Formerly amicable alliances were cast aside as he began to attack and conquer the lands of Sadatsuna's allies in pursuit, even those of his kin in Mutsu and Dewa Provinces. Masamune declared war on Ōuchi and the Ashina for this betrayal, and started a campaign to hunt down Sadatsuna. Shortly after Masamune's succession in 1584, a Date retainer named Ōuchi Sadatsuna defected to the Ashina clan of the Aizu region. The Date clan had built alliances with neighboring clans through marriages over previous generations, but local disputes remained commonplace. Others say that he had his trusted retainer Katakura Kojūrō gouge out the eye for him, making him the "One-Eyed Dragon" of Ōshu. Some sources say he plucked out the eye himself when a senior member of the clan pointed out that an enemy could grab it in a fight. Various theories behind the eye's condition exist. As a child, smallpox robbed him of sight in his right eye, though it is unclear exactly how he lost the organ entirely. In particular, his famous crescent-moon-bearing helmet won him a fearsome reputation. Masamune is known for a few things that made him stand out from other daimyōs of the time.
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