Original subtitles

In Yonezawa, Yamagata Prefecture,

the Yonezawa Uesugi Festival is held every May.

Because of "Dokuganryu Masamune,"

actor Watanabe Ken attended the festivities.

Thank you. Here's a top for you.

Thank you, my lord.

Farewell.

Yonezawa Castle, where Masamune was born and raised,

is now a park which people enjoy.

On this grounds is a 500-yer-old fir tree...

whose treetops swayed in the wind since Masamune's time.

If it hurts, say it doesn't...

It doesn't hurt!

Then say it hurts!

It hurts!

Shifuku temple, where Masamune studied, was transfered to Sensai.

Beneath the cryptomeria trees,

remains the grave of Terumune, Masamune's father.

This is Onogawa Hot springs,

where Masamune bathed to heal his broken leg.

If is said that the beautiful Ono-no-Komachi opened these pools.

Today, it is still used as a public bath.

Yonezawa was home to the Date for over 200 years.

How Masamune must have loved his homeland and people.

Dokuganryu Masamune (One-eyed Dragon Masamune)

Episode 29: Demotion

Screenplay by James Miki

Based on the novel "Date Masamune" by Sohachi Yamaoka

Music by Shinichiro Ikebe

Theme music performed by NHK Symphony Orchestra

Cast

Masamune Date: KEN WATANABE

Shigezane Date: TOMOKAZU MIURA

Kojuro Katakura: TERUHIKO SAIGO

Kita: KEIKO TAKESHITA

Princess Mego: JUNKO SAKURADA

Deibansai Koyanaga: TOYOTO FUKUDA Kuniyori Yanbe: SHINYA OWADA

Samanosuke Harada: ISAO WASHU Tsunamoto Oniniwa: TAKEHIRO MURATA

Magobei Goto: SHIRO SANO Bunshichiro Endo: SHIGEYUKI NAKAMURA

Mitsunari Ishida: EIJI OKUDA

Hidetsugu Hashiba: TAKANORI JINNAI

Lady Yodo: KANAKO HIGUCHI

Nagamasa Asano: YOICHI HAYASHI

Kita no Mandokoro: KAORU YACHIGUSA

Yoshiaki Mogami: YOSHIO HARADA

Lady Noko: KUMIKO AKIYOSHI

Ieyasu Tokugawa: MASAHIKO TSUGAWA

Hideyoshi Toyotomi: SHINTARO KATSU

June 1591.

Masamune invaded Osaki-Kasai with a large army

and took Miyazaki and Sanuma castles.

For Masamune, who escaped certain death

by using the ruse with his wagtail signature,

stamping out the riots once and for all

was the only way to regain the kanpaku's absolute trust.

The Date lost many of their renowned warriors in this war.

Can you hear me, Kuniyori?

We won, the enemy has been annihilated.

Kuniyori.

Kuniyori. As you are.

I am sorry, my lord.

You did well. I thank you.

My lord...

Water!

My lord...

Am I dying for you

or am I dying for the kanpaku?

That goes without saying.

For the sake of Masamune Date.

- Kuniyori. - Kuniyori.

In July, under Hideyoshi's order,

Hidetsugu Hashiba and Ieyasu Tokugawa

came to decide on the allocation of Ou lands.

And in August, Masamune received

an official letter from Hideyoshi.

The letter praised Date's exploits in battle.

Sanuma Castle

This means nothing.

If he thinks I did well, he should increase my territory.

Don't say that.

First, we must regain his trust.

So this is a good start.

There's one more good news.

Princess Mego is with child.

What?

With child?

Is that true, Deibansai?

Excuse me? Have I ever lied to you?

My lord!

Congratulations.

This is a surprise.

That Mego is having a child.

Hold on. It's not Princess Mego.

What?

It's Lady Neko who's pregnant.

Lady Neko?

Don't get it wrong.

You said so, Uncle.

No, no...

I'm sure I said Princess Mego.

Then Mego is pregnant.

Er... er... It's Lady Neko.

Fool. Which is it?

Think very carefully before you answer.

Is the legal wife having a child

or is it the mistress?

I've been telling you.

It is Lady Neko, the mistress who is pregnant.

- All right. I got it. - Then is it a boy or girl?

Er... I can't say until it is born.

That's true.

My lord.

Congratulations.

Date Mansion, Kyoto

How is the baby? Is it doing well?

I thank you for your concern, but I know what to do.

This time I will be careful

and make sure not to have a miscarriage,

and give birth to a healthy heir.

How do you know it's a boy?

I can tell.

Even the fortune said it will be a boy.

Please don't spread that around.

Why is that?

There are many warriors with different agendas in Kyoto.

Those who wish for Date's annihilation

might try to kill you.

Who said that?

Everyone, including Princess Mego, is concerned.

Then you must not treat me poorly.

I'm having the baby.

Yes, the lady-in-waiting Iizaku is having the baby.

But you are only a surrogate.

Surrogate?

Our lord is the father of the child.

And the Date's official wife is Princess Mego.

Therefore, the lord's heir is Princess Mego's child.

You are so irritating.

No matter what anyone says I am the child's mother.

- Until it is born... - Be quiet.

I will not let my child be taken away.

Date customs dictate the child has a guardian.

I don't want to hear it. Begone.

Excuse me for my rudeness.

Please take care of yourself.

I understand how you feel.

But you mustn't brood.

I know that.

If the official wife can't have a child,

the mistress does.

It's a good thing for the clan's prosperity.

I fear there is no one as broad-minded as you.

You are beloved by the many mistresses

and you love Sir Tsurumatsu who is Lady Yodo's child.

You just have to pretend you gave birth to the child.

To Tsurumatsu, Lady Yodo is his mother

and so am I.

He's so fortunate to have two mothers.

What a beautiful thought.

I will always remember that

and will think of you as an example of a warrior's wife.

You make too much of me.

You're still young.

If you keep praying, you will have a child.

Oh no, I couldn't.

Do not give up.

Your grace and charm is the talk of the Kyotoites.

Even if the mistress has a child,

I am certain you will not lose your lord's favor.

Have confidence.

Reporting.

Oh, Sir Gen-i.

Please depart for Yodo Castle at once.

What's the matter?

You can speak.

The young prince took a turn for the worse.

What?

August 5th, 1591.

Tsurumatsu, who had always been sickly,

passed away in Yodo Castle.

Hideyoshi lost his only child, that he fathered after fifty.

If the gods...

If the gods faulted you, I will bear that fault.

Come back.

Come back to me, Tsurumatsu.

Tsurumatsu...

Wake up. Wake up.

Wake... Please wake up.

He's smiling.

He's smiling.

Tsurumatsu's smiling.

He's smiling.

Heartbroken, Hideyoshi cut off his topknot at Tofukuji.

His close advisors followed suit

and solemnly went into a period of mourning.

You all have many children

so you probably think I'm a weak ruler,

seeing me act this way.

I was blessed with Tsurumatsu late in life.

There is no hope. I shall have another.

Why must a kanpaku feel this way?

I have made so many offerings to the gods.

And this is the result.

Laugh, laugh.

Laugh at me.

I saw a golden cloud.

Tsurumatsu has a more beautiful soul than the gods.

He's in Nirvana now.

His memorial service will be one

the likes of which no one has ever seen before.

Get ready to deploy.

Deploy?

Where to?

I will take Korea, make that a foothold,

and invade China.

Well? Don't you think that's a suitable diversion?

Order the warrior lords to get ready to deploy.

Masamune learned of Tsurumatsu's death at Sanuma Castle.

He lost the apple of his eye.

He must be heartbroken.

He has secluded himself in Arima from grief.

He won't see anyone.

I feel his pain.

Well then, let's get to the reason we're here.

The lands for Sirs Date and Gamo

have been allocated

and we're here to relay those official orders.

I will listen respectfully.

This is the decision after inspection regarding Sir Date's status.

The former fiefs of Kasai and Osaki

will be Date's new territory.

Thank you.

However you will retain

Shibata, Miyagi, Kurokawa from the original Date fief

and the other six districts will be confiscated.

What did you say?

In other words Tamura, Shionomatsu, Shinobu

Date, Yonezawa and Katta will be given to Ujisato Gamo.

Yonezawa...

- Hold on. - You're giving...

- Yonezawa to Sir Gamo? - Restrain yourself!

Are you dissatisfied with the official ruling?

Begging your pardon, I don't understand.

You said his highness is secluded in Arima

and sees no one.

Shigezane!

The Ou land allocation has been put in our hands.

Putting aside Tamura, Shionamotsu and Shinobu,

the Date land is where our ancestors are buried.

And Yonezawa is where our ancestral castle is.

What is the reasoning behind

confiscating that and bestowing it on Sir Gamo?

There's no need for us to give you a reason.

Do you accept or not?

Answer.

This is out of the question.

- What? - Sir Mitsunari.

We cooperated in the suppression of the riots

and received a commendation from His Highness.

Therefore it stands to reason we should be rewarded,

but there's no way we should receive such punishment.

But it has already been decided.

You should humbly accept this decision.

Then I ask you again.

Does Sir Ieyasu know about this?

It was his idea.

You should talk to him about it.

We have now given you the official notice

of the land allocation for Sirs Date and Gamo.

Iwatezawa Castle

Ieyasu Tokugawa was presently staying at

Iwatezawa Castle in the former Osaki territory.

There are many warrior lords

whose names are known throughout the land.

But there is none that can hold a candle to Sir Tokugawa

and I was thankful for your close association with me.

So I doubted my ears when

I heard that this land allocation

was your idea and came to ask you in person.

I'd like to hear your reason for this decision.

So you're dissatisfied with the reallocation?

- A can't accept it. - I thought you'd be happy.

I beg to disagree.

Date's territory was worth 720,000 barrels of rice.

With this reallocation we will only be worth 580,000.

There is no lord that would be happy with

a decrease of 140,000 in income.

- I see. - On the other hand,

Sir Gamo's territory has increased

to a worth totaling 700,000.

Even though he's a close advisor,

our treatments couldn't have been more.

That's not so.

When I had to leave my ancestral land

and move to Edo, I thought it was a demotion.

But by reclaiming the surrounding eight lands,

I now have an income of more than two million barrels.

Misfortune can turn into fortune.

Listen to me.

Osaki has a lot of arable land.

Although on paper they produce 580,000 barrels,

if you make improvements,

it could produce at least one million barrels.

If I was in charge, I can make it produce 1,5 million barrels.

1,5 million?

In addition, there is the sea to the east.

In the west, a profitable gold mine.

Depending on your ability, you can create great wealth

from the sea, land and mountain.

The possibilities are infinite.

Thankfully accept the reallocation

and move from Yonezawa to these lands.

However, to have Sir Gamo

take over our ancestral Yonezawa land...

Ujisato is not pleased about Yonezawa either.

Even though his income's increased,

he's been sent further away north.

It's a demotion.

Sir Ieyasu.

Excuse me for asking,

but are you really totally loyal to the kanpaku?

I can't believe a man of your caliber

would complacently

subjugate yourself to the kanpaku.

Would you let me know your true feelings?

It's difficult to go against the tide.

Water conforms to the shape of the container.

I am a lazy man.

Look, Sir Masamune.

Take this Iwatezawa Castle as your residence.

Tamatsukuri River forms a natural moat,

is protected by a sheer cliff,

and is a stronghold as good as Chihaya Castle.

I had Yasumasa Sakakibara

survey the land and left you clear demarcations.

You say we just leave with our tail between our legs?

It can't be helped.

We can't disobey the kanpaku's order.

Yonezawa Castle

But the clan's family temple is here.

What will become of our farmers and residents?

Everything that has connections to Date...

the castle, people and temples included,

will be moved to Iwatezawa.

My lord!

I've given this a great deal of thought.

I fear the vassals and retainers would be incensed.

I know you said we must bide our time, but...

We had to leave Aizu, had Sendo taken from us

and now to have Yonezawa confiscated as well...

That's what being transferred means.

That's in name only. This is clearly punishment.

Stop complaining.

There's a time to fight with one's life,

and other times when we have to bend with the wind.

That's the way of the wise.

While we're bending, we'll be sent to the hinterlands.

I'm sure they're planning Date's destruction, step by step.

It's Sir Gamo's plot.

Don't be swayed by Sir Tokugawa.

Listen, all of you.

It's our lord, most of all, who's anguished by

having to hand over Yonezawa Castle.

He's right.

Look.

I'm beginning to see how the world is changing.

The kanpaku has lost his heir Tsurumatsu

and is very upset.

Since he's old, he will not have another.

So looking around,

I think the next ruler will be Sir Hidetsugu.

I am on good terms with Hidetsugu

and we are close in.

I've had drinks with him several times in Kyoto

and we can be speak frankly to each other.

If I nurture this relationship, the Date clan will rise again.

We will humbly retreat

and wait for an opportune moment.

That is a wise observation.

What say you?

Why don't you get some sleep?

Who am I?

You are Hideyoshi,

Emperor's Advisor and Grand Minister.

Emperor's Advisor and Grand Minister?

Why...

...is this happening?

Yamagata Castle

Just then,

Hidetsugu Hashiba, Hideyoshi's nephew,

on his way back from defeating Masazane Kunohe,

had stopped at Yamagata Castle.

That was splendid.

Come closer.

Come a bit closer.

I will reward you with a cup.

Her name is Princess Koma?

Yes.

How old is she?

Eleven.

Oh, Sir Mogami has a beautiful child.

Thank you.

Don't be shy.

Here, drink.

Sir Hidetsugu.

Here, drink.

Accept the cup.

Here.

Don't you like sake, Princess Koma?

Please excuse her clumsiness.

Never mind. Don't worry about it.

Begging your pardon,

I, Yoshiyasu, would like to finish the sake

for my younger sister.

Yoshiyasu.

All right. Drink.

Sir Mogami is Masamune Date's uncle.

So both Princess Koma and Sir Yoshiyasu

are Sir Masamune's cousins.

I see.

May I return the honor?

Is the "yasu" in your name taken from Ieyasu?

Yes.

I hear Mogami is close with Ieyasu.

The way I hear it,

the second son was named Iechika

and sent to Ieyasu as his page.

That is correct.

Is that in expectation that Ieyasu will rule the world?

Of course not.

Sir Ieyasu is in Kanto

and we were given the Ou territory,

so we can't help but be cordial.

From now on, I think it's wise you depend on me, don't you?

I am thankful for your kind words.

Allow me to speak.

Our lord intends to give his third son, Sir Yoshichika,

to you as your page.

So please take good care of him.

That's not necessary.

I have enough pages.

I will take Princess Koma instead.

I am saying I want Princess Koma.

Please don't joke.

Princess Koma is still a child.

You don't know the worth of a woman, Nagamasa.

A flower in bloom is a wonderful thing,

but a bud is even more enticing.

Please, let me decline.

Oh? So you refuse?

That's not it.

Okoma is unrefined, country born and bred.

I don't want her to embarrass you

if I send her when she is so unschooled.

I will take my time to teach her.

Please, forgive her.

Who do you think I am?

Please calm down, Sir Hidetsugu.

I am the kanpaku's nephew.

Do you think you can survive if you disrespect me?

I am not disrespecting you.

Bring Princess Koma here.

I said bring her here.

Yes, sir.

Father!

I promise I will hand Okoma to you.

However, could you give us three years?

What?

I am a warrior lord.

As her father, I don't want to be ridiculed

as a country bumpkin if I send her to Kyoto

without proper training in etiquette.

He has a point.

If possible, I would like her to be trained here

so that she will be fully prepared

and not be ridiculed by the Kyotoites.

You promise?

I swear to the gods.

Well, Sir Hidetsugu,

it will be entertaining to have her come to Kyoto

just when she begins to flower.

She will be safe with Sir Yoshiaki until then.

I, Nagamasa, will be the witness.

I'll leave it up to you.

Early winter, 1591.

Masamune, with his clan and retainers,

left Yonezawa Castle.

It had been Date's resident castle

for 43 years since Masamune's grandfather Terumune

made his home here in 1548.

Let's go.

Congratulations.

- Congratulations - Congratulations.

All residents of the six cities of

Omachi, Tatsumachi, Higashimachi,

Daigakumachi, Yanagimachi and Aramachi

made the move and created a new

merchant community in the castle town.

Narushima Hachiman shrine Shifukuji Temple,

Rinnoji Temple and Shoden An were also moved.

Iwadeyama Castle

Masamune also renamed Iwatezawa Castle

to Iwadeyama Castle.

For Masamune, 1591 was a year of tribulations.

But finally nearing the year-end,

he received good news.

Good job, my lord.

Lady Neko gave birth to a baby boy.

- What? - A boy.

Mother and child are doing fine.

This is so auspicious.

This is a good omen.

The Date's future is looking bright.

Lady Neko, the Iizaka lady-in-waiting,

gave birth in Munefuyu Murata's castle

in Shibata district.

In deference to Hideyoshi,

Masamune had sent her to Munefuyu's castle.

I am finally a father.

Yes. We've been waiting for this day.

Shigezane, Kojuro.

I'm determined.

I won't be second best to anyone.