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Tsuki no Toiki, Ai no Kizu
v.1.1 The year is 1579 and a girl was found lying in a forest with a sword cut on her back. She had lost her memory and so was called Kaguya and was taken in by the owners of a brothel in the red light district of the city. Half a year later, Kaguya is in perfect health and helps around in the house chores (not those chores ^^; )as well as with the other women's little kids. While bathing with the kids, they comment on the scar on her back, saying that it looks like the Moon. They ask her if it hurted, but she says that she doesn't remember. While she is putting them to sleep for their nap, the girls start giggling and shouting. Turns out that certain favorite client has arrived: Hanzou-sama. Kaguya looks from behind the separation and thinks he is really handsome. One girl tells Kaguya that he is one of the local lord's escorts. All the girls go crazy about him, but he ends up choosing an elegant girl called Okyou, and she tells Kaguya to serve the refreshments to the room to the other girls' disappointment (^^;; ) When Kaguya arrives with the drinks, she finds Okyou on Hanzou's lap and is embarrassed. Hanzou realizes she is new and asks her name and age. Kaguya is very nervous because his voice is also great, and says that she is 17 or 18. Okyou explains about Kaguya's memory loss, and Hanzou just loves it! He says that he wants to stay with this "Princess Kaguya" (refering to the famous Japanese tale) because he finds her amusing! (^^;; ) Okyou tells him in shock that Kaguya is not a prostitute, but he insists that they will only talk, so Okyou leaves and poor Kaguya has to face him. (^^) Kaguya serves him a drink and he asks her about her memory loss. She says sadly that she can't remember anything, her self, her family, her house... He wonders if she really can't remember a thing and she answers that is true. Hanzou leans closer and puts an arm around her shoulders, putting all his charm in his face. He kisses her, to Kaguya's shock, and as he smiles and starts opening her kimono, he says that since she doesn't remember feelings she had, this might not be her first time... "FOOL!" Kaguya slaps him away and to his shock (to be called a fool ^^; ) she yells at him that the one thing she does remember is this being the first time she met a lech like him! Kaguya runs down to the room with the other girls, who wonder why she is so upset. Okyou asks her what happened with Hanzou and soon Hanzou himself appears! Kaguya turns around crying and tells him not to go near her, making the other girls shout at her for talking at him like that. But to everybody's shock, Hanzou kneels on the floor and asks for forgiveness! The girls tell him to stand up and ask what she did to make him do that as he keeps saying he is sorry. Kaguya finally tells him angrily that it's ok and that she forgives him. He seems very relieved and Kaguya is taken by his honest and happy face. Hanzou leaves right away and Okyou attempts to strangle Kaguya jokingly as she cries in frustration because it had been half a year since she was last with him! The other girls tell her not to complain because it has been even more time since he was with them... Kaguya realizes that all the girls have been with Hanzou and feels very stupid that she told him that about liking... However, her heart beats faster when she remembers his kiss. Hanzou is on his way when he spots a little girl crying, and he helps her rescue her little cat from drowning in the river. A man comes to tell him to hurry up because there are problems in the castle... the assasin was found last night! Tokugawa Nobuyasu, lord of the castle, is waiting for Hanzou. As they go to see the assasin, Hanzou speaks with another of the escorts, Hanzou asks if it's a girl, but the man says this time it's a man. However, Nobuyasu takes them to Princess Toku's room and accuses her of being the hand behind his mother's assasination! After all, she is the daughter of Nobunaga... Hanzou and the men try to calm him down, and even though he is very angry, he does leave while Hanzou tends to the princess with a concerned expression. At the same time, the girls at Kaguya's house comment on the bad feelings that are between Nobuyasu and the princess. He married her to be closer to the position of heir to Nobunaga (who started the reunification of Japan in the middle of XVI ct.), and they say that his mother was really bad to the princess and this reached Nobunaga's ears and... The owner of the place interrumpts and tells them to go work. He takes Kaguya and he and his wife help her into a cute kimono, then attempt to put some make up on her. Kaguya is fast to see that something it terribly wrong (^^;; ) and asks them what is going on... of course, they agreeded to set her up with Hanzou. Kaguya says no way, but Okyou tells her that it will be fine, so she gives up and goes meet him. He is very happy to see her and tells her that she looks very pretty, then gives her a pretty decorated hairpin! He takes her by the hand and drags her outside to the busy street to walk around. He even links hands with her! Kaguya is happy and impressed by this... However, Hanzou notices a man dressed hiding his face is following them and in a surprise move, he takes Kaguya over his horse and rides away! Kaguya wonders what's going on, but Hanzou just points at the beautiful moon. Kaguya is happy like a child at the sight, but he says that she is even more beautiful than the moon... Kaguya asks him why he is saying that to her, and he says that she looks a lot like his frist love... As he leans towards her, Kaguya sees something that makes her very scared. She pushes him away, falling from the horse. As she loses conciousness, she keps thinking, "don't come close!" Kaguya wakes up in the house and is happy to hear that Hanzou took her back... Later while she is helping with the logs for heating the bathtub, as one of the men is cutting them, the axe falls appart right towards Kaguya! However, she reacts by pure instinct and stops it with one of the logs... Kaguya and the man wonder how on Earth she did that... Kaguya thinks it's weird that she can do things like that. While she helps Okyou with her bath, she advises Kaguya not to go too far with Hanzou because he is not serious about her. This depresses Kaguya, and as she absently does her chores, the misterious man seizes her hand and calls her "Sara", commenting on the fact that she seems to be doing fine. Kaguya is very surprised and wonders about all of this, but suddenly the man runs away saying he is sorry. Kaguya tries to follow him and ask him more about herself, since he seemed to know her, but Hanzou appears and orders her to go back to rest! Hanzou takes her in his arms and carries her to her futon. He says he is sorry he came even after she told him not to. But Kaguya doesn't remember saying that and says that she wouldn't say something like that! She says she is happy that he came and that she wanted to see him a lot... Hanzou is very surprised at this and starts asking her if what she said is what she feels, but Kaguya remembers what Okyou said and excuses herself, thinking she is an idiot and he is with her only because she resembles his first love. She asks him to forget what she just said, but Hanzou stops her with a kiss! Hanzou asks her what her feelings towards him are. Like? Dislike? He tells her to show him her heart... And as they kiss again, she admits she likes him... a lot. Hanzou keeps on kissing her and starts taking off her kimono from behind, but Kaguya tries to stop him! He says it's ok and that he knows about the scar on her back. He tells her that he wants to love her and that includes her scar. However when he looks at the scar, he stops in shock! He demands to know if she really doesn't remember anything before the half year since she was found. He says that he was the one who made that scar! Hanzou explains that half a year ago Nobuyasu's mother was killed in front of his eyes, and that he gave chase to the woman-killer, cutting her back with his sword. But the woman fell from a cliff and he gave her for dead... Kaguya asks in disbelief if she is that assasin... but then throws something at him in anger and disbelief that he would call her an assasin and that he would make up such a story about her! Kaguya runs away from the room and the house as she cryes in pain. As she runs, she crashes into some men, who try to handle her, but the moon reflects in her eyes and she seems to be suddenly andother person, kicking the men's butt. Kaguya returns to her "normal self" with a jolt surprised at what she just did. Hanzou catches up with her, but Kaguya sees/remembers him as running towards her with a katana instead and runs away. She tries telling herself that she is not a murderer and ends up stumbling and rolling down a hill. Before Hanzou can reach her, the mysterious man seizes her and goes away. As she is carried away, Kaguya hears Hanzou but thinks that it's not correct, she is not "Kaguya," but Sara. Sara wakes up in a young man's lap. He is called Rikimaru and he is her servant. She tells him how she spent the last months and tries to appear cool. They talk about having to finish business, that is, Nobuyasu. While Rikimaru sleeps, Sara tries to throw away the hairpin Hanzou gave her, but can't make herself do it and breaks down in tears because he is her enemy. Meanwhile, Hanzou tells Nobuyasu that he has seen the man who killed his mother and he demands him to stop the man. During the night, Sara and Rikimaru sneak into the castle but are discovered. Sara manages to be thrown up to Nobuyasu's quartes by Rikimaru, but when she is about to kill him in his sleep, it turns out to be a trap, and Hanzou was waiting for her! Hanzou disarms her and puts a hand to her throat, saying that he is going to kill her... He yells at her asking if she can understand his feelings! Sara cries and says that she loves him, and that's the only thing she wants to understand. He asks her why, even after he tried to kill her... Rikimaru interrumpts them and tells him to let go of Sara, as he prepares to slay him. However Sara orders him not to and steps in front of Hanzou! She tells Rikimaru that she loves Hanzou, then prepares to leave but it's too late and the lord's men appear. Hanzou tells them not to hurt the pair, and they use the confusion to run away in search for Nobuyasu, even though he tells her not to go... Sara and co. arrive to the room where Nobuyasu is hiding, but before they can do anything, he takes the princess as hostage, right in time for Hanzou and the men to arrive. To everybody's shock, the princess tells Sara to finish her business, and Sara calls her "older sister!" Nobuyasu starts to rant about leaving Nobunaga's side and making alliance with one of the enemy families and orders Hanzou to kill Sara. Instead, Hanzou delivers a well-deserved punch and tells him that he has forgotten where his loyalties should lie, so his only exit is honorable suicide... to Nobuyasu's horror, the other men seem to agree with Hanzou. In a fit of rage, Nobuyasu attempts to kill the princess but Sara stops him and reminds him of Nobunaga... Nobuyasu accepts that there is only one way to go. Much later Hanzou gives what's left of Nobuyasu to the princess. Sara realizes that the princess is the famous "first love" of Hanzou. He coldly and in a very formal way asks her to forgive all the bad things he has done to her so far. Sara is appalled at how distant he seems and runs away. The princess tells Hanzou that Sara was always more interested in fighting than in being a bride to somebody, and that her life was hard, but Rikimori replies that Sara is very much a woman, and explain how the last half year has changed her, then asks for comfirmation to Hanzou. Sara looks at the moon-less night and remembers how nice it was to look at it with Hanzou. She cries because she won't be able to do it again, but Hanzou interrumpts and gives her the hairpin (which she used to disarm Nobuyasu). Sara hugs him but he tells her not to play with him. She begs him not to say those things but he simply replies that he already loves somebody. Sara asks defeated if it's her sister, but as he puts the hairpin on her, he tells her that not, his beloved is Kaguya. As they kiss, he tells her that he loves Kaguya, Sara, the scar and everything about her!
Tsuki no Toiki, Natsu no Yume
Sara is sent in a mission to "Hanzou," except that it's a different Hanzou that her dear Hanzou! Sara is now stuck in a marriage deal until she can find what she was sent for. To fix things, the original Hanzou appears to celebrate his friend's wedding to... Sara?! Hanzou tries to show how much he loves her, but doubts start to assault him... At the end, it's all about trust, and his love for Sara wins over all! (except... perhaps...) Go to the continuation/spin-off series: Tsuki no Shippo!

IMAGE GALLERY

Some scenes from the "Tsuki no Toiki, Natsu no Yume," enjoy!

All images © Ueda Rinko, Shueisha (except backgrounds).