Chapter 57: The Turmoil of Dong Guo (Seeking Recommendations)

  The two people then discussed the form of the internal strife, in fact, what is called discussion is that Ashikaga Yoshifuyu said, Kira Mimasaka agreed, anyway Ashikaga Yoshifuyu kept talking about how to expel Mitsutomo, how to seize Kyoto's various plans, after Nakao Castle was built, how to defeat Miyoshi and contact the daimyos of various places.

  Miyoshi Nagayoshi hid in the residence of Sakamoto Castle and refused to come out. In the Imperial Palace, there was no third person, Ashikaga Yoshifuyu thought that Kira Manshirōmaru was still a very loyal and reliable person. At least he brought more than 2,000 troops at his own expense to support the Shogunate, and only he did it alone. Although Hosokawa Nagayoshi also had 3,000 troops, they were not under the control of the Shogunate. The actual armed forces of the Shogunate were only over a hundred gokenin, which was a problem even for daily defense, let alone fighting against the three good families.

  "Is your mother's family the Nakain clan? Take this opportunity to visit Kyoto and see your relatives while the castle is being built. If you have a chance, go to Kinai and take a good look at the military strength of the Mikka clan for me."

  "Yes! I, Kiryū Matsuomaru, will go and gather information for your lordship!"

  "Hmm! Although there is no genpuku, a formal name must be used. Your childhood name will have to be discarded!" Ashikaga Yoshifuyu said suddenly.

  "Yes! From today on, I'll be called Kirishima Saburō." Kirishima Manzaburou replied calmly, but with some discontent in his heart: "This little general is really impolite, taking away my childhood name right from the start! What did my childhood name ever do to you?!" But what could he do, he could only silently mourn for his lost childhood name.

  "Kira Sanrō! You will be my Sanrō! In the future, you will also be my Kira Uesugi Sanrō! Do you understand?" Ashikaga Yoshifuyu suddenly brought up this matter, which made him somewhat bewildered. The name "Kira Uesugi Sanrō" had only been used by one person in history - Kira Mitsusada, the second head of the Kira family and the founder of the temple of Zenpen Daichōden.

  As the eldest son of Kira Uemon, Kira Yoshinaka was also known as Ashikaga Saburō. His father, Kira Nagashige, and Ashikaga Takauji's fourth-generation family head, Ashikaga Yasuuji, were biological brothers. Kira Yoshinaka married a daughter of Ashikaga Yasuuji, making him the son-in-law of his uncle, further solidifying the close relationship between the two families.

  At the same time, Ashikaga Tadayoshi had only two daughters, one of whom was married to Hojo Tokiyori as a successor, and the other was married to Kira Utsushi. In the Ashikaga family, from then on, the Kira clan became one of the most trusted vassals of the main house of the Ashikaga clan. This close relationship was maintained throughout the Kamakura period until the Kenmu disturbance appeared, and he understood this point very clearly.

  "I, Kira Yoshinaka, understand!" Since Ashikaga Yoshifuyu brought up the close relationship between the second generation of the Kira family and the Ashikaga family, and hinted that he wanted to be the shogun's Kira Yoshinaka, the implication is self-evident.

  The solo meeting ended quickly, and the general's imperial cuisine was used at Jisho-ji Temple. In the afternoon, he also attended a meeting with the bakufu officials, as the leader of the bakufu officials, of course, to meet his own officials: Ichiban-gashira Hino Teruspring, Niban-gashira Momoii Haruhito, Sanban-gashira Ueno Hisanobu, Yonban-gashira Hatakeyama Harunaga, Goban-gashira Ootani Takamasa and others.

  The Kyoto-style vassals were all descendants of the noble families who had served for generations. After the extinction of the Hosokawa Dainagon family, the Hosokawa Kyogoku family adopted a son, Hosokawa Haruspring, who was destined to follow in the footsteps of Hosokawa Haruyuki. The main house of the Toi family had been extinct for over 100 years, and the Ueno family, which served as the lord of the castle at Onimaru-yama in Bichu Province, did not show much enthusiasm for the shogunate in Kyoto either, only sending a minor branch to respond. The head of the Hatakeyama Chikuzen no suke house, Hatakeyama Harakuni, still served as a vassal, but unfortunately, the main house of the Hatakeyama family was in disarray and the branch families had lost their foundation and were unable to bear the burden of military service.

  In the end, it still relies on ōtani, and ōtani Hyōbu no Kami was the elder brother of ōtani Seikō. Without his younger brother Seikō's luck, he could not directly gain the favor of Ashikaga Yoshimasa, but instead stayed in the group of attendants serving as a bakufu guard, and the actual power of the bakufu attendants was in his hands. The other several hatamoto were just nominal and had little practical significance.

  Kirishima Manzaburou exchanged pleasantries with them as usual, but the attitudes of several other daimyos were completely different. Hosokawa Haruspring pretended to be friendly, Hatakeyama Harunaga tried to win him over with enthusiasm, and Ootori Takamasa's coldness all left a deep impression on him. In their conversation, he could sense a very deep rift between them, and there was almost no possibility of close communication among them.

  "This situation made him sigh: 'Among the more than 100 people in the public service, there are so many contradictions. Can the shogunate really accomplish anything relying on them?'"

  ……

  In the Odawara Castle of Sagami Province in Kanto region, Hojo Ujiyasu listened to the report from Fuuma Kotaro with a gloomy face.

  "... Shinjō Castle lord Narita Nagayasu, Iwatsuki Castle's ōta Sukemasa and sixteen others rebelled, plunging Musashi Province into turmoil."

  "Kotaro! How's the task going that the main house assigned you?"

  "Yes! I, your subject, have finally clarified the details of that night's incident at the cost of five lives of the Wind Demon Troop. On that night, multiple fires broke out simultaneously in various parts of Furukawa's residence, and Furukawa was frightened by the fire and rushed out of the Tenjin Tower, but for now, it is unclear how he died."

  "Are you saying that multiple fires broke out simultaneously at Kogosho?" Hojo Ujiyasu stroked his mustache, closing his eyes in silence.

  "Hiss!" A sharp intake of cool air, the chief vassal of the Hōjō family, Daidōji Shigekatsu, angrily exclaimed: "Multiple fires breaking out at the same time, this is definitely an act of arson! Who is so cruel and vicious as to frame my Hōjō family!"

  "It must be Uesugi Kenshin! He has always been resentful of being defeated by our lord."

  "No! I think it's a remnant of Uesugi Norifusa! The Ota family must be involved!"

  "Hold!" Uesugi Norikata shouted to stop the discussion, and asked Kazama Chikafusa: "Have you investigated the cause of the fire? Who set it? Why did they set it?"

  "I, Fuuma Kotarou, have not yet investigated the cause of the incident, but I found a suspicious clue. After Furukawa Hyorokyu was murdered, someone searched for something in his residence. Through my efforts, I discovered that the famous sword 'Mura no Ame' has been stolen from the Furukawa family."

  "Steal Village Rain Pill! Who dares to be so bold!"

  "We must find it! If we can find Murasame Maru, we'll be able to figure out who's behind the conspiracy against us!"

  "Right! We've found Murasame Maru!" The entire Hojo family was filled with righteous indignation.

  Uesugi Kenshin slammed his fist on the table and ordered, "Since we know that someone is secretly plotting against the Uesugi family, our clan cannot just sit back and do nothing! Tell Kagetora to definitely capture Koga's residence, seize Sano Yasutada and Ashikaga Fujin, I want them to personally reveal the truth of that night. My Uesugi family will not bear the name of injustice!"

  "Yes!" The Northern Fujiwara clan's vassals bowed down.

  "Kotaro! Investigate the whereabouts of Murakami Yoshiaki as soon as possible, I'm leaving this matter to you." Takeda Shingen stood up and slowly left the evaluation room.

  "Yes! I'll do my best!"