TOKUGAWA IEYASU
Episode 13: The Battle of Mikatagahara
Takeda Shingen left Kofu with an army of 40,000,
and the another army which met on the way,
they entered Totomi on October 10th.
With the precision of chess pieces,
they advanced to conquer Tatara and Iida.
When they arrived in Kuno castle,
Ieyasu brought his army to Tenryu River.
What shall we do?
What?
The Oda reinforcement haven't arrived.
We can't face the Takeda army alone.
So what?
We may be skilled warriors outdoors, but
if we face them head-on like this,
we will only be swallowed up by their vast number.
No matter how large they are, we'll face them
as long as we are united at heart, we won't be swallowed up.
I'm afraid we're not united.
Some feel it's better not to fight this war.
Why don't you convince them to fight, then?
No matter how large the Takeda army is,
I have decided that if I let them pass,
my descendants would be ashamed of me.
Please reconsider...
That's enough! You're excused!
Excuse me.
Reporting!
You're in the lord's presence.
Pull yourself together.
I'm sorry.
Yamagata Saburo of the Takeda clan attacked the East Mikawa.
We're engaged in fierce battle.
We couldn't defend Fort Idaira. It fell to Yamagata.
Lord, they have to cut off the Oda reinforcements' route.
I know. Let him rest.
Send a messenger to Oda.
Tell them we won't budge until the reinforcements arrive.
Agreed!
The war cloud approached with the advent of winter
and hung ominously over Hamamatsu castle.
Shingen didn't expect Ieyasu to risk his life on this war.
Shingen's army conquered Ieyasu's out-post castles'
with surprising secrecy and accuracy which were
Damine, Tsukude, and Nagashino en route to Kyoto.
This caused uproar in the Tokugawa clan.
If the Futumata castle falls,
we'll be completely defenseless.
If you insist on fighting the Takeda army,
we should prepare to fight in the castle.
Wrong.
The purpose of this war is to fight even if we lose.
That's too reckless.
Quiet!
Shingen would pass us by without a fight.
The reinforcements haven't come from the Oda's.
They've abandoned us.
What?
The Oda clan is facing the crisis themselves.
The Honganji riots, Asai Asakura refugees,
and the Shogun Yoshiaki has pitted the Miyoshi,
Matsunaga clans against them, the Oda have not abandoned us.
It's best that you retreat to the castle
and plan a different strategy.
No!
How can I retreat now!
If you don't fight with me,
I'll become a monk.
Do you want me to abandon this world?
Is that what you want?
Listen,
don't let one Takeda soldier through!
Why is he so stubborn?
The difference between our 31-year old lord and
52-year old Shingen is apparent just in their lineups.
Our lord hates to lose, so he can't face it.
Being older isn't necessarily wiser.
How impudent.
There's no way we can win in age
but the younger one has more time.
Fool!
This war is a matter...
...of life or death.
Any news?
It's good news.
Lord Nobunaga has decided to send three armies,
each with three thousand men to aid Lord Ieyasu.
Three thousand...
just a drop in a bucket.
That's the best Lord Nobunaga can do now.
Spread rumours into the Takeda clan
emphasizing that...
twelve thousand are heading towards Totomi.
Yes.
Your luggage?
Thirty guns.
Send them to Hamamatsu castle immediately.
The Oda's reinforcement army lead by Takigawa Ichimasu
arrived early in December.
After two months of bitter struggle, the front defense of the Hamamatsu,
the Futamata castle fell on December 19th.
Ieyasu's main castle was now exposed to the enemy.
On December 21st,
Ieyasu held a meeting with the Oda generals.
According to our reports,
Shingen's main army passed by Iinoya towards East Mikawa.
It seems that Shingen has no intention of fighting us.
He'll cross the Tenryu River on December 22nd,
and head up to Mikatagahara.
We'll await there then!
Now, the lineup.
Tadatsugu, take the right wing.
Kazamasu...
you take the left.
Understood.
The entire army will line up in between.
Takikawa will be left off Tadatsugu, then Sakuma.
Hirate is left of Sakuma.
Understood.
Heihachi will be on the right of Kazumasa.
Then, Tadaya and Yasumasa.
You will be with Ietada.
Ietada is right off that along with Ogasawara.
I'll be in the middle. Sakuza's in the main army.
Understood.
Mototada, you oversee the battle.
You're using the crane-wing formation at Mikatagahara?
Indeed!
We'll be surrounded by cliffs...
we can't go back.
At dawn tomorrow each regiment will be at Mikatagahara,
and don't let the enemy take another step!
Understood!
The next morning, on the 22nd,
Takeda Shingen's army silently crossed the Tenryu River.
There, the over cautious Shingen sent out scouts.
Reporting!
They're waiting for us in a single crane-wing formation.
What...? He came to die?
It seems...
he hasn't given it enough thought.
That formation will not affect our grand army.
I see...
he's still young.
Let's fight.
He's asking to be wiped out. We should take him on.
Father.
It's like cutting through silk with the dagger.
Alright.
Oyamada can start it off.
If you men get tired,
you replace them.
Clear?
Understood!
This crane-wing formation in a single file,
resembled crane with wings spread wide apart.
Shingen's formation was like that of a fish's scale.
There were many layers to penetrate before one could reach the main army.
Lord!
They are now only 1.2 miles away!
What should we do?
Kazuma's regiment will fire the first shot.
That will signal all of us to attach at once.
Fight like hell!
Let's go!
Reporting!
Koyama, one of Kazumasa's men defeated the Oyamada's regiment.
Well done!
Reporting.
Honda, Sakakibara, Okubo are after Baba's regiment.
Understood.
Reporting!
Takikawa's regiment has been defeated three hundred men.
The reinforcements are already crumbling.
Alright, tell Tadatsugu!
Let's go!
One moment, please.
Lord, you must not proceed with your flag.
Tadatsugu, why did you leave your regiment?
I'm ready to be admonished.
We can't distinguish friend or foe with your flag.
We're ready to die for you here. Don't come!
What insolence!
Hirate and Sakuma have been defeated by the Oyamada.
Those useless Oda generals!
Quiet!
I'm going out, blow the shell!
Forward!
Keep moving!
Katsuyori?
Lord!
Lord, don't go too far! It's dangerous!
Reporting!
Katsuyori is battling Ieyasu and his two hundred men.
The Yamagata regiment has cut off their path of retreat!
This is your chance.
Push them off the cliffs.
This is the end of today's battle.
The Tokugawa army was dispersed in all directions.
Don't stop, my lord.
Go straight to our castle!
Please get the food ready in time.
Get the cloths, coagulant herbs, and antiseptic vinegar ready.
Yes.
Boil plenty of water.
My lady.
The castle overseer wants to see you.
I understand.
Calm down, everyone.
Lord, are you wounded?
Fool, the fight is yet to begin.
Lord!
Hurry!
Honda Tadazane is dead and Naito is still struggling.
Alright, we're going back.
We can't let Nasito die.
Fool!
What a stupid general you are!
They're dying for you so you can return safely!
Lord, go into the castle!
No!
Lord!
I've come to greet you!
How can I return alive in this struggle?
Have you forgotten how to lead?
How insolent!
Let me go!
I'll take you place, pardon me!
Come on.
Let me go!
I'm Tokugawa Ieyasu!
Come and get me!
By the time Ieyasu reached Hamamatsu castle,
Natsume Masayoshi who took Ieyasu's place...
was already dead.
Lord, we're in the castle. Get off your horse.
Let me assist.
This is disgusting!
You crapped in the saddle!
It stinks!
Fool!
This is the miso in my belt!
Is it clear now!
Lord...! Lord!
Guard the front gate!
You, the entrance!
Leave the castle gates open
and make a bonfire for the others.
I'm alright!
Me? Crapping in my saddle?
Idiots!
Bring me rice and hot water!
I fought a foolish war.
I'll rest a while.
Keep the bonfires burning.
Hit the drums.
Go ahead.
Is he asleep?
Is he snoring?
Indeed.
What about the bonfires?
I'm amazed.
The bonfire is as light as day and the gates wide open.
He should give us orders.
I got his orders.
I'm going to the cliffs.
What? Again?
For his sake, I must fire some shots at the enemy.
Now...
gather the gunmen.
No, I'll go.
Sakura-dono, you stay with the lord.
I see.
He fought with all his might...
and now he's deep in sleep.
Life and death don't matter. That's his true character.
The drums and bonfires stopped the Takeda army from attacking.
Though at first the castle looked empty,
it was suddenly bustling with life.
Sixteen foot soldiers guarded the gates but
to make it look like hundreds of soldiers,
they switched positions and moved around.
This strategy proved to be successful.
Once you approach the Anayama regiment,
just fire at random and shout on the top of your lungs.
Fire!
They're attacking.
Retreat... we're trapped!
The sound of shots outside and the drums from the castle
made the Takeda army believe they'd be trapped in between.
Word spread and they have all retreated!
We did it!
What pandemonium!
Look at all your ugly faces!
When you think about it, we've won!
Congratulations!
Sure! We drove thirty thousand men back with only eight thousand!
Wrong!
We lost!
But we didn't submit to them.
I see.
Many have died in this war,
yet peace has not come.
I'm with you.
We're with you!
We have to stand ground for the sake of Mikawa.
The enemy is about to stamp our Mikawa to the ground.
The upcoming new year will be decisive for us.
Yes!
Shingen felt he shouldn't stay and headed for Nida castle.
At the battle of the Mikatagahara the Takeda lost four hundred men
and Tokugawa and Oda lost one thousand one hundred and eighty.
This was the only battle Ieyasu lost in his life.
Ieyasu took a beating.
He's lucky that Hamamatsu castle was unharmed.
This was a good experience for him.
A bitter one.
Surrounded by enemies. Nobunaga is immobile.
I'll help him at Noda.
I can't let him die.
When the new year came at Okazaki castle,
its residents were making military preparations.
Listen carefully!
Upon my father's orders
we may have to go to Noda to fight the Takeda army.
Understand?
Ayame?
Ayame!
Happy New Year, my lord!
Forget the formalities.
Ayame, join me for a meal.
I'll be happy to.
Hold on.
You may not.
Why not?
What's the matter?
We must make distinctions.
You should eat with your wife as customs dictates.
Let me excuse myself.
Listen,
she's not taking my wife's seat.
I allowed her to join us so she can get to know my wife.
Young lord, but...
Well said, Nobuyasu.
Mother!
Chikayoshi.
Look at my lord.
He neglects me, the Imagawa's niece,
and chases after some low ranking woman.
But Nobuyasu tries to make the wife and concubine get along.
Nobuyasu,
I give you permission.
Ayame, the young lord gives you permission.
Accompany him.
No.
I was wrong.
Therefore,
forgive me.
Mother, father is alone at his castle without you.
Young lord.
It was selfish of me,
to want to celebrate with two women.
Nobuyasu.
Do you think your father is alone?
He already have women.
A woman named Oman and another one called Oai.
Why must you worry about your father?
Mother, are you making a fool of me?
I, Nobuyasu, will decide on my own!
Nobuyasu.
Chikayoshi, come!
Yes.
Excuse me.
In Hamamatsu, as well, when the new year arrived,
they were prepared militarily.
A messenger has arrived from Okazaki!
Okazaki?
Yoshiro?
It must've been tough. You came by land?
No, by sea.
I see.
Give me the greeting later.
How did the tax collection go?
Oga Yashiro was hard to replace.
He was an extremely gifted mathematician,
kept balanced accounts,
and got along with commoners.
It's alright.
I appreciate that.
I heard Nobuyasu has a concubine.
Has the princess conceived?
I haven't heard...
He got a concubine before she conceived.
Who is she?
She's the daughter of Lady Tsukiyama's acupuncturist.
We checked up on her.
When was this?
The beginning of December.
December?
That Nobuyasu was eying women
while I was risking my life!
Yashiro.
Report back to Nobuyasu at Okazaki
that his father is angry.
Yes.
And tell him to economize.
That's the best medicine for children.
Otherwise, he may have to submit to Katsuyori soon.
This is an important year for Nobuyasu
and for me as well.
What? I'll lose out to Katsuyori?
He was very angry.
He said you fooled around with women,
spent money wastefully, and forgot to prepare for war.
Wait? Women, he means Ayame?
There's nobody else.
I thought father knew what I was doing.
It's the doing of the villainous retainers.
Don't get angry but you can talk to me for advice.
You're my only ally.
I won't forget your loyalty.
Keep this.
Yes.
My lady, I saw the situation in Hamamatsu,
but our lord has miscalculated.
Miscalculated?
We can't win the war against the Takeda army.
What'll happen to us.
Everyone would have to die.
If you want to save the young heir, now is the time to act.
Someone's been spying on us.
The lord knows about your infidelity.
What infidelity?
Our illicit affair.
No! We must deny it whatever our lord says!
We would have to send a messenger to Takeda Katsuyori
so that in defeat, at least, your young heir would be spared.
I see.
The Takeda and Imagawa clans were related.
Nobuyasu is my son,
and he too, is an Imagawa by blood.
If I join hands with the Takeda, Nobuyasu will be spared.
We must save Nobuyasu at whatever cost!
We have to save Nobuyasu at any cost!
Send someone to Takeda immediately...
The Takeda army which headed toward Noda castle,
laid a siege on it for over a month.
It's lord and 900 men were resisting fiercely.
But it was a matter of time before the castle fell.
What did Okazaki say?
Oga Yashiro won Lady Tsukiyama over.
She wants her son, a descendent of the Imagawa
to keep the Mikawa province.
So, when the Ieyasu's army arrives,
she'll let us in her castle.
She's no ordinary woman, she's crazy.
I pity Ieyasu.
His wife is digging a trap for him at Okazaki castle.
Reporting!
We got a message from Noda castle!
What?
Shingen's Main Army
Father!
The Noda castle has finally surrendered!
Good!
Who should we assign to rule this castle?
After we leave,
Ieyasu will surely become powerful.
Saburobei,
you keep this castle.
Yes, my lord.
This is our last night here.
Don't let your guard down.
Yes.
Congratulations!
Noda Castle
As the siege continued,
every night after dinner, someone played the flute.
The battles began at daybreak but at dusk, both sides lay down their arms.
As they listened to the tune, they felt the sorrows of the war.
Shingen, also, listened to this melody...
I didn't expect to hear that flute tonight.
It's the eve of their downfall.
They must be crying to the tune.
Move this stool to the left.
Someone in the castle may know that I listen here every night.
My lord! A gunshot!
It's nothing.
Just a greenhorn.
My lord!
Lord!
Someone get help!
That gunshot?
Don't panic.
All we heard were two gunshots.
It may be a signal.
I'll check it out.
Ieyasu, who had come to Noda castle's aid,
indistinctly sensed a change.
Get a doctor!
Carry him back to the camp.
Don't panic, the enemy would find out.
Shingen's words were barely audible.
Though he had a record of past victories to his name,
and was ready for the battle of supremacy,
Shingen was laid up.
One of the Bear Prince's men.
That gunshot didn't kill Shingen but wounded him.
Horsemen dashed out from the Takeda camp,
and returned with more men.
The note must be true.
Send the Iga spies in,
to prepare for our next move.
News from Ieyasu reached Nobunaga.
Nobunaga had set up camp at Mt. Toragoze.
What is it?
What did you find out?
We investigated Takeda's men who returned to the temple.
I doubt if he's alive.
It's consistent with Ieyasu's report.
When Ieyasu made a move the Takeda claimed
Shingen was cured and set out to Mikawa,
Sakurobei attacked Yoshida castle.
That's unusual.
Yes...
That's Lord Ieyasu's opinion.
Suppose, he's dead, if you were Takeda, what's next?
Yes.
I'll hide that fact and retreat.
Why?
At the battle of Mikatagahara,
Shingen gave Ieyasu the real taste of war.
If Ieyasu discovers his death,
he can't retreat in safety.
The second reason?
The lords' who were waiting for Shingen's aid would falter,
making you more powerful.
Anything else?
Some of the retainers would abandon their clan
if their heir, Katsuyori were to be its new head.
I'll hide his death, too.
Monkey.
Send a messenger to Ieyasu!
We'll crush the Takeda's with one clean blow.
Understood.
Shingen's death was kept a secret for 3 years according with his will.
But the other lords who say Ieyasu's sudden move,
realized that the iron wall
of the Takeda army was crumbling.
To be continued.