full speed toward the capital, they were pleased that their expectations had not been disappointed. As Hideyoshi made his way eastward, they sent him urgent messages, pressing him to hurry and informing him of the latest movements of the Akechi troops.
When Hideyoshi arrived at Amagasaki, Nakagawa Sebei and Takayama Ukon each took part of their forces and visited Hideyoshi's camp.
When the two generals arrived, the samurai on guard duty at the gate did not seem overjoyed at their presence, nor did he hurry to announce their arrival. 'His Lordship is resting just now,' he informed them.
The two men were taken aback. Sebei and Ukon knew well their own value as allies. The military strength of the man they sided with would be doubled. In addition, the nearby castles controlled the entrance to Kyoto. Certainly, securing those two key castles, which were almost in the middle of enemy territory, would give Hideyoshi tremendous strategic and logistic advantages.
Thus, when they came to Hideyoshi's camp, they took it for granted that Hideyoshi himself would come out to welcome them. All that the two generals could do was wait. During that time, they watched the arrival of stragglers. All the while, messengers were coming and going in all directions. Among them was a samurai whom Nakagawa Sebei recognized.
'Isn't that a Hosokawa samurai?' he muttered.
It was well known that the relationship between Mitsuhide and Hosokawa Fujitaka was very close. The two men had been close friends for many years, and their families were linked by marriage.
What is a messenger from the Hosokawa doing here? Sebei asked himself. This was a matter that concerned not only the two generals waiting to see Hideyoshi but the entire nation.
'He said Lord Hideyoshi was sleeping, but I think he's wide awake. He's being rather rude, no matter what he's doing,' Ukon complained.
They were about to leave when one of Hideyoshi's pages ran up to them and invited them into the temple that served as Hideyoshi's headquarters. Hideyoshi was not in the room they were led into, but it was certain that he had been awake for some time. Loud laughter was coming from the abbot's quarters. This was not the kind of reception the two generals had anticipated. They had hurried here to ally themselves with Hideyoshi and strike at Mitsuhide. Ukon seemed vexed, a vaguely bitter look on his face; Sebei's expression was sullen.
The oppressive summer heat aggravated their dissatisfaction. The rainy season should have begun to clear by then, but the air refused to dry. In the sky, the clouds moved back and forth in an unsettled way, as if reflecting the state of the nation. From time to time the sun shone through the clouds with an intense brilliance that was enough to make a man feverish.
'It's hot, Sebei,' Ukon commented.
'Yes, and there's no wind at all.'
Naturally, the two men wore full armor. Even though modern armor had become lighter and more flexible, there was no doubt that beneath the leather breastplates, their sweat ran in rivulets.
Sebei opened his fan and cooled himself. Then, to show that they did not rank lower than Hideyoshi, Sebei and Ukon made a point of moving to the seats reserved for men of the highest rank.
Just then, a shout of greeting came in with the breeze. It was Hideyoshi, and as soon he sat down in front of the men, he apologized profusely. 'I'm really sorry to have been so rude. When I got up, I went over to the main temple; and while I was having my head shaved,' he said, patting his bald head, 'a messenger from Hosokawa Fujitaka arrived with an urgent dispatch. So I had to talk with him first and make you wait.'
He sat in his usual way, oblivious to distinctions of rank. The two men forgot their formal greetings and simply stared at Hideyoshi's freshly shaved head, which reflected the green of the trees of the neighboring garden.
'At least my head is cool in this heat,' Hideyoshi added with a grin. 'Taking the tonsure is very refreshing.'
Looking a little self-conscious, Hideyoshi vigorously rubbed his scalp. When Sebei and Ukon saw that Hideyoshi had gone so far as to shave his head for the sake of their former lord they forgot their earlier displeasure and instead felt ashamed of their own pettiness.
The only trouble was that each time they looked at Hideyoshi they wanted to laugh. Although no one called him Monkey to his face anymore, his former nickname and his present appearance provoked a certain feeling of amusement.
'Your speed surprised us,' Sebei started. 'You must not have slept at all between here and Takamatsu. We're relieved to see that you're in good health,' he went on, fighting to stifle his laughter.
'You know,' Hideyoshi said ingratiatingly, 'I very much appreciated the reports you sent me. Because of them I was able to know the movements of the Akechi, and, more important, that the two of you were my allies.'
Neither Sebei nor Ukon was so soft-headed that flattery could take him in. Almost ignoring Hideyoshi's last remark, they quickly began to give him advice.
'When will you be setting out for Osaka? Lord Nobutaka is there with Lord Niwa.
'I haven't got time to go to Osaka now; that's not where the enemy is. I sent a messenger to Osaka this morning.'
'Lord Nobutaka is the third son of Lord Nobunaga. Shouldn't you meet him first?”
'I'm not asking him to come here. I have asked him to take part in the forthcoming battle, which will be the memorial service for Lord Nobunaga. He is with Niwa, sco I thought it wouldn't be necessary to stick to formalities. He'll be joining our camp tomorrow for sure.'
'What about Ikeda Shonyu?'
'We'll be meeting him as well. I haven't seen him yet, but he sent a messenger with a pledge of his support.'
Hideyoshi was confident about his allies. Even Hosokawa Fujitaka had refused Mitsuhide's invitation. Instead, he had just sent a retainer to Hideyoshi telling him that he would not join forces with a rebel. Hideyoshi triumphantly stressed to the two generals that this loyalty was not only the natural trend of the world but also a great moral principle of the warrior class.
Finally, after talking over various subjects, both Sebei and Ukon formally delivered to Hideyoshi the hostages they had brought along with them as pledges of their good faith.
Hideyoshi declined with a laugh.
'That won't be necessary. I know you both so well. Send these children back to your castles right away.'
That very day Ikeda Shonyu, who had known Hideyoshi since their early days together in Kiyosu Castle, joined Hideyoshi's army. Just before setting out that morning Shonyu had also taken the tonsure.
'What! You had your head shaved too?' Hideyoshi said when he saw his friend.
'We did the same thing by chance.'
'We think the same way.'
Neither Hideyoshi nor Shonyu needed to say anything more. Shonyu now added his four thousand men to Hideyoshi's army. Hideyoshi had started with an army of about ten thousand men, but with the addition of Ukon's two thousand men., Sebei's two thousand five hundred men, Hachiya's one thousand, and the Ikeda corps of four thousand, the army now numbered more than twenty thousand troops.
At the first war conference, Sebei and Ukon unexpectedly began to argue with each other, neither man giving any ground.
'It has been a matter of samurai etiquette since ancient times that the lord of the castle closest to the enemy leads the vanguard,' Ukon said. 'So there is no reason at all why my troops should follow Sebei's.'
Sebei refused to give in. 'The division between rear and vanguard should have nothing to do with how close to or how far away from the battlefield a man's castle is. The caliber of the troops and the commander are what matter.'
'Well then, are you saying that I am unworthy of leading the vanguard against the enemy?
'I don't know about you. I am certain in my belief, however, that I am not going to yield to anyone. And I'm not going to hesitate in front of anyone in my desire to lead the vanguard in this battle. The order should be given to me, Nakagawa Sebei.'
