#Fuck you FireFox ensorcellment is a real word don't spellcheck me bro

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 72 Deep Lore Posting

Fed at last, dear void, and not a moment too soon! Excessively long yapfest incoming since we are finally getting lore with fascinating implications, as well as call-backs to ideas introduced very early on in the manga.

Editor's Notes:

First Page: イヲリ幼き日現れたのは毘灼頭領-幽 [Iori osanaki hi arawa re ta no wa Hishaku touryou- Yura] "Yura, the leader of the Hishaku, appeared one day when Iori was small child." Last Page: 父娘の時間はただ流れて... [oyako no jikan wa tada nagarete...] "The time spent between father and daughter flows on..."

Oh, but what's this on the last page...?

次号取材のため休載致します。続きは18号（3月31日［月］）に掲載します。

The series will be on break next week so the author can research and gather materials. It will resume in the 18th issue (Monday, March 31st). Dang.

Also, I checked chapter 58 and there was no mention of a break to lead us to the Sojo Bathhouse chapter, so don't get your hopes up for another bonus- we won't be getting one. Thank goodness we were left with a lot to chew on!

The Real Truth (Part I)

Not exactly the most dangerous enemies ever seen

At last, the truth of what happened. John has no reason to be lying here so we can conclude that the the foreign nation was indeed not part of Japan. They were "savage" due to culture and upbringing, not as an inherent part of their nature- not great, but we've got a hell of a lot to learn beyond this chapter so let's roll with it. And their government launched the attack and brought hell no one should ever experience back on the heads of innocents. Clearly, they're humans in John's version of events.

I'm glad we got explicit confirmation that the Kamunabi and likely other government forces set up a propaganda campaign to mischaracterise the enemy as "naturally bloodthirsty savages". Like I said back in the chapter 66 post, dehumanising the enemy basic propaganda. You need to justify murder on such a large scale that the terminology changes to "casualties" and making the enemy out as an imminent threat that can't be reasoned with is the easiest way to do it.

Why this unknown little country initiated the assault, we don't know yet. About those WWII allegories then... is our small island nation Japan itself? Sounds like a tale of many peaceful citizens paying the price for a militant government embroiling them in a war that got them nuked to me.

Christ.

WWII is a very touchy subject in Japan so I will not be assuming any of the author's intentions here. I'll just note that so far we are seeing some commentary on the horrors of war in general and how ordinary people are paying a terrible price for something they didn't necessarily want to happen. Also, the focus is less on who deserved what and more on how the effects of war echo through generations- what it drives people to do, and how their children deal with the aftermath. Chihiro and Iori are our biggest windows into this with their fathers naturally.

That said, hoo boy. Please, please, please be careful with this, Hokazono-sensei. The horrors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were very real and no one should have to experience that kind of tragedy. Just please also acknowledge that the aggressor can't be totally innocent even if the retaliation they endured was unjustifiably harsh. If we are going to see criticism of the island's government and/or military for starting the war, good. If this is a "war is bad for everyone" story, also fine. If this is a "small island nation attacked others unprovoked and did bad things but worse things happened to them in return so they're justified in seeking revenge" story then NO.

The framing of this is is going to be so important. I think we can safely assume that John declared "war" at the Rakuzaichi because he's opposed to the Kamunabi covering up what the Sword Master did- the Imperial imagery in the flower vase, wanting to topple the current government, John wanting Magatsumi for himself- dollars to doughnuts the Hishaku are remnants of that island nation trying to get back at Japan, probably comprised of parts of the old government that led them to war in the first place. And if that is their motivation, that's perfectly acceptable! It would be good writing so long as we aren't seeing them be morally justified! Basically, it's fine to write the Hishaku as thinking they're justified, so long as the author doesn't agree with them.

I cut an anxious speculative yap because we just have to wait and see, of course... break week makes this extra hard but I don't think we'll be getting more context than this until we meet the other two Bearers. Sushi guy is up next most likely (Kuguri has his blade and he was conspicuously brought up in chapter 60). The lore drops this chapter mean that even if the Assassination Arc ends with Samura, there's still a hell of a lot to do with the remaining three Bearers in the next.

WTF Kunishige and Hi There, Sojo

The more we learn about this war, the more I appreciate the writing. How many times can we go back to Chapter 1 to add a little more context and not feel like the author's being repetitive?!

"...I'm committed to taking it on."

Yeah. We are getting Iori's backstory right now but how will Chihiro handle the reveals as the nuke-maker's son? He didn't fight Sojo for the right to have a say in how to manage the legacy passed down to him as a one-off thematic fight. Every new piece of information we learn is something he will have to grapple with too. Now we learned the full reason why Kunishige always clammed up about Magatsumi- and that the other bearers will die if the Sword Master does. What the scallop?

It took me aeons to translate this in the Japanese version.

Kunishige giving his most powerful sword to the person he trusted the most, and binding all of the other bearer's lives to him... wow. All that as a sign of their resolve to share the same fate... or cutting corners to save time on a crucial safety mechanism if we don't want to be generous. God, how awful did Kunishige feel after his masterwork corrupted his most trusted person into wanton killer and made him lose his mind? Talk about unintended consequences... this also leaves some more questions open about how the True Realm can affect the Bearer but not going to hold my breath on getting answers to that.

Anyway, that death bond! Is it also true in the reverse, in the sense that the Bearers can't truly die while bonded to their blades without the Sword Master perishing first? (Shiba wasn't sure why Chihiro came back to life after definitively dying in ch. 60 and suggested it could be one of the Blade's powers). God I wish we had put more weight on Chihiro's death there instead of trying to rush into the Iori and genius vs. genius sub-arc!

Still. All Samura has to do is kill the Master and use his remaining few days to take down the Hishaku. Seems like a haphazard plan if the Hishaku can successfully keep away from him and wait out that death timer y'know? I think this means that the Master won't be dying to Samura like he wants this arc. We also still have three bearers to meet and the Sushi guy was teased as being next. Which means we... don't have any idea of where this is going once again! Samura's almost certainly dying some way, some how... if he gets back up after that and the only difference is that he's no longer bound to Tobimune, we'll know what happened...! Or if his pinky ring with Yura triggers and does him in, or he takes himself out before it can- sky's wide open. The only thing I'm pretty certain on right now is this:

Killing someone with the enchanted blade is important to bring them back (whether that's a Tobimune-specific ability or not is uncertain), but that could be why Samura switched swords to kill Uruha

He's trying to die alone so no one else has to go with him. That's why he's hunting the other Bearers first, to break their bonds before killing the Master so he's the only one that needs to bear the burden (along with any Hishaku he can take out). THIS GUILTY MOTHERFUCKER!!

Also, this raises questions about what would happen to Chihiro if the Master died. Is Enten bound to the Magatsumi too? If Samura killed Chihiro knowing the bond through Enten would restore him but also break, then that's another facet to the mercy that Samura showed him via death. AND URUHA?! There's something fishy going on with him because the Kamunabi were interested in the effects the the bond had on a Bearer after 18 years for a reason right? God this is getting messy.

Oh my, how about that delicious narrative density though? Kunishige didn't intend for the man he trusted most to have his mind corrupted by Magatsumi and massacre of hundreds of thousands of people. But the way people use author's creations is out of their hands.

Not literally, of course.

Yes we are doing some callbacks to the first major villain's theme: Author's Intent vs. Death of the Author! Goodness the writing is so wonderful when we can keep doing subtle references to the first guy to get wiped out. Normally they are just a stepping stone for the MC to show his potential, but Sojo was much more! Using the power of hindsight, he was more than just the first test to Chihiro's power and resolve- he was also our big hint that Kunishige's intentions with making the blades and the results they got probably didn't match up.

Obviously we still have a lot more to learn about what he was thinking about when he forged the blades (I got theories, let me tell you). No matter what though, I find it difficult to believe he'd intentionally give the Master a sword that would drive him insane. Having that man as the nucleus of their group resolved to share the same fate means he was the one person who couldn't go haywire. So Kunishige's intent could have been overridden by unintentional defects or aspects to the sword like the True Realm.

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Since I'm here, I assume the Official EN TL won't translate 蠱 [kodoku], the name of Magatsumi's True Realm ability (wrong assumption apparently). It means "charmed and cursed, something that bewilders or leads one astray... the work of demons". Yup. Gotta know more about the forging process for these things. Genuinely starting to fall back in love with the potential narrative ties and the meta commentary the author can make with this scenario... please let us stay here for a while yet, I don't want to go back to Hiruhiko and his bullshit unless it's time to meet back up with the main plot in the present too.

There are two other little bits that might not have anything to do with anything but I think they're neat so I'll mention them.

Kodoku isn't the normal reading for 蠱- that's maji. Kodoku (孤独) means solitude, loneliness, and isolation. It's also part of kodokushi (dying alone/solitary death). Given the Master's situation right now after all the other Bearers were rounded up in to fancy sanso ("shame boxes"), make of that what you will!

2. 蠱 is included in the only other kanji spelling of kodoku as 蠱毒, "poisoning someone" or Gu. You can read up on Gu here but the gist is that several venomous creatures are boxed up together to concentrate all the toxins into a single survivor for various types of rituals. Metal.

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Iori!

Those scars like tears again, man.

Once again appreciating the gender-neutral framing here- Iori's gonna become the strongest just like so many other shounen protagonists! She'll do it to protect her dad! A delicate girly girl she ain't- but she's not feeling like she needs to be one which is the best part. No boys teasing her for being a girl here, no one being awkward around her because girls don't normally learn swordsmanship. She's just a kid who wants to protect the parent she has left. That's all that matters to her character. I love an author that knows how to write girls and women as people...!

I also love Iori. Awful things have happened to her and will continue to happen to her, but goddamn it I want her to find her happiness and some peace once all this is said and done. I think we'll get into her side of the trauma festival next chapter- specifically what led Samura to break his promise to not abandon her again. I don't think my heart can take it no matter how much time we have to prepare, man. Iori's so precious and he'd finally stepped up for her! He was finally looking towards the future through her! And she deserved to be happy with her dad now that they'd bonded as father and daughter! I can't handle it already I really can't. God, I love my heart being brutalised before the author shatters it with a single well-placed tap.

She's finally feeling like a real character now too since we are getting her backstory with no distractions. Iori's absolutely sticking around after Samura's gone- this is the second character we've done a total deep-dive without Chihiro for, the only other one so far being Hakuri. This kind of thing is why I will be pissed if we keep introducing characters to get us attached then write them out though... I don't love being convinced to care deeply about a character then have to put up with them being shelved after their single-use purpose is up. It's wasteful to keep introducing a custom-made character for every arc so I hope this is the last time we do it for a bit. We don't have to keep every character around all the time, obviously, just don't keep expanding the cast with one-offs so that only Chihiro really matters in the end.

Okay. Tangent aside, I think the next chapter will be about how Samura came to abandon her the second time. I hope we get his thoughts on it... I really do. Right now I'm betting on it being a combination of preexisting guilt + new guilt over Inori's death + not wanting Iori to suffer losing another parent again + not wanting her to follow his path like she's said she wants to do. So he had her memories sealed to spare her the pain of losing another parent on top of all the other things she'd already experienced. Instead of working through it together like Kunishige wanted to do with Chihiro, Samura chose to keep his kid in the dark for her own safety. Jesus Christ my heart if this is true...

However it happens, it will be a heartbreaker for sure. We know it's not gonna be a good time so the only thing to wonder is how bad it will be. Let's put that break week to good use by making some depresso espresso, folks.

Sasuga Iori-chan, good job being the daughter of a famous war hero! Hard work? PSHAW! - random student guy

Just one more reminder of why she's closing her eyes. 1) copying dad to fight him on his level (cute!) and 2) makes it easier for her to fight with the world's most convoluted Iai technique. She can fight well so let her stay! Let me keep Iori until the very end!

Gremlin Guy, Though?!

Getting to see my gorilla wife and his situationship partner was the best unexpected bonus of the chapter.

I didn't have this guy and some Shiba and Azami trivia anywhere on the list of things we could get this chapter, but I'm so happy it happened! I feel like we are starting to finally tie this arc's events back to the Kamunabi, which has essentially been shoved to the backburner since the end of chapter 60. First Iori having an aunt in the org, now this meeting with Prince Nez Kamunabi Higher-up (please give these guys names soon I don't care if it's boxes next to the same panels that have been reused since ch. 18).

How 'bout dem apples though, Shiba has another strong tie to the Kamunabi that isn't Azami- though they're both tied to Prince Nez. He's one of the three people who sealed Magatsumi, one of the three officials present at the peace treaty signing, and the one who likes to get to the heart of the matter with a neutral take. The guy who explained the practical reasons of buying the Shinuchi at the auction instead of raiding it and asked Hakuri to demonstrate his powers during Chihiro's interrogation. The one most concerned with getting Magatsumi re-sealed. One of the four who helped Kunishige hide with the blades after the war ended. Someone capable of telling Samura what he wants to hear.

Hmm.

Just putting this in my back pocket to see if we get more context on it later. He's on the mole list obviously, but I'm not going to make any judgement calls because we know so little about him and the rest of the Kamunabi leadership still.

Speaking of the peace treaty... was the Kamunabi already formed by then, or perhaps about to be? Prince Nez and Beard from the leadership team are there.

Where's the actual government?

I guess these are two of the bigger influences in the group, especially since two out of the three also put the seal on Magatsumi. More info on these guy's internal politics sooner rather than later, please! But I can wait on that information because heck do we have a lot of things piling up to address with the Kamunabi.

-Who's the mole -Everything to do with Hiyuki and her presence in the org -Kazane and Ikuto's status (remember them lol?) -Azami under investigation for hiding information about the Rokuhiras -Org politics and factions (pro-Kuni vs. anti-Kuni) -Function during the war & formation to current state -Role in the cover-up -Why Shiba left them & why he's still working with them on the side -Results of Chihiro's blood test -How they "use" the Masumi (& possibly other clans) -What shady shit they're doing with Uruha's body -Taking care of Hakuri -Relationship to the bearers & especially the Sword Master -Iori's aunt in the org (<- NEW!) -What were their plans for the prophecy? (<- NEW!)

We've got partial answers to some of these but nothing satisfying yet. As to the prophecy, I wonder if there's someone with fortune-telling sorcery in the Hishaku... I don't think John told Samura about this oracular vision out of the kindness for his heart for one second, he's definitely using Samura to make it come to pass so he can use Magatsumi for himself. I'll be a little disappointed if the Kamunabi did follow Prince Nez's logic and sit back because they've already done as much as they could, I'll admit. But it's fine- overconfidence leading to safety failures happens all the time.

Last Thoughts: The Master and the Bearers

Yikes

So, one has to wonder at how much of this guy's massacre mindset was there all along, what the war did to him, and how Magatsumi affected him. The phrasing about the True Realm is that the Bearer "bends the blade to their will" but with this guy's appearance, isn't it possible that something about or within the blade corrupted him? Again, going back to 蠱 [kodoku]- charmed and bewitched, the work of devils. Ensorcellment, poison, crushing loneliness in isolation... what the fuck happened to this guy?

Kunishige surely wouldn't trust a guy like the Master as we see him in canon right now. I wonder if this is one of the sins that Kunishige was warning Chihiro about ever-so-slightly. You never quite know how your ideals will function in the real world once your creation is out there. Nor can you account for every possible way it'll affect people who come into contact with it. He made weapons to "defend" according to Prince Nez's little spiel and the propaganda, but weapons aren't only used for protection. Something something Cold War because of nuclear weaponry stockpiles right?

I wonder if Kunishige was friends/best buds with this guy and seeing what his masterwork did to him is what made him lose that shine to produce more WMDs. We'll need info stat but right now I'm happy mulling over everything we got. I'll probably end up making a few addendum posts as my sad little brain churns through things to make connections as-is.

I'm interested in the other bearer's takes on all this now too. How did they feel fighting their leader and shipping him off to a prison in who-knows-where? What did they think about the "enemy" and fighting them? Uruha seemed to have believed the line from the Kamunabi about them being valuable defenders of the peace, Samura doesn't buy it at all. Let's meet Mr. Sushi guy soon....! Finally, I'm looking forward to what happens next a little bit again. Going back to these core beats and themes is where I want to stay for as long as possible.

Alrighty dear void. I'm as happy as a bivalve in a cozy little shell right now to finally finally FINALLY be ditching the sideshow to get to the parts we've been waiting for. (I know the Hiruhiko stuff will be used as context for something else later, but it was so goddamn painful to sit through weekly okay?) Good vibes to you over the break week and see you on the 30th in my local timezone!