#satsuma's wrath

[uenodivision]

Satsuma's Wrath: A team made up entirely of brothers, each of whom are successful in their own respective areas. Whether it is leadership, strength, charisma, or smarts, there is no place where these young men born out of an ancestral line do not shine. And though you'd think that with so many teams (possibly) gunning for them in the D.R.B., they'd be worried, you'd be wrong. Why? Because much like their ancestors, there is nothing these men like better than to have the deck stacked against them! Chesto!

Sleight of Hand: 'Now you see them... now you don't!' These three "magicians" make a living by entertaining the masses with their "magic tricks". Truthfully, though they call themselves "magicians", they are actually just thieves using their innate talents and skills to rob easy marks of their wealth. Whilst one entertains the crowd, the other two are busy lining the team's pockets. If you wish to find out how they do it, come to one of their shows and try to find out the trick! Just don't be surprised if your wallet feels strangely lighter by the time the performance is over...

Soul Sister: Growing up on a ranch that their father owns, these three sisters know almost all there is to know about farm animals, which they've taken care of their whole lives. But what they're really known for is their wine, Âme Sœur, which they've taken, perfected, and has made them famous amongst wine drinkers all across the world. But while having a brand name is all well and good, what these three women really want to be known for are their rap skills!

Sounds of Silence: You ever heard of the phrase, 'silence is golden'? Well for these three, that advice rings true. Hailing from various countries, these three secret agents have recently arrived in Japan. The threat of Chuohku has grown so much that other countries in the world are starting to become worried about the threat they present. And if another World War is looming in the distance, then it is absolutely imperative that it be stopped before it can start! Therefore, three countries have made a temporary alliance and have sent their best agents to Japan with one goal: find out what Chuohku is up to, and put a stop to it at all costs!

[homestuck-human-generator]

Name: Ind. Kody Linwood Color: Lapis #2832c2 Symbol: Satsuma Strife Specibus: batkind Handle: corvidAnachronism Animal: parrot Pronouns: ou/ou/ous/ous/ouself Age: 20 Birthday: September 26, which was a friday. Sexuality: lesbian Interests: ceramics and poker Dream Moon: prospit Classpect: Muse of Breath Land: Land of Destruction and Wrath, a bloody place, with silly Argus Monitor consorts. It is a place full of deserts and windchimes. Krios slumbers. Instrument: polyphone

[bakumatsu-assassin]

2 - is there a scar they don't like to talk about?

Among the scars grafted onto his skin, one that remained unspoken was the third-degree burns he had received during the Hamaguri Gate Rebellion. On a scorching August 20th, a searing summer day, Leopold found himself stationed at the Western Gate of the Imperial Palace, armed and loaded. News of a looming rebellion, spearheaded by Templar-affiliated Imperialists, had reached him. An assemblage of samurai ronin, an insurgent force, advanced toward Kyoto with an objective: to apprehend the Emperor and potentially manipulate him into becoming a political pawn.

As the ronin column traversed the densely urban terrain, draped in the banners of Choshu Mori, Leopold emerged as the harbinger of confrontation, his hand instinctively gripping the revolver. In a resounding voice, he called upon the rebels to disband, adhering to the directives of the Tokugawa authority.

Yet, his words met swift dismissal due to the barrier of language, amplified by the presence of a foreign operative aligned with the Shogunate. Instead of dissuasion, his presence fueled the flames of the ronin's fervor, united under the fervent cry of "sonno joi." The discharge of Leopold's second shot into the sky acted as the final fuse, igniting a cataclysmic explosion of violence.

Emanating from hidden perches atop the rooftops, the Assassins executed their descent like avenging angels, wrath flowing from their very wings. The heavens themselves bore witness as smoke bombs tainted the atmosphere, draping an ethereal veil over the unfolding tableau below. Within this obscurant curtain, violence took center stage, a tempest that surged through the streets, leaving chaos in its wake.

Into this maelstrom of turmoil, the defenders from the Satsuma and Aizu clans surged, their advance a cacophony of brutality and savagery. The battleground morphed into an arena of crimson clashes, with the shadows of the combatants dancing within the chaos, a symphony of bloodshed and movement merging into a macabre performance.

Amidst the chaos, an inferno erupted, swiftly consuming the city in its ravenous grasp. The flames voraciously devoured the lives of countless Assassins who found themselves ensnared in the fiery embrace. In the midst of this conflagration, Leopold became ensnared, trapped within the maw of the roaring blaze. Agonizing pain seared through his body as the burns etched upon his flesh throbbed with intensity.

Even the Mentor was not spared from the inferno's wrath, succumbing to the relentless blaze. In the wake of this devastating event, the fault lines within the Japanese Brotherhood deepened to a crescendo, reaching a feverish intensity. The aftermath saw fractures splintering through the once-unified ranks of the Assassins, prompting a mass exodus as many disillusioned members chose to defect from the cause.

Amidst the turmoil and despair, Leopold couldn't shake the haunting thought that this might have been the pivotal moment when everything took a grievous turn.

[shinsengumi-archives]

Anecdotes about Todo Heisuke

In "近世殉難者一人一首伝" probably written by Nishimura Kanefumi, the author of "壬生浪士始末記", the following is written about Heisuke Todo, who was killed by the Shinsengumi in the Aburanokoji Incident.

"In the Todo clan, there is one name Nambu Yoshichiro from Edo. He was a man of Edo. He was a master of the swordsmanship. He was a student of the Ito (Kashitaro). He died at the same time as him (the Aburanokoji Incident)."

It is accompanied by a poem written by Todo: 

益荒男の七世���かけて誓ひてしことばたがはじ大君のため

I pledge to be a man of valor for seven lifetimes for the sake of the sovereign

Todo Heisuke was born in Tenpo 15, and while studying the Hokushin Itto style of swordsmanship under Itou Kashitaro in Fukagawa Sagamachi, he became a guest at the Shieikan, a dojo of the Tennen Rishin style of swordsmanship headed by Kondo Isami.

In "文久三年異聞録" written by Kojima Shikanosuke, a patron of the Tennen Rishin-ryu in Tama, Todo's name is mentioned as a student.

Many Shinsengumi fans are probably aware that there is a story that he was an illegitimate son of Todo Izumi-no-kami, although the truth is unknown.

The "京師騒動見聞雑記録" describes Todo Heisuke during the Shinsengumi period as follows:

“Todo Heisuke, a Mibu ronin, is another great warrior ...(omitted)... He was cut down at Ikedaya, and was wounded deeply and half-dead, but he survived.”

It is written that he was quite a daredevil.

After the famous Ikedaya Incident, Itou Kashitaro and his faction joined the Shinsengumi as a new force through Todo's solicitation.

Later, when Itou's faction split off from the Shinsengumi after being appointed to the Goryo-eiji, Todo, with Kondo's permission, joined them and took the name Nanbu Yoshichiro, in accordance with Itou's strong wish that "I would really like you to do just that, Todo-san.”

As for this Nanbu Yoshichiro, the Nanbu family home was used by the Shinsengumi as a camp for a while in Mibu. The most popular theory is that he borrowed the name and surname of Yoshichiro, the younger brother of Heizo, the head of the family. However, the reason why Todo changed his name to Nanbu Yoshichiro is not clear.

On the night of November 18, Keio 3, Itou was killed by the Shinsengumi on his way back from being summoned to Kondo's concubine's house. The Goryo-eiji who went to retrieve his corpse, which was left at Aburanokoji, also fought to the death with the ambushing Shinsengumi, resulting in the deaths of Todo, Hattori Takeo, and Kakumono Menai.

Nagakura Shinpachi, the leader of the Shinsengumi's second squad, said that he had been instructed by Kondo to let Todo escape at Aburanokoji. However, Okamoto Takebei, one of the guards who went to Aburanokoji to retrieve Itou's corpse, wrote in "岡本武兵衛聞書”:

“As soon as the corpse was placed on the palanquin, Nambu Yoshichiro pulled down the palanquin's rafters and a sword cut into Nambu's back. Nambu turned around, and was cut in the face from the forehead to the nose, and was killed immediately before he had time to draw his sword.”

It does not appear that Kondo gave the order to let Todo go. The fact that Todo was the first to be cut down is also consistent with a story that Koyama Masatake, a student at the Seishu Juku, heard from a Shinsengumi member.

The Shinsengumi thought that Todo would be the one who would suffer the most in the event of a battle, and it is likely that the Shinsengumi took Todo by surprise and made him the first to be executed. In other words, there was no order to "let Todo go”.

Incidentally, it has been said that the Goryo-eiji were connected with the Satsuma clan and that they were planning to assassinate Kondo, but both of these claims could be considered untrue. Broadly speaking, the Shinsengumi and the Goryo-eiji were on friendly terms. However, after the Great Restoration, Itou incurred Kondo's wrath when the Goryo-eiji jointly submitted to the Imperial Court a letter of recommendation to "restore the monarchy under the leadership of the nobles". Itou had never visited Kyoto before joining the Shinsengumi. In other words, it is my understanding that Itou's lack of awareness that he joined the Shinsengumi without grasping and analyzing the situation in Kyoto after the Kinmon Incident led to the formation of the Goryo-eiji and the tragedy of the Aburanokoji Incident.

There are those who claim that Shimada Wajiro, a swordsman under Otani, was concerned about Itou's preference for art and was very reluctant about him joining the Shinsengumi, but this is written in a novel titled "新選組剣豪秘話" by Koshi Ryuzen, and the work itself has no more documentary value than Shimozawa Kan’s, so it is an inconsequential story. 

As a side note, Itou's group was not the only group to call themselves "Goryo-eiji" during the Keio period. About 30 people, including Nishikawa Oribe and Shimizu Miyauchi, served as "Izumiyama Goryo-eiji" under the control of  Kanshuuji Tsuneosa (see "勧修寺経理日記").

References

歴史読本（December 1997 issue） 

市居浩一著『新選組高台寺党』（新人物往来社刊） 

古賀茂作著『検証・油小路の血闘』（新人物往来社刊『新選組研究最前線』所収）

[ron-inn]

Week 3: Black Smoke

     Kenji doesn’t know the protocol for calling on an ancient god—that was more of Masami’s expertise as one of the village’s senior shugenjas, the magic wielders who could connect to the spirit realm and commune with its inhabitants.  The old legends were super vague on instructions: just travel east until you couldn’t anymore, then two more days to reach the Forbidden Lands; cross the Bridge of Sorrows until you reached the Temple of Ancients; boom, wake up a god.  The legends didn’t go any further, so Kenji just wings it and also lights the candles surrounding the stone altar in the back. He waits for the black smoke to rise up midway to the ceiling before he unsheathes the sword and starts calling out names of power, trying to enunciate them exactly the way Masami did whenever she had to perform the annual Rite of Seals for the village. 

     Then, something responds.

     “Who Is It… That Calls Us… From Our Slumber?” The multitude of voices speaks in a jumbled, echoey collective.  It is neither male nor female, but the deepest instinct inside Kenji knows that this being is very old, very powerful, and very ready to strike him down if he doesn’t explain right now why he marched into its resting place and started waving a mystical sword around, yelling for “the Captive God” and “Dormin the Sky-Render” to wake up.

     “Hi, Kenji here.  Grandson of the grandson of Nakamura the Brilliant and all that.  I’ve also got this ‘Sword that Cuts the Heavens’ that’s supposed to call upon you.  Anyways, I’m here because I want you to help me save this girl,” Kenji answers back.

     “Who?” 

     “Masami.  She was sacrificed for a fate she didn’t deserve, to ‘save Hyuga’ from ‘unimaginable doom and destruction.’”  Kenji snarls sarcastically and has to stop himself from spitting on the floor to show exactly what he thinks of Satsuma’s prophecy.  He continues, “Her spirit was separated from her body but I grabbed her before they could continue the ritual. ’S not right to happen to her.  So now I’m here because I heard you can do the impossible.” 

     He looks over to the stone altar he had gently laid Masami’s small body upon; she was still clothed in those ceremonial white robes. If one could ignore the barely audible rattling breaths and the ice-cold, ghostly pale skin, he could swear it was like she was just sleeping. 

     Kenji looks back and narrows his eyes at whatever’s talking to him from up high. “So, Dorma or Dormin-kami , or whatever fucking kind of god you are, how about you do your magic jumbo shit and tell me how to get her soul back?”

     The voices boom and roll: like thunder, like earthquakes, like the powerful echo of Satsuma’s voice whenever the Guardian Lion God seized control of him in the throes of visions.  “It Is Not That Simple… Our Powers… Have Wasted Away… Since We Were Sealed Here…  Many Of Your Human Lifetimes Ago… You Must Free… The Fragments Of Our Power… From The Shadowed Colossi… Only When… We Are At Our Fullest… Can We Bring Back The Soul… Of The One You So Care For…”

     Those voices then tell him of six massive guardians scattered across this vast land, represented by the mighty stone statues lining the path leading up to the altar.  Every time one was slain, its corresponding statue would shatter and release some of Dormin’s power. Kenji puzzles over some of the descriptions that the voice(s) listed off.  A spirit causing mudslides and quakes? He can probably find it in the mountain range he saw in the distance while crossing the bridge to the temple. A spirit inhabiting the bones of an ancient general?  Shouldn’t be too hard to find a giant walking skeleton. And maybe that spirit of boats and salt is hidden at the bottom of some lake. But a spirit of greed and a spirit of manipulation and illusions?  A spirit still yet pure? Where the hell is he supposed to find those? A small part of him wishes Akane or Toshio were here to help him solve this riddle—they were always the smarter ones—but he crushes that thought as quickly as it forms.  Kenji knows he couldn’t drag anyone else into this taboo the moment he swiped the legendary sword from the village’s shrine.  

     “Hunting, huh?”  Kenji muses as he swings himself up onto his horse and draws out the sword, holding it high above his head for the metal to catch the sunlight as Dormin instructed.  He watches the beam of magic shoot forward from the blade and into the distance, smiling when he sees a pillar of light erupt in response. “Well, that won’t be too bad, I’m pretty good at stabbing, hacking, and making sure things stay down.”

     “Ikuzo, Kiso-chan!”  And with that, they’re charging forward to kill the first guardian.  

     The smoke from their first target doesn’t feel that horrible, just sears down his throat and into his lungs like he’s just inhaled burning coals, just leaves him reeling and dizzy as if he took one of Hatch’s famous haymakers to the temple.  But by the time he watches the black smoke erupt from the fourth guardian’s corpse and rush into his nose and mouth yet again, he’s starting to really hate it.  His chest feels like someone’s ripping open his rib cage, his sore arms are pulsing with new black veins,  and his head is pounding worse than an all-night drinking sesh with his friends and barrels of Ume-Ume’s “special” brew.  He’s also trying to ignore the solid bump that’s starting to sprout from his head.

     “Ack, Kami,” he curses God as he hacks up something thick and dark, leans over to the side to spit the sludge from his mouth as he rides on.  The sleeve he wipes his mouth on is already streaked with black and blood and other nasty things he can’t think about right now. “No wonder why Momoko never let me try smoking,”  Kenji mumbles as he reminisces about all the times the village doctor lectured Jun whenever she caught the guardsman on a break with his ivory pipe and tobacco satchel.

     Two more to go is the only thought that overrides all the aches, pains, and fears in his mind. He urges Kiso to ride faster to the next pillar of light, using the shine emanating from the Sword that Cuts the Heavens to keep them on course. He thinks, Just hold on Masami , I’m almost done.  Then I’ll wake you up, you can scream “ baka” at me all you want and I’ll laugh like before.  You can finally give me that gift you promised me for the Rite of the Silver Moon .

     Kenji doesn’t know how he made back to the Temple after killing the last guardian (he thought for sure he wouldn’t be able to survive when the guardian started crumbling and Kenji hung onto the sword still embedded in the giant’s weak point on its head as they started falling down, down, down).  He sobs when he sees Kiso, limping but still alive after she bucked him off to save him from the fifth demon’s jaws that had ambushed them. He completely ignores the sonorous voices of Dormin, the rumbling delight evident in the chorus as It thanks him for what he’s done. He just keeps resting against Kiso and weeping into her mane, relieved that he didn’t lose his only other companion on this crazy, stupid quest.  

     When he looks up at the sound of horse hooves and rustling armor, there’s a group wearing the colors of his old village, maneuvering around the shattered blocks of stone from fallen titans to approach him at the base of the altar’s steps.  Kenji laughs upon seeing the faces of his friends, now grimly waiting to kill him. There’s Vice-Captain Kohaku (well, probably “Captain" now that Kenji fucking ran from his village and effectively resigned from his position), looking at him with those same stern eyes and disappointed frown on her face.  There’s Hatch—he looks good with that new armor but judging by the way he squirms and shifts atop his horse, Kenji knows the brawler is itching to trade the heavy lacquer plate for the light karate gi he favors.  Toshio is off to the side, looking at him with almost pity in his green eyes, but Kenji knows that he wouldn’t hesitate to nail him with a few of his steel shuriken and rifle bullets.  And there, at the front, the Demon Slayer herself—Kenji begins to bellow with laughter even harder when he sees that it’s his best friend, Akane, leading the group.  

     He wipes away the tears, flings his arms wide open, and grins with that old Kenji flair for dramatics.  “Hey! Nice of you guys to join me at this party, but I don’t recall sending out invitations!” Judging from Kohaku’s and Hatch’s horrified expressions (Akane’s and Toshio’s faces remain impassive as per usual), he must make for quite the sight: torn clothing, bloody and banged up body, arms pitch-black up to the shoulders, a full bone-horn protruding from his forehead, and black smoke swirling around him like some sort of evil aura.   

     “Kenji.”

     At that single word, his smile drops and he watches Akane dismount and walk forward.

     “You know what happens now.  You broke the rules,” she says.

     “Funny, I thought you of all people would have hated being tied down by rules, especially when they hurt people you love.”

     “Satsuma threatened to go after Momoko.  I didn’t have a choice.” Oh, Akane, always straight to the point, especially when it comes to her wife.  Kenji both fumes with wrath and aches with understanding at her words. The pulsing in his arms speeds up and the haze in his mind gets worse as he wants to strike out and beat that calm determination off her face.

     Kenji barks out a bitter laugh.  “Well, guess who didn’t have a choice either!  Oh wait, Masami wants her soul trapped in the spirit realm while her body rots!” Can’t they see? He thinks, That this is what Satsuma and his god wanted?  To convince everyone that her sacrifice was the “only” way to save Hyuga?

     Akane stops a couple of feet away from him, warily watching the sword by his side, calculating as always what her foe will do next.  “She did want this.  You were supposed to respect her choice.”

     “ I was supposed to protect her! ” he roars.  (He doesn’t want to remember the tight-lipped resignation on Masami’s face when Satsuma first marked her for damnation; he doesn’t want to recall the fiery argument they had the night before the ceremony.)  “ That’s the duty of the Captain.”  He looks over at Kohaku, who has stayed oddly silent this whole exchange, and shoots her a lopsided smirk.  “Sorry, Kohaku. I guess that makes me a failure, huh? I hope that you can do better than me now that I’m gone.”

     Kohaku bows her head and murmurs, “I will never be like you.”  At the same time, Hatch cries out one last useless request for Kenji to come back with them with Masami, tears streaming down his face.  Toshio continues to look at him with indescribable emotions swirling in his dark green eyes. Honestly, why didn’t the ninja take the shot?  Kenji knows he made for such an open target when trying not to break down completely in Kiso’s presence. Perhaps Akane held Toshio back. He’s grateful if she did.

     It means she remembers that pact she made with him years ago: when they were young, wild, and oh-so-afraid of their capacity to kill.  Of being alone at the end of the slaughter.

     Kenji turns back at Akane.  Upon his attention, she draws her katana and shifts into Gedan, a basic low stance favored by her Alligator Style for its powerful counter-attacks.  Instinctively, he shifts into Jōdan, an aggressive, overhead stance of the Firefly Style.  They wait. It’s an old routine, as familiar as a lullaby to a child.  He’ll swing downward first, she’ll sidestep and aim a slash to his arm, he’ll pivot to block her sword and force her back with a shove, she’ll leap back to analyze him for openings but he’ll press forward with wild swings that will break her focus and force her to defend. They’ll switch off.  He knows he’s always been stronger and more resilient, but she’s more agile and has the sharpest instincts for finding weak points. They’ve always been equally matched, a constant push-and-pull that has never known an end.

     But this isn’t a training duel in the village fields and this isn’t a battlefield where they stand back-to-back, cutting down whichever enemies foolishly rush them. Now Kenji and Akane face each other to witness which is stronger: their promises to their loved ones or their promises to each other.  Perhaps this was inevitable, for loyalty and bonds built over years to gradually crumble away to dust with each clash of their swords.   

     What a mess.  

     Kenji sighs.  It’s not a dead man’s sigh of regret when the body releases its last gasp for forgiveness and peace.  No, it’s a sigh of tired endurance, of indomitable will; a breath loosed into the air before it rises and condenses into storm clouds that break open and unleash heaven’s wrath.  He smiles. “I’m guessing it makes sense that they brought you out to kill one last demon, but you better be prepared for the fight of your life!  I won’t go down without giving it my all!”

     Akane simply nods.  ��Goodbye, old friend.”

     Kenji replies to her unspoken words, “I’m sorry too.” 

     And he thinks, And I’m sorry, Masami. Guess you’ll have to wait a little longer to give me your gift.  I’m sure it’s beautiful, whatever it is.

     And so, what else can he do but to charge forward?

----------------

A03 LINK:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20848121/chapters/49974308#workskin

[soysaurus]

Smithy blinks. “Oh,” he says, voice a little cracked, hair a little mussed. He blinks again, but the skies do not clear. The world still looks yellow, hazy, covered in a faded halcyon filter that could look like ten years ago if he really tries. If he squints hard enough and flops his head to the side.

But the boy standing in front of him has black hair instead of musty brown. His eyes are red instead of gold, chipped with bloody flecks that scream of nights spent alone. Of days spent talking to no one but the hollow shadow on the wall.

And really, he looks the same. He looks like the kid Smithy rescued from the sidewalk: thin bones but stronger than anyone. If Smithy pushed this boy and his now-son together, side by side, he bet they would even be the same height. The boy looks barely seventeen.

His lips split like a shark, sharp teeth jagged under the flickering street lamp. The sun is setting, and maybe ten minutes have passed. Maybe it’s only been a few seconds or an hour, but dark blue is dribbling down the clouds, lapping up every sliver of light it can find. Time has always worked funny around the gods. A child of one—a child of two gods Smithy hasn’t been able to slay when the entire world has crumbled, when every human has finally looked to the stars and thought, for once, that they really are truly alone—must warp the very fabric of space itself.

Smithy licks his lips. His back hurts from the fall, from the initial clamber that caught him off guard and forced the young god to tower over him. The black bag his boy, Remi, stuffed to his chest this morning lays open-mouthed on the floor. Apples and biscuits, and the expensive copy of Pride and Prejudice Remi pretends he hasn’t sneaked glances at for the past five years, spill over the pavement like a kid’s candy floss after a carnival ride too many. The kid might never buy candy floss again.

Or maybe they will, because humans never learn their lesson, and they keep trying again and again, expecting a different response when they haven’t changed at all.

The god chuckles, dark and deep, the low rumble of a storm when the sky looks satsuma-pink. “Beg,” he commands. His fingers crackle, and red sears over his skin, dancing on the edge of his clothes and reaching out to Smithy with cherry-glossed lips.

Smithy’s eyes hover on the flames. He’d watched the God of Wrath drown in its own diamond-crusted pool. He’d pushed its head in and held it there until scorched limbs stopped flailing, until flames died in smoky ashes—a sad excuse for a Saturday evening campfire.

“Who’s your father?” he asks, attitude Smithy’s never had before he met Remi leaking across his tongue. He blinks again. The sky is still clouded.

The god’s lip curls back in a broken sneer. “Did you think you killed us all? Did you think a measly human could really decimate the very species that created you?” He spits on the ground, the glistening speck landing a centimetre from Smithy’s knee. “I played with the dolphins while you burnt my home down. I sent pictures and videos to my uncle and never got a response back.” The god tips his head to the side, dark hair flopping over his forehead. It’s a small forehead over such large eyes. Maybe he’s not seventeen at all.

He scoffs. “I’m the child of the gods you could not kill: the only two left when you destroyed our whole world.”

Smithy’s eyes close, open. His tongue stings with the weight of the words he’s swallowing.

The god looks at him, red flicking back and forth, sharding through his hair like a cheap light through the mist of a night club. His eyebrows crash down, hard, and his teeth grind together. His fists clench by his sides, and the first line of sweat rolls down Smithy’s back.

The sun is fading, but the street is warmer than before. Red flames pool down to the floor. The pavement is following in the God of Wrath’s footsteps, whether it wants to or not.

“The Goddess of Worn Books,” the young god begins. His teeth grit down even harder. “And the Goddess of Forgotten Dreams.”

“Oh,” Smithy lets out again, echoing the moment before. The reel in his head is spinning, stumbling through the past ten years and racing through the evening he tore the throne of the gods down—the night humanity spent partying until the sun joined; the night he found a little kid by the corner of the road. “You look nothing like them,” he declares, taking in the way flames roar louder, brighter, hotter.

The kid snarls in front of him, eyes sharpening like the very reason Smithy destroyed the gods in the first place, like the very reason humanity complained for millenia upon millenia. But humans were made in the gods’ image, and Smithy is nothing but human himself.

Maybe innocence is made only to be corrupted, and all Smithy did was create a new God of Wrath to replace the old one. Someone younger, faster, more capable and a thousand times more deadly.

Flames search his throat. Smithy blinks. The stars are crystal-clear above him.

“My son is going to come looking for you,” he warns, even if his voice is steady and even.

The god snickers. “I’ll tell him you said hi.”

Smithy doesn’t get another word out. The last thing he sees is the expensive copy of Pride and Prejudice forgotten on the floor, getting worn as rain bleeds the ink from the pages.

Remi doesn’t look anything like him, just like how this god looks nothing like their mothers. But Remi is only human, and children are only children. Even with their parents gone, they still turn out exactly like them. Even if Remi has brown hair while Smithy is blonde, even if Remi’s eyes are dark while Smithy wears blue, they’ll still share the same words, the same heart, and maybe even the same mind.

Or maybe not.

Maybe humanity is the biggest child of them all, and that’s all there is to it.

The god grins. “Goodnight.”

“I’m the child of the gods you could not kill.”

[rivermoose-vlogs]

I wasn’t tagged – and what is it with me and doing things I wasn’t tagged for vs. things I was? – but Icebreaker694 – who’s blog is AMAZING and you should go check it out – did this tag and tagged anyone who wanted to do it, so here I am.

I LOVE Ghibli movies. I’ve been watching them for YEARS. Like, I watch them in Japanese when I am too impatient to wait for the english dub to come out. So I wanted to do this okay?!

Bonus from Icebreaker: PlayBuzz quiz to see what Ghibli Heroine you are: Link if you want to play – I got Nausicaa from Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind!

The Rules:

Please pingback, rather than link to Kate@Melting Pots and Other Calamities. She will only know if you’ve done this tag if you pingback.

Tag as many people as you want. Ghibli movies aren’t as popular as Disney or Pixar, so be careful that those you tag are at least somewhat familiar with Ghibli.

You can use examples from books, movies, TV shows, anime/manga, and webcomics.

As this tag celebrates heroines, please name either a piece of fiction or a female character, if you’re able.

Have fun!

Questions!

Nausicaa, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind: (Even though this isn’t technically Ghibli, it’s still marketed that way). Nausicaa is a princess in a post-disaster world. She is compassionate and brave, a daring explorer who is capable and selfless.  Name a strong female leader. 

Uhura from Star Trek. Seriously. She’s not the captain, but she’s an irreplaceable part of the Bridge Crew!

(Never seen this one…)

  Sheeta, Castle in the Sky: Although Sheeta may have a quieter demeanour than other Ghibli heroines, she is not a damsel in distress. She’s royalty, but doesn’t stay on the sidelines; she is involved, kind, and despite a sad past, hopeful. Name an inspiring member of royalty.

Leia from Star Wars. As if any other answer is acceptable!

(Great movie – though not one of my favorites)

Satsuki and Mei, My Neighbour Totoro: Before Anna and Elsa, before Lilo and Nani, there was Satsuki and Mei. Satsuki was incredibly young when their mother was hospitalised, and with their father at work, she has to take care of Mei. And Mei is only four, with a big imagination. Name a pair of siblings (or two friends who act like siblings). 

Katniss and Primrose from The Hunger Games. Katniss takes care of Prim the same way Satsuma takes care of Mei.

(Arguably my favorite Ghibli movie – Soot Sprites! The Totoro song that with forever be in my brain!)

Kiki, Kiki’s Delivery Service: Kiki has to go off on her own to live alone, as is the custom among witches. She goes through many things that newly independent young adults face, like money problems, finding a place to stay, job searching, and loneliness, before finding her way thanks to her special abilities. Name a female character who has supernatural gifts.

Jessica Jones – A kickass super-heroine with super strength. Does that count as supernatural? I’m going with it.

(I’m DYING to see this movie!)

  Gina and Fio, Porco Rosso: Gina and Fio are both heroines in this film, and they couldn’t be less alike. Gina is a young woman who is very feminine, a singer and a restaurant owner. However, she is very resourceful and capable. Fio is a teenage mechanic who is independent, goes against the flow, and isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty. She may be one of the best mechanics of her time. Name two inspiring heroines; one who is unabashedly feminine, and another who is more of a tomboy. 

Izzy from TMI – super feminine and super badass!

Lada from And I Darken – A serious tomboy, like that is 90% of her characterization.

Angel, On Your Mark: On Your Mark is a music video that Ghibli helped a music group with. It may not have much of a story, but it’s beautiful and interesting, and not may people are aware of its existence. Name an underrated heroine.

Maximum Ride! Not enough people seem to have read the books – and…well…winged humans.

(I didn’t know this video existed…)

Shizuku, Whisper of the Heart: Shizuku is an eighth-grade student who can’t quite focus on school as much as on her favourite books. However, through encounters with an ambitious boy who seems to have a likely chance at meeting his goals, a cat who rides trains, an antique shop owner, and a cat statue called The Baron, Shizuku is determined to meet her own goal and become a writer. Name your most relatable character. 

Cath from Fangirl. She is literally me!

(I can’t remember if I’ve seen this movie…)

San, Princess Mononoke: San has been raised by wolves her whole life. When humans begin to invade her home forest to make towns and use the resources for themselves while killing the spirits and animals within, San refuses to let it be. She takes a stand and becomes the village’s  greatest obstacle. She is such a force to be reckoned with that they even give her a name; The Princess Mononoke. Name a female character who is physically strong.

Kara Danvers (AKA Supergirl) – she’s literally an alien was super-strength – okay?

Chihiro, Spirited Away: At the beginning of Spirited Away, Chihiro starts off as a whiny, spoiled ten-year-old girl. However, during her time working at the spirit’s Bath House, she discovers parts of herself she didn’t know she had. The story is about her finding the strength she already had but was unaware of. Name a character who has an amazing character journey.

Tessa Gray from The Infernal Devices. A lot happens in a short frame of time for her – but she grows a lot as a character.

(I love this movie so much you don’t understand!)

Haru, The Cat Returns: Haru is a typical high school girl; kind, clumsy, and a little forgetful. But she soon finds herself involved in events that are out of her control. In a way, it is because of her normalcy that she can find her way out of her situation and become stronger because of it. Name a female character who may not have any supernatural abilities herself, but is memorable anyway.

Tohru from Fruits Basket! Even surrounded by guys who turn into animals she stands out!

(Haven’t seen this movie…)

  Sophie, Howl’s Moving Castle: Sophie doesn’t think much of herself for a lot of the story. She doesn’t think she’s pretty or memorable, especially when compared to her younger sister, Lettie. It gets even worse when she’s cursed to look like an old woman. When she finds a new life that involves the mysterious wizard Howl, a fire demon, Howl’s apprentice, and many others, she is shown to be resilient and intuitive. Name an emotionally strong character.

Kaori from Your Lie In April – I won’t say too much as its spoiler-y. But, for real. Wow.

(I LOVE Howl’s Moving Castle – one of the best Ghibli movies for sure. Its the Ghibli version of Beauty and the Beast)

  Ponyo, Ponyo: Ponyo is one of the youngest Ghibli heroines at only five years old. But she still gets a lot done, including becoming human, discovering things, finding a best friend, and saving the world. Name a hero who happens to be a child.

Chiyo from Azumanga Daioh (an anime I love). She’s a 10-year-old genius child who is skipped ahead to high school and faces all sorts of interesting obstacles because of her age.

(Ponyo is the one Ghibli movie most people know since since did the dub – its basically the Ghibli version of The Little Mermaid and its great)

  Arrietty, The Secret World of Arrietty: Arrietty is a Borrower; she is tiny and survives by stealing small things that humans won’t miss. Yet she’s curious about the human world, and does braver things than most humans would be incapable of doing, despite her tiny size. Name an unlikely hero.

Skye / Daisy Johnson from Agents of SHIELD. Her entire character arc – especially in the first season – is how she doesn’t think she fits the bill of being a hero (and she so is).

(I love this movie – its also a really great book-to-movie adaptation!)

  Nahoko, The Wind Rises: Nahoko has tuberculosis during World War 2. However, she doesn’t allow this to cripple her, and enjoys life to the fullest anyway, which includes painting and falling in love. Even being placed in a sanitarium doesn’t break her. Name an inspiring character with some sort of obstacle. 

Naho from the anime Orange. She gets lets from her future self and has to try and fix things without really knowing what happened and I’d say she handles that obstacle better than I ever could.

(I haven’t actually seen The Wind Rises – though I want to!)

Kaguya, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya: in a time where women were expected to follow social norms such as blackening teeth, shaving eyebrows, and being forced into arranged marriages, Kaguya refuses to play along. She would much rather be outside, dance, and play with friends. Name a female character who challenges social norms.

Definitely Haruhi from Ouran High School Host Club. She ends up cross-dressing and pretending to be a boy in order to pay back her debts to her school’s host club and it is one of my favorite animes!

(Haven’t seen this Ghibli film either…)

There we go! That was the Ghibli Heroines Tag! I had a lot of fun! And now I want to go watch a Ghibli movie…

A little sad two of my favorites “From Up On Poppy Hill” and “When Marnie Was Here” weren’t here, but oh well!

If you like Ghibli, or you liked this tag, and you like video games, you should play Ni Nu Kuni: Wrath of The White Witch – its a JRPG animated by Ghibli and one of my favorite games EVER!

Let me know what you think of this tag!

What is your favorite Ghibli movie / which do you want to see?

Tag:

Like Icebreaker, I don’t know who would want to be tagged in this.

So I’m tagging anyone who wants to do this / likes Studio Ghibli!

The Ghibli Heroines Tag I wasn't tagged - and what is it with me and doing things I wasn't tagged for vs.

[recentanimenews]

Shokugeki no Souma 3 – 08

Thanks to his consulting network, Eizan Etsuya is one of Totsuki’s greatest wheeler-dealers, and his profits greatly exceed the combined tuition fees of the entire enrollment. He has connections with everyone, including the three Shokugeki judges. He also has a fifty-strong eviction force about to knock down Polar Star’s doors. Souma doesn’t have a chance in hell, nor do the Polar Star residents…right?

Well, not so fast. Food Wars didn’t back our friends into a corner just to hit the trap door and send them plummeting to their doom. Simply put, neither Souma nor his dorm-mates are going to take this raw deal sitting down. Even if Eizan and the judges say it’s hopeless, Souma just has to believe…it isn’t.

He finds a degree of support in Rindo, who clearly sees something in Souma, and wouldn’t want to see him expelled. Of course, he wouldn’t have been worth supporting if he does lose; she seems to be waiting for him to show what he can do, which is more than you can say for the dismissive Eizan and his puppet judges.

Satsuma chicken is the ingredient, and Eizan shows that yes, he can still cook by preparing some exquisite Haianese Chicken Rice, a dish as much of strict orthodoxy as it is a dish of elegance and restraint. The judges go nuts over it, and Souma is also impressed by the taste, which is most definitely refined.

But he isn’t going to win this thing, or even get to a point where the judges taste his dish, by trying to surpass Eizan in refinement or sticking to a script. If Eizan is classical, Souma’s got to bring the jazz. Fell deeds awake. Now for wrath, now for ruin, and the red dawn! 

His resulting dish, gyoza made with boned wings and a sauce composed of, among other things, ketchup and Parmesan, does indeed sound like a desperate cobbling together of disparate ingredients that will only do the noble Satsuma fowl a disservice. That’s what everyone thinks, at least.

The judges were in Eizan’s pocket. There was no way they were even going to entertain picking up a fork to taste Souma’s food. They were that sure Eizan’s dish was superior. And yet…I guess the smell was just a bit too irresistible, or maybe Eizan’s rice wasn’t quite filling enough.

Whatever the case, after Eizan tastes the gyoza and is left speechless, one of the judges digs in, then another, then another. And all of sudden, Souma has won 3-0, and the eviction (which had been thwarted by Polar Star in riot gear) is called off. Suddenly, the impossible is possible.

It’s a win for all of Polar Star, not just Souma, as he wouldn’t have stumbled upon the flavor combinations that beat Eizan’s competent but by-the-book cuisine were it not for their input and collaboration. Erina, having witnessed this dorm-as-a-culinary-think-tank, can’t believe such a chaotic system could work. And yet…it did. I wonder what her father will say about this.

By: sesameacrylic