Chapter 55: The Two Guardians of the Imperial Palace (Seeking Recommendations)

  The Hattori family has brought new news, and the new changes that occurred in Kanto have finally reached Kinai after a delay of half a month. In Sano, Takahisa has proclaimed his own grandson, Ashikaga Fujinaga, as the new shogun of Kanto, and ordered the punishment of Norimasa for killing the previous shogun. Upon hearing this news, Norimasa was enraged and immediately dispatched Nagatsuna to lead a large army to surround the Imperial Palace in Kokura. The Kanto region, which had just calmed down, has once again been plunged into a great storm, but it is unknown where this will blow next.

  Due to this series of changes, the people of Kanto who were shaken by the Battle of Kawagoe were reinvigorated again. Moreover, the Hōjō clan's killing of the Kantō Kubō was a crime that could not be forgiven. At this time, the siege of the Koga Imperial Palace shouted to kill Sagara Takahisa, and its momentum was so arrogant that it shocked people. The samurai families in Kanto successively raised the flag of revenge for Ashikaga Yoshizane, calling on the samurai families in Kanto to rise up against the tyranny of the Hōjō clan, and the powerful clans in Kanto rose up suddenly.

  "Has the Hōjō family surrounded Kogosho?" Kiryū Mimasaka was greatly surprised. The death of Ashikaga Yoshiteru in Kinai also caused a considerable stir, and many people lamented that the world was not clear, morality had declined, and traitors like Miyo and Hōjō who betrayed their lords seemed to be on the verge of collapse.

  The monks of the Lotus Sect took advantage of this to loudly proclaim their theory of the end of the law, absorbing a large number of believers. For a time, the Lotus Sect, which was once called Nichiren, regained its footing in the capital. The monks of Mount Hiei's Enryaku-ji Temple were not pleased with this development, and neither was Ishiyama Hongan-ji Temple. The monks of both temples were active in Kyoto, hoping to push the Lotus Sect out again. However, Kyoto had become a chaotic mess, and the Shogun and the Imperial Court had fled to Omi Province for their summer vacation. The courtiers had nowhere to run, and could only anxiously await the next move of the three Mikawa families.

  Sakamoto Gosho was also the final destination of the Kirishitan uprising in Kyoto, and the bakufu had learned of the Kirishitan's plan to rise up in Kyoto early on, so they sent out bugyō Nakazawa Sukeshiro Tsunetoshi to wait in ōtsu early on. When he entered Sakamoto Gosho, he encountered ōdono Shōshō no suke Harumitsu, who was left behind to guard the place, and Kutsuki Miyauchi no shō Hyōgan, and only then did they learn that neither the Daimyō nor the Imperial Prince were inside Sakamoto Gosho.

  Originally, because Ashikaga Yoshiteru and his son Ashikaga Yoshiaki were not willing to be expelled from Kyoto again, they ran to the vicinity of Jishō-ji Temple outside Kyoto Castle and prepared to build a castle on the mountain behind Jishō-ji Temple, Mt. Nakao, as a base for further attacking and taking control of Kyoto.

  Ginkaku-ji Temple was originally called Jishō-ji Temple, and the Tōzan-dō hall was built by Ashikaga Yoshimasa. The intention was to rival Kinkaku-ji Temple (Golden Pavilion) of Rokuon-ji Temple, which was built by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. Unfortunately, this shogun turned out to be incompetent, not only ruining the reputation of the Muromachi bakufu that had been accumulated over a century but also causing the ōnin War during his reign, losing the last bit of luck for the bakufu. The subsequent shoguns all became puppets of the powerful daimyos, such as the current retired shogun Ashikaga Yoshitane, who frequently commuted between Kyoto and Sakamoto for official business, which was also a rare occurrence in the history of the Muromachi bakufu.

  Of course, the adoptive father of the great master, Ashikaga Yoshitane, was also a good runner, and he was the kind who could make long-distance strategic transfers. The first time he was confined to Awaji Island doesn't count, but later on, he ran around in Etchu, Etchū, Harima, and finally took back his position as shogun. Then, not many years later, he had a falling out with Hosokawa Takakuni, and then continued running in Awa, Settsu, Sakai, and Awaji, until he couldn't run anymore and died of illness in Awaji.

  The Shogun's house has been a tragedy for decades, the beginning of which can be traced back to the Kakitsu War over 100 years ago. After Ashikaga Yoshinori was killed by Akamatsu Mitsusuke, the Muromachi shogunate began to decline irreversibly. Ashikaga Yoshimasa only accelerated this process. After Ashikaga Yoshihisa's death, Ashikaga Yoshitane was exiled in the Meiō Coup and the Ashikaga Yoshitsugu line was completely destroyed, destroying the last remaining prestige of the Shogun. From then on, running away became a compulsory course for the Shoguns.

  ōtomo no Sukune Mitsuharu and Kuchiki Miyauchi Sukehisa Tadayasu were appointed as the guardians of Sakamoto Gosho, the former being a trusted vassal of the Ashikaga shogunate, while the latter controlled the neighboring Kōjima district in ōmi Province, which was also a stronghold of the pro-shogunate faction.

  ōmura Seizō's father was ōmura Masujirō, a renowned diplomat of the shogunate. He had truly lived a long life, having just celebrated his 96th birthday a few months prior, but unfortunately passed away soon after. Although the old man had gone to the afterlife, it could be considered a happy occasion, so ōmura Seizō, who was over 50 years old himself, wasn't particularly sad and even spoke with Kira Yoshinaka about his father Masujirō's history.

  The ōtani clan originated from the Kawachi Minamoto clan's new branch, and can be said to be a powerful and authentic New Branch of the Minamoto clan. This is a famous samurai family that appeared in "Taiheiki", compared to the self-proclaimed but not well-known New Branch of the Minamoto clan, the fake descendant of the Setara clan, it's unknown how many grades higher they are.

  Because it was a powerful gate of the Nitta clan, the ancestors of the ōtani clan followed Nitta Yoshisada and opposed Ashikaga Takauji, but as the Ashikaga family continued to win, the Nitta clan perished and defected to the shogunate. During the time of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu at Kōgan-in, they became attendants, and later during the time of ōtani Mitsufuyu, his daughter, Imadenokata, was fortunate enough to become a wet nurse for Ashikaga Yoshimasa, and the ōtani clan also rose in prominence.

  Perhaps when the General's family tasted the sweetness, the Ogawa clan held on to the conviction of being an outsider. Ogawa Tsunemasa's aunt, Ogawa Sako, married Ashikaga Yoshimichi as a concubine, and during Ogawa Tsunemasa's era, he also married his own daughter to the 12th generation head, Ashikaga Yoshiharu, as a concubine.

  It was precisely because of this that they were able to serve as the Shoshi of the Bakufu for many years, and during the time of Ashikaga Yoshishige, served as the fifth captain of the Hokoshu, and during the Chōroku era, served as the Gogei-shu, also managing to stand out among the many Hokoshu who served at the side of the Shogun.

  The recently deceased Daisōtoku Tadakazu was a veteran of the six eras of Ashikaga Yoshimasa, Ashikaga Yoshitane, Ashikaga Yoshizumi, Ashikaga Yoshiharu, Ashikaga Yoshitsuna and Ashikaga Yoshiaki. He had experienced nearly a century of turmoil since his youth in the Kinai region. A few years ago, after the Battle of Shōryūji, the retired shogun Ashikaga Yoshitsuna fled in disarray, and Tadakazu followed him as an old man to the Sakamoto Palace in ōmi Province, where he remained until his death. This elderly gentleman had always hoped that during his lifetime he would see the revival of the bakufu.

  Unfortunately, until he closed his eyes, he still received disappointing news that Ashikaga Yoshiteru had retreated back to Sakamoto in Omi Province. It seemed uncertain when he could return to Kyoto again, let alone revive the great cause of restoring the shogunate. He was able to pass away with endless regret.

  In contrast, Kotsukawa Harutane was also unlucky. His father, Kotsukawa Tanetane, died suddenly at this time. Compared to the elderly Ogigayatsu who passed away, Kotsukawa Tanetane was only 51 years old when he died of illness. The Kotsukawa family had many children, just like the Ogigayatsu family. As one of the first batch of people to surrender after Ashikaga Yoshifuji's coming-of-age ceremony, he was greatly promoted.

  Kusunoki Masatsura, a younger brother of the same clan, was in charge of the rear guard. Kusunoki Masasue was in charge of the vanguard. Two younger brothers, Kusunoki Naotsura and Kusunoki Tōyō, also served under Masatsura in the rear guard. The infant son of Kusunoki Harutsuna had just been born this year; his wife was a daughter of Tobai Ujitsura.

  Kirau Manzaburou's son is believed to be Kusunoki Mototsuna, who was active in Omi Province. His son would later marry the granddaughter of Tobigarashi Masatsune, a high-ranking priest of the Jodo Shinshu sect's Takada school, and the daughter of Ei no Ie, the chief priest of the temple Isse Ichimon Tanryūji. This family had a very close relationship with the Tobigarashi family.

  Note: These two are the representatives of the Muromachi Shogunate's internal and external affairs, with ōtomo representing the inner vassals and Kusunoki representing the outer vassals.