Shenmue/The Black Car

The Dragon Mirror
Ryo Hazuki is returning home, but something doesn't feel quite right. The dojo sign outside the front gate is smashed, and there's a strange black car parked beside it. Cautiously walking through, Ryo spots his housekeeper Ine-san, apparently injured. She insists that she's fine, but Ryo's father may be in danger. Stopping to catch his breath, Ryo is shocked by his father's pupil, Fukuhara-san, being thrown violently out of the dojo and landing at Ryo's feet. Inside the dojo, Ryo is restrained by two men in black suits, while a mysterious man in a flowing Chinese robe, Lan Di, demands to know where Ryo's father Iwao has hidden a "mirror". Momentarily breaking free, Ryo attempts to assist in his father's fight against Lan Di, but he is easily knocked aside. Despite refusing to divulge the mirror's location, Iwao is forced to reveal that he has buried it when Lan Di threatens to kill Ryo. When the black suits return with the ancient stone artifact, Lan Di delivers the killing blow to Iwao, and leaves Ryo to hold his dying father.

Four Days Later...
After the opening cutscene, you can look around Ryo's room to get used to the controls. Looking on the desk and in the drawers will get you a few items for your inventory - none of them are essential, but they might help you pass the time later in the game.

Hazuki Residence
Once you're done, head into the hall to get a cutscene with Ine-san - she'll ask that you're doing okay, and will give you the first of your daily ¥500 allowance, before telling you that Fuku-san wants to speak with you in the dojo.

If you go into the kitchen, you'll get a short flashback of your father when you look at the carrots on the table. It's worth looking around the Hazuki house for a while; there are plenty of items to examine, and there's a moves scroll behind the altar room.

When you leave the house, you'll find yourself in the courtyard. Head left, around the side of the house (not through the gate), to get to the Dojo. You can walk up to the tree outside the dojo for another flashback, or just head straight in to talk to Fuku-san about what happened between Lan Di and your father. Once that's done, you'll be back in the courtyard. Head back to the front of the house, and go out through the gate.

Yamanose
There's only really one way to walk through Ryo's home village, so follow the road down the hill. When you're passing the shrine, Ryo will hear a cat meow and go in. He'll spend a few minutes talking to Megumi, a little girl who's adopted an orphaned kitten. The cat's mother was killed by a black car, similar to Lan Di's, and the car almost hit Yamagishi-san, an elderly man in Sakuragaoka.

Once you're done, continue down the hill to...

Sakuragaoka
Take the first right, past the phone booth - the only other path is a dead end. You'll come to a T-junction, where an old woman will ask you to help her find the Yamamoto's house. If you want to help her, it's on the left from the T-junction, more or less opposite the road to Dobuita. She's waiting for you in the park. If not, you're looking for Yamagishi-san's house, which is the last house when you turn right at the T-junction. He'll tell you that the car was racing towards the shopping area in Dobuita, and that people there might have more information.

Dobuita
You can ask a lot of different people about the car, but the quickest way is to talk to Nozomi - she's standing outside her grandmother's flower shop. Talk to her for a bit, and she'll tell you that Tom had words with people in a black car. Go along the main street past the Tomato convenience store and you'll find Tom dancing at his hot dog truck. Speak to him and he'll tell you to ask Chinese people about other Chinese, as well as offering to ask around on your behalf. Go back towards the Tomato store, and you'll encounter the first QTE of the game. You can ask several different people about local Chinese, but they'll all point you to Tao-san at the Ajiichi Chinese Restaurant. Talk to Tao-san, and eventually tell you about the "Three Blades": the Barber, the Tailor and the Cook, a set of ancient professions that most Chinese immigrants in the area are involved in. He'll mention three people to speak to - Itoi-san at the Mary's Patch shop, Maeda-san the barber and the cook at Manpukken Ramen, as well as Liu-san, a barber who's father has been ill lately. Speaking to any of them about the Three Blades will point you to Liu-san, although his shop's been closed up 'til now. It'll be open once you've spoken to any of the Three Blades, so you can go in and speak to Liu-san.
 * QTE: Left, A, B

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