Then Captain Muraki urged his horse forward.

“No, My Lord,” he said to Lord Ankan. “I will stay and fight. You must go with Lord Ieyasu.”

Lord Ankan was furious.

“Do you presume to give me orders, Captain!” he spluttered. “It seems that you have forgotten your place!”

“Far from it, My Lord,” Captain Muraki replied evenly. “You said yourself that this is a moment for wisdom. Lord Ieyasu may have need of your advice. He won’t get it if you’re lying dead here.”

“He’s right, Ankan,” commented one of the generals. “Better a living general than a valiant cadaver.”

Jimmu stared hard at Lord Ankan. Had he known that Captain Muraki would volunteer to take his place? Had his offer to lead the rearguard action been a sham?

Lord Ankan’s face gave nothing away.

“I salute you, Ishida Muraki!” he said hoarsely. “I commend your spirit to your ancestors.”

Lord Ankan turned his horse and rode down the slope, behind Lord Ieyasu and the generals. The nobles’ personal bodyguards followed on.

Jimmu rode up to Captain Muraki.

“How can I assist you, sir?” he said.

Realization struck him like a blow. What was he thinking of? The words seemed to have sprung from his lips of their own accord. His admiration for Captain Muraki had overcome his desire for revenge. What had happened to his values? Where was his iron resolve? Did he really respect Ishida Muraki more than the memory of his father?

Captain Muraki frowned.

“You can do nothing, Jimmu,” he said. “Go with Lord Ankan, and protect him.”

“But—”

“Every samurai knows that one day he will come to the place where he must die,” said Captain Muraki. “This is my place—not yours, Jimmu.”

Jimmu was moved to tears, but he held them back. “How can I thank you for all you’ve taught me?”

“By fighting fearlessly and devoting yourself to Lord Ankan,” Captain Muraki said. “Now go!”

As Jimmu’s horse descended the slope, his resentment and anger grew. Lord Ankan had brought about the deaths of his mother and father, and now Captain Muraki was about to sacrifice himself.

Ankan is not worthy! Jimmu thought. Captain Muraki is worth a thousand men of his sort.

Jimmu ground his teeth. He was determined that before the break of dawn, he would slay Choju Ankan.

16 - HAMAMATSU CASTLE TOTOMI PROVINCE

16

HAMAMATSU CASTLE TOTOMI PROVINCE

WINTER 1572

Jimmu lost the trail in the dark, and blundered into a dense thicket of bamboo. By the time he forced his way out he was thoroughly disoriented, and might have spent the entire night wandering about had he not spotted the lights of Hamamatsu burning brightly on the plain below the ridge. In fact the lights were so bright that Jimmu feared that the Takeda had already taken the fortress, and left it in flames. He encouraged his horse onward, down the steep slope.