Ch.229Nagasaki (5)

On the deck of the Goryeo warship, a battle suddenly erupted.

“Charge!”

“Hnngh!”

Goryeo soldiers and Japanese warriors continued their fierce struggle.

Between them, Irin and Benkei moved back and forth, leading the battlefield.

While they were commanding their respective forces in battle,

Irin and Benkei were drawn to look at each other, as if pulled by some force.

“It feels almost like facing a demon.”

Irin said this while looking at Benkei.

The large-bodied Benkei also stared at Irin.

Though dressed in something resembling monk’s attire, the aura surrounding his body was thick with bloodlust.

He too immediately sensed that Irin was no ordinary person.

“Judging by those eyes, you’re no easy opponent. My fighting spirit is boiling after a long time.”

Benkei said this while adjusting his grip on his spear, which was as tall as himself.

Seeing this, Irin also sensed that Benkei was about to attack and tightened his grip on his sword.

As the two men faced each other, the soldiers began to withdraw as if by prior agreement.

The retreating soldiers created a space between them, allowing the two to focus on their duel.

“We support you, General Irin!”

“Show them the might of the Goryeo navy!”

“Win, Benkei!”

“Show these enemies the might of Kage Otoshi’s right-hand man!”

The soldiers cheered for their respective commanders.

Irin looked at Benkei and casually spoke.

“You seem quite extraordinary.”

Benkei was Japanese, born and raised in Japan.

As such, he couldn’t understand the Goryeo language spoken by Irin.

However, from the atmosphere, he could immediately tell that his opponent was showing respect.

In response, Benkei also looked at Irin and didn’t hold back his praise.

“If I had met you in my youth, I might never have collected 999 weapons.”

Benkei had traveled throughout the country, challenging many warriors.

As trophies, he took the weapons they used as payment.

His unusual journey ended when he finally fell before Minamoto Yoshitsune, an unparalleled warrior.

For Benkei to mention weapons while highly praising Irin essentially meant he considered Irin equal to his lord, Minamoto Yoshitsune.

Though they couldn’t understand each other’s words, they shared mutual respect.

But this was only possible before they crossed swords.

Now they had to wield their weapons with the intent to take each other’s lives, so further courtesy and respect were unnecessary.

“Take this!”

“Hnngh!”

Thus began the life-or-death duel between Irin and Benkei.

Their weapons clashed when they were only about three steps apart, close enough to feel each other’s breath.

Clang!

“You blocked my spear…!”

“Such tremendous strength…!”

Benkei and Irin couldn’t help but be surprised.

But with their lives at stake, there was no reason to maintain composed expressions of surprise.

The first to continue the attack was none other than Irin.

He skillfully executed a horizontal slash.

Unlike a spear, a sword allowed for relatively free directional changes, enabling him to target Benkei’s unprotected flank.

Benkei dodged Irin’s attack by turning his body, as if he had predicted it.

“My attacks won’t stop!”

Irin said this while continuing his consecutive strikes.

Faced with attacks coming like waves, Benkei had no choice but to maintain his defense.

As Benkei was pushed into a defensive position, the Japanese soldiers began to stir.

“Could it be… the legendary Benkei!”

“You must not lose!”

Hearing the cries of the Japanese soldiers, Benkei gritted his teeth.

“RAAAAARGH!”

A roar like that of a monster echoed through the air.

Then he grabbed Irin’s sleeve with his hand while Irin was continuing his attack.

“Ugh!”

Irin, who had been attacking with his sword, never expected Benkei’s hand to come between his strikes.

This was because the hand could have been sliced off by the blind edge of the blade.

He couldn’t imagine Benkei would suddenly thrust his bare hand in and grab him by the collar.

Benkei didn’t miss Irin’s moment of confusion.

He grabbed Irin’s sleeve and lifted him up with one hand.

“Let… let go!”

Irin struggled and managed to wound Benkei’s arm with his sword.

But Benkei, seemingly unmoved, slammed Irin to the ground.

“Kuk!”

Irin suddenly found himself rolling on the floor.

He tried to get up with his weapon.

But Benkei wasn’t going to just watch.

Having succeeded in his counterattack, Benkei immediately began attacking Irin, who was sprawled on the floor, using his spear.

“Krgh!”

It was difficult to avoid a spear attack without being able to get up.

Naturally, Irin had no choice but to roll around on the floor.

“Hehehe, look at those Goryeo bastards.”

“Rolling around on the floor trying to survive.”

“General!”

“This won’t do! We must save the general!”

The Goryeo soldiers tried to draw their swords to save Irin.

Seeing their actions, the Japanese soldiers also looked at the Goryeo people with swords in hand, clearly not intending to stand idle.

It was a situation ready to explode.

At that moment, Irin managed to roll on the floor and barely avoid the attack.

Afterward, Irin got up and counterattacked against Benkei’s assault.

Benkei couldn’t help but be considerably surprised by Irin’s sudden counterattack.

Thus unfolded a situation where no one could predict who would win, a situation where the next moment was unknown.

* * *

While the naval battle between the Goryeo navy and the Japanese navy continued,

Yoshitsune, defeated by the Ulus army, had no choice but to retreat and reorganize his troops.

“The troops have been reorganized, General.”

“Good work.”

Yoshitsune replied calmly.

His adjutant approached and spoke to him.

“We cannot accept this defeat. We must counterattack immediately and avenge ourselves.”

Yoshitsune shook his head at the adjutant’s words.

“Our forces were defeated by the enemy. It’s unthinkable to face the enemy with troops that have already been defeated once.”

This was content found in military texts like the Six Secret Teachings and Three Strategies.

Therefore, Yoshitsune did not act rashly.

“Moreover, the enemy will already be in a defensive position.”

Yoshitsune predicted that the Mongols would be in a defensive position.

“Does that mean we cannot have our revenge?”

The adjutant clicked his tongue in disappointment.

Of course, this wasn’t appropriate behavior for an adjutant who had nearly died at the hands of the King of Oni.

But he couldn’t show such an attitude to Yoshitsune, his lord.

So he was deliberately putting on an exaggerated act.

Creating an atmosphere as if they had lost regrettably.

Yoshitsune also understood the reason for his adjutant’s behavior.

However, he didn’t mention it to avoid making him feel intimidated.

Reprimanding an adjutant during war could affect the morale of the army.

So instead of scolding the adjutant, he explained why they weren’t counterattacking.

“Revenge is important, but winning the war is also important.”

“I apologize, my lord.”

“No need. I share your desire for revenge. However, there’s no reason to act rashly when we can win by simply waiting.”

“Win by simply waiting…”

“Yes. The King of Oni has won temporarily, but that’s all. They can never escape the Nagasaki area.”

This was because Yoshitsune’s shogunate forces were blocking the entrance to Nagasaki.

Moreover, the area where the shogunate forces were stationed was mountainous terrain.

This made it difficult to effectively operate cavalry.

For this reason, the numerically superior shogunate forces could defeat the Mongol army just by defending this location.

“But with the enemy’s navy at Tsushima, shouldn’t we annihilate them before they can act?”

The adjutant’s point was accurate.

If the Goryeo navy entered from the rear through Tsushima, the shogunate forces would be caught in a pincer attack.

“Your point is correct. But Benkei is there.”

Yoshitsune’s trust in Benkei was absolute.

This was because Yoshitsune had once dueled with Benkei.

Having felt Benkei’s skill firsthand, Yoshitsune didn’t think he would be defeated.

“Benkei is not only an outstanding warrior but also a naval commander.”

Benkei was one of the top naval commanders in the shogunate forces.

Because of this, countless times he had seen enemy fleets being surrounded by shogunate forces, deceived by Benkei’s tactic of jumping alone onto enemy ships.

“He will meet my expectations this time as well.”

Yoshitsune expressed his trust in Benkei with these words.

At that moment, a messenger suddenly approached Yoshitsune.

After showing proper respect to the young lord of the Minamoto family, the messenger happily delivered his information.

“General Benkei has defeated the Goryeo navy!”

“As expected!”

Yoshitsune slapped his knee in great joy.

His subordinates also cheered, celebrating Benkei’s victory.

“Indeed! He never disappoints.”

“Truly worthy of being the general’s right-hand man!”

Everyone couldn’t help but be excited about Benkei’s victory.

At that time, Yoshitsune, maintaining his composure, questioned the messenger.

“Did he sink all the enemy ships?”

“Regrettably, he only repelled the enemy rather than completely annihilating them.”

Yoshitsune expressed his disappointment.

But even just repelling the enemy was essentially a victory.

This was because they were supply lines.

Their retreat meant that the Mongol forces in Nagasaki would not receive supplies.

They could try to obtain supplies locally, but there were clear limitations to local supply.

“Isn’t this essentially a victory?”

“Indeed. Nagasaki is just a small fishing village. It’s impossible to continue supplying from such a place.”

Yoshitsune nodded at his adjutants’ words.

Though regrettable, this was still a significant gain.

A unit without supplies would inevitably suffer a drastic reduction in combat effectiveness.

Facing such an enemy would be easier than facing a scarecrow.

Therefore, the shogunate forces had no reason to move hastily.

They just needed to wait until the Mongol forces withered away.

“However… something bothers me.”

Yoshitsune muttered to himself.

It was because the Emperor, who had antipathy toward the shogunate, was being quieter than expected.