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The arrival of the Oda army plunged the Saito army into unprecedented chaos.
That's only natural, if you think about it.
Since the Rokkaku and Wakasa Takeda armies had been annihilated, the Saito army was left to fight against both the Asai and Oda armies.
Facing a combined force of approximately 12,000 men, Saito's army, having lost many soldiers in a volley of gunfire from the mountaintop, had to deal with the enemy with only about 2,000 men.
If we combine the forces of the Asakura army that are currently in Odani Castle, our total troop strength will be superior, but the Asakura army shows no sign of moving, and more importantly, even if we could join forces with them, in the meantime, the Saito army would have to face the Asai and Oda armies alone.
As Saito's army, in a panic, began to move towards Odani Castle where Asakura's forces were located, a quarter of the Takenaka family's retainers began to gather around their utterly weakened lord.
Although they had been separated from Hanbei by Ryukou, they finally succeeded in returning to their beloved master by pleading with him to serve in this emergency situation.殿Rearguard
For Tatsuoki and the other members of the Saito family, who already looked down on Hanbei, this was like "cutting off a lizard's tail," and they saw no problem at all if it meant saving their own lives in exchange for the Takenaka family.
but--
"Princess...! Finally, finally it's here!"
The elderly retainer, leaning beside Hanbei who was weakly mounted on his horse, said with tears in his eyes:
"Now, finally—finally, we can remove the burden placed on the princess from the Saito family ! If we surrender to the Oda army now, we will be in danger!"軛yoke
The old minister foresaw the future and was overcome with emotion, tears welling up in his eyes.
Hanbei nodded slightly, his consciousness fading.朦朧Drowsy
Last night, Hanbei was informed by Saito Michioki of the plan to overthrow the Asai family, and he pretended to obediently follow the orders of the Saito family.
There were also Saito family spies infiltrating Bodaiyama Castle, so even after Dokou left, Hanbei had to reaffirm his resolve to "destroy the Asai family" to those around him.
Once he confirmed that the spy, feeling reassured, had secretly slipped out of the castle and headed towards Inabayama Castle, Hanbei declared to his remaining retainers that he would work "to save the Asai family at all costs," and immediately began taking action.
According to Michioki, it seems that, with the help of Hisamasa, the retired head of the Asai family, the Takeda family from Wakasa, the Asakura family from Echizen, and the Rokkaku family from southern Omi have all decided to invade Asai territory simultaneously.
Daoxing, quoting Longxing, said, "By joining in, we can break through the current situation..."
In other words, it seems they intend to acquire territory in northern Omi and allow Tatsuoki to escape there, thereby continuing his resistance against the Oda army.
Although what he said seemed to be "not a solution at all," the members of the Takenaka family, who knew Ryukou's character well, immediately understood from what Dokou continued to say that "that was his main objective..."
In other words, "Once we have defeated Asai Bizen-no-kami Nagamasa, we will transfer his wife, Ichihime, to the Saito family as a precaution against the Oda family."
Although the pretext was to blackmail the Oda family by holding Ichihime, one of the most beautiful women of the Sengoku period, hostage, Hanbei judged that it was simply a matter of Ryukou and Dokou wanting to rape Ichihime.
And the moment Ichihime's name was mentioned, a flame of hatred unlike anything Hanbei had ever felt before was ignited deep within his heart.
"Are you planning to involve Lord Bizen-no-kami as well?!"
That's exactly it.
For Hanbei, Nagamasa, despite only knowing him for a few days, was the "first daimyo" who had treated him with sincerity.
Hanbei felt deep-seated resentment towards Doko and Ryuko for trying to trample even on his way of life.
However, Hanbei was well aware that this was all due to being embraced by Nagamasa, being taught to "live for tomorrow without being trapped in the past," and receiving a gentle kiss unlike anything he had ever experienced before.
In other words, as a woman, or as a person, she had decided which of Nagamasa and Tatsuoki she should prioritize when weighing them against each other.
The reason he didn't follow Nagamasa was entirely because, "If I followed him now, I wouldn't be able to deal with any movements within the Saito family against the Asai family..."
For that reason—
"We must do everything we can to find a way for Lord Bizen to survive."
However, Hanbei only had a short time left during the night.
Internal maneuvering within families like the Wakasa Takeda and Rokkaku clans was impossible. Therefore—
"We have no choice but to rely on the Oda family, who are allies of Lord Bizen and enemies of the Saito family."
That's the reason.
The fundamental factor in warfare is total troop strength. If this is inferior, the likelihood of defeat increases dramatically.
To compensate for this, and for the sake of the Asai family, who were now facing off against four other families on their own, it was only natural to think that "assistance from the Oda family is absolutely essential..."
However, it seemed unlikely that the Oda family would readily comply with a request from the Takenaka family, who were merely vassals of the Saito family.
That is precisely why Hanbei secured his post-war subservience to the Oda family as his guarantee.
and--
"I just need to endure it, as I have been doing."
If you receive an invitation from Longxing, Daoxing, or anyone else, you should simply surrender yourself to them as you have done before.
In order to save Nagamasa, they absolutely could not let their presence be discovered.
She had to be the same old "toilet girl," just as she always was.
You must deceive everyone except those who know the Takenaka family's affairs, or even God who does everything .俯瞰overhead view
However, even though I could convince myself of this with reason, my heart could not be easily subjugated.
When Ryukou invited him to a midday tryst, and ran his hands over the opening of his kimono and his thighs, Hanbei unconsciously pushed him away.
Hanbei's regret, "If only I had been more resolute and strong-willed...", stemmed entirely from that.
When the woman he considered a sex slave resisted, Ryukou, revealing his rage and excitement, violently assaulted Hanbei in front of his retainers .打擲Chouchaku
This only served to fuel the hatred of those in the Takenaka family who had decided to abandon the Saito family.
Indeed, Shigenori's failed attack on Tatsuoki was a consequence of the circumstances surrounding it.
Hanbei's own "weakness of heart" caused the plan to fail.齟齬Sogo
In order to "keep Hanbei alive" and to prevent their plan from being exposed, the retainers had no choice but to show the Saito family that they were determined to kill Shigenori at all costs.
But if they didn't do that, the Takenaka family would have to endure the humiliation from the Saito family indefinitely.
"There's nothing we can do about Lord Shigenori—!"
Having made that decision, the Takenaka retainers, shedding tears of blood, drew their bows against the brother who had acted out of righteous indignation on behalf of his sister.
And that deeply wounded Hanbei's heart.
If only I had endured it, Shigenori wouldn't have been hurt.
Indeed, once you admit your fault while in a weakened physical state, it's only natural that only negative thoughts will come to mind afterward.
The Oda army has already arrived.
If that's the case, then there's no longer any need for me to remain in this world.
Besides Hanbei and Shigenori, the Takenaka family also has an older brother, though he is sickly. If he were to adopt an heir, the "Takenaka family" itself could continue to exist.
But—
"The Asai forces are rapidly approaching us!"
"W-What?!"
The old retainer was taken aback by the messenger's report.
"What about Oda?! What about the Oda family?!"
"N-Not yet! Only the cavalry led by Lord Bizen-no-kami, the supreme commander of the Asai clan, is advancing with tremendous force—"
Yes, although this plan was intended to save the Asai family, no contact was made with the Asai family whatsoever, and everything was being done on a completely different level.
The Asai family probably only recognized the Takenaka forces as "Saito's army."
In other words, what that means is—
— To help Asai, and be killed by Asai.
That future is almost a certainty.
"Wh-what should I do...! What should I do...!"
The old retainer panicked. It was uncertain whether laying down his weapons would make him appear no longer an enemy.
This was because it was well known that the Asai army had recently shown no mercy to its enemies and was aiming for a complete annihilation.
And then—the horse carrying Hanbei swiftly passed by the old retainer.
"--P-Princess!?"
By the time the old retainer reached out to grab the short sword that had been snatched from his waist, it was too late.
Hanbei mustered every last ounce of his remaining strength and galloped towards the familiar white horse.
"I believe the person I see there is the commander-in-chief of the Asai clan, Lord Bizen-no-kami Nagamasa!"
I mustered all my strength and shouted—and the Asai army came to a halt.
"My name is Takenaka Hanbei Shigeharu of the Saito family! Let's have a fair fight! My retainers will not interfere in any way!"
If I just say that much, he should understand.
Hanbei, with a weak, fleeting smile, drew the short sword he had pulled from the old retainer's waist and dropped it.
However, his slender arms, covered in bruises, couldn't even support the weight of the short sword, and the blade was pointing towards the ground.
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(Shigeharu...)
When I saw her leap out from among Saito's troops, I felt a tightness in my chest.
He wasn't wearing any armor, and his mud-stained clothes made it immediately obvious that someone had assaulted him.
That was probably something she was forced to do by her master, Longxing.
Moreover, if you look closely, her beautiful hair is a mess, and her face and wrists are covered in grime .青痣bruise
Hanbei—a woman forced to be a man—clearly illustrates the violence inflicted upon her by men.
His strength was so great that he couldn't even support the weight of a mere short sword.
It was abundantly clear that simply "being there" was giving them every ounce of energy.
But then she challenges me to a one-on-one duel—
However, more than that,
"I can't believe it—that Shigeharu Takenaka was a woman..."
The members of the Asai army seemed surprised by that.
Hanbei's name became widely known throughout the land due to the incident in which he seized the impregnable Inabayama Castle.
And everyone recognized that "Hanbei has a feminine face," but "he is still a man."
However, anyone claiming to be Takenaka Hanbei in front of the Asai army could only be a woman, no matter how you look at it.
However, there was no way a man would wear a formal uchikake (a type of kimono worn by men) and appear on the battlefield, so the Asai forces could only be bewildered by the situation.
However, they noticed that their commander-in-chief, Nagamasa, didn't seem particularly shaken—
—Ah, so Lord Takenaka Shigeharu knew all along that she was a woman.
Seeing this, they finally began to change their perception.
"—Alright."
I took a step forward with Taishakutsukige and drew Ishiwari Kanemitsu.
"Lord Shigeharu, I will grant your wish. If the Saito forces there do not interfere, we swear we will not interfere with them either."
"...thank you"
Hanbei's face was covered in bruises, and he smiled weakly.
"Please do not hold back in any way."
"Hmm..."
Taishakutsukige turned to look at me, then towards the horse Hanbei was riding, and with its light green eyes, it seemed to be trying to tell me something.
(Hey, you're not kidding, are you?)
I gasped as I recalled what had happened at Bodaisan Castle.
"—Can you do it, Taishakutsukimo?"
"Kyuuuuuuuuuuun"
When Taishakutsukige let out a clear neigh, Hanbei's horse shivered violently.
"Lord Bizen-no-kami, then let's begin fairly and squarely—"
"Kyuuuuuuuuuun!!"
Just as Hanbei was about to declare a duel, the neigh of Taishakutsukige echoed through the air, and the black horse Hanbei was riding suddenly raised its hind legs with all its might.
Faced with such an unexpected situation, and with Hanbei only able to force his body to keep going through sheer willpower, there was no way he could endure it.
The short sword slipped from Hanbei's hand, and she fell forward—hanging precariously, her collar caught in the horse's mouth.
The soldiers of both sides were taken aback by the unexpected turn of events.
The Taishakutsukige, carrying me, moved forward through the crowd and came close to Hanbei.
The horse Hanbei was riding was a stallion—which means that he had sexual intercourse with Taishakutsuki at Bodaisan Castle.
He had been completely captivated by Taishakutsukimo, a potential candidate for a reverse harem.
As if offering it to Taishakutsukige, the stallion raised its head, still holding Hanbei in its mouth.
Then Taishakutsukimo turned to me and stared intently at me with those beautiful eyes.
"Shigeharu, you've lost."
I take her from the stallion, hug her tightly, and whisper.
"My plan all began the moment I went to your castle."
Of course, that's a complete lie; everything is simply a matter of chance.
However, it is wise to make the most of opportunities like this.
Especially with someone as intelligent as Hanbei, it's definitely better to appeal to him by saying, "I think more than you, and I'm better at thinking things through."
"Come with me."
Indeed, Hanbei's eyes widened in surprise, and just like before, he gripped my arm tightly and began to sob loudly.