CHAPTER 154: CHAPTER 102 TEMPORARY TERRITORY

For a Samurai, land is power, and anything related to land is never a small matter.

After a brief silence in the room, one of the Household Retainers saw Oda Nobunaga stroking the newly-grown fuzz on his upper lip, lost in thought and unable to make a decision. He couldn’t help but open his mouth to object, but how to procure saltpeter was still a problem yet unsolved.

Of all the Magistrates currently in place, only Nozawa expressed willingness to give it a try. It’s easy enough to voice opposition, but if Oda Nobunaga kept pressing the issue—or asked the objectors to complete the task themselves...

Several magistrates who had opened their mouths quickly closed them again, not daring to speak for the moment. Still, they shot Nozawa extremely subtle glances, betraying a faint wariness, jealousy, and dissatisfaction.

Is he aiming to reach the top in one leap?

This wandering Samurai from outside certainly isn’t lacking ambition, just waiting to ride these circumstances to grab a big fat piece of the pie?

Wishful thinking!

Nozawa pretended not to notice, unconcerned about how these people viewed him. In fact, he didn’t really care whether he could acquire land this time—he just needed Oda Nobunaga to know he might be able to get saltpeter.

Yes, as long as he could accomplish that first step, it was enough.

He vaguely remembered that in history, Oda Nobunaga, in order to secure enough gunpowder, personally went to Kaido Town to visit various wealthy merchants, hoping to solve the problem by throwing money around. In the end, he was ridiculed as a country bumpkin. He was forced to tone down his arrogance, took lessons in the Tea Ceremony from the local big shot, bowed his head to the wealthy merchants, and only then managed to obtain a stable supply at last.

When he returned, he was deeply shamed and bore a lasting grudge. After succeeding in Shangluo, he immediately sought revenge. No matter how much those Kaido Town merchants offered to buy their peace, he refused, repeatedly changed his mind on them, toyed with them in every way, and dragged them out to embarrass them at every opportunity.

So, Nozawa was in no hurry. This matter would definitely work out. Oda Nobunaga could not swallow an insult; if not this time, then the next time he was slighted, he’d ignore everything—no matter how much all the Household Retainers objected on their knees and in tears, as long as saltpeter could be procured in Owari, he’d just hand over the land.

Of course, even so, the matter remained tough. Most of the Oda Danjo Chonosuke household retainers were bound to object, and it could drag on too long, delaying Nozawa’s development.

He waited for a while. Seeing Oda Nobunaga still couldn’t make a final decision, he figured directly asking for good farmland was unrealistic. Even Oda Nobunaga would find that hard to accept. To get the land sooner, he immediately stepped back: "If it really won’t do, an unclaimed wasteland would be fine. I can recruit my own men to help."

Wasteland?

Given his initial lion’s demand, this new condition was obviously much easier to accept. A couple of the previously hesitant Household Retainers relaxed a little, realizing he wasn’t eyeing Takeshige Manor, the prime cut of meat, nor was he trying to leapfrog into a position of power as a direct competitor.

Oda Nobunaga’s hesitation lessened considerably as well. If this problem could be solved, a patch of wasteland wasn’t out of the question. Nozawa might secretly clear some land regardless, but it would still be part of Owari; it’s not as though it could fly away. And if Nozawa actually succeeded and wanted to secure perpetual ownership, he’d have to become an Owari local noble, a "寄子", and call him Lord, finally bringing this troublemaker into the Oda Danjo Chonosuke household system.

Oda Nobunaga had already agreed in his heart, but granting land was always a big deal—wasteland included. It could easily shake the foundations of the Oda Danjo Chonosuke family’s rule. So he looked down at the Magistrates and asked, "What do you all think?"

Niwa Nagahide and the other Ministers of Internal Affairs exchanged looks. Some still felt resentful—so many people risked their lives on the battlefield and never got a plot of land, and Nozawa tried a "maybe" and already walked off with one. Even if it was wasteland, it still left a sour taste, but they really had no more grounds for objection. Any further opposition and the task would ninety-nine percent surely fall to them, so they just kept silent.

Oda Nobunaga was very pleased, feeling these new Magistrates were far more useful than the old Household Retainers. In the past, facing a similar situation, arguments would break out immediately, everyone trying to lecture him on how to rule.

This was much better now. The new Magistrates were honest and smart. In the future, he planned to be even bolder with them.

He gave his orders directly to Niwa Nagahide: "Go get the map!"

Niwa Nagahide promptly instructed someone to bring the map and spread it in front of him. He began picking places for Nozawa within the Oda Danjo Chonosuke direct demesne, and after one round, pointed to an uninhabited area downstream of the Otai River: "How about right here? The soil and water are good!"

The implication was that he was allowing Nozawa to wield some power for personal gain—complete the task and secretly clear a little land. When Nozawa eventually became a local noble, he’d recognize those fields as Nozawa family property and grant them official status.

Nozawa leaned in for a look, pointed and said, "This one isn’t really suitable, Your Highness. It’d be better if it were a bit closer to Atsuta Port—so it’s easier to collect materials when we test things out. How about this spot?"

Oda Nobunaga followed his finger and saw it was a piece of seaside wasteland southwest of Atsuta Port, very close to the root of the Chita Peninsula and not far from the Oda/Imagawa/Yamaguchi family front lines. He couldn’t help but say in surprise, "You choose here?"

This was no good place to settle down. Though the Bai Chuan Pass area had many Rock Fortresses and the Imagawa and Matsudaira families would struggle to mount large-scale attacks, small enemy units slipping through was normal—it wasn’t exactly secure.

Nozawa had planned for this: "Let’s go with here! Personally, I think it’s the best fit."

"Suit yourself!" Oda Nobunaga usually didn’t meddle in small matters—so long as the outcome suited him. He then turned to Niwa Nagahide and ordered, "Give him that land. From now on, that place will be called... Wanjin!"

He saw a tidal inlet where a river curled into the sea not far off, and casually gave it a name. Then he pulled out a book, flipped a few pages, and after a pause told Nozawa, "I’ll assign you Marubashi and Nakajou as Yoriki as well. Do a good job—I want to see results in six months!"

By the end, his tone had grown stern. The meaning was clear: he’d met all Nozawa’s conditions and sent two men to assist; if Nozawa still couldn’t get it done, he shouldn’t complain when Oda Nobunaga turned on him and forced him to cough up the land again. He also quietly raised the pressure—never mind feasibility, the original one-year deadline was now halved.

All in all, he wanted to see saltpeter appear as quickly as possible, secure a large amount of gunpowder, and realize his plan for an Iron Cannon Ashigaru battalion.

Nozawa didn’t mind. Rushed deadlines—perfectly normal; even if he failed, even if he made no progress in six months, Oda Nobunaga wasn’t going to kill him. It was no big deal.

By this stage, his objective was achieved: he finally had a plot of land entirely under his authority, where he could do as he pleased, even if it was wasteland—it was enough for his needs!

......

Oda Nobunaga handed things over to the person in charge and, feeling the problem was solved, left on his own. The Magistrates all dispersed, debating Nozawa’s luck—if he could pull off this task, he’d achieve in an instant what countless Samurai never could in a lifetime: owning feudal land outright.

Of course, where there’s envy, there’s also jealousy. Plenty of Magistrates destined never to gain a fief would grumble and mock him as well.

Nozawa still didn’t care, just wanting to get things settled. After all, Oda Nobunaga only made the final decisions and never handled the details—those fell to Niwa Nagahide and the other Ministers of Internal Affairs.

He spent two days haggling with Niwa Nagahide, finally determining the approximate size of Wanjin and receiving the two Yoriki Oda Nobunaga had "bestowed": Nakajou Heichiro and Marubashi Five Gates—two junior Samurai. Yoriki was a status that varied over the eras; in this period, it was rather like a "contract worker." Their ultimate feudal allegiance stayed with Oda Nobunaga, but Nozawa could command them, even take them into battle. It was dual management.

The two had been members of Oda Nobunaga’s horsemen, sons of Owari noble families without inheritance, both slightly younger than Oda Nobunaga: Nakajou Heichiro was eighteen, Marubashi Five Gates was seventeen. Upon meeting their new superior Nozawa, they were very polite. Nozawa returned the courtesy, since these two were essentially "supervisors" and, on a construction site, would be the ones wearing red helmets.

Once all the miscellaneous affairs were handled, Nozawa took his family and the eighty-nine "old, weak, sick, and disabled" followers, along with thirty Lang Faction men borrowed from Niwa Nagahide, and put Nakajou Heichiro and Marubashi Five Gates in charge of command, heading straight for his temporary fief of Wanjin.

Yes, it was only a temporary fief, just a springboard—his final destination wasn’t here.

He was going somewhere he could truly call the shots, not to be just another minor noble in Owari.