[28] 木曽の最期（下） DEATH OF KISO (2)

南山高等学校　２年　日英バイリンガル通信　NO. 28　November 8, 1991

「弓矢取りは、年ごろ日ごろいかなる高名候へども、最後の時不覚しつれば、長ききずにて候ふなり。御身は疲れさせたまひて候ふ。続く勢は候はず。敵に押し隔てられ、言ふかひなき人の郎等に組み落とされさせたまひて、討たれさせたまひなば、『さばかり日本国に聞こえさせたまひつる木曾殿をば、それがしが郎等の討ちたてまつたる。』なんど申さむことこそ口惜しう候へ。ただあの松原へ入らせたまへ。」と申しければ、木曾、「さらば。」とて、粟津の松原へぞ駆けたまふ。（中略）正月二十一日、入相（いりあひ）ばかりのことなるに、薄氷（うすごほり）ははつたりけり、（木曽殿は）深田ありとも知らずして、馬をざつとうち入れたれば、馬のかしらも見えざりけり。あふれどもあふれども、打てども打てどもはたらかず。今井が行くへのおぼつかなさに、ふりあふぎたまへる内甲（うちかぶと）を、三浦の石田次郎為久（いしだのじらうのためひさ）、追つかかつてよつぴいてひやうふつと射る。痛手（いたで）なれば、真向（まつかう）を馬のかしらにあててうつぶしたまへるところに、石田が郎等二人落ち合うて、つひに木曾殿の首をばとつてんげり。（中略）今井四郎いくさしけるが、これを聞き、（中略）太刀のさきを口に含み、馬よりさかさまにとび落ち、貫かつてぞうせにける。

　　　　　　　　　　DEATH OF KISO (2)

　　“However famed a samurai may be, he will disgrace himself forever if he makes a blunder at his last moment. You are tired and have no more forces. If we are separated by the enemy, and if you fall off your horse while fighting with a retainer of a nobody and are killed, they will say, ‘A retainer of such-and-such a man killed Kiso, who was well known all over Japan.’ That will be a shame. Please run your horse to that grove.”
　　Kiso said, “If you insist,” and ran his horse there. (ellipsis) It was at dusk on the 21st of January. Rice fields were covered with thin ice. Kiso ran his horse onto the ice not knowing there was a deep paddy under it. Immediately the whole body of his horse, even its head, sank under the mud. However hard he urged his horse with the stirrups and whip, it did not move at all. He anxiously turned toward Imai, when Ishida Jiro Tamehisa of Miura, who had caught up with him, bent his bow to the full and sent an arrow whizzing at him. It penetrated Kiso’s armor and seriously injured him. He lay his face down on the head of his horse. Just then two retainers of Ishida’s reached there, and at last cut off Kiso’s head. (ellipsis) Imai Shiro, who was fighting, heard this, (ellipsis) put the point of his sword in his mouth, jumped from his horse headlong, and died with the sword penetrating his neck.