Chapter 8 Honganji Warfare

This is the hall of Honganji Temple. Those in the gathering hall, headed by Mitsusa (appearing as the master) and his son Mitsushou (teaching as the master), including Shimoma Izumi who came secretly from Echizen, have now fled to China (central Honshu, Japan) to seek refuge with Mori More than a dozen people, including Ashikaga Yoshiaki's secret envoy Shichiri Yorishu and Fuzoin, Suzuki Sonichi from Kii Zaga, Nakagawa Yoshiren, a remnant of the Asakura family, and important ministers of Hongoji Temple, have been talking here for nearly 25 minutes up. After the destruction of the Nagashima Honganji Temple in Ise, news of Takeda Katsuyori's defeat in Mikawa came, forcing them to think long-term, so the meeting time became more and more lengthy.

Those present agreed that since Takeda Katsuyori had been defeated, Nobunaga's next target must be Ishiyama Honganji Temple. Thankfully, Mori Terumoto agreed to help Honganji.However, even so, they still have no certainty of victory.Because the Oda Gunsada is bound to come out in full force, heading straight for Osaka.In their thinking, Nobunaga might adopt a blockade strategy and order the army to surround Honganji Temple and cut off external traffic. In this way, wouldn't everything be over? "It seems that Honganji Temple is facing a life-and-death situation." Guang Zuo said in a dignified tone, causing all the people present to sit up straight.Everyone racked their brains to find a "way to survive"; however, they were at a loss.

Is this how you surrender to Nobunaga? Or put all your eggs in one basket and take a risky move? "If you just succumb like this, you really feel ashamed of the disciples of Long Island!" Finally, everyone's opinion has been unanimous.But how can we grasp the "odds"?Thinking of this, a sense of despair and sorrow rose again in everyone's hearts. "I think we should listen to the opinion of my protagonist, Mr. Fang!" Lai Zhou took the lead to break the silence: "This is an extraordinary event, and it should be dealt with by unusual means, which is the best strategy! Besides, we must win this war no matter what."

"Of course we understand this matter. The question is, will Mr. Uesugi agree to join forces with his old enemy Takeda Seki against Nobunaga?" Xia Jianhequan raised the question in his heart. "That's why we sent envoys to Koshu to persuade Katsuyori to bow his head to Uesugi Kenshin and ask for his help! Kenshin is a swordsman and a swordsman, so he will definitely not refuse... No! If it's just one Katsuyori If people beg him, the matter may not be able to be completed satisfactorily; but if the Mori family, Honganji Temple and Mr. Kokata also say so, the result will naturally be different!"

"That being said, please don't forget that Kenshin is the enemy of Kaga and Noto!..." "As long as Uesugi can join our ranks, Oda Seki is nothing to be afraid of. In today's world, only Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin have the power to suppress Oda Seki... Shingen is dead, and his son Katsuyori Defeated by Nobunaga... who else can we rely on now besides Kenshin?" After Lai Zhou finished speaking, Zhong Heyi continued to say: "Now is not the time to discuss, let's find out the other party's tone before we talk!" "That makes sense..."

"That's good. As soon as the alliance of Uesugi, Mori, Ashikaga, and Honganji is established, we will immediately return to Echizen and prepare to fight the Oda Army with all our strength! Mr. Suzuki, are you willing to fight side by side with us?" "Of course! Of course I would!" Suzuki Sun replied repeatedly. "Echizen, Kashi, and Kishu sent troops together, and the Maori power came from China. Kenshin Uesugi and the Takeda clan teamed up with Nishigami, and Honganji fought desperately in Osaka... In this way, Matsunaga Hideo, who has all the forces in Sakai, will also Automatically join our side. As long as Uesugi and Mori can successfully form an alliance, all problems can be solved.”

"Okay, let's do it! There's really nothing else we can do!" "Whether there is any other way or not, for the current plan, we must do our best to make this matter come to a successful conclusion. Only by forming an alliance with Uesugi, can we protect ourselves... Everyone must understand this. " However, everyone has their own ghosts in their hearts. Lai Zhou only wanted to help Ashikaga Yoshiaki regain his status as a general and return to the capital again; Mori Terumoto tried to replace this incompetent general and own the world. They believe that both Takeda Katsuyori and Uesugi Kenshin have the ambition to win the world, so they are convinced that they will be able to form an alliance.Once all the troops are gathered, Matsunaga Hideo, who is guarding Hiyori, will definitely betray Nobunaga again and join their camp.

The purpose of Honganji Temple is simply to protect one's own beliefs.Now, they and Nobunaga are irreconcilable, and there is no way to compromise.Therefore, they had no choice but to follow Lai Zhou's suggestion and try their best to get Kenshin to join in order to deal with Nobunaga together.Now that you have decided, you have to go all out to achieve your goal as soon as possible, otherwise... "I see!" Shimoma Izumi looked back at Mitsuzuo and his son, and said, "As soon as the alliance is established, I will return to Echizen immediately to prepare for dispatching troops. The most important thing now is how to disperse the forces of Oda Seki? In my opinion, Ishiyama should also Keep your troops as low as possible."

"You're right!" "Mr. Suzuki, you should also return to Kishu as soon as possible, gather Zaga's soldiers, and prepare to send troops!" "I know!" "In addition, others must try to distract Nobunaga's attention so that Mourise has enough time to persuade Uesugi to join us. No matter what method is used, we must complete this matter." By the time the secret meeting ended, the east had already paled.After drinking a bowl of porridge, the generals took advantage of the sky before full light to take a small boat down the Yodo River from the northern bank and set off on their own way home.

For Honganji Temple, this is an important meeting that concerns the survival of the temple.However, it is a bit ironic to make Uesugi and Takeda Seki, who have been at war for nearly two decades, live in harmony and work together for Honganji Temple!To put it more clearly, in today's Japan, the generals who can independently fight against Nobunaga are not second-guessed except Uesugi Kenshin.But, can Kenshin really respond to Maori's call and cover Katsuyori's trip to Shangluo? Regardless of success or failure, Shimoma Izumi decided to direct Nobunaga's attention to the north, so he came to Echizen secretly.As for Suzuki Sunichi, he also set off towards Kishu, preparing to mobilize local forces to fight against Nobunaga.

The envoy sent to ask Takeda Katsuyori to see Takeda Katsuyori was served by Odate Military Ministry Shaosuke, and the envoy responsible for asking Kenshin for help on Katsuyori's behalf was served by Yamato Awaji Mamoru.However, first, Takeda Nobutoyo must explain the matter to Katsuyori himself. In addition, Sengfu Zangin, who was originally the envoy of Yoshiaki, secretly went to see Kenshin, and Qili Laizhou went to Kaga to ask his disciple Suzaki Keisei; they planned to ask Kenshin for help from Suzaki. On the other hand, the deployment of Honganji Temple has come to an end, and the irony is getting stronger. After the death of Takeda Shingen, his son Katsuyori suffered another tragic defeat, which caused the reputation of Uesugi Kenshin to skyrocket... Under such circumstances, after Nobunaga's triumphant return, he hurried back to the capital before he had time to stop in Gifu. On June 13th, Uesugi Kenshin specially sent envoys to congratulate this victory, but never mentioned the next battle. When Takeda Shingen was alive, Kenshin and Nobunaga had formed an alliance against the Takeda family, so it was only natural to send envoys to congratulate the victory of the Nagashino battle this time. The envoy sent by Kenshin is Nobunaga's old acquaintance Yamazaki Senryasai. Nobunaga solemnly welcomed Sakuyanagi to the Nijo mansion, prepared good food and wine to entertain him, and then said in a tentative tone: "How about it? Mr. Uesugi can take this opportunity to capture Konobu in one fell swoop! After all, today's Katsuyani, the combat power is less than one-fifth of what it used to be..." As soon as the words were finished, Zhuan Liusai immediately raised his wine glass, looked at Nobunaga and said, "We have discussed this matter before, but after considering all the facts, we found that there is no hope at all..." "Oh? Why? Last year (March of the second year of Tensho), I sent Shibata Katsuya and Inaba Katie from the Kanto army to visit your master. Mr. Uesugi personally agreed, as long as I send troops from the west to attack Katsuyori , he will surely respond to us from the east.” "However, things have changed." "Things have changed...well! There has been a change, we have cut off Katsuyori's hands and feet." "That's not what I'm talking about." Zhuan Liuzhai quickly shook his hand, looking embarrassed. "As you know, my master once swore not to invade others for life. Every time the severe winter came, he would go up the mountain to pay homage to Bishamondo, and live a life like a holy monk. He didn't go down the mountain again until spring came." "I understand this matter!" "He thinks he is the incarnation of Bishamonten, and he took up the sword and gun in order to eliminate the injustice in the world. It is because he is fighting for justice, so until now, he has never tasted defeat." "Well! It's true—" "When Shingen was alive, he had fought with him dozens of times; now that Shingen is dead, of course he can't take the opportunity to bully the opponent's weaklings. In my master's opinion, taking advantage of the fire to rob is the most inadvisable behavior." "Well, indeed, Mr. Uesugi is the most popular..." Nobunaga patted his knee and said with emotion.However, he had a different idea in his heart. As far as Nobunaga knows, Kenshin's heart is indeed very holy, and his life is as simple as a holy monk.What's even more rare is that even though he is majestic on the battlefield, he is full of arrogance and chivalry. (However, these alone are not enough to calm the troubled times!  …) Since the messenger made it so clear, Nobunaga has nothing to do.No!In fact, from the beginning of the conversation with the messenger, Nobunaga did not expect that the other party would agree to assist him. He just wanted to understand the movement of Qianxin who lived in seclusion behind the scenes from the expression of the messenger, and what forces are currently active in the local area... "So, since Katsuyori's father died, Bishamonten should follow the will of God? Isn't it? Mr. Suyanagi-sai...... This kind of argument is not unreasonable! Since Shingen is dead, of course Mr. Uesugi will not Katsurai's enemy again." Zhuan Liuzhai was even more embarrassed: "No! I don't know much about this..." "That's the truth! According to Mr. Uesugi's style, as long as the other party bows his head first, he will definitely let the past go, and he is not allowed to bring up old grievances. However, I think that besides Katsuyori, there must be more ambitious people with malicious intentions. Bishamonten, right?" "That's right! That's exactly what happened." "Sure enough! I guess Yoshiaki, who has gone far away, must be crying to the Chinese Maori about my evil deeds, and Honganji, Katsuyori, and Hojo in Kinki are also trying their best to win over Bishamonten, right? Things are as expected, But I believe Mr. Uesugi will never be swayed by interests. Ha, ha, ha." The terrified Zhuan Liuzhai drank the wine in the glass in one gulp, and said in a trembling voice: "Thank you for your hospitality, I want to say goodbye." "Okay! Please give my regards to Mr. Uesugi." After Tsunyusai got up, Nobunaga called Morinaga Ke loudly. "Long Ke! Bring in the messenger of Asakura Jingjing."