The Giant of Fukujima (Part 2)

At about this time, in the far off land of India, a prince was born who would change the world for such as Terumasa within the next few decades. This prince, who was known as Siddhartha Gautama, at a young age began to become bored with his rich and useless life. He became aware that the interminable orgies and drinking no longer held any flavour for him, and began to ponder the meaning of happiness and fulfilment.

Now some of you may be scratching your heads and asking 'Why is this loon telling us this... What has this bored Indian prince to do with Lord Teru and Fukujima and all that? Be patient, you shall know this presently.

Siddhartha was soon to leave his palace and his rich life behind him and take up the life of the ascetic, walking into the wilderness, with only the bare minimum of possessions, to allow him to contemplate the world without these hindrances. He soon gained himself many followers and became known as the legendary Buddha. He taught people to love peace and to live in harmony with all living things, no matter how great or small. Well soon Buddhist disciples began to travel far and wide, and some found their way to Japan. One young monk reached the island of Fukujima and the court of Lord Terumasa. This young holy man was called Yuji by the Japanese and soon became part of the Dragon court and a great friend and advisor to Teru. But Yuji was not all that he seemed. Teru perhaps trusted him too much. Yuji had some very individual ideas about the future of the Dragon Throne. He planned to marry the Lord's youngest and favourite daughter and gradually work his way up the ladder of heirs to the throne and endear himself to the King so that he may be given an island or two for himself and eventually take possession of all the realm of the Dragon.

Soon though his ambition became so great that his earlier, more modest ambitions, grew to take on a more sinister proportion.

One day, after making long and painstaking plans with some of the warlords whom Terumasa had subdued all those years ago, he and his accomplices, under the pretence of making gifts and petitions to the king, entered the throne room and made to attack their lord. With swords drawn and hatred in their hearts they went bearing down on the gigantic King.

Terumasa, though unprepared, was much too old and experienced a warrior to be easily disposed of. He fought bravely and ferociously, but against such a large number of equally hardened adversaries, he began to lose ground, and with a great shout of anguish he fled his assassins to the wild vastness of the Sea of Grass, that was the gently undulating central plain of Fukujima. There he wandered for many long days and gradually lost his sanity.

Meanwhile, aside from the conspirators, no one knew the fate of the king, for you see Yuji the cunning rascal, having achieved the highest position in the land, after the king of course, had told everyone that the king was in deepest contemplation at a secret retreat. He convinced everyone that the king had ordered that no one, but no one was to disturb him, on pain of flogging, until such time as he may see fit to return to his palace, not even his nearest kin were exempt from this ban. Yuji also announced that the Lord had appointed him as his regent for the duration of his absence.

In this way many years passed, and though the Kings wife and family were terribly suspicious, Yuji with his smooth tongue managed to quell their fears, and persuade them that all was fine. He even brought them loving and personal messages from the king, which of course were inventions concocted by him to allay their fears. Now those loyal to the king were aware that Terumasa had been contemplating conversion to Buddhism for sometime, and had Yuji himself not taught that a person seeking enlightenment must take the time he needs to find inner peace? So it was that the lies of Yuji and his cohorts rang true. If a suspicious courtier became too curious then Yuji simply resorted to admonishing him, by reminding him that he must not make so bold as to question the decisions of his Lord, who was wise beyond all, and that it was an intolerable impudence to question his motives.

I hear some of you asking, "Well what did become of Terumasa?" Forgive me, I assumed that everyone knew the story.