Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

"Jubei, how many men did you lose?" Oda Nobunaga asked, looking at Akechi Mitsuhide who was being bandaged.

"About two or three thousand." For Guangxiu to be ambushed and attacked in the ravine, losing two or three thousand was already considered quite good.

"Shichibei?" Nobunaga turned to look at Shichibei again.

"I suffered no losses." Shichibei only realized this after arriving in Kyoto.

Bessho Yoshichi's rebellion was likely intended to join forces with the Mori army at Hanakuma Castle to attack Shichibei. However, he failed to anticipate a problem in the coordination; he didn't expect Hideyoshi to send Kawamura's army directly to Miki Castle, eliminating the need for Shichibei to personally go to Himeji Castle to retrieve them. This prevented him from containing Kawamura's army within the combined forces of Bessho and the Mori-Araki alliance, thus hindering his ability to defeat Kawamura's forces.

Of course, this was also related to Shichibei's swift escape after being advised by others. Had he hesitated for even a day, or even just half a day, the Mori army would have already reached the shore.

Then they'll be left with no one to turn to, only to face certain death. "My lord, these powerful officials have all been misled by the Mori clan." (Mitsue)

He bought Nobunaga's house.

What a hard-working person, so dedicated.

"Yes!" Nobunaga nodded, clearly agreeing with this statement.

“Then no matter how many national heroes rebel, we only need to defeat the Mori army.” Mitsuhide said this with great certainty.

Even the Daibetsu-sho family, the governors of the eight districts of Higashiharima, or Araki Murashige, a powerful lord with 200,000 koku in Settsu, were powerless to resist the Oda clan's attack. Even if they banded together, their strength was insignificant in the face of the behemoth that was the Oda clan.

These powerful families relied solely on the support of the Mori clan. Even if the Mori army only numbered ten thousand, they would have a core, allowing them to fight more efficiently under the Mori's coordination. They could also coordinate with each other to launch raids and invasions on a larger scale.

"Kill the Mori first; the rest are nothing but moss on a blade of grass." "What do you say?"

"Attack Settsu first." Mitsuhide pointed in the direction of Settsu and immediately made the suggestion. We absolutely cannot allow the Mori to gain an advantage in Settsu. Once the Mori establishes a foothold there, and with his control of the entire Seto Inland Sea and Osaka Bay, the Mori army can leverage its naval superiority...

He sent his 100,000-strong army to the capital region.

Even 100,000 peasant soldiers, combined with the powerful local warlords of the Kinai region, would be enough to give Nobunaga a run for his money. Nobunaga couldn't possibly be completely unprepared in other directions; he was also fighting the Ikko-ikki in the Hokuriku region. Therefore, even if he gathered 100,000 men in the Kinai region, he wouldn't be able to gain a comprehensive advantage.

"You must immediately muster your troops to rescue Takatsuki. Shichibei, you also take your troops and prepare provisions." Nobunaga made the decision on the spot.

Just then, a report came from outside that Bessho Nagaharu had also fled to Kyoto with seven or eight hundred remaining soldiers, and had come to apologize to Nobunaga. Nobunaga would not blame him at the moment; he still needed to use Bessho Nagaharu as a bargaining chip to win over the local lords and villagers of Higashiharima.

He summoned him immediately, and without mentioning anything else, immediately offered him three thousand kan (a unit of currency) to settle him down. He ordered him to be armed as quickly as possible and prepared to follow the Oda clan from Settsu back to Harima, thus clearing the land route between Harima and Hashiba Hideyoshi.

Bessho Nagaharu kept kowtowing to Nobunaga. He could only cling to Nobunaga's coattails in order to fight back in Harima and kill his treacherous uncle, Bessho Yoshichika.

A large number of troops quickly gathered in the Shimokyo region, and Shichibei's current force of over 5,000 men was disbanded, while another squad of three...

A thousand or so men gathered in Kyoto to prepare provisions and procure weapons for Nobunaga and Mitsuhide, who were to be deployed to Settsu.

News soon came back that Settsu Ibaraki Castle was surrounded by an enemy force of about 40,000 men. It should be noted that the castle lord, Nakagawa Kiyohide, only had a meager 40,400 koku of rice. Even if he mobilized all the peasant soldiers outside the castle and brought them into the castle, the number would not exceed 2,000.

Two thousand men were in imminent danger facing an attack by an army of forty thousand.

Because of his crushing defeat, Mitsuhide can only muster a maximum of ten thousand troops, including his own men. If given more time, he could regroup, but Ibaraki Castle is on the verge of collapse.

Nobunaga's main force was reduced to less than 10,000 men last year due to a large number of reassignments, but it has gradually recovered to about 15,000 to 16,000 men this year.

Even with Bessho Nagaharu's 800 men, Hashiba Hideaki's 300 men, and Shichibei's 3,000 support troops, we're still short of 30,000 men.

Can't save?

Save them! Of course we must save them, and not only save them, we must save them swiftly. Also, send a human messenger to Harima to tell Hideyoshi. Hold out in Harima for now; a few months at most, until Nobunaga has subdued Settsu.

Immediately shift the attack to Higashiharima.

Because of Kiyohide Nakagawa's resistance at Ibaraki Castle, Kawamura-ya supplied Takatsuki Castle with supplies for five days. By the time the combined forces of Mori, Araki, and Honganji, numbering 40,000, surrounded Takatsuki Castle, which was defended by about 3,000 men, the castle already had enough food and equipment to hold out for four months.

Several hundred remaining soldiers from Ibaraki Castle, including Nakagawa Kiyohide, also sought refuge in Takatsuki Castle.

While the castle wasn't exactly well-equipped or well-supplied, it was certainly difficult to breach in a short time. Even Hideyoshi, arguably the greatest siege strategist in Japan, when faced with Bitchu-Takamatsu Castle and its 5,000-strong garrison led by Shimizu Muneharu, still resorted to a naval assault. Hideyoshi, with 30,000 men, wouldn't have risked a direct assault on Bitchu-Takamatsu Castle with only 5,000. Now, even if the Mori coalition had 40,000 men, they wouldn't risk a direct assault on Takatsuki Castle either.

The Mori allied forces, numbering 40,000, deployed at Tabe, Tsuchibashi, and Tsujiko south of Takatsuki Castle and established siege fortifications. The Oda forces, numbering approximately 30,000, advanced to Ijiri northeast of Takatsuki Castle and deployed, resulting in a stalemate.

Nomi Munekatsu, who was commanding the attack, was quite surprised that the Oda army had arrived so quickly, but the two armies had already met, and there was not much time to think. He immediately deployed his troops and prepared to fight.

"Master, master..." Shichibei had just begun distributing lead pellets to Nobunaga's men when a shop assistant from the Sakai branch ran into the camp.

"What's wrong with Sakai now?"

"Several thousand Mori soldiers and several thousand Ishiyama soldiers launched a surprise attack and captured Kishiwada Castle. The castle lord, Matsuura-dono, was killed in battle, and the Mori army has entered Kishiwada Castle."

Before the waiter could finish speaking, Shichibei's hand, which was counting the lead bullets, suddenly stopped. Kishiwada Castle had been known for its fortifications since it was built by Miyoshi Yoshikata; how could it have been so easily captured in a surprise attack?

"Matsuura's faction, led by Terada Yasutau, colluded with the Mori clan, opened the castle gates, attacked and killed Matsuura Hizen-no-kami, and proclaimed himself Matsuura Munekiyo, surrendering to the Mori. Sakai was shaken, and some people fled overnight." Shichibei didn't ask any further questions, and the waiter told him everything Shichibei wanted to hear.

“This…this…” Shichibei knew the lingering power of the Battle of Kizugawaguchi was great, but he didn’t expect it to be this great.

I don’t know if it’s because of our own little wings, but the Mori clan’s determination to advance into the Kinai region is much stronger this time. It can even be said that they are going all out to attack the Kinai region.

It's also possible that the demise of the Takeda clan greatly spurred the Mori clan. This made them realize the cutthroat nature of the Sengoku period, where stagnation meant certain death. After stabilizing the situation in northern Kyushu, they immediately turned their attention to the Kinai region.

Once they capture Kyoto, even if Oda Nobunaga still has millions of koku of land, the advantage can be transferred to the Mori clan.

"The members of the guild are in disarray. They hope you can return to Sakaimachi as soon as possible to take charge of important matters." Seeing that everyone around him was one of his own, the man stopped pretending and quickly revealed his true intentions.

To put it bluntly, it wasn't just about getting Shichibei back alone; they wanted Shichibei's troops to be stationed in the Sakaimachi area. Normally, if Kawamura's army were to be stationed in Sakaimachi, it would actually bring the war to Sakaimachi.

But things are different now. The main target of the Mori army is now Kyoto, and it is the other local gentry who have risen up in unison with the Mori clan who will invade Sakai.

The Mori clan had an army of 100,000; if they were to launch an attack, it would be a catastrophic defeat. But the local warlords generally only had a few thousand or ten thousand men, which was far from enough to contend with Kawamura's army.

Now that the Mori army has captured Kishiwada Castle and Sennan District, they are now completely aligned with the Saiga party in Kishu.

Together. The Saiga party no longer needed to travel by boat; they could simply proceed by land to directly aid Ishiyama Hongan-ji Temple.

Sakai, this so-called "free city," is now completely surrounded by anti-Nobunaga forces and must find a way to save itself.

Historically, Oda Nobunaga achieved a great victory at the Battle of Nagashino, reducing Takeda Katsuyori to only a little over a hundred men when he returned to Kofu. However, he did not press his advantage and advance further. Apart from Kosaka Masanobu leading eight thousand cavalry to Shinano to welcome him, it was probably because of the significant threat posed by the Mori clan behind him, preventing him from maintaining a prolonged military presence abroad.

Now that the Takeda clan has fallen, the threat posed by the Oda clan in the east has been greatly reduced. This allows them to focus all their efforts on dealing with the Mori clan, which in turn increases the Mori clan's sense of crisis, leading them to concentrate their full strength on...

Fight.

Good, the sooner we kill them, the better.

Taking his men with him, Shichibei hurried to pay his respects to Nobunaga. There, he found a messenger reporting to Nobunaga from within the shogunate. When Shichibei entered, Nobunaga asked if he had received news of the fall of Kishiwada Castle.

That's right, that's why Shichibei came to report. Sakai-machi has finally gained basic submission to Nobunaga; we can't let him fall under the pressure of the Mori army and side with the Mori.

Now that Nobunaga knew, Shichibei said no more and waited for Nobunaga's instructions.

Nobunaga's attitude was resolute: no matter how many routes they came from, he would only go one. According to intelligence, the Mori forces in other directions were all detachments, flanking forces. Only the Mori force in Settsu was the main force.

Judging from the banners, the commander of the Mori army is Nomi Munekatsu, the vanguard general of Kobayakawa Takakage on the Sanyo Road. Kobayakawa Takakage himself should be in Harima, directing the attack on Harima. As for Kishiwada Castle, I heard that the commander-in-chief is Katsura Motonari, who, although also a general of the Mori clan, is clearly not part of the main force.

This is actually quite easy to understand. If you see Oda Nobunaga or Oda Nobutada, you can be sure that the main force of the Oda clan has arrived. Even if they haven't come, a considerable number of troops have arrived. If you only see Kawamura Shichibei Nagayoshi, then it's definitely not the entire 120,000-strong Oda army that has arrived.

It's not simply a matter of leadership ability; it also involves a series of factors such as prestige, experience, and status.

Shichibei simply didn't have the ability to lead 120,000 men; even divine intervention couldn't save him. He simply couldn't lead them. Therefore, Nobunaga...

If they come, it might be only 10,000 people, or it might be 100,000. But if Shichibei comes, then at most it will be a few thousand people, not tens of thousands.

Nai Mei Zong Sheng Lai, that's an advance force of over ten thousand. Gui Yuan coming? Never even heard of him, he'll probably only bring two or three thousand at most.

No one else moved; they stayed in Settsu, focusing their attack on Nomi Munekatsu's main force. Kawachi had Sakuma Nobumori, and Yamato had Oda Nobutada. Even if it was his own son, if he was useless, Nobunaga would never tolerate him.

Sakuma Nobumori, nicknamed "Retreating Sakuma," was a master of defensive warfare. Enemy forces in the southern region found it extremely difficult to cross Wakae Castle and advance on Kyoto. Furthermore, Oda Nobutada of Yamato could bring along Tsutsui Junkei, giving them a significant numerical advantage over Matsunaga Hisahide.

Izumi is in turmoil, but it won't be a major disaster. As for Sakaimachi, it might be robbed.

Tell the Sakai clan to write down the name of the robber, and then Lord Nobunaga will kill his entire family to avenge you.

No matter who invades Sakai, their entire family's heads will be chopped off and hung on the main street of Sakai, so that everyone in Sakai can see it clearly.

Alright, since Nobunaga has said so, what else can Shichibei say? He can only reply to the Sakai faction that he has no way to send troops to Sakai before the battle is decided in Settsu.

"First published on 705u.com - Book Club"

Although we are members of the Sakai-kai, we are first and foremost retainers of Oda Nobunaga, and all our actions are subject to Oda Nobunaga's will. Whatever Nobunaga says goes, and everything else takes a backseat.

With no other option, the man had to turn back to Sakai and announce Oda Nobunaga's decision to the assembled members.

"We must defeat Takatsuki's enemy as soon as possible." Akechi Mitsuhide hadn't spoken earlier because there were many people around, but now that it was just his own men, he showed a hint of urgency.

Allowing the Mori army to wreak havoc in the Kinai region, while not enough to shake Oda Nobunaga's rule, would certainly unsettle the people of southern Kinai. For the past hundred years, the region has seen a constant change of rulers, and the people's hearts have never been at peace. Any disturbance here will inevitably stir up trouble.

Chapter 404 Hideyoshi Lost Territory but Survived People

Hideyoshi, who was in Himeji, naturally received an urgent report that Bessho Yoshichika of Miki Castle had pursued and released Bessho Nagaharu, and had sided with the Mori clan. However, what was even more pressing was the advance of the Mori army.

Attack, a two-pronged attack.

One route was from the northwest, where 15,000 Mori cavalry from San'in (shielded) led by Yoshikawa Tsuneyoshi attacked into the Saya-gun district of Nishi-Harima and quickly surrounded the border castle, Kagetsuki Castle.

Inside the castle are 3,000 Amago Re-establishment troops, whom Hideyoshi had arranged to enter. Although they are unlikely to cause any problems in the short term, the castle only had three months' worth of food reserves last month. If the Yoshikawa army besieges the castle for a long time, its fall is inevitable.

You asked why Hideyoshi wouldn't go to rescue Kozuki Castle? Of course he wanted to. But he had to defeat the Kobayakawa army, which had already invaded Ako District, was advancing towards Iho District, and was threatening Himeji Castle in Shikama District.

Kobayakawa Takakage, Hoida Motochika, Awaya Narukata, and Minakata Narimasa, leading 25,000 cavalry, marched into Harima in a grand and imposing manner. Hideyoshi, with only a little over 10,000 troops at Himeji Castle, was at a significant disadvantage and could only resort to a defensive counter-attack strategy.

Originally, there were at least four or five thousand men from the Bessho family that could be conscripted, but now, with Bessho Yoshichika's rebellion, Hideyoshi has to rely on himself.

Let's work hard!

Unfortunately, Hideyoshi's right-hand man, Hidenaga, had retreated to Kyoto with Shichibei. It wasn't that they were missing Hidenaga's three hundred men; they were missing a capable assistant like Hidenaga.

If it were all done by Hachisuka Koroku, Hachisuka Koroku would be worked to death. Therefore, Hideyoshi inevitably relied on Kodera Yoshitaka, a local tycoon in Harima, and entrusted him with important responsibilities, effectively making him in charge of all affairs in one area.

However, this raises a problem: Kodera Yoshitaka was a retainer of Kodera Masataka, and his mother was Kodera Masataka's adopted daughter. In fact, he was Kodera Masataka's grandson.

Otherwise, why would their family, whose original surname was Kuroda, be allowed to use the surname of the Kodera clan, a branch of the Harima Akamatsu clan? That's where their lineage comes from; they belong to the Kodera branch.

Theoretically speaking, Kodera Yoshitaka was a retainer of Hideyoshi and Riki, and normally shouldn't have been under Hideyoshi's direct command. Hideyoshi could only command Kodera Masakazu, who in turn commanded Kodera Yoshitaka.

Unfortunately, Yoshitaka had distinguished himself in the previous Battle of Murozu and was a key figure in persuading the Kodera clan to side with Oda.

He became Hideyoshi's most important guide in Harima.

Hideyoshi is now bypassing Kodera Masakazu and directly commanding Kodera Yoshitaka, causing Kodera Masakazu great panic. This is because Hideyoshi beat Bessho Yoshichika during the Kakogawa pacification. Kodera Masakazu witnessed this firsthand and believes that Hideyoshi is suppressing, or even actively forcing, local lords in Harima to rebel, then seizing their territory to install Hashiba retainers.

For example, the entire Akamatsu family of Tatsuno was placed under the jurisdiction of Hachisuka Koroku, making the Hachisuka family a feudal lord with a fief of 53,000 koku, while Akamatsu Hirohide only had 10,000 koku and did not have actual control over the family.

Various examples were clearly presented to Kodera Seisho, and even if someone else were in his shoes, they would feel insecure.

Hideyoshi is currently elevating Kodera Yoshitaka's status to facilitate his eventual replacement of Kodera Masakazu. After all, Yoshitaka is legally Kodera Masakazu's grandson and has the right of succession that was common during the Sengoku period in Japan.

Having been able to seize control of the Kodera family, Takataka would surely be eternally grateful to Hideyoshi, never forgetting him and wholeheartedly serving him.

And what about his minor official post? It's more like a trap than a safe one. Who knows, he might fall off his horse and die on the road one day while out on a errand.

Or perhaps they were eating something and suddenly fell ill and died overnight.