CHAPTER 2: THE TRIAL OF THE FIRE SCROLL
NARRATOR: The year was 1671. White Beard, a ferocious warlord, had conquered half of Japan. A single warrior stood in his way: Takezo Kensei. Kensei had already done the unthinkable. By himself, he had defeated White Beard and his best men in the town Otsu. Kensei now had to find White Beard’s secret stronghold to end his threat once and for all. This quest would become known as the Trials of Kensei. His first task would be to find the Fire Scroll.
CURATOR TATSUYA ATSUMI (Museum of Cultural History, Tokyo Japan): The fire scroll is said to have contained many of White Beard’s strategies and secrets including clues to the location of his secret camp known as the Hidden Fortress.
NARRATOR: Some claimed that White Beard had bargained with oni or devils to keep the scroll safe within a circle of flame. While supernatural deals may not have actually occurred, what is known is that White Beard made a practice of torturing spies and traitors by burning them alive.
PROFESSOR DONNA DORN (University of Chicago, Japanese Studies): A thief attempting to steal his scroll was captured. As punishment, White Beard not only burned the thief alive, but his village and all of its inhabitants as well. The parchment was forever known afterwards as the Fire Scroll.
NARRATOR: To get to the scroll, Kensei had to face yet another trial, the Ninety Ronin. Once again, our hero alone would face overwhelming odds.
PROFESSOR DONNA DORN: His numbers were the source of his military power. Legend has it that White Beard was so fearful his encampment would be found, he picked ninety of his most cruel men and tasked them with the protection of the scroll.
PROFESSOR KAREN CHAMBERLIN (University of Cambridge, Literature): Some say they were cannibals who ate anyone they saw. And anyone who dared to steal the scroll, they ate alive.
NARRATOR: The stories tell that Kensei killed all ninety ronin. But could one man really defeat ninety blood-thirsty killers?
PROFESSOR DONNA DORN: It’s difficult to extract truth from fiction. The number of the scroll’s guardians changes. Sometimes it’s ninety ronin. Other times, it’s nine hundred. Another version claims it was not ninety ronin, but ninety devils.
NARRATOR: What we do know is that the Fire Scroll existed and that Kensei faced an army to get it. The Fire Scroll led Kensei to his next two trials: climbing the frozen waterfall, and then finding the single crimson peony. While these quests were seen as feats challenging his ingenuity, Kensei’s future tasks would prove far more deadly.