Japan had enjoyed more than one hundred years of peace since the setting up of the Tokugawa Shogunate and all seemed well. But dark forces were in play. While the daimyos still paid homage to the Shogun and the Edo Bakufu, the power of the shogunate was not as impressive as during the time of the great Tokugawa Ieyasu.
At the same time, in distant Kyushu, a swordfight between two swordswomen led to a storm of unexpected velocity and threatened to push the Shimazu clan into extinction. This was further complicated by the fact that a woman was appointed as a daimyo and her milk brother was no other than the ruling Shogun, Tokugawa Ieshige, who secretly harbored a special feeling for her.
But Shimazu Hidetora was not what she seemed from the surface. There was a dark secret that only she and one other person knew. And this might turn Satsuma into a sea of blood...

Written by Yoshimitsu Ono and translated by Y. Hitomi, the tale took us back to Edo period Japan, with insights into the real spirit of bushido. A samurai's life was for the lord. And the samurai, male or female, was ready to give life up anytime, even by committing seppuku.
Yoshimitsu's description of different forms of seppuku was fascinating. But even more so was his showing what real bushido meant. It was not mere courage or fearlessness of death. It was dying for a purpose, at any cost...

Warning: very vivid description of the seppuku process which can cause discomfort and not for the faint-heated. For those who are interested and who believe themselves to be strong enough to brave the experience, this is a book you should not miss.