A few years after the Shinsengumi was formed in Kyoto in the spring of 1863, people in Hijikata’s native Hino could hardly believe reports of the bloodletting in Kyoto at the hands of the vice-commander because “he was such a gentle person,” according to one writer.  But “Toshizo was a different man with a real sword in hand.” Once when Hijikata briefly returned to Hino, he reportedly told a gathering of family and friends that the blade of one of his swords had “corroded” from overexposure to human blood. [from Shinsengumi: The Shogun’s Last Samurai Corps]

[The photograph of Hijikata Toshizo is in my “Shinsengumi: The Shogun’s Last Samurai Corps,” courtesy of the descendants of Sato Hikogoro and Hino-shi Furusato Hakubutsukan Museum.]