Chapter 178: The Great Oda Free-for-All
Owari was once again plunged into turmoil. Yuan Ye had to temporarily abandon his exploration of the Mount Ise Range and return to Xin Wanjin to prepare his army, in order to assist Oda Nobunaga in dealing with the challenges posed by Saito Yoshitatsu and Oda Nobukata.
There was no helping it. His reliance on the trade routes controlled by the Oda Danjō no Chū family was still very high. Even though Oda Nobunaga, as an ally, was very troublesome and constantly called upon him for assistance, he still had to go. After all, only when Xin Wanjin was in good condition could he continue exploring the Mount Ise Range. Without the power of Xin Wanjin and so many capable subordinates, he would be gored to death by wild boars within three days of entering the mountains alone, let alone explore anything.
Of course, Oda Nobunaga seemed to have realized that he was asking for help too often, or rather, he was increasingly in need of allies’ support and his reliance on Xin Wanjin for gunpowder was growing. So, with a wave of his hand, he returned Old Wanjin, stating that Old Wanjin could serve as the garrison for the Wanjin Army, so that Yuan Ye wouldn’t have to drift at sea every time he came to assist in a battle.
Thus began the war between the Upper Four Districts and the Lower Four Districts of Owari, with both sides starting to form alliances and seek support.
For instance, Oda Nobunaga, through a marriage alliance, married off another sister, forming a marital alliance with Oda Nobukiyo, the castle lord of Inuyama Castle. This was a slight comeback, a severed arm to Iwakura Castle. Inuyama Castle was also a major castle in the Upper Four Districts of Owari. The lord, Oda Nobukiyo, whose father Oda Nobuyasu had been the guardian of the old Iwakura Castle lord Oda Nobuyasu, was a close attendant vassal who grew up by his side. For example, Ikeda Tsuneoki was Oda Nobunaga’s guardian. Unwilling to submit to the rebellious traitor Oda Nobukata, he decisively threw his support into Oda Nobunaga’s embrace.
At the same time, this was also a strong counterattack against Saito Yoshitatsu’s “scheme.” Inuyama Castle’s location was particularly strategic, situated in the northeastern corner of Owari, shaped like a sharp blade thrust into the waist of Mino. With the faction of Inuyama Castle leaning towards Oda Nobunaga, it could tie down a significant amount of Saito Yoshitatsu’s energy, making it difficult for him to fully support Iwakura Castle. The situation began to devolve into a one-on-one duel between Oda Nobunaga and Oda Nobukata.
Facing this situation, Oda Nobukata and Saito Yoshitatsu were not idle. While engaging in small-scale skirmishes with Oda Nobunaga, they began to plot against another “veteran rebel” within the Oda Danjō no Chū family – the protagonist of the time when Oda Nobunaga’s mother planned to “depose the elder and establish the younger,” Oda Nobunaga’s own brother, the lord of Suemori Castle, Oda Nobuyuki.
“So, his rebellion failed again?”
Yuan Ye was currently stationed at Inano Castle in Kaito District with the Wanjin Army, entrusted by Oda Nobunaga. His task was to suppress the local lords, preventing them from making any moves, while also guarding against a sudden attack from the Iwakura Army on this area. It served as a crucial node on the current front line between the Upper Four Districts and the Lower Four Districts of Owari.
At this moment, looking at the latest intelligence provided by A Man, he hesitated to speak, then spoke again, feeling it was incredibly fantastical and bizarre. After all, so many Oda were fighting amongst themselves, the atmosphere was almost Cthulhu-esque.
Initially, the conflict between Oda Nobunaga, Oda Nobukiyo, and Oda Nobukata already seemed chaotic. Now, with Oda Nobuyuki emerging, and adding the father and son Oda Nobuyasu and Oda Nobuie from before, looking around, it was all Oda. If one were to count the various family elders, retainers, and family members, there were about three hundred Oda participating in this battle, making it a super Oda free-for-all.
One could only say that the Oda family had truly proliferated and thrived in Owari for a hundred and seventy to eighty years, truly spawning a large brood.
However, Yuan Ye was currently more concerned about Oda Nobuyuki’s situation. After all, few people could rebel twice. A Man, sitting cross-legged in front of him, was eating peaches offered by local lords, juice dripping down her chin, and mumbled, “Of course, he failed. This dung ball wanted to betray again, contemplating a sneak attack on Nagoya Castle. But his senior retainer Shibata Katsuie betrayed him first and directly tied him up and sent him to Kiyosu Castle.”
“And what did Oda Nobunaga say?”
“Oda Nobunaga locked Oda Nobuyuki up with their mother for company,” A Man said after thinking for a moment. “He praised Shibata Katsuie highly, believing he had fulfilled his past oath. He promptly stopped his lord from committing disloyal and unjust acts, deeming him a model for samurai, and reappointed him as a senior retainer of the Danjō no Chū family, with a position only slightly below Sakuma Morishige!”
“Is that so…” Yuan Ye nodded slowly. So, one could rebel twice and still not be killed? And how ironic life is. Oda Nobunaga’s four senior retainers: one was nearly incapacitated after a rebellion, one committed suicide, and two died in battle. Yet, the two senior retainers of his constantly rebelling brother were fine and had now, in a twist of fate, become Oda Nobunaga’s senior retainers.
His thoughts wandered, and he sighed at this peculiar historical phenomenon, his mind then turning to Shibata Katsuie.
This man, who would later be known as one of the “Four Heavenly Kings of Oda” alongside Takigawa Kazumasu, Akechi Mitsuhide, Niwa Nagahide, and Hashiba Hideyoshi – as everyone knows, there are usually five in a group of four heavenly kings. And those who have played the Taikō series will be familiar with him. He is a representative figure of the Owari local lords, and along with another representative, Sassa Narimasa, they would constantly compete for quests with the “protagonist – Monkey,” and incessantly mock and belittle him, acting as major and minor villains in the game.
Now, this major villain had also returned to his rightful place, officially under Oda Nobunaga’s banner. It seemed he had even won Oda Nobunaga’s favor. He estimated that he would have to deal with this major villain frequently in the future.
As for the other minor villain, Sassa Narimasa, he seemed to be still young. As the fifth son of the Sassa family, he was still studying at a terakoya. He would likely only pledge allegiance to Oda Nobunaga after his elder brother, Sasa Masatsugu, died in the Battle of Okehazama. So, he wouldn’t be seen for a while.
A Man finished her peach and saw him lost in thought, not finding it strange, nor caring what he was thinking about. She then resumed her routine report: “Hibitsu Village is as usual. The latest report shows no abnormalities.”
This was a special instruction from Yuan Ye. The separate residence in Hibitsu Village had to be reported every three days. Yuan Ye snapped back to attention, seeing that the latest search party had still yielded no results.
He couldn’t help much in this regard, as he couldn’t figure out what was going on. For now, they could only search blindly and rely on luck, having already prepared for a protracted battle. He shook his head slightly and asked, “Understood. Are there any other matters in Owari?”
“None.”
“What about Mino?” Yuan Ye asked. “How are things progressing in Mino, and how many available personnel do we have there now?”
“Not many. Most have just been positioned and are seeking opportunities to gather intelligence. As for the messages received…” A Man took out a small notebook from her pocket and flipped through it, murmuring, “Most are unconfirmed reports. The most significant is that Saito Yoshitatsu has just captured Mount Akechi, and the head of the Akechi family, Akechi Mitsuyasu, committed suicide after his castle fell.”
“Akechi Mitsuyasu?” Yuan Ye was surprised for a moment, then hesitated, “Wasn’t he… I heard he had a son named Akechi Mitsuhide. Is there such a person?”
The “Life Preservation Style” in Xin Wanjin had only just begun to infiltrate Mino, and much of the information was incomplete or unorganized. A Man rummaged through her notebook, flipping through her characters that only she could understand, and hesitantly said, “We don’t have records of that. But according to some intelligence submitted by the old man earlier, there is such a person. He is… Akechi Mitsuyasu’s adopted son, in his twenties, with the tsūna Jubei, but he’s not well-known. The old man didn’t pay much attention to him.”
“Akechi Mitsuyasu’s adopted son?”
“Yes, Akechi Mitsuyasu was both his uncle and his adoptive father.”
Yuan Ye momentarily suspected that Oda Nobunaga was about to assemble the “Four Heavenly Kings of Oda” and asked with concern, “Where is he now?”
A Man flipped through her notebook again, feeling that her role as “Director of the Eastern Depot” was truly arduous. This idiotic lord was always coming up with sudden ideas, inexplicably starting to care about minor figures. But she was somewhat accustomed to it. After flipping for a while, she said, “I don’t know. This guy isn’t conspicuous at all. Who knows what happened to him after his family was destroyed.”
Yuan Ye found her statement strange. “Then why did you specifically mention the Akechi family? Why did you say it was special that Saito Yoshitatsu captured Mount Akechi?”
“Because Akechi Mitsuyasu was Nohime’s uncle, meaning he was Oda Nobunaga’s uncle,” A Man said strangely. “Didn’t you know? The Akechi family is a branch of the Toki clan, the Shugo of Mino. Nohime’s mother was from the Akechi family, so the Akechi family has always been pro-Owari. That’s why Saito Yoshitatsu dealt with them.”
Yuan Ye really didn’t know. He hadn’t paid much attention to Mino affairs before. He pondered for a moment, “So, that means… Akechi Mitsuhide is Nohime’s cousin?”
He used to wonder how Akechi Mitsuhide suddenly became a trusted retainer by Oda Nobunaga’s side and how he suddenly gained his trust. Was it due to family connections? Was Akechi Mitsuhide actually Oda Nobunaga’s maternal uncle?
“Roughly speaking!” A Man said strangely. “What’s wrong with that? Marriages between Daimyo and samurai are like this. They are all interconnected; anyone can be related to anyone. You are also involved now. You and Nohime can actually be considered relatives, and you’re distantly related to the Akechi family.”
So, the Japanese Warring States period was just a bunch of relatives fighting…
Yuan Ye understood, but it was irrelevant. He wouldn’t acknowledge these relatives… well, maybe only Inu-hime. He wouldn’t hesitate to fight or kill any other relatives.
He directly ordered, “Then have our people in Mino search for his whereabouts and pay more attention to this person… if he’s still alive.”
A Man casually noted his request in her small notebook, preparing to send a message to Mino to look for Akechi Mitsuhide, and then dismissed it. Yuan Ye had many similar nonsensical requests; today he wanted to focus on this, tomorrow he wanted to look at that. It was a normal phenomenon. She went back to her own work.
Yuan Ye remained seated, slowly savoring how these familiar historical figures were all beginning to move into their proper places, slowly drawing open the curtain on the grand drama of the fierce battles of the Japanese Warring States. He felt that a certain historical turning point was drawing ever closer.
