#endo i need their BACKSTORY

[peanutseagle]

I'd be excited too if my nanny had the hots for my homeroom teacher

[kugiscki]

tatsuya endo if u can hear my desperate cries …… yor forger backstory next chapter ….. please [voice begins to echo] please ….

[erenfox]

martha darling do you wanna tell is something 👀

SHSJSHSJGKKSKAAAAAAAEEEEE

.

.

aLSO

THAT heh heh heh NOT ONLY GIVES ANYA VIBES

BUT ALSO COULD IMPLY THAT MARTHA CURRENTLY HAS A BF

cuz becky asked: DID u HAVE a bf? (aka past tense)

and my queen martha just chuckles

OOOO 👀👀👀

[yumeka-sxf]

According to this tweet from Endo, today's new chapter will be the final installment of the "Henry x Martha backstory" arc...and it definitely went out on a high note! The part where Martha meets Henry's wife was absolutely heartbreaking...in particular the below page, starting with an upside down view of the scene, showing how the world is literally warping for Martha, followed by shards and shreds of her various memories with Henry, all the while the "throb, throb" of her heart is overlaying all the panels. Definitely one of Endo's best portrayals of a truly shocking moment.

It's also interesting that we never see Lucia's face, despite her having a big panel when she first appears.

Endo has done this before with other characters, Loid's parents being the other big example. We also never see their faces, despite them appearing several times during his flashback arc.

With the few examples we've had, to me it seems like Endo hides the faces of characters who 1) appear as flashbacks only and 2) who have had a significant emotional impact on the character whose memories they appear in, but at the same time, that character has since done their best to get over the painful memories associated with them. So they basically represent some past trauma for the character (even if they don't necessarily dislike them) but in the current time, they've more or less left that part of their past behind. Hence why their faces are obscured in the character's memories. This is also why I think we'll never see Loid's parents or Lucia's faces outside of flashbacks. This is just my interpretation of course, and I'm curious if there will be more examples in other characters' flashback arcs.

But back to Henry and Martha, I also liked the fact that, despite her broken heart, Martha still saw Lucia as a good person and became friends with her. Henry seems to love her as well. This actually ties back very well to what Martha tells Becky at the end of her story about how dangerous it is to latch onto preconceptions and prejudices without knowing the truth.

In Becky's simple world, she would see Lucia as the "evil seductress who stole Henry away" and Martha has to get him back. But as Martha said, things aren't always that simple and don't always adhere to our preconceived notions. Sometimes things can't end up exactly how you want or expect, so you have to be grateful for what you have and see things as they truly are, despite living with lingering regrets. In fact, this whole speech from Martha at the conclusion of her flashback was extremely deep and profound. Not many people can write both comedy and drama so well, but Endo is certainly one of them.

Also, is this Wiesel's first appearance? Still waiting for the doggy play date chapter with Wiesel, Bond, Max, and Aaron! 🐶

Since it's been so long since I read the first chapter of this arc, I couldn't remember if Martha had actually revealed the identity of her lover in her story, but makes sense that she didn't. I can imagine Becky storming into school yelling at Henderson and causing total embarrassment for all 😅 Funny that she almost guessed correctly though.

I'm surprised we never found out how Martha started working for the Blackbells, but that's an easy enough mystery to solve - she needed work after the wars were over, and being a bodyguard suited an ex-soldier. Also seems like she never told Henry her true feelings either...maybe by the time Lucia died, it was too late and they had both grown somewhat apart by then, and/or they had some additional falling outs about Martha joining the other wars, etc. It just wasn't meant to be and the message of the story was Martha coming to terms with that and being wiser for it.

In conclusion, this was a great arc that really shows Endo's range as a writer who can do both comedy and drama very well. Despite Henry and Martha being side characters, I have a feeling that the struggles they experienced will have relevance later in the series. But for now, I look forward to seeing the Forgers and other characters again (and getting back to the last major uproar of Anya telling Damian about her powers...seems like ages ago, lol). Endo will be taking a well deserved break, so the next new chapter will be on August 19th!

I also have some new posts planned in the coming weeks, so stay tuned for those as well 😀

[squish--squash]

on the topic of this post I made I also wanna talk about how nii satoru utilizes giving us, the readers, characters' backgrounds as a whole.

So far the characters we've seen flashbacks of/gotten backstories of have been Umemiya, Choji and Togame, Tsubaki, Hiragi and Sako and Kaji, Endo and Takishii, suzuri, and Sugishita (give or take a few more characters).

This might seem like a lot of characters, but the thing is, we're always given these flashbacks and backstories because we need them, or because they parallel to Sakura in one way or another.

Us getting Umemiya's backstory gives us a very big opening into learning WHY he is the way he is and why he does everything the way he does. It reveals to us why he focuses so much on eating with people and gardening, when it wasn't something we might've been wondering in the first place. As such a monumental guide and positive role model for Sakura, learning about Umemiya's past and how those key moments have effected him today allows us to realize just how much growing up Sakura still needs; while Umemiya's seemed to have completed his own journey in a way, Sakura is still leaps and bounds away from completing his own.

Choji and Togame and their history together with Shishitoren gives us more perspectives. With Togame, it gives us reasoning behind why he'd been choosing to act the way he'd been when we first met him, and creates depth by having us learn that he's not just some crazy evil guy who wants to stomp on people just for fun, he's been in agony for years. With Choji, it gives us another perspective on what it might look like for someone to find their way to the top with no further purpose, which is what Sakura's original goal was. He didn't want to be at the top so he could be a leader, he wanted at the top to prove himself and nothing more. With no further goal in mind, he could easily fall into a similar path as what Choji was walking down before the duel with Umemiya.

Tsubaki gives us hindsight and details on his own past and why he's so loyal to Furin and Umemiya, and why he is the way he is, which is important due to the themes surrounding his character involving self-acceptance and identifying with something outside of the norm. Both of those things are important to Sakura, with his unique looks and his overarching story revolving around the acceptance of others and himself. It was a backstory he, as well as us, needed to hear.

Suzuri's story rings similar to Sakura: both had upbrings that scarred them and let them down (as it's implied a LOT that Sakura's own past hasn't been nice to him in the slightest, and has given him below the bare minimum), but while Sakura ultimately chose to join Makochi, and later Furin, Suzuri did not have that grace of choice and instead could only choose what he could, which was leading his own gang through desperate measures. Like Choji, Suzuri's story can be real as a possible parallel to what Sakura could have been, but it also shows as a way to humanize Suzuri, who up until that point we saw as nothing but a mindless enemy.

Kaji's backstory and his mentorship to Sakura is important to us too, because we learn how far Kaji has come himself with the guidance of Hiragi that he uses to then help guide Sakura. It establishes a connection and bond between more of the Wind Breaker characters that makes them feel more fleshed-out and three-dimensional, and gives more depth to the world they live in.

etc etc... I'd add more but this post is getting too long. The point is, we're getting the backstories to our supporting cast and enemies because they build an increased depth to the overall story or increase our perspectives on characters that would otherwise remain flat or just simple. And we only get it when it matters, such as keep moments in the middle of an arc, or at the beginning to help. nii satoru isn't just throwing out information to us all willy-nilly, there's thought and care behind all of this.

This all comes to a head with the question, "why haven't we gotten a certain someone's backstory yet?" and that answer is very, sweetly simple. Because we don't need it. Because Wind Breaker is about him. We're getting backstories of other characters because Wind Breaker ISN'T ABOUT THEM, not as its core. We need backstories from other characters as a way to learn about them and their reasonings/motivations so we have complex and well-rounded characters, but without them needing a novel each, so we get stories that they relay or flashbacks to give us that information without taking a hit to the flow of the plot.

Plus, the series is ongoing. Who's to say we won't get an arc down the line that'll reveal a certain someone's backstory in a very important, key moment that'll make the entire wait worth it?

[cantareincminor]

Day 28: Favorite Theory for the End

I haven't looked into many fan theories for the end! But I did write my own version of the end in my longest fic, tying up Project Apple and other political threads.

Spitballing, I think the canon ending is likely to have these elements (rather boring predictions):

Forgers stay together, Twilight is allowed to retire as Loid Forger (there is precedent for this in the lives of real spies)

War is averted, and Ostania and Westalis establish more peaceful ties

All of the Forgers' individual secrets are revealed to each other, and while the journey to acceptance may be rocky (especially between Twilight and Yor), they ultimately forgive and understand each other

The "bad guys"---the political and scientific figures behind Project Apple, plus the warmongers, are defeated

Bonus: Franky gets a girlfriend!

Beyond this, there are more nuanced questions I'd like to explore:

Will Twilight have to leave the Forgers at some point?

This one's 50/50 to me. Having Twilight disappear for a while--whether it's because his cover is blown or because WISE needs him elsewhere--could introduce a lot of active tension and mystery. From a storytelling perspective, if Endo chose not to reveal Twilight's fate or narrate from his POV for an entire arc, it would help put the spotlight on other characters and give them a chance to shine.

It would force characters like Yor and Anya to change the status quo of their behavior, ask questions, hunt for answers. Especially if Anya came clean to her mother about her and Bond's powers and was able to assist in finding Twilight and helping him out of whatever predicament he might be in.

Will Twilight and Thorn Princess have to fight each other, even if just for a few minutes when they're taken off guard?

This one's 75% likely to me. While Endo teased it in Yor's drunken imagination, that could still have been legit foreshadowing of the eventual showdown. There are so many great fics about Twilight and Thorn Princess running into each other on the job by accident that explore this already, I won't go into the potential setup here.

The main reason I think it's likely is because the whole premise of the story is these two extremely competent underground professionals from opposing countries living together and having no clue about the other's identity. It would make sense for them to have an explosive surprise encounter where the house of cards falls apart.

But what happens after the encounter is the main question. Does one of them leave the Forgers? Do they fully come clean or does Twilight continue to lie and try to trick Yor? Does all the trust they have accumulated in their relationship vanish and have to be painstakingly rebuilt? Or will it be a quieter scenario where they each own up to their guilt, and commit to understanding the other? I'd like to lean toward the latter, especially with Twilight's personal philosophy of relentlessly trying to understand every unknown he comes across. As he told Donovan Desmond, he believes that it's worth trying to understand other people even though it's very difficult.

Will Anya be captured/threatened by Project Apple in some way?

75% likely. This again has been explored in many fics.

From a storytelling perspective this makes sense because it would serve as a unifying factor for Twilight and Thorn Princess to work together, and WISE and Garden perhaps as well (or for their best operatives to go rogue, which can be even more interesting).

Anya, and children as a whole, are cast as the beacons of hope and innocence, worth protecting at all costs, throughout the narrative. This is apparent from chapter 1 when Twilight reveals his inner motivation is to make a world where children don't have to cry. It's reemphasized through Yor's own backstory of raising Yuri at great cost to herself; when we see Twilight's own tragic backstory of everything he lost and how he became a spy; when Sigmund Authen says that children are the world's greatest treasure; when Jeeves looks on Damian and his friends and is happy to see him loosen up and be himself, instead of constantly feeling burdened by adults' expectations. All this is to say that, when an author sets up a person/concept like this as "The Precious" in a story, they're likely to threaten it with grave danger as the pinnacle of the conflict--for all the competing sides to give up their differences and come together over the one thing they can agree on.

Will any important characters die?

75% likely. To fuel the narrative, Endo may kill someone off, as is common in longer mangas. The convenient way to do this is with an older mentor figure like Sylvia or McMahon--which leaves their subordinates devastated and lost and looking for answers or retribution. If Sylvia dies, Twilight may be forced to step up as commanding officer of WISE until the parent organization can send a replacement.

Other than that, I really have no clue.

How will Yor and Yuri confront each other about their respective secrets?

I believe this will happen after Twilight and Yor find out about each other. It might come as part of the identity reveal convo, where Twilight discloses this to Yor. He would definitely need to prevent her from giving away any signs to Yuri that her husband is a spy.

Other than that, I really have no clue again, lol

And finally, a less important question, but one I've seen fans debate about now and then: will Twilight and Yor have more children together?

50/50. (This includes both biological children and adopting--to cover the possibility that one or both of them have become infertile due to the demands of their jobs.)

Obviously I do not think this will happen until way later, after all the identity reveals, after peace has been achieved. Endo might conclude the manga with a timeskip to show what our main cast's lives are like (and the overall political landscape), and that might be when we glimpse a Twiyor baby or two.

From discussions with other fans, I think that opinions about the "Twiyor baby" largely hinge on a fan's personal preference for whether they want children in their own lives. Of course there are exceptions, but in general, fans who have or want children of their own headcanon that Twiyor will have more children, while those who don't want children hc that Twiyor will stick with just Anya.

Given that much of this question is speculating on future Twilight and Yor (I'd say at least 3 canonical years after where we currently are in the manga), it's really hard to say where their mindset will be at that point. But, I'd say Yor is more likely to want another child than Twilight. Family life with the Forgers has given her new purpose and joy; she loves being a mom to Anya, and whenever we see memories of her youth, we see her happily taking care of Yuri and treasuring those times with him. Twilight, on the other hand, needs to undergo A LOT of character growth before he'll even consider a question like this. Right now he doesn't even acknowledge Anya and Yor as his family beyond mission purposes, is trying to emotionally distance himself from them, and is still committed to the whole "hero who casts no shadow" business.

Thanks for reading this far if you made it down here!

[gaoau]

i've been thinking a lot about Suo and i need it to stop, so i wanna analyse him a little bit and say things into the void. normally i like to psychoanalyse characters in fics but i've seen that side of the fandom and i do NOT wanna go there, so i'm saving myself by pulling the same thing i did with Nanao ig.

disclaimer: this isn't necessarily a theory about his backstory as much as it is what i personally wanna see happen. see, if i were writing him, i'd do very specific things that could go in various directions, but since i am not, unfortunately, writing him and he's not my character to fuck with, all i can do is yap. which, also, probably won't be very eloquent.

manga spoilers for literally the whole manga up to date btw.

i don't think we won't be getting a backstory on him, to be honest. with a character like him, yeah, the mystery is part of the charm, and having this much anticipation can suck ass if once the secret gets revealed, it doesn't stick the landing. but i doubt Nii Satoru doesn't have something planned for him. why would bro be leaving Suo's room illustration out of the fanbook if there wasn't something there to talk about? what is in his room to talk about? but that's not what this is about.

anyway i'm gonna be so fr Suo's built like a dog. he's clearly full of shit, and yknow, that's fine, good for him, but there are things that are so painfully obvious he's just straight up lying about. after his fight with Kanuma, which is deadass the first time we see him fight, he says he "doesn't usually get so emotional," which ?? shut the fuck up? that's not true.

i know a liar when i see one. we've seen him fight five times? six if i wanna be generous; in three of those he got crazy emotional (Kanuma, keel, and Endo), and just a tiny bit miffed with the gymnast guy idr his name fuck that freak. which, listen, to be fair, if someone touched a single hair on Nirei's head in front of me, real me too i'd kill a guy. but look me in the eye lil bro don't lie to me. real talk, though, he was more than ready to kill the keel dude, and was going to. he wanted to. he was shaking while Sakura held him back, don't play with me. he wasn't gonna stop just cause someone was interjecting.

bro was itching to kill, side-eyeing Sakura, spitting snark cause how's the hot-headed mf who jumps head-first into a brawl without a second thought staying more rational than him, the rational one? Sakura's talking to him the same way i talk to my dog after she tries to kill my cat. i'm ngl my dog has better self-restraint than this kid. he also just straight up xd's his way out of it? like "oh whoopsies! mb gang! i was just feeling silly goofy! 🤪" like he forgets he's not supposed to glare at people with murder in his eyes.

speaking of murder! this is where i want him to have killed someone before Bofurin. he's, like, 15? so there's not much time to work with, but the same way Kaji was going feral at idk 8 years old, i can see a world in which Suo actually went overboard when he was a younger kid. (i'm not saying this is what things are pointing at, but i want this to be the case. i would do this myself.)

he is emotional, i don't think that's up for debate. i understand why he gets so emotional and i do think it's very noble and cool and swag of him, that's a good person, somewhat, he cares about his friends and it pisses him off when they get hurt. i fuck with that. that's great, get him an ice cream (if he even eats fucking weirdo). but why are we acting like "i am chill ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ" when, clearly, that's not true?

here's where his teacher comes in. for how much grief i'm giving him, i don't think he's all lies at all. i don't think him liking Nirei and Sakura enough to not only speak highly of them, but also fuck a guy up for them, is a lie. i think he is as kind as Umemiya describes him to be, cause honestly, if Umemiya says someone is kind, then they probably are.

i don't think this is necessarily fake as much as i think it's borrowed. it's learned behaviour. it's teachings passed down to him by his teacher. it's discipline. it's not something that comes naturally to him, but it is something a person he respects and looks up to taught him, so he tries to live by it. he's very clearly been disciplined, probably got beaten into the ground by his teacher, got his ass handed to him again and again and again until he sharpened his reflexes and learned how to control himself in a fight.

he talks a lot about adulthood, talks a lot about maturing, talks a lot about self-control and whatnot. which, by the way, this is a child? lil bro you're fifteen go play on your switch idk. but i'd like to think this comes from someone telling him, "hey, what you did was not okay. you have a lot of strength and you're not an animal. use it wisely so you can one day grow into a proper adult." solely cause i want him to have killed someone. that's all i want.

i think it would make sense, really. how funny would it be if he was living similarly to Sakura? i've seen people headcanon him as a rich kid, but he lies a lot, and i wouldn't put it past him to be living in a sad, lonely one-room apartment. there's a billion ways things could be done with him. maybe his parents didn't care to try disciplining him, maybe he grew up with no parents at all. he has a short fuse, that's easy to tell, even if he acts like he's got everything under control. it's a very Suzuri type of situation, so maybe it's not the direction Nii Satoru is gonna take things, but one can dream.

as for the eyepatch, i haven't really thought much about it. the way i see things, he's gotta come from a neglectful background, so losing an eye would make sense. or maybe he did it himself, i'd love to see that (i would do that with a character like this if he was mine). if his eye is even missing at all, cause all things considered, it might be sort of just a way to give himself a handicap to remind himself not to go overboard.

which, circling back to the self-restraint thing, i like to think that's the reason he doesn't really use much excessive force. not to say he doesn't kick and punch, cause lil bro packs a mean punch, but he doesn't gravitate to hitting people. he's usually using his opponent's weight and momentum against them, which is why i was decently surprised when i saw him grab the keel dude and wind back to bash his face in. he's not violent, until he lets go of what little self-restraint he has, and then he is. it's values and principles that come from someone else telling him how to behave, except he still struggles to hold himself back.

to put it in simple terms, if he were my character, this is what i would do. i'd have him kill someone by going overboard as a kid, have him be taken in by this teacher, have him disciplined and clean his act up by beating his ass, and then have him parrot all these teachings at people he meets later. cause that's essentially what he's doing, he's just repeating things someone else told him. what does bro know about being an adult he doesn't even pay taxes go do your trig homework. but he tries, and you can tell he's trying, even if it doesn't come natural, he cares about his friends and he cares about becoming a better person, he's just a little too quick to snap.

you know what i mean? he cares about Nirei in particular, he loves Nirei, he tries to learn from Nirei. (guys i love Nirei i wont shut the fuck up). but fr, he's got that Nanao complex where he instigates things or sets things into motion and doesn't quite participate. he watches from the back, for better or for worse, but he doesn't necessarily involve himself in things. he keeps a distance. he feels like the other side to Sakura's coin sometimes, learning about people and how warm they actually are. he's all prim and proper and nonchalant, but he recognises he's no match for Sakura and maybe even Nirei. after all, it's always Nirei the one grabbing both of them by the arm and dragging them places.

he talks so big and maturely about not meddling too much with people who can't quite handle friendship yet, and then goes "!" when Nirei tells him "? fuck are you talking about? that's the more reason to teach Sakura about friendship." it's the look on his face after Nirei, despite Suo's long-winded and logical argument, goes to Kotoha and insists they help Sakura anyway. he's learning from Nirei too. also Nirei's crazy endearing so real me too but that's beside the point.

i don't think these parts of him are fake, but they might just be artificial. he's still integrating them into his own person and making them his, but he still slips here and there. he's not quite there yet. i hope he killed someone when he was 8yo. that's all thank you for reading thumbsup

[leeknowslaughh]

Wind Breaker Chapter 158 SPOILERS!!!

I’M CRYING OVER THIS COLORED PANEL

I really loved this arc a whole lot, but boy am I glad it’s done!! Please, Satoru Nii, please give us more background on Sakura and PLEASE GIVE US SUO’S BACKSTORY!!!! 😭 I’m begging for it.

Good for Endo even though I still don’t like him and have NOT forgiven him for what he did to Sakura!

NIREI LOOKS SO FREAKIN CUTE HERE IM NEVER MOVING ON!!!!!!!!

Also good for Sakura to learn how to text well enough to let everyone know it’s over and that Umemiya, my king, is victorious! ❤️❤️

Kaji looks so defeated 😞 my poor baby! I need him to be hugged. Someone hug him stat!

Overall, this was a great arc and a wild ride of emotions. I’m glad it’s over so we can move on to some fluff!

[laauranenn]

in wbk fandom you can't have conversation about the writing, development and complexity, this fandom is overprotective about nii's mid writing, Any comments about his flaw in writing characters or this plot will be shut down , fandom only cares about shipping and yaoi

the side characters especially umemiya are well fleshed out with detailed backstories , everything in the plot literally revolve around umemiya , the antagonists like choji and chika revolved around their obsession with ume , tsubakino and sugishita backstories included ume too ,nii is focusing on exploring umemiya and his past more than his mc Sakura

Nii can't make Sakura the center of the plot, the plot always revolves around the side cast and their issues ,while the problem Sakura has with trusting people has been addressed and nearly settled, the root cause is still left in the wind. It feels like the issue was addressed, but Sakura himself specifically never got his past elaborated on, but there is prime opportunity for angst and character moments, as well as just humanizing Sakura.

Thank you so much for responding!!

When I said I want to have a conversation, I meant it!! I agree that when you've got a fandom for something, the fans tend to be protective of the media and its author, and that shipping is something that is very prominent in fandom spaces.

But for the sake of this conversation, I'm going to do my best to ignore shipping that isn't confirmed or implied in the manga, and I'm going to acknowledge flaws in the writing if the points you bring up are convincing!

(If it becomes relevant, I'll only bring up things such as Endo and Takiishi's relationship and Tsubaki's affection for Umemiya, but I don't think they'll be something I need to really get into. )

I disagree with all the plot revolving solely around Umemiya, despite how relevant he is to most arcs in the manga.

The reason that Umemiya is so relevant, and is so present in the story, is because Sakura is going to take his spot someday. Sakura comes to Furin intending to take the top spot, a position that is currently filled by Umemiya.

For Sakura to make it to the top and it mean something, we need to understand what the position truly entails, and how it came to be. Which is what all the information we get on Umemiya is for. We're learning of his journey to the top and how he has shaped the world and its inhabitants.

For Choji and the Shishitoren arc, I'd like to argue that his obsession with Umemiya is about his position, and not about Umemiya himself. Choji and Umemiya are essentially in the same position, just in different teams. Which is why Choji focuses on Umemiya the way he does.

Choji and Togame share the same notion of power being a means to freedom. Choji latches onto this and decides that he wants to be the strongest, and therefore the freest. But when he reaches his goal of being the strongest, it turns out to not be like how he imagined, and the team takes a turn for the worst because of this.

Umemiya, however, is the strongest of his team. Yet he isn't experiencing the same boredom and despair as Choji is, despite being at the top. This is what Choji is so focused on. It's less about Umemiya as a person and is instead about the position he's in.

Sakura does also play an important role in the Shishitoren arc. The whole conflict likely wouldn't have started, or wouldn't have gone the way it did if it weren't for Sakura being there. Without him, the conflict likely would've been resolved differently.

Sakura and Togame's fight is important for both characters. For Sakura, he has a fight with someone where they both respect each other, likely for the first time. And for Togame, Sakura opens his eyes to the ways he's been acting, the ways he's gone against his own beliefs in order to salvage what is left of Shishitoren.

As for Tsubakino and Sugishita, they've both known him for years and he's played an important part in their lives.

For Tsubakino, Umemiya has been his friend since their first year in junior high. He learns that Tsubakino just wants to be himself and love the things he loves, which Umemiya praises him for, and tells him he's going to help back him up if someone tries to hurt him again. And they've been close friends all the way to where we currently are in the manga! Umemiya shows up in Tsubakino's story because he's relevant. It'd also be a little strange for Tsubakino to be one of the four kings without Umemiya showing up somehow, don't you think?

And with Sugishita, Umemiya also plays a similar role. Sugishita gets himself stuck in a spiral of meaningless fights he doesn't even want to be a part of, which Umemiya then saves him from. Umemiya saves him and brings him the peace he wants. This then manifests into his loyalty to Umemiya, as well as his friendship with the four kings.

With Sugishita, this also gives us insight into why he seems to hate Sakura so much. From the start we've known the main reason for it, which is Sakura aiming for Umemiya's spot in the school. But with the most recent chapters, we see why exactly he is so offended by this idea. Umemiya brought Sugishita peace, something that Sakura is actively disrupting. How could someone like Sakura, who's constantly snapping at people, and running into fights possibly measure up to Umemiya and what he's done for Sugishita?

It adds another layer to Sakura and Sugishita's rivalry, which I find incredibly interesting!

It's true that a lot of side characters are getting detailed backstories, while Sakura hasn't really had one yet. But in my opinion, this works out nicely with the way it's executed. It adds to the worldbuilding and makes the characters and the town feel more real, more solid.

I've really enjoyed learning about all the characters, as well as their relationships with each other. It makes Makochi and Furin feel like actual places with actual people, rather than just something that's there to only serve the main character.

As for Sakura's lack of backstory? I can see why you're itching for one, but I can't see it fitting into the story well if we got it right now. I also don't think that there even is a lot to it, not a lot to tell. We've already got a lot of info about Sakura and why he is the way he is, even without a proper backstory.

Even the first chapter makes Sakura's past very clear. He's a boy who's been mistreated for his looks for his entire life. It's brought up a couple times in the first few chapters even.

"How ya look doesn't matter in a fight, that's why I came to Furin"

"This is more like it. This is the right reaction. Everyone is always pushing me away, rejecting me, dismissing me-"

Sakura is someone who's been isolated growing up. This shines through in the way he interacts with others. Sakura is much more confident in a fight, he handles himself better in a fight. But when he interacts with others in a casual setting, he stumbles and gets flustered easily. A lot of the things that show just how alone he's been are subtle or might even be played as jokes, such as the only contact in his phone being a bot that gives you the weather forecast for the day. He also takes things literally. This could be just a trait of his, but it's likely a result of his lack of experience in social situations.

It's a lot of little things that add up. He's slow at texting because he's had nobody to text. He holds a spoon weirdly, likely because nobody corrected him growing up. Doesn't know how to open a Ramune bottle as he's never had one before. (This last one could also just be coincidence, but it all does still add up.)

I'm satisfied with how much we know about Sakura, but I'd love to hear what you'd like to get from a Sakura backstory!! Because it is true we haven't gotten a lot of info on where he was before Makochi.

The lack of backstory for him is because Wind Breaker isn't about his past, it's about him moving forward from it. It's about how Sakura makes a space for himself in Makochi. It's a story about him being accepted, about how a boy hated by all others becomes the hero of the town!

Please do respond again!! Share what you think of what I've said and give me your own observations! I'd love to keep the conversation going :)!!

[mydream-synopsis]

here me out i think togame and endo are two sides of the same coin.

they are willing to do anything for choji and chika, respectively, but they do so in two very different ways - endo destroys, while togame fixes.

for endo, takiishi is his god: whatever chika shows is right, is endo's definition of right. takiishi's actions are absolutes, and endo is his most devoted follower. therefore, endo does every thing to provide, even if that means burning down the world till only its ashes are left. like he did for this arc, he would dig a path with his bare hands for takiishi, so chika doesn't need to lift a single finger.

on the other hand, togame knew what he did was wrong. he knows he should have made sure that choji did not step into the wrong mindset that day in front of the ori. but, he couldn't bring himself to do so because choji is his king, and he is merely a knight in service. whatever tomiyama wishes is his command. however wrong choji's decisions may have been, togame's decision was to protect him and his authority as the leader of shishitoren.

that's why im really excited to see how endo and takiishi reach a conclusion at the end of this arc. for togame, meeting sakura and being confronted of his own decisions had pushed him to realise his own doing; this makes togame's decision to go to sakura with hiiragi, suo, nirei, and sugishita a major turning point for his character - for the first time, togame became his own person. this is my own assumption, but im guessing that togame chose to go to the bridge where sakura would be rather than to go with choji, as both a strategy for the fight and as a gesture for sakura. this was the first time he wrote his own morals.

as for endo, his fight with sakura is the first time he was ever "seen". this is what endo has been searching for this whole time; he just wanted someone to see him, and only him for even just a second. now the question is, can endo receive this from takiishi? can umemiya bring takiishi to this realisation, just like he did for choji? most importantly, what will endo choose?

(also. i really hope we get to see takiishi's backstory. because it's interesting how, even with the way he reacts to endo, he does Not actually get rid of him. takiishi has the power to practically end him on the spot but he doesn't!!!!!!!! WHY.)

[bluntloyalist]

more than air in my lungs and blood in my veins i need backstory and/or development of whatever the fuck weird toxic situationship love square bullshit is going on w tsubaki umemiya takiishi and endo

[the-alarm-system]

Why Singlets should be EXPECTED to support ALL systems no matter what side of syscourse you are on

Even if you believe that endogenic systems aren't systems, you should hold singlets at the high standard of listening and believing EVERY system they come across. Singlets have to remember the power they hold over us when it comes to the right of our existence, and so they should hold 0 standards to what a "real system" should be like. If we gave them even a sliver of what proves a fake system to be, they will start to doubt more and more systems depending on what they define as "wrong and abnormal" just by the simple mental opinion of "well some systems are faking..I have to spot them out".

This is why so many anti-endo singlets turn towards belief that all systems are fake, even DID or other CDD systems. We also do not owe singlets our traumatic backstories for them to believe us, and putting anti endo rhetoric into their heads will only make them demand that of us. Most ableist singlets, when you come out to them, already demand a "real" reason. Our trauma is not something they need in order to respect us, and 99% of the time they would perceive the trauma as not bad enough to be a CDD system.

Even if you are anti-endo, if your singlet friend is talking about potential fakers, thats a red fucking flag because they do not understand anything of the system experience to even think of determining that. Hold them to the proper standard of believing and supporting every single system because they are singlets and have no true voice on plural existence.

cross tagging because this is a general statement, ALL singlets should support ALL SYSTEMS without question. This is a fact to all systems.

[erenfox]

MARTHA DARLING THAT ANGST WAS TOO MUCH FOR ME HELP

BECKY I FEEL YA, GURL I WAS SCREAMING THE SAME THING AS YOU 😭😭😭😭😭🥺

(spoilers lmao)

OUR QUEEN MARTHA WAS IN LOVE WITH HENRY

MR. ELEGANTO X OUR QUEEN NANNY 🥺😭

IF THIS AIN'T THE PUREST SLOWBURN ONESIDED LOVE THEN IDK WHAT IS

she beat them bullies for him and then he protected her from them I'M CRYING 😭✋

im definitely sure that henry is gonna fall for her now 100% because did you see his lovestruck face during the dance THAT WAS ADORABLE 🥺

WE NEED MORE HENDERMARTHA BACKSTORY ENDO I'M BEGGING U 😭🙏🙏

[yumeka-sxf]

Henderson and Martha backstory in today's new chapter...was not expecting that, but it was really good! I know people were shipping them before, but now the ship has really set sail 😅

So Martha is the origin of Henderson's "Elegant" catchphrase...how cute, lol.

Now we know why Henderson was so shocked when Becky said this! 😂

I'm not into reading fanfics, but I still got some "Twiyor Eden AU" vibes from this chapter!

I see some of Twilight in young Henderson: Twilight is constantly conflicted with keeping up his spy persona despite growing feelings for his family, just like Henderson was obsessed with perfectly upholding the rules of Eden...until he started to realize that even the prestigious school was being corrupted.

Also similarly, Twilight's realization about the need for information, which eventually led to him becoming a spy, is just like Henderson's realization about the need for education, which led to him becoming a teacher.

And still another similarity is Henderson becoming so obsessed with his pursuit of education that he cast aside desires of wanting to have fun and enhance relationships with others...just as Twilight has been doing since he became a spy. But it seems like present day Henderson realized how ignorant he was back then...maybe Twilight will eventually realize this about himself as well?

I've mentioned many times before that I love how Endo is able to so seamlessly bring darker themes into otherwise non-dark stories, which makes the setting, characters, etc, more interesting. Even in something so simple like the short mission with Bond last chapter where he gives a glimpse into the horrors of animal experimentation, in this chapter he brings in themes of impending war and corrupt education in what would otherwise be a benign school romance story.

Looks like this arc will continue with at least another chapter, possibly more! I'm still curious to see how Martha ended up becoming a soldier and eventually working for the Blackbells. Or maybe she ended up being part of Garden, as some people theorize. Regardless, I really don't think ballet stayed her main focus throughout her life. Also, didn't Henderson eventually get married and have a child later on? Hope we'll learn even more about them in the next chapter!

[sophieinwonderland]

i've seen some people saying that and i don't know where to post it and i don't wanna get into syscourse atm but RAH.

sysmeds saying that endos are all faking being plural and therefore are all bad and should be harassed and shits is just really horrible to me. first of all: how can you tell that a thousand of people are faking an experience??? second of all: yes, some people might be faking but that's probably not even 1/3 of them. and last of all: even if someone is faking, do you think harassing them, being mean towards them will make them stop?

and even, faking being plural, or having a disorder is a sign of something else: why do they do it? yeah, most of the time it's because of other disorders, sometimes trauma or because of a need of attention. and maybe more! practically nobody fakes it for fun and giggles! -Lorenzo

This! ☝️

These sysmed narratives always seemed pretty absurd to me for a lot of the reasons you point out.

If I could point out another, it's that people who want to fake a mental illness are usually not going to pretend to be endogenic.

People faking mental disorders are going to try to be the most extreme form of those because they want attention. That's what they are in it for. They would want the sympathy for their trauma, sympathy for how bad their lives are because of their disorder, etc.

Since dissociative identity disorder is the most well-known form of multiplicity, that's what they would most likely be trying to fake. Since it's mostly associated with trauma, and traumatic backstories are going to help garner sympathy, actual disorder fakers are going to be faking that too.

All of this just goes to show that... Sysmeds really just put zero thought into their stances. Because if you think about it for more than 5 seconds, the entire thing falls apart.

It becomes even more ridiculous when you throw in tulpamancy to the mix, and realize that if they are correct and endogenic systems aren't real, that means that an entire community wrote hundreds of guides, some of which are novel length, on how to do something that isn't possible, and made those guides available for free with no benefit to themselves.

It makes absolutely no sense at all.

[psychicwavementality]

🍄🍬🔪

🍄: I like to think Endo has a thing for scent and musk. Specifically Chikawa Takeshi's and Sakura's :)

🍬: This take is lukewarm at best, but I dislike how the fandom woobifies Sakura everytime something 'sad' happens. I think he's learning to be vulnerable and that's good, but the fandom's reaction makes my eye twitch sometimes. He doesn't need to be babied and I'm certain he'd rather be respected regardless of his backstory.

🔪: Oh, there's so many... I don't know where to begin 😂 I think the worst of the worst comes from when I wrote for DSMP lore 😭🙏

One of them: pages and pages of bestiality and zoo perspectives and other adjacent materials, both scientific and personal. I was writing for a character who was, weirdly, briefly established as a zoo in canon, but then nobody mentioned shit about it and I was like, wtf, this is opportunistic. (It's c!Wilbur. I viscerally remember the Wiki stating he and Friend (a sheep) dated, but only in Dutch. Then he had this whole thing about Sally the Salmon. And a fox son? C'mon.)

++ Researching suicide methods, better ways to write gore, and death is probably a given for any darkfic/ero guro writer. Cannibalism, that one was for c!Sam—I technically know how to butcher a human carcass; I have a guide that I stumbled across that teaches you how to... 😭

I also had to search a shitton of legal documents, first for the USA, then annoyingly Australia for Lustlove. That wasn't weird, just extreme pain.