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We visit Tokyo’s Reversible Destiny Lofts, the apartments designed to make you live forever【Pics】

Incongruous in their grey surroundings, these multicoloured buildings looks like something in a children’s playground, or perhaps an outsized set of toy building blocks. But these colourful constructions are Reversible Destiny lofts—rental apartments in Tokyo’s Mikata City. And the inside of these eccentric properties is just as extraordinary and confusing as the exterior.

But what is “Reversible Destiny” anyway? And how is living in a playful apartment supposed to make you immortal? We sent a reporter from our Japanese sister site Pouch to find out.

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Kobe City firefighters ask you to stop calling emergency numbers for trivial stuff like sunburns

We’ve all heard stories about absurd calls to emergency lines, from people calling about a bat in the house to a missing newspaper delivery. We like to think that these people aren’t stupid so much as too frustrated to think clearly…though we may be wrong.

Of course, Japan isn’t free of these kinds of silly emergency calls, either. In fact, a recent article received a lot of attention online when it listed some of the simply absurd emergency calls that have been made in Kobe City. Check them out below…

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University students create giant artwork of an octopus attacking a temple, now seeking a buyer

Tokyo University of the Arts, a school founded in 1949 through the combination of a music and fine arts school, is one of the most popular art schools in Japan. It has produced a host of famous alumni, including numerous artists, directors, musicians, and designers, so it’s not entirely surprising to see the university making headlines.

But one of the pieces created for this year’s art festival is nothing short of amazing! This massive work of art, which features a giant octopus wrapped around a Greek-style temple, has captured the attention of people across Japan. Now that the festival is over, though, the students are asking if anyone wants to buy it! If you’ve ever wanted a piece of art to decorate your entire front lawn, hurry because supplies are definitely limited.

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If you’ve grown up eating bacon and sausage for breakfast, a Japanese morning meal can be refreshingly light. Generally consisting of a slice of grilled fish, small bowl of white rice, miso soup, and some vegetables, Japan’s take on the most important meal of the day will give you enough energy and nutrients to kick-start your body while leaving out excess fat and calories that can have you ready to crawl back into bed for a nap.

But not everyone in Japan has such a modestly sized breakfast. In fact, pro wrestler Manabu Nakanishi’s breakfast looks more like dinner…for a family of four!

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Although he’s one of the most respected figures of all time in the manga industry, Kazuo Koike isn’t typically associated with the otaku subculture. When his most popular creation, Lone Wolf and Cub, was translated into English it attracted as many international fans from among Western comic readers as from those who favored Japanese manga, and in general his works have a gritty, somber tone to them, unlike the brightly colored daydreams and self-insert power fantasies that are often associated with otaku-pandering fare.

There’s also the fact that Koike was born in 1936, and being old enough and of the corresponding gender to fill two-thirds of a “grumpy old man” bingo card, you might expect him to have harsh words for Japan’s legions of hobby-obsessed individuals, like those that often sputter forth from Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki.

But it turns out that not only is Koike accepting of the otaku life, but he thinks that being an otaku from the cradle to the grave makes for a beautiful life.

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Drummer for visual kei band evokes smiles online with photos of adorable rescue kitten

Whether people like to admit it or not, a big part of being in a successful band is maintaining an image. Sure, we know deep down that most of our favorite musicians are just normal people with very specific talents, but we still love to see them as their over-the-top personas. David Bowie may be a great singer, but a good chunk of his success comes just from being so flipping weird all the time.

For visual kei bands in Japan, the “visual” aspect—and thus the image—can be almost as important the music for fans, and visual kei band The Black Swan are no different. But despite the dark, often graphic nature of their videos and general image, their drummer has revealed himself to be a big ol’ softie by posting a plethora of photos of his rescue kitty on Twitter…and winning the hearts of Internet users throughout Japan!

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How to make one of the most complicated but awesome themed sushi rolls【Video】

Many of us are willing to toss around the word “cook” when we are messing about in the kitchen. Food shows, Internet recipes and even the paper cookbook provide us with a ton of ideas about what to prepare for dinner. So while some of us are pretty handy in the kitchen, it takes a whole different class of cook to take on the name “chef”. These food artists take seemingly common (or uncommon) ingredients and turn them into some crazy dishes that they claim you can do yourself at home!

Let’s take a look at your next contribution to the Japanese pot-luck dinner, the Tiger Sushi Roll!

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Following flooding in Japan, Twitter users debate the history of the river’s “Angry Demon” name

The flooding in Japan has been absolutely awful, without a doubt, and the news has rightly been focused on the resulting devastation. But there is one aspect of the flooding that’s become a bit of a hot topic online, aside from all the rescues and damage. The overflowing river has an…unusual name: Kinu River or the Angry Demon River.

Obviously, the name has proven to be quite apt this year, but it sparked a lot of discussion online as people have wondered: Where the heck did this name come from?!

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Foreign worker in Japan fends off armed robber with single word, gets no respect from local media

At some point in life, someone is going to ask you a question that makes you feel uncomfortable. How much money do you make? How many people have you slept with? Just what did happen to all of your political rivals from the junior high student body president election?

Quite often, though, you can get out of answering by asking in return “Why do you want to know?” As a matter of fact, the question “Why?” is so disarming it can even prevent armed robbery, as one foreigner working in Tokyo just found out.

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Lone crayfish stands in defiance of floods

Various areas across northeast Japan have been struggling to cope with the massive amounts of rainfall that have led to flooding and landslides. The scenes of destruction have dominated the news in the past week leaving many concerned about their fellow citizens, friends, and family in the region.

However, one young woman in the area found a little message of hope from an unlikely ally, a crayfish standing tall in the middle of a flooded road with its claws raised to the sky and refusing to back down.

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Japan’s netizens weigh in on singer Gackt’s new look: “He looks like a video game boss!”

As western stars who’ve been in the entertainment industry since we were nippers could tell you, reinvention is the cornerstone of a long and successful career. Just like Madonna and David Bowie, Japan’s mega-popular musical powerhouse Gackt loves a good makeover, and his newest incarnation has gotten Japanese netizens all riled up and excited. Why? Because he looks like a total badass!

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Japanese Nickel Damascus knives look exquisite and a little like they’re slipping out of reality

Don’t you hate it when you get ready to do some cooking and Paul Hogan comes out of nowhere ridiculing your cookware with taunts of “Ya call that a knife?”

Me too.

That’s why next time I’ll be ready with my new Nickel Damascus Chef’s Knife forged by famous Echizen blacksmith Takeshi Saji using techniques that span the globe. Now that’s what I call a knife!

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Famed director Hayao Miyazaki will create a nature sanctuary on a small island in Okinawa

If the Spirit of the Forest, Cat Bus or Totoro were real, you can be sure they would live in a nature sanctuary created by Hayao Miyazaki. The award-winning film maker has long included his stance on nature and the environment in his movies and now he is going one step further to ensure that at least one small corner of the Earth will stay pristine.

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This may be a rather random question, but are you capable of drawing a man in various states of undress? Most of us can probably visualize how it should look, but turning those thoughts into illustrations doesn’t always come at a snap of the fingers.

Coming to the rescue of budding illustrators and manga artists is a new pose reference book dedicated solely to men undressing. From T-shirts to kimono to boxer briefs, this is probably the most educational book we’ve seen filled with men stripping off their clothes.

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Osaka river turns into giant floating sushi train complete with oversized sushi 【Pics & Video】

Osaka is known throughout Japan for being a foodie’s paradise. The area has such a focus on food and dining and has given birth to so many well-known dishes that there’s even a famous saying: Kyo no kidaore, Osaka no kuidaore, meaning “Dress up till you drop in Kyoto, eat till you drop in Osaka”.

This October, the city will be showing us just how much their food culture means to them, with a giant floating sushi train carrying plates of gigantic sushi up and down the river, and we’re taking a sneak peek at video and photos of the trial run!

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Sea turtle, I choose you! Aquarium in Japan makes learning fun with trading card-themed displays

Not all the lessons we learn in school stick with us, but I’ll bet the ones that do are the ones that were interesting, out of the ordinary, or made us laugh. Some people get along just fine with traditional learning methods, but others need things spiced up a little bit, which is why this aquarium’s creative twist to the traditional information display is absolute genius.

Take a look at some of the clever, humorous “monster cards” on display at the Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium.

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Mt. Fuji becomes Studio Ghibli’s Laputa following recent typhoon 【Photos】

Mount Fuji—its almost perfectly symmetrical shape and towering, snow-topped beauty have long been a symbol of Japan, recognised the world round. It has also recently been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its strong ties to the Japanese culture. And now, in the clear skies following this week’s typhoon, it is also being called Laputa, as Twitter users are posting their impressive photos of the cloud-capped peak.

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Need a real Kingdom Hearts Keyblade? Ask these guys to make it for you!【Video】

If there’s one thing we know, it’s that Kingdom Hearts 3 is definitely, probably, hopefully coming out sometime in the future. It might be released in 2016 or 2017 or forever, but it is for sure coming…so they tell us. Like most fans of the series, we’ve replayed Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts 2 over and over again just to get ready for the big release. We’ve made Sora swing the Keyblade around enough times in the game that if given a real Keyblade, we’d probably be pretty amazing at using it.

Luckily for us, there are master weaponsmiths who showcase their talent on YouTube and just this week they uploaded their team making the “Oathkeeper” and it couldn’t be more perfect.

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Japan spent most of this last week getting pounded by torrential rainstorms. This wasn’t just a case of people getting their socks wet, either, as flooding caused damage to houses, disruption of train lines and highways left some people stranded away from home, and in some extreme cases residents even had to be evacuated by helicopter.

But while the rains stimulated the craziness in some people, they brought out the generosity in one bar owner in Tochigi Prefecture, because while the rain was falling on Japan, drinks were on the house, as he took to Twitter to offer free booze or a place to rest for victims of the typhoon.

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Kochi high school set to launch Self-Defense Force training course, government totally unaware

In a recent interview, the head of Kochi Chuo High School, Masahisa Chikamori, announced that the school would be starting a Self-Defense Force Course in 2016. This course would provide students with the skills and knowledge needed to join Japan’s armed protective organization, including some combat training.

However, both the Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology admitted they were unaware of this training program when questioned about it.

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