THE MANUAL OF NINJA ARTS
Jumping in darkness
Running through darkness
Who are you, Kagemaru?
A man without sadness
A man without happiness
The only man capable of hearlng the voices of red evening clouds
What are you up to, Kagemaru?
Rising with the wind
Disappearing ln the wind
Where did you come from, Kagemaru?
A man without pain
A man without joy
The only man capable of dreamlng boundless dreams
Where wlll you go, Kagemaru?
Directed by OSHIMA Nagisa
This story takes place durlng the Eiroku era, between 1558 and 1570.
All over Japan, warlords were battling for hegemony.
lt was a tlme of wars, when the weak fell victim to the strong.
THE FUSHIKAGE CASTLE IN OSHU-DEWA
Below this castle
passengers were attacked by a samural every night.
Stop!
You beIong to Fushikage CastIe?
Yes!
Then draw your sword!
I'II kiII you.
Who are you?
ln 1561,
Sakagaml Shuzen kllled hls lord Yuki Mitsuharu to seize power.
SAKAGAMI SHUZEN
Hotarubi, come out!
Brother, what do you want?
Can you guess who the highway kiIIer is?
ShaII I search him out?
Yes, and then pIease cut him down.
HOTARUBI
From what dublous orlgln dld these two come?
Hotarubi, dressed as a ninja,
found a susplcious man below the castle.
But that man...
Disappeared!
You beIong to Fushikage CastIe?
I'II kiII you!
The Stormwind styIe of the Ninja Shadow SchooI.
THE STORMWIND STYLE
Come on!
The ninja technique of the ''PALE-MOON-SCYTHE''.
You're a ninja!
Like you.
The ''PaIe-Moon-Scythe'' styIe.
Draw!
Coming!
Princess!
Who are you?
The man who rescued the wounded hlghway killer
reached the hide-out of the lKAZUCHl GANG.
Who are you?
- WouId you Iike to have a castIe? - What?
He is Yuki Jutaro, a son of Yuki Mitsuharu - the former Iord of Fushikage CastIe.
YUKI JUTARO
Him?
You want to stay bandits forever?
Don't you want to use him and capture Fushikage CastIe?
The hlghway killer of Fushikage Castle
was Yukl Jutaro, who wanted to take revenge for his father, who was
kllled by hls hlghest vassal, Sakagami Shuzen.
Jutaro, now recovered,
asked the man who had rescued hlm who he was.
But, smlling at Jutaro,
he told him only his name.
KAGEMARU
Did Kagemaru bear a grudge against Fushikage Castle as well?
lf so, he wasjust one of millions.
And nobody would know to whom he belonged.
ln this era,
huge famines were raging everywhere.
The rlce flelds were dylng, droughts drying up the soil.
The peasants were almost starved to death.
On top of that, the treatment of peasants by the lords,
like here in the Fushikage territory, was...
TAX INCREASE!
They had no other choice than to escape by night.
But...
... finally, they were cornered.
Then the anger of 150 Fushikage vlllages exploded.
THE FUSHIKAGE PEASANT REVOLT
But, on the orders of Sakagami Shuzen,
20,000 soldiers began to crush the peasant revolt.
The peasant army had no chance of beating the well-tralned soldlers.
Desplte the sadness and the anger,
desplte the rage and the outcry of blood,
the rivers remained silent,
and so kept the mountains
while a couple of winters passed through the land of Mogami.
The enemy!
Damn! The Fushikege soIdiers. We're encircIed.
My horse!
Damn shit!
Shit! We'II be burned to death!
We can't get out of here!
Kagemaru, where are you?
We'II cut them to pieces untiI we die!
Wait!
It was me who toId the Fushikage cIan to attack here on a snowy day.
What? You've betrayed us?
Don't panic! FoIIow my orders.
Use this!
A white cloth.
How to use it?
Listen! When they come out, shoot them.
What happened to them? Though the hide-out had collapsed, nobody came out.
The soldiers werejust beginning to wonder, when...
Now, Iet's attack Fushikage CastIe!
The soldiers who fought against the lkazuchi bandits
vlctoriously returned to Fushikage Castle through the snow.
I thank aII of you. A drinking bout is awaiting you in the main haII.
Forward!
This was Kagemaru's plan.
The bandlts had invaded Fushikage Castle,
disguised as the soldiers.
That's TENJlN'S ART OF WAR, which means ''The way there is pleasant, the way back terrible".
ln search of Shuzen, the assassin of his father,
Jutaro storms forward.
Is Shuzen here?
Is Shuzen not here?
Mysterlous Kagemaru,
what are you up to, next?
After most of the bandits and the soldiers had fallen,
Kagemaru, who had sllently been watching the battle in the castle,
suddenly waved a torch.
Outslde the castle, a host of torches answered Kagemaru's.
That's Kagemaru's signaI.
Go!
This was Kagemaru's second plan.
While allowlng the bandlts to attack the castle, he gave the peasants the opportunity to revolt.
Kagemaru, who are you?
Shuzen! Shuzen!
Who are you?
I'm Jutaro, Mitsuharu's son.
Die!
You can't kiII me!
Running away?
Die!
Prepare yourseIf!
Here we meet again.
Hotarubi, I Ieave him to you.
Stop!
Make way!
- We're both one-armed. - Fair pIay.
Idiots! Nobody notices me.
Here's a horse.
Escape!
Thank you. What's your name?
It's not important.
Then, fareweII.
Kagemaru helped Jutaro's enemy Shuzen to escape.
What are you up to, Kagemaru?
- Jutaro! Shuzen escapes! - What?
You can't escape from me.
- Come here. - You!
Okay, Iet's finish it.
Withdraw!
Fushikage Castle fell.
Fushikage Castle,
whlch had ruled over 150 villages, fell.
Which power conquered the castle?
The castle troops and the bandits were both extinguished.
The peasants survived.
But Kagemaru, their leader,
disappeared.
Kagemaru!
Today too, the stormy autumn wlnds were raging across Mogami plain.
But Fushikage Castle, which once towered high above the plain, had vanished.
The peasants removed the remnants of the ruins.
And when they'd almost flnished,
Yukl Jutaro, who'd falled to kill Shuzen, appeared.
The castIe has disappeared!
Hey! What happened?
I don't know.
But you're carrying away the stones of the castIe.
I know nothing.
I'm removing them because they'II spoiI my fieId.
What? You're Iaying out a fieId right here?
lt was unbelievable.
Shortly afterwards, Jutaro learned Kagemaru had burned down the castle.
But he had no idea...
why Kagemaru had done so.
KAGEMARU, WHO ARE YOU?
At that time,
Shuzen was hlding out in a forest near Owari.
He practlsed jlnjutsu every day with his sister.
As can be lnferred by now,
both were ninja.
You don't progress very weII.
It's because I didn't prectise enough when I was Lord of Fushikage CastIe.
I don't want to remain a ninja aII my Iife.
Why did we break the ninja code, kiII our feIIow ninja and fIee from Iga?
Even if I became the best ninja, I couIdn't ruIe the whoIe country.
I'd aIways be used by someone eIse, and die a miserabIe death.
I can sense someone approaching.
Huh?
He...
... Iooks very much Iike me!
HoId it!
You're attacking Akechi Mitsuhide, a retainer of Oda.
AKECHI MITSUHIDE
Your face!
Why did you kiII him?
Look! That's my head!
Understand?
I'm dead!
From now on, I am Akechi Mitsuhide.
KIYOSU CASTLE, OWARI PROVINCE
This is ODA NOBUNAGA...
What is the current situation in Mino?
Well... Mltsuhide was checking out the sltuation at lnabayama Castle in Mlno...
What's wrong with you, Mitsuhide?
I think the castIe wiII faII soon, because of Iast year's defeats.
Whet's wrong with you? You're so sIow today.
I'm taIking about the peasants in Mino.
It wiII be serious if they run away or begin to revoIt.
Hotarubi! Come out!
Did it work, brother?.
Who are you?
- Mitsuhide, what's wrong? - Who are you?
- If you're Mitsuhide, so am I. - That can't be!
You stiII don't understand, Shuzen? You kiIIed my shadow.
Shadow?
Now it's my turn to kiII you.
But don't be afraid: I actuaIIy won't.
You wiII become my new shadow warrior, untiI you too die in my pIace.
BuIIshit!
I introduce to you Akechi's ten shadow warriors.
From now on, you wiII Iive and die with them.
AKECHI'S TEN NINJA
That year, Oda Nobunaga
began besleglng lnabayama Castle in Mino.
His armles marched desplte the wind and rain.
Called by a splrltual voice, Jutaro rushed to Owari.
Jutaro!
Ever since he had left her to klll Shuzen,
Akeml had been searching for him.
Suddenly a mysterious man appeared. Lookl He's running faster than a horsel
Who are you?
I'm Onikichi, aIso caIIed Skanda.
Who was ONlKlCHl?
Jutaro had no time to think about it.
We're Oda's advance force!
You're Shuzen!
Make way for Lord Akechi Mitsuhide!
Marksmen, come forward!
How dirty!
- What happened? - We haven't shot yet.
Who are you?
Neither warriors nor pessants. So you can guess...
Stop joking!
We're bashakutai, packhorse drivers from Sakamoto.
BASHAKUTAI FROM SAKAMOTO
These two cheated us.
Wait! These bodies beIong to us.
Even in death, they're stiII our comrades.
Shut up! You want to oppose Akechi Mitsuhide?
Hey, Mitsuhide! You're ideaI as our enemy.
Stupid! Are you bIind?
What are you Iaughing about?
Look carefuIIy around you.
Huh? What?
The bashakutal from Sakamoto were a band of packhorse drlvers
who fought slde by slde with the peasants
in many of their uprisings.
We can't do anything. Retreat!
But before you do, you'II Iay down aII your weapons.
What?
You resist?
Make your decision.
Lay down the weapons!
CoIIect them!
Before anybody knew what was happening, Shuzen dlsappeared from his horse.
Shuzen too was a nlnja.
Hey, if you move, I'II kiII the man with the eye patch.
Down with the weapons!
As you pIease.
What?
What's this?
Shit!
Except for this one, aII the other rifIes are onIy mock-ups.
You took us in.
We'II never Iet packhorse drivers Iike you take us in again.
Onikichi, it Iooks Iike we've defeated them.
OnIy Shuzen got away. Did you reaIIy hit him?
OnIy in the Ieg.
He won't die from it.
The band of packhorse drivers wlthdrew.
But the man called Onlkichl approached Jutaro.
At thls moment, Akechi's ten ninja rushed by, having learned that Mitsuhldes detachment
had been attacked by the packhorse drivers.
Jutaro!
Though a femous ninja, I can't kiII him.
Jutaro!
Somebody's coming.
So many peopIe died, but...
AKEMI
Jutaro!
I'm so happy!
That woman again...
After havlng carrled Jutaro to a nearby valley, Akemi didn't know how to proceed.
Then Oniklchi appeared, this tlme accompanied by his child.
It's bIood-poisoning.
We'II have to cut off his Ieg.
But if we'd have rock saIt...
I'II go and get some.
The salt lay at a dlzzying height on top of a cliff,
but dellcate Akemi miraculously returned wlth some salt.
lt was ground down and mixed wlth coal and some herbs.
Jutaro's wound was gettlng betterday by day.
Hey, you saved me?
I want to thank you.
No, not me. Akemi saved you.
Akemi?
She sucked the pus from your wounds.
She just went out to prepare breakfast.
Just wait a IittIe whiIe.
When she returns, pIease pass on my thanks to her.
I must Iocate Shuzen.
Jutaro is gone!
He went to search for Shuzen.
Jutaro!
Stop!
WeII done, Akemi. It's me.
Brother!
I missed you.
Brother.
WiII you come with me, or accompany Jutaro?
I'II go with Jutaro.
Jutaro!
Akemi was Kagemaru's younger sister.
Which explains the floatlng ease of her movements, but...
Stop!
Who are you?
Since you reaIized that I'm a ninja, you mustn't be an ordinary man either.
No, no. I'm just en ordinary packhorse driver.
Don't Iie!
THE NINJA ART OF THE EIGHTFOLD BODY
Daddy!
The reaI one is there!
Daddy!
Taro!
It's awfuI. Can you see my head somewhere?
This is terribIe. Look for it now.
Was Onikichi Kagemaru's real self?
But Akemi dld call Kagemaru her brother,
after he had stripped off Onikichi's face.
Didn't Kagemaru become the real self, and Onlkichl the fake one at that moment?
But Taro calls Oniklchi hls daddy. So isnt he the real one after all?
And on top of that, the nlnja art of the eightfold body...
And a body without a head, talklng right ln front of our eyes...
This is the mysterious reallty where the ninja art of creatlng illuslons
becomes indistinguishable from the real world.
What? A band of packhorse drivers?
Yes.
Nonsense! The band of packhorse drivers was destroyed five years ago,
when Kagemaru, their Ieader, was executed.
Nobunaga was right ln saying that Kagemaru was dead,
and that the band of packhorse drlvers had been extlnguished.
But desplte that, he sent out his troops to put down the revolt.
And there was another Kagemaru who was leading this revolt, for sure.
But what was that?
Unexpectedly, the rebel troops opened their llnes.
Running away, cowards!
What were the rebeIs up to?
Forward! Overpower them!
Retreat! Retreat!
Mltsuhide's soldlers were just about to escape across the river
when they were swept away by huge logs.
Did you see how the Kage cIan's art of the ''Trout-In-The-Water'' worked?
TROUT
What's a trout?
And whats the Kage clan?
But Hotarubl and the soldlers had a hard enough time to escape...
and hadn't time to thlnk about that.
Who are you? Make way!
I can't Iet you pass.
What?
Hotarubis sword plerced the water sack.
The water poured out onto the ground.
And all who were touched by it broke down in agony.
Who are you?
I'm Shibire, the paraIyzer of the Kage cIan.
Another member of the Kage clan.
SHIBIRE, THE PARALYZER
Bring me the head of Kagemaru.
It seems he causes you a Iot of troubIe. How much?
MUFUDOJIN, THE WINDLESS PRIEST.
How much did they offer you for my head?
3,000 goId bars.
I'II give you the same.
Then I'd prefer to take your head.
AIright! 5,000 then.
Then I have no choice.
Wait! Who's Kagemaru?
He's my pupiI.
ls Mufudojin an assassin?
Will he really be able to kill Kagemaru, his pupil?
THE NINJA ART OF TURNING TATAMI
After a long search, Jutaro finally located Kagemaru
among the rebels who were just celebrating their victory.
Kegemeru! I have to ask you something!
What?
Why did you destroy Fushikage CastIe?
Why do you ask?
It was my father's castIe!
That's the reason why the peasants destroyed it.
You Ied them.
PeopIe think that I instigated the revoIts, Ieading the peasants.
But if I hadn't done so, someone eIse wouId have, in my pIace.
Liar!
You reaIIy beIieve you can win against the reguIar armies and the feudaI Iords,
that there wiII come e time when the peasants wiII ruIe the whoIe country?
I don't know.
Even if we are abIe to win some battIes, it doesn't mean that we'II win the war.
Then it's a futiIe struggIe.
FutiIe... ? Perhaps.
It's not whether we win or Iose that's important,
but that we get cIoser to our goaI.
But...
Wait! Even if I'm kiIIed, there wiII be someone to succeed me.
Though they might aIso be defeated...
the struggle will continue untll all people can live equally together.
You reaIIy beIieve such a dreamIike worId is possibIe?
No matter how Iong it may take - 10 years or 100 -, the time wiII come.
History is a succession of battIes.
We'II reach our goaI step by step.
It's the onIy vaIuabIe way of Iiving.
Who are you?
Make wey! I hsve to taIk to your Ieader.
Kagemaru, it's been ages.
Master! Why such bIoodIust?
I've come to kiII you.
Don't touch him!
Kagemaru, a Iot of things can be achieved with your head.
WeII.
Dojin, you...
I'II get 5,000 goId bars for it.
THE YEAR GENKI 1
- Kagemaru's head is supposed to arrive soon. - The Ieader of the peasants?
There's a rumor that he aIready died once.
Mufu Dojin!
ln July of the year Genki 1
Kagemaru's head arrived at Kiyosu, Nobunaga's headquarters.
His head is Iaughing...
So, that's it, after aII.
This is Kagemaru's head.
ImpossibIe!
Kagemaru wiII return!
DispIay his head on the Northern gate
untiI it's rotten and faIIs to pieces.
Obsessed by his sword and his wish for vengeance,
Jutaro finally encounters Shuzen on a battlefleld.
CaIm down! I'm not Shuzen!
Liar!
Wait! Don't you understand?
I'm Akechi Mitsuhide.
Shut up!
Who are you?
Now you're trapped, Jutaro.
Two Shuzens!
You're a reaI nuisance. I'm gonna kiII you!
Shit! Which is the reaI one?
It's the ninja art of doubIing:
Two, but not two. One, but not one.
Then I'II cut down both of you.
NINJA THROWING BLADES
Dirty!
Idiot! A ninja doesn't know such a word.
BLINDING POWDER
OIL BAG
Death bIow.
Wait! Let me do it!
Now I'II kiII you.
What are you waiting for, Hotarubi?
Perhaps this heartless nlnja was in love wlth Jutaro a little?
Whlle Hotarubl was hesltatlng...
What's that noise?
- It's coming cIoser... - ... from...
the East.
The horizon is moving!
EARTHRUNNERS
Hotarubi, beat it! Let's go!
- But... - Let him go. He'II die anyway.
What are these earthrunners,
that scared Shuzen and the ten nlnja so much?
Earthrunners!
lts a huge swarm of mllllons of rats.
Thelr species multiplied too much and began to run across the land.
Nobody knows whether lt's a result of food shortages,
or a natural means of decimating the species.
But they keep runnlng incessantly, like mad things, until they reach a lake
or the sea, into which they throw themselves without hesitation, to drown.
They keep runnlng,
gnawlng to pieces men, animals, houses and trees.
lt's as if the horlzon itself were on the move.
Jutaro!
I'm gIed, so gIad. I wss terribIy worried about you!
Let's go.
- My eyes! - HoId onto me!
Jutaro! Get up! Quick!
It's hopeIess!
Good-bye, Jutero. HoId out!
The earthrunners passed by,
but all that remalned was just the dead plain, without a single blade of grass.
Only the dust was still moving ln the wind.
And... soon after...
Meanwhile...
Kagemaru's head, dlsplayed on the Northern gate,
didn't change a bit, despite the sun, the rain and the wind.
His splrit was as strong as ever, as lf he had still been alive.
And then the head disappeared during a storm.
Among the people
spread the rumor that Kagemaru was lmmortal.
AMIDA BUDDHA
ln the year Genki 2, a year after Kagemaru's head disappeared,
Nobunaga began to put down the buddhist lKKO lKKl REVOLT.
Though they were kllled one by one, the rebels, unwavering in theirfaith,
never gave up thelr resistance, and the battles never ceased.
AMIDA BUDDHA
Aren't they afraid to die?
They beIieve they wiII enter Paradise immediateIy.
- And someone expIoits their faith. - Who?
But we have to cooperate with them...
because, Iike us, they aIso fight against Nobunaga.
And many of the Ikko sect members are peasants.
Hey!
Who are you? You Iook suspicious. TeII me your name!
No, I won't!
Stop!
Daddy, this is a dead-end!
- Where are they? - There's nothing to hide.
But Onlklchl and hls son dlsappeared.
Maybe he's a member of the Kage clan as well.
Kagemarus head actually was cut off, but disappeared.
And Onikichi and his son are still allve...
Maybe the solution to the mystery of Kagemaru lles withln the Kage clan.
KUSARE, THE STINKER
Oh, that's him!
Kagemaru!
ImpossibIe!
They're done for!
What's that, for God's sake?
What... ?
It's reaIIy Kagemaru.
TENSHO 2
Nobody knows whether Kagemaru really rose from the dead, but the battles continued.
Meanwhile, Nobunaga drove away Shogun Yoshlaki,
and hls princlpal rlval Takeda Shingen dled.
He was on the brlnk of unifying the entire country.
Only the Nagashima lkko-lkki rebels defeated him repeatedly.
ln August of 157 4,
Nobunaga challenged the rebels for the fourth and last time,
mobillzing both on land and at sea several tens of thousands of soldiers.
First, hls fleet blockaded the waterways.
Then, he burned the forest tralls which were often used by the guerillas.
Nobunaga's strategy was successful.
The rebels barricaded themselves in at Nagashima Castle.
Nobunaga besieged it without attacking.
The slege lasted two months.
ln the castle, supplies ran short.
On September 29th, the rebels decided to surrender.
Lay down your weapons and come out!
20,000 people left the castle.
THE EXTERMINATION
But the rest of the rebels kept on fighting.
And total annihilation -
Nobunaga's special treatment for insurgents -
was awaiting the prisoners.
- How? - They'II be wiped out, of course.
- Who's that? - Capture him!
Stop himl
I'm Kagemaru!
That's impossibIe!
I'm immortaI.
THE MANUAL OF NINJA ARTS THE STORY OF THE KAGE CLAN
Walklng under water, dlving lnto the soil, rising from the dead,
hlding one's head in the trunk and electrocuting the enemy.
Thls was a mysterious ninja clan called
The KAGE.
Now we'll uncover all their mysterles.
They dldn't acqulre thelr special skills just because they were ninja.
THE HISTORY OF THE KAGE CLAN
IS A STORY OF SADNESS AND STRUGGLES
OF MEN BORN DURINg TIMES OF WAR.
KUSARE, THE STINKER
Durlng the Tenmon era,
there lived a mysterious boy ln a poor but peaceful village.
The people were wondering about this boy.
He was very qulet and preferred to play with animals, rather than with chlldren.
One day, the boy didn't return to the vlllage.
His name was Kosuke.
At the same tlme, anothertragedy occurred.
When a mother badger
returned to her babies, having bitten off her leg
to escape from a trap, they had starved to death.
And this was the beginning
of the curious relationshlp between the mother badger and lonesome Kosuke.
Kosuke soon became used to llving like the badgers.
And then Kosuke dlscovered hls own pecullar skill.
THE STINK-SHOT
One day, they found a trail of grain.
The trail led to the house of Kosuke's famlly.
Kosuke's mother saw her grown-up son in the moonlight.
Every day she laid out the trail anew.
But Kosuke had already ceased being her son...
Stlll, once his badger-mother also came to the house,
he felt at home again.
Soon Kosuke became re-accustomed to human life.
And he received his nlck-name: Stinker.
Then, one day...
... another tragedy occurred.
Out of the blue, a mysterious boy appeared.
Thls boy wasjust llke Kosuke.
Curlously, Kosuke felt attracted towards him.
This prlest was young Mufu.
Of course, the mysterious boy was Kagemaru,
who had discovered Kosuke's skill, and who had thought...
of using him as his double.
THE ART OF USING A DOUBLE
So Kosuke became a nlnja...
and a member of the Kage clan.
SHIBIRE, THE PARALYZER
lt was a yearof famines.
Those who were caught stealing food were punished
with the ''kamasukaburl'', the straw sack.
The punishment involved the whole family, even small children.
lt was a cruel village law born out of poverty.
One llttle boy survived the punishment.
Suddenly, the men were hlt by somethlng that came out of the water.
They died, their bodies completely charred.
The boy was called Sutekichi, ''The Thrown-Away'', and was adopted by a charcoal burner.
Again, the same phenomenon occurred.
Time passed.
A hermit became his sword teacher,
after observing a flght between Sutekichi and a wolf.
The hermit ordered him to attack his own father from behlnd.
But his father parried Sutekichl's blow,
and advised him it would be betterto become a skilled charcoal burner.
Again, some time passed.
But Sutekichi couldn't give up his wish to become a warrior.
His father promised him
that he would allow him to become a warrior,
if he could beat him.
And the phenomenon occurred forthe third time.
A frog burned to death in a puddle.
The hermit was a nlnja,
who knew about Suteklchl's skill, and planned to steal it.
When Suteklchi found that out, he furiously pursued hlm.
Hls sklll was to produce an electric shock whenever he was cornered.
At that moment, his charcoal burner father showed him hls real face forthe first time.
He was... Kagemaru.
IWANA, THE TROUT
Rumor in the village had lt, that lt was a water spirlt,
orthe curse of a man-eating woman.
A warrlor dlscovered a creature half-human, half-flsh,
swimmlng in the rlvers and running through the swamps.
So, the rumors were rlght,. lt was either a water spirit or the curse.
While the sun was setting, the villagers went home.
The fisherman cllmbed the rock,
and found an old travelllng warriorthere.
The warriortreated his wound
and asked him
if he was a water spirit?
The fisherman denied it and assured hlm hls mother wasn't a man-eating cannlbal, either.
That year, the reglon was hit by a cold spell, and the following year, by a drought.
When all the supplies were used up, the weakest started to die.
Finally, starving people even began to eat human flesh.
The villagers set out to hunt down the cannibals.
''l must find something to eat.
''My sister-ln-law ls waltlng at home: she has no milk left for her baby. ''
The glrl was strolllng through a dried-up field,
whlch was nearthe hide-out of the cannibal the villagers were searching for.
lt was a tragic misunderstanding,
whlch provoked an even more terrible tragedy..
if the girl weren't a real cannlbal, then herfamily would accuse them.
ln order to prevent thls, they had to klll her entire family.
Her sister-ln-law wasjust able to hide her baby before she was kllled.
The vlllagers swore to each other to keep silent about it forever.
The year of famines passed.
But the boy still had to hlde hlmself, and hls grief didnt ease.
He searched for his mother at the bottom of the lake for three years.
Miraculously, he eventually found her.
She was lylng at the bottom of the lake, as if stlll alive.
From this day onward, he spent more time under water than on land.
Soon both his body and his habits adapted to underwater life.
To his surprlse, webbing grew on his hands and feet,
and gllls developed on hls sldes, so that he could breathe underwater.
Tripletsl
Bunshln, the art of multiplying the body.
Then the volcano exploded.
The stream of lava brought to a boll the lake where his mother's body was resting.
The water in the lake evaporated.
But his mother had dlsappeared.
lnstead, Kagemaru, Kusare and Shibire appeared here.
And the fisherman too became a member of the Kage clan.
ZOROKU OR ONIKICHI, THE TURTLE
These are the lshlzuchl mountains - the border between Tosa province and lyo provlnce.
Though heavlly guarded, the border
was frequently vlolated by wood thieves.
But a cruel fate awalted lllegal border-crossers...
even if they were children.
Now all that remained for him was to wait for the wolves.
The boy's name was Onlkichl.
But soon he realized there is somethlng far more terrible than wolves.
lcicles.
The thlck, sharp iclcles were like swords.
Then a strange thing happened.
Oniklchi tucked ln hls head like a turtle does.
The Chlnese word forturtle ls zoroku'.
His special sklll determined his future fate.
Thls woman dressed in black was Princess Yasha,
the leader of a gang of thleves in Suzuka.
KYOTO
Ten years passed.
Kyoto was overcrowded wlth beggars and starving people.
Whlle the attention of the crowd was belng dlverted by a turtle,
Princess Yasha's head dlsappeared.
Although the guards were immediately put on alert, the thief wasn't found.
At the same time, some corpses of starved people were removed.
A wandering priest from Hieizan
hefted one of them onto his back and left the town.
But the corpse was still alive.
Who was the prlest who immediately recognized the art of suspended animatlon?
Thls was the boy Oniklchi, who was now a grown-up.
He had sworn to take revenge for Princess Yasha, who was his step-mother and teacher.
The man who killed her was Hosokawa Yorimitsu.
Yorimitsu gave the orderto brlng the packhorse driverto his residence.
He wanted to try out his new sword on him.
Now lt was Onlkichl's turn to satisfy his thirst for revenge.
THE NINJA PUNISHMENT OF BLEEDING WHITE
Onlkichl took the money and fled.
But hls pursuers fell from their horses one by one.
lt was a ''kamaku''.. a ''mosquito-curtain' -
invlsible threads with poisoned hooks.
KAMAKU - MOSQUITO CURTAIN
Suddenly Kagemaru appeared ln Kyoto, too.
He told Onikichi that he needed the money for the rebels.
lt was the first tlme that Onlklchl was defeated by somebody.
When he realized it, he burst out laughing.
THE TRIPLET OF THE KAGE CLAN
There was once a peasant couple who were fleeing from some soldiers.
Suddenly, the woman groaned with pain...
and fled into the bushes, pushing back Kagemaru...
who wanted to help her.
She was pregnant,
and at thls very moment, the parturition began.
But the pain returned agaln...
Another one...
And another one...
After givlng blrth to three healthy children,
the woman died from exhaustlon and blood loss, leaving the triplets to Kagemarus care.
But the trlplets were kidnapped, wlthout Kagemaru notlcing.
This was the flrst tlme Kagemaru was taken in.
The footprlnts were made backwards.
lt was Onlkichl the turtle who kidnapped the children.
EROKU 2
Nineteen years passed.
Thls year, Kagemaru, who was leading a revolt for tax reduction,
received the news that the ninja clan from Kokedani was fighting for the Bakufu.
He set out to scout out the situation.
But the clan's castle in Kokedani had already been destroyed by someone.
lt was Onlkichi, the turtle.
He had attacked the castle priorto Kagemarus arrival.
ln addition, Onikichi had...
THE SHIMEJI MUSHROOM WITH FOUR HATS
This was the first tlme Kagemaru saw someone steal his own technique.
But both the thieves as well as their victim, felt fine with it.
The three men...
who acted as Onlklchl's doppelgangers were the triplets...
he had once kidnapped.
EIGHT SHIMEJI MUSHROOM HATS 4 + 4 = 8 Shimeji mushroom hats
Now the Kage clan was complete.
lt was in the year Eroku 2, a year before Shuzen took over Fushlkage Castle,
and Oda Nobunaga defeated lmagawa Yoshimoto in Dengaku-Hazama.
Swlmmlng under water was lwana's task, of course,
while the head cut off by Mufu Dojln
was one of the triplet's.
AS LONG AS THE KAGE CLAN EXISTS, KAGEMARU WILL BE IMMORTAL.
THE MANUAL OF NINJA ARTS END OF THE HISTORY OF THE KAGE CLAN
ln the year Tensho 2,
Oda Nobunaga destroyed hls arch enemies - the Nagashima lkko-lkki rebels,
whlle the Echlzen province was ruled by the rebels.
There were stlll a lot of obstacles
laylng on his path towards the unlflcation of the country.
One day,
a contest was held at Nobunaga's castle in the presence of His Excellency.
Nobunaga and his nlnja Shuzen both pursued ulterior motives during lt.
The one-eyed warrlor Midare lshin.
But right before his victory was due...
Wait!
I, Yuki Jutaro from Mogami, chaIIenge you.
Oh, an additionaI contestant.
lt wasn't by chance that Jutaro had turned up.
The hlgh waters floated hlm to an island in the south.
There, he was trained by
SOHNINSHO, A NINJA FROM CHINA
in the ''Beatlng-of-the-Waves'' ninja technique.
THE ART OF ''THE BEATING-OF-THE-WAVES''
He then secretly came to the Azuchi castle to kill Shuzen.
But Shuzen and Hotarubi learned about his plan.
Thus, they got Mitsuhlde to announce the contest, in order to lure Jutaro.
Whlch succeeded.
That explains why Akemi was captured by Hotarubi.
Jutaro!
Will they kill Akemi, if l defeat him?
Jutaro!
What's this?
Guard your Majesty!
Hey, you Iouts!
How dare you, in the presence of His Majesty?
Quit it!
Both of you, approach!
You're the winner of today's contest.
What do you want as a reward?
Speak up.
WeII, first:
I want your permission to fight against Akechi Mitsuhide.
Against Mitsuhide?
Granted?
WeII, aIright. But on one condition.
There's a msn by the name of Kagemaru.
Bring me his head.
If you succeed, you may fight against Mitsuhide.
Now?
It's your own decision.
You can stay a whiIe and make up your mind.
l can't tell hlm that l'm Kagemaru's sister.
l wish time would stand still.
l beg you, please stay with me,
... wlth Akemi.
But, despite the sorrows of the young lovers,
time didn't stand still.
ln the meantlme, the fierce battles continued.
The remains on the battlefields
were always the same.
I'm hungry.
Look! A potato fieId!
Thieves!
Run! Go, go!
Wait for me!
Come on!
Get outa here!
Hey, that's a woman!
Stop!
Idiot!
HeIp!
Like starving wolves, driftlng chlldren of the war plundered and devastated villages.
Wait! They're going to rob them.
Hey, rascaI! You're sIeeping in the wrong pIace.
I can sIeep wherever I want.
What?
Go! Forward!
Heave-ho!
Listen!
Listen to me!
They took everything away from us: our parents, our homes and ourfieIds.
Now we'II rob them in return.
Everything we want.
He's right!
We'II spIit the booty between us.
Nobody's Iiving here enymore. This wiII be our castIe.
We'II aIIow nobody in and defend it together.
Right!
May I join you?
Who are you?
ActuaIIy, this is my house.
So we're reaIIy sorry, priest.
Go, get him!
- Hang him high! - PuII him up!
We need weapons to defend our castIe.
We'II coIIect them from the battIe-grounds.
Yes!
It's not so easy to kiII me.
Listen. Robbery might be good,
but what wiII you do if there's nothing Ieft to rob?
Those who are robbed by you wiII rob you in return. It'II never end.
What eIse can we do?
Produce something.
This Iand is suitabIe for farming.
But we'II need money to buy seeds and tooIs.
I'II get some for you.
Liar!
You just wait. I'II return soon.
And keep in mind: don't quarreI!
CaII aII our peasants to arms.
We must defeat Nobunaga.
KENNYO, ABBOT OF THE HONGANJI TEMPLE
Kennyo's maln interest was the spread of the Honganji sect.
At that time, his interest corresponded with the peasants'.
The uprislng of these allies was the main obstacle...
to Nobunaga's unification plans.
What's that?
They're on the other side, too.
They're coming down the mountains as weII.
It Iooks as if they were crawIing on the ground.
An opticaI iIIusion.
Marksmen! Fire!
Shoot! Shoot!
Though they lncessantly flred, the swarm of will-o'-the-wlsps kept getting closer.
The fear among Akechi's soldlers rose to panlc.
WINDMILL SHURIKEN
WindmiII shuriken!
Wait! It's just an iIIusion!
Don't be fooIed!
Wait!
But Akechl's soldiers began to flee ln panic.
WeII, the fIames over there...
Wind and rain?
We're Iucky.
Centipede fires
- Or- the nlnja art of crawling fireflies.
THE NINJA ART OF CRAWLING FIREFLIES
The rebels gained the upper hand ln Echizen, Kaga, Saiga and Kii.
They were always spearheaded...
by the band of packhorse drlvers from Sakamoto led by Kagemaru.
I won't toIerate any further deIays!
OnIy Jutaro can kiII Kagemaru.
Listen, Mitsuhide...
- What? Akemi? - Stupid!
Didn't you capture her as a decoy anyway?
Shuzen!
Did you hear?
So we'II pin the bIame on Kagemaru?
Almost slx months since then.
Our baby's already moving.
A baby made by Jutaro and me.
I'm Mori Ranmaru.
I'm here to inform you
that Yuki Jutaro is Ieaving.
He's waiting for you on the pine road.
lf l tell hlm l'm pregnant, surely he wont...
She's coming.
She disappeared
without Ieaving the sIightest trace...
Time passed.
Akechl's ten nlnja began to get nervous.
And then... suddenly...
The smeII of bIood...
Akeml's sudden movements had caused a miscarrlage.
There she is!
I can onIy escape to the right, but I'II Iose an arm.
Damn!
AIright, give the signaI.
We are rebeIs!
KiII them aII!
I'm Kagemaru, the terribIe.
Forward!
Mori Ranmaru lnformed Jutaro...
that Akemi was waiting for him on the pine road...
which was nearthe town attacked by the rebels.
What heppened? Who did this?
Kagemaru... the rebeIs.
Kagemaru?!
Jutaro didn't realize that it was all a set-up
to foster his hatred for Kagemaru.
Akemi!
Akemi.
I'II kiII him!
Jutaro, we're Akechi's ten ninja.
He sent us here to heIp you.
So, on Nobunaga's order, Jutaro, Hotarubi and Akechl's nlnja
lnflltrated the terrltory of the Kage clan, in order to search for Kagemaru.
The reddlsh old man, followed...
by hls grand-children...
THE FIRST
... considers drowning...
the flrst chlld in a pond.
Then he considers...
cutting off the flesh of the second...
THE SECOND
... and eating it.
Then he considers...
cutting the third into pieces...
and cooklng it.
lt wasjust a trlck by Kagemaru.
Then he considers...
burnlng the fourth child...
who's carrylng the dead one on hls back, with a bundle of brushwood.
lt's obvious whlch member of the Kage clan...
was thls Kagemaru who sank lnto the swamp.
THE THIRD AND FOURTH
SHADOW LAND
The art of the quadrupIed body.
Mice prepared with explosives.
These are ordlnary mice this time.
But the moment he sighed wlth relief...
One of them was highly explosive,
and Kagemaru shot at it to make it explode.
THE FIFTH
Then he considers...
grlndlng the fifth one to a mush, with sesame.
Then he considers...
whlpplng and steaming the sixth, to remove his skin ln the river.
lt ralned for seven days.
A whole week, he pretended to be dead.
But the dead mice were full of maggots,
whlle the corpse of the llving ninja wasn't.
Therefore, Oniklchi was able to see through the trlck.
THE SIXTH
Then he considers nalling...
THE SEVENTH to a beam and maklng leatherfrom his skin.
THE EIGHTH
The dragonflies attacked the moths.
The valley of dragonflles.
Kusare intentionally lured him here.
THE NINTH
The lga-nlnja art of hiding in the fog.
lt was covered with gunpowder.
A fuse. Here too, exploslves were hidden.
Shlbire had hldden them, lmitating the art of the enemy.
THE TENTH
That year, there was a drought.
Not a single drop of rain fell.
The old man recounted..
The same thlng happened 50 years ago.
ln those days, we dug deep in the swamp for water.
We discovered a member of the Kage clan and two of Akechis ninja.
These three had sunk lnto the swamp before.
And a flght broke out again.
A signal fire was lit, to gather the Kage clan.
There was someone who smlled, when he saw the fire.
lt was Hotarubi.
Before the last, declslve flght, she took a bath in the lake.
She rolled around ln the sand to clean herself perfectly.
Hotarubi, the female nlnja, was washing herself for the last tlme.
Now, Jutaro,
we'II meet in HeII,
because Akemi is sureIy in Heaven.
Hotarubi!
Go back!
You've got no chance.
For me, it's either win or die.
If you're dead, everything is over.
A ninja Iives for his art.
Even if he dies, his art wiII Iive on.
Don't move, or we'II cut off the other arm as weII.
Shit!
Quicksand!
Hotarubi finally dled.
But she said that, even lf a nlnja died, his art would live on.
What did she mean?
What happened to my daddy?
Taro, what's going on?
My father hasn't come back...
Don't worry. Zoroku can't be kiIIed that easy.
Daddy!
Oh, the fishman.
He's dead!
Dead!
They are aII dead.
Hotarubi's art survlved her.
She was ready to dle
in orderto destroy the Kage clan.
So she polsoned her own body,
and, dying, she threw herself into the well.
Whlle the Kage clan and Akechl's nlnja
were killing each other with all their might,
another decislve battle took place elsewhere.
There, Olzumi Nobutsuna and Yagyu Munetoshi,
who claimed to be the true disciples of the Kage school,
challenged Mufu Dojln, the staln on the Kage school, to purge him.
To avold the flght,
Mufu had to hide fortwo months, durlng which he was supposed
to bring the money to the waiting children.
The result was...
HeIIo!
Too Iate!
Because of this...
the children still kept theirfingers clutched
around the gold coins -
the cause of the quarrel that had made them kill each other.
Priest!
AIms, pIease.
I ran out of miIk for my baby.
Here you are. Take it.
- A statue of Jizo, the guardian god of chiIdren? - You shouIdn't ridicuIe me.
Look!
- GoId! - It's mine! Mine!
Even with money, I couIdn't save peopIe.
It means that I have Iived a compIeteIy faIse Iife.
Oh, they are stiII aIive, though heaviIy wounded.
I reaIIy Iove these rascaIs.
After having treated the boys and the glrls,
Mufu left them for the last challenge of his life:
his duel wlth Olzumi Nobutsuna.
I've come to take revenge for what you did to me.
You're responsibIe for the deaths of my proteges.
I can't understand your actions.
A moron Iike you wiII never understand.
Today I'II eradicate the root of aII your faIse teachings.
You never used your sword for anything but your own benefit.
Nobutsuna! Master!
Mufu struck him down with a blow of his scabbard.
At the same time, his sword killed the serpent and saved Nobutsuna's life.
Then he left him behind, saying he would glve him time to reconsider.
However, nobody has seen Mufu ever since.
Some people say
that he became a living buddha,
that is to say, a mummy.
ln the meantime, the battles between Nobunaga
and the rebels went on.
TENSHO 2 THE EXTERMINATION OF THE NAGASHIMA REBELS
After havlng destroyed the rebels in Nagashima,
Nobunaga marched on to Echlzen, which was still in thelr hands.
Kennyo, the head of Honganjl Temple, had attempted to selze power there
by appolnting a governor for the province,
which caused an internal quarrel
between the faithful peasants and the blg land owners of the ruling class.
Nobunaga used this opportunlty to subjugate the Echizen province.
TENSHO 3 THE EXTERMINATION OF THE ECHIZEN REBELS
Then Nobunaga began to extermlnate the Saiga rebels in Kii,
the last bulwark of Honganjl Temple.
But the rebels took on Nobunaga's fleet and destroyed lt,
encircllng them wlth their small but manoeuvrable boats.
Two months later, Nobunaga's fleet returned to the Bay of Osaka.
ln the meantlme, Nobunaga had ordered Kukl Yoshitaka from Kumano,
a famous pirate, to build seven war ships, the blggest in Japan at the time.
The battles continued.
But the rebels had no chance
agalnst the lron-clad ships armed with cannons.
So Suzuki Magoichl, the leader of THE REBELS, surrendered.
TENSHO 5 THE EXTERMINATION OF THE SAIGA REBELS
OnIy here in THE KAGA PROVINCE,
the flerce battles agalnst HASHlBA HlDEYOSHl went on.
Fire!
UnbeIievsbIe! These peasants have cannons.
UnbeIievabIe!
Though onIy wooden cannons, they are stiII effective.
- Important news! - What's that, Saizo?
- Saiga surrendered! - What?
Then Honganji TempIe is isoIated?
They say that Kennyo wants to surrender too.
So he finaIIy showed his true face.
It wiII be disastrous for us if he betrays us now.
I'II go, Saizo.
The Kage clan doesnt exist anymore.
Of the eight Shlmejl mushroom hats, only one remains.
What's that?
A night attack!
The rebeIs!
Move aIong!
Kyonyo, you're stiII young.
But father, you caIIed for resistance
and now you want to give up!
Nonsense!
If we continue, the Honganji sect wiII be destroyed.
So you just made use of the peasants?
They couIdn't Iive without us.
So we have to protect our sect, first of aII.
I didn't know
that you were such a moron.
Kyonyo!
I'm the abbot!
My authority is absoIute.
Now, Kennyo, you finaIIy showed your reaI face.
I won't reproach you for expIoiting the peasants.
I knew it right from the beginning.
And I understand that you're trying to ensure the survivaI of your sect.
But I won't Iet you surrender to Nobunaga uniIateraIIy.
CsII the country to arms once more.
Then we'II manege to shore up our frontIine again.
The Honganji sect must survive
by fighting warIords such as Nobunega, and supporting the autonomy of the peasantry.
I don't care at aII.
What?
I've been waiting for this day for a Iong time, Kagemaru!
Jutaro!
So, you finaIIy got it?
Why?
Your impudence won't save you. Ask yourseIf!
Didn't you send for Akemi to kiII her?
What?
It was a trick by Nobunaga.
Stop!
Jutaro, Iisten! They'II kiII you too!
Forward!
Damn! DoubIe tiIes.
Kagemaru, you Iost.
Shuzen...
You shouId surrender!
Maybe you're right.
With so many rifIes aiming at me...
Wait, Kagemaru.
Jutaro, I never kiIIed Akemi.
What?
She's my younger sister.
Huh?
Don't waste the rest of your Iife.
That strange monster of the time was finally caught.
He was executed the same day,
afterthe arrival of lnspector Morl Ranmaru.
What a beautifuI sky!
I've seen a sky Iike this before.
Kagemaru, this time you'II die for good.
I'm not so sure.
Shuzen, did you say anything?
No, nothing.
Ranmaru.
That's his voice.
Behind us lles a long path.
And we still have a long way to go.
The art of the wordIess expression of the heart.
Understand?
TeII it to Nobunaga.
- Did you say anything? - No.
Let's go then.
In THE YEAR TENSHO 8
Abbot Kennyo flnally surrendered to Nobunaga.
Hls son Kyonyo burned down the temple in protest and left him.
lt was the end of Nobunagas arch-enemy.
TENSHO 10
High time for a ninja from Iga to seize power over the whoIe country.
Forwerd! Forward! The enemy's at Honnoji TempIe.
THE HONNOJI INCIDENT In June of Tensho 10
Sakagaml Shuzen, a nlnja from lga and one of Akechi's shadow warrlors,
attacked Oda Nobunaga at Honnojl Temple in Kyoto and kllled him.
But returning from Chugoku, Hashlba Hldeyoshi defeated Shuzen
soon afterwards at Tennozan Mountaln.
THE BATTLE OF TENNOZAN
Damn! Now I have to start from scratch.
But even the reaI Mitsuhide
wouId have fled end hidden somewhere.
Make way!
Aside!
Away!
Who are you?
Take it. It's the head of Mitsuhide.
The warriors pursued the mysterious father and son
who had beheaded Mltsuhide, but lost them ln a sandstorm.
And moreover, they were swallowed up by quicksand.
Of course
this man was Onlkichl, the turtle of the Kage clan.
And now we reallze that it was he who survived
the extermination of the Kage clan.
Around the same time,
another man was wanderlng through the sandstorm.
lt was Jutaro, who wandered around almlessly,
no longer havlng the objective he had pursued for half his life.
We don't know anything about his later life.
Nor do we know anything
about the later llves of Onlkichl and his son Taro,
who escaped the extermlnation of the Kage clan.
But we flrmly belleve ln Kagemaru's words:
''After my death, another Kagemaru wlll emerge. ''
EVEN THOUGH THEY MAY BE DEFEATED,
THE PEOPLE WILL KEEP ON FIGHTING FOR THEIR RIGHT TO LIVE EQUAL AND HAPPY.
SubtitIes by Suna and miikki for ADC