Joining the Team with Capital (Please Follow)

"Nene and Yaya are my adopted daughters. They came with me this time to visit relatives."

"Lord Yamauchi, at such a young age, you are already the magistrate here. Your future is boundless indeed."

Inside the Hachisuka Estate, Asano Nagakatsu, who had just entered the house, warmly drew Yamauchi Kazutoyo into conversation.

Yasui Shigetsugu of Miyago Village was Asano Nagakatsu's brother-in-law. Asano Nagakatsu had no son, so he took his brother-in-law Yasui Shigetsugu's son, Chokichi, as his adopted son-in-law—who would later become Asano Nagamasa.

"Lord Asano, you flatter me. You serve Lord Oda Kazusa-no-suke at Kiyosu Castle. That is what truly makes others green with envy," Yamauchi Kazutoyo returned with a compliment.

Asano Nagakatsu smiled faintly and said with great humility, "I am merely an archer of the Oda clan, hardly worth mentioning."

"What brings Lord Yamauchi here?"

"I came to seek out Lord Hachisuka. I did not expect to disturb Lord Asano's family visit. Please forgive my rudeness." Yamauchi Kazutoyo bowed.

Flattered, Asano Nagakatsu quickly returned the bow. "In that case, I shall take my family inside first. You two talk."

With that, Asano Nagakatsu nodded to Hachisuka Masakatsu before leading the three children into the house.

After leaving the room, Nene looked back at Yamauchi Kazutoyo. When she noticed him looking her way, she fled on tiptoe like a startled rabbit.

Business came first. For the time being, Yamauchi Kazutoyo had no room in his heart for women, and he swiftly withdrew his gaze.

"Lord Hachisuka, to be frank, I currently need some men to handle a matter. I wonder whether you would be willing to lend me a hand?" Yamauchi Kazutoyo then explained the purpose of his visit to Hachisuka Masakatsu.

Hachisuka Masakatsu reached up and stroked the stubble on his face. "Since Lord Jikan sent you to find me, I should give him that much face. Over the years, Lord Jikan has shown my family no small amount of care."

"Only..."

"Only what?" Yamauchi Kazutoyo asked.

"Only, I am preparing to enter service at Inuyama Castle. If I follow Lord Yamauchi to do these things... it truly puts me in a difficult spot," Hachisuka Masakatsu said awkwardly.

Already in his thirties, he was still living under another's roof and relying on his uncle's family to support him. That could not go on forever, so Hachisuka Masakatsu was also preparing to find himself a post.

The Hachisuka clan had once been a local warrior family entrenched along the Kiso River in Kaito District. They held a stipend of one hundred kan and were intimately familiar with river transport on the Kiso River, but after offending Oda Nobuhide, they had been driven out of Kaito District.

Though their lands were gone, their connections remained. Hachisuka Masakatsu had ties to great and small local magnates all along the Kiso River, which was why Oda Nobukiyo wished to take him in as a retainer.

"Lord Hachisuka..."

"Lord Yamauchi, just call me Koroku."

"Then Koroku may call me Iemon."

"Excellent!"

After pondering for a moment, Yamauchi Kazutoyo continued, "Forgive my bluntness, but entering service at Inuyama Castle does not seem like a wise move for Koroku."

"Of course I know serving Inuyama Castle is no long-term solution, but my wife has just borne me a son. I cannot keep living at my uncle's house forever."

"Why does Koroku not enter the service of Oda Kazusa-no-suke at Kiyosu Castle?" Yamauchi Kazutoyo asked.

Hachisuka Masakatsu blinked at Yamauchi Kazutoyo. "Then why does Iemon not go to Kiyosu Castle?"

"I have no connections," Yamauchi Kazutoyo answered honestly.

Hachisuka Masakatsu shrugged. "There you have it."

"Unless one of Lord Kazusa-no-suke's senior retainers recommends you, where would such an opportunity come from?"

"Kiyosu Castle is recruiting menials, but what samurai would be willing to lower himself to do that kind of drudge work?"

Yamauchi Kazutoyo and Hachisuka Masakatsu sighed in unison. What a headache!

There were, of course, two other paths.

First, if one held land in Oda Nobunaga's domain, one could serve the Oda clan by becoming part of the military service corps—commonly known as taking a loan to work as an ashigaru.

Second, if war broke out and troops were insufficient, the Oda clan would mobilize some men outside the military service corps. These troops were usually called "underground spears." They mainly handled logistical work or waved banners and shouted encouragement on the battlefield. They were temporary workers.

But clearly, neither method suited Yamauchi Kazutoyo and Hachisuka Masakatsu at present, nor did they fit the actual circumstances of their two families.

After hesitating for a moment, Yamauchi Kazutoyo asked tentatively, "Can Koroku handle a boat?"

"What kind of question is that? It is a craft passed down through my family. Of course I can."

"In that case, Koroku might as well return to Matsukura Castle with me. Matsukura Castle urgently needs people with such skills lately. My uncle is the adopted son of the lord of Matsukura Castle. Finding Koroku a position should not be difficult."

After hearing this, Hachisuka Masakatsu sank into thought. Yamauchi Kazutoyo did not press him and simply waited quietly for him to decide.

"Can you get me a boat?" Hachisuka Masakatsu suddenly asked.

"That should not be difficult," Yamauchi Kazutoyo replied.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo was not simply making it up. There were two ports outside Matsukura Castle, and shipping was extremely prosperous. Someone like Hachisuka Masakatsu, who knew the Kiso River's waters like the back of his hand and understood every place along its course, would be a prized commodity.

At the same time, an idea suddenly took root in Yamauchi Kazutoyo's mind.

His bargain-bin uncle might have little presence at Matsukura Castle, but he was still Maeno Tokiuji's son. Now that he had encountered Hachisuka Masakatsu as well, perhaps the two of them could put their heads together and make something happen on the Kiso River.

If the Battle of Okehazama broke out on schedule, he still had one year to prepare. He could not muddle through that year in a daze. It was time to build a team of his own.

When the time came, he would join the team with capital!

"If Koroku is willing to help me, then once the matter is done, I am willing to give you another ten kan as payment." Seeing the other's attitude soften, Yamauchi Kazutoyo pressed further.

"How many men do you need?" Hachisuka Masakatsu looked up.

"How many can you find?"

Hachisuka Masakatsu answered, "This is my uncle's territory, after all. I only know seven or eight people well here. If that is not enough, I can only return to Hachisuka Village to find more, but I will need at least three days."

Naturally, Hachisuka Masakatsu did not want his uncle Yasui Shigetsugu involved in this matter. If something went wrong, he could still run, but his uncle's stipend lands were here and could not simply pick up and move.

"That is enough!" Yamauchi Kazutoyo said firmly.

"What are you planning to do?"

"No rush on that. In three days, I will send someone here to notify you. Koroku only needs to gather the men first."

"Be careful not to let word leak out."

"You can rest assured when Iemon handles matters. But let me put the ugly words first: if I do not see the money once it is done, do not blame me for turning my back and refusing to recognize you." Hachisuka Masakatsu's voice was grave.

"Sister, who was that samurai just now?"

"I think his name was Yamauchi Iemon."

"You had only just met him, and Sister already remembered his name?"

"You're asking for a beating!" Nene grabbed her younger brother Chokichi by the ear, not noticing the faint blush that had already risen to her cheeks.

Thirteen-year-old Chokichi was actually a little older than Nene, but he was an adopted son-in-law, so he counted as Nene's younger brother-in-law.

Put simply, Asano Nagakatsu had adopted Nene and Yaya, his wife's nieces, as daughters, then taken his brother-in-law Yasui Shigetsugu's son Chokichi as his adopted son-in-law.

"Instead of standing here making fun of me, why don't you hurry up and see what Yaya is doing?" Nene pointed at her younger sister, who was outside the courtyard chasing butterflies everywhere.

Chokichi had no choice but to do as he was told, but just as he reached the doorway, Yaya burst into tears.

"Pee... pee!" Two-and-a-half-year-old Yaya helplessly held out her hands toward Chokichi.

Chokichi hurried over and quickly discovered that water was dripping from Yaya's trouser legs.

"Oh no! Sister, come help! Yaya wet her pants!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Nene ran out from inside, scooped Yaya up, and rushed into the inner room.

Chokichi scratched his head as he stood there blankly, utterly bewildered. The marriage agreement had been settled, but who knew how long he would have to wait for his wife to grow up.

What a headache!