Chapter 193

## Noboribetsu Hot Springs

* Volume
* Magazine

**Noboribetsu Hot Springs** (登別温泉, *Noboribetsu Onsen*) is the 193rd chapter of the *Golden Kamuy* manga.

## Synopsis

Enonoka tells Sugimoto's Group a Nivkh legend about a river of monsters in which a man who was fishing at a river hears a monster's voice and some footsteps getting closer to him. The man then strips naked and uses the charcoal from his bonfire to draw a couple of big eyes on his buttocks, pointing them at the monster approaching him to scare it away, never to return to the river.

As Shiraishi leaves to relieve himself, Sugimoto wonders why such a weird story had been passed down but notes that there must be a lesson to learn from it, which he asks Asirpa what it could be. She came to the conclusion that those who do bad things are afraid of being seen. Asirpa asks Sugimoto to show her his butt and she puts some markings on them so that they can surprise Shiraishi. However, when Shiraishi returned, they found that Shiraishi had also done the same thing.

In the Noboribetsu Hot Springs, Nikaidou and Kikuta are goofing around in the hot springs when Kikuta asks Nikaidou about the designs on the tattooed skins but Nikaidou claims to have never seen one. Afterwards, Kikuta meets with Ariko and tells him to go to his village to ask if anyone has also seen the strange man. As Ariko confirms his objective, they see a couple of soldiers walking by, commenting about a pretty girl that they had seen. Kikuta turns back to Ariko and says that they are falling behind Usami and the others, and as a result they are being treated like fools. He goes on to say that if they wishes to work alongside Tsurumi again, they should prepare some kind of a gift for him.

As Usami is getting massaged by an anma, Nikaidou wonders if they should take Kikuta and Ariko with them to Tsurumi in Abashiri but Usami says that they won't as they will meet up with Tsurumi elsewhere. Nikaidou wonders what they will do about Inkarmat and Ienaga, however Usami says that it is none of their business before turning to the anma to complain about his techniques. Some time later, the anma meets up with Toni and another blind man to share information about Nikaidou and Usami. He states that they should eliminate Ariko and Kikuta before they find out who they are but Toni says that they should wait until the new moon since the moonlight reflects off of the snow and makes it too bright for them to be seen. The anma turns to Toni and blames him for his slip-up and he admits his own mistake.

In *Penkeyu*, Kikuta is staking out the area and wonders if the geta man will show up. Meanwhile, Ariko meets with his mother Ikaripopo in his Ainu village and asks her about a man wearing clothes with a strange pattern but she tells him that they are tattoos, much to Ariko's surprise. Kikuta hears clicking sounds and under the shine of the moonlight is able to see the man that Ariko spoke of. He points his gun at Toni, demanding him to take his coat off but Toni puts out his lantern and takes his gun out to shoot Kikuta. Kikuta is able to avoid the shot and fires back, hitting Toni in the arm. Toni is surprised that Kikuta can see him since he had used a lantern so that Kikuta's eyes won't get used to the dark. Kikuta notices a couple more men ganging up on him and takes out another gun, claiming that he can see them with his eyepatch off.

## Character Appearances

* Saichi Sugimoto
* Asirpa
* Enonoka
* Yoshitake Shiraishi
* Enonoka's Grandfather
* Cikapasi
* Genjirou Tanigaki
* Otonoshin Koito
* Hajime Tsukishima
* Mokutarou Kikuta
* Kouhei Nikaidou
* Rikimatsu Ariko
* Tokishige Usami
* Anji Toni
* Ikaripopo *(Debut)*