Epic period drama based on Shiba Ryotaro's historical novel, helmed and scripted by Harada Masato of Sekigahara and KAKEKOMI. Vividly depicts Shinsengumi vice commander Hijikata Toshizo's life spanning the final days of the Edo period into the Meiji period. After the Perry Expedition, the domestic conflict intensified between the "sabaku" faction that wanted to restore the bakufu's authority and the "tobaku" faction aiming to topple the Shogunate and build the nation around the Emperor. Toshizo (Okada Junichi), who was born into a farming family, heads for Kyoto with his cohorts to become swordsmen, and they form the Shinsengumi.