Well, no. They shouldn't have "decapitated that bald old fvck". That's not how a ruler works. Yes, witchcraft was involved, but they are still ronin and they killed not just one guy, but an entire castle's worth of samurai. The guy was, on top of that, a lord and they were renegades. The shogun reigns supreme here. His word was "I forbid you to seek revenge", because he understood the entire affair as Lord Oldguy wanting to kill Lord Badguy and he expected Oldguy's samurai to kill Badguy, because they wanted to overthrow him and avenge his master. He did not know that Lord Badguy was, in fact, the bad guy. If that was the case, then the shogun would've probably hanged Badguy and would've allowed Oldguy's suicide. Why would've Oldguy still died? Because he still brought dishonor to his house and attacked a guest, whether witchcraft or not.
The only things the ronin did in the end, was restoring their honor and being allowed a samurai's death. That's why their deed was and is so revered in Japan. The shogun could've had mercy, but I think from a medieval point of view "having mercy" is a disgrace in comparison to "dying with honor". Besides, what good would've it brought the reinstated samurai to KILL THE RULER OF JAPAN? That would've disgraced them again and all their efforts would've been moot.
It's important to remember that in those times HONOR was more important than anything else.
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