Volume 1: Stormy Weather in Kawajima Chapter 68: Horse Hooves Trample the Camps

  "My lord, Kizaki and Izumiguard have fallen."

  "What?!" Naokazu Sugita stood up from his cushion in surprise. Kagekatsu Uesugi, as the first brave general of Echigo, had fought many battles for the Uesugi family, and aside from his bravery, he was also a politician within the Uesugi household, responsible for diplomatic affairs with the Hokuriku daimyos, the Hatakeyama clan. Who would have thought that today he would fall at the foot of Shiraiwa Mountain?

  "My lord!" Straightening his back, Masanaga looked over and saw Uesugi Kenshin quietly closing his eyes.

  After a long time, Uesugi Kenshin opened his eyes and said slowly: "The death of Kakizaki Kageie is like cutting off one arm of Uesugi Shigeuji."

  Uesugi Kenshin paused for a moment and asked, "Who in the Takeda army has such ability to kill the Kage family? I absolutely do not believe that Takeda Shingen's fourth son has this kind of skill."

  At this time, another messenger from Echigo rushed up the slope and knelt down in front of Uesugi Kenshin, saying: "My lord, the main force of Kakizaki Kageie has been defeated, and now the Takeda cavalry has also broken through the iron gun troops and the bow-legged light troops."

  "Takeda cavalry? The Takeda family was defeated by them, who is the commander of the Takeda cavalry?"

  The officer hesitated for a moment and said: "I report to your lordship, this is unclear."

  "Scoundrel!" Jiang Shigui cursed loudly, "Doesn't the opposing general have a flag?"

  "Report to the lord, the commander of the Takeda army has no flag or crest. All the cavalrymen of the Takeda family wear red armor and have a uniform flag with four diamonds on their backs, but there is no identifying flag."

  Naoe Kanetsugu sneered and said, "My lord, it's the Takeda family's Red Armor Corps. The commander must be Hanada Bokuden without a doubt. Otherwise, it would be Obata Toramori's Obata Red Armor, but judging from Obata Toramori's martial arts skills, he doesn't have the ability to defeat Kikkawa Motonaga and Izumo no Kami."

  "No, the one who took the scenic view is absolutely not Uesugi Kenshin." Uesugi Kenshin said in a low voice, then stood up and looked far into the distance.

  Looking from Uesugi's main camp.

  Naokata saw that the Takeda army's cavalry was only over sixty riders, but in the midst of the Echigo army's formation, they charged left and right, unstoppable. The commander who led the charge was exceptionally brave, wielding a long spear, wherever he went, the Echigo generals and soldiers fled in disarray, no one could withstand his spear's single strike.

  Naoie Naokatsu was dumbfounded, no wonder Kikukawa Tsunaharu was defeated by him. Naoie Naokatsu tried hard to recall, but for a moment he couldn't remember which general of the Takeda clan was so accomplished in riding and shooting.

  In the blink of an eye, the red cavalry corps of the Takeda army was defeated again, and the 300 troops of Takekane Kiyonaga's unit, which served as the third array of the Echigo army, were also killed.

  The soldiers of the Wu army were defeated under the iron hooves of the Takeda army, fleeing in all directions, and the general's flag and long spear were abandoned everywhere.

  Naoe Kagetsuna exclaimed in shock to Uesugi Kenshin: "My lord, the objective of this Takeda cavalry unit is our own headquarters!"

  "Hmm, I know," Uesugi Kenshin said calmly, his fingers rolling over the prayer beads, "just let him come over with his horse, and I'll see what kind of person he is."

  The front half of the gun tip on Li Xiao's right hand was now dyed a deep red with fresh blood. The chestnut-colored horse he rode, every time its four hooves landed, countless sweat and blood droplets fell from it, forming a trail of blood.

  Li Xiao's men and horses were all soaked in blood, as if they had just crawled out of a bloody pool, making people feel terrified. The Wada army cavalry behind Li Xiao was also mostly the same, with everyone wearing a blood-stained military uniform.

  The sound of killing and shouting had not yet dissipated from Li Xiao's ears, the battle just now had temporarily put him in a state of high mental excitement, but as the main general of the cavalry team, Li Xiao also had to keep a clear consciousness, calmly judging the situation on the scene.

  Saito Choshin and Irobe Shigenaga's troops are now attacking from the front and left wing. Both of them are famous generals in Echigo, with intact military strength and extraordinary combat power. If Li Xiao collides with them head-on, even if he can break through the enemy line, the casualties will be heavy.

  Li Xiao turned the horse's head without hesitation, and the cavalry team of the Takeda family followed Li Xiao, bypassing Saito Toshinobu and Shibata Katsuie's troops, and rushed straight to the miscellaneous army of the Ueno clan.

  Today's Battle of Nagashino, from start to finish, the Uesugi clan's miscellaneous army played a tragic role. As the vanguard of the attacking force, they had not yet clashed with the Takeda family when they were hit by a volley of gunfire and defeated in full retreat.

  The second time out of the array, it was easy to tidy up the military situation and prepare for another battle with the Takeda army. However, the formation was defeated by the retreat of the Nagano family's ashigaru corps, and they were attacked by the Takeda army and defeated, losing their helmets and armor.

  The Uesugi clan's miscellaneous troops, who had been repeatedly battered, would see the Takeda family's cavalry unit choose them as their target and suddenly many people's eyes showed a resigned look, while more people wanted to slip away and escape in all directions.

  When the Takeda cavalry, which had harvested countless lives on its way, came with an unstoppable charging array.

  The gun-footed light infantry in the front row of Ueno's clan could not withstand this intangible pressure, and they shouted and dropped their long guns, fleeing in all directions.

  "Not worth a blow." Li Xiao's companion, Dao Sheng, let out a cold laugh, then squeezed his legs tightly around the horse's belly, and together with Li Xiao, accelerated their galloping speed.

  The cavalry led by Li Xiao broke into the army of the Ueno clan without any effort. Only a few brave family heads wanted to take their brave warriors forward and fight against the Takeda army's cavalry, while most people turned around and ran as soon as they saw the horse head of the Takeda army. The Ueno clan's army couldn't even slow down the Takeda army's charge for a moment.

  The military forces of the Uesugi clan have completely collapsed, and to avoid being pursued by the Takeda army's cavalry, the defeated soldiers rushed towards the nearest Nagano family's military forces, wanting to rely on them for shelter. However, this action instead disrupted the formation of the Nagano army.

  Li Xiao would not let go of the opportunity, leading the cavalry team to consciously drive the defeated soldiers of the Hao tribe towards the direction of the Nagano army. The Nagano army and the coalition forces of the Ueno Hao tribe had reversed their previous situation, and this time it was the turn of the Nagano army's formation to be chaotic due to being charged by its own coalition forces.

  So when Li Xiao's cavalry corps entered the army of Nagano along the route of the defeated soldiers of the Haotou tribe, Shibata Katsuie and Shigeo Sukechika, two generals who came to rescue Echigo, both showed a helpless and resentful expression at this moment.

  The Takeda cavalry, numbering only a little over sixty men, broke through the combined forces of the Uesugi and Echigo armies five times, scattering several thousand soldiers, with hundreds falling to the blades of the cavalry. This was unprecedented since Uesugi Kenshin took command of the Echigo army.

  The Nagano army, although numerous, had just suffered a defeat and their formation was now disrupted by the fleeing soldiers. As a result, despite putting up some resistance, they were unable to withstand the cavalry charge of the Takeda army.

  In the midst of the army's array, the great sword flashed down, and where the long spears danced, blood glints appeared. The soldiers of the Nagano family were like autumn wheat stalks cut down, lining up in a row of corpses along the path where the Takeda cavalry had passed through.

  The fifth corps of Nagano army was defeated!

  Li Xiao led the Takeda cavalry to break through five arrays, and now there is no military force blocking them in front of them, and they rushed straight to Uesugi Kenshin's main array.

  At this moment, Uesugi Kenshin was finally shaken. He looked at the Takeda cavalry, which had been rampaging all the way, breaking through several of his own armies, and now they were killing their way right under his nose.

  The commander of the opposing army, riding a tall horse, was far larger in build than the average Japanese person at that time. He and his horse were completely drenched in blood, making it impossible to discern what he looked like.

  At this moment, the other party stopped his horse at the foot of the mountain and raised the gun tip in his hand to point at his position, shouting: "Uesugi Hoshiro, do you dare to come down the mountain and fight with me Li Xiao?"

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