Hell's Paradise (地獄楽)

Ohashi Inn

Shinsenkyo...

You're the only one to return from that island.

Tell us exactly what happened,

Yamada Asaemon Jikka.

Fine, fine. What happened, right?

I doubt it'll make much difference.

Mind if I relax a bit?

No? Fine, fine.

Let's see. Where should I begin?

To get the immortality-granting Elixir of Life,

the shogun ordered condemned criminals and members

of the Yamada Asaemon Clan to Shinsenkyo two days ago.

I was responsible for Horubo, the Killer Prayer.

Aza Chobe killed him on the boat, so I returned earl—

while quivering with the disappointment of being

unable to fulfill my mission, I turned back,

but the currents washed me ashore.

Wait. You landed on the island?

Well, yes.

More than 60 people have gone missing there...

I considered continuing with my mission,

but needed to tell the criminal's family of his death

and somehow made it back here.

Hold on. What exactly does somehow mean?

There's no point in explaining it.

I'd stay away from that island if I were you.

That island is not of this world.

Only idiots and children poke bee hives.

A-Are you indirectly calling the shogunate fools?!

I wouldn't say indirect—

Forgive me.

Even we struggle with this ill-mannered man.

Responsibility lies with the Yamada family and myself.

Please accept my apologies.

You think a single apology is enough?

Hey.

What? We needn't show deference to the Asaemons.

Don't you know?

He's the one who...

W-Well, you must be exhausted from your return journey.

We'll overlook your disrespectful attitude.

I will now read the missive given to me by the shogun.

Listen closely.

The Yamadas must return to Shinsenkyo and observe.

The most suitable members are to be selected for the job,

Yamada Asaemon Shugen.

Dawn and Confusion

Aw, man.

In the end, we samurai are just pawns.

Our lives are expendable.

Jikka-dono!

You went too far before the shogunate earlier.

I figured things would work out since you were there.

And they did, didn't they?

I'm saying not even I can overlook your behavior.

I wish you'd observe proper samurai etiquette.

Oh, yeah? Sorry about that.

I'm currently acting in Eizen-dono's place.

I cannot let things fall into disarray in his absence.

Well, color me impressed.

Do they have more useful condemned criminals?

Apparently they'll be sending Iwagakure shinobi next.

Oh?

When selecting new members to send to the island,

all the criminals were killed by the Iwagakure.

The shogun chose the four shinobi present.

As chief of the Iwagakure, I will assist the shogun.

I've actually forgotten something on that island, too.

Trusting criminals was nonsense in the first place.

Jikka-dono, you'll be joining them.

You'll travel to the island in a few days.

What? No way!

I don't want anything to do with that place.

Jikka-dono...

Eizen-dono said he'd report on the second day.

Today is the third.

It's not just Eizen-dono either.

Are Tenza, Kisho, Sagiri, and the others all right?

I find it unbearable to simply wait.

Yeah, that's true. It's concerning.

That being the case...

We'll head to the island and complete our mission quickly.

Um, excuse me.

Lord samurai...

What shall we do with this?

Oh, this thing?

They would know the island is dangerous if they saw this,

but I never got the opportunity to show them.

Dragging it up with an anchor was wasted effort,

sorry.

I'll take you to the red-light district sometime.

What?

Or would you rather come to my bedchambers?

Either's fine with me.

Actually, um...

Don't touch that, lord samurai!

The tentacles might still be alive!

Nah, they're already dead.

I don't sense any waves of life.

Let's go, Jikka-dono.

Waves of life?

Sorry to keep you waiting.

We finished making our report to the shogunate.

As planned, the four of us will go to the island.

We've been chosen solely for our strength this time.

Tameshi-itto-ryu Rank 3 Yamada Asaemon Jikka

Jikka-dono will be coming with us.

What? I don't remember agreeing to that.

Tameshi-itto-ryu Rank 2 Yamada Asaemon Shugen

We'll depart right away for Shinsenkyo.

Tao is life itself.

To use tao is to consume life itself.

Using large quantities affects the body and soul.

Are the body and soul not two different things?

No, both are merely a form of tao.

You're discussing complicated topics again.

We agreed not to talk about that stuff here.

Forgive me.

Just kidding.

Don't bow your head.

In fact, hold it high.

Hold your head high!

Well, Rien?

Isn't the new training ground great?

It's impressive, Tao Fa.

By exercising under and above water and studying breathing,

one can train in doin and taisoku.

Music encourages meditation,

allowing for training of both shuitsu and shuten.

That room is good as well.

One can focus on bochu jutsu there.

Right?

It's ridiculous.

I mean bochu jutsu itself.

Remaining in the middle of yin and yang as I do is best.

I disagree.

The properties of tao differ depending on the life.

Joining with others draws out new strength.

Too much, Ju Fa. That was incredible.

You two are certainly focused on your training.

Need some tan?

Yes, please.

Mu Dan made this.

It's fresh-squeezed.

Here you go.

I forgot to add the glowing stuff.

The stuff that makes the drinks glow.

Where is it, Zhu Jin?

I don't know.

We're inside the Tensen's castle.

It's dangerous to stay in one place.

We should exit the gates.

Okay.

Those outfits...

You can hardly tell what kind of group you are.

What's the problem? They're cute.

We'd stand out in our bloody clothes.

I hope you can "overlook" it.

I'm just copying my master.

In any case,

our goal for now is to find Gabimaru and Mei-san.

Gabimaru's target is the Elixir of Life.

He should be trying to reach this castle.

It will be more convenient for us to meet outside the gates.

Hold on. Do we need to meet up with them?

Should we worry about our mission and the Elixir?

Not only is the island teeming with monsters,

but those super-dangerous Tensen are lurking around.

There's no way the mission matters anymore.

Our best option is to leave as soon as possible.

No, we'll meet up with them.

What? I'm saying this for your sake, dear Sagirin.

You don't mean that.

You've acted that way since you learned there's no Elixir.

You want more Asaemons who'll take your side against the shogunate