#jin is best samurai boy

[viharbinger]

Hear me out. . . Jin Sakai + childhood friends to lovers 🩷

Childhood Friends to Lovers

pairings: Jin Sakai x gn! reader

a/n: hi I have school on July 1st imma kms tbh 🥹

warnings: nothing, mentions of marriage?

masterlist

The young lord Sakai was a timid boy growing up. He grew more brave over the years, of course, but you were the highlight of it— by chasing him with bugs and scaring him with stories you heard from adults like a bear roaming around the village.

You first met near a river by the village when you saw him climbing up a tree. Being a chilvarous child, you followed him up, scaring him down the process. Let's say a few broken bones appeared when you both accidentally fell down.

As innocent as you look, his parents and Yuriko could not even begin to resent you for breaking his bones on accident because of how well you were bringing him out of his shell. They love that their only son was finally out there making friends.

However, you don't know his family that well since they seem to always be somewhere else whenever you're around. But whenever you do get to visit, Yuriko will always be there handing out snacks and taking care of you like you're also part of clan Sakai.

She'd comb your hair so it was neat and tidy when she's finished with Jin's, clean your clothes when it's muddy after playing with Jin— you're practically family!

Over the years as you grew up, there was definitely some romantic tension around, almost kisses here and there, and definitely a lot of hand holding. Jin does sees this, but he doesn't do anything yet as he's simply too busy to advance further in your relationship. But of course, you're not going to let that slide.

Finally when the time was right, Jin was back at home in Omi village and had spare time. Let's say that you gave him a kiss or two and it all worked out. He was also uncharacteristically smiling the whole day after that, you'd think he was a different man.

The first kiss was honestly a test on the waters, you did it first to see if he was fine with it. He was surprised at first, speechless, in fact. It almost made you chicken out and started apologising for trying to make an advance on Lord Sakai. "I'm sorry. Keep going." He says, blinking out of the trance you put him in, cheeks flush. And you kissed him a second time. And another. And another one longer than that one. It's like you're teenagers learning to kiss for the first time. Which probably was true on his part.

Everytime you meet now, he's greeting you by kissing your hands, and caressing them softly. It's like your playful and messy friendship changed completely to a beautifully romantic one. Sometimes, you even get the surprise of Jin bringing you back a gift from his travels. Maybe a poem? Flowers? Or something you like?

The next thing he's thinking about is marrying you, honestly. You seem to be the only person to be able to capture his heart and keep it full, he's not gonna let you get away!

And when the samurais on Komoda beach fell and Jin barely came out alive, he went to you as soon as he could. He needed to know if you were okay. If his best friend and partner was okay. "Jin.. You're alive." You hugged him tightly, dropping the bags of goods on the floor.

"Of course." He whispers, hugging you right back, pressing a firm kiss to your temple. "But how? I heard every samurai died. I was about to prepare your funeral." You laugh cry, wiping the sharp painful tears away.

"I'm here now, just like always." He tucks a stray hair away from your face, watching as your expression changes from upset to happy. He's right, he has always been with you. Since you were just a little child, he's always been.

[kid-az]

Astral Chain Legion personality Hc’s

I’ve been getting very obsessed with Astral Chain recent, and really want to share my headcanon’s about the five Legion’s, even if only a few people will care. (ALSO HEAVY SPOILERS FOR THE AXE LEGION!)

Sword (Stereotypical knight pal.)

-Stereotypical knight/samurai personality, very honorable, likes a fair fight, and heavily dislikes when an opponent or the Mc acts ”dishonorable.“ (Chimera’s by them using elemental attacks, and the player when they use grenades or consumables.)

-Is extremely interested in healing and medicine, specifically because such a thing is completely foreign in the Astral Plane. Can’t heal physical injuries yet, but managed to discover how to heal red matter corruption from individuals.

-Loves tampering with technology, particularly camera’s and other surveillance tech.

-Likes dogs, and wishes the Mc would adopt them as well. Also likes playing ball, especially when nearby people think there‘s a ghost haunting.

-Gets along well with Arm and Axe, but distrusts Beast and outright hates Arrow. Is best friends with the Mc.

Arrow (Little shit)

-In contrast to Sword, Arrow is more of an unscrupulous, pragmatic individual, preferring to keep a distance and use whatever underhanded tactics they need to win. This is why they disobeyed and abandoned Akira, as they did not appreciate their more dutiful, lawful personality. Only connects with the Mc when they see how much of a rebel they are.

-Is extremely competitive, and dislikes when they lose at a shooting contest. Has an intense, one-sided rivalry with Joey Wood, and is very bitter on how they lost so many times to him.

-Loves cats, and often plays with or pets them in Max’s safehouse. Is anlso interested in big cats, and wishes they were still extant. Likes pigeons and crows too, and often silently begs to to Mc to buy seeds to feed them.

-Hates Beast, but is decently cordial with Arm and Axe. Likes pissing Sword off, and doesn’t have the same animosity towards Sword as they do for them. Feels somewhat bad for Akira, especially when they discover they have clones.

Arm (Boisterous gentle giant)

-Gentle giant to living beings. Is very careful when interacting with people or animals, and often wishes they could see them. Likes performing “magic tricks” appreciating the surprise and praise people indirectly give them over such a seemingly impossible thing. Loves every animal, and is interested in learning about them.

-Really physically affectionate to the Mc and their friends, and often hugs them.

-The complete opposite to objects and chimeras. Loves obliterating dumpsters and other metallic objects that crumble, and is very glad to smash/blast any chimera’s they find, often offering to be worn as a suit of armor to do so.

-Is very jovial, and often makes sure that the Mc or other, non-beast legions are okay or relatively uninjured. Is very interested in food and coffee, and tries their best to prepare such things with mixed results. (Though has definitely gotten better at it post-game)

-Likes classical music, and wishes that genre was more common on the ark.

-Is friends with every other legion other than the Beast legion, who they outright hate. Somewhat misses their old owner Jin, and hopes that he isn’t overworking himself.

Beast (Not at all a good boy.)

-A rabid, murderous psycho of a legion. Loves brutally mauling any chimera or human their allowed to outside of other Beast chimera’s, who they actually formed an amicable relationship with (Comparable to a gang leader) before being recaptured. Was the only one that wanted to outright kill their owner.

-Completely hates anyone they deem as “weak,” the only ones not considered that being the Mc and other Beast chimera’s. Outright prejudiced against anything else, especially Shell chimeras, which they are very, very eager in ripping apart. Begrudgingly allows the Mc to ride them out of respect.

-Is very disturbed by dog’s and how much they resemble them and other beast chimeras, often hiding away from them out of fear.

-Really likes music, and often bops to that. Especially likes heavy metal when killing chimera’s.

-Hates the other legions, and that feeling is mutual outside of Axe, who considers Beast to be funny in a demeaning way. Completely hates their former owner Alicia, though to be fair they hate her as much as they do any other human.

Axe/Max (Grumpy but kindhearted dad)

-Has the fused personality of the Axe legion and Max, who the former absorbed out of respect for their bravery and selflessness.. Is upset about no longer being able to eat human food, but doesn’t mind that as he can protect his kids and civilians better.

-Just as much of a gruff but gentle-hearted guy as before, though now has a huge love for battling chimera’s. Is very happy to see his kid is rescuing and taking care of the cat’s, and couldn’t be more proud.

-Axe legion personality before fusing with Max was a mix between Sword and Arrow, being knight-like but also being very pragmatic in their fighting style. Did consider Max to be like a father, and felt bad about killing his human body, and so decided to mix his memories with their’s. 

-Can be very overprotective, and often get’s in the way of enemy attacks to protect his kid. Felt terrible for having to kill Akira, but knew that they wanted them to do that to save humanity from Noah Prime.

-Gets along well with all the other Legions, and acts a mentor-like figure to them. Is good friends with Sword and Arm, makes sure that Beast doesn’t do anything dangerous to themself or others, and has a cordial, business business-like relationship with Arrow, as they help out in range combat. As stated previously, he is very proud and overprotective to Mc and Akira.

[w0nd3rplay]

“love so obvious" wip

characters featured — jin sakai (ghost of tsushima), ezio auditore (assassin's creed), satoshi hasashi (mortal kombat), yoomi moonstar (mentioned, oc)

The sun was shining under the leaves of the trees on a typical afternoon, in a lush, green forest with only sounds of birds chirping, the wind blowing through the trees. There stood a japanese bearded man whose long hair tied into a bun and dressed in japanese traditional clothing, clutching onto his katana. Patiently pacing around for someone, standing guard. He was transparent yet so wispy, he's a softly glowing spirit.

"Ah, so you must be the ghost of tsushima everyone and history knows you as?" A baritone yet hushed voice with an italian accent commented from behind, leading to the japanese man who became alarmed, began unsheathing his blade, getting into stance and pointing at the source of that voice. Only to find it's someone he wanted to meet. he became relaxed, giving a sigh of relief and putting his katana back.

"You and that voice of yours scared me," the former samurai noted, to which the italian assassin chuckled "Amico mio, Jin, it's one of my best charms" he boasted, "And maybe you would teach those best charms to my great grandson somehow, Ezio." Jin continued, Ezio raised an eyebrow, asking "Which one? We both have too many." to which Jin Sakai replied "Satoshi, he's been struggling with his feelings for your grandchild, Yoomi."

"My, struggling with his feelings?" He echoed, "He's not the most expressive boy in comparison to Yoomi" Jin reasoned, "I'll see what I can do, amico mio." Ezio affirmed, putting his fingers on his chin. "Come, walk with me" Jin asked, gesturing the other man to follow him.

TAGGING: @laismoura-art @theelderhazelnut @bloody-arty-myths @scentedcandleibex

[japanguiding]

TOP TOKYO THINGS TO DO:

-Shibuya/Yamashita Park/Harujuku/Meiji Jingu/Yoyogi (Nearby)

-Shimokitazawa Rojiura samurai curry is the best curry, desserts at Captains Donut and Shirohige Ghibli cafe

-Kichijoji Go Inokashira Park and Ghibli museum

-Mount Takao Get nature see monkeys

-Kamakura and Beach

-Yokohama and Chinatown (Close to Kamakura)

TOKYO DAY TRIPS

-Hakone

-Atami

-Nikko

CHAIN RESTAURANTS

-Saizeriya (italian)

-Hub (british pub)

-Torikizoku (izakaya/wetherspoons style)

-Mos Burger

-Sushiro

-Hamazushi (sushi)

-8 Pizza

-Pizza Slice

BIG MUSEUMS

-Mori Art Museum Roppongi

-National Art Center Tokyo Roppongi


-Ghibli Museum Kichijoji / Kichijoji Park

-Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum

-Team Lab Odaiba

-Team Lab Planets

SMALL GALLERIES

-Gyle art gallery harujuku

-Voillld

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-Anagra art gallery

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CLUBS

-Harlem

-Atom

-Oath shibuya

-A Life

-WWW

TOKYO  RECOMMENDATIONS:

EBISU

-Hainan Jeefan Shokudo (singapore chicken & rice)

-Chinese Cafe 8 (cheap lunch)

-Blue Papaya (cheap lunch)

-Afuri healthy ramen restaurant

-Ebisu Bahn Mi sandwhiches

-Falafel Bros

-Yebisu beer museum (500 yen includes 2 beers)

-Tokyo Photographic Museum

-Parasitological Museum (free)

-Ta-im (Israeli food)




NAKA MEGURO

-Nakame no teppen honten Izakaya (expensive)

-Onibus Coffee

-Fukuho Gyoza (very cheap)

-Kiyosugi standing bar

-Colloseo Italian restaurant

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-Junakdelic Mexican Food (3000 yen)

-Breakfast Club (american breakfast)

-Bells Hotdog

-8 Pizza

-Hatos BBQ meat (expensive)

-Berry/ Just Another Space (cool secret gaijin bar 3rd floor)

-Locale Tokyo (organic)

-Niigata Sanpō-tei Tokyo Lab Nakameguro




JIYUGAOKA

-New new york club deli

GAIKUGEIDAIGAKU

-Sunny Boy Books (zines)

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DAIKANYAMA

-DooWop Daikanyama (chicken burger)

-Pizza Slice

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SHIBUYA

-Commune Takobar Parco Mexican food

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-3 Coin Bar (cheap)

-Beat Cafe bar (THE ONE)

-Tasu Ichi bar

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-Bar Trench

-Nondoko 209

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-Swig Bar

-The Nuts Exchange (vegan)




OMOTE SANDO

-Taro Okamoto museum (620 yen)




HARUJUKU

-Sama Curry

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-Meiji Jingu temple

-Sakuratei okonomiyaki

-Jins Glasses (glasses shop)

-Menchirashi (udon)

SHINJUKU

-Shinjuku Gyoen park

-Sekaido art supply shop

-Fukuho Gyoza (very cheap)

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-Mannen Ya fashion

-8 Bit Cafe

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SHIN OKUBO

-Nene Chicken (Korean chain)

-Mash Bros (pie shop)




UENO

-Ueno Park

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-Ueno National Museum

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ASAKUSA

-Asakusa local burger

AZABUJUBAN

-Soul food house

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AKIHABARA

-Manga shops

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TOKYO STATION

-Park

-National museum MOMAT (500 yen)

-Imperial Palace




ROPPONGI

-Hainan Jeefan Shokudo (singapore chicken & rice)

-Mori art museum

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GINZA

-Kagari ramen




ODAIBA

-Team Lab (3000 yen)




SHIMOKITAZAWA

-Rojiura samurai curry restaurant

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YOYOGI UEHARA

-Anda Gyoza restaurant

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SANGENJAYA

-A Bridge restaurant

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SETAGAYA

-Seatagaya art museum

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KICHIJOJI

-Ghibli museum (must book in advance)

-Inokashira Park

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-Ramen Maji




NAKANO

-Manga district

-Broadway

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OTSUKA

-Bar Speakeasy




KOENJI

-Faith Koenji Gallery

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-Jirokichi Live House




IKEBUKURO

-Sunshine City

-Aquarium (2000 yen)

-Shops

-Pokemon Center shop

-Snoopy Charlie Brown shop




KYOTO

-Arishiyama

-Arishiyama Monkey Park

-Ki Kyoto (Lebanese food)

-Muraya Kyoto (cool bar)

-Nakagawa Liquor Store

-Public Tavern Tsubame Hall 大衆酒場つばめホール

[orihara-infobroker]

Bushido, Honour and Ghost of Tsushima

Now that I’m done crying over a horse (I WILL NEVER BE OVER THIS), let’s talk about Shimura and Sakai and the definition of honour to a samurai.

Because the story tells us that Jin has no honour and is a bad samurai but that is from the perspective of Shimura and the samurai like him. There is no good ending for Jin, not because he doesn’t have honour, but because he defied the authority structure. Basically, it’s politics.

I believe Jin is actually the one with more honour and that Shimura forsakes his own honour on the beach when he pursues a course of action that leaves Tsushima (and the mainland) open to invasion. Because without Jin’s willingness to adapt, Tsushima would have been lost, no question. 

The principles of the samurai “code” - bushido - weren’t truly codified until Miyamoto Musashi wrote about the samurai class in his later years. This was in the 1600s. Ghost of Tsushima takes place in the 1200s, well before Musashi’s writings. Which is not to say that the samurai didn’t follow a code of honour but that code could vary from clan to clan, region to region. What was functionally the singular unifying factor was that the samurai were warriors and they were nobility. 

Now, as we all know, the role of nobility has historically been a very divided one. There are the ruling class who believe that their job is to take care of the people and there are the selfish pricks who are rich and entitled and abuse their privilege. Now, I’m not saying that Shimura is abusing the peasants but it is made very clear that they are not his priority. His personal honour (or perception of what honour is) is more important to him than the lives of the peasants. Even the lives of his own soldiers are less important than their perceived “honour”. And Shimura makes it clear that the will of the Shogun (yaaay politics) is more important than the lives of the people. Even his own “son”.

Jin exemplifies the noble who understands that his role is to protect all of his people. He is the people’s hero because he cares about them. He earns their respect and loyalty in a way Shimura cannot because Shimura sees them only as subjects to rule over, not people to care about. 

Further, in the game, Jin does some very “ninja” things. Using poison, assassinating, attacking from behind etcetera. Well. The shinobi as a class didn’t really come into being until the Sengoku era (around the late 1400s, early 1500s). So the criticism levied on Jin for his dishonourable behaviour is somewhat amusing because while samurai did have a general belief that assassination was dishonourable and that you should meet your foes on the field of battle face-to-face, they weren’t opposed to using non-conventional tactics to win battles. They just didn’t get their own hands dirty with it.

Now, if we were to talk about the principles of bushido as they have been interpreted through Musashi, there are nine principles by which a samurai should live his life:

1. Do not think dishonestly. 2. The Way is in training. 3. Become acquainted with every art. 4. Know the Ways of all professions 5. Distinguish between gain and loss in worldly matters. 6. Develop an intuitive judgement and understanding for everything. 7. Perceive those things which cannot be seen. 8. Pay attention even to trifles. 9. Do nothing which is of no use.

These are the principles that were later further reimagined as the eight virtues of bushido by Nitobe Inazo in the 1800s and are what most people see in reference to bushido today:

Righteousness (義, gi) Be acutely honest throughout your dealings with all people. Believe in justice, not from other people, but from yourself. To the true warrior, all points of view are deeply considered regarding honesty, justice and integrity. Warriors make a full commitment to their decisions.

Heroic Courage (勇, yū) Hiding like a turtle in a shell is not living at all. A true warrior must have heroic courage. It is absolutely risky. It is living life completely, fully and wonderfully. Heroic courage is not blind. It is intelligent and strong.

Benevolence, Compassion (仁, jin) Through intense training and hard work the true warrior becomes quick and strong. They are not as most people. They develop a power that must be used for good. They have compassion. They help their fellow men at every opportunity. If an opportunity does not arise, they go out of their way to find one.

Respect (礼, rei) True warriors have no reason to be cruel. They do not need to prove their strength. Warriors are not only respected for their strength in battle, but also by their dealings with others. The true strength of a warrior becomes apparent during difficult times.

Honesty (誠, makoto) When warriors say that they will perform an action, it is as good as done. Nothing will stop them from completing what they say they will do. They do not have to 'give their word'. They do not have to 'promise'. Speaking and doing are the same action.

Honour (名誉, meiyo) Warriors have only one judge of honor and character, and this is themselves. Decisions they make and how these decisions are carried out are a reflection of who they truly are. You cannot hide from yourself.

Duty and Loyalty (忠義, chūgi) Warriors are responsible for everything that they have done and everything that they have said and all of the consequences that follow. They are immensely loyal to all of those in their care. To everyone that they are responsible for, they remain fiercely true.

Self-Control (自制, jisei)

Now if we look at either of these lists, we can see that Jin does not lack in honour. He does not stray from the path of the samurai. Quite the opposite, Jin exhibits exemplary personal responsibility. Shimura, on the other hand, while not without honour and generally consistent with Musashi’s guidelines, does stray far afield of the virtues. In fact, I would argue that his strict adherence to the “rules” as he perceived them is actually what makes him less honourable than Jin. He cannot perceive things in any way other than the one he was raised with and that is his downfall - and nearly the downfall of Tsushima. 

Which, historically is not inaccurate. (Not that you should be looking to Ghost of Tsushima for historical accuracy. In fact, please don’t... XD) During the actual mongol invasion of Japan, the mongols sailed from Korea and took Tsushima as well as Iki Island then proceeded to land at Hakata Bay. These islands simply did not have the number of troops sufficient to defend them against an entire fleet.

What actually defeated the mongols was not samurai honour (or Jin’s sneaky shinobi tactics). It was weather. During the battle at Hakata Bay, the mongols decided to retreat to their ships at night to avoid being ambushed by the Japanese. And because the troops were on their ships and out to sea when the tsunami hit, the mongols lost nearly half their fighting force. They retreated and, much later, planned a second invasion, following a similar path as the first. They attacked Tsushima and Iki again, routing the samurai and murdering many of the islanders. They moved against Nagato and Hakata Bay but this time the Japanese were better prepared for them and they were forced to return to Iki and other small islands. The Japanese counter attacked by launching raids on the mongol ships. As the Japanese continued to push them back, keeping them off the mainland, the mongol fleet was once again defeated, not by samurai, but by weather. A great typhoon struck the fleet and devastated it. The mongol commander fled, leaving many of his troops stranded on Taka Island where they were rounded up and killed by the Japanese. (Note this is a condensed summary of the invasions. There is obviously more detail to the actual events.)

Amusingly, what did come out of this war was a growing respect and fear for the Japanese from the Korean, Chinese and Mongol nations. The mongols, in particular were quite concerned by the Japanese swords. The Japanese, however, found that these earlier katana that they were using were inconvenient to use when fighting in close quarters against large numbers and responded by refining them.

Anyway, the history lesson aside, Jin’s story is a tragedy but it’s also an absolutely wonderful samurai story because it shows the lengths a truly honourable samurai will go to, to fulfill his duty to his principles and to his people.