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PLAYER
YOUR NAME: Boba
18+?: yes
CONTACT:![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
chipsnfish
CHARACTERS IN GAME: Yato (goen)
RESERVATION LINK: ey
YOUR NAME: Boba
18+?: yes
CONTACT:
chipsnfishCHARACTERS IN GAME: Yato (
goen)RESERVATION LINK: ey
CHARACTER: CANON SECTION
NAME: Sakichi Ishida
AGE: 18 (20 after timeskip, 41 eventually what is time)
CANON: Rengoku ni Warau
NAME: Sakichi Ishida
AGE: 18 (20 after timeskip, 41 eventually what is time)
CANON: Rengoku ni Warau
CANON HISTORY: wiki but it's awful so here we go I guess, think about me as I cry 1000 glittering tears
( scroll for history! )
• While many elements of Rengoku ni Warau are fictional, Sakichi himself is based on the historical figure Mitsunari Ishida. "Sakichi" was that figure's childhood name, and Sakichi does end up taking up the Mitsunari name later on. As in history, Sakichi as Mitsunari will eventually lead an army at the Battle of Sekigahara, the last defining battle of the Sengoku Period.
• Sakichi's story begins in 1577. He is a page to Hashiba Hideyoshi, a daimyo during the Sengoku Period of Japan. Tasked with finding the mysterious Dokuro Hozuki, Sakichi travels to the land of Oumi. It's rumored that the Dokuro Hozuki is the key to controlling the Orochi, a fearsome serpent capable of destroying the lands. Utterly devoted to Hideyoshi, Sakichi makes it his mission to find the Dokuro Hozuki at all costs. According to Hideyoshi, Kumou Shrine is where he needs to go.
• He arrives at Kumou Shrine, which is rumored to be run by a pair of cursed twins. Sakichi poo-poos the notion of people being cursed for being born and heads in. SPOILERS these twins are Baren and Okuni, and they play a trick on Sakichi that ends up with him tied up, blindfolded, and sitting in a literal pool of shit with poop in his hands. Good job Sakichi you're a winner.
• The townspeople hear that the twins are playing tricks again and try to do Sakichi a favor by trashing the shrine. Sakichi is like what I didn't ask for this, what's wrong with you people. Then he chases them off. After mysteriously watching this from a tree, the Kumou twins finally make an appearance in front of Sakichi.
• Sakichi is a pest and decides to stay at Kumou Shrine until the twins tell him where the Dokuro Hozuki is. The twins are annoyed by this. They stage an elaborate ploy to get Sakichi in trouble by making it look like Okuni was shot and sending him off to the Kunitomo Group, a community of prestigious gunsmiths downwind. Thinking that he's doing a good and just thing by helping the victimized Kumou twins, Sakichi marches off to the Kunitomo Group. He picks a fight, somehow manages to win, and then realizes that he's been tricked all along. He heads back to Kumou Shrine, taking a parade of trouble with him.
• More stuff happens. Sakichi blows up barrels of gunpowder and accidentally reveals his SECRET MISSION to a big angry mob of people. Good job Sakichi, part 2. Mutiny within the Kunitomo Group is dealt with and Sakichi becomes a friend to Kunitomo.
• Trying to understand what's up with the twins, Sakichi shadows Baren one day. He ends up following him to a prostitute house. Sakichi's delicate sensibilities are scandalized. One of the prostitutes turns out to be a well-known informant; her name is Gengetsu. Ninjas from the Iga clan bust in to kidnap her. Sakichi and Baren successfully defend her and skedaddle out of the village. They also learn that Iga are going to try and kidnap Okuni, but Baren and Gengetsu are just like lol good luck, Okuni's a badass.
• Sakichi and Baren head off to find Okuni. The two of them annoy each other but they still bond kind of. They eventually run into Tanba Momochi, one of the Iga Grandmasters. You know he's strong because he's literally sitting on a huge pile of corpses when they find him. There are a father and son still alive, so Tanba has the son kill the father for kicks, then kills the son too. Sakichi is fucked up over this and, despite Baren's insistence that it's pointless to jump in to save strangers, especially against a hard dude like Tanba, Sakichi jumps way in anyway because he's just that super pissed.
• Tanba says he won't kill Sakichi because he's a candidate to be a vessel for the Orochi. Which I guess is a good thing, because Tanba outclasses Sakichi mightily. They fight, and despite being the clear underdog, Sakichi is so intensely shounen that he gets Tanba's blood riled up anyway. "If you live to kill for pleasure, I will without hesitation crush you. I do it because I believe I can do it! THIS IS MY WAY OF LIVING!" Good job Sakichi, part 3. Except Baren trips Sakichi with a slingshot and makes him fall into a hidden hole in the ground, obscuring him from Tanba's view. Tanba loses track of Sakichi, gets kind of weird in the face and says "ISHIDA SAKICHI" 21 times, and dashes away to try and find Sakichi.
• Back at the pit, Baren comments that Sakichi isn't suited to the battlefield. Sakichi says yeah I guess I'm more suited to documents and politics. But his dream is to make a world with at war, and Hideyoshi is the one who will make it happen. Baren remarks that "Nothing will be fulfilled just by wishing. Nothing can change with just pretty words." Sakichi replies, "I know. But nothing will start if one does not say it." And then Baren decides to trust Sakichi, as long as Sakichi cooperates with him and Okuni.
• Baren and Sakichi run across Nobukatsu Oda, Nobunaga Oda's incompetent and tasty-sounding son. They learn from him that the Iga are planning to set Oumi on fire. The two of them rush off to Oumi, leaving some Kunitomo friends to meet Okuni instead.
• Along the way, they encounter Tanba and his posse of Iga ninjas. With some fancy maneuvering, Sakichi and Baren both manage to land a hit on Tanba and escape.
• They make a stop at one of Gengetsu's hideouts along the way. Turns out she's an onmyouji, cool. She can't divine any information because she's being blocked though, so not so cool. Baren takes a horse while Sakichi and Gengetsu take another. In exchange for making sure the twins won't die, Gengetsu explains the twins' background and reasoning to Sakichi. The twins used to be loved along with their mom, Asahi Kumou, up until Asahi died. The villagers blamed the twins for their mom's death, and from then on the twins became hated. The twins allowed the village to hate them because it united the villagers and helped them cope with the skies above Oumi always being cloudy and gloomy -- a sign of disaster. Sakichi is pissed.
• Once they reach the village, Baren and Sakichi split up to figure out how to stop the fire from happening. Except the Iga show up and herd Baren to a certain spot, where an explosion goes off and starts the fire near him. Baren is framed!! The villagers accuse him of starting the fire and go after him as a mob. Baren tells Sakichi to run into this burning building and save the dude inside, and Sakichi is like god dammit what but he does it anyway... Good job Sakichi, part 4. Here is where Sakichi meets Sakon, who does Sakichi a solid by destroying some falling flaming debris about to fall on him. Mission complete, Sakichi runs out to see Baren on a cliff being confronted by villagers. Sakichi continues to be mad that Baren (and Okuni) try to take everything upon themselves. "Give me half! I'll shoulder the burden with you!!" quoth the Sakichi. Baren makes a note of it but in the end is like sorry bro and walks further away. A villager shoots off Baren's eyepatch (which is wow either really impressive or really incompetent) , revealing scale-like markings around his left eye. Baren plays it up like he's Big Bad Orochi, scaring the villagers into shooting him. Baren falls off a cliff, presumed dead. Sakichi is fucked up over it.
• Sakichi returns to Kumou Shrine, only to see the villagers smashing it to the ground completely.
• Sakichi returns to his Lord Hideyoshi feeling like trash. He comes back with lots of information about the Dokuro Hozuki and Orochi. Hideyoshi tells him to continue the Kumou twins' job of protecting the Dokuro Hozuki. But Sakichi is torn up over the loss of the twins (Okuni also got shot a lot and fell off a cliff, assumed r.i.p.) and expresses doubt over whether he's the best person for the job when he was so powerless to save the twins. Hideyoshi smacks Sakichi on the head with his fan and tells Sakichi that he does have strength, and that it's too early to be claiming powerlessness. He entrusts Sakichi with the continued Orochi mission and tells him to prevent the Orochi's resurrection.
• Sakichi is moved by Hideyoshi's words and gets fired up again. "I, Sakichi, swear that I will protect the Dokuro Hoozuki, and stop the Orochi from wreaking havoc!! Everything is for the land of my lord! For the peace of the country!"
• Sakichi shows back up at the Kumou Shrine and basically tells everyone to fight him if they don't like him taking charge of the shrine. More like he tells them to "protest to their heart's content", but same diff. No one wants to fight him because they think he's weird. Sakichi starts rebuilding the shrine.
• SKIP AHEAD TWO YEARS.
• Sakichi works on rebuilding the shrine for two whole years. This is all he has to show for it. Good job Sakichi, part 5. Gengetsu shows up and comments that Sakichi looks different, but let's not kid ourselves he looks exactly the same lmao.
• Sakichi bugs Gengetsu into finally showing him the way to the Dokuro Hozuki, and she agrees. She takes him to a hut in the woods, where the Dokuro Hozuki supposedly lives. Sakichi thanks her, loudly announces his presence, and then decides to sit on the ground until she comes out. He sits there for literally seven days until he's starving and dehydrated and he can't feel his limbs. Sakichi how are you even sure she's in there. He collapses. Good job Sakichi, part 6.
• But the Dokuro Hozuki does make her appearance, telling him to find a scroll in Setsu containing a written method to controlling the Orochi's power. Sakichi passes out. When he comes to, it's off to Setsu.
• Sakichi rides off on his GLORIOUS, GLITTERING HORSE, who I can't believe is named Nadeshiko. A bandit appears out of nowhere and tries to steal his shit and run off, but this horse literally fights the bandit and stomps his ass down. And so we know why Sakichi is in love with a horse.
• Sakon shows up. Wow what a coincidence. Sakichi immediately accidentally drops the fact that he's on a secret mission related to the Orochi for Hideyoshi. Good job Sakichi, part 7. Sakon says that he's investigating a lord named Murashige Araki, who opposed Nobunaga Oda. Murashige's castle is under siege nearby. Sakichi, the worst person in all of Japan at keeping secrets, gives even more information about his intent away. Luckily, Sakon is a cool guy and just finds it funny and interesting.
• Murashige erupts from the bushes out of nowhere SPEAK OF THE DEVIL. He's running from more bandits. Sakon saves him because Sakichi is a slowass.
• Sakichi and Sakon are like why are you even here, dude. Murashige is not forthcoming, so Sakon speculates that Murashige ran away and Sakichi is like what!! no way, his castle is under siege and a general wouldn't escape alone and abandon his soldiers. Murashige looks SUSPICIOUSLY GUILTY. Precious, precious Sakichi doesn't notice this. Sakon notices that Murashige is carrying a wrapped package and Murashige freaks out when asked what's inside. Also, turns out Murashige is wounded. He continues to freak out, ranting about how terrifying Nobunaga is.
• Seeing how injured Murashige is, Good Bean Sakichi tries to do his best to help Murashige walk. When Murashige's continued panic and distrust is clear, Sakichi calms him down by letting Murashige hold his sword. Murashige says, "What kind of fool... Your sword is your life! To just hand it over to a stranger..." Sakichi is like yeah I trust you bro, now let's hurry. It truly hurts me how shounen he is despite having the face he has.
• FROM HERE ON OUT THE TRANSLATIONS ARE PRETTY CASUAL SUMMARIES. JSYK. SHOUTOUT TO PIXI FOR BEING A GODDESS
• Sakon voices doubt about Murashige's character and Sakichi is like yo shut up, letting people die in front of me is no bueno. Sakon continues to operate on the assumption that Murashige is running away, and Sakichi continues to have faith that Murashige is merely leaving to get help or negotiate in person. After all, Murashige has seen so many of his people die, so he wouldn't abandon his troops and family. Sakichi actually looks very kindly and supportive when he says this, probably to drive home the MAXIMUM GUILT on Murashige's face in the next panel. Sakichi continues to be unable to read guilt. Good job Sakichi, part 8.
• Like a surprise buttspook, Nobukatsu-don shows up again, along with Tanba and his ninja posse. Sakon fights the posse and Sakichi takes Tanba again, despite Sakon being a superior fighter in almost every way but alright. Tanba swats Sakichi aside and starts terrorizing Murashige to find out where Murashige's Orochi scroll is. Sakichi is Very Persistent and keeps clinging to Tanba to get him to stop. Sakichi urges Murashige to flee, tosses him onto Glorious Horse Nadeshiko, and declares that Tanba Shall Not Pass. Tanba beats him up a lot. To Sakichi's credit, he's still a real smart fighter no matter how messed up he gets and manages to get yet another hit on Tanba.
• Murashige eventually gets guilted SO HARD by memories of Sakichi assuming the best of him that he circles back around and intervenes. He does pretty swell at fighting Tanba, until Tanba just punches his sword and breaks it (haha oh rnw), then another ninja stabs Murashige in the back. Since Murashige appears unable to talk anymore, Tanba walks away and Sakichi, Sakon, and Murashige are left alone. Murashige then reveals that the Orochi scroll was in a hidden compartment in the package he was smuggling away and entrusts it to Sakichi. Then he deda.
• Sakichi is real sad.
• Sakichi goes back to Hideyoshi and finds out that Nobunaga has sent a summons for him. Sakichi questions if he has to go. He tries to keep the reason why he doesn't want to go secret, but as we know he's the worst at secrets and he basically spills it anyway. Good job Sakichi, part 9. Hideyoshi trusts Sakichi though because Sakichi says he can be trusted, and that's precious. Sakichi looks so happy about being useful to Hideyoshi and JUST TAKE MY WORD FOR IT, IT'S REAL CUTE.
• Sakichi's friend Kinosuke gets nosy, Sakichi tells him to go away in a blunt, mean-sounding way, yet Sakichi praises him in a way when he's gone... Sakichi's really bad at talking to people lmao. Sakon remarks that Sakichi should work on gathering allies and making friends for the day when Sakichi will be a leader himself, and Sakichi is like nah no need, I'm just following Hideyoshi. Sakon says yeah I dunno man it's gonna mess you up someday. TWENTY-YEAR FORESHADOWING
• Sakichi and Sakon are traipsing along to pass through Sakichi's home village of Ishida when some dude comes up and starts screaming at Sakichi like THIS IS YOUR FAULT!!! Turns out the village is on fire and everyone's dying haha oh man. Soldiers bearing Sakichi's house emblem are razing the village to the ground and this is personally confusing to Sakichi because he literally doesn't have any soldiers for himself. He goes to confront a soldier, and some Dragonball shit happens where it hits him in the face and he goes flying off his horse and straight into the side of a house, demolishing the side of the house but leaving Sakichi strangely intact.
• TURNS OUT THE SOLDIERS ARE DEAD PEOPLE. Welcome to Zombie Sengoku. One of the soldiers even uproots an entire tree and starts swinging it around as a weapon?? Gengetsu shows up and blasts all the zombies in the face with her own face. #justonmyoujithings. Iga ninja show up, blah blah blah more fighting, Sakichi gets pulled into the ground and harassed by a dude with a forked tongue and this series is getting real weird.
• Eventually, the Iga pull a kid out and stab Sakon and Gengetsu, and present Sakichi with the choice of "save this kid or save your friends". Sakichi is, of course, pissed off, and really he can't make the choice because he's too idealistic and can't handle anyone dying in front of him. He feels powerless again and falls into despair over being unable to live up to his own words. Ninja lady slits the kid's throat, laughs at Sakichi a lot, then moves on to kill Gengetsu. Sakichi starts begging for her to stop and his face is real sad and it's not okay, guys
• WHOOOSH SURPRISE THE TWINS SHOW UP!! They're perfect and beautiful and it's almost like they didn't get shot and fall off cliffs the last time we saw them. Sakichi is so dewy-eyed when he seems them, what a goober. They give Sakichi words of encouragement and together they all chase the ninjas away.
• They manage to save the kid's life. The twins are like geez Sakichi and Sakichi smiles and says he was waiting for them... The twins can't believe their little Sakichi is this cute and ellipses at him. They say that as the eighth heads of the Kumou Shrine, they're going to support Sakichi and help him become the best.
• Sakichi puts his sword down and bows to them, saying that he thought they were alive but that it still hurt because he could've done more if he'd known their intentions earlier. The twins berate him and disagree, saying that it was their decision and he's being conceited lmao. Okuni says that if Sakichi was that worried, he should consider what they said earlier about helping him rise to the top. Sakichi is like. Nah. Hideyoshi's where I'm at.
• Turns out the twins had Murashige's scroll delivered to him because anyone brave enough to stand up to Nobunaga would be a good protector. Sakichi becomes upset that they would use Murashige that way, because the twins love Oumi and Sakichi thought they would be different from someone like Nobunaga. The twins tell him that these are the times they live in and that sacrifices must be made to realize their dreams. Sakichi becomes angry and storms off.
• The villagers are surprised to learn that the twins are alive and have difficulty comprehending the possibility that the twins are decent people who helped everyone. Sakichi shows up like IS EVERYONE OKAY and that's real convenient for the townspeople because he gets to be their new scapegoat. They start losing their shit and throwing rocks at him, and poor diplomatic Sakichi stops his friends from defending him. Instead he calmly tries to talk to the villagers, asking them what proof they have that he's to blame. Of course, angry mobs ain't gonna have anything to do with calm or logic, so they shout at him more and throw more rocks. He begins to think about how easy it is for people to turn on you, thinks about the twins and how they took the burden on themselves, and then thinks about how all of it is still wrong.
• He sees Okuni watching from nearby and begins talking to the townsfolk, telling them that he's to blame for the fire incident two years ago as well. He's pretty much trying to absorb as much blame away from the twins as he can. He thinks to himself that he's not kind enough to wish for the happiness of fools who don't want to see the truth, then tells the villagers to hate him if they want to hate him.
• The twins are alarmed and mad, and as they argue with him, Sakichi breaks down and shouts that he knows he's contradicting himsef. He has too many conflicting feelings: he wishes for the peace of Japan, but he can't wish for the mob's happiness; he should be happy that the twins are alive, but he looks at them and feels bitter about what happened with Murashige. Baren says that this it what it means to live in troubled times, but Sakichi refuses to blame the era for "things like grief or giving up". Again, the twins urge him to change the times and make his ideals a reality. Sakichi says he won't be used ("a vessel to stand on"), and storms off to his old house.
• The twins barge into his home because there's no lock lmao and usher him into the backyard to exchange a vow with him, calling him their stepbrother. They say that if he doesn't want to be used, then they'll be equals like siblings. Sakichi can keep on dreaming, and the twins will clear the path. Sakichi is moved and asks if they're really sure, listing all his faults. He's still not strong, but since meeting them, he's begun to think that he wants to change the world with his own hands.
• He explains that Sakichi is his childhood name, but Hideyoshi gave him another one. If all three of them are together, then he can finally use it with confidence. THERE'S A PUN INVOLVED HERE BUT WHATEVER THE NAME IS MITSUNARI. They all share a cup of sake and I guess they're OT3 married now. jk they just siblings
• Despite all that fancy punning with the Mitsunari name, I think they still keep calling him Sakichi so lmao I guess I will too.
• THEY'RE OFF TO SEE NOBUNAGA. The twins are like, NO MATTER WHAT DON'T GIVE NOBUNAGA THE SCROLL. This seems reasonable. They walk up a ton of stairs and the twins are fine but Sakichi is exhausted by the time they reach the top... I honestly can't tell if he's weak or if the twins are just that ridiculous. Probably a bit of both tbh.
• THEY GET TO NOBUNAGA. This should be obvious by now but Sakichi almost immediately drops their supposed-to-be secret that they know about the Orochi scrolls and have one. Good job Sakichi, part 10. At least this time it's on purpose... He tells Nobunaga that he's entrusted the scroll with someone else, and that if he (Sakichi) is harmed, the scroll will never be found. They start having an ideological battle in which Nobunaga says that he's going to conquer everything in order to build a peaceful country, even if people/insects are crushed in the process. Sakichi shouts THAT'S MESSED UP DUDE, I WON'T GIVE YOU THE OROCHI and all the guards are alarmed and draw their weapons. Good job Sakichi, part 11. Nobunaga's like bye have fun trying to escape and the trio all start beating up guards and running...
• They fight fight fight, then Sakichi gets tossed off a railing and separated from the twins. The Dokuro Hozuki shows up out of nowhere (her name is Botan I'mma just call her Botan) and shows Sakichi the way out, which involves jumping off a super high balcony into a river. He ends up doing this but doesn't know how to swim. The twins rescue him out of nowhere somehow even though Sakichi plunged like 20 stories in rapid succession and it would've taken an elevator for them to follow him that fast. Anyway they escape, more or less because Nobunaga lets them.
• After all this time Sakichi is still working on rebuilding the shrine, amazing. Turns out Sakichi left his scroll with his old friend who is actually an Orochi candidate and he's shocked to learn that said friend (Kinosuke) has some darkness in his heart because he can't see anything written in the scroll, which only good-hearted can read I guess. But in the end Sakichi is just like... ok but there's still no problem, Kinosuke is loyal to Hideyoshi and he said to come get the scroll. No bigs. Baren dropkicks him for being too Sakichi, and then Okuni caves Baren's face in with her elbow for being too Baren.
• They plan to steal Nobunaga's scroll while he's busy trying to move in on Iga territory and decide to start amassing an army for Mitsunari Ishida.
• Baren is Tanba's son. Irrelevant to Sakichi but I just thought that was hilarious. Please laugh at Dana because it causes her pain. Baren ends up going with Tanba because Tanba would fight all three of the trio otherwise.
• Nobunaga tells Hideyoshi to lend him Sakichi for the upcoming battle with Iga. Hideyoshi can't refuse and internally hopes Sakichi doesn't do anything dumb lmao.
• Okuni has a pissed off Sakichi tied to a post. He rants about how he approves of nothing re: Baren, so Okuni punches him in the face and he calms down lmao. Gengetsu shows up and joins the gang to help them communicate with Baren.
• Sakichi is STILL rebuilding the shrine while Okuni lazes around. Botan shows up and starts giving the lowdown on Orochi stuff. She's a shikigami summoned by the Abe clan 300 years ago in order to seal the Orochi. She disappeared when her duty was done then, but has reappeared again now. The Orochi is already beginning to assimilate with its chosen vessel. She explains that during the first stage, the host goes out of control when unconscious. Also, that people are trying to awaken the Orochi by causing the candidates to fall into despair. SO THEY GOTTA BE CAREFUL.
• Sakichi finds out that he's going to be Nobunaga's page and it's like WOWWEE i'M BASICALLY GONNA DIE AREN'T I but he has to go so haha. He acknowledges that he'll be going and off they go to the races. Multiple people pray that Sakichi doesn't do anything stupid.
• So Sakichi is just sitting with Nobunaga for this battle in some swanky new samurai armor. He probably won't have to go into battle unless shit goes horribly wrong but I guess we'll see in coming chapters lmao. BASICALLY Sakichi's role in this is just talking to Nobunaga about how the battle is going and strategy and stuff, blah blah. AND THIS IS WHERE THE MANGA CURRENTLY STANDS AT AS OF CHAPTER 44.
CANON PERSONALITY:
Sakichi's mind is as straight as a gunshot. He leaves no room in himself for contradiction or hesitation. He hates lies, and every word that leaves his mouth can be taken as his earnest truth -- whether it was asked for or not. A task set before him is as good as done; he will pursue it with steady, single-minded determination until it's finished, whether it's as simple as traveling from point A to B, or as complicated as investigating a virtual unknown. He is logical in his approach, always organized. Even when complications arise, he is quick to identify his priorities and tackle each one with wit and courage until there are none left. Truly, one would be hard-pressed to find a more direct and dedicated man than Sakichi. He makes his mission his life, to detriment of nearly everything else.
Sakichi's laser focus leaves him with little leftover attention for inessential things like friendship, hobbies, and pleasantries. While he is fully capable of behaving politely with the percentage of the population he perceives himself as serving, he is always goal-minded and does not often slow down to accomodate for the people unrelated to his immediate concerns. This can make him overly brusque and harsh of tongue, even with his friends. Example: in the very first chapter, his friend Kinosuke tries to tag along with him and is talkative and nosy in the process. Sakichi stops, looks him in the eye, and says, "I'll tell you directly. You're in the way. An unrefined man with a loud voice like you won't be of use. ... It's the truth. You're the personification of bodily desires. Do you think that you are my partner? You really are naive." It's behavior like this that leaves Sakichi largely friendless -- not that he particularly minds. He relies on himself and his ingenuity first and foremost.
Sakichi often stands alone, but he stands strong. He has a remarkably rigid character and believes greatly in order, diplomacy, and justice. He has a low tolerance for faulty logic, mischief, and immorality, and is quick to stand against those things while making his position abundantly clear. He's so outspoken that it's awfully common for him to cause a scene, no matter how many people he may be angering in the process. He could even be described as hotblooded. If someone is being wronged in front of him, he will drop everything to interject and correct the wrong. This can be a problem when he's all but throwing his life away in the process, but time and time time again Sakichi will do it, no matter who else is dragged into his trouble. He absolutely refuses to compromise his morals for anything.
And Sakichi is a highly moral creature. Unrealistically so. He's called idealistic by basically half the cast, and an inexperienced idealist by the other. Please read this, one of my fave quotes:
Baren: Nothing will be fulfilled just by wishing. Nothing can change with only pretty words.
Sakichi: I know. But nothing will start if one does not say it.
Despite his largely stoic nature, he dreams deeply of peace for his wartorn home of Japan. He always attempts diplomacy before an altercation and appeals to others to talk their problems out. He believes that communication is the best solution, and that hatred and superstition are caused by misunderstanding. Unless given reason not to, he tends to believe in the best intentions of other people. For instance: he is confronted with the warlord Murashige running from his long-besieged castle; Sakichi's companion Sakon deduces that the man must be fleeing and abandoning his people, whereas Sakichi believes that no lord who has seen so many of his people die already would abandon even more of them. SPOILERS, Sakichi was totally wrong. But he believes in the Murashige's goodness to the very end. He's uncompromising and refuses to accept failure when it comes to realizing his beliefs, which is not always for the better. It's often the people around him who end up extracting him from the trouble he creates for himself.
When he does fail to protect his beliefs -- whether it's because someone under his care has died, or he's forced to watch someone suffer in front of him -- he reactions with great emotion. When it appears as though the Kumou twins have died, it shakes him to his core and detroys his self-confidence. When Murashige dies, Sakichi grieves and thinks back on him repeatedly. When contradictions start building up in him and he's unable to resolve them, he bottles his frustration up until he erupts into tears and anger. He appears serious and sometimes even unfeeling, but he's really a very passionate person.
Sakichi is so straightforward and trusting by default that he's easily fooled, particularly by the Kumou twins. He tends to take people for their word, so if one is a good enough actor, they can easily mislead him. However, once betrayed, Sakichi becomes twice shy and thrice angry. He hates deception. Conversely, he's most comfortable with people who are sincere and transparent. He doesn't hesitate to voice his criticisms toward other people, but he's also open about his approval and trust toward others if they gain his favor. Sakichi's honesty is so reflexive that it makes him an awful keeper of secrets; he accidentally namedrops his secret mission to find the Dokuro Hozuki several times, and his attempts to cover up the secret he's just blown are laughable. He doesn't have a secretive bone in his body. It makes him somewhat hopeless, but exceedingly trustworthy as well. Even when presented with the opportunity to retrieve a (fake) Dokuro Hozuki that has supposedly been stolen from the twins, he resolves to charge an enemy base on his own, take the Dokuro Hozuki back, and then return it to the twins before anything else. "There's no meaning in taking it if the owners don't permit it." His morals are his law.
Despite being a samurai of moderate skill, and depite being more than ready to take to the battlefield for his Lord Hideyoshi, Sakichi tries to avoid violent solutions wherever necessary. Told that the Dokuro Hozuki resides in a certain hut, but that she never appears before anyone but the Kumou twins, Sakichi simply decides to announce himself before sitting in front of the hut for seven straight days in the hope that she'll show herself before him. He even collapses before she ends up showing herself to him. He is told by more than one person that he's "unsuited for the battlefield," more suited to paperwork and politics. However, it's his strong drive to work toward his ideals that puts him out in the field. His persistence and adaptibility is what helps him succeed, rather than his fighting ability.
SKILLS/ABILITIES:
Swordsmanship. Sakichi is a samurai of moderate skill. He is a competent swordsman and can handle his own against a typical non-powered opponent, but he is frequently outclassed in terms of raw talent by his more prestigious castmates.
Braininess. Sakichi's greatest asset is actually his brain. He manages to win against (or at least survive) faster and more powerful opponents through tenacity and calculation; he creates a plan and carries it through, however it may take a toll on him. For instance, he may use his bare arm as a shield against a blade to force an opening of attack. No matter how beaten down he is, he continues to calculate until he can create a path a victory. In history he is noted more for his mathematical prowess than his military record, and he follows a similar tack in canon; he is more successful for his knowledge, analytical skill, and strategic thought process.
• While many elements of Rengoku ni Warau are fictional, Sakichi himself is based on the historical figure Mitsunari Ishida. "Sakichi" was that figure's childhood name, and Sakichi does end up taking up the Mitsunari name later on. As in history, Sakichi as Mitsunari will eventually lead an army at the Battle of Sekigahara, the last defining battle of the Sengoku Period.
• Sakichi's story begins in 1577. He is a page to Hashiba Hideyoshi, a daimyo during the Sengoku Period of Japan. Tasked with finding the mysterious Dokuro Hozuki, Sakichi travels to the land of Oumi. It's rumored that the Dokuro Hozuki is the key to controlling the Orochi, a fearsome serpent capable of destroying the lands. Utterly devoted to Hideyoshi, Sakichi makes it his mission to find the Dokuro Hozuki at all costs. According to Hideyoshi, Kumou Shrine is where he needs to go.
• He arrives at Kumou Shrine, which is rumored to be run by a pair of cursed twins. Sakichi poo-poos the notion of people being cursed for being born and heads in. SPOILERS these twins are Baren and Okuni, and they play a trick on Sakichi that ends up with him tied up, blindfolded, and sitting in a literal pool of shit with poop in his hands. Good job Sakichi you're a winner.
• The townspeople hear that the twins are playing tricks again and try to do Sakichi a favor by trashing the shrine. Sakichi is like what I didn't ask for this, what's wrong with you people. Then he chases them off. After mysteriously watching this from a tree, the Kumou twins finally make an appearance in front of Sakichi.
• Sakichi is a pest and decides to stay at Kumou Shrine until the twins tell him where the Dokuro Hozuki is. The twins are annoyed by this. They stage an elaborate ploy to get Sakichi in trouble by making it look like Okuni was shot and sending him off to the Kunitomo Group, a community of prestigious gunsmiths downwind. Thinking that he's doing a good and just thing by helping the victimized Kumou twins, Sakichi marches off to the Kunitomo Group. He picks a fight, somehow manages to win, and then realizes that he's been tricked all along. He heads back to Kumou Shrine, taking a parade of trouble with him.
• More stuff happens. Sakichi blows up barrels of gunpowder and accidentally reveals his SECRET MISSION to a big angry mob of people. Good job Sakichi, part 2. Mutiny within the Kunitomo Group is dealt with and Sakichi becomes a friend to Kunitomo.
• Trying to understand what's up with the twins, Sakichi shadows Baren one day. He ends up following him to a prostitute house. Sakichi's delicate sensibilities are scandalized. One of the prostitutes turns out to be a well-known informant; her name is Gengetsu. Ninjas from the Iga clan bust in to kidnap her. Sakichi and Baren successfully defend her and skedaddle out of the village. They also learn that Iga are going to try and kidnap Okuni, but Baren and Gengetsu are just like lol good luck, Okuni's a badass.
• Sakichi and Baren head off to find Okuni. The two of them annoy each other but they still bond kind of. They eventually run into Tanba Momochi, one of the Iga Grandmasters. You know he's strong because he's literally sitting on a huge pile of corpses when they find him. There are a father and son still alive, so Tanba has the son kill the father for kicks, then kills the son too. Sakichi is fucked up over this and, despite Baren's insistence that it's pointless to jump in to save strangers, especially against a hard dude like Tanba, Sakichi jumps way in anyway because he's just that super pissed.
• Tanba says he won't kill Sakichi because he's a candidate to be a vessel for the Orochi. Which I guess is a good thing, because Tanba outclasses Sakichi mightily. They fight, and despite being the clear underdog, Sakichi is so intensely shounen that he gets Tanba's blood riled up anyway. "If you live to kill for pleasure, I will without hesitation crush you. I do it because I believe I can do it! THIS IS MY WAY OF LIVING!" Good job Sakichi, part 3. Except Baren trips Sakichi with a slingshot and makes him fall into a hidden hole in the ground, obscuring him from Tanba's view. Tanba loses track of Sakichi, gets kind of weird in the face and says "ISHIDA SAKICHI" 21 times, and dashes away to try and find Sakichi.
• Back at the pit, Baren comments that Sakichi isn't suited to the battlefield. Sakichi says yeah I guess I'm more suited to documents and politics. But his dream is to make a world with at war, and Hideyoshi is the one who will make it happen. Baren remarks that "Nothing will be fulfilled just by wishing. Nothing can change with just pretty words." Sakichi replies, "I know. But nothing will start if one does not say it." And then Baren decides to trust Sakichi, as long as Sakichi cooperates with him and Okuni.
• Baren and Sakichi run across Nobukatsu Oda, Nobunaga Oda's incompetent and tasty-sounding son. They learn from him that the Iga are planning to set Oumi on fire. The two of them rush off to Oumi, leaving some Kunitomo friends to meet Okuni instead.
• Along the way, they encounter Tanba and his posse of Iga ninjas. With some fancy maneuvering, Sakichi and Baren both manage to land a hit on Tanba and escape.
• They make a stop at one of Gengetsu's hideouts along the way. Turns out she's an onmyouji, cool. She can't divine any information because she's being blocked though, so not so cool. Baren takes a horse while Sakichi and Gengetsu take another. In exchange for making sure the twins won't die, Gengetsu explains the twins' background and reasoning to Sakichi. The twins used to be loved along with their mom, Asahi Kumou, up until Asahi died. The villagers blamed the twins for their mom's death, and from then on the twins became hated. The twins allowed the village to hate them because it united the villagers and helped them cope with the skies above Oumi always being cloudy and gloomy -- a sign of disaster. Sakichi is pissed.
• Once they reach the village, Baren and Sakichi split up to figure out how to stop the fire from happening. Except the Iga show up and herd Baren to a certain spot, where an explosion goes off and starts the fire near him. Baren is framed!! The villagers accuse him of starting the fire and go after him as a mob. Baren tells Sakichi to run into this burning building and save the dude inside, and Sakichi is like god dammit what but he does it anyway... Good job Sakichi, part 4. Here is where Sakichi meets Sakon, who does Sakichi a solid by destroying some falling flaming debris about to fall on him. Mission complete, Sakichi runs out to see Baren on a cliff being confronted by villagers. Sakichi continues to be mad that Baren (and Okuni) try to take everything upon themselves. "Give me half! I'll shoulder the burden with you!!" quoth the Sakichi. Baren makes a note of it but in the end is like sorry bro and walks further away. A villager shoots off Baren's eyepatch (which is wow either really impressive or really incompetent) , revealing scale-like markings around his left eye. Baren plays it up like he's Big Bad Orochi, scaring the villagers into shooting him. Baren falls off a cliff, presumed dead. Sakichi is fucked up over it.
• Sakichi returns to Kumou Shrine, only to see the villagers smashing it to the ground completely.
• Sakichi returns to his Lord Hideyoshi feeling like trash. He comes back with lots of information about the Dokuro Hozuki and Orochi. Hideyoshi tells him to continue the Kumou twins' job of protecting the Dokuro Hozuki. But Sakichi is torn up over the loss of the twins (Okuni also got shot a lot and fell off a cliff, assumed r.i.p.) and expresses doubt over whether he's the best person for the job when he was so powerless to save the twins. Hideyoshi smacks Sakichi on the head with his fan and tells Sakichi that he does have strength, and that it's too early to be claiming powerlessness. He entrusts Sakichi with the continued Orochi mission and tells him to prevent the Orochi's resurrection.
• Sakichi is moved by Hideyoshi's words and gets fired up again. "I, Sakichi, swear that I will protect the Dokuro Hoozuki, and stop the Orochi from wreaking havoc!! Everything is for the land of my lord! For the peace of the country!"
• Sakichi shows back up at the Kumou Shrine and basically tells everyone to fight him if they don't like him taking charge of the shrine. More like he tells them to "protest to their heart's content", but same diff. No one wants to fight him because they think he's weird. Sakichi starts rebuilding the shrine.
• SKIP AHEAD TWO YEARS.
• Sakichi works on rebuilding the shrine for two whole years. This is all he has to show for it. Good job Sakichi, part 5. Gengetsu shows up and comments that Sakichi looks different, but let's not kid ourselves he looks exactly the same lmao.
• Sakichi bugs Gengetsu into finally showing him the way to the Dokuro Hozuki, and she agrees. She takes him to a hut in the woods, where the Dokuro Hozuki supposedly lives. Sakichi thanks her, loudly announces his presence, and then decides to sit on the ground until she comes out. He sits there for literally seven days until he's starving and dehydrated and he can't feel his limbs. Sakichi how are you even sure she's in there. He collapses. Good job Sakichi, part 6.
• But the Dokuro Hozuki does make her appearance, telling him to find a scroll in Setsu containing a written method to controlling the Orochi's power. Sakichi passes out. When he comes to, it's off to Setsu.
• Sakichi rides off on his GLORIOUS, GLITTERING HORSE, who I can't believe is named Nadeshiko. A bandit appears out of nowhere and tries to steal his shit and run off, but this horse literally fights the bandit and stomps his ass down. And so we know why Sakichi is in love with a horse.
• Sakon shows up. Wow what a coincidence. Sakichi immediately accidentally drops the fact that he's on a secret mission related to the Orochi for Hideyoshi. Good job Sakichi, part 7. Sakon says that he's investigating a lord named Murashige Araki, who opposed Nobunaga Oda. Murashige's castle is under siege nearby. Sakichi, the worst person in all of Japan at keeping secrets, gives even more information about his intent away. Luckily, Sakon is a cool guy and just finds it funny and interesting.
• Murashige erupts from the bushes out of nowhere SPEAK OF THE DEVIL. He's running from more bandits. Sakon saves him because Sakichi is a slowass.
• Sakichi and Sakon are like why are you even here, dude. Murashige is not forthcoming, so Sakon speculates that Murashige ran away and Sakichi is like what!! no way, his castle is under siege and a general wouldn't escape alone and abandon his soldiers. Murashige looks SUSPICIOUSLY GUILTY. Precious, precious Sakichi doesn't notice this. Sakon notices that Murashige is carrying a wrapped package and Murashige freaks out when asked what's inside. Also, turns out Murashige is wounded. He continues to freak out, ranting about how terrifying Nobunaga is.
• Seeing how injured Murashige is, Good Bean Sakichi tries to do his best to help Murashige walk. When Murashige's continued panic and distrust is clear, Sakichi calms him down by letting Murashige hold his sword. Murashige says, "What kind of fool... Your sword is your life! To just hand it over to a stranger..." Sakichi is like yeah I trust you bro, now let's hurry. It truly hurts me how shounen he is despite having the face he has.
• FROM HERE ON OUT THE TRANSLATIONS ARE PRETTY CASUAL SUMMARIES. JSYK. SHOUTOUT TO PIXI FOR BEING A GODDESS
• Sakon voices doubt about Murashige's character and Sakichi is like yo shut up, letting people die in front of me is no bueno. Sakon continues to operate on the assumption that Murashige is running away, and Sakichi continues to have faith that Murashige is merely leaving to get help or negotiate in person. After all, Murashige has seen so many of his people die, so he wouldn't abandon his troops and family. Sakichi actually looks very kindly and supportive when he says this, probably to drive home the MAXIMUM GUILT on Murashige's face in the next panel. Sakichi continues to be unable to read guilt. Good job Sakichi, part 8.
• Like a surprise buttspook, Nobukatsu-don shows up again, along with Tanba and his ninja posse. Sakon fights the posse and Sakichi takes Tanba again, despite Sakon being a superior fighter in almost every way but alright. Tanba swats Sakichi aside and starts terrorizing Murashige to find out where Murashige's Orochi scroll is. Sakichi is Very Persistent and keeps clinging to Tanba to get him to stop. Sakichi urges Murashige to flee, tosses him onto Glorious Horse Nadeshiko, and declares that Tanba Shall Not Pass. Tanba beats him up a lot. To Sakichi's credit, he's still a real smart fighter no matter how messed up he gets and manages to get yet another hit on Tanba.
• Murashige eventually gets guilted SO HARD by memories of Sakichi assuming the best of him that he circles back around and intervenes. He does pretty swell at fighting Tanba, until Tanba just punches his sword and breaks it (haha oh rnw), then another ninja stabs Murashige in the back. Since Murashige appears unable to talk anymore, Tanba walks away and Sakichi, Sakon, and Murashige are left alone. Murashige then reveals that the Orochi scroll was in a hidden compartment in the package he was smuggling away and entrusts it to Sakichi. Then he deda.
• Sakichi is real sad.
• Sakichi goes back to Hideyoshi and finds out that Nobunaga has sent a summons for him. Sakichi questions if he has to go. He tries to keep the reason why he doesn't want to go secret, but as we know he's the worst at secrets and he basically spills it anyway. Good job Sakichi, part 9. Hideyoshi trusts Sakichi though because Sakichi says he can be trusted, and that's precious. Sakichi looks so happy about being useful to Hideyoshi and JUST TAKE MY WORD FOR IT, IT'S REAL CUTE.
• Sakichi's friend Kinosuke gets nosy, Sakichi tells him to go away in a blunt, mean-sounding way, yet Sakichi praises him in a way when he's gone... Sakichi's really bad at talking to people lmao. Sakon remarks that Sakichi should work on gathering allies and making friends for the day when Sakichi will be a leader himself, and Sakichi is like nah no need, I'm just following Hideyoshi. Sakon says yeah I dunno man it's gonna mess you up someday. TWENTY-YEAR FORESHADOWING
• Sakichi and Sakon are traipsing along to pass through Sakichi's home village of Ishida when some dude comes up and starts screaming at Sakichi like THIS IS YOUR FAULT!!! Turns out the village is on fire and everyone's dying haha oh man. Soldiers bearing Sakichi's house emblem are razing the village to the ground and this is personally confusing to Sakichi because he literally doesn't have any soldiers for himself. He goes to confront a soldier, and some Dragonball shit happens where it hits him in the face and he goes flying off his horse and straight into the side of a house, demolishing the side of the house but leaving Sakichi strangely intact.
• TURNS OUT THE SOLDIERS ARE DEAD PEOPLE. Welcome to Zombie Sengoku. One of the soldiers even uproots an entire tree and starts swinging it around as a weapon?? Gengetsu shows up and blasts all the zombies in the face with her own face. #justonmyoujithings. Iga ninja show up, blah blah blah more fighting, Sakichi gets pulled into the ground and harassed by a dude with a forked tongue and this series is getting real weird.
• Eventually, the Iga pull a kid out and stab Sakon and Gengetsu, and present Sakichi with the choice of "save this kid or save your friends". Sakichi is, of course, pissed off, and really he can't make the choice because he's too idealistic and can't handle anyone dying in front of him. He feels powerless again and falls into despair over being unable to live up to his own words. Ninja lady slits the kid's throat, laughs at Sakichi a lot, then moves on to kill Gengetsu. Sakichi starts begging for her to stop and his face is real sad and it's not okay, guys
• WHOOOSH SURPRISE THE TWINS SHOW UP!! They're perfect and beautiful and it's almost like they didn't get shot and fall off cliffs the last time we saw them. Sakichi is so dewy-eyed when he seems them, what a goober. They give Sakichi words of encouragement and together they all chase the ninjas away.
• They manage to save the kid's life. The twins are like geez Sakichi and Sakichi smiles and says he was waiting for them... The twins can't believe their little Sakichi is this cute and ellipses at him. They say that as the eighth heads of the Kumou Shrine, they're going to support Sakichi and help him become the best.
• Sakichi puts his sword down and bows to them, saying that he thought they were alive but that it still hurt because he could've done more if he'd known their intentions earlier. The twins berate him and disagree, saying that it was their decision and he's being conceited lmao. Okuni says that if Sakichi was that worried, he should consider what they said earlier about helping him rise to the top. Sakichi is like. Nah. Hideyoshi's where I'm at.
• Turns out the twins had Murashige's scroll delivered to him because anyone brave enough to stand up to Nobunaga would be a good protector. Sakichi becomes upset that they would use Murashige that way, because the twins love Oumi and Sakichi thought they would be different from someone like Nobunaga. The twins tell him that these are the times they live in and that sacrifices must be made to realize their dreams. Sakichi becomes angry and storms off.
• The villagers are surprised to learn that the twins are alive and have difficulty comprehending the possibility that the twins are decent people who helped everyone. Sakichi shows up like IS EVERYONE OKAY and that's real convenient for the townspeople because he gets to be their new scapegoat. They start losing their shit and throwing rocks at him, and poor diplomatic Sakichi stops his friends from defending him. Instead he calmly tries to talk to the villagers, asking them what proof they have that he's to blame. Of course, angry mobs ain't gonna have anything to do with calm or logic, so they shout at him more and throw more rocks. He begins to think about how easy it is for people to turn on you, thinks about the twins and how they took the burden on themselves, and then thinks about how all of it is still wrong.
• He sees Okuni watching from nearby and begins talking to the townsfolk, telling them that he's to blame for the fire incident two years ago as well. He's pretty much trying to absorb as much blame away from the twins as he can. He thinks to himself that he's not kind enough to wish for the happiness of fools who don't want to see the truth, then tells the villagers to hate him if they want to hate him.
• The twins are alarmed and mad, and as they argue with him, Sakichi breaks down and shouts that he knows he's contradicting himsef. He has too many conflicting feelings: he wishes for the peace of Japan, but he can't wish for the mob's happiness; he should be happy that the twins are alive, but he looks at them and feels bitter about what happened with Murashige. Baren says that this it what it means to live in troubled times, but Sakichi refuses to blame the era for "things like grief or giving up". Again, the twins urge him to change the times and make his ideals a reality. Sakichi says he won't be used ("a vessel to stand on"), and storms off to his old house.
• The twins barge into his home because there's no lock lmao and usher him into the backyard to exchange a vow with him, calling him their stepbrother. They say that if he doesn't want to be used, then they'll be equals like siblings. Sakichi can keep on dreaming, and the twins will clear the path. Sakichi is moved and asks if they're really sure, listing all his faults. He's still not strong, but since meeting them, he's begun to think that he wants to change the world with his own hands.
• He explains that Sakichi is his childhood name, but Hideyoshi gave him another one. If all three of them are together, then he can finally use it with confidence. THERE'S A PUN INVOLVED HERE BUT WHATEVER THE NAME IS MITSUNARI. They all share a cup of sake and I guess they're OT3 married now. jk they just siblings
• Despite all that fancy punning with the Mitsunari name, I think they still keep calling him Sakichi so lmao I guess I will too.
• THEY'RE OFF TO SEE NOBUNAGA. The twins are like, NO MATTER WHAT DON'T GIVE NOBUNAGA THE SCROLL. This seems reasonable. They walk up a ton of stairs and the twins are fine but Sakichi is exhausted by the time they reach the top... I honestly can't tell if he's weak or if the twins are just that ridiculous. Probably a bit of both tbh.
• THEY GET TO NOBUNAGA. This should be obvious by now but Sakichi almost immediately drops their supposed-to-be secret that they know about the Orochi scrolls and have one. Good job Sakichi, part 10. At least this time it's on purpose... He tells Nobunaga that he's entrusted the scroll with someone else, and that if he (Sakichi) is harmed, the scroll will never be found. They start having an ideological battle in which Nobunaga says that he's going to conquer everything in order to build a peaceful country, even if people/insects are crushed in the process. Sakichi shouts THAT'S MESSED UP DUDE, I WON'T GIVE YOU THE OROCHI and all the guards are alarmed and draw their weapons. Good job Sakichi, part 11. Nobunaga's like bye have fun trying to escape and the trio all start beating up guards and running...
• They fight fight fight, then Sakichi gets tossed off a railing and separated from the twins. The Dokuro Hozuki shows up out of nowhere (her name is Botan I'mma just call her Botan) and shows Sakichi the way out, which involves jumping off a super high balcony into a river. He ends up doing this but doesn't know how to swim. The twins rescue him out of nowhere somehow even though Sakichi plunged like 20 stories in rapid succession and it would've taken an elevator for them to follow him that fast. Anyway they escape, more or less because Nobunaga lets them.
• After all this time Sakichi is still working on rebuilding the shrine, amazing. Turns out Sakichi left his scroll with his old friend who is actually an Orochi candidate and he's shocked to learn that said friend (Kinosuke) has some darkness in his heart because he can't see anything written in the scroll, which only good-hearted can read I guess. But in the end Sakichi is just like... ok but there's still no problem, Kinosuke is loyal to Hideyoshi and he said to come get the scroll. No bigs. Baren dropkicks him for being too Sakichi, and then Okuni caves Baren's face in with her elbow for being too Baren.
• They plan to steal Nobunaga's scroll while he's busy trying to move in on Iga territory and decide to start amassing an army for Mitsunari Ishida.
• Baren is Tanba's son. Irrelevant to Sakichi but I just thought that was hilarious. Please laugh at Dana because it causes her pain. Baren ends up going with Tanba because Tanba would fight all three of the trio otherwise.
• Nobunaga tells Hideyoshi to lend him Sakichi for the upcoming battle with Iga. Hideyoshi can't refuse and internally hopes Sakichi doesn't do anything dumb lmao.
• Okuni has a pissed off Sakichi tied to a post. He rants about how he approves of nothing re: Baren, so Okuni punches him in the face and he calms down lmao. Gengetsu shows up and joins the gang to help them communicate with Baren.
• Sakichi is STILL rebuilding the shrine while Okuni lazes around. Botan shows up and starts giving the lowdown on Orochi stuff. She's a shikigami summoned by the Abe clan 300 years ago in order to seal the Orochi. She disappeared when her duty was done then, but has reappeared again now. The Orochi is already beginning to assimilate with its chosen vessel. She explains that during the first stage, the host goes out of control when unconscious. Also, that people are trying to awaken the Orochi by causing the candidates to fall into despair. SO THEY GOTTA BE CAREFUL.
• Sakichi finds out that he's going to be Nobunaga's page and it's like WOWWEE i'M BASICALLY GONNA DIE AREN'T I but he has to go so haha. He acknowledges that he'll be going and off they go to the races. Multiple people pray that Sakichi doesn't do anything stupid.
• So Sakichi is just sitting with Nobunaga for this battle in some swanky new samurai armor. He probably won't have to go into battle unless shit goes horribly wrong but I guess we'll see in coming chapters lmao. BASICALLY Sakichi's role in this is just talking to Nobunaga about how the battle is going and strategy and stuff, blah blah. AND THIS IS WHERE THE MANGA CURRENTLY STANDS AT AS OF CHAPTER 44.
CANON PERSONALITY:
Sakichi's mind is as straight as a gunshot. He leaves no room in himself for contradiction or hesitation. He hates lies, and every word that leaves his mouth can be taken as his earnest truth -- whether it was asked for or not. A task set before him is as good as done; he will pursue it with steady, single-minded determination until it's finished, whether it's as simple as traveling from point A to B, or as complicated as investigating a virtual unknown. He is logical in his approach, always organized. Even when complications arise, he is quick to identify his priorities and tackle each one with wit and courage until there are none left. Truly, one would be hard-pressed to find a more direct and dedicated man than Sakichi. He makes his mission his life, to detriment of nearly everything else.
Sakichi's laser focus leaves him with little leftover attention for inessential things like friendship, hobbies, and pleasantries. While he is fully capable of behaving politely with the percentage of the population he perceives himself as serving, he is always goal-minded and does not often slow down to accomodate for the people unrelated to his immediate concerns. This can make him overly brusque and harsh of tongue, even with his friends. Example: in the very first chapter, his friend Kinosuke tries to tag along with him and is talkative and nosy in the process. Sakichi stops, looks him in the eye, and says, "I'll tell you directly. You're in the way. An unrefined man with a loud voice like you won't be of use. ... It's the truth. You're the personification of bodily desires. Do you think that you are my partner? You really are naive." It's behavior like this that leaves Sakichi largely friendless -- not that he particularly minds. He relies on himself and his ingenuity first and foremost.
Sakichi often stands alone, but he stands strong. He has a remarkably rigid character and believes greatly in order, diplomacy, and justice. He has a low tolerance for faulty logic, mischief, and immorality, and is quick to stand against those things while making his position abundantly clear. He's so outspoken that it's awfully common for him to cause a scene, no matter how many people he may be angering in the process. He could even be described as hotblooded. If someone is being wronged in front of him, he will drop everything to interject and correct the wrong. This can be a problem when he's all but throwing his life away in the process, but time and time time again Sakichi will do it, no matter who else is dragged into his trouble. He absolutely refuses to compromise his morals for anything.
And Sakichi is a highly moral creature. Unrealistically so. He's called idealistic by basically half the cast, and an inexperienced idealist by the other. Please read this, one of my fave quotes:
Sakichi: I know. But nothing will start if one does not say it.
Despite his largely stoic nature, he dreams deeply of peace for his wartorn home of Japan. He always attempts diplomacy before an altercation and appeals to others to talk their problems out. He believes that communication is the best solution, and that hatred and superstition are caused by misunderstanding. Unless given reason not to, he tends to believe in the best intentions of other people. For instance: he is confronted with the warlord Murashige running from his long-besieged castle; Sakichi's companion Sakon deduces that the man must be fleeing and abandoning his people, whereas Sakichi believes that no lord who has seen so many of his people die already would abandon even more of them. SPOILERS, Sakichi was totally wrong. But he believes in the Murashige's goodness to the very end. He's uncompromising and refuses to accept failure when it comes to realizing his beliefs, which is not always for the better. It's often the people around him who end up extracting him from the trouble he creates for himself.
When he does fail to protect his beliefs -- whether it's because someone under his care has died, or he's forced to watch someone suffer in front of him -- he reactions with great emotion. When it appears as though the Kumou twins have died, it shakes him to his core and detroys his self-confidence. When Murashige dies, Sakichi grieves and thinks back on him repeatedly. When contradictions start building up in him and he's unable to resolve them, he bottles his frustration up until he erupts into tears and anger. He appears serious and sometimes even unfeeling, but he's really a very passionate person.
Sakichi is so straightforward and trusting by default that he's easily fooled, particularly by the Kumou twins. He tends to take people for their word, so if one is a good enough actor, they can easily mislead him. However, once betrayed, Sakichi becomes twice shy and thrice angry. He hates deception. Conversely, he's most comfortable with people who are sincere and transparent. He doesn't hesitate to voice his criticisms toward other people, but he's also open about his approval and trust toward others if they gain his favor. Sakichi's honesty is so reflexive that it makes him an awful keeper of secrets; he accidentally namedrops his secret mission to find the Dokuro Hozuki several times, and his attempts to cover up the secret he's just blown are laughable. He doesn't have a secretive bone in his body. It makes him somewhat hopeless, but exceedingly trustworthy as well. Even when presented with the opportunity to retrieve a (fake) Dokuro Hozuki that has supposedly been stolen from the twins, he resolves to charge an enemy base on his own, take the Dokuro Hozuki back, and then return it to the twins before anything else. "There's no meaning in taking it if the owners don't permit it." His morals are his law.
Despite being a samurai of moderate skill, and depite being more than ready to take to the battlefield for his Lord Hideyoshi, Sakichi tries to avoid violent solutions wherever necessary. Told that the Dokuro Hozuki resides in a certain hut, but that she never appears before anyone but the Kumou twins, Sakichi simply decides to announce himself before sitting in front of the hut for seven straight days in the hope that she'll show herself before him. He even collapses before she ends up showing herself to him. He is told by more than one person that he's "unsuited for the battlefield," more suited to paperwork and politics. However, it's his strong drive to work toward his ideals that puts him out in the field. His persistence and adaptibility is what helps him succeed, rather than his fighting ability.
SKILLS/ABILITIES:
Swordsmanship. Sakichi is a samurai of moderate skill. He is a competent swordsman and can handle his own against a typical non-powered opponent, but he is frequently outclassed in terms of raw talent by his more prestigious castmates.
Braininess. Sakichi's greatest asset is actually his brain. He manages to win against (or at least survive) faster and more powerful opponents through tenacity and calculation; he creates a plan and carries it through, however it may take a toll on him. For instance, he may use his bare arm as a shield against a blade to force an opening of attack. No matter how beaten down he is, he continues to calculate until he can create a path a victory. In history he is noted more for his mathematical prowess than his military record, and he follows a similar tack in canon; he is more successful for his knowledge, analytical skill, and strategic thought process.
CHARACTER: AU SECTION
AU NAME: Sakichi Niijima (brother to Makoto Niijima [justfists], played by Sarah! and a third sibling)
AU AGE: 22
PHYSICAL DIFFERENCES:
Sakichi in canon has green hair, green eyes, and long hair tied into a bun. In Recolle, he will have black hair, brown eyes, and a plain cropped hairstyle. He will also be slightly taller due to the time period; his height is unspecified in canon (but roughly 5'5"??), and in Recolle he will be 5'8".
AU NAME: Sakichi Niijima (brother to Makoto Niijima [
justfists], played by Sarah! and a third sibling)AU AGE: 22
PHYSICAL DIFFERENCES:
Sakichi in canon has green hair, green eyes, and long hair tied into a bun. In Recolle, he will have black hair, brown eyes, and a plain cropped hairstyle. He will also be slightly taller due to the time period; his height is unspecified in canon (but roughly 5'5"??), and in Recolle he will be 5'8".
AU HISTORY:
• The Niijima siblings are, from youngest to oldest: Makoto, Sakichi, and their elder sister. They were still young when their parents divorced. Their father was a detective and their mother a nurse; combined irregular work hours eventually fractured their marriage. Their mother took custody of Sakichi and raised him in Recolle, and their father took custody of Makoto and the eldest daughter and raised them in Japan.
• Sakichi has a cousin (maternal side) in Chiyo Matsuoka (admiringly, okayed by Ara). He took care of her when their moms would get together, and Chiyo would share her art with him. They're on good terms. He also had a childhood friend in his neighbor Dia Kurosawa (unidolize, okayed by Coco), whom he met when he was hanging laundry and his boxers blew away into her yard.
• A serious, straight-laced child. His mom was a good woman with strong principles, but often absent and tired from work. He felt a responsibility to lessen her burden by taking care of her and their home as much as he could. His childhood and teenage years consisted of school, studies, and housework. While appreciative, even his mom was concerned about his lack of hobbies or social life. But he was stubborn about what he perceived to be his duty, and devoted most of his free time to cleaning, laundry, cooking, and all that good domestic stuff.
• A studious high school student. Achieved high grades in all subjects. That kid who asks the teacher too many questions and challenges the material when he's unsatisfied with it. Not popular. Engaged with only a few of his peers, and chose to actively ignore the ones he deemed mean-spirited or annoying.
• His mother started dating again when he was in high school. As her boyfriend began to take more care of her, Sakichi found his own role in the household diminishing. Seeking new purpose and attracted to the idea of an honorable, highly disciplined, duty-driven career, he decided to work toward joining the military. The Marines, to be exact, because he has no sense of moderation. To this end, he joined the track and field club in high school and committed himself to getting healthy and fit enough to make the cut.
• Sakichi did, in fact, make the cut. While awful at being friendly or approachable, he is a steadfast team member and managed to drag his butt through basic training in good favor. He would graduate to become a Fire Support Marine (MOS 0861), a forward observer attached to an artillery crew. His primary job was to move ahead of the front lines, observe the enemy, and direct artillery fire onto a target. The role would suit him well, requiring patience, independence, mathematical ability, and all-around utility.
• He excelled at his job, but the messy reality of combat would eventually weigh down on him. Seeing his comrades injured and killed, the constant suspicion, the battered locals, the muddy morality, and so many other hard truths were difficult for him to bear. Even worse, the efficacy of it all was not always clear. He continued to perform faithfully, but by the time his active-duty service ended, he was disillusioned and uncertain of the virtue of his actions. He would attain the rank of Corporal.
• His happiest times in the military were when he received mail from his few friends and family. He would become invested in writing letters and learning about the growth and development of his loved ones.
• Sakichi's mother remarried and moved away while Sakichi was overseas. Upon returning to Recolle, Sakichi restarted his civilian life by getting a job with the post office as a mail carrier, and found a roommate in Roji (kindhearted, okayed by Seto).
• Sakichi performs his duties as a mailman with singular gusto. He almost seems to be stuck in Marine mode, hiking his routes with excessive amounts of mail in record time. He allows no obstacle to get in his way, tackling issues and difficult conditions with almost needless determination.
AU PERSONALITY:
Sakichi is still driven by purpose, but his purpose is not always clear to him as it was in canon. As Sakichi Ishida, he had a simple dream: peace for a land long torn apart by war. His path to that peace was through the kind and just Hashiba Hideyoshi, and so he was able to devote himself to Hideyoshi's will with unwavering focus. Sakichi Niijima is not as surely guided. He searches for purpose through duty, first through his mother and home, then with the military. The first ultimately did not need him to be relied upon, and the second lacked the clarity he wanted. While he's now devoting himself to mail delivery, this alone will not be the fulfillment he's looking for. He needs a cause he can trust and serve wholeheartedly, and he will not find it in a faceless entity. Until he can, he'll always feel a little restless, questioning whether he could be doing something more.
This Sakichi has grown up in a largely peaceful time. While he retains his serious, resolute, forward-thinking nature, he has less reason to go charging off with some important task and more time to notice the people around him. He's more likely to open up and attempt to connect with good-intentioned people, though just as quick to stand against perceived wrongdoing. In addition, his closest figures in life have been nearly all female: his mom, sisters, cousin, and childhood friends. It has made him more comfortable with women in general, and softer in their company. That isn't to say he's soft by normal people standards -- he's still too blunt and stiff of character -- or averse to other men. He's simply a little more relaxed and accommodating of their ways.
Having returned from active military duty relatively recently, Sakichi is still sensitive to the sacrifices of his fellow servicemen and women. Though he became disillusioned with the military itself, he still holds his fellow Marines in the highest regard. The contrast between his military and civilian company can make him feel disconnected, and consequently both confused and impatient when people do not meet his high expectations. He is especially intolerant of those who complain needlessly and rely on dishonest means.
Overall, Sakichi Niijima isn't all that different at his core from Sakichi Ishida. His circumstances have changed, but he's still as straight and focused as a laser, whatever his purpose at the time may be. He's just as dismissive of what he sees as frivolous, and operates alone as much as he's allowed to. His idealism remains, battered as it may be. He's seen that there is much wrongdoing in the world, but it doesn't stop him from acting to correct the wrongs in front of him.
• The Niijima siblings are, from youngest to oldest: Makoto, Sakichi, and their elder sister. They were still young when their parents divorced. Their father was a detective and their mother a nurse; combined irregular work hours eventually fractured their marriage. Their mother took custody of Sakichi and raised him in Recolle, and their father took custody of Makoto and the eldest daughter and raised them in Japan.
• Sakichi has a cousin (maternal side) in Chiyo Matsuoka (
admiringly, okayed by Ara). He took care of her when their moms would get together, and Chiyo would share her art with him. They're on good terms. He also had a childhood friend in his neighbor Dia Kurosawa (unidolize, okayed by Coco), whom he met when he was hanging laundry and his boxers blew away into her yard.• A serious, straight-laced child. His mom was a good woman with strong principles, but often absent and tired from work. He felt a responsibility to lessen her burden by taking care of her and their home as much as he could. His childhood and teenage years consisted of school, studies, and housework. While appreciative, even his mom was concerned about his lack of hobbies or social life. But he was stubborn about what he perceived to be his duty, and devoted most of his free time to cleaning, laundry, cooking, and all that good domestic stuff.
• A studious high school student. Achieved high grades in all subjects. That kid who asks the teacher too many questions and challenges the material when he's unsatisfied with it. Not popular. Engaged with only a few of his peers, and chose to actively ignore the ones he deemed mean-spirited or annoying.
• His mother started dating again when he was in high school. As her boyfriend began to take more care of her, Sakichi found his own role in the household diminishing. Seeking new purpose and attracted to the idea of an honorable, highly disciplined, duty-driven career, he decided to work toward joining the military. The Marines, to be exact, because he has no sense of moderation. To this end, he joined the track and field club in high school and committed himself to getting healthy and fit enough to make the cut.
• Sakichi did, in fact, make the cut. While awful at being friendly or approachable, he is a steadfast team member and managed to drag his butt through basic training in good favor. He would graduate to become a Fire Support Marine (MOS 0861), a forward observer attached to an artillery crew. His primary job was to move ahead of the front lines, observe the enemy, and direct artillery fire onto a target. The role would suit him well, requiring patience, independence, mathematical ability, and all-around utility.
• He excelled at his job, but the messy reality of combat would eventually weigh down on him. Seeing his comrades injured and killed, the constant suspicion, the battered locals, the muddy morality, and so many other hard truths were difficult for him to bear. Even worse, the efficacy of it all was not always clear. He continued to perform faithfully, but by the time his active-duty service ended, he was disillusioned and uncertain of the virtue of his actions. He would attain the rank of Corporal.
• His happiest times in the military were when he received mail from his few friends and family. He would become invested in writing letters and learning about the growth and development of his loved ones.
• Sakichi's mother remarried and moved away while Sakichi was overseas. Upon returning to Recolle, Sakichi restarted his civilian life by getting a job with the post office as a mail carrier, and found a roommate in Roji (
kindhearted, okayed by Seto).• Sakichi performs his duties as a mailman with singular gusto. He almost seems to be stuck in Marine mode, hiking his routes with excessive amounts of mail in record time. He allows no obstacle to get in his way, tackling issues and difficult conditions with almost needless determination.
AU PERSONALITY:
Sakichi is still driven by purpose, but his purpose is not always clear to him as it was in canon. As Sakichi Ishida, he had a simple dream: peace for a land long torn apart by war. His path to that peace was through the kind and just Hashiba Hideyoshi, and so he was able to devote himself to Hideyoshi's will with unwavering focus. Sakichi Niijima is not as surely guided. He searches for purpose through duty, first through his mother and home, then with the military. The first ultimately did not need him to be relied upon, and the second lacked the clarity he wanted. While he's now devoting himself to mail delivery, this alone will not be the fulfillment he's looking for. He needs a cause he can trust and serve wholeheartedly, and he will not find it in a faceless entity. Until he can, he'll always feel a little restless, questioning whether he could be doing something more.
This Sakichi has grown up in a largely peaceful time. While he retains his serious, resolute, forward-thinking nature, he has less reason to go charging off with some important task and more time to notice the people around him. He's more likely to open up and attempt to connect with good-intentioned people, though just as quick to stand against perceived wrongdoing. In addition, his closest figures in life have been nearly all female: his mom, sisters, cousin, and childhood friends. It has made him more comfortable with women in general, and softer in their company. That isn't to say he's soft by normal people standards -- he's still too blunt and stiff of character -- or averse to other men. He's simply a little more relaxed and accommodating of their ways.
Having returned from active military duty relatively recently, Sakichi is still sensitive to the sacrifices of his fellow servicemen and women. Though he became disillusioned with the military itself, he still holds his fellow Marines in the highest regard. The contrast between his military and civilian company can make him feel disconnected, and consequently both confused and impatient when people do not meet his high expectations. He is especially intolerant of those who complain needlessly and rely on dishonest means.
Overall, Sakichi Niijima isn't all that different at his core from Sakichi Ishida. His circumstances have changed, but he's still as straight and focused as a laser, whatever his purpose at the time may be. He's just as dismissive of what he sees as frivolous, and operates alone as much as he's allowed to. His idealism remains, battered as it may be. He's seen that there is much wrongdoing in the world, but it doesn't stop him from acting to correct the wrongs in front of him.