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

Chapter 20 The Kiyosu Conference: The Division of Territory

After the Honnoji Incident, almost all the daimyo believed that the Oda clan would be plunged into a long period of chaos.

Therefore, most of the forces that had previously submitted to the Oda clan seized the opportunity to send troops to take advantage of the chaos and seize the territory controlled by the Oda clan.

The same applies to the Uesugi, Hojo, and Tokugawa families.

Only Sanada Nobuyuki, with his omniscient perspective, understood that although the Oda clan would soon decline, a new "ruler of the land" would immediately emerge and swiftly "unify" all of Japan with overwhelming power.

The Sanada family doesn't have much time left to take advantage of the chaos.

In fact, as early as when Takigawa Kazumasu withdrew from Ueno, Akechi Mitsuhide had already been defeated by Hashiba Hideyoshi, who had returned from Binchokuni.

At the time of the Honnoji Incident, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was leading his army in battle against the Mori clan to the west.

Shimizu Muneharu, who defended Takamatsu Castle, was too fierce. Even though Hashiba Hideyoshi turned Takamatsu Castle into a swamp with water, he still could not capture it.

Hideyoshi Hashiba was forced into a protracted tug-of-war with the Mori clan.

It was at this time that Hideyoshi Hashiba hoped that Nobunaga Oda would send reinforcements, and the reinforcements provided by Nobunaga were none other than Mitsuhide Akechi.

This indirectly led to the Honnoji Incident.

Upon learning of Oda Nobunaga's death, Hashiba Hideyoshi swiftly reached a ceasefire agreement with the Mori clan. He then rapidly withdrew his troops back to Kyoto (known as the Great Return to China, meaning the incredibly fast withdrawal), and subsequently engaged in a major battle with Akechi Mitsuhide in the Yamazaki region.

The battle directly devastated Akechi Mitsuhide. On his escape route, he encountered a group of lone samurai hunters, and was pulled off his horse by nearby farmers, where he died on the spot.

With the death of Akechi Mitsuhide, the Akechi army immediately collapsed.

Hideyoshi Hashiba quelled Mitsuhide Akechi's rebellion with almost no effort.

The choice that Toyotomi Hideyoshi made during the Honnoji Incident should be called a "miracle" (in contrast to the so-called Great Return to China, where China refers to the central region of Japan).

What made Hideyoshi Hashiba truly remarkable was that upon learning of the news from Honnoji Temple, he immediately decided to withdraw his troops, with almost no delay, and swiftly reached a ceasefire agreement with the Mori clan, with whom he was at war.

They also left Miyabe Tsugujun and others behind to guard against a potential counterattack from the Mori clan before calmly retreating.

Compared to other "corps commanders" such as Shibata Katsuie, Takigawa Kazumasu, and Oda Nobutaka of Sakai Port, Hashiba Hideyoshi astutely seized the opportunity and launched a solo campaign against Akechi Mitsuhide before the other Oda generals returned.

While figures like Shibata Katsuie quickly led their troops back, they did not launch any concrete actions for a long time.

While Akechi Mitsuhide, who controlled Kyoto, remained on the sidelines, only Hashiba Hideyoshi launched a decisive attack.

This achievement allowed Hideyoshi Hashiba to successfully seize control of the narrative.

After all the chaos, it's time to divide the spoils, and this time the place to divide the spoils is Kiyosu Castle in Owari.

Kiyosu Castle is located in Owari Province, the stronghold of the Oda clan and the place where Oda Nobunaga rose to power.

On the 27th day of the sixth month of the tenth year of the Tianzheng era, almost all the attendees arrived at Qingzhou City.

Those who attended the Kiyosu Conference were mainly Hideyoshi Hashiba, Katsuie Shibata, Tsuneoki Ikeda, Nobutaka Oda, and Nobuo Oda. Also present were Tokugawa Ieyasu, Nagahide Niwa, and others.

The first three were senior retainers of the Oda clan, while the last two were Oda Nobunaga's other two sons.

As for Takigawa Kazumasu?
He was still on his way on horseback.
After a brief discussion, the Oda clan quickly reached a consensus.

First, Oda Nobutada's son, Sanboshi, became the head of the Oda clan, with Oda Nobutaka and Oda Nobukatsu serving as his guardians as members of the clan. Although there was initial controversy over the choice of head of the clan, after negotiation, the young Sanboshi was ultimately chosen. This was not only because Sanboshi was Oda Nobutada's son, but more importantly because Sanboshi was only a few years old and had not yet come of age, posing no threat to any party.

He was assisted by four retainers: Hashiba Hideyoshi, Shibata Katsuie, Ikeda Tsuneoki, and Niwa Nagahide, while Hori Hidemasa served as his tutor.

As for the Oda clan's territory, it was also redistributed.

Oda Nobutada's territories of Mino and Owari were respectively given to Oda Nobutaka and Oda Nobukatsu, while Sanboshi, as head of the clan, received Azuchi Castle in Omi (Oda Nobunaga's residence).

Shibata Katsuie received three districts in Omi Province, Niwa Nagahide received two districts in Omi Province, and Hashiba Hidekatsu (Oda Nobunaga's fourth son and also Hashiba Hideyoshi's adopted son) received Akechi Mitsuhide's province of Tanba.

Hideyoshi Hashiba gained the provinces of Kawachi and Yamashiro, and together with the provinces of Harima, Inaba, and Tajima that already belonged to him, his territory reached five provinces, making him the biggest winner.

As for Takigawa Kazumasu, because he was absent from the Kiyosu Conference, he received nothing except for the territory of Ise Province.
After the meeting concluded, Tokugawa Ieyasu, who had attended as an ally of the Oda clan, gave his opinion inside the castle tower of Kiyosu Castle.

"Gentlemen, Musashi no Kami (Mori Nagayoshi) and others have evacuated Shinano. Lord Kawajiri was killed by the Ikki. I heard that Lord Takikawa has also left Ueno."

"In this way, the land of Konobu and Ueno was completely freed from the control of the Oda clan."

"Considering that Lord Shibata needs to defend against the Uesugi clan's counterattack in Echigo Province, and Lord Hashiba also needs to guard against the Mori clan, I volunteer to send troops to defend against the Hojo clan's attack."

Tokugawa Ieyasu's attitude was very sincere, and what he said was reasonable and well-founded, which made him very convincing.

Since the Battle of Okehazama, the Oda and Tokugawa families have formed an alliance, and their relationship has remained close.

When the Oda clan was expanding outwards, the Tokugawa clan also contributed significantly.

Especially during the Oda Encirclement Network (an anti-Oda clan alliance launched by the opposition), the Tokugawa clan firmly stood on the side of the Oda clan in the face of the fierce attack of Takeda Shingen, the Tiger of Kai.

Therefore, Tokugawa Ieyasu has always left the Oda clan with the image of a loyal, honest, and reliable person.

Faced with Tokugawa Ieyasu's request, Oda Nobuo and Oda Nobutaka agreed to Tokugawa Ieyasu's proposal with almost no hesitation.

Just as Tokugawa Ieyasu was about to bow in gratitude, Niwa Nagahide suddenly spoke up.

"Gentlemen, to be honest, my family is not without a foothold in the land of Jiaxin."

"At least as far as I know, there is another family that stands on our side and has been trying its best to reclaim the territory that we lost."

At this time, the situation was extremely chaotic everywhere, and information was scarce.

Many members of the Oda clan only knew that Mori Nagayoshi, Mori Nagahide, and others had abandoned their territories in Shinano and returned to Mino, but now they became interested after hearing what Niwa Nagahide said.

Shibata Katsuie shouted in a loud and boisterous voice, "Gorozaemon-jue, stop being so mysterious! Who is this loyal bastard?"

In Shibata Katsuie's view, given the current situation in Shinano, the fact that there were still people willing to continue fighting for the Oda clan was truly a testament to their unparalleled loyalty.

“It’s the Sanada family from the small prefecture of Shinano,” Niwa Nagahide said slowly.

Sitting in front, Hideyoshi Hashiba slowly raised his head. Not very tall, he deliberately lifted his buttocks so that everyone could see him.

"Are there members of the Sanada family among our retainers?" Hideyoshi Hashiba asked, puzzled.

(End of this chapter)