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

Tao Longfang saw that the time was ripe, so he immediately ordered his troops to attack the main camp of the Niwa army. This sudden attack caused the Niwa army to fall into chaos. Tao Longfang broke into the main camp of the Niwa army and even killed Niwa Akihisa. Niwa Akihisa was almost desperate at this time, and planned to lead his troops to attack the Ouchi army, and even decided to die in battle.

At this time, Nizi Hisayuki, who was scorned by Nizi Akihisa as "hysterical wild state", stepped forward and urged him to withdraw from the battlefield. After he left safely, Nizi Hisayuki led 500 cavalrymen to charge at the Ouchi army, and finally died of exhaustion after being shot by the Mori army general Nakahara Zenzaemon.

Hisayuki Amago's desperate fighting bought time for the Amago army to reinforce the main camp. The reinforcements arrived shortly afterwards, and after leaving behind corpses all over the mountains and plains, the Ouchi army withdrew from the battle, and the Amago army suffered heavy casualties.

That night, after discussing with his important ministers, Akihisa decided to stop attacking Yoshida-gunyama Castle and return home immediately. Afterwards, Harukihisa ordered all the troops to set fire to their camps and retreat towards Izumo.

Looking at the blazing fire, Nizi Akihisa was in great pain. Yuhara Munetsuna, Misawa Tameyuki, Nizi Hisayuki and other brave generals died on the battlefield, more than 10,000 soldiers died in a foreign land, and the loss of food and supplies was innumerable. At this moment, Nizi Akihisa recalled Nizi Hisayuki's earnest persuasion at the beginning, and he was very upset and regretful.

The next morning, the combined forces of Ouchi, Mori, and Takeda planned to pursue the victory and completely annihilate the Amago army before it retreated to Izumo. However, heavy snow suddenly fell, making the roads impassable, so the combined forces had to give up, and Amago Akihisa was able to retreat to his hometown of Izumo via Iwami.

From August 1540, to January , , the Battle of Yoshida-gunyama Castle, which lasted nearly half a year, ended with the victory of the Ouchi side.

The defeated Amago Akihisa fled north like a lone goose in the cold wind. The coalition forces of Ouchi, Mori, and Takeda took advantage of the victory to wipe out the remaining forces of the Amago clan in Aki. Many pro-Amago clan people, including Yoshikawa Okiyoshi, Misawa Tamekiyo, and Honjo Tsumitsu, expressed their submission to the Ouchi clan. For a time, the Amago clan was completely eliminated from Aki.

The defeat of the Amago army in Koriyama and the cleansing of Aki by the Ouchi army were indeed an important node in the struggle between the two powers. Coincidentally, just two days before the defeat of the Amago army, on the tenth day of the first lunar month, a great battle broke out at the Yagi Castle in Tajima, which also became an important watershed in the years of struggle between the Yamana clan and the Inaba Yamana clan.

On the fifth day of the first lunar month before the war, Takeda Kuninobu led more than 2,000 troops to complete the first stage goal, which was to capture 22 villages in the southern part of Tajima Yabu County. He did not stop, but led his troops north and attacked Yagi Castle, the residence of Yamana Yutoyo, intending to force him to open the city and surrender by force, and to hand over the position of the head of the Yamana main family to Yamana Masamichi.

Takeda Kuninobu was very proud of his success in conquering cities. He thought that due to his close relationship with Takeda Motomitsu, the Wakasa Takeda clan would not interfere too much in his attack on the Yamana main family. Therefore, he was not in a hurry to launch a strong attack on Yagi Castle, but adopted a siege method to force Yamana Yutoyo to open the city without bloodshed.

But things did not develop as smoothly as he had imagined.

When Takeda Kuninobu arrived at the foot of Yagi Castle, the entire castle town was empty. Not only was there no one, but not even a grain of rice or a bundle of firewood was left for the Inaba Yamana army.

After sending troops to search the city thoroughly but to no avail, Takeda Kuninobu reluctantly set up camp outside the city and convened a military meeting to discuss what to do next.

According to Takeda Kuninobu's idea, Yagi Castle was the largest castle in Yabu County, and by plundering the town below the castle, he could achieve "fighting to support the war" and provide considerable logistical support for the siege. However, in fact, he encountered Yamana Yutoyo's scorched earth and cleared the countryside, which made the situation serious.

After intense discussions, the generals of the Inaba Yamana army put forward two suggestions.

The first was to forcibly collect food from the newly captured villages. This move was effective quickly, but also had serious side effects. It was winter, just after the New Year, and forcibly collecting food would not only reduce the loyalty of the people in the territory, but it might even lead to a grassroots uprising, which was not a good thing for Takeda Kuninobu, who wanted to concentrate his forces to attack Yagi Castle.

The second was to change the plan from a siege to a strong attack in order to resolve the battle as quickly as possible. Although this approach could reduce the consumption of military rations and reduce the logistical burden, the strong attack would inevitably cause a large number of casualties. In addition, due to the freezing weather, all the doctors in the castle town had fled into the city. It was difficult for the injured soldiers to receive effective treatment by relying solely on the army doctors, which was bound to have a significant impact on the combat effectiveness and morale of the Inaba Yamane army.

After much deliberation, Takeda Kuninobu could not make up his mind. However, the Yamana clan in Yagi Castle had already made preparations for war. They not only stored a large amount of food and military supplies, but also built houses for the people to live in. The morale of the soldiers was high, and they were ready for a long siege or repeated attacks.

"My lord, although our family is not as strong as before, we have mobilized more than a thousand people. The Inaba army outside the city will not be able to attack in a short time." In the palace of Yagi Castle, Tanjie Shojiro, who hurried to support, said to Yamana Yufeng.

"There is sufficient food and grass in the city, so there is no need to worry about their siege." Kakiya Tsunari said confidently.

Of the former "Four Heavenly Kings of the Yamana", only Tajiesho and Yoshiwa Kakiya Tsunari are left, and due to the reduction of their territories, the knowledge and actions of the two have also been greatly reduced.

However, the battle at the beginning of the year, especially the invasion of the Inaba Yamana army, caused Kakiya Tsunari, who was originally close to the Amago family, to change his attitude and began to agree with the view of Yamana Yoshitoyo, that is, to rely on the Wakasa Takeda clan to counter the Inaba Yamana clan, thereby ensuring the survival of the Yamana main family.

Yamana Yufeng was not worried about the current situation, because during the meeting at Tsurumine Castle, Yoshishige had already made a solemn promise to him, and the two sides had also discussed the counterattack plan for the later period. What he had to do now was to defend the city and wait for the arrival of the Wakasa Takeda army.

On the seventh day of the first lunar month, Takeda Kuninobu, who still held out a glimmer of hope for surrender, once again sent envoys into Yagi Castle, expressing his willingness to take a step back. As long as Yamana Suketoyo was willing to open the city and surrender, he would petition Yamana Seimichi to allow Yamana Suketoyo to retain the territory of Bihan County.

Not surprisingly, this condition was rejected on the spot by Yamana Yutoyo. Not only that, he also asked the envoy to go back and tell Takeda Kuninobu that if the Inaba Yamana army wanted to return to Inaba with dignity, they must promise him two things. One was to withdraw from the territory occupied by this expedition, and the other was to return the territory ceded to the Inaba Yamana clan at the beginning of the year. Otherwise, he would never let Takeda Kuninobu leave Yagi Castle smoothly.

After receiving the reply from Yamana Yufeng, Takeda Kuninobu was furious and cursed in front of all the generals: "How abominable! Doesn't he understand that I am the one surrounding him, not him surrounding me! In this case, there is nothing more to say, let's prepare for the siege!"

"Ha! Yes, sir!" After receiving the order from Takeda Kuninobu, the generals immediately launched a strong attack on Yagi Castle from the north, west and south according to the previously agreed plan.

Unfortunately, Yagi Castle is a mountain castle that has been built since the Kamakura period. It has been expanded by several generations of castle lords. It has dense fortifications and strong defenses. The main castle stands on a high mountain cliff. It is a rare dangerous and strong castle in Yabu County and even in the entire Tajima Province.

Although the three-day assault filled up several earthen trenches, it did not have much impact on the overall defense system of Yagi Castle. On the night of the eighth day of the first lunar month, Tanjie Shojiro led the Tajima Yamane Army to launch a night attack, which dealt a certain blow to the Inaba Yamane Army outside the city, forcing Takeda Kuninobu to withdraw his main camp to the outskirts of the castle town. In the late night of the ninth day of the first lunar month, Yagi Castle was silent inside and outside, with a cold wind and swaying shadows of trees. A ninja took advantage of the night to avoid the patrol sentry of the Inaba Yamane Army and entered the main camp of Yagi Castle.

In the palace, in full view of everyone, Taroko Mitsuna carefully took out a secret letter from his arms and handed it to Yamana Yutoyoshi through Tanjie Shoyoshi.

"I am Tara O Mitsugu, and I am here on the orders of my lord to deliver a secret letter to His Majesty Kingo." Tara O Mitsugu is now a senior ninja in both Tango and Tajima ninja teams, and is deeply trusted by Yoshishige.

"It turns out to be Lord Mitsuna. I have heard of your name for a long time!" Yamana Yufeng had long heard of Mitsuna Taro's deeds and knew that he played an important role in suppressing the "Isumi Rebellion" and building the Aki-Tajima-Wakasa intelligence network. The fact that this jonin came in person today was enough to show that Yoshishige valued the Yamana clan, which also made Yamana Yufeng very pleased.

While Yamana Yufeng was praising the jonin, he swiftly took the secret letter and read the contents of the letter nervously under the gaze of his retainers. The expression on his face changed unconsciously, from frowning and worried at the beginning to bright eyes and raised eyebrows, and finally the corners of his mouth turned up and his eyes curved into crescent shapes. Although he did not say a word, his joy was evident.

"My lord, what does the letter from Wuwei Palace say?" Tian Jiezhuang and his son Yihe Kakiya Xucheng asked nervously.

"It can be said that Wuweidian has put in all its efforts this time!" Yamana Youfeng handed the secret letter to Tianjie Zhuangzhiyi and others to circulate, his eyes full of surprise:

"He has appointed Yamagata Morinobu as commander, Sakakibara Nagamasa and Nagasaka Nobumasa as deputy commanders, and is leading 5,500 troops from Kosumiyama Castle. They are expected to arrive outside Yagi Castle tomorrow morning. In addition, Kumagai Takanao is the general commander, Shirai Mitsutane and Matsumiya Kiyonaga are deputy commanders, and they are leading 2,000 troops to gather at Ikuno Castle to prevent the possible support of the Harima Nishiko army from the north."

"A total of 7,500 troops!" Tian Jie Zhuang Shiyi carefully read the letter back and forth several times, still exclaiming in disbelief: "Think about it, at the beginning of last year, when Wu Weidian gathered the troops in the territory to attack Tajima, the total force was only more than 4,000 people. Now, in just one year, they can lead 7,500 troops to fight. The mobilization power of the Wakasa Takeda family is really terrible!"

"Over the past year, Wuweidian has put a lot of effort into consolidating the territory and expanding its power!" Kakiya Mitsunari, who had been an envoy to Wakasa many times, is now a "fanboy" of Yoshishige, and his words are full of respect and admiration for Yoshishige:
"During this year, we have established the 'Le City and Le Seat', formed a navy, opened up shipping routes, carried out land inspections, and forced 'gathering under the city'. The economic strength of the territory and the control over the people have been significantly enhanced."

"Yes, all of this relies on financial support and can also feed back into fiscal revenue, and the cycle continues. Today, the Wakasa Takeda family has become more and more powerful like a snowball." Yamana Yufeng nodded, agreeing with Kakiya Mitsunari's opinion.

"Not only that, I also heard that in the past six months, Wuweidian has been piloting the 'separation of soldiers and farmers', training a group of regular soldiers as cavalry, and organizing forces to research and imitate a kind of southern barbarian weapon called 'iron cannon'. This requires an investment of real money!" Kakiya Mitsunari continued to make "public service advertisements" for Yoshishige.

"What is a teppo? I really don't know." Yamana Yufeng responded, "But the matter of the Makai was also mentioned in the letter from Wueden. In addition to the 7,500 troops, he will lead another 1,000 Makai from Wakasa to command the counterattack against Inaba in the near future."

"There are still a thousand horsemen?!" Tianjie Zhuangzhiyi was amazed, "It seems that I still underestimated the Wuweidian. If we add the standing soldiers to guard against the Asakura, Asai and other families, wouldn't the Wakasa Takeda family be able to mobilize more than 10,000 troops?!"

"Ten thousand troops!" When these words came out, everyone in the hall took a deep breath. You know, just before Yoshishige succeeded as the head of the family, that is, in the ninth year of Tenbun, the Wakasa Takeda clan was still in a state of disintegration with a weak ruler and strong ministers. At that time, being able to recruit more than a thousand troops was already the limit.

But now, in just over two years, under the leadership of Yoshishige, the Wakasa Takeda clan has undergone earth-shaking changes. Not only has the size of its territory increased several times, but its financial revenue has also increased significantly. This has allowed Yoshishige to continue to consolidate and strengthen his position in the Takeda clan and his territory.

What followed was a significant improvement in control and leadership over the people, creating the current powerful force that can mobilize tens of thousands of people at a glance.

"If this continues, my Yamana family might have to hold the reins for Wuwei Palace in the future." Yamana Youfeng shook his head helplessly. He thought that he was also a descendant of a famous family with an ancestor like the "One-Sixth Palace", but now he lived in a remote corner of Tajima. He felt deeply moved.

"Your Highness, please do not be pessimistic." Tian Jie Zhuang Shiyi saw this and stepped forward to comfort him, "The world is in turmoil. How can it remain unchanged forever? It is not easy for our family to survive through all the ups and downs. We should look forward to everything. Let's get over this hurdle first. What happens next will be determined by God's will."

Yamana Yufeng nodded after hearing this. Only then did he remember that Taroko Mitsugu was still standing in front of the prince, so he quickly asked him to sit aside and rest for a while.

Kotara Otoko declined Yamana Yufeng's offer and asked respectfully, "I wonder if Your Highness has any message for my master. If not, I have to hurry back to report."

"Excuse me, sir. Please tell Wuweidian that I will cooperate with Lord Yamagata Morinobu and teach these guys from Inaba a lesson." Seeing that Tarao Mitsunaga was unwilling to stay for long, Yamana Yufeng was not in a position to say much and could only respond with a solemn oath.

"I understand." Taroko Mitsuna was as serious as ever. After bowing to Yamana Yufeng and others, he quickly walked out of the palace and disappeared into the night in a short while.

As stated in the secret letter, at seven o'clock the next morning, just after daybreak, more than 5,000 Takeda troops, led by Yamagata Morinobu, arrived near Imatadera, not far north of Yagi Castle, and set up their main camp on a nearby hill.

The red and black "four-cut diamond" flags spread from the top of the mountain to the foot of the mountain, fluttering in the cold wind. Standing at the highest point, looking at Yagi Castle in the south, Yamagata Morinobu waved the military uniform in his hand, signaling the formation to beat the taiko drum and blow the conch shell.

"Woo! Woo! Woo!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A year later, the Wakasa Takeda army once again set fire to the land of Tajima. (End of this chapter)