In sixteenth century Japan, an elite breed of soldier known as the Samurai represented the law of the land. Whatever the Emperor commanded, the Samurai carried forth-even when those commands seemed above the call of duty. Yoshima Gorisaki, called Gori, had never had anything to do with these Samurai-until word gets out of Gori's betrayal of Emperor Tenchu. The Samurai are sent to dispatch Gori, his wife, and all his children. They succeed in half their mission, but Gori is not what he appears. Gori was once the Emperor's best assassin and friend. He joined the imperial army at the age of nineteen, and he quickly rose through the ranks, eventually reaching the highest Samurai order by the age of twenty-five. Over this time, Gori and Tenchu remained friends ... until the girl of Tenchu's dreams refused his love. This girl loved Gori instead; she married him, and together they began a family. For this reason, Tenchu orders the assassination of his friend Gori and his family-even the beautiful woman Tenchu once loved. But Gori survives the attempt on his life. He promises revenge for what the Emperor has done, and he will stop at nothing. Gori, a trained Samurai, is on a mission to destroy all the Emperor holds dear. But will old friendship bring about mercy, or will love and honor bring about vengeful death?