Pathway to Japanese Literature

Discover Japan's stories—across time, across language.

Kuroda JosuiAuthor: Yoshikawa Eiji

Original Title	黒田如水
Author	吉川英治
Genre	Historical Fiction
Author Type	Male Author
Summary	In feudal Japan’s turbulent era, a young strategist, Kuroda Kanbei, navigates a perilous political storm as chief retainer of Gochaku Castle. Faced with an existential crisis, his clan debates allegiance: remain loyal to the powerful Mōri faction or gamble on Oda Nobunaga’s rising tide. Kanbei’s unshakable belief in Oda’s vision—a unified realm free from chaos—clashes with elder retainers clinging to tradition. Tensions erupt when covert schemes unfold, including the kidnapping of their lord’s daughter as a Mōri hostage. Undeterred by betrayal and slander, Kanbei embarks on a covert mission to Gifu, risking his life to secure Oda’s alliance. Disguised as a humble peddler, he sails eastward through enemy waters, his resolve as sharp as the blades plotting against him. Amidst whispers of war and shifting loyalties, his journey becomes a pivotal thread in the fabric of a nation’s destiny—a lone beacon of foresight in an age consumed by shadows. Will conviction outmaneuver treachery? The answer lies beyond the horizon.