Setting Rise of the Rōnin is set in
Yokohama,
Edo and
Kyoto, in the mid-19th century during
Bakumatsu, the final years of the
Edo period. The game depicts the leadup to the
Boshin war between the
Tokugawa Shogunate and various anti-shogunate factions displeased with the western influence after the forced reopening of Japan following the
Sakoku period. The story follows the Blade Twins, whose genders are selected by the player, and their involvement in the Veiled Edge resistance group after their family, Kurozuku clan was murdered by
oniwaban working for the Shogunate due to the clan anti-shogunate ideology. Trained by the Veiled Edge's leader, the Bladesmith, the Blade Twins begin their mission to overthrow the Shogunate.
Plot In the year 1853, the Blade Twins are tasked by the Bladesmith to assassinate Commodore
Matthew Perry and steal a secret message in his possession. They are able to steal the message, but are unable to kill Perry due to the intervention of another assassin, the Blue Demon. Outmatched, one of the Blade Twins is forced to flee while their partner sacrifices themselves to ensure the Blade Twin's escape, now the Protagonist. After Shogunate
oniwaban attack the Veiled Edge's village, the Protagonist believes that their partner is still alive and decides to desert the Veiled Edge to search for them. The Bladesmith forces the Protagonist into a duel to the death to win the right to abandon the clan, with the Protagonist prevailing and the Bladesmith wishing them luck with her dying breath. The Protagonist makes their way to
Yokohama in 1858, where they befriend wandering ronin
Ryoma Sakamoto. The social order of Yokohama and all of Japan has been thrown into turmoil due to the arrival of the
Perry Expedition and increasing Western influence in the country. As Ryoma searches for his master
Shoin Yoshida with his fellow students, the Protagonist investigates the whereabouts of their partner, now known as Demonclaw Samurai, who is working for the Americans and British. Shogunate Chief Minister
Naosuke Ii enacts harsh suppression and
purges of anti-Shogunate and anti-foreigner sentiment, culminating in Shoin's arrest and execution in 1859 which angers Ryoma and his friends.
Genzui Kusaka decides to take Shoin's place and rebel against the Shogunate, along with
Kogoro Katsura,
Shinsaku Takasugi, and others. They rally a small army
to attack Ii directly. The Blue Demon, whose true identity is
Akikatsu Manabe, attempts to protect Ii but is struck down by the Protagonist in retribution, and Ii is either successfully assassinated or manages to flee with a still-living Manabe, only to be assassinated later by the Demonclaw Samurai. As a result of Ii's death, American influence in Japan wanes as British influence strengthens, led by
Ernest Satow and
Rutherford Alcock. In 1863, the Protagonist continues working with Ryoma's group in
Edo upon learning the Demonclaw Samurai is collaborating with the British. After Genzui brazenly burns down the British Legation, Ryoma begins to balk at Genzui's increasingly violent methods. Genzui sets his next target as
Kaishu Katsu, an important Shogunate official. The Protagonist and Ryoma attack Katsu, who easily fights them off and instead wins them to his side by telling them his desire to reform the Shogunate and modernize Japan without the use of violence. They assist Katsu in recruiting additional followers to his cause. Eventually, they meet the Shogun
Yoshinobu Tokugawa himself, who expresses his own desire to modernize Japan to match the West. Yoshinobu decides to travel to
Kyoto as part of a ploy to lure his enemies into the open, and Katsu requests the Protagonist and Ryoma to join the
Roshigumi to protect Yoshinobu. However, shortly after their arrival in Kyoto in 1864, the leader of the Roshigumi, Kiyokawa Hachirō, is assassinated by the Demonclaw Samurai and exposed as a traitor, throwing the organization in chaos. Roshigumi is disbanded, some of its members returning to Edo while those remaining in Kyoto form the
Shinsengumi. Sensing weakness, Genzui leads the Choshu clan to
attack Kyoto. The Shinsengumi, along with the Satsuma clan armed with British
cannons, are able to defeat the Choshu. The Protagonist confronts the Demonclaw Samurai, who reveals that they have been behind many of the events accelerating the Shogunate's decline as revenge for their village's destruction. The Protagonist disagrees with the Demonclaw Samurai's path of violence and refuses to join forces with them. The Demonclaw Samurai flees while Genzui commits
seppuku to avoid capture. Realizing that both the Satsuma and Choshu want to overthrow the Shogunate, in 1866 Ryoma manages to convince Satsuma general
Takamori Saigo to join forces with the Choshu despite being traditional enemies, forming the
Choshu-Satsuma Alliance. Shortly after, the Protagonist infiltrates the Shinsengumi to investigate an assassination attempt on Ryoma. The Protagonist roots out the traitor within the Shinsengumi and accompanies Ryoma to the Shogun's palace, where they manage to thwart an attempt by Satow to assassinate Yoshinobu and convince the latter to dissolve the Shogunate and effect a peaceful transition of power. In 1867, despite Yoshinobu engaging in negotiations with the Choshu-Satsuma alliance, the Demonclaw Samurai begins to stage
false flag attacks to stoke tensions between the two sides, culminating in them attempting to assassinate Ryoma, who envisions a Japan under democratic rule. Ryoma is either killed or severely wounded. Without Ryoma's mediating influence, relations between the Shogunate and the alliance collapse, leading to the
Boshin War in 1868. After an assassination attempt by the Demonclaw Samurai, Yoshinobu is forced to retreat to Edo, allowing the alliance forces to seize Kyoto after the
Battle of Toba-Fushimi. Katsu makes plans to burn down Edo to prevent its capture, but the Protagonist is able to negotiate a
peaceful settlement between the two sides that spares the city. As the peace talks are being finalized, the Protagonist confronts and defeats the Demonclaw Samurai one last time, choosing to either spare or execute them. If spared, the partner comes to realize the error of their ways, and as penance decides to leave Japan to observe its development from afar. Afterwards, the Shogunate is dissolved and Yoshinobu retires to live quietly as a civilian while the
leaders of the Choshu-Satsuma alliance begin the process of reorganizing Japan's government as well as rapidly modernizing its army and navy, while the remnants of the Shogunate and Shinsengumi sail towards
Hakodate to form the
Republic of Ezo. If the player manages to save Ryoma's life and spares the Demonclaw Samurai, a post-credits cutscene shows the two of them running into each other in New York City. ==Development==