Chapter 219: Nobuna's Second Bloom
The morning mist still clung to the damp earth north of Okehazama, swirling around the temporary encampment of the Saito clan. Two thousand soldiers from Mino Province occupied a gentle slope right at the border of Owari and Mikawa. Above their heads, heavy war banners snapped in the chilling wind, displaying the two-layered mountain crest of the Saito family—a jagged pattern that perfectly mimicked the winding, treacherous scales of a viper.
Inside the dim confines of the main camp tent, Saito Dosan sat in absolute silence. His breakfast rested on a low wooden tray before him.
A single bowl of watered-down porridge. Two thin slices of pickled radish.
It was an incredibly simple, ascetic meal. Though it might be hard for outsiders to believe, just as Hikaru knew, the terrifying Viper of Mino was a devout follower of Buddhism. In his early years, Dosan had wandered the lands as both an itinerant merchant and a traveling monk. He cared absolutely nothing for fine food, soft silks, or material comforts.
He cared only for power, and the status required to hold it.
The heavy tent flap rustled. A maidservant slipped inside, immediately dropping to one knee against the woven floor mats.
"Report." Her voice trembled slightly. "The Lady Strategist's shikisen was instantly severed by the enemy last night. The sudden backlash caused her to vomit blood. She has been stabilized and is out of danger, but..."
The maidservant swallowed hard, lowering her voice to a fearful whisper. "The Lady Strategist says the strength of that youkai within the Imagawa army far exceeds our most generous estimates., there is an extremely powerful miko accompanying it."
Dosan's wooden chopsticks, currently pinching a slice of pickled radish, stopped dead in mid-air.
"Instantly severed?"
"Yes. The Lady Strategist stated that the enemy miko did not even perform a formal ritual. She merely brushed her hand casually, and the divination thread shattered."
Dosan placed the pickled radish into his mouth. He chewed twice, the crunching sound echoing loudly in the quiet tent. His gaunt face remained entirely impassive, a mask of aged stone.
A long, suffocating moment passed.
"Anything else?"
The maidservant's head bowed even lower, her forehead nearly touching the mats. "According to the urgent reports from our spies who managed to infiltrate the Imagawa periphery, that miko is highly likely to be the famous one from Musashi Province."
"Kikyo."
Dosan set his chopsticks down on the wooden tray. The sharp, triangular corners of his eyes narrowed into dangerous slits, and the faint, habitual smirk resting at the corner of his mouth finally vanished completely.
The strongest miko of the Warring States period.
He knew of Kishin Hikaru. He knew of the master of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, the true god of Musashi and Sagami Provinces. Those terrifying rumors were already spreading like a wildfire along the entire Tokaido road. He also knew that this Kishin Hikaru had risen from Musashi Province and shared a deep, mysterious connection with that young but incredibly famous miko, Kikyo.
However, that girl was human. She was not a youkai, and she certainly was not a god.
No matter how deep their connection might be, it was logically difficult for them to travel and fight together constantly. Setting aside the natural, spiritual opposition of purity and impurity, a frail human constitution inherently could not keep up with the relentless, tireless pace of a youkai's movements.
It had always been this way in previous intelligence reports. Slaying the thunder, killing the oni—every piece of information regarding Kobe Hikaru always depicted him acting alone, a solitary force of slaughter.
But this time was different.
This time, Kikyo was standing right beside him.
An Oni Samurai rapidly approaching the legendary level of a Great Yokai, paired with the strongest miko of the Warring States period, all backed by the Imagawa main force of seven thousand seasoned troops.
Hanbei's shikisen could not even get close to their camp. The only trump card Dosan held in his hand capable of dealing with supernatural entities was now completely useless.
Dosan remained seated in silence for a long time. The morning wind outside the tent caught the heavy fabric flap, lifting it just enough to bring in the biting coolness of the morning dew.
He finally stood up, his armor clinking softly.
"Pass the order."
His voice was flat, revealing not a single ripple of emotion.
"Break camp. The entire army is to move immediately to the western entrance of Okehazama."
The maid looked up in sheer confusion. "My lord, the western entrance is exactly where the Imagawa..."
"Set up our formations right there, facing the direct path of the Imagawa Clan."
Dosan walked slowly to the tent entrance and lifted the heavy curtain himself. The pale morning light washed over his gaunt, lined face. His triangular eyes squinted into two thin, calculating slits under the rising sun.
"Send another messenger. Direct it to Imagawa Yoshimoto."
"What should be written in the letter, my lord?"
Dosan smiled. It was a smile exactly like a snake baring its fangs—cold, entirely sinister, yet strangely forthright.
"Just write this. Saito Dosan of Mino is willing to lead two thousand troops to defect to the Imagawa Clan, and will conquer Kiyosu Castle for them."
"There is only one request. Preserve the territory of Mino, and save the Saito Clan."
The maid knelt there, completely stunned.
Yesterday, this man had declared he came to Owari to help the Oda Clan fight off the Imagawa invasion. Today, he wanted to defect and surrender his entire force to the Imagawa Clan.
Capricious, treacherous, and utterly devoid of honor. But that was exactly why he was the Viper of Mino.
He only ever placed his bets on the side boasting the highest chance of winning. Yesterday, he gambled that Oda Nobuna could turn the tables using the overwhelming power of her divine artifact, so he sided with the Oda.
Today, Hanbei's shikigami divination was instantly shattered by the opponent, leaving them blind and unable to even perform basic reconnaissance. Combined with the terrifying news that Kikyo was present on the battlefield, the odds had violently reversed.
Dosan saw the board very clearly. Oda Nobuna truly possessed the terrifying power of the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven, and the divine artifacts wielded by Shibata Katsuie and her other generals were indeed formidable. If he could offer them crucial help in their darkest hour of need, the rewards would surely be immense.
However, he would never commit himself entirely to a sinking ship. He would always carve out a bloody way out for himself.
Now, it seemed his choice to pivot was the correct one.
The Imagawa Clan had Kishin Hikaru. They had Kikyo. They had a massive, well-supplied army of seven thousand.
And Hanbei, the peerless genius strategist he had spent three long years tracking down in the deep countryside of Mino, the only person in his ranks capable of magical reconnaissance and battlefield support, could not even fathom the opponent's true strength without vomiting blood.
His chips were gone.
Therefore, continuing to bet his life and his clan on the Oda was nothing short of suicide.
Saito Dosan turned his back on his allies faster than flipping a page in a book, but he did so with complete, unshakeable justification in his own mind. Because he never talked about loyalty with anyone.
He only talked about loyalty with the winner.
The formal letter of surrender was delivered to the Imagawa main camp exactly half an hour later.
After reading the elegant calligraphy on the parchment, Yoshimoto tapped her knee rhythmically with her closed folding fan.
"The Viper of Mino..."
She shifted her gaze toward the corner of the lavish tent. Hikaru sat there, quietly sipping a cup of green tea.
Hikaru completely ignored her stare. He kept his head lowered, his deadpan eyes focused entirely on grinding Banryu's favorability, methodically accelerating the progress needed for the Ten Changes completion. He ran a polishing cloth over the massive blade with practiced, rhythmic strokes.
[Banryu: favorability +1. Current favorability: 45.]
That same day.
Kiyosu Castle.
Bad news always traveled fast. When the dire reports of Saito Dosan defecting and surrendering to the Imagawa Clan finally reached Oda Nobuna, the atmosphere in the room plummeted to freezing.
The blonde girl was currently squatting unceremoniously on the wooden floor of the Tenshukaku. A massive map was spread out before her knees. It was not just a map of Owari Province, but a sprawling depiction of the entire known world.
Katsuie stood rigidly behind her lord. The deep, jagged crack on the side of her breastplate had been hastily patched with a new, unpolished iron plate, but the heavy gloom swimming in her amber eyes had not dissipated in the slightest.
Nagahide sat kneeling gracefully on the left side of the map, several pages of dense calculations still spread across her lap.
Toshiie squatted near the sliding doorway, hugging her knees tightly to her chest. Her large, anxious eyes blinked rapidly as she watched the heavy silence in the room.
Sakichi stood in the furthest, darkest corner of the room, her arms crossed tightly against the wooden wall, her face completely expressionless.
"My lord."
Katsuie's voice was terribly heavy, sounding as if her chest was being crushed by a boulder.
"Saito Dosan has betrayed us."
Nobuna did not look up from the floor.
The ink pen in her hand continued to draw circles on the map. Circle after circle, drawing further and further away from their current position. Drawing from Owari to Mino, from Mino to Omi, from Omi all the way to Kyoto.
"Saito Dosan has betrayed us, the Imagawa Clan is still marching on our doorstep, and we are now trapped and attacked from both sides."
Katsuie swallowed hard, forcing the tactical reality out of her throat. "The Imagawa Clan has seven thousand soldiers. Add Saito Dosan's two thousand, and that totals nine thousand frontline troops. With their logistics and supply personnel, their numbers are nearly thirty thousand. Our main fighting force is barely one thousand two hundred, and even counting our logistics, we only have two thousand five hundred. The sheer disparity in military strength has reached an irredeemable point."
She gripped her fists. "And that monster is still out there with them."
"My lord, this subordinate strongly suggests abandoning the castle immediately and retreating north into the deep mountains. At the very least, we can preserve our core strength and live to fight another day."
"We cannot retreat."
Nagahide's calm, analytical voice interjected the very second Katsuie finished speaking.
"To the north lies Mino. Saito Dosan has just defected to the Imagawa Clan, meaning the northern escape route is entirely cut off. To the east is the Imagawa main camp. To the south is the open sea. To the north..."
She turned a page of her notes, the paper rustling sharply.
"The various factions residing in the Kinai region to the north are currently watching and waiting like vultures. They will absolutely not accept or shelter a defeated, broken army."
"Retreating into the dense mountains of Ise to the west might allow us to survive for a short while, but our current provisions will only last us seven days at the absolute most."
"I know."
Nobuna cut her off sharply.
The ink pen stopped moving. She finally looked up, her piercing golden eyes fixed intensely on a very specific location on the map.
She wasn't looking at Owari. She wasn't looking at Mino.
And naturally, she wasn't looking at Kyoto, which was geographically close to her but effectively unreachable in their current state.
She was looking in the completely opposite direction.
The very end of the Tokaido road.
Yes. The Imagawa main camp. The home location of Suruga Province.
"Katsuie."
"Present."
"How many people did Imagawa Yoshimoto bring with her on this campaign?"
"Seven thousand in her main combat force. Plus logistics, supply lines, and auxiliary troops, she brought nearly twenty thousand..."
"Yes, twenty thousand!"
Nobuna's eyes were burning like a wild, untamed fire, startlingly bright in the dim room. "Then tell me, back in Suruga Province, how many garrison troops are actually left guarding her home right now?"
Katsuie was stunned.
She stared down at her lord, her amber pupils suddenly dilating as the sheer insanity of the implication hit her. "My lord... you don't mean to..."
Nagahide's slender fingers also stopped moving over her paper.
She did not speak a word. But her calculating gaze had already shifted from the location of Suruga Province on the map, dragging slowly down to the south, tracing the jagged coastline of Owari.
"Go by water."
Nagahide whispered those three words into the silence, instantly adding the logistical foundation to her lord's unspoken plan.
Nobuna grinned widely, baring her teeth as she used Nagahide's childhood name. "Manmi, as expected of you. You catch on fast."
Nagahide did not smile or respond to the praise. She simply lowered her head, her fingers moving in a blur as she quickly wrote down a series of numbers on the fresh paper.
"We depart from the south coast of Owari, traveling east along the inland sea. Requisitioning enough local fishing boats will take about two hours. Forming the fleet and loading the men will take another half hour. We travel strictly by night and hide the ships by day along the jagged coast. If the winds favor us, within three days, we can reach Shimizu Port directly in Suruga Bay."
She looked up, her eyes meeting Nobuna's.
"One thousand two hundred people loaded onto the boats. We leave a very small portion of people here at Kiyosu Castle to put on a grand show of force and deceive their scouts. It is logistically feasible."
"Our provisions will last exactly seven days. The sea route takes three days. The siege on her mansion will take at most four days. It will be just enough."
"There is absolutely no margin for error. If we fail to take the mansion, we starve to death on their shores."
A desperate, suicidal gamble.
This was the true definition of burning the bridges and staking everything on a single, mad throw of the dice.
Toshiie huddled tighter at the door, her face flushing as she muttered softly to herself. "So... so exciting..."
Katsuie gritted her teeth so hard her jaw ached. Her amber eyes darted around the room twice, processing the sheer lunacy of the strategy, before she finally pressed her heavy hand onto the wrapped handle of her great axe.
"My lord..."
"It is decided!"
Nobuna shot up to her feet. Her long, brilliant golden hair swung wildly with the sudden movement, scattering like liquid sunlight over her armored shoulders. She threw the vermilion brush down onto the map, the wet tip landing exactly on the territory of Suruga Province, leaving a blood-red stain.
"Since we cannot possibly win a head-on battle, then we simply won't fight them head-on."
"Imagawa Yoshimoto is coming to Owari to take my head. Fine. I am going to Suruga to take hers."
"We take the water route. Depart from the south coast of Owari, travel east along the inland sea, and strike like lightning directly at the port in Suruga."
"We will take the main castle of Suruga, the Imagawa Mansion, and wipe her entire foundation out in one single, decisive blow."
"Once her nest is burned to ashes, her massive army here will be like duckweed floating without roots. Their supply lines will be permanently cut, and their safe retreat will be gone."
"When that time comes, it will be her turn to fall apart in panic."
Katsuie opened her mouth to protest, then slowly closed it.
This plan was completely crazy.
But it was not without solid tactical reason.
Imagawa Yoshimoto did indeed bring her entire main force out for this grand march to the capital. Only the old, the weak, and the bureaucratic officials remained behind in Suruga Province.
Although the Oda Clan had pitifully few soldiers, a rapid, water-borne raid directly on the enemy's undefended rear was precisely the kind of warfare that could be executed with few soldiers.
Few people, few ships, a tiny radar footprint, and blistering speed.
One thousand two hundred desperate warriors crammed onto dozens of requisitioned fishing boats, traveling under the cover of night and hiding by day along the coastline. Theoretically, they could absolutely reach Suruga Bay within three days.
As long as Imagawa Yoshimoto's vast intelligence network did not extend its eyes over the open sea, they would never be discovered until it was far too late.
Nagahide closed her stack of papers, her voice remaining perfectly level and low.
"I will stay behind to guard Kiyosu Castle. Fifty people are more than enough. I will keep the clan flags flying and the bonfires burning high every night. I will have Sakichi arrange a few groups of people to constantly rotate and change clothes while walking patrols on the castle walls. From the outside looking in, the enemy scouts will find it impossible to tell what is real and what is false."
Sakichi, a highly capable official under Nobuna, nodded from the shadows.
"The Imagawa Clan's scouts are entirely focused on the land routes. They have no presence on the sea. This route is viable."
Toshiie finally stood up, her armor clattering as she quickly brushed the dust off her knees.
"Th-then, I shall go with you, My Lord! I'll smash their gates!"
Katsuie glanced sideways at Toshiie, then looked back at Nagahide.
Nagahide returned her intense gaze calmly.
No words were needed between the veterans. The silent intent to support this madness was unmistakable in the room.
'Insane...' Katsuie muttered under her breath.
But her calloused hand was already resting firmly on the handle of her great axe, her knuckles white. The heavy haze of despair in her amber eyes had completely dissipated, replaced by a burning, violent intensity.
Since the day she swore to follow Oda Nobuna, she had long grown accustomed to this specific brand of madness.
"When do we depart?"
Nobuna grabbed the edges of the massive map, rolled it tightly into a tube, and tucked it securely into her robe. "Kiyosu Castle will be left entirely to Manmi."
"Everyone else, you come with me."
"Before we leave this castle, I want you to requisition absolutely everything in the city that can float. Fishing boats, cargo ships, wooden rafts, anything will do. Empty the docks."
"In three days, I will stand on the soil of Suruga."
She strode forward and pushed open the heavy wooden shutters of the Tenshukaku.
Brilliant morning light flooded into the room, illuminating her excessively delicate, fierce face. Her golden hair seemed to ignite in the sunlight, framing her like a goddess of war.
She gazed toward the distant east, speaking with absolute, unshakeable conviction.
"Imagawa Yoshimoto wants to march on the capital, and she wants to clear me from her rear while doing so."
"Then let her go."
"When she finally turns back around, she will find that behind her, there is still me. The Oda!"
Nagahide remained kneeling on the floor mats, silently watching the radiant golden silhouette as if her lord were about to vanish entirely into the blinding light from the window.
She slowly lowered her head and turned to a fresh, blank page in her notes.
She raised her ink brush.
With precise, elegant strokes, she wrote down four characters to name the operation.
"Creating a diversion."
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