[1]

Go here and talk to the man by the river. The man says he loves to hang out around here, because it's such a nice spot, and that eating home-cooking here is always nice. Ryoma, thinking to himself, says this really would be a nice place to eat food he made himself. Choose the TOP OPTION to eat. Next select your home meal (meals you make when cooking in Another Life). The man notices Ryoma's meal, asking if it's home-made. Ryoma tells him it is and the man says he envies Ryoma for having a meal prepared by his beloved wife! Ryoma tries to tell him it wasn't made by his wife, but the man doesn't listen, saying all men in the world yearn for a loving meal prepared by their wife. He says it's his dream to have one - he thought that dream would come true after he got married, but it didn't! Ryoma asks why his wife doesn't make a meal for him and he says he realised it after they got married - she's a really bad cook. He also says she's really scary - she'll probably kill him if he asks her to make a meal! The man says Ryoma has to be grateful to his wife, for making him such a lovely meal. Ryoma asks the man if he'd like to try some of his meal. After he eats with Ryoma, he says it was delicious - the taste of love is better than anything. Ryoma tells him he'll come by with more meals again. This starts the friendship gauge with him. You are also rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and a woman will call out to Ryoma, asking if he's seen a purse she dropped in the area, but Ryoma hasn't seen it. She goes on to say she's always been careless. She says she needs vegetables for a meal and wishes there was someone who had lots of spare vegetables and is willing to share some. Ryoma says he'll give her some and she tells him any vegetables will do. Talk to her again and select the TOP OPTION to give her vegetables. Give her any vegetable you like. You can get vegetables either at shops, like the Greengrocer in Fushimi, or by farming in Another Life. This starts the friendship gauge with her. She thanks Ryoma and rewards him with a Vitality Pill. You are also rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and a dog barks at Ryoma. A woman arrives and tells Ryoma the dog spends all day and night barking and it's such a nuisance for everyone. But she says it won't be a problem soon, because the dog is going to be "dealt with" (put down). After she leaves, Ryoma tells the dog to shut up, or it'll be killed. Ryoma thinks he should give it something to chew on, to stop it from barking all the time - like a bone. Get hold of a bone and then come back to the dog. If you don't have a bone, the Pawn Shop in Rakunai sells them. Interact with the dog and select the TOP OPTION to give it a bone. This begins the friendship gauge with the dog. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and interact with the cat. The man talks to the cat, saying he's given it 1000 Mon, so now he's asking it to bring him good fortune ("Beckoning Cats" are those ceramic cats that wave and supposedly bring good fortune to the owner). Ryoma asks what he's doing, giving money to the cat. The man says this is no ordinary cat - It's a Beckoning Cat that brings good fortune. The cat turns around, then turns back to the man and gives him something. Ryoma isn't convinced by the whole thing, but the man doesn't care if Ryoma believes him or not. After he leaves, interact with the cat and select the TOP OPTION to give it 1000 Mon. Ryoma gives it 1000 Mon and asks it to bring him good fortune. The cat runs off for a moment, then returns with something - Whitebait. Ryoma, asks the cat if it wants to eat it, then gives it the fish. This begins the friendship gauge with the cat. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and interact with the wooden panel there. A man from behind the panel speaks to Ryoma, asking "do you have the goods?". Ryoma tells him he's got the wrong man, then says he's leaving but the man tells him he can't just let him leave after what he's heard and asks Ryoma to work with him in place of the other guy, who hasn't been showing up. The man then tells him that "the goods" are Tomatoes - he wants 10 of them - and says he'll pay Ryoma 2 Ryo for it. Ryoma says he'll get the tomatoes. When you have 10 Tomatoes (you can grow them in Another Life) go back and speak to him - select the TOP OPTION to give him 10 Tomatoes. You receive 2 Ryo. as payment. This starts the friendship gauge with the man. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and talk to the cat. Ryoma sees that it's not well and supposes it's hungry. Choose the TOP OPTION to give it a fish. This starts the friendship gauge with the cat. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and talk to the man. He asks for something Ryoma doesn't want - apparently he collects random stuff that people don't want/need anymore. Choose the TOP OPTION to give him something. This is exactly the same as the Junk-Child from Chapter 2 - you give him any junk you don't need. You can give him just about any item in the game except valuables and food/drinks.

After giving him an item, the friendship gauge with him starts. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and talk to the dog. Ryoma notices it's injured. Select a medicine item in your inventory to give to the dog (any recovery medicine item will work - like Vitality Pills, Frenzy Pills, All-Purpose Pills). This starts the friendship gauge with the dog. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and Ryoma sorts out the straps on his sandels. As he's doing that, 2 men arrive from opposite directions and bump into Ryoma. The 2 men dropped their bags and Ryoma picks up the first one he sees and gives it to one of the men. The man says he has to hurry over to Mukurogai and then leaves. After he leaves, the other man gets up and looks for his bag. Ryoma picks up the other bag on the floor and gives it to him. However, the man notices that this isn't his bag - this bag has a pistol inside! Ryoma accidently gave the bags to the wrong people. Ryoma says he'll go and get the man's bag back, then the man gives him the bag with the gun in it to give back to the other guy.

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[2]

Go here and Ryoma sees the man from earlier. The man hands over the bag to a thug and apologises for being late. The thug seems pleased, getting the item out of the bag and saying with this gun he'll never lose to anyone again. But then he notices this isn't a gun at all, it's a chikuwa! Then two other thugs show up, with a young girl beside them, and they accuse the man of trying to play them for fools. The girl is the man's daughter, who was taken hostage - "So you don't care what happens to your daughter, huh!?", they ask. Ryoma then steps in and explains that the man's bag got mixed up with someone else's. Then a fight starts against the 3 thugs.

After the fight, the man thanks Ryoma and they exchange bags.

Ryoma looks at the chikuwa, saying it looks really nice. The bag has 5 of them inside and Ryoma wonders what he should do. Select the TOP OPTION to not eat one and give them all back to the man (if you do eat one, you get a less valuable reward).

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[1]

Go back here and speak to the man. Ryoma hands over the bag. The man thanks Ryoma and rewards him with Snake Skin. You are also rewarded with 300 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and talk to the dog. Ryoma notices it's unwell and supposes he should give it some food. Choose the TOP OPTION to give it food. You can give it any food item in the game (strangely, you can even give the dog sake if you want). This starts the friendship gauge with the dog. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and look at the cat. The cat falls into the water and Ryoma rushes over to save it. He notices both the cat and himself are filthy (turns out the water is dirty!), so he takes the cat to the nearby bathhouse to wash it. This starts the friendship gauge with the cat. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and Ryoma notices something on the ground - go and examine it. Ryoma notices it's a diary. Choose the TOP OPTION to read it.

(note that in these letters, the gender is completely ambiguous - Ryoma guesses it's a girl, but it's not established in writing. As a result, I'm going to have to use "my crush" a lot in place of "he/she", to keep it ambiguous)

It reads:

"Lately my heart has been feeling like a cloudy sky. What should I do about this pain in my heart? It hurts so much. Whether I'm working, eating, sleeping or bathing, I'm always thinking of you. I know this love cannot be and I tell myself I have to give up on you, but it's impossible! I cannot think of anything but you! I love you!"

After reading that, Ryoma says "It seems the owner of this diary is in love" (no shit? Thank you, Sherlock Holmes). He continues to read:

"The more I put my feelings into words, the more painful it becomes. That's enough! It's time to put an end to this diary! I'm going to leave it at a shrine somewhere! But if someone picks it up and learns of how I feel, what will that person think? Will they laugh, saying I'm stupid, or will they say they understand? To you, who has picked up this diary - do you think my pain is normal? Or is it just foolish?"

Ryoma says he should write a reply in the diary. Choose the MIDDLE OPTION to say "It's important".

Ryoma writes the following reply:

"It's important. Even if it's a love that seems impossible, so long as you keep going it could very well come to be one day. Good luck"

After this, leave the area and then return and examine the diary again (exit Gion, then come back).

Ryoma notices a reponse to his reply. It reads:

"Thank you! I'm surprised a complete stranger would be so encouraging! Thanks to you, I feel a lot braver now! I'll try my best for a bit longer! I can't handle a love through which I have to suffer!"

Ryoma wants to write another reply. Choose the TOP OPTION to say "Start by learning a lot about this person".

Ryoma writes the following reply:

"Do you know the things this person likes and dislikes? It's like swordfighting - If you know what kind of guy your opponent is, you can predict his moves to a certain extent. That is important if you want to win."

Leave the area and then return and examine the diary again.

Ryoma notices a reponse to his reply. It reads:

"The moment I read your message, I was shocked. I didn't really know that much about my crush. So, like you suggested, I've been investigating the place where my crush lives and their belongings so that I can learn about what my crush likes and dislikes. In the middle of searching, my crush caught me and gave me a good scolding! My crush was so angry! Aaah, now it'll never happen. It's heart-breaking! I can't endure this! Alright, I've decided to just come straight out and confess to this person! Whether it's a success or a failure, my agony will be gone, so this is the end for our diary exchanges. It was short lived, but I had fun exchanging messages with you! Thank you for everything! ...But before that, I have to think of how I'm going to confess! The place has to be somewhere with a nice mood. I'm thinking the big shrine by Kamo River, where we've been having our diary exchanges. The problem is how I'm going to confess... My mind is completely blank! Would you give me a suggestion? How should I confess to get my crush to like me?"

Choose the TOP OPTION to say "Being sincere in your confession is the best option!".

Ryoma writes the following reply:

"Just be genuine - conveying how you feel with sincerity in your words is the best thing to do. That's the only advice I can give you. Good luck"

Leave and then come back to see the girl there. He recognises her as Akari from the shrine. She's with the shinto priest from the same shrine. Then he thinks to himself "You mean she's the girl with love troubles, with whom I've been exchanging messages?". Ryoma hides himself and watches what goes on. Then he notices something seems weird... Turns out it's the priest who is confessing his love! It wasn't Akari's diary after all; it was the priest's. Akari says it's not possible between them, but asks if they can still be friends. After she leaves, Ryoma approaches the priest and asks him if he wants to go for a drink somewhere.

You are rewarded with 350 Dharma.

[1]

Go near here and a man starts smelling Ryoma. The man apologises for doing that so randomly, saying he could smell from his body that Ryoma is a single man who cooks meals himself at home. The man says he's a chef and asks Ryoma if he'll bring him some of his home made meals to try. The chef says he wants to create revolutionary new cooking and to do that he wants to try out meals made my men to give him some ideas. Ryoma says he'll bring him one of his home made meals. Speak to him and select the TOP OPTION to give him one of your home made meals. The chef praises Ryoma's cooking, saying it's revolutionary and asks him if he'll bring him more. This begins the friendship gauge with him. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and talk to the woman standing around. She says she has a favour to ask of Ryoma - choose the TOP OPTION to hear her out. She says there's something she wants really badly - a cucumber. Ryoma points out that she can just buy one from a greengrocer, but she says she only wants a cucumber given to her by Ryoma. Ryoma says he'll get her a cucumber. Talk to her and choose the TOP OPTION to give her a cucumber. Then it gets a little... disturbing, I guess? She says "That length... That thickness... This is exactly what I wanted" (just listen to those unnecessary sound effects...). She rewards Ryoma with a Vitality Pill. She leaves, saying she wants to go and enjoy it. This begins the friendship gauge with her. You are also rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and Ryoma sees a Joshi shouting at a couple of old people.

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[2]

Go over to the old couple. The Joshi then kills their dog, then says the old couple are next. Then Ryoma steps in and a fight against the Joshi begins.

After the fight, the Joshi runs away. The old man tells Ryoma that's the second time that "Kazukichi" (the name of the dog) has been killed by a Joshi. He tells Ryoma that, until a while ago, they had a son called "Kazukichi" and the 3 of them lived together in Edo, but suddenly one day he was killed in front of them. They got a pet dog to try and bury their feelings on loneliness and named it after their son. He gives Ryoma a Double-Pilgrimage Talisman to thank him for saving them. The old man wonders where to bury the dog, then the old lady appears. Apparently Kazukichi loved cherry blossoms, so that would be a great final resting place for it. The old man asks Ryoma if he could find a nice spot under cherry blossoms.

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Now, go to your garden in Another Life and look at the tree there (when you arrive back at the garden, Ryoma will comment about the tree there - then go over and look at it). Ryoma asks Haruka if this is a cherry blossom tree and she says it is - she says it used to bloom all the time, but it withered and has never grown since. Ryoma explains to Haruka about the old man and the dog and how he's looking for a spot under a cherry blossom tree to bury it. Haruka then says that she doesn't mind if the dog is buried here, under this tree.

---

[2]

Go back here and speak to the old man. Choose the TOP OPTION to tell him you've found a place. The old couple bury their dog under the tree, then suddenly they notice the cherry blossom tree is blooming once again! You are rewarded with 350 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and Ryoma sees 3 children. One says they need one more person, then sees Ryoma walking by and calls out to him, asking him to play with them. They want him to play "House" with them. Ryoma says he's not interested and is about to leave, but then the girl starts crying. Ryoma supposes he should play with them after all - choose the TOP OPTION. Ryoma tells them he's never played it before, so they tell him what it's about and tell Ryoma he's playing the role of the wife! Ryoma says a girl should play that role, like the girl on the right, but she says she's playing the role of the samurai. They begin the game and one of the girls says Ryoma is her mother, so he needs to go and cook something. Ryoma pretends to prepare a meal. You get a choice of 3 options, but it makes no difference what you pick. Next, the father returns. They all sit down to eat Ryoma's meal. You get another choice of 3 options, but again it makes no difference what you pick. Next, the samurai arrives and says she's here to collect their tax. After collecting the tax (or rice? apparently they're paid in rice in their fantasy world) the samurai leaves. Ryoma then asks why a samurai is going around collecting taxes, saying that's handled by tax offices, and he also points out there's no institution that is financed with rice (way to ruin their game, Ryoma... lol). The samurai tells Ryoma to shut up or she'll invoke her samurai right to kill them all! Then Ryoma tells her that right only applies when a samurai's honour is besmirched and doing it in other situations is just a crime. After that, Ryoma realises he may have ruined the game for them, but then the child and father seem happy with him! They thank Ryoma for playing with them, then 2 of them leave. Ryoma notices the girl who played the samurai is feeling down. She asks Ryoma if what he said was true and he tells her it is. But then she tells Ryoma that the samurai who often shows up at her house is always like how she played the role. Ryoma asks if he can meet this samurai, so she leads him back to her house. Ryoma sees the samurai and confronts him about his actions. A fight against him begins.

After the fight, Ryoma tells him that if he hears he's been doing this again, then he'll invoke the samurai right to kill against him! They thank Ryoma for his help. You are rewarded with 350 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and talk to the man on the ground. Give him any recovery medicine item. When the man gets up, Ryoma asks what happened, but he says he can't remember. The man thanks Ryoma for helping him and rewards him with a Deadwood Branch. The friendship gauge with the man starts. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.

[1]

Go here and Ryoma sees a boy crying and his mother telling him off. Go and speak to the boy and he tells Ryoma about how much he loves vegetables, but his mother hates them so he doesn't get to have them much - apparently they just have tofu every day! Ryoma says he'll give the boy vegetables. Talk to the boy again and choose the TOP OPTION to give him a vegetable. This starts the friendship gauge with the boy. You are rewarded with 150 Dharma.