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lupin-kot · 2 years

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4th Heist - Kyoto

Maria learns about culture. Fujiko makes a discovery. Lupin looks into the mirror.

[CW: Blood, Domestic Abuse, Police Violence]

We open on a very young Goemon Ishikawa XIII, watching a Kabuki play with his father. Goemon's father looks like an average, unsuspecting businessman. Combed hair, glasses, shirt and tie.

The play they're watching is Kinmon Gosan no Kiri, which is a telling of the legend of the historical Goemon Ishikawa. The current scene depicts Goemon on top of the Sanmon gate at Nanzen-ji, describing the beauty of the view surrounding him.

Young Goemon asks his father who this man is, and his father answers that's is an ancestor. When young Goemon asks if this man is his grandfather, his father laughs and says no, this person lived much, much farther back. He then checks his clock and tells his son that he needs to use the bathroom. Goemon's dad gets up and exits the row of seats, leaving his son behind.

We jump forward in time. The play has continued for quite a bit and the scene has grown dark and suspenseful. On stage, Goemon is now threatened by enemy general Mashiba Hisayoshi. Little Goemon XIII gets frightened, but his dad still isn't there. He gets up to go look for the bathroom.

He finds it. As he opens the door, he sees his dad- And in his hands the man he just killed. And he's not the only one. The bathroom is almost completely destroyed and six corpses are littered about. Goemon's father slashed the throat of the man he is currently choking out with a familiar sword, he turns around, just to meet his son's shocked gaze.

This is actually the first piece of art I made for this series!

Goemon wakes up, but immediately recoils in pain. Lupin, Jigen and Mariya look down to him. Jigen tells Goemon to lay down still since he still needs to recover from the wounds he sustained from the fight in Lockwood Tower. Muscles in his arms and his abdomen were completely pierced. Despite the warnings, he gets up and stumbles to the window to see a familiar landscape outside: Kyoto, his home.

Lupin, who is pretty clearly in a foul mood, explains that after they escaped via helicopter, Lupin flew them to a hospital and then posed as a doctor to have him transported back here. He also explains that his injuries are so serious that Goemon won't be able to train or fight for at least eight weeks, dead minimum. Actually, Goemon shouldn't even be able to stand right now. In an off-handed comment he says that now, Goemon isn't really pulling any weight for the team right now and that Jigen made Lupin bring him here. "A waste of time", he scoffs, "You guys are just lucky that the next item for the competition is going to be a piece of cake." Goemon asks what the next piece of the hunt is- and Lupin smiles: It's the silver Kiseru-pipe of the Goemon clan.

Goemon is shocked and says that this is absolutely off the table. Lupin disagrees, saying that if they don't take it, someone else will. And besides, to the shock of everyone, Lupin has already send a calling card. Goemon makes it very clear that he intents to protect this precious heirloom. In return, Lupin swears to steal it, right from under his nose. He tells the rest of the room to come with him. Mariya, still content on finding out more about her father's death, joins him. Jigen just down and says nothing, but he's not moving. Feeling betrayed, Lupin leaves him.

After a while of standing strong, Goemon falls back down. Jigen puts him back onto the bed, where Goemon asks about Alice. Jigen explained that Lupin got into communication with Zenigata who promised that because of a lack of evidence, Alice was discharged and that because he was called to Japan anyways, he would drop her off close by, adding that this was "only a set-up to trap and catch you guys, so don't get any wrong ideas!". Goemon is relieved.

We jump to Zenigata at the Organized Crime Department of the Criminal Affairs Bureau, Interpol's headquaters in Tokyo. His superior seems annoyed but explains that he is being put on the Lupin case again since the DNA database in Lockwood Tower was destroyed. Zenigata nods on autopilot. Ever since Mariya's betrayal, he's been feeling blue. The police chief finishes by saying that while Zenigata seems to have the smarts and knowledge to find Lupin, he is missing the strength to actually catch him. So, another office is being assigned to the case with him.

Meloi Burua, a.k.a. Melon Cop, an officer that makes it clear that he is willing to do everything to close a case.

Zenigata is appaled by his new colleague's aloof behaviour, but has no chance to interject. Melon Cop seems pretty adamant about getting started on the Lupin case and asks the police chief to keep Alice Cartwright a bit longer. He's sure that he can make her talk. Zenigata interjects that she has not seen her father in about twenty years and so it would be unlikely that she knows much, but the police chief gets hushy and says that as long as he gets results, M.C. is allowed to to whatever he wants with the woman. The Americans wants Lupin, and they want him quickly.

Lupin meanwhile seeks to get one up on the competition. He calls Fujiko. She explains that he is reportedly going up against Toyotomi Hideyoshi XIII, a descendant of a Samurai and feudal lord unified Japan and then invaded Korea. Apparently, he believes himself to be the rightful heir of the Emperor of Japan and has an obsession with melting down his opponents weapons into his own. Fujiko makes Lupin an offer: If he wants to know more, he should meet her at a rooftop bar in downtown Kyoto where she will explain more. Lupin agrees and brings Mariya with him.

Goemon meanwhile makes his way to the Gorokizu residence, Goemon Ishikawa's civillian name, before ascending to legendhood. Here, Jigen and Goemon meet Goemon's Grandfather. Goemon confesses about losing Zantezuken, but Goemon XI wants to hear nothing about it. He berates Goemon XIII and tells him that he's nothing but a disappointment, just like his father. After failing his first assassination job, killing Lupin The Third, Goemon XIII was banned from ever entering his home again. Now, he's come to return to beg on his hands and knees to be re-trained to find his way again. Jigen can do nothing but watch as Goemon XI gets up and beats his grandson over the head with his walking stick. Goemon XIII now lies flat on the ground. His grandfather says that he will resume his training and leaves the room, but the only way to welcomed back is if he completes the task he originally failed: Killing Lupin The Third.

Goemon begins training intensively, with inspiration from his training montage in Goemon's bloodspray. Jigen stays by his side but is unsure whether to try and stop him, singe Goemon's wounds start reopening. Meanwhile, Goemon explains the disappointment that his Goemon Ishikawa XII, his father.

Like all heirs to the Goemon name, his father was trained by his father to be an assassin. Operating globally to whoever pays most, Goemon Ishikawa XII was brutal, precise and discrete. That all changed when he met his mother, a politician in Senegal. The two fell in love and had a mad affair, but when his father found out about the two, he left his son two choices: Leave the woman he loves and be expelled from the family or marry a Japanese woman and retain the family name.

That year, he married the love of his life and soon later, his son was born, the Goemon Ishikawa XIII we know today, even though that was not his birth name. Our Goemon explains that his father continued his dangerous line of work. Bitter, he says that his love made him careless and soft. Goemon Ishikawa XII was killed on a job when our Goemon was eight years old.

The custody now fell to his grandfather who made Goemon disavow his father and swear to never see his mother again in exchange for rejoining the Goemon clan and getting trained in the art of assassination, like his father, and his father before him. Our Goemon, filled with anger at his father for leaving him all alone, agreed. Thus begun his training to become the deadliest assassin his family had ever known. He finally fought his way to getting the name Goemon Ishikawa passed down to him. His birthright. Finally, for his first job, killing Lupin The Third, he was gifted a family heirloom and the sharpest sword on the planet- Zantezuken. Goemon is angry at himself for failing this first task and his naiveté of getting roped into Lupin's gang. Jigen disagrees.

"You've got to give one thing to him though. Without that scumbad, we would've never met. And let me get this straight: What you're putting yourself through is insane. Listen. I care about you, and Daisuke Jigen doesn't care about anybody."

The gunslinger digs a little deeper. Goemon seems to still hold onto his belief of his father as a weakling but reveals that boyhood was hard for him. Being stoic and focused on his training, it was impossible for him to find any friends.

An early concept. Since his childhood, he's been seen as nothing but a monster.

Meanwhile, Lupin and Mariya meet Fujiko. Lupin is stressed and wants to get down to business, but Fuijko insists of taking it easy first. They get drinks and sit down. After a while of flirting (which makes Mariya a bit uncomfortable), Lupin leaves to take a whizz.

Fujiko now sprints into action, telling Mariya to get up and follow her. When Mariya asks if Fujiko is abandoning Lupin here, she says yes. Fujiko explains that the person they both are looking for, Lockwood's second in command, Suzuki, is in a secret underground club in this very building. Since Suzuki had already seen Lupin he needs to stay out of this. In exchange for taking Mariya to see Suzuki, she wants some of the info extracted from the Lockwood HQ computer terminals. Mariya is shocked how Fujiko knows about her looking for Suzuki, but Fujiko explains that Lupin told her.

She explains: "I know what you want, and about your gift. I may not have future vision, but I know that you'll come along. You saw that Suzuki would be here. That's why you begged Jigen to bring Goemon to Kyoto. That's why you tagged along with Lupin. We want the same thing, right? So why not work together."

Mariya reluctantly agrees. Fujiko is happy and notes that Mariya seems like a young woman that reminds her of herself: willing to do whatever it takes.

In the elevator, Fujiko makes a deduction based on the data from the tower. Since the DNA stoles from thieves around the world was taken during deals with the people from the King of Thieves competition, there must be a link between it and Lockwood. While she notes that Lockwood could have simply bought the data from whoever runs the competition, she is sure that Mariya and her are about to meet the person that runs the competition.

Fujiko notes that whether or not she realizes or wants it, Mariya's power is an incredible tool for thieves.

The elevator ride is longer than expected. Fujiko asks Mariya what she wants to do with Suzuki wants she finds him. Mariya is frozen. She hadn't even thought that far. Fujiko winks at her and reassures that to just follow her example. Suzuki will be wrapped around their fingers in no time. Mariya notes that from what little time she had spend with Lupin, the two of them seem pretty similar. Fujiko laughs but then gets strangely serious and promises that that's not the case at all.

They arrive at the secret club. The atmosphere in here is thick. The air smells like smoke and perfume. Mariya and Fujiko take masks at the entrance and join the people.

Evening turns to night. Goemon, his grandfather and Jigen have turned in for the night. Then, the assault starts. The family residence is surrounded by men with guns. Goons, as it seems, of Toyotomi Hideyoshi XIII. They set fire to a part of the ancient building to distract the inhabitants and get access to the kiseru-pipe. The house's inhabitants wake up and Goemon's grandfather orders him to take care of the criminals and defend the heirloom. Without his sword and still badly wounded, Gomeon fights his way, fists versus guns, through the burning halls of the Goemon residence.

Jigen, thinking practically, wants to extinguish the fire first- but no modern extinguishers in sight. When he asks Goemon XI why there's no fire extinguishers in the house, "it's not the olden times anymore where you need a chain of buckets from the village well", the old man responds that the house doesn't need one because no-one would dare set fire to the residence of Goemon Ishikawa.

Meanwhile, Melon Cop has ordered the arrest of Alice Cartwright again, to "interrogate" her. So, she has been send to Kyoto prison. Melon Cop wants to be close to the residence of Lupin's frequent collaborator, Goemon Ishikawa XIII, just in case, despite Zenigata saying that Goemon has not been observed entering his home for years. Alice is obviously scared about being in prison in a foreign country, and Zenigata, who insisted on coming too, does his best to comfort her. He explains that his is all a misunderstanding, and that everything will be alright. Just then, one of Melon Cop's informants comes through, bringing the news that Lupin has been spotted in a club in downtown Kyoto. He tells Zenigata to come along and grabs his signature weapon- a baseball bat. Alice makes Zenigata promise to not hurt her dad. She's not seen him in years and despite him being a stubborn dirtbag, she's not ready to lose him again.

Back in the underground club, Fujiko has managed to loosen up Suzuki. By acting like a pretty thief out of her depth, Suzuki has spilled the beans on being the mastermind of the King of Thieves competition. He says that while Lockwood's business is war, the "true goals of the boss are way beyond that". Fuijko begins to ask more about the boss, but Suzuki doesn't break just yet. All he says is that thanks to the boss, he is as flawless as he is now. Without the boss, a woman like Fujiko wouldn't have even looked at him. They kiss.

Mariya breaks the kiss up by asking about the kind of soliders Lockwood Industries create. When asked how she knows all of this by a suddenly suspicious Suzuki, Fujiko interjects and explains that her friend is a scientist that is interested in working for Lockwood Industries. Suzuki laughs menacingly and explains that he hates leeches. He says that the last scientists that worked on Project Exodus did such solid work that they didn't even bother leaving them alive since they left such extensive notes on how the project worked.

Suzuki explains: "You only get deticated people like that once in a lifetime. These sick bastards were willing to experiment on their own children. Could you imagine? Yuck. Children, I mean. Not the experiments."

They laugh.

Just then, Lupin sneaks up behind them, in mask as well. He tells Mariya and Fujiko to leave since police are getting ready to raid the building. Before any of them can respond, the elevator arrives on their floor. Ding! The doors open and deafening gunfire starts.

We go back to the Goemon residence. A person stands hidden outside of the building. The man hiding out here checks his watch. What is taking them so long?

Out of nowhere, a shadow jumps out and slams the person to the ground. Goemon Ishikawa XIII, bloody, beaten and bruised, kneels over Toyotomi Hideyoshi XIII and begins choking him to death. Out of breath, Jigen arrives and begs Goemon to show mercy.

"Goemon, please! He's just a snot-nosed little shit. He's not worth it."

Goemon finally snaps out of his rage and looks at his opponent. Jigen is right. The person below him, dressed in a fine black suit and with a tacky pair of gold-rimmed glasses is a teenager, maybe nineteen years old at the maximum. The boy seems about ready to pee his pants and is squealing and begging for mercy. He just wanted to be emperor, king again, as is his right. He's screaming for his bodyguards and his daddy. Goemon let's go for a moment. Jigen breathes a sigh of relief, but then Goemon violently grabs the boy again and tells him that if the two of them ever meet again there will be no mercy. The boy agrees vehemently and runs off into the night.

Jigen and Goemon look back at the burning house. Jigen begins to speak.

"Shame about that house. Might've made for a nice vacationing spot."

Goemon responds. "If this was really meant to be, let it burn. Down to the soil."

Back in the underground club, a whole shootout between the cops and the murky customers has begun. Lupin sneaks ahead, Fujiko and Mariya behind him. He knocks one officer out and the group are now standing in front of the elevator. They get in and Lupin presses the UP-button, but Fujiko holds the door open. As Lupin asks what in the world Fujiko is doing, Suzuki calmly steps in. He thanks Fujiko for her services and says that he wasn't sure about the whole charade but that she has fulfilled her part of the deal- bringing him Lupin the Third. Both Mariya and Lupin are shocked at Fujiko's betrayal, but Suzuki uses the moment to punch Lupin in the face and drag him out of the elevator. As the doors close on a frozen-in-place Mariya, Fujiko tells her not to view her too harshly. They're both just woman doing what they have to, after all. Mariya stays in the elevator alone and in silence as it begins to move upwards.

After what feels like forever, the doors open back up. Out on the roof, talking to civilians, is Inspector Zenigata. He sees a the elevator open, and pulls his gun out- but as soon as he sees Mariya, tears in her eyes, he lets the gun fall and runs to her. They hug and Mariya says she's sorry for what she's done.

Under the dark night sky, Jigen and Goemon are watching the stars. Goemon is exhausted and rests his head on Jigen's shoulder. Their hands touch. Just then, Goemon's grandfather appears on the scene. He has rescued to pipe and says that Goemon still has to stop Lupin from getting it- and then kill him. Goemon, with help from Jigen, gets up. He says that yes, he will protect the heirloom. Yes, he will honor his forefathers. But no, he will not kill Lupin anymore. Or anyone, for that matter. He tells his grandfather straight into his face that he is sick of being used as a weapon. His grandfather gets furious. He berates him for having forgotten the true meaning of the outlaw Goemon Ishikawa, whose very name struck fear into the hearts of his enemies. Goemon responds that he finds it funny- the scene he remembers most from the legend of Goemon Ishikawa is when he sacrifices himself to save his son from getting boiled alive. He takes the pipe and leaves.

Suzuki and Fujiko use the chaos of the club raid to bring Lupin to a second service elevator. Lupin has his mouth taped over and can only stare angrily at Fujiko, who doesn't avert her gaze but tells Suzuki that she'll get herself a drink and will join her "boys" later. Suzuki is fascinated by Fujiko's carelessness.

"What a woman. You're a lucky guy, Lupin The Third. Well, were".

Just as Suzuki gets ready to leave, Melon Cop enters the frame. He says that he's been looking for Lupin and that he's under arrest. Suzuki pulls his gun and asks who the FUCK this guy is. Melon Cop responds.

"Hey now, I don't want you." And promptly shoots Suzuki straight in the head. He then grabs his bat and lightly pokes Lupin on the forehead. Lupin still has tape over his mouth but has managed to free his hands from the rope binding them. "Now- as for you..."

Melon Cop reels back- and swings at Lupin's head. He takes a step back- into the service elevator. Melon Cop follows, presses the UP-button, and the door close behind them.

We then see Suzuki's lifeless body laying on the ground. A pair of familiar high-heels step next to them. Fujiko leans down and grabs Suzuki's phone. There's a call incoming. The caller is someone called MAMO. She answers.

"Mr. Suzuki? No, I fear he's currently not available. That being said, I do think that I might still be able to help..."

Seemingly unbothered by the chaos and gunfire around her, she disappears into the smoke.

The two of them begin to fight in the elevator. Well, technically Lupin is just trying to survive until the elevator arrives at the ground floor. Melon Cop relentlessly attacks with his bat while Lupin evades. The small elevator room makes it more difficult for M.C. to get good swings in with his bat. Ding! The door opens. Lupin stops another swing with his hands, rips the bat out of Melon Cop's hands and beats him once right in the back of his knee- M.C. kneels down and yells out in pain. Lupin uses the moment to escape into the cool nights. He manages to steal a police car, but not before Melon Cop manages to shoot him into the leg. Lupin drives off.

Having bandaged his leg, Lupin, delirious from the blood loss, exits his stolen car and limps to the entrance of his hotel. Safety is within reach. Just then, a shadow reveals itself from under a tree, stepping into the moonlight. Goemon Ishikawa XIII. The two thieves stand opposite of each other in the middle of the parking lot. They both look like shit.

Lupin asks if Goemon still plans on stopping him, adding "I could still kick your ass, any day, even like this." Goemon declined the invitation to violence, adding that he just wants to talk.

The two of them sit down and leans against the street lamp and reminisce about the first time they met.

Goemon's first assignment as after finishing his grandfather's assassin training was to kill Lupin the Third.

While Goemon was showboating his new weapon, the Zantetsuken, Lupin swapped it out for a fake. Goemon had to swear his life to Lupin to get his sword back- after helping him in a heist, of course. And even though Lupin kept his promise and returned the sword, Goemon stayed with him- and Daisuke Jigen- for many adventures afterwards.

Goemon says that it's strange how much his family still clings to this historical figure that neither of them have met or even know someone that met them. As heir to the Lupin name, Arséne Lupin the Third understands this very well. What's even funnier to Goemon according to his family history, Goemon the first and his son were killed, leaving his daughter to carry on the family name and tradition. This isn't something his grandfather told him about. Lupin reveals that he is actually really the third male heir of the original Arséne Lupin, who lived in France during the Victorian Era. So, his family is actually a long line of female thieves, with only one other male heir, Lupin the Second, his grandfather. After bonding for a while over shared family pressure and trauma, Goemon goes back to business.

He reveals to Lupin that he has brought the family pipe with him, but that he's not planning to give it away. Despite everything that happened, he still wants to honor his ancestor- but in his way, as a thief that does good. Lupin says that it's fine, he can keep it. Goemon asks if that is really alright since that would mean Lupin not advancing to the next round of the King of Thieves tournament. Lupin says that he doesn't even care about that stupid competition anymore and that a true gentleman doesn't care about what other people think about his standing. And besides, he can always just steal the crown from whoever wins.

Goemon now gets serious. He reiterates that he is sick of being used as a tool and weapon- that goes for his family, but for Lupin as well. He says that the team dynamic needs to change. Lupin is silent and nods, saying that he needs some time to think. Goemon leaves for the hotel room.

Meanwhile, inside, we see Jigen. He's waiting for a call from Zenigata. Finally, he picks up the phone and calls him. Zenigata answers, currently in a taxi with Mariya who is napping. Jigen asks about Alice, where she is and when he can see her. Zenigata seems confused and says that Jigen went to pick her up already.

We see a flashback as Zenigata describes to Jigen what happened when Mariya and him returned to the Kyoto police department.

Zenigata had entered the holding cell tract only to find Alice gone. The local officer (which Zenigata doesn't know and therefor doesn't further describe but the one that we know as Mr. Flinch) tells him that the woman's father came to pick her up. He shows Zenigata a still from the security tape on a computer that stands on the desk in front if him. Indeed, we can see Jigen- even though he is dressed differently from the one we know- leave the room with Alice. Zenigata nods and exits.

As he leaves, we can see the security video play in full. "Jigen" enters the prison block, shoots two of the security guards and grabs Alice, who he doesn't seem to recognize. With no regard for her disability, he pulls her out of her cell and exits. As we pan downwards- below the desk- we notice two bodies stuffed underneath. The officer (Mr. Flinch) presses a button on the keyboard- and the security tape is deleted.

We fade out over Jigen on the phone panicking as Zenigata's taxi drives into the sunset.

This episode's licensed credits ending theme™

Next time, we go to Paris!

#lupin iii #lupin the third

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