Page:Tales from old Japanese dramas (1915).djvu/168

114, succeeded in cutting his way through the enemy's ranks, and took a road by a bamboo grove, near the village of Ogurusu. Suddenly a company of Hidéyoshi's horsemen, who had overtaken him by a short cut, fell upon him. He fearlessly encountered them, and cut thirteen of them down, the rest taking to flight.

Mitsuhidé alighted and, resting in the shade of the bamboos, began to think of his past and present fortunes, good and bad. He recognized that all hope was now gone, so he made up his mind to commit suicide. He knelt with signs of despair, and made ready to perform the melancholy deed. At that moment, however, several peasants thrust at him with bamboo-spears from inside the grove. The wounded warrior sprang to his feet with a roar of rage and furiously cut at them. They were immediately filled with terror and beat a hasty retreat. Then Mitsuhidé again resumed his former position, and with calm determination committed seppuku. On the second of June he had assassinated Nobunaga, and it was on the thirteenth of the same month that he met his tragic end. So that his glory as Shogun had lasted only ten days.