"I don't think this is a false report, my lord," Toshimitsu said, once again intuiting the truth. "In any event, I think we should determine a counterstrategy at once."
Perceiving that Mitsuhide was wavering, Toshimitsu rejoined with a concrete proposal. "If I were to wait for Lord Tsutsui here, you, my lord, could hasten to stop Hideyoshi from entering the capital."
"There isn't much hope that Tsutsui will come, is there?" Mitsuhide finally admitted.
"I think there are only one or two chances in ten of his joining your side, my lord."
"What strategy do you suggest for stopping Hideyoshi?"
"The only view we can take is that Ukon, Sebei, and Shonyu are already in league with Hideyoshi. If Tsutsui Junkei has joined him as well, our military strength will be insufficient to take the initiative and attack him. In my estimation, however, it will take Hideyoshi another five or six days to get his whole army here. During that time, if we reinforced the two castles at Yodo and Shoryuji, built forts along the north-south road to Kyoto, and mustered all the forces in Omi and the other areas, we might be able to hold him off temporarily."
"What? All of that would only stop him temporarily?"
"After that, we'll need a far grander strategy—going far beyond small local battles. But right now we're in a critical situation. You should leave immediately."
Toshimitsu waited for Fujita Dengo to return from his mission in Koriyama.
He arrived with anger stamped all over his brow. "It's no good," he said to Toshimitsu. "That bastard Junkei has also betrayed us. He made up some excuse for not coming here, but on the way back I discovered that he's been in contact with Hideyoshi. To think that a man who was so close to the Akechi clan would be capable of this!"
Dengo's abuse was unending, but Toshimitsu's lined face showed no emotion at all.
Mitsuhide left at about noon, having accomplished nothing. He arrived back at Shimo Toba about the same time that Hideyoshi was enjoying a short nap in Amagasaki. The heat on this day was the same at both the Zen temple in Amagasaki and the camp at Shimo Toba. As soon as Mitsuhide arrived back in camp, he met with his generals at headquarters and discussed battle strategy. He still did not realize that Hideyoshi was already within shouting distance at Amagasaki. Although Hideyoshi's vanguard was already moving into position, Mitsuhide judged that it would take several more days Hideyoshi himself to arrive. It would not be right to attribute this mistake to his intellect. He had simply made a judgment based on common sense, using his own uncommon intelligence. Moreover, this particular judgment was in harmony with what everyoneelse deemed logical as well.
The conference had been completed without any waste of time, and Akechi Shigetomo was the first to leave. He immediately rode to Yodo to begin emergency construction work to strengthen the castle. The narrow mountain road to the capital would surely be a focus for the enemy assault. Yodo Castle was on its right, Shoryuji Castle on its left.
Mitsuhide issued an order to the divisions that had been deployed along the banks of the Yodo River: "Pull back to Shoryuji and take up defensive positions. Prepare for an enemy attack."
Mitsuhide made his preparations, but when he calculated the size of the enemy army, he could not completely relinquish his perception of his own weakness. A considerable number of soldiers had been gathering here from the capital and the surrounding area, putting themselves under his command throughout the day. But they were all low-ranking samurai or ronin —little better than mercenaries looking for a quick way to rise in the world. Not one of them had any military ability or the resources to lead.
"How many men have we got in all?" Mitsuhide asked his generals.
Counting the troops at Azuchi, Sakamoto, Shoryuji, Horagamine, and Yodo, Mitsuhide’s forces numbered about sixteen thousand men.
"If only Hosokawa and Tsutsui would join me," Mitsuhide mumbled, "no one could dislodge me from the capital." Even after he had decided his strategy, he was troubled by the sizeable difference in the numbers of troops. Mitsuhide's brain worked in terms of calculations, and now there was not even a flicker of hope that he would have the advantage. Moreover, somewhere a tiny wisp of fear was finding its way into his consciousness. That in itself could make the difference between victory and defeat. He was beginning to sink beneath the waves that he himself had created.
Mitsuhide stood on the hill outside of camp, staring up at the clouds.
"Looks like rain," he muttered this into a wind that showed little sign of rain at all. It was essential for a general who was soon to engage in a battle to be aware of the weather. Mitsuhide stood and worried about the movement of the clouds and the direction of the wind for a long while.
Finally he looked down at the Yodo River. The small lights that swayed in the wind must have been those of his own patrol boats. The undulating line of the large river appeared to be white, while the mountains beyond were pitch black.
The broad sky stretched over the river, and to the faraway estuary of the sea at Amagasaki. As Mitsuhide's eyes stared in that direction, almost as though they were sending out shafts of light, he asked himself, What is Hideyoshi capable of? Then he called out in a harsh tone that he rarely employed, "Sakuza! Sakuza! Where is Sakuzaemon?"
He turned quickly and walked back to camp with long strides. A dark and violent wind was shaking the barracks like a huge wave.
"Yes, my lord! Yojiro is here!" an attendant answered, running out to meet him.
"Yojiro, the call to arms. We're marching out right away."
While the army was striking camp, Mitsuhide sent urgent dispatches to all his commanders, including his cousin Mitsuharu in Sakamoto Castle, informing them of his decision. He was not going to retreat and fight a defensive campaign. He had resolved to attack Hideyoshi with all his strength.
It was the second watch of the night. Not a single star was visible. A combat unit was the first to descend the hill; it was to stand guard at the upper and lower reaches of the Katsura River. The supply corps, the main units, and the rear guard came down behind them. A sudden shower began to fall. By the time the entire army was halfway across the river, pure white rain was beating down on it.
The wind came up as well—a cold wind from the northwest. The foot soldiers muttered to themselves as they stared at the dark surface of the river.
"Both the river and the wind are coming at us from the mountains of Tamba."
During the day, they might have been able to see. Oinosaka was not far away, and it was only ten days before that they had crossed Oinosaka and left the Akechi base at Kameyama Castle. To the men, however, it felt like something that had happened several years ago.
"Don't fall! Don't let your fuses get wet!" the officers yelled. The force of the current in the Katsura River was far more violent than usual, due probably to a heavy rainfall in the mountains.
The spear corps crossed, each man holding on to the spear of the man in front of him, followed by the gunners, who grasped each other's stocks and muzzles. The horsemen surrounding Mitsuhide galloped up the opposite bank, leaving a trail of froth and bubbles. From somewhere in front of them, the dull sound of sporadic gunfire could be heard, while in the distance sparks leaped into the sky, probably from burning farmhouses. As soon as the gunfire stopped, however, the fires also disappeared and everything returned to darkness.
A runner soon arrived with a report. "Our men have driven back an enemy reconnaissance party. They set several farmhouses alight as they retreated."
Taking no notice of this report, Mitsuhide advanced through Kuga Nawate, passed by Shoryuji Castle, which was held by his own men, and purposefully made his camp at Onbozuka, some five or six hundred yards farther to the southwest. The rain that had plagued them for the last two or three days now ceased, and stars began to glitter in a sky that had previously displayed nothing but different shades of ink.