#with how Takasugi met them and why they chose to follow him

[sankatsuka]

Bansai Kawakami and Kiheitai Discussion - The Humanity that Drives Kiheitai

After watching Gintama till the end, my favourite faction in Gintama is undoubtedly Kiheitai. The Liberation Army arc was my most favourite arc in the entire series - it had a really interesting commentary on characters impacted by the loss of their home and loved ones.

What stood out to me the most was Bansai's gradual realizations as he lived nihilistically down Takasugi's path of destruction. How Bansai has actually always carried the spirit of a Samurai who wanted to protect his country - his home. So he is the one able to open Takasugi's eyes to the present, to the fact that Kiheitai had become akin to a home to all of them who are just nobodies who have lost everything.

Warnings: I bring on some talking points from my previous discussion about Takasugi's character. My interpretation of Takasugi's character is heavy on Takagin. (read here)

The end of the Shinsengumi Crisis arc shows how Bansai is the most open about learning about other beliefs outside Takasugi's. This distinguishes him from the other members of Kiheitai we've seen so far, who seem to blindly be following him as they've lost all purpose. This hints that Bansai hasn't lost his purpose, and it's related to protecting people, with how much present-day Edo drew him in.

We are given confirmation during Kiheitai's formation that Bansai has always been living with that desire to protect the people of his country. He ends up joining Takasugi because there was no other way forward, but seeing Takasugi's charisma probably reinforced his belief that he would be able to protect this country. This is why Bansai isn't blindly devoted to Takasugi, and is able to see with his eyes that present-day Edo never needed to be protected. That it Kiheitai themselves who couldn't face the present.

He acknowledges that Kiheitai were the blind ones, blind to the people and themselves. This makes what Kiheitai truly is clearer to him: they were just a bunch of people who lost everything and wanted someone strong to exact their vengeance while carrying the weight of their anger. And Takasugi is a lost hero who strayed from his path away from the Joui 4 because he was too weak to face the present like them (I do think that Takasugi is most burdened by his guilt of choosing Gintoki over their teacher they fought for and cherished, like Enshou leaving his brother to die to be with his now-wife. But I don't think Bansai knew about this and thought Takasugi couldn't get over his anger of the lives lost only for his teacher to only die in vain. Like how nobody knows what Enshou had done to his brother to the very bitter end too...)

Having taken such lessons from present-day Edo and knowing what Kiheitai really is, Bansai's path became clearer to him. He has to be the comrade who spurs Takasugi to the right path, to rise and become the hero he really is, the one who moves forward because of the present living and not the dead from the past.

Bansai was no longer fighting to protect Kiheitai's ambitions of overthrowing the government, he would die fighting protecting the spirit of Kiheitai. Which he does by telling Takasugi he has to keep going because Kiheitai is always chasing him, not for their goal of overthrowing the country.

It's thanks to this and Kiheitai demonstrating Bansai's final words that Takasugi wakes up. He isn't a hero fighting to protect the country, he was just an ordinary person who has to live for his present - the Kiheitai who has always been chasing after him, not to achieve their ambitions that just proved pointless at the end.

The reason Bansai is the one capable of seeing Kiheitai for what it really is is probably because of what Takasugi saw in him when they met. Takasugi only chose to recruit Bansai at the start, whereas he showed disappointment in Henpeita's half-heartedness and straight up turned Matako away. Both of the latter two had given up on fully living as themselves, and Takasugi encouraged them to find their proper answers instead of relying on him and didn't deem them as strong enough to follow down his road with such fragile resolve--But Bansai didn't give up.

Bansai was still chasing after his desire to protect the country and it's people until the very end. He didn't have the eyes of someone who gave up and wanted to end things in the best way possible like Henpeita. Bansai was doing everything he can to protect as many as he could (Matako and the imprisoned Joui rebels, probably even placing a bet that Takasugi could bring about a miracle in the prison).

That's probably why Bansai didn't close his eyes entirely to the present-day Edo and the ideals they all live by. He's still chasing after the country he wants to protect, and there was no absolutely certainty Takasugi's methods were the answer. In the end, he finds his answer in the heroes that are powered not by the dead, but by the people who follow them (Joui 4). And he is capable of seeing that heroic spirit that should be in Takasugi, and how his sights should be on the Kiheitai that is chasing after him, and not the dead of the past.

For such a strong-headed guy who wanted to protect his country so strongly, Takasugi couldn't let Bansai's life go to waste to a country that forsake his efforts. Not when Takasugi knows the pain of trampling over corpses, and the country they were willing to put down their lives for wouldn't even carry that burden alongside them. Even if Takasugi himself didn't know where he was going, he was willing to put his trust in a miracle somewhere along the way - as long as he could protect these people.

For these people who were willing to put their lives down in the name of justice in a country that didn't even care about them, Takasugi refused to let them lose their precious lives that way. He spares Henpeita because of this, but also decides against recruiting him because he wouldn't drag down someone who still had a chance at living a normal life. Bansai was already at the stage of idiocy where he couldn't be saved anymore, so instead of leaving him to die for that meaningless cause, Takasugi recruits him. Because he was planning to fight till the very end for a miracle, and that was a better cause than the country for people who were willing to throw their lives away. Even if it was just blind confidence.

And because of this, Henpeita reaches out to Takasugi again, that the miracle he wants to bet on to keep living was Takasugi himself, instead of a normal life. Matako also proves that the same miracle she would bet her life on at a young age was Takasugi by joining them on the battlefield.

This was the Kiheitai Takasugi intended - a place that only had idiots and nobodies who would die for their justice, and he wouldn't let their deaths be wasted on the country that wouldn't honour their spirit.

(Because Takasugi detests himself for having forsaken his comrades' deaths, because he would have forsaken their wishes to save Shouyou for his own wish of being with Gintoki. So he takes it up on himself to make amends even as a dead person walking. I'm sorry I have to include so much Takagin, I have to emphasize why Takasugi cares so much about honouring people's lives.)

For that Takasugi, Bansai tells him that Kiheitai are always right behind him. Even if he's lost everything, as long as those eyes have something they are headed towards, Kiheitai will follow suit. Because they chose to follow Takasugi, and at some point found a home in each other. So they would fight to protect that home, instead of the country that they knew they've already lost their place in but still foolishly have the heart to want to protect.

So their deaths would never be wasted. Of course, he's free to make amends by sacrificing himself, but that's only at the very end after he's achieved whatever he was seeking.

But ultimately, it would've been better if they could all live normally in this home they found. As Bansai fights to the very end, he remembers that he and Henpeita resolved to die for the sake of a hero who could change the country. But now he's fighting for the sake of going back to the peaceful times where they can finally start facing each Takasugi for who he really is: their friend.

Because Bansai knows now, what spurred them on wasn't their ambitions to make a miracle to happen - it was the place they all found in Kiheitai.

(Also, I love how Bansai and Shinpachi have such strong parallels. Their shared connection with Otsu, Gintoki and Takasugi saving the other, Bansai protecting Shinpachi. It feels like the two of them share a strong love for the home that raised them, and Shinpachi may have ended up like Bansai had he been older and lost everything.

I wish I could've seen them spending more time together, Shinpachi may have been able to wake Bansai up to face the present before it was too late as it is in canon...)

[nijiro-no]

Some random scenes with Kiheitai chibs bc I really needed to draw them after last week’s chapter ;;

“Nothin’s changed

‘cause we know the fact that the Kiheitai was born to destroy the world 

That the Kiheitai was born in order to save one girl

And that both those things are who we are.”

[atopearth]

Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms Part 11 - Kazama Chikage Route

I know that Kazama needs to care about her well-being since he can’t very well let her die from exhaustion when she’s with him, but it was nice to see him notice when she was tired and find a hut to rest for the night to take a proper break. It’s great that Chizuru is finally showing interest in her roots as a Demon! I’ve always wanted to know more but since most routes revolved around the Shinsengumi guys accepting her for who she is, demon or not, it was hard to learn more about them. It’s nice to see Kazama telling her more about their history, like how it was inevitable that they had to exile themselves in hiding because no matter how powerful they were, humans had the advantage in numbers, and that was something they couldn’t overpower. Lmao when Chizuru takes her bedding to the other side of the room because she doesn’t feel comfortable sleeping so close to Kazama under the same roof. Girl, if he wanted to attack you, you wouldn’t get much of a distance advantage when he’s so strong😆 It’s kinda cute how Kazama follows Demon tradition and won’t do anything until they’re married. I feel like one of the reasons why Kazama was insistent on this route to Edo that Amagiri told them to not go through since it could cause trouble (due to Kazama not continuing his alliance with the Satsuma, and Chizuru is unknown to them I guess) with their identities was because he knew that Chizuru was fatigued and he didn’t want her to have to push herself anymore on these gruelling mountains. Good that she calmed him down and said they should go another way just in case them trying to enter through here would alert Kodo.

Omggg it was so sweet when Kazama grabbed her hand and walked with her like that after she nearly fell off the cliff or something. So dangerous, but him ending up doing that is so worth it🥰🥰 I was right! He was trying to get through that checkpoint for her sake!🥰🥰🥰 He’s so sweet and considerate! It’s common and natural instinct for male Demons to guard the well-being and safety of their women since they lack stamina and strength compared to them, so I guess he’s been trained to take care of women properly!😆 That CG of him holding her hand just makes me squeal in happiness😊😊 It’s pretty saddening to see Chizuru think about all those past happy memories she had with Kodo back in the clinic, only for him to come and step all over them as the monster he truly has become/is. So glad Kazama appeared when Kodo started saying he wanted Chizuru to breed with his Furies eughhh. Lmao at Kazama reprimanding her for not laying low like he told her to, and instead running right to trouble haha. I’m happy that Kazama prioritised protecting her instead of killing Kodo😊 And also happy that he acknowledged her conviction towards going after Kodo and Kaoru since this isn’t just Kazama or the Demons’ problems, it’s also her responsibility since they’re her family. It’s nice to see that Chizuru is recovering some of her memories of her burning village and how Kaoru led her away and then Kodo saved them by escaping with them. Wonder why Kodo couldn’t take Kaoru along if he could take Chizuru though…but I guess Kaoru would have wanted the Nagumo clan to think he was Chizuru so they could run... Nice to see that she can empathise with their feelings even if she can’t agree with their actions.

Is it just me or did I never truly realise how much the shogunate betrayed the Shinsengumi? Shiranui coming and telling Chizuru that the shogunate was already discussing surrender terms with the Satsuma-Choshu and that they practically sacrificed the Shinsengumi to the Imperial nationalist party because they had a bone to pick with them due to the past battles made me so shocked and disgusted. How could they do such a thing? The Shinsengumi are fighting their hardest and so desperately because they believe in them and yet they treat them like this to the end, I just can’t help but cry at how unfair and heartless this all is. And the Shinsengumi will be up against the enhanced Furies alongside Kaoru, they won’t even have a nice swift death, they’ll be torn to shreds and even eaten! As much as I’d like for both Kodo and Kaoru to have happy endings since they had to suffer so much as the people who were abandoned and abused by both humans and Demons; with their mindset and with how much Kaoru’s life has just been filled with pain, I honestly do think that it’s impossible for them, or maybe mainly Kaoru to really find solace in anything. Kodo died very quickly but I guess Kaoru was able to escape to come back as the crazy he is for another day. I do feel terrible for them though, them wanting revenge is justified, it’s just that their revenge would kill so many people and create unimaginable damage to Japan and even this world if they allowed such monsters to rampage. It’s nice that Kazama at least now acknowledges that there are humans who aren’t driven by greed and power. Now that Kodo is gone, Chizuru wants to see what has become of the only true warriors left - the Shinsengumi, and I would like to as well…

Not a fan of Kazama’s Western clothes but he always looks hot anyway, so, sure this is good too🤣 Although I feel terrible that Harada is dead, when Shiranui said that he might be bad luck since people he fights alongside with (they had a temporary alliance fighting against Furies) usually end up dying after, I couldn’t help but think about how Shiranui must feel that way towards Takasugi as well… I honestly didn’t think Kaoru would really be dead even though Kazama said he inflicted a grave wound and that there was no way of him surviving. I really thought he’d be okay and come back and attack them again. I honestly also didn’t think Kazama would take her back to her burnt village and that she would see Kaoru’s dead body laying on a bed of flowers with a peaceful expression. It honestly makes it hard to not feel sad and terrible about how much pain he had to suffer his whole life, and that it was only in death that he felt some sort of peace… So, the humans that destroyed Chizuru’s village were the anti-shogunate alliance encompassing the Satsuma, Choshu and Tosa domain that requested the help of the Yukimura clan but were refused since they don’t dabble in human affairs, but then they took that refusal as a challenge to their authority and decided to get rid of them… How honestly petty of them…I think I can see in a better light why Kodo was so insistent on revenge, he was the only adult left of the Yukimura clan, that knew how the clan lived, how kind they were etc and yet they were destroyed by such humans, how could he not get revenge for all the people he cared for that died? Kaoru kept to his promise to Chizuru that he’d protect her because he’s the boy of the family, and so he pretended to be her and went to Nagumo, but in the end, that destroyed him, not only did the humans destroy his former life, the Demons also destroyed his current life and potential future. They all suffered so much because of these humans, how could they not get revenge? How could they possibly understand Chizuru’s perspective that they should care about all the humans they are killing when these humans never cared about theirs? In the end though, the human civilians they killed definitely didn’t deserve any of this, and they did need to be stopped regardless, but it’s just so painful to have to know more of their background and history because it makes me feel bad that I detested them so much in the other routes. Even though I felt like I could understand them to an extent, now I feel like I really knew nothing of the magnitude of their hatred. They had every reason to become the people they were, in a sense, it couldn’t be helped, I don’t think I would have been able to do any different. Especially when even until the end, even until their last breath, the Yukimura clan actually held on to their principles and chose not to fight against these humans that came to kill them! I’m so disgusted and devastated.

I’m glad Chizuru realised on her own how reckless she was for wanting to head to Aizu castle without knowing anything and only going there on the possibility that the Shinsengumi should be there. It was so difficult to hear the passing of the guys as usual, but it was nice to see that Kazama was impressed and shocked that despite the Aizu having surrendered already, Hijikata still remains on the battlefield fighting where he can until his last breath. I was also impressed with Chizuru asking Kazama to go with her to Ezo (where Hijikata is) to witness the end of the Shinsengumi, and to tell Hijikata of the passing of the other guys just in case he hadn’t heard yet, since they deserve to live on in people’s memories and to be told of their last stand. When Shiranui came and handed Chizuru Harada’s spear and told her he was one of the bravest and ferocious warriors he’d ever met, I couldn’t help but cry. Harada was so kind, so strong, so valiant and unrelenting, I hate imagining him being torn to shreds by the Furies when he had finally run out of strength, it just tears my heart apart thinking about it🥺🥺🥺 But I’m also really happy and touched that Shiranui acknowledged him so much. It was really sweet when Kazama encouraged her and acknowledged that even if she didn’t pick up a sword and fight in this war, she fought in her own way with Kodo and everyone, she definitely deserves to cry if she needs to, I’m sure anyone has the right to cry in such turbulent times tbh. And having missed the Shinsengumi every time she thought she had finally reached them, who wouldn’t feel depressed? They’re so close and yet so far…

Since it’s difficult for suspicious civilians like them to get a boat to Ezo where everything is taking place, they had no choice but to stay at Sendai for a while to figure out what they can do to get there, and lmao it seems like they’ve been here long enough that Chizuru and Kazama’s relationship is practically like a bickering wife and husband. She takes care of all the homely duties and controls how much sake he drinks and can tell when he’s in a bad mood, and can even compare his attitude to be like a cat hahahaha. It’s nice to see Chizuru more assertive. She also seems much more mature, although she’s anxious that she can’t reach the Shinsengumi and doesn’t know what’s going on, she also understands that Kazama and Amagiri are trying their best and she is grateful for that instead of letting how desperate she is overcome her. I’m glad Kazama encouraged her when she was about to fall into depression that she might never see the Shinsengumi, he’s right, as the one who knew all of them and yet is still alive to this day, it is her duty to witness whatever else is left in their journey and to remember the people that they were, so she can’t lose faith yet, especially since the Satsuma are allowing them to board their ship now! Btw, dang does Kazama’s route have so many CGs! I’m so happy but jealous since the others have so few compared to him! When he hugged her, my heart felt so warm! He’s worried that she won’t be able to take it seeing the Shinsengumi’s demise. I found it so sweet when Chizuru asked Kazama to be beside her as she watches over everything that will encompass. He is the only one she wants to watch over them with. He is the one she trusts the most and believes will be there for her. At least she was able to see Souma and witness him becoming the chief and surrendering on behalf of the Shinsengumi, their pride and convictions live on with him and I think it’s great that they were at least able to see that.

I was about to scream at Chizuru for asking Kazama what he was going to do now since she’s done with everything she wanted to do (since she couldn’t find Hijikata’s remains, but at least they were able to find out from a soldier that he died valiantly like the man that he was), I’m so thankful he told her and then kissed her haha. He ain’t leaving you forever, Chizuru! He’ll take care of his clan by moving them somewhere else outside of human sight (since they might get attacked) and she’ll stay in Ezo to come to terms with the memories of the Shinsengumi. It was so sweet when he told her that she can come find him when she’s ready, but if she doesn’t, he’ll come for her☺️☺️☺️ He’s so cuteee~ Lol, I guess it is better for Chizuru to stay still at Kodo’s clinic and have Kazama find her instead but loll, she was literally just waiting for him to come get her😆 It was great when he came and then said he had prepared everything and found a place for his clan to move and that he was only missing her from this plan. I swooned! Hahahah, Kazama you’re so smooth!🤣 Nice ending🥰 Bad ending seems pretty silly though, I feel like even if Chizuru said she’d go alone to look for the Shinsengumi, Kazama would at least follow her to keep her safe considering how much they had bonded this past year, like what a waste to spend all your time getting her here, and then letting her run off and die by herself! I have mixed feelings towards the unrequited love ending. I find it weird that Kazama would die by Hijikata’s sword even if he were to turn into a Fury and be crazed enough to be seeking death. Also, I felt like it was more of a bad ending for Hijikata lol, just because that, a Hijikata who would be at such despair and allow the Fury powers to consume him as he tries to kill whatever he can in revenge for Kondou and his comrades is just saddening. A Hijikata that has discarded all hopes and is not aiming to fight the Imperial soldiers until his last breath just sounds so terrible.

Anyway, overall, I really enjoyed Kazama’s route, I loved it! Ending could have been better since I would have enjoyed them actually getting together and being together for a bit but it was still good! I think the story was very well developed and had good pacing. I liked how they didn’t dwell on Kaoru and Kodo being the “villains” they had to deal with for the entire time and instead they chose to deal with their story with a swift end to it, but also adding to it through Kazama’s recalling of the Yukimura clan’s past. It gave me a much better impression and more fleshed out background for why Kodo and Kaoru were how they were and how they were forced to become so deranged and unrelenting towards using and killing humans to achieve their revenge. It made me feel for them on another level and I’m glad they did that. I also really loved how the last half was based around Chizuru and Kazama trying to reach the Shinsengumi and see their ending because it helped to show Kazama that there were humans with proper principles and convictions and that refused to bow down to greed or a comfortable life. Kazama has always looked down on humans and never believed them to be worth a mention, so I’m glad Chizuru’s existence guided him to people that could show him another side of humans and I liked the change in him. Best thing was that this route had a coherent story AND it had a good amount of romance as well! Kazama was the one who showed the most emotional and physical support for Chizuru, but I think her existence and words made him realise how interesting she and the Shinsengumi were as well, and that helped to open his eyes broader to the vast amount of humans in this world, so I really liked how they both supported each other and how they both came to enjoy each other’s company, it was really sweet and cute! Definitely the most well rounded route in the game!