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Is he Utamaro the painter?

Yes, and the one next to him is the writer, Santo Kyoden.

That's the producer, Tsutaya.

What a party!

What do you think? Don't you think they perform very well?

Good plays are always welcome.

And the next play must be more magnificent.

What's your opinion, Utamaro?

Although the play is magnificent enough, only your talent can bring us surprise.

No way: luxury shows are prohibited by Prime Minister Matsudaira Sadanobu.

And the censorship may become stricter.

It's terrible.

Watch out! Watch out!

Hi, boss.

He is unprofessional.

Dao Heting shouldn't employ people like this guy.

How is the crippled guy doing?

His foot is badly injured.

Many people could replace him.

Your feet!

Once more!

Prime Minister Matsudaira Sadanobu is coming!

Lord Pin Chuan is becoming older and weaker.

Look at his serious face.

He looks so different from in the plays.

He must spend a lot of time maintaining his body.

Otherwise, he might have retired, and we'd feel bored.

People are worried about this year's show.

That's what we expect.

Yes...

Don't move! Don't move!

The time for revenge finally arrives.

That person killed your father.

And he is also the person who got your foot crippled, Mr Zhang.

Now it's time for revenge.

Come on, you coward!

I'll kill you!

Use my ancestral sword, kill them! Revenge!

Hurry up!

Revenge, revenge!

What a busy day!

What's wrong with you guys?

Nothing serious. We just want you to join us.

My name is A-Kuan. I'm their boss.

This is Zuo Ji and he is Quan Zhu.

Wait a second. I never said I wanted to join you.

Stop!

I know what happened to you.

I was there at that time.

The tickets were expensive. How could you have been there?

And you are not professional artists.

Watch your language!

We are street artists and we go to the theatre as well!

Don't forget what we live on.

So you're giving up?

I saw what's happening.

The ladder is more likely coming from your foot.

From MY foot?

But the one climbing up is another guy.

How could you climb up the ladder from your foot?

That's so silly.

Trust me!

I bet on you.

The stage is everywhere.

Join us and rove around.

Let's just call you... Tonbo.

- Is that OK for you? - Ha-ha, Tonbo!

They are all booked up.

Sorry for making you wait so long.

Hi, shopkeeper. I wanna buy this book.

Sorry, but Santo Kyoden's new book is sold out.

We're so sorry.

Forgive us.

Thanks a lot.

Spring comes lightly.

What are you doing?

Willow and cherry trees are turning green.

I wanna enjoy this scene with my lover.

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

So many people perform here.

So everyone should be rewarded by at least two or three thousand yen.

Ten thousand yen is welcome as well.

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Give us more for reward,

the more the better.

Two yen, three yen?

You think that's enough?

Where's your boss, Tsutaya?

Hey, CangZang.

Our boss went to Lu Denghu.

- Shut up! - Lu Denghu?

Tsutaya went to the brothel.

Who allows you to tell them the truth!

JiYuan Brothel.

Thanks a lot.

Thanks a lot!

You bastard woman!

Use some salt to get rid of the smell!

He is an official.

Hi, boss.

Where have you been? I thought you were dead.

We are doing business.

Get out if you don't want to make love.

Sweet...

You're a nice girl, especially your hair style.

Edo is really a nice place.

- So you like observing people's hair styles? - Yes...

You can know a person's personality by her hair style.

You can see whether she is a slut or not.

You're very cute.

No way!

This is my precious thing.

It's only a piece of paper.

It contains many wonderful stories.

I think some publishing house would like to publish them.

I must add some sketches.

Really?

The show will start very soon.

Excuse me, I'm leaving.

For what?

What a nice show...

Though it's prohibited, this show is welcomed by so many people.

Why... why...

They are as beautiful as fairies.

Bird Two!

Bird Three!

Put your hand in and you'll find a bird.

Thanks to Santo Kyoden, Tsutaya's business is going well.

When you said you wanted to stop writing,

I thought the Edo Novel would vanish.

Tsutaya would be over as well.

Enjoy yourselves!

Master Santo Kyoden.

Being popular may get you noticed by officials.

Hope there is no trouble.

What are you talking about? We should be proud of this.

It's popular in brothels, too.

You are as great as I think.

Your works are masterpieces ; no one could compete with you.

Leave us alone.

Yes.

Sorry for making you wait so long. Come in.

Oiran.

Let's just talk here.

Lord Tsutaya, Lord Santo Kyoden, Oiran is here now.

Freshwoman?

With a cat?

Beauty with a black cat. Must be a wonderful picture!

I must draw a picture for this beauty.

So you come here with a cat,

you are unique.

A customer gave me this cat as a gift.

So wherever I go, I bring this cat with me.

That's good.

I'll show you something today.

How beautiful!

Oiran, look at this.

I never saw such beautiful painting before.

So beautiful.

Who painted this?

Whom do you think this person should be?

SanGuo, QingZhang is good at painting beauty.

I see, QingZhang's beauty painting is the most famous.

So this is not his work?

It's Utamaro's work.

What kind of paint material is this?

It looks very good.

It's mica ore.

It's a new painting style, using mica ore.

It's really beautiful.

This costs a lot of money.

Tsutaya puts all his money in.

Wait for me here.

Hope you all have a good time.

Boss, something is wrong!

An arrest warrant from the official!

They want to arrest you...

and Mr Santo Kyoden.

What...

What happened?

It's about Santo Kyoden's painting.

Haven't we bribed them all?

There should be no problem.

But the arrest warrant is here.

That's impossible.

I've given them the money...

Must be someone reported it.

Bird Two up.

Bird Three up.

Spring comes lightly.

Willow and cherry trees are turning green.

I wanna enjoy this scene with my lover.

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Hello, Boss Tsutaya. Long time no see.

Who are you? I don't know you.

Don't you remember me? When I was still an Oiran...

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Get away! Get away!

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

What's going on outside?

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Get away!

It seems Tsutaya is in trouble.

Get away!

You bastard!

It's more and more interesting.

It hurts.

Bravo! Bravo!

Don't go there.

Watch out!

Be careful!

Don't worry, I'll take good care of it.

Let's go!

Yes!

Hi, boss. Are you OK?

Get a sedan, be quick!

Sedan, sedan...

Just like a nightmare.

Bearers, come here.

OK.

Boss, Mr Tsutaya.

It's forbidden to sell...

pornographic books.

The book written by Santo Kyoden,

is in breach of this rule.

He will be warned, as a punishment.

The 30 foot shop is reduced to 15 feet.

Half of my property is confiscated.

But all these things can't make me a half-man.

The punishment is so severe.

Their hands are cuffed and half of their property is confiscated.

Boss, this is a warning to us.

Tsutaya wants to earn big money from NiaoZhuan's books.

But his plan...

failed.

Boss, I hear the show of Zhong Cunzuo is not so popular on the first day.

Few people went to watch the show.

They quarrel over not paying enough money to the performers.

Even Tuan Shilang can't afford 1000 yen...

let alone Zhong Cunzuo.

Men are stubborn.

Women are more stubborn.

Watch your language. You want the boss to fire you?

You hear what they say?

Yeah.

I can't believe those three theatres could influence us.

- I don't know what's wrong with him. - I'm in a bad condition, too.

Shit!

How could you stand his behaviour?

He looks down upon us.

Or maybe he just looks down upon our skills?

Leave him alone.

He has many things to do.

Using his crippled foot?

Even though one's foot is crippled, one can also pursue one's dream.

Can I help you?

Aha, it's you again.

Nice painting skills.

Can't believe you are an amateur.

Hey, the handcuffer!

The more frugal, the better.

So many troubles recently.

The thrift rule makes the audience smaller and smaller.

The performer's salary is reduced from 1000 yen to 500 yen.

You mean there's no 1000-yen performers?

If this situation continues, there'll be no plays to watch.

Any good ideas? Mr Tsutaya.

The colour is bright.

If this bad situation goes on,

not only the performers will be influenced.

A-ha...

I know you.

You're the guy I met in JiYuan.

You were wearing women's clothes at that time.

Hi boss, is he your disciple?

No, he is only a temporary worker.

What a pity. He's got some talents.

I tried to persuade him before, but he refused.

He used to perform in Dao Heting Theatre.

Welcome!

JiYuan WuDing Street...

is just like it used to be.

Lamp Street is as prosperous as before.

Be quick, wipe it.

- May I come in? - This kind of life is not so bad.

CangZang is coming.

Santo Kyoden gave me this,

he wanted to give it to you through me.

I don't think you're tired of...

working here,

though I'm not so sure.

Tell me something about your thoughts.

If you don't say anything, we won't know what you want.

We can spend your money in any way we like.

We just don't want you to feel embarrassed.

You'll be regretful if you leave today.

Someone like them...

- Are you OK? - Boss.

- Bring him some blankets. - I'm OK.

I'll go on with my talk.

Get him a doctor.

I'm all right.

OK.

You must take good care of yourself.

Have a rest.

I'm worried.

Excellent skills.

This is not an ordinary thing.

It must be a rare masterpiece.

Sorry for letting you read this pornographic book.

No need to apologize.

I like it very much.

The details are very vivid.

The skills are just as good as...

those of professional painters.

You are a master at painting.

How could my painting be compared with yours?

Compared with those boring paintings,

these erotic art works are more explicit.

More people are addicted to this.

Thanks for your help.

You should go on with your works.

Only in this way could we let those guys live a luxurious life.

Feel the life with your heart.

Do you understand?

If you want your works to become popular,

you need more moving inspirations.

Seems magnificent from outside, but it's dull internally.

I'm sorry.

Do you know a guy named Utamaro?

He's really good at painting.

No, I don't know him.

It doesn't matter whether you know him.

Excuse me!

What's up?

Lord ZaoMa just arrived here, he's gonna come in.

He told me he wouldn't come.

It seems I have to face him this time.

- Get everything prepared. - OK.

ZhuTian from Hua ChuanHu.

Shichuan Tuanshilang.

Let's welcome him.

Shichuan Tuanshilang.

Shichuan Tuanshilang.

Nice.

Don't touch these important things.

If they are important, why don't you store them well?

So it's about to start now?

Sure. Teacher and Tsutaya like his performance very much.

Teacher is deeply impressed by his performance.

What do you think?

If you want to feel joy, just come here and watch his new shows.

JinTian,

Mr JinTian,

let's work together,

and kick their asses.

Follow me.

I hear your books are popular and Mr Tsutaya's property was cut in half.

So life must be very hard.

I hear another producer reported him to the officials.

Everthing is governed by spirit.

Namo Amitabha. Namo Amitabha.

The greatest...

Lord Silver Devil.

It's getting more and more interesting.

Take out your sword.

Take out your sword.

Take out your sword. Come on...

Come on!

- It's amazing. Attack! - Yes!

33 percent.

Be quick. Let's get out of here.

No play to watch now.

You are right: the time of kabuki is over.

Let's go.

What's up?

Calm down, calm down.

Don't go.

- Hurry Up! - What are you doing? - Calm down.

I really don't think you dare to escape again.

Now, remember this.

Here you are. What are you doing here?

You have a client.

Who is he?

The most famous Utamaro.

He's painting now.

Do you practice the steps?

Although many men want to see you, I won't let you meet other clients.

Your only client is me.

Let me...

buy a cat for you.

There is a kind of flower that explodes in hell.

Let me get rid of your handcuffs.

Boss! Boss! Congratulations to you!

It's great!

Congratulations to you!

It's my show-time now.

You wanna hit me?

No.

I'm sorry.

This thing happened so suddenly.

That's why I'm so angry.

I don't quite understand what you mean.

You must be joking, right? Have a cup of tea.

No, I'm not joking.

Now, listen carefully.

I, Utamaro, am the most famous beauty painter.

Of course, I know this.

But I'm not only a painter.

From day to night,

from south to north,

I meet many kinds of women.

I have fun with them. My beauty painting is well known among the people.

I see.

So you cooperate with HeWu for money?

Even though you are my teacher, you can't stop me.

But if I let you go...

Tsutaya will be sluggish?

Take my advice...

don't waste your money.

Kabuki is desolate now.

I'm HuangShizi.

NanZhijie.

- Do me a favour. - Sure.

I don't like that guy.

The one who paints in the studio? His name is Saito

I hear he is a kita-flow performer.

Painters are not so popular now. So they come here to find some work to do.

After Prime Minister Matsudaira Sadanobu

made that decree, all the performers are prepared to leave.

Thanks to them, we have work to do now.

Be quiet. It's our turn now.

Put it down.

QuZhe!

Stop!

Stop there!

I will not let you escape!

Come on!

That year, ZhongCunzuo was forced to close

In the second year, Matsudaira Sadanobu quit his position as councillor.

You are Mr TieZang.

Boss is waiting for you inside.

Since you move a lot, we don't know exactly where you live.

Boss has been looking for you for a long time. Weird man.

To paint his portrait for the performers?

Yes.

I don't want kabuki to be on the wane.

ZhongCunzuo, SanZuo and other theatres ; it's hard to go on with their business.

Only a few famous performers are left now.

No matter how hard it is,

I won't let the kabuki in Edo vanish.

I need your help.

This is my greatest wish.

You see, the performer portrait,

it's not rigid.

The face is close and vivid.

The material comes from the kabuki stage.

It will only attract many people's attention...

if I have good painters.

No matter how popular the book is, the key point is the performer's fame,

and it has nothing to do with the painter's skills.

What? What?

Don't talk to me in Utamaro's tone.

Boy, listen,

it's just the beginning. I have more to do.

I need your help.

So do you wanna take this risk?

So you agree?

It's a hard job.

It's not easy to compete with Utamaro.

He is a very good painter.

It's like a moth flying into a flame.

I feel sorry for you.

Stop.

Boss always has a very high standard.

You are lucky that he chose you.

But I think you'd better give up.

It's much easier to find a wife in FanTian Ting.

You can't make fun of him like this.

Don't you feel ashamed?

"Don't you feel ashamed?"

You read 'Outlaws of the Marsh'.

Tell me, what's in the book that attracts you ?

Look at you.

Were you really a warrior before?

Of course. My family was powerful in the area of JunFu.

So were you, CangZang, right?

I'm shocked.

But it's no longer a warriors' world now.

No matter how good your background is, if you wanna make a living,

you have to live together with others.

What's up?

Nothing important, I just wanna visit you.

- Not happy with your job? - Yeah.

Only a few customers recently.

If you have nothing important to say, I'm gonna leave now.

How about giving that cat back to her?

Tonight, XinZang's wedding banquet will be held.

Seems that some big bosses from GuYuan are invited as well.

It's been a long time since we met each other.

I want to have a talk with you at the wedding banquet.

So you haven't given up your dream, right?

Spring comes lightly.

Willow and cherry trees are turning green.

I wanna enjoy this scene with my lover.

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

What magnificent outfits!

Even more magnificent than Mr Utamaro's painted beauties.

Mr Utamaro is wonderful.

Just express your talents.

Spring comes lightly.

Willow and cherry trees are turning green.

I wanna enjoy this scene with my lover.

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Get him away!

Teach him a lesson!

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Give us more for reward, the more the better.

Nice painting.

You draw XuJi naturally?

It's just the same as Ban Silang's work.

I didn't even recognize that you're such a good painter before.

Nice painting!

Don't make fun of me.

My paintings are just some graffiti.

That's the best proof.

Really?

What they say on the stage are lies.

The lines they say are nonsense.

Have you ever heard them talk like us on the stage?

This is an ossified world.

What the audience see will not be real.

The audience are watching the performers most unreal faces now!

Such real lines can't impress them.

BiaoZang!

You can't talk like that.

This is not a place you can come into.

Get out!

Hey, what's wrong? You wanna fight?

Stop it!

You wanna fight? Fight with me.

I just wanna get him out of here.

You asshole!

Boss.

Do you have a plan?

Anyway, I won't give up.

I'll come back to the stage one day.

How could you go back on stage, with your crippled foot?

I believe there will be a way.

You like drawing very much?

No.

Or do you prefer performing on stage?

To tell you the truth, I'm a 'posterity painter'.

Really?

It's a kind of painter that paints in the street with sand.

- What does your father do? - I don't know.

My mother died when I was seven. After that, I followed her man.

I earn a little money by helping out.

Bad days.

Why does this kind of brutal thing happen?

I've made my decision. I will go to Edo.

I wanna achieve some big things in Edo.

You wanna go with me?

See you!

This is for you. You can use them when you paint.

Any price is OK for me.

Wait for my good news.

Are they the pictures that I want?

You just... only saw one or two pictures.

It's all the same, no matter how many pictures I see.

How could I, Tsutaya, admire these pictures?

That's so funny.

Now listen,

Utamaro never imitates, and he creates his own style, Utamaro Girls.

So he surpassed QingZhang, the one who is good at painting beauties.

You mean I should imitate other people's styles?

Yeah.

Seems you still don't understand what I'm saying.

Look at this.

- This is... - Utamaro's painting.

There's no signature, but I know it's Utamaro's style of painting.

It's really unsightly.

But his skill has improved a lot.

These Utamaro Girls will become more and more popular.

He grabs the essence of a woman's...

posture, smell and skin.

Very nice skills.

This kind of confidence is unique.

Listen, the performer portrait painting,

must exceed the Utamaro Girls.

Maybe it's too difficult for you.

Hey, TieZang.

It's not finished yet.

This is just my job.

Why are you so serious?

Don't you ever paint the same expression?

So what's wrong with these paintings?

Aren't they all my portraits?

I don't like these paintings.

It hurts.

It hurts.

Anybody here?

Who's there?

Your new neighbourhood.

Wait a second.

Sorry for disturbing you so early.

My name is TieZang. I came here to say hello to you.

My name is Okan.

These are my friends. We are street entertainers.

We are good people.

Are you an entertainer, too?

No.

I'm nothing but a painter.

So my neighbour is a painter?

My husband will be happy about this.

What do you mean?

I don't know why, but he's suddenly become very interested in painting.

Come in and have a cup of tea.

May I come in?

Sure. Sorry it's a little messy here.

What's wrong with you? Your face is pale.

Ahh... the picture is so...

He is the man that Tsutaya is looking for.

This Noh performer, ZuoDu,

so all his pictures are here?

Yes.

I use the leftovers to paint for other performers.

Really?

Then take these.

It'll be OK if the pictures are some performers' portraits.

These are only some boring pictures.

I think TieZang's pictures are more suitable.

What's up?

- Boss. - TieZang!

Where are you going?

What's up?

TieZang,

what's wrong with you?

Here you are.

Where did you get this?

I want to go to Edo City and find this guy.

He is my new neighbour.

That's all I can tell you. See you!

Wait, TieZang. Where is your new home?

TieZang!

He's only an ordinary man,

a man named TieZang.

Wherever he goes, he always paints.

I'm not a great master.

If we go on drinking like this, we won't see tomorrow's sun.

You are still worried about the future?

I like guys like you.

Are you a painter, too?

Yes, so?

BiaoZang gave me these tools.

I couldn't have painted those paintings without these tools.

I always want to try something new.

Is BiaoZang your master?

No.

Where is he now?

He went to Edo.

It would be great if he was together with you.

Maybe I can get some painting tools from him.

What do you mean?

You know what I mean.

Here you are.

I know it's you, the one I'm looking for.

Since I saw your work in ZhongCunwu,

I've always been thinking of you.

OK, let's come to the point.

I want you to paint portraits for the performers.

Not those scary heads, but the vivid portraits.

I've talked with the boss of SanZuo.

They allow us to paint performers in their theatres.

ChengTian House.

BinCun House.

DaHe House.

And some other theatres.

They all agree to help us publish our new paintings.

Our paintings will become very popular.

Isn't it very nice?

My name is Tonbo.

A-ha, your name is Tonbo.

I'm not a professional painter.

I'm looking for just such unshaped painters.

Though I haven't studied your paintings carefully, I can feel there is...

something attractive in your paintings.

Thanks for your praise.

So I'm your talent scout.

Trust me.

You mean I'm a talent?

Stop making fun of me.

I'm serious.

You were a kabuki performer before, right?

We do this for the revitalization of kabuki.

Isn't it a good chance?

Boss made Utamaro become a star before.

Utamaro?

That's right.

Utamaro's paintings are only about those mysterious women in his mind.

Right?

But there's some kind of wonderful feeling in your paintings.

What are you talking about?

What I'm talking about is my true feeling.

Wonderful paintings make people happy.

There's something in everybody's heart.

Neither you nor I know exactly what it is...

But I'm sure your paintings will become very popular.

Just do it.

Talking about such things is easy and free.

Easy and free?

We won't tell them who painted these pictures.

Just let them guess.

After they are popular and well-known,

then I will tell them your name.

What do you think? Sharaku.

Sharaku?

Yes. Sharaku is your new name.

Toshusai Sharaku?

Toshusai is Edo.

Sharaku means easy and free. That's the personality of an Edo man.

That's interesting. Toshusai Sharaku.

You must like it very much, too.

But without my permission,

you can't show these to others.

Goro, it's the same for you.

Yes.

Bring 20 yen to my room.

An important client is waiting for you.

Hi, Lord. Long time no see.

You don't often come here, recently.

It's Tsutaya.

Without a lover, the world is dark.

My shoulder hurts.

Shit!

Painting is hard for you?

You...

want your paintings to be perfect,

to be praised by others.

You need to put all your heart into your work.

But, up to now, you haven't tried your best.

So you can't paint the best picture at the moment.

Listen,

focus on your work.

Paint for yourself!

If painting is hard for you, then you are not Sharaku (easy and free).

You're KuYue (hard and painful).

Take it easy.

A rare visitor.

I found this lost dog, and I brought it back home.

Cute. Isn't it?

Tonbo has been lost for 10 days.

You must know where he is.

You know the guy who took him away, right ?

Goro?

What's going on? Tell me.

You know he performed on the stage before, right?

So what?

He was a good performer before his foot was crippled.

What's going on?

He paints the stage performers now.

So he won't come back here?

- I have no idea. - You bastard!

You bastard!

Forget him.

Do me a favour.

This is a secret.

Let me paint a picture for you.

I may get your balls crushed.

So please do me this favour.

Close the door.

What do you think of this painting?

Toshusai Sharaku?

Who is he?

Never heard this name before.

Who do you think he could be?

You?

Awesome!

There's a man named Saito Jurobei, in ZhongCun theater.

He likes painting portraits of Noh performers.

- I hear he is really good at painting. - Ah? Noh performers?

There're so many kinds of painting in Edo theatres.

Saito Jurobei.

Boss, this painting is really very nice.

But it seems very wild.

Doesn't look like it was painted by a professional painter.

Brush on some mica.

No need to waste it.

Only Utamaro uses mica.

That's why I wanna try it.

I see.

Boss, it seems much better now.

Is the man in the painting me?

These are ChengTian House's new works.

You must be joking.

Those are GaoLi House's works.

- Are those GaoLi House's works? - Yes.

What's this?

This pair of works by BinCun house are not very good.

The performers must wanna kill the painters when they see these pictures.

So scared, so scared.

FengGuo House sells this kind of picture, too.

The pictures in BinCun House are beautiful, too.

- Let's buy some there. - OK.

Is this a ghost? Like an abstract octopus.

LongZang is like burnt corn.

You are right.

I want my portrait to be shown in ChengTian House, too.

Have you found some performers you like?

What? It will scare the others.

It must work.

This painter, Sharaku, must have never watched kabuki before.

I agree with you.

Nobody buys.

I thought it would become very popular.

Seems that I'm wrong.

Excuse me.

I want this and that picture.

This picture, too.

- I wanna buy this picture. - Me too.

These are the newest performer portraits.

What you see is a new painter's picture. His name is Sharaku.

He is a new, rising talent in performer portraits in Edo.

Very similar.

There are some more.

Our performer Zuo Shilang.

The portrait is so big.

Have a look.

- Mr CiZang seems very happy. - Yeah.

But Fu Sanlang's chin is almost down to his chest.

Have a look.

No, I'm not like that.

I'm cuter than in the picture.

Look, ShiSong looks exactly the same as in real life,

especially his makeup.

I can almost hear him.

My neck and forehead are not like that.

I can't believe Tsutaya published such paintings.

Strange paintings.

Who will buy such an ugly painting?

It scares me.

Find out who paints these pictures.

It's Toshusai.

Find out who this Toshusai is.

Yes.

I can't paint paintings like this.

Tell me your name.

Oiran asked me to come here.

You were with Boss Tsutaya last time.

So we allowed you to come in.

You are only an attendant.

- You have no right to come here alone. - In fact, I'm...

I don't know why Tsutaya admires

a third-class painter called Sharaku so much.

Why do you look at me like that?

I'm not a beast.

No geisha girl would want to do business with you. Get away.

Don't try to do silly things.

This picture shows the performer is telling lies.

What Sharaku's painting shows is the ugly aspects of performers.

That's why the performers being painted don't like his paintings.

That's the main reason.

Does he want to show the ugly parts of human beings?

Master NanBo.

I believe all these pictures have their own significance.

Maybe there are some performers that you are familiar with.

What these pictures show are the most common faces on the stage.

Some are make-up performers, and some are ordinary audiences.

This is the apparent contrast.

Maybe he is a depressed painter, who has lost his target in life.

I agree with you.

Even Master NanBo spoke highly of his paintings.

I'm deeply moved, too.

This kind of painting will become very popular.

I see.

I'm going to make an investigation,

to find out who he is.

Will the world be changed because of his painting?

Or maybe just as the picture shows,

people will reveal their ugly aspects.

You are right.

So, Master Nanbo,

what kind of person do you think this Sharaku is?

He must have experienced many difficulties...

so that he could paint such ugly and worn faces.

Boss, have you made your decision?

It won't do any good if things go on like this.

How about painting their standing postures?

You can paint their clothes if they are standing,

not just focus on their faces.

Try something new and you'll become familiar with it very soon.

I won't paint standing postures.

Do I have those skills?

You must paint.

While you are on the way, you can't give up half way.

No, I won't.

Nobody can force me to paint things I don't like.

You are not a kid. You must go on painting.

Goro is right.

There is a kind of venom that flows in your paintings.

And you are that toxic element. You can't get known by other people.

Let Sharaku disappear for a while.

If you are over, then I'm over.

No matter what happens, we must go on with our business.

Goro,

you paint the parts below the neck.

For the clothes, the more luxurious the better.

So he changed his style at last. Did you find out who Sharaku is?

Yes, he lives in Tsutaya's villa.

Goro is with him.

Somebody said they are often seen together with a lame man.

A lame performer?

Yeah.

We also told this to some kabuki fans.

To arouse their feeling of shame.

Sure.

And they also said, they will beat him if they meet him.

We'll incite them, as you told us to.

- We will report to you if there's any news. - Yes.

Good morning, Mr Utamaro.

Fuck off!

What's wrong?

Fuck off! All of you!

Fuck off!

I want your fingers.

You are too important to me.

You are the most beautiful woman I've ever met.

That guy...

I won't forgive him.

See, those paintings are now printed on the fans.

This means Sharaku is accepted by the people.

It's time for Toshusai Sharaku to make his debut now.

Although his works are highly recognized,

there are some criticisms, too.

Don't care what they say ; being famous is the key.

Just as Goro said,

it's time to tell them who Sharaku is.

Sharaku will become well-known in the world.

I'm sure.

Yes, it's time now.

I guess ChengTian house's boss will be jealous,

if Sharaku becomes well-known.

QingZhang and Utamaro can't compare with you.

This firework is shining for you.

Hey, boss!

- Boss! - Hurry up!

Put him down lightly.

A strong man like the boss,

could be ill unexpectedly.

Thanks to you, Boss returned to the top again.

Those paintings have sold out.

Although we have two competitors, QingZhang and Utamaro,

we also have Sharaku.

I do this not to help you.

No, I know you do this for our boss.

I know that without TieZang's help, we can't beat Utamaro.

After that, you'll never imitate other people's work again.

Nobody is trustworthy in my eyes.

Tsutaya's the same.

But you've never been accepted by this world.

No matter whether it's me, or boss,

we're always considering this seriously.

I won't paint for performers, no matter how many times you persuade me.

Although I can't paint for performers,

I can paint another kind.

No need to imitate and I can paint it well.

It can't be imitated, either.

You look nice today.

Really?

Maybe it's because of the sunset. I look bad in the evening.

A-Chun is not here?

She is crying now.

My body is so weak ; no wonder she's sad.

Then what should I do?

That's a problem.

You are as beautiful as a princess.

Like Luna living on the moon.

And I'm like an old man, cutting bamboos there.

The moon welcomes me.

And I'm next to you.

Nice wine.

My beautiful bride...

Let me drink some.

Give me your glass. You should go paint.

Go!

I know! I'm not a prisoner!

They lock me in here all day.

I've never watched their performances before.

I can't paint for those performers.

I've brought something for you, Sharaku.

Although you say you can't paint for those performers,

these are the most popular performer portraits in Edo.

Nice.

Imitate these pictures.

This is ZhongCun, and this is Shanxia Jinzuo.

Performer portraits are for those who can't watch the performance.

Give them an immersive feeling.

If you are good enough,

they may feel the performers are around them.

Is that true?

Goro.

Boss is still lying on the bed.

He hopes you can paint some popular books.

But you are stubborn.

As a painter, you need to try different things,

if you wanna be recognized by this world.

Boss told you this?

I don't trust you.

I wanna talk with him.

Goro! I wanna talk with him...

After you finish your paintings.

If you don't paint, boss will go bankrupt.

You are his only hope.

Do not let him down.

He trusts you.

Come here. Let me show you how to paint quickly.

Paint like this.

Like this.

Have a try.

What's the matter?

You do it.

What's up?

I can't paint in that way.

Copying painting has a lot of fun in it.

Sharaku likes copying painting.

Tonbo! Sharaku!

- What are you doing? - I can't do it!

I can't imitate.

I can't do it, even though boss begs me.

You can't leave.

Ungrateful guy!

Boss won't see you again.

Now, listen,

even if you don't want to paint,

there are still many people who want to paint for boss in Edo.

Boss already saw through you.

He wants me to do the difficult parts.

Then I'm out.

Wait!

Let him go.

No use getting him back.

What a stubborn guy!

Goro.

I'm here.

Where is Sharaku?

He asks me to paint by myself.

I don't know if I'm qualified.

Who are you?

My boss wants to see you.

Could you go with me?

Who is your boss?

Are you Sharaku? We've been watching you for a while.

After tonight, I won't be Sharaku any longer.

So I'm not Sharaku.

Don't try to escape ; it's too late.

Let's see our boss now.

Who's your boss?

Don't be scared when you hear our boss's name.

So you are Sharaku, just as I thought.

It's useful to keep watch on Tsutaya's house.

I didn't know you could paint.

What do you want?

Let him go.

Yes.

Take off your clothes.

Be quick!

Yes.

Put on their clothes.

You, too.

For what?

You two escape from here together.

You are an eyesore.

I can't stand your paintings.

Not only me, many people hate your paintings.

Take her and get out of Edo.

This woman is useless to me.

Disappear from here now.

OK?

You are a clever woman.

You must know how much this brothel will lose if you leave.

Haven't you planned to elope with him for a long time?

Wanna go home? Lord Utamaro.

Yeah.

What's wrong with your foot?

Just a little cut.

Ahh.

Sorry about that.

There is a kind of flower that explodes in hell.

They are coming.

Go.

I'm only a prostitute.

Yeah.

Escape, yourself.

Don't worry about me.

I don't even know what your name is.

What's your real name, Sharaku?

Got them.

Go back with us!

I love you!

You asshole!

- It's Tonbo! - Tonbo!

Tonbo!

Tonbo!

Tonbo!

It must be very painful.

But at least you have a beautiful memory now.

I won't leave you.

You promised me before,

wherever we go, we should be together.

Kansei 9

Tsutaya died

JiYuan WuDing Street is just like it used to be.

Lamp Street is as prosperous as before.

JiYuan WuDing Street is just like it used to be.

Lamp Street is as prosperous as before.

Beware of fire! Beware of fire!

Beware of fire! Beware of fire!

Beware of fire!

I'll come back again.

Although Sharaku's paintings are performers' portraits,

they also show the performers' ugly aspects.