The story begins in Osaka with a troubled young man getting a tattoo and reacting violently when he realizes it involves pain. The tattoo artist warns him that the needle knows if a tattoo is unsuitable for its wearer, which the thug interprets as an insult. Tensions rise when a minion delivers a letter from a Yakuza boss, and a strange black powder spills out, causing the artist to panic. He reveals that a previous recipient of a similar letter met a grim fate, showing off a scar he survived due to an unusual heart placement.