Chapter 97

Today's second update, please recommend and collect!

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On the thirteenth day of the sixth month of the Tenshō era. The well-prepared family of Kukko raised the slogan of reclaiming the seized supplies, gathered over a dozen powerful families, and formed an army of nearly 2,000 men to formally declare war on the Sashiki family. The allied forces split into eastern and northern contingents, advancing towards the Sashiki family's main castle, Miyajima Castle. The eastern contingent, led by the Kukko family, consisted of fifteen powerful families with nearly 1,600 men; the northern contingent was formed by the Rōshi, Taku, and Chōkura families, totaling over 300 men.

As agreed, the battle began on the twelfth of June, with the northern contingent first attacking the Myōkō group, who were allied with the Sashiki family. The Myōkō group quietly withdrew without a direct confrontation, and their territory was divided among the northern contingent. During this process, an interesting rumor circulated about the Rōshi family's forces being ambushed by the Myōkō group hidden in the mountains. It was said that in a critical moment, the head of the Rōshi family personally took the field, taking over a dozen heads, causing the Myōkō group to collapse and flee. Taking over a dozen heads in one battle was a display of a fierce general, though it was an unconfirmed rumor, the Rōshi family and its head once again became the focus of attention among the powerful families.

Upon receiving the report from the Myōkō group who had fled to the Sashiki family's naval port, the Sashiki family immediately mobilized the entire domain and sought aid from friendly powerful families. Clearly, the Sashiki family had noticed the Kukko family's secret movements over the past half-month and had made some preparations. However, they were still shocked by the coalition of over a dozen powerful families, even the head of the Sashiki family wondered when he had offended so many powerful families at once.

On the afternoon of the fourteenth of June, the eastern contingent, which had encountered no resistance, and the northern contingent met at a pre-selected flat area five miles from the Sashiki family's main castle. Nearly 2,000 men surrounded the flat area, with various family banners fluttering in the wind. In the largest tent in the center of the flat area, over a dozen powerful families gathered.

"Ha ha ha," Kukko Daisuke, seated at the head of the table, spoke first, "Ladies and gentlemen, the Sashiki family unjustly seized our supplies and bullied the weak, making them the common enemy of the eastern part of Matsura. To protect your territories from invasion, our family has decided to punish the Sashiki family. Tomorrow, we will surely break into the Sashiki family's stronghold and take the head of Sashiki Sadamitsu..."

Seigorō sat quietly in an inconspicuous corner, listening to Kukko Daisuke's empty speech while coldly observing the other powerful families' performances. Among those present, besides Kukko Daisuke's young master, Kukko Masahiro, the old minister Ōishi Chisato, and the old acquaintances Chōkura Yoshitada and Taku Yoshinaga, no one else was familiar. Kukko Daisuke did not seem to plan to introduce everyone individually.

"Ladies and gentlemen, after we capture Miyajima Castle tomorrow, the supplies in the city will not be taken by our family, but will be distributed as war spoils to all families," Kukko Daisuke suddenly shouted loudly. The crowd, which had been continuously echoing, immediately fell silent, then erupted into even louder praise. At this moment, everyone was imagining the scene of obtaining war spoils. The Sashiki family was a powerful family in the eastern part of Matsura, on par with the Kukko family, and the supplies in their city were sure to be astonishingly rich.

"However, the supplies will be distributed according to the order in which each family enters the city. The first to enter the city will receive the most supplies," Kukko Daisuke, seeing the crowd's reaction, was very satisfied and shouted again.

"Wow," the tent immediately fell into chaos again, with each family rubbing their hands and secretly planning how to be the first to enter the city the next day.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please be quiet," Kukko Daisuke shouted, striking the wooden table with his sword. After the crowd quieted down, he continued, "The Sashiki family will not sit idly by. They will certainly seek support from their allies, so some of you will need to take on the task of blocking the Sashiki family's reinforcements."

The tent, which had been somewhat noisy, instantly fell silent. Who would be willing to give up the easily obtainable Miyajima Castle to take on a thankless task? If they were unlucky, they might really encounter a family determined to rescue the Sashiki family, resulting in heavy losses.

Seeing the completely silent tent, Kukko Daisuke was slightly embarrassed and paused before continuing to entice, "For those who take on the blocking task, our family will immediately provide 100 koku of rice and consider fulfilling one of your requests."

The tent remained silent. 100 koku of rice was not attractive compared to the supplies in the city, and the request was a mere formality. If the request was too high, the Kukko family might not agree, and if it was too low, it might not offset the losses from the blocking task. Therefore, no one was willing to speak up immediately.

Just as everyone was silent, Seigorō, sitting in the corner, suddenly spoke, "Lord Kukko, our family will take on this important task."

"Whoa," everyone turned to look at the source of the voice. Upon seeing it, they couldn't help but laugh inwardly. Who sent this little kid? He must be a fool to volunteer. They were worried for the head of his family, who would let a 17- or 18-year-old attend such an important meeting.

"Oh?" Kukko Daisuke, who was about to force some small powerful families to take on the task, was surprised. Someone had volunteered, and seeing his age, he became interested and asked, "Who are you?"

"Rōshi Seigorō," Seigorō replied with a slight bow.

"Whoa!" The crowd, who had been ready to watch the show, immediately widened their eyes and opened their mouths in an "O" shape. This was the head of the recently rising Rōshi family, the fierce general who had taken over a dozen heads in one battle? But he looked only a dozen years old. Was he a genius or a fool? In an instant, the crowd was filled with surprise, doubt, jealousy, and caution.

"Ha ha ha, so you are the head of the Rōshi family, known as the 'Eagle of the Eastern Matsura'," Kukko Daisuke laughed, seeing the crowd's reaction. "Indeed, heroes emerge from the young. Do you have any requests?"

"Actually, our family recently purchased a batch of supplies in Hakata, which need to be transported back via the Genkai Sea. We request that Lord Kukko ensure the safety of the journey," Seigorō replied.

"Whoa," the crowd, who had just recovered from Kukko Daisuke's laughter, fell into a state of shock again. If only a few people had doubted that the head of the Rōshi family was a fool earlier, now most people were certain he was. Taking on such a thankless task and then making such a trivial request, he must be a fool.

"Alright, the Kukko family will keep our promise, and please let everyone here be witnesses," Kukko Daisuke, ignoring the crowd's reaction, readily agreed to Seigorō's request.

Was Seigorō really a fool? Clearly not. First, the crowd underestimated the difficulty of the siege. Although the attacking force was six to seven times the defending force, the Sashiki family would fight to the death, and the attacking side would suffer significant losses even if they eventually captured the city. Second, everyone overlooked the movements of the Matsura family, the dominant force in the eastern part of Matsura. Seigorō suspected that the Matsura family had already lain in wait, ready to intervene. The outcome of this battle was still uncertain, as evidenced by the Kukko family's promise not to take any supplies after capturing the city, suggesting they had anticipated the Matsura family's intervention. Their focus was not on the Sashiki family's main city but on the Sashiki family's navy. Even if they captured the city, who knew how the various families would react? The allied forces might fight among themselves over the spoils. Finally, Seigorō had his own plans, and the blocking task provided a convenient opportunity.

After finally confirming that the Rōshi family and two other powerful families would take on the blocking task, the meeting was declared over, and each family returned to their tents to prepare for the siege the next day. The two small powerful families who shared the blocking task with the Rōshi family were forced to take on the task by the Kukko family. In times of chaos, the rule of the strong preying on the weak always applied.

Entering his tent, Seigorō slowly sat down in the main seat, turned his head to look at a dark corner, and asked, "Is everything arranged?"

From the darkness, a black-clad figure with a masked face emerged. Bowing to Seigorō, he said, "Lord, everything has been distributed. I also saw several small boats dispatched from the Sashiki family's naval port this afternoon, so they will likely confirm the Kukko family's secret plan to attack the navy soon." This person was the ninja Ichinowa, who had agreed to temporarily help Seigorō after recovering from his injuries.

Seigorō nodded and fell into deep thought. The Kukko family wants us to be cannon fodder, but I won't let you have your way.

......

In the evening, in the council hall of the Sashiki family's Miyajima Castle, a sound of broken porcelain was heard, followed by a roar, "Damn the Kukko family, they are indeed targeting our navy? Pass the order, the personnel recalled from the navy should immediately return to the navy."

"Not possible, Lord," the old minister Nobusuke immediately advised, "There are only about 300 men in the city, and even with the 100 men hiding outside the city, there are only 400 men. Before the peasant soldiers from other parts of the domain are gathered, our defensive strength is very weak. Moreover, if we send troops from the city, it will be easy for the enemy to ambush us."

"Hmm? What do you suggest we do?" Sashiki Sadamitsu looked at Nobusuke with dissatisfaction. The navy must not be lost, or the Sashiki family would be at the mercy of the Kukko family.

"Aren't there the Myōkō group who fled to the port? Let them board the warships and fight under the supervision of our navy," Nobusuke replied.

"Those Myōkō group who were beaten and fled? Can they be a match for the Kukko family?" Sashiki Sadamitsu had little confidence in the Myōkō group.

"Lord, they are pirates. On land, they may not be a match for ordinary powerful families, but on water, it's different. This is also an opportunity to weaken their strength and make them more obedient to our orders. Given our current situation, we have no other choice," Nobusuke answered.

"Ah! Alright, you will personally arrange this, and there must be no mistakes," Sashiki Sadamitsu thought for a moment and finally said helplessly.

"Yes, Lord," Nobusuke bowed and accepted the order.

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(PS: Two updates today, the word count of two updates is equivalent to three updates! Everyone, after reading, don't leave in a hurry, please recommend and collect! The number of collections is really low. Can today's recommendations be strong? Can today's collections increase? Just a click of your mouse can give the author great motivation. In less than a month and a half, 300,000 words have been released, which is already quite strong compared to many books. I request everyone to recommend and collect to comfort the author. The book group 218847013 is now open, only discussing the plot, no advertisements, welcome to join.)

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