Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

Yatsushiro Castle was deserted; the Shimazu soldiers who had been defending it had all fled. Shiga Chikaji and Kawamura Naokichi, who had entered the castle earlier, had already taken control of the area and were awaiting Shichibei's arrival.

Shichibei, without hesitation, took over Yashiro Castle, leaving 500 men to garrison it, and marched straight to Izumi Castle on the border of Satsuma and Higo. Just then, Oda Nobukatsu's retainer arrived on horseback. He learned that Nobukatsu had requested Shimazu Yoshitora to lead Shichibei into the inner castle in order to secure Satsuma Province.

The requirements are quite high, but with Oda Nobuo's authorization, there's nothing to fear. He can now contend with Shimazu Yoshitora, Iriiin Shigetoyo, and others.

The army advanced swiftly. Despite his grief over his son's recent death, Fukami Nagatomo, in his capacity as the Sagara family's heir, led two thousand men to aid Kawamura's army. As for the Sagara brothers, Tadafune and Yorifusa, they were both sent to Mifune Castle as guests. Just like Aso Koretoge's pregnant concubine, they too had to be guests.

Furthermore, Kai Muneun also accompanied Shichibei on the expedition. Shichibei needed a guide familiar with the situation in northern Satsuma. It wasn't that he didn't trust Fukami Takayuki, but rather that venturing deep into enemy territory and placing all his hopes on one person would be absolutely unwise.

Do you think it might kill that old man Kai Muneun? Well, if he dies, so be it. If that butcher Zhang dies, we'll have to eat hairy pork.

Opposite to Izumi Castle in Satsuma is Minamata Castle in Ashikita District, Higo Province. This castle was originally the territory of Inudou Yoriyasu, but after the Sagara army was defeated, the Ashikita and Yatsushiro districts were ceded to the Shimazu family. At this time, the lord of the area was Furuka Oki Daibu.

Upon inquiry, it was learned that they had just died in the Battle of Iidayama-Mifune Castle, with countless castle soldiers killed or wounded, and few having escaped back.

When Kawamura's army arrived, the few inhabitants of the castle decided to surrender. Shichibei promised not to kill them after they surrendered, and even let them escape back to Satsuma.

While this would certainly prepare the Satsuma people, letting them know that Kawamura's army had arrived, the main force of the Shimazu army was locked in a stalemate with Oda Nobukatsu in Hyuga. Even if they were prepared, what difference would it make? The Shimazu army, even with its full strength mobilized, only numbered 50,000. Having already defeated one flank, and with another attack on the Hyuga front, their rear was severely vulnerable.

This could be used to spread news of Kawamura's army's arrival to Satsuma. Spreading panic within Satsuma might even force Shimazu Yoshihisa to retreat in haste, only to be pursued relentlessly by Oda's army.

Shichibei ordered Inudou Raian to temporarily organize three hundred men to guard the castle. From there, Shichibei crossed into the territory of Satsuma and arrived at the mouth of the Yonezu River northwest of Izumi Castle, facing Izumi Castle across the river.

At this point, Kai Muneun received orders to enter Izumi Castle to find out about Shimazu Yoshitora's situation. As expected, Shimazu Yoshitora had gone to Hyuga with Shimazu Yoshihisa to fight, while his eldest son, Shimazu Tadatsumi, was guarding the castle.

Shimazu Tadatsumi it is. As long as you can lead the Kawamura army to storm the inner castle, the Satsuma governorship will be yours.

Shimazu Tadatsumi, who was on the castle, had of course already received Shimazu Yoshihiro Toshihisa's message.

The defeat was devastating; Yoshihisa was killed, and Yoshihiro's fate was unknown. However, the Shimazu had only lost one arm; their main force of 30,000 to 40,000 cavalry remained in Yoshihisa's hands, and their strength was still intact.

To invest or not to invest?

Kai Muneyuki, who entered the castle to persuade the enemy to surrender, discovered that the troops remaining at Izumi Castle numbered no more than five hundred. He bluntly stated that the army outside the castle numbered over ten thousand, which was why he had defeated Shimazu Yoshihiro's victorious army. Not only was their morale high, but it also led to the surrender of the Higo forces. If they didn't surrender today, tomorrow ten thousand, or even twenty thousand, of Higo troops might come.

How long can your mere few hundred soldiers hold out?

Even if we hold out today, once the Oda army attacking Saga Castle in the north is free, tens of thousands of troops will rush in again. At that time, with 100,000 troops gathered under the walls of Izumi Castle, who do you think you are? To withstand repeated attacks from 100,000 troops?

It's better to surrender sooner rather than later. Surrendering early will at least save your family. Anyway, you're not that close to the Shimazu brothers, so don't hesitate any longer, brothers.

575. I commanded the decisive battle against Shimazu.

"What? This person's appetite is way too big."

Kai Muneun returned to Kawamura's camp from Izumi Castle, bringing back Shimazu Tadatsumi's terms. The security of Izumi Castle was a given, and it would be ideal if he could become a genuine Satsuma governor. As a guide, leading the troops and directing Shichibei to attack Ouchi Castle would be no problem either.

However, besides this, Tadatsumi's younger brother, Tadahina, is currently serving in the army of Shimazu Yoshihisa. Moreover, he has become Shimazu Toshihisa's adopted son, and it is hoped that Shimazu Tadahina will inherit Shimazu Toshihisa's 30,000 koku of land in Hyuga.

His other brother, Tadakiyo, became the adopted son of Shinna Tadamamoto, the lord of Oguchi Castle in Satsuma. Shinna Tadamamoto's legitimate son, Tadayasu, had died in Nan-Higo with Shimazu Yoshihiro, so if they didn't take advantage of the situation now, they might not have another chance.

Regardless of Hyuga's new subordinate Tadahiro's attitude, the matter was settled with Shichibei first. Later, when the Shimazu army was defeated, everything was out of the control of the defeated general.

During the reign of Shimazu Sanehisa, he fought desperately against Shimazu Tadayoshi and his son Takahisa. In the end, Shimazu Yoshitora married Shimazu Yoshihisa's daughter, and the two sides reached an agreement, with Shimazu Yoshitora surrendering.

Under these circumstances, the Shimazu Yoshitora family actually possessed a batch of...

Those who were close to Shimazu Yoshihisa's faction included two groups: those who were subdued by force and those who accompanied Shimazu Yoshihisa's daughter, Lady Uhei, into Izumi Castle as part of her dowry and subsequently gained control of a portion of the government.

It would be difficult to silence these retainers, but we could ensure they had no legitimate claim to the cause. The simplest way was to get Lady Yuhei's brothers to support the rebellion, instead of their maternal grandfather, Shimazu Yoshihisa.

Normally, these second and third sons would either become retainers of the eldest son, be adopted into other families, or be sent away to become monks. Now that Shimazu Tadatsumi is willing to help each of them obtain tens of thousands of koku of land, and even potentially the status of independent lords, what could they not be happy about? They'd be overjoyed!

Shichibei is hesitant to agree to the Hyuga territory offer; he can only try his best to negotiate. However, he can agree to the Satsuma territory offer for now. Oda Nobukatsu has already promised Shimazu Tadatsumi the Satsuma governorship, which is within his jurisdiction and has nothing to do with Shichibei. Shimazu Tadatsumi has a big appetite, but his price is certainly attractive.

Alright, let's open the city gates at Chushui!

With the floodwaters opened, the next targets are Isa County (where Shinna-shiki Oguchi Castle is located) and Satsuma County. I urge Nagatomo Fukami to quickly go and persuade the Shibuya faction. The main castle of Satsuma County is Miyanagata Castle, the castle where the previous soldiers died in battle.

The main castle of Shimazu Toshihisa. It was also the territory of the original Kidaiin clan of the Shibuya faction, and the territory that the Irikiin clan gave to Shimazu Yoshihisa was also in Satsuma District.

At this time, Irakiin Shigeyutaka was recuperating in the Irakiin Academy. When Shimazu Toshihisa went into battle, he sent his retainers Yamaguchi Shigeaki and Tanedo Hidetaka, along with two hundred cavalrymen, to assist him.

Very good. More than fifty riders were killed, and most of the defeated soldiers had not yet escaped back to Irikiin. Seeing that Shimazu Tadatsumi had already opened the castle gates and surrendered, Fukami Nagatomo repeatedly persuaded him. After understanding the situation, Irikiin Shigeyutaka put forward his conditions.

The fourth brother of Shimazu Tadatsumi inherited the Irakiin clan, taking the name Irakiin Shigetaka, and the two families became one. Then, their family's land of several thousand cho had to be returned to him. There was a conflict here, as Shimazu Toshihisa's territory was the territory stripped from the Shibuya faction.

No problem. Upon hearing that it was being given to his younger brother, Shimazu Tadatsumi didn't waste any words and confiscated several thousand towns of land in Kawauchi Heisa, Satsuma District, intending to leave it to Shimazu Tadatsunari later.

You ask whose land this is? It belongs to Katsura Tarobei. Who told you to support Shimazu Yoshihisa? Die!

He had absolutely no relation to Katsura, the Mori clan leader of later generations. Katsura Tarobei's ancestor was Shimazu Tadakuni, but because he was from a collateral branch of the family, the family split up. That's how he ended up in Kawauchi-Kawahira Castle, which, despite being called a castle, didn't even have a limestone platform.

Yes, it's just a simple wooden enclosure.

The Shibuya faction rose up in great numbers, summoning more than a thousand men to support Kawamura's army. Including Shimazu Tadatsumi's five hundred men, the Satsuma Sengoku forces now numbered more than fifteen hundred cavalry.

Just when everyone thought Satsuma would collapse and fall apart, Katsura Tadashi, upon hearing that his territory, Kawauchi Heisaku, would be stripped of its power and given to Shimazu Tadahira, chose to rise up in rebellion and rallied the people of Satsuma to resist the Oda army's attack.

Shichibei was shocked when he heard the news, but when he asked, he learned that Katsura Tadashi had gathered a total of eighty samurai and two or three hundred miscellaneous soldiers to besiege the city.

This is ridiculous. A wooden fortress on the edge of the river, with so few people, why bother besieging it? Defending the land left by one's ancestors is understandable, but these few people would be better off retreating into the inner castle. The inner castle is high and fortified; if they could gather a few thousand men to defend it, Shichibei's small force wouldn't be able to take it.

And yet you actually defended Pingzuo Castle?

The troops immediately moved towards Heisaku, abandoning any attempt to persuade them to surrender. They saw Kawamura's army, including former Saiga Negi, and Sakai Kunitomo's men, carrying twelve large cannons, advancing to the castle walls. Against a mountain castle, the cannons were of little use. Against a riverside castle like this, bombardment was the only solution.

Katsura Tadaki in the castle is still publishing "Ya Tamama があるならば Defense ぎ、出きたならばeach 々 Saber を Lead っTi げEnemy Army にぶつかり、そのbone" The pre-war speech of "The flesh is the dust, the name is the descendant, the residual is the flesh" (to the effect: every shot is shot, every soldier is killed, and the name of bravery is passed down from generation to generation after the death).

The cannons fired a barrage of bullets at the city wall, which was nothing more than wooden planks. The wall immediately collapsed, and the cannon fire continued unabated. The Shimazu soldiers guarding the wall were routed and unable to defend themselves.

Shimazu Tadahira, Irakiin Shigetoyo, and others stood by and watched. Seeing Kawamura's army attacking like thunderbolts, they secretly assessed the outcome of their own defense. At the same time, they lamented that Shimazu Yoshihiro's defeat was not unjust, for Watanabe Ryo had already led several dozen of his personal guards into Heiza Castle like gods of war.

Not long after, Hiratsuka Tamehiro and Kawamura Naokichi were brought into the castle to assist them. The battle lasted less than half an hour, and the fighting within the castle was over. More than 120 castle soldiers were killed, and Katsura Tadashi fled to the inner castle with 20 remaining soldiers.

The wives and children inside the city all benefited the first few samurai to enter. Shichibei not only did nothing to stop their human hunting and looting, but also instructed the Kawamura-ya shopkeepers who followed behind...

Purchase on the spot.

If a captured woman was unmarried, she was usually taken without question. Married women were sold off, while the children were kept to see if their fathers would come to ransom them. There were no important hostages; if there were, they would be tied up and sent to the rear as leverage in negotiations.

The people of Satsuma, who were secretly observing the battle at Heiza Castle, saw that Katsura Tadatsugu's resistance lasted for less than an hour, and that Kawamura's army, led by Shimazu Tadatsu and Iriiin Shigetoyo, was collapsing in succession.

The entire Satsuma Kingdom was in chaos. Due to a lack of troops, all the cities had surrendered. The more loyal ones were sent to the inner city to assist in the defense after surrendering; the disloyal ones? They were simply surrendered without any further discussion.

On the sixth day after entering Satsuma, Shichibei's forces had already passed Shigetomi (Izumi-Imiya Castle-Nurirain-Gama-Kajiki-Shigetomi-Inner Castle). The entire Inner Castle was on high alert, and the garrison commanders, including Shimazu Naohisa, Ijuin Tadatsugu, and Hirata Masamune, hurriedly reported to Hyuga.

It wasn't that they were hoping Shimazu Yoshihisa would return to rescue them, but rather that they were telling Shimazu Yoshihisa that they would hold the inner castle to the death, and asking their lord to choose an opportune moment to fight.

So what happened to Yoshihisa Shimazu?

As Amago Katsuhisa surged forward, Tokugawa Ieyasu realized his opportunity had arrived. The Shimazu army, besieged at the castle for three days, had initially planned to ambush and annihilate the Tokugawa forces, even dismantling the main gate of Takagi Castle. However, the Tokugawa army proved incredibly formidable, failing to breach the castle, leaving the Shimazu army in a predicament.

Without the slightest hesitation, Tokugawa Ieyasu, with Torii Mototada as his vanguard, stormed the castle gates and charged straight at Shimazu Yoshihisa. It must be said, Tokugawa Ieyasu was at least two Ito Yubei taller than Shimazu Yoshihisa.

While Saruwatari Nobumitsu was still urging Shimazu Yoshihisa to quickly breach the defenses, Torii Mototada had already charged down from the castle and led his five hundred men in a fierce counterattack against the five thousand Shimazu troops.

Caught in a pincer movement, the Shimazu clan is in a precarious situation. At this point, even if Shimazu Yoshihisa wanted to escape, he might not be able to. Saruwatari Nobumitsu snatched the headband from Shimazu Yoshihisa, his meaning being, "Brother, you'd better run, I'll die in your place."

escape?

Chosokabe Nobuchika arrived at the scene on horseback, wielding a four-foot-three-inch-long dachi (a type of ancient Chinese sword). He swung it with incredible speed, and in the first encounter, he killed eight Shimazu soldiers. His subordinate, Kuwana Tarōzaemon, was equally formidable, also wielding a dachi and fighting fiercely, cutting down six men in a single blow.

Nobuchika himself was a handsome man standing at 185 cm tall, and coupled with his extraordinary bravery, the contrast was so striking that the Shimazu army facing him was almost terrified.

He also received a small hint: 300,000 shi (a unit of dry measure).

He originally only had 100,000 koku of rice in Nan Yiyu, but now he suddenly wants to raise it to 300,000 koku. He would be doing himself a disservice if he didn't go all out.

The Shimazu army, facing a two-pronged attack from Amago Katsuhisa and Chosokabe Nobuchika, finally broke apart—not intentionally, but forcefully disrupted by the Oda army. The Tokugawa, Amago, and Chosokabe forces, working together, simultaneously drove the Shimazu army towards Satohara Castle. Ideally, they would also defeat Shimazu Iehisa at Satohara Castle, leaving the Hyuga with no rivals.

By the time Hori Hidemasa and Oda Nobui arrived, the Shimazu army had already been blown into several pieces, scattered here and there, a chaotic scene, yet all in a state of unanimous disarray.

When two smart people meet, that's how it sometimes happens; they can occasionally produce a stroke of genius.

"The Shimazu Repairman is here!" Nobumitsu Saruwatari, wearing a helmet of Yoshihisa Shimazu, shouted from the ranks, waving a large cross-shaped insignia to call on his soldiers to come and protect him.

But his tactic didn't work. Natsume Yoshinobu had already performed this kind of fake death for Tokugawa Ieyasu at Mikatagahara. Amago Katsuhisa had witnessed it many times. Without the protection of loyal retainers, he wouldn't be living the good life of a daimyo with 300,000 koku of land.

The three completely ignored Saruwatari Nobumitsu and continued to drive their troops, causing chaos and confusion among the Shimazu army in an attempt to gain victory. They believed that currying favor with Oda Nobukatsu would secure their future positions.

Oda Nobukatsu, who had only advanced to Taga Shrine at this stage of the war, was no fool. He realized that a decisive battle might have already begun, and the reason the situation was still chaotic was because the Shimazu army numbered as many as 35,000 cavalry.

Even managing to quickly drive away or capture 35,000 Satsuma black boars would be difficult. Let alone 35,000 Satsuma Hayatos, who are known for their fierce and powerful nature.

So what should be done in this situation? As someone long considered utterly foolish, Oda Nobuo was certainly resentful. Otherwise, he wouldn't have refused Hideyoshi's request for a transfer to another fiefdom, choosing instead to be stripped of his title.

In a sense, this person is someone who cares a lot about his reputation. But the line between his reputation and his actual reputation is blurred. When a knife is at his neck, he doesn't care about his reputation at all and runs away as fast as he can. But when his knife is used to kill someone else, he becomes incredibly powerful, as if he has divine abilities.

He killed Nobutaka after the Kiyosu Conference, and then betrayed Yasuyasu during the Battle of Komaki-Nagakute. He's a very strange person with a rather twisted personality. He's not afraid of the infamy of killing his own brother, nor is he afraid of the infamy of betraying his comrades.

The current situation does seem to favor gaining an advantage, so what should we do?

So Oda Nobukatsu, without consulting Ataka Kiyoyasu or waiting for Hashiba Hideyoshi, donned his armor, raised his father's Yongle Tongbao horse emblem and his own long flag with a papaya pattern, and joined the attack on the Shimazu army.

You might ask if he actually went to slay the Shimazu barbarians, but he didn't. However, his mere presence on the battlefield instantly boosted the morale of the entire Oda army.

The phrase "leading by example" is easy to say but hard to do.

A large group of people were chasing him, but he charged into the battlefield with only two thousand cavalrymen. He swept past the various attacking forces and arrived at the flank and rear of his good son-in-law Amago Katsuhisa's army.

To be honest, Amago Katsuhisa was brimming with courage. "My adoptive father is here; I can't let him down!" he thought. He drove his Izumo troops toward the Shimazu army. In truth, Oda Nobuo had no real intention of attacking. He mainly saw that Amago had charged the deepest and covered the widest area, allowing him to get to the edge of the battlefield and assess the situation.

If things go well, he'll stay put and wait for reinforcements. If things go wrong, he'll run away. What's there to be afraid of? There are plenty of others to take his place.

Yes, he can definitely escape.

When the troops saw Oda Nobunaga's Yongle Tongbao horse emblem appear on the battlefield, the sound of the advancing drums was like thunder, and they all bravely advanced, with no one willing to fall behind.

Accompanied by the thunderous sound of taiko drums, the Shimazu army collapsed one after another. Most of them were driven to Satohara by Tokugawa Amago and Chosokabe, while the few scattered ones were annihilated by the pursuing Oda army.

The once formidable Shimazu army was rapidly crumbling. Ataka Kiyoyasu, who had been carried in a palanquin from the rear, watched Oda Nobuo survey the battlefield with a triumphant air and could only sigh inwardly.

What should one do when one is arrogant in victory and in defeat?

Unfortunately, he would never say such things aloud; instead, he would offer a few words of flattery to Oda Nobuo. Oda Nobuo, too, was beaming with pride, his arrogance undisguised. After all, they had won a great victory; who wouldn't be happy?

In particular, this battle was in fact commanded independently by Oda Nobuo.

576. Now that things have come to this, we can try to persuade them to surrender.

Upon arriving at the inner castle, Shichibei could clearly sense that the Shimazu family was a typical Sengoku period samurai family. The so-called inner castle was a flat castle built on level ground, generally used for residence and administrative affairs.

Following the inner castle was Tofukuji Castle, which existed as a rearguard. Tofukuji Castle was naturally a castle on the mountain behind the inner castle. At this time, Shimazu Naohisa, Ijuin Tadatsugu, and others had abandoned the inner castle and retreated into Tofukuji Castle to fight to the death.

Tofukuji Castle is what later became Tagayama Park in Kagoshima City. The mountain itself isn't very high; I estimate it's only a few dozen meters high. However, it seems there are several thousand soldiers defending the castle, and with Shichibei's current forces, it's unlikely he can conquer it quickly.

However, not being able to attack a castle is one thing, besieging it is another. With the help of local strongmen like Shimazu Tadatsumi and Irakiin Shigetoyo, Kawamura's army quickly set up three fortified walls around Tofukuji Castle and dug trenches to let in seawater. Tofukuji Castle was too strong to attack, so they decided not to attack it.