Even a great demon had to kneel before me!

In the early years of Japan's Warring States period, a vast expanse of flatland lay in the northern reaches of the Musashino Great Plain in Tokaido.

Now, beneath the cover of night, a mighty army had halted there, a force that could only be called magnificent by the standards of this little island nation.

Flames blazed throughout its encampment, lighting the night as brightly as day.

The clatter of armor rang incessantly around the camp. Everywhere, ashigaru and hatamoto samurai patrolled, with more than eighty percent of them clad in armor.

Yet even under the protection of such an army, its commander, seated at its center beneath an enormous banner bearing the three-scale family crest-

The tall, handsome Hojo Akitoshi!

-wore a deep frown and an unhappy expression as he stared blankly at a translucent jade fragment on the low table before him.

"A barrier of knowledge?"

Hojo Akitoshi stared at the jade fragment and muttered, his brow furrowed.

I was a promising young man from Blue Star, knowledgeable about everything from astronomy to geography.

Then I woke up one day and found myself reborn into the Hojo family in the early years of Japan's Warring States period.

So I started planning my conquest from infancy.

At nineteen, I finally managed to push aside Hojo Ujiyasu, the Hojo family's intended successor. All I needed was to win this Battle of Kawagoe, and I could take command of the family with full legitimacy.

Then I would beat down the Tiger of Kai-Takeda Shingen-and kick aside the Dragon of Echigo-Uesugi Kenshin.

Finally, I would deal with the Sixth Heavenly Demon King-Oda Nobunaga-and kill that monkey and turtle while I was at it.

After that, becoming the ruler of this land would be a matter of course!

Who could have seen this coming?!

The longer he stared at the jade fragment, the more Hojo Akitoshi looked like a man whose carelessness had cost him everything.

"Ah, so this isn't just Warring States Japan. It's the world of Inuyasha?"

"So that's what those occasional rumors about demons really meant?"

Hojo Akitoshi gazed silently at the sky. After living here for nineteen years, only now did he finally understand who he really was.

"That Hojo simp who had a crush on Kagome. When he failed to win her over, he picked some girl off the road as a substitute."

"And a substitute wasn't enough. He even insisted that she change her name from Suzaku to Kagome!"

At that, Hojo Akitoshi let out another long sigh.

What did I do to deserve this?!

"My lord! My lord! Why have we stopped advancing at a time like this?"

"Kawagoe Castle is right before us! The Takeda Army and the Imagawa Army are attacking it day and night!"

"If our army doesn't arrive in time and Kawagoe Castle falls, how will you fulfill your ambition of conquering the realm, my lord?"

While the transmigrator Hojo Akitoshi was still sighing, a loud voice rang out from outside.

Ignoring the guards' shouted warnings and attempts to stop him, the owner of that voice charged inside.

"Oh, it's you, Mitsuhide!"

At the sound of his voice, Akitoshi set aside the melancholy brought on by discovering that he was actually in the world of Inuyasha.

An aura of ambition vast enough to swallow the realm rose from Hojo Akitoshi as he fixed his gaze on the man who had barged straight in.

It was Akechi Mitsuhide, whom he had recruited years ago. With a smile, Akitoshi gestured for him to calm down. Above all, he must not lose his composure before the samurai at a time like this.

"My deepest apologies, my lord."

At the sight of Hojo Akitoshi's intimidating presence, Akechi Mitsuhide immediately dropped to his knees, as though to demonstrate his remorse.

After bowing respectfully, Akechi Mitsuhide raised his head and spoke in utter bewilderment.

"My lord, Kawagoe Castle is right before us. With the strength of the Hojo, crushing the combined forces of the Takeda and Imagawa would be child's play."

"But why?"

"Why?"

Hearing Akechi Mitsuhide boast of their army's strength, even dismissing the Tiger of Kai's Takeda Army as a worthless rabble-

Hojo Akitoshi felt he had every right to be proud. More than a decade of hard work had not been wasted.

But...

"Demons."

He had to face what needed facing. Hojo Akitoshi might have seemed deeply troubled moments ago, but now that he understood his circumstances-

He was not a man who would back down easily. Otherwise, how could he be on the verge of becoming the head of the Hojo family?

Did they think Hojo Ujiyasu, the originally designated successor, was some pushover?

As Hojo Akitoshi calmly uttered the word "demons," he saw a flash of astonishment cross Akechi Mitsuhide's face.

"My lord, do you mean...?"

Akechi Mitsuhide lowered his voice. Demons were undoubtedly far less likely to appear around Japanese nobles.

Generally speaking, the more powerful the noble, the less likely demons were to appear near them.

Apart from a handful of utterly ill-mannered demons like Naraku, it seemed as though the demon world and the human nobility had reached an agreement.

Neither would interfere with the other.

That was also why Hojo Akitoshi had lived here for nineteen years after transmigrating, only to discover the true nature of this world now.

"Would the Takeda or Imagawa really dare to defy every taboo and cooperate with demons?"

"It's one thing for those demons to snatch a few people now and then, but how dare they interfere in human wars on a large scale?"

Akechi Mitsuhide slammed his fist into the ground, his face burning with anger.

"Heh."

Hojo Akitoshi looked at the indignant Akechi Mitsuhide and chuckled.

"The Takeda and Imagawa haven't allied with demons. But when you walk, do you worry about the ants beneath your feet?"

"By the same reasoning, how much would a powerful demon care about wiping out a human army that happened to block his path?"

"What?"

Akechi Mitsuhide's voice suddenly rose several pitches. Angry though he was, he was not a man incapable of recognizing reality.

"Are we the ones blocking this demon's path, or...?"

His implication was obvious. If it was the Takeda or Imagawa, that would be wonderful news.

But if it was their own Hojo army!

Then, even if it went against a samurai's honor, they had no choice but to bow to superior strength. If they needed to give way, they would.

At worst, they could recruit monks, onmyoji, and priestesses afterward to settle the score.

"It's the Imagawa."

He calmly named the unlucky victims-the army Sesshomaru had casually wiped out during his first appearance, on his way to trouble his younger brother Inuyasha.

Watching Akechi Mitsuhide's reaction, Hojo Akitoshi understood that the man's response was correct.

But that did not mean Hojo Akitoshi himself had to go

Along with the conventions of this era.

Otherwise, after dealing with the tiger, the dragon, the Sixth Heavenly Demon King, the monkey, and the turtle-

Was I supposed to tolerate a dog and a spider perched above my head?

Wouldn't that make all the effort of dealing with the tiger, dragon, and demon king pointless?!

"My lord!"

Perhaps realizing that his attitude had displeased his lord, Akechi Mitsuhide struck his forehead heavily against the ground.

"For the sake of the Hojo's great undertaking, please endure this small humiliation for now, my lord."

"In the ancient great nation to the east, even the First Emperor once made Lao Ai a marquis, and Liu Bang suffered the Siege of Baideng. Once you become ruler of the realm, my lord-"

"A few mere demons will be nothing you cannot sweep aside with a wave of your hand!"

"I know."

Calmly gesturing for Akechi Mitsuhide to rise, Hojo Akitoshi picked up a few roasted soybeans kept beside him as a snack.

"Pass down my orders. Send men back to the Hojo's main castle to search for the Heavenly Feather Robe that our subordinates once presented to me, and bring it here along with the Heaven Blade from the secretly stored Heaven-and-Earth Naginata."

"Also, dispatch ninja to find the Demon Slayer Village, where someone named Sango lives, and the monk Miroku, who bears the Wind Tunnel curse in his hand."

"In addition, find the eminent monk Shinsen, who sealed the Demon Horse Entei and the Purgatory Demon, and the eminent monk Ungai, who travels about slaying demons with his disciples."

"The priestess Hitomiko, whose spiritual power is said to rival Kikyo's in her prime, and Dark Priestess Tsubaki, who once competed against Kikyo."

"Find them and bring them to me!"

"Yes!"

Seeing that his lord had reached a decision, Akechi Mitsuhide, kneeling on the floor with both hands at his waist, bowed his head in assent.

He quickly repeated Hojo Akitoshi's orders. Just as he rose to pass them along-

"Send additional men to search the surrounding area for a place called Kaede's Village. It's the village where the once-famous priestess Kikyo lived."

"Find the residence of someone called the Peach Immortal as well."

"And assign men to keep watch on Demon Priestess Urasue."

Before Akechi Mitsuhide left, Hojo Akitoshi added those final instructions.