C-RURM03 (Apr 4, 1996)
Puzzle
“Mrs. Aka A.K.A. outside of Ottawa.”
Knowledge | 2 Words
Clue
Hover over the clues if you require!
Clue 1: Not Aka's Baltimore name, mind you.
Clue 2: When mortals die, they are reborn as demons. Who was Aka originally?
Clue 3: Look at SRD01.
Answer and Explanation
Answer: Yamana Sozen
Explanation: In SRD01, Mrs. Aka is likened to 'Yamada Sozen', who was dubbed the 'Red Monk', drawing a similarity to Aka's red theme.
Summary of Receipt
Summary
Transcript
RECEIPT #003
FILED UNDER: CAFE-RURM
DATE: 4/04/96
EMPLOYEE #71
I’ve been doing a bit of research into our good friend, Mrs. Aka, the Redman. Admittedly, young #44 paved the way toward these discoveries. As he uncovered a few months ago, in life, the Redman was Yamana Sōzen, also known as Aka-nyūdō, the Red Monk. He was a key figure in the Ōnin War, which led to the end of the shogunal system and ushered in the Sengoku period for Japan. The blood on Sōzen’s hands is likely what led to his rebirth in the Hauntaurskald, and being a skilled samurai certainly gave him an edge in the trenches of Pandemonium. All surface information, no? Now, for the part neglected by authentic sources and only mentioned in more apocryphal texts.
Sōzen was working to develop a technique that would end Katsumoto and, potentially, allow him to control the Ashikaga Shogunate completely. 血塗らめ. Chinurame. In English, roughly translated to blood coating or blood smearing, it was a sort of sword ritual developed by Sōzen. He would draw a circle in the air using his sword, which would then, allegedly, ignite into red flames. Stepping through this circle would allow him to activate his “Chinurame,” allowing him to, as the texts say, “cut through both physical and magical barriers and control blood—either his own or his enemies—to manipulate the environment.”
We’ve all seen Redman by now, yes? Notably, he does not dress like a Samurai, nor does he carry a sword. What he does have, however, is his Hellish Hand Cannon, a symbol of status among Satan’s elite. It is my belief that the Redman never truly lost his ability to perform Chinurame, but with his demonic magic, he has enhanced it—perfected it, perhaps. If I am correct, his gun does not fire “bullets” but infernal blood. His Chinurame has become, as I have decided to coin it, a Bloodshot. One that can allow him to take control of others and, if I have translated the texts correctly, break through barriers, mundane and magical.