Who Is Ise no Saburō Yoshimori (Ise Saburō)?
One of Yoshitsune's longest-serving retainers
Ise no Saburō Yoshimori is one of Minamoto no Yoshitsune's longtime retainers. In the Gikeiki, Yoshitsune meets him on the journey to Ōshū, and he becomes his follower.
He supports his lord through the battles against the Taira and, after Yoritomo turns against Yoshitsune, through the flight from the capital, Yoshino, and the journey through the northern provinces.
He is sometimes counted among Yoshitsune's "Four Heavenly Kings" (Shitennō), together with Benkei, Satō Tsuginobu, and Satō Tadanobu, though accounts differ on who belongs to the four.
Episodes featuring this character6
NEWEpisode 6
Each Win Pushed His Brother Further AwayThe Reunion at Kisegawa and the Koshigoe Letter
When Yoshitsune hears his brother Yoritomo has risen against the Heike, he rushes to join him, and the two brothers, meeting for the first time, weep together. But after winning battle after battle and wiping out the Heike, Yoshitsune finds the road to his brother barred.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 7
Assassins Came. The Hero Slept.The Night Raid at Horikawa (Shizuka Gozen)
Yoritomo sends the assassin Tosabō to kill his brother, and Yoshitsune accepts Tosabō's false oath because he wants so badly to trust his brother. That night, it is Lady Shizuka, the famous dancer, who senses danger first. She wakes him, straps him into his armor, holds up the lights in the dark, and finally sets the mansion ablaze to call Benkei and the others to the rescue.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 8
He Abandoned the Capital to Save ItThe Storm at Daimotsu Bay (Yoshitsune's Flight)
Hunted by his own brother, Yoshitsune refuses to turn the capital into a battlefield and flees west, setting sail from Daimotsu Bay. But a violent storm scatters his fleet, and only a handful are washed back to shore. Having lost everything, the survivors set out for Mount Yoshino.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 9
The Yoshitsune They Faced Wasn't HimMount Yoshino (Shizuka's Parting and Sato Tadanobu)
On snowbound Mount Yoshino, Yoshitsune decides to send Shizuka back to the capital to save her from the warrior monks hunting him. But the escorts she trusted abandon her in the snow, while on the same mountain Satō Tadanobu dons his lord's armor and name, and makes a lone stand among the cedars.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 12
Strike Your Master, or Lose HimThe Nyoi Crossing (Benkei Strikes Yoshitsune)
Hunted by his own brother, Yoshitsune and his band disguise themselves as mountain monks and head north. At the Nyoi Crossing, his lord is about to be exposed, so Benkei does the unthinkable and beats him with a fan in front of everyone. Later, in the snowy mountains, a newborn baby grips the very hand that struck him.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 13
No One Passes Until My Lord Is DoneBenkei's Standing Death at Koromogawa
the series finale. In Hiraizumi, Yoshitsune finally finds peace. But after Hidehira dies, Yasuhira's huge army attacks the manor on the Koromo River. Until his lord finishes reading his sutra, Benkei stands alone at the gate and does not move.
19 pages