Accompanied by his constable Chugo Kimura, Hasegawa Heizo travels to Kyoto to visit his father's grave for the first time in 16 years. On the way to their lodgings, they rescue a mute girl named Oyone from a group of thugs. Heizo attempts to entrust her safety to his old ally, Urabe Hikotaro of the Kyoto West Magistrate, but she desperately pleads to accompany him. Unbeknownst to them, her former employer-the master of the "Izumoya" inn in Osaka-leads a dark double life. As the party departs for Nara, the looming threat of the master thief Kozu no Gentan and his gang closes in on Heizo.