Editing Oda Nobunaga (section)

===Consolidation of clan leadership===
{{Main|Battle of Kiyosu Castle|Battle of Muraki Castle|Battle of Inō|Battle of Nagara-gawa|Siege of Terabe|Battle of Ukino}}

In spring 1552, Nobunaga faced a new challenge when his uncle, [[Oda Nobutomo]], [[Battle of Kiyosu Castle#First Battle|attacked Nobunaga's domain]] with the support of [[Shiba Yoshimune]], governor of [[Owari province]]. Nobunaga repelled the attack and burned the outskirts of his uncle's castle at Kiyosu to discourage further attempts. However, Nobutomo was spared any serious punishment.

In 1553, Hirate Masahide, who had been one of Nobunaga's closest advisors and mentors, committed ''seppuku''. It is generally believed that he did so to admonish Nobunaga, but the actual motive is unclear.{{efn|There is no doubt that Nobunaga was saddened by his death. He later built Seishū-ji (Masahide Temple) in Ogi Village, which was Masahide's territory, to mourn him.}}<ref name=Turnbull2/>{{rp|68}} Yoshimune tipped off Nobunaga that Nobutomo planned to assassinate him; Yoshimune was subsequently captured and put to death on Nobutomo's orders. Nobunaga mobilized his forces to [[Battle of Kiyosu Castle#Second Battle|blockade Kiyosu castle]] and set up a lengthy siege.

In 1554, Nobunaga finally achieved victory over the Imagawa clan at the [[Battle of Muraki Castle]], reclaiming the lands he had lost to them.<ref name=":Chaplin">{{Cite book |last=Chaplin |first=Danny |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1111714915 |title=Sengoku Jidai. Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Ieyasu: three unifiers of Japan |date=2018 |publisher=CreateSpace |isbn=978-1-9834-5020-4 |location=Scotts Valley, California |pages=55–63 |oclc=1111714915}}</ref><ref name=":Ōta">{{Cite book|last=Ōta|first=Gyūichi|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/743693801|title=The chronicle of Lord Nobunaga|date=2011|publisher=Brill|others=J. S. A. Elisonas, Jeroen Pieter Lamers|isbn=978-90-04-20456-0|location=Leiden|pages=3|oclc=743693801}}</ref> After securing eastern Owari, Nobunaga then turned his attention back to [[Battle of Kiyosu Castle#Fall of Kiyosu Castle|the siege at Kiyosu]],<ref name= Sansom2 />{{rp|276}} where he eventually defeated Nobutomo and forced him to die by ''seppuku''.

In 1556, Saitō Yoshitatsu raised an army against his father, Saitō Dōsan, who was slain in combat at the [[Battle of Nagara-gawa]]. Nobunaga set out to Oura in Mino with troops to rescue his father-in-law, but immediately withdrew upon hearing of Dōsan's death. Thereafter, Yoshitatsu usurped his father's title and became lord of Mino.<ref name= Turnbull2>{{Cite book |last=Turnbull |first= Stephen |title=The Samurai Sourcebook |publisher= Cassell & Co. |year= 1998 |isbn=978-1-85409-523-7 |page= 215}}</ref>

The loss of the Saitō clan's support further undermined faith in Nobunaga's leadership; key retainers such as Hayashi Hidesada, Hayashi Michitomo, and Shibata Katsuie soon turned on him. They raised an army to support his brother Nobuyuki (Nobukatsu), who was highly regarded within the Oda clan. Nobunaga defeated the rebels at the [[Battle of Ino]], but at the plea of his birth mother, Dota Gozen, pardoned them. Despite his brother Michitomo's death in battle, Hidesada pledged his loyalty to Nobunaga and resumed serving him, while Katsuie chose to remain in Nobuyuki's service.

In 1557, however, Nobuyuki conspired with Oda Nobuyasu, lord of Iwakura Castle, to plot another rebellion. Shibata, disgusted by Nobuyuki's treachery and disloyalty, secretly warned Nobunaga. Nobunaga falsely claimed to have fallen ill and had Nobuyuki and his entourage assassinated when they came to visit him. It is said that either [[Kawajiri Hidetaka]] or [[Ikeda Tsuneoki]] carried out Nobuyuki's murder.<ref name=Turnbull2/>{{rp|69}}

In 1558, Nobunaga sent an army to successfully protect Suzuki Shigeteru, lord of Terabe Castle, during the [[Siege of Terabe]]. Shigeteru had defected to Nobunaga's side from Imagawa Yoshimoto, a ''daimyō'' from [[Suruga Province]] and one of the most powerful men in the Tōkaidō region. By 1559, Nobunaga had captured and destroyed [[Iwakura, Aichi|Iwakura]] Castle, eliminated all opposition within the Oda clan, and established his uncontested rule in Owari Province.<ref name= Sansom2 />{{rp |276}}