The bandit camp, our formation——

Shibazaki Renjuro stood outside the commander's tent with his hands behind his back, looking at the Shinsengumi position in the distance.

After the surprise attack force set off, Shibazaki Renjuro felt like ten thousand ants crawling on his heart.

I couldn't sit still, scratching my head and head... While I was in the commander's tent, my heart had flown to the distant battlefield in the north.

He really couldn't calm down, so he simply stood outside the handsome tent and waited impatiently.

Settsu Yorimitsu stood side by side with him, accompanying him silently.

Compared to Shibasaki Renjuro, who frowned, Settsu Yorimitsu was obviously much calmer.

I saw him spreading his legs casually, with a calm expression on his face.

Logically speaking, if the surprise attack had been successful, the Shinsengumi position would have been on fire and smoke would have been emitted by now.

However... they have waited until now, but the soaring fire and thick black smoke have never caught their eyes...

The Shinsengumi camp in the distance is still peaceful.

What this means... is self-evident.

Shibazaki Renjuro's facial lines gradually became tighter and more ferocious.

"Kenzo..."

He softly called his beloved disciple's name, and held the hands behind his back tightly, as if he wanted to tear apart the flesh and peel off the bones.

"...It seems that the surprise attack failed."

Settsu Yorimitsu, who was muttering like this, still had "taking his time" written on his face, as if he didn't even think that the "failure of the surprise attack" was such a big deal.

"Shibasaki-sama, there is no need to lose heart."

"The ancients said: 'Victory and defeat are common matters for military strategists.'"

"Next, we..."

Before Settsu Yorimitsu finished speaking, Shibazaki Renjuro suddenly raised his eyebrows - his eyes were covered with red bloodshot eyes, with a fierce look, which looked extremely terrifying.

"Since the surprise attack failed... let's continue the attack! Defeat the Shinsengumi with overwhelming force! Someone is coming!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a messenger who was waiting near the commander's tent quickly ran to Shibasaki Renjuro, with his head lowered and his eyebrows lowered in a humble manner.

"Deploy another 2,000 people to the east! I will never stop until the Shinsengumi's eastern position is torn apart!"

"yes!"

"Wait a moment!"

Just as the messenger was about to retreat, Settsu Norimitsu raised his hand to stop him.

At the same time, he turned his head and cast a deep look at Shibasaki Renjuro.

"...Shibasaki-sama, please forgive me for speaking frankly. If we transfer another 2,000 troops to the east, our army camp will only have 1,000 people left."

Shibazaki Renjuro asked nonchalantly:

"So what?"

Settsu Yorimitsu turned up the volume:

"Sun Tzu said: 'Those who were good at fighting in the past were first invincible, then waited for the enemy to become victorious'."

"First make yourself invincible, and then look for opportunities to defeat the enemy - this is the only law of war."

"Since we can come up with the strategy of 'attacking the enemy when they are unprepared and taking our own formation', it means that the other party may also adopt the same strategy."

"The Shinsengumi's strength is only one hundred and one of ours."

"Faced with such a disparity in military strength, if the opponent wants to win, there are only two strategies."

"The first is to engage in a military and food war and use up our food and grass."

"Second, launch a surprise attack, just like the 'Battle of Okehazama' back then."

The Battle of Okehazama - In the third year of Eiroku (1560), Imagawa Yoshimoto, the "first archer on the Tokaido Road", raised 40,000 troops to attack the then weak Oda clan. Oda Nobunaga personally led the elite troops to surprise the Imagawa army.

This formation will kill Imagawa Yoshimoto.

"If it were me, I would definitely assemble an elite force like Oda Nobunaga did back then, and then do everything possible to attack the enemy's key point, which is right here!"

Settsu Yorimitsu pointed to the handsome tent next to him and the handsome flag fluttering in the wind.

"To take a step back, even if Tachibana Aoden doesn't think of this plan, the generals under his command can always remind him."

"As far as I know, Hijikata Toshizo, Shannan Keisuke, and Kiyokawa Hachiro under Tachibana Aoden's command are all very resourceful people."

"Shibasaki-sama, we shouldn't be so reckless."

"We must not neglect the defense of our formation in order to strengthen the frontline offensive."

"No matter what, we should leave at least 3,000 troops in our army camp!"

"Only in this way can we ensure the safety of the camp and thus the safety of our formation!"

Shibasaki Renjuro has always respected Settsu Yorimitsu since he served him.

In the past, when Settsu Yorimitsu made the suggestion, Shibazaki Renjuro must have nodded in agreement early on.

However... at this moment, he contradicted the other party for the first time.

"Mr. Settsu, no matter how good the Shinsengumi is in fighting, they will only have a hundred people."

"As long as we launch offensives one after another and attack continuously without giving them a chance to breathe, we will consume them to death!"

"The first battle is the decisive battle! If you lose the first battle, it will be difficult to win Iga - Mr. Settsu, isn't this exactly what you said?"

"If we don't send more troops to the front, how can we defeat the Shinsengumi? How can we capture Iga?"

The distorted expression on his facial features, coupled with the menacing questioning... was so terrifying.

Despite this, Settsu Yorimitsu remained unfazed.

"Yes, the first battle is the decisive battle - these are indeed my exact words."

"But we don't have to compete with the Shinsengumi on the battlefield."

"The so-called 'war' is not just the flash of swords and shadows."

"Since we can't defeat the Shinsengumi head-on, let's switch from offense to defense and use the 'invisible sword' to defeat them."

"First, use the tactic of 'surrounding three and one' to surround the Shinsengumi on three sides, leaving a passage for them to escape."

"The shogunate, which is suffering from internal and external troubles, has no extra troops and is unable to mobilize combat-ready troops to reinforce the Shinsengumi."

"Matsudaira Eiho shoulders the important task of 'surveilling Satsuma and Choshu', and the Aizu army under his command cannot take a step out of Kyoto."

"As for the vassal lords inside and outside the capital, they are all a bunch of mediocre people who only want to eat, drink, have fun and protect themselves."

"Even if the shogunate orders them to send troops to assist the Shinsengumi, they will definitely disobey it and do nothing."

"As long as you don't invade their domain and don't infringe on their interests, they will just sit back and watch."

"No matter whether the Shinsengumi wins or loses, they will not send out a single soldier."

"Therefore, we can besiege the Shinsengumi for a long time without worrying that other armies will come to interfere with us."

"Then, send a smooth-talking lobbyist to Kyoto to contact Choshu and Tosa."

"Tell them: We are the rebels who have our hearts dedicated to the imperial court and regard it as our duty to fight against the barbarians."

"So far, the 'Samu Faction' and the 'Ozunou Faction' in Kyoto are generally in balance, and neither can do anything to the other."

"Both sides are eager to obtain strong reinforcements to break the current deadlock."

"With tens of thousands of troops, we are already a force that cannot be underestimated."

"Furthermore, 'even the ordinary people in the capital are fully supporting the cause of respecting the king' - if all the people in the world know about this, it will definitely have a huge blow to the prestige of the shogunate."

"After knowing our position, Choshu and Tosa will definitely be willing to listen to our appeals."

"We do not need them to take drastic measures such as 'directly sending troops' or 'supporting us in a big way'."

"Even if we beg them like this, they will never agree."

"In their eyes, we are certainly not important enough for them to send troops to help."

"They just need to make some eye-catching noise in Kyoto."

"For the shogunate, Kyoto is an important city that cannot be lost."

"As long as Choshu and Tosa made some conspicuous noises in Kyoto, such as frequently mobilizing troops and holding massive military training."

"If it's just a small favor like this, there's still room for discussion with Choshu and Tosa."

"The 'King-honoring Faction' in Kyoto suddenly made an unusual move. Guess how the shogunate's drunkards would react?"

"They will definitely be terrified and order Tachibana Aoden to defeat our army as soon as possible and return to guard Kyoto!"

"Just like Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty who forced Ge Shuhan to leave Tongguan to fight against Anlu Mountain, and Ming Sizong who forced Hong Chengchou to leave Shanhaiguan to fight against Huang Taiji."

"There are quite a few people within the shogunate who hate Tachibana Aoden, or even hate Tachibana Aoden, and among them there are many high-status Naotshin and daimyo."
To be continued...