The samurai's heroics have won momentary peace for the village, but as Kirara's Dowsing Crystal indicates, much darker clouds are on the horizon. While Katsushiro and Kirara battle with their feelings for each other, Kyuzo proves just how fearless and skilled a samurai can be - embarking on a solo mission into the heart of the enemy camp.

Kanna is bombarded by rainfall as the Bandits make their final attack on the village. Deploying waves of attackers from every direction-- from ninja-like foot soldiers to the giant Benigumo machines-- the Bandits clearly will not stop until the village is destroyed. In the battle's furious climax, not all of the samurai will survive.

With the death of their friend fresh on their minds, the surviving samurai must come to terms with the aftermath of battle. What lies ahead for them now? Is Kanna truly safe? They can't look to Kambei for leadership; without counsel, he departs on a solitary trek to the Guardian's cave, having an even more perilous mission in mind.

From the very beginning of this new Era of Merchants, little has been known about the Capital, and the divine ruler who manages this complicated system of control. Who is this man, responsible for the rise of the Merchants, the energy trade, and the Bandits torment of the peasants? With sword in hand, Kambei is about to find out.

Kambei's confrontation with the Emperor--and Rikichi's wife-- has landed him in a prison cell, awaiting his fate as the purported assassin of the Imperial Envoy. But the turmoil at the Capital is far from over. A political whirlwind has engulfed the empire with Ukyo at its center... and the outcome could make him more dangerous than ever before.