Hayro drew his sword. An old sword.
It was the sword he used during the Boshin War.
"Kruuu…!!"
Just drawing the sword required tremendous force. It wasn't simply because the scabbard had rusted.
It was the weight of his soul confronting the pride he had turned away from for decades.
Skree~
With a rough grating sound, the tarnished blade revealed itself.
Hayro pointed the sword at Okita, handling it with care and familiarity.
"A Shinsengumi member… the name is…."
He clutched his head in agony, then roared like a beast and raised his head.
"I can't remember!! But… this body remembers the sword!! Here I come!!"
Hayro kicked off the ground and lunged forward.
Boom!
It was different from the gunfight. There was no shadow of Blood Demon Art, nor any explosion of gunpowder. Only pure momentum bursting from his lower body.
His movement, low and skimming the ground, was like a wolf targeting the nape of its prey.
Okita's eyes shone calmly.
"Yes. That is the sword of Mibu."
Clang!!
Okita's sword and Hayro's rusted sword clashed. A tremendous shockwave erupted, causing the surrounding flames to momentarily die down.
"Uraaah!!"
Hayro pushed forward with force. The sword strike laden with a demon's strength was heavy.
But Okita didn't receive that force head-on; she deflected the sword obliquely and plunged into Hayro's chest.
Shing!
Okita's blade grazed Hayro's side. But Hayro ignored the pain, spun his body, and countered.
"Dieee!!"
A crude but practical swordsmanship. A killing sword focused solely on cutting down the opponent, without any flourish.
It was the distinctive sword style of a Shinsengumi member who had crossed blades countless times in the back alleys of Kyoto.
Okita smiled as she parried that blade.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Sparks flew. The two swords intertwined at a speed invisible to the human eye.
"Your stance is too high! Your chin is up!"
Okita shouted as if scolding, striking at Hayro's opening.
"Shut up!!"
Hayro swung his sword widely to restrain Okita.
"I… I was strong even without relying on things like guns!!"
Hayro's sword strikes grew faster. His demonic physical abilities intertwined with past memories, and he was displaying skill from his prime, no, beyond that.
The madness in his eyes faded, replaced by a warrior's fighting spirit.
Kanao blankly watched the scene.
It was clearly a fight with a demon.
But the exchange seemed almost sublime, like a master and disciple sparring in a kendo dojo.
"Haa… haa…!"
After dozens of exchanges, the two separated and glared at each other.
Okita calmly breathed as she looked at Hayro and took her stance. As a Servant, her power was overwhelmingly stronger than Hayro's. Yet, she matched her strength to his level.
It was a courtesy to him as a Shinsengumi swordsman.
"This is enjoyable. It's been a long time since I've crossed swords so purely."
Okita adjusted her grip on the sword.
"You… are strong. Worthy of being called a captain."
Hayro grinned. Though it was a hideous demon's face, that smile was human-like.
"This is the last one. A strike with everything I have."
Hayro raised his sword above his head.
An overhead slash.
A stance that disregarded defense, burning all life into a single downward strike.
Okita responded. She lowered her body, aiming the tip of her sword at his throat.
"Come. Okita Souji, captain of the Shinsengumi's first unit, will receive it."
The wind stopped. Even the sound of the burning flames grew distant. A silence as if only two swords existed in the world.
"Wooooooooh!!!"
Hayro roared and kicked the ground. His speed was the fastest yet.
A simple, stubborn, and thus unavoidable honest slash.
At that moment, Okita's world was dyed cherry blossom pink.
Her foot slid silently. The ultimate of instantaneous movement, surpassing swiftness.
First step: Sound Breaking
Second step: No Interval
Third step: Severing Blade
"[Mumyou (Nameless──"
Space distorted. Before Hayro's sword came down, Okita's sword shone.
"──Sandanzuki (Three-Stage Thrust)]!"
A single charge. But three thrusts existed in that trajectory.
A mysterious demonic sword where three thrusts pierce the same spot simultaneously.
Hayro's downward slash grazed Okita's shoulder and split the air.
Meanwhile, Okita's sword had perfectly pierced Hayro's heart and emerged from his back.
Hayro's movement stopped.
"...."
Okita maintained her remaining spirit and slowly sheathed her sword.
Click.
With that sound, crimson blood gushed like a fountain from Hayro's chest.
"Guhk…!"
Hayro knelt. Using his sword as a cane, he barely supported his body.
The demon's regeneration didn't work. Partly because her sword was special, but more so because he himself had accepted defeat and death.
"A splendid… sword…."
Hayro spat blood as he spoke.
"A flawless… perfect… thrust…."
Okita approached Hayro, knelt on one knee to match his eye level.
"Your sword was heavy too. It was a sword that did not disgrace the name of the Shinsengumi."
"The Shinsengumi…."
Hayro's eyes grew dim.
Memories flashed by. The memory of laughing and chatting with comrades on the veranda of the Mibu headquarters.
Vice Captain Hijikata's nagging. Commander Kondō's hearty laughter.
And the back of the genius swordsman Okita Souji, whom he had so admired.
"I… lost. To the guns, I lost… I wanted to fight with everyone, until the end, and win."
"I felt the same way."
Okita said softly.
"I too wanted to fight with everyone. Under that banner, all together. No matter how hopeless the battle, even if the end meant dying meaninglessly. I wanted that."
Okita reached out and wiped the blood flowing down Hayro's cheek.
It looked like his tears.
"You… were a Shinsengumi member to the end. A splendid Shinsengumi member. I, Okita Souji, will convey my gratitude to you for fighting with everyone until the end."
Those words were salvation.
The resentment he had suffered for decades, unable to forget even as a demon, melted away like snow.
"Thank… you… Captain…."
Hayro's body began to crumble into ash from the edges.
The fingers holding the rusted sword scattered.
But as if unwilling to let go of the sword even in his disappearing moment, he clutched the air with his ashen hand.
Hayro's form completely collapsed.
The flying embers rising into the night sky. They looked like cherry blossom petals scattering in spring.
Okita stood up from that spot and quietly paid her respects toward the member who had turned to ash and vanished.
"You've worked hard. Rest well."
The character 誠 (sincerity) engraved on her back shone steadfastly even amidst the burning flames.
"Okita-san!"
Kanao ran over, and Okita smiled faintly.
"Kanao-san."
Okita looked up at the sky with a refreshed expression.
"That member, in the end, was smiling, right?"
"Yes… he looked very peaceful."
"Then that's enough. That's all that matters."
Okita brushed the dust off her clothes.
"In this era, Saitō-san and Nagakura-san might still be alive. I should write a letter later. Let's go, Kanao-san."
There was still much cleanup to do. Kanao nodded and moved quickly. And, behind such Kanao.
"Kibutsuji Muzan."
"I will never forgive you for mocking and insulting the Shinsengumi."
Okita Souji.
For the first time in her life, she was feeling the emotion of fierce hatred and anger.