SAMURAI 7

Facing starvation at the hands of the Nobuseri, the farmers of Kanna Village make a desperate decision: hire samurai to wage war. The village's Water Priestess, Kirara, her little sister Komachi, and a heartbroken man named Rikichi journey to a giant merchant city. Navigating dangerous streets filled with ronin, they must find willing samurai before their village is lost.

Kirara's Dowsing Crystal found a samurai strong enough to lead them, but he refuses to help. Volunteering instead is the untried Katsushiro, but the Crystal does not point to him. Could Kirara's tool of divination be wrong? The answer must come quickly, when the Magistrate's pleasure-loving son kidnaps Kirara, and the young samurai faces his first real test.

Since the Great War ended, society has been turned upside down. Samurai honor has been replaced by the materialism of the merchants, and displaced warriors must find new ways to survive. For one battle-scarred man, that means entertainment, exploiting his skills for daily bread. But with his real-world approach and adaptability, he may be exactly what the farmers need.

The group has gotten the Magistrate's attention -- never a good thing. Viewing samurai "relics" as a threat to merchant authority, their scuffle with his son makes a convenient excuse. He orders the group's execution, farmers and samurai alike. As they battle a string of assassins, Kambei encounters one silent, incredibly skilled samurai he is determined to recruit.

Frustrated by their inability to find willing (and capable) samurai, Kambei's group stops at a teashop to recharge. There, they are told of a wandering, moneyless man who chops wood with his sword to pay for meals. As they soon learn, that is only the start of this nomad's peculiar, rice-loving, philosophizing ways. But his uniqueness could prove invaluable.

After the mysterious murder of the Imperial Envoy in the Magistrate's home -- with a bloody sword as the only clue -- a citywide hunt for all samurai begins. With a high price suddenly on their heads, the band of samurai must escape the city fast. Kikuchiyo, the erratic and blundering machine, seizes the moment to prove himself to the team.