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Chapter 1

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Chapter 1 is titled "The Slaughter of 1333".

Synopsis[]

In Kamakura, 1333, the people gather in the streets to welcome Ashikaga Takauji and his army, considered the strongest warriors and the guardian deity of Kamakura. Among the crowd is a boy whom Takauji recognizes as Hojo Tokiyuki. Takauji approaches the boy and remarks that he is good at playing Hide from the demon as usual. Takauji explains that he is on his way to Kyo to prevent Go-Daigo, the former emperor, from making suspicious moves and that he does this out of loyalty to the Hojo clan. Tokiyuki replies that everyone knows they can count on Takauji.

As Takauji leaves, Settsu no Kiyoko approaches Tokiyuki and advises him not to speak so cordially to Takauji, since Tokiyuki is the heir to the Hojo clan, who would one day become the leader of the shogunate and her husband, whom Takauji would be a subordinate of. Tokiyuki then notices his archery masters looking for him and dodges both them and Kiyoko before escaping towards the town. As he escapes, the vassals comment that he is not at all a warrior like Takauji. One of them, Settsu no Chikaaki, tells his daughter Kiyoko hat Tokiyuki, despite being the successor to the shogunate, would be a mere puppet ruler like his father Hojo Takatoki, who only commands in appearance while his advisers hold the true power. Kiyoko replies that him being a puppet ruler is not of concern to her, and that she only cares for the Hojo clan's fortune.

Tokiyuki runs through the town and passes by two warriors who are complimenting Takauji's excellence in many aspects. The narrator notes that the boy appears weak-willed and unfit to be a warrior, and none of the warriors expect anything from him. He continues running with a puppy while two people silently watch from behind. While hiding at the top of a tree, Tokiyuki overhears his masters, who were looking for him, complain that he is lazy, a coward and sets a bad example. He observes Kamakura while thinking to himself that a mere puppet would not need the power of the pen and sword, that he needs neither status nor honor but a simple life in the city, and that the shogunate would remain untroubled as long as it has loyal warriors like Takauji.

A girl then approaches the tree, telling Tokiyuki that her father says his cowardice and laziness are mere aspects of the monster sleeping inside him. A person then suddenly appears behind the boy's back, surprising him. He introduces himself as Suwa Yorishige, a Shinto priest from Shinano province who came to pray for Kamakura's protection; he claims that he has been at the top of the tree all along since he foresaw the future in which Tokiyuki would hide there and introduces the girl as Shizuku, a shrine maid and his helper. Since Tokiyuki appears suspicious, Yorishige attempts to prove himself by looking deeper into the future and then makes vague claims about the boy's future, which further increases his distrust. In the middle of the last claim, which predicts that he would be a hero who shakes heaven and alter Japan's destiny in two years' time, Tokiyuki runs away. Regardless, he feels good being called a hero.

Later, while playing balls, Tokiyuki tells his half-brother Hojo Kunitoki about his encounter with Suwa Yorishige. Kunitoki replies that their father is ill and that Tokiyuki is soon to be designated as the heir. Despite being the eldest son, Kunitoki does not want to succeed since he knows that succession by a concubine's child is often controversial. He says he understands what Yorishige said: since Tokiyuki is better at evasion than him and their father, Tokiyuki has the potential to become a hero.

A month later, a sudden attack led by Takauji, who colluded with Emperor Go-Daigo to oppose the shogunate, causes the deaths of many of Tokiyuki's acquaintances and relatives: Kunitoki is beheaded, Takatoki committed seppuku, Tokiyuki's weapons masters are killed in battle while Chikaaki committed suicide and Kiyoko is raped and murdered. Takauji sends his son to Nitta Yoshisada, a military commander in the Kanto region, to command in his name. This act further helps Takauji's fame grow thoughout the region, leading many warriors to join him. In 24 days, the shogunate collapses. Upon realizing this, 800 members of the Hojo clan and its followers committed mass suicide at a temple.

As Tokiyuki gazes at the corpses of his father and the warriors in despair, Yorishige and Shizuku approach him and inform him that he can take refuge at the priest's territory in Shinano, as commanded by his father, and that an escape route has been prepared. However, Tokiyuki is reluctant to leave and suggests that he should instead commit seppuku like others. Yorishige tries to persuade him by reading his future, but, once again, he can only foresee vague scenarios.

They then both go outside to observe Kamakura being destroyed by the rebels. As they watch the chaos unfold, Tokiyuki expresses his thoughts about his lack of faith in Yorishige and the hope of restoring the shogunate, stating that he would rather die with others, as it is disgraceful for the defeated not to die. In response, Yorishige pushes him off the cliff, shouting to the rebels that the boy is a Hojo. However, despite the fall, Tokiyuki manages to dodge all of the warriors and quickly returns to the cliff, where Yorishige awaits him, by jumping on rocks and tree branches. Yorishige then tells him that his monstrous survival instinct is where the hero inside him resides.

The warriors try to attack them with arrows, but none of them hit their mark. The attackers themselves are then ambushed from behind by a boy and a girl, later revealed to be Kojiro and Mochizuki Ayako. As Tokiyuki, Yorishige and Shizuku leave the place on horseback, the priest offers the boy with comrades, military might and wisdom so that he may win against Takauji, who seeks to kill him, and that until then he must survive the Hide from the demon game. When Tokiyuki asks for the reason for the help, Yorishige tells him that he will one day know if he recaptures Kamakura. Tokiyuki then thanks Yorishige for his trust and for awakening his desire to live as the three head towards Shinano.

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