Ekei Ankokuji

Ekei Ankokuji (安国寺 恵瓊) is a reputed monk and military advisor during the Battle of Sekigahara. A Mitsunari sympathizer, he acts as one of Hidemoto's vassals.

The English localization of Koei games erroneously transcribes his name as Ekei Ankokuji. Ankokuji is the temple he practiced and not a family name, so the Western name order would not actually apply. An approximate English translation of the same name would be "Ekei of Ankoku Temple".

In Saihai no Yukue, he is 53 years old and his height is 100 cm (3'3"). He chats as a hobby and his favorite food is the thicker version of tofu.

Samurai Warriors
In Samurai Warriors 2, Ekei is the main reason why Hidemoto and Kikkawa stay loyal to the Western Army. If he is defeated during either scenario of the battle, the two generals will defect immediately. Surrounded by enemies, the players may sometimes receive a mission to rescue him. In the Xtreme Legends expansion, he reinforces Motochika at Shikoku to defeat Hideyoshi.

Kessen
During Kessen, Ekei is often addressed as "Anko" and is one of Mōri's vassal at Sekigahara. He presses for his lord to attack the Eastern Army immediately while his lord stalls. Unlike his comrades, he will follow any orders that Mitsunari will send his way during the conflict. Anko will continue to serve the Toyotomi family if Mitsunari wins the battle, praising the commander on his political accomplishments.

Saihai no Yukue
The short and wise Ekei tries to convince Mōri to fight in Saihai no Yukue. His efforts are stifled by the giant Kikkawa, making his arguments comparatively inferior. When Kikkawa is no longer present, Ekei tries to keep a calm expression but is actually panicked by the fruitless situation. While Mōri agrees to finally join the battle, Ekei has little faith in his lord's efforts and lazily wants to wait for their army's reinforcements. His theory is slightly flawed in that it will take more time for them to come than he expects. Mitsunari eventually reads his mind and learns that Ekei is searching to live and die as a part of a larger whole, believing his time has not yet come. Through a brief interrogation, Mitsunari assures him that Mōri is changing for the better and convinces him to also trust in himself and comrades. Inspired, he becomes one of the three generals who changed history.

According to the official databook, Ieyasu continues to rule the land after Sekigahara and Ekei is punished by having his properties confiscated.

Mōri Motonari: Chikai no Sanshi
Unlike other titles, he is first introduced as a young boy in Mouri Motonari: Chikai no Sanshi. During Motonari's campaigns in the west, he gradually conquers the Aki Province for his family. One of the many daimyo within the area is Nobushige Takeda, the leader of the Aki-Takeda clan (unrelated to the Kai-Takeda) and Takewakamaru's father. To assure the safety of his heir, Nobushige sends Takewakamaru away to live at the peaceful Ankokuji (temple). His father defends to the best of his ability, but he suffers a mortal wound on the battlefront against the Mōri. When the head abbot sees young Takewakamaru sleepless and worrying about his father's well being, the monk reveals the truth to him. Takewakamaru is devastated by the news.

Many years later, Takewakamaru has departed from his secular life to become the head abbot at Ankokuji. By chance, he sees a young Takamoto (future heir of the Mōri) lost in the nearby mountains. Without revealing his name or asking the identity of the straggler, Ekei leads the young daimyo back to the temple to rest. He asks his visitor if he likes his garden surroundings. Takamoto responds that they are pleasant to the eye yet he detects a sense of doubt from its caretaker. Ekei, who is the caretaker in question, is surprised when Takamoto explains the garden feels incomplete and without a sense of purpose. Ekei thanks Takamoto's honesty and leads the daimyo back to his destination. When Takamoto visits again, he remarks the feeling of hesitation has vanished and is happy by its improvement. Ekei then tells his friend he is the gardener and reveals the reason for his doubts, which is his childhood of losing his father to the Mōri. Thanks to his visitor's comments, Ekei has finally learned to accept his father's death and his new lifestyle. While Ekei offers his appreciation, Takamoto nervously excuses himself. A bystander on the road recognizes Takamoto and tells the surprised abbot of the daimyo's real identity.

Ekei is visited by Takamoto several times later and, when Takamoto attempts to apologize for what happened to Ekei's father, the monk asks him to stop. Expecting to see his friend again since the daimyo is the castle lord nearby, the men part on good ties. Soon after, however, a panicked villager pleads for his medical aid when Takamoto is poisoned during a victory banquet. Ekei arrives too late to help and is the only man beside Takamoto on his deathbed. Left with the dying wish to look after Terumoto, Ekei offers his condolences to his friend's family. He mainly acts as an occasional envoy and messenger for the Mōri.

He leaves his temple with a fellow monk named Eishin for a trip to the capital. While on the road, they meet a lost woman named Shino who is searching for someone at Kyoto. Offering to guide and escort her, Ekei and Shino reach their destination and rent a place to rest from their travels. Ekei recognizes the rogue Shikanosuke and offers the rented room for shelter. Unwittingly, he reunited the childhood friends and agrees to help them settle. Shikanosuke, who is searching for the Amago heir forced into priesthood, soon demands Ekei to reveal his location to him. Ekei instead offers Shikanosuke a chance to give up his warrior ways and live a life of peace with Shino. As one who also lost his father while at war with the Mōri, Ekei tries to utilize empathy to convince the young general. In the end, his attempts are for naught and Shikanosuke leaves for war to restore the Amago name.

When Motonari collapses a third time, Ekei is the one who attends to him. The dying daimyo is aware of Ekei's real identity and jokingly suspects the monk of holding a grudge against his family. Motonari knows this isn't true and asks Ekei to guide Terumoto for him.

Left with the wishes of two respectable men, Ekei openly supports Terumoto three years later in political manners and in battle. He reminds the young lord that he doesn't consider himself serving the Mōri and is only staying true to the deceased. When Terumoto corners Ieyasu at Gifu Castle, Ekei can't help but dryly comment on the irony of helping those whom robbed him of a secular life rise to undisputed power. Following Ieyasu's defeat, Ekei is ordered by the young commander to begin negotiations with the royal court for Terumoto's appointment as Seii Taishogun.

Voice Actors

 * Brian Dobson - Kessen (English)
 * Munehiro Tokida - Samurai Warriors (Japanese)
 * Masaya Takatsuka - Samurai Warriors 2 (Japanese)
 * Yasuhiko Kawazu - Kessen (Japanese)
 * Kenichi Morozumi - Mōri Motonari: Chikai no Sanshi

Historical Information
Ankokuji served Mōri Motonari throughout his life. Given the nickname as the "Little Monk" by those in the Mōri clan, he served faithfully till Motonari's death at which time he left the clan only to return after some time passed to serve Motonari's grandson and heir Terumoto. When the Toyotomi's retainers split between Tokugawa Ieyasu and Ishida Mitsunari, Ekei pushed his lord to support the latter. Terumoto was still indecisive, yet still sent a sizable force under to command of three figures: Kikkawa Hiroie, Mōri Hidetomo, and Ekei.

At the battle of Sekigahara, Hiroie and Hidemoto did not move their troops despite the urgings of Ekei and Mitsunari. As a result of the inactivity of the Mōri clan's troops, among other things, the battle ended in the Tokugawa victory. Ekei was captured and executed while the Mōri clan's lands and power were diminished (despite a secret agreement between Hiroie and Ieyasu) by the reasoning that they did not actively aid in Ieyasu's victory.

Etymology

 * The name Ekei means "favor, benefit" (恵) (e) and "red jewel, beautiful jewel" (瓊) (kei).
 * Ekei's surname Ankokuji means "safe country" (安国) (ankoku) and "temple" (寺) (ji).

Gallery
Nobunaga's Ambition=