'In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity' - Sun Tzu, The Art of War

The ruler of Japan, the Shogun, is dead. It is a time when Samurai warlords wrestle with each other and with the constraints of their own honour while attempting to seize power in Japan, employing both elegant Geisha and sinister Ninja in their cunning schemes. Foreign ambassadors fear any conflict will spread war across the Orient. The bureaucrats of the government, the Bakufu, are trying to quell unrest among the populace by harnessing the popularity of such figures as Actors and Sumo Wrestlers. In the meantime, the criminal gangs of the Yakuza seek to prey on the Merchant classes, who grow ever more wealthy. But the West has discovered Japan and their powerful weapons threaten to break apart Japanese society. Will the Portuguese retain their monopoly on trade with Japan or will Dutch merchants succeed in establishing a foothold? Will the arrival of the Protestants result in a schism in the Catholic Church of Japan? Or will the Shaolin monks persuade the new ruler of Japan to expel all foreigners?