Japan's Warring States Period: The Rise of the Wakasa Tiger

Chapter 120: Tango's First Archery
Isshiki Yoshiyuki spoke in a tough tone, but in reality his calves were trembling unconsciously.

Watching more and more samurai and foot soldiers leaving the team, Isshiki Yoshiyuki felt unprecedented pressure, a pressure even comparable to the disastrous defeat at Kurahashi Castle.

"My lord, let's charge with the honor of a samurai at stake!" Nobunaga Yukinobu advised solemnly.

"Charge!" Isshiki Yoshiyuki thought, if he didn't charge, the others would all run away. Instead of being humiliated by the Takeda army, it would be better to fight to the death. At least he could leave a name for himself in the future generations.

At his command, the foot soldiers formed a group and began to attack the Takeda army. The archers behind him also bent their bows and drew their arrows to assist. From a distance, it really looked like a powerful force.

On the Takeda side, the general was Shirai Mitsutomu's son Shirai Kiyotsu. He had followed his father in Tango and was well-known. He also knew the situation in Tango quite well. When he heard that Isshiki Yoshiyuki had brazenly attacked Tanabe Castle, he volunteered to lead 500 troops to support him.

Seeing that the Isshiki army took the initiative to attack, Shirai Mitsutane immediately ordered his troops to change their formation to the Crane Wing Formation for a defensive counterattack.

Seeing the Takeda troops on both wings advancing quickly towards his flank and rear, Nobunaga Yukinobu realized that he might be surrounded and immediately ordered his troops to break up into small groups and form a fish-scale formation to avoid being caught in one fell swoop by the Takeda army.

However, the Takeda army had an absolute advantage in terms of manpower, and their morale was high after having just won two battles. With the proper command of Shirai Kiyotane, the vanguard of the Isshiki army was soon trapped on both sides of the Tsuru Wing Formation and became a prey.

At this time, Nobunaga Yukinobu, who was outside the encirclement, repelled a small attack from the outer Takeda guerrilla army. He freed himself and tried to lead elite samurai to support the Isshiki army inside the encirclement.

Unfortunately, the disparity in troop strength was too great and the encirclement was too tight. Nobuyasu Yukinobu's several attacks failed and his soldiers began to lose their will to fight.

At the critical moment, Isshiki Yoshiyuki led the remaining twenty or so elite cavalry warriors into the battlefield.

The participation of the mounted warriors actually changed the local situation of the war. The encirclement of the Takeda army was torn open, and the besieged Isshiki army seized the opportunity to quickly break out of the gap.

"Men of the Isshiki family, cheer up, we have a chance to win this battle!" Isshiki Yoshiyuki was riding his horse on the battlefield, his emotions reaching a peak. In a trance, he felt that he must have been blessed by the ancestors of the Isshiki family, and his military luck began to become stronger. Otherwise, how could the fierce Takeda army begin to lose after he joined the battle?

"Sir, Isshiki Yoshiyuki is such an eyesore. Let me kill him!" In the main camp of the Takeda army, more than one general shouted that they wanted to take Isshiki Yoshiyuki's life.

"No rush, let's wait and see." Shirai Kiyotane shook his head, signaling everyone to be patient.

As for Isshiki Yoshiyuki, after rescuing the besieged vanguard of the Isshiki army, he was in high spirits and unknowingly led his troops to attack deep into the Takeda army. Even though Nobunaga Yukinobu shouted at him from behind, he did not stop his attack, as if he really had an indestructible body under the protection of the ancestors of the Isshiki family.

"Sir, the enemy is coming!" A general of the Takeda army asked for orders to fight again.

"Give me my bow!" Shirai Kiyotane shouted, and the foot soldier behind him immediately handed over his longbow.

Bending the bow, putting the arrow on, aiming, and shooting, the whole set of operations was smooth and in the blink of an eye, the arrow had already shot into the air, drawing a beautiful arc and then shot into the formation.

"Ah!" A mounted warrior next to Isshiki Yoshiyuki was hit in the left eye by the arrow. He let out a howl and fell off his horse.

The scene just now was like a bucket of cold water poured over Isshiki Yoshiyuki, giving him a chill to the bone.

"It's just a body length away, it's so dangerous!" Isshiki Yoshiyuki took a breath and looked forward in the direction of the arrow, only to see Shirai Kiyotane drawing his bow and arrow again, and the arrow was aimed at him!
"Not good!" After waking up, Isshiki Yoshiyuki quickly turned his horse's head and retreated. But no matter how fast the horse was, could it be faster than a flying arrow?

With a "swoosh" sound, a beautiful arc was drawn in the sky again. The sharp arrow with the words "Shirai" engraved on its arrow head (a special arrow used to shoot high-ranking generals, usually with names engraved on the arrow head) pierced through Isshiki Yoshiyuki's chest in an instant like a white light.

Isshiki Yoshiyuki suddenly felt the pain unbearable, and he continued to retreat while holding his chest, but he was injured in the vitals. He spit out a large mouthful of blood after running only two steps, staggered twice, and fell heavily from the horse's back. "It's so... uncomfortable..." After struggling on the ground for a few times, the former fifteenth head of the Isshiki family left his life at the foot of Tanabe Castle at the age of only thirty.

"Sir, he is truly the best archer in Tango!" Witnessing Shirai Kiyotane killing Isshiki Yoshiyuki with a single arrow, the surrounding Takeda warriors were excited and cheered with their arms raised.

Shirai Kiyotane smiled slightly: "This can be considered a one-shot victory, it's too cheap. Well, the bandit leader has been eliminated, let's attack with all our strength!"

"hey-hey!"

"Roar!"

The roar of the sea resounded throughout the battlefield, and its mighty momentum seemed to shake the souls of the Isseki army out of their bodies.

"Listen, Isshiki Army! Your general has been shot dead by our army. Surrender quickly to save your life!"

"Stop your fearless resistance and surrender!"

Isshiki Yoshiyuki was shot dead by an arrow in public. This shock caused the morale of the Isshiki army, which had just started to improve, to plummet to the bottom in an instant.

"Run, run!"

"Why are you running? How far can you run? Surrender now!"

"Yes, surrender!"

The Isshiki Army, which was already cobbled together, collapsed in an instant. Even though Nobunaga Yukinobu shouted and even begged, the army still disintegrated rapidly.

Seeing this, Nobunaga Yukinobu burst into tears and howled to the sky. The Isshiki troops around him were almost dispersed, replaced by the Takeda troops who gradually surrounded them.

"I'm Nobunaga Heiji Yukinobu, come here if you're brave!" Knowing that there was no hope of escape, Nobunaga Yukinobu waved the Jumonji spear in his hand and staggered left and right in the encirclement. Blood mixed with sweat blurred his vision, and a deep wound on his shoulder gushed out blood.

"Why waste your time talking to him? Let's go together!" Someone in the crowd said this. Then, a group of foot soldiers raised their spears and stabbed at Nobunaga Yukinobu who was in the center!
"Puff! Puff!" In the blink of an eye, Nobuyasu Yukinobu was poked into a "hedgehog", and blood flowed continuously to the ground through the "holes" in his body.

"My dear father, I am an unfilial son and cannot avenge you..." Before he could finish his words, the son of the former Tango Shugodai went to find his father.

The deaths of Isshiki Yoshiyuki and Nobunaga Yukinobu marked the complete failure of the Isshiki clan's rebellion. But this did not mean that the war situation had been reversed, and a greater crisis had just arrived.

Kayue Castle was originally the castle of the Ishikawa clan of Tango Province. During the Battle of Kurabashi, the lord Ishikawa Naomune was killed, and the castle and the Minamiyosa County where it was located were incorporated into Yoshishige's direct territory.

On the morning of the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, more than 2,400 famous soldiers from Mount Tajima marched into Tango Province via the mountain road on the south side of Jiayue. The first obstacle they faced was Jiayue City.

There are more than 200 permanent troops stationed in this castle, and it is currently guarded by Keijiro Masaaki Oniwa from the Bitchu Date clan, a guest general recruited by Shirai Mitsutane.

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(End of this chapter)