climb the walls slash their necks. Slowly but surely, the morale of Eiji's army was slowly dying out. This bloody scene would soon last for many more hours...
Screams of mutilated soldiers calling out for their mothers, buried from the cannon fire and clashing of metal. Blood was painting the walls red, as many more gallons would soon fill more and more inches of the walls. Intestines and other organs are found everywhere, the heads of the young and old lay on the cold ground. Eiji could no longer take it, and he joined the battle himself.
*BOOM*
Eiji's powerful slashes sliced rows of enemies at once, guts spilling out to the sky. He skillfully cut through the soldiers that climbed the walls, restoring the balance of power once again. Until now, Jisei himself and his other brothers haven't joined the fray yet. Eiji's sword was bloodied, and his eyes were blank, seeing the gore of it all. As a coping mechanism to seeing the scene, Eiji shut off his mind, only slashing mindlessly through the hundreds of enemies. Seeing Eiji's power, some of his soldiers' fighting spirit was restored, one even exclaimed, "Look! Our Commander himself has joined!" Their spirits were lifted, as they all joined their commander. The cannons continuously rang out throughout the battle.
...
Hours later, the cannons slowly died down, as the enemies were disappearing from the city. The first wave was slowly coming to an end. Both sides held heavy casualties, Jisei's number suffered the most, though that didn't worry him one bit.
...
The bodies were gotten rid of, and the tears of their comrades stained the ground below. The soldiers could barely keep up. Eiji looked over the scene, his heart heavy with regret. One of the archers went near him and asked, "Sir... How long will this last...?" Eiji turned around to face him and gripped his shoulder, "Kid... I don't know myself..." The archer was saddened to hear that and replied, "I see..." But he smiled at Eiji, "Thank you, sir..." Eiji smiled as well and patted his shoulder, "We will push through this, no matter what." The archer nodded and left. Eiji was left alone with his thoughts, as he prepared his soldiers for the next wave of Jisei's attack.
...
It lasted for 15 days. 15 days of constant clashing of swords, firing of cannons, destruction of walls, and arrows flying through the air. Eiji's army was halved, while Jisei's army lost a quarter of its numbers. The soldiers were barely holding up, the supplies were slowly waning. Any further waves could annihilate the remaining men.
One evening, one man was slowly edging closer to the city walls. The archers exclaimed, "Identify yourself!" The man smirked and replied with a loud smug voice, "Jisei!"
... The archers' faces paled and they called out for Eiji.
...
Eiji met Jisei outside, the air around them was thick with tension and fear. The archers and soldiers stood guard, defending Eiji from behind. Their bows were aimed straight at Jisei, but that did not bother him one bit, even smirking in response.
Eiji asked him, "What is your business here...?" Jisei smiled and replied, "You know, you and your soldiers held strong." Eiji's heart was beating fast, filled with fear, but he did not show it. "And? Be quick." Eiji demanded. Jisei smirked and replied, "You know I'm gonna give your city a chance." Eiji was skeptical, "What do you mean by that...?" He asked, his voice laced with uncertainty. Jisei asked him, "You're the only one with a stone here, right?" Eiji froze in fear. Jisei smirked, "I have a proposal for you... But before that, let me ask you something." Eiji hesitantly nodded, knowing that he must not anger him.
Jisei looked at him straight in the eye and asked sternly, "Where does your loyalty lie, the Emperor, or the people?"
That question alone made Eiji think about his loyalty to the Empire. He looked down, weighing the answer to that question. He was silent for a while until he spoke in a very clear voice, "The Emperor could die for all I care." That answer shocked the soldiers around him, but Jisei only laughed loudly. He looked at Eiji with a bright face, "Good answer." Eiji looked down at the ground in shame. Eiji hesitantly asked Jisei, "So, what's the proposal?" Jisei stopped laughing, wiping tears from his eyes, "Oh, that, well... Join me." Eiji's eyes widened. "Be the new lord of this city, be my general, and I will spare the citizens from slaughter." Jisei offered his hand and asked, "What do you say, Yamamoto?"
The soldiers and archers were shocked, but at the same time, they wanted Eiji to accept, though the sacrifices of those who lost their lives before them would be meaningless, further bloodshed and the lives of the people were simply too important to ignore.
Eiji pondered his choices. "If I reject him, he might join the battle himself, that would surely mean my loss... But if I'll accept, then the people could be saved..."
His mind was reeling with all the possibilities for a while, but then he remembered the people who lived here, the smiles on their faces, the children who still have years ahead of them. In his mind, one thing was certain, the safety of the civilians is above his already waning loyalty towards the Emperor.
With no hesitation, he shook his hand, "I accept." The reactions of Eiji's side were mixed, though ultimately, they all applauded his decision. The soldiers cheered for Eiji, chanting and yelling celebrations for the end of the battle.
This meant multiple things. Though the safety of the people was guaranteed, this signaled Eiji's betrayal of the Empire, though that barely meant anything to Eiji at that moment.