Original subtitles

Hisamitsu got angry at Kichinosuke...

and ordered him sent to a faraway island.

The name of the island was Okinoerabujima,

one of the Amano Islands, a small island...

surrounded by coral and a circumference of 50 km.

Presently this island is growing tropical house plants...

and exporting them throughout Japan.

It is 500 km from Kagoshima to Amamioshima...

and another 90 km to Okinoerabujima.

Between Amamioshima and Okinoerabujima...

there is the island of Tokunoshima where...

Aikana and Kichinosuke lived together.

Now there was no easy access between the islands,

so despite being close they could not see each other.

It was like a paradise with an abundance of flowers...

and many butterflies, too.

Some of these even flew to the mainland,

leaving Kichinosuke to wonder how he could return.

Tobu ga Gotoku

Episode 20: Dawn of the Satsuma-England War

Screenplay: Osanai Mieko

Original Story: Shiba Ryotaro

Music: Ichiyanagi Toshi

Original subtitles: TV Network Japan, Inc.

Subtitle Transcription: Rashomon

Additional translation and Timing: Kame Fansubs

QC: Avallac'h

Narrator: Kusano Daigo

Cast

Saigo Kichinosuke: Nishida Toshiyuki

Okubo Ichiro: Kaga Takeshi

Iwayama Ito: Tanaka Yuko

Okubo Masu: Kaku Chikako

Saigo Shingo: Ogata Naoto

Ofusa: Manda Hisako

Komatsu Tatewaki: Ohashi Goro

Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu: Mitamura Kunihiko

Kanoe Tadahiro: Yagiyuu Hiroshi

Sanjo Sanetomi: Kadono Tukuzo

Matsudaira Shungaku: Isobe Tsutomu

Oyama Kakunosuke: Kanie Keizo

Okubo Toshiyo: Kitamura Kazuo

Iwakura Tomomi: Kobayashi Nenji

Kawaguchi Seppo: Ryu Raita

Shimazu Hisamitsu: Takahashi Hideki

Producer: Yoshimura Fumitaka

Director: Hirayama Takeyuki

September 1862

So, you finally went to Edo.

Yes, I went and came back safely.

I heard that there was chaos caused...

by the killing of a foreigner.

There's no need to worry about that.

I've settle the matter with the shogunate.

You see? I told you not to worry.

Quiet. Ichizo's saying that to keep me from worrying.

A woman shouldn't butt in.

Honestly, Father. You're so cranky lately.

Are you here again? Go on home.

Father.

I'm not so ill that my married daughter...

must come and nurse me.

Master Shingo! Master Ichizo is here.

I know no such person.

I'm sorry. Masters Kichijiro and Kohei will be home soon.

I'll make some tea.

You don't need to serve tea to someone we don't know.

It's all right.

I brought some rice and a little bean paste.

Don't accept them!

I brought them for the Saigo family.

If it bothers you, don't eat.

The Saigo family won't accept charity from you.

Please leave.

If you don't go, I don't know what I may do.

That's fine with me.

What are you saying, the both of you?

No, I know the frustrations of being under house arrest.

Your time will surely come.

That's why you must keep yourself fit.

How will those who died at Teradaya have their day?

The survivors will have to carry on for them.

It's our duty.

Please leave.

I have nothing to say to you.

Before Ichizo could catch his breath upon returning home,

a courier arrived from Kyoto.

The upstart exclusionists are seeking an Imperial mandate...

enjoining the shogunate to expel the barbarians.

If the Shogun rejects it,

the shogunate will become an enemy of the Court...

and our aim for Court-shogunate unity is doomed.

Then, inflated with success, Choshu might induce...

the Court to summon the Shogun to Kyoto.

Ichizo!

I want you to leave for Kyoto immediately...

as an attached liaison officer and...

get Lord Konoe to oppose the Shogun's visit.

Your new position is an important one...

of acting in the chief retainer's stead.

Although it's an exceptional promotion,

isn't this assignment in Kyoto quite serious.

A woman shouldn't comment about her husband's job,

but I sense something big that's coming hard and fast.

A year ago, I wouldn't have imagined myself speaking...

to nobles, daimyo, or the Shogun's councilors.

Now, I can talk to them of foreign policy and such.

What a thrill it gives me.

Hikokuma, let's play horsie.

Get on.

Hang on.

Don't worry about it.

It's in my nature to be challenged by difficulties...

and to overcome them. Right, Hikokuma?

However, Sanjo Sanetomi, a noble who'd come into power...

with the young extremists, was already at Edo Castle...

presenting the Imperial writ which called for...

the expulsion of the foreigners.

Tokugawa Iemochi, I humbly present this Imperial writ.

I humbly accept.

Then you must go to Kyoto immediately.

It was only recently that my master was in Edo...

and Lord Hitotsubashi and Lord Matsudaira assumed...

their positions in the reforming of the shogunate.

It's unthinkable to demand that the Shogun...

leave Edo at a time like this.

I know that.

Then have it called off.

I can't do that.

Aren't you the Imperial Advisor?

Call a Court Council to order.

But, nowadays, they're meeting behind my back.

What do you mean?

After Lord Hisamitsu left for Satsuma,

the Court's been dominated by young extremist nobles...

who have the support of Choshu and Tosa.

It's truly frightening.

Madam...

Hush!

They're all worked up.

You'll only excite them by crying out. Calm down.

Someone!

Kyusuke, lock the front door quickly!

'Tenchu!' [divine punishment]

Hachizo said that when he went to work in the fields...

the other day, he saw some ronin wandering about.

They were probably looking for me.

It's become dangerous.

Lawlessness also prevails in the city.

Even with Lord Konoe's help, it's difficult to dislodge...

the expulsionists from the Court.

Little wonder. Say the wrong thing and right away...

it's 'Devine punishment!' and swords are banished.

I've decided that the only thing I can do now...

is to go home and have Lord Hisamitsu come to Kyoto.

Even if he comes, there's nothing he can do...

as long as Choshu has the Court under its paw.

Something for your personal use.

As long as we live, we'll be able to meet again someday.

We must do something: a storm is coming.

The boatmen are really agitated.

We seem to have run aground.

We don't want to be dragged to the bottom.

Loosen the ropes.

If you don't want to end up as fish food,

it's each man for himself!

I'm not going to die here! If I die, Satsuma will die.

I won't die!

Okinoerabu Island

This is Master Saigo.

Looks like he's still alive.

I'm Kawaguchi Seppo, a fellow exile.

I came to get you out of this cage.

By order of the clan?

No, it isn't by an order.

Then there's no need to help me.

You'll die if you're left like this.

Tsuchimochi begged me to do something.

I had him show me Lord Hisamitsu's orders.

After reading it carefully, I couldn't find anything...

that says you must be kept in a cage.

That's ridiculous. Before I boarded the brig,

there were orders to keep me confined.

That's right, but according to Master Seppo,

it doesn't have to be in a cage.

I found an old hut and built an enclosure around it.

Please move into that.

It's Heaven's will.

I'll rot here if I must.

I don't want to live by resorting to petty tricks.

I heard that Saigo Kichinosuke was a great man,

but this man is too stupid!

This man is defying Heaven's will.

Do you think only clan orders have divine authority?

If that's so, then you can just rot in here.

But, you mustn't take Providence so lightly.

Waiting for Heaven's will means giving up everything...

and leaving your fate to Heaven.

This is only being stubborn.

I sold Lord Hisamitsu's books for drink, so I've no right...

to preach to you, but Tsuchimochi is different.

Tsuchimochi brought you fish because he thinks...

that it's important that you live.

To persist in taking only water and cold rice...

proves that, for a big man, you are small spirited.

That's why you can't accept my finding...

the loophole in the orders as Heaven's will.

What a disappointment.

Then...

Is Heaven telling me to stay alive?

Word came by yesterday's boat that...

a foreigner was killed by Lord Hisamitsu's retinue.

This incident will shake up Japan.

If you don't live, how can you be involved?

Don't you owe it to your country?

I'm so ashamed.

Please take me to my new enclosure.

I'll take you there.

This is bad! His legs have weakened from not moving.

Pardon me!

What is it?

Better go to bed. You'll catch a cold.

What's the matter?

You were having a bad dream.

You're still fatigued from the trip.

Won't you please see a doctor?

I don't have the time.

You must make the time.

Masu.

It's not my intention to meddle in your work,

but what happened during this trip?

Nothing.

Why do you ask? It's not like you to do so.

What happened on the boat?

Ever since you came back from Kyoto,

you've been talking about a boat in your sleep.

I'm not a child. Why would I talk in my sleep?

I shouldn't have said anything.

I'm sorry.

Masu...

I won't die.

I'll never do anything...

to bring grief to you and the children.

There was no reason to keep it from you.

The boat almost went down.

The boat?

It was a very narrow escape.

I'm alive by Heaven's grace.

I can't die now.

If I die, what will happen to Satsuma?

However, there may be war.

If I've been haunted by anything, it must be that.

There's nothing to fear.

We won't lose to the British!

Will we be fighting England?

If we must die, we'll die together.

There's nothing to worry about.

We leave for Kyoto on March 4th.

According to our Edo steward, England is demanding...

an exorbitant indemnity of 100,000 pounds from the shogunate...

and 25,000 pounds from us for the incident at Namamugi.

I don't care about the money,

but paying it would be an admission of fault.

That's true.

We must consider the possibility of war...

if negotiations break down.

Ichizo will remain here while we are gone.

You'll act as the clan lord's chief attendant and advisor.

Thank you for this honor.

You are to see that we are well prepared in case of war.

I shall stake my life on it.

At 34, Ichizo had become the highest official...

in the clan and would be indispensable...

in the settlement of the Namamugi Incident.

Kyoto - Imperial Palace

On the day that Hisamitsu left Kagoshima,

Shogun Iemochi and Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu, his guardian,

presented themselves at the Imperial Palace.

Here, they were pressed to set a date...

for the expulsion campaign.

It's impossible to protect our seclusion in an age when...

other nations are entering into friendly relations.

Hitotsubashi, what are you getting at?

As long as it is an Imperial command,

we must carry out the expulsion of the foreigners.

Is the Emperor aware that the disparity in arms and...

technology between the West and Japan is greater...

than that between an adult and an infant?

It's a matter of great importance to Japan.

I want a definite answer.

He isn't aware.

That's what I thought.

As warriors, we'll work to expel the foreigners.

However, by making an enemy of the world,

this capital will become a target.

Day and night, gunfire and smoke will fill...

the mountains and the plains.

When that happens, don't let the gunfire...

scare you into running around in confusion.

Let's set May 10th as the expulsion date.

We leave it in your hands.

Wait!

Didn't you just say that it was an impossible task?

If we refuse, the Tokugawa shogunate will become...

an enemy of the Court and cease to exist.

So, May 10th is definite?

A warrior does not go back on his word!

Didn't you say there's a disparity in armaments?

Can we win?

We cannot win.

But, as the guardian to the supreme commander of...

the military, I will lead the 80,000 horsemen...

to a glorious death on the battlefield.

Please let the Emperor to understand that.

On May 10, Choshu started firing cannons at foreign ships,

which were passing through the Kanmon Strait.

But, Kichinosuke was not informed about this.

Heaven put public servants here for the people.

The hearts of the people are that of Heaven.

A good official will take the happiness...

and the suffering of the people as his own.

That is Heaven's will.

Therefore, it is important to live...

each day according to Heaven's will.

That was some lesson.

Let's call it a day.

Yes. Thank you very much.

Living among such compassionate people,

freed of the specter of duty,

I no longer have the desire to rush back...

to the battleground of hypocrisy and self-interest.

That's great!

Let's compose a poem over some 'sake'.

Your poems are good and plain, but need a bit more work.

Compared to your poems,

Tsuchimochi's mother's cooking is much better.

Meanwhile, a secret message from the Emperor...

had reached Hisamitsu, asking him to return...

to Kyoto to control Choshu.

It seems Choshu made a determined attack...

on the foreign fleet, but it can't be said...

for certain if it was successful.

Didn't they win?

I don't know if they won or lost, but since it's the...

first time that they've exchanged fire with the foreigners,

it must have given the exclusionists a boost.

Probably.

It's as if the Court is playing Satsuma against Choshu.

Please take care that you don't fall prey to their...

manipulations like the Taira and Minamoto of old.

The Emperor has ordered me to Kyoto.

Even so, why follow orders when they are ineffectual?

That would make a tool of the Imperial mandate.

That's lacking in awe.

Since the shogunate made no show of power in their...

handling of the Namamugi Incident, the British...

are demanding direct negotiations with Satsuma.

What?

They will probably use their armed might to exert...

pressure as the Black Ships did with the shogunate.

We should now be shoring up our defenses...

instead of going to Kyoto.

Is the British fleet coming here?

They've appeared off Choshu.

We must meet them with our entire military force.

The shogunate has said that we must either...

turn over 25,000 pounds or your head.

Then it's settled.

When the fighting begins,

Tatewaki will be the commander in chief...

and you'll be in charge of the front line.

To prepare for the attack, Shingo and other members...

involved in the Teradaya Incident were pardoned.

The British ships are here! Light the signal fires!

I won't be able to come home for awhile.

Look after my father and the children for me.

Hikokuma, Nobukuma, listen to your mother.

Are you ready?

What a time to be moving into a new home.

Stop complaining. Just do what Ichizo tells you.

Do you understand?

Father. I'm leaving now.

Give them a good thrashing for me.

On June 28th, the British warships took up position...

in Kagoshima Bay, off the coast of Maenohama.

I wish they'd fire.

Let them come.

I'll blow them up with one blast from this cannon.

Here they are!

Why're you...?

I volunteered to be a runner, but they assigned...

me to the field kitchen. Isn't it annoying?

A runner has to dash about dodging bullets.

It's too dangerous for a woman.

I volunteered, knowing the dangers involved.

You can't fight on an empty stomach.

Fortify yourselves while you can.

Everyone, come and eat!

The rice balls are made from real rice.

Potatoes won't give you enough strength,

and you'll be laughed at by all of Japan.

So eat up the rice!

What are you doing? If you're not going to eat,

I'll take them somewhere else.

Night fell, and negotiations between...

Satsuma and Britain got nowhere.

The young men were called up hastily.

I will tell you about the new plan of action.

The enemy has come to demand indemnity for the...

Namamugi Incident and the execution of the perpetrators.

We could never agree to that.

Our plan was to hold a parley in the castle...

to discuss this thoroughly,

but the enemy leader refuses to come ashore.

Hence, the new plan.

Okubo!

Lord Hisamitsu is calling for you.

I'll take over from here.

Get your instructions from Oyama.

All right, listen carefully.

The enemy has invoked the International Law...

to request supplies of wood, water, and vegetables.

What?

As warriors, we're obliged to honor their request.

But, we mustn't let this chance slip by!

We're forming a raiding party.

I'll be the leader.

The enemy must be hot on their ship and thirsty.

Disguised as watermelon vendors,

we'll board and seize the ship.

This will be a good chance for the outcast members...

of the Seichugumi to redeem themselves.

Rejoin us and help us to recruit.

I'll be the first to volunteer.

Are you scared, Yasuke?

No, even if we get on board, will we be able...

to communicate with the foreigners?

That's no problem. I don't know how,

but there was a foreigner who spoke fluent Japanese.

Then there's nothing to worry about.

What now?

What about swords? Won't they be suspicious...

if watermelon vendors were armed with swords?

That's a good point.

We'll dress as farmers or tradesmen...

and carry a hidden dagger.

Yes, sir!

A staff is a good weapon.

Watermelon vendors use carrying poles.

We can crack the foreigners on the head with them.

Foreigners sit on chairs...

because they can't bend their knees.

Knock them and they'll fall over easily.

That's when you stab with your dagger.

We have watermelons! Let us aboard.

Let us aboard or we'll kill you!

Watermelon vendors don't shout like that.

We're selling watermelons! Lower the ladder.

Good evening.

He's kneeling.

Be on guard. They're monsters.

You've got to smile. Laugh!

Where's the fellow who speaks Japanese?

Why can't you speak so we can understand?

Never mind. We'll grab their commander.

He's in there.

We aren't doing anything.

Would you like some watermelon?

It's delicious.

It really is delicious.

Oyama!

I dare you to shoot!

You'll feel the edge of my sword.

You're not getting any watermelons from us!

Negotiations continued with neither side conceding.

On September 1, 1863, Satsuma decided to go to war.

All the gun batteries are in readiness.

Tomorrow's the day.

Kichinosuke, isn't this ironic?

Lord Nariakira wanted to open the country to trade,

but it's turning out just the opposite.

To be continued.