Original subtitles

About 130 years ago,

this city was born during turmoil in Japan.

Just a small fishing village in 1860, Yokohama was destined to be a major city...

after being designated as the only place foreigners could live.

The Shogunate wanted to isolate foreigners far from the Tokaido (main road).

But, soon the foreigners received the right to travel freely.

From ice cream to newspapers, with only a few hundred people,

they could build a complete functional town.

Diplomats and traders started to influence the Edo Shogunate...

with weapons, ammunition, and military ships.

It was only 5 years after the port was open to foreigners...

that attacking foreigners started outside the village.

Joi (Expel the barbarians)

It was known at that time that the safest stretch of the Tokaido...

was from Namamugi Village to Kawasaki.

Tobu ga Gotoku

Episode 19: Foreigner Assassination

Screenplay: Osanai Mieko

Original Story: Shiba Ryotaro

Music: Ichiyanagi Toshi

Original subtitles: TV Network Japan, Inc.

Subtitle Transcription: Rashomon

Additional translation/Timing: Kame Fansubs QC: Avallac'h

Narrator: Kusano Daigo

Cast

Saigo Kichinosuke: Nishida Toshiyuki

Okubo Ichizo: Kaga Takeshi

Aikana: Ishida Eri

Oyama Kakunosuke: Kanie Keizo

Komatsu Tatewaki: Ohashi Goro

Matsudaira Shungaku: Isobe Tsutomu

Ikushima: Kiki Kirin

Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu: Mitamura Kunihiko

Tenshoin: Fuji Junko

Iwakura Tomomi: Kobayashi Katsuya

Shimazu Hisamitsu: Takahashi Hideki

Producer: Yoshimura Fumitaka

Director: Komatsu Ryuichi

June, 1862

This town seems to be unsettled.

The day after his arrival in Edo,

Hisamitsu called upon Matsudaira Shungaku.

The only way to achieve government reforms...

is to have you as the administrative deputy...

and Lord Hitotsubashi, the shogun's guardian.

Thank you, but I must decline.

Why?

The administrative deputy's position will become...

the most important position in the shogunate.

Echizen is a collateral house of the Tokugawa.

I'm aware of that.

Since the establishment of this shogunate,

the 'fudai' daimyo have always been in charge of administration.

Which is truly a vexsome arrangement.

My late brother Nariakira...

worked for government reforms to the end.

Speaking of Lord Nariakira,

how is Saigo Kichinosuke who was often with him?

He's gone.

Gone?

He's been banished.

Meanwhile, Ohara Shigetomi, the Imperial envoy,

had entered Edo Castle according to Ichizo's plan...

and presented to Shogun Iemochi the Imperial mandate...

which they had devised with Iwakura.

I humbly ask you to accept it.

I accept it respectfully.

To the shogunate, nothing could have been...

more distasteful than this.

Still, it is an Imperial directive.

It is not an Imperial order.

It was obviously issued under pressure...

from Satsuma, not by the Emperor's will.

The Imperial Court has never been known...

to interfere in the shogunate's administration.

If we comply to this, they will say we were afraid...

of Satsuma and the shogunate will lose its authority.

You have this wrong, Your Highness.

Please let the Council handle this.

All right. Do as you see fit.

It's a good thing Your Excellency came with us.

You could assert yourself with the Shogun, whereas,

Lord Hisamitsu wouldn't even have gained admittance.

Although, you were a little rustic to be my servants.

Yes, I was in a cold sweat for fear that everyone would...

know we were from Satsuma the minute we spoke.

It's nothing to laugh about.

Matsudaira Shugaku, as well as the Council,

suspect our clan of sinister designs.

If our proposals for reform do not pass,

not only would it make Lord Hisamitsu's trip a farce,

but it will also affect the Emperor's authority.

I know. I am also a loyalist.

Even if I die, I can't go back to Kyoto...

without an answer from the shogunate.

Though we may be serving under the Envoy,

make no mistake, we're Satsuma warriors inside.

We'll cross swords with the Councilors if the need arises.

It's important to have that frame of mind.

Look here, am I to cross swords, too?

Yes.

Edo - Satsuma mansion

The shogunate is the head of the military houses after all.

Though the Kyoto nobles trembled at the sight of...

our 1,000 troops, the shogunate has set up a resistance.

How cowardly they all are.

Still, you must make it clear to them...

that I have no ulterior motive.

Now, the problem about the rank and succession.

What do you mean by 'succession'?

The Council won't hear me or admit me to Edo Castle...

because I am not a clan lord.

Address the shogunate about this, will you?

Lord Mochihisa has officially succeeded...

to the headship of the clan already.

That's why I also want help from the Inner Palace.

Understand?

He wants to retire his own son so that...

he can take over the headship of the clan?

Since a daimyo needs the shogunate's permission...

to succeed to the headship of a clan, if Lady Tenshoin...

will use her influence with the shogun's family.

Okubo...

Kichinosuke used to mention your name often.

Just as I was feeling relieved at hearing that...

he'd been reinstated, I hear he's been exiled again.

I came out eagerly, thinking that you were going to ask...

Lady Tenshoin to sway Hisamitsu into pardoning Kichinosuke.

But what do I get? An appeal from Hisamitsu...

for help in unseating his own son.

How can you expect me to take such a request to her?

I'm sorry.

I'm the one who's sorry.

And he wants to be invested with the rank...

of ju-shi-i-no-jo-chugo?

That's the highest rank a daimyo can hold.

It can't be bestowed upon some non-ranking nobody.

What kind of man is this Hisamitsu to not know that?

I've never been so disgusted and disappointed.

Let's say that this never took place.

I knew Kichinosuke was good-natured, but how could...

he have such a presumptuous man for his best friend?

Kichinosuke, I feel like crying.

Never have I been so embarrassed.

That's because he's not familiar with Edo customs.

That may be true, but this trip of Hisamitsu...

They say that one misstep can split the country in half.

And if we get involved, we'll invite undue suspicion.

Please be careful.

Only, we won't find out Saburo's true intentions that way.

It's so frustrating not having Saigo here.

What good will it do to keep whining about that?

If Saburo refuses to listen to reason,

in order to get Satsuma to reconsider,

we must make it clear that we'll support the Shogun...

as members of the Tokugawa family to prevent turmoil.

Is that understood?

So, they wouldn't listen to my request.

They say the right to bestow ranks belongs to the Court.

For the shogunate to break with precedence,

it would only lead to trouble...

and be of detriment to the Emperor.

I'm truly sorry.

I'll pursue this matter with the Council.

Never mind about that.

Since the Court ordered the governmental reforms,

the shogunate must be made to accept the mandate.

Do you understand that you must work all the harder,

since I'm not allowed in the castle?

Oh, Oyama.

Are you agreed to this assault on the Councilors?

Assault on the Councilors?

Shunsai is gathering some warriors together.

If it's for Satsuma, I'll join them.

It's just that I can't trust Shunsai.

What is going on?!

You don't need to worry about a thing.

What will you gain by killing the Councilors?

Can you bear this insult?

Half a month has gone by since we came to Edo.

There's no other way but to bear down on...

the Councilors and force them to accept the proposals.

Don't bother about us. Just go back to Kyoto...

with the Envoy and Lord Hisamitsu.

We'll stay on to kill the key officials in the shogunate.

What happens after you've killed them?

Satsuma's devotion to the Emperor and country...

will become known to everyone.

I understand.

Then you're with them?

- No. - Why not?

Although there's reason in what you say,

Lord Hisamitsu hasn't said that he's leaving Edo yet.

What good will such extreme actions accomplish now?

It's too soon to take action.

How long must we wait?

I promise that I'll tell you when the time comes.

Please, for the sake of the country, do not act rashly.

I'll vouch for him, so give up your plans.

We must hand it to Ichizo when it comes to ingenuity.

How do we justify killing our old comrades to get here?

If Satsuma suffers shame in Edo, I'll kill you.

That's fine with me.

Should it come to that, I'll let you kill me.

Shunsai, you're a witness to this.

I understand.

Listen, folks!

In the gathering gloom by Chiyoda Castle's moat...

picture, if you will, 10 or so suspicious shadows...

of burly men with shoulders squared come and go.

It was by this moat's edge that...

the notorious Regent Ii met his end.

Can you blame the alerted bigwigs for shuddering so?

To guard against break-ins, fires, and especially, assassins,

nary a person left the castle that day.

I had this from the tea master...

and thought I'd have my day of business.

Who could be making our pompous officials quail?

This will tell you. Buy one and read all about it.

You there, sir...

Thank you for your patronage.

Enjoy your meal.

Thank you.

These suspicious shadows couldn't be...

Yes, Shunsai and his comrades.

I thought he gave that up.

He's given to threatening them instead of killing them.

What a vexing fellow he is!

Not so loud!

It seems Shunsai has managed to place...

inadvertent pressure on the shogunate.

Now, it's the envoy's turn at the screws.

The Council isn't withholding the answer out of choice.

Then fix a date.

It is not in our power to fix the date.

If we could have a little more time...

Is that so? Then, as the Emperor's agent,

I must give it some thought.

If you do not accept the Imperial mandate...

We respectfully accept the mandate.

Not wanting to be killed for ignoring the Emperor's will,

Itakura accepted the Imperial mandate for the shogunate.

Tokugawa Yoshinobu is hereby appointed...

as the shogun's guardian, and...

Matsudaira Yoshinaga, the administrative deputy.

I humbly accept.

You're sitting at the threshold. Sit there.

I'm a vassal's vassal. I couldn't possibly sit in...

a seat placed higher than the shogun's kinsman's seat.

That's right.

My felicitations on this occasion.

It has been my brother's dearest wish and mine...

to work for harmony between the Court and shogunate.

Now that this has been achieved, I'd like to give...

my life to working for you, the Court, and the shogunate.

By the way, where is that mastiff-like man?

Saigo Kichinosuke, who was favored by Lord Nariakira.

It's too bad that he's not here today.

I was going to scold him soundly.

Has he offended you, too?

I was thinking of the good of the country.

He's a great fool who rocks the foundation of Japan...

by being unable, despite Lord Nariakira's training,

to quell Satsuma's ill fame from threatening...

the Council members and resorting to force.

But, Lord Nariakira himself said that he was...

the only one who could handle that wild horse.

Tokunoshima

Your message came by yesterday's boat.

I was so happy to hear that you gave birth...

to a baby girl that I cried.

However, you mustn't come to see me.

This time, I am here under punishment.

I don't want you to be punished, too.

"you must not make such a strenuous trip.

"I will always be thinking of you.

"Please take care of Kikujiro. -- Kichinosuke"

Thank you. You read that very well.

Pleasant dreams, both of you.

Good night.

Is there a way to get to Tokunoshima?

Aikana!

I want to show this child to my husband.

Don't be unreasonable.

I was resigned to never seeing him again,

but now, he's on a neighboring island.

The baby isn't strong enough yet.

Nor are you recovered from the birthing.

Give it up. The right time will surely come.

Saigo-sensei!

Did the two of you...?

Not just the two of us.

Aikana!

Kikujiro!

Father!

How you've grown!

There was a boat going to the Ryukyu Islands...

and the officials gave us permission...

I couldn't wait to show you the children.

Is this my daughter?

She's named 'Kikuso' for 'chrysanthemum plant.'

What a good girl.

Husband...

I'm wicked to be so happy that you're close...

to us when you've been exiled again, aren't I?

No, I'm the one who's terrible.

While I was running about the capital,

I never gave a thought about you or the children.

But when I came here, all I thought of were you.

I thought that if I settled here,

I'd be able to see you someday.

This is like a dream.

How Kikujiro has grown.

You must be exhausted. Get some sleep.

Who is it?

Nakahara, it's you.

What's up?

Word came from the clan by today's boat.

You are to be moved to Okinoerabu Island...

by order of Lord Hisamitsu.

It pains me to tell you that the boat departing tomorrow...

morning for the Ryukyu Island awaits you in Inokawa Harbor.

Aikana...

Kichinosuke and Aikana were fated never to be together...

no matter how hard they tried.

On August 21st...

Hisamitsu left Edo and headed for Kyoto.

Some foreigners are trying to cut in on the procession.

Kill them!

Arimura!

Don't do anything rash!

It's a warrior's compassion.

Shunsai!

Reform the procession.

What shall we do?

I'll take care of it.

What about the procession?

There's nothing else to do but go on.

I'll leave it up to you.

It may be safer to go beyond Kanagawa...

to stop for the night.

All right.

Forward!

An Englishman had been killed.

This was the so-called Namamugi Incident.

What?! A foreigner was killed in broad daylight?

That's right.

Are they the offenders?

No, the killer was Okano Shinsuke...

a former foot soldier who had left the clan.

He came to see his former lord's procession...

and was angered by the foreigners' discourtesy.

He fled after chastising them.

The procession has continued on...

because of the unexpected delay this has caused.

I'm leaving these two behind as witnesses...

to give testimony during the inquiry.

Wait!

The Namamugi area is within the promenade boundaries of...

the Yokohama settlement. It is a grave matter...

if a foreigner has been hurt there.

Do you call yourselves warriors?

What?

We have a law that says a daimyo has the right...

to kill anyone who impedes his procession.

Since he was a foreigner,

his country is bound to raise objections.

Satsuma has already declared to the shogunate our stand...

on foreigners' riding everywhere, heedless of manners.

Should they give offense, we may not pardon it.

You must make the foreigners understand...

our laws on daimyo's travel on the highway.

Do you understand?!

This is not something for a post-town official to argue,

but a problem for which the shogunate should take...

the responsibility and resolve!

Wait!

Wait!

After creating such an incident,

he goes on as if nothing had happened.

We can't overlook this. Close the barrier at Hakone...

and stop Hisamitsu from going to Kyoto!

Calm down.

No, we should send an army after Hisamitsu immediately.

You may talk of attacking him,

but he has 1,000 men with him.

What clan is equal to do battle with him?

That's the spirit! Ready?

What's going on here?

Ah, Ichizo. You've come back at a good time.

We were just about to go and kill everyone...

in the foreign settlement.

What are you saying?! You mustn't do that!

What if the foreign soldiers come after us?

We must all make a stand here.

A reckless foray will only make matters worse.

Think of this inn as a fort and defend it.

Excuse me for starting.

It's all right.

I'm truly grateful to you.

I was so worried about what would have happened...

if you hadn't been there.

All that remains for us is to rebuff...

whatever the shogunate may say.

Well, I'm glad that you're all right.

And Lord Hisamitsu?

He's already retired for the night.

He's sound asleep.

Sound asleep? After all that's taken place?

The political scene in Kyoto had changed...

in the 3 months that Hisamitsu was gone.

The cry for monarchism and expulsion of foreigners...

had replaced the call for Court-shogunate unity.

What is the meaning of this 'tenchu'?

It means, 'to punish the guilty in the name of Heaven.'

I know that! Why should Choshu be punishing...

the supporters of the Court-shogunate harmony...

which was proposed by my brother and advocated by me?

I didn't come all the way from Satsuma...

to create a world so lost to order.

The nobles are something else.

As soon as Choshu showed any strength, the nobles...

changed sides and took the rug from under us...

while we were away on our mission.

I can no longer trust them.

The schemers from Choshu managed to take...

advantage of the nobles' cowardice and greed.

Then quickly make counter-plans!

With Kyoto like this, I can't stay a moment longer!

Fearing for his life due to drastic changes in...

Kyoto's political climate, Iwakura had sequestered...

himself in Kyoto's remote countryside.

It can't be helped. Nobles always fall for money.

The Court switched to the expulsionist party because...

the monarchists had used the same methods as Satsuma.

If you're talking about loyalists, Satsuma is...

Satsuma is thoroughly loyal to the Emperor.

It was Lord Nariakira's dearest wish to achieve...

harmony between the Court and shogunate and to build...

a strong nation able to stand against foreign powers.

The extremists say that they can't tolerate...

the compromise and feel it their duty to elevate...

the Court and depress the shogunate.

Having proved myself a supporter of the shogunate...

by promoting the marriage of Princess Kazunomiya to the Shogun,

I've been declared the Court's enemy and forced into exile.

Even if I weren't exiled, I'd have thought it best...

to hide out here in Iwakura Village since men...

who were after my head were hanging about my mansion.

While there's life, there's hope.

How deplorable.

Don't speak as if it doesn't concern you.

You'd better plan something quickly.

With Satsuma's popularity dropping daily,

you may soon be declared enemy of the Court.

Tosa and Choshu have denounced...

all who stand in their way enemies of the Court...

in their desire to become 'king of the hill.'

That's an outrage.

They say that they're only doing what Satsuma did.

What makes them say that Satsuma did wrong?

Ask yourself that.

Imperial Envoy Ohara, whom you took to Edo to realize...

Nariakira's outmoded plan, was only a showpiece.

Even the shogunate knew that.

All the same, they'd have to yield to your demands...

if you threaten them with your cannon.

You met with success because the foundations of the...

shogunate were already decayed and gave way to force.

Why is Lord Nariakira's plan outmoded?

If times were like they were,

would we be able to speak to each other like this?

It began with Lord Nariakira advocating shogunate reforms...

to make the world better. It had widespread support.

Now, it's the lowly ronin challenging the shogunate...

in the name of the Emperor.

It's the passing of times.

And the current is frighteningly swift.

Furthermore, robberies committed under the guise...

of the Royalist cause have cropped up.

I'd hope that you'd be aware that Shimazu Saburo...

is guilty of giving rise to this trend.

Let me assign a bodyguard to you.

That's too dangerous.

If I am linked with Satsuma, my seclusion will be useless.

I'd never have enough heads to satisfy all my assailants.

I appreciate the thought, though.

There was a mosquito.

Since we've accomplished what we set out to do,

we're going home for now and come again another time.

Like the turbulent passage of the times...

a merciless storm was raging over Okinoerabu.

You can't live on cold rice and water.

My death has been ordered.

It's up to Heaven to decide. There's no need to worry.

To be continued.