SISAM

In the 17th century, early in the Edo Period of Japanese history, trade with the indigenous Ainu is the main source of income for the Matsumae clan, which controls the island of Ezo, now known as “Hokkaido.” Kojiro Kosaka, the son of a Matsumae clan retainer, is a young samurai dedicated to the martial arts. He and his older brother trade with the Ainu for goods they will sell to other clans. With Zensuke, another merchant, they travel to an Ezo trading post at Shiranuka, but when Einosuke catches Zensuke making a careful list of their trade goods, Zensuke suddenly kills him and flees. Kojiro pursues Zensuke, but ends up unconscious and badly injured in an Ainu village. When he recovers, he offers to help Akno, the Japanese-speaking village headman. Sharing food, clothing, and shelter with the Ainu, Kojiro comes to sympathize with their culture, customs, and ideals. He begins to learn their language. But there are those in the village suspicious of this stranger who represents the Japanese colonization that looks down on their way of life. Meanwhile, an invasion brews..