SHINIGAMI DISTRIBUTION MAP
The map below (based on the one in the Yami no Matsuei Character Book) shows the districts of Meifu and indicates which shinigami are assigned to which area.
I've added a few relevant place names: Kyoto and Nagasaki need no explanation; Hiroshima is where Terazuma worked prior to his death; Osaka is where Watari grew up, hence his southern accent; Kamakura is where Hisoka's family live; and Fukuoka is where Tsuzuki and Hisoka board the Queen Camellia.
Obviously, the map isn't strictly accurate - I know I've missed a few islands and not all of the boundaries/outlines are in quite the right place, but hopefully it gives a general idea of what's where.
GLOSSARY
Meifu - the land of the dead.
Chijou - the land of the living.
JuOhCho - Meifu's judicial system, which processes the souls of the deceased.
EnMaDaiOh - the head of JuOhCho.
Shokan - EnMaCho's summoning division.
Cho - a court district of Meifu.
Shinigami - "God of Death", responsible for summoning the souls of the deceased to appear in court.
HOW IT WORKS
Meifu is divided into ten Chos, nine of which correspond to the districts of Japan in Chijou. With the exception of EnMaCho, each Cho has two shinigami in charge of the area.
EnMaCho is unique, as it is situated entirely within another Cho and answers only to EnMaDaiOh. EnMaCho is not only responsible for Tokyo, it also handles the unsolved cases from all the other districts.
Shinigami work in pairs to prevent individual shinigami from abusing the power they have over life and death. EnMaCho's Shokan bureau (summoning division) has eighteen employees.
OKAAAAAY, I'M CONFUSED...
You're not alone. Shinigami are supposed to work in pairs, so how come Tatsumi, Watari and Konoe don't appear to have partners? In the cases of Tatsumi and Konoe, do either of them have responsibility for one of the nine other Chos as well as their respective duties as secretary and chief of EnMaCho? Since there are ten Chos, how come there are *eighteen* shinigami?
I have no idea about the missing partners, but I do have a theory as to why EnMaCho has eighteen shinigami. Given that the employees of the Shokan bureau are shinigami, and that shinigami must work in pairs, it would seem logical that the employees of the Shokan bureau are therefore the nine pairs of shinigami responsible for each of the nine other Chos. Matsushita-sensei, however, does not make the set-up entirely clear, and if anyone can provide a better explanation, please do!
Note concerning use of plurals - I'm aware that the correct plural of "cho" isn't "chos", but I'm using the English plural form to clarify things.
CREDITS
Translations on the map are based on those of Theria.net, Sakura-Crisis.net and Akiya - I can read a bit of Japanese, but not much! The good idea of a colour map for easy reference comes from Akiya, whose colouring-in of the JuOhCho Basics Lecture map was invaluable in helping me create this new (and very different) version. Akiya's version (and mine) can be found in the FAQ folder of the Files section at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/yami_no_matsuei/.
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