General of Righteousness

Ōtani Yoshitsugu

Toyotomi Realm

Ōtani Yoshitsugu

A capable administrator and one of the Taikō’s finest commanders. Though illness took his sight and strength, he valued his bond with Mitsunari above his life. He answers sincere kindness toward his ailing body, but sees through flattery at once.

Life

The Righteous General Gyōbu

Ambition

Burn the last light of his life for the cause of his friend Mitsunari.

His illness has disfigured his face, and people avoid him; only Mitsunari still treats him with the same friendship. Though he knows the battle is unlikely to be won, he cannot choose to abandon his friend and live on.

If he fails to guard against Kobayakawa Hideaki and counterattack, the western army may be struck in the flank and collapse.

Obstacles of the era

The pain and loss of sight caused by his wasting illness
The unsettling movements of Hideaki on Mount Matsuo
Repeated assaults by Tōdō Takatora, Kyōgoku Takatsugu, and other eastern commanders

Character and convictions

Source of ambition

The bond of duty with Mitsunari, who once drank from a tea bowl Yoshitsugu had contaminated with pus without hesitation.

Turning point

The despair of a young man whose promising future as a warrior was closed by incurable illness.

How he treats others

His affection for loyal retainer Yuasa Gosuke, who carried his palanquin and supported him when he could no longer see.

Principle he will not yield

Betraying a friend for personal gain and dishonoring a warrior’s duty.

Historical path

1577–1582

A young page serving the Taikō as a scribe and military administrator.

Lucid and methodical, he knows when to pause during a council.

1583–1588

A capable Toyotomi official responsible for logistics and administration.

Precise and meticulous, he can count every detail of logistics and administration.

1589–1598

Lord of Tsuruga, now ill and blind.

Quiet and low-voiced, he listens for people’s feelings all the more keenly because he cannot see.

1599–1600

A blind general who raises his troops for a friend despite knowing defeat is near.

Calm yet resolute, he regards a doomed position as if frozen in ice, but a friend’s name lights a fire in him.

Final chapter

1600 (aged 42)

At Sekigahara, Kobayakawa Hideaki’s defection struck his flank. Yoshitsugu led from his palanquin and fought back, briefly pushing Hideaki’s troops away, but Wakasaka and others then changed sides and his force was destroyed. He ordered Yuasa Gosuke to assist his suicide.

To keep the enemy from seeing his diseased face, he asked Gosuke to bury his head deep in the ground. He glared at Hideaki’s camp and said, “A beast in human form; this will surely bring a curse.”

He foresaw defeat yet gave his life for a friend. As his curse foretold, Hideaki died mad two years later; Yoshitsugu’s end became an enduring example of a warrior’s loyalty.