Daikomitsu kept himself well informed as to their movements, and long before they had concentrated upon Tokyo had gone there and begun the rebuilding of his popularity. Managing to elude his acquaintances at Kyoto and get away without arousing suspicion as to his intentions and aspirations even Takara did not divine his real purposes, and Kido knew nothing of them and cared less about him. Nor did his friends, professed or otherwise, in Tokyo know anything about his connection with the ronin, but (when they thought of him at all) considered him a statesman and a patriot, without any direct connection with any party or faction at either place. They knew he was of the literati and a kuge by birth, but counted him equally a friend to the true shogunate.
All the major wrongs complained of by the ronin were directly chargeable, as they thought, to the shogunate, and in consequence their activities began in that direction. Assuming the disguise of various occupations many of them gathered at Tokyo, marking their victims and preparing to make good their own escape. Regular meetings were held and all movements directed orderly and with despatch, so that as a whole they made no mistakes, while each member bound himself by an inviolable oath. They had been worked up to the belief that Ikamon was responsible for everything, and lest he should escape, early marked him as their first victim and awaited only the word of Daikomitsu, who in due time said:
"Take the principal first. You can better right the wrong after the instigator is gone."
Ikamon, with all his spies, remained ignorant of the plot against him, probably because he considered Daikomitsu his friend and believed in the crude contrivances advanced to throw him off his guard; possibly because of his being beset with a multiplicity of dangers, for these were to him hard and trying times. He could trust no one now except Yasuko, his wife, who had remained loyal to him and proud of his achievements. She knew not the reason, nor did she question his motives; she trusted him, and that was to her enough.
"I shall be home early to-day, Yasuko," said Ikamon as he parted, bowing politely to his wife, and started off on a blustering morning in March to attend to some official duties which called him outside.