Biographies CII: Funada Yoshimasa, Funada Tsunemasa, Kuryū Akitomo, Shinozuka Bō, Hata Tokiyoshi, and Others

Funada Yoshimasa

¶Funada Yoshimasa came from Kōzuke province. He served as steward (shitsuji) to Nitta Yoshisada. When Yoshisada was encamped at Mount Kongō, he and Yoshimasa laid plans for raising an army and sought to obtain an edict (ryōji) from Imperial Prince Moriyoshi. Yoshimasa said, "I hear that the Prince has lately been hiding in the mountains. It would be well to use a stratagem to find him." He therefore had more than thirty soldiers disguise themselves as mountain bandits and climb the ridges of Mount Katsuragi by night, while he himself, feigning to be a deserter, met them on the road. The real bandits saw this, took the party for their own comrades, and hurried to their aid. The two groups then closed on them from both sides, took several alive, and, loosing their bonds, addressed them: "We do not mean to kill you. Lord Nitta, having obtained the edict of the Prince of Daitō (Note: another name for Imperial Prince Moriyoshi), intends to raise a righteous army. If you value your lives, guide us to where the Prince is staying." The bandits gladly said, "That is easily done," and asked leave to send one of their company ahead; Yoshimasa allowed it. A few days later a messenger bearing the edict did indeed arrive, and Yoshisada raised his army on the strength of it. When Yoshisada attacked Kamakura, Shiota Sannyū was defeated in battle. His subordinate Kanō Shigemitsu meant to kill himself but thought better of it, stole the household's goods, and fled to hide in a Buddhist temple. Yoshimasa heard of this, seized him, and exposed his head (Note: that is, displayed the severed head) at Yuigahama. Soon afterwards he also captured Kunitoki, son of Hōjō Takatoki. Yoshimasa later followed Yoshisada and was killed in battle at Kyoto (Note: following the Taiheiki). Among Yoshimasa's kinsmen was Tsunemasa.

Funada Tsunemasa

¶Of Funada Tsunemasa, it is not known how near or distant a kinsman he was to Yoshimasa. He bore the title Nagato-no-kami and always followed Nitta Yoshisada, fighting hard. When Yoshisada had taken Onjōji and was about to withdraw his army, Tsunemasa clung to the bridle of Yoshisada's horse and said: "To press the advantage of victory and pursue a beaten enemy is to your lordship's profit. The enemy have already abandoned their armor and horses and flee in confusion, clutching their heads. If we pursue them as they are and attack into Kyoto, what remains of their force will lose heart and collapse. If we mingle among the enemy, set fires and raise war cries, and ride freely in every direction, the enemy will be unable to judge how many we are. In this way we can also settle the contest with the Ashikaga." Yoshisada was pleased and said, "That is exactly my own mind." He pursued the enemy into Kyoto and won a great victory. Later he followed Nitta Yoshiaki in holding Kanegasaki castle. When the castle fell, Toki Yorikatsu, Kuryū Akitomo and Yajima Yasutaka were about to kill themselves. Tsunemasa stopped them, saying: "So long as Lord Nitta lives, we should endure the shame of surviving and wait for him to rise again. There is no need to die in vain and give the enemy credit for it." He then hid with the three in a sea-cave among the rocks on the shore, and so they were spared death. When Yoshisada attacked Asuwa, Tsunemasa led seven hundred horse (Note: another text gives five hundred) to Ago and tried to cross the river; the enemy shot at them, and many men and horses drowned. Tsunemasa withdrew his troops and returned; of what became of him afterwards nothing is known (Note: following the Taiheiki).

Kuryū Akitomo

¶Kuryū Akitomo (Note: the name Akitomo follows the Kinshōin text. Another book writes Akitomo as Kuniaki; the two books disagree and it is hard to determine which is correct. Here one is provisionally followed) bore the title Saemon and was a man of Kōzuke province. His strength of arm was beyond the ordinary, he was skilled with the bow, and he was fond of swordsmanship. He served Nitta Yoshisada and, together with Shinozuka Iga-no-kami, Hata Tokiyoshi and Yura Tomoshige, was famed as one of the "Four Heavenly Kings" (Shitennō) (Note: the name "Four Heavenly Kings" follows the Tenshō variant text). He was also counted, together with Shinozuka Iga-no-kami, Sugihara Shimōsa-no-kami, Takada Yoshitō, Fujita Saburōzaemon, Fujita Shirōzaemon, Fujita Rokurōzaemon, Ashibori Shichirō, Kawanami Shinzaemon, Namba Bizen-no-kami, Kawagoe Mikawa-no-kami, Nagahama Akihiro, Takayama Tōtōmi-no-kami, Sonoda Shirōzaemon, Aoki Gorōzaemon, Aoki Shichirōzaemon and Yamanoue Rokurōzaemon, among the "Sixteen Horsemen" (Note: the origin of the sixteen horsemen named above is not clear). Whenever they went into battle they raised the same banner, and their advances and retreats were always shared. From the time Yoshisada raised his army, Akitomo never left his side. In the second year of Kenmu (1335), following Yoshisada, he won distinction in the battles at Yahagi and Hakone. When Yoshisada was routed, Akitomo gathered the scattered soldiers and fought on for three days. When they reached the Tenryū River it happened to be raining; the river rose greatly, and they tried to lay a floating bridge to bring the army across. A traitor within the army secretly cut the mooring ropes. When the horse-handlers tried to lead the horses across, the bridge broke and they fell into the water. Funada Yoshimasa saw this and tried to have soldiers rescue them. Akitomo went into the water in full armor, hauled men and horses through the raging current, and climbed up on the bank. The planks of the bridge had gaped open by more than a jō, but Yoshisada and Yoshimasa clasped each other's hands and leaped across. As the remaining soldiers could not get over, Nabari Hisatomi (Note: the name Hisatomi follows the Kinshōin text) took armored men in both hands and threw them across one after another, twenty in all, and finally, carrying two under his arms, leaped over himself. Seeing how nimble he was, the men of the army sighed privately and said, "With warriors of such valor among us, we still could not escape defeat." The next year, Yoshisada attacked Hosokawa Jōzen at Onjōji. Jōzen sallied out but was beaten and withdrew. Our army sought to press in after him, but the warrior-monks fought hard and removed the bridge over the moat, so that it could not enter. Akitomo and a certain Shinozuka each pulled up a great wooden stupa (sotoba) and laid it across as a bridge. Hata Tokiyoshi and Watari Tadakage said in jest, "Let the two of you take charge of building the bridge. We will do the fighting," and were first across the narrow gate. While the defenders thrust their spears about in confusion, Tadakage seized sixteen spears, and Tokiyoshi trod on the gate-bar with his foot and snapped it without difficulty, so that the guards were amazed and fell into disorder. Yoshisada then led thirty thousand horse in after them, and the rebel army was at last utterly defeated. When Uryū Tamotsu went over to the other side, Wakiya Yoshisuke and Nitta Yoshiaki fled back to Kanegasaki, but on the way most of their soldiers ran off, and only sixteen followed them. They met a woodcutter, who told them that Kanegasaki too was surrounded by the enemy. All were greatly distressed and said, "We must go by the Tōsandō to Echigo, or else each of us must kill himself here." Before the discussion was settled, Akitomo stepped forward and said: "Now the roads on every side are blocked and our army is worn out. The long journey to Echigo is not one we can easily complete. To die without even seeing the enemy would be sheer cowardice. Better to muster many false troops and strike the enemy unawares; we may be able to get into the castle. If that fails, then we can die honorably before the generals." All agreed. As the day was just ending, they posted false troops beside Miyamadera. At dawn they dashed to Kanegasaki, came out behind the enemy, and shouted at the top of their voices, "Twenty thousand reinforcements have arrived!" The enemy soldiers looked toward the banners at Miyamadera, took it that a great host had truly come, emptied their camp, and fled. In this way they were able to enter the castle. Ashikaga Takauji, enraged at having been deceived by so small a force, sent a great army afresh, ringed the castle many layers deep, and attacked morning and night. Akitomo sallied out of the castle with a great shout, wielded a huge club, and struck down several dozen men, so that the enemy could not approach. When the castle fell, he escaped together with Funada Tsunemasa; what became of him afterwards is not known (Note: following the Taiheiki).

Shinozuka Bō

¶A certain Shinozuka bore the title Iga-no-kami and was a man of Musashi province. He called himself a descendant in the sixth generation of Hatakeyama Shigetada. He was fierce and strong, skilled with the bow, and served Nitta Yoshisada. When Yoshisada marched on the eastern provinces and was beaten back, only some five hundred soldiers remained to him. On the road a monk told him: "The enemy fill the provincial seat of Izu, and are said to number eight hundred thousand. With so few men you will surely not get through." Shinozuka, together with Kuryū Akitomo, turned to the troops and said, "Five hundred against eight hundred thousand! Gentlemen, today we shall truly be each worth a thousand." He then led them forward, fighting as they went. When a certain Ichijō grappled with Yoshisada, Shinozuka seized him from the side and threw him. Ichijō was nimble; his feet stayed on the ground and he did not fall, and he came at them again. Shinozuka kicked him down and cut him. Ichijō's men all fell upon Shinozuka, but he killed nine of them himself, and the rest, their legs failing them, did not dare approach. Yoshisada took the opportunity to escape. Soon afterwards he followed the attack on Onjōji and won distinction. After Wakiya Yoshisuke died, he held Seta castle in Iyo province together with Ōdachi Ujiaki. Hosokawa Yoriharu advanced with a great army and besieged the castle for thirty days. Ujiaki, his strength spent, killed himself; Shinozuka threw open the gate and burst out, announced his own name in a loud voice, shouted, "Men, take this head and earn your reward," and, wielding an iron club, broke through the encirclement. The enemy soldiers fell back in confusion to east and west, and Shinozuka walked off at leisure. The enemy sent two hundred mounted warriors in pursuit and had them shoot arrows at him. Each time the pursuers drew near, Shinozuka turned and rebuked them. After going several ri he reached Imabariura at nightfall. An enemy ship lay moored at the mouth of the inlet, guarded by its sailors. Shinozuka went into the sea in full armor, swam for about a ri, now sinking, now surfacing, leaped up and boarded the ship. The sailors, astonished and suspicious, demanded his name. Shinozuka said, "I am Shinozuka Iga-no-kami. Sail for me and take me to the island of Oki." He himself hauled up the great anchor, had the long mast, fourteen or fifteen hiro in length, raised, and lay down inside it. His snoring rolled like thunder and made the whole ship shake. So he was carried to the island of Oki; what became of him afterwards is not known (Note: following the Taiheiki). Shinozuka's daughter was called Iga-no-tsubone and served the Shin-Taikenmon'in. When Kō-no-Moronao attacked Yoshino, the emperor went in procession to Anō, and the Lady, with a few women of the inner palace, accompanied him. When they came to the Yoshino River, the planks of the bridge had been half cut away, and they did not know what to do. Iga-no-tsubone broke off the branch of a great tree and, joining pieces together, made a way across for the Lady and the other consorts. After the enemy withdrew, men of great strength were made to try to break the branch, but it is said that none could. Iga-no-tsubone later married Kusunoki Masanori (Note: following the Yoshino Shūi).

Hata Tokiyoshi

¶Hata Tokiyoshi bore the title Rokurōzaemon and was a man of Musashi province. His body was massive and outstanding, and his spirit fierce. He was skilled in stratagem, strong, and a good swimmer. In grappling, thrusting and shooting from horseback he was skilled in every way and never once lost in battle. At the age of only sixteen he was fond of sumo, and no one in Bandō could match him. Later he made his home in Shinano and lived by fishing and hunting. At the beginning of Kenmu, when Nitta Yoshisada raised a righteous army, Tokiyoshi followed him and fought hard. He also followed Wakiya Yoshisuke in attacking Funasakayama and took it. When Yoshisada held Somayama castle, Tokiyoshi, together with the men of Kaga named Shikiji, Yamagishi and Ageki and others, built a castle at Hosorogi and broke Tsubaki Kiyofumi (Note: the name Kiyofumi follows the Kinshōin text) at Daishōji. In this way Kaga and Echizen were pacified, and Yoshisada's rear was secured. When Yoshisada fell in battle, Yoshisuke had Tokiyoshi hold Minato castle in Echizen. He had only twenty-three men, but held on firmly, resolved to die. The enemy soldiers of Hokuriku attacked it, but for years could not take it (Note: "for years" follows the Tenshō text). When Yoshisuke was about to attack Ashikaga Takatsune at Asuwa, he sent out summons to the generals so that all might rise at once. Tokiyoshi gathered three hundred men and took Kanazu, Nagasaki, Kawai, Kawaguchi and other places, reduced twelve castles, and took eight hundred heads, so that hardly anyone was left alive where he passed. By this Kawai Tanetsune surrendered. Tokiyoshi joined his troops with his own and set out that same night for Asuwa. Going by mountain paths he came out behind the castle, raised a war cry, and shot arrows in rapid succession. Takatsune, fearing that his castle would be burned, fled. Soon afterwards the enemy sent out a great army anew and attacked Somayama, and Yoshisuke was beaten and withdrew into Echizen. The imperial forces in Kaga, Noto, Etchū and Wakasa all lost their positions; only Tokiyoshi, with twenty-seven men, held Takanosu castle, and Ichii Ujimasa joined him there. Takatsune and Kō-no-Moroharu attacked it with seven thousand men of the Hokurikudō. Takanosu castle was steep and towering and could not easily be climbed, so they built thirty-seven forts facing it, and attacked day and night without rest, looking up at the castle. Tokiyoshi's nephew the monk Kaishun and his household retainer Akuhachirō Tamenori (Note: the name Tamenori follows the Nanto text) were both brave and skilled in battle. There was a dog named Inujishi, well tamed and agile, and clever enough to understand a man's wishes. When Tokiyoshi left the castle by night with Kaishun and Tamenori, he first sent the dog ahead to scout the enemy's movements. If the enemy were on guard, the dog barked once and came back; if they were not, it wagged its tail at Tokiyoshi. The three would then follow the dog into a fort, shout and fight fiercely, and strike the enemy unawares. The enemy threw down their arms and fled, and Tokiyoshi, changing his method each night, attacked fort after fort. The enemy were so troubled by this that they secretly sent wine and provisions and begged him not to raid their forts. At that time Ageki Iemitsu, though in Takatsune's army, was inwardly disaffected, and a rumor ran through the army that "Iemitsu has sent several hundred koku of millet and is in secret communication with the Hata side." A notice was also set up in Takatsune's camp reading, "I intend to strike Hata and cut down Ageki," and all Takatsune's officers and men came to suspect Iemitsu. Iemitsu, ashamed and angry, one morning at dawn led more than two hundred of his household, raised shields, and advanced straight forward. The various armies said, "Iemitsu knows the inside of the Hata camp. If we press the castle now, we shall surely take it. Do not let him alone take all the credit," and the whole force of seven thousand climbed the steep path. Inside the castle all was silent and not a sound was heard, and the enemy took it for easy. When the soldiers had already reached the castle, Tokiyoshi, leading Kaishun, Tamenori, Tsurusawa Genkurōdo, Nagao Shinzaemon and Kodama Gorōzaemon, burst into the enemy ranks with a great shout. The enemy soldiers, in disorder, huddled together in one place. Tamenori, from a height, threw down logs and stones one after another, crushing more than seventy men (Note: "more than seventy men" follows another text) and wounding more than could be counted. Tokiyoshi took advantage of this to advance, fighting in every direction and killing and wounding many. Takatsune withdrew his troops and did not offer battle again. Tokiyoshi thought, "A standoff this long is no good plan. We must use some further ruse to draw out the enemy and settle victory or defeat then." He therefore left Ichii Ujimasa to hold the castle, chose sixteen soldiers, climbed Ijiyama by night, raised the nakaguro banner, and waited for the enemy to come. Takatsune heard of it and thought, "Those must be the warrior-monks of Toyohara and Heisenji come to support the imperial army," and himself led three thousand horse in a sudden attack. Tokiyoshi, his armor and horse splendidly adorned, brandished his naginata and cried in a loud voice, "General Hata has come. I wish to meet the Owari-no-kami" (Note: Takatsune's official title). The enemy ranks shook in alarm. Tokiyoshi, with the sixteen men about him, galloped his horse and fought fiercely. Takatsune's army was beaten and crossed the river in flight. Tokiyoshi gathered his men, but had lost five, and the rest were all badly wounded. Kaishun received seven wounds and soon died. Tokiyoshi too received several wounds; a stray arrow lodged in his shoulder and the head could not be drawn out, and he died three days later. From this time onward the imperial forces in the Hokuriku region never recovered their strength (Note: following the Taiheiki).

Watari Tadakage

¶Yura Tomoshige (Note: the name Tomoshige follows the Kinshōin text) bore the title Shinzaemon and was a man of Kōzuke province. When Nitta Yoshisada raised his army, he always followed and fought hard. Later he followed Wakiya Yoshisuke and, together with Hata Tokiyoshi, attacked Funasaka and took it. When Uryū Tamotsu went over to the other side, he held Kanegasaki castle together with Nitta Yoshiaki. Kō-no-Moroyasu advanced with his troops, and as time passed, the castle was cut off from relief and its provisions ran out. Tomoshige then said to Yoshiaki, together with Nagahama Akihiro: "The rebel army, pressing its advantage, is already at the outer castle. But the soldiers within the castle are worn out and can hold no longer. We beg that the Crown Prince board a boat and flee outward, and that afterwards the rest of you take your own lives. We two will hold off the rebels for you for a while." Having spoken, he went out. For several days there had been no food, and their bodies were so spent that they could not walk, so they cut flesh from the dead and ate it. Leading more than twenty soldiers, they fought off the enemy; blood dripped from their wounds and their mouths were terribly parched, so they scooped up the blood to slake their thirst. Soon Anma Toshikatsu (Note: the name Toshikatsu follows the Kinshōin text) reported, "The commander has already lost his life." The two then said to each other, "The time to die has come. Rather than die in vain, let us stab the rebel general to death and then die," and, leading fifty-eight soldiers from the castle, they burst into the enemy camp and died in battle. (Note: this book writes only "Yura and Nagahama" and does not give their names. The Kinshōin text takes them to be Tomoshige and Akihiro. But according to the current texts, in the seventh year of Shōhei (a Southern Court era name) the emperor sent Yura Shinzaemon Nyūdō Shin'a as envoy to admonish Nitta Yoshimune, and also, when Nitta Yoshioki died at Yaguchi, Yura Shinzaemon is said to have killed himself with him. If so, those who died at Kanegasaki were in every case different persons from Tomoshige. The one who died at Yaguchi may perhaps have been Tomoshige's son, who took the name Shinzaemon. At present this is hard to establish, and so it is merely appended here.)

¶Yura Mitsuuji bore the title Echizen-no-kami. When Nitta Yoshiaki was about to enter Kanegasaki castle, the enemy blocked the road and waited for him, but Mitsuuji persuaded them to leave. This story appears in the biography of Yoshiaki. When Wakiya Yoshisuke held Ishimaru, Mitsuuji took his stand at Saihōji castle. When Yoshisuke attacked Asuwa, Mitsuuji led more than five hundred soldiers, took the six castles of Wada, Emori, Harami, Fukamachi, Ago and Shōnai, and had his men hold them (Note: following the Taiheiki). What became of Mitsuuji afterwards is not known.

Oyamada Takaie

¶Watari Tadakage (Note: Watari is also written Wataru) bore the title Shinzaemon. He was a descendant of Torii Shigeuji, Ono Bettō. Shigeuji's son Yukitada sided with the imperial forces at the time of the Jōkyū disturbance and fled to Mikawa province, where he settled in the village of Watari; he took Watari as his clan name and changed his name to Tadauji. Hyōgo-no-kami Tadayoshi, the seventh-generation descendant of Tadauji, was Tadakage's father (Note: following the Torii genealogy). Tadakage was fierce and strong, skilled with the bow and able in handling troops; he belonged to Nitta Yoshisada's command and often won distinction in battle. When Yoshisada held Kanegasaki castle with his younger brother Yoshisuke, they were besieged many layers deep outside, contact with the court was cut, and they did not even know that the emperor had gone in procession to Yoshino. Tadakage therefore went by byways to the temporary palace (anzaisho), obtained an imperial letter (rinji) (Note: an order from the emperor), and returned. Worried that the roads were blocked and passage difficult, he hid the letter in his topknot, went under the water, and made his way to Kanegasaki. Through this the castle learned for the first time where the emperor was, and the soldiers' spirits rose again (Note: following the Taiheiki). When Yoshisada died, Tadakage returned to Mikawa, resumed the Torii clan name, and called himself Tōzaemon (Note: following the Torii genealogy).

Uryū Tamotsu

¶Oyamada Takaie bore the name Tarō, and it is not known where he came from. In the first year of Engen (1336) he followed Nitta Yoshisada on the march west and came to Harima. They besieged Akamatsu Norimura's Shirahata castle. From spring into summer the army was short of provisions. Yoshisada, worried that his soldiers would plunder violently, had notices set up in the streets: "Whoever reaps a single ear of rice or violates a single house will be punished." For this reason the farmers did not stop their tilling, and the merchants did not change their shops. Takaie broke this prohibition and reaped wheat, and the army officers judged that his crime deserved death. Yoshisada heard of it and said: "How would he have taken wheat of his own accord? Most likely he thought it grew in enemy land and so was outside my prohibition. If not, then his provisions had run out utterly and he broke the ban because he had no choice." He sent a man to investigate, and found that the man's saddlery and arms were splendidly kept, but his fodder and provisions were exhausted. Yoshisada said, looking ashamed: "That man sought food in order to put forth his strength for battle. For a common soldier to go hungry first is a disgrace to the commander. A brave warrior must not be lost, but neither may the law be bent at will." He therefore sent two robes to the owner of the wheat field as compensation, and gave Takaie ten koku of rice in apology. Afterwards Yoshisada fought Ashikaga Takauji at Hyōgo and was routed. His horse was struck by an arrow and fell, so Yoshisada climbed onto a mound by the roadside to wait for a fresh horse. The enemy gathered in force and surrounded him. Takaie rode up, gave his own horse to Yoshisada, and fought hard until he was killed. Through this Yoshisada was able to escape (Note: following the Taiheiki. In the Kinshōin text, giving a horse and dying in battle is made the deed of Okabe Norizumi).

¶Uryū Tamotsu bore the title Hangan and was a man of Echizen province. His younger brother was the monk Gikan. The next brother bore the name Hayashi Jirō but shaved his head and changed his name to Genrin (Note: the various variant texts of the Taiheiki write Shinrin). The next brother, named Shigeru, bore the title Hyōgo; the next, named Teru, bore the title Danjō-zaemon; all were known for valor. In the second year of Kenmu (1335), Tamotsu, together with the Kaga men of the Shikiji, Ageki, Yamagishi and Fukamachi families, responded to the imperial army and won distinction by killing Nagoe Tokikane. In the first year of Engen (1336), when Nitta Yoshisada came to Kanegasaki escorting the Crown Prince, he sent Yoshiaki, son of his younger brother Yoshisuke, to raise troops in the nearby provinces as a rear guard. Yoshisuke and Yoshiaki went first to Somayama castle and met Tamotsu. It was just the depth of winter; Tamotsu and Teru entertained the two with great quantities of wine, went to meet them as far as the post-station of Sabanami, and brought out grain from their storehouses to supply the army. When the drinking was at its height, Yoshisuke gave Tamotsu a suit of armor, and Tamotsu in turn presented twenty robes and brought out all the floss and silk in his storehouses to clothe the soldiers, who were greatly pleased. Before long Ashikaga Takauji pressed the emperor and obtained an edict for the destruction of Yoshisada's family, and ordered Ashikaga Takatsune to entice Tamotsu. Tamotsu took this at face value, held his castle, and opposed Yoshisuke. Gikan went to the Sabanami post-station and said: "My elder brother Tamotsu is by nature foolish and has easily fallen into the rebels' scheme. The matter is already pressing. You two must not remain here long. I beg that you leave the young lord alone here with me. I will do all I can to raise him up, and at the proper time raise troops and serve as a rear guard for Kanegasaki. My brother Tamotsu too will surely in time repent and serve the imperial army." As he finished he wept. Yoshisuke, moved by his honest and single-hearted manner, handed his son Yoshiharu over to Gikan's care and himself returned to Kanegasaki with Yoshiaki. Tamotsu followed Takatsune and Kō-no-Moroyasu in besieging Kanegasaki, but soon heard that Gikan and Teru were planning to raise troops for Yoshiharu, and thought, "Takatsune suspects me, and I cannot escape now." He therefore secretly sought like-minded men and planned to slip away. At that time Utsunomiya Yasufuji and Amano Masasada were in a different camp, and in their discussion of the generals' banners the opinion was voiced that the Nitta should be placed first. Tamotsu overheard this secretly and was inwardly glad, and often sent wine and tea to Yasufuji and Masasada. By going back and forth and forming ties he won great favor. When he then disclosed his secret plan, the two agreed to it. At that time, because the rebel siege had lasted long, the officers and men had grown slack and many ran away home. Moroyasu was worried by this, set up barriers on all the roads, and ordered, "Do not let anyone through who has no pass." Tamotsu therefore falsely petitioned, "I wish to send soldiers to Somayama to bring fodder for the horses of the army's commander-in-chief." Moroyasu had an official write a wooden tablet reading, "One hundred fifty soldiers are permitted to pass the barrier," and gave it to Tamotsu. Tamotsu secretly scraped away the characters on the tablet and wrote "three hundred men," leaving Moroyasu's seal as it was, and fled together with Yasufuji and Masasada. When they passed Miyamadera, the barrier officials were puzzled but did not challenge them, and so they were able to return to Somayama. Tamotsu consulted with his brothers, set up Yoshiharu as commander, and raised his banner before the Akuwa shrine. Soldiers of Yoshisada's who had fled and hidden heard of this and gathered one after another, reaching more than a thousand. Tamotsu then detached five hundred men and sent them to the Sabanami post-station and to Yunoo Pass to block the enemy's road from the north, built a fort on the hill southeast of Kohiuchi castle, and stored more than seven thousand koku of provisions as a defensive reserve. Soon he heard that six thousand enemy soldiers were coming to attack, and, wishing to draw the enemy deep in, sent men to burn the houses of the people along several ri of the road by which they would come. When night fell and Moroyasu's army arrived, there was no place for it to lodge. It entered the village of Yunoo anyway; but the enemy were extremely tired and, thinking the battle would come tomorrow, all went into the houses of the people, took off their armor, and fell asleep. At midnight Tamotsu, together with Yasufuji and the others, set fire to the place and fell upon them, and the enemy were thrown into confusion. It was a heavy snowfall, and men and horses alike were buried in snow. Three hundred were taken prisoner, and the heads taken were beyond counting. Takatsune heard of it and, fearing that the road to the north would be cut by Tamotsu, withdrew his troops and returned to Echizen, but on the way he stopped at Shinzenkōji castle. Tamotsu, leading three thousand soldiers, attacked it for a day and a night, took three hundred heads, captured one hundred thirty men alive, and had them all beheaded and exposed on the riverbed of Hoyama. His reputation grew greatly, and soldiers of the neighboring provinces and warrior-monks of Heisenji and Toyohara came over to him one after another. In the spring of the next year, Tamotsu, with Gikan, Genrin and Teru, led five thousand soldiers to relieve Kanegasaki. Satomi Tokinari served as commander, but Kō-no-Moroyasu had Imagawa Yorisada take twenty thousand soldiers to hold the key points and meet them, and our men all drew back. Only Tokinari, with a few riders, charged into the enemy. The enemy saw this, took him for the commander, and gathered around in a rush to surround him. Tamotsu and Gikan turned back to rescue him. Genrin and Teru also tried to rush to his aid, but Gikan looked back at his three brothers and scolded them: "Why do you disobey what I always told you? My brother and I will simply die in exchange with the enemy; that is all the defeat it will be. If all of you die as well, the great cause will be lost." Genrin, Teru and the others therefore did not advance; but a great enemy force pressed in, and they were separated from Tamotsu and Gikan. Tamotsu, Gikan and Gikan's nephew Shichirō died in battle together with Tokinari, and Teru and the others gathered the remnants and returned to Somayama. Earlier, whenever Gikan went out to battle he had agreed with his brothers, "Even if the battle goes badly, we brothers must not all die together. We must surely let Yoshiharu achieve a great deed again." This time it indeed turned out just as he had said. When Tamotsu and Gikan were gone, Kanegasaki lost its rear guard and became more hard-pressed each day. Yoshisada and Yoshisuke climbed over the castle wall and escaped by night, reaching Somayama in secret. Genrin and Teru again planned to relieve Kanegasaki, but had only five hundred men, and heard that the enemy's strength was growing daily and had reached a hundred thousand; before their discussion was settled, Kanegasaki fell. In the third year of Engen (1338), Yoshisada summoned those connected with him and raised troops at Somayama. Shigeru became Echizen-no-kami and Teru Kaga-no-kami, and with five hundred men they took their stand together at Myōhōji castle. When Yoshisada attacked Ashikaga Takatsune and defeated him greatly, Shigeru and Teru also had a share in the success. When Yoshisada died, Yoshisuke withdrew to Echizen Fuchū and had Teru retire to Somayama castle and hold it. When Emperor Go-Murakami took the throne, Teru followed Yoshisuke in attacking Takatsune at Asuwa and put him to flight. But soon a great enemy army came in and occupied the place, Yoshisuke's army was beaten, and the lands of the northern provinces all fell into enemy hands (Note: following the Taiheiki). What became of Teru afterwards is not known.