The Revenge of the Soga Brothers
Hiroshige particularly illustrated this story.
During the feudal period in Japan, two main clans confronted each other: the Minamoto (Genji) and the Taira (Heike).
The Iko clan, who's chief was Ito Jiro Sukechika, ally to the Taira clan, is at its worst.
The shogun, Yorimoto, chief of the Genji clan wants to unify Japan and in doing so assure his power through his descendants. He has every person with Heike blood in them executed, going as far as executing his own brothers (Yoshitsune and Noriyori). Ito Jito Sukechika's son Kawazu Saburo Sukeyasu, who is a sumo wrestler is murdered by his cousin Kudi Suketsune in the mountains of Hakone. Kawasu leaves behind a widow and two young sons aged three and five.
Later Kawazu's widow marries, in a second marriage, a man named Soga. This man adopts the oldest son, Juro Sukenari, and sends the youngest, Goro Tokimune, to a Buddhist temple to become a monk. Time goes by and the two boys, who kept their wish of avenging their father's death and the family's honor, become men. Finding out that their father's murderer, Kudo Suketsune, left his domain to go hunting with the soghun Yorimoto toward the Mount Fuji, Juro decides to take action and goes to seek his brother at the temple in Oiso. During that night, in the middle of a storm, Juro and Goro penetrate the hunting camp, finding Suketsune's tent and taking revenge.
Instead of running away after murdering Suketsune, the two brothers proclaim cleaned honor loud and clear. The two brothers wake the camp up. A tough fight is conducted and the eldest, Juro is killed. Goro manages to free himself from the hands of Kudo Suketsune's men and reach the soghun Yorimoto's camp. The following plot will stop him. A sumo wrestler named Goromaru disguises himself as a lady in waiting and captures him. Goro is then brought to Yoritomo, who would willingly spear him, but Suketsune sees it in another way. He wants revenge in return. Goro is executed.
The Soga brothers were only 20 and 22 years old when they died avenging their father's death.
