Seijiro Makabe

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Seijiro Makabe
"The ritual that cannot be spoken about... and the place that mustn't be seen..."
Japanese	真壁 清次郎 まかべ せいじろう
Alias	Kusabi
Age	61
Occupation	Folklorist
Cause of Death	Sacrificed as a Kusabi in Hidden Ritual
Date of Death	Year of the Repentance
Encounter	Sacrificial Altar (Final Chapter)
Games	Fatal Frame II Deep Crimson Butterfly Crimson Butterfly Remake
Notes	Folklorist's Note Camera Obscura Pointers Crimson Sacrifice Twin Shrine Maidens Tamashizume
Spirit Stone	Lazulite & Sparkling Kusabi Spirit Stone
English Voice Actor	Michael Bell (FF2) Mick Lauer (FF2R)

Seijiro Makabe is a character in Fatal Frame II, Deep Crimson Butterfly and Crimson Butterfly Remake. He was a folklorist working in Japan around the Meiji period, and was particularly interested in legends about gates to the underworld. He visited Minakami Village with his young assistant, Ryozo Munakata, to learn about the secret ritual practiced there. Makabe was a friend of Dr. Kunihiko Asou, and brought several of Asou's inventions with him to the village: the Camera Obscura, the Projector, and the Spirit Stone Radio. He hoped to be allowed to take a picture of the secret site at the heart of the village, a place so forbidden that even speaking its name was taboo.

Past

After arriving at Minakami Village to an unexpectedly warm welcome, Seijiro stayed in the Kurosawa House with Ryokan Kurosawa and his family. The Kurosawa family were preparing their twin daughters (Yae and Sae Kurosawa) for the Crimson Sacrifice Ritual at the time, as the previous ritual had failed. Seijiro continued his research about the village, unaware that the villagers planned to use him as a temporary sacrifice known as a Kusabi.

One day he was approached by Sae and Yae, who gave him a map of the house and urged him to leave during the night. Seijiro chose to stay, but sent Ryozo away from the village just in case. Soon afterwards, Seijiro was taken prisoner by the Veiled Priests and locked in the Cell. At first, no one would say what they intended to do with him, but it didn't take Seijiro long to suspect that the Hidden Ceremony the villagers wished him to participate in was a form of outsider sacrifice, as he had heard of villages practicing similar customs in ancient times. Since the Cell was used to store old documents, Seijiro was able to continue his research and learn even more about the forbidden rituals during his imprisonment. As the Hidden Ceremony approached, Seijiro's main concern was for Ryozo; for himself, he was satisfied to be able to see the Hellish Abyss with his own eyes.

In Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake, Seijiro's story is adjusted and expanded through new notes and a side story showing his exploration of the village's most secret locations. In the original story, Seijiro only learned the truth behind the villagers' hospitality after he was imprisoned in the cell and left to go through the village documents stored there. In the remake, discovering the Umbral Mound convinced him that the villagers intended to use him and Ryozo as Kusabi. With this knowledge, Seijiro decided to send Ryozo away, but remained behind to continue his investigation, searching for an entrance to the Deep Path. He explored the Osaka House basement, where the possessions of sacrificed outsiders were stored, and saw the failed Kusabi enshrined in an underground chamber beneath Eikado Temple. Finally, with the priests and Mourners close behind, he entered the Deep Path through the Chamber of Ropes in Kurosawa House, and almost succeeded in reaching the Abyss before he was captured and placed in the Cell.

Makabe was subjected to the Cutting Ritual, tortured to the point of death to increase his value as a sacrifice, and cast into the Hellish Abyss. The ritual did calm the the Hellish Abyss a little, but in the end, it was not enough. When Sae's solo Crimson Sacrifice Ritual also failed, the Repentance was unleashed onto All God's Village. Seijiro's spirit returned as the mutilated, monstrous Kusabi, and proceeded to massacre the villagers gathered in Kurosawa House.

During the game, Mio Amakura encounters the Kusabi while exploring Kurosawa House, but also glimpses Seijiro's wandering spirit in various places around the village. In Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake, Seijiro's notes about operating the Camera Obscura help Mio to unlock its full potential as well, which is what ultimately enables her to defeat the Kusabi.

Writings

Makabe was a prolific writer, writing more than 80 books in his lifetime. His final writings about Minakami Village, in the form of a notebook, were taken from the village by Ryozo Munakata when he left. After the Repentance they were edited by Ryozo and compiled into a book titled "Japanese Folklore Anthology 7: Tamashizume", which can be found in the official Zero: Akai Chou guidebook. The dedication reads: "If this book is ever completed, I would like to dedicate it to my friend, Kunihiko Asou. - Seijiro Makabe (1885 ~ 1946)".

Gallery

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Misc. Info

• Until the final battle of the game, the Kusabi cannot be harmed. Even during the final battle, he is one of very few ghosts in the series to steadily regain health, making powerful shots and high-level film a necessity.
• Seijiro's returned spirit's body is covered with talismans (御札, ofuda).
• Seijiro's character design was intended to give him the appearance of a hardy scholar who is used to working in the field and has little interest in material comforts. In the remake, to further emphasise these traits, his beard was made slightly more unkempt and his features more craggy.

See Also

• For quotes by Seijiro, see Quotes: Seijiro Makabe
• For other folklorists in the Fatal Frame Series, see Folklorist.
• For more information on kusabi, see Kusabi.
• For other rituals in Fatal Frame II, see Fatal Frame II Rituals.
• For images related to Seijiro Makabe, see Images of Seijiro Makabe.