At the beginning of Shōgun: A historical fiction Novel of Japan. In chapter one John Blackthorne an English pilot, of the trading ship Erasmus a storm causes the ship to wash up on the shore of Japan. Blackthorne and his crew are received well in a Japanese house, unaware that they are about to execute. His involvement begins as soon as he reveals his dislike for a priest. Lord Omi and Lord Yabu see that Blackthorne may be the key to getting rid of the Jesuits.
Before Yabu can secure Blackthorne, Lord Hiro-matsu, the trusted help of Lord Toranaga, persuades Yabu to give the ship, its contents, and its pilot to Toranaga. Hiro-matsu then takes them all to Osaka aboard a galley piloted by Rodrigues, a Portuguese merchant. He tries to kill
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Blackthorne risks his life to prevent Ishido from noticing Toranaga by acting like a crazy person. He succeeds, and the party makes it to the galley, which is block off in the shelter by samurai in fishing boats. Toranaga cuts a deal with the Jesuits, and they take him out of the shelter. Rodrigues repays Blackthorne a life by allowing him to pilot the galley. As a result of enabling Toranaga's escape, Blackthorne is made Hatamoto (a high-ranking samurai.)
Back in Anjiro, Toranaga avoids Yabu's traps. He does this by honoring Yabu in front of all his men, who cheer "Toranaga!" Then, Toranaga quickly exits before Yabu realizes he has been manipulated.
That night, Blackthorne attempts suicide to protest Yabu's order that the entire village be killed unless he learns Japanese. To their surprise, Blackthorne was not bluffing, but Omi stops his arm. The Japanese now see Blackthorne as a true samurai.
While working to train Yabu'sarmy, Blackthorne falls in love with Mariko (a arried woman), who is teaching him Japanese. Blackthorne discovers that to progress in his studies, and to survive, he must become Japanese.
Toranaga returns to Anjiro and begins to implement his war strategy. First, he develops a false, indecisive and weak personality in order to make everyone think he is beaten. Second, he does everything in his power to gain