| abstract
| - In the games, Yoshimoto wears a mask and seems childish and cowardly, but will fight when ultimately cornered. Yoshimoto was a brother-in-law to Shingen Takeda due to an alliance via marriage proposal. When facing him on the battlefield, the player will often be met with decoys, until the real Yoshimoto reveals himself. He is eventually murdered by Nobunaga in the storyline of the series. Yoshimoto wields a giant fan and his element is light. Yoshimoto's seiyuu is Kōzō Shioya, while his voice actor in English is Brian Drummond. Brian also provided the voice of Mr. Cake on My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
- In Samurai Warriors, Yoshimoto is depicted as a man easily flustered by the slightest offset. The make-your-own characters can start their story serving him only to leave once they deem him an inadequate lord. His character alters in Samurai Warriors: Xtreme Legends as he becomes a kemari fan. He rides to the capital to stage his own kemari tournament. After he survives Okehazama, he suffers great losses and calls off the march to Kyoto. He receives a secret message from Shingen to ask his help invading Odawara Castle. As he assists the Takeda army, Kenshin and his men intercept and claim that Shingen is only using him. Even Ujiyasu states that he isn't even planning a rebellion but Yoshimoto punishes him anyway. When the two rivals meet at Kawanakajima, Yoshimoto is given the option to assist either side of the conflict. Yukimura warns him to continue with the plan and he becomes hostile if Yoshimoto doesn't approach Kenshin's camp. As he rushes towards his former allies, Masamune assists and they rout the Takeda army. Although Shingen admits that he never used his ally, Yoshimoto defeats him and idolizes Kenshin's life as a warrior. He mimes Kenshin's actions to see if he can be like his idol. As the Takeda flee to Ueda Castle, Yoshimoto and his army assist the siege. His army tires from the conflicts but they are successful in defeating the remaining Takeda army. The Uesugi-Imagawa army heads towards Honnoji and Kenshin uses the opportunity to challenge his fellow warrior to the right for the land. After Yoshimoto wins the title of the greatest warrior, he is left confused by Kenshin's ritual for bestowing him the title. Humorously, Masamune quickly appears to challenge him for the right and Imagawa mimes Kenshin's actions to the lad, therefore bestowing him the title with no contest. If Yoshimoto remains loyal to the Takeda army, Kenshin remarks that the plot failed and is defeated. Although his vassal protests his decision, Yoshimoto keeps his mind on kemari and reminds that harmony is key between friends. Both he and Shingen slay Ieyasu's army at Komaki-Nagakute. With the path to the capital clear, they head towards Honnoji and Nobunaga challenges them a final time. After Yoshimoto storms the temple and defeats their foe, he is ready to start his kemari tournament until Shingen betrays him. To make sure that he can play without any regrets, he routs his relative. In his ending, he plays his game in an unlikely land of peace. He returns in Samurai Warriors 2: Xtreme Legends to continue his desire for a friendly kemari gathering with other generals. Althrough he helps Shingen at Kawanakajima and Nagamasa at Odani Castle, both ignore his kemari fanatic which leaves Yoshimoto rather lonely. He wanders the land alone and years later joins in Hideyoshi's campaign of suppressing Kyushu. The latter encourages Yoshimoto not to give up his dream for the ball game. Afterwards, Hideyoshi's vast army attack Odawara Castle, and Yoshimoto joins the campaign as well. When Hideyoshi dies after the unification, Ieyasu and Mitsunari become bitter enemies and Yoshimoto joins the former's forces. Eventually, the Eastern Army gains the upper hand in battle and Mitsunari is soon defeated. Yoshimoto finally gets his wish granted as both armies play Kemari with him. He marks them as his own army of kemari warriors. His dream stage is a reenactment of Yoshimoto's side at Okehazama. While the battle seems going well at first, the Imagawa main camp is ambushed several times, which lowers the morale of Yoshimoto's forces. Ieyasu's betrayal turns out a threat for the Imagawa, and Yoshimoto wants to defeat the rebel for his treachery. Though Nobunaga is eventually defeated, Yasutomo reports they have sustained too many loses to continue their march to the capital so Yoshimoto decides to head back home. Although he has no personal story, Yoshimoto is named one of the main powers of the Kantō region in Samurai Warriors 3. With Shingen's help, he defends Suruga Province from Ujiyasu and Kenshin's separate forces. He remains a liable threat until his death at Okehazama. During the battle, Yoshimoto will be frightened by Nobunaga's assault and will attempt to flee to Ieyasu Tokugawa's camp. If the player defeats Ieyasu before Yoshimoto reaches him, the Tokugawa will defect and join the Oda. When Yoshimoto is struck down, Nobunaga assures him that his death will not be in vain, claiming that Okehazama will be the start of Nobunaga's conquest. During his own story in Samurai Warriors 3: Xtreme Legends, Yoshimoto's thrilling addiction to kemari continues. Since the land is at war, however, no one has time to be his partner for the game and the daimyo dwells in loneliness. By some stroke of luck, Yoshimoto meets Masamune and Muneshige. Masamune entices him to extend his kemari ambitions to the world, challenging Yoshimoto to have the entire land recognize his kemari skills. Happy to oblige since he found new friends at last, Yoshimoto joins forces with the two broad minded youths to confront Nobunaga at Okehazama. Once he finds the real Nobunaga and entertains the demon king, Nobunaga agrees to collaborate with Yoshimoto for the sake of the world. Deciding to leave Owari to his new friend, Yoshimoto heads east into the Kantō region. The trio face the Takeda, Uesugi, and Hōjō simultaneously. With Ujiyasu defeated, Yoshimoto asks his relative to take care of Japan with Nobunaga so he can set sail across the world for his kemari dreams. Ujiyasu begrudgingly agrees. While Yoshimoto continues to make speedy progress for his global kemari dream, Masamune becomes unnerved by the kemari fanatic's ambition. Masamune originally lied to Yoshimoto since the start and intended to use the gullible gent for unification in his name. He didn't actually expect Yoshimoto to gain the other daimyos' trust so easily. Thinking he gave birth to an unstoppable monster, Masamune decides to oppose Yoshimoto by joining forces with the Mōri. Yoshimoto and the Oda forces start a campaign to prove his kemari skills in the western regions of the land. Even when Masamune tries to admit that the truth of his ruse, Yoshimoto is already too enthralled by the idea to listen. Muneshige is aware of Masamune's lie and frustration but is interested in trying his strengths against Yoshimoto's drive with Ginchiyo. While Yoshimoto continues to ask his defeated opponents to play nice with one another, Kanbei finds the dream to be rubbish and orders the troops to keep their eyes aimed at Motonari. Motochika arrives to Motonari's assistance and Yoshihiro joins the battle to oppose Yoshimoto. Obtaining victory against the odds, Yoshimoto has enthusiastically fulfilled his goal of proving himself the best kemari player in the entire land. Yoshimoto expects to have Nobunaga reign supreme so he can make his maiden voyage abroad. Unfortunately, a messenger soon arrives to inform him that Nobunaga has been killed at Honnōji. Falling into a depressed slump without his good friend, he eventually remembers his friend's words to never stop something he has started. To restart his dream, he decides to help Ujiyasu's fight against Hideyoshi at Odawara Castle. Yoshimoto defeats Hideyoshi, but, rather than take the land under his name, he is assured to leave it in the monkey's hands for his journey to see the world. Funding for the boat he desired is cut short, and its construction had to be discontinued. Persevering for his dream, Yoshimoto desires to propose a request to Ieyasu, the current man in power, and fights beside Yukimura and other remnant Toyotomi loyalist at Osaka Castle. When Yoshimoto triumphs, he asks Ieyasu to pay for the rest of the funds for his ship and to come with him on his global voyage. Masamune, who stubbornly refuses to accept how far his lie has gone, resists accepting Yoshimoto and Muneshige's extensions to reconcile. Therefore, he is the one left behind as the ship sets off. Yoshimoto still considers the youth to be his good friend and therefore kicks a special kemari ball towards him before their boat departs from the docks. Masamune catches it and reads the message fondly scribbled on it: "I'm leaving Japan in your hands!"
- Yoshimoto Imagawa is the eleventh head of the Imagawa and one of the three feared daimyo of the Tokaido region. He shares family relations with Shingen Takeda and Ujiyasu Hōjō, using them to reign supreme as a masterful strategist and governor within the west. He is best known for dying at Okehazama, which is Nobunaga's early claim to fame. After his death, Yoshimoto has been ridiculed for being too portly and sluggish to counteract the ambush in many forms of media, with Koei titles being no exception. He first appeared in the Samurai Warriors series as a unique NPC in its first installment. Like Hideyoshi, he becomes playable in Samurai Warriors: Xtreme Legends. Fans voted him to thirty-fifth place in Gamecity's Sengoku Musou 3: Empires character popularity poll. For the Samurai Warriors 4 poll, he is ranked forty-fifth among the cast. His Nobunaga's Ambition counterpart is sixtieth place in Gamecity's character popularity ranking for 2015. The Nobunaga no Yabou 201X poll for 4-star officers puts him in fifth place.
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