The sounds of birds happily chirping in the forest trees and the smell of the forest fills the air carried by a light cool wind as it hits the face of Hanbei and he closes his eyes for a moment to take in the smells and sounds of the forest. He feels at ease and relaxed by the scene of nature unfolding around him and he exhales a breath and then opens his eyes refreshed by the brief moment of peace. Hanbei thought to himself, "One must always find moments of peace to remind myself that life is not always surrounded by pain and death but there are times for beauty and peace also, this province lord Ryuzen wishes to take is quite lovely in the mountains here and rich with wood and stone. An excellent prize if we take this province" Then near him tied to a tree his pack horse began to stir and make noise, his horse was hungry and Hanbei went and fed him a few apples to keep him content and quiet. His packhorse was all black and short but very strong and relatively calm and quiet accept when he was hungry. Hanbei was using this horse disguised as an ink merchant and the horse was carrying his goods as well as his tools he used on missions. Hanbei in his mid-twenties five feet 6 inches tall, muscular in his arms and legs with a small gut from his love of sake and broad shoulders and flat chest. His face was squinted with small brown eyes and black goatee with a shaved head. He was wearing grey trousers and a black short sleeved robe, and a grey outer robe and black sashes to secure his robes from flapping about in the wind. Finally, he had white leg wraps and straw sandals and on his forearms were arm guards to protect against brush. On his head wrapped around his shaved head was a cotton towel to absorb sweat and keep it out of his eyes and to complete this ensemble a straw hat to conceal him from the sun and to keep his face partially concealed around others. He was just inside the border of Kozuke traveling along a mountain trail and he has just stopped and is waiting to meet his fellow shinobi assigned to help on this mission. They chose to go on separate routes to not arose suspicion and if one of them was caught by the locals the other could still continue on the mission. In actuality there was only one other shinobi he was waiting on, and his name was Toshie and he like Hanbei was also from Iga province hired by Ryuzen to serve him. Unlike Hanzo and Hanbei he did not participate in the Imagawa campaign and was used mainly to gather intelligence around Kai for any security threats to Ryuzen estate and clan and to the Takeda as well. He was 19 and had been a shinobi for seven years and has served the Kuroda clan for several years now. He has long black and young man's face with curious black eyes and no wrinkles. He is a few inches taller than Hanbei but leaner and skinnier. One of his gifts is Toshie has the ability to talk and charm anyone he comes into contact with and make them lower their defenses around him. Yet despite all the charm and humor lies underneath a deadly predator who can one minute easily laugh at your jokes and in the next minute snap your neck with no thought of remorse or afterthought. To Hanbei Toshie was the perfect merchant in disguise and he knows he could easily pass through enemy checkpoints better than he could and with him disguised as a salt merchant it made his disguise all the more believable.

  Finally, he hears the sound of a flute playing a soft melody ringing through the forest mountain road and Hanbei knows Toshie is near and just appearing around a corner of the road is Toshie dressed in a similar outfit as Hanbei but with blue outer coat instead of a grey one like Hanbei and Hanbei sees him riding a brown horse followed by another brown packhorse who was no doubt carrying salt as well as other concealed items needed for the mission ahead. As he came close to Hanbei he dismounted his horse and shook Hanbei hand. Then Hanbei spoke first, "Well met Toshie I am glad you made it here, now our next part of this mission can begin" "What are we to do next?" "We are in two days' time to meet Mizuki in the forest near Minowa castle. She is currently hired as the lady in waiting to a minor lords' wife and is currently visiting the castle lord with their entourage. We are here to gather a report of the clan and the lands surrounding this castle and then decide are next steps in gathering information about this land and then get that information back to our lord Ryuzen as well as find any ways of making this clan weaker before we return to Kai" "Interesting I am sure Mizuki is gathering information as we speak, (Toshie chuckled)" Hanbei and Toshie both smiled because Mizuki like them was an Iga ninja in the service of Ryuzen but unlike her brother ninjas she was considered the most dangerous shinobi of their entire group. She was only five feet tall and strikingly beautiful with lightly colored hazel eyes and the blackest hair like the darkest part of night. Her face was light skinned with a small nose and with full lips shaded red. She had a beauty mark in the middle of her left check that made her all the more desirable. Her body was small and petite, and she kept her hair long to her shoulders in a ponytail. She had a smile that could melt the coldest heart. She had a thin waist and stomach from her ninja training and legs and arms of a modern-day cheer leader. She was barely twenty and had been personally trained by the head of the Iga ninja Hanzo and he had been brutal in training her to fight and on several occasions broke some of her bones for mistakes she made in combat. He taught her how to use poisons and how to use her feminine charms to infiltrate and seduce her targets. She learned how to gauge and observe a target in what they desired and wanted and to use it to her advantage. She learned to be an excellent pickpocket and locksmith that she could easily unlock any gate or door with no problem at all. She had seduced countless men for information and killed over twenty-five targets and was Ryuzen most successful ninja for his clan. With this background she would infiltrate the Nagano clan of Minowa castle and gather information of the strength and power of this clan and seek ways to weaken them as well. They both having now reached the meeting point then both continued on to the next point they were to meet Mizuki at.

  They reached the meeting point in the forest two days later when evening had just fallen and the night skies was beginning to darken. Both ninjas at the edge of the forest on a large hill could see Minowa castle on a flat plain with large mansion in the middle of the compound surrounded by a large wall with various other buildings surrounding the castle and its walls was small but prosperous castle town and further beyond them were several rice fields and the entire plain was surrounded by mountains and hills filled with all kinds of trees that gave a beautiful green covering. Hanbei could see the lights coming from the castle and town and could see people moving about the town. He could smell rice cooking, see peasants walking home from the fields after long day of hard work. He could observe a blacksmith shop on the edge of town. He could hear the clanking of a blacksmith hammer working on some sword or tool in his shop. He could see various merchants' stalls selling all kinds of wares and items along the main avenue that led to the castle gate. Children were playing along the street in some sort of game of tag; small carts being moved with all kinds of items going into the castle. To Hanbei this town was prosperous and happy and had no idea that war was coming and to them life played on as usual with no inkling of the rest of the world beyond. Hanbei thought, "Lord Ryuzen had picked his target well, this town and clan was small, but their location was strategic and the gateway to the rest of the province. A perfect foothold for the Takeda to expand into this new territory" Then the smell of the loveliest scent of perfume he had ever smelled came downwind from behind him and he knew instantly it was Mizuki. Toshie instantly stood up and so did Hanbei also, they both were expecting her to come out of the forest at any moment and then without disappointment she appeared from the brush. Her hair was fixed in braids and neatly placed in large loops in the back of her head. Her face was flawless from the makeup of a woman from court made her face look extremely pale and her lips were rosy red. She was dressed in a white shimmering silk kimono robe wearing wooden sandals on her feet. Both Hanbei and Toshie in unison said smiling with brotherly affection, "Sister" Mizuki smiled warmly to both of them and said, "Brothers" Hanbei then began to speak with Mizuki while Toshie listened, "How does your mission fare so far? What have you learned about this clan so far?" "Straight to business then (smiling as she spoke), The name of the clan in charge of this land is Nagano clan and the head of the clan is the aging Tadamasa Nagano and is in his mid-fifties and very stubborn and hardened by years of conflict with the other clans in this province, suspicious of outsiders, he is disciplined and not cruel. The kind of lord who counts arrows personally. He believes survival requires caution over glory and most importantly of all he does not trust in his son's ambition" "So a good lord with a foolish son is what I beginning to understand if that is correct Mizuki" "Yes he is foolish, but what makes him an idiot is he has the belief that he is meant to be a great lord but his problem is he is fat, lazy, does not work and simply dreams of being a great lord but with none of the drive. He believes everything should be handed over to him with no effort of his own and on top of that he has a large ego that craves the attention and praise of others to fulfill his delusion of being a great lord" "So I assume this fool is your way in to extract and gather information?" "Yes, his name is Harunobu Nagano, and I have already caught his eye, and he is actively trying to pursue me, but I have not yet allowed him near me, and I am only staring at him with slight gaze in his direction and small smile when no one is looking making him feel like this is a genuine connection. Very soon his desire of me will allow me entry into the inner chambers of the castle" "Excellent, do not rush your prey and he will come to you of his own free will. What would you have us do in the meantime while you infiltrate the castle?" "I have arranged for you to have a stall setup for you to sell your wares and where I can pass information to you as well as messages. I must get back before I am missed and here is the map for the outer defenses and where you will need to setup your stall" Mizuki then handed over the map and directions to the stall and quickly made her exit back into the forest. Then Hanbei and Toshie made their way to town and luckily it was dark enough with just lights coming from the castle and various buildings in town that no one really noticed them as they entered town and made their way to the stall which was right next to the black smith shop on the main avenue of town.

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  Toshie and Hanbei finished unpacking the goods and tools from their horses and Toshie went to the town stables to rent stalls to have their horses placed while they stayed in town. Hanbei then set up the stall and placed various ink goods and salts in various containers on the stall and then noticed the smell of brewing tea further into town and saw a local tea house further down the main street. Hanbei then secured the goods at the stall and made his way to this tea house and noticed how it was quite a large building the outside was in a long rectangular shape with a chimney in the middle of the building sticking out. There were several small wooden tables inside the teahouse that he could see from the entrance. The roof was covered in thatched straw tied together and the walls were made of wood from the local forest. There are several open spaces for windows on either side of the entrance a passerby could see look in on the activity. Hanbei could hear the sounds of conversations inside, and he thought this would be a good place to listen for any tidbits of information about this land and castle plus he really wanted some tea. Hanbei made his way inside and a young serving girl who looked barely fifteen with a white cloth covering her head to keep sweat and hair out her face dressed in simple gray dress and wearing a white apron approached and bowed her head and guided Hanbei to a seat near the back of the tea house. She then asked, "What type of tea would you like drink and enjoy?" "I would like bancha (rougher form of green tea for commoners)" "Very good" The serving girl then walked to the center of the teahouse where there was a fireplace with large pot filled with boiling water being attended by a very large older man who was balding dressed in cooks' outfit also wearing large white apron. The fireplace with the large pots of water boiling was surrounded by a large wooden bar with a small opening for someone to enter. There were several small wooden tables with mats for sitting on placed next to the tables lit by candlelight and small lanterns hanging from the wooden posts around the tea house giving it a serene atmosphere. There were peasants, samurai, merchants all placed in groups around the fireplace inside the teahouse. Hanbei still wearing his straw-hat was listening to the various conversations near him and one conversation between two samurai piqued his interest. Both samurai appeared to be in their thirties and had the typical samurai haircut with the topknot in blue samurai robes with their katanas placed next to them on the table. The samurai on the right with a small scar on his left cheek spoke first, "The fat fool of Minowa just did something very foolish and will cost us dearly in the clans finances" "What did the lords son do that has you so frustrated?" "That fool just spent several hundred gold coins from the treasury to buy an expensive new katana that is to be made from our local blacksmith" "That fool that money was could have been used to hire a hundred spearmen instead of buying one lousy sword" "When the other clans hear of the lord's foolish sons spending we will be embarrassed and lose face" "This is not the first time this fat fool has done this and this could hurt us later if we go to war with fewer men" "I worry for the future of our clan if that idiot ever becomes the daimyo" "Hush now let's not speak of this in the open anymore" With that conversation over the young serving girl had just brought him his tea in small tea pot with a small cup and she poured his first cup and Hanbei thanked her and paid her. She then left and he blew on the hot cup of tea and then took a sip, and it tasted perfect and after being on the road for several days he savored the flavor of the green tea. Then thought to himself, "So the daimyo son is not only delusional but has no discipline when it comes to finances. When Mizuki visits the stall, I must pass this information to her and see if she can use it to her advantage in seducing this foolish lord. If her perfumed scent and beauty can bleed this castle dry before my lord shows up with his army, we will take this castle quite easily" Then Hanbei continued to drink his tea and looked forward to the challenge of bringing this clan down from within without ever firing a shot.