Chapter 40

On April 25, 1540, in the morning. The sun was shining brightly.

A gentle spring breeze blew through the forest on Mount Takayama, causing the leaves to rustle softly. The ground was covered with colorful wildflowers, and bees were diligently flying from one flower to another. The beautiful songs of birds could be heard on both sides of the mountain path. Everything seemed so perfect.

But Daisuke Oishi, standing on the mountain path, did not think so at all. Indeed, since he set foot on this path leading to the village of Harumakura, his already stormy mood had turned even more turbulent. The two-mile path now seemed like a flood of ferocious beasts. Every ten meters or so, several large trees would fall across the path, blocking the way. When they tried to detour through the forest, they found it filled with traps. Three bandits were injured and fell to the ground, all with their feet pierced by bamboo stakes in the pits. During their journey, arrows would suddenly shoot out from the depths of the forest, making it impossible to guard against them. Although he wanted to tear apart the person who came up with these ideas, Daisuke Oishi had to grit his teeth and endure it. After being blocked several times, Daisuke Oishi left the three injured bandits behind and continued forward with the rest. If the trees blocked the way, he would just cut them down.

Of course, Daisuke Oishi had considered taking the path along the stream through the forest. But after comparing the two options, he ultimately chose to stick to this path. Why? First, there was no clear path in the forest by the stream, only thickets everywhere. This path, at least, could accommodate three people walking side by side, making it much easier to navigate and less likely to be attacked. Second, so far, the traps were only along the edges of the forest, while the path itself was only blocked by trees, with no traps. The area by the stream, however, had been confirmed by his son the previous night to be extremely dangerous.

Thus, Daisuke Oishi directed the bandits to cut down or move the trees blocking the path. If the trees were too large and difficult to cross, they had to risk entering the forest. Of course, they had learned to be cautious, using long spears to probe the ground and trees before proceeding.

Two hours later, the main force finally bypassed all the fallen trees. Now, they only needed to navigate a small bend 20 meters ahead, and they would be just a few hundred steps from the village. The cost of this journey was seven bandits injured by arrows, with wounds on their backs, thighs, or arms. All the bandits were panting heavily, their initial high spirits completely gone.

Although he was anxious, Daisuke Oishi knew it would be unwise to attack the village in their current state, especially since the enemy was well-prepared. So he decided to rest for a moment. Just as he was about to order the bandits to rest and boost their morale, a series of screams came from the other side of the bend. Listening carefully, he heard muffled shouts, which seemed to be his son, Daisuke Tarō, calling for help. "You, go check it out," Daisuke Oishi immediately pointed to a bandit to investigate. The bandit ran off.

After a while, the bandit ran back in a panic, shouting, "Bad news, sir, it's the young master, they are..."

"What? What are they doing?" Without waiting for the bandit to answer, Daisuke Oishi rushed to the bend. The bandits, who had just sat down, could not continue resting and had to get up and follow him. Soon, Daisuke Oishi reached the high point of the bend. He saw an open clearing a few hundred steps ahead. About 50 steps from the path's exit, two thick wooden posts stood, with a naked man tied to them, his limbs stretched out in a crucifix position. Seven or eight children were taking turns beating the man with bamboo sticks. The man was screaming in agony, his body covered in blood. From a distance, the man's condition was unbearable to look at, while the children, with red eyes, seemed determined not to let him go, some even aiming at his vital areas. This man was Daisuke Tarō. In stark contrast, six meters in front of the man, a man in tattered robes sat on a tree stump, sipping tea leisurely. Seeing the bandits at the bend, he raised his wooden bowl slightly, as if inviting them to join him.

"Ah! Tarō!" Daisuke Oishi screamed, his eyes bloodshot, his mind filled with rage. "Kill!" Without hesitation, he shouted, raising his sword and charging down. The bandits behind him, shocked by the scene, gasped and shuddered, thinking, "How hateful!" Seeing their leader charge, they also raised their weapons and shouted as they ran, trying to dispel the psychological shadow cast by the gruesome scene.

"Hehe, Saborō, our guests seem eager. Let's give them some more entertainment," Masahiro said with a smile, watching the approaching bandits. "Yes, my lord," Saborō, who had been standing behind Masahiro, bowed and then turned to face Daisuke Tarō, slowly raising his katana. The white blade gleamed in the sunlight, while his small, trembling figure was filled with excitement. Yes, at this moment, Saborō was excited. He could finally avenge his father and brother, who had been killed by bandits. Since then, he had been living with his mother and sister, and without the lord's help, they might not have survived the winter.

"Ah?! No, no, please don't. Father, save me!" Daisuke Tarō, sensing what the young boy was about to do, pleaded desperately.

Feeling no other sounds except Daisuke Tarō's screams, Masahiro sighed inwardly. In fact, his original plan was to have a few ashigaru complete the task. But Saborō and Kizaburō, along with eight children, knelt before Masahiro, requesting to take on the task. Seeing these children, who had deep enmity with the bandits, Masahiro, moved by their sincerity, agreed. He consoled himself that these children were already becoming pillars of their families and needed some training.

"Ha!" Saborō shouted, his katana slicing down like lightning. "Father, brother, this is the first cut. There will be more. Rest in peace," he murmured. The sound of metal clashing rang out, followed by a scream that echoed across Mount Takayama. The blade had struck Daisuke Tarō's thigh bone and got stuck. After the first cut, Saborō fell to his knees, crying out to the sky.

"Ah? Tarō!" Daisuke Oishi, running at full speed, witnessed the tragedy and spat out a mouthful of blood. "Damn you, I will kill all of you." "Ah!" The bandits behind him also let out a roar, whether out of fear or anger. Soon, they were about to finish the few hundred steps of the path, and the 15 bandits had spread out into a line about 7 meters long, with Daisuke Oishi and four bandits in the lead.

"Ah, die!" Seeing they were about to leave the path, Daisuke Oishi imagined the man who had tortured his son now begging for mercy, and a cruel smile appeared on his face. Suddenly, he felt the ground give way, and a crack opened up. "Boom!" Daisuke Oishi and the four bandits behind him fell into the ground. The bandits behind them, seeing this, tried to stop, but due to inertia, three who had stopped at the edge of the pit were pushed in by their comrades. "Ah! Ah! Ah!" The pit was filled with screams.

"Kill!" At this moment, 21 ashigaru, under the command of Tsuda Masahide, quickly formed a formation opposite the pit. The ashigaru were arranged in three rows of seven, with the first row crouching and inserting the ends of their spears into the ground for support; the second row placing their spears on the shoulders of the first row, with the spearheads pointing forward; and the third row holding their spears at a 45-degree angle.

At the same time, dozens of long bamboo spears suddenly emerged from the bushes on both sides of the path, piercing the legs of the bandits. The bandits, already terrified by the sudden change, did not notice the attack and were instantly injured. Even more unexpected was the continuous shooting of arrows from both sides, which, although made of bamboo, caused many injuries at such close range. In a flash, Masahiro, who was far away, quickly drew his sword and rushed to the battlefield, covering 40 meters in an instant.

"Ah!" Suddenly, a long scream came from the pit in front of the ashigaru formation. A blood-covered "monster" with bamboo stakes in his eyes jumped out. "Ah!" The ashigaru were clearly startled by the "monster's" appearance. The "monster" shouted and swung his sword wildly, causing chaos in the ashigaru formation, who retreated in disarray. Despite Tsuda Masahide's stern commands, it was to no avail.

"Ah! It's Lord Oishi!" The bandits, who were being attacked and had lost their morale, recognized the "monster" as their leader and shouted. The bandits' cheers rose, and they regained their fighting spirit. "Lord, charge forward, kill them all, kill!"

"Move!" At this moment, a roar came from behind. Masahiro, who had just arrived, recognized the voice of his lord, and the ashigaru quickly moved aside. "Hai!" Masahiro shouted, not slowing down, leaped into the air, and swung his sword in a circular arc at Daisuke Oishi. Despite his blindness, Daisuke Oishi, relying on his combat instincts, sensed the danger and roared, gripping his sword with both hands and swinging it with all his might to meet Masahiro's blade.

"Clang!" A loud metallic clash rang out.

"Ah!" Daisuke Oishi screamed and was thrown back into the pit, but he still held onto his sword. "Hmph," Masahiro grunted, retreating several steps and falling to the ground, his hands bleeding from the impact.

"Quick, move!" Tsuda Masahide, the quickest to react, immediately shouted, organizing the ashigaru to form a new formation and block the path's exit.

Ignoring his injuries, Masahiro, after steadying his breath, stood up and looked into the pit. He saw Daisuke Oishi lying on his back in a corner, a bamboo stake protruding from his throat, blood gushing out. It was clear that Daisuke Oishi was dead. A once-promising bandit leader, who was about to become the chief of the bandit stronghold, had thus vanished from the annals of the Warring States period, returning to dust and earth.

(PS: New book release, third week. Clicks, collections, and recommendations welcome!)

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