Ito Teruzumi’s appointment as Regent turns a seemingly unfillable vacancy into a decisive shift in political power. Its force lies not only in naming a successor, but in the chain of signatures and confirmations that makes the appointment difficult for Yabu to dismiss: Ito is to take Toranaga’s place, while Ishido becomes president of the Regents.

Vacancy and Appointment

Toranaga had resigned from the Council, but Yabu had believed the remaining four Regents could never agree on a fifth. Jozen’s announcement overturns that expectation: Ito Teruzumi is taking Toranaga’s place, and Ishido’s faction presents the appointment as an accomplished decision rather than a proposal still open to debate.

The evidence Jozen produces is an appointment letter accepted and signed by Ishido, Kiyama, Onoshi, and Sugiyama. The document is also countersigned by Yodoko, the Taikō’s wife, who certifies that it is true and was signed in her presence. Dated eleven days earlier, this is one of six copies being sent through the Empire, giving the appointment the appearance of both prior planning and formal authentication.

Public Confirmation and Political Pressure

The appointment is announced as part of a larger summons. The Council is to meet in twenty days, on the first day of the new moon, and the daimyos are invited to Osaka to renew their oaths of fidelity. An Imperial authorization for a Flower-Viewing Ceremony marks the occasion. Jozen presents the meeting, ceremony, and appointment as connected signs that the new Council’s authority is already established.

Yabu’s reaction exposes the announcement’s immediate effect. He is shaken because the appointment contradicts what he understood about the Regents’ inability to agree; he studies the document, his fingers trembling, and recognizes its authenticity. Although he answers with outward courtesy, he is trying to buy time to think. The appointment thus changes his situation before the meeting takes place: refusing the invitation would mean challenging a decision whose legitimacy has been carefully documented and publicly circulated.

Consequences and Significance

For Ishido, Ito’s appointment resolves the vacant seat while placing the presidency of the Regents in his own hands. Jozen regards the signed appointment as closing a trap around Toranaga and his allies, and as protecting himself and his men under the authority of the new arrangement. The document does more than report a personnel change: it turns political consensus into leverage.

The episode also reveals the fragility of Yabu’s assumptions. He had counted on disagreement among the four Regents, but the authenticated letter shows that an agreement has already been reached and distributed. By the time the Council formally gathers, the appointment has been framed as legitimate, endorsed by Yodoko, and accompanied by invitations to the daimyos. The looming meeting therefore carries the pressure of a decision already made, leaving Toranaga’s allies to respond to a reorganized balance of power rather than an unresolved vacancy.