Premise: In 1868 the Satsuma and Choshu clans, never a real threat to Tokugawa authority as long as they remained rivals, joined forces to overthrow the shogun and restore the authority of the emperor, the 14-year-old Mitsuhito.

Hypothesis: Satsuma and Choshu were bitter rivals before joining forces, and regularly pillaged each others' villages.
Relation: neutral