1:38:00
To face death without wavering -
1:38:03
that is truly the way of the samurai.
1:38:06
But what did this man do?
1:38:09
He cravenly asked
for a day or two's grace.
1:38:13
One might well accuse him
of having gone mad!
1:38:16
True enough.
1:38:19
Motome had indeed gone mad.
1:38:23
But I say good for him!
1:38:25
I praise him for it.
1:38:29
He may have been a samurai,
1:38:31
but he was also
a man of flesh and blood.
1:38:34
He could not live on air alone.
1:38:39
When he has reached
the point of no return,
1:38:42
even a man as strong as Motome
will go mad trying to protect his family,
1:38:45
and I would praise him for it.
1:38:49
They'll call him "the bamboo ronin."
1:38:52
Not only samurai, but townspeople, too,
will scoff at his wavering.
1:38:58
But let them laugh all they want.
1:39:01
Who can fathom the depths
of another man's heart?
1:39:08
Thanks to the shogunate's ruthless policy
of wiping out the provincial lords,
1:39:12
countless samurai lost their masters
1:39:14
and were cast out
to wander the depths of hell.
1:39:18
How can those who never wanted for food
or clothing understand their misery?
1:39:24
To those who find Motome
loathsome for his pleading, I ask:
1:39:28
What if you found yourself
in the same position?
1:39:31
Would you do any differently?
1:39:37
After all,
this thing we call samurai honor
1:39:42
is ultimately nothing but a facade.
1:39:45
Is that your grievance?
1:39:47
Grievance?
1:39:49
Is that what you're trying to tell us?
1:39:52
That samurai honor
is nothing but a facade?
1:39:56
Yes.