Japan's a Paradise!
Tears In Wakasa
Episode Sixteen centers around Kunikida's journey to Wakasa
because of the death of his best friend, Yamatone. Yamatone was the man
responsible for founding the TAC and Kunikida is deeply affected by his
friend's unexpected death. While he is in Wakasa, he goes to visit
Yamatone's widow. He finds Wakama in a garden of beautiful
flowers, which is, in itself, very unusual because all the trees in
Wakasa are mysteriously dying. During his visit he learns that despite the
fact that Yamatone disappeared without a word to Kunikida, his friend still
talked about him constantly. As he is leaving Yamatone's house, Wakasa
stops him and hands him a letter that Yamatone wrote to Kunikida before he
died, and as they are standing there, a group of men see Wakasa and become
terrified. Kunikida takes the letter back to his hotel room and begins to read
it: "Where has the Japan we once believed in when we were young
gone?" Kunikida finishes the letter, and turns to stare out into
the darkness beyond the window, reflecting on the Yamatone's disillusionment
and bitterness towards the people of Japan for how they have turned their
backs on their heritage and their land, "turning cannibal".
During the night, a new Aragami attacks, killing two of the boys that
Kunikida saw run from Wakama outside of her house. Now the rest of the
TAC journey to Wakasa to investigate the murders. Shortly after
arriving, Momiji is playing ball with a little girl until she senses something
strange about a nun who has just passed her by. Following the nun,
Momiji comes to the Cave of the Holy Fast of Yaobikuni. She goes inside
and hears a voice - the voice of the nunyao warning her that the humans will
sacrifice her. After their conversation, Momiji comes to with a start
and asks Kome about the cave and the nun, and then realizes that it never
really happened.
In the next scene the members of the TAC are all together talking about the
legend of the Yaobikuni - a fisherman's daughter who ate the flesh of a
mermaid and gained immortality - and how all of the local villagers are afraid
of Wakama believing that she is the Yaobikuni. They believe this because
Wakama looks exactly like a woman who lived in their village fifty years ago
and shortly after her arrival there, all of the trees started dying and the
local fisherman have been unable to catch any fish. Kunikida
discounts such a ridiculous notion and goes to a local detention center where
he and Sugishita are interrogating one of the young boys that ran from Wakama.
The boy is terrified, claiming that he and the other two killed Wakama in a
drunken rage. Stunned, Kunikida visits Wakama, where she admits that she
is the nunyao. Kunikida doesn't know what to say. Instead he
listens to Wakama tell him about how she had found happiness with Yamatone for
a short time, until the night that the young boys tried to kill her.
After their attack, Yamatone became enraged, and seeking to avenge her, he
drank Wakama's blood and became the creature that was responsible for the
boys' deaths.
The episode reaches its climax on a cliff overlooking the sea where a group of
policemen have cornered Yamatone and he is attacking them and sucking the life
out of them, The TAC arrive, closely followed by Kunikida who confronts
Yamatone.
Yamatone loses some of his anger when he sees Kunikida and then Wakama.
Realizing what he has become, he sees the weapon in Kunikida's hand and
charges at him, giving Kunikida no choice but to fire at his friend.
After Kunikida shoots Yamatone with the Corona shot which sets fire to
Yamatone, Yamatone then backs away from Kunikida towards the edge of the
cliff. Wakama, realizing what he means to do, screams her denial and
rushes to embrace him and together they fall into the ocean. The episode
ends in Wakasa just outside the Yamatone residence where Kunkida is walking
away, passing by Wakama without acknowledging her presence.
