刺靑

In the lively streets of Edo, tattooing—刺青—has become a fashionable art practiced by everyone from samurai to merchants. Colorful parlors and noisy tea houses teem with patrons seeking bold designs, while specialists compete to etch the most striking patterns onto flesh. The city buzzes with talk of masterful ink, and names like Seikichi, the young prodigy from Asakusa, spread like whispered legends.

Seikichi’s skill is renowned for its delicate precision and daring motifs, earning him commissions from courtesans and even reckless gamblers. Yet beneath his fame lies an obsessive yearning for the ultimate canvas—a flawless, luminous skin that could hold his most intricate designs. One humid summer evening, while passing a restaurant in Fukagawa, he catches a glimpse of a woman’s pure white foot peeking from a carriage curtain, its perfect lines and porcelain sheen striking him like a hidden treasure. The sight awakens a fierce desire to capture that beauty forever, setting the course for his next, most personal masterpiece.