The episode starts off in Satsuma in 1835, 20 years prior to the arrival of the Black Ships led by Matthew C. Perry. People in Satsuma are excited by the arrival of the heir to the domain, Shimazu Nariakira, from Edo. Meanwhile, a long-awaited daughter is born in one of the cadet families of Shimazu clan, the Imaizumi Shimazu family. The father of the girl, Shimazu Tadatake, and the mother, Oyuki, name her “Katsu,” wishing the child’s happiness. Okatsu grew up as a tomboy, much stronger than her brothers, yet is warm-hearted and full of curiosity.
Aoi Miyazaki
Okatsu / Atsu-hime
Eita Nagayama
Kimotsuki Naogoro
Maki Horikita
Princess Kazu
Rie Tomosaka
Ikki Sawamura
Komatsu Kiyomichi
Hideki Takahashi
Taizo Harada
Kimiko Yo
Hisa-hime
Hiroshi Tamaki
Kanako Higuchi
Atsuko Takahata
Honjuin
Kyōzō Nagatsuka
Mayu Tsuruta
Yuriko Yoshitaka
Mikako Ichikawa
Oryu
Masato Sakai
Tokugawa Iesachi
Kinya Kitaoji
Masao Kusakari
Abe Masahiro
Tomoko Nakajima
Kenichi Yajima
Mayumi Wakamura
Sumie Sasaki
Yoshinori Okada