Chapter 8: The Changes of Sanhe

  The Matsudaira family didn't care about the life or death of the Hattori clan, who were not from Mikawa Province. Sakai Tadashige oppressed them and no one came to their aid. The meager stipend that supported the 110 members of the Hattori clan was cut off on some pretext. With no income, their livelihood became a problem. Hattori Yasunaga fell into despair, not knowing where to go if he left the Matsudaira family at this time. The Imagawa and Oda clans had no need for ninja troops, so if he left the Matsudaira family now, he would have to continue wandering with his clan.

  Yamamoto Kansuke seized the opportunity to intervene and dispel his concerns, easily gaining the recognition of Hattori Kazutada as a native of Mikawa Province and a wanderer of many countries for over a decade. After some time of contact and repeated persuasion, Hattori Kazutada finally decided to leave the Matsudaira family and join the Kira family.

  "Ah, I see! The Matsudaira clan's methods are indeed inhumane!" Kiryū Mantsumaru clicked his tongue and said, "With an annual stipend of 100 kan, they have to support the Ishimi Temple and the Hattori clan with nearly a hundred mouths to feed. Isn't that a bit too harsh?"

  "Master, how much rice can one kan of copper coins buy now?"

  "With the grain price of Mikawa, I can probably buy about 8.5 bushels of rice!"

  "So it seems that even with 100 guan of copper coins, I can only buy 85 shi of rice? Is there no other way?"

  "If we change it to coarse grains like millet, oats, wheat and potatoes, we can double the amount. We can buy 170 stones of food."

  "It seems like it's still not enough after all...". The two of them asked and answered, seemingly without any malice, and stripped away the last fig leaf from the Hattori family.

  The commonly used copper coins in Mikawa were Kanei Tsūhō, which were inferior copper coins made by local daimyos without minting technology. In the early years of the Tenbun era, 100 mon of Kanei Tsūhō could buy 100 koku of rice, but as private minting of Kanei Tsūhō became widespread, prices continued to rise, and by the 18th year of the Tenbun era, 100 mon of Kanei Tsūhō could only buy 85 koku of rice.

  These eighty-five bushels of rice seem like a lot, but an adult consumes one and eight-tenths bushel of grain per year. Eighty-five bushels are not enough for the men in the Hattori family to eat; are the women and children supposed to drink the northwest wind?

  Even if the eighty-five stones of rice were all exchanged for coarse grains, it would not be enough to eat, so Hattori Yasunaga remained silent with his head hung low in embarrassment. The twenty or so members of the Hattori clan who accompanied him were different, they had no feelings for the Matsudaira family, and one by one clenched their fists and gritted their teeth in indignation, it seemed that the Matsudaira family had indeed not done many good deeds.

  Apart from Hattori Yasunaga serving as the head of the Matsudaira family's samurai, and receiving a stipend of 100 kan, his relatives were also low-ranking samurai of the Matsudaira family, although they only received a few kan in stipends or just enough rice to support one person, but they managed to get by, belonging to the group that barely struggled above the poverty line.

  Of course, this is just the cost of living, and ninjas need to collect intelligence and activity expenses. Daily training, weapon clothing costs and other expenses have not been calculated yet. In the past, when Matsudaira Hirotada was still alive, he could get some extra support and rewards, but as soon as Matsudaira Hirotada died, everything disappeared, and even his salary was not given to him.

  For half a year, the Hattori clan couldn't get a single penny of stipend and had to rely on their meager savings accumulated over a decade to barely scrape by. Hattori Yasunaga also tried to find a solution with the Tokugawa family's hereditary vassals, but none of them were willing to speak up for him; some kind-hearted ones would occasionally offer some food aid, while those without empathy would directly chase him away.

  The once-proud Iga ninja clan, the Hattori family, has fallen to the point of relying on charity and handouts. It's a bit humiliating for the Hattoris, who have no choice but to secretly hunt in the mountains and fish in the rivers to make ends meet. The women of the household gather together to weave fishing nets and baskets, which they sell in the town below Okazaki Castle. Every time they encounter samurai from the Matsudaira clan in the town, they are filled with shame and anger. Unbeknownst to them, their resentment towards the Matsudairas has been building up over time.

  Looking at the relatives of Hattori's family, Kirishima Manzaburou said: "I heard that Ishimaru has the intention to join our main house, and our main house is overjoyed! As a token of our sincerity in accepting the Hattori family, we have specially appointed Hattori Ishimaru as the head of the material inspection department, with an annual salary of 200 kan."

  "Yes! I, Hattori Yasunaga, thank you for the lord's kindness! I will devote myself to the great cause of the Kirishima family and never forget the lord's great favor!" Hattori Yasunaga had thought about a raise in salary, but having his annual stipend doubled so easily was still somewhat surprising. With twice as much food, living conditions would improve greatly, which also meant that this winter, his clan wouldn't have to worry about starving or freezing, nor would they have to engage in humble and base occupations to compete with the poor for profit. Under Hattori Yasunaga's lead, the members of the Hattori family bowed down in gratitude.

  "Ishimaru-dono is in charge of providing the twenty men for the Mongaku corps, and the equipment used by the Mongaku will be provided separately by our house. I'm leaving this matter to Ishimaru-dono!" After the stipend was settled, it was naturally a mandatory burden. Kira no Mōzumaru didn't hesitate with him, and gave preferential treatment in terms of supplies and equipment. Then he said: "Also, you must provide ten brave ninja to serve as interrogators for our house. The treatment of these ten people will be the same as that of our house's Uma-zumai!"

  "Yes! We, the Uesugi clan, are willing to devote ourselves to our lord!" The people of the Uesugi clan were very excited. The new master's house was very generous to the Uesugi family, and as soon as they took action, it was a big move. The treatment of the Kirishima samurai was very high, and it was famous that the cost of horse feed was borne by the Kirishima family, the training loss of arrows, and the cost of weapons were also borne by the Kirishima family. In addition, each person could also receive three people's worth of rice, which is six stones of rice.

  Six stones of rice can support a family of three with plenty to spare, and these ten people can support thirty people. Suddenly, for Hattori Yasunaga, the economic burden of thirty people was reduced. Calculating again, the stipend of 200 kan and various subsidies, it's not impossible that the living conditions are twice as good as those in the Matsudaira household.

  They are a group of samurai who serve as the guardians of the shogun's palace, and they are also known as the "Shogun's Guards". The Ashikaga shoguns also had a group of samurai who served as their personal bodyguards. Below the shogunate, there were no specific titles for these guards, but instead, they were referred to by other names such as " Uma-mawashi" or "Hatamoto". These men were all non-productive warriors who spent their time practicing martial arts and archery, and during times of war, they would serve as the main force of the shogun's army and take on the responsibility of protecting the shogun.

  Let the ninja serve as a vassal, just like the Mōri clan. This is absolutely great news! Looking at the Hattori family's somewhat disheveled appearance, Kiryū Mimasaka gave a considerate order: "You gentlemen have come from afar to surrender to our house, so you must be settled in the mansion first. Zenjirō! The Hattori family's accommodations are now your responsibility!"

  "Yes!" Zentaro responded, and Hattori Yasunaga also bowed repeatedly to thank the Hattori clan before happily following Zentaro out of the Honmaru. They were accommodated in the samurai residence, originally called Tōkurin but now renamed Sanmaru, within the entire Saijo Castle which had been rebuilt by Yamamoto Kanbee.

  The Kira family's Nishi-Jo Castle was built during the time of Ashikaga Yoshinori, the third generation of the Ashikaga clan, which was a powerful military family in Kawachi Province. For over 300 years, it had maintained its original earthwork structure until Yamamoto Kanbee came to the Kira family and rebuilt it into a more modern castle over several years, giving it new vitality.