Okiku and the World (せかいのおきく)

Okiku and the World

Prologue: Where does Edo's Poop Go?

Edo (now Tokyo), 1858, Late Summer

Here you are

Take your time

What?

You alone?

My partner got loose bowels and now he's out, sick

So, you can't buy all of it?

Sorry, I'm shorthanded today I'll just buy half

Here's 50 Mon

You're a wastepaper man

Who's talking, manure man

What's the look for?

It stinks!

The temple's wastepaper?

It's worthless if it gets wet

What does a wholesaler pay for that?

Depends on the paper

Not much, I bet

Man, you're nosy

You're from Kobikicho, your name is...

Oh, you need to?

No!

If you need to, we'll move

I just came to the temple

You came over here, so...

To shelter from the rain

You're Okiku san, from Jiroemon's row house

Don't say my name in a place like this!

Sorry

Your name is Okiku?

You're...

He just called your name, but...

I've seen you at Kikyoya, the wastepaper wholesaler

So, you know each other

Sometimes I go to Kikyoya to buy calligraphy paper

I see, you teach reading and writing at the temple school here, Okiku san...

Don't say my name here!

Sorry

This rain means autumn's coming

We're stuck here awhile

Please move out of the way

Please move away!

Yes

Hurry up!

She's scary...

How far are you hauling those?

To Kasai, by boat

How much do farmers pay for that?

So you do want to know

You asked me first, so I'm asking you back

Collecting wastepaper doesn't pay so good?

Who asked you!

I just lost my partner

Leave me be

- My partner... - Leave me be

My partner...

Leave me be...

Kameari Village, Kasai Ward

Who kept asking to leave you be?

While you're at it,

why not leave Edo and move here, Chuji

I don't want to leave way out here in the middle of nowhere

You just live in a poor row house

Aren't we there, yet?

- Ouch! - Man, you're a weakling

The cart's wobbling

The wind's blowing the stink at me!

Makes my eyes water...

I can't look ahead

Thank you so much

Go sell these at the central vegetable market

Yes sir, I'll take them

Hey, you're making a mess

I want to get it over with

Give it here

Let's go back to Edo

The river's calm and this wind will speed the boat

No, it'll be sundown when we're done

Yeah, in that case, we let it rest in a riverside manure pit overnight

Or two nights or three

Just like miso paste, shit's better after it's aged a little

It's what you call shit paste

That's your cue to laugh, Chuji

Bro...

Bro?

Bro Yasuke, your hands...

Go wash them by the well

When autumn brings the storms,

the river gets wild and we can't get to Edo

Better hurry or the market will close

One riceball won't last you all day

I just don't think it's right

What?

Piling up vegetables where you loaded piles of shit

It's fine, whatever you eat just turns into slop

From food to shit, it goes round and round

Kobikicho Jiroemon's row house

What are you always praying for, Dad?

I'm not praying for anything

I just pray 'cause I'm afraid

These skies won't grant my wish anyway

Dad

What?

Why, Dad, do you always fart when the dawn bell rings?

And not just once or twice

I wonder why,

maybe I'm getting old

Soon, I'll be farting and shitting at the same time

Thanks to you, I have to wake up, too

Say, Okiku

What is it, Dad?

I preferred it when you used to call me Father

We're not samurai anymore, Mother's gone

and you do nothing all day

Can I take a shit?

It's already autumn

Chapter One: The Invincible Okiku

1858, Autumn

Something sure stinks!

The roof leaks in the rain,

this place is just a shack..

It's just,

a shabby shack

Oh, no!

I stepped in it!

Move

Pardon me...

Pardon me

Watch out, you're splattering it!

You all right?

It stinks!

What a stinky mess

This is what happens in tenements!

Hey, Landlord!

At this rate, my nose will get squashed

We’ve put up with this shit for two nights, now

You should let us use your outhouse, Landlord

Only you three use it, so it's not overflowing yet

It will overflow soon

When I crouch down, the stuff nearly touches my butt

Why isn't the manure man here? His name's Yasuke san, right?

That's what I want to know

I don't give a shit, but clean up this shit

That's right, my husband's got diarrhea

My stomach feels like it's full of worms!

I need to pee so bad I can't sneeze!

This is your mess to clean up, Landlord

At my age,_ I refuse to shit on the road!

I used to, all the time, but not any more!

We can't even shit, so we don't dare eat!

You gotta do something about this, anything!

How dare you talk to me like that when you can't even pay rent!

Dad, we already paid

Oh, me?

Sir, say something to him

Well...

Wait for it to dry

Who's got time for that!

In this situation, patience is called for This shit won't kill you

Well Sir, we aren't samurai or important like you are

All I do is be patient,

but there's nobody to look after me,

whatever I pick up, I drop,

my back's so stiff I can't reach back to wipe my behind

You wouldn't understand, Sir,

but these days, I see things like bugs flying in front of my eyes

and I'm afraid the whole world will go black...

Save that for later!

I'm getting older, too

When I crouch, my knees shake and my legs go numb

To wipe my behind, my thighs cramp and I can't even lift a sword

Save that for later!

So, Okiku,

I can talk about it later?

We save talking about everything for later, so life never improves

So, injustice prevails

I dislike this side of you, Dad

You always argue and want the last word

You take on other people's troubles and accuse your superiors of injustice

Imagine my patience, after you served your clan but lost your position

I only accused them out of loyalty to my clan

I was only doing my job as the clan's accounts keeper

You should be proud of me!

I think,

you can save that for later, too

I understand Okiku san's point of view...

But right now, we are talking about poop

None of you here appreciates

how I had to swallow my samurai family pride

and learn how to say shit and fart without batting an eye!

None of you may criticize me!

Pardon us

Where the hell have you been!

We're in a hell of a mess because you didn't show up

My tenants are talking nonsense...

Sorry, there was so much rain, our village flooded and boats were banned

Our boat was nearly washed away by the flooding rivers, we only just made it

This is disgusting