I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

After everyone saw the location he was pointing to, they all showed amused expressions, and their facial expressions underwent a fascinating transformation.

Nagakura Shinpachi gasped:

"Wait... isn't this place...?!"

Heisuke Todo blinked, stunned.

"A war is going to break out here? Really...?"

Harada Sanosuke looked completely bewildered:

"What's wrong? Where is this place? Okehazama?"

Yamanami Keisuke smiled slightly:

"It's not Okehazama. It's more famous than Okehazama!"

Hijikata Toshizo sneered:

"Following the 'Great Return of China,' are we going to emulate another famous scene from the Warring States period?"

Ignoring the complex emotions of the crowd, Qing Deng said calmly:

"The Changzhou army will definitely deploy its defenses here! So we must prepare as soon as possible!"

……

Aoto/Shuten-dōji:

"Head immediately to Sekigahara, the land that divides the world in two!"

*******

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Only three days left this month! Readers with monthly passes, please be sure to vote for this book! (Crying leopard head.jpg)

Please vote with your monthly tickets for the 7100 words I wrote today! I'm begging for monthly tickets! I'm begging for recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

P.S.: I suddenly have a strong urge to write a modern fantasy novel with shrine maidens, female ghosts, female warriors, and female ninjas, like "Senren Banka". I'll start writing it when I have the chance in the future.

Chapter 910 The Decisive Battle That Will Determine the Future! [5400]

Sekigahara is a basin located within Nono territory, bounded by Mount Ibuki to the north, Mount Sasao and Mount Tenma to the west, Mount Matsuo to the southwest, and Mount Nangu to the southeast, spanning four kilometers east to west and two kilometers north to south.

It is a vital passage connecting the Hokuriku region in the northwest and Ise in the southeast, and it is also an excellent site for field battles.

The division between Kanto and Kansai in Japan is mainly based on Sekigahara as the boundary; the area east of Sekigahara is called Kanto, and the area west of Sekigahara is called Kansai.

Therefore, from a geographical point of view, Sekigahara is truly a place where the world is divided in two!

The reason why everyone was so surprised when Qing Deng pointed to that place was because Sekigahara was too special.

Two hundred and sixty years ago, in the fifth year of Keicho (1600), a tremendous battle broke out here, namely the famous Battle of Sekigahara!

To understand the origins of this great war, we must first begin with the establishment of the Toyotomi regime.

In 1582, Akechi Mitsuhide assassinated his lord Oda Nobunaga, intending to replace him. In the end, all his efforts were in vain for Hideyoshi Hashiba.

In the Battle of Tennozan, Hideyoshi Hashiba eliminated Mitsuhide Akechi, accumulating unprecedented prestige.

In the Battle of Shizugatake, Hideyoshi Hashiba eliminated Katsuie Shibata and became the de facto ruler of the Oda clan.

Thus, Toyotomi Hideyoshi inherited almost all of Oda Nobunaga's political legacy.

Oda Nobunaga was just one step away from unifying Japan, but Hashiba Hideyoshi made that final step for him.

With the deep foundation accumulated by the Oda clan over many years, as well as his own excellent military capabilities and skillful diplomatic tactics, Hideyoshi Hashiba quickly unified the whole of Japan.

At this point, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was only one title away from becoming the ruler of the land.

However, because he was not a descendant of the Minamoto clan, he was unable to establish a shogunate.

Therefore, he took a different approach, no longer insisting on the position of "General Who Subdues the Barbarians," but instead being granted the title of "Kanpaku" and establishing a completely new political system.

The term "关白" originally meant "to state or report," and it comes from the "Biography of Huo Guang and Jin Midi" in the Book of Han: "All matters were first stated to Huo Guang before being reported to the emperor." In other words, any important matter was first stated or reported to Huo Guang before being presented to the emperor.

The term was introduced to Japan by envoys to Tang China and gradually became an important position for the Japanese emperor after he came of age, assisting him in managing all affairs of state, equivalent to the prime minister in ancient China.

After the rise of the samurai class to power in the shogunate, the Kanpaku (regent) became a figurehead, much like the imperial court.

In 1585, Hideyoshi Hashiba was appointed Kanpaku (regent) and became the universally recognized "King of the Land".

In 1586, the imperial court bestowed upon him the surname "Toyotomi," and Hashiba Hideyoshi changed his name to "Toyotomi Hideyoshi."

In 1591, Toyotomi Hideyoshi abdicated, passing the position of Kanpaku (regent) to his nephew Toyotomi Hidetsugu, and proclaimed himself "Taiko" (an honorific title for the former Kanpaku).

From then on, "Taiko" almost became the exclusive title for Toyotomi Hideyoshi. When people talked about "Taiko," they would immediately think of Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

Thus, the period when the Toyotomi clan held power is simply referred to as the "Taiko era" or the "Toyotomi Taiko era".

Toyotomi Hideyoshi rose from humble beginnings to become the ruler of the land... Although he established an unprecedented great achievement, he had a fatal flaw: he had a problem with his fertility.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi was a notorious womanizer who frequently took concubines after rising to power.

However, no matter how many women he married, he never had any children of his own.

The offspring they finally had were often killed off early due to outdated medical technology and childcare practices.

It wasn't until his later years that his concubine, Asai Chacha, finally gave birth to a healthy son who would later become the second lord of the Toyotomi family: Toyotomi Hideyori.

However, when Toyotomi Hideyori was born, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was already very old and didn't have many years left to live.

Therefore, in order to maintain the Toyotomi family's rule, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, like Chai Rong at the end of the Five Dynasties period, appointed several regents.

He ordered the five most powerful daimyo under the Toyotomi regime to jointly assist Toyotomi Hideyori.

These five prominent figures who entrusted the young emperor with the care of his son are collectively known as the "Five Elders".

They are Tokugawa Ieyasu, Maeda Toshiie, Ukita Hideie, Mori Terumoto, and Uesugi Kagemori.

In essence, Toyotomi Hideyoshi established the "Five Elders" to counterbalance Tokugawa Ieyasu.

At that time, Tokugawa Ieyasu was the most powerful daimyo under the Toyotomi regime, without exception.

Its strength was so great that Toyotomi Hideyoshi was extremely wary of it.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi attempted to subdue Tokugawa Ieyasu through military means, but suffered a defeat in the Battle of Komaki-Nagakute (1584).

There was no other way but to use diplomatic means to subdue Tokugawa Ieyasu.

From then on, Toyotomi Hideyoshi's attitude toward Tokugawa Ieyasu was "he wished he could kill him immediately, but he was always helpless."

Toyotomi Hideyoshi ingeniously established the "Five Elders" precisely to prevent Tokugawa Ieyasu from rebelling, thus preventing the latter from becoming too powerful.

As it turns out, humor is indeed an important element of history.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi, following the example of Chai Rong, appointed several regents, thinking that this would ensure everything would go smoothly.

Unexpectedly, his final fate was exactly the same as Chai Rong's—a pitiful end where all his scheming came to naught.

Among the "Five Elders," only Maeda Toshiie could rival Tokugawa Ieyasu.

The other three are either too young and inexperienced, or lack talent and ability.

The year after Toyotomi Hideyoshi's death, Maeda Toshiie passed away.

In other words, the "Five Elders" on whom Toyotomi Hideyoshi placed high hopes became mere figureheads not long after his death.

As we all know, one of the secrets to becoming a veteran artist is longevity. As long as you outlive other talented people, you will naturally become a veteran artist. This statement is perfectly applicable to Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Thanks to his exceptionally long lifespan, Tokugawa Ieyasu outlived a host of powerful figures, including Imagawa Yoshimoto, Takeda Shingen, Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Maeda Toshiie. He finally ushered in his own golden age, with no rivals of equal caliber in the country.

Just as Tokugawa Ieyasu began to reveal his wolfish ambitions, a loyal retainer of the Toyotomi clan made his move. His name was Ishida Mitsunari.

Ishida Mitsunari was a close confidant of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and was extremely loyal to the Toyotomi family.

After realizing Tokugawa Ieyasu's disloyal intentions, he immediately set about forming an anti-Tokugawa coalition.

In terms of status and position alone, Ishida Mitsunari, whose personal territory was only 20 koku, was no match for Tokugawa Ieyasu.

But he managed to forge an alliance that could rival Tokugawa Ieyasu through various means.

The conflict between Ishida Mitsunari and Tokugawa Ieyasu intensified day by day.

Finally... the two major groups inevitably clashed!

In 1600, the Battle of Sekigahara broke out when 8 troops led by Ishida Mitsunari and 10 troops led by Tokugawa Ieyasu met on the road to Sekigahara!

This battle involved a total of nearly 200,000 troops on both sides, making it the largest civil war in Japan since the Onin War, and it was hailed as "the war that decided the fate of the nation".

Fight a decisive battle to determine who will rule the land in a region divided between two powers... Fight the most unique war in the most unique location.

Because Ishida's army was deployed west of Sekigahara, it was simply referred to as the "Western Army".

In contrast, the Tokugawa army was deployed east of Sekigahara, hence it was simply referred to as the "Eastern Army".

Such a massive decisive battle could easily last for ten days, half a month, or even a year and a half.

Unexpectedly... the battle was decided in just one day - the Eastern Army won a complete victory!

Judging from the formation alone, the Western Army held an almost overwhelming advantage.

The Western Army occupied various high grounds, such as Nangong Mountain and Songwei Mountain, creating an overwhelming pressure on the Eastern Army.

Anyone with even a basic understanding of military affairs knows the importance of high ground.

Logically speaking, with such a huge advantage, even if victory is not guaranteed, they should at least not be defeated in less than a day.

The Western Army was defeated not so much by the Eastern Army, but by itself.

From the very beginning, the Western Army was a large, makeshift organization with serious internal factional struggles and a lack of unity among its members.

Tokugawa Ieyasu cleverly exploited this weakness of the Western Army and successfully won over some of its generals.

Of all the things that caused the most damage to the Western Army, it was the betrayal of Kobayakawa Hideaki.

In the Battle of Sekigahara, Kobayakawa's army, with 15000 troops, was deployed at Mount Matsuo and was one of the most important units of the Western Army.

Shortly after the start of the war, the Western Army gained a significant advantage and at one point put the Eastern Army on the defensive.

At this critical juncture, Hideaki Kobayakawa suddenly betrayed Ishida Mitsunari, turning against his former ally.

Kobayakawa Hideaki's betrayal during the battle resulted in the Western Army's flank being wide open, directly reversing the course of the battle. The Western Army quickly collapsed, and Ishida Mitsunari and other generals were captured alive.

Judging from the outcome, Hideaki Kobayakawa deserves great credit for the Eastern Army's victory in the Battle of Sekigahara.