All language subtitles for Eng.The.Wife.of.Seishu.Hanaoka.(1967)

Presented for the 1967 Arts Festival

A Daiei Film

THE WIFE OF SEISHU HANAOKA

Kae was 8 when she first saw Otsugi.

She was with her nurse Tami

and peeked into the herb garden
behind the house.

Look, it's Otsugi.
She's beautiful.

She's not just beautiful.

They say she's clever too.
Everyone speaks well of her.

Otsugi's father, Naomichi,
was a poor doctor

and very unkempt in appearance.

He would come down from Hirayama
and visit Kae's house.

Her grandfather was a retiree

and enjoyed Naomichi's
bragging and takes...

Kae could never believe this man was
the husband of the beautiful Otsugi.

Otsugi and you are a real
beauty-and-the-beast combination.

You did well marrying her.

I had had my eye on her for ages...

...but she was a carefully protected
daughter of a big land owner

who dealt in indigo and dyed cloth.

She was well out of my league.

But then there was a godsent illness.

She was 16 and had
a terrible skin condition

which all the doctors
tried but failed to cure.

I seized the opportunity and
forced my way into the house...

...saying I would try to cure her,

and if I succeeded
they should let me marry her.

I used the Dutch medicine
I'd studied in Nagasaki

and wangled myself a wife!

You're a cunning devil.

But a doctor’s job is
to save his patients.

When a patient dies,

I always wonder how
I might have saved them...

...my regret is enormous
if I lose someone.

Anyway I thought I could get
a beautiful and clever wife

and we'd have a kid who'd be
a better doctor than me.

So I worked frantically to cure her.

Fortunately Unpei is a splendid son.

He's a brilliant doctor,
so my plan has borne fruit.

Listening to your bragging
really helps me sleep!

When Kae's grandfather died,
she saw Otsugi again.

Otsugi next showed up at Kae's house
3 years later in the late spring.

Is Naomichi well?

He's rather down about the death
and it's aged him.

So I've come here
as his representative.

So formal...

What is it about?

I'd like to humbly ask for Kae's
hand in marriage for Shinpei.

This is so unexpected.

Unpei's in Kyoto now, isn't he?

Yes, he left in spring

and he'll be back in 3 years
with good training.

It's my duty to find him a wife who
can help him make the most of this.

The first thing a doctor's wife
needs is good health,

the second one is to be firm.

A farmer's daughter shocked
by the sight of pus or blood

is not going to cope
with the life of a doctor's wife.

A merchant's daughter
will be no good either.

There's no call for toting up
accounts on the abacus...

...illness comes without respecting wealth,
and patients who can't pay are common.

You are a respected samurai with a
large stipend and a long family history -

and Kae would be the perfect wife.

It was unexpected, so I'd like
some time to think before I reply

Perhaps it is presumptuous
for a country doctor

to make such a request but...

Please ask if she will marry
uneventfully into a big family

or build a castle
by developing a poor family...

Please ask her from me
whether she might consider that.

Our social gap is too wide.

Hanaoka's bragging has even
infected his wife, it seems!

They say a disease gets worse
as it spreads! Otsugi is crazy!

But Kae is 21 now.

None of the proposals
to date have been pleasing.

Rather than Kae marrying into
a big old family and suffering...

...she would be happier
in a smaller family...

That's true, but isn't that
Naomichi's idea rather than yours?

For generations our family has
intermarried with the great families.

I must carry on the tradition.

If the dowry worries you,
we can give her without one!

Why not ask about that?

I know the mother's social
class is a problem but...

I talked to her, and although
she didn't say it exactly

I think she wants to go
to the Hanaokas.

Does Kae know Unpei?

No. But Kae has always said
she admires Otsugi's beauty

and wants to be her daughter!

What's all this?

In what kind of family does a mother come
and ask for a daughter-in-law like this?

If Otsugi wants her,
Kae will be ecstatic.

If you don't allow it,
she will weep all night...

Kae, I want you to tell me
how you really feel.

I wish to go to the Hanaoka family

Produced by
MASAICHI NAGATA

Screenplay by
KANETO SHINDO

Starring

RAIZO ICHIKAWA
as Unpei "Seishu" Hanaoka

AYAKO WAKAO
as Kae

HIDEKO TAKAMINE
as Otsugi

YONOSUKE ITO as Nomichi Hanaoka
MISAKO WATANABE as Koriku

Directed by
YASUZO MASUMURA

In Unpei's absence

I have placed here the
guardian deity of this house...

...the great Ming dynasty book of herbs.

My father Unzen Hanaoka
copied it and he, and I...

...and my son Unpei have pored over
and handled this book.

All the Hanaokas are here apart from
two of Unpei's younger brothers.

One is studying
to be a Buddhist priest

and the other is in a merchant
house learning the trade.

This is Ryoan Shimamura,
my apprentice.

Let's begin.

Unpei was born 23 years ago.

Otsugi was sweating and groaning,
and the midwife calling for hot water...

...the midday sun suddenly grew dark.

There was a heavy rain, lightning
and thunder which shook the ground.

I held Otsugi and kept saying,
"you can do it", "you can do it".

In the midst of the storm,
it was I who delivered Unpei.

I still remember it clearly even now.

I remember him wriggling in my arms
and the healthy first cry he gave.

Then I noticed the sky had cleared.

A crow was flying high in the sky

I couldn't help but cry out that
here was a genius, a wonder child.

I gave him his name using
characters "tremble" and "cloud"

because of the thunder.

In Unpei are combined my father -
a great doctor - and I with my tenacity

This is not just boasting.

This prodigy will bring glory
to the house of Hanaoka

and will be the genius
of Japanese medicine!

Let us conclude here
with this anecdote.

The girls around here make cotton
to supplement their dowry money

But our girls are different.

They do it so that we can
send money to Unpei.

I can weave.
Please show me what to do.

Don't hurry or the threads will tangle.

The young doctor's wife made this?
The stripes are well-woven.

She wasn't brought up to do it,
but does it very well.

We have a good wife for Unpei.
I am satisfied with her.

I will pay the money to Unpei
when I return to Kyoto.

Yes, please.

Okatsu, these are the bran bags
that Otsugi uses in the bath.

They're full of molasses
and bird droppings.

She throws them away
after using them just once.

I collect them and use them
a couple more times.

Please, let me use them too.

I'd like to be as beautiful as her.

Mother, what illness are these
Datura flowers used to treat?

I wonder if I should tell you...

They also call them Korean morning glory
and Dr. Hanaoka calls them Manzara.

They're very poisonous and if you eat them,
you become insane and die laughing.

But the leaves smoked with
tobacco are good for asthma

and an infusion of leaves is
a painkiller on wounds.

First time I came to this house they
were blooming and so beautiful.

When was that?

I was 8.

So long ago. Why did you come?

I heard rumours about your
beauty and wanted to see you.

You're not my child by birth,
but call me mother

and I love you perhaps
more than a daughter.

This bond is too deep to be measured.

Three years passed.
And then, in the spring...

Such rain. It's late spring
and yet it's like winter.

The whole house smells of mould
and even my breath is mould-colour.

Elder brother is home.

Welcome home.

Welcome home.

We didn't expect you so soon.

You need to wash your feet.
Put hot water in the bucket.

Unpei. This is your wife, Kae.

She's been waiting for you too.

Unpei. I'm so pleased you're back.
We've been waiting.

Welcome home.

You've grown a lot, Ryohei.

It's already done.
But thank you.

If you want to be a surgeon,

you have to know about
non-surgical medicine too.

As well as learning Dutch surgery

I have been studying
Chinese herbal medicine.

In order to know the body and cure
no matter what difficult disease.

Just like Hua Tuo.

Hue Tue?

The great surgeon who lived
2,000 years ago in China?

You're brave to aspire to be like him.

Hua Tuo opened the skull
and removed tumours.

He out people's chests open
and then sewed them up again...

He also made his patients sleep

and it's said he could operate on them
without their crying out in pain.

But those stories may not be true.

Those texts are full of exaggerations.

But if it's even half true

and the patients could be
operated on while asleep...

...they wouldn't thrash around and even
difficult operations would be possible.

I will discover that sleeping medicine
and become the Hua Tuo of Japan.

I will cure the incurable.

Well said. Unpei, you're amazing.

I can die happy

Unpei has always done
what he's said he will do.

He will probably succeed in this too.

This is a set of Dutch surgical
instruments I had made.

Things have clearly moved on from
when I studied Western medicine.

This is cotton wrapping for wounds.
It has more stretch than bleached cloth.

We could weave these.

Make me as many rolls as you can.
We are going to need a lot.

Okatsu and Koriku have become
really good at weaving.

For three years they've been working hard
so that we could send you money

Thank you. It's really you who bought
these instruments for me then.

Kae.

Yes?

Tonight you'll sleep separately

You must be tired
after the trip from Kyoto.

You need a good night's sleep.

Sleep well... but sleep alone!

Unpei, I beg you

Let the glory of the
Hanaoka family bloom.

This evening go to Unpei.

He's waiting for you.

Take your pillow.

Come in.

Quickly now.

Does it hurt when I
squeeze your breasts?

Ouch!

Good morning.

Oh, I see you can sew cloth bags.

Until now making the bags
has been my job.

I will make my own.

Do you know what these
flowers are called?

I may be wrong but
I think they are Datura.

You know a lot!

- I shouldn't pick them?
- Yes, it's the right time.

Let's try the flowers before the seeds.

Where can we dry them
without them getting mouldy?

How about hanging them
from the kitchen ceiling?

They will dry well there.

That's a good idea.

Please wipe them dry with a dry rag.

I will.

Throw away the rags
after you've used them.

OK.

There's poison in the flowers,
isn't there?

Yes. It's not as strong as wolfs bane,
but it's better to be careful.

OK.

You... those are...

Datura, Unpei told me to dry them.

What a waste!
Why are you doing that?

He told me to wipe them carefully

They're poisonous
so wash your hands carefully

It can be very dangerous
if they end up in pots and pans.

Can you help me hang these Datura
leaves above the stove and dry them?

I'm home.

Welcome back.

Unpei has been waiting for you.

Yonejiro is here.

They're really cute.

You've brought me a lot of cats!

With these rains there's no rice and
people have difficulty finding food.

They were more than happy
to give me the cats.

I need cats and dogs in order
to help people live.

Get me as many as you can.

Here you go.
Feed it and look after it carefully

I will.

They're dead!

The amount of Datura was too great.

Sis, it's Kae...

Kae, what's the matter?

She's pregnant.

Really? That's brilliant.

It just keeps on raining.

Two years of these prolonged rains
have made the price of rice double.

Across the whole country
hundreds of thousands of people

are starving to death.

It's terrible.

These rains have rotted the rice and
made the rivers flow out of control...

All this has brought all kinds
of strange illnesses.

Herbal medicine sellers
are doing well though.

I'm selling loads of Ginseng.

But no matter how much money you get,
you can't buy human life.

What kinds of illnesses are spreading?

People's bones are rotting and sticking
out under the skin all over the body

If you press, it hurts
as if it was rotten inside.

Are these some kind of blisters?

No, this is a kind of bone growth
like exostosis.

The bones are rotten
and fluid builds up.

It's probably because people's diet has been
so limited because of these long rains.

Can it be cured?

I can cure it.

You put ointment to kill the pain
and out of the rotten bone.

Thank you.

People have heard
rumours about Unpei

and are coming from
Kawachi and Yamato...

...and even from
as far away as Osaka.

Because of the dreadful times
hardly anyone can pay us.

But when people are starving to death
we are lucky to be able to eat

even millet porridge.

Let's eat!

Mother, please give me
the same as everyone else.

Unpei and you are different.

Unpei is the most important
person for all of us.

And the next most
important person is you.

I understand as a wife
that you feel awkward...

The child you're carrying is a Hanaoka
and your job is to bear it safely

The rice and the fish on your
tray are to feed the child...

...and all of our prayers are with it.

So eat and don't hold back.

This stage of pregnancy is a time when
you'll be hungry and want to eat a lot.

It's Datura.
The leaves you picked for me.

I dissolved the juice in sake
and gave it to them

and at first they mostly died.

But now look!
They're sleeping.

If I can operate on them
while they're asleep,

I will be able to out anything out.

Look at this!

It's no good.

It's still not enough.

Kae, the baby is due soon.

I wanted to talk to you about it.

Here it's a custom to give birth
at home - your own family home.

Unpei said it would be OK -
so you can go home.

But you gave birth here and got
Unpei's father to deliver the baby

Back then...

...there were no women
apart from me.

I'd like Unpei to deliver the baby

You want him to act as a midwife.

If you really don't want
to go home, that's fine.

I would like to go home.

You're not looking too worn out.
I am so relieved.

Otsugi is looking after you well.

There's a saying that it's a
waste to feed the bride...

...but in these troubled times
Otsugi has looked after you well!

We should be grateful.

Yes, indeed.
We married her to the right family

Unpei is talked of as the
best doctor in the region.

He has a very good reputation.

I hear he has had lots of apprentices
coming to learn from him. It's amazing.

Mum, Otsugi Hanaoka is pretty
but it's all on the surface.

Deep down she's cold-hearted
and eaten by spite.

They say she's clever but
she's cunning and calculating.

Taking me in as Unpei's bride
while he was away

was to make me earn
money by weaving.

Her sending me home was definitely
because she wanted to save food.

It's because I'm pregnant
and can't weave any more.

That's just you being bitchy

If you speak like that about such a wonderful
mother-in-law, heavens will punish you!

You don't understand...

Pull yourself together.
You're going to make yourself ill.

Just think about giving
birth to a healthy baby

That's a woman's job.

I will. I'll show her!

Otsugi can do a lot but
she can't bear Unpei's child.

Just be a little more patient.
First birth takes half a day of labour.

Be strong.

She's good looking.

How about calling her Koben?
I knew it would be a girl.

Well done,
but I'd like a boy next time.

I can't relax until
there is a Hanaoka heir.

OK.

Next time.

Look after yourself and recover your
strength before you come back.

There are enough women
to do all the work.

OK?

Please look after our
very important bride.

Four years later the famines
and long rains finished but...

Okatsu, does it hurt?

When I breathe, it throbs.

Since when?

(This festival is held in early March) There was
a lump around the time of the Doll's Festival.

Why didn't you tell me then?

It's breast cancer, isn't it?

There's no cure.

So I said nothing.

What is it, mother?

Nothing. Go in the next room.

Unpei, can you make me
one of your painkilling poultices?

They work on cuts but not for breast
cancer. You will have to bear the pain.

Then give me the medicine
you tried on cats and dogs.

The one that put them to sleep
and they died.

It's a doctor's job to save life.

I can't give you a drug that kills,
no matter how great the pain.

Then out me open and do the surgery
You're good at that.

If I could do that, do you think
I'd leave you in pain like this?

Okatsu wants it so much,

won't you put on the poultice
just to ease her mind?

Do you want to kill her?

I'm not trying to do that.

If I could trade places with her, I would.
I wish I could die instead of her.

There's wolfs bane in those
poultices. It's fatal to swallow.

If I apply it to her breast,
she will put it in her mouth.

Don't you realize that?

A woman's breasts are her life,

but can't you out it out of her
with your surgical kills?

She has a tumour the size of a fist

and it's spread to her side
and shoulder.

If I out her,
it's not just the breast.

And she's weak and can't bear
the pain and a loss of blood.

Perhaps if anaesthesia were possible...

Anaesthesia is possible, isn't it?

Recently cats and dogs
have been sleeping

and they don't move
if you poke them with a stick...

...and when they wake up, they can
walk and they're fine, aren't they?

The anaesthesia is not ready

I know it's hard for you
as her mother,

but I've done everything I can
as a doctor.

I know it's 10 or 100 times
worse to operate

and it twists my guts
with frustration.

This cat fell off the veranda
and hit its head and died.

It fell?

It was staggering and
its head was hanging

and it dropped straight down.

Mother, this cat's brain was
damaged by the anaesthesia.

If I give it to Okatsu,
you know what will happen.

Mum, the villagers are
saying Okatsu died

because we are cursed because of
all the dogs and cats we have killed.

Shut up.
You must never say that again.

If cats and dogs could curse us,

you wouldn't have been born safely!

It's not a curse that
missed Kae and hit Okatsu.

Dr. Hanaoka, you'll not
be happy to hear this,

but I think it was just her natural time.

Doctors are not like priests and
should not believe in allotted life spans.

Whatever illness people die from,
it can be prevented by doctors.

What killed Okatsu was me, me!

She died because my medical
skills were not good enough.

7 years passed
and things were peaceful.

Okatsu and Koriku are
working for Unpei

and have ended up without
much chance of marriage.

I thought I mustn't do that
with the younger ones

and I got them married off last year.

Ryohei is in Kyoto studying medicine.

Is that so? I suppose
you must be very lonely

Yes, but the number of Unpei's
apprentices is increasing all the time

and we had to build
another house for them all.

Is Unpei's wife well?

Yes, she's a picture of health.

Mother, Father is playing
with the cats.

It's quite funny Look!

Mistress, this cat is
brilliant at somersaults.

It slept for 3 days and is
exactly as it was before.

There's no damage.

It's been 10 years since you started,
but anaesthesia is now a reality

Congratulations!

Think how pleased your
father would have been.

We haven't succeeded yet.
Cats and people are very different.

The amount I used for this small cat
would not be effective on a human.

It's a question of how much to increase the
dosage in order to put a human to sleep safely...

...the difficult bit is yet to come.

I see.

Unpei, I want you to listen carefully

because I have been
thinking about this a lot...

Why are you being so formal?

I want you to use me for
the anaesthesia experiments.

It's the middle of the night so
I was worried. Don't scare me.

If you test anaesthesia on a person,
you'll be able to perfect it.

Being so close to your goal and not
going the last stretch would be idiotic.

I gave birth to you...
and I know what you want.

I know that better than anyone else.

It's ridiculous. I want you to
use me for the experiments.

I made up my mind a long time ago.
Will you please use me?

It's out of the question.

If something were to happen to you,
I would never be able to face people.

Your life is precious.

You must live and see to it
that the family is successful.

The one who wouldn't be able to face
people is me - the daughter-in-law.

How could I be happy if I was giving
drugs to my beloved mother-in-law?

This is my role.

No. I have less life ahead of me...

...Unpei has a wonderful wife and
I am content and my work is done.

You still have an important
role to provide heirs.

Until you have done that, your body
is too valuable to mishandle.

People say a wife should go if she
can't have a child after 3 years.

All I have given birth to in 15 years
is one brainless girl...

Why is my life so precious?

I want him to use me.

Kae, are you defying me?
I am your mother-in-law.

Yes, on this occasion...

I cannot allow my elderly mother-in-law
to do this. I am the wife!

Kae, are you telling me that
I am old and therefore useless?

Stop! Stop this!

Enough talking of "few remaining years"
and whether you're afraid to die...

Do you think you'll die
if you take my medicine?

I'm not making something
that will kill people!

I'm sorry

If you're so confident why
are you hesitating? Use me!

OK. I will use you both.
I need several human subjects.

You say both of us, but
I spoke first. Start with me.

OK, I will. But say nothing
to my apprentices.

How long will the effects last?

Less than 4 hours.

It's not as bitter as I expected.

It's strong, so please lie down.

There's something I have to say first...

What is it?

When Ryohei comes back from Kyoto
I want you to adopt him as the heir.

My younger brother?

The absence of an heir is troubling me.

So be it. He's studying medicine
and he'll make a good heir.

That's a relief.

It's your mother...

Are you in pain?

Mother? Mother!

Unpei?

Does it hurt?

I feel so hot!

That's normal so don't worry

I'm fine.

It was Kae who decided to call you.

I'll come back later.
There are a lot of patients today

Unpei?

Yes?

Unpei, you're my son.

I am.

Unpei.

I...

It looks like she's fallen asleep.

What are you doing?

This is where the body feels most pain.

If I pinch it slightly and she groans like
that the dose is obviously too weak.

It's too weak.

Is she really OK?
She thrashed around so much...

I just gave her a little juice
in alcohol so it's like

she's slightly drunk
and has fallen asleep.

I see.

Keep it secret though!

How long was I asleep?

Only 4 hours.

I couldn't tell at all.

It's very effective.

Do you feel any pain in your
head or in your joints?

No, none at all.

Is your vision OK?

I can see.
There's nothing wrong with me.

The experiment was a great success.

Thanks to you.
Here are some smelling salts.

Kae, you must be relieved
to see my condition.

There's absolutely nothing to fear.

But surely you don't need
to take the drug now...

I'm very relieved that you're OK.

Mistress Otsugi is amazing.

I take my hat off to her.

Being a mother made her
able to take the drug.

Good morning.

Otsugi has broken her promise

and is telling everyone the
experiment has been successful.

This will make things difficult for you.

What will you do if a patient asks you
for anaesthesia when you operate?

You're right.

It will have to be 8 times as much as
I gave her in order to be effective.

You can try it on me.

No matter how strong the drug is
I'm not scared to take it if it helps you.

Kae, you would really do this for me?

Yes.

You hair is so long.
When will mine get like that?

I'm sorry

Why are you crying?

I got dirty water in my eyes.

Take a deep breath and drink it.
It makes it easy to swallow in one go.

Do you want some water?

Give her some water, please.

Are you in pain?

Are you hot?

Koben...

Look after Koben.

It's OK. You're not going to die.

But make Koben the heir...

I will.

She's your daughter...

I promise.

I pinched her inside thigh as hard
as I could but there's no reaction.

The anaesthetic effect is excellent.

You haven't slept for three days.

You're going to get ill.

I'm OK. You go to bed.

The young mistress
hasn't woken up for 3 days...

If she doesn't wake up,
there'll be scandal.

Kae seems to want to die,

but it's me who'll be
in trouble if she does.

I hope more than anyone
that she will be OK.

If something happens
to the bride I brought here...

I... I could never live with it.

Kae, are you awake?

She'll be OK now.

She'll be able to talk
in a couple of hours.

Make her some really
delicious rice porridge

and give her three raw egg yolks.

She's not had anything
to eat or drink for 3 days.

You haven't had anything either.

Really?
OK, I will eat the same then.

Why are you making rice porridge?

Kae is awake.

Unpei is delighted.

He wants to eat with Kae.

He wants to eat with her...

The young mistress has woken up.

The experiment seems to
have been successful.

Mistress Otsugi is preparing rice
and crying with happiness.

That's great news.

Mistress Otsugi and
the young mistress

are wonderful examples of
womanhood for a doctor's house.

They risk their lives
for the master's success.

That deserves respect.

Did you have dreams?

So no dreams.

Headache?

OK.

How do you feel in general?

Heaviness in the legs?
You can't move them, can you?

No, you mustn't lift them.

Any pain in the joints?

Nothing?

Good! That's good!

By the way
who taught you to tie these knots?

My grandmother.

She said it was an important
accomplishment for a samurai's daughter.

She said the more you move
the tighter they get

and they will not come undone.

I see.

Like this?

I see.

It may look like nothing much but it's
a very clever way of tying the knots.

It's great for stopping
the bleeding quickly

As you'd expect of a samurai's daughter.
She thought about it carefully

Yes, she did.

Unpei, Kae has been conscious
for two weeks and she's still in bed.

And she's so weakened that we can't
say the experiment was a success.

A patient who took that and underwent
an operation would probably die.

Is it that she has a particular
weakness to datura?

I'm sorry to have caused you
so much worry

I'm tougher - I've had children
and never got ill.

Do the experiment again on me.

You're my child and so I
really want to be of use to you.

OK. Let's do it.

Kae?

She's coming around.

I've slept for 3 days.

Has it really been 3 days?

I've been awake all the time and
I'm so tired that I can't remember.

But don't worry about that.
I'll get the smelling salts.

Where's Unpei?

He’s just stepped out
to an emergency patient.

This time it was a
great success, wasn't it?

Unlike you,
I have no exhaustion...

...I feel absolutely fine.

For Unpei's sake
you should be pleased too.

Yes, he will be delighted.

Koriku, can you give Mistress Otsugi
rice porridge and egg yolks?

She'll be really pleased
if you do that.

I need to finish the floors
before it gets dark.

Before it gets dark???

Kae?

I thought the weather was good
but it's getting slightly dark...

It would be a shame
if the rain spoiled the starch.

Koben? What's the matter?

Is something wrong with you?

Just two days ill with a cold...

...and then died.

She was lucky not to suffer.

Cry. Cry your heart out.

If you can still cry
then you're still happy.

It's when your tears dry up
that it gets really lonely

When Okatsu died I...

...I wanted to die too and go to her.

What is it?

You're taking Datura yourself
every night, aren't you?

You noticed?

I'm experimenting on myself to try to get
the amount reduced to the right level.

What if something happens to you?

Why won't you let me be
the subject of the experiment?

If I give you too strong
medication... you won't cope.

No. Please try it on me.

I'm afraid that people are going to die.

I suppose it was just Koben's fate...

...but Okatsu could have been saved
if anaesthetic had been available.

I want to be used
so you can perfect it.

Kae?

Yes?

This last experiment...

Will you do it for me?

I will.

This is a whole bundle of leaves
which I have toasted, crushed and dried.

I've made powder so
it should be easy to swallow.

You did enough experimenting with me.
Why do you have to do more?

When you let Okatsu die

I said I would do the experiment
because I wanted death.

I expect Kae feels the same way now.

Are you conscious?

Yes.

Try to get up by yourself.

OK.

Can you get UP?

No, I can't.

What's the matter?
Tell me.

Tell me.

My eyes hurt. The pain goes
really deep into my head.

Your eyes?

Kae cried so much when Koben died
that she probably weakened her eyes.

It's not the medication.

If we cool her with water
she'll be fine.

It's not because
of crying over Koben.

Kae had pains in her eyes
before Koben died.

It's the drug
that's made her eyes bad.

Why didn't you tell me?

I couldn't have done the experiment.

Why didn't you say anything?

But it didn't affect me in any way
when I had it...

There's no comparison...

I just gave you enough to act as
a sleeping draft for 3-4 hours...

Unpei

She...

You...

Did Kae know about this?

I knew.

You knew... and you lied to me?

You told me I slept for 3 days...

I'm sorry

Kae... you...
I can't believe you did this.

I'm sorry Kae.

I'm a doctor...
I really should have noticed earlier...

Does it still hurt?

No. At least compared to before.

Is it evening?

Evening?

Why haven't you lit the lamps?

Kae...

Kae...

Unpei...

Please Unpei, do something...

Kae... do you hate me so much?

What is it?

I think I'm pregnant.

I see. I'm convinced
it'll be a boy this time.

I'd like to give him my name
and call him Unpei.

It's been one year since Otsugi died.

Little Unpei is really like
his Grandmother Otsugi.

If so, he'll be handsome.

I'd given up hope of having a boy...
and then it just happened.

If Otsugi were still alive,
she would be delighted.

Koriku, is something wrong?

Your voice is lower
and you're out of breath...

It's strange...

I see... maybe I...

Maybe my hearing is more sensitive
because I've lost my eyesight.

Kae...

I've got a lump on my neck.

It's painful.

Your neck you say...

What on earth is it?

Unpei, is it a blood boil?

Hmm... I need to look more carefully

What is a blood boil?

It's cancer. It means
cancer in the blood vessels.

The same as Okatsu...

I noticed it before but
there's nothing I can do.

Could you out it out? Using the
anaesthesia you used on me?

You're a samurai's daughter.

You know how
a woman kills herself.

Tell me.

I learned I should put my hand on
my throat and find the pulsing part.

I push the knife in there.

Koriku's cancer is in that place.
There's no way to operate.

If she's out there, she'll die.

This is the second sister
I have to watch die and do nothing...

Being a doctor is a terrible thing.

I still can't do enough.
I am not Hua Tuo.

(A famous Chinese doctor) I still
can't do enough. I am not Hua Tuo.

I still can't do enough.
I am not Hua Tuo.

Kae, you're crying.

It's strange how my eyes cannot
see but they still produce tears.

Why are you crying?

I never got you married
and now this illness...

As for not marrying, I am happy
You don't need to console me.

I saw you...

I saw Otsugi and you and
I watched both of you carefully

Your tense relationship...

I'm dying of the same thing as Okatsu...

...and no matter how tough it has been,

it can't be as tough
as life has been for you.

Koriku...

Otsugi picked me out and brought
me here as a daughter-in-law.

...and Otsugi was beautiful and clever
and loved me like her own daughter.

Why did you and Otsugi compete
to take that scary drug?

Why did you drink so much
that you lost your sight?

It wasn't competitive.

Otsugi and I...

As a mother and a daughter in a doctor's
house we just wanted to be useful.

Is that really true?

Yes. That's true.

You think that because
it was you who won.

Because I won?..

Kae...

...Don't you think that men
are amazing?

Unpei must have noticed the
relationship between Otsugi and you...

...but he just watched from the side
and got you both to drink the medicine.

The struggles of the women
of this house...

were in the end all just to bring
up one man. Don't you think?

A weak man caught up
in these battles...

...would wither like a tree
which has been watered.

I don't want to be reborn as a girl.

The reason I was so happy
despite never marrying...

...was because I was never a bride
and never a mother-in-law.

3 Years later on a winter morning...

Kae, I hope you'll be pleased.

Today we have a patient
with breast cancer.

But this time we can operate.

It's wonderful...

She's a tough one.

She knows she's going to die
so she'd like to have me operate...

The anaesthesia will be useful.

Yes, it will.

It's been 15 years since
I started thinking about it.

They say a woman's breasts are
her life and cutting one off is fatal...

...but I will demonstrate that a life
can be saved. I am confident.

I will cure the beriberi
and then I can operate.

If you succeed...

...the spirit of Okatsu who died of
breast cancer will be pleased.

What is it?

It seems I'm pregnant again.

In spite of being 40 now...

That's a good sign!

One joy on top of another.

Bear me a fine child.

Kae, feel this.

The way of tying the cords
you taught me.

I've made that into a family crest.

It's also useful for tying up
the sleeves when working.

The world's first
breast cancer operation

to be done under general anaesthetic
took place in October 1805.

Kae, the operation was
a great success.

I removed the tumour.

From now I can operate on anything.
All kinds of operations are possible.

Now I can do like the famous
Chinese doctor Hua Tuo did.

Congratulations.

It's thanks to you.

No, it's thanks to Otsugi.

I wouldn't have been here
without her.

This is the new treatment space.
It's double the size it was.

This is the operating room.

This is where we wash the bandages.

The next room is
a medicine supply store.

This is where the medicine is made.

This is the dormitory for the
apprentices. There are 50 of them!

I'm going to make
a place for you here.

I'd like it the way
it has been up to now.

I'd like the back storage room,
like your mother.

The people in the village
started to tell a new story.

A moving tale about a wife who
lost her sight to help her husband.

Kae didn't like it.

She said nothing and hated to go out
when there were people around.

THE END