Chapter 62 21. One Arrow Pierces the Clouds, Thousands of Troops Come to Meet

Time passed, and just after the first month of the year, Nagao Kagetora sent out imperial letters, and all the forces east of Fuwa Pass, big and small, received a copy. Even the Muto clan in Shonai, the Ashina clan in Aizu, the Shiina clan in Echizen, and so on were all summoned.

One after another, the hatamoto and horse-horse of the Nagao clan delivered the letters with the seals of Kanto Kanrei Uesugi Kento and Echigo Shugodai Nagao Kagetora to every powerful lord in Kanto.

They crossed the continuous Echigo Mountains, along the raging waves of the Sea of ​​Japan, and along the rolling waters of the Shinano River, from mountains to hills, from hills to plains. From large towns with a large population to small towns in the countryside that are cold and remote.

Along the way, they shouted loudly: "Echigo Shugodai Nagao Danmasa is riding to Kanto in the name of Kanto Kanrei Uesugi Sakino."

The majestic war horses and mighty knights announced the news that Nagao Kagetora was coming everywhere.

From morning to night, from the morning frost to the evening snow, one figure after another broke the tranquility of winter, and the flags of Nagao Kagetora flew everywhere.

The phrase "Go to Kanto, and serve under Lord Nagao Tansho." became the most exciting slogan in the entire East.

The horses raised in the mountains and forests were saddled, and the farmers working in the fields also put on armor. The warriors wiped their sharp swords, and the foot soldiers stroked their sharp spears.

The lords took Nagao Kagetora's letter respectfully, and the bells and drums summoning the three armies sounded from south to north, from east to west. The two people who were originally hostile shook hands and made peace, and the friends who were originally good friends worked together.

Even the noisy people of Echizen and Yangbei put away their guns and swords and obeyed Nagao Kagetora's orders. Ashina Moriuji of Aizu even slammed the table in excitement. Regardless of the icy snow and the long journey, he summoned the soldiers in his territory to shovel away the snow that blocked the road and set off for Kasugayama Castle in the biting cold wind.

The hearts of the people in this world are too corrupt, and the corruption cannot be worse. Fathers kill sons, sons kill fathers, and brothers fight against each other. Ministers attack and kill their masters, and the ministers of the ministers follow one after another.

Everyone is looking forward to the emergence of a hero, a hero who can unite the people who cannot survive because of the greedy lord's robbery and the bullying and oppression of the rebellious villains, and can correct the country and restore the order of seniority.

And Nagao Kagetora, with a body of only 1.5 meters, contains the ambition to help the world. He shouted out what they wanted on behalf of all the people who wanted to end the rebellion and did what they could not do.

Almost all the forces from all directions responded to Nagao Kagetora's call. By the end of February, Nagao Kagetora's 8,000 troops and 3,000 people from the Oshu Ashina Mori clan finally rolled out from Kasugayama Castle.

It took only a few days to reach Numata. Upon hearing the news, the originally unstable Hojo clan and the Joshu clan immediately, under the leadership of Nagano Yoshimasa of the Minowa Nagano clan, including the Kaneyama Yura clan, the Kiryu Akai clan, the Ogokami Izumi clan, and the Agatsuma Saito clan, raised more than 12,000 soldiers. All gathered under the command of Nagao Kagetora, raising the banner of revenge for the Kanto Kanrei.

Everyone shouted "Go to Kanto, to the command of Nagao Dansho-kun", and from Shinano to Shimotsuke, there were endless teams joining Nagao Kagetora. Even heroes like Takeda Harunobu and Murakami Yoshikiyo did not dare to stop these teams at this time, and they were deeply afraid of Nagao Kagetora's courage.

As Nagao Kagetora marched to Langqiao Castle, the Yamanouchi family, led by Yamanouchi Yoshikatsu, also recruited 3,500 people to join them.

When they arrived at Langqiao, Nagao Kagetora once again issued an imperial edict in the name of Uesugi Kenshin, setting a deadline. Sure enough, the Utsunomiya clan, the Sano clan, the Ashikaga Nagao clan, and the Nasu clan also quickly joined them. At this time, Nagao Kagetora had an army of more than 45,000 people under his command.

The people's hearts were obvious, and the powerful military oppression could not stop people from hating the rebellious villains. At this moment, even the swords could not intimidate the justice and righteousness that vowed to overthrow the powerful.

Kobayata once again mobilized rice, grain, grass, beans, carried swords, guns, bows and arrows, encouraged the civilians and chores, and followed the army to Langqiao Castle in Joshu, Kanto.

At this time, the sun had just risen, and the morning mist was dissipating. Xiao Pingtai saw Nagao Kagetora standing on the top of the mountain, wearing a very fitting Nanbando, with his cloak fluttering in the wind, holding a red spear in his hand, and several brave warriors standing around him, with the chaotic dragon flag fluttering in the wind. The morning light seemed to be particularly fond of him, and it was sprinkled on Nagao Kagetora's body in patches. With his resolute and majestic face, although he was just staring into the distance in silence, it also made people respect him.

The soldiers in the distance looked at Nagao Kagetora standing upright in the morning mist that had not yet completely dissipated. The breastplate of the Nanbando reflected the not-so-bright sunlight, and Nagao Kagetora seemed to be wrapped in the divine light of the gods and Buddhas.

Suddenly, several Echigo soldiers knelt on the ground, chanting "Bishamonten protects our army and wins every battle." The soldiers, who were already moved by such a magical scene, could no longer control themselves, and they knelt down from one end of the mountain to the other.

At this moment, Nagao Kagetora was no longer the incarnation of Bishamonten, but the real Bishamonten who came to the world. He did not stop anyone from kneeling, and he accepted everyone's faith calmly. The momentum emanating from him far exceeded the clay and wooden Buddha statues in the temple. He had become a god, and became the god of war in the eyes of tens of thousands of soldiers.

The soldiers who were inspired and infected by the god of war waved their hands, like waves, and all shouted "Victory, victory, victory." The roar went straight into the sky and shook the world.

Generals from various places must also be observing Nagao Kagetora on the hillside, wondering if they will be infected by his spirit and work together to suppress the Hojo Army.

After all, Koheita knew the outcome of his first battle in Kanto, and achieved a brilliant but extremely fragile victory. Although he inherited the position of the leader of Kanto, he was still trapped in the quagmire of the war in Kanto and lost the best opportunity to march into Kyoto and bring order to the world.

But at this moment, being around Nagao Kagetora, he could feel the momentum and ambition of almost winning, and the shock to his soul was too strong. It made Xiao Pingtai shaken, who originally thought it was impossible. Could the course of history be changed? Will the true people of the world become the long-tailed Kagetora who now commands the heroes?

Entering the camp, Nagao Kagetora continuously dispatched troops. The troops were all different in strength and weakness, but he arranged them in an orderly manner. At the same time, the generals were summoned to discuss the matter, and Xiaoping Tai also followed Yamauchi Yoshikatsu to the covered bridge city. Hojo Takahiro has completely ceded the residence in the city to Nagao Kagetora, and he and his men all went to the camp outside the city for resettlement.

When Yamauchi Yoshikatsu and Koheita entered the city, the drums beat, and soon everyone arrived in the evaluation room. Dozens of samurai sat down and waited for Nagao Kagetora.

The older ones are in their sixties or seventies, with white hair and frail bodies. The younger ones are like Utsunomiya Hirotsuna, only a few years old. They are being led by the family elder, Hoga Takatsugi, with fake seriousness on their childish faces.

Others, old or young, almost all the powerful figures in Northern Kanto are already sitting here. Here awaits their nominal co-owner.

Following a few firm and powerful footsteps, Nagao Kagetora walked in. He was holding a long sword in his left hand and a porcelain cup in his right hand. Another person walked out from behind and was guided by two followers. Xiaoheita could tell at a glance that it was Kentou Uesugi, the current leader of the Kanto region.

Nagao Kagetora stood in the center of the crowd holding the sword-riding cup. He said solemnly and powerfully: "Since Hojo started rebellion, Kanto has become disordered. The subordinates are rising up, and father and son are killing each other. First, the official was detained in Furukawa, and then the leader was trapped in Hirai. The loyal ministers were brutally killed by swords, and they were killed on both sides. The villain's jade belt has been added to his body. His treacherous and treacherous deeds are too numerous to describe, and his crimes are too numerous to mention. I am here now to honor the Emperor, who has ordered me to wield a sword. You will correct the situation, correct all the officials, and attack the disloyal ministers. We will gather a hundred thousand gluttons and a thousand groups of braves to fight in Guandong. I hope that all the generals will work together to put aside their prejudices and clear away old grievances. The atmosphere of thieves transforms the imperial land."

The daimyo who had been suppressed and bullied by Hojo became excited after hearing this, pumping their fists and roaring, high-fiving each other, and promised to be sincere and united in obeying Nagao Kagetora's orders.

Then Nagao Kagetora asked everyone to calm down and respectfully asked Ken Uesugi to lecture. With a smile on his face, Ken Uesugi first firmly held the hand of Nagano Yamasa who rushed up to salute, and softly comforted the sixty-year-old veteran. Nagano Ye was in tears as he said this, lamenting that he would still be able to see Guan Ling return to his country in his lifetime.

Then he pointed at someone and said, "In such and such a month and year, I went eagle hunting with your father, but now he has gone one step ahead of me." The man scolded Hojo Ujiyasu for his undeclared war, attacking his father, and killing his father.

Then Uesugi Kentou pointed to another person, "During the night battle in Kawagoe, your son gave me his horse. He did turn around and kill the Hojo army. It was he who killed his son." With tears in the corners of his eyes, the man said that it was the greatest honor for Heijiro to serve as a soldier in the Yakata Palace, and that it was all the evil deeds of the Hojo traitor.

One by one, almost everyone had an almost sworn hatred for the Hojo clan, and the atmosphere at the scene was exaggerated to an extremely sad and indignant state.

Originally, most of these generals had gathered under the commander's banner to fight, but now that the commander came forward to appease them, they also expressed their loyalty while crying about being bullied by Hojo.

Kentou Uesugi also understood his identity, and after mobilizing the atmosphere of the whole place, he asked everyone to obey Nagao Kagetora's order, and the generals agreed with a bang. They all expressed that they would not live up to the expectations of His Highness. Xiao Pingtai thought that this picture of a loving father and a filial son, and a harmonious relationship between the monarch and his ministers would last forever.

The army then entered Musashi Country, and troops continued to come to join them, and finally reached Ninja Castle. At this time, there were more than 50,000 soldiers in the army.