Great name!

Chapter 306: Alliance against the Tsuda Family

I will continue writing next month, and will slowly finish the ending, but it shouldn’t be much longer.

Oda Nobutada announced the three most important institutions, and the rest were details that only needed to be discussed by the Council and then submitted to the Yorinban, who would give it to Oda Nobutada, who would discuss with the Council and then make a decision.

After telling this story, Oda Nobutada said: "Akechi Mitsuhide rebelled and killed his father. His crime is unforgivable. All his family members, regardless of gender, age or status, will be executed!
The same goes for the military commanders who conspired with Akechi. I will use their bloody heads to pay tribute to my father!"

Oda Nobutada had a ferocious expression on his face and said these words with gritted teeth.

Once this order is issued, at least thousands of people will be slaughtered, and Kasuga Tsubone, the wet nurse of the third shogun of the Tokugawa family, will also be executed along with her father!
No one had any objection to this order.

Oda Nobutada vented his anger, and as he had not yet recovered, he felt a little exhausted.

He looked at Tsuda Shintora and said, "Father-in-law, you tell us what to do next."

Tsuda Nobutora nodded and looked at the others: "Now let's talk about the Kanto incident. Hojo Ujimasa took advantage of the internal strife of his family to send troops to seize Ueno. This is unforgivable and must be punished!"

He looked at Tokugawa Ieyasu and said, "Mikawa-no-kami, when you return to the Tokugawa family, prepare the troops, money and food."

"what!"

Tokugawa Ieyasu responded with a respectful salute.

When he saw the civil strife in Kyoto, he was frightened at first, but then he thought, Tsuda Nobutora and Oda Nobutada were also in Kyoto. If they both died in Kyoto, then Tokugawa Ieyasu could establish himself!
However, before he left Kyoto too far, he learned that the rebellion was over, and Tsuda Shingen turned the tide and defeated the rebel Akechi Mitsuhide.

All the previous thoughts disappeared immediately, and now he would be a good vassal of the Oda family.

Facing Tsuda Shinto, he had no intention of resisting at all. Whenever he thought of the time when Tsuda Shinto chased him closely, he would have nightmares.

If I want to be a shogunate retainer, I will be a shogunate retainer. Moreover, I, Tokugawa Ieyasu, will also be a staunch member of the Tsuda faction!

Niwa Nagahide asked, "Then will you, Jibu-dono, still be the general commander in the expedition against the Hojo clan?"

Tsuda Shintora shook his head and said, "Does a mere Hojo Ujimasa need my help? The shogunate has just begun, and I want to stay in Kyoto to assist the shogun in handling the affairs of the shogunate.

As for who will be the general in the campaign against the Hojo clan, we all need to discuss this together today.

At present, Chikuzen is in Sanyodo, Nobutatsu is in Sanyindao, Lord Shibata is in Hokuriku, and Lord Niwa will continue to conquer Shikoku, and Lord Nagahide and Lord Nobuo will assist you together.

As for the candidate for the general commander of the Kanto Army, we will choose from among Lord Ikeda, Lord Mori, and Lord Kawajiri. What do you think, General?"

Oda Nobutada glanced at Nobutora and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He had originally suspected that his father-in-law would seize power, just like the Minamoto shogunate, where the power of the Minamoto family was usurped by the Hojo family, their in-laws.

But now it seems that my father-in-law deliberately avoided the affairs of Kanto, and even Nagatobu was sent to work under Niwa Nagahide, so any previous doubts can be dispelled.

He then asked, "Who do you think is more suitable, father-in-law?"

Nobutora pretended to think, but in fact he already had a candidate in mind, that was Mori Yoshinari. Mori Yoshinari had a good relationship with him, while Ikeda Terumasa and Kawajiri Hidetaka had an average relationship with him.

When Nobunaga was alive, these two people were instructed by Nobunaga not to deal much with Nobutora, and Kawajiri Hidetaka even had the task of supervising him in Mino.

Now that Nobunaga is dead, although Ikeda Terumasa and Kawajiri Hidetaka are still trusted by Oda Nobutada, they are not as trusted as they were during Nobunaga's time.

Without Nobunaga's support, Nobutora was not afraid of them at all.

So he directly mentioned Mori Kosei. Even if Ikeda Terumasa and the others were dissatisfied, they had to keep it to themselves!

Because the person who could suppress Nobutora is already dead!

“I think Lord Mori can do it, and with Lord Ikeda as the deputy general, Lord Sakai as the vanguard, Lord Kawajiri, Lord Tokugawa and others, we can suppress the Hojo family together.

In addition, Masayuki Sanada of Northern Shinano is a talented person. When I fought with Katsuyori Takeda three times, this guy once planned to deal with me. Although he was a little immature, he was not bad.

When Lord Sakai arrives, you can have him come to your tent and serve you."

Oda Nobutada had no objection to Nobutora's arrangement, he nodded and said, "Well, let's do it.

What happened to the Hojo family is unforgivable. I will not accept the Hojo family's surrender. Please don't let me down."

Mori Kecheng quickly saluted and said, "General, rest assured, I will definitely destroy the Hojo family!"

Mori Yoshinari led his troops into battle, with troops from the five provinces of Mino, Owari, Hida, Shinano, and Kai, plus the Tokugawa family, for a total of 50,000 troops.

When Hojo Ujimasa learned the news, he immediately ordered the Hojo family to prepare for war. At the same time, he sent envoys to contact Uesugi Kagekatsu in Echigo in an attempt to form an alliance.

Hojo Ujimasa wanted to attack the Oda army from the south and the north.

But the problem is that Uesugi Kagekatsu was somewhat hesitant about forming an alliance with the Hojo family.

After all, the Oda family is too strong.

Naoesuke Kanetsugu was the person Uesugi Kagekatsu trusted the most. He immediately suggested that Uesugi Kagekatsu reject the Hojo family's alliance proposal. He felt that the Uesugi family should immediately join forces with the Oda family in order to preserve Echigo.

Naoe Kanetsugu said, "Master, Echigo is the only one left for the Uesugi family. If we lose Echigo again, how can we be worthy of the death of Lord Kenshin?"

As soon as Uesugi Kagekatsu thought of his adoptive father Uesugi Kenshin, he made up his mind. He decisively sent envoys to the Oda family to request surrender.

When the news reached Kyoto, Nobutora told Oda Nobutada about Uesugi Kagekatsu: "Uesugi Kagekatsu is just a dog guarding the house, there is no need to worry about him. Since he wants to surrender, it is a good thing. It is just right that he can send troops to Ueno.

Moreover, by following the example of Uesugi Kagekatsu, our army can subdue other peoples and divide the power of the Hojo family."

According to Tsuda Nobutora's strategy, the Uesugi family surrendered to the Oda shogunate, and then Uesugi Kagekatsu sent troops to attack Ueno, and cooperated with the Oda army to attack the Hojo army in Ueno.

At this time, the Satake clan in Hitachi, Kanto, and the Satomi clan in the Boso region sent envoys to visit the Oda army's commander, Mori Yoshinari, while sending troops to attack the Hojo clan's territory.

When Hojo Ujimasa saw that he was attacked from both sides, he had to withdraw his troops for defense.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the Hojo family was at a disadvantage.

However, the lords in the Mutsu region are still waiting to see whether the Oda family can destroy the Hojo family, the overlord of Kanto.

……

At the front line of Takamatsu Castle, Hashiba Hideyoshi was looking at the letter sent from Kyoto with a frown. Hashiba Nagahide, Hosuka Koroku and others were all staring at Hashiba Hideyoshi with a frown.

In the end, it was Hashiba Nagahide who asked first: "Brother, what is the news from Kyoto?"

Hashiba Hideyoshi threw the letter to Nagahide, and said with a hint of reluctance in his tone: "I became a seat in the Council, but the retired Jibu-dono is the chief!"

Upon hearing this, Hashiba Nagahide immediately picked it up to check. He also looked depressed and said, "There's nothing we can do. This time when Akechi Mitsuhide rebelled, it was Jibu-dono who saved the situation. If the head of the family died, the consequences would be unimaginable." Unimaginable?

Hashiba Hideyoshi disagreed. If the head of the family died and Tsuda Nobutora also died in the war, he, Hashiba Hideyoshi, would have the opportunity to take power!
He thought of the scene after Oda Nobunaga, Oda Nobutada and Tsuda Nobutora all died. How long could Akechi Mitsuhide live? Tsuda Naganobu would definitely fight to the death to kill Akechi Mitsuhide to avenge himself.

As for the remaining people, Niwa Nagahide has no ambition, Shibata Katsuie is just a reckless man, Oda Nobunaga purely relies on Tsuda Nobutora, and as for Mori Kanari, Sakai Masanari and others, they can be completely suppressed in the name of the young master's three magic masters!
His only opponent is Tsuda Naganobu, because he is Sanposhi's uncle and very powerful. In addition, although Oda Nobunaga is average, he will definitely support Tsuda Naganobu!

Even so, Hashiba Hideyoshi felt that he could at least be on par with Tsuda Naganobu.

But the problem now is that Tsuda Nobutora is not dead!

Hashiba Hideyoshi snorted and said, "Never mind all that, Nagahide, you should immediately arrange for someone to send gifts to Lord Shibata and Lord Nobuo and have a good talk with them."

……

Hokuriku, northern village.

Sakuma Masamisa was very dissatisfied and said, "Didn't Tsuda Nobutora retire? How come he is the head of the council? Logically, it should be your uncle!"

After Tsuda Nobutora retired, Shibata Katsuie became the most important retainer of the Oda family. As for Tsuda Naganobu, who succeeded Nobutora as the head of the family, his status was naturally not as high as Shibata Katsuie's.

So what Sakuma Masamisa said was not wrong. Logically, the chief position should have belonged to Shibata Katsuie, but unexpectedly, Tsuda Nobutora showed up again.

Furthermore, Sakuma Morimasa was the son of Sakuma Moritsugu, and Sakuma Moritsugu was the younger brother of Sakuma Nobumori.

In his opinion, his uncle Sakuma Nobumori was exiled because of Tsuda Nobutora, so he had some hatred towards Nobutora.

Of course, Sakuma Masamisa was no small character either. He was known for his courage and bravery. Because his official position was Genban Yun, everyone called him Oni Genban.

Although Sakuma Masamisa was a powerful general among the younger generation, Tsuda Nobutora was, after all, the most important minister and a famous general who was always victorious. A man like him was naturally no match for Nobutora.

Shibata Katsuie frowned and said, "This is Echizen. You can ignore Tsuda Jibu's prestige, but when you return to Kyoto, you have to be careful!"

Sakuma Masamisa shook his head and said, "If you can avoid going to Kyoto, then don't go. It's better to stay in Echizen and feel comfortable."

“You, you…”

Shibata Katsuie nodded lovingly. He liked his nephew very much. He looked very much like him.

The next second, a samurai came to report: "Report, Chikuzen-no-kami sent an envoy to pay a visit!"

"monkey?"

Shibata Katsuie snorted. Because of Aichi, his relationship with Hashiba Hideyoshi was not good.

At this time, Hashiba Hideyoshi sent someone to visit him, probably because of the Council matter.

He said, "Bring it to me."

After a while, Hashiba Nagahide was brought before Shibata Katsuie.

After some pleasantries, Hashiba Nagashide got to the point.

"Lord Shibata, you should know about what happened in Kyoto. My brother sent me here in the hope of forming an alliance with you."

"An alliance?"

Shibata Katsuie snorted.

"After the alliance, who will listen to whom, me or him? Will the monkey listen to me?"

Hashiba Nagahide replied: "Brother formed an alliance with you to deal with Tsuda Jibu. We all have a common enemy. As long as we can deal with Tsuda Jibu, it doesn't matter who obeys whom."

Shibata Katsuie snorted, "Even with the monkey alone, I'm afraid we are no match for Tsuda Osamu. As for the other people on the council, Mori Kanenari has a good relationship with Tsuda Osamu, and Niwa Nagahide is the most opportunistic.

As for Ikeda and Xinbao, I'm afraid they won't be enemies with Tsuda Jibu. How can I and Monkey suppress Tsuda Jibu?"

Hashiba Nagahide smiled and said, "That's not a problem. In addition to Lord Mori Kansei, Lord Niwa, Lord Ikeda, and Lord Shinbao can all be won over."

Shibata Katsuie was just making things difficult out of habit, but seeing that the other party was so persistent, he had no choice but to go along with it. After all, he didn't want to be suppressed by Tsuda Shinto for the rest of his life.

"Well, I understand what the monkey means. We can discuss it again if there is anything in the future."

Hashiba Nagahide bowed and left.

The purpose of winning over Shibata Katsuie was to deal with the affairs of the Council, while the purpose of winning over Oda Nobuo was to deal with the affairs of the Senate.

After all, Tsuda Nobutora and his younger brother Oda Nobutora were the heads of the Senate, and the Senate consulted with Oda Nobutada to decide the affairs of the Council.

As the chief of the Senate, Oda Nobutada could also influence Oda Nobutada's decisions.

Since Oda Nobutora is the younger brother of Tsuda Nobutora, he will definitely favor Tsuda Nobutora and continue to influence Oda Nobutada.

Therefore, Hashiba Hideyoshi not only had to win over the people in the Council, but also the people in the Senate.

Oda Nobuo already had a grudge against the Tsuda family, and Tsuda Shingen saved Oda Nobutada, which was like a bolt from the blue for Oda Nobuo.

You know, since Oda Nobutada is dead, doesn't that mean Oda Nobuo has the chance to become the head of the Oda family?
As a result, Oda Nobutada did not die!

Oda Nobuo's dream was shattered, and he became even more resentful towards the Tsuda family.

Oda Nobuo was naturally happy when Hashiba Hideyoshi came to make friends with him.

Although there were already signs of internal strife within the Oda family, this did not affect the Oda family's efforts to pacify external forces.

The Mori clan was defeated in Sanin and Sanyo, and the Chosokabe clan in Shikoku was also beaten badly by the Oda army. Even worse was the Hojo clan. Now Hojo Ujimasa has withdrawn the Hojo clan's forces to the core area and will further retreat to Odawara Castle.

After seeing the defeat on the front line, Tsuda Nobutora suggested to Oda Nobutada that he personally lead an expedition against the Hojo clan and take advantage of the situation to subdue the lords in various parts of the northeast.

Oda Nobutada's physical condition was much better than before. He followed the advice of Tsuda Nobutora, assembled 30,000 troops in the capital, and marched towards Kanto with heavy weapons such as artillery.

With the Oda clan's reinforcements, Hojo Ujimasa had no choice but to retreat to Odawara Castle. He hoped that Odawara Castle could withstand the Oda clan's attacks as he had before.

However, Oda Nobutada brought in dozens of cannons and bombarded Odawara Castle, and the morale of the Hojo family collapsed visibly.

The defeat of the Hojo family was imminent.

(End of this chapter)