Tanegashima Tomokata had always been a personal favorite of the Daimyo. Tanegashima had been orphaned at the age of eight by the seemingly eternal war with the cursed Ito. A raid by the Ito upon his village had become a massacre as Ito commanders lost control of bloodthirsty soldeirs seeking to avenge their own Daimyo being killed recently, and the soldiers went on to slaughter the entire village and burn it to the ground. They let not one man, woman or child survive the onslaught, and when soldiers of the Shimanzu arrived they looked upon an endless lake of innocent blood. The soldiers of the Shimanzu cursed the Ito, and buried many Shimanzu brothers that day. Even those who looked down upon the farmers were moved heavily by the sight, and the search for survivors was a sorrowful one indeed.
At least, it was until, hidden in the crevice of an unburned building, with a dead Ito soldier some twenty feet in front of him, there lay a sobbing boy.
The boy was taken back to the capital city of the Shimanzu by the soldiers, and as the sole witness of the events, was asked by the King what had happened. This boy, Tanegashima, had been playing with his friends on the far part of town from the attacks. Upon hearing the screaming, the shouting of an attack, and seeing the smoke rising from the buildings being burned, he and his friends had gone into a nearby Butcher's shop. His friends then ran to fight the invaders, while Tanegashima had ran to his home, hoping to help his father fight the invaders off. However, halfway there, he had found himself cut off by the invaders. A single soldier chased him into a building, a shop that sold various trinkets, a place oft visited by the young boy. Here, he made his stand. Hiding behind a shelf, he waited until the soldier had passed, then came up behind him and, using all his force, plunged the butcher's knife into the soldier's back.
Following this, he finished off the soldier, and hid in this crevice which he knew from his many visits, and waited. He heard shouting and screaming, and sobbed quietly to himself until finally he was found. The boy had been crying throughout his story, and, greatly moved, the Daimyo had decided to put him in his military and watch his progress...and eventually make him a general.
Now that reality had been fulfilled. Tanegashima sought to prove his worth. He also had two greater, deeper reasons for his attempted bravado.
Firstly, since the raid, he had hated the Ito. He had vowed to kill all he could, to burn their cities, to pay them back for what they had done. This burning hatred had only grown in the times he had grown, as he heard constant reports of raids and battles by these demons who he could not think to call human beings. He wanted the personal apology of their Daimyo as his eyes were gouged out, he wanted him and his people to feel the emptiness inside that he had experienced for so long.
But he had another reason too. While the Daimyo had loved him as his own, and had taken great care that he should develop, he had never once called him his son. The Daimyo had never discussed adopting him officially, and Tanegashima had never brought it up directly, feeling as though he was not yet worthy.
This war was Tanegashima's chance to prove himself worthy of being the son of the man who led his nation. He took all the forces in Shimanzu available, and marched towards the nearest stronghold of the Ito. He did not concern himself with the cheering peasants along the way inside of his territory, instead focusing on what was ahead. They entered Ito territory, and found empty villages all along the way. They had been evacuated. After seemingly endless marching through these dreary scenes, they finally took up siege upon the city. But the Ito, itching for a fight themselves, offered him battle on the plains outside.
Tanegashima deployed his troops in a basic formation, doing what he had been taught all his years, adhering to accepted military tactics. The many troops under his command were, once arrayed, made to march forward quickly toward a hill which dominated the battlefield. Tanegashima ordered a quick attack upon the troops of the enemy, already on the hill, whilst his own archers would target those on the hill from below. While the infantry force was busy however, Tanegashima saw a light cavalry unit dispatched treacherously to flank his own army.
Here, his zeal and hatred overtook him. Seeing no other option that could satisfy his honor, he ordered his personal bodyguards, soldiers of the highest caliber, to charge. Battle was met, swords were drawn, and the two sides sent to butchering each other while the infantry, now without a commander to personally order them, went on chasing enemy routers. The enemy cavalry, after putting up a short fight, routed, and were killed to the man as they tried to spur their horses away from the vengeful leader of the Shimanzu.
When he had finished the horsemen, the last of them killed personally by his sword, Tanegashima returned to his soldiers cheering, for they had victory.
Tanegashima hosted a short party, followed with an order to storm the city. However, they hoisted white flags, and allowed the troops in without resistance from their walls.
Tanegashima, however, initially planned to destroy the city anyways. He had a burning hatred for all things Ito, and wishes to see them perish as his family and friends once had. He had arranged that his personal trumpeter give a signal, and at that moment, the soldiers would loot the town, taking what they could whether it be goods, women, or lives. The men marched into the square, symbolically hoisted the Shimanzu flag, and prepared to give his men the signal to do what they please.
But then, he saw a sight which sparked something inside of him. He saw a young boy, scared of the change, holding onto his father's leg while the father stared with contempt towards the conquering general. And in the small child, whose eyes were wide with fear, he saw himself as a younger boy. And he told the trumpeter to lay down his trumpet, and to not give the signal which Tanegashima now himself dreaded as the ultimate instrument of evil.