Chapter 54: The Death of Oda Nobuhide
Enemy attack?!
Yuan Ye was still agonizing over how to avoid being exploited by those shameless monks at Aragiko Kannon Temple when the alarm bell of Takeuchi Manor suddenly rang. He was momentarily stunned – he had only moved in a little over ten days ago, and the house wasn’t even renovated yet, yet the enemy was already attacking?
Wasn’t this the heartland of the Oda Danjō no Chū family?
How could enemies suddenly appear and attack?
While he was still wondering what was happening and who the enemy might be, A Man and A Qing had already lunged for the matchlock guns, short-handled axes, and bronze hoop staffs.
They always carried weapons, and items like shuriken were never far from their persons, possessing a vigilance that allowed them to strike back at any moment if danger arose. Their main weapons were always kept within sight, never too far away, and now they were being put to use.
Seeing their actions, Yuan Ye also reacted immediately, his gaze sharpening as he reached for his bow. After all, his vigilance was not weak, but having lived in an era of peace, his reaction was still slightly slower than those like A Man and A Qing, who lived in precarious times.
But before he could dash out the door, he heard A Man exclaim, “Wait, no, it doesn’t seem to be the alarm bell. The alarm bell wouldn’t be so slow and leisurely…”
He paid no mind, first retrieving his bow before returning. By then, the bell had sounded a few more muffled times, accompanied by the sound of conch shell trumpets. The player seemed to be specially trained, their breath long and sustained, the mournful sound of the conch shell continuing for a long time, its tone very desolate.
“What’s going on?” Yuan Ye asked A Man as he adjusted his bow, which had some minor issues due to rapid assembly.
A Man was already fully armed, holding a matchlock gun with a grave expression. “It shouldn’t be an enemy attack. The Oda Danjō no Chū family is gathering their vassals and followers… No, this manor is direct territory of the Oda Big Fool. He’s the one gathering his vassals and followers!”
After speaking, she hesitated for a moment, then looked up at Yuan Ye and asked, “Should we go out and see what’s happening?”
They were not retainers or followers of Oda Nobunaga, so the gathering wouldn’t directly involve them. However, something was clearly happening, and staying foolishly at home would leave them no time to react if something occurred, potentially leading to their demise.
Yuan Ye thought the same. They needed to figure out what was happening. If things turned bad, they could escape early. He nodded, “We should go and see. If anything seems wrong, we can retreat.”
He quickly assigned tasks. The Momoi Brothers and Yayoi were to guard their foolish son and be ready to flee with him if the situation turned dire. He, along with A Man and A Qing, would go out to investigate first.
The streets within the manor were already in complete chaos. The once peaceful night was now filled with panic and disorder. Groups of Oda family followers, clad in dōmaru and carrying katanas, were rushing from all directions towards the residence of Okuruku Kiyobee, the central location of Takeuchi Manor. At this moment, numerous torches seemed to be lit there, brightly illuminated like a fire spreading, and the sounds of shouting and neighing horses could be heard, creating an atmosphere of impending battle.
“What madness is the Oda Big Fool up to now? Who is he going to attack?” A Man judged that Oda Nobunaga was about to launch an offensive. At the same time, she was bold enough to mutter and grab an Oda family follower, asking him, “What’s going on? Where are you attacking?”
“I don’t know. You should hurry too, or you’ll be punished if you’re late!” The young follower, only sixteen or seventeen years old, glanced at A Man. Seeing her holding a matchlock gun and a tall “samurai” standing behind her, he didn’t dare to get angry. He only threw out a sentence before breaking free and running forward. It seemed there was a time limit for the assembly.
A Man looked back at Yuan Ye, who thought for a moment and said, “Let’s follow them and see!”
The group mingled with the crowd and arrived at Okuruku Kiyobee’s residence.
It was even more chaotic here. Two to three hundred fully armed young followers were crowded together, forming ranks. Some older followers were distributing spears, long rice bags, and back flags – a type of insignia worn on the back of a dōmaru, white with blue stripes at the top, and bearing Oda Nobunaga’s quince five-piece crest in the center.
Okuruku Kiyobee, along with several magistrates, was poring over a booklet, making notes and occasionally issuing verbal orders for the rapid completion of the grouping.
Yuan Ye, A Man, and A Qing watched from the shadows for a while. They felt that these followers were quite elite, likely having trained frequently. At least they had arrived on time upon hearing the alarm bell and conch shell trumpet, and their formation and armament were swift. However, the act of planting so many flags, so many “flags,” made them worry – it was hard to return alive with so many flags planted, wasn’t it?
Okuruku Kiyobee busied himself for a while, believing that all who were supposed to be present had arrived. Once the military rations rice and other supplies were distributed, they could depart. However, his gaze swept over and landed on Yuan Ye’s group. He paused, then remembered who he was – Yuan Ye had shut himself away since moving to Takeuchi Manor and hadn’t left home for over ten days. Okuruku Kiyobee had almost forgotten him.
He lowered his head and flipped the booklet to the front, scanning it. He didn’t find the name “Nohara Saburo Ieyoshi” in the vassal section. He felt Yuan Ye wasn’t under his jurisdiction. But seeing him looking around, seemingly unaware of what was happening, he hesitated before approaching and asking, “Lord Nohara, why are you still here? Did you not receive notification?”
“No, what happened?” Yuan Ye had wanted to ask him, but he had been waiting because he saw him busy.
Okuruku Kiyobee was silent for a moment, then sighed and said, “His Excellency Oda Danjō no Chū departed for the Pure Land this afternoon.”
“What? How could…” Yuan Ye was stunned for a moment, doubting if he had heard correctly. The de facto ruler of all eight districts of Owari Province, the powerful Daimyo Oda Nobuhide, was dead? So suddenly?
Okuruku Kiyobee seemed to have deep affection for his former lord, his eyes slightly reddening. He sighed again in a low voice, “Yes, His Excellency Oda Danjō no Chū has passed away.”
“This… Please accept my condolences.” Yuan Ye didn’t know what to say for a moment, as the news was too sudden. After a pause, he asked, “May I ask… how did he pass away?”
“He passed away from illness.” Okuruku Kiyobee sighed again. Seeing that the notification had been delivered, he had no intention of chatting further. He instructed, “Lord Nohara, you should also head to Nagoya Castle soon. The Lord must have many matters awaiting action!”
He seemed to have mistaken Yuan Ye for a page retainer of Oda Nobunaga. Yuan Ye didn’t rush to explain. He looked around and asked him, “Then, Kiyobee-sama, you are going to…”
Okuruku Kiyobee didn’t hide anything from him. Their actions were meant to be open and aboveboard. He directly stated, “Under the orders of Lord Hayashi Shingoro, we are going to Kigawa Fort to reinforce the defenses.”
Yuan Ye nodded. Although he didn’t know where Kigawa Fort was, he could guess it was likely an important checkpoint. After all, with the sudden death of Oda Nobuhide, the “Tiger of Owari,” Hayashi Hidesada, as Oda Nobunaga’s chief senior retainer, would naturally take action to prevent anyone from causing trouble.
This was as expected. He directly bid farewell to Okuruku Kiyobee, “Since that is the case, I will not disturb you further.”
Okuruku Kiyobee nodded and said nothing more. He returned, holding his sword, and soon led his men, carrying torches, to depart.
Yuan Ye also led A Man and A Qing back home. Upon arriving home, A Man exclaimed in astonishment, “Oda Nobuhide is dead!” After exclaiming, she seemed to feel it wasn’t strong enough and exclaimed again, “The Tiger of Owari is dead just like that!”
Although she had heard from her grandfather before coming to Owari that Oda Nobuhide had been beaten repeatedly, and the tiger had become a defeated dog, completely decadent, and would die within a year or two, Oda Nobuhide died in just three months, and so suddenly, without anyone noticing. He just died, and it was still somewhat beyond her expectations, making it impossible not to exclaim.
Yuan Ye was deep in thought. Hearing this, he looked up, his eyes flashing, and asked her, “He’s dead, that’s for sure, but what do you think… how did he die?”
A Man was quick-witted and immediately understood his implication. However, after hesitating for a moment, she said, “He probably died of illness. The Big Fool has no reason to kill his own father. His position as heir is quite stable, and he is also Saito Dosan’s son-in-law, with his own territory and retainers. If Oda Nobuhide wanted to move against him, the Danjō no Chū family would at least be in great turmoil, and might even perish – Oda Nobuhide wouldn’t be that foolish, even when drunk.”
“Is that so?” Yuan Ye pondered for a moment, feeling there was some truth to it. Perhaps he was just overthinking.
“It should be like that!” A Man couldn’t think of any reason for Oda Nobunaga to rush to patricide and seize the throne. She asked curiously, “Do you think something is wrong?”
“No one came to find me.” Yuan Ye hesitated for a moment and said softly, “If he died of illness, even a sudden illness, they should have called a doctor for resuscitation! Even if he died before I could arrive, someone should have at least called me. After all, Oda Nobunaga knows my medical skills are quite good, so there’s no reason he wouldn’t send someone to find me.”
“Yes, that is indeed a bit strange.” A Man also realized it, but after thinking about it, she quickly dismissed it. “It seems there’s a slight issue, but it has nothing to do with us. Who knows what the situation was at the time.”
Yuan Ye shook his head and didn’t dwell on these conspiracy theories. He then asked with concern, “What do you think will happen to Owari next?”
His transmigration was inexplicable, and he hadn’t done any relevant homework. The opening of that damned 《 Taikō 2 》 was after Okehazama, when the Monkey officially became a samurai. He had no idea what happened before, and he was very uncertain now – the “Tiger of Owari,” who had dominated Owari for over twenty years, was dead. Even guessing with his rear end, there would surely be fluctuations and chaos, right?
“Alas, it will definitely be chaotic, but I don’t know if it will be a major or minor chaos!” A Man said without even thinking. She hadn’t enjoyed good days for long, and now it had become like this. She was also unhappy and sighed, “Saito Dosan of Mino has long coveted the fat of Owari. The Matsudaira family and the Imagawa family will likely not miss this good opportunity either. They will surely come to take some territory. It’s impossible for things not to be chaotic next!”
As expected, Yuan Ye also sighed, blaming Oda Nobunaga in his heart for being so inconsiderate – his own father was sick, and he didn’t even say anything quickly. If he had said something, he would have gone all out to save him. At least Oda Nobuhide should have held on until he opened the soy sauce workshop and sold all the soy sauce before dying!
Now, look at this. Most of his money had turned into soy sauce and was stored in the vats in the backyard. As a result, Oda Nobuhide was dead, and the world was about to descend into chaos. How could he sell soy sauce in large quantities?
How could he renovate the house and do major renovations?
However, such matters were not subject to his will. Oda Nobuhide was already dead, and he couldn’t bring him back to life. He could only accept reality, return home, and close his doors, cautiously observing the winds in Owari.
Indeed, the death of Oda Nobuhide, the “Tiger of Owari,” had a significant impact. After the news spread, the air in the entire Lower Four Districts of Owari seemed to freeze. Everyone was cautious, fearing that any disturbance would draw the wrath of the Oda Danjō no Chū family.
The air remained frozen until the third day, when everyone finally received their notifications and was invited to attend Oda Nobuhide’s funeral. Especially for the local lords and local warriors, the messengers even explicitly stated that none of them were allowed to remain in their territories and must attend the funeral until Oda Nobuhide’s heir, Oda Nobunaga, permitted their return. Those who did not attend would bear the consequences!
Even Yuan Ye, the fake samurai, was caught in the net. The Oda Danjō no Chū family had not overlooked him; someone had come to invite him. They just didn’t treat him with much respect, their tone being more polite, but he still had to go. He couldn’t refuse!
