Kazekage Ninja: The Rise of the Hidden Sand-Chapter 159 - 54: With the Token in Hand, I Command the World

"This is Lord Senkō Byōei's sword and topknot."

Hidan humbly presented the two items to the daimyo of the Land of Wind, his face full of sorrow.

"Sigh!"

Jinghang sighed softly beside him, his expression like that of someone who had just lost a father-in-law—not too indifferent, yet not overly sorrowful, perfectly balanced.

"Two thousand samurai... all... all gone."

In the luxurious suite of the Crystal Palace, the daimyo of the Land of Wind clutched the leather sofa so tightly that it was nearly torn apart. His mouth was agape, almost wide enough to swallow an egg whole. His face was pale, and shock and terror were almost overflowing.

Counting the eight hundred samurai lost at the Diegeng Pass, the daimyo's four thousand elite troops had been reduced by two thousand eight hundred. For such a large country to have only a thousand samurai left to defend it was an unprecedentedly fragile "national defense" force since the founding of the Land of Wind.

On the ninth day of the samurai expedition being besieged by sand bandits, Hidan quietly infiltrated Biancheng Station and discovered that Senkō Byōei was organizing all the samurai for a suicide attack.

"You can see the situation now; we are in a deadlock. The stored water is almost gone, and continuing to hold out is meaningless. If we flee, we will inevitably be pursued by the sand bandits and eventually die in this vast desert.

Since we cannot hold, nor can we flee, we might as well charge out and kill as many sand bandits as possible to ease the pressure for future samurai expeditions.

The responsibility for this defeat lies with me. I will lead the charge, repaying the daimyo of the Land of Wind with my death. If any of you are unwilling, you need not participate; I will not force you."

But what else could they do if they didn't participate? Surrender was the only option, and Hidan believed that anyone who showed even the slightest hesitation would immediately be cut down by Senkō Byōei.

"Ninja, you've come."

Senkō Byōei gave Hidan a wry smile.

He had boasted that he would defeat the bandits in ten days, but now...

Hidan said nothing. The situation was beyond saving, and it was a blessing that he could save himself. He couldn't take any of these samurai with him. Seeing the determined expressions of the samurai, ready to face death, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of emotion.

"You can break through, right?"

Senkō Byōei asked.

"Yes."

Hidan nodded.

"Then I have a favor to ask."

Senkō Byōei took out a stack of letters from his bosom.

"These are the farewell letters of us defeated samurai. Please deliver them to Lord Hachikyu Oni in Dragonfly City if you have the chance."

Senkō Byōei bowed solemnly to Hidan. Then he took out a short sword and cut off his topknot, letting his hair fall freely. Only a disgraced samurai would have his topknot cut off before death.

"For this defeat, I bear heavy guilt. Deliver this to the daimyo of the Land of Wind and tell him I have washed away my sins with my death."

Hidan accepted the topknot and short sword, nodded solemnly without saying a word.

"Everyone, see you at the Temple of Wind!"

Senkō Byōei drew his katana and shouted to the sky.

"See you at the Temple of Wind!"

The samurai drew their katanas and roared to the heavens.

At noon that day, led by Senkō Byōei, over a thousand samurai charged out of Biancheng Station. The sand bandits blocking the station scattered like birds and beasts. The samurai ignored these small fry and headed straight for Black Wind Fortress, hoping for a slim chance of survival. However, the bandits had already set up numerous traps around Biancheng Station and on the road to Black Wind Fortress. Countless samurai died before even seeing the enemy. It was all futile yet tragic.

By the time they reached the gates of Black Wind Fortress, less than six hundred samurai remained with Senkō Byōei. Waiting for them were three thousand fierce sand bandits, ready and waiting.

This time, Kawashima Tsumi did not choose to duel Senkō Byōei but instead used their superior numbers to wear down the samurai's forces.

The same old tactic: ronin in the front, ninjas in the back casting jutsu. Senkō Byōei wielded his katana, charging left and right among the sand bandits, but the samurai around him fell one by one.

After killing nearly forty bandits, Senkō Byōei finally collapsed from exhaustion and was beheaded by the waiting Kawashima Tsumi, dying heroically for his country.

The remaining dozen samurai, seeing the hopeless situation, stopped fighting and committed seppuku on the spot.

In this battle, the samurai expedition was completely annihilated, while the Black Wind Fortress bandits lost fewer than five hundred...

Despite the shock and anger, life had to go on. But now the daimyo of the Land of Wind's problems were more than just the simple issue of five billion ryo in taxes. The defense of Dragonfly City was extremely weak, and if the sand bandits attacked, the very state could be in danger of being overthrown.

"Lord Kazekage, what... what should we do?"

Even the way he addressed them had changed, showing that the daimyo of the Land of Wind was truly terrified this time.

"Rest assured, my lord. The regular army of Sunagakure has five regiments stationed on the Yuezhi Peninsula. No sand bandits would dare attack. You can stay here peacefully; there will be no trouble."

A ninja squad consists of four people, ten squads make a company, and ten companies make a regiment. Five regiments equal two thousand people, which was the security force specially strengthened for the Five Kage Summit.

"What about my Dragonfly City?"

"Well... Lord Daimyo, we are ninjas and do not have the right to station troops in Dragonfly City."

Jinghang spread his hands helplessly. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

Not only Dragonfly City, but Sunagakure also did not have the right to station troops in the entire Kunling Plain. Otherwise, who would be the daimyo of the Land of Wind?

"At a time like this!? What can Lord Hachikyu Oni's thousand samurai do!"

The daimyo of the Land of Wind was anxious.

"I now authorize you to deploy ninjas to strengthen the defense of Dragonfly City. Take this!"

The daimyo of the Land of Wind took out a golden token from his bosom.

Made entirely of gold, it was exquisitely crafted, covered with wind-shaped wave reliefs, and bore a large "Order" character inlaid with peridot.

Jinghang naturally recognized this token. It was the daimyo's order token, which could theoretically command all armed forces within the Land of Wind, including all samurai and ninjas. Of course, ninjas from Sunagakure generally only followed the Kazekage's orders, and whether they would comply depended on the Kazekage's decision. However, the samurai did recognize this token.

"Yes!"

Jinghang solemnly accepted the token. He was now equivalent to the commander-in-chief of the Land of Wind's military forces.

"Yakura, take notes."

With the token in hand, Jinghang immediately began issuing orders to reassure the daimyo of the Land of Wind.

"First order: Sunagakure's regular army's 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th regiments are to be stationed in Dragonfly City, taking over city defense. Notify Lord Hachikyu Oni to relocate his samurai to Half Mountain Green Palace, Temple of Wind, and other administrative residences."

There was no other choice; Lord Hachikyu Oni's men were only enough to guard such places. A single finger couldn't cover the face.

"Second order: Command the regular army's 2nd division to assemble in the Moon Lake New District, preparing to suppress the bandits!"

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