#Ranting with rin

[riririnnnn]

Love when they are just R O U N D:

Like, let me just cup their R O U N D cheeks and just squish squish~

They all GREW up though:

DAMN!

Honourable mention:

[someprettyname]

Oh fuck off. Go away. Don't talk to me.

[ credits :  @/mtmon11356 Twitter ]

[jaidenk-nox]

Elizabeth midford

Shitty 2AM rant on the Misogyny that Lizzy has faced since the very start but it's the perspective of someone who has witnessed the horrors of Misogyny in Spanish speaking fandom

I should mention that English is not my first language and I'm not very good with it either, so most of this was done with Google Translate and I tried to correct what I could, I hope it's at least readable

I've never seen enough people point out the fact that Elizabeth midford character also defies the "Girlboss" archetype, she is definitely physically strong and can protect herself, but she is A 15 YEAR OLD GIRL, who manages her emotions like someone her age would and also exhibits many neurodivergent traits. I have always been bothered by the way physical strength is misunderstood as a "girlboss" trait, the simplest example I can think of is Ran Mao, she possesses brutal and superhuman strength. but it doesn't make her a girlboss, in case anyone forgets Ran is a girl who barely reaches 18 years old and is exploited by an opium trader who also seems to be involved in human trafficking (implied in the manga). Is she really a girlboss? girlboss when her physical strength is more of a requirement to SURVIVE while working as an assassin and sometimes seductress (which u can tell she doesn't enjoy much)? Obviously Ranmao's social reality is very different as she is a woman of color from the underworld, unlike Elizabeth, who is a white woman from the nobility. However, her physical strength has always been a double-edged sword for herself. Lizzy longs to get married, like any other girl her age, she longs to be protected but says goodbye to it the moment Ociel returns.

I may seem a bit exaggerated, but the way your sociocultural background affects the way you perceive and treat a character has me slightly traumatized, I wish I could give proof of the horrible and degrading treatment that Lizzy has received from the Spanish-speaking fandom.

I am a trans boy of color who grew up watching my female relatives being encouraged to rip their hearts out of their chest from the moment they turned 8yo for the simple goal of caring for and protecting my cis male relatives. household chores, cooking for them, washing their clothes, taking accountability for their actions. Their freedom and childhood as little girls were taken away from them. but none of that was ever valued, I never saw anyone recognize it as sacrifice.

Elizabeth is not a woman of color, nor does she have those demands as a woman of nobility, but she SACRIFICED stuff to try to protect Ciel on her own way, I have seen many people underestimate her backstory in book of Atlantic because "High heeled shoes aren't reason to cry." Everything Lizzy has done for Ciel is devalued, all her suffering has been minimized. losing so many family members in such a short time, losing the boy you were raised to marry your entire life. People truly forget that lizzy is still just a child, that she has the right to mourn everything she lost that day. She had to mourn publicly as a noble girl,she probably heard that she would never be able to get married or would never achieve happiness, I've never seen any adult to stop and think about how heartbreaking and soul shattering that must have been as a 11yo

I have seen how EVERY thing Lizzy does is judged. how her behavior, personality and temperament are criticized. but other characters like Soma just get a pass while doing the same stuff, but this does not just stop at gender, but also at age. people HATE girls and afabs who act like children when they are literally CHILDREN.

How is it possible that Lizzy has faced such harsh judgment from the fandom when there are other characters like Maam red, Lau, Grell, Undertaker who are universally ADORED or atleast respected in the fandom.

I love u Elizabeth midford but ur character makes me violently ill omfg

[spacealligator]

anyone else thinks Rin is a bit idolized in canon and fanon?

always the perfect good girl or a girlboss

people, give me a girl failure

Rin is almost as fucked up on the head as Kakashi and Obito, she went through hell in war, and in AUs where she survives, she goes through hell with the jinchuriki thing and Obito’s death

c'mon give her some unhealthy coping mechanisms, make her jaded, tired of the world's bullshit, make her a total cynic, dissimulated, selfish, morally gray, relatable!

[luvingshidou]

Ik I'm bored when I start making coquette bllk pfp 😭😭😭 seriously wtaf am I doing liek oml I'm acc just so bored at this point ughhhhghhh

I love them though🫶🫶🫶

[tonguetiedraven]

Yukio requires a lot of critical reading from the get go

And if you're only starting that critical reading once Satan bums a ride in his eye, you're much too late.

He also requires a willingness to acknowledge that sometimes the character that annoys you has reasons even if you don't like them, and sometimes you're too biased about your favorite character and boy oh boy has Rin gotten caught up in this lack of critical engagement to. The story is more complex than victim and abuser and that simplification robs the story and Rin and Yukio of their richness and complexity.

This is going to be several parts and will be taking deep dives into some of the most important Yukio interactions that explain his story and character and beats that I think get often overlooked or misunderstood entirely. It will be entirely manga based because the animes take a fairly anti-yukio stance in several instances and seem to intentionally pick paths to mangle his character. The first anime mostly. But man did it do that to a lot of characters. None so badly as Yukio though.

It's fine to dislike the character, but darn it he deserves you at least disliking the real him.

Yukio Okumura is one of the most misunderstood and mischaracterized people in Kato's world (if not the most misunderstood, though sometimes I think Rin should get that slot because man people will just not read any of his flaws or short comings.) By both sides of the arguments, typically.

He is an immensely complex character who is messy, depressed, armed to the teeth, suicidal, brilliant, exhausted, livid, abused, abusive, eternally rocking a customer service smile, aware of the world in a way most of his peers simply aren't, and not always sympathetic. He is a teenager who has to act like an adult, the twin brother (but more often babysitter) of Rin, and the boy who doesn't fit in anywhere.

Probably the most frequently disliked character in the anime/manga as well, which is amazing with the cast of vile human-experimentation committers we've got, and when Ernst Egin is just walking around in the anime sullying Yuri's last name and being an awful character.

In my last essay on Blue Exorcist, I stated that most people's characters misconceptions started with the Kyoto arc, but for Yukio, we're going to have to go back a bit further. We have to go back to chapter two.

Chapter two is Rin, who has figured out he's Satan's son and has sworn to become the greatest of exorcists to defeat Satan and knows nothing about exorcisms or defeating Satan or even Satan at this point, who hasn't figured out that Mephisto is a demon or that Yukio is an exorcist, has been told to hide his flames and to either hide the tail, ears, and fangs, or make up some kind of story about them that doesn't involve Satan and his flames, is trying to sit through the orientation and is only kind of going along with it at all because Rin, our main pov character, has the attention span of a caffeinated squirrel and the impulse control of one as well at this point of the story. It makes him a great character to read from because he kind of skips over any lore drops that would be dull and lets us, the reader who is clueless about this world, find out things as they're important.

We were introduced to Yukio in the previous chapter and found out that he was Rin's younger and more successful twin. That he wants to be a doctor and was heading to True Cross.

This chapter, as Rin is sitting at the orientation, we find out that Yukio is smart.

Yukio is smart. He is the representative for the entire class, and we will find out that he managed to get that rank and position while maintaining a side job as an exorcist. He beat out every other student in this rich school while having a side job and awareness of a secret world that only a small percentage of people know about. He is a remarkable and driven student who is almost always thinking several steps ahead of Rin, the character we're mostly viewing this manga through.

That is the easiest thing to forget about Yukio. He is almost always aware of things Rin is not and almost always thinking of a bigger picture or a different picture than Rin is. That does not mean he is always correct, but he is almost always working off a dataset that Rin is not even aware of the existence of. He is playing 3d and sometimes (4D chest when Mephisto is involved) and Rin is still grappling with the regular 2D chess rules. He has always lived in the world of demons and by all likelihood known about who/what Rin and himself are since he was very little. We don't know the exact age he was told the story, but we know he has known it for a long time.

Another very important thing to take from this section, and the main reason I'm posting these particular panels is because it tells us how Rin sees his little brother at this point. His first thought when he see Yukio excelling is that his younger brother was always a crybaby who needs protection and couldn't stand up for himself or his dreams.

Rin is stuck in this false perception of his twin. Even though he can acknowledge that his twin is really smart, he struggles greatly with accepting that fact and even more with ever listening to his twin because for most of his life, Yukio was a cry baby that got bullied a lot and needed someone to stick up for him.

Yukio was those things, and we know from Yukio's own mouth much later in the manga that Yukio despised being that way and still fears that he is that way. That he is weak and pathetic and can't be strong.

Rin goes off from this orientation with the determination that his twin will graduate, become a doctor, and never have to find out about demons and the dark side of the world, and he runs into Mephisto who transforms into a dog in front of him, and God Bless Rin's heart, he just kind of assumes that's a thing some exorcists can do and does not clue into the fact that Mephisto is a demon and will not until Mephisto flat out tells him it.

Rin misses a lot of things. He is not that smart of a character. He is a great character, and he has a fantastic heart and a lot of wonderful character development, but picking up on details and critical thinking are not his strong suits, so we can't always trust his view point.

Rin can be wrong and often is.

Rin goes into cram school, meets the rest of his class who awkwardly stares at him as he takes a seat at the front of the class with dogphisto and they wait for the teacher who turns out to be none other than Yukio Okumura.

Yukio Okumura who does in fact know about the demonic world. In fact:

Yukio has been an exorcist since he was thirteen.

Rin makes a scene, because of course he did. His twin just flipped his entire world upside down and now not only did Rin's adoptive father know a whole lot of things that he never told Rin, Rin's twin did too.

It is important to remember that Mephisto has dictated how Rin's entire day has gone at this point. Yukio's story is heavily tied with Mephisto's manipulation, and that is often over looked by readers of this story, and I cannot stress enough that Mephisto is manipulative. He has pushed and controlled most of the characters in this story and he has done a lot of manipulation, both subtle and blatant, of Rin and Yukio. From the times they meet to the lessons they learn to the money they earn to the place they live, Mephisto's hand is in EVERYTHING.

He was the reason they had little to no time to talk before the school day started and absolutely the reason Rin didn't know Yukio was teaching this class until the entire class knew Yukio was their teacher. Yukio was given Shirou's class to teach by Mephisto, and he has already been given very specific orders on how to treat Rin and what specifically to do. Shirou has also given Yukio very specific instructions on what to do with Rin and how to take care of him.

Anyway, Rin makes a scene but the lesson forges forward with Mephisto and Yukio explaining things to the class, Rin, and us the reader. We learn about temptaints and that their classroom is a goblin nest and Rin holds his opinions and questions in for a few seconds but busts and once again makes a scene.

Yukio tells him plainly that he's seen demons since he could crawl which clues us the audience (and Rin) in on the fact that Yukio has always known about demons. We also learn that he has been training since he was SEVEN. Yukio has spent more of his life training and being an exorcist than he hasn't.

He tells Rin that the only one that didn't know about demons (and their parentage) is Rin. This is obviously shocking, and traumatizing, and a really blunt and honestly mean way to tell Rin this. There are reasons for that we'll get to in a minute.

(This has got to be the most awkward of classes for the other students. I'd be dying of second hand embarrassment xD)

Rin grabs Yukio, the vial is dropped, and goblins start popping out of the ceiling, walls, and just everywhere. The first-day students are immediately overwhelmed because half of them still can't even see the demons, and Yukio immediately springs into action. He takes out the hobgoblins that are the biggest danger and ushers the vulnerable and ill-prepared students outside the room so he can properly exorcise it, maturely takes blame for the entire thing (even though it is easily his and Rin's fault) but Rin won't go out because a BIG part of Rin's character is pushing for immediate conversations when he's frustrated or mad.

It's a positive and negative trait of his. He refuses to wait on conversations when he wants to have them, but he also refuses to have a conversation at all if he doesn't want to. He seldom takes the other person's pov into view on these until much later in the manga after a lot of development, and he's not great at hearing the other person he's conversing with. He makes a lot of assumptions and puts them on the other person until they clarify in some way, if they do. This means that we the readers can be left assuming incorrectly if we're not paying attention.

Mostly posting that moment because Rin getting chewed on is hilarious and cute but also to point out that Yukio is basically choosing the path to most irritate Rin here. He's refusing to engage the conversation and basically treating Rin as a nuisance who is in his way while he's trying to solve a problem.

As a side not, Rin is very much in the way here. Yukio could quickly clear this up without Rin being a talkative demonic chew toy.

This talk is a vital one to understand the twins and their dynamic until after the Kraken arc. It is, I would say, one of the three most important twin moments until the Kraken arc. It is also one a lot of people don't take time with because they're (understandably!) upset about what Yukio is saying and how he's saying it, and how heartless it feels at first glance.

This conversation is entirely about Rin. Rin asks how Yukio feels about him and doesn't ask how Yukio feels in general. (That's not how these twins operate.)

It is heavily implied that Yukio was told that if Rin were to be unsealed, Rin would no longer be Rin. That he would become someone, something far different and dangerous. He would be violent and wild and evil and he would have to be put down. It is heavily implied that Yukio was taught by Shirou to try and guard Rin and keep him sealed at whatever cost, and if he was unsealed for some reason, it would be on his shoulders to take Rin out if Shirou couldn't do it himself.

Yukio calls Rin a fool and asks why he wants to be an exorcist. Does he want revenge? Or does he want to atone? If he wants to atone, then he should turn himself in as the son of Satan or just die.

Rin hears all that and asks Yukio if Yukio thinks he's to blame for Shirou's death. Yukio asks if he'd be wrong if he did. We also get this wild lore drop that becomes a big deal much later on in the manga but we don't really fully grasp at this point

Yukio knows. Yukio knows that Shirou has been possessed by Satan before and has been fighting him for fifteen long years and has never stopped being targeted.

Also I have to point out that Yukio just never stops shooting and killing the hobgoblins in this entire scene and Rin is on fire and whacking a few with his bagged sword but not really doing anything about them at this point.

The talk culminates in this moment.

This is a shocking moment. It sounds very much like Yukio does blame Rin and possibly should blame Rin, and more than that, as Rin is drowning in guilt and grief he won't let himself confront over Shirou, Yukio aims his gun at Rin and calls him 'big brother.'

"You killed father Fujimoto!"

Yukio says that to Rin, and Rin gets mad that Yukio is pointing his gun at him (can't confront the grief and guilt yet and won't except in pieces at our most broken spots until much much later) and charges at Yukio shouting at him to shoot--

And Yukio--

Doesn't.

I am positive at this moment Yukio broke his script and was indeed supposed to shoot Rin. Whether or not he was meant to, he doesn't.

Rin destroys the hobgoblin behind Yukio that was gearing up to tear into his little brother, and turns to look back at Yukio.

"Don't insult me. I'd never fight my little brother." (I think there's a lot that could be said about Rin not fighting him but the demon being all gun ho for it but that's an entirely different discussion)

Rin declares that while looking like a demon. He has the sword drawn so the demonic features are entirely there. The fangs, the ears, the eyes, the flames, everything.

Yukio looks forward and down again (we learn Mephisto is still here, because of course he is. He's directing this scene.) Yukio asks how Shirou was at the end. (I hear: "Was he brave? Was he still our dad?" in that question. "Did he become something else? Did Satan win in the end?"

The answer is no. Satan destroyed his body, but Shirou won.)

This. This is such an important moment so oft glanced over. The amount of times both these boys long to be strong and hate themselves for being weak and see the strength in the other or completely miss it, the essays that could be written on that know no ends.

And Yukio?

He smiles, It's not much, and it's laced with a heavy kind of sadness, but it's there and it's relieved and accepting. He tells Rin a powerful truth, one Rin doesn't understand the weight of at all, and one we the readers also don't get at this point, but he tells Rin that he also became an Exorcist to be strong.

They both take a moment to notice that the schoolroom is just wrecked to hell. The hobgoblins did a number and Rin's flames finished that number.

Yukio is warning Rin. Rin never thinks things through. He is an impulsive puppy who gets himself in situations and keeps charging forward, trampling things in an attempt to solve them again. He speaks without ever thinking and he acts with his emotions, which are why his flames are so often out of control. Yukio is warning him about all of that and that the harsh words he spoke will follow Rin from everyone if he pursues this path.

"Think it through," he's saying, "be sure."

Rin says bring it on and grins and calls Yukio teach and it's a cute moment.

THEN WE GET TO THE MOST IMPORTANT SCENE THAT THE ANIME CUT OUT

And why they did it I don't know and it makes me want to scream because it has made so many people miss so much about Yukio and Mephisto and the manipulative bastard Mephisto is. (That is said fondly and exasperatedly. I'd punch the hell out of Mephisto if I knew him in real life and I thoroughly enjoy reading about the bastard.)

This was a test. Mephisto is putting both twins to the test. Yukio is to keep an eye on Rin and make sure he stays Rin. That he doesn't become a rampaging demon and doesn't turn into a second blue night. (We the readers don't actually know what Satan did that was so terrible outside of, you know, killing Shirou and trying to take Rin to Gehenna but we'll find out more and more and more as the manga goes. Yukio already knows and has since he was at least seven. He has slept in the same room as Rin and known his twin was temporarily sealed in Kurikara and that if the seal broke, Rin could become an utter monster.

No one knew what Rin would be when the seal was broken and he had his heart again. They knew at the very least that the Vatican would want him dead, and that if he wasn't a feral monster, they'd have to hide him.

(And I for one would not want that responsibility. I love Rin and think he's a great character but he cannot listen to orders and has no sense of danger and consequences and the thought of trying to keep those flames and his mouth contained would make me crumble under anxiety and dread.)

Anyway, Yukio and Mephisto have very clearly been in talks and we'll see a few chapters later during a certain reaper attack that Mephisto has given Yukio orders about protecting Rin and being ready to take Rin out if he's at risk.

Yukio remembers as he's talking to Mephisto, and we see the moment the little seven year old started his training, and he's so small it hurts.

Also woah on the lore drop. What do you mean, Shirou? WHAT DO YOU KNOW?????

Anywho, Yukio is told he could protect Rin, and of course the boy who has always been bullied and frightened by things that aren't just humans would jump at the chance to protect his fearless big brother.

And thus, Yukio's fate is sealed and Mephisto moves a piece forward on the board.

The chapter ends with Rin going to his new dorm room in the old and abandoned dorm, and Yukio is there too. Their now roommates.

Before this moment, Yukio had a room in the nice dorm with his fellow students. He was actually Ryuuji's roommate, or he was going to be. Before he became a full time teacher on top of a full time exorcist and the top student. Now he is all of that and a full time babysitter directly responsible for protecting Rin, which essentially means not letting Rin's secret get out.

Now most people who watch or read this chapter take the argument at face value and leave it with a deep rooted feeling that Yukio was cruel and unfair. I'd remind those readers that Yukio came home to Shirou very very dead and Rin very very demon, and that Mephisto separated them and told Yukio to take a teaching position his very newly dead dad was meant to have. That Yukio had moved out to his own space apart from Rin for the first time in his life the day of his father's death, and the day he was supposed to start forging his new identity not revolving around Rin, his identity and life became even more tied to Rin.

Yukio is a character who has never gotten a life to live that was his own and free and has always been seen by those around him (and himself) as weak. He despises that and fears himself to still be the small crying boy who was terrified of the dark and needed his brother to protect him. From the very get go Kato lets us know that Yukio is smart and he is the one with all the responsibilities, and he is in direct conversations with Mephisto. He is placed in a position of authority over Rin, but Rin is not told this and will never accept Yukio being in a position of authority over him. That on the first day of his high school life, he agrees to take on the role Shirou had in both teaching and guarding Rin.

He threatens his brother but does not shoot him. He calls him a demon and brother. He accuses him of killing their father and asks what their father was like at the end. He tells his brother that 'just die' will follow him wherever he goes but calls them the same at the same time. He tells Rin to get control of his flames and then treats him like the rest of the students.

He tells a lot of half truths, but shares a vital one in trusting Rin to know that Yukio too thought himself weak. (Still thinks himself weak.)

Yukio is not one thing. He is a multitude of complex things and at this point, the reader is only just starting their journey with him, and there are far more dramatic and horrifying things awaiting him.

But that's the next part. For now, I ask that you take a second look at chapters you think are familiar, and for the love of critical reading, ask yourself what the other characters who are not Rin know and are thinking. The story is so much richer when you look at them all.

To keep seeing my updates on this and my other aoex analysis/thoughts, check out my #raven ramble tag

[merlucide]

NONONO YOU LISTEN TO ME.

…

SAE IS A GOLD GIRLIE.

RIN IS A SILVER GIRLIE.

PROOF (ft my amazing editing):

YOU KNOW IM RIGHT.

(Other bllk boys colorssss)

[fruitypeaxh]

Itoshi Brother Rant

Thinking about how the fight was from Rin’s point of view rather than Sae’s, we see Sae as someone cold and detached toward Rin. However, I believe that's because Rin perceives him that way. Rin's emotions toward Sae are very detailed.

I feel like there are moments when you can see how much Sae cares for Rin, despite his words. We also don't know what Sae went through in Spain, so maybe his way of showing love is something Rin isn't used to, since he was always nice to him when they were little.

Maybe Sae said those things because Rin started playing soccer because he idolized Sae. I feel like Sae thought Rin was too dependent on him to find a dream/ego of his own. That's why Sae told him in the U-20 match, “As long as you're my little brother, you can never surpass me.” meaning that if Rin remains focused on defeating Sae, he will never become good enough in soccer.

(Let me cope ☹︎ I just need them to make up)

[ghostlychief]

My girl Rin

[lunarcloak]

for the sake of the future

(haunted by the past)

[minh-i]

To Rin, Sae might be the older brother that he looked up to who abandoned him after he came back from Spain. And to some others, Sae might be the guy who came back, abandoned Rin and their dream because he felt that Rin was too 'below' him. But I feel like that might not be the case at all.

Hear me out, Sae came back from Spain looking tired, drained, because he went and 'explored' the real world, he knows that he wasn't as good compared to the real pros.

This kind of tells us why Sae hates the Japanese football team so much. Take Kira for example, like Sae, he was glorified, admired upon as the future of the Japanese football team. But then he, and Sae, both met people with bigger egos, skills and unlike Sae who had the chance to 'improve' in Spain (I'll just say it like that for now cuz there's no Sae backstory yet), Kira got coldly eliminated and was never seen again.

Sae knows that the JFU doesn't really care about football and just wants to make a quick buck, thats why he hates them so much.

Next thing, the relationship of Sae and Rin. We know that they got along really well as kids and suddenly, Sae came back, changed his dream, and abandoned his brother. That's how it is right? But I feel like there's more to it than just that.

Sae's original dream was to become a striker, but when he went to play for Real Madrid that dream was probably crushed as he realized that he is, in fact, not as good as he thought he was. So, instead of being the world's best striker, as someone who's faced reality, he's aiming to be the best middle fielder instead. So he can support his lil bro, side by side with him.

In this panel here, Rin said that Sae said that they'd fight together. And Sae, instead of fulfilling that promise as a striker he's trying to tell Rin that he can be the best striker instead, and that his big bro the 'world's best middle fielder' will be right by his side to give him the support he needs.

But as Rin spoke Sae probably realized how heavily dependent his brother was to him. Rin wasn't playing football for the sake of football or his own passion, Rin was playing football for the sake of being the second best after Sae, playing football because of Sae. I think that's what set Sae off.

If you really look at Sae's eyes here I think you can kinda see that Sae was hurt by the words that Rin said (at least that's what I see -the widened eyes mixed with the heavy eye bags makes it look like Sae is gonna tear up-)

But by now, Sae has realized how dependent his brother's goal was on him and Sae knows that with a half assed goal like that, Rin won't be able to get nowhere in the 'real world'. Like Sae said, and I quote "The soccer field is a battlefield" which means that there is no room to be 2nd best. You either give it your all or give it nothing.

Sae wants Rin to have a goal of his own, if the only reason Rin is playing football is because of him, then Rin won't be able to make it.

In conclusion, as kids, Sae and Rin shared a dream, to be the best and 2nd best striker. But Sae, who has faced the real world and realized how Rin never wanted to be the best and only to be '2nd best after Sae' felt that Rin's resolve is weak and feeble decides to end 'their dream' right then and there.

And for Rin, if he were to keep playing even after Sae shattered their dream, to have his own goal to keep going forward to. Instead of always aiming for 2nd best.

Sae knows that he's just that good now since he's been able to play with world pros and have improved massively. So if Rin were able to beat him in a one on one, it'd mean that Rin would have enough potential to make it even if he'd be aiming for 2nd best, It'd mean that Rin would have enough talent and skill to continue 'dreaming'. But if Rin loses, their shared dream would be over and it'd be time for Rin to figure out his own dream and goal in life. To aim for the top, and to aim to be better than everyone else, which ultimately means for Rin to be able to overcome himself and aim to be better than he already is. Rin aiming for 2nd will not give him the same result because he's aiming to be good but you'd never overcome his mental barrier of 'not aiming to be the best' and it'd stop him from being able to evolve further (if you know what I mean?)

In this panel, you can see Rin calling Sae 'big brother' even though previously, Rin wanted no mention of Sae being related to him. Which shows that Rin is still attached to Sae and that Rin's only goal really, even though he said was to overcome his brother, was probably to be able to get his brother's approval rather than to actually become better than him.

I swear, if Sae had admitted to him being proud of Rin (which I wished happened) Rin might've lost his goal, which is to overcome and beat Sae, and gone back to his 'lukewarm self'. But because Sae chose to compliment Rin's rival/Isagi instead of him it made Rin's hatred for Sae and Isagi grow even more. In the end, as shown in chap 269 and in the U20 game, if Rin remembers the 'unpleasant memories' of him and Sae (+ the restriction Isagi brings) it manages to bring out his ego and further evolve him.

So I guess in the end, even though I'd very much love for them to reconcile, this is probably the better decision for Rin's football career (I still rlly want them to make up with each other, the sibling angst is getting to me).

I was rereading blue lock and this is just my own interpretation of these scenes. I don't know how accurate this is but this is how I see it. Also, I didn't proof read, this is just a rant because Itoshi brothers lore is sad. I probably repeated a lot of words so apologies for that.

[riririnnnn]

Random things in Blue Lock I find endearing:

-> Barou looking after Nagi

This was cute, you know. I mean, Barou was the one who first scolded Nagi for swimming in that bathtub, but he is also the one taking care of him—you getting me? It's a small thing, I know, but it's really cute!

-> Rin accepting Hiori's help

With the way Rin was shown till that point, I was actually scared for Hiori because I thought Rin was going to shook off Hiori by saying, "Fuck off!" Like, it just seems very plausible for his character, but then he surprised me!

Just look at him allowing Hiori to help him up by his arms! I understand that many will think that I've gone crazy, but this is one of those things where if you know, you know.

–> Barou throwing Nagi

I snorted at this panel. Like, before this panel, we can see that Isagi literally has his hand around Barou's nape, but no, Barou has to throw Nagi only, it got to be Nagi—if that doesn't sum up their relation, I don't know what will.

–> IGA-DA-GOAT-GURI and Goatmaru

When Isagi's name was suddenly called and he got startled which cracked them up. I just absolutely loved the above panel—so adorbs‼️

-> Sae being Sae

I really haven't seen anyone talk about what he said above—even I seemed to have overlooked his words. It seems so bittersweet that when Sae gave validation to Isagi, he mentioned Rin too like, "He saw through your instincts too." Almost as if it were some kind of necessary requirement for someone to shine in his eyes.

Like, in simple words, "You looked through my little brother's instinct too? Now that's some good shit!"

It's kinda a subtle way of Sae giving Rin validation too like, "He is a solid player! How I know? Oh because he saw through your gameplay."

Sweet.

-> Ubers

Lorenzo especially. Like, just look at him! I don't need to say anything more!

-> Silly Boy

I wanna squeeze his face!!!! AAAAAA!!

And he is supposed to be the ace of the national team???? Like, look at that face, I will never be intimidated by such a cutie patootie. He deserves so many smooches!

-> Little Brother

Aww. Just, awwwwwwww.

Head pats is my own love language too, so seeing this made me melt, and to be honest, Niko is Blue Lock's little brother! It just makes sense to think like that.

.

.

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Part: 2, 3, 4.

[someprettyname]

That one time Rin gave Aryu a breakdown.

but then...rin just sat down and....

So in conclusion, this is how Aryu sleeps every night....

.... Knowing that he's the most glam person around. Mhm. Round of applause for our glam boy please 👏🏻

[rainybyday]

I want to see a Curse Kakashi in the jjk x naruto cross over fics instead of Obito. I mean, the Uchihas from what the fandom and the anime/mangs showed up would make it apparent that Obito would be a cursed spirit if given the chance in the jjk world. Which, yeah I get it, but like, I want to see a Curse Kakashi haunting a Sourcer/Human Obito instead of the other way around

I mean, yes Obito has resentment and grief and just all the negative emotions to be a curse spirit and be OP as shit with everything and just haunting Kakashi cus being in another world doesn't mean he can escape his best friend/teammate/love interest/whatever-at-this-point haunting him from the grave. But I would also like to point out that so does Kakashi

I mean, yeah, you can argue that Kakahi has some sort of settlement of his feelings and trauma after the fourth war, but it doesn't mean all his emotions about those memories are gone as well. Sometimes, difficult events in life force you to accept them and move on or push them aside to focus on more important things. I'm not saying everyone does this, but from Kakashi's perspective, his whole life was repeatedly dragging him down. Death of loved ones, failures that changed the course of his life, questions of loyalty, betrayal, guilt, regests, and the constant what-ifs that are sure to haunt him from time to time. He is a shinobi, he wakes up to nightmares of blood and words from dead loved ones, he sees his loved ones come back from the dead, he himself died as well, only to face another war and get appointed a job he never wanted in the first place.

I'm just saying, any point in time in kakashi's life you can pluck him from the naruto verse and place him in jjk to be a curse of some kind.

anyways that my rant of wanting to read a story with Kakashi haunting obito in the jjk crossover fics, if anyone of you find this exact story tell me

[kitshomeforwaywardsouls]

So I started binging InuYasha lately and spoiler warning

Actually fucking horrified by the amount of people in the fandom who think shipping Sesshomaru with Rin is ok. Like Yashahime… certainly exists but what in the actual hell. Sesshomaru started letting Rin travel with him when she was like anywhere from 6-10 based on her character design and personality; and I’m supposed to believe that him dropping her off in Kaede’s village (and still sending her gifts and checking in while she grows up mind you) only to later marry and have children with her when she’s 16-18 is ok????? Whoever decided that that was something that should happen should be put in fucking jail I don’t care. And no one even try to argue that “they’re soulmates” or “it’s not grooming they fell in love!” because shut the fuck up, Rin talks about wanting to be with him forever when she’s literally a small child and he hears this. An adult deciding to persue a relationship with that kind of inherent power dynamic even if that person becomes “of age” is disgusting. The twins are cute but people who ship Sesshomaru and Rin need to be booed out of existence. Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

[ira-in-ink]

[🌹]: i'm never forgiving kaneshiro for giving us kaiser's type of woman, but not sae or rin's. i was looking forward to it and he disappointed me. again. looking back, i never forgive him for anything, really.