Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

Shichibei turned his head to look at the ship owner who was speaking. "So, you're saying that Nagashima offered five or ten times the price to hire your ship?"

Yes, when Shichibei asked the ship owner, he said that Nagashima wanted him to send a ship to bring the hundreds of Saiga arquebusiers hired by Ganshoji to the island, but he refused.

Previously, when Nagashima fought against Nobunaga, they had hired a mixed force of arquebusiers. After the battle, they naturally returned to Saiga. Now that Nobunaga has returned from the Settsu front, every warlord knows that Nobunaga will definitely attack Asakura and Nagashima. Therefore, Genshoji Shoichi will definitely have to go and recruit the Saiga troops to Genshoji to assist in the battle, and these arquebusiers are also needed to defend the castle.

"Is he still alive?" Upon hearing this, Shichibei had a thought.

The boat owner, of course, said he'd already left and was definitely not there. Hmph, we're all in business; we can even sell a noose. Everyone knows each other. After the meeting, Shichibei went to find that man and ask if there was any way to contact the Nagashima man who rented the boat.

It's not that Shichibei is planning some kind of tactical maneuver again, but rather that he wants to use Nagashima as a transit point to find out if Takeda Shingen has hired the Saiga arquebusiers.

The Saiga clan had been mercenaries in the Kinai region for many years, performing well in Osaka and Nagashima. Crucially, they used their own arquebuses in battle; buying arquebuses was too much trouble for Shingen, but he knew they were effective. Now that they had connections and could recruit the Saiga clan through the Hongan-ji Temple, why not?

It's not like they're short of money. Judging from what Midori said in her letter, the Takeda family's income hasn't been bad these past two years; they've even been able to hire more people.

Kishu, like Koga and Iga, is mountainous with limited land, and thus produces many mercenaries. Historically, Nobunaga specifically hired the Negoro and Saiga troops to fight against them. For a time, the Negoro troops were even assigned by Nobunaga to Sakuma Nobumori as support, specifically to participate in the battle to attack Ishiyama Hongan-ji Temple.

Of course, we can't inquire about this openly; we'll do it quietly. If we manage to find out, Lord Nobunaga will certainly reward us handsomely.

And indeed, just as Shichibei had suspected, Takeda Shingen intended to recruit some Saiga followers for himself. After all, he and Kennyo Shonin were brothers-in-law, and both were about to join the anti-Nobunaga united front, so it would be easy for them to ask Honganji Temple to act as intermediaries and invite the Saiga followers to join the war.

As a revolutionary weapon in Japan, the arquebus played a significant role not only in defense but also in offense. Previously, Japan's weak ranged attack capabilities meant that many samurai fought on the battlefield, their bodies riddled with dozens of arrows.

Arquebuses, on the other hand, were very fair; if you were hit, you died. This was extremely effective in siege warfare. Nobunaga repeatedly left behind large arquebuses to bombard the castle walls, leaving the castle embarrassment with no ranged means to attack the Oda army charging at the castle. There are even records of large arquebuses directly breaching castle walls, although those walls were most likely made of what are known as "itabei," or wooden walls.

The cannons fired rapidly from below the city walls, and the defenders inside didn't dare to raise their heads, greatly reducing the difficulty of the siege.

Nobunaga commanded from Tsushima, dispatching numerous small boats to patrol the harbor, since Nagashima was right there. Ise Bay was too large to cover entirely, but Nagashima was small; the key was to ensure no ships could get close to it.

If the small boats monitor the area and discover that someone is trying to storm Nagashima, they will send out intercepting or attacking ships. If the siege lasts for ten days to half a month, Nagashima will be in a hurry. Even if the island has a lot of ships of its own, the believers and ordinary monks who are temporarily armed are probably no match for Kuki Yoshitaka and Saji Ichisei, who have been engaged in naval warfare for many years.

Nobunaga was quite happy watching this cat-and-mouse game without actually fighting, so he didn't pay attention to Shichibei.

After waiting in Tsushima for several days and conducting some covert investigation, Shichibei received some less-than-confirmed information. It was Saito Tatsuoki again who acted as a go-between, helping the Takeda clan acquire Nagashima and requesting that Nagashima send someone to guide several hundred Saiga soldiers to Suruga. Once in Suruga, the Suruga Takeda navy would naturally be there.

Or rather, it doesn't need to be that far; just enough to safely take the person away from Kumano Beach, under Kuki Yoshitaka's control. The rest can be left to Kohama Kagetaka, who has fled to the Takeda clan; Kohama Kagetaka can bring the person back to Suruga himself.

He managed to escape unscathed from Kuki Yoshitaka's attacks and encirclement, which shows he has some skill.

Upon learning this news, Shichibei secretly plotted. Meanwhile, the Takeda clan began controlling exits. Yamagata Masakage and his son Yamagata Masamichi also left Kofu and began gathering troops. On Nagashima, someone was secretly trying to transport the Saiga troops to Suruga.

Before the war, all sorts of seemingly unrelated messages were actually quite obvious. For example, some people would say that something big was coming, and that when trains to Fujian were suspended for a day or three days due to equipment maintenance, or when all night trains were canceled for several weeks, that was when something truly big was coming.

Chapter 262 The General Raises an Army to Punish the Rebels

The big one is coming right away!

Taking advantage of Oda Nobunaga's main force retreating to Gifu in Mino, Ashikaga Yoshiaki escaped from Kyoto, leaving Yamaoka Kagetomo with over a thousand cavalry to guard Nijō Castle. Yoshiaki himself entered Makishima Castle and raised the banner of rebellion against Oda Nobunaga.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the Shogun of the Muromachi Shogunate, issued a call to all the feudal lords to serve the emperor and to unite against the great traitor Oda Nobunaga.

The entire nation was shaken. Whether they were on good terms with Oda or had already openly opposed him, everyone was astonished. It wasn't the first time the Shogun and the Kanrei had been at odds, but every time the Shogun publicly declared his intention to send lords to Kyoto to punish the rebels, it signified a political reshuffling across Japan.

Oda Nobunaga, who had already begun a tug-of-war between Tsushima and Nagashima, appeared calm and collected, as if he had anticipated this. However, since Oda Nobunaga was currently in Owari, he couldn't immediately launch a massive attack on Makishima Castle.

Earlier, Settsu Ikeda, Miyoshi Nagayasu, Miyoshi Masayasu, and others were locked in a standoff with Nobunaga's main force at Takatsuki, and Asakura Yoshikage had also sent troops north of the river. It was a perfect opportunity, yet Ashikaga Yoshiaki did not rebel. Now that the situation in the Kinai region is temporarily calm, Ashikaga Yoshiaki has rebelled. This shogun really knows how to pick his timing.

There were two possible responses. One was to submit a memorial to the imperial court, requesting that the court, in accordance with established procedures, promote Ashikaga Yoshie, the Grand Councilor, to Junior Third Rank and Acting Grand Councilor. This promotion was already warranted, given his eight months of actual service as shogun; however, the timing of the promotion was intended to warn the court to be discerning and not immediately choose sides.

Secondly, it's quite simple. The lords of Tamonyama Castle, Mori Yoshinari, Sakamoto Castle, Akechi Mitsuhide, Yokoyama Castle, Hashiba Hideyoshi, Katsuryuji Castle, Hosokawa Fujitaka, Takatsuki Castle, Takayama Shigetomo, Takaya Castle, Hatakeyama Akitaka, and Kizu Castle, among others, either personally led their troops or dispatched their retainers to participate in the war.

Nobunaga's lieutenant, Naomasa Hanawa, was appointed commander-in-chief to attack the Nijō Palace in Kyoto. Another lieutenant of Nobunaga's main force, Nagahide Niwa, was appointed commander-in-chief to attack Makishima Castle.

It's not necessary to demand an immediate capture of the castle, but rather to demonstrate an attitude: Nobunaga is not cowardly, not at all. Handling this matter alongside Ashikaga Yoshie's promotion is also a way to make things clear to the feudal lords of the land.

Do you have the capability to take over Kyoto before Nobunaga kills Ashikaga Yoshiaki?

If you don't have the ability, and Nobunaga marches into Kyoto, the Shogun will be Ashikaga Yoshihide. Then, you should all carefully consider who will be the greatest traitor to the land.

We need to be quick!

Nobunaga, please hurry! Everyone, please hurry too!

"Over on Nagashima..." Shichibei learned that Takeda Shingen was trying to recruit and transport the Saiga arquebusiers to Suruga, and immediately reported to Nobunaga.

"I'll stay on Long Island and not go anywhere else." Nobunaga was quite calm. Having seen so many storms, he was indeed more composed and at ease.

"Understood." Shichibei actually wanted to ask if he should also stay on Tsushima, but seeing that Nobunaga seemed to be thinking about something, he didn't dare to say anything more.

"Is there anything else to say?" Nobunaga and Shichibei have known each other for a long time, so he knows Shichibei quite well.

"Formerly the White Guard of the Former Seki, now at Tanba Kuroi Castle." Shichibei was too embarrassed to say that he wanted to run away and go home to lie down, so he revealed this information.

Konoe Sakihisa and Ashikaga Yoshiaki were known to all. Sakihisa was banished from Kyoto by Yoshiaki and lost his position as Kanpaku, which was given to Nijo Haruyoshi.

Now that Ashikaga Yoshiaki has sided with Nobunaga, there's no need for Nijō Haruyoshi, Yoshiaki's pro-Yoshiaki regent, to continue in his position. It's time to replace him. In Shichibei's opinion, Konoe Sakihisa, who is hostile to Yoshiaki, would be a suitable replacement.

Moreover, Shichibei now has a very good persuader, who is being supported in Otsu Town. Offering both a house and money, Karasuma Mitsunori finally bowed his head and gave Shichibei his "ancient and modern teachings." With this, Shichibei has received the recognition of the teachings and can now boast about being a master of katakana.

"Oh!" Nobunaga was indeed intrigued.

Yoshiaki has rebelled, so we need to strike him down from multiple angles. While we don't necessarily need to kill Nijō Haruyoshi, who is on good terms with Yoshiaki, getting rid of him is absolutely necessary. Otherwise, having an anti-Nobunaga regent standing before the Emperor, constantly nagging and complaining, is annoying for everyone.

"Should we make some contact?" Shichibei asked cautiously, without suggesting that they be invited to Gifu Castle as guests.

"Send someone to deliver five hundred kan." Nobunaga didn't seem to be in a hurry; he just wanted to hold onto this card for now and wasn't in a rush to play it.

They only sent some living expenses; they didn't mention writing letters or delivering messages. Shichibei simply obeyed, and there was no need to interfere with Nobunaga's judgment.

"What about the expenses and personnel for the promotion to the rank of Grand Master?" Ashikaga Yoshisaka's reception was handled by Shichibei, so his expenses must also be covered by Shichibei.

"Do everything according to the official standards, as always." This amount of money was not small, but Nobunaga spent it very freely.

"As ordered."

Alright, that's all for now. Shichibei respectfully withdrew from the residence. Yes, it was a villa Shichibei built on Tsushima. Nobunaga seized it without a word upon arrival. After all, finding a large house isn't easy, and finding a comfortable one is even harder.

After leading his troops to Tsushima, Nobunaga pointed to the villa and asked whose house it was. His servants immediately replied that it belonged to Kawamura-dono. Without saying a word, Nobunaga went inside and immediately set up the courtyard as his main camp.

Fortunately, Shichibei only built this "battle house" to facilitate the management of his territory of less than two thousand kan near Tsushima. Of course, it also had a touch of returning home in glory, so it was built rather spaciously, but not luxuriously decorated. If it had been too luxurious, Nobunaga might have been a little displeased.

At this moment, Nobunaga was living comfortably, even working with Oda Nobuhiro at their villa to devise battle strategies for the attack on Nagashima's Ganshoji Temple. With 10,000 troops by their side, they were able to stay safely on Tsushima, despite the lack of a castle there.

Just as Ashikaga Yoshiaki raised the banner of rebellion, the Jodo Shinshu sect in northern Ise organized its forces to try to break the siege of Nagashima by the Shima and Chita navies.

More than three hundred ships were organized for the battle, including small boats that could only carry eight or ten people. The Kobayashi-class ships from the later game *Total War: Shogun 2* are now considered capital ships.

Murakami's navy mainly consisted of Sekisen and Kobayashi ships. Utilizing the superior maneuverability of the Kobayashi ships with their 24 oars, coupled with their yuki (roasted darts), they inflicted a crushing defeat on Kuki Yoshitaka in the first Battle of Kizugawa.

If the people of northern Ise Province had three hundred small boats, dominating all of Japan would be a bit of an exaggeration, but dominating the eastern provinces wouldn't be a problem. There's certainly no naval force in the entire eastern province capable of defeating three hundred small boats.

The navy of the people of northern Ise Province had no ships, only a few dozen that met the criteria for a kobayashi (small sailing ship), namely a sailing ship with less than forty oars. These few dozen hastily converted kobayashi, with shields erected on both sides of the hull for cover, carried arquebusiers and archer soldiers, and drove fiercely towards Nagashima, attempting to break through to Nagashima and carry supplies to Ganshoji Temple.

Kuki Yoshitaka and Saji Kazunari are quite capable. Their naval forces are located on the two salients in Ise Bay, Shima and Chita Peninsula.

Saji Kazunari was a naval commander whom Oda Nobuhide had won over by sacrificing one of his daughters. And Kuki Yoshitaka was even more of a threat; besides Shima province, Nobunaga had promised him the Kishu region and Ise province.

Later, when the demand for the Ise district was not met, he allocated 8,000 koku of Kawachi to Kuki Yoshitaka. Nobunaga spared no effort in trying to win over these two families.

By the way, why didn't Saji Kazunari perform well in the Battle of Kizugawa? Because historically, this guy covered Nobunaga's rear and died in battle at Tsushima. Otherwise, given his status as Nobunaga's brother-in-law and a naval admiral, Nobunaga would definitely have greatly promoted him in order to conquer Shikoku and Kyushu.

Alternatively, if you want to see a restored Kobayakane boat, you can visit the Kumano Hayatama Shrine in Japan and the Inojima Naval Memorial Ceremony in Onomichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture. However, whether you can see them playing with fire arrows is not guaranteed.

Both sides' main warships were small boats, but the Shima and Chita navies had a higher level of coordination and were more accustomed to surface warfare. Even in Ise Bay, a relatively calm region later known for its pearl cultivation, it was still difficult for those unaccustomed to seafaring to gain a foothold.

Shichibei didn't go to watch the battle, but Nobunaga, in high spirits, abandoned Nobuhiro as his deputy general and went to the seaside to watch. Kuki Yoshitaka and Saji Kazunari were also happy to show off in front of Nobunaga, each gathering their warships and troops. One of them moved in from the north along the Kiso River, while the other flanked the northern Ise Province troops from the south.

The two sides quickly clashed. Although the hastily organized Kita-Ise navy was not small in number, it soon broke apart under the Shima navy's flexible encirclement and cutting tactics.

Then came a barrage of fire arrows. Think about it, Shima's sailors were quite skilled; they could draw their bows and arrows while standing on a ship. And then there's Nasu Yoichi, the legendary greatest archer in Japanese history, who shot a folding fan off another ship from his own vessel—his archery skills were truly divine! To float up and down, shooting at a moving target, and hitting it with a single arrow—if that were true, he would be practically invincible.

The Kita-Ise navy had erected shields early in the morning, which made things a little better for their small, unprotected boats. Before the melee even began, the Shima navy had already driven back more than half of them with gunfire.

Because they needed to transport supplies to Ganshoji Temple, even Kobayashi's ship wasn't fully manned, and the Kita-Ise navy could only barely retaliate from behind the shieldboard. Before Kobayashi could react, Saji Kazunari boarded the ship. When outnumbered, you have to take advantage of your numerical superiority.

Shichibei, who was chatting with Oda Nobuhiro at the main camp, soon received news of the great victory at the front. Apart from a few small ships that landed on Nagashima, most of the northern Ise naval forces were either defeated or retreated on their own. The strategy of besieging Nagashima was clearly appropriate and suitable, and Ganshoji would only become more and more anxious.

They were able to organize so many ships this time, but what about the next wave?

There were only a few places in Ise Bay suitable for shipbuilding, and the shipyard on Tsushima was directly under the command of Shichibei. Years ago, the previous Ito Sojuro lost money in Osaka Bay and, under Nobunaga's forceful orders, his shipyard was merged into Kawamuraya. While the shipyards of Anotsu and Ominato weren't directly under Shichibei's command, they had been given stern warnings beforehand.

It's impossible for anyone to engage in private trade with Nagashima in the short term. Furthermore, Kisogawaguchi, one of the largest timber trading hubs in Japan, is also controlled by Shichibei. The timber for shipbuilding comes from Shichibei, making it easy to trace.

"Hey, I heard you have a few spies in the north?" Oda Nobuhiro was clearly pleased to hear the news of the great victory on the water.

"Yes." Nobuhiro was Nobunaga's elder brother and a senior member of the Oda clan whom Nobunaga had strongly supported. Shichibei had told Nobunaga, so it was not surprising that Nobuhiro knew as well.

"It's almost ready to use. You'll definitely get some credit then." Nobuhiro was Shichibei's father-in-law, so he spoke without any reservations and even patted Shichibei on the shoulder.

"Are they going to advance?" With the naval victory severing the connection between Nagashima and Kita-Ise, it's indeed time to advance and seize the city.

"That's natural."

Shichibei originally thought that Nobunaga would first eliminate Ashikaga Yoshiaki at Makishima Castle before launching a full-scale attack on Nagashima. Now it seems that Nobunaga really underestimated Ashikaga Yoshiaki, not even touching the main force in Gifu, but only sending the generals stationed in the Kinai region to attack Nijō Palace and Makishima Castle.

"Long Island and Beishi are as interdependent as lips and teeth; if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold." Oda Nobuhiro is quite cultured; after all, he is the eldest son of Oda Nobuhide. Regardless of his academic level, he must have been sent to school properly for several years.

Just as the two were gossiping about the meaning of the words at the Nagashima Ganshoji Temple, Takeda Shingen, who was at the Tsutsuzaki Mansion in Kai Province, received news of Ashikaga Yoshiaki's uprising. Shingen, who had just returned from recuperating at Yumura Onsen, seemed to be in relatively good condition.

Shingen felt even more at ease after learning that Nobunaga's main generals deployed in the Kinai region were all tied down by Nijō Palace and Makishima Castle. Even though Nobi Province alone could potentially muster 50,000 troops, Shingen was not in a hurry.

There's also Nagashima, which can tie down about ten thousand of Nobunaga's men. So, Nobunaga will likely only have about thirty thousand troops left to commit to the defense of Nobi and the battle against the Takeda army.

With a mere 30,000 men, Takeda Shingen considered his forces to be like chickens and dogs before him. Defending a castle would likely be a major problem. However, considering Nobunaga's long-standing military habits, he seemed to prefer open field battles.

Very good, Takeda Shingen also liked field battles.

If we can defeat Nobunaga's main force of about 30,000 men in one battle, even though Nobunaga may still have tens of thousands of troops left, those will all be the generals' troops. At that time, the generals will inevitably be unsettled, and it will be unclear whether they will still be willing to support Nobunaga.

With provisions from the Nobi Plain and elite troops from the Koshino Mountains, the world was in the hands of Takeda Shingen.

Chapter 263 Learning that Shan County is going to Sanhe

The victorious naval soldiers returning to Tsushima immediately sought out Shichibei, as the enemy ships they had captured were loaded with a considerable amount of military rations and various weapons. Aside from what they needed, they naturally wanted to exchange the rest for money immediately.

The battle on Long Island won't end in three or five days. It would be safer and more convenient to exchange the spoils for money, carry them with you, or have them sent home directly.

Aside from the ships themselves, the commanders, including Nobunaga, completely condoned their soldiers' practice of classifying everything as spoils (including prisoners). In this day and age, if you're out fighting a messy war and you don't allow your soldiers to capture indiscriminately, who would want to follow you?

Nobunaga's campaigns are marked by numerous instances of arson and burning of villages and towns. Even the regular soldiers at Gifu Castle, who received annual stipends, needed to make a little extra money by indiscriminately capturing prisoners to boost morale.

Shichibei was good at this; he'd pick up an abacus and haggle with them on the spot. "Your rice's damp, let's say four hundred." "Your knife's chipped, not good enough." Haggling was an instinct ingrained in Shichibei's very being. At this point, no one distinguished between foot soldiers and high-ranking retainers; they were all shouting and yelling at the top of their lungs on the dock.

They're all just trying to gain their own interests, so what's the difference? The only thing they won't do is resort to violence, because if they do, it'll just be a mess and both sides will lose.

Nobunaga witnessed a great victory on the water and was very satisfied. He believed that after only two or three sieges, Nagashima's external support would be completely cut off. Without external support, Nagashima alone would inevitably face famine sooner or later.

Kuki Yoshitaka and Saji Kazunari, who had won the victory, were naturally richly rewarded. Generals are different from common soldiers; those who had rendered meritorious service, even without additional credit, could easily earn a few coins as a reward. Fine horses, famous swords, tea sets—there were plenty of items of equivalent value. Many people also secretly sold these gifts in private.