Hey everyone Diavolo here and today were back
with the 3rd, the Hōrai edition, the absolute pinnacle edition, the peak, by far the greatest
arc throughout the amazing story that is Hells Paradise. Just wanna thank you for 150k and all the
support over the past few weeks here on the channel, beyond insane to me that im still
somehow growing. Also once I finish the last arc which is the
next and final part in the Hells Paradise story, the full story will be up on Patreon
before the next arc is here on YouTube, so if you wanna join Passione, peep that. All support on that end goes towards editors
and helping with getting content out quicker and more consistently here on YT! So when it comes to Hells Paradise’s Hōrai
arc here it takes a turn for the absolutely mental. It initially focuses on the alliance of the
surviving criminals and executioners invading Hōrai to retrieve the Elixir of Life and
escape the island. However everything changes after Lord Tensen
anticipates their arrival... Plus oml there’s just so so much more that
happens, so get ready sit back grab a bag of popcorn and a full fridge of supplies,
subscribe if you haven't cause you need me in your life, push this video to 5k likes
and lets get into the Hōrai Arc from Hells Paradise. After Mei does her thing, Fuchi interprets for the group
and begins explaining the plan they’re about to undergo. From what they can learn, Hōrai is designed
to be a massive fortress modeled off China’s Epang Palace and that the sea monsters prevent
anything from leaving the island. However, Mei reveals that Hōrai contains
numerous ships at a underground floodgate that allows departure along a safe current. So their mission is to avoid confrontation,
acquire the elixir and steal a ship to make it back home on. Gabimaru tells them that according to Mei
the Tan elixir is located in a laboratory, but the palace's interior is constantly changing. With time drawing closer to the moment they
invade enemy territory, Shion pulls Gabimaru and Yuzuriha over to have them instruct the
group in the art of espionage using Tao. Looking like an absolute babe with these specs
on Yuzuriha teaches the group on how to mask their presence by suppressing their Tao. Afterwards Gabimaru also nerded out, teaches
his lesson in using Tao against their opponents. After the training was over, everyone is divided
into two teams, the Escape-Route Team made up of big G, Shion, Nurugai, Tōma, Mei, and
Fuchi and the Elixir Retrieval Team made up of the other 3. While the 3 powerhouses are off doing there
thing sourcing the elixir, the Escape team needs to find the boats and open the flood
gates. Realizing that Mei has wanted to leave the
island for a while now, Gantetsusai suggests that they let her depart alone and not wait
for the Elixir Team. However, Gabimaru asks Mei if there was anything
she desired to do before leaving the island. Surprisingly Mei tells him that she actually
wished to meet with Rien and Jofuku again to ask why they changed from how they were,
before then escaping. Remembering his wives words to him about valuing
everyday and living a decent life, Gabimaru promises to fulfill Mei's wish no matter what. At a similar time inside of Hōrai, Tao Fa
greets Chōbei after the end of the Doshi ritual ceremony but is stopped by Ju Fa. He cruely tells the other Tensen that there
is no need to communicate with livestock and just breathing the same air makes him feel
ill. Angered by his presence Ju Fa lashes out at
Chōbei who manages to block the strike. Realizing just how much stronger he’s become
Chōbei tells the immortal that he should've finished him off in the last fight, because
now he can see thru all of his moves. Stopping them from further escalating, Rien
orders Ju Fa to behave himself and has Chōbei follow him to his laboratory so that he can
study his Tao. As the two walk and talk Chōbei notices that
he is starting to get use to his new power but after looking at Rien senses that his
Tao is on a completely different level. Initially he was planning on escaping as quickly
as possible and running back to Tōma, however after seeing the difference in strength decides
to stick around incase he can find some sort of weakness. Once entering the laboratory, we see a massive
Waitanhua flower which is called a Banko. These flowers don't allow them to store the
extra Tan, but unlike the smaller flowers it can process a far greater quality of Tan
all in one go. The reason Tan cant be preserved is because
over time the Tao eats away at that of the humans lifeforce, eventually and just like
the human that plant will soon wither before it can produce the perfect quality Tan. This is why Rien desires Chōbei's rare Tao,
to complete his research. Again with Yuki referring to something from
our world, this Banko here or Pangu in Chinese is an entity that appears in prominent creation
myth. In this creation myth it explains that in
a world of nothingness, Banko was the giant who emerged from his egg, separated Yin and
Yang with his axe, elevated the sky above the earth and apon his death turned himself
into the sun, moon, landscape, weather and animals. Pretty much its the god of earth in this creation
myth and maybe something similar in hells paradise. Meanwhile, the Elixir Retrieval Team infiltrates
Hōrai and once safely landing on the roofs, signals to the others that the area is clear
to enter. Sagiri notices that the plan is moving quickly
and wonders if its truly time for the mission to come to an end. Pulling up his mask, Gabimaru States that
they always knew they were on a timer, so yes everyone will leave this island tonight. Flashing back to the preparation, Fuchi breaks
down Mei’s explanation and gives out a basic layout of the castle. He reveals that each Tensen has a sanctuary
of their own and the Elixir and escape ship are most likely in the center area. Popping in Mei tells us who is in each area
of the castle. In here eyes the elixir is most likely with
Rien in the Laboratory, Ju Fa and Tao Fa will be doing the silly inside of the Bochu Jutsu
sanctum. The Taisoku sanctum is the domain of Zhu Jin,
Shu’itsu sanctum which is the meditation domain ruled by Gui Fa and finally the Shuten
sanctum run by Mu Dan but ya know he know around anymore hahaha. She also states that since the Banko flower
drops down at night, Rien will not be in the temple conducting research. Instead he’ll most likely move to the main
residence where Jofuku resides, making it possible to avoid running into him after securing
the elixir. Gabimaru then explains that he and Yuzuriha
will land at the top of the inner gate and will survey the layout of the castle using
their Tao sensory. In the present, Sagiri notices the dreadfully
sinister amount of Tao coming from the palace and starts to falter. Gabi and Yuzuriha though console her stating
that it doesn't bother them as they’re already used to it. Using what they’d learnt in preparation
for the mission, both Gabi and Yuzuriha take out all of the guards while constantly keeping
their Tao suppressed to not alert anyone. After taking out all of the Doshi, the Elixir
Retrieval Team successfully make it through with the first part of their predetermined
plan and enter the castle. Almost instantly after getting inside they
make it to the supposed room with the Elixir. Gabimaru opens the door and senses the layout
of the room but suddenly sees Tao forming an entity in the middle. Surprised that someone knew he was there,
the Tao silhouette is revealed to be Ran who had the same idea of suppressing his Tao. Stepping forth Mei asks her younger brother
how he knew of their arrival. Ran commends their attempt but reveals that
Chōbei has informed them that the humans would be coming to invade the palace and agreed
to keep track of their arrival by sensing their Tao on one condition. This is just due to the fact that after hurting
his brother in the last battle, Chōbei was able to track his exact location. Just as if he went up against Zhu Jin Gabimaru
finds himself in trouble due to Ran possessing the Water-attribute which hinders his Fire-attribute. The plan if they bumped into an enemy with
a stronger attribute was to run, as if try fighting with such a heavy debuff they’ve
got no chance. Hoping into a JoJo esque pose Ran becomes
delighted to see Mei once again and begs her to return back to their side, explaining that
they no longer need to follow the Outer Way of Tao since they have completed their research
in creating the Elixir of Life. Utterly Shocked Gabimaru asks for more info
on what he just said. Obviously because of the fact the Tensen discovered
Chōbei they feel that with his co-operation they’ll easily be able to create a potent
enough elixir. All that they need to do now is produce more
Tan that has a considerable quantity of exceptional material. Thats why for this exact reason that Rien
has started the Rite of just consumption, the end is indeed coming near. Despite his plea, Mei refuses and says that
she only wishes to say goodbye to everyone. To her now its obvious that she’s different
to them, but dying is sad. Instead she just came to say goodbye before
leaving the island with everyone else. Disappointed Ran just states that the Rite
of Just Consumption would have to continue and she can become another offering. After Sagiri asks what he meant, Ran explains
that it was ritual to capture and offer the humans to the grandmaster. Over with the Boat Squad, Gantetsusai, Fuchi,
and Tōma get separated from Shion and Nurugai due to a massive cloud of mist that obscures
their vison. Pushing forward either way the three then
bump into Tao Fa and Ju Fa while Shion and Nurugai are approached by Zhu Jin for a second
time. Knowing that their plan to avoid Lord Tensen
has failed, the group decide to move onto their second plan, which is just straight
hands, giving everything they’ve got cause its not like they could ever outrun these
feigns. Not phased, our boy announces to Ran that
they won't give up without a fight and instead they’re beat him down and say bye bye to
this island. Seeing as how the ritual has already begun,
Ran prepares to let loose knowing that all they need know is the sacrifices. So I just want you all to think back to the
pot analogy I used at the start of the video and how it was literally shown to us on the
panels themselves. Now think about how what they’re doing with
this elixir is simply another form of this old-school Japanese curse, there sticking
all of these ‘venomous beasts’ into the island which is literally shaped like a pot
in the hopes they can precure a vial of immortality juice. Idk its something that just clicked in my
head right now, but I love how early on its foreshadowed that this exact this would happen. Knowing that even though he’s going up against
someone with an unfair advantage, Gabimaru tells Sagiri and Mei to go search for the
elixir while he and Yuzuriha hold off the creature. However, Mei warns him that they are not in
the Rien’s Temple, shocking Gabimaru. Sensing the kick coming at him from behind
he quickly dodges and jumps back, before flying forth at the immortal trying to land a kick,
but Ran comfortably weaves out of the way. Hoping into an unrealistically messed up posed,
Ran confirms his sisters comments as he’d restructured the palace before they arrived. Apparently the Tao of inorganic material is
even easier to manipulate that of living creatures. Constructing buildings and renovating are
all tasks that actually fall to Ran, so its even easier for him to control it than the
others. With that he creates some spikes from the
floor that trap Mei leaving her with no where to run as he slowly closes in. Needing to protect Mei, Gabimaru decides to
fight Ran but is unable to harm him due to not possessing the right attribute. Yuzuriha sees an opening to attack Ran and
throws a Tao imbued kunai. However, the kunai bounces off of his body
due to Ran cloaking himself in Tao armor. Getting caught off-guard Ran snaps a fat double
kick that pushes both Gabi and Yuzuriha back. Observing his Tao Gabimaru can visibly seen
the thick layer of armor protecting him from any attacks. The crazy thing about Ran’s armor is that
unlike traditional armor that has holes under the armpits and other vital spots, Ran has
no gaps at all to exploit. As he says it, his Tao and muscles are in
perfect harmony, flesh perfected. Needing to force an opening, Gabi re enters
the battle and fights Ran vertically while they both stand on a bunch of massive pillars. Ran jumps at Gabi kicking away a massive chunk
of his pillar, however our man uses this to his advantage as he picks up the rocks and
activates Ninpo: Stone Storm sending them rocketing back at the immortal. Not phased due to the elemental diff, Ran
just returns the ability by kicking them at Gabi causing him to drop to the ground. Gabimaru then tells Yuzuriha that it was time
to begin their next strategy. Confused after hearing this Ran examines his
Tao and notices that nothing has even changed, so he cant see how things would also change
in the battle. Ran readies himself to fight Gabimaru how’s
closing in, however, Gabimaru suddenly vanishes from his site, before re-appearing and landing
a fat blow that sends the immortal tumbling across its sanctuary. So back before the mission began Gabimaru
explained that Tao was like a current of water flowing around ones body, its even tangible
allowing the user to change the speed, size and strength. The attribute you’ve got determines which
direction your energy flows. You have your normal ways of combating opposite
attributes, sadly though the Tao currents of Lord Tensen are so massive that normal
rules don't apply. Gabimaru theorizes a 3 step process to use
the enemies Tao against themselves. Firstly you weaken your own energy around
a specific part of your body to take in their Tao. Then you ride the current so that the boost
of Tao spinning around your body doesn't damage you but floats around till you can reverse
its polarity and sent it back straight at the opponent. In the present, Gabimaru smashes Ran into
the ground by redirecting the Tensen's Tao. He sync’s his breathing with Ran’s and
falls into a place between tranquility and serenity, finding the middle way allowing
him to ward of incoming blows. Realizing that even getting grazed by one
of the immortals attacks would be brutal, he considers starting the second step to his
plan, but decides to hold off. Slowly healing himself Ran becomes impressed
by Gabimaru's skills with Tao, he explains that the thick clouds of mist tend to activate
a persons hidden powers when the arrive, yet he’s just something else, Gabi in his eyes
possesses sheer talent. However, Gabimaru disagrees with his comment,
stating that everything that has happened was because of everyone's efforts and the
sacrifices they made along the way for the sole purpose of defeating Lord Tensen. While Ran is left shocked with Gabi’s pure
determination, Sagiri quickly frees Mei from the restraints and lets the others know they’re
gonna head for the elixir. Screaming at them to behave themselves, Ran
swings around and attempts to stop them but is stopped himself by Gabimaru who yells at
the others to get it done. Still trying to get past, Ran quickly figures
that Gabi’s using his own Tao against him and decides to suppress it, yet as soon as
he does, Yuzuriha comes in and slices the plant man in two. Darting forth she goes to finish the job but
is warned by Gabimaru to stop. Ran, impressed with the skills of his enemies
decides that in light of the ritual, he is not allowed to toy with them. His body suddenly begins turning into a bunch
of flowers and vines before exploding into his 4 armed Kishikai state. Rien sits in the ritual circle and reviews
the names of the human invaders given by Chōbei. With Zhu Jin encountering Shion and Nurugai,
Rien believes that he holds the advantage since Shion's Wood Tao will have no effect
against Zhu Jin's Water Tao and Nurugai isn't able to use hers yet. Still he does sense a great deal of rage and
knows that anger can greatly increase someone's abilities. Also at a similar time Gantetsusai and Fuchi
face Tao Fa and Ju Fa, Rien believes that his team will defeat them with ease as neither
of their opponents have refined their Tao. Though he does takes note of Gabimaru as he
can sense that they need to be extremely careful with him. After he finishes his review, Rien presents
the completed Elixir of Life to Jofuku and announces that once they defeat the human
invaders they will be ready to depart to the mainland to continue with their ultimate plan. Meanwhile, the Asaemon from the second landing
party become exhausted after travelling so far in such a short amount of time. After making it to the Tan pits all of them
are disgusted and disheartened once they find what remains of Tenza and Genji. Furious at the fact that more of his close
friends have died before he was able to save them, Shugen states that they make for Hōrai
now, once there, everyone, the hermits and the convicts are to be eviscerated. Having stolen one of the special flutes the
Doshi use to control the Mōnshin, Shugen blows it and commands them to carry him and
his crew to Hōrai at once. Remembering their past discussion on how if
the enemy evolves redirecting its Tao will be impossible, Gabimaru comes up with the
idea of boosting Yuzuriha's Tao imbued weapons with his own to defeat Lord Tensen. Back in the fight, Gabi sees Ran going to
attack and prepares to use the same plan of redirecting his Tao. However, he and Yuzuriha are completely dumbfounded
when a single punch from the immortals Kishikai state blows apart the surroundings while also
knocking them back. Following up Ran pummels the life out of Yuzuriha
and Gabi, sending our boy shooting outside of the building and causing Yuzuriha to drop
to her knee’s severely injured. Elsewhere as Sagiri and Mei run throughout
the palace searching for the Laboratory, Mei notices the loud noises coming from the Dō'in
Temple and become worried for their allies. Sagiri assures Mei that Gabimaru will be alright
since he has a backup plan but even still the idea of him following through with that
plan worries her. Taking things up a level, the Kishikai monster
Knee’s causing massive damage before following up and smashing him into the ground. Disappointed in how easily he’s being beaten,
Gabi takes note of how unlike the previous Kishikai’s they've seen, Ran’s mind is
still in control allowing him to perform his techniques to an even higher degree. Despite her past warnings that when push comes
to shove she’ll dip out of the fight, Yuzuriha lets loose her rope like ability to grab her
teammate in an attempt to try and survive. However, Ran catches up to them and as she
realizes that if she doesn't block its the end for her throws, Gabimaru manages to block
the attack on time. Having had enough with this pathetic cockroach
of a human, Ran throws away any idea of using Gabimaru for Tan and instead smashes down
breaking his guard and seemingly ending our mans journey home. To top it off, Ran then throws Gabi into pillar,
leaving him their to live out his final moments... Remembering all of the times Gabi had said
that his life takes priority and that he wouldn't die until he makes it home. HE AGAIN REITERATES THAT THOUGHT, AS MAN ISNT
ABOUT TO END IT ALL. No no no no... Pricking his finger with one of the flowers
the young man chooses to to sacrifice whatever it takes in order to return to back to the
love of his life. Regaining his footing, Gabimaru stands back
up fully healed, while revealing his black eye and the vine like patters that stretch
out over the left side of his face. So the reason that Gabimaru can achieve this
state and not just bloom into a bunch of flowers like everyone else who’s been stung is for
a very specific few reasons. Pretty much if only a little bit of Tan makes
it into the body it has the possibility to balance out, making someone the same as Tensen. Gabimaru who had overheard this explanation
got everyone to accompany him to Mu Dan's pile of bloomed flowers. He then retrieves one of his flower stingers
and plans to receive the same powers as Chōbei by overcoming the Arborfication, but Mei objected
to doing it at that time due to just how dangerous the risks are. However, Gabimaru reveals that he was already
aware of how Chōbei managed to accomplish this feat and is willing to take the risk. What separates Chōbei from everyone else
is that he has someone that he fights for beside himself. So when he’s down on his luck he finds the
strength to defy death because no matter what he’s gotta get back to his brother. Back with the girls, Sagiri becomes shocked
after only just learning about part 2 of his plan, but knows that he is willing to do this
all in the hopes of returning back to this wife. Over in the battle Gabimaru dodges out of
the way from a few thundering punches and kicks. Focusing himself Gabi knows that he needs
to take out Ran before the flower takes over his body, even still he notices that Ran’s
attacks are starting to become slower as he consumes more Tao throughout the battle. Yuzuriha whos still recovering from that previous
blast tells Gabi that he’s not normal, no matter what happens, even if he dies he doesn't
stop pushing forward, all for the hope of seeing someone that might not exist. Turning and looking at her Gabimaru explains
that yeah he may be crazy, but there’s only some places idiots can truly reach. Someone who keeps a cool head and thinks logically
just wont survive, there’s times were you’ve just got to let loose. He compliments Yuzuriha as someone who pushes
people away on the off chance that they might make her an idiot. Hearing this, she becomes encouraged by Gabi
to step forth despite her wounds and fight with her friend in a dance of death. Knowing that his Fire Tao has no effect on
Ran's Water, Gabimaru tells Yuzuriha that they need to rely on her Earth affinity to
defeat him. Needing to make an opening for her, Gabi starts
off by activating his ascetic form and using Ninpo: Demonic Firebug to throw a burst of
fire at Ran. The immortal easily extinguishes the flames
but Gabi slides in next to him and activates Ninpo: Burning Bridge sending a fireball rocketing
towards Rans face. Slashing his foot back, Ran comfortably dissipates
the flames from around him, yet as he does so Yuzuriha makes her move and latches onto
him down with her mucus strings. Thinking thats good enough to finish him off,
Gabimaru attacks and dodges an attack Ran makes to his tanden. He then uses Ninpo: Ascetic Blaze in an attempt
to scorch the creature but as he looks down at his work, see’s a hand reach through
and toss him towards Yuzuriha. Slightly impressed Ran says that even with
this scheme of theirs its only a futile struggle thats prolonging the inevitable and yet its
beautiful to behold. Hearing Gabi talk some smack, Ran prepares
himself for the final bout and tells them to show him everything they have. Okay yeah im not gonna hit ya with 30 seconds
of techniques so re-igniting the battle, the two shinobi then unleash their various ninjutsu
techniques in combination with each other. Ran somehow manages to block every ability
and bushes them off but suddenly notices that his body started to crack. With the immortal randomly confused with what
just happened, Gabimaru reveals that his earlier attack was meant to overstimulate Ran in order
to make him lose his sense of judgement and timing. Throughout the fight they were able to stall
for enough time to have the Kishikai use up all of its Tao. Suddenly Ran's Kishikai form explodes, revealing
his weakened and reforming state, giving Gabimaru and Yuzuriha an opening to attack. As the two rush in, Yuzuriha starts to feel
pain coming from her wound but tries to endure it until they defeat Ran. Rising back up infront of them, Gabimaru sees
that Ran had managed to cancel out his form before completely running out of Tao. While changing genders Ran swipes at Gabi,
making it obvious to the Ninja that he’s trying to recover his lost Tao by cycling
between yin and yang. He screams out to Yuzuriha to use her ability
before he recovers and hearing this, Ran reaches out clutching down on Gabi’s shoulder telling
him that its impossible. He knows that the wound she received earlier
is extremely deep and should she continue with the plan, she will die... Stopping in her tracks Yuzuriha agrees with
Ran's statement and throws her Kunai away. Suddenly spinning around though, the QUEEN
catches her weapon and sparks up her Tao as its time to follow through with what she came
here to do. Slapping his hands together, the immortal
goes on the defense by forming a field of massive spikes in an attempt to take Yuzuriha
down before she reaches him. Putting out his hand, Gabi helps Yuzuriha
avoid the spikes by flicking her up into the air. She then jumps down off the ceiling and as
she perceives the remaining Tao inside of Ran’s Tanden, annihilates it with the Earth
affinity infused kunai. With the battle coming to and end, the immortal
being then starts to crumble away, calling out for his brother during his pitiful demise. After he fully turned into a bunch of foliage,
Yuzuriha warns Gabimaru about the Arborfication process eventually taking over his body. Still in his eyes he knew that he had no other
option if he wanted to see his wife again. He then suggests that they catch up to Sagiri
and Mei but Yuzuriha needing to rest tells him to leave without her. Before leaving, Gabimaru tells Yuzuriha that
he’ll be waiting for her at the boats and also thanks once again for saving his life
when they first encountered each other on the island. AHHH man this moment always gets my freaking
tear ducts rolling. After being left alone, Yuzuriha unbuttons
her dress and removes the mucus protecting the would she received. Thinking to herself, she finds its sad that
she never showed her heart to anyone, till the end she remained the same, always going
at it alone whether that be life or death... Knowing that her life was at risk, Yuzuriha
apologizes to her deceased sister Saya. She really really tried to live for the both
of them, but this here is the end of her road. Remembering what she said to Senta when he
passed, she tells herself those same words. “When it hurts go ahead and think about
whatever you want. A pet cat, maybe? A lover left behind? Your family? Pass on with that beautiful vision. Yuzuriha then faints with a smile on her face
after thinking about Saya as her final thoughts. (Damn that hurts every time, sorry I had to
blur some stuff and have been throughout the video cause Yuki is crazy. But yeah that really hurts my soul, I don't
know what false expectation id brought on myself at this point. Like I just thought everyone was gonna be
okay) Nearby while Gabimaru runs, he remembers the
plan that they need at least five people of their group to help sail one of the underground
ships and goes to push forth to the temple. However, he stops still dropping to the ground
as the effects of the vines spread through his body. Beginning to crawl he remembers Yuzuriha’s
words on how the more he regenerates, the quicker the vines will take hold. Thinking of his and the look she’d have
on her face if she saw him now, he fully collapses before losing consciousness. Moments earlier in the Bōchū Jutsu sanctum,
Gantetsusai, Fuchi, and Tōma encounter Ju Fa, Tao Fa, and Chōbei. Seeing his brother, Chōbei puts out his hand
and informs Tōma that Lord Tensen has agreed to make them immortal, all he has to do now
is join him. Big G tells Tōma to leave and rejoin his
brother as he doesn't think that them gaining one more wimp is gonna even the odd. After saying goodbye, Tōma walks up the stairs
to finally see his brother for the first time in days. INSTANTLY as the BOYS see each other they
break out into a gleeful smile and slash at the two immortals standing next to them. The creatures try to retaliate, but the boys
are able to overcome the monsters and send them tumbling down the stairs. Proudly standing there, Chōbei tells his
bro that he was slow on the uptake but can already sense that he’s come into his own. With
a fat smile on his face he thanks both Gantetsusai and Fuchi for keeping his brother safe and
shows his gratitude by having them take on Tao Fa, while they take on the other immortal. Gantetsusai and Fuchi then watch in shock
as Tao Fa regenerates from the previous attack and expresses her disappointment in Chōbei's
betrayal. Getting her attention Gantetsusai points his
blade towards her and asks if she wanted him to take the pain away. Over the other side of the room, the bro’s
then prepare to fight Ju Fa, who after recovering becomes enraged at the fact the attacked Tao
Fa. Let the rematch begin. Just like last time Ju Fa believes that nothing
is going to change no matter how much they try. Dashing in, the brothers lay down a plethora
of strikes that the immortal manages to fend off. Dropping down to the floor, Tōma jumps off
Chōbei’s back and manages to land an attack on Ju Fa. However he uses this to catch Tōma off guard
and almost hits him with a volley of Tao energy balls. Having been pulled to the side in time by
his brother, the two then re-engage in a close combat duel, slashing at the immortal and
slowly beginning to push him back. Unable to stop the force from pushing im back,
Tōma darts in close and manages to deal a significant strike to the monsters face, making
it realize that this battle is the complete opposite to last time. Just like in the battle with Ran, he then
angrily decides to ignore the ritual and take out the two brothers. Meanwhile on the first floor, Gantetsusai
explodes after seeing just how beautiful Tao Fa is after losing some of her clothing. After taking a complement from Fuchi, she
dashes at Gantetsusai and attacks him with a strong punch, before following up and kicking
him in the head sending him crashing towards a pillar. She jokes that hearing some old creep gawk
over here makes the skin on her body crawl. (even though she’s literally a 1000 years
old, anyway anyway) Calling Fuchi cute though she offers to partake in a round of Bōchū
Jutsu with her. AEEEE MY BROTHER However, Fuchi cuts her off
literally and declines, stating that he’s only interested in examining the construction
of her biology. Picking himself back up, Big G becomes excited
with the idea of spending some quality time with Tao Fa. Wanting to get down to business and continue
with the rite of just consumption, Tao Fa bulks up. The boys dart in and slash at her, but the
immortal easily takes control over the battle comfortably dodging all of their strikes. Jumping up Tao Fa lets loose a wave of Tao
that pushes out from all around her, flinging our guys across the room. Seeing as they cannot defeat her by normal
means, Fuchi suggests that they formulate a strategy to fight against her ability to
use Tao. However, Gantetsusai screams frustrated with
the notion of Tao, having heard the word a million times isn't gonna change anything
in his eyes, plus he cant even remember half the stuff that goes into it. Instead he just wants to have fun, he runs
at the immortal trying his best to take her out while she simultaneously mocks him for
not being able to use Tao. She shows him the advantage to using Tao,
kicking him in the back while she stood behind him. Floating up Tao Fa lands just a simple tap
to Gantetsusai’s face, but the resulting blast sends forth a flurry of Tao kicks that
leave him on the ground. Dancing around him, relentlessly mocking him
she just tells him to give up, however Gantetsusai refuses and comments on how she must've had
fun toying with humans for the past 1,000 years. After hearing this statement, Tao Fa loses
her smile and expresses that all of this time they’ve trained to achieve immortality,
they lure humans over and over and over again for a thousand yes. Yet still, even now they haven't been able
to achieve perfect immortal bodies. They’ve all realized it, its just that if
she stops smiling now, she’ll completely lose her mind or maybe she already has. She then attacks the two with another blast
of Tao and disagrees with Gantetsusai's statement saying that the whole process isn't fun at
all. Having properly experienced Tao for the fist
time, Fuchi picks himself up and imagines the breakthroughs he can make to medical science
with this knowledge he just gained. Also feeling a little different Gantetsusai
stands up excited to continue with the battle. Initially confused, Tao Fa is astonished by
there enemies ambitions that causes them to continue fighting and senses their Tao surging
around them. Sprinting at the immortal now, Tao Fa launches
another invisible projectile towards Gantetsusai. However, he briefly senses her the attack
and dodges, shocking the immortal who then receives a fatal blow. So back before they all left for the palace,
Shion explained to Nurugai, Fuchi, and Gantetsusai that they were unable to sense Tao because
they depend to much on their eyes in battle. To use Tao, one must detach themselves from
reality and all the body to embrace the sensation. Laying there not participating in learning,
Gantetsusai explains he only believes in things that he can cut while Fuchi explains that
he can only accept things that he can touch. In the present day, after managing to land
his first attack on Tao Fa, Gantetsusai figures that he can use this weird technique, only
for the Tensen to instantly retaliate sending him shooting into a pillar saying that it
was probably just luck. Fuchi comes in from behind and manages to
push her away from Gantetsusai as he recovers, however, she suddenly appears right infront
of him and hits him with a point blank attack before grabbing him by the neck and blasting
him with another flurry of energy balls. Tao Fa drops Fuchi allowing him to get back
while she comments on how sweet the lengths he was willing to go to in order to help his
"friend". Battered and bruised, Fuchi says that Gantetsusai
wasn't his friend, yet in that moment he falls into a memory where he told big G they weren't
friends, but they also weren't so different from each other. This didnt apply to just him aswell, all of
the executioners at the end of the day are just human and if they make connections with
someone it leads to genuine feelings just like anyone else. In the short time they’ve spent together
he was able to observe that the samurai were no different from the convicts, everyone is
made of skin and bone with an innate desire to live. From the bottom of his little heart Fuchi
wished that Gantetsusai along with everyone else would return home safely, even if they
never spoke again after that day. Watching the little man infront of him just
standing there, Gantetsusai senses that he’s in massive danger AND LIKE THE MADLAD he is
rips out his eye. Back just before when he dodged that blast
he knew that he was relying on sensation and NOT SIGHT. Now though, mans on a completely different
level and can perceive everything around him through the use of Tao. He quickly grabs Fuchi and dives out of the
way before another volley of energy balls could take them out. Stepping back into the frey, Gantetsusai screams
that every attack she hits him with only increases his strength and now he’s eager to let loose. Flashing back into the past after our man
big Gantetsusai was defeated by his former master. Turns out our big mans actual name is Tetsunosuke,
sitting there he wonders how his master was able to defeat him despite being an old cripple. Knowing that his pupil wants to learn more,
his master explains to the young man that he has become greedy with wanting to become
stronger and tells him that he must let go of his strength, then let go of it some more
and he’ll finally find everything he wants. Thinking on that statement some more, Gantetsusai
re-iterates that he didnt have a clue what his master meant back then. Yet now after a life of mistakes he finally
gets it, the more you gain, the harder it gets to take a good look at yourself. In the present, Gantetsusai manages to dodge
Tao Fa's projectiles and continuously strikes away at he, not giving her a chance to regenerate. However, his attacks are unable to stop her
from reviving as sadly Gantetsusai doesn't have the right attribute to properly take
her down. Not wanting the battle to turn into one of
attrition, Fuchi knows that only his Metal Tao will be able to stop Tao Fa from regenerating
and jumps in to grab her so that it subsequently weakens the immortal allowing Gantetsusai
to cut her tanden. With time beginning to slow as big G swings
his blade towards their foe, he asks himself if he should just trust this new sensation. Remembering his master’s words to stare
good and hard at what's left, as in their he’ll find everything, Gantetsusai closes
his eyes and uses a Tao infused strike to precisely cut the immortals tanden without
harming Fuchi who continued holding her from behind. Meanwhile, Chōbei over in his own battle
prepares to unleash his transformation on Ju Fa to increase his abilities but is stopped
by Tōma who believes that they can defeat him together. The immortal feign tells them that they are
foolish for thinking that they stand a chance against him and his sister, to which Chōbei
explains that no matter where, what or who they are he always crushes his opponents with
his bro covering his sides. Becoming enraged that the pathetic livestock
wont just end this futile battle The Tensen tells them that the only thing they have in
common is the fact that they fight better in pairs. Reaching out his right hand, another suddenly
reaches through the opening in the curtain next to him. Down below its shown that the body of Tao
Fa had begun to bloom into a tree like state with fruit growing from each of the limb like
branches. Apologizing to his girl, Ju Fa then begins
fusing with the other Tensen, while stating that together they will obliterate them. As a child, Ju Fa and Tao Fa were told that
they were special, in that they were born as two parts of a whole. Since then, Ju Fa developed the urge to protect
Tao Fa and always came to Mei for answers. In one specific memory of his, Mei tells him
that it was natural for him to care for her since they were partners, the fact that he
is able to imagine the pain she feels is perfect proof of that! Empathy is both the root of uneasiness and
compassion. Yet because of what they are, its inherently
harder for them to understand or internalize these thoughts. Sadly though a change soon started showing
itself in Rien after he introduces the five Tensen's to the Hōko, explaining that they
are allowed to use them to replenish their Tao. He then assigns them their true training art
in an attempt to help them achieve immortality. Both of them were in my eyes disgustingly
assigned with Bochu Jutsu, like common man they were pretty much family at this point. During one of their I guess i've gotta call
it a training session, Tao Fa expresses her pity in using the Hōko to replenish their
Tao. Ju Fa agrees with her which in turn causes
Tao Fa to feel happy that he understands exactly how she feels. After a few centuries had passed, Ju Fa becomes
frustrated that the Hōko are on the verge of extinction due to their Arborfication and
how Rien and Jofuku are not trying to fix the problem. Gui Fa which is one of the Tensen I haven't
mentioned before, suggests using the humans from the mainland as another source. Which just like Mu Dan says, if they don't
do exactly that then its likely they’ll deplete their Tao over time and die. After remembering everything that Tao Fa has
gone through, Ju Fa becomes angry and slams the table screaming that everything they’ve
been through has been for nothing. Looking up he suddenly starts to watch as
the Tensen's faces turn into smiling pits of darkness. Fearing what they’ve become he starts to
question if they’re all mad, did the endless training drive them to insanity? Feeling broken inside he just ponders the
thought that maybe its him and Tao Fa that’re the crazy ones. Later, he walks down to the floodgate and
sees that Mu Dan and Tao Fa are preparing to send out an Arborified Hōko to lure in
humans to the island. Ju Fa asks his girl if she was okay with doing
this, as after all she had in the past stated that she didnt like treating the Hoko this
way. Turning around with a beautiful open smile
on her face she confirms, answering with yes while asking if this was crazy of her. Kneeling down next to her, Ju Fa puts his
arm around Tao Fa and tells her that she wasn't crazy. The humans are like the Hoko, lower than the
livestock and fit for their use. Thinking if he’s indeed crazy, he pushes
it to the side stating, instead its the world around them thats gone mad. Sadly back in the present with the two finally
becoming one and transforming into their Kishikai states, they look down with their own crazy
transformation telling the pathetic humans that they’re nothing more than livestock. Daaaaamn I always feel so bad fo Ju Fa man
just wanted his girl to be happy, so he’s followed her till the ends of the earth. Absolute respect! Anyways Having fused together into their destructive
embodiment of love, the duo emit and ear piercing screech causing Chōbei, Tōma, Gantetsusai
and Fuchi’s to immediately protect their ears. Chōbei throws his sword to attack but misses
as the monster flies up breaking through the ceiling of the palace before ominously floating
above them in the nights sky. Confused Fuchi begins to wonder how the monster
is able to fly with an unnatural proportion, however the way it captivates his thoughts
makes him feel as though its the embodiment of love itself. Gantetsusai mocks Chōbei's earlier attack
causing our bandit king to claim that he’ll fight big g next after defeating the monster. Fuchi tells Gantetsusai that he needed to
administer first aid before he could fight again, however, he refuses and says that his
only focus is on defeating the immortals. Looking at his friend though, Fuchi watches
as Gantetsusai starts to laugh uncontrollably. Quickly realizing what's causing it, he sees
that one of the spores the monster had sneakily let loose managed to sink into Gantetsusai's
neck. Having managed to not get hit himself, he
removes the barb and tells the other that they need to get under cover. Chōbei knowing that he needs to break this
stalemate prepares to jump up and fight the monster. He transforms and sends forth a couple of
vines that allow him to get ahold of the immortal. Hanging there he then morphs his hand into
a massive battle axe and cuts Tao Fa's tanden with his vines, making him realize that his
Metal affinity dominates one of the immortals wood. Randomly splitting itself inhalf, the immortal
then sends a lightning fast barrage towards Chōbei, which connects and manages to skewer
him. Then picking it up a notch, the creature boosts
itself forwards before using that momentum to send Chōbei flying across the area and
back through a building. Gantetsusai mocks Chōbei once again while
next to him Tōma panics thinking that her brother is in danger. Fuchi calms them down and says that there
is no way they could slash the monster in one slice so in order to defeat it they have
to work together. Big G and the Bandit king exchange some half
assed insults about working with each other, yet as soon as the creature tries to attack
them, they turn their anger towards it and deflect its attack. Fuchi like the calm headed G he is, kinda
just realized Fuchi literally replaced Senta as a character with his entirety, except unlike
Senta he isn't afraid to inflict injury. Oh well he reminds them that their enemy is
the Kishikai amalgamation in front of them and that they can focus on fighting each other
later. Finally stepping forth with everyone now planning
to work together Chōbei, Tōma, Gantetsusai and Fuchi all vow to win. With all of the others standing behind him
Chōbei transforms and blocks the monsters vine attack. Growing some more branches, the immortal shoots
some stingers towards the group, but the bandit throws himself infront of them to save his
bro from being hit. While stuck dazed wondering if he can even
handle this foe, Chōbei reviews the elemental attribute cycle and knows that because of
the secret technique he has in store hes the only who can actually finish the immortals. Ju Fa sprouts an extra vine to attack Chōbei
but suddenly its sliced in half by Tōma. He then grabs Fuchi's hand in order to strengthen
his Metal Tao and darts forth with him to slice Tao Fa's tanden. Getting in close, Tōma uses Fuchi’s momentum
and flings him in close enough so that he’s able to land a slice on the Tanden. Sensing an opportunity, Gantetsusai jumps
in to deliver his attack but accidentally slips and falls into the pool as the monster
itself once again flies up into the sky. Standing there Chōbei sees Tōma arguing
with Gantetsusai and remembers how throughout there lives, he’s never seen this side of
him. Throughout their childhood he was always someone
who could only ever follow in someone's footsteps, but now hes noticed that his brother has slowly
started to become his own person. Realizing they should probably be focusing
on the battle, Chōbei points everyone's attention up to the newly evolved monster still floating
in the sky. Knowing that they can't defeat the monster
without destroying both tandens simultaneously, Chōbei assigns himself with Gantetsusai in
order kill Ju Fa with strategy he has planned, while the leftovers; Tōma and Fuchi deal
with Tao Fa. Reverting back to Simpoma he asks his brother
what he should do, Chōbei though punches him on the head demanding that he make his
own decisions now, since he has faith in his abilities. Gantetsusai isn't exactly chill about teaming
up with Chōbei and is initially reluctant to listen to his orders but after the bandit
complements his strength man gets straight up manipulated into fighting with him. Chōbei looks towards the monster and notes
that they are similar for the fact that both duo’s are willing to protect their own. In his eyes though, Tōma has grown to the
point where he no longer needs protection and because of that states that he will rip
them both a part so they can pass on together. Skipping back to before the battle begun,
we see that Rien while setting up the ritual of rite consumption told Chōbei that his
brother bears an ill omen. Back in the present time, Chōbei, Tōma,
Gantetsusai, and Fuchi all charge towards the Kishikai monster while constantly fending
off barrages of vines. Turning to the small man, Gantetsusai tells
him to give him some cover as he dives forth in an attempt to cut it down. Seeing him get hit directly though by multiple
vines, it causes Fuchi to think that the swordsman has almost reached his limit. The monster launches their spores towards
Fuchi but having seen the attack in time, is protected by Tōma who throws his own body
infront of it. Needing to snap Fuchi out of the daze he’s
in, Tōma shakes him around and explains that his tao is vital in their plan. Jumping up into the sky, Chōbei notices that
everyone is on their last legs, but this is it, they wont have another chance to win. Claiming that he’s ready now, the big man
himself manages to sneak under the monster through the water, before popping up and sending
a massive slash directly up through the immortal, cutting it in half and leaving the others
with a perfect opportunity to take it down. Fuchi, Tōma and Chōbei then come in from
both sides swinging their attacks towards the immortals. Ju Fa and Tao Fa try to reconnect into their
Kishikai form, but just before they are able to do so, our team successfully destroys the
Tanden of both immortals. Screaming for her partner, Tao Fa emerges
from the pool weakened but is quickly stopped and held in the arms by Fuchi who tells her
to stop as these are her final moments. Ju Fa then also climbs out of the water extremely
weakened and tries to attack Chōbei. Since his Tao won't be able to hinder them,
Chōbei punches himself in the gut and removes two bottles of Water Tao, that he originally
planned to use against Gabimaru. He then pours the liquid on Ju Fa, which almost
act like an acid to stop him from regenerating. Basking in victory, Chōbei just tells the
creature that he should have never picked a fight with the Aza brothers. Randomly Gantetsusai comes and finishes the
job entirely causing Chōbei to think that the man was taking pity on the creatures,
when in all reality man really did just want up the KD. In our big brutes head though his thoughts
are slightly different, while remembering Tao Fa's words from their last battle, he
kneels down and places a peach from Tao Fa's body next to Ju Fa, thanking her for the "fun"
they had throughout their battle. As he slowly dies and tears appear in his
eyes, Ju Fa apologizes to his girl for not being able to protect her. Now appearing as children (which obviously
represents the most sane and happiest time in both of their lives, before all of the
weirdness started) Eitherway the two then embrace each other in the afterlife with Tao
Fa saying that she was glad that he was her partner. Back in reality and with the battle having
been won, Fuchi wonders how the others are currents fairing. Then once again going back a bit earlier in
time, Sagiri and Mei encounter Gui Fa who says that he wont attack them if they don't
move from where they are, but also adds that he will absolutely crush them if they even
take once step forward. After arriving, Mei pointed out that this
was the Rentan Temple, yet Rien wasn't here so she just casually asked her fellow immortal
where they could've gone. Gui Fa says that Rien had left not to long
ago and he was given the task to guard the ritual circle. Gui Fa explains that the items infront of
him are meant to tell the fortune and current status of the humans fighting against the
other Tensen's, which is how he knew that her and Mei were on the way. Sagiri then reaches for her sword, causing
Gui Fa to emit their Tao towards Sagiri in a similar manner to someone overwhelming a
person with their aura, which causes Sagiri to collapse from the pressure. Impressed with the fact she can still move,
Gui Fa tells that that if she does continue to resist he will crush her. Sagiri explains that she doesn't wish to fight
and instead places her sword on the ground while apologizing for invading their island
along with their behaviour since then. With that said though, she finds it pathetic
how now he tries to stop her when all along they were purposely luring people to the island. This conflict is merely an extension of what
they sowed and sadly with how things are now, its only going to result in more losses. In an attempt to prevent this, Sagiri offers
a declaration of peace between both sides, they will leave and the immortals will allow
it to happen without delay. Hearing this, Gui Fa drops the hold he had
over Sagiri and allows her to move. However, he warns them that even if they return
back to Woguo it would be pointless. Wanting to know what he meant by this, Gui
Fa explains to the two through an illusion created with Tao, that Rien's true plan is
to depart Hōrai on a ship and release the Paradise Butterflies on to the mainland, turning
every human into Waitanhua flowers. Then once all of the humans had turned they
would form together into one giant Banko, called the divine BEAST BANKO. From that Rien can finally produce the much
sought after perfected Tan. Hearing this shakes our girl to her core as
finally for the first time in the series someone of normal sanity found out the truth about
Rien's maniacal plan. Btw Waguo is the ancient Chinese name for
Japan, pronounced Wakoku in Japanese. Funnily enough the name came about in the
3rd century and literally meant dwarf country. Later on in the 7th century and to amend their
short shaming the Japanese people changed the Kanji up to mean peace and harmony. Still rambling on here but its actually crazy
how many times the names changed, like even now there's still Nippon, Nihon, Jipang and
finally Japan itself. ANNNYWAYS Sagiri asks Gui Fa why? Why would they all go to these lengths, what
could possibly be motivating them? Gui Fa answers that they as in him and the
other Tensen, feel nothing for humans and that they are materials for them to use in
order to make an elixir. Hearing this change in her old friend, Mei
objects to this statement, saying that Jofuku's original research was for the good of mankind
and using lives isn't. Yet in the Gui Fa’s eyes, they've all changed,
ever since one specific day in which they all tested a specific method and managed to
lure in the first group of humans to the island. On that day they learned just how beautiful
and delicious humans truly are. It was more than they ever expected, humans
outside of Hōrai were weak frail things, yet they possessed far more exquisite materials. The reason for this is because humans are
beings full of doubt and indecision, they waver between the extremes which itself is
the essence of Tao. Love and hate, life and death. Due to the Tensen being born as higher beings
they simply cant fathom those aspects of Tao, so to Gui Fa its frankly unthinkable that
they would look for a more suitable form of immortality elixir at this point. With the elixir completed by Rien, Gui Fa
also says that to come to an understanding would be meaningless and all they can do now
is to try and steal more lives from the others. Looking over his shoulder the dude then points
out that as they speak Shion's talisman is beginning to burn up, symbolizing that in
his battle, he’s nearing the end of his road. In his fight with Zhu Jin, Shion manages to
cut the immortals body two hundred n fifteen times. Looking at the thing infront of him, he comes
to a quick conclusion that his plan is working, the creature is beginning to slow its regeneration
speed. Walking up to it once more, Shion absolutely
exhausted continues to attack, slicing the thing in half once more. After getting right above the creature, Zhu
Jin quickly springs back and manages to get some distance between them in an attempt to
regenerate. Nurugai goes to attack herself, but Shion
holds her back while explaining that the monster itself is also just as knackered. Terrorfied and unable to take him out, Zhu
Jin asks what in the world Shion is as he defiantly isn't normal. Remembering the moment where everything first
changed Shion grits his teeth and tells the feign that those who steal the lives of other
willingly could never under stand, while those who've been stolen from will never forget. Looking like an actual 80 year old bag of
bones Zhu Jin defends themselves by attacking the duo with the remains of all of the other
bodies that have been generated throughout the battle. However, Shion sees through the his opponent's
ruse and slices the Tao infused bodies to bits. He then jumps forth using his infamous Itto
Ryu Harvest Shower but fails to land a hit on the fleeing immortal. Zhu Jin initially thinks Shion misjudged the
distance between them, but the reality of his attack was revealed when the blind king
acting like he has perfect 20/20 vision fakes a trip to grabs the tip of his sword from
the ground and throws it towards Zhu Jin's tanden. Getting up from his injury Zhu Jin sees that
Shion himself is just as exhausted from using too much of his Tao and in that moment takes
the opportunity to attack. Nurugai runs towards Shion to assist him but
as per usual, she is told to stay back as he doesn't want to put her in danger. Sadly Zhu Jin uses this moment to her advantage
and seemingly crushes Shion with the Tao bodies. Laughing out loud thinking that she's managed
to take down one of her opponents, Zhu Jin is promptly gobsmacked as they watch Shion
slice his way out the coffin. In utter shock at Shion's determination, Zhu
Jin asks why he would shave away at his own life force and go so far to avenge his fallen
comrade. Standing there utterly broken over everything
thats happened on the island, Shion explains that he hasn't had a single chance to feel
grief or mourn, at times he even finds it difficult to rage. Still no matter what, he states that until
he managed to rid the earth of these pathetic creatures, the grief, despair, NOTHING will
return to him. He wonders how many more hundreds of cuts
itl take until he can finally put his student and best friend to rest. Literally just in fear for their life at this
point, the creature makes a last ditch effort to heal itself by slipping backwards into
the water. Coming back up its shown that somehow in just
a matter of moments Zhu Jin was able to heal themselves by taking a leaf out of Gui Fa’s
book. So unlike all of the others who partake in
Bochu Jutsu, Gui Fa doesn't, instead he maintains a middle ground between both Yin and Yang. Zhu Jin then tries something new on the side
of the Tensen's and begins to partially transform their body into their Kishikai form. Standing there and looking super freaking
clean, like the fit actually goes hard the immortal taunts Shion, asking if it was still
possible for him to land all those cuts. Just like with Tenza, Zhu Jin states that
it has accustomed to their tricks and its fairly evident as the three begin their fight
once more that Shion and Nurugai are only barely able to hold on against the partial
Kishikai form. Tricks though? this statement said by Zhu Jin hits probably
one of the saddest notes within one of our favorite characters as that is literally who
Shion is, a trickster. He couldn't care what this pathetic amalgamation
of leaves thought, his mother was the one who gave him these scars. He was always born blind, but because he was
also born as a travelling performer, it was a necessity to trick people into giving them
some measly donations to live. Over time he came to be known as the divine
boy who could see through anyone's swordsmanship without even seeing. Moving forth through his life Shion remembers
how it one day led him into the Tōdōza (which is a real life guild for blind men to join
and the Kengyo was the highest ranking member of that org, it lasted from the 14th century
all the through to 1871 and there was also a female section called Gozeza. The highest ranking member which was the Grand
Kengyo was said to have equal authority to a Daimyo) Once that said Kengyo in Hells Paradise
heard of Shions abilities, it was through him that he managed to end up as a student
of the Yamada clan. To not sully his mother's honor, Shion went
along with the false backstory that he was the illegitimate child of a famous swordsman
and kept his real past life a secret from the Yamada clan. Even still this fact shames him to his core. After becoming a fully grown adult and hearing
Tenza speak his mind to Shugen about how he should see him for what he is now, along with
watching him gradually gain acceptance despite his past, Shion becomes inspired to be like
his student, just like how he grew him into the man he was. Back in the present, Shion blocks one of Zhu
Jin's attacks and states no matter what, if its just this one IT WILL DIE BY HIS HAND,
HE WILL GLADLY GIVE HIS LIFE FOR THAT CAUSE. Quickly leaning back he dodges Zhu Jin's lightning
Tao attack and hears them gloating about how he does not stand a chance against their power. Shion angrily silences Zhu Jin before they
could finish their sentence and declares that he will defeat them. That form is just a cheap trick that prioritizes
performance over dealing destructive blows. He tells Nurugai to stay back as he will end
this himself, before rushing in and detaching Zhu Jin's left hand, then in the same movement
plunges his snapped Katana deep into her Tanden. Remembering the survivors strategy meeting
about how they need to target Lord Tensen's plant like ovules to deal the finishing blow,
Shion disembodies Zhu Jin with his blade. Then standing above presses his sword down
on the Tensen's ovule to end the battle. While doing so, Shion is suddenly assaulted
by the remains of Zhu Jin sending a bunch of vines shooting into his body. Mei explains that they need to pull the blade
out otherwise the ovule will continue to attack the one who holds it down. However, Shion continues to press down on
his sword knowing that if they both die then he will still be victorious in the end. Nurugai worries that if Shion continues with
holding the sword down then he will die, however, Shion tells her to stay back. He expresses the pain he felt as he left Tenza
behind to fight for their lives and pleas to Nurugai to leave him behind as he takes
responsibility for past his actions. He finds it horrid that he made the correct
choice to flee in the past and now all he can do is this, his eyes don't shed tears
so he’s unable to show how much he truly cared. Nurugai tries to intervene and talk to him
but Shion just demands that she flee’s, causing her to turn and run away as tears
begin to fall from her face. She knows exactly what her Sensei’s going
through now as she’s been in the exact same shoes. She could never forgive herself, instead she
thought she was the reason everyone in her life died. Yet after meeting Tenza, seeing his actions
and hearing him say that he was unable to accept her reason for wanting to die, it causes
her to stop and look at the blade infront of her. Beginning to walk now She then sees a vision
of Tenza bending down infront of her before standing up and gifting Nurugai back her blade. Nurugai tries to explain her situation but
before she can even verbalize what's going on, Tenza holds out her blade with one hand
and says that if thats the case then there's only one thing to do. Encouraged by her man, Nurugai grabs the blade
and boosts it back towards the palace. Inside of the building Shion is fully covered
with the vines and sadly starting to feel his life being eaten away. This alone to him confirms that just like
him, the immortal is also slowly beginning to fade away. However, Nurugai suddenly fly's through tackling
Shion and freeing him from the death grip he was in. After tearing away the remaining vines, Nurugai
bear hugs her Sensei in an attempt to restore his Tao. Sitting there absolutely exhausted now, Nurugai
points out that the immortal is slowly regenerating, but at this speed itl most likely take a whole
day to recover. Shion believes that they should take it out
while its nice n easy, Nurugai objects though and tells him that thats exactly why they've
got to leave. If anyone even tries to get close to the creature
when its in that state then the vines will immediately skewer anyone, so instead they
should get to the others. Shion cant though, he finds it impossible
to leave while that specific creature still sucks in air. Finally... Nurugai tells him that that isn't it, he’s
wrong. Tenza never died with pain or regrets. She saw it with her own eyes... He was smiling because he knew that the people
he loved were able to escape. It was the smile of someone who was proud
in their final moments, but also an air of sadness, she doesn't think that he regretted
a thing about his final moments. Walking up to him, Nurugai hugs Shion and
asks that instead of holding revenge in his heart, he tell her all about the man that
he used to be. After Shion looks towards the blade embedded
in Zhu Jin, he notices a reflection of Tenza beside him and Nurugai. Finally feeling somewhat at peace, Shion thanks
Nurugai for reasoning with him and agrees to leave. Back over at the ritual circle, two bottles
suddenly shatter while another slowly begins to crack. This here obviously indicates that instead
of the criminals or executioners, the members of Lord Tensen have been defeated. Noticing that the talismans remained intact
after the battles concluded, Sagiri believes that Gabimaru and the others are still alive. With the ritual pretty much over, Gui Fa gets
up and prepares to report to Rien. Confused, Sagiri questions Gui Fa why they
weren't willing to avenge their comrades. Pretty much this is just due to the fact that
these Tensen supposedly carry no emotions or bonds with one another. Instead their passing's were merely a larger
part of their training in the way of Yin and Yang. Gui Fa even reminds Mei that the same went
for her, the Tensen are beings that only ‘Seek The Way’ no bonds or emotions, what they've
seen is only an act created by a lost child. Confused as to why she would ever reveal herself
after leaving, Gui Fa inquires as to why she came back. Our lil Mei still hardly able to verbalize
herself just answers that she finally understands what life means. Turning back, Gui Fa just sadly responds that
he does indeed envies her. (Honestly Gui Fa along with Ju Fa were really
the only 2 Tensen to see how messed up their ways had become, obviously Mei understands
aswell hence why she left. I just think the reason the other 2 didnt
is because they do truly have emotions and never wanted to break away from what they’d
come to know. Eitherway everyone is suddenly taken off-guard
as the palace then begins to violently shake with Gui Fa saying that the situation has
taken a turn for the worse. Outside its revealed that the maniacal maniac,
the order 66 merchant, Rank 2 Yamada Asaemon Shugen riding atop his Mōnshin smashes through
the wall that made up Horai’s surroundings. Back over with the largest squad and after
giving Gantetsusai an eyepatch to help protect his left eye, Fuchi, Tōma, and big g have
a comedic discussion in its positioning. Chōbei hilariously interrupts their conversation,
calling them utter fools for weeing away time, and quickly brings their focus back to the
main issue at hand. He reveals to them all Rien's plan of turning
every human in Japan into Tan and synchronizing them all with the monster called Banko. He also remembers how Rien told him that he
was confident that the other Tensen wouldn't die, but also stated that if they did happen
to then it would not matter to him. Chōbei listens to Gantetsusai's compliant
about how he finds the situation far too complicated and also agrees with Fuchi's suggestion on
his eyepatch, much to the Asaemon's happiness. Tōma getting a lil curious as to what his
bro got upto with the Tensen inquires but is utterly shocked after Chōbei reveals that
he engaged in Bōchū Jutsu and was constantly experimented on. Knowing that they must stop Rien and retrieve
a ship from the floodgate to escape themselves, Fuchi asks Chōbei if he is willing to ally
with them. Before he could give his answer, the four
suddenly feel the room tremble. Meanwhile, Nurugai helps Shion up so the two
can walk together while he’s still injured. Shion ensures Nurugai that even if things
don't go as plan and they end up in the worst possible scenario, then he will ensure that
she’s still able to survive and return home. Edo though would not be their destination,
instead they will roam the country together. In the current time period there are still
a fair few mountain clans that remain hidden, maybe living that life will suit them both. He gets down on his knees and promises that
so long as the life burns in his eyes he will be her protector until that day comes. The two then get into a comedic discussion
about another one of Shions blind metaphors, when they both suddenly feel the palace starting
to shake. After the tremors settled down, Shion is unable
to detect what caused it. All around them though, appearing from the
darkness Iwa ninja masks break through from the shadows, with one in front of the duo
telling them that they have been ordered by Shugen to eliminate all convicts and any Asaemon
who have sided with them. At the same time, Gantetsusai and the other
3 there along with a currently an unconscious Gabimaru are surrounded by other various ninja. Instantly the ninja around Gabi lash out in
an attempt to take him out, however, Gabimaru wakes up and in one perfect motion takes out
all four enemies. After looking down and realizing that it was
Iwa ninja’s he just merked, Gabimaru deduced that the next Gabimaru is here. So in a flashback during the first night they
camped out on the island, its shown that Sagiri was constantly told by Gabimaru that she was
feeling sleepy, even though she denies it. She recommends that he sleep after the battles
he fought but is quickly told that people like him in Iwa are able to go for at least
10 days without sleep. With this in mind she asked as to why Gabimaru
was even worried about people coming after him. Gabimaru tells Sagiri that he has no doubt
that they’ll track him down and find him. Hearing him, Sagiri becomes confused by this
as like why would they go out of their way for just one stray ninja. So this is like Gabimaru reveals, for one
simple fact, the connotation "Gabimaru the Hollow", is a codename meant to carry and
pass down Iwagakure's strongest shinobi. Bruh saying Gabimaru 12 times in one sentence
here is finna make my brain implode haha, eitherway. Well remember when the chief found Gabi with
his merked parents, turns out that the dude there next to him was the previous Gabimaru. He wasn't telling our Gabi to necessarily
behold weakness, but instead the current Gabimaru of that time who im guessing was the one who
merked our Gabi’s parents. Otherwise how did the dude gain the position,
unless Gabi’s parents were just tryna leave and its me who’s read it wrong but oh well. Back when Senta was alive and during the time
Yuzuriha and him ran off to evade the flames she actually explained this exact possibility
to the weeb king. She went over the horrific tale of "Gabimaru
the Hollow" and how the name alone was the only thing she new was real. She’s almost certain she heard tales about
how even if Gabimaru was slain he still somehow shows back up and wreaks even more havoc than
before. Decades pass but this name never ages or dies,
its as if its as living breathing representation of terror. Seemingly falling into a flashback of our
Gabi’s own memories, it shows the Iwagakure chief telling the potential young Gabimaru
candidates on how he will pick from one of them to become the next inheritor. During the training, the chief sets his sights
on the young Gabimaru for his impressive skills and his lack of emotions. Soooo Gabi used to be kinda diiiiferent, this
dumb kid threw a rock at his head one time and well yeah ahh, Gabi didnt have middle
ground. After finding what happened the Chief asks
the previous Gabimaru on the one who committed this act and its assumed that our Gabi kinda
popped off. As the early days brutalization continued,
the chief takes note of how each victim separated the young Gabimaru from the weak so that now
only those who are like minded equals remain. Later on, one of the shinobi comes up to Gabimaru
after becoming impressed that he carried out a dangerous mission. With admirers and peers that envy him, along
with having true talent, the chief decides that Gabimaru will be the next shinobi to
inherit the alias. The chief tells Gabimaru that he has chosen
him as the next successor and must complete a ceremony where he has to take out the current
Gabimaru in a fight to the death. Im assuming this is with absolute ease as
we don't even see it, the previous Gabi got off screened by our boy in a matter of moments. Overly enjoyed with just how broken Gabimaru
is, the chief screams in delights that he will become history's strongest Gabimaru the
Hollow. In the present, Shugen orders the ninja to
execute any lifeform they come across, except the other surviving Yamada. Then just as abruptly leaves with Isuzu and
Kiyomaru, while nearby Jikka decides guard the rear when in all actuality mans tryna
do the least work possible. Looking up to the ninja next to him Jikka
says that he knows this whole obey the Shogunate concept is just a front at use to hide their
own agenda on the mission. Thinking back this specific ninja remembers
the chief's orders to kill Gabimaru in order to become the next "Gabimaru the Hollow" themselves. Standing up though she tells Jikka that they
share the same goal since at the end of the day their objective is to kill everyone else
on the island. However, the ninja tells themselves that the
only thing that was more important than actually taking out Gabi was to bring "him" back. Looking up with a maniacal expression the
ninja just remembers that after all she was the one who slaughtered everyone in his way
and took out those that were envious of his success. In a flashback we see the time were Gabimaru
for the first time realized who it was that was taking out all of his competition. After confronting her, the ninja admits to
this, she explains that they’ve been supporting him all along from the shadows and confesses
their feelings to him, that they love him, they'd be happy to die by his hand or kill
him. Bruh Yuki just came out the bag with the maxed
out clingy ex gf. Holy thats like the personification of crazy
crazy. Also on another note, those masks all the
Ninja wear resemble ones used in Noh theater. Noh drama is the oldest surviving form of
Japanese theater. It combines music, dance, and acting to communicate
Buddhist themes. The tradition began throughout the Muromachi
period with around 60 masks that originally had religious connotations. Funnily enough and you all probably saw this
coming, Gabi’s crazy girl we just meet wears the mask that represents a jealous female
demon. Back in the depths of Hōrai inside of the
floodgates, Rien senses the tremors coming from outside and is also reported to by Gui
Fa that the other remaining Tensen have been killed, the Rite of Just Consumption has failed,
and extremely skilled human reinforcements have arrived. With no other choice, Rien stages a counterattack
by sending the Dōshi out for battle while keeping a minimum with him as protection.. As they rush towards the battlefield, Rien
reiterates that this is war, the losses and outcome of this battle matter not, before
long everything should return to how it once was. Above ground now, everyone including the Doshi
riding their steeds begin throwing hands. Seeing as how they cant manage to defeat every
fodder opponent, Gantetsusai, Fuchi, Tōma, and Chōbei decide to instead make a run for
it. Over in another battle, Shion procures himself
a sword from one of the ninja and is told by Nurugai to follow her to safety. While sprinting away themselves, Gantetsusai
lets them all know that he knows a think or two about experiencing war. These fights there currently in go way beyond
just pitting strength against strength. In war living and dying is complete luck,
there's no fun about the battles and no pride at all to be won. Its only hell on earth and the people who
survive are only those that run, those who have pawns do their bidding and the complete
madmen with the gods on their side. Over with one of those madmen and as the Dōshi
army charges towards him, Shugen remembers Eizen and is driven to cut down the entire
freaking army in only a few deadly swings. After seeing Shugen's battle skills, Kiyomaru
asked him if had some experience with war, however he’s quickly told by him that this
battle isn't war, its an execution to purge the scum who dared to defy the Shoguns honorable
blade testers. He then commands his two underlings to cut
off the enemies escape routes and slaughter them all. At the floodgates, Rien encounters this so
called wannabe Gabimaru and is surprised that he couldn't detect their presence at all. Gabi’s stalker says that they have no desire
to fight with Rien and is sure that if they just waited here, Gabimaru himself might come
to the floodgates. While asking if this person happens to be
from the mainland, Rien also commands the Dōshi to take them out, however, the second
Gabimaru just like he also did with Sagiri asks if they’d like to see some Ninjutsu? before suddenly using Ninpō: Ascetic Blaze
to incinerate the Dōshi. With the area around them beginning to catch
fire, the Ninja orders its clansmen to burn all the ships except for one while they themselves
take on Rien. Back inside of the Rentan sanctum Sagiri and
Mei are confronted by the Dōshi and Iwa Ninja. Sagiri sees the ninjas charging towards her
and instantly defends herself by sensing their Tao to track the flow of their movements. While fighting off everyone, she notices that
the Dōshi don't attack Mei while the shinobi do not attack her because of her position
in the clan. Believing that its most likely due to the
specific orders each side was given, she comes to the conclusion that the key to winning
lies in exploiting this weirdity. Two Dōshi then come charging in to attack,
however, ayoooo its time, they are randomly pulled away from the two by a random sticky
string. Ofcourse its no one other that the snnneeeaky
kunoichi herself, Yuzuriha. Seeing that her friend is still somehow alive
after her previous bout she runs in and gives her a hug. Pretty much we all got hard baited thinking
she’d passed away, when in all reality she just had to rest. Noticing one random ninja, Yuzuriha then finishes
off a small group of them and explains to Sagiri that before meeting up with them she
checked out the surrounding area’s. The situation is probably the worst one they
could be in, right now they are seemingly cornered by all of the battles happening around
them. Since the shinobi were hired by the shogun,
Sagiri thinks that they could persuade them to fight together, however, Yuzuriha tells
her that it just wasnt possible since they are out to kill all of the criminals and reminds
Sagiri that their task for coming here has not changed. Sagiri knows this and points out that the
elixir is most likely at the floodgates. Turning she asks if Mei was willing to accompany
them to confront Rien, but before she even has the time to answer, the three are approached
by Isuzu. Seeing Sagiri for the first time since arriving
on the island Isuzu becomes relieved, but is shocked to see her standing next to the
criminal Yuzuriha of Keishu. Sagiri tries to explain that she and the other
executioners had no other choice but to team up with the criminals given their situation,
however, Isuzu pulls out a book and reads Yuzuriha's criminal records. She tells her that many lives were stolen
by her hands, so think of her victims, do not dishonor them as Yuzuriha is truly a villan. At the same time, Kiyomaru confronts Shion
and Nurugai while Jikka confronts Chōbei and Tōma. Isuzu explains in combination with the others
that each criminal and immortal creature are their enemies and anyone who is willing to
help them, even the Asaemon, are also seen as an enemy. With that said, Isuzu asks that Sagiri move
away from Yuzuriha and come join her side. Meanwhile, Gantetsusai and Fuchi who’d temporarily
separated themselves from the Aza Brothers run off in an attempt to find an escape route. Catching their attention though and slowly
appearing through shadows behind them. Oml Shugen looks rizzed out of his freaking
mind here, like the fit is darth mall spec. Standing there infront of them, Gantetsusai
notices just how menacing this dude is. Realizing that Fuchi has untied his criminal's
hands, Shugen angrily demands he give him a proper reasoning as to why. Wondering what's up with this uptight weirdo,
Gantetsusai tries doing a similar thing like he did with Gabi to feel out how his opponent
might fight, however, Shugen, sees through his intentions and silences his him, telling
Gantetsusai that he only wishes to speak with Fuchi. Gantetsusai just stands there dumbfounded
as to who Shugen is since, unlike the other opponents he has faced, he is unable to get
an exact read on what he’s packing. Shugen still not over his first question yells
out to Fuchi to explain the reason why his criminal's hands are untied. Like we all know from everything thats happened
on the island so far, Fuchi tries telling him that they had no other choice but to ally
themselves with the criminals due to the extreme circumstances. Shugen hears his reason but as he’s here
now, tells him that he no longer has to be by Gantetsusai's side and can behead him instead. He pleads with Fuchi to not throw away all
of the memories they have together, all the times they spoke about anatomy and the path
that he has chosen in life. Saddened with the reality of the situation,
Fuchi says that he also cherishes the times he spent learning about life through his experimentations,
but also says that before coming to this island he didnt understand the value of life, no,
not until the death of his close friend. He instead draws his sword and apologizes
for disappointing him but what they need to do now is focus on escaping, they can worry
about everything else later. After drawing out his sword, Shugen is shocked
to see that Fuchi used his tsuba as Gantetsusai's eyepatch. To him and most other Samurai the blade is
a warriors soul, the Yamada’s soul. Furious he screams that if he’s indeed misplaced
his soul then he’ll be forced to, but before he can even finish his sentence man is cut
off by the BIG G who himself became dissatisfied at the fact that Shugen just assumed he could
merc him with ease. Instantly the two clash swords and while stuck
in the blade tussle Tamiya knows that he’s fine and should be able to throw him around
with the size advantage. Winning the tussle like he though, Gantetsusai
manages to knock Shugen off his feet, however as he think’s he can take advantage of this
scenario, notices that the Samurai had legitimately transformed into someone else. Having gained some distance, big G instantly
closes it and goes to strike down on him but Shugen easily blocks Gantetsusai's next attack
and takes the time to tell him about the fond memories he had helping Yamada Asaemon Genji
with his calligraphy. As he starts to describe Genji, Shugen’s
strength increases and causes Gantetsusai to see him as an image of Genji. Shugen now with this massive strength buff
deflects Gantetsusai's attack and challenges him. With all of the fallen and even alive Yamada
beginning to appear as spirits behind him, Shugen states that it will not be him who
delivers the final blow, but the blades of all Yamada Asaemon. As the bout begins, Shugen uses Genji’s
Helm-Splitter technique to completely off balance Gantetsusai who is unable to counter
before the Samurai disarms him. Having lost his sword and with no other option
left, Gantetsusai tries to throw a punch, but Shugen once again avoids the attack by
imitating Kishō's ability. With the big guy beginning to fall over Shugen
explains the kind of man that Kishō was. Though he rarely asserted himself into a conversation,
he was a genius when it came to foreseeing and warding off attacks. Stepping things up a notch, Shion suddenly
uses a combination of both Kisho’s harvest shower and Genji’s Helm Divest in an attempt
to mortally wound the criminal. Dropping to his knee’s, Gantetsusai says
that he wished he go to play some more, but now he’s slowly starting to fade. Not taking him entirely seriously, Shion screams
that mercy isn't meant for the likes of a criminal, no. This is an execution. Having swung the blade down atop big G, Shugen
is left mortified to find that no one other than Fuchi has blocked his strike. Fuchi tries explaining that crime and evil
are not the same, Gantetsusai is a undoubtedly a criminal, but by no means is he "evil". He tells him that he’s just over this who
thing, he doesn't want anyone else to pass on, even if it means turning his back on the
laws of this era. Having heard these words, Shugen sees that
Fuchi hasn't changed since the time they first met. Ahh so yeah id love to go over what they got
up to just here, best buds but ya know YouTube n all these days. Annnyways, as we bang it back to reality Shugen
suddenly slashes Fuchi before he even has a chance to react. With tears beginning to fall from his face,
Shugen just remarks that he was a sublime man to the end, someone who only ever put
those infront of himself. Elsewhere inside the Rentan Temple, Isuzu
explains to Sagiri that she has faith in Shugen because he upholds order. He protects people who abide by the law and
punishes those who go against them, the level of crime doesn't matter, in his eyes its the
standard itself that needs to be upheld. At the same time, Chōbei and Tōma surrender,
Shion lays down his weapon, and Gabimaru is approached by two ninja with faces resembling
the Iwagakure chief and his wife. Back with the fallen Fuchi, Gantetsusai thinks
that its mental he’d ever go that far for the sake of order. Absolutely raging out at this point, Shugen
screams that no, this isn't crazy, what he witnessed was pure determination from which
there is no return and for that reason he condemns Tamiya a villan before seemingly
finishing it all. Manipulating the flames themselves, Rien controls
the second Gabimaru's fire ninjutsu and uses it against the surrounding ninja taking out
a bunch of them before they even got a chance to react. Dodging out of the blast herself, the female
Gabi throws a kunai at Rien which connects directly with the immortals face, but after
it recovers immediately sees that not only can the being use "sorcery" but is also able
to regenerate. Thinking back to what Gabimaru said about
how no matter what the situation, an enemy is still a physical being, if it has a conscious
mind then a strategy can be formed. With that in mind the second Gabimaru places
out her hands onto the shoulders of some ninja and commands them to use the last of their
life to set the ships ablaze. Not wanting the ships to burn up otherwise
all the butterflies and the whole plan goes up in flames, Rien tries to manipulate Tao
in an attempt to crush the ninja boarding the ships. Unable to stop everyone and seeing just how
tense Rien had become, the second Gabimaru calls out that she found her love. To her its obvious that she’s been holding
back as to not damage the surroundings, but in reality its only the ships that cause Rien
true pain. Pondering if its a possible love, the ninja
states that at times it can be troublesome and at others a strength, but in this fight
here it is indeed the immortals weakness. All of the surrounding Ninja which seemingly
keep appearing from the cracks like insects, send a plethora shuriken towards the creature. Rien easily blocks off the basic attack, but
is shocked to see that the Elixir of Life has been taken from her by the second Gabimaru
who without a second thought tosses it to another ninja and commands them to get it
outside. As Rien tries to stop them, the second Gabimaru
activates Ninpo; Pyro Bridge to launch a torrent of fire that completely engulfs the immortal. Rien doesn't drop their concentration over
which ninja has the elixir and destroys them with a shot of Tao. However it soon comes to their attention that
one of the items they were carrying was the squad leader's mask and the other with the
elixir escaped. The female Gabi knows that she stands no chance
of winning when it comes to strength, but this is war. When someone is in an unfavorable condition
one must exploit the enemy's point of view to create chaos, that way any outcome is possible
as in war it isn't the strong who prevail, its the wicked and twisted. After bringing the elixir outside, the shinobi
pulls out a massive sea shell and signals the team that it has been acquired. Isuzu hears the signals indicating to her
that the mission is now complete. Yuzuriha who’s on the ground infront of
her unable deal massive damage due to still needing to heal attempts to fight against
Isuzu without her full power. Seeing the slimy string coming Isuzu easily
counters by kicking rubble up from the ground below. Sagiri quickly darts in and gets Yuzuriha
out of the way while asking her fellow executioner to calm down as Yuzuriha is not the villain. Utterly enraged by the fact that Sagiri just
wont listen, Isuzu responds by telling her that even though they captured the elixir
she will not stand to see any of the criminals alive before they leave. Going into a small flashback, it shows that
even tho Isuzu didnt exactly have a bond with everyone inside of the dojo she felt a connection
with Sagiri the first met since they were females in the Yamada clan, so now to see
her teamed up with an enemy on the island it makes her enraged. Meanwhile, Gabimaru watches as the two shinobi,
Kinkakubō and Ginkakubō, use Transformation Jutsu to reform their faces into the Iwagakure
chief and his wife. Speaking as the chief he tells Gabimaru that
he has been expelled from the clan, no grave shall bear his name as to leave the village
means that you no longer exist in reality. Speaking of reality the same goes for his
wife, as apparently she is only an illusion created as a scheme to help imprison his heart
inside of the clan, however it sadly backfired in his case. Funnily enough Gabimaru complements the two
Ninja on their adept use of transformation Jutsu and hearing him do so makes the big
guy shudder with joy over the fact the revered Gabimaru would say so. Hearing the two talk to him about the next
Gabi’s instructions, our boy easily figures that the next Gabimaru must be Shija, which
the two confirmed. Along with this they also updated their previous
commander that Kumokiri, along with two others had perished on the voyage to the island. They also insisted on telling Gabimaru that
Shija was obviously the person who merced all the other candidates and that in their
eyes they still view him as the true Gabimaru. Finally I can let me brain rest and just refer
to the female Gabi as Shija now, holy the idea her name wasn't mentioned until now blew
my mind when I re-read this. Gabimaru then asks them to explain the real
reason behind why the clan was hired for this mission, however, Kinkakubō responds saying
that the chief just works in mysterious ways. After they also hear the massive trumpet go
off the guys let Gabi know that it informs them that they’ve acquired the Elixir of
Life. Then moving onto the main issue at hand, Kinkakubō
humbly asks Gabimaru to end his life as this way the chief will remove the kill order on
him and if he wants to can make it painless by licking the ninja’s toxic saliva. Gabimaru found their method to be gross but
is begged by Kinkakubō to reconsider since in their hearts they’re all allies. Pointing out that they hadn't entered his
throwing hands range, Gabi praises them for following the basic ninja principles. Despite this Gabimaru flexes his bloodlust
and causes them to stumble backwards. Somewhat annoyed Kinkakubō asked if he was
still willing to defy the chief and hearing that Gabimaru planned to escape this place. Kinkakubō tells him that even if he does
make it back to Japan, Yui does not exist. Obviously our boys heard this bot ass take
how many times now? Man just cant fathom the idea that she isn't
alive, especially since he knows the people from Iwa specialize in psychological warfare,
so in his eyes he has to see it to believe it. Although they were unable to reason with him
and much to the annoyance of Gabimaru, Kinkakubō says that he and the others are all delighted
that he refused since this gives them a chance to fight to the death with the current Gabimaru
Iwagakure. Everyone inside of Iwagakure looks up to him,
especially the younglings, the idea that they all get to fight in mortal combat with him
is a dream. Funnily enough some of the higher ranks even
dropped down to get the opportunity to become fodder on this mission, JUST so they had the
chance to throw hands with Gabi. Bowing their heads in honor of what's about
to come, the plethora of Genin rush towards Gabimaru, However, using Tao sensation and
looking like he perceives everything in reality, Gabimaru quickly deals with the ninja, dodging
in and out of all of their attacks and using their own weapons against them. With the fodder losers dealt with, Gabi tells
them all that Iwagakure's tactics such as physiological warfare and numbers will not
work on him. Kinkakubō notices that Gabimaru has become
stronger but is corrected by the ninja, saying that no, he finally learned to become weak. He then states that he doesn't care who he
has to fight, whether its lord Tensen or every Iwagakure or even these new Yamada, if they
stand in his way and try to hinder him from escape, he will obliterate everyone and everything. Dude I laugh so damn hard at this part, like
we’ll just skip around quickly so you get the idea. Well as Gabimaru begins taking down the genin
who’re overly satisfied, they all introduce themselves before instantly being merced by
our man who all the while lets them know what they did wrong with their technique. Training them in their final moments like
a true king. Ending the beatdown Gabimaru takes out the
final attacking Ninja with a fat kick completely cracking the floor their standing on. Going byakugan mode Gabi activates his Tao
and takes the opportunity to sense the palace's layout, revealing the skirmishes taking place
between enemies and allies. Quickly dodging a random fodder ninja that
tried attacking from behind, he also senses that Shija is located at the floodgates in
a boat, Sagiri is safe for the time being, but he’s shocked to sense that Fuchi has
fallen. Keeping the missions main priorities first,
Gabimaru ignores assisting the others to rush towards the Rentan Temple to meet up with
Sagiri, steal the Elixir of Life from the ninja squad, and leave through the floodgates
to reunite with his wife. Meanwhile, Zhu Jin's plant like remains suddenly
re awaken, slowly moving it leaves the Taisoku Temple and takes the underground water system
to eventually reach the Divine Beast, Banko. Remembering Rien's past explanation about
how the Banko required more higher quality Tao to stay alive and that consuming it would
be dangerous. Zhu Jin in their half baked state throws the
warnings aside and makes its way into the amalgamation of vines to become one with the
Divine Beast. Erupting from the top of the palace, wood
and other remnants of it go flying everywhere as Zhu Jin emerges completely fused with the
Divine Banko and draws everyone's attention. At a similar time its revealed that Chōbei
allowed himself and Tōma to be captured by the enemy as he believes its better to bide
his time rather than fight when out-numbered. However, Chōbei bizarrely starts to feel
pain coming from his arm which as Jikka stars to ask him what's up flowers begin uncontrollably
sprouting out from his body. While this occurrence is happening, a captured
Dōshi walks in front of Jikka and starts to transform back into a human. With the dudes sentience returning he just
wonders as to where he is and the whereabouts of his allies that he arrived here with. At the same time, Gabimaru's Flower Tao also
starts to react and his body begins sprouting flowers. Looking into the distance and seeing the massive
flower monster he assumes that its most likely got something to do with it. At the floodgates, Rien's body also reacts
and while sensing what caused this change finds that Zhu Jin had merged with the Divine
Banko. The Zhu Jin-fused Banko then releases a plethora
of roots which begin to track to any large source of Tao, transforming them into trees
in the process. In the Rentan Temple, Sagiri notices that
Mei's body is starting to react to the Banko causing Isuzu to rush outside and find out
what exactly happened. Only making it to the doorway though she then
becomes horrified as she looks outside witnessing multiple sunflower like human trees, mixed
with taller Mōnshin and Sōshin stuck in the Zazen pose walking through them towards
the center of Hōrai. Meanwhile, Shugen notices Gantetsusai's and
Fuchi's disappearance and instead only finds a bed of flowers infront of him. While this has been going on, Rien thinks
back on an old conversation he had with Ran. In it he was saddened about how the Divine
Banko wilted, but refused any thought of ever turning it into Tan as it was just too strong
to control. Even for them ‘the Tensen’ it would throw
off the delicate balance of Tao that gives them form. Sadly because of what Zhu Jin has done everything
will start anew, endlessly they shall return to the outset. Just like before their hopes are dashed a
feeling one only gets while travelling between Jigokuraku itself. Having heard Rien state this once again, Ran
asks why he would go so far, what is he truly trying to achieve. Shugen who’s still looking at the flowers
infront of him realizes that both Fuchi and Gantetsusai were covered by them and wonders
what would could've possibly caused it. He is then found by Iwagakure shinobi who
have come to confirm that Shija was taken out while fighting Rien but managed to stall
him momentarily and now the Tensen is about to leave on his ship. After getting the Elixir of life from them,
Shugen orders the ninja to uncover Gantetsusai and Fuchi's bodies from the flowers and confirm
their status. One Shugen had left tho and made his way to
the floodgates, an Iwagakure shinobi reforms their face and reveals themselves to be Shija
in disguise, stating that they had substituted themselves with another Iwagakure shinobi
allowing them to escape. They then for good measure throw two kunai
at the flower bed to make sure that Gantetsusai and Fuchi don't survive. Shija jumps on a roof and once she see’s
just how messed up the area has become states that its almost as if there on the other-side. Seeing the massive Banko monster infront of
her she realizes that mere mortals are no match for such a thing. Laughing now she leaps from the building in
some hectic JoJo looking pose ready for her otherworldly deathmatch against Gabimaru. Shortly after, Fuchi still somehow alive wakes
up and comes to the conclusion that Shugen must've held back as he defiantly could've
ended him then n there. Looking over to his man, he then see that
Gantetsusai is in a terrible condition and decides that instead of treating himself he
needs to help him. With his hands trembling Fuchi tries focusing
on treating his wounds until he sees an apparition of himself telling him that he should give
up since this new outlook of his on life will not do him much good in this era. This is an Era in which men happily surrender
their lives if a superior commands it. One in which a Son takes pride in serving
as a Kaishaku. Shugen is a perfect representation of this
and thats why he acts this way, he knows that the Yamada clan is already treated like a
band of Ronin and this could cause them all to be disowned by the Shogun. His apparition pleads with Fuchi to know his
place as if he emerges from this, itl ruin everything. With Fuchi slowly beginning to fade he tells
himself that the clan does matter a lot to him and he doesn't want it to be disbanded. Still he believes that what he has learned
on this island matters and now he’s beginning to lose his mind over these competing emotions. He knows he’s that he does truly want to
support Gantetsusai, and even though Shu tried to end his life, he doesn't blame him. In the end he just wonders if this is what
if means to be human... Opening his eyes himself to the sound of someone
mumbling, Gantetsusai instant rises to his knees and panics seeing Fuchi lying down dead,
realizing that he had gave everything he had to heal him. Screaming at him he asks if Yamada Asaemon
Fuchi really just went and saved his life? Unable to open his eyes or even respond, Fuchi
just becomes delighted to hear that Gantetsusai called him by his name for the first time. In his last thoughts, Fuchi warns Shugen that
the survivors are not to be underestimated since he has observed their will to continue
fighting no matter what, everything and everyone on the island is a walking paradox. Fuchi then happily waves goodbye as he accepts
his fate and tells us all that he hopes everyone's dreams become realized enemies and allies
alike. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH My throat
has a meteor sized rock in it rn, that hit harder that Senta in my books. Dunno if its cause I loved these two guys
and their interactions the most, but seeing him happy for everyone in the end, figuring
out how he truly felt towards people and how he came to see that everyone was similar is
just a great way to end a character that I initially thought was a simple replacement
for the weeb king. Plus to those saying this show it just has
hands, like yeah a lot of it is but its also jam packed with proper character development
on each side and enough world building so that we don't feel like were missing out on
some massive piece of info. Might sound crazy, but for how concise and
quickly the story is moving, its still smashing everything I want to know and more. Plus the ART, GOD YUKI. Also ahh Gabimaru is still alg man just ripped
the flowers off. Several minutes before everything went down,
Gui Fa entered the Main Temple Annex to protect the Basin as ordered by Rien. While looking through the flame thingy he’s
holding, Gui Fa becomes confused if this was indeed Rien's true plan all along. In the present, Shugen is told by the Iwagakure
shinobi to not engage the giant monsters since their touch will cause him to be engulfed
in flowers. Not bothered by this Shugen makes quick work
of the monster using Senta's fighting style and cries upon thinking about his passing. Pushing forth he notices that the Banko isn't
paying attention to him and makes a run for it to enter Main Temple before the vines could
block his path. Meanwhile, Sagiri, Yuzuriha, and Isuzu defend
themselves against the monsters. Next to them and seeing as how the Tao around
is being disrupted Mei slowly begins to start blooming herself. and that they must do something quickly before
it is too late for her. Yuzuriha swings up to get a good look at Zhu
Jin and after seeing that its blocking the entrance to the floodgates with vines and
monsters, notes that it seems as if there back at square one. She then sees that Sagiri is trying to convince
Isuzu into cooperating with the convicts but to no avail. Wanting to help her she drops in and tries
her hand in persuading her. However, Gantetsusai arrives carrying Fuchi's
body while boldly stating that they do not need to join forces with her as after all
it was Shugen who took down Fuchi. After the group buries Fuchi in flowers, Gantetsusai
directs his anger towards Isuzu and once again says that they don't need her help, which
Yuzuriha disagrees with. Agreeing with him though, Isuzu says that
they do not need to cooperate, as Shugen is here. Members of this mission weren't chosen because
of their innate ability, rather the three of them were ideal disposable pawns set up
for the amusement of the Shogun. If it were a priority to them, then they would
have selected Shugen to begin with as his power is incomparable. Yuzuriha who knows that they need help becomes
annoyed with Isuzu’s stubbornness after she continuously refuses and calls her a gorilla,
only for Isuzu to get hit with a fat dose of that childhood ptsd and reply that gorillas
embody the very concept of Bushido. Getting down on her knee’s Isuzu then intends
to commit seppuku to take responsibility for the death of her comrades and hope’s that
her death will appease the shogun. As everyone continues to bicker amongst each
other, Jikka arrives with Tōma, Chōbei, Kiyomaru, Shion, Nurugai, and the Iwagakure
shinobi. Jikka tells Isuzu that if she doesn’t return
home then the responsibility will lie in to Shugen Kermit kermicide. However he does also says that he just came
up with a great plan that will be able to defeat Zhu Jin and might have a way for the
criminals to earn their freedom but needs assistance from Gabimaru in order to do so. Remember how I brought up that the Divine
Banko was literally the god of creation, in creation myth earlier in the video, well now
with everything weve seen what do you all think about that being reality
in this series? Chōbei, while suffering from Zhu Jin's effects
on his body, explains to everyone that according to Mei the Divine Banko has spread all over
the palace and that the fragments in the air are Tan particles from the flowers, which
will cause anyone to undergo Arborfication if inhaled. Mei also warns them that they have until morning
to destroy it or everyone's Tao will be disrupted and cause them to turn into flowers. Knowing that to stop it they have to destroy
the Tanden, Chōbei lets them all know that he sense the Banko has five tandens of each
of the Five Elements scattered around the grounds of Hōrai. After remembering how he won their fight with
Ju Fa and Tao Fa, Gantetsusai predicts that they’ll probably have to destroy all of
the Banko's tanden at the same time. Looking around at the state of everyone, Shion
becomes concerned with their condition since the battles with the Tensen's has left them
in bad shape to continue fighting. As a few larger monsters roll up behind their
group, everyone easily takes care of them destroying them in an instant. After hearing Sagiri and Nurugai make excellent
points about needing enough Tao to destroys the Banko and stop the monsters from pestering
them, Jikka, while lazily big chilling on the floor, tells them that they need Gabimaru
to handle this problem. Then out of freaking no where Sagiri ducks
after sensing a fire torrent coming from behind her, which incinerates the monsters, and reveals
that the one and only Gabimaru has arrived. However due to him being inflicted by the
Banko’s effects he collapses to the ground after finally re-uniting with everyone. With Gabimaru in a bad state, Jikka sees that
he has to change his plans and turns his attentions to the Iwagakure shinobi beside him. Alright cutting myself off cause i've always
wanted to explain this thingy Mangaka’s do. Gege does it occasionally from what i've seen
and Yuki did it here. Its called “author's fiat" or "authorial
fiat." It refers to a situation in storytelling,
particularly in manga, where the author introduces a plot development or outcome simply because
they have stated it to be so, without providing a logical or organic explanation within the
narrative itself. Its often used to resolve complex or seemingly
unsolvable plot points, establish new rules or abilities, or make significant changes
to the story without a clear build-up or explanation. Some people think it can take away from the
story, but tbh I like it if its used correctly as it can truly add to the hype of what's
to come. I’d love to know your thoughts on it though,
so be sure to let me know down below! Anyways back to the story! Obviously Gabimaru was super glad to see that
Sagiri is okay since he reminds her that he needs her in order to return and receive pardon. Despite everyone feeling exhausted, Chōbei
says that they have to fight back no matter what happens. He then walks up to Gabimaru and complements
him on their first battle before stating that given what he’s seen its fairly evident
that he’s also got something to lose. To which our battered and bruised Gabi confidently
says that he does and that nothing else mattered to him. Chōbei becomes satisfied after hearing this
from him and Shion who’s close-by then looks at Nurugai and sees that he also has something
to lose. Jikka walks up to Isuzu, who wonders if Gabimaru
has charmed Sagiri after seeing her wanting to help him. She knows that she swore not to defile her
brothers legacy by working with these criminals so instead she decides to defer and catch
up with Shugen. With everyone onboard, Jikka prepares to discuss
the plan but wishes for Shion to explain instead, much to his annoyance. While Gabimaru is seemingly distracted, the
Iwagakure shinobi ready themselves while remembering a specific shinobi principle: When going for
the kill, keep your presence suppressed, no movements, let it all come as naturally as
breathing. As if nothing is out of the ordinary they
all take the opportunity to attack him with thrown kunai. In the moments before they striked from the
shadows, Shion explained to the unaware group that a tanden can only be destroyed by a user
with the correct Tao attribute, and Tao Restoration will increase the attack potency. Mei then confirms the Tao attributes of Jikka
who’s earth, Kiyomaru with metal, and Isuzu with water Tao. Wondering if the scruffy dude is anyone you
can count on, Yuzuriha questions Sagiri about his skill, to which she also becomes unsure
due to the bad rumors about him. These bad rumors btw are like that he pawned
his blade so the one he has now is trash and often gets on the booze with the boys not
completing assignments. While they are distracted, the Iwagakure shinobi
throw their kunai at Gabimaru in an attempt to finish their mission. Randomly though, Jikka notices their attack
and turns asking if they really wanna go through with this. So you see even Sagiri has been confused for
a while as to why Jikka is rank 3 and even asked Shion back in the day. Shion states that taking his personality into
account he’s the lowest of low, it was confirmed that he sold his sword for some cash and now
only carries around a simple bamboo takemitsu which is a sign of disrespect to the Shogun,
however he’s never once been accused of it, due to how his blade cuts like steel. Shion explains that one time while they were
on the booze he told him he could perceive the truth in all things and through that manipulate
someone's momentum by applying force in certain spots. He claimed that it was something that went
beyond just the waves Shion was able to perceive and in reality its fairly evident mans aligned
himself with some yin or yang as he was able to easily reflect all of the Kunai back into
the Ninja. Takemitsu btw refers to like a bamboo sword
carved in the shape of a Katana. Its not the Shinai which is made up of bundled
slats or a bokken which is usually made of heavier wood and sometimes referred to as
a bokuto. The word Takemitsu can also be used as a pejorative
for a cheap, dull-edged blade. With everyone stunned at what just happened,
Nurugai becomes confused because she thought the shinobi were on their side but is told
by Jikka that he knew the shinobi were only pretending to be allies to complete their
main objective of taking out Gabi. Jikka confesses that he did not know whether
to side with Iwagakure or Gabimaru but after seeing Gabi decided to stick with him thinking
that they were somewhat alike, although Gabimaru disagrees. Ya see Jikka tho he got a few ladies' n thats
why he thinks they’re similar. Yuzuriha becomes convinced of Jikka's abilities
but still finds herself unable to get a good read on him. The group then decides to take possession
of the shinobi's equipment. Sagiri finds herself conflicted, thinking
they have to start over with their harsh situation, and knowing that even if they succeed they’re
all doomed to slaughter each other at the end. Gabimaru disagrees though as he believes there
are a few differences compared to how they started and while looking at just how much
everyone has changed, Yuzuriha agree’s with this illogical thinking of his, as thats when
he tends to be right. And DAAAAMN everyone looks to fire with the
new fits, especially Chōbei dude looks so demonic. So everyone's’ pairings have pretty much
stayed the same, except this time instead of being with Yuzuriha, Gabi is with Sagiri
since her wood Tao will help his fire, Yuzuriha will stay with Mei to figure out the exact
locations of each Tanden and finally big G will team up with Jikka to help boost his
earth Tao. everyone well equipped and paired up, the
group sets off to destroy the tandens. Falling into a memory of the Tensen, Zhu Jin
remembers Rien's explanation on the Rite of Just Consumption and giggles at his poor drawings. Ju Fa notices their smirk and reprimands them,
to which the youngling apologizes but remarks that the cant stand the way Ju Fa picks on
them. The Tensen knows that its all for Tao Fa’s
sake but finds it annoying he’s always on edge trying to protect them. Thinking on each Tensen more, Zhu Jin goes
over all of the good and bad qualities of them and how at heart they’re truly nice
people. Then remembering how they must work hard so
they don't fail like last time, large white orbs begin appearing infront of her making
her think she needs to collect them all to complete the Rite of Just Consumption. In reality the amalgamation of Zhu Jin's Banko
begins grabbing at the surroundings doing its best to gather as many different types
of Tao. Having made their way to the Shu'itsu Temple,
Kiyo and Isuzu comfortably destroy a bunch of random creatures protecting the entrance. Isuzu starts to notice that she is getting
exhausted from staying too long in the area and finally realizes that this is why they
had to ally with criminals. Hearing her statement and while taking out
a few insects, Kiyomaru tells Isuzu to not doubt Shugen's orders as he was the only one
who ever believed in them. Shugen never judged them for coming from an
offshoot dojo or because they were young, he trained everyone the same no matter what. After remembering the respect Shugen showed
him, Kiyomaru reminds her of how he stood up for her in the past and was even the person
who got her the teaching role. Isuzu thanks Kiyomaru for reminding her about
her loyalty towards Shugen and remembers the time Shugen pointed out the beauty in the
color of her skin. Having cut their way through the overgrowth
outside the Palace, Isuzu breaks the door open, rushes in and tells herself that Shugen
is in the right. Standing there inside of the Shu'itsu Temple
the duo finally confront one of Zhu Jin's Tandens. After arriving at the Banko's Earth tanden,
Shion tells Nurugai to stay back as he defends against the monsters approaching them but
quickly realizes he’s nearing his limit. They then hear the sound of the conch from
Yuzuriha, signaling that everyone has reached their respective tandens and can begin to
destroy them. Seeing as how the tanden is too high up for
his sword to reach, Shion imbues Nurugai's sword with his strengthen Tao and throws it
towards the tanden but unfortunately it only leaves a shallow cut. In her own dark world, Zhu Jin feels something
attack her hand but cant seem to figure out what it is. Reaching forth trying to grab a ball of Tao,
its shown that in reality she's controlling monsters which are about to grab the duo. Shion yells out to Nurugai to stay behind
him until the next sound of the horn since her inability to use Tao puts her in danger. Wanting to speak up, Nurugai remembers all
of the times Shion told her to stay back as he fought alone and how he relinquished his
status as a Yamada Asaemon in front of Kiyomaru in order to become her guardian. He knows that due to the era he’s currently
in he has no hope of changing any of the laws around her fate. However a man can change himself and thats
why he decided to leave the Yamada clan, because like the legend he is, he couldn't condone
the execution of an innocent person. Nurugai asks Shion if he meant what he said
during that time, to which he answers yes. After saying that she was happy to hear him
state that, Nurugai rushes in to attack the monsters herself. She already knows that its dangerous, and
remembers the reason as to why she cannot perceive Tao. So ya see in her clan they don't believe things
that cant be seen or touched. However after thinking about what cant be
seen, and remembering the feelings she felt towards Tenza, manages to awaken this ability
and breaks forth into the reality of gods. Having cut down a bunch of fodder creatures
with this new technique, she tells Shion that she needs to use her own strength to survive
and asks that he become her partner instead of a guardian. With a smile on his face, Shion states that
his eyes have clearly deceived him and because his body cant take to much more, asks that
she take the lead until the next sound of the horn rings out. Agreeing, Nurugai rushes forth and takes the
lead. Still unable to see, Zhu Jin becomes furious
at the random damage she keeps taking and causes the Earth tanden to sprout multiple
bodies of Mu Dan, much to Shion and Nurugai's shock. While at the Wood tanden, Chōbei and Tōma
find themselves confronted by clones of Tao Fa that have emerged from the tanden, leading
them to believe that the same is happening to every tanden that corresponds with the
Tao attributes of that specific Tensen. The brothers then begin to ponder on whether
they should make the choice of escaping with the other survivors or act on Jikka's secret
plan of eliminating Shugen in order for him to make a false report to the shogun that
they had died. So i've held off sooo hard from saying this
earlier, but you see our friendly neighborhood Jikka is actually what id consider to be a
first generation Yakuza. We know for a fact that Samurai overtime did
indeed take that role throughout this period of Japan, as with no war, they took different
routes of occupation. Why he wants everyone gone is for the fact
man wants to be the next leader of the clan and doing that would be perfect for him. He wants to put this world behind him for
one of luxury instead, plus he also drops the bomb that if Shion and Sagiri end up surviving
the bandits can take them down if they please, but thats just a maybe. After the clones partially transform into
their Kishikai, Chōbei prepares to fight back but feels his body suffering from the
Banko's effects on his Tao. He also senses that Tōma is gradually suffering
from the Tao particles in the air and tries to think of a logical plan going forward. Chōbei knows that its pretty much impossible
to take on both the Tao Fa army and destroy the Tanden, plus they've got no time to do
the restore glitch effect. Telling himself to break apart once more he
knows that he just gotta do it, originally it was his plan to slam back the elixir with
his brother, but now he’s leaving everything up to him without a single worry at all as
he knows he’ll win. Watching his brother run ahead of him, Chōbei
pushes himself forth and forces vines out of his back, front and all sides that destroys
everything around him. Meanwhile, Gabimaru and Sagiri are approached
by Shija who has comfortably taken out all of the Gui Fa clones. Flashing back to the moment Gabimaru and Sagiri
confronted the Gui Fa clones, Shija comes in and quickly disposes of the clones. As the dust begins to fade its obvious that
she’s extremely delighted to reunite with Gabimaru. Gabimaru then takes the time to talk to Shija
due to knowing that the shinobi is unpredictable, however, after hearing the sound of the conch,
Sagiri reminds him that they are running out of time and must either have Shija cooperate
with them or take them on as an enemy. Gabimaru tells Sagiri that he cant afford
to fight Shija with the current state he’s in, prompting Sagiri to try to perform a Tao
Restoration on him. Seeing this and while calling her a wench,
Shija darts in behind the two and prepares to take out Sagiri, only to cease their assault
in an instant after being ordered by Gabimaru to wait. Hearing him out, Gabi just asks her to help
as he’s in great need of her strength. With Shija having multiple personalities its
hard to know which way she’ll react. Turns out shes been waiting for months to
hear those words. A battle in her mind between helping the chief
or following her heart. Happily she agrees to help Gabimaru but only
in order to truly resurrect his true self. In a sense, she will dedicate her existence
to the sole revival of histories strongest Gabimaru the Hollow. As Shija rushes in to attack and despite his
previous injuries Gabimaru tells Sagiri to take down the regenerated Gui Fa clones behind
them while he handles fighting against Shija. Shija first starts off their attack by using
Ninpo: Hair Forged to throw multiple hair kunai at Gabimaru. While dodging them, Shija uses the opening
to use Ninpo: Flash Hand to push him backwards. Gabimaru flashes out of the way of a kunai
and fights her in close quarters combat, with the two using a multitude of technical techniques
to try and get the upper hand on the other. Simultaneously the both of them end their
initial clash by using Ninpō: Fire Monk to create a massive explosion. Knowing that Shija knows more ninjutsu than
him, Gabimaru speculates that continuing to fight with Taijutsu is more effective, however,
Shija literally word for word quotes what Gabimaru was thinking and tells him that they
are aware of every move he makes as after all they spent so much time observing him. Despite this and as the two begin fighting
once more, Gabimaru tells Shija that they are also able to read their actions with the
help of Tao. He then purposefully takes a kick to the navel
in an attempt to send himself towards the Banko's tanden and destroy it but ends up
only destroying the statue beneath it. Shija sees through him and could tell that
from the very start of their fight he has been protecting Sagiri (who they refer to
as ‘the hag’). They then start to wonder if Gabimaru's current
state is because of the hags presence and as she manages to get the upper hand, slamming
Gabi into the ground, Shija becomes saddened after seeing that Gabimaru's body is suffering
from weakened Tao regeneration. Picking up his face and staring into his eyes,
she finds it truly heartbreaking to see that her love lost his deadly ferocity and instead
choose to protect others. Shija then realizes in anger that Sagiri is
with Gabimaru to perform Tao Restoration and jumps towards her direction in disgust. Gabimaru yells out to Sagiri to run. However, Sagiri refuses, stating that she’s
had enough, she wont stand being called a hag anymore and prepares to face Shija alone. Knowing that the ninja isn't an immortal,
Sagiri uses her Tao sensory to anticipate Shija's attack, but is unable to react in
time as in an instant she appears before her and slams her to the ground. Having picked up a special bag earlier, Sagiri
pulls it out causing the female ninja to quickly dart back and ask why she is allied with Gabimaru
despite her job. Sagiri explains that yes once apon a time
she lived to a strict code, but this is no longer the case, as an era begins to shift
its almost possible to sympathize with anyone, not just Gabimaru, but the Tensen's and even
Iwagakure ninja. After hearing this statement, Shija uses her
Ninpo: knotted locks, sending her hair through the ground, before it springs up restraining
Sagiri, pinning her down. Thinking that Sagiri wants to share a similar
experience to herself, she makes her inhale the powder she tossed earlier. So you see this powder is one that manipulates
ones sensations and makes them experience an overwhelming sensation of pain. Its often used in the training of young ninja,
which just like it shows with Shija, usually results in only a few of the family members
surviving. This toxin is known as nerve powder and all
in Iwagakure undergo intensive training with it for 3 days and 3 nights until they acclimate
to the pain. As they prepare to give Sagiri another drug
which is called never bliss and connects with the pleasure section of the brain, Shija tells
her that all in Iwagakure are made to be numb, stripped of their senses so that the only
feeling they have left is one of death. Fear and despair in the face of death are
the only distinct sensation those inside the clan feel. Gabimaru first granted her that feeling, and
through her encounter with him she eventually became aware of her own mortality. Yes in it there is death which embodies life
itself, death which comes for all, true fleeting life can only be found in that moment of parting. Ahh Yuki back at it with the poetry, had to
change things up slightly so its not suuuper morbid cause ya-know YouTube, but I recommend
everyone go read this for themselves as Yuki kinda pops off with just how beautifully he
constructs a vivid image with words themselves in someone's mind. Usually a mangaka’s most potent tool is
their art or pencil, but sometimes Yuki is just as great with the writing in my opinion. With his body suffering and his Tao depleted,
as well as Sagiri being unable to combat against Shija, Gabimaru see’s their chances of victory
slowly fade away. Shija asks Gabimaru why he is desperately
clinging to life, to which he answers that he desires to live a normal life with his
wife. Shija tells Gabimaru that his wish can not
come to pass since Iwagakure will remain in pursuit of him forever and his wife does not
exist. Gabimaru denies the thought though as he knows
its the typical psychological warfare and tries to buy time to recover his Tao and present
an opening for Sagiri. Shija like shes done throughout the majority
of this bout, sees through his scheme and pleads to Gabimaru to come to his senses as
they try to explain that his wife and the life he shared with her is false, pure make
believe... Back over at the main body of the Banko, Gantetsusai
focuses on preparing himself to cut down the giant flower in front of him. Meanwhile, Jikka who aint really that keen
to do much right now decides to lay down and puts his faith in Gantetsusai. Gantetsusai interprets his unfazed behavior
as a test of courage and sits down wishing to follow along as well, which Jikka found
to be strange. He then hears the signal to take action but
is told by Jikka that the roots will tell them when the tandens have been destroyed
and when its the correct time to take out the main plant. Gantetsusai questions how he knows this and
Jikka explains that he has been able to understand how things move ever since he was young, like
how to inflict a cut or exactly where a petal would fall. His moto is one of waiting as good things
are bound to come to those who wait. Gantetsusai then senses that he is up to something
but can't seem to tell what his intentions are. Over with the grrrazy stalker gf, Shija explains
to Gabimaru that due to Iwagakure's influence, no matter how hard someone craves a normal
life, its simply unattainable. The chiefs daughter is no exception at all,
she possesses no emotions and has been merely set up to fake a relationship with him as
a way to hide the atrocities he commits. Her smile, taste’s, all is a deception crafted
to imprison his mind. Cutting off the mental stuff going on right
now as I needa point out how cracked Yuki is again, this here is a representation of
Bunraku theater and the bodies are usually controlled by 3
different people. Its just perfect imagery to show just how
manipulated and controlled Gabi’s life has been. With this in mind, she begs for Gabimaru to
revert back to his former self and throw away any idea of a normal life. After hearing Shija out, Sagiri awkwardly
smiles as she looks up at Gabimaru standing back up. Like Sagiri suspected all our boy needed was
the confirmation that she does indeed exist. We know his Tao explodes whenever his wife
is mentioned, and for him these feelings are tied to strength and weakness. Due to that and because of how hells paradise
the dual forces of Yin and Yang can effect someone's body and mind alike. His body is then shown recovering after his
Tao becomes stabilized from the confirmation he received of his wife truly existing. Gabimaru remembers the words Yui imparted
to him, that this is the battle we call life and its important to preserve a little normalcy
at all times. Confidently he tells Shija that he always
knew his dream would come with a price, but now he’s ready to search for a new normal
life with her by his side. With his body back to normal, Gabimaru boldly
states to Shija that they will not have an advantage over him and will not allow them
to get in his way no matter what. This causes Shija to remember their past confrontation
with him when they were children where he states the exact same thing, get in my way
and ill take you out. Shija like the mental case she is then becomes
overjoyed with Gabimaru's newfound attitude, screaming that this is indeed perfect. In a past memory, Yui explains to Gabimaru
how to properly prepare chestnuts. After Gabimaru questions the point behind
it all, Yui tells him that she doesn't quiet understand herself, she just wanted to try
the normal way since growing up in Iwa wasn't normal at all. The two then sit down together to eat chestnut
rice which Yui says that she found to be "very delicious and sweet". Gabimaru though staring at his plate just
wonders if it really was since he wouldn't know due to how his sense of taste is dulled. Yui who’s sadly in the same situation then
tells him that by saying it out loud they can at least pretend to be normal. So for anyone who wanted to know, the dish
Yui made is called Kurigohan or chestnut rice. Its a traditional autumn dish in japan that
adds a hint of sweetness to an otherwise basic meal. I just wanted to make the scene slightly sadder,
the fact they couldn't even taste the change in food is rough. In the present and during the current battle,
Gabimaru manages to inflict grievous damage to Shija, who with a smile on her face realizes
that he is now fighting just like he did in his hey-day and assumes its since he isn't
being held back by the flowers effects anymore. Gabimaru says that he has not lost his battle
instincts, its just that the battlefield in general for him has changed, referring to
his memories of how he could not understand his wife's struggle. At first he never understood why she would
do something so random, it just seemed like meaningless drudgery to him. What was the point of the food, the normalcy,
he could never seem to figure it out. Looking up into his eyes, Shija figures out
that Gabimaru's "love" has no clear signs of weaknesses, and in a last ditch effort
attacks with everything that was taught to them by Gabi. Darting at him, she tries to strike his vitals,
but to no avail. Throwing a kick, Gabi effortlessly leans back
out of the way, before blocking a follow up strike thrown by her. Jumping back, she remembers the time Gabi
told her she’d never be able to master ascetic blaze, before pulling her hand upto her face
and releasing a huge torrent of flames. After using her own ascetic blaze, Shija boosts
forth, pushing the flames aside and somehow managing to stab Gabimaru's heart. Nonchalantly looking down at his injury Gabimaru
applauses Shija for her adept use of the ability, explaining that if he was still human they
might've just killed him. Now though and because he’s making it home
no matter what he grabs her hand, pulls her in close and activates Ninpō: Ascetic blaze,
FULL FIRE completely setting the duo alight. After being engulfed by Gabimaru's fire ninjutsu,
Shija thinks back over her sad existence, she remembers how everyone had an admiration
for Gabi, but hers was different, something more. Wondering what it was she felt, she thinks
about the time she fled from Gabi when they were children and questions if the reason
was because she feared that she might’ve died. As time slowly moved forth Shija caught wind
of Gabimaru being married to Yui and tries to mirror her appearance by burning the right
side of their face. In all reality though she's known for a while
that the pounding of her heart wasn't born from admiration, nor from dread, but sadly
the time for that to had indeed passed. Having collapsed to the ground with a smile
on her face, Shija with their last bit of strength creates a large whistle from their
hair and signals all of the Iwagakure shinobi. Asking what the signal was for, its revealed
that it was infact a cleansing ritual, one to clear the path forth for Gabi and the last
Ninpo she’ll ever use. They also tell him that Yui is indeed alive
and awaiting his return, apparently the chief hadn't planned to do anything until after
they returned. With their last breath, Shija asks Gabimaru,
that if she's ever reborn, in sickness and in health, until death do us part, would he
face them once more, to which he answers yes with a smile. Shija happily thanks Gabimaru for his answer
and wishes them luck in his future battles. Everyone thoughts on Shija? Moving forth now, Sagiri rolls over to Gabimaru
and is told by him that they need to re-focus their attention back onto destroying the tanden
while it is still regenerating. With everyone around being in the prime position,
Yuzuriha sounds off the next signal and all four teams simultaneously prepare to destroy
the tandens. Over with the big chillers though, Jikka begins
getting back up on his feet after sensing that the timing is right for him and Gantetsusai
to destroy the Banko. Yeeet as Big G himself begins to stand, he
states that things might be slightly difficult, revealing the titan sized Banko that had begun
taking on a new transformation. In preparation to take on the transformed
monster, Jikka begins tossing off his clothing, as a way to maintain his spiritual focus,
and asks Gantetsusai for his sword. Gantetsusai finds it odd he doesn't have a
strong enough weapon to cut down the Zhu Jin-fused Banko, but, after looking at his surroundings
and witnessing bodies of Zhu Jin sprouting out of vines, Gantetsusai chooses to follow
with Jikka's plan and gives him his sword. Yo this part is actually mental, like this
dude is him. Using his own special intuition, Jikka senses
all the fatally wrong moves he could make as he walks forth to take out the monster. Eventually after casually strolling past countless
spots where he’d die in an instant, Jikka comes to a good position with the right factors
like wind and presence around him to take down the monster. Finding that all is in sync now, Jikka swings
Gantetsusai's sword and successfully cuts down the head of the Zhu Jin-fused Banko from
a distance, just like he did in the past with the ocean monster. Having watched this unfathomable feat Gantetsusai
becomes astonished and remembers the time that he believed defeating monsters would
lead him down to the path of legends. Standing in front of him now is exactly the
sort of man to go down in history as a God Slayer. Thinking on the past some more, he also remembers
when Fuchi freed a Dōshi and refused to explain why. As a baby clone of Zhu Jin approaches him
now, Gantetsusai states that he started to understand where Fuchi was coming from and
that fighting monsters, in order to give him a thrill in his old age, doesn't affect him
anymore. Infront of him and having walked across a
field of flowers, Jikka steps up to the tanden and prepares to destroy it. Gantetsusai tries warning him that if he should
proceed then it might also have an affect on Gabimaru and Chōbei since their Tao is
connected with the monster. Despite being told this, Jikka ignores the
risks and destroys the Tanden. With the Zhu Jin Banko's destroyed, all traces
of its remains start to slowly wilt away. However, Jikka and Gantetsusai soon realize
that the giant creature is still alive. This is due to it already being morning as
warned before by Mei, and now because of that they must take on the task of destroying the
tandens simultaneously again. Chōbei sees that the Wood tanden is beginning
to slowly regenerate from the sun and finds himself to low on stamina to make another
attempt at destroying it again. Tōma yells out suggesting to Chōbei in leaving
the monster behind and trying to find a way off the island together. In his eyes there's no reason in dying here
as that would make him no different to their father. Despite his brother's plea, Chōbei activates
his break down state one last time and uses his vines to dig into the Wood tanden. He knows he doesn't have the right attribute,
but skewering the roots with his vines will allow him to cut off the regeneration to the
main body. With only one job left, he chooses to do that
exact method with each and every location as he can fully destroy the immortal.. His plan ends up becoming a success as everyone
around watches Chōbei’s vines burst through all of the Tanden in each location. One last time our Demon Bandit says breakdown
and come the hell apart... but not on himself instead on the immortal Banko which as a result,
starts to wither away. Having used up all his strength, Chōbei falls
to ground and hears his brother crying out to him. Falling into a flashback he remembers the
time he held Tōma as a baby and how he felt like he could break apart at any second, but
still grabbed onto him for dear life. Once realizing that he must protect him as
his older brother, Chōbei with tears in his eyes says that he protected him, because thats
what big brothers do. In the afterlife, Chōbei kneels down before
his parents and apologizes for the sins he had committed in his life but was happy to
know that he was at least a good brother. A young Chōbei then runs to his parents with
open arms as his life comes to an end... randomly though and breaking through the light, he
notices a hand reached out to him. After the passing of his older brother, Tōma
kneels down in grief while holding on to what seems like a plant ovule. Meanwhile, Mei and Yuzuriha run out of the
temple, while complaining about the foul odor in the air, and encounter Gui Fa as a child
who’s holding on to this random Basin/Urn looking thing.
