Souten no Koumori is a 2006 one-shot manga by Hiromu Arakawa following the adventures of kunochi Henpekumaru. After being injured while escaping from her ninja clan the "Tekki" or "Iron Demons", she awakens in the manor of the child-lord Chiyozuru. Bonding as the days go on, it becomes apparent that Chiyozuru's greedy uncle seeks to kill the young lord for the lands he inherited by his father. Making the matter more complicated, the uncle has hired the Iron Demons to assist him in carrying out the mission and Henpekumaru is now forced to face the very clan that raised her and molded her into a killer.
This manga provides examples of:
- The Ace: Henpekumaru is the most talented pupil of the Iron Demon leader, to the point he immediately calls his men off to combat her personally, knowing the others don't stand a chance.
- Action Hero: Henpekumaru herself is stated to be the deadliest assassin of the Iron Demon clan and shows it in combat when they assault Chiyozuru's manor, being able to cut down swathes of them herself.
- Adorably Precocious Child: Chiyozuru is forced into the role of lord after his father's passing, despite being a preteen.
- Archnemesis Dad: Henpekumaru's adoptive father is the leader of the Iron Demons, and actually the only one of them to stand a fighting chance against her. They end up mutually unable to kill each other (though they still wound one another), but guards with bows arrived to help out Henpekumaru, and the Iron Demon leader dies telling Henpekumaru to live as she wishes.
- Authority Equals Asskicking: Most of the Iron Demons don't stand a chance against Henpekumaru, but their leader who trained her did.
- Bittersweet Ending: Chiyozuru succeeds in defeating his uncle who sought his death and is well-loved by his people, but Henpekumaru doesn't reveal herself after meeting him incognito despite him stating his want to meet her again for having saved his life.
- Bleed 'Em and Weep: Henpekumaru cries after looking at her bloody hands and leaving Chiyozuru's mansion once the fight against the Iron Demons is over.
- Chain Pain: Henpekumaru uses a chain as a weapon in addition to her dagger, wrapping it around to bind enemies, crush heads or even deflect the tip of the Iron Demon leader's sword. Unexpectedly, it's not a kusarigama but just a long chain attached to a manacle that she wears.
- The Chessmaster: The Iron Demon leader orchestrates a devastating assault and has a history of unparalleled assassinations. He comes damn close to wiping out the manor, only stopped by his feelings for his adoptive daughter making him unable to kill her.
- Combat Pragmatist: As entirely expected for an amazing Ninja, Henpekumaru practically slaughters the Iron Demons attacking the mansion by picking them off with sudden, surprise attacks.
- Conservation of Ninjutsu: The Iron Demons kill off Chiyozuru's guards well, but none of them stand a chance against the lone Henpekumaru...well, until just the Iron Demon leader is left against her. Downplayed, since the Iron Demon leader actually ends up getting killed from the intervention of more guards appearing to his flank and loosing arrows at him rather than Henpekumaru herself.
- Dragon-in-Chief: The leader of the Iron Demon is responsible for the planning and attack for Chiyozuru's uncle to kill the boy and while he and his men prove a lethally effective squad, once they're killed it's merely stated that Chiyozuru hunted down and dealt with his uncle in passing.
- The Dreaded: The Iron Demon clan in general are feared for their prowess and known as carrying out all of the assassination missions assigned to them.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Chiyozuru learns the harsh reality of the world after his uncle tries to have him killed but doesn't let this break him. Instead, he takes the fight to his uncle afterwards and when Henpekumaru sees him years later, Chiyozuru has become a kind and just lord, loved by his people as a fair ruler.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: While the Iron Demon leader has tried to erase his feelings and calls Henpekumaru weak for not taking a fatal strike at him, he admits his own tenderness towards her and leaves himself open to a deadly barrage of arrows from Chiyozuru's retainers to stop himself from striking at her.
- Evil Uncle: The Big Bad is Chiyozuru's greedy uncle, who seeks the lands left to the latter by his father, though the Iron Demons are the ones left responsible for much of the assault.
- Expy: Henpekumaru herself is clearly based on Arakawa's Lan Fan, similarly being a badass, stoic Action Girl with a ninja-fighting style.
- Face Death with Dignity: With multiple guards armed with bows flanking him, the Iron Demon leader calmly states that he is also pitiful for failing in his duty due to a little girl just previously having said that the more pitiful Henpekumaru is, the angrier he gets. His dying words is to tell her she is no longer an Iron Demon - live as she wishes.
- Heroic Self-Deprecation: Despite saving Chiyozuru's life, Henpekumaru is driven to tears over having killed again (and certainly her adoptive father's death) and regards her name as fitting for an ugly animal that can't pass for a bird or a beast (henpeku is written similarly to the word for bat) as she leaves Chiyozuru's mansion despite being dearly wounded while a guard was right by her saying they have to her fixed up. Judging by her not revealing herself to the grown-up Chiyozuru in the Bittersweet Ending, she still wasn't ready to accept herself.
- Made of Iron: Despite a dagger having just been embedded in her right shoulder and only being armed with a chain attached to a manacle instead of a true weapon, Henpekumaru manages to fight the Iron Demon leader to a standstill. She also survived on her own after leaving Chiyozuru's mansion despite having gained another serious cut to her left shoulder from the Iron Demon leader and a guard rightly fearing for her wellness if they didn't look after her injuries.
- No Name Given: Though a parent figure to Henpekumaru and the de facto Big Bad of the story, the leader of the Iron Demon is never given a name and his title is just one that can be inferred.
- Parental Abandonment: Henpekumaru's parents were killed by bandits. Chiyozuru's father passed away, leaving him as the lord of his clan.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Chiyozuru grows into this, beloved by the people of his domain and known as a kind and just ruler.
- Rule of Symbolism: The snowman Henpekumaru and Chiyozuru make which resembles him gets bloodstained in the battle against the Iron Demons, which Henpekumaru looks at with tears in her eyes before leaving the mansion.
- Snow Means Death: The brutal battle against the Iron Demons occurs during a snowy night. Played for Drama - Genichi mentions assassins are liable to strike on a snowy day since the snow will help cover up blood...though also Downplayed since Henpekumaru ends up surviving the nigh-death sentence of walking out alone into a nightly snowfall while seriously bleeding.
- Taking the Bullet: The Iron Demon leader tosses a dagger at Chiyozuru, but Henpekumaru stops it from hitting Chiyozuru by holding her right shoulder out.
- These Hands Have Killed: Henpekumaru does this to her bloody hands before grasping her face and crying after having killed the Iron Demons. Downplayed since it's not the first time she's killed...just the first time since she abandoned her shinobi life. Also, it's really her own blood on her hands.
- Would Hurt a Child: Chiyozuru's avaricious uncle sends the Iron Demons to assassinate the boy so he can take his lands. The Iron Demons have no compunctions about their target, previously having ordered Henpekumaru to murder the son of the targets she was sent to kill.
- Wouldn't Hurt a Child: Henpekumaru herself. What led to her defecting from the Iron Demons was being told to cut down the child of the targets she was assigned. Tellingly, the next time she opposes them is when they come to kill Chiyozuru.
- You Didn't Ask: Having been found wearing male clothing, Chiyozuru gets surprised to find out that Henpekumaru's a girl when he yells he'll come in to bathe as well while she is and then does as he says. Since his attendants were telling him to not go in, he was probably just less perceptive than them.
