a story of Hyogo Tukikage (Jushiro Konoe)

Was an unbeatable enemy

Hyoma, who placticed Japanese fencing with Hyogo 20yeas ago, has been in trouble.... sceriouse trouble these days.
He is now charged in monitoring a big house where on of the wives of his master lives.

She

- After the opening title, there's a distant view of a town with a castle on the upper hill._

In one of the streets of the town, during the day, a clan of 6 youngsters of "Samurai" caste encircles
a young "Civil" caste man, a carpenter.
They blame his awkwardness on bumping one of thier shoulders as he was passing by.

"Don't you know that you have just bumped into a son of the topmost vassal in this domain, Mr. Samanosuke Miyajima?
You can not be easily forgiven."
The young carpenter apologizes immediately, and obeys their demand to kneel and bow his head down to
the ground submissively.

Samanosuke demands the carpenter to bark like a dog and even steps on the carpenter's neck.
Finally the capenter becomes unable to bear the pain and insult and shows a gesture of protect.
The drunken and rude samurais attack the carpenter with thier swords one after another - it is a complete massacre.

3 colleagues of the carpenter have noticed the brutal battle on the street and shout,
"It's Seikichi!! We have to notice it to his family. Hurry! Hurry!"

- One of our heroes - "Yaizuno" Hanji, lovable yakuza, is walking down another street of the same town.

He stops at the door of a rice vender and asks a clerk for the direction to the house of Mr. Tamizou, his 'Old Boss'.
The clerk tells Hanji that he had retired from yakuza many years back and shows the direction.
Hanji arrives at the house and is greeted by Tamizou, sick in futon, and Osumi, a fiancee of Tamizou's son.
Tamizou and Hanji start talking about how they have been doing these 8 years slowly.

Suddenly, 3 guys are running into the entrance of his house, shouting,
"Seikichi-san was killed!!"
They explain the tragic incident that has just occured to Seikichi.
The fiancee is shocked and begins crying.
While Hanji, Osumi and the men are talking at the entrance, they hear a loud noise from inside of the house.
They rush in and find Tamizou lying over the fire pit, dead.

What a terrible 're-union' this turns out to be!!
Both Seikichi and sick, old Tamizou are victims of an irrational incident, leaving Osumi, who will have joined
the family just within a month or so...
Hanji is now boilding over with wrath, so he determines to take vengeance on the murderer.


- In a banquet room, in the evening of the same day.
  A drinking party is held by the clan of bully samurai. Samanosuke, the son of the topmost vassal.

"Haven't the Geishagirls come yet?!"
One of his followers stands up, saying "All right, I'll see what's keeping them."
When he is about to open a sliding door of the banquet room, Hanji rushes into the room,
drawing his sword and dashing over to Samanosuke, screaming,
"So, you're the stupid son of the topmpst vassal, aren't you? I have come to take vengeance for my old boss and his son."

His flashing sword strikes the forehead of Samanosuke.
Other samurais join the battle and try to get Hanji with their swords. Though his sword action looks somewhat clumsy,
Hanji fights superbly. The entire place is going to be a fierce battlefield.

"Hold it, Hanji!!" - This is Hyogo Tsukikage, our hero!!
"Dannah! How did you know I'm here?"
Hyogo shoots back to Hanji. "I have very sharp ears, you know" and says to the samurais,
"You too, guys! Put your swords back into sheaths!"

- Moments later. Hyogo and Hanji are alone together in a small guest room.

"I can't figure out just how you settled the mess so calm and cool." Hanji wonders.
"They ought to behave themselves since I've mentioned them to their moral overseer, who is coming
to see me soon."
"Come to see YOU?"
"It's been more than 10 years since I'd last seen him. The guy was one of my best buddies at the sword gym.
We were both young, at that time. We matched well."

- The 're-union' of Hyogo and Shinbei Oh-uchi, the moral overseer.

"Oh, Shinbei!!"
"Well, hello Hyogo! You look good!"

Hyogo queries Shinbei about what thier topmost vassel is really like.
"He is a great man, the samurai of samurais."
"I see. Then, what about his son?"
"His son? Well, that lad is a troublemaker."
Hyogo murmurs"His father is the Samurai of samurais...That alone is troube..."
"Is something wrong, Hyogo?"

With Hyogo's explanation on what happened today, Shibei understands the situation and says,
"All right let me handle the whole matter, then."

- At the home of the topmost vassel.
  A strict 'father to son' speech is given by the 'Samurai of samurai ' at the veranda:

"You should be ashamed of yourself! Don't ever come home like this unless you compensate that man."

- A moment later, in the same room..
Shinbei is persuading Mr.Miyajima to settle the whole thing peacefully since it was originally caused by a rude bullying by Miyajima's son.

Mr. Miyajima answers "I fully understood what you have said. But I'm afraid that it's too late, now."


- At Tamizou's house, after the funeral.

Hanji says he will escort Osumi on her way back home.
"Nice idea"Hyogo says, clicking walnut shells in his left hand - his habit when he has something to think about.
Hyogo follows them saying, "On the second thought, I'll go along with you. My walnut sounds ominous."

Hanji tries to console Osumi "It's nice to have a family, companion to talk to in a situation like this. Isn't it, Dannah?"
Hyogo says "Hanji, now we seem to have too many companions to talk to."
Then appeared the clan of bully samurais, including Samanosuke.
Hanji yells at them "So, this is your way to express your condolences, ha?"

Hyogo deflects the swords of each attack from the opponents and one by one, send back his hard Judo chop to them.
Amid the fierce battle, the 'stupid' son, Samanosuke, attempts to give Hyogo a sudden attack.
Hyogo draws his sword rapidly and deflects the enemy's attack and sends back a flashing swing.

Samanosuke collapses!

Puzzled for a moment, Hyogo realizes that he get Samanosuke with the blade side of his sword.
At that moment, the moral overseer, Shinbei Oh-uchi, rushes into the scene.

"Did YOU kill him, Hyogo?"
"Yes, I did."
Hyogo continues his explanation.

"Now, Shinbei, I did the whole thing and this man and lady had nothing to do with it."
Shinbei nods and says "I understood."

- In a room of Inn. Shinbei, Hyogo and Hanji are drinking and talking.

"Mr. Miyajima thoughtfully concluded that there was a critical fault on his son, a lack of decent samuraiship."
"I really appreciate your effort to settle this matter, Shinbei. It's great to have a nice friend."says Hyogo.
"Well Hyogo, I guess you probably don't want to stay around this domain any longer after such an incident.
So, as for tonight, let's drink until morning."

Hanji stands up, approaches to the window and opens it, saying,
"It's dawn, now..."
At the last of this small drinking party, Hyogo reminds and asks
"Shinbei, would the lord of this domain also have heard about the battle?"
"Well, possibly he may have."

Then, a messenger rushing from the castle on a horse tells Shinbei to report immediately to the castle.
Shinbei turns back to Hyogo and says
"Hyogo, I guess you'd better make an early departure from here. There is a forked road to the west.
One travels alongside our domain and another, quite shorter and bumpy, leads to another domain.
You see what I mean, don't you?"
"Thanks a lot, Shinbei, I'll heed your word."

- Formally dressed Shinbei enters the briefing room of the castle.

Shinbei notices that the members of the clan of the young rude samurais are also in the room.
"Are you also being called upon?"
"Yes, sir."

The top-most vassel, Mr. Miyajima, finally enters the room and occupies the top seat and says
"I'm going to recite the order that has just been issued by the load. Gentlemen, you are advised to take the following
words carefully as such.... The Domain samurais led by Shinbei Oh-uchi are ordered to excute Hyogo Tsukikage.
Until the execution is completed, no one is allowed to back."

At Shinbei exits from the room, Mr. Miyajima says to him
"Shinbei, you must understand that the order was definitely not issued for my sake, but for the favor of the lord."
Shinbei replies "I understand it, sir."
Mr. Miyajima continues,
"The lord even dispatched the Rifle Troop to get Hyogo Tsukikage. Well, they will surely get him.
However, I doubt if this is a decent manner for killing a samurai."

- Hyogo and Hanji are walking down the lane in the hillside that leads to the domain border.

Hyogo suddenly stops.
"It's funny. Something's wrong there. Hanji, you step aside from me for a minute."
As he makes a few more steps forward, a pack of samurai led by Shinbei Oh-uchi appear from the midst of the hill.

There are consecutive exchange of glances between best friends for a moment.

Finally Shinbei opens his mouth "Hyogo, under the order of the lord, I must slay you."
"I see." Hyogo replied.
Both Hyogo and Shinbei draw their swords.

With at utmost concentration, they make a few steps while gazing at and observing each other intently...
After one exchange of extraordinary sharp swings -even the sound follows later, an incredible sound like one
made by two stainless steel pipes hitting each other at high speed - they step back and maintain their distance.

"It's been quite a long time since I last saw that trick of yours."
"I would never use the same old trick, Hyogo."
"After more than 10 years, I've never gotten rusty, Shibei."
"Neither have I, Hyogo."

They're still looking for the right timing to get each other...

Then, stormy swings from both of them commence -it looks like two lightning bolts making a 'cross counter'.
Hyogo and Shinbei step back from each other and pause for a moment

(who won?).

Shinbei slowly falls down and says "I'm proud to be struck by a superior sword fighter.... Thanks Hyogo..."
"Shinbei!!" Hyogo cries.
Shinbei manages to summon up his strength and says,
"Our Rifle Troops are waiting for you over there at the domain border. So be careful Hyogo."
Shinbei dies.
Hyogo says "So, that's it ..... He didn't come here to get me, but to warn us about the Rifle Troop."

Hyogo picks up a wild flower, dedicate it to Shinbei's dead body and presses his hands in prayer.
"I will never forget your friendship with sacrifice of your life, Shinbei."

- Hyogo and Hanji carefully walk through bushy hill that overlooks the pack of samurai at the domain border.

Hyogo looks up at the overcast sky sending a silent 'Goodbye' to Shinbei.
Just then, Hyogo notices a pair of travelers, a rounin and yakuza, approaching the domain border, without knowing
that they could erroneously be targeted by the Rifle Troops.

"Hanji, we've got to keep them out of danger. You go and tell them not to come any closer to the battle zone
while I keep attention of the Rifle Men."
"No way! There are just too many of them!"
"Just go and warn them. Quick!"

Hanji is barreling down from the hill and shouting to the ronin and the yakuza,
"Hey! You two! Don't get any closer."
Amid the panic, Hyogo strikes from behind of the Rifle Troops with his sword and gets them, one by one.

The battle scene soon becomes disadvantageous for Hyogo since he was outnumbered by the Rifle Troops.
Hyogo runs to escape the bullets. One of the bullets hits Hyogo's leg and he falls down.
Finally, Hyogo is cornered by the remaining Rifle Troops led by the commander who has a pistol in his hand!!

- The overcast resounding with a gunshot!

Hearing it, Hanji dashes over the scene, and finds Hyogo lying on the ground among the dead bodies of the troops.
Hanji thought this is 'the final for Hyogo's life' and breaks into a cry.
"Dannah! Dannah!"

Hanji notices that Hyogo moans and slightly starts moving.
"Thank God, HE'S ALIVE!!" Hanji rushes to Hyogo and helps him rise.
Hyogo glances at Hanji, showing a weak smile on his face and says
"It's over, now"

It's apparent that Hyogo had been shot a few times.
Hyogo tries to lift him up by using his sword as a cane and tries to get him walk.
Hanji is supporting Hyogo on his side.
While another pair of ronin and yakuza is watching them in astonishiment, Hyogo and Hanji start walking down the lane slowly.

Yes, their journey just contimues.....

- THE END OF THIS EPISODE. -
     (Thank you ever so much for reading! -from MICK)

　　　　　　　　Previous Page / Next page /　Home