Kiganjô no bôken

Liberated from a slave auction, Osami joins with priest Ensai on a quest to find and deliver relics of the Buddha to Osami's brother in the Middle East for transport to Japan. They join with a camel caravan crossing the vast western desert, then are captured by a tyrant king. The king, who has lost his belief in the goodness of man, allows Osami the chance to complete the delivery of the relics to his brother on the promise that Osami return within three days to suffer burning at the stake. If Osami does not return in time, the innocent Ensai will die in his stead.—Jim Beaver