IN 1156 civil war broke out in Japan between the Taira and Minamoto clans. At the Battle of Ishibashiyama in 1180 the Taira commander Oba Kagechika overcame Minamoto Yoritomo, who fled into the nearby forest and hid in a hollow tree trunk. There Kagetoki, Kagechika’s cousin, spied him; nevertheless, he reported back that Yoritomo had vanished without trace.

A distrustful Kagechika took up the manhunt himself, and stumbled across the tree where Yoritomo lay hid. Ignoring Kagetoki’s protests, he was exploring the hollow when two doves flew out, convincing him that it was empty. Yoritomo capitalised on this unexpected reprieve by winning the Genpei War and becoming Japan’s first shogun, the effective ruler of the land.

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