"The Tokugawa Shogunate's 400th Anniversary." "This story has nothing to do with that. and Fuu have at long last reached Edo." "and we're already getting a lucky break!" "all-you-can-eat deal?" "we're going into this thing to win!" "so this little event is like manna from heaven." "there's really no need for us to win." "please!" "The registration fee." "One shu." "it's not free?" "we wouldn't be here." "you claim the whole pot." "then... okay?" "What about your samurai friend there?" "but I can't simply hand over the embodiment of a warrior's soul to..." "Hey." "and you'll get them back." "Hold it!" "Just think of it as handing them over for safe keeping." "there ain't no way we're gonna lose." "let's stuff our faces!" "And they're off!" "It has finally begun!" "The Wonderland of Food!" "big eaters from all over the city are here in full force today!" "The rules are simple." "The contestant who eats the most wins!" "and our dish is eel rice bowls topped with plenty of that main ingredient that all Edo kitchens boast." "I'm Edo's #1 gossip! To hell with vegetarianism!" "It is an honor." "everyone is now underway." "the winner from the year before last." "Father Ingen?" "but she is the Queen of Sweets." "It remains to be seen just how long she can keep this up." "Give me another!" "the man with the bottomless gullet!" "Sounosuke of the Mujina tenements!" "I'd expect nothing less from last year's champion!" "Another! we have a rather well-mannered rule of putting your hands together in the traditional gesture of "I'm done eating." "my!" "We have a contestant making the "give up" sign already!" "This was fast!" "This was too fast!" "Why in the world did this bespectacled man even bother to come here?" "!" "I am ashamed." "win back my swords." "we're now seeing a flurry of contestants retiring!" "This is a veritable survival game!" "Who will be the last one eating?" "!" "Don't even think of stopping." "My swords are on the line here." "damn you!" "my!" "Another contestant is down!" "That leaves us with only three!" "the man with the bottomless gullet!" "the Queen of Sweets!" "And a newcomer!" "A mysterious giant!" "I'm sorry!" "I missed one!" "We have one more!" "We have one more contestant!" "she seems to be a young girl of tender years!" "at about the same time." "What's this?" "Have the Queen of Sweet's chopsticks stopped moving?" "An official is going over to her for verification as we speak." "Could she possibly be..." "He's signaling "no good"!" "She's retired!" "Impossible..." "How could I possibly lose?" "I won't accept defeat." "I refuse to accept defeat!" "How can this possibly be?" "!" "is finally down!" "Another!" "Another!" "Another!" "T-This girl's stomach is a cosmos unto itself..." "It's connected to the void of the universe!" "the unthinkable has happened!" "These two newcomers are locked in one-on-one combat!" "they both have done what no eater has done before and broken the 27 bowl barrier!" "we have finally gotten the personal data on these two contestants." "15." "his name is..." "I can't read it!" "And do my eyes deceive me?" "These two have picked up their pace even more!" "The cooks are having trouble keeping up with them!" "Don't underestimate Anago's cooks!" "How much food can a human being eat?" "Where have we been?" "Where are we going?" "!" "Their forms are like unto the gods themselves!" "Truly awe-inspiring!" "I am moved beyond words!" "It may be that we are now bearing witness to the very instant that the human stomach evolves and takes itself to a new level." "Stupid fly!" "my!" "She gives up!" "I don't believe it!" "She's made the "give up" sign! our winner is the large mystery man!" "I win!" "Yay!" "This can't be happening..." "Why the hell did you put your hands together when you were doing so well?" "There was a fly!" "anyway?" "Get off my case." "My swords... you people!" "Those swords!" "you put up good fight." "Are you girl ninja?" "I'm not a ninja." "you are not?" "Then you should have said so in first place!" "Why would I even need to point that out to you?" "or does this guy talk kinda funny?" "He does!" "He sure does!" "And do his eyes look blue to you?" "They are!" "They're blue!" "You talk nonsense." "And does his hair look red to you?" "It is!" "It's red!" "M-My name is Jouji." "I am a Japanese." "Do you not believe me?" "More importantly..." "Those swords are my life." "Will you return them to me?" "I won't." "did ya?" "I'm not asking you to return them for free." "will you work?" "What?" "I want to do Edo sightseeing." "I give them to you as pay." "no can do." "We don't know anything about Edo." "We'll go wherever you want." "we could be spending it looking for the sunflower..." "I used to be known as The Edo Tour Map." "You liar." "We've received reports that a European is wandering around here in disguise." "Have you seen anybody like that?" "Huh?" "A European?" "I'm not sure." "I don't think so." "I haven't seen anybody like that." "Kaminarimon" "Oh!" "Is this the famous Kaminari Man?" "this is..." "Kaminari Man!" "So impressive!" "would you say something to the man?" "huh?" "and that's Man #2." "Wow... sir!" "yes?" "Do you have to make such a racket all the time?" "what are their stomachs made of?" "yes?" "that's... leave 'em be." "A European?" "There was really one here?" "We received a tip that a man fitting that description was in the eating competition." "there was a large man about this tall who talked awfully funny." "Is that who you mean?" "That's him!" "Yay!" "Tamoyo!" "Kagiyo!" "Yay!" "Yay!" "I can't believe how much you two can eat." "I always have room for free food." "The sun has set." "Surely you've seen enough of Edo by now." "not yet." "I see more." "There are lots more!" "This is great!" "people!" "Pay close attention." "We've received a report that a European is in this restaurant." "Hiding him wouldn't be in your best interest." "Harboring him makes you an accomplice!" "Is that clear?" "it puts me in a harboring kind of mood." "What?" "punk?" "and you'll live to regret it." "Hey!" "You've got some guts." "but it's in your own interest not to resist." "I'd apologize while I still had the chance." "and I wanna resist even more." "Hey." "Gimme that sword on your back." "I do think not." "you bastard!" "You!" "You're the European!" "Arrest all of 'em!" "Whoops!" "Let's go!" "Damn it!" "Where'd they go?" "What were you thinking?" "Why do you have to stir things up?" "Guys like that piss me off." "I can't help it." "What'll we do if we won't be able to stay in Edo because of this?" "We won't be able to look for the sunflower samurai!" "Geez!" "traditional Japanese beauty!" "Is this her house?" "Of course it isn't." "right?" "This is no time to take in a play." "This is last!" "This is last!" "I give back your katana swords." "then." "wait a minute!" "Noriemon!" "Nakamuraya!" "How beautiful!" "that was..." "Ouch!" "I love that person!" "I go to see!" "go see"?" "Wait a minute!" "Do you think he knows?" "No way." "You are a man?" "it was a guy under all that." "You didn't know that?" "How can this be?" "cut it out." "I..." "like man... even better." "And you are exactly my type." "Will you listen to my story?" "I am not really a Japanese." "I come here from Holland." "Thou shalt not lie with mankind... they treat me like deviant." "I was very depressed." "I come across a certain book." "The book of Saikaku Ihara of Japan. "The Great Mirror of Male Love." "it was very shocking." "carnal desires to gush forth." "it is a means by which extraordinary time and space." "It is in no way a vulgar thing. but is even more profound." "bushido was built around the solidarity and cohesiveness of a male group which had expelled all women. and spill their red blood in the act of ritual suicide." "the philosophy of bushido has much in common with the path of male love." "Japan is wonderful!" "Wonderful culture of man love!" "I think that Japan would be country like heaven on Earth." "You!" "The European and the insolent bunch who are sheltering him!" "Surrender peacefully!" "Why do you arrest me?" "I do not do anything wrong. there's no law saying that foreigners are allowed to!" "What insolence!" "I won't stand for it!" "T-They're all Europeans!" "too!" "screw you!" "You can kill that one if you want!" "I give your sword back!" "too!" "Mugen!" "I know!" "Wow!" "Samurai sword fight!" "Sir!" "Please wait!" "What's with those guys?" "Are they the next act?" "Samurai!" "hold it right there!" "This is more like it!" "Nakamuraya!" "hold it!" "Can't you see this official order?" "!" "Scarlet Seal" "That's... the scarlet seal of the Shogunate!" "Allow me to inform you of this man's true identity." "Governor-General Izaac Titsingh!" "W-We humbly beg your forgiveness for our insolence!" "What's that mean?" "That means that he's a special foreigner who has official dispensation from the Shogunate." "Allow me to introduce myself." "assigned by the Shogunate as their interpreter." "let's go." "I... don't want to go." "the day of your audience with the Shogun is almost here." "We've told him that you had fallen ill." "I can't stay?" "you can't." "I see..." "I had hoped that I could live in this country as a Japanese." "But I suppose that is not possible yet." "cheer up." "the day will come when this country will accept people like me." "I am sure that this country will stop being so tight assed one day." "buddy?" "I want to show you my gratitude." "We didn't really do anything to earn it." "If you'll excuse us." "See ya!" "wait for me!" "I want to ask you something." "what is it?" "Do you know anything about a samurai who smells of sunflowers?" "I've been looking for him for a long time." "I am sorry." "it was we Dutchmen who bring sunflowers here." "Do you have any more clue to go on?" "right!" "but I do have something that belongs to him." "Keep this hidden away." "It is very dangerous thing in this country." "Do not let anyone see it." "Why not?" "There is only one thing that I can tell you." "I am sure that you will find some answers." "Nagasaki... wait!" "what do we do now?" "Isn't it obvious?" "Huh?" "Hey!" "the Edo Chapter" "The End" "Huh?" "Is it?" "the Nagasaki Chapter starts!" "seriously?" "I wasn't told of this." "Check it out!" "Spring is announced when the wild plants break out in a dance." "and in the fields are patterns of grass set out to dry." "let's celebrate its fullness." "and I count off the days and months again." "I can still see the too-distant blue sky when I close my eyes. (It was so warm.)" "I take your hand as I pluck flowers and sing (There is no clue.)" "within the memories that are now coming back to me." "I'm setting out to find my way back to you." "Spring is announced when the mountain leaves break out in dance." "and textiles with plains grass patterns are set out to dry." "let's celebrate its fullness." "and I count off the days and months again. my dreams becoming distant apparitions." "the wind I felt every time you held me as I was bathed in the light that followed on your heels." "Haru o tsuge odoridasu sansai." "Natsu o miru Uji nohara karakusa kawaku wa." "Aki no tsuki nobotta manmarusa o-iwai." "Fuyu o sugi mata tsukihi o kazoeru." "Mada mabuta no oku ni aru itsuka no natsu toosugita aozora. (Atatakakatta.)" "Te o tsunagu hana tsukamiutau itsuya omoide (Ate wa naku.)" "kioku no naka de." "anata no moto e." "Haru o tsuge odotte sanba." "Natsu o miru Uji nohara karakusa kawaku wa." "Aki no tsuki nobotta manmarusa o-iwai." "mata tsukihi o kazoeru. yume wa tooki maboroshi ni." "Anata o oikakete ita hikari no naka de dakareru tabi atatakai kaze o tayori."