Bushidoboutique

True name: Ōtaka Gengo Tadatake (大高 源五 忠雄)

Age: 32

Katana mei: Tomohisa (2,1), length 2 shaku 6 sun

Wakizashi mei: Masakuni (5,1), length 9 sun 5 bu

The tale of the text – with a little twist

Ōtaka Gengo Tadao had the useful combination of loyalty, martial skill, and a talent for appearing harmless. A retainer of the Akao family, he spent his time in Edo posing as a cultivated man of taste—writing haiku, studying tea ceremony, and generally giving no indication that he was quietly planning revenge.

These refined interests were not without purpose. His tea connections allowed him to inspect his target’s residence, while his side business selling bamboo cleaning tools revealed a critical detail: the household was thoroughly cleaned on the 14th of each month. By evening, the occupants would be exhausted, likely drunk, and in no condition to repel determined visitors. Strategy, in this case, hinged on housekeeping.

When the night came, Tadao fought bravely, though not without injury. By morning, he had repaired to a noodle shop, where—bleeding but composed—he drank sake, tended his wound, and wrote a poem about snow bending pine branches. Priorities, clearly, were in order.

Before returning to the action, he tossed down his purse with instructions that it be spent on sake, and thoughtfully included a note promising payment to whoever might have to deal with his remains. Few warriors combine foresight with such courtesy.

He also carried a second poem celebrating the small pleasures of Edo life—fish, spices, and honest labour—suggesting that even in the midst of vengeance, he retained a certain appreciation for the everyday.

A poet, then, a spy. And, above all, a man who ensured that, whatever happened, someone would at least be able to afford a drink afterward.

For an accurate translation of the print text, I would encourage you to get the book: Kuniyoshi -The faithful samurai by David R Weinberg.