I prayed to God...
"Please..."
"...let me capture that moment through my drawing."
Suddenly, I thought of the "The Record of Peter Kürten".
It was a short manga drawn by Tezuka Osama about a real life German serial killer.
"I am not a madman!"
"I was seeking vengeance!"
"Vengeance against society!"
This is it!
That final moment...
This moment...
...when life is ebbing away...
I failed, failed, failed!
I must look for a new prey again.
Wabi-Sabi Subs presents: YAMI NO BANSOSHA
Ep. 1: "Must Overcome Fear"
Yes?
"Hello. Is this Terada Yuki-san?"
"I am Yokoyama, your husband's lawyer."
It's Mizuno.
My name's Mizuno... Yuki.
"Yes, but your divorce hasn't been finalized..."
I am using my maiden name for work. What can I do for you?
"Well, your husband had hired me..."
"Since you subjected him to violence, and required to pay compensation..."
He started it.
"I heard you pinched his neck, which caused him to faint, is that true?"
"Anyway your husband wants to continue with the marriage."
What?
"He said that if you give up the divorce talks, he won't make you pay compensation anymore."
Unbelievable!
I have no intention of getting back together. I have to go to work. If you'll excuse me.
"Oh, b-but..."
I swear!
Dammit!
(AJIMAPRO)
I see... You're a detective? (Ajima Yoshiko, Ajima Pres.)
No, I'm a researcher. Mainly to do with publishing.
I investigate and resolve disputes related to books and magazines.
Since magazines are often sued, right?
So how long have you been doing this line of work?
Three to four years. Before that, I was with the police.
Oh, really...
Then, do you do a lot of dangerous work?
Oh uh...
This isn't related.
Do you know a lot about manga?
I'm afraid not.
It's okay. Because I wanted Eijinsha to send me someone...
...who's not well-versed in manga.
Ozawa-kun, the thing please.
These are the drawings.
A total of 50 pages.
If I may...
Is this the first time you've seen such a thing?
Yes it is.
After the death of Ajima...
Eijinsha asked us to let them publish his complete works.
Then we managed to save and put together a lot of his drawings and manuscripts but...
We found those drawings during that time.
Do you know whose work those are?
Isn't it the work of Ajima Fumiya-sensei?
Since Ajima debuted at age 18, until his illness at age 72...
...he had always been creating manga.
However...
...no one has ever seen this work.
So you're saying this was an unpublished work?
He made 78 long novels.
Including his short stories. (Ozawa Yukihide, Ajimapro Publishing Rights Department)
...he made a total of 354 works. (Ozawa Yukihide, Ajimapro Publishing Rights Department)
But these sketches were not published.
Ozawa-kun is a geek when it comes to Ajima.
Rather than "geek"...
I'm more like a die-hard fan.
I joined Sensei's fan club...
...and have read all of his comics.
Is it possible that these are works that were rejected for publication?
If one is a newbie, it may be so...
But with Ajima-sensei, I don't think it's likely.
He would repeatedly edit and consult...
Then complete the work.
I don't think it's likely that any of his works were rejected.
So you're saying though this was a completed work...
...the problem is not that it wasn't published, right?
Do you think that you've found something unusual?
That is not the only problem.
I will tell you the details later.
Read it for the meantime.
"Mister..."
"...what are you drawing?"
"You draw well, huh?"
"Are you a mangaka?"
"Can you tell?"
"Because it's the first time I've seen someone draw so well."
"Really? Thank you."
"What's your name, Mister?"
"Just call me Mangaka."
"Okay. Mangaka-san."
"I failed, failed, failed!"
"For me there is justice."
"But this kind of justice is not allowed in this world."
It's horrible, isn't it?
Yes.
I mean...
It's okay to be frank.
It's rather disturbing.
The so-called "Mangaka" guy mumbling about a woman...
After careful planning, he killed her.
That's just it.
Yes.
Do you have any thoughts about it?
It's very realistic.
Right.
Like he had drawn something that he had seen.
Ozawa-kun.
These were found next to the drawings.
About 35 years ago in Itabashi...
Several crime incidents occurred successively.
Four young women went missing in four years.
"Mysterious disappearances..."
Did they run away or were murdered...
Nothing was found.
No clues nor body was found.
They're considered mysterious incidents.
Cold cases, huh.
You already get it, don't you?
That manga... what is it trying to say?
Ajima who had a vivid imagination, it's good if he was only trying to draw the case.
However, take a look at that last paragraph.
"There is no evidence that the four missing girls have been taken away by the same person."
"However, based on eyewitness accounts, there was said to be a suspicious person..."
"That man was carrying a large sketchbook..."
"...and was seen in the vicinity where the victims were."
And also, that man was said to have professional drawing skills.
Do you understand? Why we want you to investigate this.
Yes.
First of all...
I would like you to find out if Ajima drew these.
I understand.
I will also find out the connection between the manga and the missing girls incidents.
Then I will give you a copy.
No...
It's okay.
It's easier if you have the original, right?
- But... - Just please handle it with care.
Thank you.
By the way...
Are there people who can mimic Ajima-sensei's style of drawing?
There may be such people who served as his assistants.
However, Sensei had over a hundred assistants.
That many?
Sensei, after all, had been drawing manga for fifty years.
"When gekiga* became popular..." (*a more realistic / experimental form of comics)
"Some people say that style of manga was unfavorable..."
"At first, I thought, 'What's so good about gekiga' but then..."
"Now, I also have introduced elements of gekiga in my work."
"I made this... The Sleeping Detective."
"From the early half of the 60s to the 70s..."
"He started with gekiga..."
"Aijima's specialties were love stories, historical tales, and also mysteries."
"The Sleeping Detective with its protagonist detective suffering from psychological trauma..."
"...is a dark work that has been highly acclaimed."
"Ishinomori Shotaro and Shirato Sanpei are among..."
"...the leading artists in this manga style."
I can't rule out the possibility that Ajima was the culprit.
During those missing girls incidents in the 70s...
Ajima was drawing dark mysteries for a youth magazine.
He had a great number of characters with abnormal and perverted sexual preferences.
A mangaka... can be influenced by the works he has drawn so...
If in that era, Ajima became that sort of person...
...I wouldn't be surprised.
Although I was with him for over 40 years...
I still don't know...
...what kind of person he was.
That is why...
I want to know the truth...
...no matter how cruel the findings are.
Itabashi...
1970s...
Mysterious disappearances...
(The Showa Unresolved Dark Chronicles Website dedicated to mysterious events in the Showa period)
"Unresolved Dark Chronicles..."
"The first incident occurred in the fall of 1973."
"The victim was a 24-year-old university student Miura Keiko."
"The second case took place in 1974..."
"Fujimoto Akemi, 22 years old, who was an office worker at Seihan Co."
"The 1975 case..."
"...is that of Sonoda Kimiko, 26 years old, a translator."
"The last case was in 1976..."
"There were two women missing..."
"One was 36-year-old Tatsumi Akiko."
"The other was Sekiya Junko, 39 years old."
"However..."
"...only the body of Sekiya Junko was found later on..."
"Since it was concluded as a suicide..."
"...she was excluded from the series of missing person incidents."
"Police have not released these common points among the victims..."
"They all live in second floor apartments."
"None of them were originally from Tokyo..."
"Their hobbies include reading and traveling alone..."
"...indicating introverted personalities."
(Mizuno)
Mizuno residence. Hello?
"Sis?"
It's Yuki.
Is Mom awake?
"She's about to go sleep already."
Please let me talk to her, just for a while.
Mom?
It's Yuki.
Hello?
"It's Yuki."
"Are you doing okay?"
Who is this?
Yuki.
Mom...
It's cold over there so...
Try not to catch a cold.
Thank you for your concern.
You too, Miss.
Please take care of yourself.
Thanks.
Can you put Sis on the phone?
Hello.
"Mom seems..."
"...out of it today."
Not JUST today.
"Anything else?"
Actually...
You know a man named Yajima-san from Tokyo, right?
He came to Dad's memorial service.
The cop?
He was a policeman who was good friends with dad, wasn't he?
Right.
Was wondering if mom knows his contact details.
"It's useless to ask Mom that."
"She even forgets stuff about us."
I'll look in the guest books from dad's funeral later.
If I find his contact details, I'll send it to you.
I appreciate it.
Sorry Sis...
(Eijinsha)
This way, please.
Yoshiko-san, really...
...she should just leave it alone. (Mochizuki Hidemasa, Eijinsha Executive Director)
The wife hopes to conduct a formal investigation.
Of course, it doesn't really have anything to do with those unsolved cases.
It's highly unlikely, right?
How can Ajima-sensei be related to those crimes?
Well, still...
...we are after all your client, right?
You have to take us into consideration.
If something goes wrong when his complete works come out...
It'll spell trouble for Ajimapro, right?
Then, what...
You want me to refer you to an editor who's familar with manga?
Yes.
First, it should be someone who can tell me about the real Ajima-sensei.
I would like to investigate no matter how long it takes.
But even an editor probably wouldn't know a thing about it.
Could there be such a person...
There is one.
A suitable candidate.
A few years ago...
He was an editor here who resigned after a short time...
...and is now a freelance editor. However...
However?
That guy's...
...a total weirdo.
I guess Belgians...
...can make tortilla chips, huh. (He's eating Pollo Loco chips which are made in Belgium)
Um... Daigo-san...
I told you I quit that sort of thing.
Just let me explain.
About your salary...
We'll pay you more than Eijinsha.
Our company plans to publish manga...
...and create some character modeling for games.
So we hope you can help us establish in the contents business*. (*Production and business of intellectual products, such as games, manga, film, music...)
What's the deal with that "contents, contents"...
You know, I hate the term "contents business."
Welcome.
Excuse me.
I was told that I can find Daigo-san here...
A mangaka and an editor...
...create characters for each manga...
These are not something...
...that can just be used for any "contents" thing.
What's so bad about making those characters more popular with games? *(spreading the character's name, face and popularity by having them appear in different games like a mascot)
A character is a character.
That's totally wrong.
But it's nothing but a paperback manga...
See? You said "It's nothing but"...
You people just think of manga as something to read.
Are you trying to belittle us?
Leave now. I'm a busy man.
Excuse me!
I guess this Hula brand is good.
- Excuse me. - How many times do I have to tell you...
Um, nice to meet you.
I am Mizuno of EK Research.
Mochizuki of Eijinsha referred me to you.
You're Daigo-san, right?
Mochizuki...
Oh yeah, it seemed he called me on the phone.
Yes.
I hope you can help me out.
Actually, from Mochizuki-san...
He hated me for quitting.
That guy referring me for a job...
It must be a bad joke.
If it's not a joke...
...then it must be a seriously bad kind of job.
My instinct tells me so.
Sorry.
I see.
I understand.
I thought you'd be interested in an investigation regarding an unpublished work of Ajima Fumiya.
I'll ask someone else then.
Excuse me.
What did you say?
- I'll ask someone else. - No..
The one... about Ajiya Fumiya. What about him?
Regarding an unpublished manga.
Let me see it.
- Are you going to help me? - I haven't said I would.
I'll just take a look.
Ajima Fumiya at the start made shonen manga*. (*aimed at young male readers)
...his mystery stories were the best...
I didn't particularly think his romantic comedy masterpieces were that great.
He spoke in a Nagoya dialect.
His political cartoons were so-so.
Let's see it.
This unpublished work was found at Ajimapro.
A total of 50--
An editor does not rely on others.
I'll be the one to verify the number.
That's the basics of editing.
What do you mean by "number"?
The order of the pages!
You ARE an investigator for the publishing industry, are you not?
Indeed, there are 50 pages.
This is how I see it.
It seems a work by Ajima Fumiya from the 70s.
It looks like a mystery story, and a dark one, too.
You're looking at two pages at once?
Readers open and read the comics like a book.
In other words...
What's presented in front of the reader is a two page spread.
In manga...
...it's not about looking at each individual panel...
...you take it all in together.
A mangaka considers...
...how readers peruse over the pages...
...when drawing his manga.
I see.
No water please.
Please give us some space.
The story is quite dark.
I think so too.
Here are my conclusions.
I think it's made by someone who draws exactly like Ajima Fumiya.
I've never seen a work that mimics someone's drawing style so perfectly.
This may be bold of me say...
...he could have been better than Ajima himself.
Is he better than the original?
It was Ajima Fumiya who invented this style.
But...
There's not many people who can imitate this style with more finesse like this.
This wasn't really drawn by Ajima-sensei, right?
Ajima Fumiya wouldn't draw such an uninteresting work...
...nor create such poor composition.
Composition?
Right now the guys who are considered masters in manga...
...do you know what's the common thing about them?
It's composition.
They were very skilled in composition...
...and can condense any number of long stories.
If it's Ajima Fumiya...
...he'll cut the length of this in half.
Next is the plot.
- Plot? - The story!
Need I explain more?
I'm sorry.
This is just my personal opinion but...
The only true masters of plot are...
Tezuka Osamu, Shirato Sanpei...
...Fujiko Fujio, Umezo Kazuo, those 4 people.
What about Ajima-sensei?
His plots were too simple.
But still he wouldn't draw works with a bad plot.
I see.
Then it's safe to conclude...
...that this was drawn by an assistant of Ajima-sensei?
I think it's possible if it was found in Ajimapro.
This should have been...
...drawn around 1985.
Check the people who worked as his assistants in 1985...
That's approximately the time when this work was drawn.
- Thanks for your hard work. - Good job, too.
- Mizuno-kun. - Yes.
Mochizuki of Eijinsha had asked me... (Eto Kensuke, EK Research Director)
...to be sure to keep that unpublished thing a secret.
Yes, of course. I understand.
After all, Eijinsha is our major client.
I'm counting on you.
Yes, sir.
- I'm off to get Nakaru-san's drawings. - Okay. Thanks.
Kazumine...
You and Daigo got along pretty well, right? (Kazuhime Kei, Eijinsha Vice Editor-in-Chief)
What?
The thing is, I entrusted Daigo with Ajima's unpublished work so...
Daigo-san?
Say...
I was wondering if you can secretly look into the progress he's making regarding it.
If the situation becomes troubling...
...report it to me, right away.
Then, I'll put a stop to the investigation. We can't let the public know about the drawings.
I understand.
Then, I'll go visit Daigo-san soon.
Thanks.
(Yajima Supermarket)
Well... (Yajima Supermarket)
How many years has it been...
...since your father died?
10 years.
Right.
(Yajima Tomoyuki, Former Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Police inspector)
Me and your dad, you know... (Yajima Tomoyuki, Former Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Police inspector)
We've known each other since our police academy days in Nagano...
For some reason, we became pals.
Yes. Dad often talked about you.
Here's some tea.
So you came to see me...
...because you wanted to ask about the missing person incidents 35 years ago?
Correct.
I want to ask the person in charge of the cases.
Okay. I understand.
Well, at that time I was in the police headquarters.
Though I had nothing to do with the case.
I had a junior colleague...
...who served within that jurisdiction at the time of the incident.
And so, I'll go and ask him.
Thank you.
But...
...to suddenly look into this case again...
I'm sure it's gonna be difficult.
Well, all the evidence are gone... and there are so many unknowns.
If...
...these cases were a series of kidnappings committed by a certain person...
Why didn't a similar case occur again in 1977?
That's a good question.
As expected of Mizuno-san's daughter.
Indeed...
If those crimes were caused by a certain person...
...his criminal behavior should have gradually gotten worse.
What do you think, Yajima-san?
- He died... - Dead?
Is it possible he stopped because he had repented?
The possibility is low.
In my personal experience, a culprit in this kind of crime rarely reforms.
He has no misgivings whatsoever.
(Mizuno Yuki, EK Research)
Look...
...you don't have to come with me.
But you're unreliable.
But...
I'm just a bit interested in the drawings.
Anyway, I'm already involved so I'll help you.
This is...
...the full list of assistants who were here around 1985.
Thank you.
But...
It's amazing that you determined the year when it was drawn.
So it wasn't around the time of the incidents in the 70s?
Um, the thing is...
Technology and skills involved in drawing manga change with the years.
The style in 1985 was like suit and tie, drawn in black and white.
Hand-painted patterns and screentones were mixed together...
Indeed...
Can we use your desk?
I'll explain it in detail.
Um, okay.
Early mangakas depicted light and shade using stippling.
Like this...
Placing dots using ink.
For example, just like in this panel, right?
This was all done by hand?
Yes.
You also use crosshatching.
Or drawing criss-cross lines.
Such tedious work is done by the assistant mangaka.
That is why...
The emergence of the screentone was very important.
Screentone?
It's a kind of sticky film where small dots are printed on it.
In this unpublished work...
...screentone was used on the protagonist's jacket.
Should be IC no. 65.
65 right? Please wait for a while.
What is IC?
The name of the manufacturer. IC Co., Ltd.
Then each screentone is categorized with a number.
This is IC's No. 65.
See?
The one used here looks like these lines.
You're right.
In the 70s, screentones were still expensive.
A mangaka could not afford it then.
If he did, he'd go bankrupt.
That's why it only became popular in the mid-1980s.
So that's why you thought these drawings were made around 1985...
I see.
Another evidence as to why these drawings were from that era.
Look at this panel.
Take a closer look at the boy's pocket book.
Wow!
It looks like the book has real printed pages.
This is called the "lawn pattern tone".
Lawn?
You mean these are patterns for grass?
A lawn pattern was partly used, with some portions removed.
It's made to look like words with parts removed to look like spaces.
The one who invented this technique...
...is now a well-known mangaka.
When was it invented?
Around 1983, I think.
But the technique spread in the manga industry...
...around 1985.
Also this mangaka...
...used the kabura pen.
In the 70s...
...when Ajima Fumiya started drawing his mysteries...
...he followed the trend, and opted to use the G pen.
With the kabura pen...
...it's very suitable for drawing a uniform line.
Tezuka Osamu is known to have used it.
Then, with the G pen...
...it's easier to show the intensity of the line.
Then...
The one who made this...
...is assumed to be an assistant in 1985...
And used a kabura pen, is that correct?
Yes.
That is why...
Ajima Fumiya is innocent!
That unpublished work of the sensei...
...what should we do about it?
Listen...
It's been bothering me from the start but...
You just call any mangaka "sensei" nonchalantly, don't you?
Yes but...
Most mangaka are called "sensei", are they not?
Although on TV, the editor calls the mangaka "sensei, sensei"...
When it comes down to it, he's a cartoonist not a teacher.
So...
There's no need for you too to call a mangaka "sensei."
Do you get what I'm driving at?
I'll try to keep it in mind.
But the most unforgivable thing here...
Is that mangaka who drew the unpublished work...
That work should not be there...
I will also help you find that person.
If he was the culprit behind the series of disappearances...
...he should atone for his sins.
I think so, too.
- Excuse me. - Yes?
Do you know of a place around here called Hainsakura?
(Miura Keiko, 1973)
(Fujimoto Akemi, 1974)
(Tatsumi Akiko, 1976)
(Sonoda Kimiko, 1975)
Oh! Kazumine!
I got a brand new kind of tortilla chips.
What do you want?
Oh, Yuki! (Terada Mikio, Yuki's husband)
Long time no see. Isn't this a coincidence? (Terada Mikio, Yuki's husband)
Your house is two districts away from mine.
I was just reading a magazine.
It's upside down.
Oh, you're right.
I have no intention to return to the way things were.
If you wish to say something, channel it through someone else.
Goodbye.
Wait...
Um, wait... please wait.
Yuki, please wait...
Hey-- what?
What? Did you come to comfort me?
Well, something like that.
We haven't seen each other for a long time.
You're very busy, right?
- I heard you became vice chief editor - Well...
...I'm not doing so bad.
How about you? Same as usual?
At this age...
I know too well the tricks in the publishing world.
Only the big company stockholders receive the high wages.
In order to maintain this kind of life...
...I have to do free-lance editing.
You caused an uproar when you resigned from the company, right?
An outstanding editor from a major publishing company chose to do free-lance instead.
I certainly do such stupid things, huh?
Are you currently in charge of a work?
Well, I got a few things here and there.
This work...
I don't think it's Ajima Fumiya's.
Probably done by an assistant of his.
He made this inside Ajimapro around 1985.
That's amazing.
You can tell all that much just by looking at it...
I cannot forgive this mangaka.
He has such a high skill...
...and this is what he does with it.
It's inexcusable.
If the mangaka was the culprit...
What was the purpose of drawing these?
Is the mangaka a fan of Tezuka?
See, in this line...
"I like Tezuka Osamu's manga of a serial killer."
Examples of Tezuka's serial killer stories...
There's "The Vampires"... "The Melody of Iron"...
There's also one more...
"Record of Peter Kürten"!
That story was from the past.
Why did Tezuka make such a story?
Perhaps Tezuka's purpose is to...
...draw the actual event?
To record it in this form of manga....
...so that the event will not be forgotten.
My thoughts may be different from yours...
But the idea of recording it through drawing is very reasonable.
Only one left is Sonoda Kimiko, huh...
(Sonoda)
I thought she might come back any time...
...so I started staying here.
I've often gone through this album.
At that time, there were no video recorders yet...
I have only pictures to remember my daughter.
But there's still someone who would come here asking about her.
I'm sure...
...she's still alive somewhere.
Um...
If it's possible...
...can I borrow a picture of Kimiko-san?
Yes, it's no problem.
Well, how about this...
It's her.
It was here...
It was in this park...
...that the mangaka saw Sonoda Kimiko.
"What an ideal prey..."
"Mister, what's your name?"
"Just call me Mangaka."
"Okay. Mangaka-san."
Drawing a real-life event in order to record it, huh...
What's this drawing...?
"The number you're trying to reach..."
Why at a time like this!?
Eto-san, I have something to report.
About the unpublished work at Ajimapro...
That case is already closed.
Mochizuki just contacted me.
Why?
It's not the work of Ajima-san, right?
That finding is enough.
Please wait.
I want to identify the assistant who worked at Ajimapro.
Our client is Eijinsha.
Later I want you the write the report...
But nothing has been solved yet!
We are not the police.
And even if it really was a murder case...
...it's already too late to do anything.
But... please give me a little more time.
Just one more week.
There's still something I can do.
Please.
Oww! Oww! You're hurting me...
Daigo-san!
My arm! My arm!
Oh, sorry.
Are you all right?
Of course I'm not...
Sorry.
This sucks...
I'm really sorry.
Give me a break...
Called you many times, but couldn't connect.
Even so, coming to my house is just too bold...
Did anything urgent happen?
Yeah...
I made a very interesting discovery!
I want to tell you quickly so I came here right away.
Take a look at this.
Pages 28 and 49.
What is it?
I still don't understand.
Even I had missed it before.
It's embarrassing that I did not notice it.
Look here.
It's the young boy, right?
Here he is too.
Based on the silhouette of the hair...
...it's the same person.
You're right...
This boy...
...witnessed the mangaka commit the crime?
He is the only witness.
What happened with the relationship between the boy and the mangaka?
That's the question.
It's too irresponsible if the story ends here.
Then it means...
Right.
This work...
...has a continuation.
Who is it?
(I know who you are. You're the one who drew that work.)
(You got away with the crime, "Mangaka"-san. Please teach me how you catch your prey.)
(....~Manga Editor)
What...?
What you said...
Who are you?
Original Work: NAGASAKI TAKASHI "Yami no Bansosha --Daigo Shinji no Ryoki Jiken Files--" (Shincho Bunko-kan)
Screenplay: SATOU DAI / ASO KUMIKO Music: GRAND FUNK
'Mizuno Yuki' MATSUSHITA NAO
'Daigo Shinji' FURUTA ARATA
'Kazumine Kei' - TANAKA TETSUSHI 'Ozawa Yukihide' - KANAME JUN
Director: MIKI TAKAHIRO
Subtitles by WABI-SABI SUBS
Translation: EARTHCOLORS / WILKI
Spot Translation / QC: WILKI Editing / Timing: EARTHCOLORS
Special Thanks to: VAMPIREXxX
A 2015 Production of: WOWOW
Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
Deviant? Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
He's a really dangerous guy. Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
The person we're going to meet next might be the culprit in the series of kidnapping and murder cases. Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
I know that. Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
I don't think there were follow-up drawings... Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
Anyway, let's search for it. Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
Well, there were several rumors about him. That maybe he killed someone in the past. Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
Are you really determined to do this? Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
I may just be imagining things but... I felt like I was being followed. Next on Episode 2: "Sharpen the Senses"
See you next time~!
This drama is fiction. See you next time~!