As he went out, a group of soldiers crowded into the room. They surrounded Kanbei, forming a wall of armor and spears around him.

"Get up!" they shouted.

Kanbei put down his cup and looked at the agitated faces around him. "What hap­pens if I do?" he asked.

"Lord Murashige's orders are to escort you to the castle jail," answered one of the soldiers.

"Jail?" he blurted out, and he wanted to laugh out loud. At the moment he thought it was all over for him, and he saw how funny he must look for having fallen into Murashige's trap.

He stood up, a smile on his face. "Let's go, then. There's nothing I can do but go meekly, if this is Lord Murashige's show of courtesy."

The warriors escorted Kanbei down the main corridor. The noisy clatter of their armor blended with their footsteps. They went down any number of dark corridors and stairways. Kanbei was made to walk in places that were so dark he could have been blind­folded, and he wondered if he might not be killed at any time. He was more or less pre­pared for such an event, but it did not seem to be forthcoming. At any rate, the lightless place he walked along seemed to be a complicated passageway weaving through the bow­els of the castle. After a while, a heavy sliding door clattered open.

"Inside!" he was ordered, and after taking about ten paces forward, he found himself in the middle of a cell. The door slammed shut behind him. This time, Kanbei did laugh out loud into the darkness. Then he turned to the wall and spoke with self-scorn, almost as though he were reciting a poem.

"I myself have fallen into Murashige's trap. Well, well… public morals certainly have become complicated, haven't they?"

He guessed that he was beneath an armory. As far as he could tell by feeling with the soles of his feet, the floor was made of thick, knotted planks. Kanbei walked along calmly, following the four walls. He was able to judge that the area of the cell was about thirty square meters.

No, the way I see it is that Murashige is the man to be pitied. What does he think he's going to accomplish by imprisoning me?

He sat down cross-legged in what was evidently the center of the cell. His buttocks were cold, but there seemed to be nothing to sit on in the room.

He suddenly realized that he hadn't had to give up his short sword, and thought, That's something to be thankful for. If I just have this one weapon… at any time I could….

He silently told himself that even if his buttocks were numbed, his spirit would not be. The Zen meditation that he had practiced so hard in his youth would now perhaps be of use.   Such things came to mind as time went by. I'm glad I came, was his next thought. If Hideyoshi had come himself, this small disaster would have been replaced by a great one. I'm grateful that it has turned out this way.

Soon a thin stripe of light shone in his face. Kanbei calmly looked toward the light. A window had been opened. A man's face appeared on the other side of the lattice. It was Araki Murashige.

"Is it cold in there, Kanbei?" Murashige asked. Kanbei looked in his direction and finally answered him with total calm. "No, I'm still warm from the sake, but it might get uncomfortable around midnight. If Lord Hideyoshi hears that Kuroda Kanbei has frozen to death, he'll probably arrive before dawn and expose your head on the gate in the frost.  Murashige, you're a man with decent brains. What do you plan to accomplish by keeping me here?"

Murashige was at a loss for words. He was also aware that he was being shamed by his own actions. Eventually, however, he laughed scornfully.

"Stop your grumbling, Kanbei. You're saying that I have no brains, but aren't you the one who witlessly fell into this trap?"

"Abusive language is not going to help you. Can't you talk logically?"

Murashige said nothing, and Kanbei went on, "You're prone to admonishing me as some sort of strategist or demon of tactics, but I concern myself with fundamental policies, not petty tricks. I have never considered plotting against a friend and making a merit of it. I was simply thinking of you, and of Lord Hideyoshi's distress. That's why I came here alone. Can't you understand? What about Lord Hideyoshi's friendship? What about your loyalty?"

Murashige did not know how to answer. He fell silent for a while, but finally pulled together a rebuttal. "You talk about friendship and moral principles, but these are words that only have luster during times of peace. It's different now. The country is at war with itself, and the world is in chaos. If you don't plot, you're plotted against; if you don't inflict injury, someone will inflict injury on you. This is a world so grim that you may have to kill or be killed in the time it takes you to pick up your chopsticks. Yesterday's ally is today's enemy, and if a man is your enemy—even if he is your friend—there's nothing you can do but throw him in prison. It's all tactics. One could say that it's out of compassion that I haven't killed you yet."

"I see. Now I understand your view of the world, your everyday thoughts on warfare, and the extent of your morality. You have the pitiful blindness of the times, and I don't fee1 like talking things over with you anymore. Go ahead, destroy yourself!"

"What? You're saying I'm blind?"

"That's right. No, even though it's come to this, I can't seem to abandon the last little bit of friendship I have for you. I have one more thing I'll teach you."

"What? Does the Oda clan have some secret strategy?"

"It's not a matter of advantages and disadvantages. You're a pitiful individual. Although you're famous for your courage, you're ignorant of how to live in this chaotic country. Not only that, but you have no desire to save the world from this chaos. You're inhuman, lower than a townsman or a farmer. How can you call yourself a samurai?"

"What! You're saying I'm not human?"

"That's right. You're a beast."

"What did you say?"

"Go ahead! Get as angry as you can. It's all directed against yourself. Listen, Murashige. If men lose morality and loyalty, the world becomes nothing but a world of beasts. We fight and fight again, and the hellfire of human rivalry is never exhausted. If you con­sider only battle, intrigue, and power, and forget morality and human-heartedness, you won't stop at being an enemy of Lord Nobunaga. You'll be an enemy of all humankind and a plague to the entire earth. As far as I'm concerned, if you're that kind of person, I'd be glad to twist off your head."

Speaking his mind and then sinking into silence, Kanbei could hear a clamor going on. Outside the prison window, Murashige was surrounded by his retainers and personal attendants, and they were all yelling.

"Cut him down!"

"No, we can't kill him."

"He's insufferable."

"Calm yourselves!"

It appeared that Murashige was caught between those who wanted to pull Kanbei out and butcher him on the spot and those who declared that killing him would have adverse results. And he seemed unable to come to a decision.

In the end, however, they concluded that even if they were going to kill him, there was no particular hurry to do so. After that they seemed to settle down, and the footsteps of Murashige and the rest could be heard clattering off into the distance.

From observing this event, Kanbei quickly understood the mood of the entire castle.

Although the banner of revolt had been clearly unfurled, even now there were those who indignantly wanted to fight the Oda and others who advocated cooperating with their former allies. Under the same roof, they feuded on almost every single point, and the situation could be read easily.

Murashige, who was caught up in this dispute, had driven away Nobunaga's envoys and increased his military preparations. Now he had thrown Kanbei into prison.