In medieval Japan, eight-year-old Hojo Tokiyuki is the heir to the Kamakura shogunate. But the Hojo clan is in decline, and Tokiyuki's peaceful days of playing hide-and-seek with his teachers come to an abrupt end when his clan is betrayed from within. The lone survivor of his family, Tokiyuki is the rightful heir to the throne, but to take it back, he'll have to do what he does best--run away!

The time has come for Tokiyuki and Yorishige's allies in Shinano to make their move against their enemies, the devious governor Ogasawara and the evil kokushi, Kiyohara. But in order to get the campaign going, Tokiyuki must earn the respect of Yorishige's warriors, and to do that, he'll need to engage his old nemesis, the wily Shokan. Shokan is no fool, however, and Tokiyuki will have to come up with an unexpected and dangerous tactic to achieve success.