The Elusive Samurai

The Hojo return to Kamakura was glorious but short-lived. Calamity has fallen upon Tokiyuki and his allies once again after losing the Battle of Sagami River. Yorishige realizes his time has come, and moves to cover Tokiyuki’s withdrawal, but the young lord isn’t giving up yet. Hoping to rescue Yorishige, he heads straight for his enemy, Ashikaga Takauji, to issue his challenge—“Kill me and you win! But if I escape, you lose everything!”

Against Emperor Go-Daigo’s wishes, Ashikaga Takauji has seized Kamakura for himself. After Emperor Go-Daigo declares Takauji a rebel, a series of battles and political machinations result in the unusual situation of there being two emperors, Emperor Komyo in the north and Go-Daigo in the south. Tokiyuki, now in hiding, searches for allies who will help him gain vengeance on Takauji. When the impressive noble Kitabatake Akiie arrives, he demands that Tokiyuki swear fealty to Emperor Go-Daigo. The heir to the Hojo Shogunate finds himself once again forced to make a fateful choice…

Tokiyuki has emerged from hiding and joined forces with Kitabatake Akiie. He has also sworn allegiance to Go-Daigo’s southern court in order to seek revenge upon Ashikaga Takauji. With Akiie’s rowdy troops in the vanguard, Tokiyuki is chosen to lead the attack and attempt to seize Kamakura once again. But the pass is guarded by a former member of the Kanto Hisashiban, and breaking through will force Tokiyuki to risk his life in a one-on-one duel to the death!

Kitabatake Akiie’s army, including Tokiyuki’s powerful Hojo clan contingent, begins their westward march on Kyo from Oshu. It will be a long journey and will not go unopposed, as forces loyal to Ashikaga Takauji are mobilizing to stop them. Not only will Akiie and Tokiyuki need to contend with ambushes and supply problems along the way, but the army of the renowned warrior Toki Yorito also moves to confront the Oshu army at a place that will one day become famed in Japanese history—Sekigahara.

The monstrously powerful Toki Yorito, who serves the Ashikaga, has brought his force to engage with Akiie’s army. His human bombs devastate Akiie’s troops, and even Tokiyuki’s retainers have trouble stopping him. The march on Kyo continues as more of the Ashikaga troops deploy to defend the capital. Then Tokiyuki must face a former friend when Fubuki returns to send Tokiyuki on a journey to the Underworld!

As part of Kitabatake Akiie’s army, Tokiyuki and his retainers clash with Kono Moronao near Nara. Saddled with a cadre of less-than-effective nobles, Akiie has to bow to their authority but still try to win the battle. After Moronao’s troops launch a sneak attack and break through into Akiie’s camp, Moronao confronts Shizuku. Can Shizuku’s divine power turn the tide of battle?

In the midst of the battle with Moronao’s forces, Tokiyuki crosses swords with Fubuki, his former retainer. Despite their old friendship, Fubuki is no longer the comrade Tokiyuki once knew, and is determined to not only destroy Tokiyuki, but to take over the Ashikaga as well! Elsewhere, Akiie launches a brilliant maneuver to outflank Moronao. But even if it succeeds, can Akiie’s exhausted army take on Takauji’s fresh reinforcements?

The Battle of Ishizu is over, and Tokiyuki and Akiie’s forces are in retreat. Despite heavy losses, Tokiyuki’s efforts in support of the Southern Court do not go unnoticed or unrewarded, and Emperor Go-Daigo bestows an important honor upon him. Ever the optimist, Tokiyuki then joins a seaborne operation with the goal of invading Kanto and Oshu. The journey will be dangerous and made even riskier by a clash of spiritual power between Shizuku and Mima…

After several setbacks, Tokiyuki and his retainers retreat to the mountains of Shinano. In order to provide a safe haven for Prince Muneyoshi, Kosaka Takamune offers his secret base to Tokiyuki. Holding this mountain stronghold against Takauji’s forces won’t be easy, especially when an old enemy of Tokiyuki’s appears once again. Though Tokiyuki outwitted him many times in years past, the All-Seeing Demon, Ogasawara Sadamune, isn’t about to let Tokiyuki slip through his fingers!

Forced out of his mountain defenses in Shinano, Tokiyuki goes on the run once again. After the death of Emperor Go-Daigo in 1339, political alliances shift again and again, even within the Ashikaga. When tensions arise between Takauji’s brother, Tadayoshi, and his steward Moronao, only bloodshed will settle things. Did Takauji orchestrate it all? The years pass by, and Tokiyuki, now an adult, must decide who he will take as his wife—Shizuku, Ayako, or Mima—or…all three? Then in 1351, Tokiyuki encounters a lost comrade during a siege…