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

Chapter 26 The hero is late
"Genbei, building this Kuniyoshi Castle must have consumed all your energy, right?" Nobushige asked.

Awaya Katsuhisa nodded, but said with some disappointment: "To be honest, I am ashamed to say that my ability is limited. With the terrain of Kuniyoshi Castle, I could have built more rafts and dug the earthworks deeper..."

Nobushige knew that with the support of Awaya Mototaka, he still had the funds and manpower to build the city. But now that Awaya Mototaka had fallen, the Awaya family was about to be liquidated, and no one would pay attention to Kuniyoshi Castle built by a branch of the Awaya family like himself.

"Don't worry," Nobushige comforted him, "Kokuniyoshi Castle, an important border town, will soon have a new mission, and by then, the current city defenses will be enough to handle it."

Yes, once Tsuruga County in the east is captured, Kuniyoshi Castle will no longer be a border castle. It will serve as a transportation hub and transit station between Tsuruga and Obama, and will continue to play an economic rather than military role.

"I don't quite understand what my lord said." Awaya Katsuhisa was confused.

"You'll know in a few days," Nobushige replied with a smile, then said, "By the way, is there any movement in Echizen now?"

"I have built a fortress each on Mt. Iwade, Mt. Karikura, and Mt. Kamikura, which are closer to Echizen, to monitor and report the movements of the Asakura army. It looks grim at the moment, especially after the New Year. More and more troops are moving toward the border from all over the place. There are currently at least 3,000 people."

Although Katsuhisa Awaya was only a few months older than Nobushige, his ability to perceive the situation on the front line was indeed far superior to his peers. He knew that although Kuniyoshi Castle controlled the key roads, in order to avoid passive defense and fighting a stagnant battle, he still had to move the intelligence network forward as much as possible, obtain enemy dynamics in a timely manner, and buy time to adjust his defense measures.

"Three thousand people? Far more than that. There will be more to come." Nobushige was also not optimistic about the situation on the front line, but he knew that Awaya Katsuhisa had done everything he could and had tried his best.

"Don't worry, our family will not let you fight alone. I will mobilize the troops from the two counties to support you. In addition, I have also sent people to Kyoto to ask the court and the kubaku to mediate. This battle will not be too passive." Nobushige persuaded Awaya Katsuhisa not to be too nervous. Of course, it was not the time to make Asakura Kagetaka's trump card public.

"My lord, coming to Kuniyoshi Castle in this critical moment is the greatest support you have given me." Awaya Katsuhisa expressed his gratitude.

"After this battle, I will put the 'Miyagawa Rebellion' and this battle together for post-war evaluation. At that time, I will designate you to inherit the name of the main family of the Awaya clan." Nobushige said: "I will not hide anything from you. I will confiscate all of Awaya Ukyo Ryo's lands. I may only be able to give you a small part, but as long as you do a good job, I will definitely not let you down."

Upon learning that he could inherit the main branch of the Awaya clan, Awaya Katsuhisa burst into tears of gratitude. This not only meant that his branch family had finally completed a "counterattack" and no longer had to be looked down upon and despised by the clan members, but more importantly, he might also take this opportunity to be promoted to the ranks of family elders, which was far more glorious than obtaining a piece of land.

"My lord, you have given me a new life. I am so grateful to you that I will go through fire and water and die to repay you!"

"You've fought for all this." Nobushige was very satisfied with Awaya Katsuhisa's reaction. No one would dislike having too many loyal ministers, especially in this critical moment of survival. Nobushige had to do his best to win over capable people to his side.

"I will stay here with you tonight. By the way, the person next to me is my newly recruited military advisor, named Yamamoto Shigeyuki. I hope you can send a few warriors who are familiar with the terrain to accompany him to explore the Yokoya River and Nosakadake area tomorrow." Nobushige said.

"Yokotani River... Nosaka-dake?" Awaya Katsuhisa hesitated for a moment, and thinking of Yamamoto Shigeyuki's disability, he kindly reminded him, "The terrain there is rugged and sparsely populated. Now the road is blocked by heavy snow, so it is very dangerous to go into the mountains."

"Don't worry, sir. Even though I have a lame leg and a blind eye, it doesn't matter. You just need to find a few capable warriors for me. The journey may take three to five days, and you need to bring enough dry food." Yamamoto Shigeyuki understood Katsuhisa Awaya's good intentions, but he would not easily change what he had decided.

When he heard that it would take two or three days, Xin Zhong was quite surprised: "Even if the mountain road there is difficult, it won't take that long. Besides, I will leave for Sanfang City tomorrow. Do you want to stay alone?"

"How can we understand the situation without three to five days? My lord, just set off tomorrow. I will wait for you in Kuniyoshi Castle." Yamamoto Shigeyuki replied.

"I really don't understand what you want to do." On the way into the city just now, Nobushige was confused about Yamamoto Shigeyuki's thoughts, and now he is even more curious.

"Don't mind, my lord. I have always been like this. When this matter is over, I will report to you." Yamamoto Shigeyuki scratched his already messy hair and said with a smile.

After hearing this, Xinzhong looked helpless: "Mogoro, Shinjiro, let's go to Sanfang Castle tomorrow and let him go."

After five days of sleeping in the open air, Nobushige and his companions were finally able to have a comfortable sleep on the tatami.

But that night, Nobushige could not sleep. He thought that it was only the second day of the first lunar month, and the Asakura clan had already assembled 3,000 troops. On the eighth day of the first lunar month, he didn't know how many people would appear at the border between the two countries. Even with Asakura Kagetaka's guarantee, he still doubted whether the small Kuniyoshi Castle could hold out until he raised his army in Ono County.

The next morning, Nobushige and the other two, after instructing Yamamoto Shigeyuki to be careful, set off for Mikata Castle under the watchful eyes of Awaya Katsuhisa.

On the way, Nobushige asked Kumagai Takashige intentionally or unintentionally: "Mogoro, after seeing you yesterday, what is your impression of Genbei?" Kumagai Takashige thought for a moment and said frankly: "I understand what the lord wants to say. The conflict between my father and him has nothing to do with me. Judging from his performance yesterday, I think he is indeed a rare loyal minister."

Nobushige nodded slightly, expressing his satisfaction with Kumagai Takashi's answer. In his opinion, this illegitimate son of the Kumagai clan had changed his position and began to consider the issue from the perspective of the Takeda clan.

The three of them headed westward and finally arrived at the formation city (similar to a military camp) outside Sanfang City near noon.

Mikata Castle has a long history. It was originally the residence of the Mikata clan, who replaced the Isshiki clan as the guardian of Wakasa. After the Takeda clan replaced the Isshiki clan as the guardian of Wakasa, the Mikata clan declined. The Kumagai clan, who followed the Takeda clan from Aki to Wakasa, occupied the castle, but it was still called Mikata Castle.

In the battle formation at the foot of the mountain outside the city, Nobushige saw nobles and people from all over Mikata County and Toshiki County, and even some local samurai who came with their families to join the battle.

Looking at the colorful military flags and strange horse logos in the city, Xinzhong felt both relieved and helpless.

The good news is that, although he has just taken over the position of head of the family, these local forces are willing to follow him to fight against foreign enemies, which shows that they recognize him; the bad news is that the combat effectiveness of these scattered armies must be uneven, how can they resist the attack of the Asakura army? It seems that all they can do is bluff at the beginning of the war.

"Lord!" Seeing Nobushige walk into the city, the crowd that had just been bustling and chatting and laughing, immediately surrounded him and asked about Nobushige's well-being. Matsumiya Kiyonaga and Kagawa Morihisa walked through the crowded crowd and came to Nobushige's side, saying excitedly: "Lord, is it done?"

Nobushige nodded heavily, and the two were delighted to see this. Matsumiya Kiyonaga even told Nobushige another piece of good news:

"My Lord, the mobilization has been basically completed. According to the latest statistics, the troops under the three cities have reached 2,300. I calculated that this is almost all the troops that the two counties can mobilize, and even the Fenggong families have joined the battle."

Xinzhong had an idea of ​​the military strength that Sanfang City could gather. He had previously estimated that there were about 2,000 people, after all, they included the nobles of the two counties, as well as his own horse and reserve troops. Although the additional 300 people were unexpected, it was not too surprising.

"What about Tango? How many troops did Itsami Suruga-no-kami bring to Kurahashi Castle?" Nobushige asked immediately.

"Suruga-no-kami sent someone with a letter saying that he has gathered a thousand troops in Oi County and has done his best." Matsumiya Kiyonaga replied rather embarrassedly.

"Oi County is already poor, and with a thousand men... I believe that Suruga no Kami should not be hiding them. Add the three hundred men in Kurahashi Castle, and the entire Tango direction has 1,300 men. Relying on the favorable terrain, they should be able to hold off the Tango army for a while."

Xinzhong was thinking about how to deploy his troops when a voice saying "The Three Palaces have arrived" interrupted his thoughts.

He subconsciously turned around and saw a middle-aged samurai wearing a plain blue jacket with the "Yokusho-dove" family crest walking in, surrounded by the Kumagai clan. He had a shaved head and a goatee, and his eyes were as sharp as a falcon's but full of fatigue.

This was Nobushige’s father-in-law, Katsunao Kumagai, who was honored as “Sanfangdono”.

When Nobushige came into this world, he had only met his father-in-law a few times, especially after the "Miyagawa Rebellion", this was the first time the two met.

"My lord, be safe." Under the gaze of everyone, Katsunao Kumagai bowed to Nobushige with difficulty, coughing continuously during the process, which made Nobushige feel uncomfortable.

"Please stand up, Sanfangdian." Xinzhong hurriedly bent down and helped him up.

"It's so light." The moment he held onto Kumagai Katsunari's shoulders, Nobushige was shocked. This middle-aged man, who was four feet five inches tall, was so thin that it was not an exaggeration to describe him as skinny as a stick.

"I am seriously ill and failed to come to meet you in person. Please forgive me, my lord." Katsunao Kumagai coughed violently and took out a white handkerchief to cover his mouth and nose. The handkerchief was instantly stained red with blood.

"Sanfangdono, your health is already like this, you shouldn't have come here. This time, we can just have Heijiro and Shigegoro to fight." Nobushige looked at his father-in-law who had once given him the utmost support, and a feeling of pity arose spontaneously.

I am very sorry to disappoint everyone’s expectations. This book failed in three rounds of recommendations, and the follow-up reading volume is less than 50, which is not a small number.

This is probably because I only write one chapter a day. I actually want to write two chapters a day, but there is really too little time and I really can’t do it. In recent days, I have been writing until one or two o’clock in the morning. I am really tired.

Thank you all for your rewards, monthly tickets and recommendations. Thank you all for not minding my continued reading of one chapter a day. Xiong Zai thanks you very much!
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(End of this chapter)