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Lanithro
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Timers
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Itachi-san
A Rainy Night's Moon
"If you could go somewhere other than this world..."
That was the question on the psychology test.
I've never been interested in that kind of thing.
The world has always been "me" and "everything else."
That's all there's ever been.
These are pretty well made.
Welcome, and thank you for coming.
In my first year of senior high, I flunked Japanese History spectacularly.
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The Bakumatsu (1853-1867) refers to the final years of the Tokugawa Shogunate, when Japan's 250 years of isolation ended.
Put on your goggles for a timeslip back to the Bakumatsu!
Using the latest cutting-edge CG, you can now experience the streets of Edo.
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The Bakumatsu (1853-1867) refers to the final years of the Tokugawa Shogunate, when Japan's 250 years of isolation ended.
This was supposed to be my spring vacation, but I ended up coming here for a remedial class.
The Edo Bakumatsu Walking Tour and Exhibition.
I'll put these away for you.
I guess this is my costume.
It's still Japan,
Yes.
Here's your ticket. Be careful not to lose it.
but it's a whole different world.
This may be an unexpected stroke of luck.
You've got it on backwards.
Huh? Got what?
That. That there.
Haven't you noticed that at funerals, the dead body's shoes will be
the wrong way round, and the kimono tied backwards?
O-Oh, right.
Is this better?
Thank you, um...
Shinonome Kon.
Thank you, Shinonome.
It's nothing.
Later.
Hey, do you know a lot about kimonos and stuff like that?
Eh? Maybe I know more about it than you do.
Then that's perfect. Would you look around this place with me?
You can explain everything to me.
Why do I have to do something like that?
Why not?
We both flunked the test.
We can help each other.
I have no idea what I'm going to put in my report.
Don't lump me in with you.
I didn't flunk.
Then...
I skipped class too often.
Huh...
The other night, they found out I was messing around with some guys from another school.
Someone ended up in the hospital, and I got suspended.
Does that count as skipping class?
Compared to a twenty page letter of apology, a report is a piece of cake.
Is it?
A report is more than enough of a challenge for me.
I'm not bragging or anything, but I got 5% on that test.
Man, I guess it can't be helped.
So ask me something.
I'll answer one question.
If you start from there, you should be able to string together two or three pages.
Really?
Um, then...
What's that?
Put on your goggles.
Long ago, the sun was used to tell time.
People of this era were always carrying lethal weapons, right?
One question, I told you.
Weren't people scared?
Weren't they worried they might be cut down at any time?
Samurai didn't just go around killing people at random.
Really?
In the Edo Period, people were more scared of illnesses, fires, and disasters.
People used to say, "Earthquakes, thunder, fires, fathers."
Hey, I've heard that before.
Though we can leave fathers out of it.
Because people didn't understand these events, they blamed them on spirits or gods.
Gods? Spirits?
Apparently, everyone believed in them.
Even without knowing if they existed?
You can't say for sure that they don't exist.
In that age, people thought they did.
Really?
That's why they were always going to temples and shrines to pray.
"Protect me from evil," or "please don't inflict any evil on me," and all that.
Oh... so do you know about topknots?
Huh? Shinonome?
He got away?
Aw, where'd he go?
Sorry to bother you, mister.
I'm looking for someone.
He has dyed brown hair,
and, um...
Hey kid, that's just a CG image.
Put out your hand.
Hey! It's a wall!
There's an information desk marked on the pamphlet map.
Look at that to make sure you don't bump into the walls.
There it is.
If you need to, just take off your goggles and look at the ceiling.
The exits are clearly marked there.
Later then. Have a fun experience in Edo.
Thanks!
Man, it's bigger than I thought.
If I don't hurry, I won't get all the way around the exhibit.
So the entrance to Edo Castle is...
Hey, it looks like I can get there by crossing here.
Question: What is emptiness?
I-Is this some sort of event?
It looks so real... Is this virtual too?
What is emptiness?
Question: What is reality?
What... are you...
What is reality?
Don't move, boy.
I was so close to finishing it off.
What's going on?
The pain and the blood...
is this real?
That was a pretty close call for you, boy.
Why did that nue attack you? Who are you anyway?
Nue?
Yes. We call the beast a nue.
We call the smaller, man-shaped thing a yakou.
Despite appearances, the beast isn't dead.
It'll return to how it was, and appear again.
They're a bother.
Are you wounded?
Huh? My goggles!
Goggles? What are those?
If I take the goggles off,
I should be able to see the arrows for the exits on the ceiling and all over the walls.
Why?
Boy! Look out!
It-It hurts...
My chest hurts.
Why...
did this happen?
Let me pass, let me pass.
What is this narrow pathway here?
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This is the narrow pathway of the Tenjin Shrine.
Tenjin is the Shinto god of scholarship.
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Tenjin is the Shinto god of scholarship.
Humans are ruled by their minds.
Please allow me to pass through.
Sight, hearing, touch...
Ultimately, the senses are but a feeble gleam inside the mind.
Those without good reason shall not pass.
The world in which people believe cannot be trusted.
To celebrate this child's seventh birthday,
Inside your mind, everything easily changes shape.
I've come to dedicate my offering.
Meaning changes.
There are as many truths as there are people.
Going in may be fine, fine, but returning would be scary.
So, child.
What is emptiness?
What is reality?
It's scary, but...
What is death?
What is life?
Let me pass, let me pass.
What is this narrow pathway here?
It's the narrow pathway of the Tenjin Shrine.
Please allow me to pass through.
Those without good reason shall not pass.
To celebrate this child's seventh birthday...
That girl...
Hey, you're finally awake.
Y-Y-Y-You! You're Shinonome... right?
What happened to your hair? And those clothes?
And you're the kid who flunked the test back then.
What was it? 5%?
Yes, that's me—
What do you mean "back then"?
I only lost you a little while ago.
It might've seemed just a little while to you.
Unfortunately, for me, it was a long time ago.
Eh? What do you mean?
I've been here about two years now.
Have I changed much?
Two years?
Hey, hang on a minute!
What do you mean, two years?
Have I been asleep for two years?
You have it all wrong.
Then why?
Stop freaking out.
Calm down. It's that sort of world.
I don't understand.
Don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to get your head around the situation.
Then again, you'll have plenty of adjustments to make in how you think.
You'll never have time to get bored.
So he's not feverish?
No, he was sleeping peacefully until just now.
How is he?
I can't do anything about this.
It's completely gone. That blasted nue took it.
My eyeball was stolen?!
But I can feel it—
That's not what I meant. Your eyesight was taken.
He's in the same boat.
Show him.
When I first came here, a nue attacked me too.
It took all the feeling in my arm below the elbow.
You can't move it?
I can move it a little, but I don't have any strength.
You can't even use chopsticks...
Well, I can do almost everything with my left arm now.
Not much can be done about a nue's power.
No doctor can cure this.
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A bouzu is a Buddhist monk.
I suppose you'll need to ask that bouzu about it.
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A bouzu is a Buddhist monk.
Bouzu?
Yes, you should get Kon to take you there.
I can't tell you much about him, but he's an expert.
He might be able to do something about your eye.
By bouzu, you mean a monk?
I may question his conduct, but his skills are undeniable.
That's it, Kon. Until the kid settles down, keep this place tidy.
I won't be able to stop by for a while.
Yes, yes.
One yes is quite enough.
Thank you very much.
You're a good boy.
I know you've had a rough time, but you need to do your best.
Well, I don't know much about it,
but I think I'll do some sightseeing and relax.
You want to go sightseeing?
He's really something.
I'll be your tour guide like you want, so put this on.
It's the second half of the tour from two years ago.
By the way, what's your name?
Rikugou Tokidoki.
That's a tough name for a slacker like you.
Toki... Toki will do, won't it?
Sure.
Just how well do you understand the situation?
I get it.
But you're in a better situation than I was.
You've got someone with experience right here.
When I got here, I totally panicked.
These streets, the nue, my right arm...
Incomprehensible things were happening to me, one after another.
Just when I'd reached my limit, and thought I was about to die,
that old woman found me.
I contracted tetanus, and was bedridden for a month.
After that, I was introduced to courtesy, revived, and learned all sorts of things.
The old woman is a stern teacher.
That's when I finally understood.
This is completely different from the normal world I came from.
No matter how long I wait, I'm not going to wake up from it.
Regardless of how badly you flunked Japanese History, you at least know this is the Edo Period, right, Toki?
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In this period, a Tokugawa ruled Japan as shogun, or military dictator. The Emperor was a religious figurehead.
Thanks to 250 years of Tokugawa rule,
it's said to be a time of peace, when even the commoners were happy.
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In this period, a Tokugawa ruled Japan as shogun, or military dictator. The Emperor was a religious figurehead.
Now that I think about it, it's not only busy here,
everyone is confident and in high spirits.
And then came the black ships with their cannons and foreigners,
bringing a whole different culture with them.
Some people accepted them, and some didn't.
Either because of the long peace, or in reaction to the intruders,
this country is now at war with itself.
Public safety is deteriorating, and crime has suddenly started to increase.
So, up to this point, it's a city of the Edo Period, just like in the history lessons.
The problems start over there.
Though the place we're heading now is that way too.
Do you mean the monster I saw? That nue?
Or the yakou and stuff?
Ayakashi is used here to mean demon.
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Though that girl called it an ayakashi.
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Ayakashi is used here to mean demon.
Like with ghosts, not many people can see those things.
They're what you'd call spirits.
Spirits...
Shinonome, do you believe in them?
I can barely believe my eyes, but...
Over there.
There?
D-Disgusting!
Most people can't see these either.
They're called sanshi - harmless spirits.
Not only can you see them, you can smell and feel them too.
This is proof beyond logic.
You want to touch it?
I'll pass. More importantly, behind you!
You bastard! You trying to start a fight with me?
I'll show you! What the hell are you doing to the tools of my trade!
This place might be incomprehensible,
but this is one thing that's not all bad.
They do say that fires and fights are the flowers of Edo.
We shouldn't make trouble—
I've never had a problem finding someone who's up for a fight.
Can't you guide him around the town without getting in a fight?
Shut up! You just kicked me in the head!
Just be grateful that I don't kill you, you hoodlum!
You violent woman! Why did you come here?!
You're so damn unreliable, I had to come looking for you, you useless bastard!
You've got some nerve talking to me like that!
I'll stop making dinner for you.
You jerk! Don't try to change the subject!
I apologize.
I'll deal with this idiot later.
Leave it to me.
I-I think you've done enough.
We're keeping Shamon-sama waiting.
Let's get moving.
R-Right!
That idiot's always like that, despite all he's been through.
How's your eye, by the way?
It doesn't seem to be injured, but I can't use it.
I see.
I know I should've said this sooner,
but you really saved me back on the bridge.
Can I ask your name?
I had my doubts about you when I heard you were Shinonome's friend,
but it seems you're a whole different type of person.
I'm Kuchiha.
Pleased to meet you.
Kuchiha? Call me Toki.
Pleased to meet you.
You really are a strange one.
You're completely different from how he was when I first met him.
You don't seem upset at all.
You're a lot more relaxed.
Well, it's more that I'm always like this.
My eye, the spirits, this world...
They all seem distant somehow.
I guess Shinonome's here too,
so maybe it's all right.
Maybe it'll all just work itself out.
Or something like that.
I can't express it very well, but...
people, things, events...
They always seemed far away.
They never seemed real.
Like they were all happening to someone else.
That's why I could always be calm.
I could always smile.
Always, anywhere.
Because it was all a dream to me.
Well, aren't you the lucky one?
Taking life as it comes,
even living life as a dream, you've never gone hungry or been neglected.
What luxury!
I envy you.
I can't stand him because he's always starting fights, and he yaps a lot.
You... just piss me off.
Did I make her angry?
Man, you're really unlucky.
Don't let it bother you.
She's just prejudiced.
You don't need to say anything to her.
But—
There are dark places in her heart that shouldn't be disturbed.
She took it as the smug response of someone who's lived a sheltered life.
If I want to keep the peace,
the smartest thing would be to avoid causing friction.
Stay calm,
think on my feet,
and just accept whatever comes.
If I do that, I'll be able to fit in.
Whenever,
wherever.
Going there is fine, but to return is frightening.
So, boy.
I am scared, but let me pass.
What is reality?
What is it to you?
What is death?
Let me pass.
What is life?
Next Episode
The Voice That Calls to Dogs
Episode 2: The Voice That Calls to Dogs.