Rurouni Kenshin Manga Translations
Volume Twenty-Six--A Man's Back
Part 230--A Man's Back 3--Family Portrait
Father
Higashidani Kamishimoemon (41)
Eldest Son
Sagara Sanosuke (19)
Eldest Daughter
Higashidani Uki (16)
Second Son
Higashidani Outa (6)
The next day.
(Early that morning, a jubilant Uki and a bleary Outa and Higashidani
are surrounded by mountains of straw hats.)
Uki: We're done! We made it!
Higashidani: See what I can do when I go all out? All right, we're going into town!
Wrap ‘em up!
(The family strikes out with the hats in big bags on their backs. A farmer couple notices them.)
Farmer: Higashidani? What're those bags? You running off then?
Higashidani: Idiot! Me, running away in broad daylight? That'd be worse than me
and Fudozawa killing each other!
Uki: Dad!
Higashidani (heading on his way): Quit worrying about us and raise our share of the daikon.
We gotta eat this autumn!
Farmer's Wife: No matter what happens, he never changes.
Farmer: Hope he does all right. This isn't just about silkworms.
If we lose the waystation, we'll all . . .
(Sanosuke is standing in a rocky, weed-choked field.)
Sanosuke: Terrible. Forget this year, they aren't gonna be able
to grow anything here for a long time.
(The Higashidani family is walking by; Uki catches sight of him.)
Uki: Hey! What do you think you're doing! Get out of our fields!
Sanosuke: They're not really fields, more like wasteland.
Uki: Shut up! I don't care, just get out!
(Sanosuke gives her an odd look.)
Higashidani (stiffly): How do y'do.
Sanosuke: How do y'do.
Higashidani: I hear you helped out my daughter the other day. Come with us and
I'll buy you some lunch.
(They walk into town; Higashidani leaves them at a soba restaurant.)
Higashidani: You go on and eat. I'll get these sold.
(Inside)
Uki: What do you want, Outa? What, tempura soba? Me too! Excuse me!
Two tempura sobas please!
Sanosuke: Look, half-head.
Uki: No! Nothing for you! I don't care what dad says, I hold the family money
and as long as you call me half-head, you don't eat!
(Sanosuke gives her the same odd look.)
Uki: Wh-what. You keep--
(She blushes and puts her hands on her cheeks.)
Uki (thinking):
That's it! He's fallen in love with me, a lonely flower in bloom in
the backwater town of Shinshu! It's only natural! He only calls me half-head to
hide his affections!
Mistake.
Sanosuke (thinking): She used to be this cute little girl, running along after me
calling "Sanosuke! Sanosuke!" People sure change.
Uki (sighing): Well, I suppose you can't help it. All right! You may eat.
Sanosuke: What? (What was that all about?)
(After their meal.)
Uki: That was good. Now Outa, when you finish eating you have to wipe your mouth.
And when we get home you'll have to brush your teeth. We don't want you to get cavities.
Sanosuke: Y'know, yesterday was one thing, but you're too soft on that kid.
(Uki gives him an angry look.)
Uki: Don't tell me about my family! You're just a stranger, you don't know anything about us!
Outa (softly): Um . . .
Higashidani (from outside): Why don't you run that by me again!
Uki: What that . . . Dad?
(Higashidani is down the street, arguing with a shopkeeper.)
Higashidani: What do you mean you won't take them?
Shopkeeper: Believe me, I wish I could, but . . .
Higashidani: . . . Fudozawa's been here.
Shopkeeper: . . . Yes. And that's not all. This backer we keep hearing so much about.
He's a former Ishin Shishi and he's coming here. They're after the silk, and if
they let the year's last shipment get away from them they'll have nothing until next spring.
There's no doubt that they'll take the waystation away from us. I'm really sorry . . .
but I can't put the livelihood of my family and my workers at risk.
Higashidani: Guess I put you through some needless heartache. Keep the hats.
They were handmade by the Higashidani family, with no cutting corners.
They'll go like hotcakes.
(As he walks out, he bumps into Fudozawa and his men.)
Fudozawa: Why the long face?
Higashidani: Fudozawa . . .
Fudozawa: Don't look at me like that. I'm not here for you today.
Just wanted to introduce you. My uncle's come all the way down from Tokyo.
Tani: So you're Kamishimoemon. You certainly look tough. But maybe it's
time you stepped aside, for your own sake. Just because we control the
waystation doesn't mean we're going to take anything away from anyone.
I'm just talking about a fair, reasonable price. My nephew will act as a
window and everything will move through him.
(Higashidani puffs on his pipe.)
Higashidani: What a fat yakuza and a former Ishin Shishi calls reasonable would be the
same as bleeding us dry.
Underlings: How dare you talk like that!
We owe everything to our Uncle--
(Higashidani smashes them both in the face.)
Higashidani: You should have realized by now you're not going to win me over.
I've beaten up over fifty of your men and you still don't get it.
Fudozawa: You always did prefer fists to words. If you want to fight,
that's fine with me. However. If we fight here and Uncle gets so much as a scratch,
there'll be trouble. The police and the prefectural authorities will want to know why.
They won't have any trouble keeping a little country waystation under control.
Crowd: Mr. Higashidani . . .
(Higashidani grits his teeth, but holds back.)
Fudozawa: A wise decision. The waystation would have been abolished.
Even if you'd managed to take out all my men, with my uncle behind me I couldn't have lost.
You never had a chance.
Tani: However stubborn you are, however good you are in a fight, this is reality.
Muscle power can't stand up to real authority. We can only get fatter, and you'll
only grow thinner. You may not like it much, but that's the truth! Think hard about
what you're going to do next. Next time we meet you won't get off with just words.
Fudozawa: Wait a minute, uncle. I want to take something out of him for the two men he
just took down.
Tani: Oh, that's even better.
Fudozawa (to two beefy men beside him): Hey, you. Take back what he owes us.
But do it gambler-style, twice as much.
Higashidani (thinking): Without the waystation we have nothing . . .
Men: Don't worry--we'll leave you alive!
I'll forgive you with my own two hands!
(Sanosuke knocks down first one man, then the other.)
Uki (rushing over): Dad!
Fudozawa: You, street fighter! What the hell is this!
translations by maigo-chan
last updated 28 july 2001