A Battlefield With No End is the 858th chapter of the Kingdom manga, written and illustrated by Yasuhisa Hara.
Synopsis
In a flashback, Sei Ka Un reflects about what the bow means to him, running through a train of thought, and concluding that to him, the bow is simply about witnessing the result. He reflects about how his shots felled countless enemies, earning praises of delight from his allies, despite the enemy continuing to rise again, and how his own allies did the same after falling, and after concluding that there was no end to be found, wonders where is bow should be aimed.
Ri Boku listens to him, and asks him if he had left the battlefield because he no longer saw a target. Sei Ka Un states it was not that he had not lost sight of his target, but rather that his target had never existed in the first place. Ri Boku tells him of a man, who, like him, had pursued the ultimate path, only to fall after realizing that the path did not exist. Sei Ka Un guesses that Ri Boku was referring to Hou Ken, and acknowledges that he was too a "seeker", though their paths differed. Ri Boku asks Sei Ka Un if his path was also about the salvation of people, but Sei Ka Un once again tempers Ri Boku's expectations, and simply says that there was nothing that served as a target to aim at. Ri Boku questions the certainty that Sei Ka Un makes his claims with, and says that Hou Ken seemed more admirable to him, having at least spent his entire life pursuing his path. Sei Ka Un begins to criticize Hou Ken, saying that he was unable to see what lay ahead, but pauses after seeing Ri Boku's expression. Ri Boku states his belief that people fight with all their might and live desperately within their respective positions and powers. He asks Sei Ka Un what he had been doing, given the peerless power he possessed. Sei Ka Un interprets Ri Boku's words as saying that those with power should live for the sake of others, and dismisses that way of thinking as the arrogance of the powerful. Ri Boku is angered by his words, and asks where the arrogance was in saving the lives of those about to be crushed.
The two men remain silent for a moment, then Ri Boku tells Sai Ka Un that he viewed people from too high a position, just like Hou Ken or the King of Qin did. Sei Ka Un challenges Ri Boku, and asks him if he saw a path, saying that if he intended to bring someone who claimed that there was no path back, there must be a path that he could see. Ri Boku deflects the question, stating that he could save those that could not save themselves whether he could see a path or not. Sei Ka Un tells him that he would interpret Ri Boku's response as him admitting that he did not see a path, and Ri Boku concedes, though he insists on saying that he was not saying that it did not exist. Ri Boku declares that the path was definitely somewhere, somewhere that could not be seen from afar, and would only be found "inside" through struggling and by struggling. Sei Ka Un asks Ri Boku if he would find it, and although Ri Boku offers to find it together with him, Sei Ka Un demands Ri Boku find it. Ri Boku agrees, but insists that Sei Ka Un's power was necessary, even just a single quiver's worth of arrows used to take down the enemy's leaders, and that would let them shatter Qin's dreams of unification by force; the first step on their path, the target. Sei Ka Un tells Ri Boku that he would think over it for a few days, and also to not forget the words he said earlier.
Sei Ka Un eventually decides to go to the battlefield, and dons his armor. His son I Ri, who had witnessed the exchange, asks his father if Ri Boku was the one who guided them to the path. Sei Ka Un says he did not know, but nevertheless, I Ri says that he was happy, finally able to see the full form of the Pinnacle of the Ten Bows of China. Sei Ka Un warns his son that he might not return, and leaves their house in his hands. I Ri wishes his father good fortune in battle.
In the present, Sei Ka Un arrives at the battlefield of the Hi Shin Unit and of Ri Shin. As Sei Ka Un's unit moves to a better location, he reflects on his time on the present battlefield and mentally asks Ri Boku to guide him to the conclusion that his bow sought. Sei Ka Un watches the battlefield and notices that the Hi Shin Unit's archer unit were not bad, and asks if they had any archers of note. His men inform him that the Hi Shin Unit had archer brothers Sou Jin and Sou Tan, who between them had slain their former countryman, General Kin Mou, amongst many officers.
Characters
Zhao
Qin
- Hi Shin Unit (Mentioned)
Characters Introduced
Zhao
- Iri