The NHK Taiga drama "BROTHERS IN ARMS （Toyotomi Brothers!）", starring actor Taiga Nakano, will air its 20th episode, "The Real Hiragumo," on May 24th (NHK General, Sundays at 8 PM, etc.). As the subtitle suggests, the "main characters" of this episode are Matsunaga Hisahide, played by Naoto Takenaka, and the tea kettle (tea pot) "Hiragumo" that Hisahide owns. Hisahide and "Hiragumo" also appeared in the 2020 Taiga drama "Kirin ga Kuru." Let's take a look back at the story that was depicted then.
◇Matsunaga Hisahide's tragic "end" and "trap" Mitsuhide tells a "lie" in front of Nobunaga
"Kirin ga Kuru," starring Hiroki Hasegawa as Akechi Mitsuhide, focused on Hisahide and the "Hiragumo" tea caddy in its 40th episode. The subtitle was simply "Matsunaga Hisahide's Hiragumo," and it aired on January 10, 2021.
Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, both filming and broadcasting were temporarily halted, resulting in the 40th episode airing after the New Year. Including this episode, there were only five episodes remaining until the finale. Many fans of the historical drama will also remember this episode as the one depicting the dramatic "end" of Matsunaga Hisahide, played by Kotaro Yoshida. So, how did the story unfold...?
Suddenly, Hisahide (Yoshida) attempts to escape from the front lines of the attack on Osaka Honganji, shocking the Oda forces. Guided by Iroha Tayu (Machiko Ono), Mitsuhide (Hasegawa) meets with Hisahide and questions him about why he is defecting now. Hisahide says he cannot tolerate Nobunaga's (Taro Suruga) the position of governor of Yamato, and declares that he will side with Honganji, who will entrust Yamato to him. At this time, Hisahide shows Mitsuhide the "Hiragumo," which he cherishes more than his life, and tells him that he has no intention of handing over this "greatest treasure in the world" to Nobunaga, and that if he is forced to hand it over, it will be to Mitsuhide, before entrusting the "Hiragumo" to Tayu.
Eventually cornered by Oda's army, Hisahide, in the flames he himself had set, let out a war cry and ended his life, chanting, "Namu Sanbo—!!" His head was then burned along with his prized possession. After Hisahide's death, Nobunaga, obsessed with the Hiragumo tea caddy, met with Mitsuhide in the great hall of Azuchi Castle. He asked Mitsuhide, who had been close to Hisahide during his lifetime, about the whereabouts of the Hiragumo, but Mitsuhide inadvertently lied, saying he didn't know. Unbeknownst to him, Nobunaga had already seen through everything thanks to a tip from Hideyoshi (Kuranosuke Sasaki)...
Eventually, the Hiragumo tea caddy made its way to Mitsuhide through the courtesan. Mitsuhide wondered why he couldn't tell Nobunaga that he "knew" the whereabouts of the Hiragumo, and he couldn't stop laughing, saying, "I've fallen right into the trap," and "This is Matsunaga Hisahide's trap." Meanwhile, the courtesan began by saying, "Those who possess such a famous item must have the resolve to do so," and revealed that Hisahide had entrusted the Hiragumo to Mitsuhide because he saw him as "a man who never loses his pride under any circumstances, a man of high aspirations, and a man of beautiful heart."
◇From Hisahide to Mitsuhide…Two messages embedded in the "Hiragumo" tea caddy
Many viewers interpreted this series of scenes not as a "trap" set by Hisahide for Mitsuhide, but rather as Hisahide "casting a curse" on Mitsuhide, who would later cause the "Honnoji Incident" and drive Nobunaga to suicide. However, regarding the use of the "Hiragumo" in "Kirin ga Kuru," screenwriter Shunsaku Ikehata commented on the drama's official website at the time as follows:
"The Hiragumo tea kettle has meaning in itself," says Ikehata, explaining its meaning as "as in the words Hisahide entrusted to Iroha Tayu, 'whoever possesses it will not lose their pride, will have high aspirations, and will have a beautiful heart.'" He also says that there were two messages embedded in Hisahide giving the Hiragumo to Mitsuhide, stating, "'Mitsuhide, you are the one who will summon the Kirin,' and to do so, 'you must sever ties with Nobunaga.' When Mitsuhide received the Hiragumo from Iroha, he received these messages at the same time."
Ikehata added, "When I came up with this episode, I felt like everything connected. It was a major discovery for me." He continued, "I introduced Matsunaga Hisahide from the first episode as an interesting character who would procure guns for Mitsuhide. At the time, I only had a feeling that the two would become friends, but the moment I came up with the 'Hiragumo' episode, the true meaning of Hisahide to Mitsuhide was constructed."
"Hisahide orchestrated the psychological transformation of Mitsuhide, using the 'Hiragumo' tea caddy to mark a turning point where he shifted from being the second-in-command supporting Nobunaga and Yoshiaki (played by Kenichi Takito) to becoming independent. Surprisingly, there aren't many other people who could do something like that. As a mastermind, I think Hisahide is the best person," he concluded.
Six years have passed since then (five and a half years to be precise), and now Matsunaga Hisahide and the "Hiragumo" are once again in the spotlight in a historical drama. What kind of drama awaits us? Episode 20 of "BROTHERS IN ARMS （Toyotomi Brothers!）", "The Real Hiragumo," looks like it will be an unmissable episode. (Fumio Kishitani/MANTANWEB)
