#spirit of sword: byakko

[captainshadowgirllostfan]

Harusame is Amidamaru's famous blade. The relic you're referring to is actually called Futunomitama no Turugi.

Asakura Yoh met his ancestor, Asakura Yohken in hell and they had a duel. It was impossible for Yoh to defeat Yohken and had Harusame when he died. Harusame was the relic of the Asakura family and Yohken ask why Yoh had it because Yohken was unaware of the fact that Yoh is his descendant. Later, Yoh come up with new Over Soul named Byakko as to catch up to Patch Hao.

[yuzuna123]

As i mention before in some of my old posts, Kazuki is a skilled sword fighter. He made his sword have a pact with the spirit Byakko when he was around 15, and when he uses he has blue lighting and blue energy.

They call his sword the "Blue lighting Sword"

[yyh4ever]

Yu Yu Hakusho Motto Cafe 2023

Yu Yu Hakusho Collaboration Cafe ☕

Another Yu Yu Cafe❤️ The chibi guys in chinese clothes are too cute! The menu is also inspired by the Chinese cuisine.

📍 Period: February 1st (Wed) to March 5th (Sun), 2023

📍 Location: Motto-cafe Ikebukuro Store 3F

📍 Official site and reservations: yuhaku.motto-cafe.com

📍Goods & Menu

~ GOODS ~

📍Mail order (started on May 10, 2023): collabocafe online shop

Trading Swaying Acrylic Keychain (5 types)

Price: 770 yen each (blind)

Size: about H56mm

Trading Can Badge (5 types)

Price: 440 yen each (blind)

Size: about 47mm diameter

Clear File

Price: 440 yen

Size: A4

Trading Stickers (5 types)

Price: 440 yen each (blind)

Size: about 62mm diameter

Clear Bottle (Full Team Design)

Price: 2,200 yen

Size: about 664mm x H185mm

Clear Pouch

Price: 2,200 yen

Size: W219mm×H160mm

~ MENU ~

► Dishes

Yusuke's Taiwan Mazesoba ~I was surprised when I mixed it!~

Price: 1,430 yen

Yusuke's Taiwanese-style mazesoba noodles topped with an egg yolk, inspired by his spirit gun.

Kuwabara's Fried Chicken Donburi ~Reiken Two-Sword Style~

Price: 1,430 yen

Kuwabara's Chinese-style fried chicken rice bowl, with 2 pieces of meat on the bone.

Kurama's Rose Gua Bao ~Fuuka Enbujin~

Price: 1,320 yen

Kurama's Gua Bao (pork belly bun), decorated with roses and pesto sauce.

Hiei's Evil Eye Tenshindon ~The Black Flames of the Makai~

Price: 1,320 yen

Inspired by Hiei's jagan, it is a tenshindon with meatballs under the omelette.

► Desserts

Hiei's Ensatsu Kokuryuuha Douhua

Price: 1,210 yen

Hiei's chinese douhua with a black dragon monaka (sweet made of azuki bean), topped with tapioca pearls, strawberries and mangoes.

Kurama's Secret Aiyu Jelly ~Fruit of the Previous Life~

Price: 800 yen

Aiyu (jelly made from the gel from the seeds of the fig found in Taiwan), inspired by Kurama who uses plants as weapons! You can also change the flavor with a syrup that looks like Kurama's fruit of the previous life.

Youko Kurama's Pineapple Sandwich

Price: 1,210 yen

A white pineapple sandwich, inspired by the image of Youko Kurama.

► Drinks

Yusuke's China Blue ~Reikodan~

Price: 950 yen

A non-alcoholic china blue with yellow jelly and tapioca, inspired by Yusuke's Reikoudan (Spirit Light Bullet / Aura Blast).

Kuwabara's Energy Ginger ~Reiken Javelin~

Price: 950 yen

Kuwabara's Energy Ginger is a drink inspired by the Spirit Sword Pole Vault, seen in his fight with Byakko, when Kuwabara rose like a phoenix!

Hiei's Dark Oolong Tea ~Jaou Ensatsu Kokuryuuha~

Price: 950 yen

A peach oolong tea made with dark oolong, inspired by Hiei's Jaou Ensatsu Kokuryuuha (Wicked King Immolation Black Dragon Wave).

Kurama's Crafted Tea Set ~Makai Plants~

Price: 1,540 yen

A set of crafted tea and egg tart, inspired by Kurama's plants from the Demon World.

~ PRESENT ~

For each menu item ordered, you'll get one blind coaster (10 types).

[the-game-spirit]

building personas is so.... complicated

and fucking EXPENSIVE oh my god

[malibvnghts]

AKIMI VERSES

GENSHIN IMPACT  --  former protector of humans that resided in inazuma  ,  fought in the archon war to protect those that they were to protect  ,  but only to have those same people turn on them and made the celestial tiger a freakshow after discovering the tiger speaks  .  tortured and traumatized  ,  akimi is weary of humans and while still believes that humans are still as atrocious as before . . . some have shown them different  .

MODERN --  akimi is the solely heir to the corporation  ;  with their documents doctored  ,  no one knows of akimi’s true identity and it’s a guarded secret that only a few know of  .  a fashionable and genderfluid person  ,  akimi is hardworking and hoping to inherit so they can finally shed the facade they’ve been forced under  .

MODERN (2.0)  –  the ozora family is one with a lot of tradition and history  ,  one of the old money family  .  their riches stem from their connection to celestial beings  ,  though the world have long forgotten the gods and divinity  ,  the ozora family is one with roots in the divine and it is the divine that gifts them with money and reputation  .  the heir of the ozora family will always be born with the abilities of the beast the family has a contract with … passed generation to generation  ,  akimi is the new byakko  ,  solidifying their status within the family and in turn  ,  with society as the heir to big and old money  .

TWISTED WONDERLAND  --  a supposed pompous little prince of the royal sword academy  ,  akimi is hardly like what one thinks princes are akin to  .  though gentlemanly  ,  the air about them is odd and strange  ,  yet alluring and mysterious  .  just as they are gifted in the way of the blade  ,  they are also gifted in the magical arts . . . being able to shift between tiger and human and use complex magic with ease  .  a hailed genius from their home  ,  akimi is struggling under the weight of expectations  .

SHIFTER  --   akimi is a tiger shifter living amongst humans  ,  with a keen nose and senses  ,  akimi uses their prowess and elegance to dominate the corporate world  .  albeit  ,  it’s a hassle to have to deal with their natural instincts and they find it a hindrance to their lives  .  living amongst humans  ,  the ozora family is one of 4 guardians that protect the land from supernatural threat  ,  exorcists  /  shamans as one could call them  ,  hired to assist in keeping evil spirits at bay and keeping a balance between the supernatural and mortals  .

YAKUZA  –  the ozora family is one of tradition  ,  with 7 branches  (  including that of the main family  )  ,  they mostly reside in port cities  ,  the main branch in the heart of the country  .  dealing mostly with smuggling of products of all kinds  –  be it legal or illegal  –  there is little the ozora family can’t get their hands on  .  they cannot say they have a monopoly of certain items nor can they say they have monopoly of certain docks  ;  they do believe in business partnerships and well  ,  agreements  .  it’s not to say that the ozora family is passive and weak  ,  no … the family is large  ,  they just seem small with how spread out they are  .

[littleeyesofpallas]

Shaman King - Name Games

I didn’t really intend to expand this accidental series of Bleach posts outside one series, but I was looking back at Shaman King, what with the new anime having been announced, and to be honest there’s not a lot to pick at in this particular regard --a lot of the names are pretty straight forward, or just not Japanese, and the O.S. are all similarly named, predominantly in English or with pretty straight forward Japanese epithets.

Like, for example Amidamaru’s name is just written as Amida[阿弥陀] as in the Japanese name for the Buddha, Amitabha, and -maru[丸] super common super generic suffix for boys’ names.  All his attack names are accordingly Buddha themed.  There’s no real obscure or obtuse kind of references or anything that isn’t really self explanatory.  It does tie into Yoh’s general attitude and personal philosophies being zen influenced, which I guess takes a bit of a leap if you’re not familiar, but again it’s pretty obvious.

Then his Over Soul names are all things like:

阿弥陀丸 = ���Amidamaru”

スピリット・オブ・ソード = “SUPIRITTO OBU SOODO” = “Spirit of Sword” 

...白鵠 = “...Byakko ” = 白:“White,” 鵠:”Swan”

Really straight forward.  English readers really weren’t missing much.  Or at least if they were reading Mankin Triad’s scanlations. (I’ll be honest, I never read all the Viz prints front to back.)

But you know what are some fun kanji readings that TOTALLY get missed in English?  The actual names of the main character.  And granted, a lot of characters in the series aren’t Japanese so they don’t all get fun clever names, but the Asakura family is like one big running joke...

So, in-world, the family itself starts in Japan in the 900s with an orphan child named  Asaha(麻葉) Douji(童子) whose names read as “Hemp”+”Leaf” and “Child(implicitly a boy)” but also an archaic reading meaning “Scholar" or depending on context “Sorcerer.“

For a little context, despite Japan having rather notorious modern marijuana policing, hemp was actually a widespread and integral crop in Japan for hundreds of years so it’s not an uncommon component of names in the first place.  It’s also the basis of a very common pattern in traditional Japanese fabric printing (and you’d probably seen it before in period settings in anime, manga, J-dramas, or film) it’s called Asanoha(麻の葉) and you’ll notice is the exact same kanji as the name Asaha.

The boy, Asaha, grows up to be a powerful onmyoji and changes his name to  Asakura(麻倉) Hao(葉王) meaning “Hemp“+”Storehouse/Warehouse/Treasury“ and “Leaf“+”King.”  Considering the name “leaf” clearly refers back to the family name’s, “hemp” I really hate to admit it, but Hao’s name is basically “Weed Lord” of the family “Weed Stash.“  If it wasn’t clear this is also why Takei draws a lot of cannabis leaves in association with Yoh(葉) whose name is just written with the same kanji as Hao’s for “Leaf” but with an alternate reading.

Yoh’s super chill and laid back personality and his ever present headphones for relaxing to are all part of this theme in his name.  This theme is also why he’s a fan of Soul Bob (aka totally-not-just-Bob-Marley) and why Soul Bob posters are everywhere in the background of Shaman King.  The Asakura family crest, adapted from the Onmyodo five-path star, also resembles a leaf not unintentionally --I don’t remember if they openly refer to that fact in-world or not.

But as we follow the rest of the family tree from there we get the ancestor Yohken(葉賢) from 500 years ago, Yoh’s grandparents Yohmei(葉明) and Kino(木乃), his mother Keiko(茎子) and father Mikihisa(幹久), and eventually his son Hana(花).  Also the branch family’s Yohkyo(葉虚), and his kids Ruka(路菓) and Yohane(葉羽).  And you’ll probably already notice a lot of those names use the same Yoh/Ha(葉) that is the basis of both Yoh and Hao’s names.

So the rest of the family’s names go...

Yohken(葉賢) = “Leaf”+”Wisdom” which, at face value, is just naming him as a wise shaman.  But it’s also basically a cheeky euphemism for “stoner logic.” 

Yohmei(葉明) = “Leaf”+”Insight” synonymous with Yohken’s reading.

Kino(木乃) = “Tree”+”From/<posessive indicator>,” so “Hemp Tree” basically

Keiko(茎子) = “Stalk/Stem”+”Child” but keeping in mind that -ko(子) is just a super common suffix for girls’ names, so it’s not like she’s being called explicitly child-like or anything, her name is basically just “Stem Girl”

Mikihisa(幹久) = “Stem”+”Longtime” but I’ll come back to him...

Hana(花) = “Flower” but also a phonetic play on ha(葉) + na(ナ) from his parents’ names

Yohkyo(葉虚) = “Leaf”+”Void/Empty” (haha that’s the same “Hollow” used for Hollows in Bleach)  As the head of the disgraced branch family of the Asakura house, his name reflects that he’s not part of the family, despite the family surname, by basically just calling him “No Leaf.”  Technically it could also read “Fruitless Leaf” which kinda sticks to the plant imagery better, but makes a little less sense when he has kids...

Ruka(路菓) = “Way/Path/Road” + “Fruit” I assume this is meant as “Way of Fruit” like a metaphor for the fact that she’s been tasked with leading the branch family to success, and not “Road Fruit” as in fruit you’d find on the road, or by the side of the road.  Although that does kind of fit in its own way.

Yohane(葉羽) = “Leaf“ + “Feather“ which I think is a play on the fact that when traced back to Jodai era(700s CE) etymology both words shared a common root word, reflecting the fact that he’s got the same ancestor as the core family, but has developed differently but in parallel.

So I said I’d come back to Yoh’s dad, Mikihisa, because as an outsider who married into the Asakura family he has an original family name other than Asakura.  His full name is Miki(真木) Mikihisa(幹久) which read as “Truth“+”Tree” and “Trunk/Stem“+”Long Time“ which has some nuance to it.  Obviously “Long Time Trunk” and “Tree (of) Truth“ evoke the image of an old and venerable tree with a thick and many ringed trunk.  That image plays into Miki’s role as a Shugenja --there is a whole lot going on with the history of the religion, more than I can reasonably summarize, but the thing to know here is that the popular image of Shugenja in media leans into them being ascetic monks, living in the wilderness, generally forest mountains, with an association with Tengu.(Tengu are frequently dressed in Shugendo attire.)

So, the forest man is named after a big tree, pretty straight forward...  The clever bit here is how once he takes the Asakura name his name can be read to match his wife’s, as the (幹) in Mikihisa and (茎) in Keiko can both read as “Stem.”

Unrelated to anything, but it’s always super weird to me that English translators insist on calling him “Mickey” (they did the same with Kaoru Miki in Revolutionary Girl Utena....)

And while I’m talking about outsiders, I’ll bring in Anna as well.  Her given name is actually just written in katakana as An’na(アンナ) so, unlike Mikihisa, her name in English is untouched.  But her family name Kyoyama (恐山) is written “Fear/Dread/Awe“+”Mountain“ which is both a description of her character as an imposing figure in Yoh’s teen life, but also a reference to Mt.Osore(恐山) where she first meets Yoh, which is both home to a famous Buddhist temple and a mythological location of the gate to the underworld.  It is of course written with the same kanji as her family name but pronounced differently, as you can see.

The American, Alumi(アルミ) Numbirch(ニウムバーチ) is obviously named after Aluminum, as all the Patch are named after metals.  I’m not really sure why the “-birch” part is in there?  It might be an obtuse play on the fact that the Japanese White Birch is also called the Siberian Silver Birch, and her dad is Silva?  It feels like a bit of a stretch, but I can’t think of another way “birch” would be relevant to her name.  But otherwise she’s not really related to the family theme.

And not at all related to the Asakura’s, but beautiful androgynous British boy detective, Lyserg Diethel is named after the hallucinogenic compound Lysergic acid diethylamide. (aka LSD/Acid)   The drug themes is part of why his spirit is named Morphine.  She is a nature spirit of (of course) a poppy flower.  The other reason she’s named Morphine is because Sherlock Holmes --from whom Lyserg gets his inverness cape aesthetic-- infamously used recreational morphine (and cocaine) to alleviate himself of the lethargy of being without a case to solve.

[penguiduck]

Writing Fight Scenes

I’ve had a lot of readers mention that they don’t feel comfortable with fight scenes.  Well, that’s understandable. It’s challenging writing about experiences you’ve never had.  But with some perspective and practice, you can most certainly work toward writing those fast-paced, heart-pounding scenes with ease.

To give you some background, I practiced competitive martial arts for six years.  I competed in tournaments and trained hard to perform well in the ring. It was a contact sport, and even if I wasn’t sparring, training often left me with bruises, usually of the physical nature, sometimes of the emotional persuasion.

This experience gave me a lot of perspective when it comes to writing fight scenes.

Whenever I step into the ring, I have a flexible strategy in mind that combines what I know about myself, my opponent, and what I’m going to learn about them in the next two minutes.  I’d like to share some of these thoughts and perspectives with you, and how your character may think before and during a match of their own. Of course, my fighting experience is limited to a contact sport.  Your story may very well be far more violent with higher stakes, but strategies may be of similar foundation. Once you take a fight into deeper consideration, aside from the depiction of two fighters merely exchanging blows, you can begin to enrich your writing experience.

I’m including examples from Yu Yu Hakusho because that’s the fandom I write the most for, and as you know, there’s a lot of fighting involved!  But remember — anime and writing are two completely different mediums. There's no one narrating everything that our beloved characters are doing on screen. You just see it. That is why you, as a writer, must paint those scenes through words for your readers.

Nevertheless, this advice really stands for any sort of writing, so do with this information what you will.

A well-written fight scene is never about just trading blows.  There are other conflicts at play, whether between the fighters or even in the heads of your protagonists.

Allow me to elaborate:

1. Who is your protagonist?

Whenever I am preparing for a sparring match, the first thing I worry about is me. I must be self-aware. 

I think about my own fitness.  How am I doing? Do I have any existing injuries or ailments?  How is my weight? My body type? What are my strengths and weaknesses?  What do I have in my toolbox? What techniques do I know? What techniques am I most versed and confident in?  

I also think about my overall wellness. Have I been eating well?  Drinking water? Sleeping? How is my emotional state of mind? What are the stakes?

Is my uniform clean and pressed?  What about my equipment? Headgear?  Mouth guard? Shin guard? Did I replace that torn lace?

I recommend using these questions to bring your character’s own reflection to the forefront in whatever way makes most sense for them.  How is your character’s fitness? Is she in good fighting condition? Has she been injured previously? What has happened since the last fight that might impact her state of mind? 

It’s possible that she’s recovering from an illness or injury.  Perhaps her mentor died a gruesome death. Maybe she’s frustrated because she lost use of her right hand, temporarily or permanently, and has had to compensate with her non-dominant hand.  Or perhaps she’s lost the will to fight, having experienced something traumatic.

Hiei had to constantly think about his own state of health throughout the Dark Tournament after his fight with Zeru.  His arm had been sacrificed to his Dragon of the Darkness Flame, rendered useless, and he was in terrible pain. He never let it impact him, of course, being the stoic warrior he is.  His personality allows for little inner dialogue to be shared with the audience, but as a fighter, he was most certainly considering what options he had with his handicap. And, as a writer, perhaps you would like to elaborate on his thoughts for your readers.

What has your character been practicing lately?  Is her weapon of choice the same? Has it been upgraded?  Has she been training with a different weapon or technique?  Is she perhaps nervous about using something new?

Maybe she just repaired her sword, and she’s unsure if it’s as strong as it was before.  Perhaps she’s been studying a new technique, and she knows she’ll need to use it in this battle.  

Remember when Kuwabara first introduced his spirit sword in Maze Castle?  He was so proud of himself, and that whole battle was an introduction to his newfound technique, how he manipulated his sword, and how he was able to harness his spirit energy.  It’s far more interesting to see this development and exploration than to just watch him stab at Byakko a dozen times.

My point is that while your character probably should keep her emotions out of the ring, she may not be able to.  There are so many things that could be on her mind, plaguing her thoughts, especially if there’s a lot riding on this battle.  I think it’s really important to not only acknowledge the physical part of fighting but the emotional toll it can take a fighter, too.

Think about the fight between Yusuke and Toguro.  Toguro had just killed Genkai, and Yusuke took that very personally.  This was not a simple battle of strength or wits. This was a battle of emotions, and it wasn’t until Yusuke was able to master his feelings and reach beyond that “six foot wall of crap” as Genkai so affectionately calls it that he was able to finally defeat Toguro.

And the catharsis that came from defeating Toguro? It was made all the more powerful because Yusuke went through that emotional journey. It wasnʼt just a fight — it was a calling, a purpose, and a lesson.  It was painful and potent, and it made him realize just how much these experiences shaped him as a person.

2. Who is the opponent? 

Before I participate in a tournament, I do my research.  Who is likely to be competing? Who is in my weight class?  What do I know about these competitors? If I don’t have answers, I would find them.  I’d chat with my instructor, my fellow martial artists. Has anyone else from my school fought these people before?  What were they like? Are there videos online of their performance?  

I find as much information as possible. I make calls, send texts, take people out to lunch, scour the internet for information.  Even if your character lives in a less technologically dependent world, I would imagine that he might talk with friends, look through old records, listen to gossip and hearsay.  He might watch battles leading up to his own fight in an effort to learn more.

And if this pre-work isn’t possible, that’s okay.  Fights in your story may be entirely unpredictable, but your character can also learn things about his opponent during the match.  

When I step into the ring and ready myself to compete, one of the first things I want to find out is on which side my opponent is dominant.  In other words, are they right-handed? Or left-handed? Right-footed? Or left-footed? Maybe they only focus on one side during training (which is silly, but that’s another conversation).  But there could be an underlying reason why as well. Perhaps they injured themselves in the previous round or maybe they just don’t like exposing one particular side of their body for whatever reason.

This information is critical because this tells me what I need to watch out for, which side of my own body I should be guarding, how I may penetrate my opponent’s defenses.  How can I catch them when they least suspect it? Where can I knock them off balance? My instructor always told me to watch the shoulders — shoulders move before the rest of the body.  You can tell what your opponent is about to do by watching their shoulders.

Your character may wish to discover the same thing.  Maybe his opponent uses a two-handed sword and is very clearly right-handed.  This may give him some information on where his blind spot is — or maybe he just needs to disable his opponent’s right arm.  The possibilities are endless, and understanding his opponent will give him leverage, offering him many options.

Understanding an opponent’s technique is also important.  In martial arts, practitioners often favor a strategy or skill.  This seems obvious, but it’s vital that you understand what it is — only then you can combat it.  

Consider Kurama’s matches with Gama and Toya during the events of the Dark Tournament.  The English dub did a wonderful job voicing Kurama’s inner conflict during these fights, struggling with first his inability to move and then his imprisoned spirit energy — if you were to put these scenes into writing, explaining his thought process would be fascinating.  How does Kurama overcome these obstacles? He seeks to understand his opponents before he defeats them, which, unfortunately, also means he risks injury to himself until then.

Your character’s thoughts about the fight, interpreting for your audience what he feels he might need to do to secure victory, is just as important as detailing the fight itself.

3. What about the writing?

The writing will come once you begin to dissect your characters and their motivations for fighting.  Your characters aren’t one-dimensional, or, at least, they shouldn’t be!  

Your fight scenes shouldn’t be, either.  It’s not about two fighters trading blows. It’s about an artfully curated dance.  Two opponents are engaged in a craft that they both know well, and whether they’re fighting to win a tournament or for their very lives, they have reasons and complex thought processes that should make their fight interesting.  

There are two players here, and unless the fight is grossly one-sided, they’re both thinking and acting independently of one another.  My advice is to thread their actions and consequences together — weave the fight scene as if it’s a stream of conscious thought, separated into paragraphs, each with a shift in perspective, for clarity.  

Instead of writing:

Yusuke charged at Kuwabara and punched him in the face.  Kuwabara punched him in the mouth. Yusuke then kicked him in the stomach.

Try this:

Yusuke had little patience for Kuwabara’s bad jokes, and he rushed toward him, landing a blow square in the side of his head.

Kuwabara flew backward with a grunt, stabilizing himself before launching himself at Yusuke, returning the favor.  His fist collided with Yusuke’s jaw, a blow hard enough to knock the teeth out of any regular human.

Yusuke expected him to retaliate, and although he was nearly knocked off balance, he swung his leg around, making full contact with Kuwabara’s stomach.

You may also find it useful to deviate from the fighting itself.  You can speak to a character’s inner dialogue or thoughts, whether about the fight or something else.  You may choose to have them begin a brief conversation. Or you may describe what other characters are feeling about the fight as onlookers.

There are many ways to make these fight scenes seamless and interesting — take some time to explore your options!

Just a few more general tips that might help:

If you’re going to use a thesaurus, be mindful about it. I use a thesaurus when I write because I suffer all day, every day from tip-the-tongue syndrome.  But words, even if they generally fit the same definition, can have vastly different connotations, so before selecting a word from the thesaurus, do some digging.  Look at the exact definition and perhaps Google some common usage. Punch, slap, and stroke do not mean the same thing, even if a thesaurus might say otherwise.

Read your writing out loud.  If you’re unsure, this is the best way to understand your cadence, the flow of the battle.  Use your best Morgan Freeman or Jorge the Ogre voice.

Consider a beta reader.  Sometimes having a second opinion is immensely helpful.

Remember that there are no strict writing rules.  You write whatever your heart desires in whatever manner your heart desires.  Experiment and explore with different styles and techniques to find whatever works for you.

I hope you find this information useful!  Please feel free to suggestion additional blog posts you would like to see from me in the future.  ^_^  Of course, please reblog this if you found it helpful!

Pictures are, of course, not mine.  They are shots from the anime or other official derivatives.

[crazy-moko]

Ken ga Toki: In-game Dictionary Translation

Proofreaders: Ran

Translator’s Note: **This is not an official translation and I’m just doing this as a hobby.**  If you can somewhat read Japanese, please do play the game.

Other Chapters:

Archive

↓ ↓ TRANSLATION UNDER CUT ↓ ↓

1. 異天津霊剣布都御魂  Kotoamatsu Reiken Futsu no Mitama A Sword God that bestows the power of Kami-oroshi unto the Five Great Swords. He appeared before the heroine for the sake of fighting the marebitos. 

2. 天下五剣 (Tenka Goken) The Five Great Swords Mikadzuki Munechika, Juzamaru, Dōjigiri, Oodenta, Onimaru Kunitsuna; these are the names of the five swords. The masters of these swords will be able to use the power of “Kami-oroshi”.

3. 鬼丸の姫 (Onimaru no Hime) Onimaru’s Princess A title bestowed upon Onimaru Kunitsuna’s wielder. Without one’s knowledge, this title was spread far and wide in Nakatsu no Kuni.

4. 刻者 (Tokijya) The Engraver A term Futsu no Mitama used when calling out to Onimaru’s Princess. It seems there is a deeper meaning behind it…… 

5. 神降 (Kami-oroshi) Descent of the Gods The power that allows one to seal the Marebitos and summon allies. However, the price to be paid is…… 

6. 現世 (Utsushiyo) The Present World The world of rebirth and reincarnation. A place where humans, onis and ayakashis live.

7. 常夜 (Tokoyo) The Land of Eternal Night An eternal world where time stopped flowing. A place where the immortal marebitos live.

8. 奈落衆 (Naraku-shū) The Hell Corps The forces led by Rokudō Rinne. They are tasked to steal the Five Great Swords and to achieve Rokudō Rinne’s plans to turn the Present World into a world of Marebitos.

9. 常世の門 (Tokoyo no Mon) The Gate of Eternal Night The five gates that connect the Land of Eternal Night to the Present World. The current existing gates are Yomotsu Hirasaka, Nirai Kanai, Kōmadan, Fudaraku and Rendaino. Each of these gates has its respective gatekeeper.

10. 六通輪廻 Rokudō Rinne The gatekeeper of Yomotsu Hirasaka. The constant conflict between the humans, onis and ayakashis; he believes that none of these are necessary and tries to take over Nakatsu no Kuni.

11. 魔尹臥無 Mayun Ganashi The gatekeeper of Nirai Kanai. Aoi’s older brother; an oni who was turned into a marebito.

12. 徳川忠長 Tokugawa Tadanaga The gatekeeper of Kōmadan. When he was alive, he lost his position and committed suicide; Rokudō Rinne then used Tadanaga’s grudge towards the Shogunate and used the Jewel of Resuscitation to revive him.

13. 蛭子神 Hiruko The gatekeeper of Fudaraku. She is Ruko’s sister. The guardian deity of the sea; she also plays the role of a gatekeeper in Nakatsu no Kuni.

14. 九尾 (Kyūbi) Nine Tails The gatekeeper of Rendaino. She turned into a Marebito due to a grudge towards Mitsukuni for sealing her.

15. 虚 (Utsuro) Void Rokudō Rinne’s hidden technique. He can create puppets by pouring blood unto Higanbanas. They take on the exact appearance of those from the Present World.

16. 日光東照宮 (Nikkō Tōshōgū) Nikkō Tōshō-gū Shrine The headquarters that Tokugawa Iemitsu presented to Onimaru’s Princess to defeat the marebito army. There are various facilities such as a smithy, a hot spring, a dojo, living quarters, etc. However, the miasma around the Tōshō-gū Shrine needs to be cleansed before use...…  **Note: There’s an actual shrine with the same name in real life.

17. 御命試合 (Gozenjiai) The Sword Tournament A tournament that is held in the presence of the Shogun to obtain the rights to the Five Great Swords.

18. 一番刀 Ichibangatana A title bestowed upon the winners of the Sword Tournament. They are also awarded with one of the Five Great Swords.

19. 芝右衛門狸 Shibaemon Tanuki A youkai that the heroine rescued. He serves as a guide; in the story, he plays an active part as a local deity. He can turn into a teapot with pourable tea.

20. 四神護符 (Shishin Gofu) Talismans of the Four Gods The four types of talismans used to ward off the miasma surrounding Tōshō-gū Shrine. The Suzaku Talisman, the Seiryū Talisman, the Byakko Talisman and the Genbu Talisman.

21. 瘴気 (Shōki) Miasma Miasma from Tokoyo. It can pollute the Present World and cause corrosion. 

22. 瘴気侵蝕 (Shōki Shinshoku) Miasma Corrosion When youkais are corroded by the miasma, they will enter berserk mode.

23. 小田原提灯 (Odawara Djōchin) Cylindrical Paper Lantern A lantern that can ward off evil spirits. Sutras are written onto the lantern; it seems that the Marebitos are unable to approach it.

24. 木霊 (Kodama) Tree Sprites Youkais that live in trees. Only those with special abilities can see them.

25. 三神宝 (Sanjinbō) The Three Sacred Treasures **Folklore version These treasures can ward off miasma. Sword of Yaegaki, Mirror of Mafutsu and Ame-naru-fumi. **Note: Ame-naru-fumi = Sacred scriptures that contains the writings of Ame-naru-michi (the Way of Heaven)

26. 天下三槍 (Tenka Sansō) The Three Great Spears These spears can ward off miasma. Nihongō is owned by Idzuna; Otogine was robbed by Mayun Ganashi. Tonbokiri is currently missing.

27. 鬼族の集落 (Onizoku no Shuuraku) Oni Clan Settlements There are 5 main Oni clan settlements in Nakatsu no Kuni. They are Aogashima, Ōminoyama (Mount Ōmi), Kinojō, Ikijima (Iki Island) and Megijima.

28. 蝦夷族 (Emishizoku) Emishi Clan Also known as the Ainu’s in the modern era. An ethnic minority that lives in the Ezo region. They have their own special tradition and culture. All knowledge of their culture and tradition have been passed down orally as they have no written language. **Note: Ezo region is the historical equivalent of the Northern island of Japan. The name was changed to Hokkaidō in 1869.

29. 日月堂 Nichigetsu-dō A general store that Sahanji runs in the Country of Suruga. It’s main purpose is to craft puppets but he takes repair requests as well.

30. 張礼堂 Chōkō-dō A private military school that Shōsetsu opened for the monetary impaired rōnins. He hopes the rōnins will regain the art of living by providing them with knowledge.

31. 百鬼夜行 (Hyakki Yakō) 100 Demons Parade A gang of chivalrous thieves formed by Yamidara, Mizuchi and Naginosuke; the 100 Demons Parade. Their main activity is to save the oppressed demons. Currently accepting new applications.

32. 刻渡の力 (Tokiwari no Chikara) Power of Engravement The special ability of the Three Sacred Treasures. The treasures have a special ability to cross time. But one needs to possess a special strength to use the ability…...

33. 桃源郷 (Tōgenkyō) Shangri-la A mythical land that’s separate from the Present World. Only the chosen ones can see the entrance to this land.

34. 飯綱の法 (Idzuna no Hō) Idzuna’s Law Idzuna’s special ability. If he gets injured, he will heal immediately. Rather than calling it a cure, it’s more fitting to refer to this ability as regeneration.

35. ???

36. 蓬莱玉 (Hōrai Tama) Hōrai Jewel A strange fruit bore from the Divine Tree on Hōrai Immortal Island that exists somewhere in the legendary sea. Among the fruits, only the ones that have reached maturity are called Hōrai Jewels. **Note: Hōrai Island is the Japanese term of Penglai Island

37. 蓬莱玉の枝 (Hōrai Tama no E) The Jeweled Branch of Hōrai The branch of a divine tree in the far distance on Hōrai Immortal Island. After a fixed amount of time, the branch will bear mature fruits.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Will update if more terms are added.

[cynthiaandsamus]

I like how eating Kuwabara’s Spirit Sword doesn’t just make Byakko bigger but it actually makes him fatter, like that’s actually oddly hilarious

[scarletooyoroi]

There was a funny thing about life. Similar to the human heart, hidden lanes and volatile situations were almost commonplace in popularity.

In a land emboldened by the essence of warrior spirit and the dangerous balance it holds, he’s become no stranger to the hectic sway of the everyday. Whereas someone from the outer ends catch the serenity of the cherry blossoms, the smoked, seasoned meats permeating their delectable senses, down to the haughty businessmen who were happily working away at a new Mora grabbing deal. Most wouldn’t come to think twice with the onset of piece seemingly on the horizon of Inauzma.

Keyword: Seemingly.

Thoma’s stance easily found there was never a day to find boring. The brittle, freshly lit kindle of peace naturally had scoundrels a plenty who aimed to bleed a fresh bounty dry. Those who were desperately tucked in the realm of lawlessness, abiding by the easier deal, just a touch of human suffering and misfortune and they’d naturally get to enjoy a lazier path to full bellies. In some ways, despite all of his integrity, he could understand the appeal. So much so infact, that he happens to be very one to intercept what would’ve been a violent end to one of the many cart carriers amidst Byakko plains.

Needless to say, these ‘fortunate’ misfortunates who brandished blades from people who made their fallen gambits with powers beyond.. Now this was no way something to be standing in the upon the freshly made process of things going right. With his hands raised up in mock surrender to those swords seething with an essence that borders demonic, that oddly kept composure was more insulting than anything else, nonetheless, this housekeeper held steady. “Fellas! Fellas. I know hungry stomachs are some convincing arguments.. Yet, if you only hold steady, there’s only reparations waiting for-” A sudden intake of breath was made.

Only for his upper frame to cant back just enough, allowing for an arc of delusion made lightning to edge by his face, snagging it with a static tickle and the faint numbness accompanied by careless intensity. Well well.

Now the world couldn’t say that he tried to think of the more sensible option.

“Why I had enough of the shogunate’s bullshit! War for a place to belong, a place where we can finally work some real power! You think we’ll give this all up cause those greedy bastards with visions can have their way again!?”

“Agreed, boss! Survival dictates that their times of weakness are most prime for bounty. People needing their will are foolish enough to let the best of their best roam by out of excitement!”

Their tunes split between jovial and eager easily alerted him to the situation at hand. While it was a possibility at the back of his mind, the explanation is revealed as to why the risks were so high in lieu of recovery efforts, those weapons, ones that held a foolish power were basically matchsticks of power plucked from the dead.

“While I’d hate to ruin the party. Haven’t you heard of one of the oldest sayings in the book? If a route is too good to be true-- it usually is, afraid I’ll have to be the example for a little bit...” Less of that genuine kindness ebbs away, a firm exhale, trained and concise breathing from his lips before the hint of a warrior’s grin dons his lips.

There wasn’t an instance for them to voice a complain.

Erupting from a spring of light would be one of his less used spears. Ones formed for training, foolishly used for combat, a sign of mockery while the plumes of heated pressure escalated around the blonde’s visage, his weapon itself rendered to a momentary blur as the seamless movements in a display of preparation easily warns the aimless ronin of their newest encounter.

Those tainted blades could arc and crackle with the age old malice that easily ate away at their blades, their souls. Fear of any concept would be seamlessly burned away in the eyes of the one who aims to protect.

“I’ll be your teacher for today, Don’t be afraid of a few broken bones, that’s only part of the process if we’re gonna show you the ropes of what being a bit nicer can bring.”

[captainchocolatechicken-fluffles]

Okay, well, it hasn’t been confirmed that Shadowside is coming back, but I wanted to talk about possible foreshadowing/ways that the show could continue.

AKA: I miss this show and I want it to come back so I’m analyzing things that could be interesting plot points.

PLEASE NOTE: This is entirely speculation and for fun. Nothing official has come out saying the show is continuing/coming back at the time this was written.

Well, first off there’s things brought up in the movie Forever Friends (which, if you haven’t seen it, I recommend you check out.) that I think could be pretty interesting to see in the show.

1. Suu-san:

One of these things is this picture during the credits:

From the looks of it, it’s Susanoo’s ark. Which makes sense, considering Akinori is his great-great-grandson. Here’s what the ark looks like for reference:

He didn’t bring it up while they were fighting Soranaki, so maybe it was given to him after the incident. Or maybe they couldn’t use it for some reason.

They could use it for a plot point where the kids summon Suu-san, or if it was blocked, they could find a way to summon him. It might be nice to see Suu-san reunite with Genbu and Byakko.

2. Ashura:

Something that was really interesting was that Ashura was working for Soranaki, and his defeat is what lets Douketsu get the Ashura Gouenmaru.

What I want to know is how did Soranaki get Ashura, and/or why Ashura would work for him anyway. Was it against his will or did Ashura do it consciously?

I like that they answered how Douketsu got the sword, but it just gave me more questions. Now that Touma has the Ashura Gouenmaru, they could find out about him working for Soranaki and try to find answers as to why.

(You know... if they continue the series...)

There’s also Yamata no Orochi, which might be an interesting topic too.

3. The Arihoshi family having the Yokai Watch

Alright, so in the movie it is established that before the watch was sealed away between Space-Time by Grandpa Enma, the Arihoshi family and Tsukuyomi were protecting it.

How did they get it? How long have they been protecting the watch?

Kine, Tae’s grandmother, had never met anyone who could use the Yokai Watch, so it’s probably been a long time since they first got it.

It’s possible that before Whisper got sealed away, he gave the watch to the Arihoshi family for safekeeping, since they’re magic users, and Tsukuyomi is their spirit guardian.

They also had Suu-san’s sword, but since Suusanoo is Tsukuyomi’s brother in their legend, it’s possible that she gave it to them for safekeeping.

Of course this is just speculation, but speaking of Tsukuyomi...

4. Tsukuyomi

She could show up again, maybe to give more insight into her relationship with the Arihoshi’s and maybe the Arihoshi family as a whole.

Tsukuyomi could also help explain how the Arihoshi family got the watch in the first place. Especially since she was so desperate to protect it that she inspirited a member of the Arihoshi to do it herself and attacked everyone in her path.

There’s something here that could be expanded upon in interesting ways.

5. The Himeno family

We know Ayame has magic, and is a descendant of a powerful sorcerer, but was her family once like Akinori’s? Did they actively practice magic at one point, and if that’s the case, why did they stop?

Did they have a guardian, like how the Arihoshi’s have Tsukuyomi, at one point? If so, are they still around, or if they did have a guardian but don’t anymore, what happened to them?

Ayame’s family hasn’t been really explored all that much, aside from a shot of the back of her parent’s heads and Akinori’s grandma talking about her ancestor.

At this point, Ayame herself doesn’t have much to do anymore, now that the Jorogumo plot is over, aside from make Akinori a hopeless loverboy.

It’s an opportunity to flesh out Ayame’s character more, and expand on the lore of the Yokai Watch world.

6. Akinori’s parents

We’ve seen all the main character’s parents, except for Akinori’s (and Tae’s, but I’ll get to that). Where are they?

Are they dead? Are they not involved in his life?

Maybe it’s a traditional thing where the oldest in the family teaches the kids magic. Tae was with her grandmother with no parents there either, so it’s possible.

I want to see them address it in the show, or at all, because I genuinely want to see what the deal is.

At least Akinori has Mitsue, Whisper, Micchi and Junior as family.

7. The Genjuu/Mythical Beast King

The Genjuu King was mentioned by Suzaku, and was the one who took away his Suzaku Sotenzan because he called him ‘Cute Little King‘ by mistake, but he’s never shown.

Considering the reason he got so mad was because he was called ‘Cute Little King‘, he’s probably something that’s not very intimidating and is insecure.

It wouldn’t be too far fetched to have the group go to see the Genjuu King, especially with Akinori having the Animasu. It’s also a chance to get more into what’s up with the Kenbumajin, since they’re literally Genjuu given human forms.

It has the potential for an interesting plot point.

8. Shutendoji

So, at the end of Shadowside, Shutendoji doesn’t really have anything to do right now. He followed Shien, then started trying to find Shuka, but now he doesn’t have anyone.

Well, except for the Yokai Detective Agency.

I want to see what they do with him. Is he going to still be a villain, looking for a boss to help take over the Yokai World, or is he going to become like a weird frienemy?

He kind of already went with the latter near the end of the series, but he just left and we didn’t see him go back to the agency at the end. I doubt he’ll leave the agency alone, so I want to see where they take the character.

9. Whisper’s Past

Of course I’d mention this, Whisper’s my favorite character, but it’s still a good plot point that I’m disappointed they didn’t mention before. Though, it does make sense when looking back at it.

The closest we get is his speech to Sebas in ep28, which is more of a vague reference to what we know, if you already know what happened.

Maybe it could be like Jibanyan’s past episode in the Shadowside series, where it’s a brief recap surrounded by plot. Maybe they could give us something new, kind of like Usuta, (maybe explain what’s up with him, that would be great too).

A good idea would be, as I’ve mentioned in the past, the kids going to the museum for whatever reason, and pass an exhibit about the Sengoku/Mitsunari where Whisper gets sad and reminisces for a moment.

(Could be a Micchi, Whisper and Junior episode, maybe? An episode focused on these three would be great on its own, honestly, I love their dynamic.)

10. Keita

It would be great for the anime to address Keita having the watch, more than the how they’ve been doing with vague nods to it. I want them to do it differently than they did in the manga, though. (From what I saw, he gets his a watch, which I don’t want. I just want them to address it and go.)

Maybe it’s just the kids finding out about it, either by chance or a slip of Whisper’s tongue, and wanting to find out more.

It makes sense that Natsume and Keisuke, especially Natsume, would want to know more about it.

Jibanyan doesn’t remember his time with Keita, and he could try to get answers from Whisper, or he remebers and that’s how the kids find out. Regardless, Jibanyan should be a part of it, in my opinion.

11. Inaho/Haily Anne and Usapyon

I just want them to address where Inaho and Usapyon went.

It could even tie in with the kids learning Keita had the Yokai Watch before Natsume and Keisuke. Whisper could mention that someone else had a Yokai Watch and ran a detective agency, so this perks the kids’ interest (especially Akinori’s) and they try to find her.

But, as much as I’d love at least a cameo of them, they don’t even have to show them. Just a mention of where they ended up.

(Shoehorning in that my headcanon is that they ended up working with Diana Gately and are now studying the Gates of Whimsy as a way for space/multidimensional travel.)

12. New Yokai

There are a bunch of new yokai and new designs for old yokai introduced in YKW4, so possibly just a bunch of cases focused on these yokai.

There can also be some that we haven’t seen before.

Personally, I want to see more yokai like Jorogumo. Like, yokai that are scary-looking, shamelessly evil, can’t be redeemed, and have to be put down. That’s my jam.

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

So those were my ideas for plot points that Shadowside could go over if it ever comes back.

If there’s anything you want to expand upon, add, or correct, feel free to do so!

[yeonchi]

Obscure Gems - Kingdom of Paradise

Aside from Dynasty Warriors, there was another game that influenced my childhood years. Americans may know it as Kingdom of Paradise, Europeans may know it as Key of Heaven, and Asians may know it as Tenchi no Mon (天地の門/天地之門).

This is a pretty old game as it was originally released in July 2005 with a sequel being released in October 2006. While the first game received a localisation, the second one, sadly, did not. As a result, while I have played both games, I have a better understanding of the first one than the second (despite me being able to extract the game’s texts from within the ISO, don’t ask how I managed to do it).

I remember when my family bought a PSP and my uncle had it downgraded (upgrading would have been better if you look at it from a present-day perspective) so we could play games from the Memory Stick. This, along with the first Dynasty Warriors PSP game, Lumines and Ape Escape On The Loose, were some of the first games that we got thanks to my uncle. I remember my dad was so obsessed with this game (and Lumines, besides not letting me play on it because school) that he would end up hogging it because he had to defeat the bosses, which were, in his eyes, hard to defeat. I did make another save for myself and after initially giving up when my first boss was too hard to fight, I eventually managed to clear the game altogether. Looking at gameplay videos of it now, I noticed that fighting the bosses was easier than I had thought, or maybe it’s because they got gud.

About the developers

This game was created by Climax Entertainment, who were also famous for the Runabout series, Steal Princess, Dinosaur King and Element Hunters. Sorry, who were those guys again? Oh wait, they’re a bunch of nobodies in today’s words.

Climax Entertainment was founded in April 1990, developing games for Sega consoles. In 1994, some members split and joined with former members of Telenet Japan to form Matrix Software, known for joining with other companies to create games, such as Square Enix for the Final Fantasy series.

Sadly, Climax Entertainment never grew significantly and they eventually fell off the grid by 2015. Apparently, by following an archived page from a source on their Wikipedia page, it was because the company went bankrupt. Oh well, let’s move on.

The game itself

The game is set on a fictitious feudal Chinese-inspired continent named Ouka, which is split into five territories ruled by each of the five clans, namely the Eastern Seiryu, Northern Genbu, Western Byakko, Southern Suzaku and Central Kirin. The main character is Shinbu, a former Seiryu disciple and aspiring swordsmaster who was expelled from his clan after learning their Chi Arts before his master thought he was ready. When Sui Lin, another Seiryu disciple, manages to escape from their temple after it was (apparently) ransacked by the Central Kirin, she encounters Shinbu and tells him that his master was killed and that they need to rebuild their clan. Upon hearing of this, Shinbu’s adoptive father, Seidatsu, gives him the Ginmei Sword, which originally belonged to his father, and the first piece of the San’yuan that he was obsessed with reviving. From there, he sets off on an adventure around Ouka and discovers secrets about the clans and his family.

As you journey around Ouka, you can fight enemies and monsters along the way. Using the Ginmei Sword, you can unleash various types of bugei, made by equipping kenpu into bugei scrolls, or create your own bugei with the freestyle scrolls you can collect. Additionally, you can use the Chi Arts and unleash attacks that can clear enemies in one hit (you’ll have to spam it sooner or later). Enemies have a stronger or weaker resistance to a certain clan’s kenpu or Chi Arts based on the five Wuxing phases. While you can overcome enemies that way, you can also chain kenpu together in a generating cycle to deal more damage. You can learn all five clans’ Chi Arts as you play the game, though the caveat is that you learn the final one just before you fight the final boss, so the time you spend mastering it before you fight the final boss just seems very protracted, particularly if you’re at the maximum level by that point.

The background context of the game’s story arcs revolves around the Seima-Ouka Great War, which occurred 300 years prior to the start of the game. Invaders from the neighbouring continent of Seima came to Ouka and waged war with the five clans, but they were defeated. While there were some that managed to escape with the army, some of Seimans surrendered and remained on Ouka, where they suffered discrimination following the war. Their currency, the taichi, was widely used there as a result. The San’yuan had been burned during the war because the Seima feared its power.

Looking at the English and Chinese scripts, I could spot some differences between them and personally, I prefer the Chinese script better as it is closer to the original Japanese script. Alone, both scripts are good, but after having seen both versions, some parts of the English script doesn’t make sense in review.

Some of the mysteries of the game are basically explained in one line without deeper context. Certain characters aren’t as prominent as you may think they are. In the end, after you defeat the final boss, you get an opportunity to play the game again with the True San’yuan bugei, harder enemies and a carryover of the Chi Arts you learnt. There was a rumour on 2ch about another bugei you could get after clearing the game five times, but that, of course, is fake news.

About the sequel

The sequel takes place 25 years after the events of the first game and is set on the continent of Seima, the instigator of the Great War. Its capital is named Seimabolm and is split into three districts based on caste. Translating the names in the game is going to be an absolute nightmare because it was never localised to the West, but I’ll do whatever I can. If you want to see gameplays of this game, you’ll have to find them on Nico Nico Douga or Bilibili (for the Chinese version).

The main character is Liju Roh, a glorified military officer who went missing for a year when he was 5 years old and came back with no memory of what happened during that year. At the start of the game, he was accused of attempting to assassinate their empress and sentenced to execution by Gikyo Altai alongside another female, Maltamil Chiena. Suddenly, Altai’s sister, Shunka, jumps down to defend Roh and they manage to escape to the third district along with Chiena. As a result, they are forced to work as mercenaries in Chiena’s agency in order to hide from the imperial troops. Roh’s mission is to fulfil his late father’s request to stop Ejen Zern, a man who Roh saw as a brother, from performing the Great Judgement a second time; the first time it happened, a big fireball hit Seima and halved the population, cutting the island into the shape of a crescent moon and creating the Banko Sea.

In this game, you can have a companion travelling with you (usually Shunka for most of the game). As Roh, you can use three weapons, a sword, a spear, or gauntlets, and set kenpu and bugei accordingly. Some kenpu are performed slowly while others are performed quickly, which can cause gaps in your fighting. Other companions you travel with can use only one of those weapons, while Shunka fights with spirit discs and spirit dancing. Yes, spirit dancing, and that’s a plot point in the game. I find the dancing movesets ineffective when fighting enemies, but there are missions where you will need to use Shunka to perform a dance.

Unlike the first game where the story advances as you travel, the story in this game advances after you complete a number of missions from the agency. These include defeating enemies and monsters, buying or collecting things or even writing messages on noticeboards. Some missions are a pain to complete, such as with the collecting missions where you need to harvest a certain part from a machine or animal and they don’t instantly drop it upon defeat. As a result, it would take you forever to collect the amount required so you can complete the mission. There are also small flying drones that you can fight in underground tunnels and they are a bit hard to fight if your kenpu doesn’t make you swing your sword or spear up or down.

The travelling companions in the game (including the ones that appear after you’ve cleared the game) have significant relevance to the story, except for a drunkard monk named Sutta Monda who becomes your companion after you complete a mission that involves fighting him outside the agency for being drunk.

After you clear the game, you can just do missions ad infinitum, whereas in the previous game, you could play the game again and again. At least replaying old storylines or sparring with your companions could have been additional options.

If you haven’t noticed this by now, Shinbu or anyone else in the first game is not featured, though there are homages scattered in the script. One particular homage is that Seima is apparently planning a second invasion of Ouka, but Roh believes that stopping the Great Judgement is more important than stopping the former.

Summary

For its time, Kingdom of Paradise is an amazing game, whether it be the battle mechanics, the graphics or the story, though for the story, I prefer the first one better because I can understand it better after much analysis (which was also helped by that game being localised). While the second game does have its good points, it’s a bit more complicated than the first game and the missions can seem a bit of a drag to do.

Some people would probably say that the two games have potential to be expanded upon and I would say that I agree, though instead of expanding the games’ universe, I adapted it into my universe for my personal project. I adapted the first game into two 15-episode arcs, then after struggling to decide whether or not to do it, adapted some parts of the second game into a two-parter. I’ll elaborate on my adaptation at a later date.

Sadly though, Climax Entertainment is dead and the games never left much of a legacy to be admired. The only way its legacy can stay alive is within the hearts of the people who played those games, particularly the people who were inspired by it.

[yyh4ever]

Yu Yu Hakusho Stage Play - Part 2

Official Site: Officeendless

Directed by 3 people, the sequel is announced to December 2020:

- 12.4 ~ 12.15: Tokyo (Shinagawa Prince Hotel Stellar Ball)

December 4th performances were cancelled. Actor Ken Tanabe tested positive for COVID-19 . Fortunately, he is asymptomatic and the rest of the staff and actors are negative.

- 12.18 ~ 12.20: Osaka (Cool Japan Park Osaka WW Hall)

December 18th (18:30) and 19th (13:00 and 17:30) performances were canceled. An actor reported poor physical condition and underwent medical tests including PCR. Performers tested negative for COVID-19, fortunately it was just a cold. Ken Tanabe is also back to the performances.

- 12.23 ~ 12.30: Kyoto (Kyoto Theater)

Presale: September 20th to October 4th at 23:59.

Einoshin Ito (Chuji Mikasano) will be in charge of the script and Ito, Rion Kako and Hirofumi Araki will be the directors.

This is a sequel to the “Yu Yu Hakusho Stage Play" that was performed from August to September 2019. Performers will include:

[SPOILER ALERT] I edited this post with all the characters the cast is playing 

► Tsubasa Sakiyama as Yusuke Urameshi

► Naoya Gomoto as Kazuma Kuwabara

► Hiroki Suzuki as Kurama and Mr. Yamada (the human who tried to save Yukina in the past)

► Shohei Hashimoto as Hiei and Hirue (one of Toguro’s subordinates)

► Hinata Mirai as Keiko Yukimura

► Yuka Hirata as Botan

► Elizabeth Marry as Genkai, Bat-Eye and BBC member. She was also part of the supporting cast, playing harvested humans and assisting Kurama (exchange of rose to the whip) and Kuwabara (spirit sword).

► Hirofumi Araki as Koenma, BBC member and also debuting as director

The new cast to Stage Play Part 2 was revealed:

► Tsubasa Kizu as Suzaku and Miyuki

► Tomokazu Enoki as Seiryuu and BBC member

► Members of the cast as Genbu 

► Mr. Stuffed Plush Tiger as Byakko (he was also done by projection)

► Marina Tanoue as Yukina and Jorge Saotome ♀

► Kentaro Araki as Sakyo and Rando

► Hiro Katayama as Younger Toguro and “Stage” Yusuke

► Masataka Nakagauchi as Elder Toguro and Jorge Saotome

The Supporting Cast (some worked in the first stage as well):

► Tetsuto Nakamura as Tarukane

► Junpei Takama as Sakashita

► Hiroo Akiyama as Teacher Iwamoto

► Naoki Tasaki as Inmaki

► Others: Yuga Andou, Ken Tanabe & Taiga Todate

#Justice for Helen

Photo taken with the whole cast in the last performance in Kyoto ⬇️

More details will be announced on the Official Site

I’m glad the same main actors will be playing the sequel.

About the premiere: Tokyo, December 5th

DVD/Blu-ray: https://www.animate-onlineshop.jp/pn/pd/1874218/

[gabriel-gabdiel]

【Draft】Rurouni Yahiko Chapter 51: A Casket of Secrets

Kinta Minakata has uncovered a casket of secrets from his family, much to his chagrin.

Rurouni Yahiko Chapter 51: A Casket of Secrets

Back in Shimabara, six years ago...

Kinta Minakata (the Shogo Amakusa doppelganger) had finished another sparring session with Kaede Morinaga (the Kenshin Himura doppelganger) with the fight ending with the Mimawarigumi Battousai narrowly winning.

This was so because "Shiro Amakusa the Second" was busy with morning mass and the healing of the sick Kakure Kirishitans (Hidden Christians) with western medicine, so he didn't have time to spar with the warrior woman.

"STOP RUNNING AWAY AND FIGHT ME LIKE A MAN!" demanded the tempestuous Kaede. "COWARD!"

"....But you're a girl," said Kinta, which resulted in him backpedaling from a screaming Morinaga's Scorpion Nest (multiple sword swipes from two swords).

Ah, so he was right. This time around, Kaede was a girl. Because sometimes, she instead claimed she was a boy. Like a woman possessed by different spirits.

Morinaga was a curious lady. Sometimes she fought like a ferocious tigress. Other times, she was as frustrating to battle as a snapping turtle hiding inside a thick shell.

Once in a "blue moon", when she was consumed with bloodlust and bad memories, she became a mix of both.

He even heard that when she tied her hair like a topknot, she even looked like the Legendary Hitokiri Battousai himself, but he personally had no idea. He never met his Battousai namesake.

Blocking every strike and countering sharply. She was a yin and yang of patient defense and inimitable offense.

She didn't only fight with a different style every time but also with a different attitude. It was like fighting three different people altogether.

"DAMMIT!" she screamed and threw her shinai (bamboo blade) at Kinta, who parried it almost automatically with his own weapon. "I want a rematch! Round two! Next time, I'll break every bone in your body, you sullen Shogo-sama wannabe!"

"Go ahead," Minakata dared with a half-smile (or half-frown). "A broken bone becomes stronger once healed."

Morinaga harrumphed. "Admitting defeat already, Kagemusha?"

"...I believe in kintsukuroi (gold repair)," he stated matter-of-factly. "Whatever that's broken can be fixed. Made even better than before."

"How naive. Spoken like a privileged, spoiled samurai." Kaede laughed then grimaced. "There are some broken things that can never be fixed, no matter how hard you try."

Rurouni Yahiko

A Rurouni Kenshin Continuation Fan Fiction Story by Chester Castañeda

Not-so-fabulous secrets are about to be revealed. A skeleton or two might even pop out.

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 51: A Casket of Secrets

Somewhere in Yokohama, back at the Minakata safe house, Kinta Minakata reminisced about his time with Shogo and the Hidden Christians.

Kinta also wondered how a fight between Kaede and Soujiro would go.

He'd fought both, after all. Which one was better?

From his experience, unless something changed between the six years he last fought Morinaga, then Seta would probably win.

Especially the Soujiro whose feelings and bad intentions Minakata couldn't read at all: His "Heaven Sword" self.

So what made the Mimawarigumi Battousai think about Shogo's apprentice now of all times? Nostalgia, perhaps.

Or something to distract him from the depressing news he got about his dear ol' grandfather. Of happier times with Shogo, Sayo, Kaede, and the Hidden Christians that he called family once upon a time.

Before Kinta betrayed them to the Meiji Government.

Like grandfather like grandchild, apparently.

Although the fight with Tetsuo Akahori's latest pawn, Soujiro Seta, was one that Kinta Minakata almost lost, he was still able to retrieve documents of the utmost importance.

So in the end, he won. Kind of.

They were samples of the decoded papers that should help the Sanada Ninja Clan in unraveling the mysteries behind the Seiryu Clan's volume of the Black Book.

"...."

The decoders of the clan (since secret messages were among the specialties of these shadow warriors) came up first with the messages and correspondences from the bakufu to the Minakatas and back along with plans of wiping off the rebellious Ishin Shishi rebels.

The families involved in the creation of the Black Book, the Four Clans, were government spies that were tasked to preserve Japanese culture but ended up becoming embroiled in Bakumatsu politics themselves.

They covered all bases from both sides of the conflict... the Shogunate and the Patriots... while at the same time having no dog in the fight. They had loyalty to neither faction or to themselves but pretended that they did.

The Seiryu Clan represented the Bakufu or the Shogunate.

The Byakko Clan represented the Japanese Imperial Army and the Shinsengumi.

The Suzaku Clan represented the Ishin Shishi Patriots.

And the Genbu Clan represented the Rebel Samurai and the Hitokiri or Manslayers of the Ishin Shishi.

Whoever they represented, they had an extensive catalog of their info and members. The Four Clans were supposed to be objective observers outside the conflict looking in, gathering information out of all sides and exchanging them among each other for the sake of gaining favor of the government when the war was over, regardless of which side wins.

As typical of such setups, the Four Clans started to backstab each other, throwing objectivity under the horse carriage and vying for supremacy by taking a gamble and backing what they viewed were the ultimate victors of the war.

Because of this, some clans were wiped out completely. The Suzaku Clan, for example, was discovered by the Ishin Shishi as traitors and killed by their best hitokiri.

However, the Sanada Ninjas and the Mimawarigumi Battousai soon realized that relaying government secrets weren't the only things that the Black Book's secret codes were used for.

Back in the hideout of the kidnappers in the middle of the Hiroshima woods...

The rider from before arrived in time to attack Yahiko Myojin and Kaede Morinaga with his bullwhip, saying, "...I see you came too late ta save 'er, ya bitch! Da boss already got 'er, didn't he? Serves ya right!"

Yahiko Myojin, still miffed from before, grabbed hold of the whip before it cracked, let it loop around his wrist, then pulled the hooligan towards him in order to hogtie him with his own weapon.

"I got to your cowardly boss before he could touch her. We got here just in time," Myojin countered.

The bullwhip rider still wouldn't shut up, though. "Dun matter. I've seen the same look in her eyes from many a horse with a broken spirit! There's no fight in her left! She's dead inside! Soiled fer life! HAHAHAmmph!"

Yahiko had to tie a gag on the criminal just to keep him quiet.

Meanwhile, the one girl Kaede Morinaga wanted to save the most on that day... Mariko... broke down right before her eyes.

Her spirit was shattered into pieces like Kaede's. Realizing what had almost happened to her.

The pale Mariko looked back at the redhead with cloudy eyes, her quivering lips opening as though to say something.

Morinaga grabbed hold of the girl by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes to help her treat the wounds of her past.

Saying things that another special someone in her life had said to her before. Shogo Amakusa's words.

"He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her," she quoted Shogo, who in turn quoted Jesus Christ from the Christian Bible's New Testament.

"Minoe-san..." Mariko trailed off, unaware of Kaede's multiple personalities, thus calling her by the name she knew her first.

"I'm not saying that because you've done anything wrong, Mariko. You're obviously not at fault here. These... criminals have no right to judge you. Listen to me. You are not soiled. You are not somehow 'less' of a person than any of us. Any of them, especially. They're scum. Don't let anyone ever say otherwise, y'hear?"

"...."

The clouds in Mariko's eyes lifted before, with a quibbling mouth and sobs that wracked her body, she hugged Morinaga tightly. She said, "...I was so scared!"

As for Yahiko, he grabbed hold of Takae's straw kabuto and placed it over his head to the point of covering his eyes, as though tipping it at the girls. He then walked away to let them have their moment.

"...Thank you for saving me. Good thing you got here on time," Mariko said after her sobs had finally subsided.

Kaede scratched her head. "N-No. The one who rescued you was my good friend, Yahiko."

Mariko smiled wanly. "Well, he saved me too. You both did."

"Oh." Morinaga looked away and smiled herself, nodding once and borrowing her other self's catchphrase. "Mochiron (But of course)."

As for Yahiko, he realized that he still had much to learn. He still needed more training if Kaede of all people had to stop him from murdering that bandit.

He merely wanted to be as strong as Soujiro and Kaede but not to the point of becoming as crazy as them.

Or was sanity the price of strength? To fight monsters, you had to become one?

No, you didn't have to. Kenshin proved that it wasn't the case.

A couple of hours later, the police arrived on the scene along with Chizuru Raikouji (who helped deliver the other kidnapped girls back to their homes in Hiroshima) in order to arrest the hooligans.

Kinta Minakata had heard all sorts of stories about his late grandfather from his mother's side: The Late Great Toshiro Minakata. The former head of the Minakata Clan and Seiryu Clan. A legendary samurai in his own right.

He was a swashbuckling, seafaring samurai... a Japanese buccaneer of the seas... who safeguarded trade and battled against Chinese smugglers and European invaders of the South China Sea during the period when Japan isolated itself from the rest of the world (also known as Sakoku), thus trade was restricted only in certain ports in the country.

Toshiro was among the samurais responsible for controlling Dejima and Nagasaki trade on behalf of the Bakufu while at the same time being part of the secret alliance of the Four Clans as the head of the Seiryu Clan.

It was under his watch that the Portuguese were expelled from the country while at the same time, the Shogunate engaged with discussions with Korean and Dutch representatives so that the overall volume of trade didn't suffer.

Kinta took a look at his inherited sword, the Akatsuki. Unlike ordinary samurai blades using "pig metal" or Japanese steel with low carbon content, it instead used steel melted straight from the swords of the fallen Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch smugglers. High-carbon European steel.

The katana, despite its popularity as a collector item among westerners or its beauty and style, was actually a comparatively fragile sword designed to be manufactured on a budget.

Japan didn't have very good access to good quality metals like European countries did. The majority of katanas were made out of low-class steel to save resources.

Furthermore, only the front part was made of good metal and even that was merely coated with a small, thin sheet of it (and sprinkled with carbon powder as they were forged). The back end or spine of the average Japanese sword was incredibly frail.

It also wasn't the defining weapon of the samurai. That would be the spear or the naginata that the Sakaguchi's adopted daughter "Satsuki" used. At certain time periods, the bow was instead the military's primary armament.

Additionally, according to some of the more disdainful European merchants and blacksmiths that his grandfather traded steel with, nothing about the "overrated" katana was completely unique to Japan.

Similarly shaped curves in blades existed in European and Indian sword creation in one form or another. The process of folding steel multiple times was also used by Vikings hundreds of years earlier.

The standards of the world was eye opening to any Japanese in Sakoku Era Japan who believed that Japan was number one at everything, especially in light of the superior military technology that the world's superpowers of the 18th Century possessed.

All the same, this knowledge Toshiro gained resulted in him getting a Japanese sword forged with European steel. The best of both worlds in design and toughness.

The former Minakata head's military exploits and iron fist when it came to upholding the Sakoku Edict of the Bakufu was legendary. Indeed, Kinta's proud Minakata and Akahori lineages were what allowed him into the Mimawarigumi Army in the first place.

It was also during this time that Toshiro made use of naval codes to better facilitate the exchange of secrets between the Four Clans before they ultimately split up and chose sides during the Bakumatsu Era.

On top of all that, Kinta's grandpa used his influence as the head of the Minakata Clan to form what was known in modern times as their zaibatsu (Financial Group)... the Minakata Zaibatsu... with its riches taken from the importation and development of new drugs using western medicine, leading to the development of their Minakata Pharmaceuticals subsidiary.

His grandfather was ahead of the curve and hedged his bets accordingly. He knew that the writing was on the wall when it came to samurai privileges due to changing times. In the Meiji Era, if you wanted to remain in power, then you should get it through money instead of blood and prestige.

However, there were also rumors of Toshiro taking advantage of his high government position back in the Sakoku Era to run his own opium cartel on the down low.

This was just a baseless accusation and pure speculation, of course. Rumors and conjectures that the envious enemies of the Minakatas would use to drag their good name to the mud.

These same critics went on a feeding frenzy like sharks against their family when Kinta's mother had an affair with a foreign dignitary, leading to the murder of the same gaijin in the hands of Kinta's livid father, who then committed seppukku (ritual suicide) afterwards to protect his honor.

The slander that resulted from the incident made Kinta quite skeptical in regards to the assumptions people made about his father selling out his dignity and samurai blood for illegal drug money.

These accusations were never proven, at least. They were just conspiracy theories from idle minds at best.

At least, that was what Kinta hoped they were.

Right?  

However, the recently discovered naval codes he got from the errand boy of his uncle from his father's side... Tetsuo Akahori... ultimately revealed the truth behind the elusive Seiryu Chapter of the Black Book. And his family.

An inconvenient truth.

By the time everything was sorted out at the police station and everybody from their group had a good night's sleep, the Sanbaka (Three Stooges) soon rejoined May Brooks/Satsuki Sakaguchi and her best friend, Chizuru Raikouji at a cafe near the Hiroshima train station.

The Great Gan, Yahiko Myojin, and Munenori Minoe arrived in time to bid their wistful goodbyes to the departing young teacher.

Reading the mood, Yahiko didn't mention anything about yesterday's storming at the camp of bandit kidnappers to Minoe. The Tokyo Samurai Descendant hoped that the eye-patched spy could figure out on his own the exploits of his female self, Kaede.

The three arrived just in time to overhear the conversation between the two best friends'... love life, of all things.

"...Oh my! You're such a damp squib, Chizuru-san! Especially with how you'd dare compare Kinta-sama to your crush, the vagabond. They are not alike at all!" said Satsuki.

They were apparently in the middle of some sort of conversation about Kenshin Kamiya (nee Himura) and Kinta Minakata (the man whom May had a crush on).

After Chizuru and May exchanged pleasantries, bows, and hellos with each other and the Sanbaka, the buxom blonde teacher then asked, "You're not making this vagabond guy up, are you? He's no make-believe boyfriend of yours, right?"

As Minoe mouthed, 'Damp squib? What's that?' the Raikouji heiress insisted, "HE EXISTS! But he's not my boyfriend, damn you! Anyway, Yahiko knows him! Tell her, Yahiko! Tell her about Homura Kenshi!"

'...Who the hell is that?' thought Myojin. 'Has she been infected by Gan's nicknaming sickness too? Get it together, Chizuru!'

Unwilling to bring up Kenshin Himura in Minoe's presence (lest his other personality, Kaede, was summoned by the name she hated the most), Yahiko decided to change the subject.

Ignoring Chizuru, the samurai boy told May, "I didn't know you practiced martial arts! You were amazing back at that kidnapper's hideout!"

He then remembered that, oh yeah, even Satsuki's stepsister Kyoko Sakaguchi from back in Shinshu practiced swordsmanship. Duh.

"HEY!" The Kaoru look-alike then stomped on Yahiko's foot with her booted foot, which he also didn't react to despite the pain. "I was talking to you, you rude boy!"

"...Do you pratice battoujutsu too?" Yahiko inquired further, recalling how close Kyoko was to fighting Soujiro and wondering how she would've fared. "Sorry, I meant iaijutsu," he corrected himself, remembering that battoujutsu was the old term for the Japanese sword-drawing style.

"Oh, good heavens no! I only use the naginata. I've never drawn a sword out of a sheathe in my entire life!" May tilted her head to the side. "Wait a tick, how did you know Musou Madden Ryu is an iaijutsu swordsmanship school, Joshua-kun?"

"Oh, didn't I tell you?" Raikouji answered for Myojin. "I met Yahiko back when I was staying with the Sakaguchis in Shinshu. He knows Kyoko-chan! He even saw her wield her grandfather's sword that one time!"

"Oh, you've met my baby sister?" asked the adopted gaijin daughter of the Sakaguchis. "I haven't seen her in a while! Isn't she the cutest?"

Yahiko scratched the back of his head and admitted, "Y-Yeah, I guess she's kinda cute," while eyeing a smirking Chizuru from behind May. "...Don't start with me, Tanuki-chan (Miss Raccoon Dog)."

"I didn't say anything!" Chizuru feigned ignorance. "Also, that ain't my name, Yoshi-boy! Who are you calling a raccoon dog?"

All the same, Satsuki winked at Yahiko and invited, "If you want, spar with me sometime."

The grinning Chizuru then teased the adopted Sakaguchi child, asking, "What would Mister Frowny-Faced Samurai Guy say if he saw you flirting with another guy, Satsuki-chan?"

The Enlightened Gan then hit his palm in his fist, taking note to remember the "Frowny-Faced Samurai Guy" nickname that "Kaori-neechan"  came up with. Because he had his priorities straight.

With squinted eyes and a cherry pink blush, Satsuki grabbed Chizuru by the shoulders and shook her around.

"WAH! That's a load of cobblers and codswallop, Chizuru-san! And you know it! I'm not flirting with anyone! You Japanese are so shy that simply being friendly with someone seems like flirting to you people!"

Chizuru's sneering smile widened even while being shaken. Meanwhile, Yahiko looked away and Gan outright stared at the... jiggling girls. One of them jiggling more than the other.

"Oho, I thought you were Japanese too, Satsuki-chan," teased the Kaoru look-alike further, staring at Satsuki's not-so-Japanese chest. "Don't you mean 'us' Japanese instead of 'you' Japanese?"

"You're a meanie, y'know that?" said May with a pout and crossed arms. "I don't even think Kinta-sama and I ever shared a chin wag outside of 'Hi, how do you do!'"

"Well, Honey, it's because he's not the 'chin wag' kind of guy," Chizuru answered, primly straightening up her ruffled kimono and ribbon. "Don't take it personally."

In the background, Minoe himself reminisced about the silent Minakata, nodding in agreement with Chizuru.

Yes, the man certainly didn't wag his chin much indeed.

From there, the Morinaga within him awakened, seething in memory of how frustrating it was to spar with the high-ranking samurai turned Shogo Amakusa body double.

The Judas Iscariot of the Hidden Christians.

Satsuki's happy expression then changed altogether as she concluded with a lower lip quibble, "So I reckon this really is farewell, huh? Cheerio, I guess?"

Chizuru kicked the snow underneath her booted feet. "Aw. And we just got back together again after so long, Satsuki-chan." The rich girl sighed.

"Huh? But aren't you coming with me, Chizuru-san?" asked Miss Brooks.

"Eh? I was?" asked Miss Raikouji in turn. "B-But...!"

"Well, of course you are! I don't see why not! You're our family friend and this is a Sakaguchi Family Reunion!" May then put her hands on her waist. "You'll do great and Bob's your uncle!"

"Who the heck's Bob?" asked Chizuru, who bit her lip, her eyes wide and darting between Yahiko and Satsuki.

Myojin sighed, shoulders slumped, then shrugged and bowed at the Raikouji heiress. "I thought I'd still see your ugly face all the way to Kyoto, but if duty calls and family friends beckon, then I guess we'll just have to say our goodbyes here and now."

"N-Now hold on a minute...!" Chizuru stuttered some more.

"Aw, come on, Yoshi-boy! You still have me!" reassured the Gregarious Gan, who leaned on top of Yahiko's spiky hair like he were a countertop and picked his nose with his sausage-sized index finger.

"...Could you take Gan with you too? He's house trained, I swear," retorted the Tokyo Samurai Descendant while pointing at the thug with his thumb.

"I-I..." stuttered Chizuru, not knowing which path to choose. Should she go with Yahiko, who knew the vagabond, or her best friend, who was about to reunite with her childhood crush?

Yahiko, Gan, and Minoe looked at each other before bursting out laughing at Chizuru.

"Wait, what's going on?" asked Chizuru. "What am I missing here? Why are you laughing at me, you Three Stooges?!"

Myojin slung his arm over Raikouji's shoulders and said, "I was just kidding. We're all going. I've changed my mind. You don't have to go with me to Kyoto or Osaka because we're coming with you and Chizuru to Yokohama."

"W-What? Hey leggo, you perv," the heiress said before shrugging off the younger boy's arm over her shoulders. "But what about your Mushi-whatever? You were supposed to go on a pilgrimage for training, right?"

"Musha Shugyo (Warrior's Pilgrimage)," Yahiko corrected without a second thought before reassuring, "Don't worry about me. This is just a li'l detour before I head on out to Kyoto. Also, I want to spar with the students of Musou Madden Ryu for good measure. I want to see Kyoko and Satsuki in action, pitting their iaijutsu with my kendo."

'...Besides, the way I am right now, with both Minoe and Soujiro able to make short work of me at my current skill level, I don't think I'm quite prepared to face Kenshin's master of all people,' he told himself, remembering how much more mature Kaede was about the bandit situation than he was.

"ALL RIGHT! I mean, you know. Whatever. That's cool," came the petered-out exclamation of Chizuru, who brushed her silken "rich girl" hair back and squirmed in her boots after her best friend and the Three Stooges saw her sudden fist pump into the air.

"Oh my! That's indeed wonderful news! You're all coming with me?" asked Miss Brooks. "You've made so many new friends, Chizuru!" she added before whispering to her best friend, "Chizuru-san, why are they coming with us again? They're not staying over at the Minakatas' like freeloaders, are they? Kinta-sama's mother isn't going to like that!"

Raikouji herself shrugged. "But that's what they are. Freeloaders. Interlopers. People who don't know how and when to mind their own business. But seriously though, they'll be staying in their own tents and inns. I guarantee they won't be a bother."

Satsuki saw the glow in Chizuru's face and cheeks then relented, "Since you're all chuffed up about it, why not? The more the merrier, I say!"

To Yahiko, Chizuru said, "I guess it can't be helped. We'll still be seeing each other again real soon. You stupid dumbasses."

"Right back at you, Raccoon Face," mumbled Myojin to Raikouji.

The Son of Tokyo Samurai then offered his hand to Satsuki for a handshake. "This is how westerners greet each other, correcct? I look forward to challenging your Musou Madden School for a spar or two. Tell 'em Myojin Yahiko from Tokyo's Kamiya Kasshin School sends his regards."

May grabbed hold of Yahiko's hand but then curtsied with her dress and bowed in traditional Japanese fashion. "I'm kind of looking forward to it myself, Joshua-kun. I know my onions when it comes to wielding long poles."

Gan guffawed in the background at that suggestive comment, which prompted Myojin to kick his shin.

"OW! It's settled then! Yoshi-boy's Musashi Gundoh continues in Yokohama, training with Miss Melon, Soba Lady's daughter, and the Stone-Faced Samurai!" declared the Boisterous Gan with a wave of his giant metal bat.

"...Soba Lady's Daughter?" Satsuki asked Chizuru.

"He means Kyoko-chan. Soba Lady is his name for Nonoko-obaasan. Because, you know, he really likes soba," explained Chizuru. "The big oaf met the Sakaguchis back in Shinshu too, along with Yahiko and Minoe."

"Ah. How... quaint. What riveting wit he has."

"Hey, at least he doesn't call her Kaori. Or Miss Melons."

"That's Miss Melon, Kaori-neechan!" corrected the Clueless Gan, which earned him swift shin kicks on each leg care of both Kaori and Miss Melon.

"YEEEOOWCH!"

"BAKA!"

After recovering from the pain, the Gabby Gan added, "Of course, we'll keep tagging along with Yoshi-boy for shits and giggles. The Sanbaka rides again. Right, Patches?"

"Mochiron!" responded Munenori.

Yahiko spared Minoe a glance, which made the wigged and eye-patched "man" smile and give him a thumb's up (because a wink was out of the question).

How could he surpass Kenshin when he couldn't defeat his two Kagemusha, the Ten Ken and the Battousai of Speed?

Also, he was more than a little curious about this Shogo doppelganger who also took on Kenshin's name, the Mimawarigumi Battousai.

Yet another Fake Battousai for him to meet. 'The plot thickens.'

Back at the kidnappers' hideout, after the local police force finally arrived along with Chizuru...

As the coppers rounded up the bandit kidnappers in shackles and handcuffs, Morinaga told Myojin, "I've made my decision. I'm going to Yokohama. I need to face off with the man who betrayed Amakusa Shogo-sama. His Kagemusha (Shadow Warrior)."

"K-Kagemusha...?" trailed of Yahiko. "What do you...?"

"It's Minakata Kinta. He served as a body double for Amakusa-sama six years ago. The Mimawarigumi Battousai. The one who betrayed the Hidden Christians to the devil himself, Akahori Tetsuo."

She turned her back on him and walked away. "Someday, when we meet again, maybe you can tell me all about Himura Kenshin. The Hitokiri Battousai."

"W-Wait, M-Morinaga...!"

He grabbed hold of Kaede and turned her around, only to end up facing the winking, gentler face of Munenori Minoe.

"Oh. I mean, Minoe. Hi."

Dammit, the Battousai of Speed ran away from him again.

Even without the wig and the eye patch, Myojin could sense the change in Kaede's demeanor after traveling with the weirdo for so long.

"AH! Yahiko-chi! What is it...?"

With a sigh and a shake of his head, Yahiko told Minoe, "I'm coming with you and May Brooks to Yokohama. We all are."

"Ah. Okay. Mochiron, Yahiko-chi!" said Munenori without thinking before blinking and realizing what the Tokyoite just told him. "Um, come again? We're going where now?"

Chasing Minoe... Kaede... and the rest of the Battousai Group was the right decision. Maybe by taking them down, Myojin would find the strength to surpass the real Battousai and bear the full weight of his heavy sakabatou.

It was silly, but his actions were spurred from seeing another chance at getting extra training to make himself stronger.

He just wanted to be stronger. He had no complex motivations of conquering Japan or avenging the death of a loved one.

He simply wished to be worthy of carrying the Battousai's... no Kenshin's... sword.

His most important inheritance.

What an idiot he was, he realized. No wonder he and Sanosuke Sagara got along so famously.

Toshiro Minakata was crazy. Crazy as a fox.

That was why he went from nobleman to merchant in order to keep his wealth and privilege regardless of which side won the Bakumatsu. This was also why he had his daughter, Kinta's mother, marry into the similarly wealthy and influential Akahoris.

He was a samurai who was ahead of the curve in regards to changing times, even though not all of his schemes went according to plan.

Like his daughter's affair with a gaijin. Or his own untimely death.

A prolific gambler in the prime of his life (like his fat lawyer son Kaneda), he knew how to hedge his bets and take calculated risks every time. Even if he lost, he'd somehow find a way to win.

According to his critics and enemies, Toshiro Minakata (allegedly) got his extra funding for his pharmaceutical business from illicit drug running. They said he was in fact a corrupt government official to the core.

The legit business that imported and made western medicine for distribution into Japanese households was the perfect front and money laundering scheme for all his illegitimate smuggling, complete with labs he could use to make both legal and illegal drugs.

The Elder Minakata got filthy rich from being a drug kingpin that no policeman could pin down until his legitimate pharmaceutical business (that he initially used as a front while using its very labs for opium processing) eventually became financially solvent itself.

It was the same bait and switch scheme done by the wealthiest families of the United States of America. Drug barons who made so much money, it lasted their family for generations to come.

However, there was no proof of such wrongdoing except rumors.

As far as the Bakufu and later the Meiji Government was concerned, Toshiro Minakata was an honest, honorable samurai turned head of a major conglomerate.

However, the naval codes unlocked info that suggested otherwise.

The naval codes used to hide info that the Seiryu Clan gathered from and on behalf of the Shogunate revealed more than just top secret documents from the past government hidden within piles of redundant paperwork.

The more messages that the family ninja Kaita delivered to him (which Kaita's sister Misanagi compiled and summarized for Kinta's convenience), the more the uncomfortable truths about Toshiro Minakata and the Minakata Family was exposed.

Toshiro's critics and their speculations didn't even scratch the surface of how much of a wily fox the old man was. He pulled the wool over everyone's eyes.

According to the puzzle pieces of hidden correspondences dating back decades and records hidden in code within what appeared to be mundane receipts and past contracts, Toshiro had been quite the busy man.

Working on both Dutch and China trade in Nagasaki as a trade regulator and enforcer that was answerable only to the Shogunate, Toshiro was the watchman whom no one else watched over. Betrayed by the very guardian who was supposed to protect them.

He realized that the writing was on the wall in regards to Japan and samurai after seeing the growing sentiment of dissatisfaction over the Bakufu by many of its soldiers and warriors.

The entirety of Japan had lost face thanks to the disaster that was the arrival of the Black Ships of Commodore Matthew C. Perry back in 1853.

The Shogunate was seen as weak and it soon became desperate to save face and crush the growing Ishin Shishi mutiny against it. The chain of events led not only to Toshiro becoming a covert drug runner but also the formation of the Four Clans spy group under the behest of the Shogun himself.

A government intelligence group tasked to protect the Japanese way of life in light of changing times.

Conveniently, Toshiro also took advantage of the resulting reopening of trade to the West after the Black Ships Incident in his plan to safeguard his personal wealth, assets, and influence in the future along with the Four Clans.

Taking inspiration to how the Sassoon, Rothschild, Lincoln, and Forbes families built their own riches in the 1830s to 1840s (the deciphered documents outright referenced them), Toshiro covertly engaged in opium trafficking at night (just like Robert Bennet Forbes) while overseeing the changing trading policies of Post-Sakoku Japan during the day.

He then married into a merchant family who had a pharmaceutical business in order to further help process the opium he imported from Hong Kong then resold back to China using his secret yakuza connections.

Yes. Rather than damn the Japanese, Toshiro had enough national pride to instead damn the already damned by also indulging in opium trade on their behalf along with the rich elite like the Delanos and the Forbes.

He even personally oversaw the safe delivery of his goods under the noses of policemen and his own samurai underlings even as he got rid of his black market competition of Wokou Pirates and the Three Harmonies Society.

He laundered his ill-gotten wealth and opium fortune to fund his actual legitimate businesses like real estate and his existing pharmaceutical company in order to get away with being a criminal mastermind that destroyed the lives of countless addicts for a couple of decades.

By the time the smoke cleared and the Opium Wars had passed, he was already a multimillionaire with a business empire that could rival the Mitsubishis.

All this time. All that wealth. All that privilege. They were all from the money his grandfather made off of the degradation and suffering of the Chinese people.

A cold sweat ran through Kinta's spine as more and more information surfaced from the Seiryu Clan's declassified copy of the Black Book. Names of past and current ministers kept popping up.

Men complicit with his grandfather's crimes... and benefited from them, so they allowed him to remain a powerful man in politics who was effectively above the law.

Such info from the Black Book was probably present in Tetsuo Akahori's own volume. The volume of the Genbu Clan. And two other volumes covering the secrets and sins of the various warring factions and other information of national importance all compiled in one voluminous book.

Every name, crime, and sin was listed along with the crimes and sins of the (grand)father. The measures they took and the bets they made during such a chaotic, uncertain time.

It was as much a history book as it was a "black book" that contained the list of secret contacts and people liable for punishment. Or blackmail.

Like with the rich families of the U.S. and Britain, Japan's elites and multiple political dynasties had an awful lot of drug money in their hands, making the Meiji Government more of an oligarchy than anything else.

This sobering reminder showed the unsurprising truth that if one dug deep enough under the family trees of the one percent, skeletons would be unearthed down below.

Inside a train going in a five hour trip straight to Yokohama in the Kanagawa Prefecture...

"Throughout my travels as a food connoisseur..." began Gan.

"...You mean food bandit," drawled Yahiko.

The five companions of Yahiko Myojin, the Great Gan, Munenori Minoe, Chizuru Raikouji, and Satsuki "May Brooks" Sakaguchi had collectively bought tickets straight to Yokohama from Hiroshima.

They were currently seated on couches facing each other, with Chizuru and May sitting on one couch then Yahiko and Gan sitting on another couch. Just behind his fellow men was Minoe.

Yahiko originally wanted to travel there by foot and rough it out on the woods (mosquitoes be damned) like he did when he traveled from the Kamiya Dojo to Shinshu in Nagano.

Then he went straight to Shura's crew at the docks of Naoetsu. Then he pushed further from Hakata Bay to Fukuoka, where he fought ronin who were terrorizing the town. Then to Hiroshima where he met the English teacher known as May "Satsuki Sakaguchi" Brooks, who helped the Sanbaka bring down a den of creepy kidnappers.

He'd been all over the map, so to speak. His Musha Shugyo had been... fruitful. He'd been perfecting his Revisal Techniques he developed on his own to harness the hardness and heaviness of the sakabatou (reverse-edged sword).

"Quiet, Yoshi-boy. Anyway, I've eaten all sorts of ramen. Okinawa soba. Kumamoto ramen. Hakata ramen. Tokushima ramen. Wakayama ramen. Onomichi ramen. Tokyo ramen. Kitakata ramen. Sapporo ramen. Ashikawa ramen. I even tasted Sakaguchi soba at Shinshu, which was one of the best I've ever eaten! Wait, where am I going with this?" said the Gluttonous Gan.

"If I have to hazard a guess, you're going to Yokohama City to try out the cuisine there," deadpanned Chizuru, murmuring, "Better not stiff the bill on us again, you fat pig. No more freebies from me for sure."

"Damn straight, Kaori-neechan!" said the Scatterbrained Gan, who ignored Chizuru's side comment, too focused on the dishes he felt entitled to partake in. "Can't wait to get a hold of those Yokohama goodies! What are they, anyway? What do I have to look forward to?"

Miss Brooks unironically answered the Ghastly Gan's inquiry with, "Uh, well we have Sanma-Men ramen in Yokohama. Oh, aaand also Shoronpo dumplings, Gomadango sesame balls, and the Gyunabe beef hotpot. Most of those are specialties of the Yokohama Chinatown though, so I'm not sure they count."

"Actually, that's perfect! All ramen comes from China, right? Didn't they invent the wheat noodle? So it's both Chinese and Japanese!" reasoned the Starving Gan, licking and smacking his lips. "Sanma-Men ramen, huh? But what about Soba for the Soba King?"

"We're not going on a food trip! While we're at it, you should've stayed in Hiroshima, Shinshu, or wherever you came from!" said Chizuru. The rich girl then nudged Satsuki's side, saying, "Don't humor him! It's not as if he pays for his own meals!"

"Oh my, let him be, Chizuru-san! No need to be chuffed about him," said the beatific teacher as though Gan were one of her misunderstood "bad boy" students. "Just think of him as a hungry bodyguard! Or a big, cuddly doggy."

"Ah, Megami-sama! You are such an angel, Miss Melon! A goddess from heaven!" said the Grateful Gan. "And quite the looker too! Woof!"

"Aw, shucks," said May. "You're beautiful too, Galileo-san! Uh, in your own way. You're a knees up kind of bloke!"

"Huh? You do nicknames too? We're going to get along famously, Miss Melon!" said the Japanese Galileo. "Oh, and speaking of melons, do you have some special Yokohama fruit desserts or sweets over there? Like melon bread or taiyaki?"

"Fruits? Desserts? Melon?" repeated the adopted Sakaguchi with an innocent bounce. "Well, yeah, I guess we have melons in Yokohama too. But they're not exactly Yokohama specialty."

The Grinning Gan was about to quip about something crass when Yahiko raised his wrapped-up sakabatou and aimed it at the bandanna-wearing man's head. "...What? The melons are coming back to Yokohama."

And so Myojin conked the goon's thick head with his sword scabbard. The Unfeeling Gan barely even winced.

Located south of Tokyo in the Kanagawa Prefecture, Yokohama was Japan's second largest city. The Minakatas settled there (or so Satsuki informed them) because of their influence in trade back in the Sakoku Era.

Around 1859, the government opened up the Port of Yokohama. It was one of the first places in Japan that allowed open foreign trade from a multitude of nations, spelling the end of the closed-off and controlled Sakoku Era Trade.

Knowing this, one of the premier hatamoto officials of the previous era packed his bags and moved his family to Yokohama along with the samurai family serving under him (the Sakaguchis).

That was how eccentric "Grandpa" Toshiro was, claimed Satsuki. He was a game-changing, forward-thinking maniac cut from the same entrepreneurial cloth as the patriarchs of the Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, Mitsui, and Yasuda Clans. But this time with samurai blood and influence involved.

At any rate, Yokohama soon became a progressive city right after the Black Ships of Commodore Perry forced Japan to open trade with the rest of the world, making it one of Japan's most internationally minded cities.

It served as a gateway to items like jazz music, baseball, beer, and beef; products that would eventually play a role in shaping modern Japan and, in turn, Yokohama cuisine.

In fact, Asia's biggest Chinatown area (outside of actual Chinese towns) was in Yokohama. It was filled with traditional landmarks, restaurants, and shops that occupied several city blocks.

Speaking of Yokohama, Kinta Minakata learned even more about his grandfather in the context of the city's transformation as an international merchant town.

Reams and reams more of hidden codes started getting deciphered by the Sanada Ninja Clan. Other names and families came up with their own questionable histories during the Bakumatsu and their connection with the dying Shogunate.

Some of whom were still in high positions in government. Many others had died in the war, leaving their families in poverty. Their children and grandchildren suffering from the sins or karma of their fathers and forefathers.

Some even had their family line wiped out entirely.

But none of those puzzle pieces fascinated the Mimawarigumi Battousai more than his hatamoto grandfather and his shenanigans for obvious reasons.

His case was personal, after all.

The Chinatown in Yokohama boasted countless stores, making it the largest Chinatown in the world by the time the 20th and 21st Centuries rolled along.

The Yokohama Chinatown was established in 1859 along with the opening of the ports of the city. The shores of Yokohama were where all the Chinese merchants went and gathered after being forced to do restricted trade in Nagasaki for centuries under the watchful eye of samurais like Toshiro.

Yokohama became the new center of trade with western countries, and Toshiro Minakata grabbed the opportunity to himself indulge in western medicine importation and, on the down low, making and distributing his own brand of opium to China to fund his burgeoning pharmaceutical empire.

Kinta expected to unlock the sins of the forefathers of the current Japanese administration by decoding the Seiryu Clan's volume of the Black Book, not uncover that his grandfather was among those criminals.

The shards from his shattered glass house cut deep.

The opium that brought China to its knees in order to give Britain a more favorable tea trade agreement also pushed his grandfather and their family up to hatamoto-class.

"So what? Queen Victoria herself is history's largest drug dealer," was one of the smug coded messages that Toshiro left to justify his own sins.

Even as Japan suffered from Unfair Treaties by countries that bullied it into submission so that it could open its shores for trade once again, the Minakatas were among the elites who plundered and took advantage of the suffering of their own nations and other nations that were also headed towards the same fate as China.

As food for the new superpowers of the world. Manifest Destiny.

The saddest part was none of this disturbing info really shocked Kinta in any way. He suspected it from the start. Or rather, he wouldn't put such actions past his family.

It almost seemed typical for a Minakata to act this way, especially the oh-so-great Toshiro. Every one of the children of Toshiro and Mieko (his grandmother) were groomed for success.

Tatsuya overcame his lack of talent in swordsmanship and physical strength to grow up into a banker that handled the entire family's significant fortune stemming from its multinational financial group named after it.

Kaneda overcame his own inferiority complex of living under his assertive elder brother's shadow (and his own body image issues) by completing his studies and becoming a lawyer himself.

Even Daddy's Millionaire Princess did her part for the family by having an arranged marriage with the Akahori Family's eldest son to strengthen political bonds and secret ties as well as merge their accumulated wealth.

Although according to Grandmother Mieko, Kinta's mother was spoiled rotten by his Grandfather Toshiro.

Even Kinta served as a pawn to the Minakatas. Or the Seiryu Clan itself.

He had to become another Battousai to counteract the Ishin Shishi Battousai that murdered many fellow Mimawarigumi samurai (even though their paths and blades never crossed through a twist of fate) and earn back his grandfather's trust that was lost from him when his mother had her affair.

As though he were the fruit of that union rather than the biological son of Azuma Akahori and Aoi Minakata.

Even Kinta had to curry favor of his own high-standard hatamoto-class samurai family (and relatives) in order to not be treated like their black sheep or a redheaded bastard.

This was all understandable... even characteristic... of the Minakata Bloodline.  

The Mimawarigumi Battousai had heard stories on the dinner table from his bragging grandpa about how their Sengoku ancestors were defeated and became Ochimusha (disgraced samurai who'd lost standing and became low-ranked citizens; could also mean the remnants or corpse of a defeated warrior).

Legend had it that instead of becoming Burakumin (outcasts) hiding in the boondocks, the surviving members of their family stole the land under the control of another family of samurais known as the Minakatas by killing them, taking their identities, and defending their uncaptured land before allying themselves with the Tokugawas.

Known for the shaved top of their heads and disheveled chonmage (topknot) after being disgraced by defeat, the new shogun allowed these ochimusha to grow their hair back along with their dignity and standing as reward for their help.

The False Minakatas became the True Minakatas.

They henceforth became known as the Minakatas (their original clan name had been lost in time), replacing the family they massacred. Through their cunning, they managed to save face and cease from being Ochimusha. Allegedly.

"What are you going to do now, Kinta-sama?" asked Misanagi in reference to these discoveries they'd unearthed regarding his grandfather.

"...." said Kinta.

Back in the train to Yokohama where the Sanbaka (and friends) were riding...

Unable to take more of the Gluttonous Gan's inane food talk, Yahiko switched seats (it was a half-empty train) to sit with Munenori Minoe (or Kaede Morinaga) from behind them.

The Son of Tokyo Samurai sat beside Shogo Amakusa's own prodigy, who had her Minoe "disguise" on and was snoring softly with her head nestled on the closed window.

Or his head. Whatever.

Munenori (or Kaede) was, after all, the reason why Yahiko decided to do his Musha Shugyo training pilgrimage in Yokohama along with him (or her).

The samurai kid couldn't risk Morinaga separating from him and doing any political assassinations and whatnot under his watch, specifically on this Minakata fellow whom she described as a traitor to Amakusa and the Kakure Kirishitans.

After all, Kinta was Satsuki's crush and all.

Regardless, Kaede was the person who almost defeated Soujiro Seta the Ten Ken (Heaven Sword), who in turn almost defeated Kenshin Himura.

According to the former Juppon Gatana member, his Shun Ten Satsu (Instant Heaven Kill) was as fast although not as strong as the Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki (Heavens Gliding Dragon Flash).

Yahiko remembered how Enishi Yukishiro countered Kenshin's ultimate technique with his own ultimate technique, the Kofoku Zetsu Tou Sei (Absolute Trap Blade Wave) or Kofuku Zettousei.

He then learned the mechanics of Zettousei from when Shura, the Scourge of the Pacific, used the same technique to get her revenge against Captain Masakichi Hananuma Inoue for sinking her ship and killing her first mate.

As the Pirate Queen turned Privateer Queen slowly but surely found a way to counter Captain Inoue's Wanmei Fengbao (Eye of the Storm) with the Kofuku Zettousei, Yahiko also put two and two together and realized that the Hirameki was susceptible to attacks from below the vortex it created, allowing a chance to counterstrike between the gap of the initial strike and the second counterstrike.

Myojin even began getting faster and stronger from sparring with both the Great Gan and the Battousai of Speed. Gan helped him work on his stamina. Minoe helped him work on his reflexes and dexterity.

They were the best training partners a growing teenage boy could ask for.

If the Tokyo Samurai Descendant could get on the level of the Nisemono Battousai (Fake Battousai) and the also-similar-to-Kenshin Ten Ken, then perhaps he could someday finally wield the heavy sakabatou and the accompanying burden of responsibility that came with it.

So that the injured Kenshin who could barely practice the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu wouldn't have to bear that burden himself.

Unbidden, Minoe began to stir and moan.

"Minoe?" whispered Yahiko. "Are you awake?"

"Amakusa Shogo-sama... is amazing. I'm sure that even the Hitokiri Battousai would fall against him. They use the same sword style, am I correct?" Yahiko heard Minoe murmur in his sleep, his one exposed eye closed and his other eye covered by an eye patch.

Ah, so he was talking in his sleep.

Yahiko smirked and harrumphed. "I've seen Kenshin in action. He's amazing. He helped the Ishin Shishi win against the Bakufu. What feats has your Shogo-sama accomplished?"

He then bit his lip, remembering how much of a touchy subject the mass murder of the Hidden Christians rebels were to Amakusa and Morinaga.

Thankfully, the half-asleep Munenori didn't interpret his words in such a malicious manner.

With his eyes (or eye) still closed, he rebutted, "Amakusa-chi is a gifted swordsman from birth, taking out young men his age in kendo tournaments then taking on older, more experienced swordsmen as well when none of the kids could match his kenjutsu prowess."

Huh. The Tokyoite didn't know that. Of course, most any sword style should succumb to the superman's sword style known as Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu. "So he learned Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu at a young age, huh?"

Munenori shook his head. "He used Nikaido Heiho when he was younger. That was his father's swordsmanship school. His Uncle Hyoue taught him Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu later on, after... escaping from Japan when the Bakufu first rounded off, tortured, and murdered the Kakure Kirishitan, including his parents."

"Oh. I... I see." Yahiko didn't know what else to say.

"...Besides, he's also a one-man army that took down whole squads of policemen and whole platoons of soldiers. Or have you already forgotten what happened in Shinshu? How you can barely keep up with Shogo-sama?"

Or maybe Minoe did find Yahiko's rebuttal earlier malicious after all. That was... harsh of him to point out, to say the least. Munenori just reminded Myojin of his failure to save the lives of many a copper.

On the other hand, if the Tokyo boy remembered correctly, weren't some of the policemen at Akahori's Mansion involved in an incident with Amakusa six years ago? From another government-sanctioned massacre of sorts?

Shogo, as Shiro Amakusa the Second, assassinated the murderers of his parents (some of whom were still in power), only for the current Meiji Administration to retaliate against his growing rebellion.

The two went silent as the sound of the rumbling train and the murmur of the passengers drowned out their thoughts.

The samurai kid turned his head, only to see someone else other than Minoe stare back at him. The person beside him removed his eye patch, revealing a new character.

Kaede Morinaga had just woken up. He'd been talking to her all this time, not the gentle Minoe.

Kaede rubbed her eyes and recounted to Yahiko the things Lady Magdalia told her about Shogo and his exploits.

Magdalia had specifically told her the story of how she and her brother escaped the Bakufu's clutches.

Even though Shogo himself didn't seem to remember how he manhandled the samurais who were after him, his sister, and his mother at the time, Lady Magdalia filled in the details.

Shogo took out the initial wave with only his shinai before that broke and he was forced to steal a katana that turned him into a bloodstained whirling dervish.

Amakusa might've remembered things differently due to the trauma of the situation. However, had his master Hyoue Nishida not intervened, Shogo might've outright murdered the samurais that stabbed his mother to death.

In fact, Kaede had compartmentalized her skill set into two categories... Cancer Stance for defensive moves and Scorpion Stance for offensive moves... based on the dual styles Shogo used (the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and the Nikaido Heiho).

"Oh yeah? Well, Kenshin himself trained hard with his master for years. And when he was 14 years old, he also took down grown swordsmen himself as a hitokiri assassin! Grown experienced noblemen samurai, even," boasted Yahiko.

The boy blinked. As much of a bad guy he painted Amakusa as in his mind, the Hidden Christian was similar to Kenshin in many ways.

Except for one important thing, but he held his tongue in regards to that in order to not incur the wrath of the emotionally unstable Nisemono Battousai.

"That's nothing! Shogo-sama defeated his master when he was the same age! Using a technique of his own making, the Rai Ryu Sen!" Kaede countered.

"Okay? Kenshin defeated his master to acquire the ougi (succession technique)."

"Ha! I knew it. Shogo-sama is better."

"What? No! Kenshin's master is a god who walks among men. A superman in his own right. Also, last I checked, he's the official bearer of the Hiko Seijuro name. Shogo's uncle isn't, so he must be the weaker of the two!"

"No, he's not! He was the swordsman Kirisaki, who protected the Hidden Christians for the longest time single-handedly until that fateful massacre. I heard he also spared his master, Hiko Seijuro, from death by countering the Kuzu Ryu Sen with something other than the ougi!"

"...A likely story!" said Yahiko with a shake of his head. "Kenshin has a better, stronger master who actually inherited the Hiko Seijuro mantle, so of course he'd whup Amakusa's ass real easy."

"HA! I bet Amakusa's twice as fast as the Hitokiri Battousai! He'd have Super Godspeed compared to the slower Battousai!"

"Yeah right! Kenshin defeated Psycho-Kid when he was still part of the Juppon Gatana... in his prime, mind you... and Amakusa can't! He got completely defeated by Psycho-Kid back in Shinshu!"

"T-That's... unfair! He fought multiple policemen at Akahori's Shinshu Mansion before facing the Ten Ken! He was already spent! Besides, he showed that emotionless bodyguard of Akahori who's boss when he used the Rai Ryu Sen on him!"

"More excuses, huh? Well Kenshin faced off against an Oniwabanshu Okashira (Garden Guard Boss) before facing Psycho-Kid back in Mount Hiei, and he defeated both of them while holding back on killing them, which made taking them down twice as difficult!"

"Shogo-sama's master Kirisaki avoided killing the people he fought all the time, including Kenshin Himura's master, whom he also faced off against. He was a pacifist, so he became skilled enough in swordsmanship to defeat everyone without killing them. That's the kind of master Shogo-sama had!"

"Yeah, well, Mr. One-Man Army didn't help win a civil war against the Bakufu to install the Ishin Shishi into power!" Yahiko blurted out even though he didn't mean to. He couldn't help himself. His emotions got the better of him.

He wasn't even particularly proud of Kenshin helping the Meiji Government rise to power, especially in light of his experience with its corrupt officials.

However, instead of threatening to cut his loose tongue or castrate him, the Fake Battousai pledged to him, "Shogo-sama's own revolution is near. Once he gets the Black Book from Akahori, he'll have all the ammunition he needs to topple this government."

Kaede herself then slapped her hand over her mouth, realizing that she had said too much as well.

Reading the mood, Myojin changed the subject. "In full health, who's faster? Psycho-Kid or Amakusa?"

Morinaga turned her head away, placing the eye patch back on her eye as though to "summon" back her alter ego Minoe before muttering, "The Ten Ken is a little faster than Shogo-sama. But Shogo-sama can still beat him. Stupid Urchin-Head."

The Son of Tokyo Samurai heaved a sigh and confessed, "It's fine. Kenshin told me that Psycho-Kid is faster than him too. Seta Soujiro might even be faster than the whole Hiten Mitsurugi School itself. Maybe."

"...But I bet the Hitokiri Battouai is waaaay slower than the Ten Ken compared to Shogo-sama, who's only a little slower."

"Hey! Don't get ahead of yourself!" said the inheritor of the sakabatou. "I give you an inch and you take a mile. Honestly."

Much later still...

"You wanted to speak to me?" Tatsuya Minakata said. The banker son of Toshiro Minakata. Kinta's uncle from his mother's side.

"Yes," said Kinta.

"What the hell do you want, you brat?"

...And Tatsuya was every bit as intimidating, menacing, and cunning as his uncle from his father's side, Tetsuo Akahori. The complete opposite of his other uncle and Tatsuya's younger brother, Kaneda.

But that was in the past. Kinta was no longer a small child or gangly teenager that the alcoholic could push around and abuse whenever he was drunk.

Uncle Tatsuya might've not inherited any of Grandpa Toshiro's immense talent in swordsmanship, but he certainly had his father's business acumen as the person in charge (by proxy and with Grandma Mieko's blessing) of the Minakata Family's vast wealth.

As expected of a ruthless banker who was as thin as Uncle Kaneda was fat.

From behind Tatsuya was their newly hired manservant bodyguard who towered over the two like an outright foreigner despite being Japanese. Meanwhile, Kinta's uncle sat on his chair behind his desk, his arms folded and his mouth a scowl.

His eyes staring straight into Kinta's eyes.

Toshiro's grandchild could hear the insistent taps from the shoes of Toshiro's eldest son.

Hiding behind Kinta's shadow though was Kaita of the Sanada Ninja Clan.

Not that the Mimawarigumi Battousai who faced off against Hitokiri Gensai Kawakami needed help defending himself or anything.

The ninja Kaita was also there to remind him of anything he missed regarding the intelligence they'd decoded in their search for the Seiryu Clan's Black Book.

Kinta didn't want to make a single mistake about the uncovered intel before asking about them straight from one of their primary sources.

Conversing with his grandfather's son about past crimes was the ex-Kagemusha's way of giving Toshiro the benefit of the doubt. Even though Tatsuya himself could very well be an accomplice to those crimes.

"...Well? What is it? I'm a busy man," said Tatsuya with a dismissive snort, breaking contact with Kinta's gaze. "I have no time to play with you. We have goddamn assassins after us, if you haven't noticed!"

Kinta went straight to the point. "What do you know about the Seiryu Clan's Volume of the Black Book?"

There was a pregnant pause.

"Seiryu Clan? I have no idea what you're talking about," denied Tatsuya. Like Jesus Christ's disciple Thomas, as Amakusa would say.

The younger Minakata then placed his copy of the decoded papers on the Elder Minakata's desk.

"What is this nonsense? I have no time..."

"There are declassified documents about Grandfather Toshiro's drug dealings in China using Minakata Pharmaceuticals as a front."

Tatsuya's scowl turned into a snarl. "Drug dealings? Are you saying your grandfather is a drug lord? Is that it? Those are some grave accusations you're hurling, kiddo. Be careful what you say."

However, Kinta always was careful. He spoke the way he fought. Methodically. With no wasted movement or words.

The nephew presented a different document from Kaita. This time full of names, addresses, and quantities of delivered goods. Contact persons, if you would. More like accessories to his grandfather's crimes.

The names listed meant nothing to the Mimawarigumi Battousai, but he summarized and said them aloud nonetheless. They were Toshiro's contacts from the warehouses he stored his opium. The names of his chemists who processed the drug.

The list of ports under his control that allowed him to ship to China his own brand of premium-grade, potent opium that was easier to access than the ones being sold by the Indians, the British, and the Americans in Hong Kong and the Pearl River outside Canton.

Although his uncle would not divulge one piece of information about the Black Book, the reactions he gave to the uncovered information spoke volumes.

Kinta had all the puzzle pieces of the Black Book right at the palm of his hand.

Through seemingly redundant and suspicious documents, bogus employee contracts in triplicate, and receipts for business expenditures that were nonexistent, his grandfather had weaved a web of lies he used to communicate with the underworld in order to go about his opium trade in ways that would've made the likes of Takeda Kanryu jealous.

The sheer amount of opium Toshiro sold and money he made was many magnitudes larger than Kanry's lifetime wealth. It involved millions of yen's worth of drugs sold by the ton. The same way the Rothschild and Forbes families built their fortunes.

Tatsuya stood up from his seat and slammed his hands on his desk, with both bodyguards... the tall nameless one beside the uncle and the ninja hidden in the darkness behind the grandchild... stirring in reaction.

For Kinta's part, he stood his ground. In his younger years, he would've flinched or cowered away from Tatsuya. Not anymore. Not after everything he'd been through.

Tatsuya got in Kinta's face before smirking and attempting to feint a punch, but the swordsman wouldn't buy it.

The ruthless businessman had half the mind to punch his nephew. Show him who was boss. His little sister's forgotten piece of excess baggage.

Like the good ol' days.

"As if Father would leave a paper trail behind," Tatsuya rebuked, calling his nephew's bluff. "What piece of fiction have you written up here? Decode? There's nothing to decode here! Spare me your conspiracy theories and nonsensical speculation!"

"If this is all false, then you won't mind the police investigating all this evidence, correct?"

Tatsuya grabbed Kinta by the collar. The younger Minakata still wouldn't flinch. Defiant to the end.

"Call the police? We own the police!"

"The Minakatas haven't been influential in politics since grandfather's death," Kinta called Tatsuya's own bluff.

"Ever since you became one of those Mimawarigumi goons from back in the day, you've been full of yourself. You've changed. But I know better. You're still the same scared little snot I've whipped with my belt time and time again. How many times do I have to teach you that lesson, boy?"

Tough talk from a drunkard who never held a sword or killed a man his entire life.

Kinta didn't say those words, but Tatsuya must've heard his unsaid sentiment through his eyes because the banker soon swung at his face immediately after.

A swing and a miss.

To Be Continued...

Miss me? It's been a while, huh?

Salamat, Abdiel

[grimtwin]

Top 10 Kuwabara moments?

His breakdown at Yusuke’s death. Keiko and Atsuko aside, since those were expected, Kuwabara’s reaction was much more surprising and heartbreaking.

Summoning his first Spirit Sword during Genkai’s tournament. He needed the added help of Musashi’s broken sword to do it, but once he did, he tore through his opponent. 

His battle against Byakko. Kuwabara never really came off as a…smart guy at this point in the series. And joining in on a mission he had no prior training for, vastly weaker than his allies and opponents, couldn’t be considered a wise idea. But he’s brave as hell and took on Byakko, who whooped the shit out of him…but we got to see Kuwabara break out some smart tactics like leading enemies into a single file, chaining them up with a new Spirit Sword technique, and risking his life to finally knock Byakko into a pit of lava…that was in a tower in the sky…which makes little sense.

Donating his own life energy to Yusuke, after Yusuke technically killed himself to beat Suzaku.

All of the rescue Yukina arc. The second he saw her, he was in love, and raced off to be the big hero, following the red string of fate. During this time, he saved Botan from a spider demon’s web, helped KO Gokumonki, tore through some bitch-ass security, and “won” a fight against the Toguro’s to rescue the love of his life.

 First round battle against RInku! One of a handful of humans in the Dark Tournament, no one expected anything but immediate death for Kuwabara. And while RInku danced around him like an annoying kid, Kuwabara survived a should have been broken neck, and a 10+ story fall…to still lose to Rinku. But at least he put a hole through Rinku’s gut and put the fear of Kuwabara Kazuma into that demon kid!

His fight against Risho. Beaten all to hell by Dr. Ichigaki’s team the immediately previous round, Kuwabara was Team Urameshi’s only hope to continue on, and he was ready to die taking Risho out. And then comes Yukina to cheer him on, and the dude swells with BDE, and basically OHKO’s Risho, and immediately goes to flirt.

The fight against Seaman, and saving his best buddies. So Kuwabara, without his powers, is just trying to have a good time, hanging out with his friends after a dope ass Megallica concert, and Seaman tries to drown them all. So Kuwabara is forced to develop a new Spirit Sword that cuts through dimensions to take out Mitarai and save his buddies. And even severely injured, carries them all, and the baddie, to safety.

Cutting out of Itsuki’s dimension demon as Yusuke is being killed, then raging so hard he, Kurama, and Hiei chase Sensui down and fight him in Demon World. Another heart breaker for the guy but false deaths are kind of a thing for YYH.

Making something better of himself after the series. He started out as a low-down punk with shit grades, always getting into fights. But because of Shizuru’s…forceful insistence, and all the shit he goes through, he becomes the strongest human that we know of, studies his ass off, gets into university, and Yukina moves into his home. It’s a Win, Win, Win for the guy. 

[hufflepuff-ravenclaw-reviews]

Nostalgia Rewatch: Yu Yu Hakusho S01E17

With Byakko feeding off of Kuwabara's spiritual energy and growing because of it, Kuwabara seems like he doesn't exactly stand a chance. However, he's as pig-headed as they come, and shoves his spirit sword into Byakko's mouth. He just feeds off of the energy again... except that he doesn't grow larger, only wider.

Kurama notes this, and the others agree that it could be worth something... if Kuwabara could notice it. However, Hiei also points out that with Kuwabara having already exhausted a lot of spiritual energy as it is, do fill Byakko up with that much spiritual energy would likely be suicidal.

After kicking Kuwabara around for a little bit, and Kuwabara trying again to stab Byakko, it seems like Kuwabara's at his limit as he keeps collapsing. But finally, as Byakko is about to step on Kuwabara, he gets all weird and jolt-y. He eventually kind of keels over, and is helped by Kuwabara giving him one last shove.

The others are quick to go to Kuwabara's side and to congratulate him, that they didn't know that he had that much spiritual power in him. But... it's not over just yet. Yusuke gets yet another call from Botan, saying that things are getting even worse in the city, and have you at least defeated three of them? She's also being attacked by a lot more of the bug-possessed people now. Kuwabara, who was seemingly too weak to stand a moment ago, is suddenly bright and chipper to see Botan... But then Yusuke's like “she hung up.”

There's another roar, and what remains of the area where they are starts to crumble, so they all run to safety for the other tower. Inside, Byakko calls to them yet again, and says that it's not over, so join me in my room! My hell room! They follow the door, where they remark at how hot that it is. It's a room filled with highly elevated platforms, and what looks like lava, but Byakko tells them a moment later is sulphuric acid. Kuwabara drops a scrap he ripped off from his sleeve into the liquid, and it incinerates before it barely touches the surface. Yikes.

Anyway, Byakko is ready for round two. Hiei is ready to fight him, but Kuwabara says that this is still his fight, and he leaps for the first platform. But it kind of crumbles, and he almost falls before the fight can begin again...

Byakko then reveals his “secret technique”: to lob screaming balls at Kuwabara, that instantly dissentigrates everything that it touches. At first, Kuwabara is ready to bat it away with his spirit sword, but Kurama calls to him to get away, and he leaps to the next platform just in time to witness the first platform being completely and utterly destroyed.

At this point, Koenma is horrified over this. His assistant asks Koenma if there's anything that Koenma could do to help... Nothing but praying to god at this point! Which... does not fill the assistant with hope.

Byakko fires off shot after shot at Kuwabara, before gloating: I have you right where I want you. All of the immediate platforms are all destroyed now. Muahahaha! He then fires at Kuwabara again (after an unholy amount of back and forth.) But Kuwabara jumps for the platform that Byakko is on, and barely makes it... Byakko laughs about this, but that laugh quickly turns to surprise when it turns out that Kuwabara used his spirit sword as a pole to vault himself up onto the platform. Kuwabara then punches Byakko in the face, which makes him stumble backwards... and tumble to his death.

Yusuke is upset and collapses on the spot when they think that Kuwabara also fell to his death. However, after a moment of this, Kuwabara calls out from the back-side of the platform (from where they're standing) that he's using his wrappings (for some sort of??? I don't know? Waist injury? Fashion? Underwear??? I don't want to think about the last one...) to keep himself attached to the platform, and please come help! They go over to him, but they can't help but gloat over everything, while Kuwabara screams for help.