Yokose Village is a crossroads in a mountain valley in Izu where Toranaga arranged to meet Lord Zataki. Its steep approaches and defensible passes made it more than a convenient rendezvous: the village offered Toranaga a way to receive Zataki while controlling the terms, timing, and security of the encounter.

Setting and Strategic Position

Yokose lies almost at the center of Izu, in a cleft valley beside the Kano River. The river flows north toward the sea, passing through Mishima, while roads meet at the village and run north–south and east–west. Shuzenji Spa is nearby, giving the area an established destination for visitors as well as a plausible setting for a formal meeting.

The terrain favored the host. A bridge provided a clear point of approach, and the land rose steeply toward the mountains. Anyone attacking would have to climb a winding road; the two mountain passes could be held with relatively few men. Kasigi Omi argued that Toranaga could not easily be ambushed there and that his forces would be able to defend him decisively.

Choice of the Meeting Place

The proposal came from Kasigi Omi after Toranaga received word of Lord Zataki’s approach. Rather than simply wait for the party, Omi suggested intercepting it over the mountains and inviting Zataki to take the waters at a nearby spa, while holding the actual meeting at Yokose Village. Once Zataki had delivered his message, Toranaga could have him and his men turned back, escorted to the frontier, or destroyed. The proposal made the village’s hospitality inseparable from its military advantage: the invitation could draw Zataki into a place where Toranaga controlled the exits and the armed balance.

Yabu supported the choice, describing the valley, river, roads, and nearby spa. Buntaro also judged Yokose safer than Toranaga’s current location. He proposed making it secure with five hundred archers and horsemen, without musketeers, in addition to the men sent by his father. Toranaga ordered the Musket Regiment into the mountains and suspended its training to prevent security leaks, while preparations proceeded around the meeting site.

The Meeting’s Arrival and Timing

Buntaro intercepted Lord Zataki the previous evening and welcomed him with formal courtesy, as Toranaga had ordered. He asked Zataki to camp north of the village while the meeting place was prepared. When Toranaga’s party arrived at Yokose Village by noon, the formal meeting was set for that afternoon; Buntaro suggested the Hour of the Goat as an auspicious time.

Zataki had wanted to meet that night, but Buntaro refused an after-dark meeting. He told Zataki that Toranaga would be honored to meet either that day or the next, leaving the choice of day open while keeping the encounter in daylight. Yokose’s geography and the careful scheduling thus served the same purpose: the meeting was presented with ceremony, but arranged on terms that reduced the danger of surprise.