Hisahide Matsunaga

Hisahide Matsunaga is a retainer of the Miyoshi clan and later the Oda clan. Infamous for his cruelty, violent nature and cunning, he was said to have defied Nobunaga for his own ambition. He is famous for defying his foe until his end, allegedly smashing the tea pots that Nobunaga so desired.

Before his playable Samurai Warriors appearance, he was a generic NPC in Samurai Warriors: State of War and a Fire Ninja bodyguard. He is voted twentieth in the Samurai Warriors 4 character popularity poll.

Samurai Warriors
Hisahide appears before Mitsuhide, proudly claiming himself to be the villain of the era. As the daimyo of Yamato Province, he aids the Saitō during their conflict against Nobunaga. Defeated and captured, he is brought to the Demon King and urges for his execution. Humiliated and embittered when Nobunaga spares him, Hisahide claims that his life and fate belong to him only, and that Nobunaga has taken them away from him.

Joining the Oda in name only, Hisahide schemes to ruin Nobunaga's campaigns by colluding with various factions. He immediately suspects that his retainers' ambitions are divided and decides to use it to his advantage. When Nobunaga returns to Gifu, Hisahide hires Koshōshō and Magoichi to raise rebels and threaten the shogun in the capital. Foiled by Nobunaga's sudden return, Hisahide plots to hit closer to home by convincing Nagamasa to betray Nobunaga. Nobunaga reveals that he was aware of Hisahide's involvement in the event but mockingly holds Hisahide responsible of the subjugation, sparing him again. Deciding that Nagamasa's death at Noda-Fukushima isn't enough, he decides to prey upon Mitsuhide's insecurities. As he joins the Oda force at Nagashino, he tries yet fails to warp Hideyoshi's loyalties to Nobunaga.

The Takeda's fall at Nagashino restores Hisahide's courage to take back his fate with his own hands. He is entrusted to protect Shigisan Castle during the Kii Province campaign and uses this chance to betray the Oda. Hisahide challenges his former lord to a final duel to the death and loses. Nobunaga who is willing to spare Hisahide once more if he surrenders his favorite tea kettle to him. Set on claiming his own life on his own terms, Hisahide blows himself up with explosives hidden inside the tea kettle. His death impacts Mitsuhide, prompting the latter to rebel.

His 4-II centric narrative begins with him assassinating the shogun before the main setting, Yoshiteru Ashikaga. He is captured by Nobunaga and the Oda troops soon after. His request for his death and his humiliation to be spared is repeated, leading to a reprisal of his schemes from the previous title. This time Hisahide coaxes Katsuyori to place his bets on the Takeda's cavalry invincibility prior to Nagashino. With each scheme, Nobunaga smugly orders Hisahide to lead the campaign, makes his knowledge known of his involvement, and spares him the death penalty. Infuriated by the indignation, Hisashide is driven mad in his obsession to stage a grand end for himself, rebelling and blowing himself at Shigesan Castle.

Hisahide's final plot has him rely on Munenori. He survives his supposed death and goes into hiding within the Yagyū manor. He convinces Motonari to join his assault on the then vulnerable Honnōji. Since he failed to convince Mitsuhide to revolt, he frames the general for his instigation and slaughters the Oda. Rejoicing the renewed ownership of his life with Nobunaga's death, Hisahide blows himself up with euphoria.

Kessen
In Kessen III, Matsunaga appears as an elderly and feudal lord who occasionally defies and belittles Nobunaga. In the Japanese script, he speaks in a sleazy and mocking Kyoto accent. Though reputed as a betrayer, villain and an odd lover of tea pots, Nobunaga spares him after his first rebellion and allows Matsunaga to join the shogunate army. He eventually defects and rebels the same time as Murashige Araki. Prior to the Siege of Shigesan Castle, Nobunaga tries to negotiate for Matsunaga's surrender but he refuses. After his final defeat, he states that he is impressed with Nobunaga before he blows himself up in one of his castle's towers.

Geten no Hana
Though Hisahide is already dead by the time Geten no Hana takes place, Nobunaga mentions him by his first name during his first romance event. He states that he took Tsukumonasu, a prized tea jar once owned by Yoshimitsu Ashikaga, from Hisahide's possessions; he uses it to personally brew and serve tea to Hotaru and his brother. Nobuyuki identifies it and uses it to cryptically describe his impressions of his older brother's conquests.

Development
Designers conceptualized Hisahide to be "the eccentric". His vibrant purple highlights, asymmetrical silhouette, "shape-shifting" clothing, and the plentiful spiderweb decorations follow the goal of making him an "overly complicated" Warriors character design. His weapon symbolizes his character's trickiness.

Personality
A profound artist who relishes the intricate style of the tea ceremony and its instruments, Hisahide holds himself in high regard as a man of class and talent. He hates the concept of people's lives being dictated by fate, as well as showing disgust for having one concept as an excuse to justify the another opposing one in a poor sense.

Character Symbolism
In the Samurai Warriors series, he is symbolized by the kanji for "sin" (罪) and "defiance" (叛).

His default weapon is partially named after Tsuchigumo. It's not clear if it is meant to be the mythological creature or the archaic insult, but either definition would apply for his Samurai Warriors character. His attacks having spider imagery may play in hand with the Tsuchigumo's literal translation, which is "earth spider".

His rare weapon is Kunimaro, a name given to one Tsuchigumo in the Yamato Bumi. He was among a group of five who defied imperial rule with their brutishness and taunted the emperor's army to come for them. They got their wish as they were hunted and mercilessly slaughtered by his men in days. The blood from their corpses was said to have stained the entire countryside thus leading to the unceremoniously named "Camellia valley". While the narrative describes them to be demons, many suspect that they were bandits. Yagatsuhaki, another name for the demonic spider, is used for his DLC weapon.

Hiragumo Kettle, Hisahide's heirloom, was named because its surface resembles the binding of a spider's web. Legends and myths will state that smashing it or dying with it was Hisahide's last act of defiance to Nobunaga. Both warlords supposedly treasured it yet Hisahide wanted to be sure that Nobunaga would never be able to claim it. Even its pieces could not be recovered, lost forever in the castle rubble. In reality, the kettle –or at least a replica or duplicate Hiragumo– exists today. This version of the kettle was one of Nobunaga's treasures and was named because he would never part with it. Due to his affinity for the kettle, it can be common for incarnations of Hisahide to be affiliated with a love for tea.

Voice Actors

 * Richard Epcar - Kessen III (English)
 * Kōji Ishii - Samurai Warriors 4 (Japanese)
 * Hisao Egawa - Kessen III (Japanese)

Quotes

 * "Hisahide, what is that insect there? It rings from within its nest, a bell cricket perhaps?"
 * "You are correct, my lord. It is the bell cricket from last year. It is essential for the insect to seek shelter, to prolong its lifespan. Lord Yoshiteru should learn from it and treasure his living days. We wouldn't want anything ...unexpected... to happen to that dear head of yours."
 * "Was that a threat, Hisahide? On what grounds do you think you have the right to order the shogun!? Out of my sight!"
 * Yoshiteru Ashikaga and Hisahide; Sengoku Musou 3: Empires


 * "I never dreamed I would be facing you."
 * "Oh, I know you. You are Sakon of the Tsutsui, correct?"
 * "I'm honored you would remember me. But you should have never shown your face here."
 * "Why would I leave when I'm ravished by the pleasure that surrounds me? This battlefield is the greatest stage I have ever created! The ground is soaked crimson, and never-ending wails of those precious seconds away from their life's end quiver and reverberate around us. Exquisite. Wouldn't you agree?"
 * "... You're just as crazy as I thought. Time for you to die for this land."
 * Sakon and Hisahide; 100man-nin no Sengoku Musou


 * "Master Nobunaga, you must know, people are petty little things with petty little concerns. You have to be careful who you trust, you know. That's just something you've never learned."
 * Addressing Nobunaga, Kessen III

Charge Moveset

 * , undefined, (undefined): Throws a bomb to the ground then jumps to the air slashing the enemies downward.
 * ,, undefined, (undefined): Stuns the enemies with a bomb, several ground mines then explode, Hisahide slashes afterward.
 * ,, , undefined, (undefined): Stuns the enemies with a spider web then throws a bomb in front of them.
 * ,, , , undefined, (undefined): Dashes circularly, fire columns then rise from the ground.

Hyper Moveset

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 * Dashing :
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 * Throws bombs along the ground. Then, he makes three larges balls of fire and sends them forth.
 * (Ultimate/Kaiden): Throws three large spider webs on the ground then snaps his finger, the webs explode.
 * Rage Attack/Musou Gokui effect:
 * Rage Attack/Musou Gokui effect:


 * Spirit Cancel:
 * Deadlock Attack & Mighty Strike:
 * R1+ :
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 * Awakened Skill effect (4-II only):

Mounted Moveset

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Weapons

 * See also: Hisahide Matsunaga/Weapons

Rare Weapon Acquisition

 * Stage: True Incident at Honnōji

Historical Information
During the 1540s, Hisahide served as a vassal under Masanaga Miyoshi before betraying him for his childhood friend Chōkei. He then became a representative for his companion in the capital of Kyoto while gradually gaining influence there as governor. Although he continued to support the Miyoshi family during his conquest of Yamato Province, sources claim that he secretly had members of Chōkei's family murdered to consolidate power over the entire clan through the young heir Yoshitsugu. However, the youth was also under the guardianship of Nagayuki Miyoshi, Masayasu Miyoshi, and Tomomichi Iwanari.

Despite the daimyo's distrust towards the Miyoshi Triumvirate, he willingly collaborated with them to subjugate the shogun Yoshiteru Ashikaga in 1565. After Yoshiteru's death, Hisahide was free to wage war against his former allies. He suffered numerous setbacks at Sakai the next year and was forced to leave the area behind. His battle against the Miyoshi also resulted in the destruction of the Buddhist Tōdai-ji in Nara, causing others to condemn Hisahide. He eventually surrendered to Nobunaga when the latter took over Kyoto during the month of November.

To survive, Hisahide participated in the Oda's campaigns for several years while retaining control over Yamato. He also secured Nobunaga's favor by sending him a precious tea item called Tsukumogami. But in truth, all this was to give the daimyo enough time to overthrow Nobunaga. He even conspired with the Miyoshi briefly in 1573 only to resume his conflict with them when the alliance proved useless. Four years after, he left Nobunaga's side once more to gain independence in Yamato, though this time the Oda had him cornered at Shigisan Castle. Defiant even in the face of defeat, Hisahide and his sons killed themselves.

Gallery
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