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Peacemaker Kurogane (PEACE MAKER鐵) is a historical fiction manga and anime series created by mangaka Nanae Chrono.

The story begins in 19th century Japan before the Meiji Restoration, while the seeds of the revolution are being planted. The story follows the boy protagonist, Ichimura Tetsunosuke, who joins the Shinsengumi (initially as Hijikata Toshizo's page) while seeking strength to avenge his parents' death by a Choshu rebel. It is a sequel to Shinsengumi Imon Peace Maker.

The story is focused on the main character, Ichimura Tetsunosuke, an energetic, short, and very childlike 15 year old. Sadly, he and his older brother (Tatsunosuke) are left to fend for themselves after the vicious murder of their parents. While Tetsunosuke wants to get revenge, his pacifist brother is not so inclined. 'Tatsu' happens to join a special police force dubbed the Shinsengumi, as an accountant, to earn a living, ironically the organization 'Tetsu' wishes to join as a soldier to seek his revenge.

This is where the story truly develops during Tetsu's trials and tribulations as a struggling page craving redemption. He develops relationships with all the legendary members of the Shinsengumi army helping them with their various struggles as he constantly battles his own against himself. The story comes to fruition as Tetsu discovers himself and the overwhelming responsibility the power he is searching for holds.

The TV anime adaptation is called Peacemaker Kurogane, but mostly follows the plot of the original manga Peace Maker, however it also introduces characters that are only shown in Peacemaker Kurogane. A pair of films adapting later parts of Peacemaker Kurogane was released in 2018.


This series has examples of:

  • Affectionate Gesture to the Head: Hijikata sometimes pats Tetsu's head to convey his affection for Tetsu.
  • Alas, Poor Yorick - Suzu carries around the head of his master Yoshida after Yoshida is killed in the Ikedaya incident. He eventually has it lacquered.
  • Animation Bump: The first episode, and the last couple more episodes have a lot more fluid animation than the rest of the series.
  • The Berserker - In the manga, Okita may count as this when he effortlessly slaughters some Choushuu men invading the Shinsengumi barracks while he's looking for Hijikata and Kondou and simultaneously coughing up blood.
  • Beware the Nice Ones - As stated in Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass below, it is very easy (and very stupid) to underestimate the Shinsengumi.
  • Big Brother Instinct - Tatsunosuke is very overprotective of Tetsunosuke.
  • Break the Cutie - Suzu goes insane after he thinks that Tetsunosuke (his only friend) killed his master Yoshida (whom he admired and was the only person who cared for him). Not to mention that he was taken in by a Depraved Homosexual old man and raped.
  • The Chessmaster - Suzu
  • Conveniently an Orphan - Tetsunosuke
  • Cool Big Sis - Ayumu
  • Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass - It's sometimes very easy to forget that the Comedian Trio and the girly looking boy with the pet pig and the creepy psychic are five of the ruthless Shinsengumi captains who can lob your head off without so much a blink.
  • Cute Mute - Saya
  • Cruel to Be Kind: Hijikata constantly treats Tetsu harshly and is seemingly never satisfied with any of Tetsu's progress. But as Okita and others point out to Tetsu later, Hijikata does not wish for Tetsu to get his hands bloody, which is why he made Testu his page so he wouldn't be officially considered part of the Shinsengumi and be spared from the strict rules that they follow.
    • Later on in the series, Hijkata frequently sends Tetsu out on "errands" just prior to a battle as a way to protect him or as an excuse for him to "leave" the Shinsengumi if he chose to. Tetsu would eventually realize Hijikata's intentions but still find ways regardless to return to Hijikata's side.
  • Cynical Mentor - What Hijikata is to Tetsunosuke.
  • Dark and Troubled Past
  • Defiant to the End: Later chapters show that the Shinsengumi, particularly Hijikata, are very aware that they are fighting a losing war but continue to fight to the bitter end.
  • Depraved Homosexual - The anime-only characters Kichisaburo and Maro are both shown to be homosexual, and both are depicted as being depraved psychos. Ito, who is shown to be explicitly homosexual, is also very much depraved. Not to mention Suzu, who, after apparently becoming homosexual, goes insane. Also, the old man that raped Suzu is one, too. In fact, pretty much every character that is shown overtly to be homosexual is depraved and psychotic.
    • Unless you assume that Hijikata and Okita are a couple; you can hardly consider them depraved by the standards of the series.
  • Dude Looks Like a Lady - Souji Okita
    • And Susumu.
  • Even the Guys Want Him - Tetsunosuke. With the good number of Bishōnen guys that surround him, combined with the massive amounts of Ho Yay, and Suzu's actions towards him in the manga, it's not hard to see why.
    • Hijikata also attracts attention and admiration from men. One panel has Tetsu blushing when Hijikata was changing off-screen. Later, Ito expresses interest in Hijikata, much to Hijikata's displeasure. When Hijikata cuts his hair and changes into his western uniform, several men develop hearts in their eyes
  • Everyone Can See It: Several characters notice and recognize the growing signs of love between Tetsu and Saya, even if the two of them don't realize it yet.
  • Evil Counterpart - Suzu to Tetsunosuke. Made even more obvious in the art for the second section of the manga.
  • Fighting Your Friend: During the battle of Utsunomiya Castle, Tatsu lies to Tetsu about Hijikata's orders so they could run away from it all. When Tetsu finds out, he refuses to abandon Hijikata and their comrades and it culminates with the two brothers fighting, Tatsu trying to stop Tetsu from leaving and Tetsu trying to escape.
  • Foregone Conclusion: Anyone aware of the history of The Shinsengumi will already know what will happen to the group and several of its members.
  • Freak Out - Tetsunosuke freaks the fuck out after Yoshida nearly kills him a second time. Then Suzu goes insane after being raped and finding his master dead and in pieces on the ground.
  • Friendly Enemy - Suzu and Tetsunosuke for most of the prequel.
  • Fur and Loathing - Nothing screams "villain" more than having Suzu seductively wearing nothing but a loose, black fur robe.
  • Giggling Villain: Maro and Suzu
  • Gory Discretion Shot: used in some assassination scenes.
  • Gratuitous English: Not only the anime opening and closing themes, but within the story itself, but Ryoma uses it all the time. EVEN IN THE ENGLISH DUB.
    • Tetsu and Tatsu's father also used Gratuitous English a lot, which is stated to be why the Choshuu Clan killed him.
  • The Gunslinger - Ryoma
  • She Is All Grown Up: Tetsu in the sequel. We all saw this coming, but whoa.
  • High-Pressure Blood: As expected with a Jidaigeki.
  • Historical Fiction
  • Heroic BSoD - Tetsunosuke, for starters. Though he's not the only one. Then there's how Suzu reacts after finding his master Yoshida dead.
    • In the anime, Tetsu goes through this twice. Once, after meeting Yoshida at the brothel, and much more severely after Yoshida nearly kills him near the end of the series - under circumstances exactly like when Yoshida killed his mom.
    • Hijikata suffered this after Kondou's execution, combined with his wounds and physical exhaustion, to the point he refused to get out of bed or eat for weeks, needing Tetsu and the others to watch him in case he tried to kill himself in his grief.
  • Idiosyncratic Episode Naming - All the chapters in the manga are named after songs from The Beatles.
  • Jidaigeki - The series is set in Bakumatsu/early Meiji.
  • Kid Hero - Tetsunosuke
  • Kid Samurai - Tetsunosuke
    • Implied that Okita was this. Hijikata apparently first gave him a sword to kill with when he was only 9.
  • Looming Silhouette of Rage - Hijikata in episode 15.
  • Love Bubbles - Tetsunosuke and Okita have a moment with these in one of the comedic, light-hearted episodes.
  • A Love to Dismember - Suzu affectionately carrying around Yoshida's skull, even talking to it.
  • Murder the Hypotenuse - Suzu comes to this conclusion when Ryoma decides to take Tetsunosuke away from him.
  • Ninja - Both Susumu and Akesato.
  • Not a Morning Person: Hijikata is frequently seen sleeping in late and doesn't like waking up early. Justified to some degree, as he often works late into the night.
  • Older Than They Look - Tetsu notably had this problem, but he's since grown out of it. An extreme example is Nagakura, who looks younger and younger with each passing volume. As of the latest one he's twenty-eight, but looks like he's barely reached puberty. Also, the killer in the extra story in volume 5.
  • One-Man Army - It'll be easier to list the people who aren't this.
  • The Only One Allowed to Defeat You - Suzu to Tetsunosuke.
  • Overtook the Manga - The anime ended at the prequel.
  • The Promise - Tetsunosuke promising Saya he won't kill.
  • Promoted to Parent - This happens to Tatsunosuke when he and Tetsu lose their parents.
  • Ridiculously Cute Critter - Saizo, Okita's pet pig.
  • The Rival - Suzu
  • Satellite Love Interest - Saya. She doesn't really have any personality. Come on, even mute people can have more of a personality and quirks than just being shy and good.
  • Shy Blue-Haired Girl - Saya
    • Brown in the anime.
  • Sibling Yin-Yang - Tetsunosuke and Tatsunosuke.
  • Sissy Villain - Suzu, Suzu, Suzu.
  • Sitting on the Roof
  • Smoking Is Cool - Hijikata is always smoking his pipe.
  • Stalker with a Crush - Suzu becomes this way towards Tetsunosuke after he goes insane in the sequel. He has Tetsunosuke's every action monitored, and becomes jealous and scared when Ryoma decides to take Tetsunosuke away with him, taking drastic action to kill Ryoma and frame it on Tetsunosuke so Tetsunosuke won't be able to get away from him.
  • Stealth Hi/Bye - Saitou, who's so good at sneaking up to people his teammates have wondered if he's part ninja.
  • Technical Pacifist - Tetsunosuke and Tatsunosuke.
  • Took a Level in Badass - Good lord, Tetsunosuke. In the start of the series, he pretty much acts like Naruto Uzumaki did for his first few episodes - brash, hot-headed, and all talk. However, we see him steadily training and sparring whenever he gets a chance, and about mid-way through the series, Tetsu actually manages to beat Heisuke. Then, at the climax of the anime, Tetsu shows up to fight Yoshida - who's sent him into a Heroic BSoD and/or Freak Out twice - and wins.
  • White Hair, Black Heart - Suzu. Especially after he turns Ax-Crazy and becomes a Depraved Homosexual, wearing makeup and revealing clothes. Even the other characters in the series comment how beautiful he is.
  • Why Did You Make Me Hit You? - Susumu does this to Tetsunosuke in a scene in episode 19.
  • Wife Husbandry - What the old merchant Yamatoya does with Suzu.
  • Yandere - Suzu, in the manga, towards Tetsunosuke.


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