Taiko. Part 79

The inns of Azuchi had already been booked long before by eager sightseers-lords, merchants, scholars, doctors, artists, craftsmen, and samurai of every rank-who waited impatiently for the opportunity to see the Sokenji Temple, to pa.s.s through the Outer Gate and approach the Third Gate, and from there to go through the residential apartments and enter the garden of white sand, there to express their greetings.

The New Year's sightseers walked through the castle, looking at room after room. They admired the sliding doors ill.u.s.trated by Kano Eitoku, stared wide-eyed at the tatami mats with their borders of Korean brocade, and gazed in awe at the polished, gilded walls.

The guards shepherded the crowd out through the stable gate, where, unexpectedly, its way was barred by n.o.bunaga and several attendants.

"Don't forget your contribution! One hundred mon each!" n.o.bunaga shouted. He took the money with his own hands and tossed it over his shoulder.

A mountain of coins quickly piled up behind him. Soldiers stuffed the money into bags, and it was then given to officials and distributed among the poor of Azuchi. Thus n.o.bunaga fondly imagined that there was not one hungry face in Azuchi that New Year's.

When n.o.bunaga spoke to the official in charge of collecting the tax, who at first had worried about n.o.bunaga getting involved with such plebeian actions, the official now had to admit, "It was truly a fine idea, my lord. The people who came to visit the castle will have a story to tell for the rest of their lives, and the poor who received the 'contributions' will spread the news. Everybody is saying that those coins are not just ordinary coins, but money that was touched by the hand of Lord n.o.bunaga himself, and as such, it would be a travesty to waste it. They said they would keep it as capital. Why, even the officials are pleased. I think this kind of good work would be a good precedent for next New Year's and for the years following."

To the official's surprise, n.o.bunaga coldly shook his head and said, "I'm not going to do it again. It would be a fault for the man who runs the government to let the poor get used to charity."

Half of the First Month had pa.s.sed. After the New Year's decorations had been taken down from the doors of people's homes, the citizens of Azuchi realized that something was going on-so many ships were being loaded at the port and were sailing every day.

The ships, without exception, were sailing from the southern part of the lake northward. And thousands of bales of rice, carried along the land routes in meandering processions of horses and carts, were also going up the coast toward the north.

As always, the streets of Azuchi were filled with the traffic of travelers and the goings and comings of the various lords. Not a day went by that a messenger was not seen galoping down the road, or that an envoy from another province didn't pa.s.s by.

"Aren't you coming?" n.o.bunaga called out happily to Nakagawa Sebei.

"Where to, my lord?"

"Hawking!"

"That's my favorite sport! May I accompany you, my lord?"

"Sansuke, you come too."

It was on a morning in early spring that n.o.bunaga set out from Azuchi. His attendants had been picked the night before, but Nakagawa Sebei-who had just come to the castle-had now been invited, and Ikeda Shonyu's son, Sansuke, was added to the group is well.

n.o.bunaga had a liking for riding, sumo wrestling, hawking, and the tea ceremony, but the chase was certainly one of his favorite pastimes.

The beaters and archers would be exhausted by the end of the day. Such interests might be called pastimes, but n.o.bunaga did nothing halfheartedly. With sumo wrestling, for example, when a basho was arranged at Azuchi, he would gather well over fifteen hundred wrestlers from Omi, Kyoto, Naniwa, and other faraway provinces. In the end, the various lords would gather to watch in large crowds, and n.o.bunaga would rarely grow tired of the sight even as the hour grew late. Instead, he would pick men from among his own retainers and order them to go up into the ring for match after match.

This First Month's hawking trip to the Echi River, however, was extremely simple. It was nothing more than an outing, and the hawks were never released. After a short rest, n.o.bunaga ordered the party to return to Azuchi.

As the party entered the town of Azuchi, n.o.bunaga reined in his horse and turned toward a foreign-looking building in the middle of a stand of trees. The sound of a violin was coming from a window. He suddenly dismounted and went in through the door with a few of his attendants.

Two or three Jesuits came down hurriedly to greet him, but n.o.bunaga was already striding into the house.

"Your Lordship!" the fathers exclaimed in surprise.

This was the school that had been built next to the Church of the Ascension. n.o.bunaga had been one of the benefactors of the school, but everything from the timber to the furnishings had been contributed by provincial lords who had been converted to Christianity.

"I'd like to see how you conduct cla.s.ses," n.o.bunaga announced. "I a.s.sume the children are all here."

Hearing what n.o.bunaga wanted, the fathers were nearly in ecstasy, and told each other what an honor the visit was. Ignoring their chatter, n.o.bunaga climbed rapidly up the stairs.

Nearly in panic, one of the priests ran ahead to the cla.s.sroom and informed the students of the unforeseen inspection by a n.o.ble visitor.

The sound of the violin stopped suddenly, and the whispering was silenced. n.o.bunaga stood at the rostrum for a moment and looked over the room, thinking what an odd sort of school it was. The seats and desks in the cla.s.sroom were all of foreign design, and a textbook had been placed on each desk. As might be expected, the pupils were the sons of provincial lords and retainers. They bowed solemnly to n.o.bunaga.

The children were between ten and fifteen years of age. All of them came from n.o.ble families, and the entire scene, imbued with the exoticism of European culture, was like a flower garden that no j.a.panese temple school in Azuchi could rival.

But the question of which kind of school-Christian or Buddhist-offered the best form of education had already been answered in n.o.bunaga's mind, it seemed, and so he had neither admiration nor wonder for what was in front of him. Taking a student's textbook from a nearby desk, he thumbed through the pages silently but quickly returned it to its owner.

"Who was playing the violin just now?" he asked.

Repeating n.o.bunaga's question, one of the fathers queried the students again.

n.o.bunaga quickly understood: the teachers had not been in the room until now, and the students had plainly taken advantage of their absence to play musical instruments, gossip, and frolic happily.

"It was Jerome," the priest said.

The students all looked at one boy who sat among them. n.o.bunaga followed the diection of their stares, and his eyes rested on a youth of fourteen or fifteen.

"Yes. There he is. It was Jerome." When the father pointed at him, the youth turned bright red and looked down. n.o.bunaga was not sure whether he knew the child or not.

"Who is this Jerome? Whose son is he?" he asked again.

The priest spoke to the boy sternly. "Stand up, Jerome. Answer His Lordship."

Jerome stood and bowed to n.o.bunaga.

"I'm the one who was playing the violin just now, my lord." His words were distinct, and there was no servility in his eyes; one could see that he was the offspring of samurai family.

n.o.bunaga looked rigidly into the child's eyes, but the child did not look away.

"What was that you were playing? It must have been a tune from Southern Barbarian nusic."

"Yes, it was. It was a Psalm of David." The child seemed elated. He spoke with such facility that it was as though he had been waiting for the day when he could answer such question.

"Who taught it to you?"

"I learned it from Father Valignani."

"Ah, Valignani."

"Do you know him, my lord?" Jerome asked.

"Yes, I've met him," n.o.bunaga replied. "Where is he now?"

"He was in j.a.pan at New Year's, but he may already have left Nagasaki and returned to India via Macao. According to a letter from my cousin, his ship was to set sail on the twentieth."

"Your cousin?"

"His name is Ito Anzio."

"I've never heard the name 'Anzio.' Doesn't he have a j.a.panese name?"

"He's Ito Yoshimasu's nephew. His name is Yoshikata."

"Oh, is that who he is? A relative of Ito Yoshimasu, the lord of Obi Castle. And what about you?"

"I'm Yoshimasu's son."

n.o.bunaga was strangely amused. As he looked at this impertinent, charming youth educated in the flower garden of Christian culture, he could only envision the reckless and bewhiskered figure of the boy's father, Ito Yoshimasu. The castle towns along the coastline of Kyushu in western j.a.pan were ruled by lords like Otomo, Omura, Arima, and Ito. Recently they were becoming heavily influenced by European culture.

Whatever was brought in from Europe-firearms, gunpowder, telescopes, medicines and medical equipment, leather, dyed and woven goods, and everyday utensils- n.o.bunaga accepted with grat.i.tude. He was especially enthusiastic about-and even desirous of-innovations connected with medicine, astronomy, and military science.

However, there were two things that his digestion absolutely rejected: Christianity and Christian education. But if these two things had not been allowed to the missionaries, they would not have come with their weapons, medicines, and other wonders.

n.o.bunaga was aware of the importance of fostering different cultures and had given permission for the establishment of a church and school in Azuchi. But now that the shoots he had let grow were beginning to bud, he worried about the future of these students. He realized that if the situation was recklessly ignored for a long time, it would lead to trouble.

n.o.bunaga left the cla.s.s and was led by the priests to a well-appointed waiting room. There he rested on a colorful, glittering chair reserved for n.o.ble visitors. The fathers then brought out the tea and tobacco from their own country, which they valued so highly, and offered them to their guest, but n.o.bunaga did not touch a thing.

"The son of Ito Yoshimasu just now told me that Valignani was sailing from j.a.pan this month. Has he already left?" he asked.

One of the fathers answered, "Father Valignani is accompanying a mission from j.a.pan."

"A mission?" n.o.bunaga looked suspicious. Kyushu was not yet under his control, so friendship and commerce between Europe and the provincial lords of that island concerned him more than a little.

"Father Valignani believes that if the children of influential j.a.panese do not see the civilization of Europe at least once, true commerce and diplomatic relations will never really begin. He communicated with the various kings of Europe and His Holiness the Pope and persuaded them to invite a mission from j.a.pan. The oldest person among those chosen for the mission is sixteen years old."

He then listed the boys' names.

Almost all of them were sons of the great clans in Kyushu.

"That's quite courageous of them." n.o.bunaga actually rejoiced that a mission of young men, whose oldest member was only sixteen, had journeyed to faraway Europe. Inwardly, he thought that it would have been good to meet with them and, as a parting gift, talk a little about his own spirit and faith.

Why would the kings of Europe and someone like Valignani so enthusiastically want the children of provincial lords to visit Europe? n.o.bunaga understood their intentions, but he also saw through their ulterior motives.

"When he departed from Kyoto for this mission, Valignani expressed his regrets... about you, sire."

"Regrets?"

"That he was returning to Europe without having baptized you."

"Is that so? He said that?" n.o.bunaga laughed. He stood up from the chair and turned around to his attendant. The man had a hawk perched on his fist. "We've tarried too long. Let's go."

Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, he was descending the stairs in great strides. He quickly called for his horse outside the door. Ito Jerome-the student who had been playing the violin-and all of the others were lined up in the school playground to see him off.

The castle at Nirasaki, the new capital of Kai, had been completed up to as the kitchens and the quarters of the ladies-in-waiting.

Regardless of the fact that it had been the twenty-fourth day of the Twelfth Month and at the very end of the year, Takeda Katsuyori had moved from Kofu, the old provincial capital for generations of his ancestors, to this new capital. The grandeur and beauty of the move itself was still the talk of the farmers along the roadside, even now during New Year's.

Beginning with the palanquins for Katsuyori and his wife and for the many ladies who waited upon them, and continuing with those for his aunt and her daughter, the lacquered litters for the various n.o.bles and ladies must have numbered into the hundreds.

In the midst of this endless procession of sights-the samurai and retainers, the personal attendants, the officials with their gold and silver saddles, the mother-of-pearl inlay, the sparkle of gold lacquer, the open umbrellas, the archers with their bows and quivers, the forest of red-shafted spears-what caught everyone's eye above everything else were the banners of the Takeda. Thirteen Chinese characters sparkled in gold on a bright red cloth next to another banner. Two lines of gold characters were displayed on the long anner of deep blue: Swift as the wind Quiet as a forest Ardent as fire Still as a mountain Everyone knew that the calligraphy for this poem had been executed by Kaisen, the head priest of the Erin Temple.

"Ah, how sad that the very soul of that banner is leaving the castle at Tsutsujigasaki and moving on today."

Everyone in the old capital seemed sad. Every time the banner with Sun Tzu's words and the one with the thirteen Chinese characters had been unfurled and taken into battle, the brave soldiers had returned with them. At those times, they and the townspeople had shouted themselves hoa.r.s.e with deeply felt cries of shared victory. Such events had occurred in Shingen's time, and now everyone missed those days.

And although the banner emblazoned with Sun Tzu's words was the same physically, the people could not help feeling that it was somehow different from the one they had looked upon in former times.

But when the people of Kai watched the enormous treasure and the stores of munitions being moved to the new capital, along with the palanquins and golden saddles of the entire clan, and the meandering procession of ox-drawn carts stretching for many leagues, they were rea.s.sured that theirs was still a strong province. The same feelings of pride that had been with them since the days of Shingen still lingered in the soldiers and even in the general population.

Not long after Katsuyori moved to the castle in the new capital, the red and white plum blossoms in the garden were in bloom. Katsuyori and his uncle, Takeda Shoyoken-indifferent to the songs of the bush warblers-walked through the orchard.

"He didn't even come to the New Year's celebrations. He said he was sick. Hasn't he sent some news to you, Uncle?" Katsuyori asked.

He was talking about his cousin, Anayama Baisetsu, who was the governor of Ejiri Castle. Located on the border with Suruga, it was considered by the Takeda to be an important strategic area to the south. For over half a year now, Baisetsu had not come to wait upon Katsuyori, always sending the excuse that he was ill, and Katsuyori was worried.

"No, I think he's probably really sick. Baisetsu's a priest and an honest man; I don't think he would pretend to be ill."

Shoyoken was an exceptionally good-natured man, so this answer did not put Katsuyori's mind at ease.

Shoyoken fell silent.

Nor did Katsuyori say anything more, and the two of them walked on silently.

Between the keep and the inner citadel was a narrow ravine filled with different kinds of trees. A bush warbler dropped almost as if it had fallen, fluttered its wings, and flew away in surprise. At the same time a voice came suddenly from a row of plum trees.

"Are you there, my lord? I have important news."

The retainer's face had lost its color.

"Pull yourself together. A samurai should speak with self-control about important matters," Shoyoken scolded him. Shoyoken was not just disciplining the young man but was also trying to calm his nephew. Quite unlike his ordinary resolute self, Katsuyori had turned pale in surprise.

"This is not some small matter. It's really important, my lord," Genshiro replied as he prostrated himself. "Kiso Yoshimasa of f.u.kushima has committed treason!"

"Kiso?" Shoyoken's voice expressed a shock that was half doubt, half refusal. As for Katsuyori, he had probably already guessed this would happen. He was just biting his lip and looking down at the retainer prostrated in front of him.

The beating in Shoyoken's breast was not going to be calmed easily, and his lack of composure was echoed in his shaking voice. "The letter! Let's see the letter!"

"The messenger told me to tell Lord Katsuyori that the matter was so urgent there was not a moment to spare," the retainer said, "and that we are to wait for a letter from the next messenger."

As he walked away in great strides, Katsuyori stepped right past the still prostrate retainer and yelled back to Shoyoken. "It won't be necessary to see Goro's letter. There have been plenty of suspicious signs from Yoshimasa and Baisetsu in recent years. I know it's a lot of trouble, Uncle, but I'm going to need you to lead an army again. I'll be going too."

Before two hours had pa.s.sed, the sound of a great drum rang out from the tower of the new castle, and the call of the conch sh.e.l.l floated through the castle town, proclaiming mobilization. The plum blossoms were almost white as this peaceful spring evening came to a close in the mountain province. The army set out before the end of the day. Hastened by the setting sun, five thousand men started out on the f.u.kushima Road, and by nightfall almost ten thousand troops had left Nirasaki.

"Well, this is just fine! He's made his revolt quite clear to us. If it hadn't happened, the day for me to strike down the ungrateful traitor might never have come. This time we'll have to purge f.u.kushima of everyone with divided loyalties."