Summary:
Masato (Hirotan) uses “Mind Dive” to enter the consciousness of his friend Kenji (AsaShin) who is in a coma, but he’s a vampire?
Aftertalk bonus:
AsaShin on why he chugged a whole bottle of “blood tomato juice” on stage:
“It’s my teeth; if you drink in sips every thing starts dripping down, and the whole costume will be stained in red. The only way to drink anything with these things is to tilt your head back and finish the whole bottle.”
Hirotan: (laughing) “You had trouble eating backstage too didn’t you?”
[Please click on this post for the (Day Session)]
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For plot and images, please keep reading below:
The stage opens with instructions from Mind Dive, stating rules that Masato cannot break while using Mind Dive to delve into Kenji’s mind. The main one is that he can only hint at things to reignite Kenji’s memory, and is forbidden from telling him things outright. Kenji must figure things out for himself first.
Masato is given a rough draft of a quiz to get started, and it is here that we see that the Kenji he knows has changed; he is no longer human but a vampire. Masato reasons logically that Kenji’s consciousness made him into a vampire in his own mind because it was something he wanted to be in order to escape his life. Masato laments that it’s all the reading Kenji did to have made him conjure the image of a vampire.
Kenji has no idea who his human self is at this point, and is fully immersed into being a vampire, claiming memories which span thousands of years ago, and despising human things.
(No one can resist Hirotan’s chest)
Masato and Kenji are given chances to speak to each other, and are also given chances to choose certain “locations” which may help spark Kenji’s memory. One of them is a factory. Masato reveals that this was actually the first place they met, and the audience discovers as Kenji does that both Masato and Kenji are parallels: their father is gone, leaving them to be the head of the house; they are both poor; they are high school dropouts; and they are best friends.
(Sniffing uniforms to figure out whose is whose, the human has stronger senses here)
(Hirotan immediately forming the cross lol)
They were the only ones of similar age in the factory, so Masato approached an introverted, sullen Kenji. Although Kenji was hesitant at first, Masato kept pestering him until they became friends. They used to eat only the crusts of bread for lunch in the factory, and played a ridiculous game of soccer together. Masato is teary, to be able to talk to Kenji again like this, is nostalgic and painful.
On the way to the next location, they meet Kaori. Kaori is Kenji’s partner, and his fiancée; but Kenji does not remember her even though he has mostly remembered Masato. Kaori and Masato try to jog his memory, bringing up the games they used to play as children (translated hilariously on stage).
Kaori has to leave at the next stop, but before she goes, she begs Kenji to return to them; she doesn’t need riches, she will work harder, all she wants is for him to come back. Kenji says he will do his best. Kaori praises them both, saying that the bond of their friendship is strong and priceless. At this point, Masato looks immensely uncomfortable, but reassures Kaori to leave it to him.
The next location is the inside of a prison cell. Masato reveals a map torn into half, and what they did to have caused Kenji to slip into a coma. Kenji’s mother had fallen immensely ill, and between the medical costs and the costs for his wedding, he was left with little alternative. He and Masato planned to rob a bank, but things went horribly wrong: Kenji was involved in the accident, and Masato was caught by the police. Masato was promptly fired, causing him to spiral into working many odd jobs to the bone in order to keep up. But that is not what Masato wants to say.
Masato begs for forgiveness, reassuring Kenji that if he returns, he’ll do anything for him; he’ll support him and Kaori in whatever way he can, he’ll help pay the medical fees, anything. (It is here that Asa’s ad-lib prompt reads: “let’s kiss”, which causes Hirotan to jump from shock and the audience to whoop.) They are reconciled.
The Mind Dive announces that time has run out; Masato frantically asks Kenji to return. He shoves towards Kenji a letter before disappearing.
Letter:
apologises for his faults, and what they did
begs Kenji to return ( “without you, I don’t have anyone else” )
his own mother was diagnosed with lung cancer, and though treatment worked he now owes a lot of money to many people
he was going crazy, so he used Mind Dive to come here and meet Kenji again
apologises for the letter being about his problems, even though Kenji has many worries himself
was afraid Kenji may not have wanted to see him again, may have hated him; but now and forever he treats Kenji as his best friend -- other than Kenji, he has no one else to rely on
“I’ll wait for you. If you forgive me, if you want to do many stupid things together again; even though this pains me to say, please bring the sum of money to the place where we both first met (factory). I’m waiting for you. I believe you’ll come.”
As stage is lighted again, we see Masato pacing around in the factory. Kenji and Kaori appear, and they chat like old friends. At the very last moment, Masato pulls out a gun and points it towards the others. The stage darkens. We hear two shots.
Summary:
Vassal Fujiyoshi Akira (AsaShin) and Oda Nobunaga (Hirotan), yes that legendary Nobunaga, have fallen through a time slip into the modern era. It is up to Akira to convince Nobunaga to return to their own time.
For more information about the concept and the use of “Mind Dive”, please refer to the (Night Session)
[Please click on this link for the (Night Session) ]
For plot and other pictures, please keep reading below:
Akira uses Mind Dive to delve into Nobunaga’s consciousness. The rules within Mind Dive restrict what he can reveal to Nobunaga who at this point does not remember who he is, and Akira must reveal these facts indirectly or jog his memory with hints. It is revealed at the start that Nobunaga is in a coma because he slipped and hit his head too hard.
Akira is Nobunaga’s vassal, and he reveals that they fell through a time slip after the battle at Honno-jii (more info here), which is known as Nobunaga’s last stand. Akira says that he followed Nobunaga through the portal which catapulted them into the present time (the portal opens at a bath house, hence Hirotan’s skit with the basin and why Nobunaga slipped).
Nobunaga is shown to be wildly fond of the present, is interested in new things, and is a strong person. Akira admires, even worships him, and is every bit the loyal vassal. However, he wishes that he and Nobunaga will be able to return to their own time, despite knowing that it would be difficult for Nobunaga to face the challenges there.
Halfway, they meet the version of Akira from the past, a small man who swears loyalty to Nobunaga because the lord saved his life.
Nobunaga is shocked at their height difference, but Akira deflects it by saying that he has been eating well during the present time, and has grown a lot while Nobunaga was in a coma. He has worked for a long time to become a worker at Bellson company who manufactures Mind Dive. He admits that the company had taken hold of Nobunaga, and he only finally succeeded this time in “kidnapping” Nobunaga from them and using Mind Dive.
(Both versions of Akira asking for head pats from Nobunaga.)
After the past version of Akira leaves, they are transported by the bus to a library. Akira and Nobunaga find two sets of swords, and the clothes that Nobunaga wore on the night of Honno-jii. Nobunaga presses Akira for answers, and the vassal relates the history which happened.
Akira begs Nobunaga to come back with him to their own time even though it is difficult for them. He pledges loyalty to serve at his lord’s side, and manages to convince Nobunaga to go back and fight in the past.
HOWEVER, in the last few seconds, a switch in Akira is flipped. He shoves a letter to Nobunaga, taunts him, and reveals that he isn’t Akira at all. He is actually Mitsuhide Akechi, the person who betrayed Nobunaga in Honno-jii, leading to his demise.
The letter details Mitsuhide’s frustrations and hate towards Nobunaga, precisely because Nobunaga is always above him and is a worthy opponent. Mitsuhide wants to settle the score between them even in this modern era, and invites Nobunaga to use a password to Mind Dive to meet him at a recreation of Honno-jii; and let them fight to the death honourably. Nobunaga agrees, meeting Mitsuhide, and the stage lights fade as their swords flash against each other.
(Our boi Nobunaga showing up to the duel with a fake moustache and beard.)
