The 47 Ronin Story (7 page)

and I have certain recommendations to make in this regard."

This was more than some of the men could take. Their mutterings sounded mutinously in Oishi's ears but only Hara was bold enough to stand and speak. He addressed his leader formally, but with an undertone of incredulity in his voice.

"Please, Oishi-dono, I don't think I understand you correctly. We have just been told that our lord's enemy, the one who caused his death, still lives, and you say there are more important things to discuss?"

He looked to the crowd for approval and received it in their shouts. Bolder now, he continued to lay it on the line. "Does not even the peaceful Confucius say that no man may live under the same sky with the murderer of his lord?"

The men shouted again in agreement until Oishi held up his hand in a commanding gesture.

"You forget yourselves," he said. "Your loyalty ^ is to the house of Asano. Our first duty is to follow the command of our lord's brother and the rightful heir to this fief." He paused to look directly at Hara. "Does not Confucius also say that of the five virtues, loyalty dwarfs all other moral obligations?"

"Our lord's brother is not our lord!" came a shout from the rear and there were answering murmurs of assent. Hara excitedly took the floor again and addressed Oishi directly.

"There is no question of loyalty," he said. "We're all loyal. The only question is how we can best show that loyalty. And I say that if we don't take revenge on Kira, we're bound to appear as cowards and weaklings in the eyes of our countrymen!"

Oishi answered him icily. "And I say it doesn't matter what anyone thinks as long as we're convinced

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in our own minds that we're right. Think for a moment of our mistress, Lady Asano, and of her little daughter. Will taking the life of a miserable creature like Kira help regain their home? More likely they would only be executed along with the rest of us for our unsuccessful attempt. Consider also what such open rebelHon would mean to Ako. Will the ancestors of the Asano family be pleased to have their tombs desecrated in view of a ruined castle?"

"Will those ancestors sleep peacefully in death knowing that Lord Asano's followers were too cowardly to avenge his death?" shouted back Hara. There was a cry of agreement from many of the men and Oishi hesitated, then quietly signaled to Yoshida in the crowd. The gray-haired old man stood and made his way to the front of the group.

"I must reprimand you, Soemon Hara," he said sternly, "for what you have just said to our leader. There is no reason to impugn his loyalty, just because he doesn't agree with you on the best way to show it. For my part, I find his position entirely reasonable. By showing no resistance and obeying the Shogun's commands to the best of our ability we will gain more toward what we want than by seeking a blood bath. If we remain blameless, the Shogun may in time see where the true blame lies and punish Kira himself."

" 'He may in time?'" mocked Hara. "You're an old man, Yoshida. Don't you want to see justice done before you die?"

"I am an old man," agreed Yoshida. "And more than anything before I die, I want to see this house restored. I say we should appeal the Shogun's decision before taking any other action."

There was a murmur of approval to this course of

action which Oishi was relieved to hear. At least they were not all against him. There was a possibility now that he could reach a compromise that would satisfy both factions, at least for the time being. He was pleased with himself for having arranged beforehand that Yoshida should propose this plan so that he himself would appear more in the light of an impartial judge.

Ono, the treasurer, now stood and for a moment Oishi regretted he had not consulted with him beforehand.

Ono was an elderly man with a studious look, a tight smile, and a mind that clicked away at a problem like the counters on his abacus. His opinions carried considerable weight and he was capable of making trouble, but as Oishi had anticipated he was in accord with Yoshida's plan. He, too, was for waiting till the last possible moment to make a decision.

"T agree with both speakers that we should make an appeal," Oishi told the group when Ono was through. "It is in no way contrary to the wishes of Daigaku Asano—from what I have been able to learn of his views." He looked directly at Hara who squirmed uncomfortably. "And besides, such a course has the advantage of buying us time to prepare."

"Prepare for what?" asked Hara.

"For a siege, if our petition is denied," Oishi answered. This was the first time he had hinted at positive action and he could tell by the sharp intakes of breaths around him that it came as a not unwelcome prospect. "I will write the petition myself today and send it by courier to the proper officials in Edo. In the meantime I ask all of you to search your souls to decide the best course of action for yourselves. So much has happened so quickly that I recommend you

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all take time to think. We will meet tomorrow morning to discuss measures of resistance, if it becomes necessary to offer it, and I suggest that only those prepared to fight to the death attend."

A hush fell over the group and Oishi spoke more slowly so that there could be no mistake about what he was saying. "We can fight, we can die, or we may decide, if we are too few in number, that it might be better to simply kneel in front of the castle and commit seppuku as a greeting to the Shogun's representatives—if that doesn't seem like too cowardly a gesture."

There was complete silence now, even on Hara's part. Seppuku was their last great resource for combating injustice. It was part of the training of a samurai that he would know how and when to take this ultimate step, yet this was the first time any of them had had it offered as a practical alternative. Oishi had indeed given them much to think about.

When the meeting was adjourned and the men returned to their duties, Oishi turned to the waiting Kataoka to question him closely about how things were going in Edo.

"Fine—fine," Kataoka nodded briskly, in spite of his weariness. "Young Horibe is doing a good job."

He went on to tell how Horibe was keeping close watch on the exit routes from the city so that he would know when the troops were being sent to take over the castle at Ako. He was also keeping track of Kira's movements so that he would know when the moment had arrived to strike. Oishi was concerned that Horibe, who had a reputation for being hotheaded, might take too much into his own hands, but Kataoka assured him that all those in Edo were pledged to follow the orders of their leader in Ako. Relieved to

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hear this, Oishi sent the exhausted man for food and rest, and started to walk toward the stable area. On the way he was joined by Hara, who was full of apologies.

"Please believe that I'm sorry if I said anything to offend you," he said. "I just can't help myself when I get excited. I know it gets me into nothing but trouble, but I've always been like this and I can't seem to stop."

Oishi smiled. "I know you well enough to realize that," he said. "And don't you worry about what happened in the meeting. You represent one viewpoint and I'm glad you do it so forcefully. We're asking these men to consider pledging their lives to our decision and they should have a clear-cut choice offered to them. We must also take care that those who depart from the way of the sword do not lose face with their comrades."

Hara looked at him with respect. His own mind was incapable of seeing into the situation so deeply and he was impressed by a leader who had both brains and a fighting heart.

"It must be hard for you," he said humbly, "to have to consider the views of all. . . . You know you can always rely on me to carry out your orders."

Oishi smiled at him. "Thank you, old friend. I know I can count on you in any crisis."

Hara bowed his head in gratitude and together they walked on. When they reached the stables, Oishi took a moment to inspect the rows of stalls where the few remaining horses stood unbrushed and with tangled manes. He shook his head in dismay at their condition, then called for the head groom. When the man appeared, as shabby looking as his charges, Oishi unexpectedly gave orders that the horses were to be

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combed and their hooves pared so that they would appear at their best. The groom was amazed at his words and happily hurried away before Oishi could change his mind. Hara's mouth, too, had fallen open at the command.

"Then you are going to fight?" he asked uncertainly.

"Not necessarily," said Oishi. "But even if we decide to evacuate the castle peaceably, it wouldn't do to post our last guard on shabby mounts, would it?"

Hara could not help but agree and turned to watch the groom as he briskly started to work. Then he realized that Oishi was staring at him and he faced his leader somewhat uneasily.

"I've forgiven you for your remarks at the meeting," Oishi said, "but I cannot so easily excuse you for not telling me about your meeting with Daigaku and Lord Toda before you returned to Ako. Without that information I might have made a blunder that could have cost us all our lives for nothing."

"I'm sorry," murmured Hara.

"I might be more inclined to forgive you, however, if you promise you'll do nothing to harm Mimura for his brave act."

Hara grimaced, then nodded reluctantly. He had been looking forward to the pleasure of beating the talkative servant to within an inch of his life.

"Keep that promise," Oishi said gravely, "or I will let everyone know that you tried to deceive me."

His manner told Hara that this was no idle threat, and the old warrior bowed thoughtfully as Oishi walked away. Then he scratched his head and sighed.

Now Oishi faced the first real test of his leadership. •67 •

If too few appeared at the second meeting, all hope of revenge would be lost. At the appointed hour, he watched from inside the castle door as the samurai assembled. He was intent on counting them when he was startled by the arrival of someone at his side. It was Hara, also anxious to see who was with them and who was not. As they counted together it was soon apparent that the turnout would be much smaller than the day before; when the time came for the meeting to begin there were only sixty or so present out of the original three hundred.

Hara was bitterly disappointed but Oishi took this development more philosophically.

"At least now we know who we can depend on," he told Hara with a wry smile.

"But what about the siege?" Hara asked anxiously. "You said that would be our next step if the petition was denied, didn't you?"

Oishi pointed to the group outside. "There can be no siege. Not with those few men at our disposal. And if you look closely you'll see that many of them are either too young or too old to put up a good fight."

Hara shook his head. "Then we have no choice but to surrender and give up everything without a struggle."

Oishi smiled, but it was not a pleasant smile. "Oh, we still have a choice to make." Then he stepped out before the assembly and raised his arm for silence. In his hand he held two documents.

"I have here a petition to the Shogun's representatives requesting leniency for the survivors of the Asano clan—that they be allowed to keep their land and other possessions because of their long and illustrious history of service to the Shogun and his

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ancestors before him. It is merely a polite request for restitution on behalf of Lady Asano and Daigaku Asano and whatever its effect I don't think it can do any harm. I am asking Gengoemon Kataoka to deliver it, in spite of his recent hard journey, because he is familiar with Edo and because he has a certain ability to think quickly and to make the best of any bargain that might be offered."

Kataoka rose from his cross-legged position in front of the gathering and came to take the document with a respectful bow. Then he sat down again as Oishi continued.

"Now, if the petition is accepted, we have nothing more to worry about. If, on the other hand, it is rejected, we must make a choice regarding our course of action. As I see it, we have but two alternatives: either to kneel before the castle and commit seppuku as a final protest, or to surrender the castle peaceably . . . and then split up and wait until the right moment to take revenge on Kira himself!"

Hara was the first to his feet with a cheer for the latter course and the others were not far behind him. Oishi smiled briefly at their enthusiasm, but then raised his hand again with a more serious expression.

"1 must make sure you realize that however appealing such a course may appear to men of action like you, it is still against the law to take revenge. So it would be well to keep in mind that even if we are successful we will be guilty of an illegal act. I need hardly add that the punishment is death. Let no one have any illusions about that. Whether we commit seppuku by our own hands or are crucified by the executioner, our ultimate end is to die. This is a band of death, but death with honor!"

The cheering was not as robust now, but it rang

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with sincerity and Oishi was satisfied that those present could be depended on to stand and fight to the end. Now he unrolled his second document and laid it flat on the steps of the castle. It was a solemn pledge of loyalty and he asked them all to step forward and sign. As the men gathered eagerly around, Oishi noticed that one boy among them appeared to be barely in his teens, and he stopped him to question him about his age. The boy swore he was sixteen, however, and his manner was so stalwart that Oishi did not have the heart to challenge him further. He was allowed to sign, as were all the others present.

When it came Hara's turn, he made a gesture with the writing brush toward the door of the castle and Oishi turned to see to what he was pointing. The door was slightly ajar and Oishi could see enough of the man standing inside to recognize him as Mimura. At first he was angry that a servant should be so bold as to eavesdrop on their meeting, but then he got the full import of Hara's signal.