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Yoshikata Saigo

Background Information

"Yoshikata Saigo" is a scene from Act-2 of the drama, "Genpei Nunobiki no Taki", that was played first in 1751. The title means the heroic death of Yoshikata. Yoshikata is father of Yoshinaka, who was one of the famous commanders of Genji. This drama is a preface story of the legend of Yoshinaka.

Story

In 1159, Heiji disturbance had happened. Yoshitomo, who was the one of Genji family, rebelled against Heike, and was killed at the incident. After the incident, Yoshikata, who is a younger brother of Yoshitomo pretends to have been sick, because he hopes to destroy the dictatorial government of Heike. But nobody knows his mind.

Lady Aoi, who is a wife of Yoshikata, is expecting a baby soon.　Yoshikata got married to Aoi after his first wife had died. He has a daughter, Matsuyoi-hime whose mother was his ex-wife.

One day, when Lady Aoi and Matsuyoi-hime have been talking together, three people come to Yoshitaka's mansion.　They are Orihei's wife Koman, her father, and a boy, whose parents are Orihei and Koman.

The family came there in order to take Orihei to their home. Orihei is a retainer of Yoshikata, and Matsuyoi-hime loves him so much. She didn't know that Orihei has been getting married already.

Orihei is out to bring his lord's letter. Lady Aoi knew that Matsuyoi-hime, who is her step-daughter, loved Orihei. So she takes them to another room to avoid bothering Matsuyoi-hime.

Orihei is in reality Tada Yukitsuna who is a warrior of Genji. Orihei became a retainer of Yoshikata in order to know his real mind because Yoshikata might have forgotten to rebel against Heike.

When Orihei has come back to the mansion, Matsuyoi-hime is waiting for him. She asks why he didn’t say that he married, and if he loves her. She thought that he was out in order to meet his wife. He says that he just carried a letter of his lord.

Then Yoshikata appears on the stage in order to get the letter directly, and he lets his daughter goes away.

Orihei says that he couldn’t find the man whose name was Tada Yukitsuna, to whom Yoshikata wrote the letter. When Yoshikata gets his letter, he finds the seal has been opened.

Yoshikata has suspected that Orihei might be Yukitsuna. He wrote a letter to Yukitsuna and made Orihei carry it. Yukikata thought if Orihei had been Yukitsuna, he would have read it. When Orihei is going to leave there, Yoshikata calls him Tada Yukitsuna in order to stop him.

Yukitsuna is surprised so much because he thinks that Yoshikata intends to accuse him to Heike. Because he was wanted by Heike. Yoshikata doesn’t forget Yoshitomo's defect and death.

Finally Yukitsuna has known Yoshikata’s true mind. Yukitsuna gives to Yoshikata the letter’s reply, that means he intends to work for the restoration of the Genji clan.

Meanwhile Osada and Takahashi, who are the envoys of Kiyomori who is a dictator of Heike come to Yoshikata’s mansion. Yoshikata meets with them alone. Osada carried a skull there. He says that the skull was Yoshitomo's, and that Yoshikata would be able to kick it if he didn’t have any dangerous hope. Osada is a son of the man who killed Yoshitomo.

Yoshikata tries to kick the skull but he can’t. He shouts Yukitsuna’s name. Yoshikata kills Osada. Yukitsuna attacks Takahashi but he can get away. It means that the reinforcements will come soon.

Yoshikata makes Yukitsuna take Machiyoi-hime to safe place. And he makes Yukitsuna’s father-in-law take Lady Aoi to safe place. Yoshikata gives Koman the white flag that is a symbol of Genji.

A lot of warriors of Heike arrives to the mansion, and Yoshikata fights against them. But finally Yoshikata has been killed. After Koman watches the death of Yoshikata, she gets out from the mansion.