Prisoner Tattoos

Lore & Background

The origin of these markings lies in the actions of Noppera-bo, who stole gold once belonging to the Ainu people. Noppera-bo was then caught and thrown into Abashiri prison, but had already hidden the gold in a secure location in Hokkaido. To prevent anyone from easily finding the treasure, he tattooed the location of the hidden gold on 24 different prisoners, each prisoner held a part of the map, necessary to uncover the treasure. The gold was originally stolen from the Ainu by the Japanese government (7th Division), not directly by Noppera-bo. Noppera-bo was executed by hanging after being captured, not in prison; the prisoners escaped at different times, not all after his execution. The tattoos themselves are complex, turning human bodies into secure storage units for the location of the gold. Throughout the narrative, recovering these tattoos becomes a race against time. As characters locate marked prisoners or their remains, they unlock new regions to explore while facing enemies who also seek the gold. The existence of the tattoos underscores the exploitation faced by Ainu communities during this historical period.

In Their Own Story

In the late Meiji period in Hokkaido, Japan, Saichi Sugimoto learns about stolen gold once belonging to the Ainu people, taken by a man named Noppera-bo who massacred everyone so he could get all the gold to himself. Noppera-bo was then caught and thrown into Abashiri prison, but had already hidden the gold in a secure location in Hokkaido. He tattooed the location of the hidden gold on 24 different prisoners, each prisoner held a part of the map, necessary to uncover the treasure. After sometime, Noppera-bo staged a jail break and asked those he tattooed to find the gold in return of getting half of it. Upon verifying that the information is true, Saichi Sugimoto sets out to gather the whole piece together so he could use money from the gold to restore Umeko's eyesight, whose husband Toraji died in the Russo-Japanese War. As the journey unfolds, more individuals including soldiers from the Seventh Division, Hijikata and others join the pursuit of the elusive gold.

Reader's Guide

The Prisoner Tattoos represent a dark chapter in Hokkaido's history, serving as physical keys to the legendary Ainu gold. Unlike traditional cultural markings used for identity or status, these ink designs were forcibly applied by Noppera-bo during the late Meiji period. Each tattooed prisoner holds a fragment of the complete map required to locate the buried treasure. The hunt for these prisoners drives much of the conflict in the narrative. Characters must track down living survivors or recover remains from remote locations across the island. The ink often depicts complex patterns that correspond to geographical landmarks, requiring knowledge of Ainu language and terrain to decipher correctly. This conspiracy highlights the exploitation of indigenous people by criminals for financial gain. It transforms human bodies into archives of stolen wealth, making the recovery process a moral struggle as much as an adventure. The movie ends with Hijikata revealing that the worth of the gold is not 200 kan, but 20,000 kan which is enough to build a new nation, adding that Hokkaido will become a battle field for all those in search of the gold.

Did You Know?

• The tattoos were applied by a man named Noppera-bo, who tattooed the location of the hidden gold on 24 different prisoners.
• Each prisoner held a part of the map, necessary to uncover the treasure.
• The gold was originally stolen from the Ainu by the Japanese government (7th Division), not directly by Noppera-bo.
• Noppera-bo was executed by hanging after being captured, not in prison; the prisoners escaped at different times, not all after his execution.
• The gold is worth 200 kan, and no revelation of a higher value occurs in the movie.