Chapter 14: The Conspiracy to Steal the Village Rain Orb

  "Hmm, that's good too, the Kiryu family supports your decision! Kiryu Kotetsu Maru found out that he had unconsciously done something that could have changed history again, although the impact of this matter can be ignored. However, this thought only flashed through his mind for a moment. He didn't invite Hattori Yasunaga over today to chat idly; he wanted to see how capable the Hattori family was: 'Shokenden, I invited you here today because I want you to do something for the Kiryu family.'"

  "The Honorable Master calls me Bōchō. I am at your service." Hattori Bōchō bowed, saying: "Please instruct me, Honorable Master."

  "It's really nothing, it's just that our family doesn't have a single famous sword that can be taken out and shown off, it's really a headache!" Kiriyama Mantsumaru made a very troubled expression, but in fact he was just talking nonsense. Apart from the fact that the Kiriyama family had been worshiping a Minamoto clan famous sword for generations, they had also received many famous swords as gifts from shoguns throughout history. It's just that these swords, although sharp, were not well-known enough in Kiriyama Mantsumaru's eyes.

  Other schools of swordsmithing aside, just the Bizen Osafune school alone has produced many famous types of swords such as Nagamitsu, Yoshindo, Kanemitsu, Yoshikane, Kagemitsu and Sanemori. Today there are over twenty of these swords in existence but none of them have a well-known story behind them. However, the first generation head of the Kirihara family, Kirihara Nagayoshi, did own a Bizen Osafune sword called "Berorinotō" which is said to be from the same origin as the famous "Dōjigiri" owned by the Shogun.

  However, since the first ancestor Kira Nagamasa, the Minamoto clan has been famous for its excellent archery and horse riding skills, but its reputation in swordsmanship can almost be ignored. The only one who made a big deal with Bichu no An was Kira Mitsumasa, who died in Shimo Tsuki, so this sword is not famous at all.

  Kira Yoshinaka was brainwashed by ōishi Kuranosuke from a young age, and he had heard so many stories about the noble Minamoto clan, famous families, and legendary swords that his ears were numb. Especially when it came to the countless famous swords of the Tokugawa shogunate, he couldn't help but feel envious and resentful. However, as for the Tokugawas' belongings, he didn't dare touch them. All the famous swords in the world belonged to someone else, so where could he get a renowned and powerful sword?

  So Kiryū Manzōmaru turned his attention to some declining martial households, and with an unconscious faint smile on his face, he said: "As the head of the Iga ninja family, Bōchō must also understand the situation in Kantō?"

  "Yes! Your humble servant has some knowledge of the situation in Kanto. My younger brother, Masakiyo, was still gathering information in Kanto a few months ago."

  "Oh? The Hattori family still has a habit of regularly going out to gather intelligence? That's great."

  The biggest shortage of the Warring States period was not armed forces, but sharp ears and eyes. However, most of the big names did not realize the importance of this point and continued to survive in a muddled way. The clever ones chose to expand their territory, while the foolish ones stubbornly maintained their independence. Intelligence from outside states was completely meaningless, and even the most developed industrial and commercial area, the capital region, could not escape this problem.

  It's not entirely correct to say that, after all, there are always some groups concerned about external news, such as the mountain monks who often walk in the mountains, the merchants of various sizes who travel from place to place, and the ninja sitting opposite him. People who have been walking outside for many years due to various reasons are often the most informed, of course, each of these three has its own strengths and weaknesses, ninjas are relatively professional, but mountain monks and merchants also have their own specialties, relying on their respective advantages can easily explore news that ninjas are not easy to hear.

  "Let's tell the Honke about the situation in Kanto first!" Kiryu Manzoumaru was also unsure of what Kanto looked like, only vaguely remembering that the Hojo clan had won a battle a few years ago and their territory had expanded greatly, but nothing else was clear.

  "Yes! Since the Battle of Kawagoe Castle in 1520, the ōgigayatsu Uesugi clan has been extinct after the death of Uesugi Tomooki. The Sanemori Uesugi clan's current head, Kantō Kanrei Uesugi Kiyonori, retreated to Taira-ji Castle and was defeated again at the Battle of Otate in 1521, causing his power to decline. The Kantō Kubō Hatakeyama Yoshitaka also retreated to Koga and went into semi-retirement..."

  "Wait! Are you saying that Tsurugi Seishi is semi-retired? What kind of semi-retirement is this?"

  Although the position of Shogun has not been handed over, Ashikaga Yoshiteru has already been isolated by the powerful retainers of the Hojo family, and the right of succession of his eldest son, Ashikaga Fujinaga, has been abolished. It is a well-known fact that Ume no Maru, born to Lady Hojo, will be the successor. According to the movements of Kogane-yakata, Ashikaga Yoshiteru should retire in the next few years... Hattori Yasunaga's intelligence ability was indeed strong, and he could even detect the internal movements of Kogane-yakata.

  "So, that means Kogoro's situation is pretty bad, huh?" Kiryu Kanetsugu asked with a heavier tone.

  "Yes!"

  "That's good! Leave this matter to the Hattori family then! Call your brother over, there's something important for him to attend to at the main house!"

  "Yes!" Hattori Yasunaga led the way, followed by his five retainers. Before long, Hattori Masanari rushed in and bowed low, saying: "Your humble servant Masanari, at your service, Honorable Master of the House!"

  "Alright! Our clan has a secret mission for you. Retrieve the legendary sword 'Muramasa' that has been passed down through the Kōga-ryū ninja clan!"

  "Is the famous sword, Muramasa, passed down through generations of the Kanto region's Honjo family? Even if you were to obtain this famous sword, would you be able to bring it out and use it, Master?" Hattori Seisei hesitated for a moment before asking, but he couldn't help himself. The reputation of Muramasa was so great that even the Ryōji family had fabricated a story connecting themselves to it, making it almost universally known."

  Many samurai daimyos in the Kanto region had the good fortune to see Muramasa's work when they visited Koizumi Hanzo, and the size and style of this sword became almost an open secret. It was too dangerous for Kira Yoshinaka to take Muramasa as his own sword, even if few people on the Tokaido road had seen Muramasa, it was hard to ensure that it would not be discovered by samurai from the Kanto region who passed by.

  "Don't worry, this sword is naturally for collection purposes only. Kōhei no Mikado has no intention of using it, and sooner or later, it will fall into the hands of the Hōjō family. Rather than giving it to someone else, I'd rather let my own clan take care of it!" Kiryū Manzanmaru said with confidence.

  "......Yes! I understand!" Hattori Masaki seemed to want to say something more, hesitated for a moment and finally responded.

  "Alright! I'm leaving this matter to you, get it done as soon as possible." Kiryu Mitsunomaru slammed his hand on the table and made a decision. Before he left, he added: "If you do well in this task, the position of leader will be yours! Work hard, I have high hopes for you!"

  "Yes!" Hattori Masahide quietly withdrew.

  After a while, Yamagata Bantō opened the sliding door and asked about his activities for the day. Kirishima Kanetsugu waved his hand to indicate that he had no intention of going out. Seeing Bantō preparing to withdraw, he casually mentioned: "How have the Honda brothers been doing these past few days?"

  "That Mihachiro is quite active." At the mention of the Honda brothers, Yamagata Zenzaburo's face turned as hard as stone, especially the two words "active" were bitten very heavily, looking very resentful of Honda Mihachiro's show-off. Then his expression changed to cloudy and sunny, "But this Mihachiro seems to have no talent for military strategy, after learning for a few days he is still like a country child holding a tree branch and dancing wildly, because I have also scolded him."

  Kira Yoshinori was very interested in how Honda Yoriharu would respond: "Oh? What did he say?"

  "He says that the tactics are trivial, but the strategy is the great way. Master, listen to this, he's really sharp-tongued!" Yamagata Zentarō sneered and said with a smirk: "Unfortunately, my Mikawa warriors don't take pride in being glib, this lazy and weak-willed guy will eventually be exposed by me, Zentarō!"