The sixth episode of the NHK Taiga drama "Toyotomi Brothers!" (General TV, Sundays at 8pm and other times), starring actor Nakano Taiga, entitled "Brotherly Bonds," aired on February 15th, and viewers were captivated by the sight of Koichiro (Nakano) moving Nobunaga's (Oguri Shun) heart with his resolve to sacrifice his life.
"Toyotomi Brothers!" is the 65th taiga drama. It is a success story of hope and dreams, depicting the miracle of the Toyotomi brothers, Hidenaga (Koichiro) and his older brother Hideyoshi (Tokichiro), who achieve the great feat of unifying the country with their strong bond.
In the sixth episode, Osawa (played by Matsuo Satoru) is suspected of plotting to assassinate Nobunaga.
Thanks to Koichiro's quick thinking, they avoid an immediate standoff, but if things continue as they are, the life of Tōkichirō (played by Sosuke Ikematsu), who remains at Unuma Castle, is in danger. Koichiro, who must prove Osawa's innocence by the next day, busies himself with his investigation while asking Ichi (played by Aoi Miyazaki) to put in a good word for him to Nobunaga.
However, Ichi refuses and tells him a story from Nobunaga's past. The next day, Koichiro, who is at a loss as to what to do, makes a surprising move in front of Nobunaga... and so the story unfolds.
Nobunaga urges him to kill Osawa, saying, "I'll make you a samurai general," but Koichiro counters that killing Osawa would be the same as killing his brother, Tōkichirō. He lashes out, asking if he's abandoning Tōkichirō, who chose to become a hostage because he believed Nobunaga's words.
Furthermore, Koichirou said that he had "come to hate" Nobunaga, and warned him, "If you let me live, I might stab you in the back one day," before urging Osawa to kill him and show his loyalty to Nobunaga.
Osawa then promised Nobunaga that he would enter the Buddhist priesthood, renounce the world, and hand over all his vassals and land. Nobunaga then had a change of heart and forgave Koichiro for his rudeness.
Viewers responded to this series of scenes on social media with comments such as, "Koichiro's big gamble," "This is amazing, Koichiro is amazing," "Already a great episode," and "Koichiro... it brings me to tears...." Comments such as, "This episode is full of highlights for Nakano Taiga," "Oh my God Nakano Taiga's acting is incredible," "Nakano Taiga is an incredible actor, he delivers his lines smoothly in this long take," "I was drawn into Nakano Taiga's acting," and "It was Nakano Taiga theater" were also posted one after another.
