Our Jodo Shinshu Is Truly Amazing

At dusk, where lay my homeland? Mist over the river filled a man with sorrow.

Dawn had barely broken when a thin veil of fog shrouded the Kiso River, draping the tranquil banks in mystery.

Iihama Taro stepped onto the bow, yawning again and again. Eager to return home, he longed to get back to Ena District as soon as possible—his newlywed wife was still waiting for him at the village entrance.

But since this was the return journey, the boats could not rely on the current. They could only struggle forward as several oarsmen pulled with all their might.

This stretch of river lay at the border between Inuyama Castle in Owari and Unuma Castle in Mino. Further ahead were the mountains of Mino, where the river channel narrowed and became especially dangerous.

Two small wooden boats slowly approached from the direction of Inuyama Castle. Iihama Taro clutched the hundred mon he had prepared long ago. This was the toll for passing through safely. Only after paying it could one pass Inuyama Castle without incident.

After declaring his identity to the approaching Inuyama Castle samurai, the latter boarded and entered the cabin to inspect it.

"My lord, the ship is carrying grain purchased from Tsushima Harbor."

"Here are one hundred mon. If the inspection finds no problems, please let us pass quickly." Though Iihama Taro spoke of one hundred mon, when he handed it over, he quietly slipped another string of coins into the samurai's hand.

Without changing expression, the samurai tucked the copper coins into his robes, then swept out an arm. "Let them pass!"

"Be more careful next time. We'll let it slide this time!" The samurai glanced at the cabin full of wooden crates and gave Iihama Taro a look that said, you know, I know.

Iihama Taro understood at once and slipped another string of coins into the man's hand. Only then did the samurai leave in satisfaction.

When collecting road tolls, daimyo across Japan set different tax rates for different goods.

Grain was the cheapest: ten mon for a horse-load transported by land. Ironware cost a little more, twenty mon for a horse-load. The most expensive was timber, with tolls reaching a full hundred mon for a horse-load.

The two were clearly old acquaintances. Every time, Iihama Taro brought timber from Ena District and carried back cloth, paper, grain, and other goods scarce in Ena District.

The hundred mon Iihama Taro gave effectively meant paying grain rates for the entire ship's cargo, and the samurai did not expose the matter. After all, the taxes collected belonged to the castle lord. Only what went into one's own pocket was truly money.

"Keep moving!"

After passing the checkpoint, Iihama Taro gave the order to set off again, then ducked into the cabin to rest.

Japanese boats had no sails. They rode the current downstream and relied on manpower upstream, so they were not particularly fast.

Diagonally across from Inuyama Castle stood Unuma Castle in Mino, controlled by the Osawa clan.

Further north was Sarubami Castle. One only had to hear its name to know it occupied a strategic and dangerous position.

Iihama Taro had barely dozed for less than half an hour when cries of alarm rang out from the oarsmen on deck.

Rubbing his eyes as he stepped out of the cabin, Iihama Taro had not even seen what was happening before a feathered arrow tore through the air and buried itself in the deck boards beside him.

"Enemy attack!"

"There are ships blocking the river ahead!"

"Bring the bows!"

Bang!

Another matchlock shot rang out. A man on the boat collapsed at once, blood continuously gushing from the hole in his chest.

Iihama Taro was dumbfounded. He had sailed the Kiso River for several years, but this was truly his first time encountering bandits.

The samurai along the route would never attack ships, because merchant vessels brought them tax revenue. This was the work of bandits.

"Three large ships!"

"Turn around, quickly!"

"It's too late! They're too close!"

The panicked oarsmen fell into chaos. Iihama Taro's grip on his sword tightened, loosened, then tightened again.

His was only a small boat with a capacity of fifteen koku, carrying just eight men including himself.

There were three enemy vessels swiftly closing through the morning mist, arranged in a triangular formation that sealed off the narrow upper reaches of the Kiso River so tightly not even water could pass.

Under such circumstances, it was already too late to flee, while fighting head-on was clearly hopeless.

Just as Iihama Taro hesitated over whether to leap into the river and save himself, he suddenly noticed two things fluttering from the lead ship.

Steeling himself, Iihama Taro took a few steps forward and peered ahead intently.

One look, and he immediately let out a breath of relief.

"So it's Jodo Shinshu. Then it's fine."

"Put down your weapons. They aren't bandits—they're Jodo Shinshu Ikko-ikki."

The Jodo Shinshu revolts surely targeted samurai lords. They were merely ordinary merchants; there was no need to fight Jodo Shinshu to the bitter end.

Besides, much of the timber he handled was sold to Nagashima. There was a chance he even knew some of the people on the other side.

"Iemon, the ship opposite has stopped. Looks like they've given up resisting."

On the Ogawa Band's ship, Yamauchi Kazutoyo, Horio Yoshiharu, Hachisuka Masakatsu, and the others stood shoulder to shoulder at the bow.

Two large white banners fluttered behind the three men. The banner on the left read, "Those who advance shall be reborn in the Pure Land of Bliss," while the one on the right read, "Those who retreat shall enter the Avici Hell."

These were slogans commonly used by Jodo Shinshu when stirring up revolts, meant to rouse the believers' fighting spirit and make the rebels willingly serve as cannon fodder.

"Should we board them?" Hachisuka Masakatsu said eagerly.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo cast a glance at the other ship, then abruptly realized something.

Large ships did not seem especially suited for collecting protection money on the Kiso River.

Their advantage lay in their great carrying capacity and their stability on the swift Kiso River, but they were not fast.

Today's vessel had been unprepared, and the mist had allowed them to catch it off guard. Once the Ogawa Band gained a reputation, however, it would likely not be so easy to stop passing ships in the future.

"Koroku, have everyone cover their faces."

"Understood!"

As soon as he spoke, seven or eight sturdy young men carrying sharp blades sprang out behind Yamauchi Kazutoyo and the others. Each wore a monk's cap, their faces tightly concealed.

Once the ships drew alongside each other, Hachisuka Koroku immediately threw out grappling hooks, pulling the two vessels together on the river.

Horio Yoshiharu held a wooden plank against the side of the ship. Yamauchi Kazutoyo did not board immediately. What if someone on the other side resisted and fired a hidden shot or loosed a secret arrow?

Hachisuka Koroku, however, did not care about any of that. Without another word, he stepped aboard.

"Hand over your valuables—ow!"

Hachisuka Masakatsu turned around in pain, only to meet Yamauchi Kazutoyo's gaze.

"We're not here to rob them. Just have them pay the toll," Yamauchi Kazutoyo said gravely.

Hachisuka Masakatsu looked embarrassed. "Sorry. It was an old habit. I didn't change it in time."

In their earlier days, the Hachisuka clan had done plenty of such cost-free business on the Kiso River. Otherwise, they would not have been driven from Owari by Oda Nobuhide and fled to scrape by under Saito Dosan.

"Gentlemen, there's no need to be nervous!"

Under his monk's cap, only Yamauchi Kazutoyo's eyes were visible. He stood beside Hachisuka Masakatsu with a field sword in hand.

"We are believers of Jodo Shinshu. We only wish to collect a little toll money. Once we have the money, we won't make things difficult for anyone."

"Who is in charge here?"

"I am!" Iihama Taro raised his hand, forcing himself to be brave.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo nodded lightly. "What is loaded on this ship?"

"I want the truth."

"If you conceal anything, don't blame me for turning hostile."

Iihama Taro swallowed and replied in a trembling voice, "Ramie cloth, Mino paper, grain, and also lead ingots and saltpeter."

Yamauchi Kazutoyo made a preliminary tally of the crates in the cabin. After roughly estimating their value, he said, "With so many fine goods, it isn't excessive to charge you two kan and six hundred mon for passage, is it?"

"Not excessive, not excessive!" Iihama Taro nodded frantically, afraid Yamauchi Kazutoyo might change his mind.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo looked around the cabin, then pointed at several crates of Mino paper in the corner. "Where did you buy this paper? As far as I know, you can't buy it at Tsushima Harbor."

"My lord, we bought it in the temple town outside Nagashima Gansho-ji. You should know that best," Iihama Taro answered.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo extended a hand. "Do you have proof of purchase?"

"Yes, yes!" Though Iihama Taro did not understand what Yamauchi Kazutoyo wanted, he obediently handed over the goods certificate issued by a temple official of Nagashima Gansho-ji.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo glanced at it and handed the certificate back.

"Since these goods were bought in Nagashima, you needn't pay for this paper."

"Two kan! Hand over the money, and we'll leave!"

"Yes, yes, I'll get the money for you right away."

A quarter of an hour later, the three ships separated to either side, clearing the riverway.

As he sailed trembling between the three ships, Iihama Taro felt as if he were still dreaming.

Iihama Taro had prepared himself for his cargo to be looted and his ship seized, yet the people on the other side had truly let them go after collecting the money?

And they had not touched a single item of cargo. They said they were collecting a toll, and they had truly collected only a toll.

Especially since Yamauchi Kazutoyo on the other ship was still waving to him, shouting things like "May your sails go smoothly" and "May you have a favorable journey," as if he were bidding farewell to a friend of many years.

No, had even the Ikko-ikki become so honorable in their martial conduct these days?

Was this really right?

Then he lowered his head and looked at the "receipt" that someone named Ogawa Saburo had handed him before they left. It stated that this ship would not need to pay the passage toll again for the next ten days.

The final line left Iihama Taro even more baffled: All who pay passage fees to the Ogawa Band need not pay again to Inuyama Castle. Jodo Shinshu is your strongest support.

At the end were umbrella-style joint signatures, headed by the name of Honganji temple official Shimotsuma Yorinari, followed in turn by Ogawa Taro, Ogawa Jiro, and Ogawa Saburo.

It certainly looked convincing enough, but would it actually work?