#shiro sanada

[cryptidwithacopiccollection]

scientific research

the post in question

[srapanes]

Tras ver Yamato por tercera vez, era necesario.

[lillydwight]

Characters that would absolutely get along imo and are badass:

Pixal (Ninjago)

Captain Julia (Galaxy Railways)

Marina Oki (Cosmo Warrior Zero)

Chell (Portal/Portal 2)

Shiro Sanada (Space Battleship Yamato (Original Series/2199/2202/2205)

Miranda Lawson (Mass Effect)

[queen-ofsunflowers]

How are Akihiko and Ryoji's relationship with Ayame and Shiro? Also, how would Shiro react to Kotone living with both Akihiko and Shinjiro? How does Shiro react to Shinjiro?

Okay! I think it's best to remember this little scene before I answer these questions.

“That doesn’t mean I don’t like you.” Minato sighed. Okay, he guessed that the way he acted towards Akihiko said otherwise, but... “My aunt and uncle are protective of Kotone — my uncle especially. When we left for Gekkoukan, he told me to keep an eye on her and keep certain guys away from her.” “...Certain guys?” “He told me to not let any guys like him anywhere near Kotone.” He had done it right before they left, knowing full well that his wife would’ve chastised him for being overprotective of their daughter like this. And that Minato would say yes if they didn’t get caught. “Guys like… him?” Sanada repeated, confused. Minato took out his phone, and in a short few minutes, he managed to pull up a picture of Shiro Shiomi. “This is my uncle and Kotone’s dad,” he said, showing the picture to Sanada. The image was of a man with ginger hair and reddish eyes, much like his daughter’s. However, the most noticeable features about him, however, is the fact that he’s littered with scars — on his fingers, knuckles, his forehead, underneath an eye and on his lip. It was the sight of all the scars that made Sanada wince. “What happened to him?” “Dunno exactly. All I do know is that he used to get into fights a lot. That’s where all those scars come from.” And that was all he could get either of his guardians to say on the matter. At one point, Minato had a bet going with Aunt Tsu that he had been involved with some shady stuff before he met Ayame. “He says that the only good thing that ever came out of it was that he met my aunt. She’s a nurse. So when you, a guy whose mind is constantly on fighting, showed interest in her… I kinda had to do something. ..."

Shiro is very protective of his baby girl to the point where he asked Minato to play guard dog. Ayame is much more chill about things. So with that reestablished, let's get into it.

How is Akihiko and Ryoji's relationship with Ayame and Shiro?

Ayame loves both of the boys. The first time that she had met them was when Minato and Kotone were in their comatose states. She would do her best to heal them, to give them enough energy to hold onto life. It was all that she could think of to do since they had no idea why this had happened yet. She thought that it was sweet that they came to check on them and visit them despite the fact that they were pretty much not conscious. It showed how much they cared.

She also learned of how much the pair did for them, though not to the full extent in some cases (i.e. the whole miyako situation). That just endeared her even more. Needless to say, Akihiko and Ryoji had her full approval fairly quickly.

Shiro, on the other hand, only got word about them through various phone calls and text messages sent from Minato and Kotone while they were in Iwatodai. He got the gist of them through their eyes. But meeting them was a different story. He was wary about both of them, but Ryoji managed to quickly change his mind. Akihiko was a different story, mostly because Shiro saw a lot of his younger self in Akihiko.

...it gets better with time, but Shiro still is firm on the ground that Akihiko has to beat him in a fight if he wants to propose to his daughter. He never expected Akihiko to take the challenge seriously, though.

How does Shiro react to Shinjiro?

Better than he does Akihiko, that's for sure. It all ties back to what Shinjiro did for Ken and why he ended up injured the way he was in the first place. Shiro is never one to judge a book by its cover, and choses to get to know someone before making his decision about them. Getting the story from Minato and Kotone on top of meeting Shinjiro in person was what led him to make up his mind about the guy.

Basically, he likes Shinjiro better than Akihiko. He sees him as being more careful in his actions and less reckless than the latter.

How would Shiro react to Kotone living with both Akihiko and Shinjiro?

He knows that Kotone is an adult at that point and can handle herself, but if those boys don't take care of his daughter, there's gonna be some hell to pay.

[general-kalani]

Like/comment on this post if you’re interested in interacting with Shiro Sanada (Space Battleship Yamato / Star Blazers)!

[basetani]

otome masterlist

Warning: May have spoilers.

🌕 - Routes I have finished. 🌑 - Routes I need to finish. 🌗 - Routes I have started but not finished. 🌟 - Games I have finished. 🕒 - Games' Developers/Publishers

-> Mystic Destinies : Serendipity Of Aeons 🌟

🌕 Shou Hatori 🌕 Shinji Hirayama 🌕 Takumi Arai 🌕 Tatsuya Yukimura 🌕 Hikaru Kazama

-> Amnesia : Memories 🌟

🌕 Toma 🌕 Ikki 🌕 Shin 🌕 Kent 🌕 Ukyo

-> Nightshade 🌟

🌕 Kuroyuki 🌕 Gekkamaru 🌕 Goemon 🌕 Chojiro 🌕 Hanzo

-> Seduce Me

🌕 Sam 🌕 Damien 🌕 Matthew 🌕 Erik 🌕 James 🌑 Suzu 🌑 Naomi 🌕 Andrew 🌕 Diana

-> Seduce Me 2 - The Demon War

🌕 Sam 🌕 Matthew 🌕 Erik 🌑 James 🌑 Damien 🌑 Diana

-> Demon Crashers

🌕 Kael 🌕 Orias 🌕 Akki 🌑 Mirari

-> The Men Of Yoshiwara: Kikuya

🌕 Hayabusa 🌕 Takao 🌑 Kagura 🌕 Kagerou 🌕 Iroha 🌗 Iroha 2nd Season 🌑 Tokiwa

-> The Men Of Yoshiwara: Ohgiya 🌟

🌕 Ageha 🌕 Utsusemi 🌕 Takigawa 🌕 Gakuto 🌕 Asagiri

-> Seven Boys 2 🌟

🌕 Vincent 🌕 Randle 🌕 Bevis 🌕 Kevin 🌕 Aaron 🌕 Clement 🌕 Rock 🌕 Julian

-> Soulset 🌟

🌕 Yvonne 🌕 Shira 🌕 Apris 🌕 Verin 🌕 Shirr 🌕 Marco 🌕 Feathor 🌕 'Secret'

-> Hustle Cat

🌕 Reese 🌑 Finley 🌑 Hayes 🌑 Landry 🌑 Mason 🌑 'Secret'

-> This World Unknown

🌕 Asa 🌗 Luca 🌑 Garett 🌑 Val

-> The Royal Trap: Confines Of The Crown

🌕 Callum 🌕 Oscar 🌗 Nazagi 🌑 Gaston

-> Let's Not Stay Friends

🌕 Frenz 🌕 Taf 🌑 Burain

-> Nameless: The One Thing You Must Recall

🌕 Red 🌕 Lance 🌕 Yuri 🌕 Tei 🌑 Yeonho 🌑 ???

-> Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds

🌕 Souji Okita 🌑 Toshizo Hijikata 🌕 Hajime Saito 🌕 Heisuke Toudou 🌕 Sanosuke Harada 🌑 Shinpachi Nagakura 🌕 Keisuke Sanan 🌑 Susumu Yamazaki 🌕 Hachiro Iba 🌑 Kazue Souma 🌑 Ryouma Sakamoto 🌕 Chikage Kazama 🌑 Independant

-> Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms

🌕 Souji Okita 🌑 Toshizo Hijikata 🌕 Hajime Saito 🌕 Heisuke Toudou 🌕 Sanosuke Harada 🌑 Shinpachi Nagakura 🌕 Keisuke Sanan 🌑 Susumu Yamazaki 🌗 Hachiro Iba 🌑 Kazue Souma 🌑 Ryouma Sakamoto 🌕 Chikage Kazama

-> Re Alistair 🌟

🌕 Derek 🌕 Travis 🌕 Shiro

-> Backstage Pass

🌕 John 🌕 Benito 🌕 Adam 🌕 Matthew 🌑 Lloyd 🌑 Independant 🌑 Nicole 🌑 Alvin

-> Dream Daddy

🌕 Joseph 🌕 Robert 🌕 Craig 🌑 Mat 🌑 Brian 🌑 Hugo 🌑 Damien 🌑 Joseph Secret Ending

-> Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome

🌕 Saito Shinjou 🌑 Miki Hiraizumi

-> Monochrome Heaven 🌟

🌕 Kamishiro Akito 🌕 Kamishiro Asuka 🌕 Kamishiro Riku 🌕 Touma 🌕 Misaki Ryuuto

-> Dandelion: Wishes Brought To You 🌟

🌕 Jisoo 🌕 Jiwoo 🌕 Jihae 🌕 Jiyeon 🌕 Jieun 🌕 Wizard

-> Amplitude

Katy's Route 🌕 Jon 🌕 Ari 🌕 Simon and Bunny 🌕 ??? Jon's Route 🌑 Michelle 🌑 Katy 🌑 Liz 🌑 Luna 🌑 Grace 🌑 Eric

-> Cinderella Phenomenon

🌕 Rod 🌕 Karma 🌕 Fritz 🌕 Waltz 🌑 Rumpel

-> Home For The Heart

🌕 Joshua 🌑 Philippe

-> The Letter

🌕 Luke x Rebecca 🌕 Luke x Hannah 🌑 Luke x Marianne 🌕 Hannah x Zachary 🌑 Hannah x Marianne 🌕 Ashton x Rebecca 🌕 Ashton x Isabella

-> Crossroad

🌕 Wolf 🌕 Hunter 🌑 Fox 🌑 Wizard 🌑 Main Route

-> Night Class: A Vampire Story

🌕 Rowan 🌕 Aaron 🌑 Both? I think?

-> Miraclr

🌕 Lucifer 🌑 Michael 🌑 Gabriel 🌑 Uriel 🌑 Raphael

-> Heart No Kuni No Alice

🌗 Boris Airay 🌑 Peter White 🌑 Blood Dupre 🌑 Julius Monre 🌑 Twins 🌑 Ace 🌑 Elliot 🌑 Gowland 🌑 Vivaldi

-> 7'Scarlet 🌟

🌕 Isora Amari 🌕 Hino Kagatsuchi 🌕 Toa Kushinada 🌕 Sosuke Tatehira 🌕 Yuzuki Murakumo 🌕 True Route (Toa Kushinada) 🌕 Bonus Character Route (Hanate Yatsukami)

-> Steam Prison 🌟

🌕 Eltcreed 🌕 Ulrik 🌕 Adage 🌕 Ines 🌕 Yune 🌕 Grand Ending 🌕 Fin

-> Destiny's Princess

🌕 Sanada Yukimura - The Twin Brother 🌕 Takenada Hanbei - The Fiance 🌕 Fuma Kotaro - The Ninja Reinforcement 🌕 Oda Nobunaga - The Father 🌑 Date Masamune - The Commander

-> London Detective Mysteria

🌕 Holmes 🌗 Watson 🌑 Akechi 🌑 Jack 🌑 Lupin 🌑 Kobayashi 🌑 Baker Street Boys 🌑 Grand End

-> Psychedelica Of The Black Butterfly 🌟

🌕 Real World Ending 🌕 Bud Ending 🌕 Happy Ending 🌕 Bad Ending 🌕 Kagiha Ending 🌕 Hikage Ending 🌕 Yamato Ending 🌕 Monshiro Ending 🌕 Karasuba Ending 🌕 Karasuba Good Ending 🌕 Kazuya Ending 🌕 Yamato Good Ending

-> Red Embrace: Hollywood

🌕 Common 1 🌕 Common 2 🌕 Randal 1 🌑 Randal 2 🌑 Randal 3 🌕 Randal 4 🌑 Randal 4 (Leader) 🌕 Randal 5 (S.E.) 🌑 Heath 1 🌑 Heath 1 (Leader) 🌕 Heath 2 🌕 Heath 3 🌕 Heath 4 (S.E.) 🌑 Markus 1 🌑 Markus 1 (Leader) 🌑 Markus 2 🌕 Markus 3 🌕 Markus 4 (S.E.)

-> Psychedelica of the Ashen Hawk 🌟

🌕 People 🌕 Heroes 🌕 Bad 🌕 Lord 🌕 Lavan 🌕 Heroine 🌕 Levi 🌕 Lugus 🌕 Hugh 🌕 Traveler 🌕 Links 🌕 Wolf

-> Dark Nights

🌗 Zeikun 🌑 Junoru 🌑 Sachiro 🌑 Kurato

-> Gods Of Love 🌟

🌕 Lysander 🌕 Helder 🌕 Exinious 🌕 Rhane

-> Re:Birthday Song 🌟

🌕 Yoru 🌕 Kairi 🌕 Syun 🌕 Ame 🌕 Nami

-> Ayakashi Gohan

🌕 Inushima Yomi 🌕 Serigano Manatsu 🌕 Hana Suou 🌕 Inushima Uta 🌗 Ibuki Haginosuke 🌑 Kimura Asagi

-> Bad Medicine ~Infectious Teachers~

🌗 Kuzuha Kakeru 🌑 Shido Kaname 🌑 Yanagi Ryota

-> Taisho x Alice I 🌟 🌕 Red Riding Hood 🌕 Cinderella

-> Taisho x Alice II 🌟 🌕 Gretel 🌕 Kaguya

-> Taisho x Alice III 🌟 🌕 Wizard 🌕 Snow White

-> Taisho x Alice Epilogue 🌟 🌕 Alice

-> Taisho x Alice Heads & Tails 🌑 Cinderella 🌑 Red Riding Hood 🌑 Kaguya 🌑 Gretel 🌑 Snow White 🌑 Wizard 🌑 Alice 🌕 Ryouishi

-> Ozmafia 🌕 Caramia 🌑 Kyrie 🌑 Axel 🌑 Scarlet 🌑 Caesar 🌑 Soh 🌑 Pashet 🌑 Robin Hood 🌑 Brothel 🌑 Hamelin

-> Fxxx Me Royally!! 🌑 Kaoru 🌑 Ryuusei

🕒 Cheritz

-> Mystic Messenger 🌟

🌕 Jumin [valentines confession|http://aminoapps.com/p/200ytad] 🌕 Yoosung 🌕 707 🌕 Zen 🌕 V 🌕 Ray 🌕 Jaehee

🕒 Voltage

-> Love 365

🌕 Yamato - My Forged Wedding 🌕 Yuma - Buter Until Midnight 🌕 Genji - In Your Arms Tonight 🌕 Sosuke - Finally In Love Again 🌕 Subaru - My Sweet Boyfriend 🌕 Eisuke - Kissed By The Baddest Bidder

🕒 Visual Wordplay

-> Locked Heart

🌗 Sol D'Lockes (Mama Bear) 🌑 Royal LeBlanc (Papa Bear) 🌑 Deon D'Lockes (Baby Bear)

🕒 Hunex Co. Ltd.

-> Ephemeral

🌕 Shiba The Werewolf (R) 🌗 Shiba The Werewolf (L) 🌑 Nagi The Invisible Man (R) 🌑 Nagi The Invisible Man (L) 🌕 Ray The Vampire (R) 🌗 Ray The Vampire (L) 🌕 Natsume The Mummy (R) 🌕 Natsume The Mummy (L)

-> On The QT 🌟

🌕 Hibiki 🌕 Keima 🌕 Akira

-> Ephemeral - Miniature Garden 🌟

🌕 Hisui 🌕 Rion 🌕 Yugu

-> My Lovey

(Secret Crush) 🌟 🌕 Soshi Kujo 🌕 Masaki Kirigaya 🌕 Kotaro Kurumi 🌕 Reo Takatsuki

(Fantasy Of The Mind) 🌟 🌕 Julius 🌕 Kay 🌕 Lucian 🌕 Diorca

(Shinobi Kakuran Musou) 🌗 Hayate 🌑 Mikage 🌑 Kugumo 🌑 Yukinojo

🕒 NTT Solmare Corp. Games

-> Story Jar

🌕 (Deluxe Ver. The Last Sacrifice | The Demon King's Desire) 🌕 (The Last Sacrifice | Forbidden Ties)

(The World Or You)

-> Ninja Love

🌕 Sasuke Sarutobi 🌑 Goemon Ishikawa 🌑 Saizo Kirigakure 🌑 Kotaro Fuma 🌑 Musashi Miyamoto 🌑 Munenori Yagyu 🌑 Rennoshin 🌑 Hanzo Hattori 🌑 Nobunaga Oda

-> Obey Me 🌟

🌕 Lucifer 🌕 Mammon 🌕 Leviathon 🌕 Satan 🌕 Asmodeus 🌕 Beelzebub 🌕 Belphegor

🕒 Hanabi Media Games

-> Love Magic 🌟

🌕 Minuet 🌕 Paris

-> Love Magic 2

🌕 Minuet 🌑 Paris

-> High School Love

🌕 Tetsuya 🌑 Naoki

-> Love Triangle 🌟

🌕 Tsukasa 🌕 Kazuya

-> Ghost Love Story

🌕 Kyle 🌑 Vincent

-> Vampire Love

🌑 Tom 🌕 Sam

🕒 Ciagram Co. ltd.

-> Princess Closet

🌕 Reo 🌑 Shuu 🌑 Kai 🌗 Akito

-> Nightmare Harem

🌕 Lucia 🌕 Kaim 🌕 Levy 🌕 Mikael 🌗 Noel 🌕 Ricardo 🌑 Mefy 🌑 Oswald 🌑 Lucas

-> Dateless Love 🌟

🌕 Soji Okita 🌕 Toshizo Hijikata 🌕 Shota Yuki 🌕 Yoshinobu Tokugawa 🌕 Akinara Aiya 🌕 Shinsaku Takasugi 🌕 Ryoma Sakamoto 🌕 Shuntaro Furutaka

🕒 Genius Inc.

-> My Twin Romance

🌗 Haru 🌑 Yuki 🌑 Both 🌑 Shizuki

🕒 Seec Inc.

-> Jimi-Kare My Quiet Boyfriend 🌟

🌕 Prince Ending 🌕 Arrogant Ending 🌕 Dark-Side Ending 🌕 Princess Ending

-> In Search Of Haru 🌟

🌕 Haruka 🌕 Takaharu 🌕 Bad Ending 🌕 Haruto

🕒 Day7

-> Miss Detective's Undercover

🌕 Sean 🌗 Jeremy 🌑 Walter 🌑 Mystic Thief

-> Love Signal: D-Mate

🌑 Simon Lane 🌑 Richard Upton 🌑 David Mason 🌗 P:Ure 🌕 Greg Odell 🌑 Tay Caden

-> Marked By King Bs 🌟

🌕 Ashton Griffin 🌕 Nicholas Rosada 🌕 William Kal 🌕 Zack Snyder 🌕 Joel Barret

-> Loved By King Bs

🌑 Ashton Griffin 🌑 Nicholas Rosada 🌗 William Kal 🌑 Zack Snyder 🌑 Joel Barret 🌑 Erick Blanche

-> Sleeping Delivery

🌗 Damian Kraus 🌕 Luke Morris 🌕 Julian Parker 🌑 Leo Reinhardt 🌑 Sebastian Weiss

-> Beauty Rental Shop

🌑 Toby Lowell 🌑 Lucian Vasilis 🌗 Soren Rayne 🌑 Kylar Xander

-> SECRET Fan Crush

🌑 Leon 🌑 Woobin 🌑 Haejin 🌑 Dohwon 🌑 Taehee 🌕 Parang Ki

-> Proposed by A Demon Lord

🌑 Penn 🌑 Hael 🌗 Laika 🌑 Riley 🌑 Vernius 🌑 Ren 🌑 Cornell 🌑 Isaac

🕒 Avocado Entertainment

-> Vampire Idol

🌑 Edgar 🌑 Kang Tae Jun 🌑 Ian 🌑 Lee Sun Woo 🌑 Baek Do Ha

🕒 DeareaD Inc.

-> Monster's First Love

🌗 Achille 🌑 Ibuki 🌑 King

🕒 StoryTaco.inc

-> Dangerous Fellows - Romantic Thrillers

🌕 Zion 🌕 Eugene 🌑 Lawrence 🌕 Harry 🌕 Ethan

-> Queen's Number - Jackpot is not my concern 🌟

🌕 Aaron 🌕 Freyr 🌕 Gon 🌕 Mo-wan

🕒 Nix Hydra

-> The Arcana : A Mystic Romance

🌗 Julian 🌗 Asra 🌑 Nadia 🌑 Lucio 🌑 Muriel 🌑 Portia

-> Storm Lover Kai!!

🌕 Kyosuke Mikoshiba 🌕 Yuto Uzuki 🌑 Mio Ikari 🌑 Rikka Toratani 🌑 Soya Tatsuhara 🌕 Takumi Mishiro 🌑 Tsukasa Sugai 🌑 Chihiro

-> Collar x Malice 🌟

🌕 Kei Okazaki 🌕 Mineo Enomoto 🌕 Takeru Sasazuka 🌕 Kageyuki Shiraishi 🌕 Aiji Yanagi

-> Code Realize ~Guardian Of Rebirth~ 🌟

🌕 Arsène Lupin 🌕 Abraham Van Helsing 🌕 Victor Frankenstein 🌕 Impey Barbicane 🌕 Saint-Germain

-> Piofore: Fated Memories

🌗 Nicola Francesca 🌕 Dante Falzone 🌑 Gilbert Redford 🌕 Yang 🌑 Orlok 🌑 Finale Route

-> Birushana 🌕 Noritsune Taira 🌕 Shungen 🌑 Benkai Mukashibo 🌕 Yoritomo Minamoto 🌕 Tomomori Taira

-> Cupid Parasite 🌑 Allan Melville 🌑 Raul Aconite 🌑 Gill Lovecraft 🌑 Shelby Snail 🌑 Ryuki Keisaiin -> Virche Evermore 🌟 🌕 Lucas  🌕 Mathis  🌕 Scien  🌕 Yves  🌕 Le Salut (Adolphe/Ankou)

-> Hana Awase New Moon Here I am considering each game as a single route. 🌕 Iroha Volume 🌕 Mizuchi Volume 🌑 Karakurenai/Utsutsu Volume 🌑 Himeutsugi Volume

-> even if TEMPEST 🌟 🌕 Crius Castlerock 🌕 Tyril I Lister 🌕 Zenn Sorfield 🌕 Lucien Neuschburn 🌕 Ish

To Play 1. Olympic Soiree 2. Butterfly’s Poison; Blood Chains

[captainzigo]

Any other Poly Ships you'd like to share with the class, Ms. Zigo?

sadly i don’t think i have any more pony ones worth drawing because they are slight variations of the the mane six all together

twilight harem is good. i’m not exactly sure that’s the name of it but it’s like twilight dating the other five but they’re not necessarily dating eachother. you can probably see why that fusion character wouldn’t be super different.

rarity mane six harem is kinda good too

sunset shimmer mane six harem is fun

starlight mane six harem i have a love hate relationship with

sunset and both twilights is pretty great too. might draw that one

rarity x aj x dash x flutters is a favorite i mine. leaves twipie all by themselves

but as you can see a lot of these are kinda the same thing as far as fusion drawing goes. but since i’m listing poly ships i’ll just keep going

mio x yukko x mai from nichijou is nice. i like it

i like shipping all of ramona flowers’ evil exes together. maybe excluding roxy

my siblings are trying to get me to ship luke skywalker x ezra bridger x din dindjarin and i am coming around to it

mamoru kodai x kauro niimi x shiro sanada from space battleship yamato (specifically 2199) is a favorite of mine

my siblings and i have a crack polyship that is tim sasha jon AND martin from the magnus archives

i ship juliann bashir with both ezri dax and elim garak equally at the same time. they are from star trek

i ship donald duck with a multitude of people. most notably the cabarellos and daisy

ann sasha marcie from amphibia

blaze the cat x both amy and silver

me, your mom, AND your dad

i’m sure there are more but i can’t think of them

[evilgirlboob]

short list of characters for my star blazers project

sorry if its a bit short, this is only like a couple, ill add more later

EARTH CHARACTERS Vice Admiral Juzo Okita (沖田十三) M61 Famed hero of the 2nd Battle over Mars. A stern, fearless stoic. Captain of the Yamato (UNS BBY-001) and formerly captain of the battleship Kirishima (UNS BBS-555). His battle strategies are nearly always high risk, high reward, and it miraculously always seems to work out perfectly.

Commander Mamoru Kodai (古代守) M27 Elder brother of Susumu and captain of UNS DDS-117 (JSS Yukikaze). His family was wiped out by an interplanetary bomb that struck the Miura Peninsula. Only he and his brother Susumu survived. He is shot down by the Gamilons while drawing their fire during Operation M so Okita could return home.

Commander-in-Chief Heikuro Todo (藤堂平九郎) M59 CinC of the Earth Defense Force. A calm, collected, reasonable man. Believes in the prioritization of morals over orders.

Admiral Kotetsu Serizawa (芹沢虎鉄) M55 Todo's right hand. A stern, angry, stubborn man. Harsh, immovable, but well intentioned. Reasonably disliked by the general public. Foil to Field Marshal Zöllick.

Lieutenant Commander Yuki Mori (森雪) F21 First mate aboard the Yamato, formerly a staff officer at EDF central command. Highly intelligent. A woman of great forethought and consideration. Kindhearted, consistently collected, fiercely believes in legitimate justice & the invalidity of sheer revenge, no matter how heinous the crime. Closely resembles the beautiful Sasha of Iscändar, who crashed on Mars.

Lieutenant Susumu Kodai (古代進) M19 Chief of the Tactical department. Hotheaded, righteous, brooding when upset. Mamoru's only surviving relative. Main protagonist of this story.

Lieutenant Daisuke Shima (島大介) M19 Friend and compatriot of Susumu. Yamato's Helmsman and Navigation department Chief. An expert navigator with an interest in astronomy. Calmer, more proper and more level-headed than Kodai. The exception being when Kodai is actually around, in which case Shima is even more rash and foolish than he.

Lieutenant JG Hajime Hirata (平田一) M21 An older fellow student at the Space Force academy when Kodai and Shima attended. A sort of "older brother" type friend to them.

Dr. Sakezo Sado (佐渡酒造) M54 A brilliant physician and a confidant of the Captain. Appointed as the ship's Medical department Chief despite no prior astronaval experience. A widely beloved drunkard. Cat person.

Makoto Harada (原田真琴) F21 Medic, officially a civilian.

Analyzer (AU09-Q1309) X3 AI companion of Dr. Sado and improvised autonomous subframe of the Yamato after the original was destroyed. Prefers to be called "Analyzer", as opposed to AU09 or Q1309.

Lieutenant Shiro Sanada (真田志郎) M28 Science and Technologies department Chief. A highly analytical and intellectually gifted man. His mind was designed to create machines. Highly emotionally intelligent, though bad at reading and expressing emotions. The Wave-Motion Gun is his brainchild.

Lieutenant JG Saburo Kato (加藤三郎) M23 Captain of the Yamato's Air Corps. Damn well coulda been born and raised in a cockpit, for the way he flies. Righteous, a little bit of a control freak. Close with Yamamoto.

Lieutenant JG Yasuo "Dash" Nanbu (南部"DASH"康雄) M20 Chief of Gunnery subdepartment of Tactial. Very much envies Kodai's position. About twice as hotheaded as Kodai, and 10 times as pigheaded. Excellent, loyal soldier, even if he disagrees with is commanding officers.

Ensign Yoshikazu Aihara (相原義一) M21 Operations department Chief and Comms officer. Reports to XO Mori. Sort of on-edge a lot of the time. Often overshadowed by those around him.

Ensign Kenjiro Ohta (太田健二郎) M24 Radar officer and Chief of the Space Weather Prediction subdepartment under Navigation. Eager and enthusiastically helpful. Bit of a mild Osaka hillbilly stereotype.

SP3 Haruki Ando (安藤春樹) M18 Wave-Motion Ballast & Shield technician. Brilliant kid, rushed through school with the goal of helping the cause against the Gamilons. Did not intend to be a soldier, merely a scientist, but is overjoyed nonetheless. Follows Kodai around like a duckling.

Kaoru Shintani (新谷かおる) M43 Chief OMCS technician. AKA, shipboard cook.

Lieutenant Commander Hikozaemon Tokugawa (徳川彦左衛門) M62 Chief engineer. Like Sado and Okita, quite brilliant, though quite odd. Former Chief engineer of the Kirishima. Very warm & paternal to all, considered the nice grandpa of the crew.

PO1 Sukeji Yabu (藪助治) M31 Tokugawa's favorite student. Cautious, introverted, kinda weird. Extremely intelligent. Refers to Starsha of Iscändar as a goddess.

Lieutenant JG Sho Yamazaki (山崎奨) M45 Tokugawa's official right hand.

Ensign Akira Yamamoto (山本明) F20 Another prodigy seemingly born to fly. Similarly to Kodai, she and her elder brother Akio were the only survivors of the early planet bombings by the Gamilons. ALSO similarly to Kodai, said elder brother died in Operation M. She and Kodai seem to keep ending up in bleak situations and having to save each other.

Ensign Hiroki Shinohara (篠原弘樹) M24 Deputy Captain of the ship's Air Corps. Quite unserious and smug in general. Very mature and insightful when the time calls for it. Never angry, and excellent mediator.

Lieutenant Akira Nemoto (根本明) M31 Captain of the Yamato's Marine Corps. Cold, quiet. Foolhardy, but a quick learner. Eager to kill Gamilons.

Corporal Kazuhiko Sugiyama (杉山和彦) M18 Deputy Captain of the ship's space Marines. Smug asshole most of the time, but humbles up quick when he deems it necessary. Doesn't like to take things too far. An EXCELLENT shot.

MCPO Isami Enomoto (榎本勇) M36 Boatswain's Mate. Kodai, Shima, and Hirata's former Practical Skills instructor. Simultaneously bubbly and friendly & strict and unforgiving.

PO3 Shinpei Iwata (岩田新平) and SP1 Kiyoshi Toyama (遠山清) M27 and M26 3rd deck operators. Inseparable. Idiots. Simultaneously fully competent and woefully incompetent. Often subjected to Enomoto's wrath.

WO2 Yuria Misaki (岬百合亜) F19 Member of the Supply department and self-proclaimed ESP haver.

WO2 Shigeru Hayashi (林繁) M18 Member of the Navigation department, plagued by visions (suffering from nightmares).

Lieutenant Kaoru Niimi (新見薫) F37 Chief of the Security department. Friend of Serizawa.

Lieutenant JG Shinya Itou (伊東真也) M21 Chief of the Armed Security department. Eerily friendly. Unnervingly polite. Gives of bad vibes.

WO1 Toru Hoshina (星名透) M19 Member of the Armed Security department. Love interest of Misaki.

[bengiyo]

Tokyo in April is... Ep 3 Stray Thoughts

Last week, Takizawa and Ren circled each other before ending at an intense Now Kiss moment. Takizawa encountered Hide, an old friend from junior high, and it's clear that Takizawa is missing information from that final summer. Hide didn't report any old rumors, but is clearly sad about Ren and Takizawa. Ren forbade Takizawa from seeing Hide again, and Takizawa is frustrated about Ren not telling him things. We also encountered Ryunosuke, who intentionally flirted with Ren in front of Takizawa.

Meanwhile, in the past, we reflected on Takizawa becoming aware of Ren's homosexuality, and Takizawa stopping Ren from having his first time with an older man from the internet. Young Takizawa offered himself up to Ren instead.

I liked the timing of the show to place both first times as cliffhangers. Reminder that I've read the manga and it there may be manga commentary below.

I like putting his arms over Ren's shoulders for the manga readers. Takizawa is much bigger in that, but I like the choice to cast actors of similar builds.

Oh, I really like the way they shot this with the young actors. This was very tasteful.

It's really sad how they were never able to talk about their feelings for each other as boys, because Ren thinks he hurt Kazuma in that hotel room. Kazuma was overwhelmed with feelings because he cared so much about Ren. I ache...

No, but Ren had to report that Kazuma was deathly ill from a love hotel. It was the right thing to do and he was punished for it.

As I expected, they gave wider angles to the adults.

Sure, make sure to highlight the wristband when he wakes up for the first time after having sex with Kazuma in ten years. I'm unwell.

Haagen Dazs from the convenience store? Shiro would not be pleased.

Oh, Ren. Friends with benefits? The way he held you last night was not platonic.

He literally moved to be on his side. I'm going to die.

They aren't going as far with the sex, but it remains tasteful.

Man, pacing the conversation about Sanada after the details about the FWB situation is such an ominous pacing choice.

I think the offending actor in the manga committed sexual crimes. I don't think I mind then going away from that.

Ren put the whole damn company in his back.

I like that Kazuma clearly understands the relationship they have.

Okay, that preview footage felt like a direct call to What Did You Eat Yesterday?

I like that they've gone light on the depiction of sex so far. I am okay with them saving it for when these two are better aligned and Ren isn't holding so much back. Incredibly tasteful changes the source material is also giving really satisfying pacing. Ren is warned about Sanaka as he becomes the savior of the company? Problems on the horizon.

[nymphilily]

IDOLiSH7 x Transformers Seiyuu

I am mentally ill

Every single Seiyuu from the Joseimuke game IDOLiSH7 (as collected by the IDOLiSH7 Wiki), and whether or not they voice a character in the Transformers Franchise; human and crossover characters included

Any characters that are not animated as of the ending of IDOLiSH7 Third Beat are listed in the SPOILER CHARACTER section. Please tread with caution

IDOLiSH7 Toshiki Masuda (Izumi Iori) - NULL Yusuke Shirai (Nikaido Yamato) - NULL Tsubasa Yonaga (Izumi Mitsuki) NULL KENN (Yotsuba Tamaki) - NULL Atsushi Abe (Osaka Sogo) - NULL Takuya Eguchi (Rokuya Nagi) - NULL Kensho Onō (Nanase Riku) - Hot Rod (Q-Transformers)

TRIGGER Wataru Hatano (Yaotome Gaku) - Optimus Prime (Robotmasters) Sōma Saitō (Kujo Tenn) - NULL Satō Takuya (Tsunashi Ryunosuke) - Hot Rod (Cyberverse)

RE:VALE Sōichirō Hoshi (Momo) - Tracks (Q-Transformers) - Yukimura Sanada (Sengoku BASARA/Q-Transformers) Shinnosuke Tachibana (Yuki) - NULL

ŹOOĻ Yūya Hirose (Isumi Haruka) - NULL Subaru Kimura (Inumaru Touma) - NULL Kōtarō Nishiyama (Natsume Minami) - NULL Takashi Kondō (Mido Torao) - NULL

AGENCY STAFF Satomi Satō (Takanashi Tsumugi) - NULL Kazuyuki Okitsu (Oogami Banri) - Smokescreen (Prime) - S.S. (Prime) - Kenzan (Go!) - Scrapface (War for Cybertron Trilogy) Susumu Chiba (Takanashi Otoharu) - Jetfire (Armada) - Wheeljack (Armada) - Sideways (Cybertron) Katsuyuki Konishi (Yaotome Sosuke) - Optimus Prime (Superlink) - Cliffjumper (Energon) - Angry Archer (Animated) - Spike Witwicky (Animated) Yoshihisa Kawahara (Anesagi Kaoru) - Farnum (RID15) Makoto Furukawa (Okazaki Rinto) - NULL Hiroki Takahashi (Tsukumo Ryo) - Starscream/Hellscream (Beast Wars II) - Mantis (Beast Wars II) - Autolauncher (Beast Wars II) - Optimus Prime (Animated)

FAMILY MEMBERS Rina Hidaka (Kujo Aya) - NULL Fumihiko Tachiki (Chiba Shizuo) - Cyclonus (Rebirth) - Silverbolt (Rebirth) - Spasma (Rebirth) - Meltdown (Animated) - Dino (Dark of the Moon) - Megatronus (RID15) Rikiya Koyama (Osaka Soshi) - NULL Kenjirō Tsuda (Kujo Takamasa) - Thundercracker (Q-Transformers) Chiwa Saito (Sunohara Ruri) - NULL

OTHERS Wataru Takagi (Mr. Shimooka) - Cheetor (Beast Wars, Beast Wars Returns, Cyberverse) - Generation 1 Megatron (Beast Wars) - Glen Whitmann (Transformers) - Jetstorm (Animated) - Safeguard (Animated) - Jazz (RID15) Junichi Yanagita (Hyūga Akihito) - NULL Ryota Takeuchi (Douglass Rootbank) - NULL Tomokazu Seki (Sakura Haruki) - Skids (Revenge of the Fallen) Hirofumi Nojima (Thorvlad) - NULL

SPOILER CHARACTERS Takahiro Sakurai (Utsugi Shiro) - Sideways (Armada) - Blurr (Animated) - Vince (Prime) Yuichi Nakamura (Okazaki Rintaro) - Lambor (Q-Transformers) - Sunstreaker (Q-Transformers) - Steeljaw (RID15) Kaori Nazuka (Takanashi Musubi) - NULL Shin-ichiro Miki (Seto Ranvalt von Northmeir) - Inferno (Beast Wars) - Sentinel (ep18 only) (Beast Wars) Kenichi Suzumura (Bernard Kenneth) - NULL Yasuyo Tomita (Haruka’s Grandmother) - NULL Ryota Osaka (Tanigawa Mon) - NULL Kazuhiro Nakaya (Producer Matsunaga) - NULL Mai Fuchigami (Hanamaki Sumire) - NULL Shugo Nakamura (Tsunashi Sotaro) - NULL SOUNGDOK (Oda Hiroto) - NULL Shoya Ishige (Matsunaga Taro) - NULL

[mysticdragon3md3]

My only real hope for later today, is for a Nendoroid Claude von Riegan (post timeskip) to get announced. And the same for Dimitri.

I was a little tempted to add movie versions of Ballister and Ambrosius from the Netflix Nimona movie. But I'm not sure yet, if I'm as obsessively fixated enough on them, enough to want figures.

The Golden Deer's post timeskip versions used to take up 2 squares. So when I consolidated them into 1 square and freed up another square, I was about to add some older picks that left my bingo cards by now:

Nendoroid school version Persona 5 protagonist with bloody Persona Awakening face.

Pop Up Parade Skull (Persona 5).

Figma school uniform Ryuji Sakamoto (Persona 5).

Nendoroid cat protagonist from Stray.

Nendoroids of the remaining Akizuki class KanColle girls.

Nendoroids related to Date & Sanada: Yonezawa Castle, Sendai Castle, Osaka Castle (Shiro Hime Quest).

Skull-Face Bookseller Honda-san

Then I remembered that I've been wanting Megurine Luka Nendoroids to return. I'd like a re-release of the original. But it'd always be nice to get all these versions that both Miku and the Kagamine twins have been getting. Like Harvest Moon, Symphony 2022 (Symphony 5th Anniversary), yukata/kimono, etc. I'd really love for other Vocaloids to get Snow versions too.

Good Smile Company didn't provide a bingo card template this time. So I was about to reuse my WonHobby36 version but change the logo. Then I remembered that I've always wanted to make icons out of the official figure line/brand logos. So I made this new bingo card mostly from scratch, with all the icons and figure types that I wanted.

[cryptidwithacopiccollection]

There will be new stuff but in the mean time have these redraws I excavated from my drafts :D

@roadkilltbh

[worldcomics51]

Be Forever Yamato: Rebel 3199! Diffusi i primi 5 minuti del film!

Prima delle proiezioni nelle sale, il sito ufficiale della serie anime remake di Space Battleship Yamato ha pubblicato i primi cinque minuti del primo film “Kuro no Shinryaku” (Dark Invasion) di Yamato yo Towa ni: Rebel 3199 (Be Forever Yamato: Rebel 3199). La clip inizia con la lettura di poesie da parte di Shiro Sanada (Hōchū Ōtsuka) e introduce una nuova eroina, Sasha Kodai/Mio Sanada. Poi,…

[gabriel-gabdiel]

【Draft】 Rurouni Yahiko Chapter 60: The Curtain Falls

We now discuss the aftermath of another assassination attempt by the infamous Brigands Guild.

The Seiryu Clan are now gathering to protect their masters, the hatamoto-class samurai family of the Minakatas, like it's the Tokugawa Era all over again.

As the final daimyo of Shimabara, Tadachika Matsudaira of the Matsudaira Clan pledged his allegiance to Emperor Meiji.

As a show of good will towards the tenets of "Sonno Joi" of the new administration, Matsudaira allowed the new Meiji Government to hunt the Hidden Christians down and eventually crush the new Shimabara Rebellion of Nidaime Amakusa Shiro Tokisada (Shiro Tokisada Amakusa the Second).

Soon afterwards, the Shimabara Domain was abolished in 1871 and it became part of Nagasaki.

To avenge the death of his master (the blind swordsman Hyoue Nishida) at the hands of Hyoue's nephew Shogo Amakusa (at the time known as Shiro Amakusa the Second), Kinta Minakata agreed to infiltrate the ranks of the Kakure Kirishitan (Hidden Christian) cult to destroy it from within on behalf of the Meiji Government.

With his skill with the sword, the former Mimawarigumi Battousai learned to become Amakusa's Kagemusha (literally "Shadow Warrior" but figuratively "Body Double") and master Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu as they continued their insurrection, treason, assassinations, and terrorism of Japan.  

Only for Minakata to double-cross the Christians and defeat their cult leader Shiro Amakusa (real name Shogo Muto) in mortal combat. He became their literal Judas Iscariot.

Nevertheless, successfully deploying Kinta's Nisshoku (Solar Eclipse) against a formidable supersonic technique like Shogo's Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki (Heavens Gliding Dragon Flash)wasn't possible to do with just the Aoitsuki O Tsuki Nari (Blue Moon Slash).

The Blue Moon Slash—actually a Double Full Moon Slash done at the fraction of a fraction of a second—might be able to match the Hirameki in speed, but not in power.

Especially since the Amakakeru's left-footed torque gave it enough centrifugal force to create a vacuum or vortex of empty air, thus doubling the impact of the second strike.

Instead of creating a second Full Moon Slash, Kinta used his great skill and timing to reverse the direction of his circular slash from an upwards slash to a downwards one, moving the flipped blade on the same trajectory as before but backwards.

Reversing his momentum gave his sword the torque it needed to match the strength or even surpass the speed of the Hirameki's second slash, thus enabling him to do the Solar Eclipse counter on Shogo's ultimate technique. 

Like a reverse-direction Blue Moon Slash that slashed at the same empty space he'd already slashed through previously before the air could fill it up again, resulting in a frictionless strike that perfectly transferred its total energy without any wind resistance.

That was the Tsubame Gaeshi (Swallow Return). This was the ultimate hidden skill taught to Kinta by Amakusa's Uncle Hyoue.

The same one that the black sheep of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu discovered when he hesitated to deliver the killing blow to his own master, Seijuro Hiko XII.

A reverse-momentum riposte after missing with initial the battoujutsu or iaijutsu slash that sliced faster than the Blue Moon Slash and struck as hard as the second Hirameki slash.

***

Rurouni Yahiko

A Rurouni Kenshin Continuation Fan Fiction Story by Chester Castañeda

Take a bow. The night is over. The Brigands Guild latest assassination attempt has been foiled by Yahiko Myojin, the Sanada Ninjas, and Kinta Minakata… for now.

Disclaimer: All characters used in this fanfic (save some others) are the rightful property of Nobuhiro Watsuki, Shueisha, Shonen Jump, Viz, Sony Studios, Fuji TV, Studio Gallup, Studio Deen, and ADV. This disclaimer also covers all the other copyrighted material that are far too many to mention here. Don't sue me please, I'm very poor.

***

Chapter 60: The Curtain Falls

***

Back at the front yard of the Minakata moneychanger office…

It was finally over.

"Ugh, NOOOOO! DAMMIT!" cried out Lucas Grant into the darkness, a velvet cloth of his own blood draping over his consciousness like a curtain over a theater stage, the light from his eyes fading.

He had him. Well, he almost had him. But he had him. He was so close. But he tripped at the finish line and underestimated him.

Or maybe Luke gave Kinta too much respect because his estranged brother truly was a saint among sinners when compared to the rest of his… their scumbag family.

Faster than even a Blue Moon Slash, he got sliced open from hip to shoulder. What just happened? What hit him exactly as he strode on the verge of victory?

"What was that technique?" Luke demanded to know, his body shaking like a leaf, his blood pooling below him.

"The Tsubame Gaeshi," answered Kinta while brushing away his matted hair in between belabored breaths, his face as pale as a ghost's.

While the bloody Lucas steamed with rage, high-blood pressure, and disbelief, Kinta exuded cold sweats, alabaster skin, and a dropping blood pressure.

In spite of himself, Luke laughed, blood spurting all over him in a shower. "Well done, Samurai."

The Prodigal Son then heard the self-proclaimed Fuuma Ninja Kai Hidaka scream something about getting over there.

Luke's head snapped into attention and stared to his side, only to see Kai engaged in battle with a tall blonde woman wielding a naginata.

His vision blurring, Luke had a brief dream of himself practicing the art of kenjutsu with his elder brother Kinta and that same European(?) girl he just saw like they were old childhood friends.

As if his delirium had taken over.

Only for the fantasy to shatter with the reality of him living in squalor as one of the forgotten burakumin (untouchables) of Japan, after the Minakata Family forsook him and his mother.

Only to see a vision of the Minakata’s disowned daughter working in the Red Light District of Yoshiwara to make ends meet for them, which roused him from his dead faint.

As he understood it, they quietly sent her away to preserve the dignity of the Minakata name, whatever that meant.

Tetsuo Akahori revealed the truth about him and the traitorous Minakatas who disowned his mother for having an affair with a foreign dignitary during the heightening tensions and growing anti-foreigner sentiment of Japan at the dawn of the Bakumatsu.

The single mother and her son became collateral damage against the hostility between the kowtowed shogunate, the restless samurai, and the gaijin who forced to open Japan's borders by force, revealing how backwards and primitive the country had become thanks to its isolationism.

No, wait. This was far from over.

 ***

Many years ago, before Niitsu Kakunoshin became the disciple of Hiko Seijuro XII…

A young, non-blind Hyoue Nishida faced a dilemma.

The deeply religious man needed to kill his beloved (if strict and no-nonsense) Master Hiko to learn the succession technique of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and become the newest inheritor of the swordsmanship school. However, doing so was at odds with his beliefs.

What was he supposed to do? He really needed to complete his training to protect the Hidden Christians from exposure and persecution from the Shogunate.

He'd heard of the horror stories of how the government tortured anyone they caught practicing this forbidden "foreign" religion, such as nearly drowning them by dunking them upside-down into a well or putting long carpentry nails into their fingertips until they recanted their faith.

Some Christians even had their fingernails plucked right out of their bed. Or they were outright crucified like their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Fearing how Western nations used Christianity to colonize other countries, the Tokugawa Government had a zero-tolerance policy against any citizen converting to Christianity.

This was the reason why the Hidden Christians remained hidden in plain sight, with their churches located inside caves and their statues of Jesus or Mother Mary as well as the cross put under lock and key in secret compartments.

The pacifistic swordsman Nishida wished to have the power to protect these persecuted faithful without spilling any bloodshed. He wanted to practice the Sword of Life the same way he followed the gospel or the Word of Life.

He wished to use Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu as his Sword of Life to wield for the sake of others and to protect people. His people. The Hidden Christians of Shimabara.

He wanted to do so through the same sword that defeated entire armies and saved whole villages during the Sengoku Era.

Those wielding the Sword of Life were absolutely not allowed to kill or to lose. To lose would not only spell their doom but also the doom of the ones they were trying to protect.

If his only options were to kill his master to succeed him or get killed himself, then he'd find a third option to save them both, so that everyone could end up happy. So he wouldn’t break one of the Ten Commandments.

After praying over and over again to God for guidance, the Christian peacemaker found his answer.

'God is great. Praise be to God,' Nishida had taught at the time. 'I leave my fate in your hands, oh Lord Jesus. I trust in You. Thy will be done.'

***

Back at the front yard of the Minakata moneychanger office…

Kai Hidaka couldn't believe his eyes. The damage sponge and unstoppable juggernaut known as Lucas Grant had finally fallen against the hands of the so-called Kagemusha in a single exchange.

At the same time, he heard the righteous indignation from the voice of the blonde bombshell known as Satsuki Sakaguchi (also known as May Brooks) for good measure, with her charging forward with her trusty naginata (polearm blade) in tow.

"Keep your mitts away from Kyoko-chan and Mr. Sakaguchi!" screamed Satsuki at him.

Hidaka, her opponent, also currently looked like a dagger pincushion thanks to the efforts of Zan of the Sanada Demons.

Man, today just wasn't their day, was it? By "them", he meant the Brigands Guild.

Cursing under his breath, Kai charged, ignoring the agony of his body that served as a knife holder to Zan's daggers.

As for May's part, she saw red as soon as she got a look at the state of Kyoko Sakaguchi and her father Satoru. She didn't even have time to register that Kinta Minakata himself faced his own death match just a few yards away.

Like a purebred mare with blinders on, she focused solely on the ninja with the destroyed gas mask. A traitorous Japanese or East Asian man on the side of gaijin assassins.

He'd touch not one hair on either of them. Her Grandpa Sakaguchi's family. No, her family.

Something weird then happened. Kai found himself in the same predicament as before with Zan. Satsuki could reach and slash at him with Old or Young Moon Slashes at will with an insane reach.

Like she had an infinite supply of throwing knives that she used to suppress Hidaka from getting anywhere near Satoru and Kyoko Sakaguchi. Except it was a blade on a stick so she recycled her throwing knives by stabbing the same blade every time.

After struggling against a strange centipede version of the lion dance mascot with reinforced steel carapaces, razor-sharp limbs, and experienced Chinese kung-fu experts serving as its puppeteers earlier, she could finally let off some steam against one of the brigands.

She intended to defeat Kai like she did the gigantic human centipede mascot: By controlling the distance and taking him apart piece-by-piece, like her taking down those martial artist hooligans one-by-one. Thusly, that was what happened.

The already exhausted Fuuma Clan Ninja couldn't even touch the Caucasian martial artist, her naginata's slashing and stabbing range as far as that of a thrown projectile. Or, ironically, one of Hidaka's rope hooks and darts.

She unloaded on him like a Gatling gun onto an advancing army. Or even a Maxim gun. Every time Kai tried to get near her, it felt like he just dove face-first into a cactus patch. Or a shower of flesh-rending broken glass.

***

Many years ago, before Niitsu Kakunoshin became the disciple of Hiko Seijuro XII…

Hyoue Nishida found a way to master Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and learn the Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki without murdering his beloved master over it, and it rooted from him hearing about tales of the inimitable Kojiro Sasaki battling against Musashi Miyamoto.

Hyoue had never seen Kojiro's signature technique before, but he heard stories about how the riposte moved so quick it allowed Sasaki to cut apart a sparrow or swallow (hence its name) in mid-flight. 

He had been secretly practicing the Swallow Return over and over ever behind his master's back since he first heard about its legend leading up to his confrontation with his master.

He tried to figure out its mechanics from merely hearing about how it worked. To reverse-engineer a move he'd only heard about from rumors, legends, and folktales.

Hyoue threw caution to the wind and let his fate in the hands of his Christian God, the Almighty Yahweh. If he died in his attempt to spare his master's life, then so be it.

That was the kind of man Hyoue Nishida was.

And so the day of him learning the succession technique arrived. He was able to do the Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki but intentionally missed with his first strike.

His master blocked then did the Kuzu Ryu Sen (Nine-Headed Dragon Flash) to force him to do the even stronger second follow-up strike. A surefire killing blow with any normal katana (as opposed to the sakabatou).

However, Hyoue refused to do the second strike that would've finished Seijuro Hiko XII off.

Instead, he did an imperfect version of the Swallow Return, resulting in him getting blown back by Master Hiko's Kuzu Ryu Sen.

A miracle then happened during the fateful duel between master and student.

Hyoue ended up slipping off the cliff he and his master fought on, dropping into the waterfall below after getting lacerated all over by his master's multi-hit move.

However, he avoided death from his refusal to do the succession technique properly because the Tsubame Gaeshi managed to shatter Seijuro's sword in turn, so his cuts ultimately ended up shallow and non-fatal.

Later on, after recovering from his wounds, he'd thank God for helping him learn not one but two new skills—the Hirameki and the Tsubame Gaeshi—while keeping his master from dying by his hands in order to learn them.

***

Back at the front yard of the Minakata moneychanger office…

Kai Hidaka had enough of Satsuki Sakaguchi's "Death by a Thousand Cuts" nonsense and pulled one of the daggers on (or in) his person to throw it at the wobbly and spent Kinta to complete their assassination mission.

Predictably, this made Satsuki charge and attack up close, deflecting the dagger before it could even reach Kinta's back. With her moving right into Kai's range so that he didn't need to close the distance between them.

"That's right. GET OVER HERE!" screamed the Fuuma shinobi.

At such a close range, her long-ranged polearm was rendered moot while Kai Hidaka could move freely with his sword daggers and entangle her with his rope darts.

"Satsuki-neechan, watch out!" cried out Kyoko as she covered her face by reflex yet peeked out of her open fingers to see what happened next.

'Ha. Women are so emotional and predictable,' thought Kai as he withstood May’s flesh-cutting slashes and dodged the stabbing attempt that would've run him through.

May Brooks smirked. For the last few weeks, she'd been sparring with Yahiko Myojin to learn how to dodge and defend herself from close-range, knowing that was her previous weak point.

'What the hell…!?' thought Hidaka as Brooks shortened her grip on her polearm and held it closer to the blade, like a regular sword.

This allowed her to parry his quicker, shorter swords with her blade or even use the freed up space on her pole to deflect his attacks from there, with her gripping it like a sword with an extra-long handle.

"MIKAZUKI O TSUKU NARI (CRESCENT MOON SLASH)!"

She could throw Crescent and Quarter Moon Slashes at that midrange as well. Whether it was from the Waxing or Waning Stance.

And, when Kai attempted to escape from her close-quarter rampage to regroup, she merely gripped her naginata normally by its base to slash at him from mid-range to long-range. He couldn't escape from her at all.

The bloody Kai dodged those slashes regardless and moved in even closer, intending to grapple with the tall woman, grab her from behind, and then slit her throat.

The adopted Sakaguchi daughter merely stepped back and responded with a, "HANGETSU O TSUKU NARI (HALF MOON SLASH)!" that, lucky for Kai, hit him by the blunt pole end instead of the sharp bladed end.

Kai dropped to his side like a bag of hammers. Fortunately, he avoided having the knives in his person stab him any worse than before.

***

After Hyoue Nishida spared himself and his master Hiko Seijuro XII from needing to kill each other to master Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu...

Nishida would later become one of the founding fathers of Musou Madden Ryu, the swordsmanship school Kinta would eventually master.

The Seiryu Clan helped him develop his own swordsmanship skills divorced from Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, which in turn allowed him to protect the Hidden Christians from harm and discovery against the Tokugawa Shogunate.

He became the bane of many an officer of the law, samurai, or local authorities in Shimabara, hiding under the masked identity of Kirisaki of the Hidden Christians. Their divine protector from persecution and death.

Notably, Kirisaki the Christian freed jailed and tortured Christians or helped them find refuge among other Hidden Christians while never taking the life of their enemies.

The ruling shogunate also tolerated Kirisaki’s presence because on top of rescuing rogue Christians, he also helped catch criminals for them.

As though exchanging the lives of the criminals for the Christians he saved.

Kirisaki became an asset to the government it defied, so they turned a blind eye on its treasonous activities of hiding and rescuing essentially fugitives of the law in exchange for his vigilantism.

Like Morihei Ueshiba with the development of Aikido, the Christian swordsman considered Musou Madden Ryu as a synthesis of his martial studies, philosophy, and religious beliefs.

It combined everything Nishida learned from Sengoku Era Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and old-school battoujutsu with Hasegawa Eishin Ryu, an iaijutsu koryu from the 16th Century founded by Chikaranosuke Eishin Hasegawa.

By the way, the Sakaguchis previously studied under Hasegawa Eishin Ryu prior to the development of Musou Madden Ryu.

From under this school did Hyoue, the Sakaguchis, and several others derive their take on modern iaijutsu or iaido before and after the Bakumatsu commenced in earnest.

Some students followed Hyoue's pacifistic "Sword of Life" lessons. Nishida and Ueshiba shared the same goal of creating a martial art that practitioners could use to defend themselves while also protecting their attackers from harm.

Others insisted in continuing to go the path of the "Sword of Death" or old-school kenjutsu and iaijutsu because in reality, kenjutsu was the art of killing and katanas were weapons used for murder.

They merely used "Sword of Life" as a safe way to practice and temper their deadly skills. Like doing no-contact sparring and kata drills before engaging in "the real deal".

However, as Japan went to civil war and heads of state rolled in Shimabara, the old officers that tolerated Kirisaki and his protection of Hidden Christians died out.

The "Sonno Joi" movement also led to renewed hatred of everything foreign, including Christians who followed the religion of foreigners. They got hunted down like stray dogs in times of famine soon after.

Years after Hyoue rescued his young nephew and niece from being purged for being Hidden Christians, he'd later get blinded by a teenaged Shogo Amakusa because he wanted revenge against the new government.

Hyoue would later train how to use the "Sword of Life" while blind, using his other sharpened senses to deal with people safely in battle, with him only using violence as a last resort.

All this time, even during the middle of the Bakumatsu, Nishida never took a life. He wasn't a pure pacifist. He was willing to draw swords and do battle when push came to shove. However, like Kenshin as a rurouni, he followed a non-killing vow.

And his nephew Shogo bitterly blamed this vow for the deaths of their people.

In the end, the Swallow Return was also the last technique Nishida used before dying in the hands of his nephew, the self-proclaimed Second Coming of Shiro Amakusa, Shogo Muto.

That was the blind swordsman's last-ditch effort to keep his nephew Shogo from going the dark path of cult leader and domestic terrorist.

Hyoue remained defiant to the end, unwilling to compromise on his Christian beliefs and unwillingness to take a life even at the cost of his own.

***

Like a newborn fawn, Lucas stood and wobbled on shaky legs, his clicky knees knocking together like the Shinsengumi knocking on your door, thinking you were harboring an Ishin Shishi fugitive.

By sheer force of will, he trudged forward.

Despite everything, the wheezing Kinta also sacrificed himself to land that last attack when by the tail end of their protracted battle, no Full Moon Slash or Double Full Moon Slash could land on Lucas.

Doing a Full Moon Slash iaijutsu from the start subjected the swordsman’s body to muscle-tearing or even bone-crushing centrifugal forces, especially one involving a reverse-momentum riposte like the Swallow Return!

It was hard to imagine the damage he was doing to his body, but surely it was enough to push him over his own limits!

Kinta's gasping mouth went agape as his little bastard brother marched towards him. Like an unkillable zombie. Like the Ochimusha the Minakatas were allegedly descended from.

What did it take for Luke to go down? How was he still standing?!

What did he go through all those years after he and his mother were banished from the Minakata Family that pushed him beyond his human limits?

Kinta himself sheathed his sword and hobbled in anticipation of his bastard brother's final attack, his scratchy throat withholding a bloody cough.

The Prodigal Son of the Minakatas had every right to wipe out their sinful clan.

However, it remained Kinta's duty as the grandson, nephew, and son of the family to protect his uncles and grandmother.

Lucas then leaped towards his unlucky brother as soon as his body gave in and he coughed, blood spraying from his mouth.

At the side of the entrance, both Yahiko Myojin and Sho Kojima—who accompanied Tatsuya Minakata back to the office to rescue Kinta —ran as fast as they could towards the Prodigal Son as soon as they spotted him attacking a coughing and defenseless Kinta.

Alas, they were too far away to make it.

Ditto with May Brooks, who'd just made short work of the injured Kai Hidaka.

She ran blindly at Lucas Grant, unaware of his connection with Kinta Minakata, but stopped short from running him through in spite of herself.

After years of living in Japan as the only other "gaijin", it was the first time she'd seen someone who was Caucasian like her, which sent a shock to her system for about a second.

A second was all the time Luke needed to finish off the huge wall that kept him from enacting revenge at the evil Minakata Family.

A flying kunai not unlike those wielded by Zan of the Sanada Demons flew in between Grant's eyes.

 "Who…!?" a frothing Lucas demanded as used his sword's handle to deflect the weapon, his one second of opportunity to assassinate Kinta now gone.

Did that damn persistent Zan revive and get in his way again? No, it was the dagger of the other ninja bodyguard who was also from the Sanada Ninja Clan. Their young master, Kaita.

Luke swiped at Kinta regardless, blindly hitting the invisible ninja instead as his crossed short blades broke under the weight of the heavy bastard sword.

The Prodigal Son then turned and blocked a sudden naginata slash with his blade, leaving him open to a number of other incoming attacks. Turning the full-rotation Full Moon Slash into a Half Moon Slash.

"Get the hell away from Kinta-sama…!" screamed Satsuki Sakaguchi, who remembered who she was now.

Or rather, who she became: A devoted student of Musou Madden Ryu and the adopted granddaughter of the Sakaguchis, who in turn loyally served under the Minakata Family since the olden times of the Shogunate.

It was Luke’s turn to wonder where he was and why he was fighting a blue-eyed blonde Caucasian warrior woman in full martial artist garb wielding a Japanese glaive, his brain unable to process what he saw. 

'Wait a minute. This girl…!' he thought. He couldn’t possibly be mistaken.

Unless he met another tall, white (creamy pink, more like) golden-haired woman in Japan, he had seen this girl before. The chances of meeting two foreign blonde girls who spoke fluent Japanese in Japan were next to nil!

Lucas then noticed the incoming attacks of his other hindrances.

The charging Yahiko's temple then got clipped by a hook punch from the struggling Luke, but as he fell to the ground, he pushed forward and did the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu Tsuka no Gedan—Hiza Hijiki knee strike that made the Prodigal Son buckle.

Finally, Sho unsheathed his sword and let its handle fly into Luke's gut, knocking the wind out of him and making him drop his sword in wincing pain, which embedded itself to the ground.

This was another form of the Lunar Eclipse: A half-drawn blade with the handle aimed at the opponent's gut before either could fully draw their blades.

Like a rampaging gorilla, Luke punched, kicked, elbowed, and threw the people nearest him, his eyes solely focused on his half-brother Kinta, who had already recovered from his coughing fit.

Yahiko shook his head in disbelief. What did it take to put this man down? He seemed as strong as Sanosuke, if not stronger…!

Soon, a dogpile occurred. Multiple coppers were called into the Yokohama Chinatown to seize the assassin. They became messy entanglemen of limbs, sai, wooden swords, and rope.

The police finally arrived along with Chizuru Raikouji and Abelia La Cerca.

The dead-tired Yahiko surveyed the carnage. Blood spilled everywhere. Several people were injured. Multiple bodyguards were killed inside and outside the moneychanger building.

Regardless, the Brigands Guild's invasion in Chinatown had ended, at long last.

'It's finally over,' thought the exhausted Kinta as Abelia tended to him and his wounds.

***

The Yokohama Police had quite the busy night, with them arresting criminals working with foreign invader assassins left and right, most of which were Chinese nationals from the local Chinatown criminal syndicate.

However, only Lucas Grant ended up getting arrested. Somehow, someway, while they were all distracted by Luke's last-ditch attempt at taking out his half-brother Kinta, Kai Hidaka disappeared.

The aching Yahiko suspected that The Faceless had something to do with it. He probably fetched his fellow Brigands Guild member in the middle of the chaos.

He almost had him too during their duel, but the strange masked brigand had more tricks up his sleeve like the experienced mercenary that he was. Like he changed personalities and styles depending on the mask he wore.

‘Now who does that remind me of?’ the teenaged samurai thought with a smirk.

However, their boss had now been caught by the authorities. Will they still continue with their mission of taking out the wealthy and influential Minakata Family?

Meanwhile, little Abelia attended to the gasping and wheezing Kinta after applying first-aid on Satoru Sakaguchi and his daughter Kyoko along with the other medics on the scene looking for other survivors.

Bandages and salves were also handed off to Yahiko Myojin and Satsuki Sakaguchi.

The two sparring mates grinned at one another and crossed their weapons together. Their lengthy training sessions at the Sakaguchi Dojo had paid dividends tonight.

"Good work, Joshua-kun!"

"You too, Satsuki!"

Chizuru herself pinched one of Yahiko's ears like an irate mother and chewed him out for not being careful and needlessly involving himself with other people's business to the point of risking his life.

Like she didn't know better by now.

Yahiko rolled his eyes and allowed the lady to scold him as he withheld a wistful smile that sneaked into the corners of his mouth. Again, though she’d hate to hear him say it, Chizuru reminded him so much of Kaoru Kamiya back at the Kamiya Dojo.

Yahiko had actually reunited with Gan and Minoe earlier, in the middle of him, Kojima, and Kinta's uncle returning to the moneychanger office.

The pair of Munenori Minoe and the Great Gan took down the Chinese mercenaries wearing the lion dance costume in typical violent fashion.

Indeed, Minoe ended up helping out with the mission despite viewing Kinta Minakata as the traitor to Shogo Amakusa’s rebellion, but he was unwilling to join Yahiko any further.

The Tokyo Samurai Descendant thanked the wandering terrorist with the eye patch and wig regardless.

Yahiko had no idea how Kinta Minakata betrayed Munenri, Amakusa, and the Hidden Christians, but he thought better than to pry right now.

The Battousai Group was the furthest thing from his mind at the moment. He’d have to deal with them eventually, of course.

After all, there were foreign invaders afoot. Someone hired them to finish off the so-called Seiryu Clan.

He also had a gut feeling that Amakusa’s faction and the current turn of events were all interconnected somehow.

It seemed too convenient for a Fake Battousai Group to harangue the Sakaguchis, only for the real one to finish them off.

Perhaps Keisuke used the name of one of the Sakaguchis’ enemies for himself. Or perhaps the Battousai Group was the enemy of the Minakatas, which in turn made them the enemies of the Sakaguchis by proxy.

***

Kinta took a long drag of his asthma cigarettes—not made of tobacco, but instead from the leaves of Datura stramonium (thorn apple) that were widely sold in the 1800s and into the early 1900s—given to him by Abelia La Cerca to relieve his respiratory emergency.

The cigarettes provided a means of delivering an inhaled treatment that would be later known by 20th Century medicine as an antimuscarinic alkaloid.

Other than almost suffocating to a dead faint due to exhaustion, he was none the worse for wear. He barely had any cuts deeper than a laceration on him. Most of the blood on his clothes were from Lucas.

Nevertheless, he was the one who almost died instead of his stamina monster of a brother. That (literal) bastard pushed him to his (present) limits.

His whole body trembled and ached from muscle strain. He felt like going into a deep sleep, afraid it’d turn into a coma he wouldn’t wake up from.

Kinta's adrenalin probably still kept him up and standing like his brother did before he was apprehended.

"Are you okay, Kinta-sama?" said Officer Satoru Sakaguchi, who himself got injured by one of the brigands of the Brigands Guild. "It’s time for you to head home and rest."

'He still calls me, Kinta-sama, eh?' Wistfully, Kinta looked up at the endless blackness of the sky and its infinite stars then marveled:

"It's been 17, almost 18 years since the Meiji Era started. There's no reason for you to be trapped into a master-servant relationship with our family."

After a brief pause, Lieutenant Satoru answered, "Don't be silly. Just because of the administration's edicts, we're going to throw away hundreds of years of gratitude? Don't be a stranger, Kinta-sama."

"It's a stupid old tradition," insisted Kinta. "Your family shouldn’t be shackled to mine. Samurai no longer exist. The hatamoto class died out along with the Shogunate."

"Come on, don't make me say it, Sir Kinta." Satoru grinned. "The bonds between our families run deeper than mere traditions and classes. We Sakaguchis are loyal to you because we choose to! We’re bound by fate at this point."

***

Yahiko poked around and eavesdropped on the Yokohama Police chatting with the "Sword of Life" swordsman and drunkard earlier. His name was Sho Kojima, wasn't it?

Sho seemed to have finally sobered up after using his mix of the Drunken Fist and Musou Madden Ryu swordsmanship at The Faceless.

Myojin overheard something about them apprehending three of five known Brigands Guild members.

One had been jailed already—someone who almost killed a squad of Yokohama Policemen had they not been saved in time by that other foreigner girl the size of a ten year old who knew all about western medicine and drugs.

They also put in chains a swarthy hairy giant of a muscular man who wielded a huge ax like it weighed as much as an ordinary sword. They arrested him back in one of the Minakata Family’s many mansions.

And now they actually caught the mastermind of the mercenaries with a direct link to the Minakatas, Lucas Grant. Right on time too, before he could murder one member of their family.

However, it was at the risk and cost of the lives of many of Yokohama’s Finest and their hired private bodyguards, one of whom Lucas impersonated in order to get close to the family.

Had the Minakata Family drama not have national security consequences when push came to shove, Yahiko would rather not interfere with it.

Also, the Akahoris were also somehow intertwined with Minakata busines. Nepotism ran deep in the Meiji Oligarchy, after all, as evidenced by the likes of Jusanro Tani.

Could it be that the Akahoris were also in league with the Minakatas? Could it be that the shared the same enemy, which was Amakusa’s faction?

If so, then why did it seem like Minoe had nothing to do with these Brigands Guild of mercenaries? He was willing to take them down, even for Kinta’s sake.

Yahiko scratched his chin. Maybe he needed to send a carrier pigeon to the Kyoto Oniwabanshu so that he could glean more info on this Seiryu Clan and Minakata Zaibatsu.

Myojin decided then and there to keep digging deeper. What was the reason behind Amakusa's use of Kenshin's name Battousai? Why did he and Minoe’s other self, Kaede, know how to use Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu?

How was Kinta related to the Battousai Group? Did it go beyond him once being called the Mimawarigumi Battousai? Was he another Battousai wannabe too, by that logic?

Just like how Minoe, without the wig and eyepatch, or his other self, Kaede, if she were another gender, was the spirit and image of Kenshin himself?

Oh wait. That last technique Kinta did. The Swallow Return. That was legendary iaijutsu or battoujutsu invented by the famous Kojiro Sasaki himself! Musashi Miyamoto’s chief rival!

Could such a legendary technique from a historical figure like Kojiro counter Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu’s Heavens Gliding Dragon Flash? Yahiko could only wonder in amazement.

However, to Yahiko, being Kenshin-like wasn’t about techniques and strength. It was more than just being named "Battousai" as well.

It was about moving forward despite all the suffering and crippling depression he faced. It was about being honorable in the face of an imperfect new government filled with corruption.

It was about the strength of defending life after being burdened by the unwashable guilt of taking so many lives. 

It was about viewing the true nature of samurai as to improve, become stronger, and become knowledgeable than you were before. Being a samurai meant self-improvement in every sense of the word.

Rather than the other face of samurai being armed thugs serving the Shogunate who were born with privilege. And when that privilege was taken away from them, the samurai became no better than bandit and criminals.

Most importantly, what was the deal with this so-called Seiryu Clan he kept hearing about?

***

"Ah! I almost forgot ‘bout you! Hold still, Señor Samurai!" said the foreign-looking little girl with rust-brown hair who appeared out of nowhere and began bandaging Yahiko’s wounds.

Yahiko took one look at the kid and then called out to the nearby police, "Hey, there’s a lost child here. Might be a foreign kid from the Yokohama Foreign Settlement or something!”

This earned him a bonk on the head from the violent kid. She was a brat, truly.

"OW! Hey! What was that for?"

"What do you mean 'What was that for?' You called me a lost child!" the girl pointed out.

Then, to Yahiko’s utter befuddlement, the taciturn Kinta turned towards him and told him, "She's with us."

This in turn earned the already injured Kinta a bonk on his head, followed by an apology. "AH! I’m sorry, Señor Kinta! But that doesn’t clear things up with him at all!"

Rubbing the bump on his head as he watched the doting child scold the poker-faced Minakata, Myojin remembered where he first met the girl. Well, saw her.

It was at the Sakaguchi Dojo. She was with Kinta and that drunken swordsman dude who helped him take on The Faceless, Kojima.

According to the Yokohama Police, she was some kid that had connections with the Brigands Guild that was after the Minakatas. She helped saved them from one of the members, a poison-based assassin.

She was also a lot older than she looked apparently, like she was more of a little person than a child, but Yahiko wasn’t so sure about that claim. Big if true.

The adorable young/old person then turned towards Yahiko and asked, "What's your name again?"

"Huh? Me? Uh, it’s Yahiko. Myojin Yahiko."

"Charmed. My name is Abelia La Cerca. Como estas? I mean, how do you do?"

"Uh, I’m doing fine. Thanks."

'La Cerca?' thought Yahiko. The police told him that was one of The Faceless' many aliases. So she was related to one of the Brigands, huh? Could they trust her?  What if she was the Brigands’ mole?

"But you're just a li'l kid," he almost muttered to himself rather than to Abelia.

"Right back at you, kiddo. You're barely a teenager," said the childlike girl midget before him. Girl midget? Gidget?

"Well, you're barely pubescent!" he said. "…Right?"

"It doesn't matter anyway," she said as she attended to Yahiko's wounds with ointment and bandages.

"Heard from the police you have connections with the Minakata's present enemies, the Brigands Guild. Like you're related to some of them or something."

This made Abelia pause. "What of it, Señor Samurai? Are you accusing me of something? Even though you're more of a rando yourself, snooping into other peoples' business?"

"HEY! I'm a friend of the friend of the samurai family serving under the Minakatas, I'll have you know!" blurted out Yahiko in defense of himself.

He felt a pang of regret from leaving out the part where he decided to intervene into the Minakata Familiy's affairs because of their Kinta's to Shogo Amakusa's Battousai Group.

That info was on a need-to-know basis, but at the same time, he was ironically becoming a hypocritical interloper on someone else's business himself.

"…Heard from Señor Kojima that you're some vagabond who volunteered to become Señor Kinta's bodyguard. And you didn't do half bad against, uh, The Faceless," Abelia said, changing the subject.

Yahiko rubbed the back of his head, flattered.

"Jeez, I was lucky to get some shots in against The Faceless and his fencing style! That Drunken Fist Samurai is your friend too? Well, he ultimately bailed me out in the end. Oh, and Kinta’s personal ninja helped too."

***

As the police secured the perimeter, tagged the bodies, arrested the perps, and gathered evidence, Yahiko finally left that moneychanger office in Chinatown. He'd finally told them his eyewitness account of what happened, so he was free to go.

Go home, perhaps? Nope, he was far away from Tokyo now. Well, maybe a train ride away, at least.

However, he was already in too deep. As the inheritor of Kenshin's sakabatou and the kanji of "Evil" behind Sanosuke's back, he had a job to do.

There were people using the Hitokiri Battousai's name in vain, creating a so-called Battousai Group meant to sow discord in the Meiji Era.

He had to take these insurgents down.

Furthermore, a former Mimawarigumi member and his Hatamoto-Class Samurai Family were in peril against literal foreign invaders at that.

This man, Kinta, might be his biggest lead yet in taking down the Battousaigumi before they could reform and wreak havoc in peacetime Japan, undoing all the hard work the Kenshingumi did in defending the country against Makoto Shishio's Ten Swords.

Yahiko's eavesdropping also helped him hear whispers about a certain Seiryu Clan and their… Black Book. A book full of names and secrets that could unravel the very fabric of the Meiji Government.

A literal government conspiracy was afoot in the middle of Yahiko investigating a bunch of terrorists sullying the good name of Kenshin Kamiya (nee Himura).

'I'll cross that bridge when I get there,' he thought while rubbing his temples with his fingers. 'What's important is that I've found another potential member of the Battousai Group while keeping an eye on another.'

Yahiko took a deep breath, remembering his misadventures with the eye-patched Munenori Minoe. Or rather, the volatile Kaede Morinaga.

The Battousai of Speed had finally met up with the traitor to their cause, the Mimawarigumi Battousai, also known as the Battousai of Skill.

The ninja turned towards Yahiko, who almost flinched and turned away, but willed himself to stare at him eye-to-eye.

"I had no idea Takae was your father," Yahiko said honestly. "I'm sorry for your loss. He was an honorable fighter who saved my life in the end."

"What is your name, Yojimbo?" asked Kaita.

"Myojin Yahiko," said Yahiko Myojin. "The son of Tokyo Samurai."

"Fine. Myojin Yahiko," Kaita Takae pointed his kunai at the teenaged swordsman. "Until I kill you, make sure no one else kills you."

From there, the son of Masahiro Takae who inherited all of his tricks disappeared in the blink of an eye, his silhouette fading from the light and merging back into the shadows.

***

To Be Continued...

Yes. I combined elements of the Shimabara Arc and the Black Knights arc together for this fanfic's continuity. In light of that, you can consider this fanfic an "Elseworlds" type of story that happens directly after "Yahiko's Sakabatou".

It hinges on the alternative universe premise of "Had the Kenshingumi never met their filler villains (because Kenshin was too busy dealing with Enishi), what would've happened to them?"

It follows portions of the 1996 anime and the manga's Iinchu Arc but skips the filler episode seasons altogether. I do think that characters like Shogo Amakusa were wasted potential, especially since he was supposed to be more skilled than Kenshin and has his own signature move.

Shogo's Uncle Hyoue also fascinated me, particularly his motivation for learning Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu as a Hidden Christian.

Danke, Abdiel

[queen-ofsunflowers]

Magic Affinities

Every witch and user of magic in general have a natural affinity for one magic in particular. This serves as their base, and the form that their magic takes naturally when no spell is their to change it or reshape it. In very rare cases, it can change and the cause of this is unknown. It’s difficult to study with the small amount of instances their are.

This is the list of what those defaults are for the Monsters and Magic AU. It includes not only witches but general magic users such as Fae as well. This list also includes those who are living and deceased. Please note that as not every character uses magic, not every Persona character is listed.

Bless

Light energy made manifest and without restriction. The opposite of Curse and difficult to master.

Goro Akechi (False)

Chisato Dojima

Nanako Dojima

Ryoji Mochizuki

Kasumi & Sumire Yoshizawa - Sumire’s and Kasumi’s magic almost can manifest as plant life due to their species of fae.

Curse

Dark Energy made manifest and without restriction. The opposite of Bless and difficult to master.

Goro Akechi

Ren Amamiya

Tsubaki Amamiya

Electricity

Daichi Arisato

Ryotaro Dojima

Shuji Ikutsuki

Tomiko Narukami

Yu Narukami

Akihiko Sanada - Due to Dullahans being catergorized as fae, Akihiko is able tointo his punches.mental energy that he packs into his punches.

Energy

Pure, raw magical energy that takes no default form. Similar to the Nuclear element in the Persona series.

Aigis

Labrys

Miyako Mochizuki

Makoto Niijima

Takaya Sakaki

Jin Shirato

Fuuka Yamagishi

Fire

Minato Arisato

Yuriko Arisato

Kotone Shiomi

Katsuya Suou

Tatsuya Suou

Ann Takamaki

Naoya Toudou (Post/Latter Parts of Persona 1)

Chidori Yoshino - Despite not being born with magic, Chidori was able to keep her magical ability upon her resurrection.

Ice

Maya Amano

Yusuke Kitagawa

Ayame Shiomi

Water

Shin Narukami

Shiro Shiomi

Wind

Eiichiro Takeba

Yukari Takeba - Despite being a harpy, Yukari possesses minor wind abilities due to her father being a witch.

Naoya Toudou (Former Parts of and Pre- Persona 1)

[general-kalani]

Interest call masterlist!

Same list idea as the starter call and plotting call. Alphabeticised by fandoms

Bitten Jeremy Danvers

— Borderlands Alistair Hammerlock Alphonso Knoxx Helga Steele Jeffrey Damien Blake Katagawa Jr. Mordecai the Hunter Wainwright Jakobs Doctor Ted Doctor Ned Doctor Zed Wilhelm the Enforcer Zane Flynt

— Dinosaurs Nigel Marven Ducky Bruton Url Theron the Therizinosaurus

— Dragons Cretaceous Dragon Marine Dragon Forest Dragon Mountain Dragon

— Evil West Chester Morgan

— Expedition Arrowtongue Bladderhorn Daggerwrist Emperor Sea Strider Groveback Gyrosprinter Littoralope Pronghead Skewers

— Fallout: New Vegas Benny Caesar Gideon the Deathclaw

— Fallout TV show Snip-Snip

— Far Cry 3 Alec Earnhardt Vaas Montenegro Buck Hughes Hoyt Volker Sam Becker

— Far Cry 4 Mumu Chiffon Pagan Min Paul "De Pleur" Harmon Yogi & Reggie Yuma Lau

— Far Cry 5 Cameron Burke Earl Whitehorse Faith Seed (adopted sister) Jacob Seed Jerome Jeffries Joey Hudson John Seed Joseph Seed Nick Rye Sharky Boshaw Staci Pratt Faith Annabelle Seed (Joseph's wife) Everett Stiles Cain Seed Amos Bobby Miller Rook The Voice Hunter the Judge Reese Spoon

— Far Cry: New Dawn Thomas Rush Ethan Seed Ivanova Lord Murder Claw

— Far Cry 6 Diego Castillo

— Frontier Cobbs Pond Samuel Grant Major Vinnicombe

— RAGE Sheriff Black Mayor Clayton Coffer Halek Hagar

— Space Battleship Yamato Abelt Dessler Elk Domel Fomto Berger Hydom Gimleh Ryle Gettoh Vance Balen Wolf Flakken Shiro Sanada

— The Quarry Kaitlyn Ka Travis Hackett

— The Silver Brumby The Brolga