is a 1967

historical fantasy Historical fantasy is a category of fantasy and genre of historical fiction that incorporates fantastic elements (such as magic) into a more "realistic" narrative. There is much crossover with other subgenres of fantasy; those classed as Arthu ...

novel by

Futaro Yamada was the pen name of , a Japanese author. He was born in Yabu, Hyogo. In 1947, he wrote a mystery short story and was awarded a prize by the magazine . He was discovered by Edogawa Rampo and became a novelist. He wrote many ninja (忍法帖 ''N ...

. It is a tale in which

Mori Sōiken was one of the leaders of Shimabara Rebellion at Japan. Outline His father was Nishimura Magobei (西村孫兵衛, other name: 森長意 Mori Nagamoto). Since his ancestor's generations, the Mori family worked as Shinto priests at Kawauchi pro ...

resurrects other dead historical figures to overthrow the

Shogunate , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakur ...

, while

Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi was one of the most famous and romanticized of the samurai in Japan's feudal era. Life Very little is known about the actual life of Yagyū Mitsuyoshi as the official records of his life are very sparse. Yagyū Jūbē Mitsuyoshi (born "Shichirō ...

rises to fight him and his warriors of the dead.

Plot

The tale starts in the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in ...

when

Yui Shōsetsu Yui Shōsetsu (由井正雪 1605 – September 10, 1651) was a military strategist, and leader of the unsuccessful 1651 Keian Uprising. Though a commoner, and thus not officially of the samurai class, Yui was known as one of the "Three Great ''Rō ...

meets the old

, who, in the story, had survived to the

Shimabara rebellion The , also known as the or , was an uprising that occurred in the Shimabara Domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate in Japan from 17 December 1637 to 15 April 1638. Matsukura Katsuie, the '' daimyō'' of the Shimabara Domain, enforced unpopular p ...

and learned the dark arts of

ninpou , sometimes used interchangeably with the modern term , is the martial art strategy and tactics of unconventional warfare, guerrilla warfare and espionage purportedly practised by the ninja. ''Ninjutsu'' was a separate discipline in some t ...

in order to get his revenge. Knowing they both wish for the dethroning of the shōgun, Soiken forms an alliance with Shosetsu and reveals a spell devised by him, the Makai Tensho, which can rise dead people as his puppets. They soon gather an undead army of legendary warriors and sorcerers, among them

Amakusa Shirō Tokisada , which means "Heaven's Grass," is a series of islands off the west coast of Kyushu, the southernmost of the four main islands of Japan. Geography The largest island of the Amakusa group is Shimoshima, which is 26.5 miles long and 13.5 mil ...

Miyamoto Musashi , also known as Shinmen Takezō, Miyamoto Bennosuke or, by his Buddhist name, Niten Dōraku, was a Japanese swordsman, philosopher, strategist, writer and rōnin, who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship a ...

, and

Araki Mataemon was a Japanese samurai active in the early Edo period. Araki Mataemon was the founder of the koryū martial art Yagyū Shingan-ryū, known sometimes as Yagyū Shingan-ryū Taijutsu. Araki Matemon studied Yagyū Shinkage-ryū under Yagyū Mune ...

, and plan to use their supernatural skills to destroy the shogunate. However, the crown of their army,

, breaks free from their control and becomes determined by his own reasons to stop their rebellion before it starts.

Characters

The roster of the dead varies depending on adaptation, but usually contains Amakusa, Musashi, Yagyu Munenori, and Hōzōin Inshun. Soiken himself is often left out in adaptations, which tend to have instead Amakusa as the villain mastermind of the story. *

Tamiya Bōtarō Tamiya may refer to: *Tamiya Corporation, a Japanese manufacturer of plastic model kits, radio-controlled cars and related products *Tamiya-ryū (disambiguation), several iaijutsu ryūgi *Tamiya connector, a type of DC power connector Places *Tami ...

Hōzōin Inshun Hōzōin Zeneibō Inshun (宝蔵院禅栄房胤舜, 1589 to February 5, 1648) was a monk and a martial artist who lived in the early Edo period. He was an Inju (the chief of a temple) of Hozoin Temple, which was a branch temple of Kōfuku-ji temple ...

Hosokawa Gracia Akechi Tama, usually referred to as , (1563 – 25 August 1600) was a member of the aristocratic Akechi family from the Sengoku period. Gracia is best known for her role in the Battle of Sekigahara, she was considered to be a political host ...

* Yagyū Jounsai Toshiyoshi * Yagyu Munenori *

Tokugawa Yorinobu was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the early Edo period. Born under the name Nagatomimaru (長福丸), he was the 10th son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, by his concubine Kageyama-dono. On December 8, 1603, Yorinobu received the fief of Mito, then rated at 20 ...

Tokugawa Iemitsu Tokugawa Iemitsu (徳川家光, August 12, 1604 – June 8, 1651) was the third '' shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada with Oeyo, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lady Kasuga was his wet nurse, ...

Adaptations

Film

* starring

Sonny Chiba , known internationally as Sonny Chiba, was a Japanese actor and martial artist. Chiba was one of the first actors to achieve stardom through his skills in martial arts, initially in Japan and later before an international audience. Born in Fuk ...

, directed by

Kinji Fukasaku was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Known for his "broad range and innovative filmmaking," Fukasaku worked in many different genres and styles, but was best known for his gritty yakuza films, typified by the ''Battles Without Honor ...

. * directed by Kazumasa Shirai. ** directed by Kazumasa Shirai. * directed by

Hideyuki Hirayama is a Japanese film director. His theatrical debut was the film '' Maria's Stomach'' in 1990. He won the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award for ''The Games Teachers Play'' in 1992. In 1995, ''School Ghost Stories'' was a big hit and mad ...

Manga

* by

Ken Ishikawa was a Japanese manga artist. He is renowned as the co-creator (with Go Nagai) of the ''Getter Robo'' anime series, as well as four of their subsequent manga continuations. According to Nagai, he considered Ishikawa his greatest friend and all ...

. * by

Shinzō Tomi Shinzō, Shinzo or Shinzou (written: 晋三, 信三, 伸三, 慎三, 真三 or 新蔵) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese politician and former Prime Minister of Japan *, Japanese photographer *, ...

. * by

Shōko Toba Shoko, Shōko or Shōkō may refer to: * Shoko (Buddhist) (1162–1238), disciple of Hōnen and second patriarch of Jōdo-shū *Emperor Shōkō (1401–1428), the 101st Emperor of Japan * ''Shōko'' (instrument), a small gong used in the ''gagaku'' ...

. * by

Naoko Kugo is a feminine Japanese given name which is occasionally spelled . Possible writings Naoko can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *直子, "obedient, child" *尚子, "esteem, child" *奈緒子, "Nara, cord, child" *菜緒 ...

. * by

Masaki Segawa Masaki may refer to: Name * Masaki (given name), a unisex Japanese given name * Masaki (surname), a Japanese surname Places * Masaki, Ehime, a town located in Iyo District, Japan * Masaki Art Museum, a museum in Tadaoka, Osaka Prefecture, Japan th ...

Anime

* directed by

Yasunori Urata Yasunori is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yasunori can be written using many different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *安徳, "tranquil, benevolence" *安紀, "tranquil, chronicle" *安典, "tranqu ...

Others

*, a

stage play A play is a work of drama, usually consisting mostly of dialogue between characters and intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. The writer of a play is called a playwright. Plays are performed at a variety of levels, fro ...

directed by Kinji Fukasaku. *, a

PS2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia o ...

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

developed by

Tamsoft is a Japanese video game developer, founded on 26 June 1992. Its current president, Toshiaki Ōta, previously worked at Toaplan as one of the six original team members and head of software development.Translationby Gamengai. ).Translationby Shmu ...

and published by

D3 Publisher is a Japanese video game developer and publisher founded on February 5, 1992. The company is known for the '' Simple'' series of budget-priced video games. Their games have been released for the Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS, Nint ...

. *, a stage play directed by G2. *, a stage play by the Herohero Q theatrical company. *, a stage play produced to commemorate the 65th anniversary of Nippon Television. * featured an adaptation of the story, crossed with Dante's ''Inferno'', as part of a storyline set in Shimōsa.

External links

* * * *{{imdb title, id=0229548, title=Reborn from Hell II: Jubei's Revenge Japanese historical novels Ken Ishikawa Japanese war novels