Kokokuji Trade Wind, Kirikuin Kaemon, Deura Morikiyo and Yokotani Yukishige are the four great ninjas of the Yamato Shinobi Army under Hidebo, among which Kokokuji Trade Wind is in charge of Kanto, Yokotani Yukishige is in charge of Zhongshan (Koshin-Etsu), Kirikuin Kaemon is in charge of Jinji, and Deura Morikiyo is in charge of the Western Kingdom, and the four of them are in charge of nearly 200 people in the middle and lower shinobi respectively, which is the most important component of Hidebo's national intelligence network.

As the leader of the Nishinobi Army, Kirikuin Kaemon was in charge of monitoring and detecting the intelligence of all the nearby castles, including Osaka, and when he heard that Hideho wanted to summon him, the retainers were confused.

"Did the lord summon Shikaemon to send ninjas to assassinate him......" Ogasawara Takakiyo asked cautiously.

"Assassination? Do you think I want to kill Osamu Ishida? Xiubao was stunned for a moment, and then laughed and said: "Although it is an idea, but this knife is cut, and the gossip to face is not something you and I can endure, and I will not give those guys who are hiding in the dark a chance." ”

"In that case, why would the lord use ninjas?"

"I want them to bring three letters into town." Hideho replied with a smile.

"To whom do you believe it?" Fujido Gaohu asked curiously.

Hideho replied without thinking, "Mano Yoriho, Nomura Yukinari and Kinoshita Katsutoshi, these are the only three of them." ”

Mano Yoribao and Nomura Yukinari are no strangers to everyone, they are old ministers of the Hideyoshi era, and they have always been the leader of the Seven Hands Group, and they have a high status in Osaka Castle. Because of this, neither the former Osamu Ohno nor the current Ishida Mitsunari dared to remove the two from the Seven Hands Group, which is evident in this influence.

Kinoshita Katsutoshi is the eldest son of Kinoshita Ieding, the brother of Kodaiin, and the elder brother of Kinoshita Nobuyoshi and Kobayakawa Hideaki, and currently holds 80,000 stone from Wakasa Goseyama Castle, which is also one of the few daimyo around Kodaiin.

Hearing that Xiubao was going to write a letter to these people, the retainers stared at each other, not knowing what kind of medicine he was selling in his gourd.

"Although Mano Yoribao and Nomura Konari are the leaders of the seven-hand group, they are different from the other five." Hideho analyzed: "In the last Osaka Rebellion, these two generals were stationed in Imafuku, and they went to Nishinomaru to protect Takadaiin, and they never participated in Ono's rebellion, so it can be seen that the two were at least superficially neutral, or it can be said that they were close to Takadaiin, which is different from other group leaders." ”

"Mitsuyoshi Majima and Takayoshi Sagijima were both promoted by Ishida Jibu, but they can be grouped together." Fujido Takatora added.

"So, Ito Nagashi, Matsuura Hidehi, and Ken Soho are counted as one category?" Shima Kiyoko asked rhetorically.

"I can't say that, these three people, including the pen head Hayami Shoujiu, are all loyal to Hideyori, can't be counted as a faction, and it's hard to say that it's a few factions, during the Osaka Rebellion, Matsuura Hideren's attitude towards Hasamizu Shoujiu can explain the problem, Hayami Morihisa is sleek and old-fashioned, and he can't see the depth for the time being, but Matsuura Hideren, his personality is straightforward, and he doesn't hide his distrust and fear of his own family. Therefore, we don't need to completely woo or consider the Seven Hands group, as long as we can get the support of two or three people, it is enough. Hideho explained to the crowd.

"What does the lord mean by using the relationship between the Gaotai Academy to persuade the two to defect?" Ogasawara Takakiyo seems to understand Hidebo's intentions.

Unexpectedly, Hideho shook his head: "I don't plan to pass through the high platform, but to send a ninja to deliver the letter directly to the two of them." ”

"Isn't that too risky? In case they bring the letter to Ishida Jibu, I'm afraid it will be bad for the family. Ogasawara Takakiyo said with a frown, and several other retainers also expressed their concerns.

"This worry is unnecessary." In order to reassure everyone, Hidebo patiently explained: "During the Osaka Rebellion, the reason why Mano and Nomura dared to remain neutral was because they didn't have to worry, even if they didn't make a move, Ono would not dare to use his limited forces to use force against them, and Ohno's plan was full of loopholes, and there was no chance of victory on his side; On the other hand, although the temple has lost its power, it is still a symbol of the Toyotomi clan, and protecting her is also to keep her safe. In addition, after the war, the two had contact with the family through the Gaotaiyuan, which is still worth associating. To sum up, it can be seen that the two are not only 'smart' and life-saving, but more importantly, they are very knowledgeable about current affairs. ”

"In this way, guarding the Gaotai Courtyard before can be regarded as a gesture, a gesture of goodwill to the family?" Fujido Takatora asked.

"Yes, after all, if you want to contact your own family, you have to first weigh whether you have this qualification, and you have to guard the Gaotai Courtyard, and then you have contact and contact with your family, this is their attitude; In the later evaluation, I won 25,000 koku for them to be sealed in the southern part of the county, which can be regarded as a return for the peach, although we have not been in contact again since then because of the expedition to Aizu, but we have already tacitly agreed. ”

"These two guys are not fools, at the beginning, Osamu Ohno had thousands of troops in his hands, and he couldn't succeed without the support of a strong daimyo, their so-called 'neutrality' was just to save his life; After listening to Hideho's words, Shima Kiyoshi and others were also relieved.

"But my lord, in that case, why did you write to that Kinoshita Katsutoshi, it was he who joined forces with the Maori army in the first place and blew up the walls of Fushimi, causing heavy losses to our army, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is the culprit for the loss of Fushimi." Aoki Toshiki, the son of Aoki Kazuki, has long hated Kinoshita Katsutoshi and gritted his teeth, and his father stayed behind as Fushimi, almost dying because of this, if this guy hadn't fled to Nishinomaru early to seek refuge in Kodaiin, he might have died under the knife of the Aoki clan.

Hideho stretched out his hand and patted Aoki Toshiju's shoulder, and persuaded: "It is precisely because he committed such a heinous crime that I have to write to him, compared to Mano and Nomura, this eldest son of the Kinoshita family, has no other choice but to cooperate with the family to open the city gate." ”

"But my lord, this guy only has more than a hundred people on his hands, how can he ......" Aoki Toshiju was still suspicious.

"Then you say, how did his more than 100 people plan to take Fushimi by the Maori army?" Hideho smiled and said, "Nishinomaru of Gaodaiin is close to Sannomaru, as long as he can trick Sannomaru into opening the door of Sannomaru, Ishida Jibu will be powerless." Besides, unlike Fushimi this time, I won't let him blow up the city walls, but let him contact Mano and Nomura in Marunouchi, protect them, and act when the opportunity arises. ”