Inuyasha Manga: 331 People's Hearts

That's a complicated subject. Depending on the conditions around the development of a person's heart, and the conditions surrounding it when crisis strikes, it can react to stimuli in very different ways to a neighbor's. For instance, some people respond to the suffering of others halfway across the world with compassion and an attempt to help, while others respond with indifference. Some see violence enacted upon their community members and stand in the way, others JOIN IN on the violence. The rest cower and stick their heads in the sand, making excuses as to why the violence is DESERVED by the people experiencing it, and soothing themselves with the lie that they're doing everything right so it could never happen to them. 

It's a massive misfortune to have to see just exactly which of your fellow humans fall into which camp.  

Inuyasha makes those around him lucky, though. 

A little distance behind him, Kagome floating on Shippou's balloon back notes as well that she's sensing a single Shikon shard, and concludes it's Kohaku. She urges Shippou to hurry, who's still sweating pretty hardcore from the effort of holding her aloft. 

At the rat origin site, Miroku is yelling Sango's name, horrified at the mound of rats that have formed around where she and her brother were just a moment before. But thankfully, a scraped up Kirara rises out of the swarm of rodents, lifting Sango out of them as well by the straps across her back. She, in turn, has her arms around Kohaku, holding his unconscious form tightly as it hangs limp. It's but a moment of triumph, though.

They look awfully peaceful for how violent a death this promises to be...

Miroku is struggling to get to them, knocking the rats off him as they crawl up his robe, freaking out because he can't use his Kazaana without sucking up Sango and Kohaku as well. Not to mention, he is not holding the rats off himself, and is quickly being overwhelmed as well, a few of the little creatures having climbed up to his shoulders and now leaping for his head. 

Inuyasha arrives at last and calls out to both Miroku and Sango, rats still clinging to his legs even as he's leaping out of the horde. Suddenly, an arrow flies from... somewhere, and hits the barrier around the discarded rat-box. A flare of light surges around the object at the impact. 

Miroku urges Inuyasha to smash that nuisance of a box, since the barrier has been removed on it, as he's just a tad weighed down by the legion of vermin. Inuyasha flies past him and brings Tessaiga down on the zushi in record time, shattering the box. The multitudes of rats do what ALL truly dead youkai in this comic do: they dissolve into thin air, which still seems to leave Miroku in mild shock. It's understandable, his brain is probably just about as rumpled and torn as his rat-nibbled clothes at the moment. 

Meanwhile, Shippou draws Kagome's attention to the rats disappearing below them, which must be a relief to him given it means he can finally touch down and doesn't have to carry people five times his size anymore. Kagome declares that the zushi has been broken, then is shocked at the appearance of a trio of figures on a nearby cliff, two short and one taller. 

Took you a minute, didn't it?

As Shippou pops back into his own form nearby and Kagome runs to catch up with Inuyasha and Miroku, Inuyasha stares up at where Kikyou is perched, saying her name softly. She turns to walk away, but she's still occupying Inuyasha's thoughts immediately afterward, as always. 

His focus on her is snapped when Miroku indicates Sango, though, who is still lying on the ground with Kohaku, both unconscious it seems. They're surprisingly WHOLE, considering how long the rats were gnawing on their flesh. Of course, it's difficult to say just how long all that business took, so maybe it was a shorter amount of time than I think. 

Anyway, Kohaku is the first to open his eyes, and sits up to find that he's partly constrained by his sister's body laying on top of him. He notes that she's covered in wounds, and that it's all because of him. I'm still DESPERATE to know where the line is for him when it's not worth it anymore.

Sango is opening her eyes now too. 

Whoops, lingered a little too long. 

Sango haltingly asks Kohaku if he's okay, reaching out to cup his cheek in her hand. Kohaku lets this gesture linger for a moment, looking a bit regretful as he regards his sister. Then he jumps back onto his haunches out of her range, poor Sango making a shocked noise and then calling out to him in despair. The atmosphere swirls behind him and the Saimyoushou reappear at his back, Miroku identifying them as though this is the first he's seen of them so far. I don't know, maybe it IS the first time he's noticed they're there, considering his focus has been monopolized by those rats until now. 

Kohaku's had enough of these close encounters, it seems. 

Hakudoushi's head starts interrogating Kohaku about who that woman is down there and why she protected him, like it's any of HIS business. After a short pause, Kohaku claims he doesn't know, acknowledging silently that Hakudoushi was watching the whole scene. Creeper. Kohaku looks down at Sango sitting staring up at him from the ground again, not wanting her to be in any more dangerous situations like this one, so he resolves even harder to defeat Naraku ASAP. Yeah kid, I don't think you have any control over the scheduling here. 

Sango yells Kohaku's name as he recedes into the sky, clearly anguished. Miroku and Kagome look on at her forlorn and defeated posture with pity. A horizon with a sun low in the sky over the distant wooded hills shows some time has passed, and Kagome and Inuyasha are shown sitting at a campfire outside a forest hut. Shippou stands a little ways away, staring at the hut, wondering aloud how Sango is doing, because she got chewed up pretty badly by the rats. Hope she didn't come down with PLAGUE. Inuyasha snaps a twig, saying that Sango's tough for a human, so her BODY will probably be fine. Kagome follows this up with the observation that the biggest issue for Sango will probably be how shocked she was to see that Kohaku had been involved with the rat plot. As usual, it's the trauma that lingers.

Inside the hut, Miroku is sitting with the dregs of a first aid kit beside Sango, who lays on her side facing away from him. He asks if her wounds are ailing her too much, and she takes a moment to respond, with the answer to a somewhat DIFFERENT question. Though not THAT different. 

... Fair. 

Miroku says her name, and she continues elaborating on her position, not only that there were many villages wiped out by the rats but Kohaku killed a lot of people at the castle with the "birds" as well. Even if these things were orders from Naraku, she emphasizes that what Kohaku has done must NEVER be forgiven. 

Or, rather, that's what she understands in her mind. She recalls a feeling like her chest being crushed when Kohaku was being attacked by the rats. What's more, when she saw that he was okay, she felt relief from the bottom of her heart. 

... Also fair. 

After saying Sango's name again, Miroku tells her this is a GOOD thing, and that she doesn't have to force herself to hate her brother. Sango hangs her head, still struggling to take some kind of responsible, moral stance on the matter by implying in a halting way that she'll have to behave differently from now on. Miroku recognizes her attempts to blame herself for not hating Kohaku, so asks her if she REGRETS protecting Kohaku. She answers that she doesn't exactly KNOW if she does or not, but, clenching the hand she's leaning on into a fist, says she thinks she'd regret it MORE if she didn't protect him. Again, Miroku assures her that this is good, and asserts that this is how people's hearts are. Sango agrees, thanking Miroku in her mind. 

Of course, he'd be in personal trouble if people weren't able to acknowledge the shitty things one has done but love them anyway. XD 

A narrow sky transition panel takes us to Kikyou wandering among one of the obliterated villages in the path of the rats, observing a barren waste scattered with skeletons of humans and animals. Her little child shikigami march ahead of her without much regard for any of this, but she's silently fuming about how Naraku did all this just to draw her out. 

She kneels next to a body of water while the shikigami hold her bow and arrows, and cuts a lock of her hair with a small knife. Kikyou then winds the lock of hair around with a tie and hands it over to the shikigami, instructing them to fly around with it. 

These assholes are really out here making looking for each other everyone else's problem. 

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? RT has a multitude of strengths and weaknesses as a storyteller, but I think one of her strengths is not shying away from the complexities of human emotions. Sango's struggle here is very realistic, and it forces the reader to consider how they would feel if a beloved family member committed an atrocity. As much as we like to believe our morals and ethics are inflexible when it comes to certain things, it's against our natures as social animals to turn against people close to us. I poke fun at Miroku here for his personal interest in not being hated for his shitty behavior, but he's right: no matter how horrible a loved-one's actions are, there is some part of us that rebels against abandoning them. There's also a part of us that feels responsible for their actions, like if we had loved them better, or differently, this wouldn't have happened. Sango's pain comes through as not just understandable, but acute and encompassing; you can almost FEEL her heart breaking. 

There's not much more to say about Kohaku's side of things, because he hasn't really done anything new here. He's sticking to his guns, still resolved to get close enough to Naraku's heart to smother it with a pillow or something. The only thing that's really changed is that seeing Sango hurt because of a plot he had a hand in, he's wanting to speed things up a bit. I don't know how he thinks he's going to manage that, since his whole plan revolves around just letting Naraku order him close to the infant. Also, though there's no outright textual evidence for this in Kohaku's thoughts or dialog, I get the feeling that he's stuck in this sunk-cost fallacy where he's convinced he's so deep in, he may as well see his plan through to the end. 

In any case, one thing's for certain: if Sango ever finds out that Kohaku has been doing horrible things consciously, outside of Naraku's influence, her anxiety around loving him anyway is just likely to increase. 

YuYu Hakusho Manga: 031 The Raging Fist!!

Seems to me certain fists have always been raging to a certain extent, the only difference being the target. A fluctuating variety of targets I've observed these days too! Seems like every week I hear of someone else being attacked and new wars being started, then being ended abruptly when there's some new target in the crosshairs. No diplomacy, no real deals being negotiated, just pure chaos as fists are swung in every direction, including at the body they belong to. Being in the body of the flailing beast, I've had a rather bumpy ride trying to live in here. One particularly famous game phrase keeps popping into my head every time something new crops up. 

"It hurt itself in its confusion!"

I sure hope that isn't a problem YUSUKE has.

It's not for the moment, anyway. Shaolin only has the time to react with a wide alarmed stare as Yusuke plows his fist into his face, sending him skipping along the swamp like a stone. 

I wish we could do the same to certain hegemonic monsters in our own world. That would be SO SATISFYING. 

Shaolin doesn't respond with anything but grunts and spits as he pushes himself into a sitting position. He gets to his feet and is immediately alarmed AGAIN by a quiver running up them. I'm not sure if Yusuke REALLY hit him that hard or if it's Yusuke's second thundering approach, but...

How in the world did this guy manage to murder 99 martial arts masters??

Shaolin lands on his back in the swamp, with a nasty sloshing sound. Yusuke approaches him yet again, yelling at him to get up. He continues to sit in the mud, though, wiping his bruised jaw with a slimy fist. Shaolin makes a disgusted noise, suggesting he got some mud in his mouth, which is a strangely satisfying thought. He then says that while Yusuke scored a physical strength number of 155, but he's certain the kid easily tops 200 in actual combat. 

Yusuke is pulling back for another punch, informing Shaolin that it's just for STARTERS, but the little menace makes a couple of winding motions with his arms from his crouching position, calling this a "Slicing Gale Aegis". 

Kagura, eat your heart out.

Botan gapes in her concern, but Genkai looks as placid as ever when she says that Yusuke will be made into hamburger if he tries to charge through. 

The air makes a worrying whooshing sound, but Yusuke just roars in rage, and leaps straight at Shaolin, fists outstretched and flying almost like he's SUPERMAN. Shaolin is in disbelief that Yusuke is leaping OVER his buzz saw air, though he's still getting a bit sliced up, with his arms crossed in front of his head as a guard. Shaolin gapes, but Genkai, in a slightly more excited manner, explains to the still speechless Botan at Kuwabara's side that Yusuke is avoiding the worst effects of the vortices by jumping in head-first. I imagine it's a kind of "less surface area" kind of deal, Yusuke turning himself into a long missile shape so that the slices don't hit him broadside. 

... Has anyone called an ambulance yet?

Yusuke collapses to the side with an exhausted chuckle and a weak declaration that he GOT Shaolin. He shakily gets to his feet, inviting Shaolin to repent for his crimes in Hell. Then when he reaches where Botan is celebrating his victory on the sidelines and Kuwabara is still laying there unconscious, he admits that he's absolutely done, shot, finished, kaput. Botan assures him that he doesn't need to worry about it, because he finished Shaolin in one smashing blow, having avenged Kuwabara's demise in style. 

Wait... DEMISE??? Maybe Botan just means that in the sense that he fell in battle, because I'd be surprised if he perished this early in the manga while living out the whole anime. Yusuke wobbles, unsteady on his feet, as Botan marvels at how he really IS done. 

But Genkai warns Yusuke in her typical dry manner that this fight is ANYTHING but over. Yusuke makes a questioning noise at her, so she elaborates that if Shaolin really is Rando, then he's just getting warmed up. The chapter is hardly half-over, after all. 

Suddenly, some stilted coughs of laughter start to sound behind Yusuke, and a rumble passes through the ground. A voice asks itself how many decades it's been since its owner fought a human as Rando. A hand reaches up, nails lengthening into claws, knuckles cracking, while the voice continues to babble, this time about how it was so unexpected to be unmasked by anyone but Genkai herself. What looks like Shaolin's vest/tunic flutters in the air as it's thrown away, and the voice talks about pleasing being discovered is actually, and how much consideration needs to go into making Yusuke suffer and die. You'd think you'd like to shake the guy by the hand more than kill him if he did something you LIKE, but I guess it's always opposite day for demons or something.

Yusuke slowly turns to look at his ACTUAL enemy. 

CHANGED? That is just NOT the same guy! Doesn't even KIND OF look like the disguise. 

Botan marvels at this other form that represents the real Rando, even seems a little impressed. Genkai, on the other hand, continues to look bored.

Yusuke is trembling, his body already put at its limit, as Rando approaches him, mockingly asking if he's alright, looking as pale as he is. But since Yusuke has never been one to recognize limits, he lunges for Rando, demanding he shut his yap. He proceeds to rapidly punch Rando again and again, but it doesn't appear to affect the heavily muscled target that just stands there stone still with a small smirk. Rando asks now if Yusuke is finished, commenting on how that wasn't anything like his previous attack, barely even registering, no power behind them. Yusuke groans in response, as some fine, silvery threads extend from Rando's lips. At first I thought he was spitting, but...

You can do just about anything with that aura stuff, huh?

Hell, Rando is practically drooling it when he corrects Yusuke, telling him it's an entire aura WEB, actually. He reckons he's probably the only demon who can spin one too, presumably because he stole the technique from a human master, although it DOES seem like something a spider monster might do before a human. In any case, the stuff wraps around first Yusuke's limbs, then his whole body, binding him tightly in what looks to be a sticky, gummy straight jacket so he can't move. Botan and Genkai stare with shock, the latter a bit less than the former, but showing SOME emotion nonetheless. Rando pulls on the rope of it extending out from Yusuke, saying it's tough stuff, so tough that you can't break it no matter how hard you try. He offers a VIOLENT demonstration of this by starting to swing the rope, and a screaming Yusuke with it, around his head. 

No, please not again...

We get a close-up right on Rando's cold eye as he says he could swing and swing his victim all day, then zoom out again to see Yusuke slammed into the ground again to emphasize Rando's declaration that the rope of sticky aura would never snap. I guess it's a good thing the ground is soft swampland? Can't be THAT soft, though...

Botan agonizes over how Yusuke is helpless and can't escape, but she's clearly in no position to help. Maybe Genkai...? Nah. 

Rando drags Yusuke a little through the grass, the boy gagging a little, before announcing that he has an idea. Next thing anyone knows, the rope of aura has been tied up on the branch of a bare tree, and Yusuke is dangling upside down from it over a small pond. Blood rushing to his head, he asks what new sadistic trick this is, and suggests he just kill him, since Rando's got him helpless anyway. Rando says he'd like Yusuke to meet his little friends first, and reaches out an arm, chanting something unreadable. Yusuke sees some shadows emerging from the depths of the pond. 

Oh, I hate those SO much. 

Rando says they're fish summoned from the demon plane, which is distressingly vague. Also, he's summoned something ELSE: a tiny oni-type demon, which he clutches in his fist though its little mouth is wide in protest. He throws it straight into the pond, saying that the fish also have big appetites, and the little oni shrieks and splashes, munching accompanying its cries. Those stop in short order and the bones of the oni float under Yusuke, picked absolutely clean. It's yet another horrifying DEMONstration, an abundance of which seem to be available to Rando, who points a glowing forefinger at Yusuke and tells him that human flesh is a special treat for those fish. 

I mean, if they have to get summoned from the demon plane to get a taste of it, that makes sense. 

Botan gasps about Rando's pose, very much in line with Yusuke's when he's about to fire his Reigun. As Rando's forefinger glows brighter, Yusuke also gapes in alarm, speechless. Rando says he loves that expression he's wearing, and Botan laments how the demon learned the Reigun fired ONCE and already figured out how to do it. Genkai agrees that Rando is a quick study, back to a deadpan placid when she admits that he could surpass her, but as an EVIL master. She doesn't seem ENTHUSED about it... but she doesn't seem OPPOSED either. 

Rando holds that shooting pose, the light at the tip of his finger growing all the brighter, and says he loves the sounds of humans getting eaten by his demonic piranhas as well. Once that light reaches a blinding pitch...

I'd say RIP to our main character, but we know from EXPERIENCE that Yusuke doesn't rest in peace. 

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? I don't think I've ever seen a more dramatic transformation out of a disguise than this one, and the other manga I'm covering has youkai regularly turning into animals and shit. It's no wonder the Botan's information on Rando didn't include a physical description; who knows if THIS is even what he really looks like. The weird spider tattoo across his face does strike me as an edgy kind of enhancement rather than his natural appearance, but then again, it's the kind of thing that anyone might have figure out a way to cover if they were getting a job at a convenience store, let alone trying to infiltrate the confidence of a martial arts master. 

It's almost not fair that Yusuke looked to be doing so well in the first half of the chapter, only to be fed to demon piranhas in the second. But I suppose that's the point, to show that no matter how righteous one's anger or cause, it'll only give you so much of a boost against an opponent that is just that much more PACKED with resources. This is a creature that has spent years collecting all kinds of master techniques and killing their originators, and he sure is loving showing them off at the moment. 

Yusuke really is going to have to pull a Houdini in order to get out of this one, or get his second-wind of luck that helped him win his last match. 

Inuyasha Manga: 330 Rat Swarm Runs Wild

A couple of weeks ago, we had a man come to our door several times in two days to talk to us about our supposed rodent problem. He was adamant that the mild signs of disturbance of insulation under the house was a sign that the mice were going to move into the house at any moment, and that it was going to be a serious problem later on when they started chewing on our electrical cables, for some reason. In all this scare-mongering, he carefully avoided talking about what it was he wanted to DO about this highly exaggerated issue, which I'm sure involved killing off all the wildlife in the yard. 

We took a flyer from him in case anything cropped up, and firmly told him he needed to stop knocking on our door every five seconds. Not only have we seen no droppings, had no electrical problems, and have a cat that would NOT be quiet if she heard rodents under the floor, but we've ensured the overgrown yard is an ample habitat for them. They have plenty of food and shelter out in the foliage that it wouldn't make a lick of sense for them to move in even CLOSE to us humans. 

A massive hungry population roaming a barren moonscape, on the other hand...

Miroku acknowledges that the rats are coming back after him, and wonders if the mayose charm has been broken as he rips the sealing beads from his right hand with a bitter curse. He points the Kazaana at the oncoming stream of rats, but despite it sucking in a great cloud of them, there's still a separate line of them streaming out of the Kazaana's range and right past him. He sweat about not being able to vacuum up all of them, since there's too many.

Meanwhile...

She reminds him that he's a youkai EXTERMINATOR, so he's kinda doing he OPPOSITE of what he's supposed to. Kohaku continues to defend against Sango's advance, though, noting once more that the Saimyoushou are hovering over his shoulder, watching him. At least they're too busy doing THAT to bother Miroku about his rat clean-up duty. Kohaku is convinced that if he shows Naraku even the SLIGHTEST hint of betrayal, he'll lose his chance to find out where that baby (or Naraku's heart) is. 

Sango forces Kohaku to leap out of the way again as she slams Hiraikotsu's end into the ground in the spot he was crouched. It's looking like she's far less likely to hold back here. She pulls a chain from one of the secret compartments at her elbow and throws it so its weighted end wraps around an alarmed Kohaku's ankle. After he skids to a stop on his knee, he responds in kind, throwing the weighted chain on his sickle at her, which she avoids by ducking behind Hiraikotsu as it wraps around the boomerang's tip. She declares he can't get away now.

At the sound of scrabbling on the rocks behind her, she looks around.  

That's looking pretty bad. They're both looking in disbelief at the advancing writhing shadow crawling across the ground toward them, and I can just HEAR Sango thinking that Miroku had ONE JOB. 

Meanwhile, back at the mayose tree, the burns from the slugs are exposed, a majority of the slugs themselves lying in shreds on the ground and being examined for devouring potential by the rats. 

The lump of slime falls to the ground among the rats, but they're still wandering aimlessly along the ground, and Shippou curses the fact that they're no longer showing any interest in climbing the tree. Kagome looks up at the damaged trunk and says that it's died, unfortunately. Didn't take much to kill this tool of unparalleled spiritual power. I guess Kikyou is showing us some weakness after all?

Nearby rats are starting to gain their bearings, and notice that the fleshy Kagome and Shippou are nearby, much to their panic. Inuyasha curses, descending from the tree in a hurry, his clawed fingers held up at the ready. He acknowledges that the rodents will just increase when he cuts them and laments how annoying they are, so he claws up some of the earth in their path to disturb it and buy a moment of time. He uses it to yell over his shoulder at Shippou to hurry up and transform rather than gaping, because they're leaving immediately. Shippou seems alarmed at the prospect of running away, but Inuyasha reminds him that the mayose tree is no longer of any use, and they're off to smash the zushi that's producing the little menaces. 

Wow, way to fat-shame Inuyasha, kid! XD

Meanwhile, as the rats advance on Sango and Kohaku, Miroku flies over the swarm to call to the former, telling her in a panic to hurry and smash the little box Kohaku is protecting. After a moment of dazed alarm at Miroku's sudden appearance with the rising tide of rats, Sango lunges once more for her brother with grunt. He fends of her fresh attack, even while she's trying to appeal to his reason by insisting he has to understand he'll be eaten by rats at this point too. He understands this only too well, and is also imagining Naraku to most likely give him the orders to protect the zushi even if it costs him his life. Talk about complying in advance. 

All the time, the rats advance on them, and start to leap at Sango's back once they get close enough. Kohaku watches in horror about to utter a warning to his sister before...

Oooh, this is an IMPRESSIVE panel! Look at that dynamic movement!

Kohaku jumps back, lands in a crouch, then quickly makes a break for it again, Sango hot on his heels. Miroku calls to Sango over his shoulder for her to get on Kirara, because it's too dangerous to be on the ground. She takes his advice, sitting astride the giant sabertoothed cat, but Kohaku is left the principal target of the rising wave of rats. Kohaku is outflanked, and the rats leap for him from seemingly all directions, teeth and claws extended. 

I want to offer a survey to Kohaku every five seconds asking him if this stunt is still worth it.

Miroku gapes over his shoulder in horror as Sango jumps from a circling Kirara's back and pulls Kohaku out of the pile of rats. The box falls from his back and she pauses in her efforts to drag her brother up from the little biting critters to raise Hiraikotsu over her head with the intention of breaking the thing so the rats disappear. But Hiraikotsu is repelled when it hits the zushi by a barrier, because OF COURSE Naraku/Hakudoushi put a barrier around the fucking thing. Still, Sango is SHOCKED that she can't break it. Miroku has now half turned to the scene, too invested in her task to not be splitting his attention, and recognizes the barrier protecting it. 

The rats are once again surrounding Sango, Kohaku, and Kirara, though I'm not certain why they were holding off for the few seconds it took for Sango to try to break the box. Plot convenience time-dilation, I expect. Miroku yells at Sango to get away now, but she kneels to cuddle her injured brother while the rats leap at them again. 

Nearby, Inuyasha announces he's going on ahead and jumps down from Shippou to touch down briefly within the sea of rats, against Kagome's protest. 

We all do, Inuyasha. We all do. 

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Aside from the little time snafu toward the end there, I was very impressed with the action in this chapter. Nearly every panel was filled with movement and terror with the characters being pursued by a perpetually starving cloud of menace that wouldn't be sated even when the heroes are consumed. And underneath that surface of that desperate turmoil of fighting a fall to this pest, I can't help but think about how this relates to the setting. The basis of animistic spiritualities like Shinto is making relatable and impose personality and literal spirit into forces of nature that seem too big, eldritch, and indiscriminately cruel to comprehend. In the time period this story is set, it was a very real threat to suddenly have a rush of "plague" on crops, rampant disease, famine, and a surge of pests that could ruin everything for the year due to a chain of cause and effect that were not necessarily visible to your everyday person. In a way, youkai and other kinds of spirits, both malevolent and benign, were conceived to help explain these phenomena and provide a story basis for comprehending them on a more personal level. 

I'm still a little frustrated by how everything is about to go back to normal in record time despite how absolutely DEVASTATING an event like this would be on this small archipelago, since frankly, I don't believe for one second that RT had intended to make me think about all this when she wrote the arc. Still, it's interesting to consider how a plague of rats went from a terrible disaster in an ancient context, to the result of the whims of a malevolent spirit, to the set dressing of a modern story.

Can we take a moment to appreciate how SAVAGE Shippou is above too? Is he aiming to inspire an eating disorder in Inuyasha or WHAT??

YuYu Hakusho Manga: 030 Shaolin = Rando!?

I didn't realize the final page of the last chapter was the chapter title page for this one. Not that it's a problem, of course, given that it would have to bear some repeating when it first came out in print. Not just because of the natural tendency for a reader's memory to get fuzzy during the week in between issues, but because little inoffensive guys like Shaolin don't really get the same amount of scrutiny that big burly guys get. No doubt this was the reason Rando chose this particular disguise. 

I mean, just look at that punim!

Botan exclaims that she wouldn't have guessed, and Yusuke is in disbelief that it's this little dude who's the dangerous demon. It's always the quiet ones, lol. As Genkai announces the second match of the semi-finals, Kuwabara rotates his shoulder to stretch and pop the joint, thinking he'll take out the shrimpboat and then it'll just be him and Urameshi left. It has not occurred to him at all that the "shrimpboat" smiling benignly at him might have gotten this far because he's not all he seems. 

Yusuke calls to Kuwabara to listen for a second, but Botan waves an admonishing finger at him, warning him not to give away classified information, reminding him that they're undercover. Uh, I think your inexplicable presence here has probably blown that cover wide open for at least Rando. GENKAI certainly knew who she was and where she came from. Still, Yusuke seems chastened and mutters his assent as Kuwabara comes over.

He asks Yusuke what he wants, then tells him if he's going to cheer him on, he doesn't need to bother with that. Yusuke stutters a bit, but then leans over and whispers to him not to underestimate this guy, and gives him some advice to throw the match for his own good. Yeah, that was ALWAYS going to go over badly. Kuwabara shoves his finger in Yusuke's face, pushing in the tip of his nose, and basically scoffs at the advice of a guy who won his last match through sheer dumb luck and still got beaten up so bad he can barely stand now. He's certainly got a POINT, here. While Yusuke growls at him like a feral possum, Kuwabara tells him not to worry, that he'll get to HIM next.

Oof, that panel hurts my eyes a little. 

Shaolin strikes a posture with his fist in the opposite palm, and politely suggests that the best man win. While they face each other when the match begins, Yusuke and Botan look on in gaping worry. Kuwabara starts things off with a declaration that the best defense is a good offense, and lunges for Shaolin. To the absolute shock of the onlookers, Kuwabara lands a face-warping punch on Shaolin. 

Are we... absolutely SURE there's a big, bad demon here at all?

Yusuke looks confused, and Shaolin rubs his cheek with a childish whine, admitting that Kuwabara is a bit stronger than the numbers indicated. Kuwabara is a little sheepish, muttering that he barely touched the wimpy guy. Wimpy, but persistent. He resolves to get more serious, and after a growl of determination, runs at Kuwabara. Every swing he takes at Kuwabara is dodged, Kuwabara twitching out of the way with no effort whatsoever. Kuwabara eventually gets annoyed and punches straight down on Shaolin's head, and Shaolin whines once more, clutching the lump on his head and bawling. Kuwabara asks who's getting the better of whom here, which just makes the picture all the sadder. 

Genkai frowns at the scene, Yusuke and Botan looking on with surprise. Yusuke turns to Botan and asks if she's absolutely SURE that's Rando, because he's not exactly living up to his reputation right now. It's Yusuke's suggestion that he got beaten up and robbed of HIS power, and Botan hums in response, without much else to say. It IS pretty hard to argue this guy is much of a threat. 

Shaolin crouches and a spectral fire surrounds him as he says it's time to play his ACE. Botan is concerned about his aura changing, and Yusuke looks like he's back to being cautious. In the palm of Shaolin's hand appears a puff of flame, which alarms the hell out of Kuwabara. 

Well, Genkai seems a little shocked, at least. 

Kuwabara lifts his arm out of the path of a flying fireball just in time and it whizzes under his armpit, but it singes his shirt which catches on fire from the proximity to the fire. He dances around, complaining of the heat, and Yusuke yells at him that he's not a rabbit. Once Kuwabara has got the little flame put out, he glares at Shaolin, grumbling about the stuff he's pitching at him and makes his own resolutions now that he's "at the plate" so to speak. 

He takes out the little piece of wooden sword he'd gotten from his previous match and creates the energy sword in much the same manner as before, calling it the "Leadoff Hitter Sword". These baseball metaphors are adorable, especially since his shirt appears to be a baseball jersey. 

Shaolin shoots another fireball, and just like he's a batter, Kuwabara swings and hits the fireball right back at its alarmed pitcher with the Aura Sword. 

It should be illegal for a scene to be this fucking cute. 

Yusuke points out to Botan that Kuwabara is getting more powerful by the minute, and even if Shaolin IS Rando, he could be in some trouble with our baseball boy. Botan wonders if Yusuke could be right, sweatdropping, but also looking a little hopeful. It would be awfully nice if Rando's defeat turned out to be easier than she assumed. 

So why do I feel like it's only going to be harder instead?

Shaolin gushes a bit about how Kuwabara just hit the fireball straight back at him and he couldn't dodge it, claiming Kuwabara combined defense and offense into one fighting style. Kuwabara is grinning when he tells Shaolin that flattery will get him nowhere, insisting he give up already. Shaolin refuses for the moment, lacing his fingers except for the two indexes, which he steeples together to point toward his chin. A jumble of Kanji float around behind him, indicating some sort of chant. Kuwabara asks aloud what all this Buddhist jazz is, speculating that it's Shaolin saying his prayers before he flattens him. 

Genkai mutters that it's some spell, though. When Yusuke and Botan look to her for explanation, she says that the flaming palms and the one Shaolin is currently using are techniques that the best "Voodoo charmers" and martial artists she knows have spent DECADES mastering. Uh, that term gives me the distinct impression that Genkai doesn't know a SINGLE Root Worker or Voodoo practitioner. Regardless, Genkai says now that she's heard of a demon stealing various masters' secrets recently, which is a hell of a thing to admit NOW, at the tail-end of her own competition for a successor. 

Yusuke expresses absolute shock that Shaolin actually DOES seem to be Rando, as Kuwabara makes a mad dash for Shaolin, resolving to make a move if his opponent is just going to stand there chanting. Suddenly, Kuwabara freezes in his advance, in question at first, then gaping, sweating HORROR.  

At first, Kuwabara screams that Shaolin has become a giant, but then he notices the tall grass around him and wonders where it came from, then hears a rustle next to him and turns to see a caterpillar that is almost as large as he is crawling over the ground. He shrieks at the snuffling thing, jumping back from its path, asking himself what's going on, if Shaolin grew, or if HE'S the one who changed. He leaves that last part unspoken, perhaps unable to utter the unspeakable, perhaps because he doesn't have time to finish his sentence before a giant hand descends and grasps him tightly, lifting him from the ground.

Honey, I shrunk the hooligan. 

Yusuke yells impotently that Shaolin can crush Kuwabara at will, a real "no duh" moment, and encourages Kuwabara to throw in the towel because he's lost. Uh, if Shaolin is a killer demon, what makes you think he's going to ACCEPT a forfeit from Kuwabara before just taking him off the census? Indeed, Shaolin asks politely for Yusuke not to take away his fun, expressing his desire for Kuwabara to suffer a little before "the end". Ominous as FUCK.

Kuwabara is struggling to escape Shaolin's grasp to absolutely no effect, and one of his arms is only allowed out of Shaolin's fist when Shaolin himself releases it to take it up into his opposite fingers. He asks mockingly what would happen if he held it like that, Kuwabara falling into silent panic, and Yusuke calling Kuwabara's name in alarm. Shaolin bends the little toy-like arm a little in unnatural directions, delicately, but producing a worrying crackle. Kuwabara stutters at him to stop, then screams when his right arm snaps under the pressure of Shaolin's fingers. Yusuke is rendered speechless in his horror.

Alright, NOW it's easy to see this guy as a demon. 

Yusuke overcomes the initial shock of watching mini Kuwabara getting his arm broken and turns to Genkai to shout at her to call the match, because it's over. She hums dispassionately at first, but then does as Yusuke asks, announcing that Shaolin is the victor. After Shaolin asks Kuwabara if he heard that he won, he claps his other hand over Kuwabara in his other fist and squeezes, producing a crunch as the body inside is mangled. Yusuke yells Kuwabara's name again, lunging toward Shaolin in the effort to stop him, calling him a scum ball. Thankfully, it looks like Kuwabara isn't COMPLETELY broken when we see him sticking out the top of Shaolin's fist in this panel, Shaolin having taken his other hand away. 

But Shaolin's cruelty isn't finished yet. He scoffs at the approaching Yusuke, then flings Kuwabara into the surrounding swamp, claiming to be done with him anyway. As Yusuke runs off in the direction Kuwabara was thrown, Botan joining him, Shaolin laughs about the speed he got on that pitch, and sighs in admiration for his thrill of victory. He supposes aloud that they would prefer Kuwabara to be returned to his original size, and lifts his hands again to reverse his spell, because he sees no real harm in it. 

Doctor? Doctor. Especially when Botan makes her medical assessment of Kuwabara while she and a fretting Yusuke kneel on either side of him: both arms, a leg, and some ribs SHATTERED. In fact, Botan says that it's possible the arms may never heal properly. Girl, take out those magic cleric powers or whatever and get busy! 

As if anyone asked, Shaolin starts gushing about how he wanted to try out that spell for a long time, but it's an awfully long and complicated incantation, and leaves him vulnerable when he's reciting it, which means it doesn't really add to his power in a practical way. He confesses that he's interested in Genkai's techniques because they require few words and create DEVASTATING results, like being able to blow a human to smithereens. Unsurprisingly, his little smile is looking pretty sinister here in a shaded panel. 

After a small pause, Genkai says that this would be the case in EVIL hands. Surely she recognizes by now that Shaolin does indeed HAVE those evil hands. I mean, he literally BROKE Kuwabara with them and everything. And he's just continuing to gush about how excited he is to try all this stuff out, and the rest of them just don't even GET IT. Yeah, man, no doubt they don't get the excitement about potentially murdering people. Super abnormal. 

Yusuke grunts through his clenched teeth that Shaolin will only get to try it in his dreams, which prompts Shaolin to take a moment to re-examine Yusuke and happily declare that he's never seen an aura so fired up with bloodlust. He thinks it's WAY COOL, lol. 

Shit is about to GO DOWN.

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Yusuke is having quite the emotional reaction, and I can't help but notice how much more POTENT it is than the one he had to Keiko's kidnapping and near demon-turn. That combined with how Yusuke doesn't even seem to really WANT to hang out with Keiko, and you start to wonder just exactly why some creators scratch their heads at rainbow interpretations of their male main characters. XD

All half-jokes aside, it's no wonder to me that this attitude of Shaolin/Rando has frustrated Yusuke to the point of murderous rage. He's maintaining an almost friendly and innocent affectation while saying some of the most malicious and threatening things with it, and the combination is very disturbing. It begs the question why he's bothering to keep up this strange act, unless the jaunty disposition is natural to him and just goes really well with his unassuming disguise. It sends a chill up your spine to think that the excitement he expresses like a kid in a candy store is literally just how he considers potential violence against humans; just like CANDY to him. Demonic indeed. 

I'm confused by Genkai again. She indicates that she's heard rumors about the demon stealing her colleagues' techniques, but still seems largely disinterested in the idea that this is what is possibly happening here. I can't decide if it's more likely that he held these trials in as a trap for the demon in partnership with the Underworld authorities (considering she did seem to recognize where Botan was from, and therefore Yusuke), OR if she just genuinely doesn't give a shit if her power goes to a demon or not. I recall from one of the discussions under a previous chapter that there MIGHT be some reasoning on Genkai's part that progress has no moral compunctions, but we have yet to hear from Genkai herself, so I'm still reserving judgment until I do. Perhaps I'm still holding out hope that she's not a consequentialist weirdo or something, lol!

And poor Kuwabara! Not only has he been horribly mangled, but he BARELY got to use his Spirit Sword, and certainly not in any way that wasn't a bat! Though I did appreciate the baseball metaphors. They were major league fun. :)

Inuyasha Manga: 329 Weakening Spirit Tree

Don't @ me, Chapter. Sure, my occasional tree visualization of root and branch isn't what it used to be, but I have a lot on my mind lately! My meditation sessions have been a struggle to focus for a while now, because of all the shit going on in my own life, the lives of my loved ones, and in the world at large. It feels like my head is overflowing, and instead of all the excess stuff that I have no personal power over/can't act on spilling out, it seems to have colonized my brain and pushed all actionable things right out. I need to find a way to banish the invaders, or my breath will continue to be harder and harder to follow in the future...

Still thankful I don't have the mental load THIS kid has, though. 

With a pained expression, Sango tells Kohaku that every village they passed was completely eaten by rats, as new ones continue to pour from the box. Sango hangs her head, mumbling that she didn't want to get involved with Kohaku yet again, Kohaku watching her and sweatdropping. He says plainly, if not a little hesitantly, that he can't disobey orders. When Sango's head snaps up, her eyes are brimming with tears, and she yells Kohaku's name. Then she leaps from Kirara's back with Hiraikotsu extended above her head, ready to swing the weapon, seemingly at the alarmed Kohaku. 

Oh good, she was just going for the box. At least she gave him an excuse to close the thing, if nothing else. 

Of course the end of the rat stream explodes into a knot on Hiraikotsu's elbow from where it fell and smashed a few rodents. Miroku calls for Sango to stop, reminding her of what she herself had told him only a couple of chapters ago, but she swings Hiraikotsu to throw off the vermin, yelling at Miroku to just suck the damn things up. 

Kohaku runs off toward an incline up a nearby hill, fleeing between a few buzzing Saimyoushou, which is probably preventing Miroku from doing what Sango ordered him. She groans in frustration as she runs after her brother, announcing her intention to smash the zushi, at the very least. Miroku looks over his shoulder at the rats still streaming off into the distance, and determines that even if he uses the Kazaana, the rats are too focused on going forward that they won't even look around. Not sure why he would care about the rats looking at him when he's vacuuming them into oblivion, but it's clear that he's wondering if the mayose charm drawing them is really THAT powerful at least. 

It's definitely BIG, that's for sure. 

As Shippou gapes up in wonder at the tree, he asks what happens to the rats that reach the sky, and Kagome answers that they get purified, most likely. She's looking a little worried here with her contracted brows and sweatdrop, and the silent Inuyasha isn't looking too much different. He notes that nowhere around the base of this massive tree is Kikyou in sight. Whether it's disappointment or concern isn't quite clear either.

Suddenly, a voice from the sky complains about how annoying a woman Kikyou is, for having setting this giant rodent trap up and then fucking off. A swirl of evil aura appears in the sky, and at its center, what looks like thick boneless appendages come worming their way out. 

Oh great, it's not tentacles, just... more fucking pests, lol!

Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippou all gape in alarm, the latter voicing the reality that they're looking at monstrous slugs. Standing on the side of one of these is Hakudoushi, STILL pissing and moaning about how he thought he'd finally dragged Kiykou out into the open. That's what you get when you devastate an area WAY too large to monitor where any one person may show up, kiddo. 

Inuyasha calls to Hakudoushi in a none-too-friendly way, accusing him rightly of being the bastard who unleashed all these fucking rats. Hakudoushi chuckles that Inuyasha shouldn't even need to ask, implying he's the only one depraved enough for a shitty plan like this. Which, you know... fair enough. 

At the edges of one the slugs' undersides sticking to the tree, the bark and wood crack under the slime breaking it down. Kagome cries that the mayose tree is being corroded by the slugs, and Shippou adds that the tree will be destroyed if they don't do something fast. Inuyasha grunts and yanks Tessaiga from its sheath as he leaps toward the tree. Hakudoushi mockingly asks if he'll cut him at the monsters, and Kagome calls to him, Shippou warning him not to use the Kaze no Kizu; he'll just be doing what Hakudoushi wants if he cuts down the tree along with the slugs. Inuyasha yells over his shoulder to the mouthy little brat that he KNOWS this, and continues his ascent up the tree with slug platforms to aid him. Shippou grumbles that Inuyasha's expression shows he doesn't understand, as if the ONLY reason Inuyasha could be going up the tree is to use Kaze no Kizu. 

Granted, there's no denying how RT loves making Inuyasha do the dumbest things...

Kagome holds up her bow and retrieves an arrow from her quiver, asserting that they have to protect the tree regardless. At least there are none of those arrows this time that will deliver a shock if she's trying use it in a way Kikyou doesn't like, lol! She nocks it and says that she's certain she can purify the youkai slugs. 

Shippou is congratulatory over her hitting the slug, but Kagome reminds him that they're pretty big targets. Gotta hand it to the girl, she stays humble. 

Meanwhile, Inuyasha is still hopping from slug-platform to slug-platform, demanding that the little bastard Hakudoushi stay right where he is above him. In his defense, he doesn't appear to be preparing to move at all. Inuyasha attempts to lecture him, asking how many villages he thinks had to parish just so he could draw out Kikyou, as if that's going to move the little psychopath. In fact, Hakudoushi's smirk remains firmly in place, asking Inuyasha in turn if he's really angry about that. It's at this point that Hakudoushi leaps from his perch just as Inuyasha is coming up to him, passing him in midair. Inuyasha swings away at Hakudoushi with a Kaze no Kizu.

See Shippou? He didn't aim at the fucking TRUNK, did he?

Hakudoushi's head smugly chuckles above what's left of his blown-away body, and as Inuyasha growls in anger and frustration, he begins to disappear into a vortex of swirling aura. Before he vanishes, he tells Inuyasha to give Kikyou a message if he sees her: As long as she continues to evade and run from Naraku, this same kind of catastrophe will continue to crop up endlessly. 

Or until the islands run out of villages to wipe out, of course. 

Inuyasha growls out a curse again, looking up at the slug above him and the sizzling trunk underneath it. On the ground, Shippou observes the rats with some concern, stuttering to Kagome that they're acting strange. Kagome lowers another arrow a bit with a noise of question, and Shippou explains that until now, they've been aiming themselves for the tree without hesitation, but now...

There's a joke in here somewhere about edging, but I'm not sure I'm the one to make it. XD

Kagome calls for Inuyasha to handle the slugs further up the tree, and Inuyasha responds he's already on it, clawing through another of the gooey youkai pests. Kagome concentrates on blasting another to oblivion with her arrow. Hopefully there aren't so many that she runs out of arrows. 

Back at the source site for the rats, Kohaku is leaping along with the zushi strapped to his back, but his escape is cut off by Hiraikotsu spinning out of the air from over his head and into the ground just in front of him. Or, maybe it just grazed the ground, because it returns to Sango's hand behind him, Kohaku following its path over his shoulder with his gaze. He turns and grunts as he throws his sickle at her, but she deflects the half-hearted resistance with Hiraikotsu's broad side, yelling his name in both warning and pleading. She insists that he HAS to break free of Naraku's grasp. Oh, if she knew he already has, it would absolutely SHATTER her at this point.

Kohaku contemplates her with some hesitation a moment. 

Scant meal as you are, I suppose you're better than the nothing they were heading for. 

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Hakudoushi's lack of concern with not being able to actually confront Kikyou is just more evidence that he pulled this youkai rat stunt because he thought it was FUN, and trapping Kikyou was just an minor excuse. This is something that we already know, though. What's particularly interesting about this, however, is how Hakudoushi is not treating this like a failure. Naraku gave him the task of drawing out Kikyou, and while it did have that effect, he created a mess big enough for her to slip out of and back into hiding without him catching her. It further emphasizes Naraku's habits to let a lot SLIDE when it comes to the failures of those in his service, something that I'm only now coming to recognize. We've only really seen him PUNISH Kagura, because she's outwardly antagonistic toward him, but the rest of his incarnations and "servants" are hardly ever given so much as an admonition for screwing up in their missions. It all just rolls off him like water off a duck's back.

How very Zen of him. Of course, he probably also considers the rat incident just as amusing as Hakudoushi, so in his mind it's worth it just to wipe out a few villages. 

I don't know if I have much else to say on the subject of Sango and Kohaku's respective dilemmas. Kohaku did look like he wanted quite badly to admit to Sango that he WAS indeed broken from Naraku's control there for a second at the end, but again, that's a double-edged sword. If he tells her that he's conscious, then she HAS to judge his actions based on his own autonomy, and letting that box stand open doesn't exactly look GOOD on him, even considering his unique reasoning. Besides, it's at least fair reasoning that he needs to continue keeping up appearances for his plan to work out, and it would be majorly anticlimactic if he threw that away so soon after making such a weighty decision. 

SOMEBODY'S gotta stick to their guns in this thing! 

YuYu Hakusho Manga: 029 Kaze-maru - Ninja!

I've been trying to cut down on my use of the em dash and en dash in my writing lately, because I hear that there's a tendency to ChatGPT and other LLMs to overuse these punctuation features, and I certainly don't want anyone to mistake my writing for that of so called "AI". As a result, I've become sensitive to the use of dashes everywhere I see them, and I can't help but flinch whenever I see them in other texts too, even ones that predate our current LLM issue by a long way. It's not their fault, but a filter's a filter. To make matters worse, the use of the hyphen in Kaze-maru has hardly been consistent when it's been used in previous chapters. In a single chapter, his name as been translated as Kaze-maru, Kazemaru, and Kaze Maru, and I've just stuck with the hyphenated spelling for consistency's sake. 

It might help if HUMANS could agree on how to spell names before they publish, instead of being so wild with them. 

Not a moment to recover? Is Genkai not vibing with Yusuke's punk persona and trying to get rid of him?

Yusuke complains that he just finished a match, and Genkai retorts that the order of the matches are set, which is a tough break for Yusuke. Uh, girl, the only one who's setting these rules is YOU. What's with the "I just work here" attitude you're adopting? Anyway, she's also sick of the fights in the dark, apparently, so she tells them they're also switching locales as she opens the massive door out of the abyss of a room.

Well, at least it'll be easier to for the audience to see the battles now too.

They climb a hill through the trees as a group this time, Yusuke bringing up the rear, huffing and puffing the whole way. Ah, the cigarettes are already taking their toll. He pisses and moans that his Reigun is all used up and he's a mass of bruises, not giving himself good odds for this round. Botan, who is slightly ahead of him on the trek, silently agrees, and adds that Kaze-maru might very well be Rando. They both peer at the backs of the two left besides Yusuke and Kuwabara, worrying and wondering which one it might be. 

The group emerges from the trees in a clearing with some tall grass that half-obscures Genkai, who announces that they've arrived. 

Genkai might be going for Yoda vibes here...

She states in all seriousness that ancient battles were fought here, and there's no more spiritual a spot on the whole mountain. It's her assertion that their powers will flower fully on this ground, swampy though it might be. Kaze-maru agrees with her, surrounded with spectral fire, saying that he feels the power surging through him. Botan turns to Yusuke and asks if HE feels anything while he examines his extended forefinger and thumb. He answers that he's getting SOME strength back, but not nearly enough for a decent shot, and he has some anxiety about being cooked if Kaze-maru is Rando with powers he hasn't shown yet. 

Wearing a smug smirk, Kaze-maru claims to sympathize with Yusuke being dealt a shit hand, and starts to lecture Yusuke on how you have to play the cards luck has given you in the real world. I wouldn't expect a guy like this to use gambling metaphors, but I guess it works for the target, so it's fine. Kaze-maru adds that Yusuke MAY prevail with enough spiritual energy, but rather than this being a hopeful note, it comes across as more mocking. Yusuke thinks that he'll only prevail by delivering one good counter punch, clenching his fist. It's no wonder his instinct is to fall back on his base brawling skills, as he doesn't appear to have much faith that he can get through this otherwise.

Kaze-maru takes a step forward, drawling about how interesting it is to meet someone like himself that can emit reiki in the same way he can, but acknowledges that it seems Yusuke's energy is spent. With this observation out of the way, he lunges for Yusuke and declares he could defeat the kid right now with his bare hands. To his horror, Yusuke's shoe gets stuck in the squishing mud and he's forced to watch Kaze-maru's fist sailing straight at the side of his face. 

That's going to hurt in the morning. Or now. 

It unsticks Yusuke from the ground, though, so that's good. He's left sprawled on the swamp some distance from Kaze-maru, having been flung through the force of the ninja's punches. Groaning, Yusuke pushes himself up as Kaze-maru strolls over, Kuwabara laments how beat Yusuke is to the point where he can't even hit back or dodge. 

Kaze-maru pulls back for another hit when he arrives at Yusuke's side, promising to make it a quick defeat for him. But Yusuke responds with an exclamation of "now!" and swings at Kaze-maru once he's close enough. Sweatdropping, Kaze-maru twitches back, so Yusuke's punch barely goes past his head. Yusuke complains that he missed, but blood spurts from a new cut on Kaze-maru's cheek, surprising him quite a bit. He leaps back some distance, and as Yusuke bares his teeth at him, Kaze-maru admits that Yusuke's not quite as spent as he thought, and he'll have to stay out of the tot's reach. 

Just thought I'd remind everyone that this is a grown man fighting a literal teenager. 

Well, the title DID emphasize that he's a ninja, after all. 

As the stars whizz toward him, Yusuke acknowledges that he's in pretty bad shape, but he should easily be able to dodge those. And in fact does, fairly easily. This doesn't appear to bother Kaze-maru, though, who stands with a neutral expression, arms crossed. Yusuke asks if he's got anything else, or if he plans to just stand there, but his attention is drawn by a growing whir behind him. To his alarm, it's the whole set of stars coming back around at his head. 

The stars slash Yusuke yet again on their third pass, causing Yusuke to cry out in pain. Kaze-maru lifts a finger from his crossed arms to wag it at Yusuke, calling these little missiles reiki-seeking throwing stars that Yusuke won't be able to escape. Over another shot of one spinning relentlessly in the air, Kaze-maru says they'll keep going until they hit their target. 

Yusuke takes a wide defensive stance in front of a tree, the stars steering toward him once again. At the last second, he leaps out from their path, and the moment one of them makes contact with the tree...

Really? They have to EXPLODE too??

Apparently. As Yusuke is thrown back by the force of blast, Kaze-maru lightly admits that his stars also explode when they're hit, so even a near miss can mess one up. Pointing in his supposed triumph, Kaze-maru declares that Yusuke out of options. Yusuke pushes himself again to his feet with more effort than ever, it seems, groaning while he thinks that he's toast if there's one more explosion like that. He staggers, and senses the turn in midair of the remaining stars as they steer for him once more, knowing that this is it. But he also knows he can't just STAND here if this guy is Rando.

Interlude by a sketch of Botan wishing everyone a happy New Year with best wishes and all that. Being as far as I can be from the New Year during my coverage of this chapter is a LITTLE amusing to me. 

Back in the chapter proper, Yusuke glances nervously over to Kuwabara, and laments how much it sucks, but...

He doesn't realize he's the new tree yet, does he?

Yusuke he's going straight into WHATEVER Kaze-maru has got, so that if HE goes down, so does Kaze-maru. Kaze-maru holds out his palm, which glows with building power, insisting (a little nervously, I might say) that Yusuke take his energy blast, because the fool cannot be allowed to get anywhere NEAR him. 

After a splash, Kaze-maru is left alone on the field, looking around and questioning where Yusuke disappeared to. He's incensed that Yusuke pulled off this impossible vanishing act, but his anger is quickly replaced with panic when his stars, in Yusuke's absence, start heading straight for him. He yells at them halting exclamations of discouragement and disbelief, as though they'll be moved not to attack their own master.

Maybe program them for that possibility next time, my dude. 

Kaze-maru arcs back with the force of the self-inflicted explosion, exclaiming haltingly that he just doesn't get it, then thumps on the ground, defeated. But Kuwabara seems more interested in the fact that, as he and the others advance on the battlefield, Yususke really appears to have vanished into thin air. Botan's attention is drawn by a glubbing in the swamp, and then an arm extends from the muddy water, waving, and she points out the spot in excitement. Kuwabara drags Yusuke out of the bog, mocking him for being so desperate as to hide in there, but Yusuke coughs that he WASN'T hiding; he just FELL IN. He and I both seem to be in disbelief that it turned out to be the right move anyway, lol. 

Smiling, Genkai says that it would seem it was, telling Yusuke that his sudden disappearance threw Kaze-maru off his timing, and though it was accidental, it's still Yusuke's win. She asserts that Lady Luck was smiling on him this time. Still not the biggest miracle she pulled off for him in this story though! XD

Kaze-maru, still conscious, though immobile on the ground, whines that he can't believe it, and Yusuke agrees. Botan can say for certain now that Kaze-maru is down for the count and is not giving off any subconscious demonic aura that she can detect, he's NOT Rando. With this affirmation, Yusuke concludes that the only one it could possibly be is the guy Kuwabara is now going to face in the second semi-finals match that Genkai is yelling at them to prepare for. The guy who Kuwabara is currently thinking should be a cinch to beat. 

Yeeeaaaaah, definitely should have struck us as more obvious...

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? I may have been somewhat torn on the re-frame of Yusuke's bad habits in the previous chapter, but my opinion of the content of this one is less difficult to parse. I definitely appreciate the element of luck being emphasized in this one, because it's just not covered in most stories that I come across. Skill and work are subordinate to opportunity in my experience, and the former just don't matter much without the latter coming around first. Without a little luck, Yusuke wouldn't have been in any position to win this one, because he just wasn't in any physical condition to continue to perform at capacity. 

And it looked to me that Genkai, smiling like she was, appreciated Yusuke's luck here too. One might have expected her to be a little frustrated that fortune had played so big a role in the outcome of this match as opposed to the skill and power of the two fighters. But she appeared almost pleased with the winner. It's possible, because she had already decided on the order of the matches, that she had been hoping the old swamp would provide a bit more of a leveling effect on the playing field, with its power-boosting properties as well as its environmental advantages. Because she's expressed her intention to go with whoever won in her trials no matter what, she would be interested in making things as fair as possible, and to make up for her personal hand in the matter as much as possible. I don't doubt she's aware that her own decisions are affecting the scales in various subtle ways, so I wouldn't be surprised if she was trying to mitigate that as much as possible. If adding a little luck into the process for anyone to grasp and take advantage of is the result, then that's all the better. 

And no doubt a spiritual adept like herself is partial to the idea of seeming randomness like luck provides an avenue for Providence to act for the best too. XD