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Abashiri convicts are 24 criminals that have the map leading to the Ainu treasure tattooed onto their skins by Noppera-Bou. They were imprisoned at the Abashiri Prison, but escaped when they were transported to another facility. Since then, the prisoners have hidden all over Hokkaido.
History[]
In the olden days, there was a lot of gold in the rivers of Hokkaido—it was a gold rush. At that time, a group of Ainu was secretly gathering gold to fight back against the Japanese that had stolen their lands and forbidden fishing and hunting. The group gathered a lot of gold, which amounted to 20 kan (75 kg), but it all was stolen by one man who killed them all. The man hid the gold somewhere in Hokkaido, but then was caught by the police, sentenced to death, and sent to live the rest of his days in Abashiri Prison. The Ainu killer was trying to communicate the location of the hidden gold to his friends from the outside, but the prison guards would steal the letters he wrote. He couldn't tell a soul about it, as everyone wanted the gold and some guards would go as far as cut the tendon on the man's leg to ensure he never escapes the prison without telling them where he hid the gold.
The man selected 24 fellow convicts to carry parts of a cryptic map tattooed on their skins (that only had meaning when all tattoos were combined together) and promised them that he will split half the gold with anyone who manages to escape. He instructed the prisoners to communicate with his allies in Otaru.
The police and the military were also interested in gold. After some soldiers heard the rumors of the the tattoos, they forced the prison to give out the prisoners under the pretext of transporting them to another place. However, the prisoners managed to kill the guards and escaped into the woods. Some of the former convicts went on their separate ways, disinterested in the gold, all that while Noppera-Bou remains in prison.
Tattooed Prisoners[]
Convict | First appearance | Crime |
---|---|---|
Takechiyo Gotou † |
Chapter 1 Episode 1 |
Murder of his wife and child. |
Kanjirou Kasahara † |
Chapter 3 Episode 2 |
Unknown. |
Yoshitake Shiraishi |
Chapter 4 Episode 2 |
Theft, numerous escapes from prisons. |
Toshizou Hijikata |
Chapter 7 Episode 1 |
Political prisoner. |
Tatsuma Ushiyama |
Chapter 12 Episode 3 |
Murder of his judo master and massacre of the other 10 students. |
Mutsuo Tsuyama |
Chapter 19 Episode 5 |
Murder of 33 people. |
Tetsuzou Nihei † |
Chapter 22 Episode 5 |
Murder of poachers. |
Kazuo Henmi † |
Chapter 37 Episode 8 |
Murder of more than 100 people. |
Kano Ienaga † |
Chapter 50 Episode 11 |
Murder of her patients. |
Tetsuo Takarai † |
Chapter 56 Episode 12 |
Unknown. |
Kiichirou Wakayama |
Chapter 65 OVA 3 |
Unknown; likely, leading yakuza, a criminal organization, gambling. |
Soroku Funabashi † |
Chapter 72 Episode 12 |
Unknown. |
Kiyohiro Suzukawa |
Chapter 87 Episode 16 |
Identity theft, marriage fraud, scamming. |
Keiichirou Sakamoto |
Chapter 102 | Robbery, murder. |
Shiton Anehata |
Chapter 108 OVA 4 |
Bestiality, animal slaughter. |
Toni Anji |
Chapter 119 Episode 20 |
Unknown. |
Maiharu Gansoku |
Chapter 143 Episode 25 |
Dojoyaburi (visiting a rival martial arts school in order to challenge its members), further violence. |
Youichirou |
Chapter 151 Episode 32 |
Murder. |
Waichirou Sekiya |
Chapter 172 Episode 37 |
Murder of 30 people by poisoning. |
Heita Matsuda |
Chapter 217 Episode 44 |
Murder. |
Fusatarou Oosawa |
Chapter 223 Episode 45 |
Murder, theft. |
Michael Ostrog |
Chapter 225 Episode 45 |
Murder. |
Keiji Ueji |
Chapter 232 Episode 47 |
Child murder. |
Toshiyuki Kadokura |
Chapter 117 Episode 20 |
None; Kadokura agreed to be tattooed by Wilk after the mass escape of other tattooed convicts. |
[]
Groups | |
---|---|
Gold Hunters | 7th Division • Hijikata's Group • Kiroranke's Group • Sugimoto's Group |
People of the North | Ainu • Matagi • Nivkh • Orok |
Others | Abashiri Convicts • Central Government • Imperial Japanese Army • Three Great Nobles of the Restoration • Yamada Circus Troupe |