Chapter 30: Oda Nobunaga’s, Matsudaira Motoyasu’s, and Isshiki Masataka’s Choices

Okazaki Castle – Isshiki Masataka

1561. Fall.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. The lord is ready. Let us guide you to where he is.”

It was a while after Nobunaga’s sudden visit that Tadatsugu finally arrived.

He really kept us waiting for such a long time, but then again, it was thanks to that I managed to speak with Nobunaga.

With such thoughts in mind, I, together with Michifusa, followed him to a room. I thought he’d bring us to the audience hall, but he didn’t.

“I’ve brought Isshiki Masataka-sama and his retainer, my lord.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Tadatsugu. You may come in.”

“Understood.”

The room was smaller than I expected. It didn’t seem like it could accommodate many people at once. In fact, there were already people inside, and considering that we’d be adding three more it felt even more cramped than it already was.

“Come, come, this way~”

“Sorry for intruding.”

Inside were the people that I was familiar with—people who’d been serving Motoyasu since he was still serving Imagawa. Motoyasu was standing right in front of me. To his left was Ishikawa Kazumasa, to his right was Honda Tadakatsu, and behind him was Lady Tsukiyama. Meanwhile, I had Tadatsugu and Michifusa behind me.

“Please forgive me that I have to serve you in such a room.”

“No need to sweat it. I understand that you’re just trying to be considerate to your subordinates. Not all of them would like to see me, after all.”

“Hearing you say that puts my heart at ease.”

I had been noticing this for a while now, but a certain someone to my left was sending me an unusually sharp gaze. Seriously, Tadakatsu, don’t direct your killing intent at me. If you make a fuss here, a war between us might just break out, you know?

Then again, I understood his feelings. Motoyasu was on the way to become a powerful figure with half of Mikawa under his rule. Meanwhile, our Isshiki was just a subordinate of Imagawa. While the territory we ruled was important for the clan, it wasn’t particularly sizable.

Yet I spoke freely without minding any honorifics to Motoyasu, while he—probably still used to our relationship in the past—was being mindful and never dropped the honorifics.

Even those who knew of our past relationship would find this uncomfortable to look at. Besides, even though our clan were bound by a marital relationship, the benefit they gained from us and Oda was incomparable.

“It’s been a while since we last saw each other, Lady Tsukiyama. I’m relieved to see you looking well.”

“The feelings are mutual, Masataka-sama. Both of us have lost our fathers. I understand your pain all too well.”

Like Motoyasu said before, she seemed quite distraught—completely different from me. I hadn’t mourned Father’s death that deeply. When I first heard news of his death, I was busy thinking about the future while Mother and the other retainers were crying. Of course, I wouldn’t say that out loud.

“Thank you for your kind words. Also, Kazumasa-dono, please accept my gratitude for escorting Lady Tsukiyama and Nobuyasu to Okazaki safely. Even though we became enemies as a result, I still couldn’t help but worry about the well-being of my cousin.”

Kazumasa-dono bowed slightly to my words.

Well, time to cut off the small talk. We had been stalled outside the castle for so long, we could not afford to waste any more time.

“Speaking of, I heard you fought in your first battle the other day.”

“Yes, on Hikuma. Though, it was a late first battle, especially compared to others of my age like Ujizane-sama and you, Motoyasu.”

“What do you think of the atmosphere on the battlefield?”

“It was quite different from what Father and Master told me. Although the battle went without a hitch—we just besieged a helpless enemy, after all—the thought that death might just approach me still lingered on my head.”

Motoyasu nodded with a serious expression. He was the same age as me, but he had more experience than me when it came to war, so he understood what I was trying to say. After all, he accompanied Lord Yoshimoto on the Conquest of Owari, even though he didn’t join the battle at Okehazama. 

Still, this was no good. I let him lead the conversation and we ended up chatting for a while.

He kept on talking, bringing up one topic after another, and I was sucked into the conversation.

Just as I was starting to lose track of time, Lady Tsukiyama, who had been standing behind him, started to talk with someone in the room next to ours.

“My lord, everything is ready.”

“Got it.”

He turned his gaze from Lady Tsukiyama to me again, and then, with an apologetic tone, he,

“I apologize for taking too much of your time. The mental preparation takes a lot longer than I expected.”

Motoyasu let out an exasperated laugh, but I didn’t understand what he was trying to say, so I could only stare at him.

But, he just ignored me and instead turned his gaze toward the room next to ours.

Then, from the other side of the opened sliding door, emerged a woman who dressed in the same fashion as I did.

“So you were there, Ohisa-sama? But why are you dressed like that?”

She was none other than my bride-to-be. Dressed not in wedding attire, but plain clothes—no, to be more specific, she was dressed in full traveling attire.

“Traveling to Ōigawa Port in a kosode¹It’s a type of short-sleeved kimono. Well, it’s actually the predecessor to kimono. You can see the image below. would be harsh, so I decided to wear a more comfortable attire.”

“That’s… yeah, you’re right, but, are you really okay with this?”

“I am. As long as I’m with you, my lord, I’m okay with anything.”

Hearing our exchange, Lady Tsukiyama was all smiles, but the men in the room made various expressions. Motoyasu looked bewildered, while Tadakatsu—who gave off the impression of a straight-laced man—looked both embarrassed and confused.

“Hearing such a thing from you made me feel like I am the luckiest man in this world. You understand me right, Michifusa?”

“Indeed, my lord.”

I turned as I addressed Michifusa, who was wearing a pleased expression.

Being in this room felt like being in hell. The only solace that I could find here was the fact that Lady Tsukiyama and Ohisa-sama were here. I wanted to let out a big sigh, but I couldn’t do that in front of all these people.

“Motoyasu, I’m sorry, but I have to hurry back home. I’ve stayed in Mikawa for too long.”

“That’s most regrettable. Please forgive me for not being considerate enough for your situation.”

“Don’t make that look. Thanks to you I got to meet someone I’ve been wanting to meet.”

“…You met him?”

“Yes. While waiting for Tadatsugu-dono, Nobunaga and his retainer, Kinoshita Tōkichirō stopped by our room. He was an interesting man, indeed. Although that meeting caused Michifusa so much distress.”

Michifusa shook his head without saying anything, but his expression told more than words.

“May I know what you talked about with Nobunaga-sama?”

“Okehazama. He praised Michifusa, then invited me to join him. He thought that it’d be better for me to join him than clinging to a sinking ship.”

After I was done talking, silence enveloped the room. Motoyasu hadn’t directly approached me like Nobunaga did even though he knew me from back when he was a hostage of Imagawa, so Nobunaga’s action was nothing short of bold.

“What was your reply?”

“I refused. Abandoning Imagawa is not an option for me. Just like Father, I’ve made a resolve to follow Imagawa to the end. Even if it means that I’d have to sink and disappear together with them.”

“I see.”

He seemed relieved, but why? Well, let’s probe it, shall we?

“Motoyasu. I believe your decision to get close to Nobunaga is wise. Mino’s Saitō might be large in size, but their foundation is weak. It’s a clan that Dōsan-dono built in a single generation, after all. Its current head isn’t capable enough to hold it together.”

“Do you think the Saitō clan will fall, Masataka-dono?”

“Without a doubt. So, the only real choice is to approach Owari’s Oda, Ōmi’s Azai²The Azai clan was a strong clan before this era, but had long been in a decline. At the time of the story, in 1561, their territory in Ōmi had been conquered by the Rokkaku clan, and they had been turned into a vassal clan of the Rokkaku. They’ll gain their independence later when a new head comes to the picture, but they were still comparatively weak, and were dependent on their ally, the Asakura clan. Later on, Nobunaga crushed both their clans. or Rokkaku³The Rokkaku clan was one of the major forces in Kyoto during this time period. They were actually hailed from the Sasaki clan, the same clan that the famous Sasaki Kojiro was from. Like I said, they were one of the major forces, but unfortunately, they suffered a lot of damage during the Battle at the Kannonji Castle, a few years after the story’s current timeline, and from then on, they went into a decline until Nobunaga eventually cleaned them up..”

Among the three, Oda was the best. Rokkaku was Saitō’s ally, but that was an alliance that Matsudaira wouldn’t be able to gain benefit from. Besides, the Kannonji Incident⁴The Battle of Kannonji Castle. It happened because Nobunaga agreed to escort the man who’ll become the last shogun of the era to the capital of Hinomoto. They had to pass through Omi as it was the shortest route, but Rokkaku denied Nobunaga’s request to let them pass, so together with the Azai clan, the Oda clan moved to besiege the Kannonji Castle, Rokkaku’s headquarters, and took it without much trouble. would weaken them considerably and take them out of the picture soon. As for Azai, their ally to the north, the Asakura clan⁵They were a powerful clan in Echizen, located to the west of Mikawa and Owari. They were a strong ally to the Azai clan, but later on, along with the Azai clan, they were beaten by Nobunaga. held too much influence on them. They couldn’t even expand their influence any further, and would soon enter a marriage alliance with Oda⁶The marriage alliance happened when Nobunaga sent his sister, Oichi, to marry the Azai clan’s head, Azai Nagamasa.. When that happened, it would spell their end too⁷What happened was, the Asakura clan’s influence on the Azai clan was too strong because the latter was a weaker clan, and because they had been allies for so long. In the end, the Azai clan decided to help out the Asakura clan when they chose to oppose Nobunaga, and both were beaten by him..

Motoyasu seemed to think hard about my words. Alright, let’s end it with one more thing.

“Nobunaga was quite impressed by you, Motoyasu.”

“Me?”

“Yes. Even though it was partly due to you having ties with some of the Imagawa retainers, you still managed to throw Imagawa into chaos. Unfortunately you failed to get me to your side, but you still managed to get Lady Tsukiyama’s father, Sekiguchi-dono, and a key figure of Tōtōmi, the lord of Hikuma Castle, Inoo Tsuratatsu, on your side. Thanks to that, Imagawa was forced to purge their own clan members once again. And there’s also your secret agreement with Iinoya’s Ii clan.”

I could see Motoyasu’s eyes shaking for a moment there. As expected, Nobunaga hadn’t said anything to him. He had intended to flaunt the secret agreement to Nobunaga to boost his own value, but Nobunaga had already known about it, or rather, I instructed the Sakae to ensure that he knew about it. That action of mine essentially thwarted Motoyasu’s plan.

Still, his charisma that attracted so many people to his side was something that no one could ignore.

Anyway, I’ve found out what I wanted to know, so it was time to head home. Everyone must be worried about me.

“I have to go back now, Motoyasu. Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of Ohisa-sama.”

“…P-please, I’ll entrust her in your care.”

Motoyasu said, bowing slightly, followed by the others who bowed deeply.

“Let’s go now, Ohisa-sama. We’ll set out as soon as we’re done loading our luggage.”

“Yes, Dear Husband.”

The dowry was loaded to the cart, while the handmaidens that would accompany Ohisa-sama were preparing to leave as well. Soon after, we were ready to leave Okazaki Castle.

This marked half of our journey of picking up Ohisa-sama.

Kosode: