'~I will not take from you and you will not owe
I will protect you from the fire below
It's not in my mind
It's here at my side

Go tell the world that I am alive~'

...

There were times when life was easy. There were times when it was not. Overall though Gintoki never lost his 'spirit', not when he's had Shinpachi and Kagura by his side. Two misfits that could easily steal his fame if not for huge amount of fans he's had. Not that they weren't famous or anything, quite the opposite - they've had their fair share of fanclubs of their own.

Sakata Gintoki was glad that he's lived long enough to meet those two.

Now, given all the battles and past that wouldn't just let him rest he started to ponder over his options. In the end however, no matter the route he chose he couldn't see any other endings beside that one.

Smiling to himself as he left snack bar, Gintoki glanced towards starry sky. There was a very slim chance for him getting out from this war alive, once he was lucky enough but twice... Maybe it just wasn't meant to be. Yet he didn't feel afraid to leave this place, his place—no, not only his anymore—it was theirs just as much.

Pachi-boy and Gura grew up so much since he met them.

He knew they'd keep Odd Jobs alive even without him because that's what he taught them—to keep pushing on, no matter how stupid, dire or ridiculous their situation was. So what if ghosts of the past would be breathing down their necks? They'd grind their teeth and smile that trollish smiles of theirs back at their foes.

That's what it was all about to be honest, the point of living and growing up – and boy, was Gintoki proud of his students and of the fact that they chose him of all the people in the world to follow after.

Walking down silent street he sighed – his dead-fish eyes looking straight ahead to the future, like so many times before.

If there was one thing he knew for sure it was the fact that even if he'd finally fall to never get up back again Shinpachi and Kagura would be the ones to pick up his fallen bokuto and finish what he couldn't once and for all.

Not that he planned on dying anytime soon. Actually far from it, what was a point in heading into war thinking it's the last thing you'll ever do. Right?

Nonetheless even if...

No, scratch that - no matter what - Gintoki knew he would survive.