In Feudal Japan the era of the samurai is waning. The sadistic young Lord Naritsugu rapes and kills at will. No one can touch him because he is the Shogun's younger brother and thus above the law. A senior government official realizes the situation will become more dangerous after Naritsugu ascends to a higher political position. After a wronged party publicly commits seppuku, a trusted older samurai, Shinzaemon, is secretly hired to assassinate him.
Short storyline
Several of the assassins are sent to buy the help of a town to block Naritsugu's passage in order to force his route to their advantage. Shinzaemon and the others ride urgently towards the town they have chosen for the battle. On the way, they are met with a few of Naritusugu's men who they kill easily. They decide to go travel stealthily through the mountains, where they meet a hunter who at least claims to be of samurai lineage, and they adopt him as the thirteenth assassin. He helps them find the village they have chosen for the conflict, and they are reunited with their comrades. They take the village over and convert it into a labyrinthine mousetrap with many camouflaged fortifications.
More info:
Runtime: 141 min | 126 min (International version)
Release Date: 25 September 2010 (Japan)
Country: Japan, UK
Box office: Budget: $6,000,000 (estimated)