Last Samurai Standing (イクサガミ)

Kotaro. Are you okay?

Can you drink some water?

- Miss futaba? - Yes?

Am I going to die?

Don't worry.

My mother is praying to the gods.

One, two, three, four.

One, two, three, four.

One, two, three, four.

Futaba?

What's the matter?

Mother.

Will cholera really ever end?

Father is already gone,

and the people in town keep dying.

And yet, we're still praying to the gods.

Futaba.

Everything that happens in this world is arranged by the gods.

That is why all we can do is pray.

As long as we keep praying,

the gods will protect us from any war or plague.

Let us have faith.

Shall we prepare dinner?

Okay.

Mother?

Mother!

Mother!

What's wrong, kokushu?

It's not you I want!

Let's go!

Over here!

Go, futaba! Go!

Go!

Draw your sword.

You're done babysitting, right?

Come on.

Are you bullshitting me?

Have you turned into a gutless bastard, kokushu the manslayer?

How have you been living since then?

Those government bastards are selfish.

They told us to fight and kill.

But when they no longer need us, they tell us to abandon our swords.

That's why I'm grateful to the one who came up with this game.

I can go back to the way I was back then.

We shouldn't hesitate to do so.

Come on.

Draw your sword!

Much better.

There's kokushu the manslayer.

What's wrong, kokushu?

That's better.

What the hell are you doing?

Shujiro!

We're not done yet!

Sir saga, what happened to you?

Come, get inside.

Please rest.

Thank you for helping us.

Not at all. Let me know whatever you need.

What you have done for me is much more than I could ever repay.

That was a long time ago.

Well, then. I'll excuse myself.

Still sharp.

You saved me back there.

Thank you.

Thank you for saving me as well.

I'll take you as far as the tokaido road in the morning.

You take your wooden tag off and run.

It's against the rules.

Your life is more important than rules.

I won't stop.

Don't you get it?

A child cannot survive.

But I can't afford to run away.

If I run, there are lives I cannot save.

Cholera?

Who's there?

Calm down. I have no intention of fighting you.

Why are you here?

Why don't we talk face-to-face?

I'll enter with my hands up, so don't start slashing at me, okay?

Did you miss me?

What do you want?

Put your sword down first, will you?

If I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't come through the front.

Come on. You too, miss.

You're so stubborn, kokushu the manslayer.

How do you know that name?

Never mind how I know.

What's more important is why I came here, isn't it?

You see, I'm here with an incredibly good deal for you today.

What is it?

I want you to form an alliance with me.

An alliance?

What's your intention?

Don't you think this "kodoku" game seems rather suspicious?

What do they gain by making skilled fighters kill each other?

Why do they make us travel to Tokyo?

Do they really intend to reward someone with 100,000 yen?

Who is behind it all?

I'm sure you are curious too.

The other participants said that the government officials

might be using it as a way to seize the swords.

If that was all, they could have killed us at the temple.

They wouldn't need to bother with all this.

That's true.

I heard that the survivors of the old shogunate forces

are gathering skilled warriors for revenge.

There's also a rumor that foreigners

are trying to incite a civil war to crush Japan.

But none of these rumors have been verified.

We don't know what the organizer is scheming.

Or what they'll be launching at us going forward.

What we do know

is that whoever's pulling the strings has serious power.

That's why joining forces

would enable us to gather more information.

If we can find out who they are,

we'll get closer to the 100,000 yen.

So? Feel a little more like listening now?

Will this mess be taken care of? I hope there's no problem.

It'll be back to normal by morning. No one will notice anything.

And? How many are there remaining?

One hundred and twenty-eight participants have passed through the gate.

That's more than I had estimated.

True to form, the samurai are stubborn to the last breath.

Still, the stench of blood is overwhelming, don't you think?

The organizer will join you all later.

Until then, please relax and enjoy the estate at your leisure.

After leaving tenryuji temple,

we pass through seki in ise province, chiryu, hamamatsu, shimada,

hakone, and shinagawa.

I calculated the number of wooden tags needed to pass

against the number of participants.

There are 292 participants.

And the number of tags required

to pass the final checkpoint, shinagawa, is 30.

Which means?

It's possible for more than one person to reach Tokyo.

That's right.

A maximum of nine people can reach Tokyo.

The 100,000 yen may be divided among those nine people,

or perhaps they will be ordered to do something more.

We don't know the organizer's goal.

That being said, if nine people can make it to the end,

there's no issue with the three of us teaming up and heading for Tokyo.

So? Not a bad idea, is it?

Why us?

You are different from the other participants.

Besides, as long as this little miss is with you,

you won't betray me, will you?

You mean that if I betray you, you intend to kill her?

That's correct.

She's a hostage, so to speak.

Although, a time may come when you'll have to kill this little miss.

Well, take your time.

There's an inn called uzuya in yokkaichi.

If you're willing to form an alliance, come to that inn on the third evening.

One piece of advice.

It's not that you cannot kill. You simply choose not to.

A manslayer is a manslayer for life.

You are still a killer, kokushu saga.

I'll see you again.

Wait.

Tell me one thing.

Why did you join kodoku?

Well, I wonder.

Maybe I just wanted to see it for myself.

The end of the samurai.

I'll be expecting good news.

Get some rest.

Mother. Have some water.

Futaba…

I'm sorry.

I'll take care of everything.

Please.

Please. I only need a little.

Please save the children.

No one in this town has any money left.

No one's gonna believe this stuff, right?

No chance.

What's this? You want money?

Yes.

Take it.

I can't deal with this crap.

You! Begging is prohibited.

Hey!

Miss futaba.

I feel sick.

It'll be okay.