"Ha-hah!" "Serves them right!" "Take a look." "This was the theatre town until just last year." "But then, they went up in flames, and they got forced all the way out to the Asakusa rice fields." "Wow, so this was it?" "But boss, you never brought me here once." "Fool!" "Watching a proper kabuki show costs at least one and a half ryo!" "They say those damned actors get paid 1000 ryo a year!" "Like hell I can afford that!" "But even if they're practically vagrants, the business of acting seems like fun!" "Oh, one moment!" "Oh, one moment!" "That's enough!" "One moment..." "One moment..." "One moment..." "One moment!" "One moment!" "Sou sa maiagare hoshi yo That's right, soar high, o star" "Ichido dake kagayaite futari o terashite Shine just once and illuminate the two of us" "Unmei no sora o kakeru hito-suji no hikari ga The single streak of light dashing across the fateful sky" "Futari o kaete yuku yo It's going to change us both" "Tashikameta no wa kowai kara ja nai The reason I double-checked wasn't because I was scared" "Shoujun wa ano ryuusei ni shibotta I've set our sights on that shooting star" "Marui renzu ni hitai o yoseta We crowd our foreheads around the round lens" ""Hajimaruyo" kimi ga yoko de tsubuyaku "It's going to start," you murmur next to me" "Sotto iki o tometa Quietly, we hold our breaths" "Futari te nigitta And join hands" "Wakatterunda mousugu kitto kiseki ga yatte kuru We know that soon, a miracle is sure to come along" "Saa maiagare hoshi yo Now, soar high, o star" "Ichido dake kagayaite futari o terashite Shine just once and illuminate the two of us" "Unmei no sora o kakeru hito-suji no hikari ga The single streak of light dashing across the fateful sky" "Futari o kaete yuku yo It's going to change us both" "Cha pter Eig ht Fox Theatre" "Cha pter Eig ht Fox Theatre News that the Barbaric Knowledge Enforcement successfully destroyed" "News that the Barbaric Knowledge Enforcement successfully destroyed the Youi that the South Magistrate's Office had trouble with, has already reached Senior Councilor Lord Mizuno's ear." "What joyous news." "After all, the Senior Councilor seemed most anxious for you, his younger brother, after your fall from grace following the incident at Osaka." "It has been determined that the old theatre town case will be entrusted to the Barbaric Knowledge Enforcement." "You mean, the case of people going missing in the area around Sakai?" "Something about strange masks being left behind." "It is most likely the work of a Youi." "I would not be so certain, were I you." "That area is still teeming with folk who resent having been forced to move their theatre houses." "It is most likely mischief committed by such rabble against the authorities." "Still, the order comes from the Senior Councilor." "You will allow them to handle this matter." "That bastard..." "Panicking because my elder brother has given a nod of recognition to the Barbarian Knowledge Enforcement." "Do you suppose so?" "Torii has always tried to bring down those who are not of humble origins, such as you and I." "But I will not let him." "Beyond this point is the old theatre town." "The Nakamura Theatre and the Ichimura Theatre that were here, and Morita Theatre in Kobiki, were the only ones approved by the authorities." "In reality, there were countless theatres that you could see plays in." "Though all of those have been shut down in the recent Reform." "Why do you speak of it so gleefully?" "As I recall, your family ran one of those theatre houses too, right?" "Doesn't a reform like that make you angry?" "Theatre is nothing but deception." "It is of no use whatsoever." "A poison that merely serves to befuddle people." "My granny!" "My granny!" "That is your granny?" "!" "I could not ask to be taken all the way to Asakusa, so we came to at least reminisce the past." "And then, suddenly..." "She's performing..." "Is this a mask?" "Return to your senses!" "She vanished?" "!" "What's going on?" "Hey!" "Is this thing human or Youi?" "!" "Leave it be and it will multiply!" "Do not hesitate!" "So they're the ones in control!" "They deflected it!" "These guys..." "What?" "Divine Fire" "Abi!" "Are you all right, Abi?" "!" "Yeah." "This is..." "A Youi leg?" "That means you let it get away, right?" "I would assume so." "We have never before heard rumors of such a Youi." "But a mask is one of the props used in theatre, is it not?" "It is rarely used in kabuki." "Though noh is a different matter." "And Youi of light, is it?" "According to your account, those Youi appear to be the ones manipulating the mask." "Ryudo, what was that?" "!" "You burned Abi back there!" "No!" "The fire came out of Abi!" "What's this?" "A fellow Ayashi's life is not to be trifled with!" "A little longer and Abi..." "Enough." "Abi's name means "volcano" in the Emishi language." "Just as things have names, people also have names." "Ryudo is capable of drawing Ayagami from other people's names as well." "This is outrageous!" "You intend to plant that filthy thing in me?" "!" "This smells terrible." "This Youi just won't cook down in the pot." "No, this is not a Youi." "Then, what are you sayin..." "Delicious!" "This is unmistakably Youi flesh!" "And of a superior quality at that!" "There is no superior or inferior when it comes to Youi!" "Then, this mask is..." "A person that was transformed into a mask by the Youi?" "!" "A Youi that turns people into masks?" "Please entrust the matter of this case to me!" "What's this about?" "Is there something bothering you?" "I do not wish to be aided any further by this thing called Ayagami, which we do not understand at all." "Hey, the person most troubled by the use of the Other World's powers is Yukiatsu here." "All Ic himura Plays" "Forced into a place like this, yet you still wish to continue performing?" "How disgraceful." "You are..." "Gorota from Mikawa!" "It is you!" "The young master of the Eiraku Theatre." "Oh, no, the young mistress." "I am most gratified to see how you have treasured it." "Which stage do you perform at now?" "No matter what stage I stood upon, I would be going against the law." "But Master Den'emon had no problem sending you up there." "He said your change from man to woman was as good as Utaemon's." "But what is wrong is wrong." "Women are not permitted up on stage." "That is why when I turned thirteen, my father prohibited me as well." "Since then, I have not gone on stage." "Then what are you using this for?" "For the good of the world." "And I would like for it to be a stronger weapon." "What?" "This is something even I had made by a craftsman, who came from a place called Hourai Village in Mikawa." "Incidentally, when you were a stagehand for us, did you ever hear..." "What?" "That is..." "Do you know who gave me my name?" "Was it my mother?" "Or..." "It was your father, Master Den'emon." "Who else would have named you?" "Are you acquainted with the Toyokawa Company?" "No." "It's an all-women's troupe." "They seem to be popular in the Naitou Shinjuku area." "Must be paying their respects today." "A women's troupe..." "Certainly, it is not true kabuki, but with them, even you could..." "They merely attract customers because of their novelty!" "Such a thing is..." "You..." "What are you doing?" "You're one of the Ayashi..." "Why don't you dress like a woman?" "I never have." "Because you cannot get up on stage unless you are a man." "That is the rule." "Only men can become kabuki actors." "They have all-women's troupes too, but that's just variety theatre." "The horse spoke!" "Hello." "The Eiraku Theatre was a famous theatre house out in Fukiya." "What's happened to your home now?" "The Nakamura Theatre caught fire in October the year before last, and as punishment, the three theatres were relocated to Asakusa." "The other theatre houses were banned." "I see..." "What a shame." "Kabuki plays and theatre..." "Being dreamily enthralled by such will not bring happiness to people." "They are the same as Youi." "Monsters that beguile people." "It is wrong." "Though we may live in a society of frugality, people cannot continually work as horses and oxen do." "It seems Lord Touyama, the North Magistrate, also said the same." "You've become talkative..." "You are the young master of the Eiraku Theatre, are you not?" "Ours is a humble theatre house, but won't you take shelter from the rain?" "Spea k Suffering Dragon" "Spea k Suffering Dragon All of these characters incorporate the symbol for "needle"." "Speak Suffering Dragon" ""Needle"?" "In ancient times, on the Mainland, one accepted being branded with a tattoo if one broke an oath, thus showing one's resolve to uphold the pledge." "Suffering thus showing one's resolve to uphold the pledge." "Suffering" "Suffering The needle is the implement of that tattoo." "Therefore, characters like "suffering" indicating the pain of the tattoo," ""speak" that refers to a pledge to the gods, and "wrong deeds", all incorporate "needle"." "Your character for "dragon" also contains the "needle", because dragons have horns that resemble needles." "I hear Atl's country had a tradition of tattoos as well..." "The same meaning is incorporated into the "sai" in Saizo's name as well." "What?" "Previously, Saizo asked me about the origin of her name." "I told her what I just told you now, and explained that the character "sai"" "means to turn the needle on oneself and pass judgment on oneself." "In other words, it refers to one who has done wrong." "It is not Ayagami that she hates, but her own name." "Building theatre houses in the theatre town is supposed to be prohibited." "Our theatrical company of women has received special treatment." "See?" "I nari" "This is..." "Come, let us go." "Saizo!" "A procession of evil spirits?" "!" "This is as eerie as a fox's wedding." "Could it be that Saizo will be the next mask?" "!" "Move aside, Abi!" "Good!" "Behind you!" "Please stop this." "But your dance was so well-received." "Will you not perform it for us once more?" "I am a wrongdoer." "This is a theatrical company of women." "It would not be wrong." "No, my name itself apparently means "wrongdoer"." "My father gave it to me." "My father named me, a woman, a wrongdoer." "I was a wrongdoer from the day I was born." "And yet, I yearned to stand upon the dazzling stage." "Is it wrong to yearn?" "It is all an illusion!" "None of it is attainable." "That is why..." "Why I became an Ayashi..." "I am leaving." "Here we go." "We've been waiting for this!" "Welcome!" "Glittering and tawdry." "Every last bit of it is hollow and artificial." "Yes, it is all fake." "By order of the Shogun, not a single real thing may be placed on stage." "The trees, the walls, the roof tiles..." "All imitations made to look real." "And the performers as well." "Youi!" "They are Youi, Master Saizo!" "This is..." "A play about Ayashi?" "!" "The Ayashi are the talk of Edo now." "How could we not make it into a kabuki play?" "Saizo!" "Come, your dance!" "Dance!" "Please dance for us, Master Saizo." "That dance is an ancient dance that my father taught me." "This dance, which the goddess Ame-no-Uzume offered to the majestic Amaterasu, you Youi, who shall never be gods," "I dance for you to grant some small solace!" "Behold this dance and the Youi..." "My!" "How magnificent!" "That was magnificent!" "I feel like I'm forgetting something..." "Abi, Genbatsu, where's Saizo?" "!" "Ryudo..." "This is muddy water!" "Goodness!" "Yukiwa, do you know the way?" "This is a trick meant to deceive humans." "I am a Youi." "It does not matter to me." "All right." "What a disgrace..." "As one of the Mountain People, this is the gravest blunder of my life!" "Well, well, the Ayashi Yukiatsu Ryudo!" "Look carefully!" "The evil Youi that have lost their abode have been most brilliantly summoned forth!" "So you used Saizo's dance to summon forth these bastards?" "!" "Youi!" "Can you cut me down?" "You, who are so full of wrong." "I became an Ayashi to atone for the wrong I have done!" "I will use my dance to save the people who are beguiled by illusion!" "You lie." "Lie?" "!" "You have merely found a new stage." "You still yearn for the dazzling stage full of lies." "Did your wrong deed taste good?" "It is for neither the sake of others nor atonement..." "You dance because you wish to dance." "You eat because you wish to eat..." "There is nothing real upon the stage..." "That means you!" "Saizo!" "I'm using Ayagami!" "Stay away." "I know what my Ayagami is." "The character that my father bestowed upon me..." "That is "wrongdoing"!" "The needle for tattoos, referring to wrong deeds!" "Saizo!" "The wrong I have done..." "Nagaku nagai tabiji ni On that long, ageless journey" "Boku wa kimi ni koi shita I fell in love with you" "Kisetsu meguri shigure-zuki The seasons turned to the month of autumn rains" "Kokoro o sotto nurasu Gently dampening hearts" "Toki ga nanika kaeru nara If time can change things" "Douka douka sotto shite Please, please be gentle" "Kimi to aruku ima dake This one moment as I walk with you" "Shizuka ni tomatte ite Stay quiet, be still" "Mizube no hotori ni tsuzuita Winding Road The winding road following along the water's edge" "Konna futari ni wa oniai nandarou It's probably fitting for a couple like us" "Hitotsu no kasa ga kanashii The lone umbrella is sad" "Mada kimi ga suki dakara Because I still love you" "Sunao ni uketomerarezu ni I couldn't accept it graciously" "Kono ame ni nagasarete Let this rain carry you away" ""Subete ga uso da" to mou ichido hohoende Smile once more and tell me, "It was all a lie"" "Preview" "There are many frightening tales in Edo." "The Seven Wonders of Honjo or Azabu." "Each town has its fateful stories." "There are as many Youi as there are people." "Next Time" " Cha pter Nine Front a nd Bac k There are as many Youi as there are people." "Next Time" " Cha pter Nine Front and Back" "Next Time" " Chapter Nine Front and Back Chapter Nine:" "Front and Back."