The Trusted Confidant (2007–…): Season 1, Episode 26 - Nigai shôri - full transcript
UEHARA CASTLE, SUWA
Kansuke, the Kasahara at
Shiga Castle have risen.
Kasahara Kiyoshige?
The lord has ordered us to go
to battle with the Suwa soldiers.
In July of 1547...
Kasahara Kiyoshige, the lord of
Shiga Castle in Saku-gun, Shinano,
challenged the Takeda.
He was rising with Uesugi
Norimasa from Joshu.
When we depart for battle,
the Uesugi's main army will invade.
The Takeda will be cornered.
What is the lord plotting?
"Swift as the wind"
"Silent as the forest"
"Conquer like the fire"
"Unmovable as the mountain"
{\fs40}FURIN KAZAN
Episode 26:
A PAINFUL VICTORY
Original Story by:
INOUE Yasushi
Screenplay by:
OMORI Sumio
Music by:
SENJU Akira
Theme Music Performed by: NHK Symphony Orchestra
Theme Music Conductor: TAKASEKI Ken
Performed by: The Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra
Title Letters by: KAKINUMA Koji
Narrator: KAGAMI Sachiko
Period Consultant: SHIBATSUJI Shunroku
Customs Consultant: FUTAKI Kenichi
Architecture Consultant: HIRAI Kiyoshi
Wardrobe Consultant: KOIZUMI Kiyoko
Sword Fighting/Martial Arts Coach: HAYASHI Kunishiro
Conduct Coach: NISHIKAWA Minosuke
Horse-Riding Coaches: TANAKA Mitsunori, TSUJII Keiji
Imperial Palace Dialect Coach: HORII Reiichi
Kyoto Dialect Coach: INOUE Yukiko
Yamanashi Dialect Coach: KASAI Kazuhiko
Cast
YAMAMOTO Kansuke:
UCHINO Masaaki
TAKEDA Harunobu:
ICHIKAWA Kamejiro
NAGAO Kagetora:
Gackt
Lady SANJO:
IKEWAKI Chizuru
OBU Toramasa:
KANEDA Akio
OYAMADA Nobuari:
TANABE Seiichi
BABA Nobuharu:
TAKAHASHI Kazuya
TAKEDA Nobushige: KASHIMA Noritoshi
KOMAI Masatake: TAKAHASHI Issei
KAWARAMURA Denbei: ARIZONO Yoshiki
KUZUKASA Takichi: ARIMA Jiyu
Hazuki: MANASE Juri
Princess Miru: MAKI Yoko
Heizo:
SATO Ryuta
Hisa:
MIZUKAWA Asami
KASAHARA Kiyoshige:
Dankan
Princess Yu:
SHIBAMOTO Yuki
SUDA Shinzaemon:
SHIKAUCHI Takashi
KOJIMA Gorozaemon: TAKADA Nobuhiko
HONJO Saneyori: KIMURA Gen
YAZAKI Jugoro: OKAMORI Akira
SUNOHARA Wakasa-no-kami: KIMURA Sakae
TAKANASHI Masayori: OTAKA Akira
ASHIDA Nobumori: IIDA Kisuke
Photographed in Cooperation with:
Yamanishi Prefecture
Nagano Prefecture
Niigata Prefecture
Hokuto City in Yamanashi Prefecture
-
Biwa Coach: TOMOYOSHI Kakushin
Buddhist Memorial Service Coach: OSAWA Kiyohiro
MUROZUMI Torasada:
KATO Takeshi
SANADA Yukitaka:
SASAKI Kuranosuke
NAOE Sanetsuna:
NISHIOKA Tokuma
Shinome:
SHIMIZU Misa
AIKI Ichibei:
KONDO Yoshimasa
MURAKAMI Yoshikiyo:
NAGASHIMA Toshiyuki
AMARI Torayasu:
RYU Raita
Lady OI:
FUBUKI Jun
ITAGAKI Nobukata:
CHIBA Shinichi
Executive Producer:
WAKAIZUMI Hisaaki
Produced by: NAKAMURA Takashi
Art Direction by: AOKI Masakazu
Technology: KAWASAKI Kazuhiko
Sound Effects: ISHIKAWA Takao
Photography by: TAME Akihiro
Lighting by: IUCHI Minoru
Audio: YAMAMURA Toshiyuki
Image Art: TANIMOTO Masahiro
Continuity: SATO Hideki
Editor: ABE Tadashi
Art Direction Manager: SUGIHARA Hiroki
Directed by:
FUKUI Atsuhiro
JULY 1547 (leap year)
Harunobu summoned the
Sakikata clan in Shinano.
Ashida Nobumori!
Aiki Ichibei!
Weren't you friends with
Kasahara Kiyoshige in Shiga Castle?
Yes.
Have the Oi remnants
joined their forces, too?
If I may humbly speak up...
The soldiers in Uchiyama Castle
have all fled to Shiga Castle.
And you let that happen?
I'm terribly sorry!
Oh, never mind. This time,
we'll wipe out all who defy us.
We can't be bothered by Saku,
or we'll never conquer Shinano.
We'll surround Shiga Castle
with our entire army.
What will you do if the Uesugi
provide reinforcements?
Shiga Castle is a pivotal
point to Joshu.
The Uesugi will want to block
the Takeda's victory at all cost.
Then we'll just have
to fight them head-on.
Amari, prepare for that.
Komai, stay back at Uehara
Castle in place of Itagaki.
Ashida, you will be the vanguard!
Yes Sir!
Baba Minbu, have the Kanahori
clan cut their water source.
Nobushige, Obu, Oyamada and Morozumi...
Prepare to attack the castle.
Shall we leave the strategizing
to Yamamoto Kansuke?
That won't be necessary!
You make the decisions!
Lastly...
Murakami.
If Murakami joins them, then we may
be victim to a pincer attack
in front of Shiga Castle.
Sanada Danjo, what are Murakami's
movements on this matter?
I haven't seen any signs of
preparation for battle, but...
They've received a messenger from Shiga Castle.
KATSURAO CASTLE, SHINANO
Lord Kasahara of Shiga Castle
has asked us for reinforcements.
He says that if we join him,
then with the Uesugi, we can launch
a pincer attack against the Takeda.
What do we do?
The Saku soldiers who are against the
Takeda have all holed up in Shiga Castle.
Which means, Shiga Castle
is their last hope...
If that falls, the entire Saku region
will become Takeda's again...
And they will fearlessly
invade our territory next.
Shall we send reinforcements?
We should assist Saku,
to hold the Takeda down.
Suda, what are Takanashi's
movements, from the back?
If we leave the castle,
will they attack us from behind?
According to our spy's report...
Takanashi Masayori is
detained in Echigo now.
The Nagao family in Echigo is
split in two, over the heirship.
The Takanashi seem to be
involved in that matter.
Isn't Takanashi, the uncle, siding
with the younger brother, Nagao Kagetora?
They have no time to be
bothered with us now.
Shall we crush the Takeda
in the meantime?
I'm sure the Takeda anticipate
reinforcements from us.
Lord, in order to find out the
movements of the Takeda...
We must get one of the Takeda
generals to side with us...
or send a spy in, so that
we can undermine them.
An inside spy?
I hate trickery!
If we do that, we'll have to
suspect our own, too.
Isn't that trying?
What stood as an obstacle to
Murakami's battle against the Takeda,
was the existence of Takanashi
Masayori, his rival.
Takanashi was supported by the Nagao,
the hereditary deputy of Echigo.
ECHIGO
In the Nagao family in Echigo...
The fate of a certain young general
was about to change greatly that year.
TOCHIO CASTLE
Young Lord, please save Echigo
province in place of your older brother.
With Kuroda punished,
the opportunity is there.
Lord Harukage is sickly and afraid of battles.
He's had many bad strategies,
so the vassals think lightly of him.
At this rate, there will never
be peace in this province.
You have the valor of your late father,
and should be the rightful heir.
Please make your rise now.
Don't you feel empty?
Empty?
To kill people in battle...
gives an empty feeling.
But you can live with that,
if there is a righteous cause.
If I kill my older brother...
I can never live with it.
It is for the sake of uniting
the clan and the province!
A clan with such immorality,
is better off destroyed.
Sir Kagetora!
In Kai, Harunobu had cruelly
banished his father, and took reign.
Then he hideously went about
ravaging other lands.
Not only have you dragged me,
a servant of Buddha, to the path of
carnage, but you're asking to
degrade myself to a villain like that.
How empty...
My enemy now... is the
emptiness I feel in my heart...
But the cruelty of the times
did not allow that...
Nagao Harukage, the older brother,
sensed his younger brother's treason,
and sent an army to Tochio Castle,
where Nagao Kagetora was residing.
Nagao Kagetora defeated Harukage's
army in a night attack.
Let us correct the disorderly world.
Grant me the power for it.
Help me attain victory.
He succeeded his brother as lord
in the following year.
KATSURAO CASTLE, SHINANO
Then something most desirable
came to the Murakami...
He is Aiki Ichibei, lord of the
Aiki clan in Saku-gun.
I am honored to meet you.
What do you, who have submitted
to the Takeda, want of me?
In order to hold my lands, I had
no choice but to submit to them.
However, I'll have to fight my friend,
Kasahara, in Shiga Castle next.
You should have expected that.
Did you think everyone was going
to submit to the Takeda?
I am most ashamed of myself.
In the previous battles against Saku,
Takeda Harunobu always put us,
who were born in Saku, at the front.
In the battles here in Shinano, the first
to die are the ones from Shinano.
Isn't that expected?
But I can't bear it anymore...
Then you should hole up
in Shiga Castle, too.
It's still not too late for that.
But we won't be able to defeat
the Takeda that way!
The Takeda have controlled
the Suwa and Ina lands...
and have gained force in Shinano.
You can't defeat them
in a straight confrontation.
The way to do it is to crumble
them from within.
What are you getting at?
Please refrain from sending
reinforcements to Shiga Castle.
What?
If you do, the Shinano men
and I will be sent to the front again.
Sir Murakami, please refrain from doing that!
Whether the Takeda win
this battle or not,
they will not give up on Shinano.
They will invade you regardless!
When that happens, I will
become your secret ally.
I will work on the other
Shinano men to switch sides.
Are you saying you will be our inside spy?
Yes.
Just promise me that in the
event you defeat the Takeda,
you will allow me to keep my lands.
If I have to submit to power, I'd
prefer it to be someone from Shinano.
On July 13, 1547, Harunobu
left Kofu to go to battle.
They started attacking Shiga Castle
from dawn of the 24th.
Attack!
What fools... not knowing there
will be reinforcements from Murakami.
Fire!
Damn you!
Sir Sanada, did you call for me?
I received word from Hazuki...
that Sir Aiki went to see Lord Murakami.
Sir Aiki did?
Did the lord send him there?
Not that I know of.
Who knows who have joined hands now...
Please be careful.
She's right.
Are you saying he switched sides?
Lord! A strange person
showed up in our camp.
A strange person?
Heizo...
Heizo!
Sir Sanada, please allow me
to stay in this camp.
Heizo, what happened to your master?
I left Sir Yazaki's service.
When I heard you returned from
Joshu, I couldn't resist coming here.
I would like to return
my obligation to you!
Please allow me to serve you!
What a fine resolve!
Weren't you a farmer saved by the lord?
How admirable of you to rush
here, not forgetting that.
Heizo, you have a fine sword there.
Yes...
Heizo, I heard you were close
to Aiki Ichibei at Nagakubo Castle.
Is that true?
Yes.
Before he came to Suwa,
he served the Sanada family.
That must be when he met
with Aiki Ichibei.
Can you return to the Sanada?
Why?
I want him to act as a spy.
I want him to report every detail
to me on the Takeda in Saku.
Can you do that?
It'll help Sir Yazaki.
Yes!
Heizo...
Get close to Aiki Ichibei.
You can identify yourself only to him.
Aiki is our ally.
As a matter of fact...
Verify for yourself if he is an ally or not.
Sir Aiki...
Sir Ashida...
So you were safe.
I am ashamed.
Who are you?
Sir Aiki, it's been a long time.
Who are you, again?
AUGUST 4, 1547
Reporting! The Uesugi force
have passed Usui Pass
and are encamped at Otaihara,
at the bottom of Asamadake.
They number 5,000 men!
So Uesugi Norimasa has come.
We can't see where the main army is.
They look like they're from the
Kuragano-to and Nishi-kozuke clans.
All right.
Itagaki. Amari. Send your
troops to Otaihara.
Work together in crushing the Joshu forces.
Please wait.
Murakami might send reinforcements.
No, they won't.
Lord, what makes you say that?
Itagaki! Amari! Now is the time
to display the Takeda power!
We're not going to just chase the soldiers
away, but we're going to kill all of them!
Unless we show the Saku people
that they can't count on
reinforcements, they will
continue to resist us.
Show all the clans in Shinano
that to defy us will mean death!
This year will be another poor
harvest year in Kai...
The battles are inconveniencing
the people, even now.
Yes.
That's probably why we need to
obtain Shinano, the land of abundance.
Isn't Harunobu walking the same
path as his father, to do that?
He's suppressing his vassals
and people with his power...
and engaging in winning battles.
Lady Okita...
He can create many great laws,
and suppress the people from
breaking them, but before he
knows it, he'll lose sight of himself.
That's what I'm worried about.
The lord is anxious to win.
He seems delirious about it.
He plans to use Shiga Castle as
an example to those who resist him,
so that they will drop such thoughts.
He reminds me of his father,
Lord Nobutora, when he invaded Saku.
The Young Lord is acting
like his father now.
We made him that way...
Which means, this time...
It will be the same.
Itagaki and Amari defeated the
Uesugi forces at Otaihara...
thus isolating the Kasahara forces
holed up in Shiga Castle, completely.
The Takeda army was obviously
dominant at this point.
AUGUST 6, 1547
Reporting! Our forces at Otaihara
have crushed the Uesugi enemy!
They've taken 15 generals' heads
and killed 3,000 Uesugi soldiers!
Just as you'd expect from
Sirs Itagaki and Amari!
Itagaki! Amari! Good work!
If we launch a full-scale attack now,
the castle won't hold for two days.
Are we attacking Shiga castle, even after
we've defeated the reinforcements?
Won't it be a show of punishment?
Are you telling me to spare
the ones in the castle?
There are many relatives of my
soldiers holed up in Shiga Castle.
This is to prevent future uprisings.
Yamamoto Kansuke!
Speak your thoughts on this.
Aren't you our strategist?
Speak your mind!
Lord... I will go to the castle.
The water in the castle
must be depleted by now.
Without reinforcements,
they will have to submit.
No... they won't submit.
Who would hole up in a castle,
with such light determination?
You'll only get killed.
I will stake my life on it as the messenger.
You can always launch
a full-scale attack later.
No!
Have you forgotten?
You can use force to win all
your battles, but that will not
necessarily be the best method.
To win without a fight,
is the best method.
Don't act like you know it all.
That is why we can't prevent
these uprisings against the Takeda!
Listen up, Kansuke.
You can break down the enemy
with your strategizing, but...
the enemy will remonstrate
himself for being off-guard,
and seek another opportunity to rise.
That is why we must show them
that we are not someone
they can defeat, even if they tried.
They are fighting desperately
this time because we took
Uchiyama Castle by force.
Are you saying it was a bad
strategy on my part?
I didn't say that, but...
If this continues...
Silence.
Generals should show mercy at times, too.
Refrain, Kansuke!
It's as the lord says.
The enemies are planning
to go down with the castle.
It is samurai mercy to let
them go down fighting.
Kansuke... All right.
Persuade them to submit.
But it won't be necessary
to go inside the castle.
Surround the castle with the
3,000 heads we've already taken.
You're going to do it.
If they submit with that,
I'll spare their lives.
Look carefully!
The reinforcements you were
depending on have been killed by us!
The Uesugi forces have been
wiped out at Otaihara!
If you submit immediately,
we will spare your lives!
If you continue to hole up in
the castle and resist the Takeda...
every one of you will end up like this!
If you surrender the castle,
the soldiers' lives will be spared!
It is useless to defy the Takeda!
We will not fear any
reinforcements you have!
We will not fear any military power!
We will kill all who resist!
They continued to hole up
in Shiga Castle.
The Takeda then launched
their attack on them.
Kasahara Kiyoshige and the
300 soldiers died fighting...
Capture the women and children alive!
You must be suspicious of me.
It's true that I approached
the Murakami in secret.
Sir Aiki...
It was under the lord's order.
The lord?
It was his strategy to stop the
Murakami from sending reinforcements.
He set me up as an inside spy
for the future Shinano invasion.
With my family as hostages, I can't
possibly betray the Takeda.
Kansuke... the lord is
a frightening man.
Look... Murakami's spy is coming.
Murakami must not be
much of a strategist,
to send a soldier like him in.
What shall we do? Kill him?
No... or Murakami
will suspect you...
Let him go free, so that
he can return to Murakami...
I agree with that.
There may be a use for him.
Heizo! Give them plenty of water.
I'll have some.
Is that Kasahara's wife?
That's right. Do you
remember her, Kansuke?
Lord Kasahara Kiyoshige's wife
is Lord Hiraga Genshin's daughter.
Did you lose your eye in battle?
I lost it from a deep grudge.
Stop joking around.
After she was saved by me
and raised by the Oi clan...
she married Kasahara.
So she didn't commit suicide and is alive...
What are you doing?
What is it, Kansuke?
PRINCESS MIRU
Princess, please forgive me...
Let's go.
That day, Harunobu returned
to Suwa, and Kansuke and the others
were ordered to escort
the survivors to Kofu.
How brutal of the lord...
What will happen to the
Shiga castle's survivors?
There isn't any man left
capable of fighting.
Only family and servants are left.
Those with relatives were
redeemed for 2-10 kan of money.
The remainder were sold on
the market set up in the city.
Of all things...
Is he allowing slavery?
All, for the sake of setting an example?
The lord hasn't tasted defeat yet.
That is why he is numb to
the feelings of the defeated.
Didn't you go to the slave market?
We're not selling that beautiful lady.
The lord gave me Kasahara's wife as a reward.
What are you planning to do with her?
Didn't you recommend the same
after the Suwa invasion?
Or, are you saying that the
lord got a son from it, but...
I will get killed in my sleep?
Will the lord forge ahead
and kill Murakami, too?
In any event, the next battle
will be with Murakami.
If he forges ahead with spirit
only, the young lord may...
Yu, I used to be afraid of
winning battles until now.
But now, I am afraid of losing...
Only of losing...
Episode 26:
A PAINFUL VICTORY
The End
PREVIEW OF NEXT EPISODE
Our next enemy is inside the lord...
I know who the enemy is!
Kai is not unified now.
It's the lord's irrelevant
thoughts that make him do it.
You must not violate
the human ways...
It's feelings of concern
for the Takeda.
It could be taken as betrayal.
I doubt it's betrayal...
Life isn't betrayal...
Do you plan to kill
your own master?
Yes.
Episode 27: THE STRONGEST ENEMY
FURIN KAZAN ERA
Saku City, Nagano Prefecture.
It's a town on a plateau that
flourishes from the Chikuma River.
During the warring era,
the small clans in this area
rose up against Takeda Harunobu,
one after another.
Lord Kasahara Kiyoshige of
Shiga Castle was one of them.
In 1547, Harunobu
surrounded Shiga Castle.
The Takeda forces defeated the
surging reinforcements
from Kozuke at Otai.
This victory determined the
direction of the battle.
The isolated Kasahara forces
met with ghastly demise.
Harunobu's fierce battle
stories were told in Saku
for a very long time.
Production & Writing:
NHK
Kansuke, the Kasahara at
Shiga Castle have risen.
Kasahara Kiyoshige?
The lord has ordered us to go
to battle with the Suwa soldiers.
In July of 1547...
Kasahara Kiyoshige, the lord of
Shiga Castle in Saku-gun, Shinano,
challenged the Takeda.
He was rising with Uesugi
Norimasa from Joshu.
When we depart for battle,
the Uesugi's main army will invade.
The Takeda will be cornered.
What is the lord plotting?
"Swift as the wind"
"Silent as the forest"
"Conquer like the fire"
"Unmovable as the mountain"
{\fs40}FURIN KAZAN
Episode 26:
A PAINFUL VICTORY
Original Story by:
INOUE Yasushi
Screenplay by:
OMORI Sumio
Music by:
SENJU Akira
Theme Music Performed by: NHK Symphony Orchestra
Theme Music Conductor: TAKASEKI Ken
Performed by: The Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra
Title Letters by: KAKINUMA Koji
Narrator: KAGAMI Sachiko
Period Consultant: SHIBATSUJI Shunroku
Customs Consultant: FUTAKI Kenichi
Architecture Consultant: HIRAI Kiyoshi
Wardrobe Consultant: KOIZUMI Kiyoko
Sword Fighting/Martial Arts Coach: HAYASHI Kunishiro
Conduct Coach: NISHIKAWA Minosuke
Horse-Riding Coaches: TANAKA Mitsunori, TSUJII Keiji
Imperial Palace Dialect Coach: HORII Reiichi
Kyoto Dialect Coach: INOUE Yukiko
Yamanashi Dialect Coach: KASAI Kazuhiko
Cast
YAMAMOTO Kansuke:
UCHINO Masaaki
TAKEDA Harunobu:
ICHIKAWA Kamejiro
NAGAO Kagetora:
Gackt
Lady SANJO:
IKEWAKI Chizuru
OBU Toramasa:
KANEDA Akio
OYAMADA Nobuari:
TANABE Seiichi
BABA Nobuharu:
TAKAHASHI Kazuya
TAKEDA Nobushige: KASHIMA Noritoshi
KOMAI Masatake: TAKAHASHI Issei
KAWARAMURA Denbei: ARIZONO Yoshiki
KUZUKASA Takichi: ARIMA Jiyu
Hazuki: MANASE Juri
Princess Miru: MAKI Yoko
Heizo:
SATO Ryuta
Hisa:
MIZUKAWA Asami
KASAHARA Kiyoshige:
Dankan
Princess Yu:
SHIBAMOTO Yuki
SUDA Shinzaemon:
SHIKAUCHI Takashi
KOJIMA Gorozaemon: TAKADA Nobuhiko
HONJO Saneyori: KIMURA Gen
YAZAKI Jugoro: OKAMORI Akira
SUNOHARA Wakasa-no-kami: KIMURA Sakae
TAKANASHI Masayori: OTAKA Akira
ASHIDA Nobumori: IIDA Kisuke
Photographed in Cooperation with:
Yamanishi Prefecture
Nagano Prefecture
Niigata Prefecture
Hokuto City in Yamanashi Prefecture
-
Biwa Coach: TOMOYOSHI Kakushin
Buddhist Memorial Service Coach: OSAWA Kiyohiro
MUROZUMI Torasada:
KATO Takeshi
SANADA Yukitaka:
SASAKI Kuranosuke
NAOE Sanetsuna:
NISHIOKA Tokuma
Shinome:
SHIMIZU Misa
AIKI Ichibei:
KONDO Yoshimasa
MURAKAMI Yoshikiyo:
NAGASHIMA Toshiyuki
AMARI Torayasu:
RYU Raita
Lady OI:
FUBUKI Jun
ITAGAKI Nobukata:
CHIBA Shinichi
Executive Producer:
WAKAIZUMI Hisaaki
Produced by: NAKAMURA Takashi
Art Direction by: AOKI Masakazu
Technology: KAWASAKI Kazuhiko
Sound Effects: ISHIKAWA Takao
Photography by: TAME Akihiro
Lighting by: IUCHI Minoru
Audio: YAMAMURA Toshiyuki
Image Art: TANIMOTO Masahiro
Continuity: SATO Hideki
Editor: ABE Tadashi
Art Direction Manager: SUGIHARA Hiroki
Directed by:
FUKUI Atsuhiro
JULY 1547 (leap year)
Harunobu summoned the
Sakikata clan in Shinano.
Ashida Nobumori!
Aiki Ichibei!
Weren't you friends with
Kasahara Kiyoshige in Shiga Castle?
Yes.
Have the Oi remnants
joined their forces, too?
If I may humbly speak up...
The soldiers in Uchiyama Castle
have all fled to Shiga Castle.
And you let that happen?
I'm terribly sorry!
Oh, never mind. This time,
we'll wipe out all who defy us.
We can't be bothered by Saku,
or we'll never conquer Shinano.
We'll surround Shiga Castle
with our entire army.
What will you do if the Uesugi
provide reinforcements?
Shiga Castle is a pivotal
point to Joshu.
The Uesugi will want to block
the Takeda's victory at all cost.
Then we'll just have
to fight them head-on.
Amari, prepare for that.
Komai, stay back at Uehara
Castle in place of Itagaki.
Ashida, you will be the vanguard!
Yes Sir!
Baba Minbu, have the Kanahori
clan cut their water source.
Nobushige, Obu, Oyamada and Morozumi...
Prepare to attack the castle.
Shall we leave the strategizing
to Yamamoto Kansuke?
That won't be necessary!
You make the decisions!
Lastly...
Murakami.
If Murakami joins them, then we may
be victim to a pincer attack
in front of Shiga Castle.
Sanada Danjo, what are Murakami's
movements on this matter?
I haven't seen any signs of
preparation for battle, but...
They've received a messenger from Shiga Castle.
KATSURAO CASTLE, SHINANO
Lord Kasahara of Shiga Castle
has asked us for reinforcements.
He says that if we join him,
then with the Uesugi, we can launch
a pincer attack against the Takeda.
What do we do?
The Saku soldiers who are against the
Takeda have all holed up in Shiga Castle.
Which means, Shiga Castle
is their last hope...
If that falls, the entire Saku region
will become Takeda's again...
And they will fearlessly
invade our territory next.
Shall we send reinforcements?
We should assist Saku,
to hold the Takeda down.
Suda, what are Takanashi's
movements, from the back?
If we leave the castle,
will they attack us from behind?
According to our spy's report...
Takanashi Masayori is
detained in Echigo now.
The Nagao family in Echigo is
split in two, over the heirship.
The Takanashi seem to be
involved in that matter.
Isn't Takanashi, the uncle, siding
with the younger brother, Nagao Kagetora?
They have no time to be
bothered with us now.
Shall we crush the Takeda
in the meantime?
I'm sure the Takeda anticipate
reinforcements from us.
Lord, in order to find out the
movements of the Takeda...
We must get one of the Takeda
generals to side with us...
or send a spy in, so that
we can undermine them.
An inside spy?
I hate trickery!
If we do that, we'll have to
suspect our own, too.
Isn't that trying?
What stood as an obstacle to
Murakami's battle against the Takeda,
was the existence of Takanashi
Masayori, his rival.
Takanashi was supported by the Nagao,
the hereditary deputy of Echigo.
ECHIGO
In the Nagao family in Echigo...
The fate of a certain young general
was about to change greatly that year.
TOCHIO CASTLE
Young Lord, please save Echigo
province in place of your older brother.
With Kuroda punished,
the opportunity is there.
Lord Harukage is sickly and afraid of battles.
He's had many bad strategies,
so the vassals think lightly of him.
At this rate, there will never
be peace in this province.
You have the valor of your late father,
and should be the rightful heir.
Please make your rise now.
Don't you feel empty?
Empty?
To kill people in battle...
gives an empty feeling.
But you can live with that,
if there is a righteous cause.
If I kill my older brother...
I can never live with it.
It is for the sake of uniting
the clan and the province!
A clan with such immorality,
is better off destroyed.
Sir Kagetora!
In Kai, Harunobu had cruelly
banished his father, and took reign.
Then he hideously went about
ravaging other lands.
Not only have you dragged me,
a servant of Buddha, to the path of
carnage, but you're asking to
degrade myself to a villain like that.
How empty...
My enemy now... is the
emptiness I feel in my heart...
But the cruelty of the times
did not allow that...
Nagao Harukage, the older brother,
sensed his younger brother's treason,
and sent an army to Tochio Castle,
where Nagao Kagetora was residing.
Nagao Kagetora defeated Harukage's
army in a night attack.
Let us correct the disorderly world.
Grant me the power for it.
Help me attain victory.
He succeeded his brother as lord
in the following year.
KATSURAO CASTLE, SHINANO
Then something most desirable
came to the Murakami...
He is Aiki Ichibei, lord of the
Aiki clan in Saku-gun.
I am honored to meet you.
What do you, who have submitted
to the Takeda, want of me?
In order to hold my lands, I had
no choice but to submit to them.
However, I'll have to fight my friend,
Kasahara, in Shiga Castle next.
You should have expected that.
Did you think everyone was going
to submit to the Takeda?
I am most ashamed of myself.
In the previous battles against Saku,
Takeda Harunobu always put us,
who were born in Saku, at the front.
In the battles here in Shinano, the first
to die are the ones from Shinano.
Isn't that expected?
But I can't bear it anymore...
Then you should hole up
in Shiga Castle, too.
It's still not too late for that.
But we won't be able to defeat
the Takeda that way!
The Takeda have controlled
the Suwa and Ina lands...
and have gained force in Shinano.
You can't defeat them
in a straight confrontation.
The way to do it is to crumble
them from within.
What are you getting at?
Please refrain from sending
reinforcements to Shiga Castle.
What?
If you do, the Shinano men
and I will be sent to the front again.
Sir Murakami, please refrain from doing that!
Whether the Takeda win
this battle or not,
they will not give up on Shinano.
They will invade you regardless!
When that happens, I will
become your secret ally.
I will work on the other
Shinano men to switch sides.
Are you saying you will be our inside spy?
Yes.
Just promise me that in the
event you defeat the Takeda,
you will allow me to keep my lands.
If I have to submit to power, I'd
prefer it to be someone from Shinano.
On July 13, 1547, Harunobu
left Kofu to go to battle.
They started attacking Shiga Castle
from dawn of the 24th.
Attack!
What fools... not knowing there
will be reinforcements from Murakami.
Fire!
Damn you!
Sir Sanada, did you call for me?
I received word from Hazuki...
that Sir Aiki went to see Lord Murakami.
Sir Aiki did?
Did the lord send him there?
Not that I know of.
Who knows who have joined hands now...
Please be careful.
She's right.
Are you saying he switched sides?
Lord! A strange person
showed up in our camp.
A strange person?
Heizo...
Heizo!
Sir Sanada, please allow me
to stay in this camp.
Heizo, what happened to your master?
I left Sir Yazaki's service.
When I heard you returned from
Joshu, I couldn't resist coming here.
I would like to return
my obligation to you!
Please allow me to serve you!
What a fine resolve!
Weren't you a farmer saved by the lord?
How admirable of you to rush
here, not forgetting that.
Heizo, you have a fine sword there.
Yes...
Heizo, I heard you were close
to Aiki Ichibei at Nagakubo Castle.
Is that true?
Yes.
Before he came to Suwa,
he served the Sanada family.
That must be when he met
with Aiki Ichibei.
Can you return to the Sanada?
Why?
I want him to act as a spy.
I want him to report every detail
to me on the Takeda in Saku.
Can you do that?
It'll help Sir Yazaki.
Yes!
Heizo...
Get close to Aiki Ichibei.
You can identify yourself only to him.
Aiki is our ally.
As a matter of fact...
Verify for yourself if he is an ally or not.
Sir Aiki...
Sir Ashida...
So you were safe.
I am ashamed.
Who are you?
Sir Aiki, it's been a long time.
Who are you, again?
AUGUST 4, 1547
Reporting! The Uesugi force
have passed Usui Pass
and are encamped at Otaihara,
at the bottom of Asamadake.
They number 5,000 men!
So Uesugi Norimasa has come.
We can't see where the main army is.
They look like they're from the
Kuragano-to and Nishi-kozuke clans.
All right.
Itagaki. Amari. Send your
troops to Otaihara.
Work together in crushing the Joshu forces.
Please wait.
Murakami might send reinforcements.
No, they won't.
Lord, what makes you say that?
Itagaki! Amari! Now is the time
to display the Takeda power!
We're not going to just chase the soldiers
away, but we're going to kill all of them!
Unless we show the Saku people
that they can't count on
reinforcements, they will
continue to resist us.
Show all the clans in Shinano
that to defy us will mean death!
This year will be another poor
harvest year in Kai...
The battles are inconveniencing
the people, even now.
Yes.
That's probably why we need to
obtain Shinano, the land of abundance.
Isn't Harunobu walking the same
path as his father, to do that?
He's suppressing his vassals
and people with his power...
and engaging in winning battles.
Lady Okita...
He can create many great laws,
and suppress the people from
breaking them, but before he
knows it, he'll lose sight of himself.
That's what I'm worried about.
The lord is anxious to win.
He seems delirious about it.
He plans to use Shiga Castle as
an example to those who resist him,
so that they will drop such thoughts.
He reminds me of his father,
Lord Nobutora, when he invaded Saku.
The Young Lord is acting
like his father now.
We made him that way...
Which means, this time...
It will be the same.
Itagaki and Amari defeated the
Uesugi forces at Otaihara...
thus isolating the Kasahara forces
holed up in Shiga Castle, completely.
The Takeda army was obviously
dominant at this point.
AUGUST 6, 1547
Reporting! Our forces at Otaihara
have crushed the Uesugi enemy!
They've taken 15 generals' heads
and killed 3,000 Uesugi soldiers!
Just as you'd expect from
Sirs Itagaki and Amari!
Itagaki! Amari! Good work!
If we launch a full-scale attack now,
the castle won't hold for two days.
Are we attacking Shiga castle, even after
we've defeated the reinforcements?
Won't it be a show of punishment?
Are you telling me to spare
the ones in the castle?
There are many relatives of my
soldiers holed up in Shiga Castle.
This is to prevent future uprisings.
Yamamoto Kansuke!
Speak your thoughts on this.
Aren't you our strategist?
Speak your mind!
Lord... I will go to the castle.
The water in the castle
must be depleted by now.
Without reinforcements,
they will have to submit.
No... they won't submit.
Who would hole up in a castle,
with such light determination?
You'll only get killed.
I will stake my life on it as the messenger.
You can always launch
a full-scale attack later.
No!
Have you forgotten?
You can use force to win all
your battles, but that will not
necessarily be the best method.
To win without a fight,
is the best method.
Don't act like you know it all.
That is why we can't prevent
these uprisings against the Takeda!
Listen up, Kansuke.
You can break down the enemy
with your strategizing, but...
the enemy will remonstrate
himself for being off-guard,
and seek another opportunity to rise.
That is why we must show them
that we are not someone
they can defeat, even if they tried.
They are fighting desperately
this time because we took
Uchiyama Castle by force.
Are you saying it was a bad
strategy on my part?
I didn't say that, but...
If this continues...
Silence.
Generals should show mercy at times, too.
Refrain, Kansuke!
It's as the lord says.
The enemies are planning
to go down with the castle.
It is samurai mercy to let
them go down fighting.
Kansuke... All right.
Persuade them to submit.
But it won't be necessary
to go inside the castle.
Surround the castle with the
3,000 heads we've already taken.
You're going to do it.
If they submit with that,
I'll spare their lives.
Look carefully!
The reinforcements you were
depending on have been killed by us!
The Uesugi forces have been
wiped out at Otaihara!
If you submit immediately,
we will spare your lives!
If you continue to hole up in
the castle and resist the Takeda...
every one of you will end up like this!
If you surrender the castle,
the soldiers' lives will be spared!
It is useless to defy the Takeda!
We will not fear any
reinforcements you have!
We will not fear any military power!
We will kill all who resist!
They continued to hole up
in Shiga Castle.
The Takeda then launched
their attack on them.
Kasahara Kiyoshige and the
300 soldiers died fighting...
Capture the women and children alive!
You must be suspicious of me.
It's true that I approached
the Murakami in secret.
Sir Aiki...
It was under the lord's order.
The lord?
It was his strategy to stop the
Murakami from sending reinforcements.
He set me up as an inside spy
for the future Shinano invasion.
With my family as hostages, I can't
possibly betray the Takeda.
Kansuke... the lord is
a frightening man.
Look... Murakami's spy is coming.
Murakami must not be
much of a strategist,
to send a soldier like him in.
What shall we do? Kill him?
No... or Murakami
will suspect you...
Let him go free, so that
he can return to Murakami...
I agree with that.
There may be a use for him.
Heizo! Give them plenty of water.
I'll have some.
Is that Kasahara's wife?
That's right. Do you
remember her, Kansuke?
Lord Kasahara Kiyoshige's wife
is Lord Hiraga Genshin's daughter.
Did you lose your eye in battle?
I lost it from a deep grudge.
Stop joking around.
After she was saved by me
and raised by the Oi clan...
she married Kasahara.
So she didn't commit suicide and is alive...
What are you doing?
What is it, Kansuke?
PRINCESS MIRU
Princess, please forgive me...
Let's go.
That day, Harunobu returned
to Suwa, and Kansuke and the others
were ordered to escort
the survivors to Kofu.
How brutal of the lord...
What will happen to the
Shiga castle's survivors?
There isn't any man left
capable of fighting.
Only family and servants are left.
Those with relatives were
redeemed for 2-10 kan of money.
The remainder were sold on
the market set up in the city.
Of all things...
Is he allowing slavery?
All, for the sake of setting an example?
The lord hasn't tasted defeat yet.
That is why he is numb to
the feelings of the defeated.
Didn't you go to the slave market?
We're not selling that beautiful lady.
The lord gave me Kasahara's wife as a reward.
What are you planning to do with her?
Didn't you recommend the same
after the Suwa invasion?
Or, are you saying that the
lord got a son from it, but...
I will get killed in my sleep?
Will the lord forge ahead
and kill Murakami, too?
In any event, the next battle
will be with Murakami.
If he forges ahead with spirit
only, the young lord may...
Yu, I used to be afraid of
winning battles until now.
But now, I am afraid of losing...
Only of losing...
Episode 26:
A PAINFUL VICTORY
The End
PREVIEW OF NEXT EPISODE
Our next enemy is inside the lord...
I know who the enemy is!
Kai is not unified now.
It's the lord's irrelevant
thoughts that make him do it.
You must not violate
the human ways...
It's feelings of concern
for the Takeda.
It could be taken as betrayal.
I doubt it's betrayal...
Life isn't betrayal...
Do you plan to kill
your own master?
Yes.
Episode 27: THE STRONGEST ENEMY
FURIN KAZAN ERA
Saku City, Nagano Prefecture.
It's a town on a plateau that
flourishes from the Chikuma River.
During the warring era,
the small clans in this area
rose up against Takeda Harunobu,
one after another.
Lord Kasahara Kiyoshige of
Shiga Castle was one of them.
In 1547, Harunobu
surrounded Shiga Castle.
The Takeda forces defeated the
surging reinforcements
from Kozuke at Otai.
This victory determined the
direction of the battle.
The isolated Kasahara forces
met with ghastly demise.
Harunobu's fierce battle
stories were told in Saku
for a very long time.
Production & Writing:
NHK