im a bit confused, and have some questions

i was just wondering how did they manage to get the gold inside all these twigs in the first place?

They were mostly branches. Though probably time consuming, not really that difficult to put in the gold bars.


and even if they managed that somehow, why didnt they just leave all the golden twigs safely in the river? rather than leaving a couple on the hill outside, which the peasants later found.

Most of it was hidden in the river. Obviously, some must have fallen in the mountains. It was really just sheer luck that the peasants happen to discover one of the branches with gold. Of course, there was no way of knowing what was going to happen to the gold if it remained in the river and if anyone was able to retrieve it, so the general thought it better to take it with him to faster restore his clan.


and who built the hidden fortress?

It was the Akizuki clan. Hidden fortresses were not uncommon during feudal Japan. They were built as a place to seek refuge in time of wars. As a matter of fact, one of Kurosawa's writers lived near what was once a hidden fortress, and it helped to flesh out this story.


and when the group went into town and settled at some place for the night. some guy was trying to buy the beautiful princess, but then refused to do so because she was mute. why would that stop him? its not like the other peasant girl talked much anyways.

It was a handicap that obviously the guy did not feel comfortable with. Like the other girl, he probably would also want to order her around, but since he though she couldn't hear, it wasn't worth it to him.


and was the general bullied into selling his horse to that other guy, or did he actually realize that it would help him in the long run?

Looking at that scene, I think that the guy wanting the horses was going to take them no matter what! General Makabe, not wanting to stir up anything while in that town, had no choice but to play it cool and take the money.


and the two peasants who argued throughout the film with one another due to their greed, suddenly at the end changed their ways? all of a sudden they started to offer each other the one piece that the general gave them?

Well, the ordeal they just went through was very profound and in the end, thought it better that they escaped with their own lives. They really thought they were done for and realized that their lives were more important than gold.