The Fuyu Crisis of 3578
Fuyu of 3578 (1144)
Note: Fuyu (Winter) is in the middle of the year due to the Empire being located below the equator.
"The flames of rebellion must be extinguished now before it turns into an unstoppable inferno."- Seitō Taishōgun Mononobe Harumitsu, 3578
Harumitsu Mononobe was shocked when he received word about the opposition that had formed against him. He full well expected that Higuchi, and a few others would revolt. But he did not expect that otherwise loyal Daimyos such as the Asuka, Hayama, Helesta, Honma, Maimoto, Matsukai, Warabeda, and the Yashiro clans to also disobeyed his orders.
These clans were part of the so-called «Kita Doumei (Northern Alliance)» (北同盟) or the «Helesta-kawa Rigu (Helesta League)» (ヘルエスタ川リーグ)" that were formed shortly after the Edict of Loyalty (忠誠の勅令) reached the north and the far west of the Mononobe Shogunate. Both also took very different stances from the proactive Chūshin, and each other.
The Kitans took a defensive posture, in that they would only fight the Shogun and the loyal daimyos if they attacked any member of their alliance. They condemned the actions of both Harumitsu and his father before him as tyrannical, and formally supported the cause of the Chūshin and Yamashita as being just. Moreover, they called on the Emperor to replace the Mononobe clan as the Eastern Shoguns with another family or abolish the two Shogun system all together, unifying it under Sasaki. To them, the Mononobe clan was unworthy of holding the title anymore and cited the ousting of Gundo clan from their position as the Seitō Taishōgun (征東大将軍) 241 years before as the legal precedent for their demands.
The Helestans, on the other hand, declared that they condemned both sides and that the violence must stop. They would send letters to both Shoguns, the leaders of the Chūshin, and Yamashita; asking them to seek the path of diplomacy to resolve their issues and even to the Emperor himself, asking for his mediation in this crisis. They would only act in self-defense of their compatriots and would fight any side which tried to wage war against them in full.
Meanwhile, the Chūshin revolt would grow in size to include several more clans: namingly the Nagao, Machita, Takamiya and Yosei (Elu) clans after the letter from Higuchi reached their domains.
It was not looking good for Harumitsu at this point.
While he could count on the largely loyal daimyos of the Nanrikudō (南陸道), Nansandō (南山堂), Tōkaidō (東海道), and Tōsandō (東山道) regions for support; it would take some time for them to raise and join forces with the Bakufu (幕府) forces and the elite Shinsengumi (新選組). Given that what was known as the Fuyu Crisis (冬の危機) seemed to be only getting worse, acting now was the best choice. Inactivity would be seen as a sign of weakness and could cause more to Daimyos to oppose him.
With this in mind, Harumitsu acted as soon as he heard the news of Chūshin movements to the mountain passes. Confident in the abilities of his men, he marched north without delay and gathered the forces of loyal Daimyos along the way.
The stage was now set for the first major battles of the war were about to commence. Dominoes were about to fall everywhere...