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Wada Koretake (和田 惟政, died 1582), also known as The Wounded, was a samurai who served as a retainer to the daimyō Oda Nobunaga during the late 16th century.
A member of the Shinbakufu, he was tasked with eliminating the remnants of the Ikkō-ikki in Izumi Settsu led by Kyonyo, who fought against Nobunaga's rule. During the effort, Koretake was tracked down and assassinated by the Iga kunoichi Fujibayashi Naoe, as revenge for his involvement in the death of her father and the theft of a prized box.
Biography[]
Siege of Iga[]
In September 1581, Koretake and his fellow Shinbakufu members traveled to Iga[1] to retrieve the Imperial Regalia Yasakani no Magatama that was safeguarded by the Kakushiba ikki.[2] Using Oda Nobunaga's siege of Iga as cover, Koretake and Yaita Wakasa were among the first to arrive and waited for Ido Yoshihiro, who had stolen the regalia's box, outside Katano Castle.[1]
After Yoshihiro was assassinated by Fujibayashi Naoe, Koretake and Wakasa ambushed her outside the castle, with the former shooting Naoe in the abdomen before Koretake broke her foot. Having recovered the box, the two masked Shinbakufu members argued about who would get to keep it until they were interrupted by Naoe's father Nagato, who knocked Wakasa to the ground and cut off Koretake's left ear.[1]
As Koretake and Wakasa prepared to fight the Assassin, they were joined by the rest of the Shinbakufu, who quickly defeated and mortally wounded Nagato. The Shinbakufu then retrieved the box and, after taunting Nagato that his and the Kakushiba ikki's life work was undone, prepared to execute him and Naoe. However, Koretake intervened and asked that the pair be left to die in pain as punishment for his injury. The Shinbakufu's masked leader granted his request, and the group departed with the box.[1]
Fighting the Ikkō-ikki and death[]
- Naoe: "You cut open my father. You left him to suffer. To die in pain!"
- Koretake: "It's... what you... and your kind... deserve."
- Naoe: "My father taught me to survive. And every day since, I have thought of only one thing. Making you suffer."
- —Naoe and Koretake during the latter's final moments, 1582.[src]-[m]
In 1582, Koretake was placed in charge of suppressing the Ikkō-ikki rebellion in Izumi Settsu led by the monk Kyonyo. Now easily identifiable by his injury, the samurai quickly earned a reputation for his brutality, with many calling him the "one-eared demon". Although Koretake was nearly successful in his goal of eradicating the remnants of the Ikkō-ikki, the tide of the battle was unexpectedly turned by Naoe, who had survived her injuries and sought revenge on the Shinbakufu for the death of her father and theft of the box.[3]
After killing Oda Nobunaga's chief executioner Shindo Hiroshii, who worked closely with Koretake, Naoe recovered a note from his personal effects revealing the Shinbakufu member's whereabouts at Amagasaki Castle.[4] Naoe and her allies Kyonyo, Yaya, and Mitsumune subsequently led an assault on the fortress, during which Naoe confronted Koretake in the castle's courtyard.[5]
Koretake's death
Despite his heavy armor and the assistance of his guards, Koretake was ultimately bested by the kunoichi. Mortally wounded, Koretake was interrogated by Naoe for the box's whereabouts, but refused to speak and only laughed at her in response. Naoe then reminded Koretake of his request that she and her father be made to suffer, to which the Shinbakufu member claimed that it was what their "kind" deserved. Angered, Naoe activated her Hidden Blade and stabbed Koretake, leaving him to slowly succumb to his injuries.[5]
Behind the scenes[]
While Wada Koretake appears to be a fictional character, the Wada clan is historical, having ties to the Settsu province, the Ashikaga shogunate, Oda Nobunaga, and Christian missionaries such as Luís Fróis.
Appearances[]
References[]
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