Japan's Sengoku Period: The Sanada Clan's Ambition

Chapter 153 Are the Sanada family really that brave?

August 2nd, the twelfth year of Tianzheng.

The Shinano daimyo Sanada Masayuki led an army of 4000 men from Iwato Castle into Minowa Castle in Ueno Province.

On August 3, Obata Nobusada, the lord of Kunimitsu Castle, led 500 cavalrymen into battle.

On August 4th, An-Naka Kageshige, the lord of An-Naka Castle, led 600 men to join forces with Wada Nobuyoshi, the lord of Wada Castle, bringing their total strength to 2000 men, and they were stationed along the Torikawa-Usui-Hiroki line.

At the same time, Hojo Ujiteru and Hojo Ujikuni also led the Musashi army out of Kuragano Castle, with a total force of 2, to confront the people of Nishi-Kōzuke Province.

At this moment, the internal struggle against the Hojo clan in Ueno is divided into two fronts.

On the west side, the Sanada clan was the main force, with the local lords of Nishi-Ueno participating in the battle, engaging in combat with the Hojo clan's Nishi-Ueno attack force.

To the east, the Uesugi family and Hojo Takahiro led a contingent of local lords from eastern Ueno to defend Hojo Ujinao's army at Masahashi Castle.

On August 6th, Sanada Masayuki left Minowa Castle and joined Naito Masayuki and Kanai Hidekage to head to Torikawa. Meanwhile, Naba Akimune went alone to Masabashi Castle to seek refuge with his father-in-law, Hojo Takahiro.

Before setting out, Sanada Masayuki specifically contacted the Uesugi family.

Although the Uesugi family has not yet pledged allegiance to Hideyoshi Hashiba, the Sanada family and the Uesugi family have an alliance, so Sanada Masayuki specifically informed the Uesugi family of his actions.

Sanada Masayuki hoped that the Uesugi clan could hold back the Hojo clan's army at Masahashi Castle, creating an opportunity for the Sanada clan.

Hojo Takahiro, who was in the town of Masahashi, was unwilling to accept the news, but there was nothing he could do.

Why is the Hojo family singled out and targeting me?

"Why not attack Minowa Castle instead of Ookabashi Castle?"

Inside the castle, after leaving behind Sanada Masayuki's handwritten letter, Hojo Takahiro was completely distraught.

Amakasu Kagetsugu shrugged, thinking to himself, "It's all because Hojo Takahiro is so hateful."

In terms of attracting hatred alone, Hojo Takahiro is truly unmatched.

"When I went into battle, my lord gave me orders that I should just defend the castle of the Hojo clan and avoid a decisive battle with them."

"Anyway, as long as we're not asked to send troops, let the Sanada clan go ahead and attack the Hojo if they want to," said Amakasu Kagetsugu, leaning back with an indifferent expression.

If he had a choice, he really wouldn't want to come to Ueno.

In his opinion, Ueno was a complete trap. Instead of wasting so much military strength and resources fighting the Hojo clan in Ueno, it would be better to retreat to Echigo.

Now that the Sanada family is willing to be the "vanguard," Amakasugi Kagetsugu is more than happy to do so.

"Let them go. No matter how powerful the enemy is, I will remain unmoved."

“If Sanada is defeated, we can simply retreat to Echigo,” Amakasu Kagetsugu continued.

The Uesugi samurai had a way out, so they didn't want to fight the Hojo clan to the death.

But for the people of Ueno, this was a battle that would determine their life or death.

August 8th, by the Bird River.

Sanada Masayuki rode a Shinshu horse to the riverbank to observe the Hojo clan's army formation on the opposite bank. Looking at the Hojo clan's army formation with its banners waving and its troops arranged in an orderly manner, Sanada Masayuki couldn't help but show a solemn expression.

Behind him, Nobuyuki Sanada, Nobusada Obata, Masayuki Naito, and others followed closely, each of them feeling somewhat uneasy.

"Lord Sanada, how exactly should we fight this battle?"

“We, the people of Koshu, can place all our hopes on the Sanada family.” Wada Nobuyoshi stepped forward at this moment.

Compared to the other citizens, he was the most anxious. Behind them lay his castle, Wada Castle, and if this battle were lost, he would be the first to suffer.

“The Hojo clan is powerful, but we are not made of clay.”

"Rest assured, everyone, with me, the Grand Steward, here, relying on the military tactics taught to me by Lord Shingen, we will surely crush the Hojo clan in one fell swoop!" Sanada Masayuki turned around and assured everyone, emphasizing the words "Grand Steward" in his voice.

Sanada Nobuyuki was speechless for a moment, then quickly turned his head away; he was already tired of this routine.

But surprisingly, these Chinese people actually fall for Sanada Masayuki's ideas.

"The Sanada clan previously defeated the Tokugawa clan at Uehara Castle in Shinano Province. Lord Sanada Daizen has fully mastered the teachings of Lord Shingen. We have nothing to worry about in this battle!" Obata Nobusada immediately took on the role of the straight man.

As the only person from Uehara Province to participate in the Battle of Uehara Castle, he has a lot of authority to speak on this matter.

Sure enough, after Sanada Masayuki and Obata Nobusada's back-and-forth, confidence gradually appeared on the faces of the local people present.

Before going to war, uniting people's hearts and minds is always the most important thing.

More importantly, it was essential to secure command. So Sanada Masayuki looked directly at everyone and said, “Since you have all decided to fight alongside the Sanada family against the Hojo, I must make this clear from the outset.”

“Since it is a war, there must be unified command.”

"In this battle, if I issue any military orders, I hope you will all cooperate fully."

"If anyone hesitates to advance or retreats midway, the entire nation of Kamishiro will rise up and attack them," Sanada Masayuki said coldly. "You may all swear an oath, and if you break it, may you be punished by both gods and men!"

“Okay!” Obata Nobusada was the first to respond and immediately had someone bring him pen and ink.

Sanada Nobuyuki volunteered to take the pen and ink, and a lengthy petition quickly appeared on the paper. The core message of the petition was simple: everyone must obey Sanada Masayuki's orders in this battle.

Obata Nobusada was the first to step forward, signing his name "Kamizusa Nobusada" and adding his monogram.

Other people followed suit, and soon the list was filled with about 10 names, with Sanada Masayuki's name at the very end.

After signing their monograms, Sanada Masayuki and Sanada Nobuyuki exchanged a glance and nodded knowingly.

"Thank you all for your kindness. In this battle, I, the Grand Steward Masayuki, will lead you all to fight the Hojo with all our might!"

"Oh!" everyone responded in unison.

Sanada Masayuki brought everyone back to the main camp and convened a military council.

A simple map was placed in the main camp. Sanada Masayuki pointed to the map and assigned combat tasks to everyone, who nodded in agreement.

"Let's do it!" "Ha!"

At Kuragano Castle, Hojo Ujiteru was completely bewildered by the constant stream of news coming from the front.

"Sanada actually wants to have a decisive battle with the main clan?"

"Where did the Sanada family get the guts?" Hojo Ujikuni couldn't help but laugh out loud. "If the enemy forces are holed up and don't come out, we really can't do anything to them. But if the Sanada family is willing to seek their own death, I'd be happy to help them."

"According to the intelligence report, the enemy's total strength is around ten thousand."

"Among them, the Sanada family had 6000 men, and the Japanese allied forces in Nishi-Ueno had 4000 men. The number of our own family members was twice that of the enemy."

“Sanada Masayuki is no fool, so why is he so eager to fight the main clan?” Hojo Ujiteru felt something was strange. Apart from Takigawa Kazumasu, Sanada Masayuki was the second person who dared to take the initiative to fight with inferior forces.

Hojo Ujikuni pointed to the west, "I'm afraid the Sanada family is worried about being attacked by the Tokugawa family in Shinano, so they want to finish the battle quickly and withdraw their troops back to Shinano."

“That’s possible,” Hojo Ujiteru nodded. “What did the Hermitage Lord say?”

Hojo Ujiteru and Hojo Ujikuni's actions were not authorized by Hojo Ujinao, the head of the clan. They would not have dared to act rashly without the endorsement of Hojo Ujimasa.

Hojo Ujikuni quickly replied, "The Hermitage Lord allows us to make our own decision."

"Report!"

"The enemy's Sanada Hyogo First Division has crossed Torikawa and is engaged in battle with the Narita clan."

"Report! Several hundred members of the Obata clan on horseback have crossed the Torikawa River upstream and seem to be preparing to attack from the flank."

"Report! The Sanada clan's main camp has approached Torikawa, and both sides have begun exchanging fire with arquebuses!"

what?
Hojo Ujiteru and Hojo Ujikuni were even more bewildered. Was Sanada Masayuki really that brave?

"court death!"

Hojo Ujikuni, being impatient, spoke up directly, "Brother, since the Sanada family is so reckless, let's defeat them in one fell swoop."

Hojo Ujiteru couldn't care less about anything else at this point. Since the Sanada family had launched an attack, he had no choice but to fight back.

"Charge!"

It was nearly noon, the hottest time of the day.

The Hojo clan never expected that the Sanada clan would launch an attack, and that it would be a full-scale assault right from the start.

Watching the Sanada clan's army continuously cross the Torikawa River, Hojo Ujikuni and Hojo Ujiteru were both shocked and delighted.

In their view, what difference was there between the Sanada family and directly handing over their heads?
"Order all units to hold their positions and not to launch any attacks without authorization."

"Assign all the arquebusiers to the flanks. Awa no Kami, you lead your men to meet them and block Sanada Hyogo-no-kami."

"Understood!" Hojo Ujikuni had been unable to contain himself any longer, and now that Hojo Ujisho had given the order, Hojo Ujikuni immediately rode off on his horse.

On the banks of the Torikawa River, Sanada Nobuyuki led his more than a thousand foot soldiers in a state of high alert, and Kana Saizo once again led the charge.

Seeing Keiko with bamboo branches stuck in her back, Sanada Nobuyuki couldn't help but feel a sense of relief.

After the battle of Kosato Castle, Kōji Saizō also won the respect and admiration of the samurai at home. With such a fierce general leading the charge, the morale of the foot soldiers below was also high.

Among the crowd, it was clear that Ke'er Cai Zang's three hundred men had actually gained the upper hand against more than a thousand Narita clan foot soldiers.

Narita Ujigami, positioned at the rear of his troops, looked on with shame at his retreating foot soldiers. It was too embarrassing.

"What are you doing?"

"You can't even stop such a small number of enemy troops?" Narita Ujinaga, enraged, grabbed a samurai beside him and began to curse.

Narita Nagatada replied with a mournful face, "Brother, who knows what's wrong with the Sanada family? They're fighting like they're risking their lives!"

Heaven has mercy! The Kanto region has been at war for years, but everyone is used to taking it easy. When have they ever encountered an enemy army that fights like this?

Even when Uesugi Kenshin swept through Kanto, he wasn't this brave.

"Quickly take your troops and hold them off! If we are defeated by these few hundred men, the Narita clan will never be able to hold our heads high in the Kanto region again!" the Narita clan head shouted impatiently.

"what!"

Narita Nagatada gritted his teeth and led his troops forward. With Narita Nagatada's arrival, the Sanada clan's foot soldiers seemed to be unable to hold on, and the front line began to be pushed back.

Upon seeing this, Narita Nagatada was overjoyed and immediately ordered, "The enemy is showing signs of defeat, follow me and kill them!"

"Oh!"

The Narita clan's foot soldiers were initially stunned by the attack, but with Narita Nagatada personally in command, they gradually regained their composure and began a methodical counterattack.

At the same time, Hojo Ujikuni also joined the battle with his "Hachigata-shu".

Sanada Nobuyuki, who was in the crowd, saw it clearly and immediately ordered someone to blow the conch shell to signal the retreat.

Soon, the Sanada clan's troops, who had just been launching a fierce offensive, began to retreat in disarray. Some foot soldiers even threw their spears and arquebuses into the Torikawa River to make it easier to escape, leaving them in a very sorry state.

"Hahahaha!"

"Pathetic!" Hojo Ujikuni shouted from his horse, raising his arm, and the foot soldiers behind him cheered loudly.

Narita Ujinaga then ran over with a fawning expression, "Lord Awa no Kami, the enemy has been defeated and fled. Should we pursue them?"

　Hojo Ujikuni: He was originally the adopted son-in-law of Fujita Yasukuni, a man from Musashi Province. He married Fujita Yasukuni's daughter and inherited the Fujita family name.

　　However, not long after, Hojo Ujikuni, who inherited the Fujita family business, killed Fujita Yasukuni's son and changed his family name back to Hojo.

　　Fujita Yasukuni had only one son, Fujita Nobuyoshi, who surrendered to Takeda Katsuyori and later became a retainer of the Uesugi clan.

　　The Hojo clan engaged in many similar actions, which is part of the reason why they were disliked in the Kanto region. It was blatantly breaking the rules; how could they eat their meal and then smash the pot?

　　Most of the samurai families in Kanto were long-established families that had been passed down for hundreds of years and for more than a dozen generations, and they simply could not tolerate the behavior of the Hojo family.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)