The Eastern and Western armies shown fighting in the Battle of Sekigahara
The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: 関ヶ原の戦い; Kyūjitai: 關ヶ原の戰い, Sekigahara no Tatakai) is a real battle that occurred on October 21, 1600. It occurred in the Sekigahara, Mino Province which is present day Gifu Prefecture in Japan. The first arc (Takezo Arc) of the Vagabond manga starts in the aftermath of the battle. Characters such as Takezo Shinmen and Matahachi Honiden were present. Ito Ittosai and Kojiro Sasaki were later shown to also be present in the aftermath of the battle.
Takezo Arc[]
The Takezo Arc begins in the aftermath of the battle. Matahachi and Takezo were part of the Western army; the losing side. Matahachi was wounded and Takezo had an injury to the leg. As they attempt to leave the the battlefield, they begin to be pursued by survival hunters. Takezo and Matahachi defeat them before being rescued by Okō and Akemi.
Kojiro Arc[]
When traveling with Ito Ittosai, both Kojiro and Ito go to the battle so that Kojiro may fight, train and have fun. Much to their dismay, the battle was already over however, many survival hunters were present. Takezo comes in and kills many of the survival hunters alongside Kojiro as Ito Ittosai observes both of their talents.
Background and Pretext[]
This battle was one of the biggest and most important battles in Japanese feudal history. The battle occurred between the Eastern Army controlled by Tokugawa Ieyasu and the Western Army, loyal to Toyotomi Hideyori. In the end of the battle, Tokugawa Ieyasu won. The battle occurred before the Tokugawa shogunate (Tokugawa military) was established.