Less than a minute after the derailment, the locomotive began emitting a large cloud of white steam and exploded with a thunderous roar.
Immediately afterward, two carriages at the rear burst into even larger flames. The sturdy steel carriages were torn apart like toys into countless fragments.
Some surviving soldiers had just crawled out of the carriages when the burning hot fragments pierced through their bodies like bullets, riddling them with holes.
Flames and thick smoke shot into the sky, forming a small mushroom cloud at the train's rear.
This explosion of the locomotive and the rear carriages affected at least five or six carriages. Along with the casualties from the derailment, it would be fortunate if even one-third of the soldiers survived.
Ryou's face revealed a cold smile as he watched the scarred, limbless soldiers crawling out of the carriages.
He did not choose to fly down and finish them off because these guys had a more important use.
After roughly estimating the number of surviving soldiers, he nodded in satisfaction.
In this accident orchestrated by him, about 500 samurai and less than 1,000 foot soldiers survived, all of them injured—some with head injuries, others missing limbs.
The once-formidable Northern Army had been half-crippled.
Ryou ceased his observation and flew away.
Suddenly, a loud, angry voice came from the central carriages.
"Damn it! You fools, hurry up and get me out of here!"
The lecherous Lord Kimura had miraculously survived.
His guards hurriedly and clumsily rescued him, while the two women who had been with him were naked and died tragically in the carriages.
One of the women had her throat pierced by a protruding iron bar, while the other was covered in bruises from being crushed.
It was clear that after the derailment, Lord Kimura had coldly used his bedside companion as a human shield, allowing him to survive.
While Kimura was getting the wound on his head bandaged with the help of others, a guard approached.
"Lord Kimura, should we continue moving forward now?"
"Bakayaro (You fool)! Can't you see I'm injured? Continue moving forward? Are you trying to get me killed?"
Kimura yelled angrily, cursing the guard.
The guard, whose left arm was missing below the elbow, hung his head and silently listened to Kimura's tirade.
After a while, Kimura's anger subsided slightly, and he immediately ordered, "Retreat! Retreat immediately! Let those Southerners fight for Yokosuka; we'll withdraw to the nearest castle station first!"
"Yes, sir."
The guard hesitated but said nothing.
Thus, like a farce, Kimura's Northern Army, without even approaching Yokosuka, turned its tail and retreated.
Ryou temporarily ignored these remnants of a defeated army and instead flew along the tracks in the direction the enemy had come from.
Soon, he reached a junction.
Since Yokosuka Port was the last stop on this railway line, the north and south tracks merged into one at this junction.
After briefly confirming his position, he began flying southwest along the tracks.
Along the way, he passed Aragane Station and immediately spotted his target.
Compared to Kimura's Northern Army, the coalition from the South was much more cautious.
They only transported their troops near Aragane Station and then marched on foot to occupy it.
The group Ryou had stationed here to monitor the Kabane horde had already been notified to withdraw, leaving only those stubborn old rogues who refused to leave.
With over 95% of the population evacuated, Aragane Station had become noticeably desolate, with almost no civilians in sight, only soldiers.
Flying through the sky, he scouted openly.
He found that, compared to the Northern Army, this Southern force was much more careful.
After entering Aragane Station, they didn't rush to rest but instead carefully searched the abandoned houses.
They had done the same when entering Aragane Station.
Trying to sabotage them by damaging the tracks again was impossible.
They seemed to have realized that the enemy planned to use Aragane Station as a stronghold, advancing step by step, and overwhelming the Yomogawa family's forces with superior numbers.
This kind of straightforward, overt strategy was almost impossible to counter.
But unfortunately, they had a foolish ally.
No matter how flawless a plan is, as long as it's executed by humans, there are bound to be flaws. If not, then create one!
At that moment, a commotion broke out, and Ryou immediately flew over, hiding his presence and observing.
"Sir, please, this is the last bit of food our family has."
An old man was clinging to a samurai's leg, while the samurai was taking a large bag of food from the old man's home.
Many old people were crying out in despair, but the samurai ruthlessly took their food. Those who resisted were either beaten or shot.
Scenes like this were happening everywhere as the Southern Army forcibly requisitioned food in Aragane Station.
These stubborn old folks who refused to follow Ryou to Yokosuka had now met an even more brutal opponent.
A well-dressed old man wearing reading glasses was pushed forward and voiced a feeble protest to the samurai.
The samurai's response was simple.
He kicked the old man to the ground.
"You traitorous rebels! Lord Sekiguchi has already shown you mercy by not having you all executed! This is wartime, and our army is requisitioning food. Anyone who resists will be killed without mercy!"
A samurai leader looked down at the old man and said angrily.
"Yes, sir!!!" the samurai beside him echoed loudly, raising his steam rifle.
Facing the samurai's brutality, the old people looked on with grief, too scared to speak, as they watched their food being loaded onto carts.
Ryou watched this scene with an indifferent expression.
Making a choice comes with a price.
These old people didn't want a safer, better life and were determined to leave his protection. Today, they were just paying part of the price for their previous choices.
Yes, just part of the price.
These samurai only wanted food. When the Kabane horde arrived, they would want their lives.
As he silently observed, time slowly passed.
The leader of the Southern Army seemed extremely cautious, choosing not to march through the night but instead setting up camp at Aragane Station.
Supplies were continuously transported to Aragane Station by steam trains.
Ryou couldn't help but smile coldly.
Perhaps before the plan begins, he could give them a little gift.
...
Meanwhile, in the temporary camp for prisoners at Yokosuka Port.
After a day of hard labor, the prisoners were herded back to their cells with aching bodies.
"Damn that stubborn Yomogawa Kenshou! Don't let me catch an opportunity, or I'll tear you limb from limb!"
Former Yokosuka Admiral Tsuchimoto Hisao gritted his teeth as he forced down a piece of hard black bread.
Feeling the emptiness in his stomach, Tsuchimoto cursed bitterly.
At this moment, he longed for a perfectly cooked medium-rare Kobe steak and thinly sliced sashimi.
"Admiral! Admiral!"
Just then, a whispering voice called out from behind him.
Tsuchimoto's body stiffened, and then he casually straightened up.
A small piece of paper was quietly slipped into his hand.
"Ah~ I'm so full I could sleep."
Tsuchimoto yawned and lay down.
The labor of building houses and walls was exhausting, and most prisoners lay down to rest as soon as they finished dinner.
Tsuchimoto's actions didn't arouse suspicion.
Using the shadows of the bodies lying around him, he carefully unfolded the paper. Written on it were a few small words.
War was imminent.
At midnight, they would break out of prison.
Tsuchimoto's eyes gleamed with intense hatred. He quickly crumpled the note into a ball, shoved it into his mouth, and swallowed it.
...
Time flew by, and soon it was midnight. The guards watching over the cells were leaning against the bars, yawning from exhaustion.
Suddenly, a strong hand reached from behind, covering the guard's mouth with one hand and choking his neck with the other. With a crisp snap, the guard's neck was broken. The lifeless body slid down along the bars, and the hand immediately searched the guard's pockets.
With the faint clinking of metal, a set of keys was retrieved from the guard's body. Soon, the cell doors were unlocked, and a group of ragged figures filed out.
Similar scenes were unfolding across the entire prisoner camp. Tsuchimoto was rescued from his cell.
"Admiral, you've suffered," one of the officers greeted him.
"Hmm, you've done well," Tsuchimoto replied, trying to maintain a dignified demeanor. However, with a few straws on his head and dressed in tattered prison clothes, he hardly looked the part. Despite this, the former naval officers around him dared not laugh.
The Tsuchimoto family held considerable power in Kongoukaku, even more than the Makino family, who served as the Shogunate Councilors. Tsuchimoto's sister was married to the Shogun as his wife. So despite knowing that taking Tsuchimoto along during the prison break would be a burden, they didn't dare leave him behind.
"Please follow me, Admiral," one of the officers, a lieutenant commander, said obsequiously.
"Hmm," Tsuchimoto responded with a grunt, his official attitude resurfacing as he found himself with followers once more.
"Prisoners are escaping!" a shout suddenly rang out from outside the cell, causing everyone's faces to change.
"Baka!(Idiot)"
Tsuchimoto spat out angrily.
"We need to leave immediately, Admiral Tsuchimoto!" the lieutenant commander urged, his face pale with fear.
"Lead the way quickly!"
Tsuchimoto dropped all pretense of dignity.
The group hurriedly rushed out of the cell, which was located one level below ground. The alarmed shouts had woken the entire prisoner camp. Foot soldiers ran around in panic, while some prisoners who hadn't been freed yet either begged for help or cursed those who had escaped, hoping Tsuchimoto's group would open their cells. However, Tsuchimoto and his men were too scared to pay attention to them.
As they emerged from the corridor and reached the cell entrance, their view suddenly widened. Corpses of foot soldiers and prisoners were scattered together, and not far off, the sounds of fighting and gunfire filled the air, throwing the entire camp into chaos.
Seeing the chaotic scene, Tsuchimoto and his group smiled with relief. The more chaotic it was, the easier it would be for them to escape. They hurriedly dashed toward the main gate, but before they could get far, the power was suddenly restored, and enormous floodlights illuminated the camp as if it were daytime. Tsuchimoto and his group were immediately caught in the spotlight.
Their eyes, adjusting from darkness to light, forced them to shield their faces with their hands. Then, the sound of numerous rifle bolts being pulled back echoed in the air. They looked up to see that the camp walls were lined with hundreds of foot soldiers armed with steam rifles.
"You fools, you've been tricked!" a mocking voice rang out—it was Shinjirou. His voice was dripping with scorn.
Realizing that they had been deceived, Tsuchimoto and his men saw the black muzzles pointed at them.
"What's going on? Are you working with them?!"
Tsuchimoto angrily grabbed the lieutenant commander's collar.
"A-Admiral Tsuchimoto, I swear I don't know! The Yomogawa family's main forces had already left this morning. How could there still be so many soldiers left?"
The lieutenant commander was trembling with fear.
"Baka! Useless fool!"
Tsuchimoto roared, throwing him to the ground.
"You don't need to blame him. Everything you've done was predicted by Lord Kenshou. Yes, our main forces left, but half of them returned halfway through," Shinjirou said, his face filled with reverence and fanaticism.
"Alright, enough talk. It's time to send you on your way. With your sins, I'm sure only hell will welcome you."
Shinjirou raised his right arm as he spoke.
The foot soldiers on the walls immediately aimed their steam rifles at Tsuchimoto and his group.
Seeing Shinjirou's murderous face, Tsuchimoto finally grasped the reality that they intended to kill him. He shouted desperately, "Wait! Wait! You can't kill me! I'm Tsuchimoto Hisao! The Shogun's wife's…!"
Before he could finish, Shinjirou's arm dropped without hesitation.
"Open fire!"
The night air was suddenly filled with the thunderous sound of gunfire, like a string of firecrackers going off at once. The open ground was soon filled with screams and the spray of blood.
A minute later, the gunfire ceased, and no one was left standing on the open ground. The area was strewn with corpses riddled with bullets, their bodies unrecognizable, and the ground beneath them soaked in blood.
"Half of you, go down and check for survivors. If you find any, execute them immediately!"
Shinjirou coldly issued the second order.
A large group of foot soldiers rushed onto the field. Occasionally, the sounds of bodies being turned over and the occasional gunshot echoed across the open ground.
Amidst the pile of bodies, Tsuchimoto was somehow still alive. In the first moments of gunfire, he had grabbed the lieutenant commander's collar and used him as a shield, buying himself an extra minute of life.
"Yomogawa Kenshou! You'll die a miserable death!"
Tsuchimoto shouted into the sky, his voice filled with endless venom.
The foot soldiers, discovering a survivor, immediately surrounded him and riddled him with bullets.
Thus, the navy officers captured at Yokosuka— from the admiral to the lowest lieutenants—were nearly all dead, effectively eliminating the possibility of rebellion among the lower-ranking naval officers.
...
Meanwhile, Ryou moved like a ghost through the Aragane Station, his target clear: the supplies of ammunition and provisions brought by the Southern Army.
When he reached the warehouse perimeter, he immediately noticed that the Southern Army was indeed cautious. he saw at least a hundred foot soldiers patrolling the area, with even some samurai inside the warehouse armed with short swords at their waists.
But no matter how tight their security, they were still ordinary men.
Ryou stepped out from the shadows without hesitation.
Sasaki Kojiro's sword was a demonic blade, a tool made for killing. And nothing honed its edge better than cutting down living people.