Biographies LXXII: Taira-no-Tadamori, Tsunemori, Norimori, Tadanori, Tsunemasa, Atsumori, Michimori, and Noritsune

Taira-no-Tadamori

¶Taira-no-Tadamori was a descendant, in the fifth generation, of Taira-no-Sadamori, Chinju-shōgun, General in Command of the Garrison. His great-grandfather Taira-no-Koreshira served in turn as governor of Ise, governor of Shimotsuke, and other posts (Note: following the Heishi Keizu), and was known in his day for his bold and daring stratagems (Note: following the Kojidan). During the Chōhō era he took up arms and fought against Taira-no-Munetsura. The matter came to the ears of the court, and he was exiled to Awaji (Note: following the Shōyūki). His father Taira-no-Masamori served in turn as governor of Ise, governor of Inaba, governor of Sanuki, and other posts (Note: following the Keizu). During the Kajō era he was appointed Tsuitōshi, Commissioner for the Suppression of Rebels, and won merit by killing Minamoto-no-Yoshichika in Izumo; he too was known for his courage (Note: following the Hyakurenshō).

¶Tadamori served the courts of three reigns, those of Emperors Shirakawa, Horikawa, and Toba (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). He was granted Senior Fourth Rank Upper, served in turn as governor of Harima, governor of Ise, governor of Bizen, and other posts, and became Kebiishi, Police Commissioner, and Saemon-no-daijō, Senior Secretary of the Left Gate Guards (Note: following the Keizu). During the Daiji era, when pirates arose along the two circuits of Sanyōdō and Nankaidō, Tadamori received an imperial command and captured them (Note: following the Chōyā Gunsai).

¶In the first year of Chōshō (1132), when the Retired Emperor Toba founded the Tokuchōju-in, an imperial command was given to Tadamori to take charge of the construction. For this merit he was appointed governor of Tajima. Before long he was promoted to Gyōbu-kyō, Minister of Justice, and was granted permission for Uchi-shōden, ascent to the inner court hall. The Retired Emperor's favor grew greater with each passing day. The court nobles, resentful of it, secretly consulted together and plotted to bring Tadamori down, planning to act on the day of the Toyo-no-akari no Sechie, the banquet of the Harvest Festival.

¶When Tadamori heard of this, he said, "Our house is of low standing, but we have been a family of warriors for generations. If I am once disgraced, the good name of my house will be gravely damaged. Yet if I avoid the court and do not attend, I may be reproached as a coward. To keep myself whole and escape shame, this seems the best course." So he had a wooden sword made, coated it with silver leaf, decorated the sheath like a sayamaki, wore it at his waist, and took with him his retainer Taira-no-Iesada. When Tadamori ascended to the hall, he drew the blade toward the darkness and let it be seen. Its gleam was like ice. The court nobles were afraid, and the plot was not carried out.

¶Presently, as song and dance followed one another at the banquet, Tadamori was ordered to perform a dance. His fellow courtiers changed the tune and sang, "The flagons of Ise are vinegar jars." In his youth Tadamori had lived between Iga and Ise, and people called his clan the "Ise Heishi." Moreover, Tadamori had a narrow, squinting eye, and they mocked him by playing on this (Note: "Heishi" and "heishi," flagon, sound alike, and "sugame," squint-eyed, sounds close to "sugame," vinegar jar, in our language). Tadamori was indignant and left before the banquet was over. As he left, he unfastened his sword and entrusted it to the Tonomozukasa, the palace attendant, and departed.

¶Afterwards the court nobles memorialized the throne, saying, "Tadamori wore a sword up to the court hall without imperial permission, and brought a Hyōe guardsman with him on his own authority. His name should be struck from the official register and he should be punished." The Retired Emperor was startled and summoned Tadamori to ask about the matter. Tadamori explained, "Earlier, a boy of my household heard that the court nobles had a plot, and followed after them to the palace. As for myself, I really knew nothing of it. I cannot escape guilt. However, the sword I was wearing has already been left with the Tonomozukasa. I beg you to examine it and then determine my offense." The sword was sent for and examined, and it proved to be of wood. The Retired Emperor sighed in admiration and said, "This is just how a good general should be prepared. It is also nothing unusual for a soldier to go into danger. There is no need to charge him deeply with guilt" (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶Once, the Cloistered Emperor Shirakawa, who always chose brave men as his guards, said to Tadamori, "In former times the Retired Emperor Koichijō kept Minamoto-no-Yoriyoshi close to his side and never let him leave it even for a moment. Now you too must not leave my side" (Note: according to the opinion of Fujiwara-no-Koremichi and the Kokon Chomonjū).

¶The Cloistered Emperor had a favorite lady, for whom he built a separate palace to the southeast of the Gion shrine and settled her there; the world called her "Gion-no-Nyōgo." The Cloistered Emperor visited her there often. One night he went out in secret, and Tadamori accompanied him as a warrior of the Hokumen, the Northern Guard. Just then, in the darkness, a sudden rain fell, and a demon appeared on the road ahead. Its hair stood like a bundle of needles, its body gave off light, and it flickered on and off. All who saw it were terrified. The Cloistered Emperor ordered it driven off. Tadamori stepped forward to shoot it, but thinking that it might be not a demon but the transformation of a fox or a badger, he reconsidered and judged it better to take it alive. He went straight up and seized it, and it proved to be an old monk. He had been about to light the lamps at a shrine, had put a covering of barley straw on his head to keep off the rain, and was carrying an oil flask and a vessel of fire-starter, and blowing on the fire. Thus the truth of the matter came to light, and people's hearts at last grew calm. The Cloistered Emperor praised Tadamori's courage and quick wit (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). Afterwards this lady was granted to Tadamori (Note: following the Heike Monogatari. The Genpei Seisuiki gives the woman granted to Tadamori as Hyōe-no-suke-no-tsubone, but this is probably a mistake).

¶The Cloistered Emperor had once strictly forbidden the taking of life throughout the realm. At one time a man named Katō Nariie was keeping a hawk and catching birds. He was summoned to the Kebiishi-chō, the Police Commissioners' office, and questioned. Nariie defended himself, saying, "I am a retainer of Gyōbu-kyō Tadamori. It is my duty every day to take fresh birds and serve them at the table of the Lady, and if I neglect it I am at once heavily punished. Moreover, under the house law of the Minamoto and the Taira, what is called a grave offense means beheading. Foolish and lowly as I am, I know that the court has strict rules. Yet if one breaks the court's rules, the offense comes at most to imprisonment or exile, whereas if one breaks the house law of the Minamoto and the Taira, one is put to death at once. So I did this only to find a way to escape death, and had no other thought." When this reached the ears of the Cloistered Emperor, he laughed and said, "Such an honest fellow should be set free" (Note: following the Kojidan).

¶It seems that the warrior-vassals of that time relied on their power and acted as they pleased, holding in their own hands the power of life and death, and that the court was unable to restrain them; this was roughly how matters stood.

¶Tadamori died in the third year of Jinpei (1153), at the age of fifty-eight (Note: what follows concerning Tadamori is based on the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). His sons were Kiyomori, Tsunemori, Norimori, Iemori, Yorimori, and Tadanori (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki; the Keizu makes Iemori a younger brother of Kiyomori and an elder brother of Tsunemori). Kiyomori and Yorimori have separate biographies. Iemori was Jūshii-no-ge, Junior Fourth Rank Lower, and Uma-no-kami, Director of the Right Bureau of Horses (Note: following the Keizu; the Heike Monogatari gives Uma-no-suke).

Taira-no-Tsunemori

¶Taira-no-Tsunemori was skilled in waka and excelled also at playing the flute (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). During the Kyūan era he was granted Junior Fifth Rank Lower, and between the Hōgen and Ōan eras he rose in successive promotions until he was granted Junior Third Rank. At the beginning of Jishō he advanced to Senior Third Rank and was appointed Daitaikōtaigū-no-daibu, Master of the Household of the Grand Empress Dowager, and soon afterwards concurrently Shuri-no-daibu, Master of the Palace Repairs Office. In the first year of Yōwa (1181) he was appointed Sangi, Counsellor (Note: following the Kugyō Bunin).

¶In the second year of Juei (1183) he followed the emperor to the western seas. When the Taira were defeated at the battle of Dan-no-ura, he secretly went into the mountains and shaved his head (Note: following the Azuma Kagami). Afterwards he threw himself into the sea and died (Note: following the Heike Monogatari; the Genpei Seisuiki says that he went into the mountains and died by falling on his own blade). He was sixty-one years old. His sons were Tsunemasa, Tsunetoshi, and Atsumori (Note: following the Heishi Keizu). Tsunetoshi was governor of Wakasa and was killed in battle at Ichi-no-tani (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki).

Taira-no-Norimori

¶Taira-no-Norimori was especially dearly loved by his elder brother Kiyomori, and for that reason built a residence beside the main gate of Rokuhara and lived there. The world called it "Kadowaki-dono," the Lord of the Gate-side (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶In the fourth year of Kyūan (1148), at the request of the Konoefu, the Imperial Guards headquarters, he was appointed Sakon'e-no-shōgen, Lieutenant of the Left Imperial Guards, and soon afterwards became a Kurōdo, Chamberlain. At the beginning of Jinpei he was appointed governor of Awaji. During the Hōgen era he concurrently served as Sama-no-gon-no-kami, Provisional Director of the Left Bureau of Horses, and was transferred to governor of Yamato (Note: following the Kugyō Bunin). In the first year of Heiji (1159), when Fujiwara-no-Nobuyori, Uemon-no-kami, Commander of the Right Gate Guards, raised a rebellion, Norimori, together with his younger brother Yorimori and others, led the imperial army against him, and Nobuyori was put to death (Note: following the Heiji Monogatari). For this merit he was appointed governor of Etchū (Note: following the Kugyō Bunin and the Okazakibon Heiji Monogatari).

¶In the first year of Eiryaku (1160) he was transferred to Hitachi-no-suke, Vice-governor of Hitachi, and by successive promotions was granted Senior Fourth Rank Lower (Note: following the Kugyō Bunin). In the first year of Ōho (1161), he was implicated in the affair of Taira-no-Tokitada, Ushōben, Lesser Controller of the Right, who was accused of plotting to establish the emperor's younger brother, Imperial Prince Norihito, as Crown Prince, and was deprived of his office (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki. That book mistakenly gives Norimori as Yorimori, but here it is corrected on the basis of the Sankaiki and the Kugyō Bunin). The following year he was appointed governor of Noto and concurrently Kura-no-kami, Director of the Imperial Storehouse Bureau. In the first year of Nin'an (1166) he concurrently became Tōgū-no-suke, Assistant Master of the Crown Prince's Household. When Emperor Takakura ascended the throne, he became Kurōdo-no-tō, Head Chamberlain, was appointed Sangi, and was granted Senior Third Rank. In the first year of Yōwa (1181) he was appointed Gon-chūnagon, Provisional Middle Counsellor (Note: following the Kugyō Bunin).

¶In the second year of Juei (1183) he followed the emperor to the western seas. In the eleventh month, when Minamoto-no-Yukiie came leading troops to Harima, Norimori, together with Shigehira and others, led ten thousand troops and lay in wait at Muroyama, dividing them into five camps, with Norimori himself held in the rear. When Yukiie arrived, four of the camps feigned defeat and fled; when Yukiie thrust at Norimori's camp, Norimori loosed his troops and fought hard, the four camps joined and surrounded the enemy, and they won a great victory (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki and the Heike Monogatari). They cut off one hundred and eighty heads and at last recovered Bizen and Harima (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶In the third year (1184), when Munemori and the others, escorting the emperor, held the fortress of Ichi-no-tani, conferments of rank and appointments to office were held, and Norimori was appointed Shōnii Dainagon, Senior Second Rank Major Counsellor. Norimori composed a waka, in which he reflected that even as his present life lasted he wondered whether it really was lasting, and that he seemed to be dreaming a dream within a dream. And in the end he declined the appointment (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶When the emperor perished at Dan-no-ura, Norimori fell on his own blade and died (Note: following the Daigo Zōjiki and the Genpei Seisuiki. The Azuma Kagami says that he threw himself into the sea and died; which is correct is not known). He was fifty-seven years old (Note: following the Kugyō Bunin). His sons were Michimori, Noritsune, and Narimori. Narimori was granted Junior Fifth Rank Lower (Note: following the Heishi Keizu) and was killed in battle at Ichi-no-tani (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). He was seventeen years old (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki). Next came Chūkai and Seien, both of whom became monks (Note: following the Heishi Keizu).

Taira-no-Tadanori

¶Taira-no-Tadanori was born and raised in Kumano (Note: following the Heike Monogatari). His physical strength surpassed that of ordinary men, and his reputation for courage resounded throughout his time. He was also skilled in waka and studied under Fujiwara-no-Toshinari (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). His office reached Senior Fourth Rank Lower, and he was appointed Sahyōe-no-suke, Assistant Commander of the Left Gate Guards, and governor of Satsuma (Note: following the Heishi Keizu).

¶In the first year of Yōwa (1181), together with his nephew Shigehira and others, he defeated Minamoto-no-Yukiie at the Sunomata River. The troops under Tadanori killed and captured a great many, and captured Yukiie's son Yukiyori (Note: following the Azuma Kagami, the Genpei Seisuiki, and Yoshisue. The name Yukiyori follows the Sonpi Bunmyaku).

¶In the second year of Juei (1183), Minamoto-no-Yoshinaka came to Enryakuji. Ashikaga-no-Yoshikiyo came to Tanba and was about to attack the capital. Munemori dispatched the generals in separate commands, and Tadanori led troops to hold off Yoshikiyo (Note: consulted the Gyokukai and the Kikki. The Heike Monogatari says that Tadanori led a thousand horsemen to Yodo, but this is a mistake). Soon afterwards Munemori called back the generals and, escorting the emperor, fled in all directions.

¶In the third year (1184), when Minamoto-no-Yoshitsune attacked Ichi-no-tani (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki), Tadanori was at that time guarding the western gate and holding off Doi-no-Sanehira (Note: following the Heike Monogatari). The attack came by surprise, and the army was routed. Tadanori, with three companions at his sides, ran toward the water's edge. Okabe-no-Tadazumi, leading more than ten horsemen, pressed after them with a great shout. Tadanori falsely declared, "I am a soldier of the eastern provinces," and spurred his horse to run. As Tadazumi closed in, Tadanori's follower blocked and held him off. Tadazumi at last advanced and grappled with Tadanori, and they fell from their horses. Tadanori drew his sword and stabbed three times, barely wounding him beneath the chin. Tadazumi's attendant ran up, struck Tadanori from behind, and cut off his right arm.

¶Tadanori, knowing that he could not escape, said, "Wait a moment, you. I will recite the Buddha's name before I die." Then he seized Tadazumi, hurled him more than a jō away, loosed his belt and took off his armor, sat upright facing west, and recited the Buddha's name in a loud voice. Tadazumi knelt and asked his surname and given name. Tadanori said, "What a fool you are. Now that I have come to this extremity, why should I give my name? If you kill me you will surely receive a great reward. Quickly cut off my head." Tadazumi at last killed Tadanori. He was forty-two years old. When Tadazumi examined his armor, he found a scroll of writings, the waka he had composed from day to day. His name was written among them, and by this it was known that he was Tadanori.

¶Now, before Tadanori went to Chinzei, he turned back from Yodo and secretly visited Gojō. He met Toshinari to take his leave, and offered him a scroll, saying, "Ever since I received your instruction, there was no time when I failed to call on you. But in these last few years the realm has been in turmoil, and even the capital has not been at peace, so I have not been able to visit you often. Now the Son of Heaven has left the capital, and disaster for my own house is about to fall. I hear that you, my lord, are compiling an anthology by imperial command. I secretly wish that Tadanori too might be remembered, if only by a single poem, under your protection. That it should come to this was unforeseen. If the world is peacefully ruled again, there will surely be an opportunity, but if even one poem is taken into the volume and included, then even on the day I die it will be the same as years of life." Toshinari wiped away his tears and agreed, and Tadanori, delighted, thanked him and withdrew. When Toshinari compiled the Senzaishū, he took one poem on "flowers of the old capital" and included it. But out of regard for the court's deliberations, he did not record the poet's name. People lamented this (Note: consulted the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). He had a son named Tadayuki, who was called Hatta-no-Kurōdo (Note: following the Heishi Keizu).

Taira-no-Tsunemasa

¶Taira-no-Tsunemasa was skilled in waka and excelled also at playing the biwa. As a child he entered Ninnaji and served Imperial Prince Shukaku, who was a Hosshinnō, an Imperial Prince in the priesthood. The Prince was very fond of Tsunemasa, and gave him a famous instrument called "Seizan," one of the biwa he himself treasured (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). In court service he became Kōgōgū-no-suke, Assistant Master of the Empress's Household (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki), and as governor of Tajima rose to Senior Fourth Rank Lower (Note: following the Heishi Keizu).

¶When the emperor left the capital for the west, Tsunemasa went to Ninnaji carrying his biwa, had an audience with the Prince, and played several pieces to take his leave. There was no one among the listeners who did not weep. When he had finished playing, he returned the biwa to the Prince and said, "This instrument was given to me long ago, and I had always hoped to treasure it all my life. But now that I am to part from you for a distant place, if I die in the western seas this instrument will also be lost. For that reason I return it to you. If some day the disorder is quelled and I am able to see you again, I beg that you will grant it to me once more." The Prince could only shed tears and could not answer. Tsunemasa at last composed a waka and took his leave (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶In the third year of Juei (1184), the fortress of Ichi-no-tani fell. As Tsunemasa fled past Ōkuradani, an enemy soldier, Shō-no-Takaie, shouted in a loud voice, "To flee on seeing the enemy, are you not a young noble of the Heike? Come, settle the matter with me" (Note: this book writes "Shō" as "Jō," but it is corrected here). Tsunemasa looked back and said, "I am not fleeing on purpose. You are no match for me." Takaie, angered, pressed in suddenly, and Tsunemasa, knowing that he could not escape, dismounted, drew his sword, and cut open his own belly and died (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki. In the various texts of the Heike Monogatari, Tsunemasa is said to have been killed by Kawagoe-no-Shigefusa; the Yasaka text gives Sasaki-no-Takatsuna, and the Nanto text gives Narita-no-Gorō. Which is correct is not known). Tsunemasa had a son only six years old, and when the Taira clan was destroyed he was beheaded at the Rokujō riverbed (Note: following the Nagatobon Heike Monogatari).

Taira-no-Atsumori

¶Taira-no-Atsumori was granted Junior Fifth Rank Lower. Because he held no office, the world called him "Mukan-no-Taifu," the Officeless Taifu. When the fortress of Ichi-no-tani fell, the Taira all escaped by boat, but Atsumori alone was left behind and went toward the water's edge on a single horse. As he watched the boat of his cousin Tomomori moving out to sea about a chō offshore, Kumagai-no-Naozane, of Minamoto-no-Yoshitsune's command, galloped up and shouted in a loud voice, "Are you not a general of the Taira? I am Kumagai-no-Naozane, the foremost brave in the realm. Turn back and settle this with me." Atsumori turned his horse's bridle to the water's edge, grappled with Naozane, and they fell from their horses and rolled together. Naozane got on top of him, pinned the sleeve of his armor beneath his knee, drew his sword, and was about to cut off his head. Looking down, he saw a gracefully beautiful youth's face. Naozane pitied him in his heart and, unable to bring himself to strike, asked his surname and given name. Atsumori said only, "Quickly cut off my head." Naozane said, "If I leave you to be lost among the common soldiers without knowing your name, would that not be a disgrace to you instead?" Atsumori then told him the truth and was killed (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). He was sixteen years old (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki).

Taira-no-Michimori

¶Taira-no-Michimori was at first named Kimimori. In the first year of Eiryaku (1160) he was appointed Kurōdo and granted Junior Fifth Rank Lower. Between the Chōkan and Jishō eras, he rose in successive promotions to become governor of Echizen with Senior Fourth Rank Lower, concurrently Chūgū-no-suke, Assistant Master of the Empress's Household, and was granted Junior Third Rank (Note: following the Kugyō Bunin).

¶In the third month of the first year of Yōwa (1181), together with Shigehira and others, he led troops against Minamoto-no-Yukiie at Sunomata and defeated him (Note: following the Kikki, the Azuma Kagami, the Heike Monogatari, and the Genpei Seisuiki). In the eighth month, Michimori, together with Tsunemasa, governor of Tajima, led troops against Yoshinaka. When Michimori reached the provincial capital of Echizen, Yoshinaka's military strength was very great, so he sent a messenger to ask for reinforcements (Note: following the Kikki). Michimori meant to wait for Tsunemasa to come and advance together with him, but Tsunemasa kept his troops in Wakasa and lingered there and did not arrive (Note: following the Gyokukai).

¶In the ninth month, Michimori sent the Hyōe-no-jō, Lieutenant of the Gate Guards, Kiyoie (surname unknown), as commander to Kaga. Just then Inazu-no-Sanezumi and others, men of Kaga, rebelled and answered Yoshinaka's call (Note: the name Inazu follows the Sonpi Bunmyaku), and attacked from behind the camp. The troops of the provincial capital were few, and Michimori went out with more than eighty men of his command and fought, but could not hold, and withdrew to Tsuruga to defend it (Note: following the Kikki), and again asked for reinforcements (Note: following the Gyokukai). The court sent Yukimori and Tadanori as reinforcements (Note: following the Hyakurenshō), but the troops of the northern provinces pressed in and the fortress could not hold. In the eleventh month he returned his army to the capital (Note: following the Kikki).

¶In the second month of the third year of Juei (1184), Michimori was at Shimotsumichi in Bitchū, following Norimori. At this time more than two thousand troops of the Sanuki provincial office rebelled and were about to head for the capital, attacking the camp along the way. Norimori ordered Michimori and Noritsune to strike them. The provincial troops fled to Awaji, and Michimori, together with Norimori, pressed the attack and annihilated them. He then advanced into Iyo, intending to attack Kōno-no-Michinobu, and went to Shikoku. Noritsune reached the temporary palace at Ubushima in Sanuki, and Michimori reached Hanazono in Awa. Michinobu, in fear, fled to Aki.

¶When the fortress of Ichi-no-tani fell, Michimori fled past the Minato River, but Sasaki-no-Toshitsuna caught up with him. Michimori fought hard and died (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki. The name Toshitsuna follows the Azuma Kagami; this book gives Narizuna).

Taira-no-Noritsune

¶Taira-no-Noritsune was at first named Kunimori. He was granted Senior Fifth Rank Lower and appointed governor of Noto (Note: following the Heishi Keizu).

¶In the second year of Juei (1183), when the Taira had recovered the Sanyōdō and Nankaidō, Minamoto-no-Yoshinaka sent his generals Ashikaga-no-Yoshikiyo and Unno-no-Yukihiro to attack; their army reached Mizushima in Bitchū and was about to threaten Yashima. Munemori sent Shigehira, Michimori, and Noritsune to lead a great naval force and hold them off. The enemy, more than seven thousand horsemen, set out before dawn. Noritsune encouraged his officers and men, bound two hundred warships together with cables (Note: the Genpei Seisuiki says more than a thousand vessels) and laid planks across them to make advance and withdrawal easy, so that the inside of the ships was like a level thoroughfare (Note: following the Heike Monogatari).

¶At the appointed time battle was joined. Noritsune was an excellent archer and, himself fighting hand to hand, shot and killed thirteen men, beginning with the enemy general Takanashi-no-Takanobu (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki). Just then an eclipse of the sun darkened the sky so that east and west could not be told apart, and the enemy, utterly defeated, fled.

¶The following year Noritsune was with his father at Shimotsumichi in Bitchū. When the troops of the Sanuki provincial office attacked, Noritsune was greatly enraged and said, "These are mere lackeys. Once they fed and watered my horse, and now they suddenly submit to the Minamoto and shoot arrows at my camp. This is outrageous. I will destroy them all." So he boarded a light boat and, together with his elder brother Michimori, pursued them relentlessly. The provincial troops fled to Awaji and took refuge with Minamoto-no-Yoshitsugu and Minamoto-no-Yoshihisa. Noritsune and his brother at last reached Awaji, attacked for a day and a night, killed Yoshitsugu, and took Yoshihisa prisoner. The remnants scattered, but they were all pursued and destroyed. They took one hundred and thirty-two heads (Note: consulted the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki. The Hōryaku Kanki gives one hundred and sixty). They reported the victory at Fukuhara.

¶He next intended to attack Kōno-no-Michinobu, and, parting from Michimori on the road, went to Shikoku. Noritsune reached the temporary palace at Yashima, and Michinobu fled to Aki and joined Numata-no-Jirō. Noritsune advanced and defeated them. Michinobu fled back to Iyo, and Numata-no-Jirō, in desperate straits, surrendered; he was taken and brought back.

¶Noritsune also heard that "Ama-no-Munemasu, a man of Awaji and a partisan of Yoshitsugu, was leading his followers to go secretly to the capital" (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki. "Ama" is written in various books as "Ama," another character, and also as "Amano," and "Munemasu" is also written "Munekazu" and "Munekage"), and with one hundred and fifty horsemen he met them on the sea of the western seas. Munemasu could not advance, withdrew, and moored his boats at Fukei-no-ura in Izumi. His partisan Sonobe-no-Shigemochi, a man of Kii, came to join him (Note: the Heike Monogatari gives Shigemochi as Tadayasu), and they meant to go to the capital together. Noritsune went on to Kii, defeated them, and took thirty-six heads (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki. The Heike Monogatari says that Sonobe-no-Tadayasu had already joined Aku-no-Tadakage, and that Noritsune struck them in Izumi and took one hundred and thirty heads; which is correct is not known). Once more he reported the victory at Fukuhara.

¶Ogata-no-Koreyoshi, Kaida-no-Munechika (Note: Kaida-no-Munechika follows the Genpei Seisuiki), and Usuki-no-Koretaka, men of Bungo, each leading his own troops, held the fortress of Imaki, and Michinobu too went there from Iyo and joined them. Noritsune led more than two thousand horsemen against them (Note: the Heike Monogatari says more than three thousand) and took the fortress in a day and a night. Koreyoshi and Michinobu fled in defeat, and Noritsune returned to Fukuhara.

¶When Minamoto-no-Yoshitsune was about to attack Ichi-no-tani, he first came to Mikusayama. Sukemori, Arimori, and others led troops to hold him off, but they were attacked at night by Yoshitsune and abandoned their army and fled. Munemori sought to send further troops to hold him off and sent messengers to urge the generals on, but the generals all shrank back (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶Munemori said to Noritsune, "The defense at Mikusa is in difficulty. I sent Taira-no-Moritoshi earlier to take command of the army's affairs, but the soldiers still suffer from having no commanding general. What is to be done? I would like you to go and set out a plan and encourage the troops." Noritsune answered, "One who confronts the enemy in the field, even if he himself takes the lead, may sometimes stumble. How much more so when the generals shun hardship and seek ease. I do not understand how one hopes to win victory in such a way. If one wishes to keep oneself whole, it is better not to go to the battlefield at all. Where the generals find it hard, I will simply go lightly. I beg you, my lord, not to worry." So he finally went to Mikusa and pitched camp at the foot of the mountain.

¶Two or three startled deer sprang out, and Noritsune said to his officers and men, "Deer are beasts of the wild and should fear men and hide. That they have come here now must mean, I think, that enemy troops are secretly about to attack. You men, do not relax your guard." And indeed Yoshitsune, leading several thousand picked troops, suddenly attacked at daybreak; the army was utterly defeated and many of the generals lost their lives (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶Munemori then escorted the emperor to Yashima. In the fourth year (1185), when Yoshitsune attacked Yashima, Munemori and the others took to their boats to avoid him. The fighting became an exchange of arrows between sea and land, and Munemori specially sent Noritsune up onto the shore to hold them off. Noritsune led more than thirty men resolved to die, turned his boat about and landed, loosed arrows and fought hard, and many of the enemy were killed or wounded. When Sato-no-Tsugunobu of Yoshitsune's command was struck by an arrow and fell from his horse, Noritsune's household boy Kikuō went forward to cut off his head, but Tsugunobu's younger brother Tadanobu shot him dead. Tadanobu's attendant was about to take Kikuō's head, and Noritsune seized Kikuō and flung him into the boat. Soon evening fell, and Yoshitsune withdrew his camp to Takamatsu in Mure.

¶That night Noritsune meant to attack Yoshitsune, but Emi-no-Morikata and Taira-no-Moritsugu contended for the vanguard until dawn, so it could not be done. Noritsune attacked at dawn (Note: following the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Seisuiki). Moritsugu, Kagekiyo, and the other picked men, each with short weapons in hand, ranged to and fro and met the enemy in desperate fighting, and the enemy troops faltered somewhat. Noritsune, leading twenty other men, loosed arrows to hold them off, but mounted men against men on foot were more than they could manage, and they turned their boats and withdrew (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki).

¶When the Taira lost the battle of Dan-no-ura, the soldiers of the eastern provinces, who had long heard of Noritsune's courage, competed to be the first to take him. Noritsune threw himself into the bloody fight, shooting down those at a distance and grappling with those near and hurling them into the sea. His cousin Tomomori, seeing that Noritsune fought on without ceasing, stopped him and said, "The course of events has already been decided. You should think about how to dispose of yourself, and there is no need to kill so many to no purpose. They are all mere common soldiers and not worth your attention."

¶Noritsune then meant to die by stabbing Yoshitsune and dying together with him. Just then Yoshitsune's boat passed close by Noritsune's boat, and Noritsune took off his helmet, removed the sleeves of his armor, leapt into that boat, and looked back for Yoshitsune. Yoshitsune, knowing he was no match for him, hid himself among the crowd. Noritsune at last found Yoshitsune, announced his own name in a loud voice, and advanced to grapple with him. One of Yoshitsune's retainers stepped in front of him, and Noritsune kicked him down. Yoshitsune took the opportunity to move to another boat. Though Noritsune's strength surpassed other men's, he could not match Yoshitsune's nimbleness, and so Yoshitsune escaped him.

¶An enemy soldier, Aki-no-Tokiie (Note: the Heike Monogatari gives Sanemitsu), together with two strong men under his command, advanced together to face him. Noritsune kicked one into the sea, and with the other two held under his arms he finally sank into the sea (Note: following the Genpei Seisuiki; the Heike Monogatari was also consulted). He was twenty-six years old (Note: following the Heike Monogatari. One version of the Genpei Seisuiki and the Daigo Zōjiki say that he fell on his own blade and died, but which is correct is not known. The Azuma Kagami says that at the battle of Ichi-no-tani Noritsune was captured by Yasuda-no-Yoshisada, governor of Tōtōmi, sent to the capital together with the heads of the various generals, and exposed on the prison gate. The Heike Monogatari and the Seisuiki both say that he died in battle at Dan-no-ura the following year. Examining the entry for the nineteenth day of the second month of the third year of Juei in the Gyokukai, it records a theory that Noritsune was still alive. The Daigo Zōjiki, too, in listing the generals who died in battle at Dan-no-ura, includes Noritsune's name. From this it is clear that the man captured by Yoshisada was not the true Noritsune).