Japan's Warring States Period: The Rise of the Wakasa Tiger

Chapter 134 The End of the Chaos
After thinking for a moment, Yamana Yutoyo told the generals that he had decided to accept the conditions proposed by Yoshishige, and once again sent Tanjie Shoyoshi to Asakura Castle to report to Yoshishige.

Seeing this, the pro-Amago faction Yagi Toyonobu was obviously restless. He actually had selfish motives in negotiating peace with Takeda Kuninobu this time.

Since both of them were pro-Amago, the peace talks went relatively smoothly, so much so that Takeda Kuninobu was willing to hand over most of Bikan and Yabu counties to Yamana Yutoyo in exchange for his position as head of the family. However, Yagi Toyonobu believed that most of Yabu county was his territory, and Takeda Kuninobu's move would likely cause losses to his own interests.

Therefore, he suggested that Takeda Kuninobu only mention Mikan County and not Yabu County to ensure the semi-independent status of the Yagi clan in Yabu County. In return, Yagi Toyonobu promised to persuade Yamana Yutoyo to accept the conditions after returning. At the same time, his Yagi clan would swear to submit to Yamana Makotoshi and be willing to become an outpost to monitor and resist the Takeda clan.

However, things did not go as he wished. Before he could even open his mouth, Yamana Yutoyo directly chose the price offered by Takeda, which made him very surprised and dissatisfied.

While everyone was not paying attention, Yagi Toyonobu immediately sent someone to tell Takeda Kuninobu outside the city everything that was happening in the city.

After hearing this, Takeda Kuninobu was furious and bluntly said that Yoshishige had deceived Yamana Masamichi and used the land of the Inaba Yamana clan to win over Yamana Yutoyo, which was a betrayal.

At this time, Yoshishige also received the reply brought by Tanjie Shojiyoshi. This result was within Yoshishige's expectations, but his concern at the moment was not about Yamana Yufeng's compromise, but how to convince Inaba Yamana to agree to this condition. This was the most urgent task now.

Yoshishige knew that he was being generous to others and using the land that was promised to be given to Yamana Mamitsu as a favor, which would definitely make the latter furious.

At this time, the most direct and effective way to ease the situation was to send someone to Takeda Kuninobu to persuade him with emotion and reason so that he could accept this plan.

Just when he was frowning and hesitant, it was Yamamoto Shigeyuki again. He slowly stood up and volunteered to Yoshishige, hoping to be the envoy to the Inaba Yamana army.

"Shigeyuki, you have to think carefully. The Lord of Takeda Castle is probably furious. Sending him somewhere else at this time will be a huge risk." Seeing Yamamoto Shigeyuki standing up, Yoshishige felt both relieved and worried.

"I understand," Yamamoto Shigeyuki bowed to Yoshishige and said, "Thank you for your concern, my lord. Now that I have stood up, it means I have thought it through. Please don't worry too much." Yamamoto Shigeyuki spoke steadily and his eyes were firm, which made Yoshishige feel relieved.

"My lord, just tell me what your bottom line is, and leave the rest to me." Yamamoto Shigeyuki promised confidently.

"Bottom line..." Yoshishige thought for a long time again, and finally replied: "Now is not the time to break up with Samasuke. I think that in order to ensure peace with the Inaba Yama clan, I am willing to give up the land of Kinosaki County west of the Maruyama River, but the premise is that he must also make concessions on the ownership of his adoptive father, Kita."

After hearing this, Yamamoto Shigeyuki nodded, and then set off for Takeda Kuninobu's main camp with a small number of samurai.

At this time, Takeda Kuninobu was furious about Yoshishige's betrayal. Unexpectedly, the latter actually sent an envoy to his door. He really walked into a trap.

When the two met, there was bound to be a verbal battle, but Yamamoto Shigeyuki's next words left Takeda Kuninobu speechless for a moment.

"Mr. Yamashiro, let's be fair. The Tajima territory currently occupied by our family was conquered one city at a time in the past few days. And if our family hadn't shown up in time, I'm afraid you wouldn't be able to do anything about Yagi Castle. Besides, the entirety of Mikan County and most of Nikata County in the north are not in your hands at the moment, not to mention the Yafu County where Yagi Castle is located.

In this situation, if it weren't for my lord stepping in, with the limited forces you have, do you think you have the ability to make Yamana Kingo surrender?"

Takeda Kuninobu felt ashamed after hearing this. Indeed, without the arrival of the Takeda army, they would not be able to defeat Yamana Yufeng. Moreover, the disadvantages of long journey and insufficient food and grass have been exposed. If they continue to fight like this, not only will they fail to capture Yagi Castle, but they will also lose other cities that they have captured.

Thinking of this, Takeda Kuninobu's tone softened slightly: "But now, Qiduo County and Qimei County are in my hands, right? Especially Qiduo County, I spent a lot of manpower to attack Hefeng City. You want me to return this place to Yamana Kingo, but I can't do that."

"How dare you mention Hefeng Castle," Yamamoto Shigeyuki said with a wry smile, "This is the Kakiya family's castle. You destroyed their castle and forced their son to death. Now they are coming back with their main force. Do you think they will let you go and allow you to occupy Qiduo County with peace of mind?"

Yamamoto Shigeyuki knew that Kido County was located in the center of Tajima, with convenient transportation, and Takeda Kuninobu would be reluctant to give it up. However, the more important it was, the more he could not let it fall into the hands of the Inaba Yamana clan.

Although he was just bluffing when he brought up Kakiya Tsunesari, it was reasonable. After all, the revenge of losing a city and a son was unacceptable to anyone. Even though the Kakiya family was pro-Amago, they were more independent than Yagi Toyonobu, so they would not endure such pain and keep it to themselves.

After hearing what Yamamoto Shigeyuki said, Takeda Kuninobu felt embarrassed again: "But the division of Tajima was agreed upon by the two lords. Now you have taken so many cities and lands, and we have lost so much, but only took less than three counties. How can I explain to my lord when I return?"

"With your current military strength, it is almost impossible to defeat Yamana Kingo and divide Tajima with the main family. Even if I admit that those lands are yours, do you think you can take them? It is better to stop while you are ahead and protect the vested interests first, so as to avoid more trouble at night.

Besides, it's not like our family didn't make concessions. We now own a lot of land in the two counties of Hexi, Yangfu and Qiduo. We gave them all up in order to force Yamana Jinwu to compromise. Don't ask for too much, just take what you have."

"Ah, I never expected this to be the result," Takeda Kuninobu sighed. "We gathered so many troops, but in the end we only got half of the territory we had planned. I'm really ashamed."

"With two thousand men, we have done our best to take over such a large piece of land." Yamamoto Shigeyuki consoled him, "But after this battle, the Yamana clan will no longer be able to covet Inaba, isn't this also a great gain? Moreover, if you give up Qiduo County, I can also ask Yamana Kingo to give up some of his interests in exchange. In this way, I can have an explanation when I return."

"This is the only way." Takeda Kuninobu nodded, and from then on, the two sides reached an agreement.

After obtaining the promise from Takeda Kuninobu, Yamamoto Shigeyuki went to Yagi Castle again and met with Yamana Yutoyo. The two sides bargained again. Finally, Yamana Yutoyo agreed to cede more than 30 villages north of the Oyagawa River in Yafu County to the Inaba Yamana family in exchange for their giving up their territorial claims to Keta County.

On the third day of the first lunar month, the three parties held a meeting in Yagi Castle to formally negotiate peace, and the war that had lasted for ten days finally came to an end.

(End of this chapter)