Morning, Toki.
Good morning.
Sorry to ask you so suddenly,
but I've just found out that I have a difficult guest coming today.
Could you hide out at Kon's place for a little while?
You have a guest? No problem.
Oh? What's this?
My, it looks like a fancy eyepatch.
Ah, this?
One of Shinonome's neighbors made it for me.
Oh? It's quite stylish.
They seem to be taking good care of you.
I'm glad you've been able to open up to others.
Life is short, and passes in the blink of an eye.
Don't be led astray because one eye is sealed.
Observe the world with an open heart, and you'll find happiness and good fortune.
Remember that, Toki.
Sure.
On The Monster's Road.
What do you think, Oume-san?
Does it suit me?
Hmm, well. I think you look a bit better than before.
I'm glad to hear that.
I'd guess it's thanks to your skills.
You really know what to say to make a person happy.
Toki-san, look at these.
They look delicious!
May I have one?
Yes, of course.
I made them just for you, Toki-san.
Itadakimasu.
Tasty!
Your cooking gets better every time.
Really?
You know, Toki-chan, I've got some dumplings at my house as well.
Should I bring them for you?
Would you? Great!
In that case, I'd like to share some with my friends as well.
Say, why don't we all have tea together?
But I made these especially for you, Toki-san.
I feel like I'll be punished if I keep all your delicious food to myself.
You silver-tongued devil!
What is that?
Man, I envy him.
Damn!
Heihachi-san, Shinonome. Let's go for tea together.
They've all brought snacks for us.
Seriously?!
Th-This is a time for a man to prove his worth.
Wait for me! I'm going to bring some sweets from the store as well!
You've settled in nicely.
Where did that come from?
Did you make it yourself?
It was given to me yesterday.
Oume-san made it for me.
She also adjusted the size properly,
so it won't fall off like the old one.
This will let me keep it hidden.
I see.
Hey! W-Wait! These snacks aren't for you.
Don't pull that!
Don't hang onto that.
But, if Oume did that much for you, she probably thinks of you as a kid.
As a kid, huh?
What's up, Toki?
I was just thinking that nobody's ever been so nice to me before.
Sorry, did I say something strange?
No, not at all.
It's nothing, nothing.
I'll wash my hands before we go for tea.
That wasn't like me...
getting upset about something like that.
I have found you, sir.
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In Buddhist legend, demons ride in a flaming chariot, looking for sinners.
I was looking for the fiery chariot.
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In Buddhist legend, demons ride in a flaming chariot, looking for sinners.
Surely, surely-
But instead, I found Momotarou,
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Momotarou is a legendary demon slayer.
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Momotarou is a legendary demon slayer.
the child of the gods who defeated the gods.
However, however,
it doesn't end there.
What?
This fellow's true identity
could even be said to be Shuten Douji.
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Shuten Douji is an ogre, 20 feet tall with flaming red hair.
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Shuten Douji is an ogre, 20 feet tall with flaming red hair.
Douji loved his mother
and hated his father, who had abandoned him.
You!
Yearning and yearning,
he missed his mother.
This yearning for his mother made the child into a demon.
That song!
Stop it!
Surely, surely.
That pitiable child...
He is a pitiable child.
Surely, surely.
Pitiable child,
pitiful,
pitiful.
Well, well.
Isn't this an adorable little thing I've found?
Although that folk song about Shuten Douji seems
to indicate another person with prophetic powers.
Hey, Tadajiro.
You've been using the bathroom for ages—
Hey, Toki! What are you doing here?
It's about a little something I borrowed from the Divine Princess.
I'm done for.
The tea here is the same as always.
Well, I'm sorry about that.
I'm sure it's very different from the tea supplied to the Shogunate.
Well, it's not bad, as a change.
Well then, I'll get straight to the point.
There were rumors that an ayakashi appeared around here the other day.
Do you know about it?
The victim just happened to come to me for help.
The fellow seemed to be terrified out of his wits,
so I couldn't just ignore him.
Even though I consulted the man who should be best informed about these things,
he insisted that he didn't know anything.
And so, there was nothing left to do but use my secret weapon.
And when I did, I caught you.
Could you be the rumored ayakashi?
How dare you!
Does the boy look like a demon?
Well, of course he doesn't.
Then accept that you were misinformed and give up.
Who are you?
Ah, where are my manners?
I am known as Sasaki Tadajiro.
My elder brother is Teshirogi Suguemon.
My younger brother is Sasaki Tadasaburou.
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Aizu is just north of Edo (Tokyo).
We are from Aizu prefecture.
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Aizu is just north of Edo (Tokyo).
You should know that we brothers are very loyal to each other.
Some pretty influential names are being dropped around here again.
Oh? Have you heard of me?
No, but I've heard of your brothers.
I see.
Well, I suppose that's to be expected.
My elder brother works with the government to protect the Shogunate, as the official face of Aizu Prefecture.
My younger brother works in the shadows with the military, to protect the Shogunate and its leaders.
And I stand in the shadows of the shadows.
I protect Edo from unwanted things.
I am a demon hunter, vital to the Shogunate.
A demon hunter? For the Shogunate?
This is the first I've heard of it.
Is there really a position like that?
It's not a job you'd be likely to encounter on the streets.
Hey, who is this guy?
I don't really know myself,
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Sakamoto Ryouma was an anti-Shogunate nationalist and played an important role in modernizing Japan.
but there's a theory that his younger brother assassinated Sakamoto Ryouma.
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Sakamoto Ryouma was an anti-Shogunate nationalist and played an important role in modernizing Japan.
To be honest, I never expected matters would go this far.
Even so, there was no need for you to come investigate in person.
Well, work is work,
and besides, I wanted to meet my old friend, Shamon.
This is bad. Given our relative standing, we can't defy him.
But, I'm a normal human being.
No matter what he tries on me, it won't work.
But, we've got to keep Kuchiha's secret hidden.
We don't know what they'll say next.
Also, we weren't completely blameless.
Even if it wasn't much of a crime.
This era puts social status before justice.
Those guys were samurai.
Do you think we have any chance of winning, as outsiders in this world?
But they don't have any proof against us.
We'll be all right if we keep quiet.
It will work out.
I'll do something about it.
It's not unusual for all those involved to be put to death.
I'm sorry!
I did it!
I did it all myself.
I'm so sorry!
Wha— You idiot! What are you saying?
These guys had nothing to do with it.
What am I saying?
This could get me killed!
I thought it up myself and put the plan into action.
But, I mustn't cause them more problems than I already have.
Hey, Toki!
My, my, it's most convenient that you've confessed.
Well then, I suppose you will have to be punished.
This is all exactly what I deserve.
Hey, wait a minute!
Your sentence is three days of babysitting!
It's a lot of hard work,
so you'd better think about what you've done.
I heard some thugs saying,
"They're keeping demons in that temple,"
so I thought I'd come by to check it out.
But they were just blowing smoke out their asses.
I'm glad.
Just relax.
Despite appearances, I've got a good eye for people.
Between you and the "victim" in the case, it's not hard to decide who's more trustworthy.
So, Tokidoki-kun,
you're supposed to be the culprit,
but after talking to you and examining you,
you seem to be an extremely normal boy.
Despite that,
I still find it strange that the monster could manipulate fire well enough to convince people it was real.
That was just stuff I learned in science and chemistry class.
Science? Chemistry?
No, er, I mean—
It's knowledge from the West.
You're an educated fellow, Tokidoki-kun.
Given how you look, could you be a student from abroad?
No, um.
Tadajiro!
All right, all right.
About the babysitting I mentioned before,
I'll come by in three days' time to pick you up.
Ah, sure.
Is something the matter?
Nothing in particular.
Then, I'll see you in three days' time.
It comes.
Princess?
It is pure white.
Finally... finally the Princess has spoken.
Prepare yourself.
for events are coming that even I cannot foresee.
Or,
perhaps that is up to the gods.
So the Princess has found him.
Is he the enemy of this world,
or is he the complete opposite?
Only the gods themselves know the answer.
Good work back there.
Uh, I'm really sorry!
I thought he was with the police!
It's all in the past now.
And besides, it worked out and wasn't considered a serious crime.
All's well that ends well.
Well, Shinonome warned me about it before,
but I guess I hadn't really understood what he was trying to tell me.
Before I came here, my actions never had such huge effects on people around me.
In Zen, we have a commonly held belief.
It's almost a "universal truth."
"Humans always look too deeply into the answers before them,
and lose sight of them."
Or so it's said.
When you were in your world,
even if you simply threw a pebble, it should've changed the shape of the world.
But those changes were so mundane and ordinary
that you simply didn't notice them.
If you've started to see it now, Toki, then it means your way of seeing the world has changed.
It all depends on your heart.
Depends on... my heart—
Ow! What the hell was that for?!
You moron!
I guess he's felt you still needed to be punished.
I see. He was worried about me.
When did he become such a caring person?
Toki...
That's another consequence of a pebble you've thrown.
I'll be on my way then.
All right, take care on your journey.
The weather's good today too.
I hope you have an easy journey.
Yes, then I'll be leaving.
Hey, you've brought your sword with you?
Man, that's dangerous.
It's just a precaution.
Anything could happen.
Oh? Are you two coming as well?
What for?
Sasaki-san only asked me to come.
I'm just here to make sure you don't go running off anywhere.
That's it exactly.
As if we could let a troublesome guy like you do what just you liked.
Also, I have a message from Heihachi.
Oh. I'd assumed Shamon-san asked you to do this.
Am I wrong?
Ah! I could have used that!
No, I...
I chose to do this myself!
Got a problem with that?!
What the hell! Don't take it out on me!
I used to have a lot of friends.
This is great.
To be honest, I would've been lonely by myself.
Let go of me, you idiot!
Don't touch me whenever you feel like it.
We got along well and never fought.
We liked each other.
I thought that was how it was supposed to be.
Yet...
I'm happier over here.
So what was Heihachi's message?
I'll tell you later.
Hey, Kuchiha. This road...
Yeah. It has a menacing aura.
Damn that old man. Where was he planning to take Toki?
He might be suspicious, but he's not a bad guy.
He's one of Shamon-san's friends, after all.
And that makes it okay?
Man, I keep telling you guys that you worry too much.
I hope this isn't a bad omen.
Let's go.
Toki, do you feel more at ease when you wear the eyepatch, or when you don't?
Well, I can't see spirits with the eyepatch, so I guess I'm more at ease that way.
In other words, you don't feel awkward even with one eye covered?
Well, that's odd.
Don't look, Toki.
If you stare too much, you'll get sucked in.
This is a spirit road.
If you lose your path, you'll never be able to return.
I've heard it's the road between this world and the next.
If you don't want to be lost, keep your eyes on the road and walk straight ahead.
Kuchiha, you look pale.
I'm not very fond of places like this.
Kuchiha!
I'm fine!
It's nothing. This has nothing to do with you.
I understand. You can make it.
I'd like to take a little break.
Yeah, I hear you.
I feel fine.
I really don't feel fine.
Don't underestimate the strength of women from this era.
Don't give up, don't give up.
I guess this means we have to keep going on our own.
It seems that way.
We've been walking for more than two hours now,
and the destination still isn't in sight. Isn't that strange?
Maybe we're being misled on purpose.
On purpose?
They have some nerve, summoning people and then treating them like this.
Are we supposed to figure out which of these three paths is the right one?
Is he playing games with us?
What is it, Toki?
Just now, I saw something that looked like a feather.
A feather?
Was it an ayakashi?
Um, I don't really know.
I don't really know if it was a feather or not.
It's this way!
What is it, Toki?
Follow me!
I see the path!
If you run when you're tired, you'll fall down.
I'm fine!
Huh?
What happened?
Toki?
What is this place?
What's happening here?
Are those two all right?
I guess this is the bottom.
I'm glad you made it here.
I've been waiting for you.
Now, let me ask you something.
Something that will determine the fate of this world...
through one simple question.
Next Episode
The Spirit of the Dog and the Sacred Princess
Episode 4: The Spirit of the Dog and the Sacred Princess.