#mouri+clan

[atemourisan]

Lost Girls: Lady Myōkyū

The first wife of Mōri Motonari has fascinated readers, historians, romance story enjoyers and Mōri clan enthusiasts alike.

Though she is one of my favorite women of the time period. Her life is shrouded in obscurity aside from the fact that she was loved by her husband and children.

As how my ojisan would say, that Lady Myōkyū falls into the category of one of Japan's earliest evaporating people due to the fact that she hasn't been found

[the12thnightproject]

Chapter 14: Midnight Confidences: The middle of the night is the time to exchange stories…are Mitsuhide and Katsu becoming… friends?

All Chapters Archived on Ao3 

Logline - With Mai, Hideyoshi, and Aki missing, Mitsuhide and Katsuko reluctantly team up. Disguised as a merchant and his concubine, can they outsmart the man known as the God of Deceit?

At some point after we said goodnight however many hours ago, Mitsuhide had changed into a loose night kimono and cleaned the rest of the make-up off his face. There was a fresh bruise on his knuckle - had he gone back out and interrogated the priest? Was that the reason for that bleak expression that had been on his face just a moment ago? Or… there were two bottles of sake on the desk. One was already empty, and the other was halfway gone. “Never mind. I’ll catch up with you tomorrow when you’re sober.”

He easily set the cup down. “I could drink twice this much and remain unaffected.” Hm. Well, that much sake would have me unconscious, but then again, I have zero tolerance and a lower body weight. And it was true that he didn’t appear to be drunk. “What is it?” He indicated the cushion in front of the desk. “I presume this is important.”

“I think it might be.” Too tired to bother to kneel gracefully, I plopped down on the cushion, then shook my head when he pushed the cup of sake toward me. “I can’t. It gives me nightmares. Waking nightmares too. And, I already just had a sleeping one that woke me up.” Ugh. I wasn’t making any sense, was it?

“A nightmare about the priest?” He rubbed his bruised knuckle. “He will no longer be a factor.”

File that one under ‘don’t need any details.’ If the priest was connected to Aki’s or the other disappearances, Mitsuhide would have told me. Probably. “A different nightmare.” One that left phantom splinters under my nails.

“If you’ve come to me to be soothed, I’m flattered.” He looked at my bare feet, then took off his socks and passed them to me. “Don’t protest. I never feel extreme heat or cold.”

I went ahead and put his socks on. They were soft and toasty warm from his feet. Comforting. “Alright. I guess to explain the nightmare, I have to go back and explain why I don’t like boxes.”

“The palanquin.” With perfectly steady hands, he poured himself another cup.

“Yes. Well. About five years ago, someone tried to kill me, or maybe just get rid of me – by locking me in a crate and leaving it in a warehouse.” I felt my stomach clench when I recalled what a stupid kid I had been at the time. 

“The warehouse that currently belongs to Shojumaru.” Alright, he was indeed sober enough to follow along.

“Yes – that one. I don’t know if he owned it then though. The crate I was in got hidden under a heavy shipment of western muskets. I couldn’t get enough leverage to move the lid.” As my brain returned to that place and time, I felt cold all over and my fingers were tingling.

“Katsu. Look at me. Breathe.” As directed, I looked up and focused on that amber gaze until I felt steady.

Oh. He had grabbed my hands.

Holding hands with him felt – too intimate -  and I let go. Or rather, I pulled away and he allowed it. “While I was in there – before I realized I was trapped - I overheard a conversation between a foreign merchant and a man he called Motonari.”

Mitsuhide’s eyebrow went up. “Five years ago? The only Motonari I can think of who would have been interested in and able to acquire a large shipment of weapons is Mouri Motonari, and he’s been dead for longer than that.”

Not able to reflect the eyebrow back at him, I simply shrugged. “So were Kenshin and Shingen, and they’re still alive.”

“You’re suggesting Mouri Motonari is not dead.” He rubbed his chin. “That’s… possible. The Mouri clan has been rather active of late. However…” He left the sentence hanging, and I mentally filled in the unstated comment that this could have waited until morning.

“The thing is, I think he’s Shojumaru. His voice. It’s been bothering me about him since we met.” Sure, it could have been that the warehouse ghosts were playing on my senses. But the more I thought about it, the more I was sure. “Shojumaru was the man in the warehouse back then. The one that they called Motonari.”

Mitsuhide went completely still. Not in shock, or surprise… more, like deep into thought. “You are certain about this?” He held up his hand over my initial protest. “I do not doubt your story, only what time does to the memory. As you say, it has been five years.”

“Five years of a memory that regularly appears in my nightmares.” Pleasure doing business with ye!  “He could not have been aware that I was trapped in there. That was just a coincidence on his side.” Although Iekane had to have known who those guns were going to.

“How did you escape?” Hm. I thought he would be more interested in the Motonari part of it all, and not so curious about my personal experience. “It’s not such an unusual question – someone must have found you, for here you are, sitting with your feet in my socks.”

Uh. Well. This answer was bound to anger him… but I supposed it no longer mattered now that the person who had saved my life was dead. (As far as I knew. Given the Sengoku spontaneous resurrection rate, he could still be around somewhere). “A person heard me yelling later and rescued me.”

“A random passerby to a warehouse that was used by weapons smugglers.” No amount of sake could make that statement less sarcastic. “For if you had been rescued by Aki, you would have mentioned it. And let me digress to remind you that it’s as important to take note of what a person does not say, as it is to listen to what they do. Therefore, the name of your rescuer…?”

“I don’t actually know if those weapons were smuggled. It could have been a legal shipment…” I trailed off in the face of Mitshide’s incredulous look. “It was Kennyo.”

“Ah.” They say a picture is worth a thousand words. So is one ‘ah’ as spoken by Mitsuhide. “The reason for your stubbornness at the beginning of the summer is now revealed. Were you working or him?”

“What? Oh. No. But I felt like I owed him for saving me, and that life debt weighed. And at the time you questioned me, I had no idea that he was anything but a travelling monk.” Ok. No evidence that he was anything more than that.

That explanation prompted of those x-ray looks from him and I once again felt that prickly feeling through my body. It had been on low hum since moving in here with him, and I’d gotten so used to it that it had become no longer noticable. But that look from him brought that feeling back into sharp focus. “Katsuko, you are far too smart to believe that.”

The praise of my intelligence was something I would have to take out and hug to myself later.

My throat was getting dry, almost enough to tempt me to the sake. There was a teapot sitting on the edge of his desk. Mitsuhide nodded at it. “It’s from this morning.” When I shrugged, he poured the dregs of the tea into a sake cup and passed it to me.

Ugh. Yup. Cold. Strong. Worse than Mitsunari’s tea… wait. Huh? Mitsunari who? I shook my head trying to rid myself of that odd thought.

“Kennyo.” Mitsuhide’s prompt was an order.

“He found me, pulled me out, and Aki caught up to us a little while later. Anyway, he took us back to his encampment, found some clothes for me, and… well, he hinted that he might some day come to ask me to repay him, or ask it of Aki.” Ugh. Another tickle in my throat that I suspected was a loose tea leaf. “Forgetting that I had not seen him when I briefly crossed his path that night seemed like a harmless way to repay him.”

“Harmless. Did it occur to you that if we had been able to capture him at that point, then he would not be able to return and ask a favor?” He stared me down for a moment. “Never mind. Sometimes I forget how young you truly are.”

Unlikely he was referring to my biological age, and probably, he was correct. If we compared life experiences, even with the time travel thrown in, I imagined that Mitsuhide’s was longer, fuller, and full of enough angst for three seasons of a K-drama.

“Besides, there were so many people in the woods that night. I figured someone else must have seen him too, and if so, you were bound to figure things out without me.” Whoops, nearly outed Sasuke there. As I wanted to get away from this line of questioning, I asked, “What do you plan to do about Shojumaru? Motonari.”

He was quiet for a moment. “Watch him. See if he makes a mistake. Find out if he has any weaknesses and exploit them. For the moment, de Sousa still seems to be a key here. Hideyoshi met with de Sousa. If I can prove a stronger connection between him and Motonari, it would give me a lever to press. If Motonari is involved, it makes the situation political. They could be hostages instead of slaves. If Motonari has… executed them already… he would have taunted Nobunaga about that.” Aside from the intake of breath on the word ‘execute’ Mitsuhide sounded measured and calm. There was a grim set to lips though, and I was sure that inside, he was anything but calm.

I understood. Hostages were easier to locate than slaves – but the political implications made the situation more desperate. “What are they like?” The question popped out. A personal question, unrelated to our business, or our contract. I wanted the answer anyway. “Lord Hideyoshi and Lady Mai. What are they like?”

Why did I feel the need to move the conversation into personal revelations? I just… possibly was putting off returning to a room that still contained the shadow of a nightmare.

He poured himself another drink, thus finishing that second bottle. “Hideyoshi is Nobunaga’s right hand man. He’s a good man… idealistic… devoted… passionate… honest. An all around pain in the ass.”

The abrupt change in description caught me off guard and I laughed.

Mitsuhide looked up at the sound. “You don’t smile very often.”

Oh God. Please don’t tell me I have resting bitch face. “Um… what? Should I?”

He waved the comment away. “Dear me, no. Not if you don’t feel like it. It wasn’t meant as a criticism. For what is needed, your face is completely appropriate.”

Oh well, yes. Every girl’s dream is to be described as completely appropriate. Not that I care if that is how Mitsuhide sees me. Still. Completely appropriate. I felt like sulking for no good reason. “I don’t trust smilers. The man who tried to kill me was like that.” I pictured Iekane with that ever-present smile and couldn’t hold back a shiver at how badly he had fooled me.

Mitsuhide must have misinterpreted that shiver, for he took off his outer robe and handed it to me. Yeesh. If we stayed up much later, he would be naked.

Which would be bad. Of course. I erased the mental image that was forming in my brain, and simply cuddled myself into that robe. “And… Lady Mai?”

“Completely devoted to Hideyoshi and his dreams. At a look, the two of them can enter a world where they are the only two inhabitants. Hand me that bottle.” He gestured to an unopened bottle of sake that sat at the far edge of the desk.

Really? He had brought out three bottles of sake intending to drink them all? But it wasn’t my place to question his habits, and I doubted this indulgence was normal for him anyway, so whatever he wanted to wallow over, was his business. I gave him the bottle. “It’s nice that they found each other.” Hopefully whether they were, they were being held together… and well, hopefully their relationship wasn’t being used against them.

“He tried not to want her… but with Mai, that’s not possible. He believed that Nobunaga wanted her for himself, and Hideyoshi is nothing if not self-sacrificing. The man would work himself until he dropped from exhaustion if no one stopped him.” A fond smile crept across his face, and suddenly Mitsuhide looked years younger. “And then he would still find time to scold everyone else.”

To be honest it sounded like Mitsuhide and Hideyoshi had a lot in common. Or maybe I was the only person that Mitsuhide had ever scolded. I burrowed deeper into the robe, letting the smells of sandalwood and cinnamon envelope me. At this time, in this hour, they were comforting smells. “Does he scold Mai too?”

“Sometimes. If she works too hard. He can’t help it. It’s in his nature to mother everyone. Though Mai at least can get him to rest.” That smile lingered on his face. It was not his normal smirk or the grin he used when he was teasing me. I don’t think he was looking at anything in the room. Or anyone.

Does he realize that his voice always softens and catches when he mentions her?

Maybe I didn’t want to hear anything about Mai after all. Not from him. It was too late now. He was in a reflective mood now and there was no stopping the flow of words.

“Mai is the most idealistic person you will ever meet. Yet, as she much as passionately despises war, she’ll leap into any fight to defend her friends or an innocent bystander, or… even me.” It sounded like he might have been recalling a specific incident.

“I’m having trouble imagining that you ever needed to be defended.” Or wanted to be for that matter. “Who dared?”

“I dared, in fact. I needed to appear to be working for Kennyo, and I carefully constructed matters to make myself look like a traitor. But Mai cut through the entire charade by refusing to believe I was guilty.” That fond smile again. He had the same note in his voice when talking about her that Sasuke did. “And the evidence of my guilt was overwhelming – I ought to know, I manufactured it myself. With my reputation, it would have been more than enough to condemn me. But she and Hideyoshi never doubted my innocence.”

“Well, to be honest, I would have a hard time accepting your guilt too. I mean, ok, I don’t like you, but anyone with eyes and a logically functioning brain can tell you’re loyal to the Oda.” Even as I said it, I wondered if it was still true that I didn’t like him.

He blinked a couple of times, before that teasing expression reappeared. “What a pity. I believe I have treated you perfectly well. I am a very likeable fellow.”

Nope. Still hate him.

The fifth thing I hate about Mitsuhide – his ego.

“Although I suppose it’s flattering that you too would defend my innocence. Flattering. But foolish.” Whatever funk he had been in seemed to be fading away. He tapped my nose. “Have you forgotten that you’re my prisoner?”

If I were being honest, it had been a fairly benign prison, given that I still figured I could escape if I really needed to. “Don’t worry. I think you’re capable of a great many morally grey things. But in service to a Nobunaga’s cause… not for personal gain.”

Once again he rubbed his thumb across the bruise on his knuckles. “For this cause there must be someone willing to take on the burden of evil. And someone must be the light to my dark. That has always been Hideyoshi. It’s a delicate balance we make up – Nobunaga needs him, his honesty, as much he needs someone to carry out the missions that no one speaks about. Someone to interrogate--” he reached over again and lifted my chin so that I was looking right into those golden eyes. “Is that what this has been? An interrogation? Looking for a weakness in your captor?”

Fighting the urge to jerk away, I forced my eyes to stay on his. “Always.” I just wanted to know more about you. This was not a conversational path I wanted to follow, so I shrugged. “Making conversation. Trying to chase away my own nightmares.”

 “Have they been chased?” He let go of me. “For I know that if Hideyoshi were here at this moment, he would tell us both to go to bed now.” It was a dismissal. “And to clean our teeth first.”

I stood up.

He did not.

“He would be correct… in both. You should go to sleep.” I stumbled on trying to figure out if I should call him by name. I never had. “Lord Mitsuhide.”

The eyebrow went up. “Will you escort me to my bed? It’s not too late to renegotiate.” But the words had no bite, and he finally stood up as well.

“To your door.” Somehow it felt like our relationship had shifted. Not as far as to say that we were friends. But past prisoner and keeper. Vassal and lord, I suppose, would be the best way to describe it.

Maybe he had been thinking along the same lines, for he said, “Planning to take on Kyubei’s role?”

He took my arm, out of habit, I think, and I walked him up the stairs. He was completely steady – I supposed he truly did have an enormously high tolerance for alcohol, for the only difference between his behavior tonight and the night he taught me how to pick a lock was a bit more candor in his conversation. Even with that, I imagined that he had only told me things that he was ok with me knowing, things I could have learned on my own.

But I was learning to pick up on what was not said… and though he had not said it, I had discovered that he was in love with Mai.

As promised, I walked him to the doorway of his room and stopped at the threshold. He turned to look at me, playfully tugged on my ponytail, much like a mischievous child would, then without a word, went inside.

I slid shut his door, then returned to my own room, and lit one small lantern to serve as a night light. Tonight I felt I needed it, not only to chase away the shadows of the past, but any odd daydreams for the future.

I had a job to do. Many jobs, it felt like. Too many people had already disappeared. I would not lose myself as well.

Damn it… I forgot to give him his socks and kimono back.

@bestbryn @selenacosmic @lorei-writes @akitsuneswife @tele86 @lyds323

[samurailoveballadhistory]

The context in SLBP is different, but the whole plot is hilarious when compared to the history.

The Oda in real life knows damn well who Kobayakawa Takakage is. He was the contact person from the Mouri side when the Oda and the Mouri were still friends. Even if maybe it was never made known to the Oda that Takakage is one of Motonari's sons, the Oda side still knows he's someone representing the Mouri clan.

If somehow the Oda side doesn't know Takakage's full name due to the courtesies of the time period (the polite way to address someone by using their surnames or titles or aliases), they should still know that "Kobayakawa" is associated with Mouri.

Takakage and Hideyoshi frequently exchange letters. In fact, transcripts (and/or the actual artefacts) of Hideyoshi's letters addressed to Takakage exist, and you can read them in the Japanese national archives. The responses from Takakage sadly has been lost.

Also, maybe this is a new writer who were never briefed about the other routes, because MC being amazed at this is very strange:

How many times have we seen Hideyoshi just casually clowning around in front of and to Nobunaga's face and nobody cares? Toshiie and old man Shibata were also kind of casual with Nobunaga, even if they won't shove him around like Kageharu does with Takakage.

[selenacosmic]

Hello! If u r still taking in requests I have one for Nobunaga, leyasu,Mitsuhide,Yukimaru,Hideyoshi and lastly Montari ( srry if miss spelled 🥲)

If reader was a Targaryen and has a dragon with her… I have been OBSESSED with House of the Dragon 🐉

Be safe out there 😘

Hello! This is an interesting request! Thank you for the request!

MC who is a Targaryen.

Oda forces.

Nobunaga Oda.

You were definitely different, your hair naturally blond to that tone. You stood out among others, and the way you acted suggested that you had come from an important family. When you did talk about your family, he wondered if you were a foreigner, since he had never heard of such clan before.

The dragon was definitely a shock, though it didn’t scare him. He wondered how useful the dragon would be on a battlefield. He might make the dragon submit to him, and it would work.

Hideyoshi Toyotomi.

You were suspicious, what if you were from an enemy’s clan? He never heard of your family, so he feared that they were a new enemy who would battle against Nobunaga. Though that fear would slowly go away as he learned more about you and your family.

Hideyoshi might faint if he sees the dragon, he would be worried that it could harm people (specially Nobunaga) if it ever got angry. He will trust you to keep the dragon calm and make sure it doesn’t harm anyone.

Mitsuhide Akechi.

He could tell right away that you weren’t a common person, everything about you showed that you were a noble, though it seemed impossible to figure it out from which clan you came from. It made a lot more sense when he learned your family wasn’t in Japan (specially during that era).

He wouldn’t get scared of the dragon, though he might need a few seconds to process the fact that you had a real dragon.

Ieyasu Tokugawa.

He found you suspicious, though Ieyasu wouldn’t try to find out more. He could clearly see that you were from a noble family, which made him keep his eyes on you. He might be less tense around you when he learns more about your family, but will still be suspicious.

The dragon will make him freak out, keep it away from him. He worries that the dragon could cause more trouble than help.

Uesugi-Takeda alliance.

Yukimura Sanada.

He wouldn’t care that much about what family you came from, though your noble attitude made him bicker with you a lot more. You two would find each other bickering more often than expected.

The dragon will make him freak out, Yukimura will get scared of it and doesn’t want it near him. He won’t lie that it was cool that you had a dragon, but he also feared the dragon.

Lone forces.

Motonari Mouri.

He could tell right away that you were from a noble family, that attitude said it all. It was like your family was very important. The problem was, he couldn’t tell from which family you came from. Even after you told him which one it was, he didn’t know about it at all. It wasn’t from Japan or any European country he has been to before. Still, it’s always useful to learn more about it.

The dragon will be a shock, though he doesn’t fear anything. He might even try to attack the dragon if he ever felt threatened by it.

[ahanenohi]

float away with the sea

This was supposed to be a simple mission. Keiji certainly did not expect it to throw his entire life beneath the waves.

or: my entries for this round of the @flash-exchange , created for the lovely @cottonfluffballofdoom .

this is a dual entry containing a rough sketch and a short flashfic below the cut (700 words)

story below the cut.

The first tides of the day brought upon fierce waves, throwing themselves upwards and onto the workers’ docks, dousing the sandals of Japan’s most famous wild child and his companions.

“So, debrief me,” Keiji started with a lazy smile, turning to the man next to him-- a trusted vassal of his uncle’s. “What are we here for, again?”

The man gave him an unimpressed look. “My Lord has an ongoing negotiation with the Mouri clan. You were asked to coordinate the final details.”

“Ah, yes. Right.” Keiji grinned. Finally, he was being trusted with such an important task. 

Keiji hummed and noticed a man atop a ship. Tanned and lithe, with a countenance that Keiji had only seen in fellow warriors. He indicated the stranger with a gesture that was both grand and playful.

“I suppose that’s our contact, eh? C’mon, let’s go greet him.” 

The vassal nodded stiffly and Keiji called out to the man as they approached.

“Ah! The Maeda delegation! Welcome,” The guy laughed. “I assume you’re here for the trade negotiations?” 

Keiji gave his assent and they got to work, discussing into the late hours of the afternoon.

“It was wonderful doing business with you,” His contact smiled pleasantly. “Our discussion was quite fruitful. Now, as for your uncle’s special request… Men?”

It all happened so suddenly. At first it was an ambush. And then, it was a betrayal as his own companions worked with the attackers and threw him overboard with the anchor.

It was all a ploy to get rid of him, he realized belatedly, struggling as he sank. As he inhaled more water with every kick, he began to notice something.

Something moving towards him. There was no chance that figure was an ordinary person.

They got close enough for him to take in their long hair, their horrified eyes and their… claws?

Claws that slashed across his neck, leaving blood in the water. He pressed his hands to his neck, desperate to survive. If he could stop the blood flow and make it back to the surface…

The figure tilted their head in an almost confused manner and simply slashed again, this time at some point on the sides of his ribcage. He gasped and swallowed water. 

This is it, he thought. This is how I’ll die. It does not feel the same as the way he’d imagined death.

The first sensation he felt is that he wasn't drowning but breathing. How was he breathing? He’d been deep under the water for ages now, the sea must have filled his lungs-- ah. He wasn’t breathing through his lungs anymore, was he? Instead he felt the distinct sensation of air coming out of his neck and sides-- from the same wounds that figure had left.

The second sensation he felt was that his legs, his face, his everything, all of it was hurting to an agonizing degree. With a final bubbled sob, he slipped into darkness.

---

“Holy Cats! You’re awake?!” Keiji startled as he looked for the owner of the voice just now, readying himself for a fight. “Calm down! My name is Mai, I’m the mermaid who turned you!”

“Turned..?” Keiji asked, eyeing the woman who had come in. He took notice of the light pink fins and tail attached to her body, almost as if she were half-fish. Mai simply pointed at his… legs?

His kimono had been neatly cut and hemmed with what looked like seaweed just below his hips. But underneath that… was a fishtail, one of rich reds and oranges. Keiji paused, concentrating on moving it. It almost seemed like flickering fire as it caught the light. Keiji lifted his hands, noting that they were now tipped with claws of the same color. He pressed his palms to his neck and felt… gills flare on his neck as he breathed heavily.

Mai gave him a guilty smile. “I’m sorry. I know from experience how much the transformation hurts… but you were tied to that rope and drowning. It was the only way to save you.”

“Don’t worry,” she said, catching him as he fell forward, shocked. “I’ll help you adjust. Just as long as you stay with me.”

[daeva-agas]

I’m so damn curious. IS MOTONARI STILL AORUND OR NOT. Kikkawa Okitsune, the old man over there, historically died long before Motonari did (despite being younger). Motonari is such a long-lived grandpa. 

Maybe I should read the event with Motoharu in it to see if they confirm if Motonari is still alive or not... Like, in the previous set, I only got to see the Shimadzu people, I didn’t manage to get the Mouri boys.

I love this (adoptive) father-son dynamic tho LMAO. Okitsune wants to make Motoharu the next clan head, but Motoharu is such a brat he’s sometimes Kind Of Nervous about it. 

I have bias for Motoharu thanks to the Hiroshima Bushoutai GRRRRRR I thought I’m not usually swayed by fangirl bias, but I guess I’m still a normal human being after all...

[blogyogawp]

Here comes the Detective Boys and the Amazoness Quartet!

The alliance between the Detective Boys and the Amazoness Quartet occurs when Ayumi Yoshida, Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya and Genta Kojima asked Professor Agasa to contact the Detective Conan Couples and the Sailor Moon Couples. As their promise, Professor Agasa calls CereCere, PallaPalla, VesVes and JunJun to disloyal Queen Nehelenia, Amazon Trio, Zirconia and the Dead Moon Circus. With their betrayal from Zirconia, Luna and Artemis suggests Professor Agasa now unites the Detective Boys and the Amazoness Quartet into one group: Detective Boys-Amazoness Quarter Alliance. The members are Ayumi Yoshida, Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya and Genta Kojima from Detective Conan alongside CereCere, PallaPalla, VesVes and JunJun from Sailor Moon SuperS. They often come when Sonoko Suzuki, Makoto Kyogoku, Usagi Tsukino and Mamoru Chiba, Shinichi Kudo, Ran Mouri, Rei Hino, Jadeite, Heiji Hattori, Kazuha Toyama, Minako Aino, Kunzite, Kaito Kuroba, Aoko Nakamori, Makoto Kino, Nephrite, Saguru Hakuba, Akako Koizumi, Ami Mizuno, Zoisite, Shuichi Akai, Akemi Miyano, Setsuna Meiou, Taiki Kou, Masumi Sera, Eisuke Hondou, Haruka Tenou, Seiya Kou, Soshi Okita, Momiji Ooka, Michiru Kaiou, Yaten Kou, Shiho Miyano, Rei Furuya, Hotaru Tomoe and Saphir from the hands of Black Organization and Black Organization, Black Moon Clan and Shadow Galactica.

[odaclan]

Hi, I don't know if you have been asked this before, but I was wondering which modern depiction of Nobunaga do you find the most accurate? Personally I have to say I'm the most pleased with what Koei does.

In the mainstream/popular media, Nobunaga is still being portrayed in a very much grandiose fashion. Even if he's not depicted in so extreme a manner as though he's God Incarnate or Satan Incarnate, he's still this gallant, legendary heroic figure, who is ahead of his times. It's not my place to say that interpretation is wrong, but I just have a different view.

As I grow older, and the more material I read, I've developed the opinion that he should be depicted in a much more humble and serious manner. He's strong-willed, he has temper, he's successful, but he's a normal person.

For example, according to someone reviewing Mouri clan paperwork, Nobunaga once messed up how he addressed Motonari, and in the subsequent letter wrote of himself with such humble pronouns, presumably to indicate how sorry he was for the faux pas. The typical pop-culture Nobunaga doesn't usually give off the impression that he would do something like this.

Koei's games are attempting to be somewhat fair, I suppose. The dramatic flair is kind of a given, considering the medium (video game). A very sedate and realistic game might not be fun to look at, even less so than a movie or TV series.

In my mind, a realistic Nobunaga would work best for a gritty and grounded manga or novel, as a down-to-earth depiction is often not suitable for screen. I mean, I suppose a skilled writer and director could do it, but I'm not sure if people would want to do that, considering Nobunaga's still-widespread reputation of being "over the top".

That being said, I'm curious about how he's like in the Takeda Nobutora movie. As I mentioned in a previous post, that was the only movie in recent history that allowed their samurai characters to wear a proper orimage hairstyle. Not a ponytail, not the sticking-up nonsensical hairstyle, but the correct topknot as depicted in samurai paintings. Reviewers and its producer commented that this movie is a subdued narrative, so there is a chance that this movie's Nobunaga might not be so exaggerated as he usually was. It also helps that he’s not the main character here. Sadly, I have not yet the chance to watch this movie.

[kon-konk]

You know, I feel like fictional swords should pull on the fact that real historical swords sometimes just have regular person names.

Like, yeah, there's a lot with fantastical/badass/fancy names (ex: Gokotai (五虎/goko meaning "five tigers" and 退/tai meaning "to drive away"), Mikazuki Munechika (三日月/mikazuki meaning "crescent moon" for the designs on the blade created during the forging process and 宗近/Munechika being the smith that forged it, this is the most beautiful of the Tenka Goken), Joyeuse (meaning "joyful" or "joyous" in French, this was reportedly the sword of Charlemagne and was used in French coronation ceremonies for nearly 600 years))

But sometimes they're just named after the family who owned them or the area they're from or the smith (like Mouri Toushiro (which is named after the Mouri clan) or Akashi Kuniyuki (named after the Akashi domain its owners were in control of and Rai Kuniyuki, the smith that forged it))

Basically what I'm trying to say is that there should be more fictional swords that have people names.

[jfvnknvdngdcbj]

Mouri and Houjou clans of the Empire of Japan

And the Nishigawan Dojo Battleground in Seattle Kingdom and paid intl a Generational Illuminati Society that is in public Dominion development. Building a personal bureaucracy to manage employees we ial finances over social cintracts based on Alexandrianist and Sinonic Principles.

[chrouya]

[54/200] Matsue Castle (2022-04-03) My friend who I first met in 2010, makes a return in this castle visit! He moved to Shimane to practice medicine so it was a prime opportunity for a well-deserved visit. Initially, I told him I'd only be in the prefecture until noon, because the train rides back to Kobe would take more than 7 hours. However, things have changed since I had not been travelling with the Seishun 18 pass due to that purchase date oversight. A highway bus only takes 5 hours, so we had a little bit more time to fool around. One sidetrip that we took was to Kumano Castle Ruins, ruled by the Amago clan. Alongside Gassan-Toda Castle, there were the 10 defensive castles called the "Amago Jikki", and Kumano Castle was one of them. However, after Gassan-Toda Castle fell to the Mouri Clan, the rest was soon to follow. There's so little information on this castle to the point there's no English Wikipedia article for it! In any case, time for the main event: Matsue Castle. ...It's only at the time of writing this post that I realised I've actually been to Matsue Castle before during my JR Pass Backpacking trip in 2014. I looked back at my old pictures and noticed that the whole area around it changed so I didn't even realize. Oh well, I guess I should be happy for enjoying an experience a second time. I do recommend a visit as it provides quite an authentic castle experience without it being changed too much into a museum. #松江城 #熊野城 #尼子十旗 #島根 #青春18きっぷ #お城巡り #日本100名城 #続日本100名城 #matsuecastle #kumanocastle #amagojikki #shimane #japanesecastle #japanphoto #pixel6pro (松江城) https://www.instagram.com/p/CeY2aKZv-rd/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[atemourisan]

Motonari but if Otani Yoshitsugu died and took over his body.

Or is he just purely evil here?

Onimusha designs are amaze balls lol.

[mahotoai]

-- RP: @yugenronin

yugenronin:

"Not every meetin' or fight is with that bastard. If ya don't want to see him, I stand by it, ya don't have to. What happened there... the only unsightly thing was Mouri Motonari. A lord shouldn't behave like that. Not toward his own people or anyone else's," Motochika insisted, hesitantly patting her shoulder. Sometimes he felt like she might still claw or bite him, but most of the time... Hasumi merely amazed him. "He made himself look bad. Maybe if ya went right for his throat when he insulted ya like that, it would've been a bad look for me, but he would have earned that response. Plus, ya didn't. It went better than it could have, that I know for sure. Not to mention, it'll take a lot more than a justified lashing out at Motonari to damage my reputation." Not wanting to fight a war he didn't have to fight was the extent of Motochika's concerns about Motonari and what the other oni lord thought of him. If they could simply live without every crossing paths again, he wouldn't complain, but their provinces were next to each other so they needed to figure out something. Still... if Hasumi had tried to attack Motonari... Motochika might have applauded her. He shouldn't, he knew that, but part of him wished they had knocked the other lord flat on his pompous ass.

Hasumi offered an amused huff at Motochika's words and urged her horse on. "... Well, for what it's worth... what I want and what is needed are two different things. I did what was needed, and that's what matters." She points out. That being said, her blue eyes turn to look over at Motochika. "... Can you tell me more about the Mouri Army? If you're both of Oni Clans... why do you live separately? Why fight? Your species is so rare as is anyway."

At least that's how she saw and heard about it. That being said, she asked from a place of innocence on the matter, not out of disrespect. She didn't want Motochika to feel like she was misunderstanding something.

[samurailoveballadhistory]

The gunpowder recipe mentioned in this story (which you can get through the onigiri/tea house) is pretty standard, so I have nothing much to comment on that. There’s a part in this where he said the ingredients includes human excrement, and that is not wrong. If I recall correctly, I’ve seen some recipe say that you can use animal dung for it as well.

That aside, though. You know, it does occur to me that this game and many Sengoku fiction in general often makes such a big fuss about guns... but not the gunpowder nor the bullets required to actually make the gun work. The gunpowder and the bullets aren’t nicely packaged with the guns themselves. They have to be procured separately, and repeatedly.

Without bullets and the gunpowder, an arquebus is nothing more than a glorified club or bat. You can use it for not much else than clobber people with it. You can have one million guns and it won’t do you any good if you have no gunpowder or bullets.

There’s a new theory proposed that the Oda army’s artillery is superior not because they have more guns, but because they use better bullets. Either through better connections (Nobunaga has control over Sakai, and has good relationship with Europeans), or because they’re very wealthy and could afford more of the higher-quality bullets than the other lords. For example, part of this new analysis suggested that in comparison, at some point the Takeda had a major bullet shortage, and had to melt down copper coins to make the bullets. The analyst claimed that this is far inferior to the standard lead bullets, and makes the firearms less effective.

Also, in regards to Sakai: Sen no Rikyu may be better known as a tea master, but in his lifetime he was also part of the Sakai trade community. He didn’t just serve Nobunaga in terms of arts and tea, he was also responsible for helping the Oda procure their bullets. 

It’s no fault of the writer, but it makes his ethereal appearance and characterization in SLBP utterly hilarious.

“Gunpowder warfare” is also a big part of the manoeuvres in the Sengoku, duked out through trade even before stepping on to battlefield itself. There were letters or accounts showing that Mouri Motonari, aware that gunpowder can be hard to come by, himself attempted to compound gunpowder in his castle. Pro-Christian lords, such as the Ootomo, used their close connection to the Europeans to sabotage their rivals from access to gunpowder. One article I saw mentioned that while placing their order for the gunpowder from the Europeans, they also said something to the effect of “please don’t sell gunpowder to those people (the rival clan) because they’re terrible”.

Seafaring lords used their navy forces to block traders from bringing in gunpowder to Sakai, forcing people to have to find other alternatives (such as trading with the Kingdom of Ryuukyuu). So on and so forth.

[onnajosshumiwa]

[OC] Sugi-no-Ōkata

Back when I entered the fandom for the first time, I've met many amazing people who brought me into the magical world of Senbasa OCs.

Sugi-no-Ōkata, Motonari's foster mother, was my first OC I've ever created in this fandom soon after watching Mōri Motonari's Taiga Drama. At that time I was trying to build my own fanon, encouraged by all the creativity of the fandom and there is when she was born.

Despite being Motonari's polar opposite, Sugi's sparkling and carefree personality never clashes with Motonari's plans. She seems very supportive, and often holds the fort in his absence, but most of the time, she has to pretend she didn't see his cold and cynical behavior towards his own men.

Motonari on the other hand tries his best to hide the bitter truth to her, being one of the fewest people he cherishes. She is family, after all, and has been taking care of him when he needed her the most.

She is the one who's responsible for Motonari's obsession over the sun goddess, being a devoted believer herself, despite her approach to the faith is less "dramatic" compared to her son.

I'm glad I could make a decent artwork for her! And I hope I'll be more consistent on the Mouri Clan fanon in the future, there's still so much I'd like to share!

[blue-and-art]

Remember not to self-medicate your anxiety disorder with alcohol.

My Mori Okimoto, not handling stress very well. This was a lighting practice I wanted to do.