Chapter nine hundred and eighty seventh suitable battlefield
Most of the samurai's joint battles were defeated and unable to annihilate the enemy's effective force. A bloody battle with countless casualties like the Kawanakajima battle is almost unique.
This requires two extremely confident masters and a group of brave and adept Tie Hanhan who are determined to fight to the death. It is difficult to recreate this kind of scene in the war of the Wu family, who are accustomed to taking advantage of the weak and fearing the strong.
Although the elites under Hojo Ushimasa are not bad in combat capability, they are still a samurai military force composed of various families, with semi-independent combat command authority.
When the war is going badly, as long as some people fight to the death, others will run away. The battlefield with tens of thousands of people seems to be fiercely fought, but after the war, hundreds of people died, and their luck was almost lost by thousands.
Most of the people fled back, but the Hojo family's roots were still there, and the war situation was still a confrontation. It would be nice for Echigo to win, but the Hojo family would be more conservative, and the turtle shell would be harder to chew.
As for Hojo Ushimasa's dispatch of troops this time, he seemed to be full of confidence in himself and wanted to fight a battle of annihilation against the Echigo army and drive Uesugi Terutora completely back to his hometown of Echigo.
Yoshigan Shiba thinks so because Terutora Uesugi reminded him of the terrain of Sano Territory.
If there were no cavalry in ancient times to pursue and kill, what would be the best way to annihilate the enemy?
That is to choose a geographical location that is not convenient for the enemy to escape, just like Young and Danger chasing people into a dead end and blocking them in the alley.
Sano Territory is surrounded by the Ashio Mountains and the Watarase River to the south. Surrounded by mountains on three sides and facing a river on one side, it is a perfect fighting ground.
After entering the Sano Territory, no matter whether it is the Echigo army or the Hojo army, once they form a battle formation and come into contact, no one can easily retreat. The defeated ones will inevitably suffer heavy losses.
Hojo Ushimasa chose this place because she was prepared to regard this battle as the starting point of her glorious career. With 20,000 Hojo elites in hand, how could she lose? What would she lose with?
However, Uesugi Teruhu saw a glimmer of opportunity. As long as the elite Hojo elites were annihilated here, the Kanto samurai family would not hesitate to surrender to Uesugi Teruhu and kill this former Internet celebrity of the Hojo family.
It's just 20,000 soft-footed shrimps. I will attack with my entire army and crush you!
Sibo Yiyin thought clearly, and his heart suddenly pounded. The difficulty was a bit difficult, but the results were fruitful and exciting.
What a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
He looked at Terutora Uesugi and asked.
"How many people are you planning to take to Sano?"
Terutora Uesugi said calmly.
"Bring all the troops you can."
Shiba Yoshigan slowly frowned and carefully counted the various troops of Echigo's army.
Naoe Keizuna and Ohkuma Asohide were arranging logistics at the rear, and their Joetsu and Nakatsu were hanging behind. Mori Kehiro's Kashiwazaki and Nakajo Fujishi's Shimotsu were still on the way.
The Numata Territory needs to be guarded, and the Central and Vietnamese troops of Kawada Nagauchi cannot move. Uesugi Kagenobu's two long tail troops of Echigo must watch over the various families in the central Ueno who are ready to move.
Sibo Yiyin calculated carefully and said.
"It seems we can't spare 10,000 people."
Terutora Uesugi said.
"Kakizaki Keike's Joetsu directly under the reserve team is available, Saito Asanobu's Chugotsu is available, and Irobe Katsunaga's Shimotsu is available.
Except for Kawada Nagauchi and Uesugi Kagenobu's men, all the other local people who have arrived will go out with the army, and I can pull out 6,000 people."
Shiba Yiyin looked at the ladies in the audience and said.
"Yamanaka Yukimori, Kaiji Keizuna, Honjo Nobunaga's Odai people and the Shimokoshi tribe. Shima Katsuki, Ogasawara Nagato's united front troops. Sanada Nobunaga's Odai people and the Sanada tribe, about two thousand people.
Eight thousand people in total? Eight thousand versus twenty thousand?"
Terutora Uesugi stared at Shiba Yoshigan and said firmly.
"That's enough! Hojo Ushimasa is so self-righteous, let us teach her a lesson she will never forget."
Shiba Yiyin looked back at her fiery eyes and said involuntarily.
"good."
———
The military meeting did not drag on for long, and the Echigo girls were already impatient and eager to have a hearty battle right away.
The Hojo family shrank like a turtle, and Hojo Ushimasa was willing to show his head and get beaten, so of course he had to satisfy her.
After arranging the marching route, Zhu Ji will go back immediately, and the army will be mobilized immediately.
After the girls left, Uesugi Teruhora whispered to Shiba Yoshigan.
"Has that batch of plate armor arrived at Numata Castle?"
Shiba Yiyin didn't understand what she meant, but he still nodded and answered.
"Should have arrived long ago."
Terutora Uesugi showed a strange smile and said.
"Mr. Kenshin, please have them transported to Sano Territory to give the Hojo army a surprise."
Sibo Yiyin then felt a throbbing feeling in his heart.
"You mean?"
Teruhora Uesugi squinted his eyes, a hint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes.
"Sano Territory is located on the north bank of the Watarase River. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides and a plain in the middle. There are no continuous hills and no dense water network.
The land is flat, the soil dries out after autumn, and there is no rain to make the ground muddy.”
Sibo Yiyin was stunned and said slowly.
"This is the most suitable battlefield for heavily armored warriors. When the battle begins, there is no way to retreat. The brave one who meets on a narrow road wins.
Those who were defeated were either besieged on the mountain top or driven down the river."
Teru Uesugi's pupils were slightly red, and he said excitedly.
"Use heavy-armored warriors to suppress the formation, hide the heavy-armored cavalry behind the mountains, and wait for opportunities to attack the enemy's rear.
No one can stop them, they will definitely be defeated!"
Shiba Yiyin nodded. The Wu family's armor was very light, and even the general's cassock only weighed five or six kilograms.
These fifteen kilograms of plate armor were put into battle, and they were invulnerable to bows and arrows. Since there were no iron cannons in Kanto, what could Hojo Ujimasa do to withstand the defense line without breaking down?
Sibo Yiyin also gradually became excited and said.
"Yes, I'll have people take out this batch of plate armor right away, and you and I can distribute them."
Uesugi Teruhu shook his head and said.
"It can't be divided. You can have it transported to the front line and let your imperial people use it.
I remember that there were two hundred of them, and some more elites were gathered together. Two hundred heavy-armored warriors and fifty heavy-armored cavalry were gathered together to be used at critical moments."
Shiba Yiyin said in confusion.
"Then your military strength..."
Terutora Uesugi smiled bitterly.
"It's good not to separate. If we separate, these guys will have to quarrel again.
I'm not in the mood to argue with them right now, so I might as well let you focus on using them. Anyway, the Hime Warriors at the Kanto Palace have been training for a long time, so it's good to cooperate.
Transport them to the front line in a low-key manner and distribute them before the war, and we will deal with the rest after the war is over."
Yoshigan Shiba looked at Terutora Uesugi and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Although the Uesugi retainers are greedy, they still know the importance of life-threatening matters in battle, and they can even be said to be brave and not afraid of death.
Teruhora Uesugi refused to ask for a piece of plate armor, not because he was afraid that they would cause chaos before the battle, but for other reasons.
Yoshigan Shiba thought that he would send 2,000 troops and Teru Uesugi would send 6,000 troops. If this battle goes well, it will herald the demise of the Hojo family.
The distribution of military merit in this battle is directly related to the results of the Kanto strategy. Uesugi Teruhu hopes that the plate armor can play a role so that the Kanto Palace will not lag behind the Uesugi family too much in terms of military merit.