Hidemitsu Akechi

* **WARNING: Contains blood. Read at your own risk.**

Place-Holder

**Hidemitsu Akechi** (? - 1582) is the main protagonist of *Samurai Warriors Crossroads 2.* He is notable for being Mitsuhide Akechi's cousin, leading him to die at Yamazaki in that context.

Having been sent to Esparanca to rescue Gracia from her kidnappers, he plans to go hell and high water to rescue her for Mitsuhide's sake.

## Appearance

Hidemitsu is a young man with short black hair.

His official outfit has him undertake a much more casual approach.

## Personality

Hidemitsu is a kind and loving young man who would always help people in his time of needs

### Anxiety

Despite his kindness, this was often overshadowed by his anxiety, due to him . Luckily, with Haru Kikkawa's help and comforting words, Hidemitsu has been overcoming his anxious persona

### Being Nice to Girls

If there's one thing he's not used to, it's talking to women. While he is used to talking to Gracia, since she is his niece, his lack of awareness and courage can often make girls misunderstand what he was on about, which can make things a bit too complicated. This seems to imply that Hidemitsu doesn't want to have a relationship that soon after Currently, Gracia is the only one that knows about why he doesn't want to upset them.

### Resourceful Planning

His strongest weapon lies in his planning, as because of his quick thinking,

### Anger

Despite his patience, even he doesn't tolerate . Gradually, as time went on, he

### Warriors Orochi

In Warriors Orochi 5 Ultimate, he has conversations with

## Story

### Crossroads 2

This game is where he makes his debut, of which he appears in all of the missions. In addition, the events of this game take place a few months before his death at Yamazaki.

Informed of Gracia's kidnapping by Mitsuhide, he sets out to find her in the other side of the world. By the time he arrived, he discovered that she's been taken to a nation called Esparanca. And without knowing of, he decided to travel to Esparanca with Toshimitsu Saito and Tadaoki Hosokawa, the latter because he's her wife.

Despite escaping, he passes out from fatigue .

#### Secularo Visit

He wakes up to find himself in a town called Secularo, one of the towns in the country of Esparanca.

#### Meeting El Presidente

That's when he realizes that he is meeting the one and only Haru Kikkawa, who had become

#### Kidnapped and Gracia's mission

After he gets kidnapped by the same people, Gracia asks

## Tropes

* Adaptational Wimp - This version of Hidemitsu is a bit more cowardly and nervous than his original counterpart though that has to do with him trying to solve things in a peaceful manner, along with his own issues.
* Ax-Crazy - As a result of his sanity slippage, he became this, but only to his enemies or those that harm the innocent.
* Beware the Nice Ones - As kind and patient as he is, even he can lose his mind
* Berserk Button - Patient as he is, the one thing that sets him off is kidnapping Gracia for their own benefit. Kana definitely learned the extremely hard way.
* Born Unlucky - Somewhat. Because of his anxiety, he is often the bearer of bad luck
* Character Development - When we first see him, he was easily pressured into saving Gracia from her kidnappers by Mitsuhide Akechi, who doesn't want to get distracted over. Over the course of the story, however, Hidemitsu is getting used to defending himself, and with help from Haru Kikkawa, he was able to gather enough courage to save and rescue Gracia from her kidnappers, even if he ended up getting kidnapped himself in exchange. in the end, he is now tough enough for him to willingly protect anyone that needs his help, even if he had turned himself into a ruthless and brutal lawbringer in the process.
* Chick Magnet - The reason why he wants to avoid getting girls was that he had once had his heart broken by a woman who manipulated him. Gracia implies that Hidemitsu doesn't seem to enjoy getting admired
* Chunnibyou - Deep down within that kind loving guy is someone that
* Cloudcuckoolander - His mind is not entirely the best
* Contrasting Sequel Main Character: Notable from the previous two main characters.
* He's completely different from Haru Kikkawa. While Haru is an optimist that loves to make people happy, Hidemitsu is the exact opposite (Being a Chunnibyou), with him being entirely nervous towards girls, despite being just as kind as her. In addition, Hidemitsu instead survives his story whereas Haru dies in hers
* He can be this to the other protagonist: Terumasa Ikeda.
* In a way, he's entirely different from Ichiban Kasuga, the current main protagonist of the Like a Dragon series.
* The Determinator:
* Despair Event Horizon - He reaches this upon finding out about Kana's crimes and depravity, hurt over her betrayal and secrets, especially the fact he had no idea how much she truly loved Gracia. However, he snaps out of it, using the events to conceal and control his rage.
* Expy - Frankly, he can be considered as
* Fatal Flaw - Rage. Due to not taking any
* From Nobody to Nightmare: He went from a kind young man who is Mitsuhide's cousin to one of the most notorious lawbringers in the entire southern border. In fact, he more or less gets compared to ***Tony fucking Montana***! If he managed to be that feared in such a short time, then that's honestly impressive for a guy who acts like a complete nutcase from time to time.
* Hair-Trigger Temper - Despite his patience, . His Sanity Slippage amplifies it to a huge degree.
* He Who Fights Monsters - Realizing the depravity of Kana and the greed of Dwight Arthur, he has admitted that he needs to stoop to their level in order to truly save the nation of Esparanca from the zombie outbreak. Granted, Gracia was horrified to discover that the sweet and kind Hidemitsu became such a monster, but she knew he would snap eventually because of being completely out of the loop.
* The Hero - The main protagonist of the second game, and is the first leading protagonist to wield a gun in that context.
* Hurting Hero - Not quite, but he gets this just as bad as Haru once you see why he doesn't want to start a relationship so soon after his previous one had went wrong.
* Identical Stranger - He's almost identical to Rintaro Shindo, which makes sense since he
* Ink-Suit Actor - He's modelled after his Japanese voice actor: Takaya Yamaguchi, due to the Dragon Engine.
* Odd Friendship - With Chacha, since he saved her
* One Man Army - With Tadaoki and Toshimitsu injured, Hidemitsu decided to rescue Gracia by himself
* Rage-Breaking Point - Him having to deal with Kana was bad enough, but as soon as he finds out that Kana was in fact the one that kidnapped Gracia out of her own sick and twisted love, that led to his current predicament, he ***Definitely*** does not take it well, over Kana's lies and deceit.
* Roaring Rampage of Revenge - He brutally kills the entire of Dwight's forces with only a Machine Gun at his arsenal.
* The Reason You Suck Speech - He does one to Dwight after the latter casually reveals he was the one that set the whole thing up to try to regain the profits lost
* Sanity Slippage - As a result of having to deal with Dwight on a daily basis, he was starting to lose control over his emotions. However, it only took Kana's betrayal for him to truly snap...
* Sir-Swears a Lot - Mostly explained above, but when Kana was shown to have lied about Gracia's kidnapping,
* Took a Level in Badass - Over the course of the story, he becomes a lot more competent in fighting, to the point it's rather frightening
* What Happened to the Mouse - He doesn't make an appearance after the second game, rumored to have disappeared. However, with Toshimitsu Saito dead, it's likely he was the one that set fire to the castle at the Battle of Yamazaki, out of his own

## Historical Information

Akechi Hidemitsu's origins are a complete mystery. His early pseudonym was Miyake Yahei (三宅弥平次) before he was renamed Mitsutoshi (光俊) and then Hidemitsu. All that is known for certain is that he served the Akechi clan. In 1578, he was considered for a marriage to Mitsuhide's daughter who was originally going to be married to Araki Murashige. Her first marriage arrangement was called off due to Araki's rebellion. After his marriage to Mitsuhide's daughter, he was known under the Akechi name. The marriage document records that it took place May 1582. In 1581, he became castle lord of Fukuchiyama Castle.

Hidemitsu was in Mitsuhide's ranks for the attack on Honnōji. Afterwards, he was ordered to guard Azuchi Castle. During the Yamazaki conflict, he acted as a part of Mitsuhide's rear guard and was routed by Hori Hidemasa of the Hashiba army.

Hidemitsu fled into Sakamoto Castle where it was soon surrounded by Hidemasa's troops. Hidemitsu thought himself unworthy to be near his lord's personal treasury filled with gifts from Nobunaga. He sought to protect them from harm for his lord, personally standing atop one of the castle guard towers to proclaim his request. Yet he strangely refused to hand over the *wakizashi* Kichihiroe. Hidemasa and his men were taken aback and, after a pause for thought, inquired for an explanation. Hidemitsu answered,

In the night hours of July 4, Hidemitsu used the sword to kill his own wife and Mitsuhide's wife. He or his subordinates set fire to the castle, perishing in the flames.

## Japanese Folklore

### Origins

One theory is based on historical records from the time period which states Hidemitsu's name before becoming a part of the Akechi, Miyake Yahei. *Tennouji Yakaiki* confirms that the Miyake were a retainer family for the Akechi. Legends derive from this notation to create various deviations of his origins. Either his Akechi name was adopted because of his status as a trusted retainer, he originated from a completely different branch of the Miyake in Mino or Izumo, or he was the son to Miyake Takasada, an independent lord from Bizen.

The Edo period accounts propose his Miyake origins are false and Yahei was used as one of his many pseudonyms. They show favoritism for a heroic image and often prefer to dub his alias as Samanosuke (左馬助 or 左馬之助 or 左馬之介) in ode to his alleged trust with his lord. Within these accounts, Hidemitsu was born into the Akechi family. The *Akechi Gunki*, which has been contested by modern historians for its accuracy, states Hidemitsu as Akechi Mitsuyasu's second son and Mitsuhide's cousin. His other given name, Mitsuharu, stems from Mitsuyasu's name and frequently appears in records from this period. Legends from this time period state his childhood name as Iwachiyo (岩千代).

Naosuke Abe, a writer of the Meiji period, alleges a different theory in his *Ena Sosho*. According to his text, he defines Tōyama Kageyuki to be the same man as Mitsuharu's father and Mitsuhide's uncle. Mitsuharu would then be Kageyuki's son Kagetora and therefore a completely different entity than Hidemitsu. This theory is currently littered with historical inconsistencies but is one of many popular misrepresentations of Hidemitsu known in modern culture.

### Career

Hidemitsu was said to be a man of culture. He was said to have favored using the Akechi Koshirae sword, heralded as an expert sword fighter in many legends. Mitsuhide was the eldest son and inheritor of the Akechi clan, so it was decided from an early age that Hidemitsu would serve him. Dōsan's death and Mitsuyasu's suicide delayed these plans. Both Hidemitsu and Mitsuhide were forced to become landless samurai during their retreat. When Mitsuhide started serving the Oda, Hidemitsu reunited with his cousin and enlisted into his lord's service.

Before Mitsuhide began his instigation at Honnōji, he wanted consultation regarding his uncertainties with Nobunaga. Hidemitsu advised for Mitsuhide to clear his head of anxieties before they come back to haunt him. He warned that if his lord had any inkling of doubt, the heavens would not grant him leadership. Although he sounded opposed to the idea, Hidemitsu was already making arrangements for his lord's instigation. His cautionary statements were made to mask their movements from potential spies. During his retreat from Azuchi Castle, Hidemitsu set fire to the main keep and its inner grounds.

Once he learned of Mitsuhide's retreat, Hidemitsu sought to retreat towards Sakamoto Castle. However, when he arrived to Otsu, his path was impeded by Hidemasa's soldiers. His allies fell one by one, and Hidemitsu alone survived. Rather than risk the fight, Hidemitsu cut across Lake Biwa with his beloved horse Ōkage. He dismounted from his saddle and held onto its reigns to avoid drowning his steed with the weight of his wet armor. Hidemasa's men were left speechless at the sight. Miraculously, the duo safely made the journey and reached Sakamoto Castle. This legend is often dubbed "Akechi Samanosuke's Lake Crossing".

When Sakamoto Castle was surrounded by Hidemasa's troops, Irie Chōbei rode towards the castle. Hidemitsu knew him and refrained from shooting him. Instead, he requested for Chōbei to listen to his ramblings. Hidemitsu reflected that he was a warrior who fought his whole life. He sacrificed everything for his lord and thought he was content to leave behind a glorious fate for his descendants. On that day, he would die for a concept and would never live to know a day of peace. Everything that happened to him would soon happen to Chōbei. Although he cited his achievements in a positive light, it was clear to the pair that Hidemitsu thought his life was in vain. Hidemitsu died when he was 46 years old. Chōbei learned from his warning and gave up his samurai life to be a prosperous merchant.

Hidemitsu's alleged close ties to the Miyagi clan solidified his sons' survival. His eldest son served the Hosokawa and went by the name Miyake Shigetoshi. His illegitimate son Tarōgorō was fabled to be Sakamoto Ryōma's ancestor. Tarōgorō supposedly wrote a detailed account of his family history and his father's exploits, which led to his heroic status in legends.

While many stories prefer to highlight his death, there are tales which state he survived Sakamoto Castle and assumed Tenkai as his alias

## Trivia

* Hidemitsu is the fourth character to be modelled after a real life person, the other three being Naotora li, Lady Shinjo, and later on, Tadaoki Hosokawa