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*Tokushima no Iwaji and Aidamaya Kitaroku - two men from [[Awa province (Shikoku)|Awa no kuni]], who have stolen the sword
*Tokushima no Iwaji and Aidamaya Kitaroku - two men from [[Awa province (Shikoku)|Awa no kuni]], who have stolen the sword
==Plot==
==Backstory==
There is a fair bit of backstory which fleshes out the connections between the characters, their individual backstories, and helps explain the situation at the start of the play. Much of this is presumably known to scholarship primarily from scenes that are no longer performed, variant versions of the play no longer performed, and/or sources such as contemporary Edo period publications.
The daimyo of [[Tokushima Domain|Awa]] had in his service a samurai to whom he entrusted a precious Shimosaka sword. However, the sword caused the death of the samurai and his son, leaving only the samurai's grandson, Fukuoka Mitsugi, alive. Fearing the evil sword, Mitsugi's aunt disposed of the sword secretly and fled with her nephew to Ise, where they began to live under assumed names.
Mitsugi was then adopted by an Ise Shrine priest, but was taught by his aunt to still have allegiance to Awa, and specifically to the daimyo’s Chief Counselor, who his father had served directly under.
Meanwhile, the daimyo of Awa had died and was succeeded by a child, whose uncle, Hachisuke Kajikawa Daigaku,<ref>An obvious reference to the [[Hachisuka clan]] which governed Awa, but with the name slightly changed to avoid censors; mention of contemporary figures in kabuki, especially high-ranking samurai, was forbidden at the time.</ref> sought to seize power for himself, but was prevented from doing so by the Chief Counselor.
The sword was lost for many years, but when rumors arose of it being up for sale in Ise, the daimyo's Chief Counsellor sent his son, Imada Manjirô, to retrieve the daimyo's heirloom. He did so, purchasing the sword, but then met the courtesan Okishi, and in staying in Furuichi (and paying for his visits to the teahouse) to spend time with his newfound love, he accumulated a considerable amount of debt. Presumably seeing no other option, and persuaded by Jôshirô that this was a good idea, he pawned the sword for the money to pay what he owed. He kept the certificate of authenticity, however.
In order to get the Chief Counselor out of his way and seize power in Awa, Hachisuke Daigaku was determined to prevent Manjirô's retrieval of the Shimosaka sword and thus disgrace the Chief Counselor, Manjirô’s father. To these ends, Daigaku sent his top spy, a samurai named Tokushima Iwaji, to steal the Shimosaka sword and the certificate providing its authenticity, from Manjirô. Iwaji was successful in somehow tricking Manjirô into giving up the certificate but the pawnbroker, and the sword, had vanished. Mitsugi heard of Manjirô's predicament and came to his aid.
Mitsugi has managed to retrieve the sword but has not, as of the beginning of the play, been able to find the certificate. He decides his first priority is to get Manjirô to safety.<ref>Halford, Aubrey and Giovanna. ''The Kabuki Handbook''. Charles Tuttle Company, 1956. pp107-108.</ref>
==Plot Summary==
===Act I===
===Act I===
====Scene One: The Chase<ref>Some of the scene numbers may have been changed, as the translations upon which this article is based omit scenes that were in the original.</ref>====
====Scene One: The Chase<ref>Some of the scene numbers may have been changed, as the translations upon which this article is based omit scenes that were in the original.</ref>====
