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Old 05-21-2018, 01:03 AM
dto dto is offline
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I know this thread is several years old, but I just found this during a forum search for "tatebanko". I agree with Tapcho that this building doesn't represent the Kaminarimon Gate, though it could be the general location. At first I thought this was a tea house or ramen shop, though a brothel is probably most likely.

Examining the street fighters, it looks like five monks are struggling with a red oni (compare with the art panel directly behind them). While outnumbered, the oni seems to be holding his own, even preparing to strike one monk with his own geta (wood sandal)!

It's noteworthy that the other citizens don't appear overly concerned about an oni within their midst. The men peering out the doorway are obviously enjoying the "show", while the women to the right are merely continuing their walk. One almost imagines a ronin (with an uncanny resemblance to Toshiro Mifune) wandering into the scene and shooing bystanders away:

"Just another oni fight. Nothing to see here -- move along, move along..."

;-)
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