Night Songs (Yoru no Uta)

A collection of short stories by the author of Ushio and Tora.

1. Karakuri no Kimi (The Puppet Princess, 1994)
Princess Rangiku lost her entire family to Lord Karimata, who invaded her home seeking her father's life work, puppets with unique capabilities. As her duty, Rangiku sets out with three of her father's greatest puppet warriors to seek revenge. She can manipulate these to battle the strongest of warriors, however manipulating the puppets leaves her own self vulnerable to direct attacks, so she seeks a ninja warrior named Manajiri to aid and protect her in her quest. (Source: ANN)

2. Tenohira no Uta (Song of the Open Palm, 1994)
A legendary practitioner of the Xing Yi Quan style is jailed for the murder of another martial artist. From his cell, he tells his jailer of the incidents leading up to the fight, and hears disturbing news about the successor to the other man's doujo.

3. Renrakusen Kitan (Strange Ferry Tale, 1988)
A teenage runaway meets a pair of siblings on a ferry. The brother carries an old sword and claims to be haunted by a demon that has cursed their clan for hundreds of years.

4. Merry-Go-Round e! (To the Merry-Go-Round!, 1988)
A teenage karateka meets a little girl who asks him to take her to a merry-go-round. Her older brother and the police are in hot pursuit, but for some reason she insists on seeing it today.

5-6. Yoru ni Sanpo shinai ka ne (Shall We Go Out Walking by Night?, 1993)
A detective with a mysterious past is called in to investigate a series of strange murders. When he visits the scene of the crime by night, he meets a young woman out walking alone, hoping to cure her fear of the darkness by "confronting the night.".
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