Tajomaru's Enemies

A series of testimonies are given before the High police regarding a dead man’s body in a grove in Kyoto. The stories of the witnesses and suspects do not match up. It was stated in two of the testimonies that they killed the man, but in the latter part of the story, the man, Takejiro, stated that he himself took his life. Though the inconsistent testaments, it is guaranteed that Takejiro was dead, Tajomaru violated Masago’s womanhood, and Tajomaru did not leave with Masago.

A woodcutter who was in the grove to cut his daily quota of cedars gave the first testimony. An intrigued passer-by was shown by the woodcutter by the way that he looked at his surroundings to search for possible clues for the man’s death. He found the body lying flat on its back wearing a Kyoto-style headdress and a bluish silk kimono. The body was found with dried blood and a single sword-stroke mark on the chest. Blood stained bamboo blades and trampled grass were all around, thus suspecting a battle. The woodcutter only found a rope and a

He was a crafty robber after all, who was able to separate the couple and execute his plan. With this, he captured Takejiro, who fell under his trap without killing him. He took Masago with him but as soon as she has seen her husband, she went furious and attacked the robber with her sword. Tajomaru was quite skilled in combat and was able to dodge her blows. He was successful in disarming Masago, and did what he wished to her after. Originally, Tajomaru did not plan on taking Takejiro’s life. His plan was changed after Masago stated that either of them must die and the survivor becomes her wife. Tajomaru was filled with determination after hearing this. However, Tajomaru wanted to fight fair and freed Takejiro from the ropes. The two men clashed and crossed swords but Tajomaru was the victor the duel. As soon as Takejiro fell, Tajomaru stated that Masago ran