The Elusive Samurai

Tokiyuki Houjou is an easygoing eight-year-old noble in Kamakura, far more interested in slipping away from stern tutors and finding the best hiding places than preparing to inherit his father’s role as shogun. While others push him toward sword and bow, Tokiyuki’s true gift is evasion—until a sudden coup tears through his tranquil world and annihilates his clan.

Left as the lone survivor and crushed by guilt, Tokiyuki teeters on the edge of surrendering his life as well. His path changes when the mysterious priest Yorishige Suwa thrusts him into the chaos of a battlefield and foretells that he will someday become a great hero. Forced to escape pursuing soldiers, Tokiyuki discovers a dangerous new exhilaration in the very skill he once used for play, and he sets his sights on avenging his family—relying not on strength in combat, but on an unmatched talent for running away.