Nah, it's not just that, cause:
if it was just about him wanting strong allies, he wouldn't be trying to convince him to kill him to save himself, he wouldn't prioritize the samurai's life over his own. Because who cares if you have strong allies when you're dead? And it's not just some facade, he even thinks to himself that what he's saying doesn't make sense and that he "he couldn't help himself", so he's acting emotionally and not rationally. He just feels bad for him. So, bro, I think you're the one who read it wrong, how could you miss that?