Original subtitles

The Daiei Company Presents:

"Nemuri Kyoshiro Enjoken" Nemuri Kyoshiro Fire-Passion Sword SLEEPYEYES OF DEATH 5: SWORD OF FIRE

Planning: Zaizen Sadao Original Story: Shibata Renzaburoo Screenplay: Hoshikawa Seiji

Photography: Morita Fujirro Sound: Oosumi Masao Lighting: Furuya Kenji Art Direction: Naitoo Akira Music: Saitoo Ichiroo

Set Design: Takachi Kan Asst. Director: Tomoeda Nengi Production Mgr: Oozawa Hiroshi Developing: Toyo Labs Editing: Suganuma Kanji Fight Choreography: Miyauchi Shoohei Sound Effects: Kurashima Yoo

Starring:

ICHIKAWA RAIZO as NEMURAI KYOSHIRO

Nakamura Tamao Sugata Michiko Nakahara Sanae

Nishimura Ko Shimada Ryuuzoo Mizuhara Kooichi Kozakura Junko Yasube Tooru

Hamada Masashi, Fujikawa Jun Takakura Ichiroo, Ooe Teruko Date Saburo, Uenoyama Kooichi Morita Manabu, Kimura Gen

Itoo Yoshitaka - Miyama Shimpachi - Fujiwara Tamotsu - Kuroki Hideo - Rokui Kazuo Funaki Yooichi - Iwata Tadahi - Sengoku Haruo - Kikuno Kimiyo -Aihara Kooichi

DIRECTED by: MISUMI KENJI

He's killed my husband! Please help me!

Is that true?

Outta my way! If you help her, you'll be disgracing yourself! Beat it!

My Clan has sanctioned my revenge. Please help me kill him. Please!

Crazy woman... You've been most fortunate to survive so long.

However, I am but a ronin... I won't risk my life to help anyone.

I will give you anything you want! Please help me, sir!

You fool!

You've... Disgraced yourself...

I am Higaki Nui... of the Todo Clan.

Thanks to you, sir... I have avenged my husband!

That man, Kaizuka Monnosuke, you said his name was...

...was he in love with you?

- Why, that's crazy... - Well, it just seemed that way to me.

Three years ago, in the dead of night, he ambushed my husband. Higaki Seijuro.

He was cast out of our Clan... and became the target of my vendetta!

You will soon she the Chief Retainer... I'm sure that he'll explain everything.

Speaking of which, he's certainly making us wait!

It's been almost an hour!

I have not yet received... the reward you promised.

You did say I could have anything that I wanted.

As for your reward for saving me... have me for one night, and only one night.

"Execution License"

I take it that you killed him in a legitimate duel, correct?

You didn't resort to dishonorable tactics, like killing him while he slept, correct?

Correct, sir. Thanks to the assistance of this gentleman, Nemuri Kyoshiro...

...I was able to destroy him, abiding always by the code of the samurai.

"Nemuri Kyoshiro" Now that's an intriguing name.

I'm Atobe Shogen, the Todo Clan's Chief Retainer in Edo.

I congratulate you on your victory.

I will assist you in restoring the House of Higaki.

Yes, sir...

I'm sure my husband, Seijuro, can finally rest in peace.

Honorable Chief Retainer...

Why was this gentleman, Higaki Seijuro, ambushed in the middle of the night?

It was Kaizuka's revenge.

He had fallen in love with Nui, but it was Higaki who captured her heart.

I see.

These last three years must have been very difficult for you.

I shall arrange an audience for you with out Lord tomorrow afternoon.

You may dress normally. Make up is allowed also.

And for me, he has no words of gratitude, eh?

Tonight at seven...

Come to Jokanji Temple, in the backstreets of Yoshiwara.

'Tis where I sleep.

The last words of that pockmarked samurai...

"If you help her, you'll be disgracing yourself!"

What did he mean by that?

Tonight at seven... I shall come to Jokanji.

However... no one must know of this!

"Narumiya"

Yes, I remember reading about this in a book, sir.

The kind of copper bell-vase, made during the Tang dynasty...

...the story goes that it takes a thousand years for its true colors to shine.

After being buried for several hundred years...

...its color changes from soft ones in the morning to...

...what seems like the shimmer of a droplet of water in the afternoon.

And, after another several hundred years under water...

...it'll become as beautiful as the finest of all pearls.

Surely, the bare skin of this Chinese Bell is...

...simply splended, isn't it, Narumiya?

A wonderful piece, indeed, sir.

I shall give it to you.

To me, sir?!

Is it too low of a price... for your silence?

Indeed... It is too low of a price.

You jest!

Well? Will you take it?

I shall accept it, sir.

That is as it should be.

Surely, your performance was most remarkable!

Even merchants such as myself could not bear taking such a chance.

No, it was made possible only by your cooperation.

Oh, no. I, Narumiya, only innocently prepared the ship...

...and before I knew it, I was embroiled in your plan.

You comedian! You delight in saying delicate things one after another.

But, remember, you too profit from this secret of the House of Todo!

The Shogunate ordered the Todo to totally destroy the Toba Suigun...

...but your men diverted half the pirates' confiscated treasures to you, Sir Atobe.

My profits, sir, are trivial compared to that.

Still, regarding the issue of cleaning up loose ends, I thought that the pirates...

...their families, and all those with ties to them had been killed.

Yet, I'm told that a few survived... and made their way to Edo.

And I have heard that the Shogunate's Official Investigator...

...is secretly becoming involved.

If words should travel from the pirates' mouths into the ears of...

...Shogunate officials, or our Clan Lord, Takaatsu...

...then it's this for us.

Before such evidence is uncovered...

...we must seek out these survivors... and permanently seal their mouths!

Oh? You want to get right to it, eh?

How considerate of you.

Give me what you promised.

I advise you to submit. Know that I'm a man who knows how to take women.

When I see a woman like you... it brings out my roguish desires!

If you plan to kill me when we are joined... I will kill you first!

By tomorrow, I'll have lost all interest in you.

We'll be strangers after this.

Should I assist... I'd be disgracing myself, eh?

Here, sir. A hot one!

It seems as if it's gonna start snowing, doesn't it, sir?

Say, old man, wanna tell me something interesting?

- "Anything interesting?" - Something worth living for.

Here, sir. Have another.

Sake is best enjoyed alone. You may leave.

Wh... Who the hell are you?!

P... Please... let me hide... I'm being chased!

You're kidding me! I ain't gonna help a fugitive! Go away!

I... I can't afford to die yet!

Don't say a word. If you do... damned fools...

I don't wanna kill you! I just have a request!

Knock it off. I can't stand such pathetic gestures.

- Please! Sir samurai! - Knock it off, I said!

This way... there's no point in dying.

My daughter's gonna be killed!

I abandoned her when she was little.

She's my only child.

But if those bastards find her...

I came to Edo to see her... after all the trouble it took...

...and this is what happens.

Please help me, sir! This is what I wanted to ask you.

- I was... a long time ago... - Not another word.

Whatever you say, it has nothing to do with me.

Sir samurai!

Instead of babbling on like that, why don't you think of a way to escape?

It's all over for me! I'm trapped in here.

Outside, there must be a hundred men ready to kill me on sight.

I'm finished!

Please, Sir samurai! Please hear me out!

Enough!

Don't want to listen? But it's too late, now that we've had our talk.

They'll think that you're my ally, they'll assume...

...I told you everything, and they'll come after you too!

Say what?

The men outside... they're sure to come after you.

They'll think I've told you things.

If it's worth telling to me, then tell the authorities about it!

But I can't do that.

How could I possibly allow my one and only daughter to learn...

...that her father will be executed?

I don't understand... I don't know what you're talking about!

So I'm sayin... listen to what I've got to say...

Denkichi! Surrender!

Hold it!

S... Sir samurai, I beg you... My daughter... My daughter...

That was the wanted fugitive Denkichi, a homeless wretch. You are?

A bar customer. If you suspect me, then do as you see fit.

You! He told you, didn't he!

Art thou samurai?

Sir, all three of our men were slain!

- What?! Slain?! - Yes, sir.

- The Shogunate Investigator? - No. They fell to the "Full-Moon-Cut..."

...a technique used by a ronin... named "Nemuri Kyoshiro."

- Oh, him... - You know of him, sir?

Be assured, sir. I shall destroy him.

If you go carelessly poking around, "the snake pops out of the bush."

"Denkichi, a vagrant, was once a member of "Toba Suigun,"a pirate ban..."

- Hey! They say he was a pirate! - Oh? THAT guy?

"Narumiya"

So you're Narumiya.

My name is Narumiya Tahei, sir.

"Yoshiwara:"famous red-light district. He who oversees the official rice reserves, and is renowned in the Yoshiwara?

I don't know what to say to that, sir.

Narumiya... Do you know a man named Denkichi?

- Denkichi? - The vagrant who just got executed.

Hmm... Doesn't ring a bell.

I see.

So, anyway, what does a representative of the rice reserves...

...want from a petty ronin like me?

Well, sir... it concerns this young lady, Kosasa.

She happens to be the daughter of a very honorable family.

For a year now, she has been an attendant at the Inner Court...

...but how should I put it...

"In search of blossoms in the springtime, she found not..."perhaps?

Why don't you just give it to me straight?

To be less poetic... She knows nothing of the experience of love-making.

Is she slow?

No. It's because of her pampered upbringing.

So what is it that you want me to do?

Rumor has it, sir... that your swordsmanship is unmatched.

I'm also told that you have enjoyed the charms of an army of women.

As I've always lived the life of a rogue, it will do me no good to deny it, eh?

Thus, you must also be a master at, shall we say, "irrigating green young fields."

Hey! Hey! We're not talking the way we should be...

You, the merchant, waxing lyrical, while I, the samurai, utter vulgarities?

Well... for that I apologize, sir.

Will you accept my request, sir?

Why don't you embrace her yourself?

No, I don't have the confidence to do that, sir...

...not when the lady in question is of such high rank.

You certainly look like a fellow who wouldn't have such qualms.

Oh well...

By the way... what is your reason for giving me this girl?

I desire to sever my ill-fated ties...

...with Atobe Shogen, Chief Retainer of the Todo Clan, once and for all.

What do you mean by "ill-fated ties?"

- That... I cannot tell you, sir - Then I must refuse.

But, Sir Nemuri... the Chief Retainer will be coming after you... wherever you go.

To me, this is a very unusual request...

...but to you, as a woman, this must be horribly demeaning.

Don't you have anything to say about it?

To experience the joy of being a woman...

Nothing is more worth living for.

This is... not much, but...

Oh? You're paying me on top of it all?

Well, as she is from a noble family...

...please, I ask that you keep this matter absolutely confidential.

Look... Why don't you knock it off already?

You? From a blue-blooded family? Surely you're joking.

There's no way you're still a virgin!

What are you, Narumiya's lover? A concubine?

Stand up.

Splendid! This is indeed a breathtaking vision.

As you make love the tattoo makes the skin blush...

...and the colors of the image become indescribable.

Listen... we'll be heading out. Get dressed.

Pardon me... but where are we going?

Never mind that. Just follow me.

One, two... One, two... One, two... One, two...

One, two... One, two... One, two... One, two...

One, two... One, two... One, two... One, two...

What should I do about our visitor, sir?

- All right. Let him in. - Yes, sir.

Permit me to thank you for your kind words the other day.

- This is... - No need...

My doorman told me about the matter already.

Still, I find it hard to comprehend... why you'd offer the girl to me.

- Explain yourself. - It is a present in return, Chief Retainer.

I don't remember doing anything to deserve such a thing!

No need to pretend, sir.

I was attacked by disguised swordsmen the other day... in front of a bar.

Those, sir... were your men, correct?

Let me make it clear... that this Denkichi fellow told me nothing about anything.

I slew your men only because they attacked me.

No matter what anybody might do...

...I will not get involved, as long as my own safety is not at risk.

That said, I ask that you put an end to all future assaults upon me.

What does that... have to do with the girl?

I do not wish to have any involvement with your Clan from now on.

This girl, then, is a gift to you.

On her body... not that I have tried it myself...

...is something both rare and absolutely extraordinary.

Whether or not you'd like to sample it, Chief Retainer... I leave up to you.

At any rate, she is yours.

Wait!

What can I do for you?

Your gift is most generous I will accept it.

But, I must show you some hospitality. Please come this way.

No... I shall be leaving; your gesture is more then enough.

Todo Clansmen?

My name is Kakurai Yozo.

I'm here to take your life!

I came here to state that I wasn't involved. No matter what your secret might be.

And, you wish to kill me?

That's right.

On orders of the Chief Retainer?

- That too. - You have other reasons?

Indeed.

What I'm interested in is... the Full-Moon Cut!

- It isn't for show. - You're not leaving 'til you show us!

Seems like you are quite skilled as well.

I won't leave without letting you see it.

All right...

- Observe my Full-Moon Cut. - We shall be watching!

This match won't be over 'til it's over. Do not interfere!

Idiot! I told you not to interfere!

- But... - Don't!

You mustn't!

Sir Kakurai, this duel must not take place!

- What did you say?! - Sheath your sword.

- Has the Chief Retainer so ordered?! - He says that you must retreat.

Sir Kakurai!

One of these days... for sure!

You lied, didn't you... about the Chief Retainer ordering them to retreat.

Correct.

Why?

I do not wish you to be killed.

The Chief Retainer is going to be very upset with you.

It matters not...

I am doing this so that you'll side with me.

I enjoyed the feast of swords you sent me.

Chief Retainer... this Kosasa girl... is one of Narumiya's concubines.

What?! Narumiya's?!

Summon your vassals, and you'll bruise the honor of the entire Todo Clan!

Is that what you want?

Narumiya... I'd like to know what your true intentions are.

It seems that you intend that Atobe and I get into an awkward situation.

Sir Nemuri... merchants, you see depend on profits for survival.

Should I report Sir Atobe's crimes to the Shogunate, I'd be destroyed as well.

Now, I... certainly wouldn't want to lose anymore then I already have.

That is why I plotted to obtain your help, and take advantage of your abilities.

And this you see... is the so-called "Businessmen's method."

For having such fine business sense, I salute you.

If I say so. I too have come to admire your selflessness, sir.

Again, are those words a trap... a scheme?

Perhaps... they are.

I for one don't wish to get involved in complicated affairs. That's all.

Alas... I believe it may be too late for that.

You see, Higaki Nui is tasked with finding the Toba Suigun's surviving members.

- The "Toba Suigun?" Pirates? - Yes, sir.

The daughter of their commander lives... quietly, in the outskirts of Shinagawa.

- I beg you, please... save her. - "Save her?"

Though they live quietly, Chief Retainer Atobe aims to kill them all.

For us, this means nothing but trouble.

How is that?

"The weak may defeat the strong," as the saying sometimes holds...

...and if by chance the survivors end up telling their story to the Shogunate...

...it'd mean the end for myself as well.

This matter does not concern me.

Sir Nemuri... you rescued Higaki Nui, did you not?

That was your mistake.

You helped a crooked woman, and killed a man much less villainous.

Because of me, one who deserved death lives on...

...and one who deserved to live died instead?

"If you help her... you'll be disgracing yourself..."

"Disgrace..." Is this what he meant by that?

Narumiya, the surviving pirates... where in Shinagawa can I find them?

By the look of the flower patterns on your sleeves, yours is a Chinese garment.

- You must be the descendant of a pirate. - What the?! You suspicious fellow!

That depends on your point of view, doesn't it?

From my point of view, you're far more suspicious then you say I am.

I'll kill you!

And, if you fail?

I'm not joking! One swing and it'll slash your throat!

Based on your form, I take it that you've been in training for a long time.

Yet, "even the monkeys can fall from the trees."

Not me!

But, what if you fail? Your body will be mine then.

All right... if I fail, then have your way with me!

It's all right now. Get up.

No! You've placed me under an obligation. I failed!

So I'll... I'll keep my word!

And, once I use your body... you expect me to leave?

That's right!

My granddaughter explained things... You must be quite a swordsman!

I never expected to run into someone good enough to fend off her dirks!

Do you plan to seek revenge against the Todo Clan for killing your comrades?

What I truly despise is... the conduct of Chief Retainer Atobe Shogen!

He stole what we risked our lives to obtain!

But then, we were pirates, after all.

Our just desserts, perhaps?

The one who told me about your hideout...

...was the Chief Retainer's one-time accomplice, Narumiya.

Now, apparently, he wants to save you all.

He said that the chief Retainer's men will attack you today.

Revenge seems so pointless to me...

Is that what you've come to tell us?

Consider it a whimsy of this suspicious character.

Now that they've found out where we are...

This must be the end!

Are you preparing to die?

I want to save my grand-daughter, at the very least.

The blood of the General of the Toba Suigun runs in her veins!

Her mother must be a foreign woman.

When I saw that cross, that's what went through my head.

As I'm sure that you can guess if you look closely at me...

...I am the child of a woman raped by a Christian missionary.

Sajihei! Oryo! You've managed to survive this long.

Take a boat and escape across the sea.

No way!

I'll give my testimony to the Shogunate even if it means my death!

And in doing so, destroy your comrades, who sacrificed to earn peaceful lives.

Alone, an old man and girl can't possibly retaliate. Abandon this selfishness.

In the bay just behind us is a boat, ready for use in case of dire need.

Grand-pa!

Should the Shogunate or the Daimyo assault us...

...as we are as weak as bugs, we'll be easily squashed.

And these bugs... Only a few have managed to remain unsquashed.

Who are they? Who still survives in Edo?

Denkichi, Kikuji... and Monnosuke.

Monnosuke?! Does he have pockmarks on his face?

You know him?

They've come. Sajihei.

The pockmarked man died, he was killed by a Todo woman.

Also, I witnessed Denkichi being executed.

Live on... Sajihei!

Kill him!

What?! Nemuri Kyoshiro did what?!

How did Kyoshiro know they were there?!

No idea, sir I have no...

Nui!

I have absolutely no idea.

You fool!

It was your responsibility, Nui, to find the remaining Toba Suigun Pirates!

How could you be so careless?!

No, the blame must be directed at me, sir.

Thinking we faced but an old man and a girl, I did not prepare properly.

I treated the matter too lightly. For that, I am truly sorry, sir.

Torii, have your wounds treated.

- Yes, sir. - Kakurai, you may withdraw.

As for Oryo and Sajihei, I will send men to hunt then down and eliminate them.

Now only one remains in Edo.

Nui, you're sure about his hideout?

Yes, sir.

As soon as this mission is properly completed...

...I will fulfill my promise and reward you handsomely.

I appreciate that, sir.

- Chief Retainer... - Huh?

Narumiya Tahei and Nemuri Kyoshiro.

Is it possible that the two may be conspiring with each other?

To determine this, I have some ideas...

Ideas?

I pledge to you... that Kyoshiro will be...

Tasuke... you're looking distressed. Are you worried about something?

Yessir... The truth is... I'm seriously in debt.

Money, eh?

Money! Money! Money!

Every living soul is ensnared in a whirlpool of greed.

But, on the surface, all is calmness, of course.

- Careful! - Yes, sir.

You saw it, didn't you!

I couldn't help it. I have eyes.

- Should I not have seen it? - No!

You displayed it, but I shouldn't have seen it? What gives?

- Come with us. - I refuse!

I'll bet that you are all Todo Clansmen.

Are you prepared to be slain now, without any regrets?

Retreat! Retreat!

Once again, you force me to help you, eh?

To where shall I escort you this time around?

To my... To the Higaki Mansion... please!

"Higaki"

A new husband was chosen for me, in order to restore the House of Higaki.

When I refused to accept him... I was taken by force, just as you saw.

And they took your kimono off?

So that I wouldn't be able to run away.

You go to great lengths to tempt me... You still want to kill me, eh?

I've figured it out already.

Well. I shouldn't bring down the curtain when your little show isn't over yet.

It appears that the story about avenging your late husband, Higaki Seijuro...

...is starting to sound like some grand machination!

Monnosuke, the fallen one, was one of the pirates.

Sir Kyoshiro!

And, you are... in charge of searching for surviving pirates.

You sound as if you've figured out every little detail...

...but you do not know what is truly in my heart.

I don't. Because women are devils.

Correct. Women are devils.

Keep your eyes open, and you will soon see Chief Retainer Atobe...

...become but a petty trinket in these hands of mine!

As soon as I learn his every weakness... I will make him destroy himself.

Destroy himself?

What method will I employ... That's what you'd like to ask me, I'm sure.

Even you, Sir Kyoshiro, can't be told that... yet I will dare to ask you.

I am listening.

Will you be... on my side?

If you would but agree to this...

...mountains of treasures can be yours, as much as your heart desires.

Try to get me in such a mood.

- I will... - You will, eh?

That's questionable.

In that case... let me at least say this...

I will make you side with me... then I plan to join hands with Narumiya.

By betraying Atobe?

After toppling the Chief Retainer and obtaining the treasure...

...I would next kill Narumiya.

If only you would agree to help me, that is.

Tis a dream that could so easily come true, isn't it?

All along, all you've wanted was the money, eh?

That and... you, Sir Kyoshiro.

Passion and possessions... now that's much to greedy.

Isn't that... what we human beings live for?

You are but a hideous monster.

You use your beautiful face and body...

How despicable.

Sir Kyoshiro... are you leaving me after this night is over?

Shall we say, not until I grow bored, not until after I embrace a monster.

I will bore you not...

Me?

Yes.

To a woman such as you...

...your husband, Higaki Seijuro, was but an obstacle, wasn't he?

As was Kaizuka Monnosuke.

Your beauty beguiled the pockmarked man and clouded his mind, didn't it!

I told you that I'd embrace your ivory skinned body for just one night.

Sir Kyoshiro!

You cannot go!

For you... I would risk my life...

I take it that your heart is set on risking your life to make me your ally.

Prepare yourself!

Higaki Nui! You've betrayed the Chief Retainer!

- What are you talking about?! - I shall destroy you both!

- Oh? Me too? - Prepare yourself!

The moonlight that kisses my face... shall be the last sight in this world for thee.

Sir Kyoshiro!

One... Two... One... Two... One... Two... One... Two...

One... Two... One... Two... One... Two... One... Two...

One... Two... One... Two... One... Two... One... Two...

At this time, all Kabuki performers were male. Now that's a beautiful actress. Who is he?

Why, that's Morita Kikuya, of Kamigata, sir.

Kikuya?

Oh! Somebody! Somebody help!

Help!

Please have mercy! I'm not trying to go after anyone!

You damn pirate! You thought you'd disguised yourself well, didn't you!

W... Wait!

Yes, I am a member of Toba Suigun...

...but I have no intention of doing you or your people any harm!

Please have mercy...

Kakurai! It's you!

I beg you! I beg you...

Hey! Does this hold any meaning for you?

That's Lady Oryo's...

Oryo is safe. She fled across the sea.

Sajihei told me of a survivor named Kikuji... That's you, isn't it?

We were the harmless ones who struggled to live on...

Damn! Those devils!

Hey! Hang on!

Why did you go and visit Narumiya?!

I wanted to see the sight... of Kayo, safe and well.

Kayo?

Yes... When I chanced upon Denkichi in Kamigata, I told him about her...

...that his daughter is... at Narumiya's...

What?!

...working...

...a... as a maid... Kayo is...

Hey! Hang on, Kikuya! Kikuya!

When she was a baby... I used to carry her on my back...

...but eventually we drifted apart... and since then we've lost contact.

She doesn't know, sir... about anything...

...not even what her father looks like.

Please... let her be... She doesn't know anything... Please.

Say... where can I find a maid named Kayo?

Oh! Sir... Well...

She's... inside cleaning now, sir.

I see.

Er, Sir... If I may...

Sir? Sir?

Oh! Good to see you here again, sir.

Please. Come this way.

Narumiya, it seems that one can buy one good woman after another if one is rich.

Not so... You, Sir Nemuri, go far beyond that...

Because you know how to make such beauties lie down for free.

Usually, it's because they are after something... Like Higaki Nui, for instance.

Oh, I wonder.

Narumiya...

If you dare to lay your hands on that maid, then you're finished.

That'll be the end for you; remember that.

Sir? Who do you mean by "that maid?"

A representative of the official rice reserves and a mere maid?!

Do you think that I'd stoop that low?!

I cannot believe I'm hearing such words from you, Sir Nemuri.

I see. In that case, let me enlighten you.

The maid who at this very moment is in the kitchen, one Kayo...

...is the daughter of one of the pirates.

What?!

Did you know that? Or, did you not know?

No, sir! Not at all.

You really didn't know?

That's right, sir.

This world can be quite ironic, eh, Narumiya?

But, the girl... why did she come here?

No... she has no idea about any of this.

Understand... If you tell her anything... I'll slay you without warning.

Sir Nemuri...

If the girl means so much to you, then I want your help, no matter what.

If you refuse... Then I won't be held responsible for her fate.

- Fine by me. - What do you mean by that?

I can blabber about you as much as I want...

...about how you wanted to cut your ties with Chief Retainer Atobe...

...and used me to advance your dirty schemes.

You'd tell that to the Chief Retainer?!

He intends to have you killed in the end.

Indeed... I'm aware of that, sir.

Please... take a look at this.

Sir Nemuri... surely you remember this.

Why... that's Kosasa's...

Chief Atobe's men... delivered something to me last night.

- Kosasa's head, that is! - What?

It's Chief Atobe's warning to me, that I'll end up just like her.

Sir Nemuri... I must decide what steps to take from this point on!

Atobe, you beast... how dare you do such a cruel thing!

Hey!

"Nigiri-meshi:"rice-balls, a simple food. I'm hungry. I sure would love to eat some nigiri-meshi.

But you're an honorable samurai...

"Onigiri:"another term for rice-balls. YOU want to eat onigiri?!

Of course I do. Won't you make me some?

Sure.

Why don't I make some for you, sir?

Kayo... right?

Yes.

"Higaki"

"Higaki" Higaki Seijuro's funeral service, eh?

"Higaki"

"Higaki" I see. Where is the observance being held?

Chief Retainer!

It's nice of you to hold a funeral for your husband...

...but far more important then that is... before you burn the incense...

...you ought to first confess your sins.

She, of all people, should know that is the proper thing to do.

What are you talking about?

It wasn't only about revenge!

The one who had Higaki Seijuro ambushed in darkness...

...was his wife, Nui. That is my theory.

For what reason?

You seduced that pockmarked man with your beauty, clouded his mind...

...and made him kill your husband.

All to feed your lust for money!

Why, you! Such insolence!

So you're a victim of seduction too, eh?

- What?! - Kakurai!

The pockmarked samurai was one of the surviving pirates.

He should have fled to another province.

But instead he chose to be with a beautiful woman.

A nondescript ronin and a smart woman, claiming to be avenging her husband...

For that fellow... it was most unfortunate that I happened to be passing by.

Silence!

No further words need to be spoken.

Terminate this insolent intruder at once!

Don't come any closer! I will slay Kyoshiro!

The Full-Moon Cut?! It's overrated!

I will put an end to this now!

Once again... another perfected technique shall vanish.

Withdraw! Withdraw!

Nemuri Kyoshiro, is that your name? I am Takaatsu, Lord of the Todo.

When I was on my way to go hawking, one Narumiya Tahei informed me...

...about chief Retainer Atobe's wrongdoings.

As for Atobe's actions... they were not sanctioned by the House of Todo.

Since this was a crime committed by Atobe on his own...

...all the treasure he accumulated will be surrendered to the Shogunate...

...and I am prepared to offer an apology to His Highness, the Shogun.

Anything to protect your House, eh?

Listen everyone! I've ordered Chief Retainer Atobe to commit seppuku.

As for the others, they "died of a sickness."

Yes, sir.

Members of our House couldn't possibly be killed by a pitiful rogue swordsman!

The deaths were from "sickness!"

Kyoshiro... Keep this to yourself. If you do, you'll be rewarded.

Such selfish nonsense!

That's another reason why I can't stand Daimyo!

Oh, Sir samurai!

Hungry again?

That's not why I'm here today.

Oh, no?

I've come to cause you pain.

You don't know your parents' faces?

They died... Both of them.

Use this money and find a new job somewhere.

I met your father... at an inn, while I was traveling.

Being forced to abandon you because of poverty left him stricken with grief...

...and as he lay there mourning, he passed away.

This is the money your father left for you.

He was an honest man... a hard worker, well-liked by everyone.

I see. My dad died.

But he was well-liked...

He was a good man, yes?

Yeah, He was a good man.

It's alright. I can survive on my own...

...by working as hard as I can!

You may find me at Jokanji, in the backstreets of Yoshiwara.

Thank you, Sir samurai.

Sir Nemuri!

Well, Sir Nemuri?

Just when the Chief Retainer thought everything was going so well...

...my scheme wiped him out. I, for one, believe that it's wonderful.

I don't wanna hear such things... nor do I want to see your face either!

Sir Nemuri!

Cease this! I'm in a good mood right now.

Please wait, sir. I'd like to give you something, a token of my appreciation.

In this world, as if it were a cult of greed...

...there grew a beautiful flower. Unbeknownst to any man.

If you ruin what I'm feeling right now... I'll slaughter you!

Narumiya! You're under arrest!

Surrender!

Take him away!

Sir Kyoshiro!

Sir Kyoshiro... Honestly... My... heart...

...still aches for you...

THE END

Subtitled By: Venom10463@yahoo.com