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!

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...