darting arrows, was heard near at hand. Mitsuhidé sprang to his feet.
"Do those sounds come from the enemy or from my troops?" he cried. "Is it victory or defeat?"
He climbed a knotted pine-tree in the front of the yard, and stared fixedly on the villages below.
"See!" he cried. "A large number of war vessels are sailing up one after the other from the left of the Wada promontory. Ah! I can see among them the banner of 'A Thousand Gourds.' I am sure it is Hidéyoshi's army! He has managed to escape from this house, and is now marching against me."
With these words he jumped down. "Well," he cried. "I'll strike the 'ape-faced sandal bearer'[1] down with a single blow." He ran out with a determined countenance.
At that moment a voice cried: "Wait one moment, Akéchi Mitsuhidé. Hashiba Hidéyoshi wants to meet you."
With these words, the hero himself appeared on the scene, dressed in a brilliant war-coat and
- ↑ In his younger days, Hidéyoshi served Oda Nobunaga as sōri tori or sandal bearer, and his face somewhat resembled that of an ape.
