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!

Kiyohara, the malicious and decadent governor of Shinano, is determined to crush any dissent within the province. When Hoshina Yasaburo, a member of the Suwa sect, rises up in rebellion, Suwa Yorishige dispatches Tokiyuki and the Elusive Warriors on a clandestine mission to aid the rebel leader. But how can Tokiyuki help the Suwa sect when its soldiers are more determined to die in battle than to achieve victory?