Uesugi Kagetora History . Uesugi Kagetora ( 上杉景虎 ) was born in either 1552 or 1554 , and during his lifetime was also known as Hōjō Ujihide ( 北条氏秀 ) , Hōjō Saburō ( 北条三郎 ) , Saburō Kagetora ( 三郎景虎 ) . He was the seventh son ( sixth to survive to adulthood ) of Hōjō Ujiyasu , younger brother of Hōjō Ujimasa , Hōjō Ujiteru , Hōjō Ujikuni , Hōjō Ujinori , Hōjō Ujitada , and older brother of Hōjō Ujimitsu . His mother was the sister - in - law of Tooyama Yasumitsu , a vassal of the Hōjō clan ( other sources say Zuikeiin , Ujiyasu ' s principle wife ) . It ' s likely that he and Hōjō Ujihide were two different people and that Ujihide was the son of Hōjō Tsunashige and living in Edo while Saburō was living in Echigo , so most historians refer to him as Hōjō Saburō when describing his early life . As a child , he was sent into the priesthood at Sōun Temple in Hakone , then sent as hostage to Takeda Shingen of the Takeda clan in the three - way alliance between Hōjō , Takeda , and Imagawa formed in 1554 . He was adopted by his uncle Hōjō Gen ' an in 1569 and married his daughter . When the Hōjō and Uesugi clans formed an alliance in 1569 , Saburō was sent to Uesugi Kenshin in an exchange of hostages with Kakizaki Haruie . At first , the hostage was set to be Hōjō Ujimasa ' s third son Kunimasumaru , but Ujimasa could not bring himself to send off his son , who was then still a baby . Saburō was sent to the Uesugi clan in early 1570 . Kenshin , who never married , developed a liking for the handsome and intelligent Saburō . He married his niece Seienin , the daughter of Nagao Masakage and older sister of Nagao Akikage ( Uesugi Kagekatsu ) to Saburō , gave him the name Kagetora ( a name that had once belonged to Kenshin himself ) , and adopted him into the Uesugi clan . When Kenshin died suddenly in 1578 without naming an heir , Kagetora and Kagekatsu , similarly adopted by Kenshin , fought for succession to the position of clan head . This episode became known as the " Ōtate no Ran " . Though Kagetora held the early advantage with the backing of Uesugi vassals such as Uesugi Kagenobu , Hōjō Hidetsuna , Kitajō Takahiro , and the Hōjō clan , the tide of the battle turned with Takeda Katsuyori ' s betrayal to Kagekatsu ' s side . When Otate Castle fell in 1579 , Kagetora attempted to escape to Odawara Castle ( a Hōjō clan stronghold , Kagetora ' s birth land ) but was betrayed at Samegao Castle by Horie Munechika and committed suicide . Kagetora ' s wife committed suicide along with him , though there are also accounts that she remained behind at the Otate and committed suicide there when her brother Kagekatsu refused Kagetora ' s surrender . Kagetora ' s oldest son , Doumanmaru died at the hands of Kagekatsu ' s troops along with Uesugi Norimasa , and the rest of Kagetora ' s children were believed to have died along with their parents during the Otate power struggle . There are accounts that Kagetora was better to replace Kenshin as heir , as Kagetora once aided Kenshin in a battle using his intelligence and earned him Kenshin ' s name , while Kagekatsu was only popular at gaining support in Uesugi clan . Cultural references . A modern - day reincarnation of Kagetora appears in the light novel and anime series , " Mirage of Blaze " . He is one of the two primary characters — members of the Uesugi Netherworld Force — responsible for exorcising undead soldiers from the Japanese Feudal Era , which are taking part in a modern - day war , led by reincarnations of various feudal era warlords , including the spirit of Takeda Shingen .