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

Chapter 77: The Rotten Wood Father and Son
In 1534, after years of wandering, Ashikaga Yoshiharu returned to Nijo Palace in Kyoto. At that time, the shogun's authority had disappeared, and he himself had become a puppet in the hands of forces such as Hosokawa and Rokkaku.

However, the ambitious Ashikaga Yoshiharu never gave up his efforts to restore the prestige of the shogunate. On the one hand, he married a woman from the Konoe family as his principal wife in an attempt to gain the support of the court. On the other hand, he established the Naikadanshu composed of his own confidants as the political center in an attempt to take back some power from Hosokawa Harumoto.

The so-called Fugong were originally the direct guards of the Ashikaga clan, composed of some people from Kinki and Tokai. They served the shogun in Kyoto on weekdays, served as the deputy officials of the Imperial Ryōsho, and followed the shogun to fight in wars. The largest number of Fugong was during the Ashikaga Yoshimitsu period. After the Onin War, many Fugong returned to the ranks of people and no longer obeyed the shogun's orders. Therefore, the sharp reduction in Fugong was not only one of the reasons for the decline of the shogunate's authority, but also one of the signs of the decline of the shogunate's authority.

Kuchiki Uetsuna was one of the people who entered the core power circle of the shogunate at that time, known as the "Naidan Eight". His eldest son, Kuchiki Harutsuna, was appointed as the public servant and led the Omi tribe in Kosei to guard Kyoto. It can be seen that both father and son were close retainers of Ashikaga Yoshiharu.

Nobushige was welcomed by the Kuchiki father and son when he went to Kyoto, which was enough to show that Ashikaga Yoshiharu showed goodwill and importance to the Takeda clan. Nobushige also returned the favor. Before arriving at Kuchiki Valley, he sent people to select a batch of treasures and a considerable amount of gold and silver to Kuchiki Uetsugu first, which naturally increased the Kuchiki father and son's good impression of Nobushige and the Takeda clan.

When Nobushige led his army to the castle town, the Kuchiki father and son had been waiting outside the Otemon Gate for a long time.

Seeing the Takeda army in full armor, flags flying, and marching briskly and in high spirits from afar, Kuchiki Uetsugu was quite surprised: "More than ten years ago, Lord Takeda Motomitsu led the Takeda army to Kyoto to support Hosokawa Michinaga (Hosokawa Takakuni), and they also passed through Kuchikidani. At that time, I was not yet a member of the Lord's inner circle, so I witnessed the appearance of the Takeda army in the city. To be honest, the Takeda army at that time is really a world apart from this Takeda army."

"This Takeda army is a powerful force that defeated Asakura in the east and Isise in the west. It is certainly not comparable to the Takeda army of that year." Kuchiki Harutsuna responded.

"Who would have thought that in just such a short time, the Takeda clan could have achieved such great results. Even the Kanrei and the Danjō (Rokkaku Sadanari) were impressed. It seems that a force that can influence the situation in Kinki is about to emerge." Kuchiki Uetsuna sighed.

"Affecting the situation in Kinki? Father, it's too early to say." Kuchiki Harutsuna said, "Although the Takeda Izu-no-kami has taken over Tango and Tsuruga counties, it is really not enough compared to the princes in Kinki. Moreover, it takes energy and time to digest these newly annexed territories. Even if the Takeda family wants to participate in the affairs of Kinki, I'm afraid they are powerless."

Kuchiki Uetsuna nodded slightly, agreeing with some of Kuchiki Harutsuna's views, but he also expressed a different opinion: "Let's not talk about the distant past. Just look at the two generations of lords, Takeda Motonobu and Takeda Motomitsu. They maintained close contacts with the Kubo and actively participated in Kinai affairs. So I don't believe that the current lord has no such thoughts. After all, for many daimyo, going to Kyoto is not only a rare honor, but also a good opportunity to show their strength."

"But this time, the Takeda family only brought a thousand people, which is really petty. With their current strength, it should not be a problem to organize three or four thousand people to go to Kyoto." Kuchiki Harutsuna said with some regret.

"Yes," Kuchiki Uetsugu also noticed this, "Both the shogun and the kanrei thought that the Takeda family could organize at least 4,000 people to go to Kyoto to decorate the facade of the shogunate, but I heard that only 1,000 people came. Not to mention the shogun, we, the inner tanshu, are a little disappointed. At first, the shogun only wanted you to come to greet them, and it was the kanrei who insisted again and again that your father came with you."

"I really don't understand why the Kanrei attaches so much importance to the Takeda clan far away in Wakasa." Kuchiki Harutsuna was confused at the moment.

"This... I'm not sure, but since the Kanrei attaches so much importance to it, I believe the head of the Takeda clan must have extraordinary qualities. There is one thing you must remember, you and I are all shogunate retainers, promoted by the Kubo, and you must consider the Kubo in everything you do." Kuchiki Uetsuna reminded.

"What do you mean, father?" Kuchiki Harutsuna asked in confusion.

"The person that the governor values ​​must be extraordinary. If we can get him to the rank of the governor first, wouldn't that be a great achievement?"

Kuchiki Uetsugu's words made Kuchiki Harutsugu suddenly realize why his old father attached so much importance to Nobushige's arrival. It was not because of Hosokawa Harumoto, but for the revitalization of the shogunate. "Father, you are thoughtful and dedicated to your work. I am ashamed of myself." Kuchiki Harutsugu said with admiration.

"We are all family, let's not talk nonsense." Kuchiki Uetsuna smiled and pointed to a place not far away and said, "Look, Izu-no-kami and his men are about to arrive. Let's go and greet them."

In the middle of the street, facing the Kuchiki father and son who were walking quickly, Nobushige hurriedly dismounted to greet them. After a brief greeting, Nobushige called on Takeda Motomitsu and a group of retainers to follow the Kuchiki father and son to the Honmaru Palace. As for the Takeda army, they were led by Yamagata Morinobu to station outside the city.

When they arrived at the Honmaru Palace, Nobushige could not bear the repeated requests of the Kuchiki father and son, and finally sat down at the head of the main seat. However, under his repeated insistence, Kuchiki Uetsuna still sat next to him. Such courtesy also increased the Kuchiki father and son's favor for him.

In the palace, everyone was toasting and chatting happily. The retainers of the Takeda clan boasted about their exploits on the battlefield in recent days, and the shogunate retainers who came with the Kuchiki father and son talked about the elegance and prosperity of Kyoto. Although it was their first meeting, they felt that they had met too late as they toasted each other, and soon the palace was filled with laughter and joy.

At this moment, Yamagata Morinobu walked in from outside, followed by Yamagata Yoriyuki and Kuchiki Hidemitsu.

It turned out that Yamagata Yoriyuki finally followed him because he could not resist the repeated invitations of Yamagata Morinobu. However, he was also thinking that if Nobushige looked down on Kuchiki Hidemitsu, he might be able to help Kuchiki Hidemitsu get a position in the Takeda family by relying on his relationship with Takeda Motomitsu.

"Let me introduce to you all. This is my elder brother, Yamagata Gennai Morinobu, a senior retainer of the Takeda clan." Seeing Yamagata Morinobu, Nobushige immediately stood up and excitedly introduced him to the Kuchiki father and son.

"Who is the elder next to him?" Xinzhong asked hesitantly.

“Isn’t this Shinbei?!” Before Yamagata Yoriyuki could introduce himself, Takeda Motomitsu, who was sitting next to him, stood up suddenly and greeted excitedly: “Shinbei, it’s you, it’s been a long time since we last met!”

"It is you," Yamagata Yoriyuki replied excitedly, "Long time no see, lord!"

"Yeah, it's been more than ten years. Your legs..." Seeing Yamagata Yoriyuki leaning on a cane, Takeda Motomitsu felt very uncomfortable. He suddenly remembered that he had not introduced Yamagata Yoriyuki to everyone, so he hurriedly said: "This is Yamagata Shinbei Yoriyuki, the son of Yamagata Iwami-no-mori (Yamagata Yorifuyu), and also a meritorious official of our Takeda family."

"I heard something about it." Nobushige bowed to Yamagata Yoriyuki and was about to say a few words when he was interrupted by Kuchiki Harutsuna beside him.

"Yahachiro, why are you here?!" Kuchiki Harutsuna asked Kuchiki Hidemitsu unhappily at the entrance of the palace.

(End of this chapter)