Matsunaga Kojiro
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Matsunaga Kojiro (died 1577) was a Japanese nobleman and the son of Matsunaga Hisahide who lived in the Yamato Province during the late Sengoku period.
Biography[edit | edit source]
By 1577, under his father Hisahide's command, Kojiro fought for his clan against the united forces of Oda Nobunaga and Tsutsui Junkei, who were aided by the monks, led by Hara Joken. During the Siege of Shigisan, Joken managed to fight against Kojiro soon and defeated him in combat but the young Matsunaga managed to escape.[2] Ultimately, his clan fell. Kojiro, following his father's lead, committed suicide while taking his father's head away from Nobunaga, who planned to use it as a trophy.[1]
Legacy[edit | edit source]
As a disturbed spirit of the land, Kojiro saw all and noticed dark measures were taken against the people of his homeland. He soon met with Fujibayashi Naoe and Yasuke at Ōmiwa Shrine and told them to meet with Junkei to investigate the claims of the darkness in Yamato. He soon followed the pair and influenced their investigation,[3] including to meet with the abbot Joken[2] and to find the missing relics.[4] He also guided them to the discovery of a secret group, the Kurai Eikyou, who was allied with The Wise, a member of the Shinbakufu.[5]
At Kōfuku-ji, Kojiro watched as the High Abbot Joken mediated over the peace talks between Junkei and Akiyama Ayako, which led to little resolve. His presence soon caught the attention of Yasuke, who questioned his presence. Soon, they all witnessed Naoe stopping an assassination attempt and killing a rogue ashigaru, which led to both the Tsutsui clan and Akiyama clan nearly fighting. Yasuke soon stopped them and accused one of them to be a traitor. Soon, Kojiro convinced Yasuke to attack the abbot, which led to Yasuke throwing a tantō at him. However, catching it with ease, Joken revealed his true nature before ordering all of their deaths, including Yasuke.[6]
Fortunately, the clans, along with Naoe and Yasuke, managed to kill all of Joken's men, before the pair chased down and ultimately killed the abbot. In his last words, Joken heard the call of Kojiro beckoning him to the next life before dying. With the abbot's death, Kojiro garnered a victory over his old foe and peace talks could resume without any corrupting influence.[6] Naoe and Yasuke also managed to eliminate all the members of the Kurai Eikyou and spoke to their ally Fuyu at Ōmiwa Shrine, to which she mentioned their "friend" left a gift at their first meeting. There, Kojiro had left the two the ōdachi Whisper of Muramasa as a parting gift.[5]
