Uda.
I'll feed you. Open wide!
Come on, eat this marimo.
His parents make a fortune from the mining business.
Marimos don't suit your taste buds, spoiled brat?
What? You guys eat marimos?
Wow. When you're poor, you eat marimo just to get by.
Someone! Somebody help!
Once the sun goes down, I'll freeze to death.
Obe.
Um, can you help me?
Becho.
Wait! I bet you're hungry.
I have food right here. Dried peaches.
Here. You can have some, so please untie me.
Peach?
My uncle in Yamanashi always sends a box of them.
Num num.
Now, isn't that yummy?
Now, can you untie me?
Obe.
Good!
No, not like that! That's not what I meant!
Not what I meant, but wow!
Thanks for saving me.
Uda.
I'm Chiyotaro. What's your name?
Obencho.
Obencho?
Okay, you're Obencho then.
You can have more dried peaches. From now on, you are my henchman.
Obencho.
Woo-hoo!
My henchman, Obencho the Menace!
EPISODE 38 - COCOON
As a Shinsengumi leader, you overcame many fierce battles in Kyoto.
You also survived the Hakodate War,
and even broke out of Abashiri Prison at land's end.
And this is the fate of such a dignified man.
Ushiyama is gone!
Inconceivable… He smashed the casket and crawled out!
Damn it, I underestimated Ushiyama's prowess.
Still, the Korean morning glory's effects will not wear off
for another 12 hours.
He won't recall this place.
Obencho! Are you there?
I'm here to feed you.
Mii.
Were you cold?
Sorry I can't take you to my house.
We're gonna skate today!
Don't be scared. I'll teach you!
INN
Wake up, sir!
Mornin'.
A man just stopped by.
He said to give this to Kadokura, the head jailer.
And how does this bastard know my name?
How should I know? Anyway, I'll leave it here.
This is…
-Nagakura! -Nagakura's not here.
Where is he?
He said you're useless and went to look for them alone.
It's Sekiya. That bastard's holding Hijikata captive.
He brought this ransom note.
Toshizo Hijikata is in a catatonic state from pufferfish poison.
With his shallow breathing, he'll stay alive for a few more hours in the casket.
I will tell you his location in exchange for the tattooed skins.
We have no proof that Hijikata nispa is still alive.
Sekiya always resorts to the same old tricks.
He works alone. He can't be watching his hostage.
He keeps his victims buried alive while he collects his ransom.
He's precise with his work. Leaves his victims just above death.
He lets fate dictate whether his hostages live or die.
INN
Nagakura has the tattooed skins.
We have to go find him.
Damn, what a pain.
We don't have any time left until the exchange.
We screw this up, and Hijikata is done for!
Maa!
Look at you go. You're a natural at this.
Ushiyama is wearing Japanese sandal skates.
Also known as gerori,
they became widely popular in Hokkaido in the mid-1800s.
Maa!
Hey, moneybags.
We warned you not to hang out around here.
Or do you want another marimo?
Uda.
Who are you?
He's Obencho.
Munch, munch.
Get down for me.
He's my henchman.
Weren't you gonna make me eat more marimos?
Damn you!
You're nothing but a bunch of lowlives.
Let's get going, Obencho.
Or else we'll catch the poor off them.
Please, forgive me!
Obencho, no!
Stop, that's enough!
Look, peach!
It's your favorite. Peach!
Peach…
How horrific.
I had no idea Obencho the Menace was this dangerous!
He's a living weapon!
I have to kill him.
Wait up, Kirawus!
Let's take a quick break.
I can't run anymore.
I'm out of breath.
I'll croak before Hijikata.
Old man!
We have to find Nagakura nispa as soon as possible!
We don't have time for that.
Sekiya has no way to tell how many tattooed skins we have.
We'll bluff our way and get Hijikata's location outta him.
Bluff how?
We'll fail with a sloppy plan like that, Kadokura!
Can you come up with something better? Huh?
See? You can't. It's because you're poor!
You're also unemployed and poor,
you butt-mining geezer!
I have to protect my city.
Boitaro! Maa!
I have to do this.
Streams of hot water flow out of Lake Akan's lake bed.
In the winter, the lake's surface freezes over.
Pockets of water called yutsubo emerge.
Come here, Obencho.
Head jailer Kadokura.
Stop there. Take off your clothes and toss them aside.
I have to be sure that you're unarmed.
I have a hunting rifle shoved up my anus.
Wanna take a look, Sekiya?
Good grief. Cunning and cautious as ever.
Sekiya chose the hand-off location to be the very center of the lake.
It's at least a kilometer to the nearest shore.
Not even a professional sniper can shoot this far.
So, where's the tattooed skin?
I brought them. Look under my overcoat.
If you make any suspicious movements, the deal is off.
Oh, that would be a problem.
You checked behind you.
Huh? What? I don't know what you mean.
Is the Ainu man on standby over there?
The knife you're hiding in your butt. Is that his?
This is a special knife my father carved. Handle it with care.
Where are you gonna hide it?
Okay, will do.
So, where will you hide it?
You were thinking of forcing Hijikata's location out of me.
Your sloppiness hasn't changed.
I'd like to hear what you think, Kadokura.
Do you think God exists?
Over here! If you don't come get it, I'll throw it away!
-Are you okay with that? -Uda.
Hurry! I'm throwing it away!
GIRLS' WORLD
Go get it!
Maa!
I'm so sorry.
I'm terribly sorry, Obencho.
Please forgive me.
Gerori!
Shit, he got us good.
Stop right there, Sekiya!
Just kidding.
You're also unemployed and poor,
you butt-mining geezer!
Stop yapping and start thinking!
See? You can't come up with anything.
Mess up the deal on purpose and let Sekiya escape.
I'll secretly follow him.
He'll return to Hijikata nispa and Ushiyama nispa for their skins.
We'll go with that.
I looked in a random direction to trick you.
Sekiya will maintain distance from the shores
as he heads farthest away.
I'll pretend that I'm chasing him and direct him to Kirawus.
There he is. The plan is coming together!
Wait!
Ushiyama!
The Korean morning glory's effects wore off at this very moment!
Sekiya, you fucker!
Ushiyama!
Why are you there, out of all places?
This is bad.
Don't let him get away. Catch him, Kadokura!
You bastard-- Ouch, ouch!
My skin!
I fucked up. I'm so unlucky.
Ushiyama, did Sekiya hold you captive?
Where did he take you? Hijikata might still be kept there.
I don't remember. When I came to, my head was sticking out of the ice.
That prostitute! Did Sekiya pay her to do that?
I remember partaking something she called an aphrodisiac.
You're such a dickhead.
Betrayed by a prostitute again!
I found this white cocoon where Hijikata was spotted.
Another one was inside Ushiyama's overcoat, meaning…
The plot thickens!
Isn't that a silkworm cocoon?
I'm freezing.
It could've slipped in his pocket while he was held captive.
Silk can't be produced over the winter.
Some buildings remain unoccupied over the season.
That's it!
The dots have been connected and formed a line!
Since we're talking about silk!
The closest production cottages are over there
and the opposing shore.
Got it. We don't have much time.
We'll split up and corner that bastard!
Sekiya!
Hijikata is inside, isn't he?
Take me to him, now!
Head jailer, I commend you for finding my hideout.
Don't underestimate Detective Kadokura's deduction skills.
-Over here. -What?
I was testing this out just now.
It's a cocoon sorting machine.
It sorts silkworms' sexes
by measuring their weight.
Each room is for different parts of the silk production process.
Including the residential building, there are over ten rooms.
Toshizo Hijikata is buried somewhere on the premises.
Head jailer, this is your trial.
Inside the cocoons are capsules of wolf's bane, strychnine,
and cyanide, all in lethal doses.
Some of the cocoons are not poisoned.
Kadokura, choose a cocoon and swallow it.
I'll do the same and swallow one too.
If I end up poisoned,
I'll tell you where Hijikata is buried before I die.
But if you swallow the poisoned cocoon,
I swear to you that I will save Hijikata.
Where the hell did you hide Hijikata?
Nobody knows better than me that the casket is running low on oxygen.
He's got another 30 minutes if he's lucky.
I'm intrigued by people with an unbending will.
Kadokura.
If your path is correct,
fate will choose you, not me.
In reality, you don't give two shits
about the tattooed skins or the buried treasure.
Your interest was in those who flock to the riches all along.
Sekiya is driven by
this little life-or-death wager he calls a trial.
I'm the kind of man who draws the poisonous capsule.
Even if only one of the cocoon is poisoned,
I'll end up with that one. I've no doubt about that.
But… still!
If I can offer my life for Hijikata's, then so be it!
Will you listen to my story while we wait for the outcome?
It was on a Sunday morning.
I was walking home with my young daughter.
She was toddling just a few steps ahead of me.
There was a sudden explosion. I lost consciousness.
A part of my daughter's head and leg had gotten blown off.
It took time for me to process that lightning struck close by.
Why was my daughter chosen?
Why didn't I die?
Does God choose our luck?
He chose to keep a criminal like me alive.
Maybe God doesn't really exist.
It's taken effect within ten minutes. That's wolf's bane.
Keep… your word. Save… Hijikata.
I'll dig him out right this minute.
How many more minutes…
before I croak?
You'll suffer for a few hours.
This is bullshit.
I'm very sorry, Hijikata.
This is as far as I can go with you.
Toshizo Hijikata is still useful for my purpose.
I'll relocate him while he's still incapacitated.
Should I target the Ainu man next?
I could also test Ushiyama's luck once more.
Never imagined my medicine-trading days would come in handy like this.
Luck isn't enough to survive this day and age.
Huh?
Oh, I'm all better.
In an attempt to quicken his death, Kadokura had swallowed more capsules.
They both happened to be pufferfish poison.
Pufferfish poison, or tetrodotoxin, and wolf's bane
counteract each other.
The effects of tetrodotoxin counteracts wolf's bane's.
Miraculously, Kadokura ingested the proper dose of pufferfish poison
to counteract wolf's bane's toxin without getting poisoned by tetrodotoxin.
Meanwhile, on the edge of consciousness, Toshizo Hijikata
swallowed sufficient amount of wolf's bane
to suppress tetrodotoxin's lethality without Sekiya's knowledge.
He swallowed wolf's bane as soon as he realized he consumed tetrodotoxin?
How did he pick out wolf's bane?
There was also arsenic and strychnine.
If death is imminent,
then I'm forced to take risks.
I'll say that fate took my side because of my grit and experience.
Impossible.
It must have been a miracle.
Yes, only a miracle could've made this happen.
So there is a God.
Wouldn't you say, Hijikata?
God has finally rebuked me.
He became a heartless murderer to reconcile
his faith and his daughter's tragic death.
He ended up becoming a monster.
He believed his daughter's death was God's way of punishing him.
I have no interest in religious matters.
My interest lies in this life alone.
How do we use the life we've been given?
That's all I wish to know.
Let's at least put his tattoos to good use.
Hope Kadokura's okay.
Thank you, Obencho.
I'll never forget you.
FIRST LIEUTENANT TOKUSHIROU TSURUMI
SERGEANT HAJIME TSUKISHIMA
SECOND LIEUTENANT OTONOSHIN KOITO
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS KOUHEI AND YOUHEI NIKAIDOU
SUPERIOR PRIVATE TOKISHIGE USAMI
SECOND LIEUTENANT YUUSAKU HANAZAWA
IMPERIAL JAPANESE ARMY FIRST CLASS RIKIMATSU ARIKO - IPOPTE
WARRANT OFFICER MOKUTAROU KIKUTA
TOSHIZO HIJIKATA MERCILESS VICE-COMMANDER
TATSUUMA USHIYAMA USHIYAMA THE UNDEFEATED
SHINPACHI NAGAKURA
DR. KANO IENAGA
TOSHIYUKI KADOKURA
KIRAWUS
TAKUBOKU ISHIKAWA
KANTAROU OKUYAMA
ANJI TONI - THE BLIND GUNMAN
TOSHIZO HIJIKATA
SUPERIOR PRIVATE HYAKUNOSUKE OGATA
SOFIA GOLDEN HAND
HEITA MATSUDA
JACK THE RIPPER KEIJI UEJI
WAICHIROU SEKIYA
BOUTAROU THE PIRATE
WILK
VASILY PAVLICHENKO
CIKAPASI - ENONOKA - RYU
YOSHITAKE SHIRAISHI
INKARMAT
GENJIROU TANIGAKI
ASIRPA
SAICHI SUGIMOTO
HOKKAIDO KONJIN INQUIRER
Next episode: The Smell of Sulfur.