This book will be widely welcomed by more serious Budo practitioners who are concerned more about substance rather than style and will thereby gain valuable insight into the mindset of Japan's unique warrior culture.

The son of a high-ranking warrior in the late-fifteenth century and a skilled swordsman, Torii Enshin joined the priesthood and intended to devote his life to the poor. But he soon finds himself having to use his samurai skills once again. These short stories, drawn from Enshin's own accounts, follow him and his faithful companions as they wander across Japan, their adventures presenting a fascinating picture of life in the centuries of unrest before the Tokugawa subjected the country to their iron grip.

Drawing inspiration from his own extensive researches and popular folklore of late nineteenth-century scholars, the author offers brilliantly crafted stories of war-torn Japan in ancient and medieval times.