Original subtitles

Saigo Kichinosuke, later known as Takamori,

was born 153 years ago in Kajiya Town...

by the Kotsuki River which flowed through Kagoshima.

Samurai of lower ranks resided in this district.

Their homes were very plain and life was hard.

With seven offspring, life was especially difficult...

for the 11 members of the Saigo family.

His childhood friend, Okubo Shosuke,

later Okubo Toshimichi, lived two minutes away by foot.

They were not the only ones to grow up here.

From among Kichinosuke's followers were many military...

leaders and statesmen like Oyama Iwao,

organizer of the Japanese Army, and Togo Heihachiro,

who crushed the Baltic Fleet during the Russo-Japanese War.

However, at this time, neither 26 year old Saigo...

nor 23 year old Okubo or the other youths knew...

what effects they would have upon the times.

Tobu ga Gotoku

Episode 3: Women of Destiny

Screenplay: Osanai Mieko

Original Story: Shiba Ryotaro

Misic: Ichiyanagi Toshi

Original Subtitles: Network Japan, Inc.

Transcribed and Edited Subtitles: Kame Fansubs

Narrator: Kusano Daigo

Cast

Saigo Kichinosuke: NISHIDA TOSHIYUKI

Okubo Shosuke: KAGA TAKESHI

Ijuin Toshi: MINAMI KAHO

Kiku: TANAKA YOSHIKO

Saigo Masa: FUJI MANAMI

Oyama Katunosuke: KANIE KEIZO

Saigo Kichibei: SAKAGAMI JIRO

Saigo Ryuzaemon: HAMAMURA JUN

Saigo Kimi: OJI MICHIO

Abe Masahiro: WAKABAYASHI GO

Sumiko FUJI JUNKO

Tokugawa Nariaki KANEKO NOBUO

Shimazu Nariakira: KAYAMA YUZO

Producer: Yoshimura Fumitaka

Director: Hirayama Takeyuki

New Year's 1852

Wait, you two!

Please keep our family safe and set Shosuke free.

Let Kichinosuke be chosen to study in Edo.

Toshi, taste this zoni (mochi soup).

Okay.

This is how the Saigo family likes our zoni.

Remember this...

Yes.

and the taro.

Yes.

Can you please set the trays?

Yes.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year.

This year, we have a new daughter-in-law...

and Kichijiro has become the young men's group leader.

Grandfather and Grandmother... Please live a long life.

This will be a good year.

Right!

Before anything, Toshi must have a child.

Ouch! That's hot!

Oh, that smells so good.

It's good. I made it.

Next New Years, you'll be able to make your own mochi.

Next New Years, we may be eating the mochi in Edo.

What's wrong with hoping? The year has just begun.

Aren't they about done?

It's New Years. Let's all eat together.

All right.

Kichi! Mine! The mochi are ready.

Yes.

Mine, you're forgetting your manners.

It smells so good, I couldn't wait.

It's even better with brown sugar on it.

Mine...

We haven't had brown sugar in years.

I'm sorry. That was wishful thinking.

It was a poor joke.

Put some miso on it.

If you think about Father in exile,

even miso should taste sweet.

Shosuke, the miso and mochi...

are both from Kichinosuke's mother.

Doesn't it really feel like New Year's now?

- Right, Mine... - Yes.

Next, we dream about going to Edo.

That's an impossible dream.

No, when you dream, you've got to dream big.

Shosuke and I will go to Edo.

Ouch!

It's all right. I'll toast them.

You enjoy yourselves. It's New Year's.

Kichinosuke...

Let's make the trip to Edo our first dream of the year.

New Year dream...

At Tsurumaru Castle, Nariakira was receiving relatives...

for his first New Years as the head of the Shimazu clan.

This is my daughter, Sumiko.

A Happy New Year to you, My Lord.

Be at ease. Let me see your face.

Oh, what a fine young lady.

What's wrong?

Father told me to use Edo speech with you.

One should do as the natives do.

Besides, Satsuma is my home province.

With your father's help, I'll make it a better place.

Will you help, too?

Shame on you!

That's all right.

My Satsuma dialect is so bad that it amuses Sumiko, doesn't it?

Yes.

Sumiko, how do you pass the day?

I spin or I weave...

Oh, don't you have any interest in poetry or music?

I have some knowledge of them, but...

No, I'm asking Sumiko.

When a woman marries,

she must learn the ways of her husband's family.

If something happens, poetry isn't of much use.

But a skill in weaving will always stand her in good stead,

or so my mother taught me.

I see. That's quite far-sighted.

Lucky is the man who marries a girl like you.

Has she been promised to anyone?

We have made arrangements for an engagement.

I'm happy to hear that.

Thank you very much.

Thank you for coming.

If you'll excuse us...

Aunt Oyama asked me if Kichinosuke...

will be going to Edo to study.

Who knows?

Will Kichinosuke be going to Edo?

That's for the teachers at school to decide.

Does that mean he can go if he has permission?

It will be an honor.

We must find a way to send him. Right, Toshi?

Yes.

I wonder what Edo is like.

The only time a girl leaves home is when she marries.

There's no need to fill your head with thoughts of Edo.

Oh, thank you.

Brother...

Since you've been the leader of the young men's group,

you are sure to be chosen.

If Lord Nariakira gives you the unexpected opportunity of going,

you must go.

I'll do your share of the work around here.

It must be frustrating for Shosuke, though.

Don't you think so, Father?

He's under house arrest. It can't be helped.

As long as Kichinosuke comes up with the money,

he can go, can't he?

Father, may I submit an application?

I don't mind,

but with our money spent on the two weddings...

and Toshi still not used to us, there are many difficulties ahead.

Father...

Let's get started.

Brother...

Edo is so far away.

Kohei, what happened to you?

There, there. Did some boys pick on you? Come.

Kohei, how dare you come home crying?

If you lost in a fight, go back and fight again.

I'm not letting a loser into the house.

Mother...

A whining coward is no child of mine!

Kohei...

You must leave him alone.

It's a Satsuma mother's duty to teach her son...

not to be outdone by others, not to tell lies,

not to be rude, and not to talk back to his parents.

When you have a son, you'll have to harden your heart...

so that you can be a good mother.

We're home.

Welcome back.

Where's Kichinosuke?

He went after Kohei.

I'll go, too.

He didn't go to help.

When they're that worked up, neither side will give in easily.

Someone has to be there,

or they may not stop until someone gets killed.

Toshi...

Husband...

Kohei's fighting as if his life depended on it.

He'll be a courageous lad.

Fight harder, Yasuke.

Don't let Kohei beat you, Heihachi.

A man can't go to Edo unless he's strong.

So you held on to your opponent and didn't let go?

Yes.

Well done. You're a Satsuma boy, all right.

Shingo and Kohei aren't sniveling cowards, right?

Shouldn't they be rewarded, Kichijiro?

I've been invited to Shosuke's house tonight.

Would you boys like to come along?

Can we really?

Yes, since you fought bravely.

But you can't sleep over unless you behave yourselves.

Yasu and Taka, you'd better clean up and be on your way.

Where are you going?

We're going to Koto's house.

Kichinosuke, with your siblings gone tonight,

it may get lonesome, but I hope you'll manage.

More, please.

It's all right.

We did it.

Yes, and the girls will probably stay up talking all night.

We should do this more often.

I've had my bath.

It's oddly quiet tonight.

The bath water was nice. Thank you very much.

Have you gotten thinner?

No.

When will you know about going to Edo?

I'll do my best to raise some money by spinning...

and making umbrella frames.

I'll take good care of your grandparents, too.

I may not be the most capable wife,

but I'll take care of the family while you're gone.

Please take good care of yourself.

Toshi...

Toshi...

Don't go.

They planned it. You don't need to go tonight.

Edo - Abe Masahiro's Residence

Meanwhile, confusion reigned in the shogunate...

over a report from the Dutch factory in Nagasaki.

Tokugawa Nariaki of the collateral Mito branch...

was a strong foreigner expulsionist...

with immeasurable power in the government.

I know where Councillor Abe is.

Please, sir!

It doesn't matter where the foreign ships come from,

we must send them away immediately.

I beg to differ, but according to the Dutch,

the Americans have warships and an army in readiness,

so it may be wiser to open the country at this time...

and enter into a peaceful relationship.

Need I mention China's example?

We will be spied upon, invaded, and suffer great damage.

There will be no negotiations.

You are right, but the Opium War resulted from...

the bad start in relations between China and England.

Are you echoing Satsuma's opinion?

Lord Mito's obstinacy and the other lords' calls...

for peace at any price are putting Lord Abe to great straits.

The shogunate must think that it'll end with only a commotion...

and the American ships won't come.

They will be here.

Will they do us harm?

Very much.

I may be returning to Edo sometime this year.

Will you remain here or not?

No, I don't wish to leave your side.

You don't mind being rocked in a palanquin for 50 days?

Right, I'm a Satsuma woman.

A Satsuma woman is a long-suffering woman.

Right.

I see.

Yusuke. I would like to see that princess again.

The daughter of the Imaizumi Shimazu?

When?

As soon as possible.

That's right. Let's meet at the Iso Villa...

where we don't need to be so formal.

Kiku... Come with us.

Yes... No, I...

I thought you really like the Iso Villa.

Princess, the garden at the Iso Villa is beautiful, isn't it?

I was just thinking the very same thing.

I'm looking forward to seeing it.

What's going on?

- It's an ox. - Ox?

Out of the way!

Get that palanquin out of the way!

Hey, will you get off the road?

You must not get in the way of the palanquin.

I'm terribly sorry. Are you hurt?

No, we're all right.

I'll have him off the road immediately.

If you're a Satsuma ox, move without protest.

It's shameful to make trouble for others.

It's hard to tell which one is the ox.

Listen to me, or you'll get no supper.

That was a harrowing experience.

Not at all. The ox is usually quite placid,

but he ran away because he heard he was being sold.

When the man promised not to sell him,

the ox moved off the road as if he understood.

It sounds as if you and the man understand the language of oxen.

Yes. The man was strong as an ox...

He was courteous to me, too.

Please don't punish him.

And the man's name?

I think it was Saigo Kichinosuke.

Saigo Kichinosuke?

Sumiko, I asked you to come here for a purpose.

You are an intelligent woman.

Think carefully and reply to what I'm about to ask.

Yes.

First of all, will you let me adopt you?

Should you become my adopted daughter,

you will go to Edo with me someday.

As my daughter, you'll be a princess of the main house of Shimazu.

You'll no longer be able to claim those...

who raised you until now as your parents.

I can't tell you now what lies ahead for you.

But at this time, I want a daughter like you.

Kiku, our talk is over. Please entertain Sumiko.

May I ask something?

If I accept, will it be of help to you?

I knew you would do when I met you at New Year's.

I understand.

Welcome back.

Toshi...

Husband...

I'm sorry. I used my money on an ox.

On an ox?

The ox was crying at being sold;

the farmer was weeping at having to part with him.

And soon, my wallet was out...

I have this bad habit of not thinking ahead.

Please forgive me.

Is that all?

You'll forgive me?

There's nothing to forgive.

Kichinosuke! Is Kichinosuke home?!

What's wrong?

Your father collapsed after coughing blood.

Won't you eat just a little more?

You must eat to keep up your strength.

That's enough.

You must be tired after doing all your chores.

No, it's all right. I'll massage your legs now.

Thank you.

Kichinosuke's job keeps him busy,

so please think of me as his stand-in.

The Saigo family...

Yes...

almost came to an end during my brother's time.

My brother was a very honest young man...

who was assigned to the clan mansion in Edo.

But there was an incident of embezzlement.

Of course my brother would never do such a thing.

To prove his innocence, he committed seppuku.

Since he killed himself before judgment was passed,

we lost our stipend of 47 koku.

Now Kichinosuke's pay is our only income.

We are the poorest family in Kajiya Town.

You're in for some very hard times.

No.

What are you doing?

Catching eels.

Eels?

Yes, I have two sick people at home...

who need something nutritious.

I see.

There's one there!

Oh, I see it.

I got it!

Grandfather!

You mustn't cry. It was his time.

I wasn't able to do anything for him.

Kichijiro, we must prepare for the wake.

Yes.

I couldn't afford to let you eat white rice...

Please forgive me.

He enjoyed the eel...

Brother, because you were born first,

you had Grandfather with you the longest.

Kichinosuke...

Yes?

Why haven't you submitted your application to study in Edo?

How irritating.

If I were younger, I'd head straight for Edo.

Yes.

Weren't you a leader of the young men's group?

How can you not go along with our lord's hopes...

to develop young men?

As autumn deepened, Kichibei's illness gradually worsened.

If I were to die now, it would be very hard on you.

Father...

Grandfather and I wanted to restore our fortune...

before turning the family over to you.

We speculated on rice rations,

but with the changeover, they became worthless.

Now we owe a huge debt to Mr. Itagaki in Sendai.

I'd hate to die before taking care of that debt.

Father!

But I leave you with the lesson...

that a person unskilled at investing shouldn't try it.

To live honestly is the maxim for the Saigo family.

Yes!

Do you want to go to Edo, Kichinosuke?

No, I don't.

I wanted to send you to Edo,

but this is all I could do.

Kichinosuke.

I'm counting on you to look after the Saigo family.

Yes.

Kichijiro...

Yes.

Shingo and Kohei...

grow up quickly and help your older brother.

Yes.

Get some water.

Father!

Father!

In the fall of 1852,

the all too honest life of Saigo Kichibei came to a close.

He was 47 years old.

Kichinosuke took over as the head of the Saigo family,

but life was even harder.

Older brother...

Oh, thank you.

That was good.

Kichinosuke.

Goodbye, I'll go on ahead.

Goodbye.

What's up?

Kichijiro tells me you've given up on going to Edo.

I just can't see my way clear to going.

How frustrating!

A Satsuma warrior never complains.

Never mind. Edo will always be there.

There's no need to rush.

You've got to be prepared, too.

I trust Lord Nariakira...

and I can wait until my confinement is lifted.

But you Kichinosuke...

I must raise Shingo and Kohei to be fine young men...

and see that Taka and Yasu are married.

It's my duty to take care of the Saigo family.

You're right.

In response to Councillor Abe's repeated requests,

Nariakira hurriedly headed to Edo.

After careful screening,

15 men were chosen to go to Edo to study.

Among them were Oyama Kakunosuke and Arimura Shunsai.

Study hard!

Another misfortune came in hot pursuit.

Two months after Kichibei's death,

Masa followed her husband to the other world.

Father!

Mother!

Never in all my life have I ever been this sad.

While a couple was lost in sorrow,

Black Ships which would shake up Japan,

were approaching her coastal waters.

To be continued.