Ode to Kirihito: Part 2

In Kirihito’s efforts to save his own life, he finds himself in different corners of the world, where he ends up caring for the diseased of all shapes and sizes. He leaves his village to share the truth, and quickly realizes that humanity as it is percieved is often superficial at best. With newly cemented beast-like looks, Kirihito now in a more populated city is quickly wrangled up and sold into slavery by Chinese human trafficers.

Shipped to Taiwan as a gift to a traveling human circus, Kirihito is no longer seen as human. Instead he is treated like a bear or tiger but without fangs or claws. He has no rights and when his new owners no longer see a need for him, he along with another performer are taken by a local village in need of a witch-doctor. After performing his duties to save a village chiefton’s life, Kirihito fights to escape to the West in hope of sharing word of the injustices of the medical community. However, with his new face, no matter what is outlook in life may be tragedy in the form of racism and bigotry will follow him and all those with Monmow’s to the ends of the Earth and possibly beyond.

By Tezuka Osamu