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Main Protagonist

Chihiro Rokuhira

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/chihiro_4.png

"I can't allow... Slime like you... to wield katana."

Voiced by: Shoya Ishige (vomic)

First Appearance: Chapter 1: Mission

"Do I seem sane to you? I don't care if they're monsters. I have to... cut them down."

The main character of the story. Once living peacefully as an apprentice blacksmith under his father, his life changed when a group of sorcerers destroyed his home, killed his father and stole six of the seven magic katana that his father had forged. Since then he has dedicated himself to retrieving the six stolen katana and killing those responsible using his father's seventh and final katana.

All According to Plan: A heroic variant. During his confrontation with Kyora, he barters away Enten for Hakuri's life, only to later reveal giving his sword to the Sazanami was already part of his plan to scope out the storehouse prior to the auction.
An Arm and a Leg: Sojo cuts off his right arm during their final duel, though it doesn't even slow him down and he quickly returns the favor. Afterwards Char is unable to regrow or reattach Chihiro's arm, meaning he is left one armed for the foreseeable future.
Animal Motifs: Goldfish. Along with the distinct water theming his katana Enten has, his katana's Guardian Entity is a trio of goldfish and the bottom of his longcoat often fans out to look like a goldfish's tail fin, especially under the effects of Nishiki.
Armor-Piercing Attack: His strongest blows and techniques allow him to cut clean through armor. He first demonstrates on an Elite Mook by cutting through his iron armbands, shortly followed by the rest of his upper body.
Astral Projection: The latent Spirit Energy he keeps stored in his blade allows him to see through the eyes of his goldfish as an extension of his will. This allows him to scout with the fish, and get a feel for the blade's surroundings even if it is taken from him and at a completely unknown location.
Badass Longcoat: His main outfit is an all-black longcoat, which is often spread out to resemble a goldfish's tail fin.
Berserk Button: Insulting his father Kunishige will immediately piss him off. He noticeably loses his cool for the first time and begins Suddenly Shouting in his battle with Sojo when his opponent claims that there's no way Kunishige would want them to be used for anything short of mass destruction. Hell, just reminding him of his father's death is enough to enrage him, as Daruma and the Mind Rape-using sorcerer find out the hard way.
The Blacksmith: As his father's apprentice, he has some know-how about forging katanas.
Blatant Lies: Azami asks (or rather politely demands) that he and Shiba be more discreet about hunting the katanas and he readily agrees with a placid expression, clearly not intending to do anything of the sort.
By the Lights of Their Eyes: Is commonly depicted with most or all of his body in shadow — except for his intense, piercing eyes.
Combo Platter Powers: His magic katana, Enten, has three separate abilities which are all based on three goldfish and their supposed lucky qualities that his father brought home one day:
- Kuro, based on a black goldfish that "wards off evil", is a powerful broad-range slash of spirit energy. After grasping the "true realm" of Enten, Chihiro can instead use a variant of Kuro known as "Scatter" which are effectively 20 mini-Kuros in a single slash, allowing for high-power compact slashes that don't tax his body as heavily.
- Aka, based on a red goldfish that "attracts good fortune", allows him to absorb an opponent's magic for his own use, effectively letting him Catch and Return magical attacks.
- Nishiki, based on a "totally amazing" three-colored goldfish, allows Chihiro to cloak himself in spirit energy, granting him a massive boost in all physical capabilities. After grasping the "true realm" of Enten, Chihiro can apply Nishiki in a manner that supports his body rather than grant a straight power boost, allowing him to fight with all its benefits even with a heavily injured body.
The Comically Serious: His stoic personality and understated reactions are occasionally played for comedy, especially as he plays the unflinching Straight Man to most of his allies' eccentricities (including his own father when he was just a boy).
The Cowl: Has some shades of this, and his infiltration of Sojo's castle shows how much of an inescapable boogeyman he is from the Yakuza's perspective. Chapter 19 is even titled "Knight of Darkness".
Cracks in the Icy Façade: Early chapters establish him as a stoic anti-hero on a bloody path of vengeance, openly talking about being fueled by The Power of Hate. While his later protectiveness toward Char adds deeper layers to his true humanity, his compassionate side is seen as early as the first chapter when he reacts in horror to dead protesters strung up by the Yakuza, only to immediately go after the gang responsible, which ends up accomplishing nothing for his larger goal but saves an Innocent Bystander.
Cutlass Between the Teeth: As Kuregumo isn't much of a sword by the time he reclaims it, he instead channels its power by holding it in his mouth while cloaking himself with Mei.
Does Not Like Spam: He's apparently not fond of sweets, telling Sojo as much when the two have a metaphorical conversation while having their final duel.
Drama-Preserving Handicap: Since merely owning an Enchanted Blade puts him on the level of an expert sorcerer, the story repeatedly puts him at a disadvantage or has him facing situations he can't simply cut his way through. He spends the better part of Sojo's arc recovering from a lightning strike, and the Rakuzaichi has him forced to give up his sword to save Hakuri.
The Dreaded: In the wake of Sojo's death, Chihiro cuts down gang after gang in Tokyo while getting info on the Sazanami family, to the point that just seeing his katana's goldfish makes a group of thugs start freaking out.
The Dulcinea Effect: He forms tight bonds with strangers extremely quickly, and will not hesitate to complicate his mission to actively ensure their safety. He quickly begins acting like Char's big brother and goes to save her while leaving Sojo for the Kamunabi, then gives up his Sacred Blade for Hakuri's life during a hostage situation, likely the kindest thing anyone has ever done for the young man, after a single day of friendship which started with Chihiro annoyed with him.
Elemental Personalities: Strongly associated with water, with his connection to his pet fish and his Sacred Blade having water-based attacks. This shows his unflappable nature and ability to move with a flowing confidence in new situations, losing his composure only under the most dire circumstances.
Elemental Rivalry: His Sacred Blade's powerset gives him control over water, and he is contested in his quest by Hiyuki, who fights with the aptly named Flame Bone sorcery.
Foil: He and Sojo, the first of the Sacred Blade wielders, are superficially similar but prove to be completely different in methods:
- Both are extremely violent and will slaughter any who get in their way, but Chihiro is an Anti-Hero who wants to prevent his father's Sacred Blades from falling into the wrong hands, and Sojo is just an Ax-Crazy psychopath.
- Chihiro, as Kunishige Rokuhira's son, knows how to forge Sacred Blades, whereas Sojo lacks that knowledge but is nonetheless trying to make more weapons out of the Datenseki he possesses using Char and her cells.
- Both of them look up to Kunishige and try to espouse his ideals, but while Chihiro knows of his father's sense of responsibility towards the Blades and desire that they only be used to defeat evil and protect the weak, Sojo has an extremely warped and incorrect view of Kunishige's desires and believes he wanted the Blades to be used for nothing more than killing.
Food as Characterization: His unspoken conversation with Sojo during their battle in Chapter 17 takes place in a Mental World at a tea table, with Sojo offering him dango and Chihiro turning them down due to not liking sweets. With Sojo's dango acting as a metaphor for his views and beliefs, Sojo tells him that he has the right to speak for Kunishige's intentions with the Sacred Blades, because it is ultimately their wielders who determine their purpose, and in turn, what their creator's legacy will be. Upon hearing this, Chihiro is visibly conflicted, but eats the dango anyway despite him previously saying he dislikes them, symbolically accepting Sojo's words as an unpleasant but true pill he has to swallow no matter how much he wishes to deny it.
Friend to All Children: In contrast to the cold and menacing aura he projects towards his enemies, Chihiro shows his softer side when he's interacting with children, such as with Char and "Mr Inazuma" Yuu.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has a prominent crescent-shaped one curving around his left eye, received back when his home was destroyed. Shiba's comments suggest he could have it covered up or repaired, but he keeps it as a reminder of his father's murder.
Gotta Kill 'Em All: His secondary goal is to hunt down the members of the Hishaku for killing his father. While he doesn't start his quest actively pursuing them, he realizes chasing the Sacred Blades they stole will inevitably put him on a crash course to confront them, even if it means taking on the entire magical underworld first.
Guardian Entity: His magical katana produces them in the form of the trio of goldfish his father had once brought home, and they appear when he performs his sword's magic techniques.
Handicapped Badass: While Char was unable to restore his missing arm after defeating Sojo, Chihiro proves he can still cut through swathes of yakuza with little effort despite his handicap, having gone on a rampage in Tokyo less than three weeks afterwards while getting leads on the Sazanami family.
Hero with Bad Publicity: Due to claiming Kuregumo's broken pieces after his duel with Sojo, he is assumed to be collecting the blades for his own selfish purposes. This results in the Kamunabi sending their top people to apprehend him.
Heroic RRoD: Consuming too much spirit energy while fighting with Enten will often cause his hands to start shaking from the strain, and requires he take a bit of time to recuperate. Using Nishiki at three times the amount his body will normally allow, on top of the exertion and loss of an arm from his final battle with Sojo, leaves him in extreme pain and barely able to stand on his own.
Heroic Vow: Chihiro does not tolerate blatant evil or the misuse and abuse of katanas. Cross his lines, and you're on his hit list.
Hidden Depths: Shiba notes that, even as The Stoic, Chihiro is prompt in making sure other people are taken care of, likely due to his upbringing — notably, he's the first amongst the two of them and Hinao to ask Char if she's eaten recently.
Hot-Blooded: Chihiro might look perpetually stoic and bored but he's driven by vengeance and is fiercely protective of his allies. His attitude is spelled out as being hot blooded with an icy façade.
Japanese Politeness: Chihiro is very courteous to everyone except his enemies, and something Lost in Translation to English is that he has a habit of referring to the goldfish entities of his sword as if they're his kids.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite being hellbent on avenging his father, Chihiro is perfectly capable of putting that quest aside in order to save innocent bystanders, his friendship with Char being a bright example.
Katanas Are Just Better: As befitting someone in a "katana society", Chihiro wields two such swords, one with a short blade and the other being his father's last katana and imbued with magic.
Kid Hero: He's a bit older than the regular Shonen protagonist but he's still only 18 when the main plot starts.
Killer Rabbit: Chihiro's presence is announced by goldfishes ominously floating over a wide range. They are met with bewilderment early, but soon enough, all criminals in the setting learn to be terrified of the things.
Legendary Carp: The Guardian Entity of Chihiro's sword is a trio of telescope goldfishes, which are characterized by their "dragon-like" protruding eyes, against Sojo, whose Kuregumo produces a dragon.
MacGuffin Super-Person: As the son of a legendary blacksmith who created multiple Weapons of Mass Destruction, Chihiro's very existence is a military secret.
The Mad Hatter: Chihiro matter-of-factly acknowledges early on that he's not sane and is on a path which will break him.
Making a Splash: His katana Enten has a distinct water theme; it releases droplets of water when it's drawn, has a trio of goldfish as its Guardian Entity, and his magical abilities are frequently stylized as water being released from his body and sword. Even the sword's tsuba is designed to look like flowing water with bubbles.
Master Swordsman: Despite being only eighteen, he proves himself to be an incredibly talented swordsman, with quick reflexes and a sure and lethal hand. He cuts through rank and file criminals with ease, and even older, more elite opponents like Sojo or three of the Tou at once tend to be evenly matched against him, with the winner determined in a battle of wits as much as sheer skill.
Meaningful Echo: Repeats Hakuri's words of encouragement back at him when Kyora starts claiming he's worthless.
Hakuri, chapter 20: Your circumstances, who should wield the sacred blade... I don't really get it at all, but is it really that complicated? You.. saved... me.
Chihiro, chapter 25: As far as I'm concerned, Hakuri is worth quite a lot. That guy... saved me.
Missing Mom: While Kunishige offhandedly mentions his mother (apparently, he is a lot more like her than his father) she is nowhere to be seen in the flashbacks to his childhood and no indication is given of what became of her.
"Not So Different" Remark: After hearing out Sojo's beliefs in their unspoken conversation during their rematch, Chihiro finds himself agreeing with his words that the wielders of the Sacred Blades are ultimately the ones who decide what their purposes are, that the Blades really are tools meant for killing, and that they both indeed have the privilege of speaking for Kunishige's intentions with the Sacred Blades. However, Chihiro follows up by saying he'll kill Sojo with bloodlust even greater than his for this exact reason, as he won't allow him to use his Blade to enact his bloodthirsty interpretations of their purpose.
Not So Stoic: While he typically comes across as calm and taciturn at all times, there are times when he'll lose his cool and let a little bit of a Hot-Blooded nature show, such as when he's defending his father's honor or trying to protect Char. That being said it's still little more than raising his voice or shouting once or twice, and he notably does not give in to rage or emotion, even in high stress situations.
One-Man Army: With his elemental prowess and skill with the katana, he can easily slaughter a few dozen Yakuza thugs all on his own.
Only Sane Man: Just about everyone he's on good terms with has some odd personality quirk or the other, frequently leaving him as the Straight Man when interacting with them.
Papa Wolf: He's still a teenager, but hurting Char has already proven to be tantamount to a death wish. When she gets kidnapped and subjected to inhumane medical experiments, Chihiro not only slaughters all of her kidnappers, but also does it while not squishing the burger he bought for her.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: Delivers a short but scathing one to Sojo after mortally wounding him, deriding him as being unworthy compared to his father and declaring that as the reason he cut him down, refusing to let his father's legacy be sullied by him.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: His naturally brown eyes glow red when using the magical attacks of his katana, and he is a ferocious opponent, as countless dead mooks could attest, if they were in any position to do so.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Big-time. His goal is to kill the assassins who not only murdered his father Kunishige but are also actively defiling his life's work.
Rule of Seven: He wields the seventh and final magical katana his father forged before his death.
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Takes this dynamic with Hakuri. While the other young man cries easily, has no skill in battle, and can be quite over the top, Chihiro is the opposite: stone-faced, a monster in a fight, and reserved to the point of borderline Emotion Suppression.
Situational Hand Switch: Chichiro's dominant hand appears to be his left given he usually wields Enten with his left hand, but he's forced to swap to a right-handed grip when rescuing Char due to injuries from his past fight with Sojo.
Sour Outside, Sad Inside: It eventually becomes apparent the bitter, hate-fuelled persona he upkeeps is more a coping mechanism for years of unaddressed trauma than a genuine aspect of his personality, given how friendly and caring he proves to be.
The Stoic: Whenever he's not in a fight, he's this, having always been rather taciturn since childhood. Subverted, as Ikuto notes that he is a lot more Hot-Blooded than he lets on with his calm exterior.
Super-Speed: He can be extremely quick when he fights, to the point one of his recurring strategies is to rush his opponents before they know he's there and instantly cut them all down in only a second. During their duel, he is only slightly slower than the literally lightning-quick Sojo.
Tastes Like Friendship: Chihiro bonds with Char through offering (and then getting) her food shortly after they meet. Notably, Chihiro's grief over his father's death is frequently visualized as him missing eating with his father at the table, and Char similarly remembers the meals she'd have with her deceased mother. This culiminates in Chihiro giving her a non-squished burger after rescuing her from Sojo's thugs.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: By the end of his negotiations with Hiyuki and Tafuku, he has reached this arrangement with them to bring an end to the Rakuzaichi. He goes through with his plan with the duo helping him out, but the moment he is successful Hiyuki will return to trying to take him down.
Tranquil Fury: When he is in a fight, he's usually this, never raising his voice even when slaughtering a whole mob on his own. Being stoic by nature, the main way to tell when he's in this state is if he's brought his swords out.
Trauma Button: Played straight and subverted.
- Dredging up his father's murder to Mind Rape him temporarily incapacitates him when he fights a sorcerer who uses such powers, but being reminded of the event that sparked his driving fury lets him bounce back far quicker than his opponent anticipated before he slaughters his assailants.
- Coming face to face with one of the Hishaku for the first time throws him off balance. Seeing their distinctive tattoo has him flashing back to the night of his father's murder with an openly forlorn expression.
Used to Be a Sweet Kid: While he was still The Stoic even as a kid, he was far calmer and content with his life forging swords together with his beloved father. After his father's murder, his thirst for vengeance makes him a far more violent and hateful person by the present.
Wacky Parent, Serious Child: He's a lot more calm, down-to-earth, and responsible compared to the flighty, goofy, and laid-back Rokuhira, and frequently found himself looking after his father rather than the other way around.
Would Not Shoot a Good Guy: His quest for revenge puts him up against despicable criminals which he cuts down without hesitation. When he is forced to fight Hiyuki, a government agent after him because of her job, he is unwilling to strike her down fatally.
Wrong Context Magic: His feat of breaking an Enchanted blade is something met with incredulity and widely believed to be outright impossible, albeit we as readers see it clearly onscreen. It's implied to be either an ability of Enten or a technique that Chihiro personally knows of as Kunishige's son.
You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!: Realizing that he has to work with Hakuri in order to retrieve Shinuchi has him make a notably stone-faced stricken expression.
You Killed My Father: His father's murder is what drives his current quest for revenge.

Chihiro's family and friends

Shiba

"I got one you ain't heard before...I TALK TOO MUCH!"

Voiced by: Jun Fukushima (vomic)

First Appearance: Chapter 1: Mission

A close friend of Chihiro's father. He assists Chihiro in his search for the stolen katana.

Beware the Silly Ones: He can be just as goofy and flighty as his old friend Kunishige, but is perfectly capable of taking on a quartet of Yakuza and coming out on top.
Big Damn Heroes: Shows up just in time to save Hinao and Hakuri from Soya after Hinao calls in a warning.
Good Is Not Soft: Works with Chihiro for a noble cause, but his methods can be even more brutal than his already quite Anti-Heroic ward. He notably proves to be a strong advocate for torture, demolishing a bound Daruma's foot and plans to pull Kyora's fingernails until he allows them into his storehouse.
Headbutting Heroes: Shiba and Azami are former colleagues in the Kamunabi, and Shiba goes out of his way to disparage the organisation when they meet for the first time in the story and the rest of their conversation is tense at best.
Intergenerational Friendship: A close friend of Chihiro, who is one generation younger then him. They met and knew each other because he was also a close friend to his father from their days in the military.
Mr. Exposition: Early in the story, Shiba talks out loud to a subdued grunt about the origin of Rokuhira's magic swords while Chihiro is in the middle of a fight. He also explains the nature of Spirit Energy to Char in the early chapters.
Offscreen Moment of Awesome: Accompanies most of Chihiro's missions, but his escapades tend to occur off-panel. A minor Running Gag shows him casually among the defeated bodies of Mooks who confronted him with no indication of how he managed it. It's not until he fights Soya that the audience gets to see what he's actually capable of.
Older Sidekick: Significantly older than Chihiro, but plays second fiddle to him in their quest to find the Hishaku and the Sacred Blades.
Parental Substitute: Not only did he train Chihiro in sword-fighting in preparation for his hunt of the Sacred Blades, he took over the role of raising him for three years after the death of Kunishige. His internal monologue expresses a paternal approval for Chihiro's quickly thought up plans and calm in the face of adversity.
Teleportation: His sorcery allows him to instantly teleport himself and bystanders with a single hand gesture, as long as he has physical contact with them. This allows him to bypass sorcerous barriers, travel across Japan extremely quickly, and be a tough opponent in battle due to its more lethal applications.
Weaponized Teleportation: He is perfectly willing to use his impressive teleportation abilities in combat. When facing off against Soya, one of the first things he does is grab him and teleport them both high in the air.

Kunishige Rokuhira

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kunishige.png

"Katanas should be wielded... by those dedicated to vanquishing evil and protecting the weak."

Voiced by: Kenta Fujimaki (vomic)

First Appearance: Chapter 1: Mission

"If you wanna be a real swordsmith, it's about time... I show you the stuff that ain't so bright 'n' shiny."

Chihiro's father and a legendary blacksmith. Despite his very laidback personality, he was very serious about his craft and was capable of imbuing his katanas with magic.

Bumbling Dad: In all matters besides blacksmithing he fits this to a tee, with a chief example being his purchase of several goldfish on a whim and leaving his son to take care of them most of the time.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He's pretty goofy when he's not working, but he's still a master blacksmith whose swords were what ended the Seitei War 18 years prior to the main story, and seems to be pretty skilled in using them as well.
Deceased Parents Are the Best: Silly as he was, it was clear that he and his son Chihiro deeply loved each other, and made sure that his son was instilled with his sense of justice and responsibility before his death.
Fun T-Shirt: Pretty much exclusively wears these around the house, in keeping with his goofy personality.
The Ghost: Not Kunishige himself, as even dead he appears and is referenced quite a bit in flashbacks, but instead his partner or whoever was Chihiro's mother. He mentions her exactly once in passing without even saying her name, but at no point does Chihiro ever refer or think back on her in any capacity and she presumably was already out of his life by the time he was 15. If she died earlier, left them, is MiA or something else altogether is unknown.
Idiot Hero: Not particularly intelligent and very spacey (unless katanas are involved), but a noble and honorable man who was a good father and well-known war hero in spite of this.
The Mentor: Taught his son how to forge a katana after he developed an interest in following in his footsteps. He also imparted to Chihiro his sense of responsibility over who wields the weapons they make, and how he ought to follow his own path rather than blindly making katanas like his father.
Parents as People: Through his unspoken conversation with Sojo and his father's past advice to him, Chihiro realizes that Kunishige had made a mistake creating the Sacred Blades and that they really were tools of murder, and he has to do absolutely everything in his power to prevent madmen like Sojo from misusing them. Kunishige's words to him even imply that he himself felt that he'd blundered making such horrific weapons, and wants Chihiro to steer clear of the course he took.
Plot-Triggering Death: Kunishige's murder at the Hishaku's hands and the theft of his Sacred Blades is what kicks off Chihiro's quest to both enact vengeance on his father's killers and stop them from sullying his legacy.
Posthumous Character: Killed by the Hishaku four years prior to the main events of the story, though we learn extensively about his character through flashbacks and his son's reflections on him.
Ultimate Blacksmith: Created a set of katanas mysteriously imbued with incredibly potent elemental powers, which only bond to and obey a single wielder at a time -- though nothing says an individual can't be bound to two at once.
Wacky Parent, Serious Child: The wacky parent to his son Chihiro's serious child, as he's generally a lot flightier, silly, and irresponsible than his calmer son when it comes to anything besides katanas.

Hinao

"Of course! What, you think I don't know anything?!"

Voiced by: Akari Tadano (vomic)

First Appearance: Chapter 3: Witness

A girl whose job is to connect sorcerers with potential employers in Tokyo. She helps Chihiro and Shiba by collecting any information that could potentially lead to the Hishaku group on the side.

Cool Big Sis: To Char, giving her the oversized jacket she usually wears and being the one who looks after her while Chihiro and Shiba are off on missions.
Genki Girl: Easily the most chipper and enthusiastic of the cast so far, next to the Kamunabi sorceress in the Anti-Kuregumo Squad.
Knowledge Broker: Her main job, serving to find sorcerers jobs in Tokyo, as well as looking for any leads on the Sacred Blades and the Hishiku for Chihiro and Shiba.
Nonconformist Dyed Hair: Only her bangs are bleached and dyed.
Out of Focus: She has no combat ability so she quickly gets sidelined once action starts. Moreover, once the main plotline with Sojo kicks in, the heroes have no need for additional intelligence or jobs, so she's missing for the better part of two arcs. Even when she reappears, she mainly stays out of the action and looks after Char while Chihiro continues his quest.
Odango Hair: Sports these, along with two long bangs and some hair clips.
Summon Bigger Fish: In order to keep Char safe while Chihiro and Shiba are away, Hinao figured out a simple signal for Shiba to warp straight to her by dialing his phone, which comes in handy when Soya tries to kill her in the process of dragging Hakuri back home.
Team Normal: In a group with a vengeful swordsman wielding a magic katana, a war veteran assisting said swordsman, the last child of a bloodline with an extraordinary Healing Factor, and an Inept Mage from one of the underworld's most prolific families, Hinao is far and away the most normal one of the lot as a simple Knowledge Broker who helps sorcerers find jobs.

Char Kyonagi

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/char1.png

"A bad guy's chasing me. I need protection!"

Voiced by: Miko Tateishi (vomic)

First appearance: Chapter 3: Witness

A little girl who provides Chihiro and Shiba with their first lead on the stolen katanas.

An Arm and a Leg: Sojo's goons cut her leg off and dangle her foot out of a car window to misdirect Chihiro while they make off with her. It grows back.
Big Eater: She never gets to finish her ramen after days of hunger, and proceeds to finish a whole sandwich, an ice cream, and a milkshake whilst Chihiro drives her around — only for it to be All for Nothing as she vomits them all out during the next fight.
Cute Oversized Sleeves: The outfit she gets from Hinao is a few sizes too large for her, resulting in her having comically large sleeves she can swing around freely over her hands.
Damsel in Distress: An agent of her pursuers kidnaps her after overhearing her tell Chihiro about the katana. Retrieving her from Sojo's clutches is the impetus of Chihiro's conflict with him and his organization, other then his connection to the Hishaku.
Disappeared Dad: Her father ran away after her mother told him her family's secret.
Drama-Preserving Handicap: Her Healing Hands ability basically allows her to confer her very-powerful Healing Factor upon another, which in Char's case allows her to shrug off losing entire limbs in a matter of hours. However, Char's skill level with this ability, which unlocked for the first time after Chihiro saved her from Sojo's hideout, is still just a beginner's. She manages to heal Chihiro's body enough from the blowback of using his sacred blade that he's evenly matched against an injured Sojo, but when he loses an arm in the process of killing Sojo, she can't regrow or reattach the limb. Shiba reassures her that she'll eventually be at the level where she can heal Chihiro's injuries as easily as her own, but given how much Chihiro throws himself into combat, if she could restore all his injuries so easily, it would allow Chihiro to fight without the threat of the blowback from his own Sacred Blade hanging over him.
Healing Factor: She can recover almost instantly from burns and scars, and can regrow amputated limbs. This clan lineage is precisely why Sojo wants her for Human Resources.
Healing Hands: As it turns out, her healing factor can actually confer her healing to others, but only if she's willing. Her unwillingness while in Sojo's captivity is why his experiments with her cells don't pay off, and upon realizing the true nature of her powers after Chihiro rescues her, she's able to heal his battered body enough for him to use his dominant hand again. However, Char's skill with the new ability isn't at the level where she can regrow or reattach a severed limb yet, leaving Chihiro a Handcapped Badass when he loses an arm against Sojo.
Idiot Hair: Sports a lonesome loose lock at the top of her hair, as seen in the profile picture.
Instant Expert: Defied. The climatic fight against Sojo has him reaching a new level of understanding and control with Kuregumo through his fighting with Chihiro, whilst Char finally manages to unlock her Healing Hands ability to restore Chihiro's battered body enough for a final fight with Sojo. When Chihiro manages to prevail against Sojo's new technique at the cost of his right arm, Char tries to use her power to restore it, but fails. Chihiro nonetheless comforts her for her aid, and Shiba affirms that she can't expect to completely master a new technique she's only just used. This is contrasted against the mortally-injured Sojo, who believes his new understanding of the Scared Blades will give him the insight to control the Datenseki they were forged from in his last moments, only to undergo a Phlebotinum Overload instead, adding insult to injury in his Karmic Death.
MacGuffin Super-Person: Due to her regeneration powers, she is kidnapped and used by Sojo to experiment with a mineral that's used in forging magic swords but causes people to explode if handled improperly.
Mysterious Waif: She's introduced as a little girl with no parents or home who (at the time) had the only clue concerning the stolen katanas.
No Indoor Voice: Frequently shouts, especially when she thinks she isn't being taken seriously.
No Social Skills: Beyond a single "Hello!", she's extremely direct about demanding protection and doesn't even mention her name until Chihiro takes her to a soba shop and their food arrives, with Chihiro lampshading her timing.
Chihiro (aside): ...Oh, we're doing introductions now?
Obsessed with Food: She is very passionate about her food and never turns down the chance to eat. While part of this is explained by the inhumane treatment she suffered under Sojo keeping her hungry, flashbacks show she and her mother's bond was represented by them sharing food and looking to each other for comfort in times of hardship. Thus, she sees sharing of food as an integral part of a positive relationship, to the point she cries Tears of Joy when Chihiro brings her a promised sandwich when he saves her.
Orphan's Ordeal: Her mother's dead, her father disappeared long ago, and she's obviously struggled on the street for some time. Her mother in particular is a point of trauma, as she died trying to protect her from their pursuers, which he mocks as foolish and pointless while trying to lure her out.
Protectorate: For Chihiro. Hurting her is an easy way to earn a spot at the top of Chihiro's shit list.
The Reveal: Chapter 6 reveals she's being chased because of her family's special power, a supernaturally fast Healing Factor. Which in itself can be transferred into another, should Char be willing to, albeit she only managed to regenerate enough of Chihiro's attached body parts to rejuvenate him enough for a final equal match with an injured Sojo. When Chihiro loses an arm during the clash, Char's skill level isn't at the point where she can regrow or reattach the limb.
Small Name, Big Ego: After Chihiro defeats the assassin sorcerer, she agrees to take him on as a bodyguard and talks as though he should consider the opportunity a privilege. This is despite the fact she is a poor orphan girl, which Chihiro notes with indignance.
Sole Survivor: She's the last of her clan, who were wiped out because of false rumors that eating their flesh would make one immortal. More specifically, her mother was the only survivor of the massacre that destroyed her clan, and she was her only child.
Strong Family Resemblance: Looks very much like her mother, although she didn't have an Idiot Hair.

Hakuri Sazanami

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screenshot_2024_02_19_090829.png

"That day, a samurai lit my helpless existence on fire."

First appearance: Chapter 19: Knight of Darkness

A young man whom Chihiro meets while looking for leads on the Sazanami family to retrieve Shinuchi before the Rakuzaichi auction.

Achievements in Ignorance: He unintentionally beats the issue of being trapped in Tafuku's sumo ring sorcery. While he fully intended to block Hiyuki's punch during their first confrontation, being subsequently knocked out by the blow counts as "first blood" in the ring and allows Chihiro to escape without resorting to drastic measures against the Kamunabi sorcerers.
Better to Die than Be Killed: Assuming his brother is out to kill him when they reunite following his defection, he leaps off a high staircase intending to take his own life instead. Soya catches him.
Betrayal by Offspring: Divulges all the information he knows of his family's secrets and traditions and allows Chihiro and Shiba to break into their family estate. As it is to stop his father's criminal dealings and bring down his otherwise unrepentant slave-taking crime family, he is plainly in the right for his choice.
Blue Blood: He's a member of the Sazanami family, a highly influential underworld sorcerer family in charge of the Rakuzaichi black market auction.
Broken Pedestal: Before his change of conscience, he was loyal to his father's ambitions and revered his older relatives in the Tou along with the rest of his siblings. Now, finding himself on the opposite end of the family's love, he sees them as the remorseless criminals they are and works to stop their reign of crime.
Cloudcuckoolander: He isn't quite all there, to say the least. He lets his cola dribble out of his mouth while thinking back on his pet mantis and family, repeatedly calls Chihiro by the same name he gave his pet mantis ("Samurai"), and sounds like such a loon when entreating Chihiro for help that he flat-out tries to run away.
Defector from Decadence: While not initially thinking much of it at first, he gradually recognized his family's deeds in maintaining the Rakuzaichi auction were monstrous and now wants to bring it down.
Dull Eyes of Unhappiness: He's introduced with a vacant gaze, being so depressed about the loss of his family that he literally can't "grit his teeth" to move on and spills his drink. His eyes then light up when Chihiro inadvertently saves him not once but twice, inspiring him to become heroic.
The Exile: His father states that while he couldn't bear having such a disappointment in the family, he didn't want to have to kill his own son in cold blood, so he merely banished him from the family's estate instead. Based on what we see of him later chronologically, this left him on the streets of Tokyo with nothing but some money and the clothes on his back, never to return or be a burden on the family again.
Fearless Fool: Despite being untalented in his family's sorceries and all but a noncombatant physically, he nevertheless throws himself into dangerous situations without any plan to keep himself safe. This regularly results in him being beaten bloody for his troubles.
Grew a Spine: Soya's comments suggest he never stood up for himself while growing up, taking the beatings from his family and never saying a word of his concerns against their criminal ways. In the present, he is willing to look his eldest brother in the eye and tells him plainly what their family is doing is wrong.
He Will Not Cry, so I Cry for Him: When he hears Chihiro's tragic backstory, he breaks down in a fit of sympathetic tears despite Chihiro himself never showing that much outward emotion over the death of his father.
Hero-Worshipper: After seeing Chihiro and Sojo's first duel and recognizing Chihiro's Heroic Spirit as he absorbs Sojo's attempt to kill everyone nearby, he becomes greatly enamored with "the Samurai". His excitement when they meet again is so great it ends up nearly scaring Chihiro off.
Inept Mage: His attempt to cast a spell on his yakuza captors falls completely flat, indicating he's not great with magic. He notes he was born with the least potential for their bloodline's sorcery in the entire history of his family, and it was a major reason for him being disowned from the Sazanamis.
Lost Pet Grievance: When he was younger, he had a treasured pet praying mantis named Samurai. He privately recollects the day he ran away as the worst day of his life prior to his banishment from his family and he felt considerable grief over Samurai for some time afterward.
Love Redeems: Maybe. It's implied that Hakuri's relationship with a woman being sold as merchandise was what made him realize how cruel the Sazanamis truly were, though it isn't exactly clear if said relationship was romantic in nature. Though given that Soya is the one bringing it up, it's entirely possible that he's just projecting.
Nice Guy: Eccentricities aside, he is a good-hearted young man. During his first appearance, he fearlessly intervenes when a little girl is kidnapped by yakuza, which gets him kidnapped and beaten in her place.
Non-Action Guy: While he's more than willing to stand up to thugs and even take Hiyuki's flaming Power Fist to the face, he really isn't suited for fights. He's so poor with magic that he can't take on a bunch of yakuza Mooks, and said flaming Power Fist was enough to knock him out cold despite Hiyuki saying she'd held back, with Tafuku even saying he was super weak.
Ocular Gushers: He's effectively bawling as Shiba recounts Chihiro's story and motives to him, and turns the waterworks up a dial when Chihiro tells Char to fix his injured face instead of giving another go at regenerating his missing arm.
Plucky Comic Relief: While he's a complete goofball, he's nonetheless willing to scrap with some kidnappers to save a child after being inspired by Chihiro's actions during the first battle with Sojo.
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Takes this dynamic with Chihiro. While the "samurai" is reserved, stone-faced, and a Child Prodigy in combat and sorcery using his Sacred Blade in tandem with sorcery. In contrast, Hakuri is openly emotional, prone to tears and over the top reactions, and not only talentless in sorcery, but useless in a physical combat.
Shared Family Quirks: His brother Soya proves just as liable to breaking down in fits of ugly tears as Hakuri is.
Sibling Yin-Yang: He and his eldest brother are essentially opposites in terms of disposition; Hakuri is regularly a kind-hearted goofball who can become serious should the situation warrant it, while Soya is usually serious and dour — unless Hakuri is involved, which causes an instant switch to a psychotic friendliness toward his younger brother.
Taking the Bullet: Jumps in the way of Hiyuki's strike when she manages to find an opening in Chihiro's defenses, saving his hero from the blow at the cost of taking the full force of the attack right in the face.
The Un-Favorite: Hakuri was disowned and sent into exile by the rest of the Sazanami family for being inept at using magic and for getting in the way of their business.
Kyora: This pathetic wretch was born a Sazanami, but he can't even do sorcery. He's useless. Worse, he's a hindrance. His life is worthless.
White Sheep: The rest of his family are immoral criminals who regularly traffic civilians and children, and despite being raised to follow their beliefs and have loyalty to them, he saw what they were doing as inhumane and plans to put an end to it.
You Are Better Than You Think You Are:
- After eating Hiyuki's punch straight to the face to protect Chihiro, Hakuri professes that he did deserve to hold the Sacred Blades despite the selfish nature of his mission, pointing out that Chihiro had saved his life twice over now and is truly doing the right thing.
- In a callback to the above instance, Chihiro comforts Hakuri after he gives up Enten in exchange for Hakuri's life by making it clear that Hakuri gave him the confidence he needed to execute his plan, refuting Kyora's cold-hearted "The Reason You Suck" Speech from the chapter prior.

Mr. Inazuma

Yuu / "Mr. Inazuma"

First Appearance: Chapter 27: Mr. Inazuma

"Today I'll prove... that I'm a hero... who stands up against... the den of evil."

A child determined to save his older sister from being sold during the 208th Rakuzaichi.

Cowardly Lion: Despite his attempts to assure himself he is not scared of anything, he is intimidated by thunder and is noticeably nervous and shaking as he enters the Rakuzaichi auction house. This fear does not stop him from marching straight in and demanding his sister back, though he stammers over himself the entire time.
Deconstructed Character Archetype: Of the Kid Hero. He has all the makings of one: determination to stand up to evil, an innocent damsel to save, and even a themed costume for his heroics. Unfortunately, with no training or knowledge, and only a small knife in terms of weaponry, his naivety and lacking plan of marching up and demanding her back fails to get him past a single Mook and would have gotten him killed if not for a more experienced hero showing up.
Elemental Motifs: Heavily associates himself with lightning. Inazuma translates to lightning, his shirt has the kanji for "lightning" on it, and his hat has a lightning bolt symbol on it. His reasoning is given from a memory of his sister, who comforted him during a lightning storm by telling him the sky only uses lightning to punish bad people.
They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!: He is very insistent on his nickname being Mr. Inazuma. When Chihiro leaves the honorific out, he goes out his way to correct him.

Kamunabi

A government agency which employ state-sanctioned sorcerers in order to maintain public order.

In General

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kamunabi_headquarters.jpg

Badass in a Nice Suit: Their standard uniform across the ranks is a sharp suit complete with a Badass Longcoat, with various further accessories depending on their status. Their practicality in the field is questionable, but their fashion sense is undeniable.
Better the Devil You Know: The higher-ups acknowledge while they may be able to outmuscle the Sazanami family with significant effort, their resources and manpower would invariably take a significant hit. They decide after some deliberation to allow them to continue their criminal work and play by their rules by entering the auction instead of taking the chance of leaving Japan unprotected by trying to change the status quo.
The Dreaded: The moment one of their representatives shows up to defend Chihiro, the surviving bounty hunters coming after him quickly flee rather than risk invoking the Kamunabi's wrath.
Elaborate Underground Base: Their main base of operations is a large facility sequestered somewhere beneath Tokyo, only accessible through a magical lock system which requires a member to speak their full name at a specific location.
Godzilla Threshold: The Kamunabi's leaders decide they can't hold back anything against Chihiro after learning that he'd killed Sojo and is now in possession of two Sacred Blades, and as a result send in their best agent, Hiyuki, after him.
Government Agency of Fiction: The Kamunabi is comprised of government-licensed sorcerers to combat threats of a magical nature and keep the peace.
Impartial Purpose-Driven Faction: Their only concern as a group is to maintain the fragile peace and order among sorcerers following the conclusion of the Seitei War. This means they are willing to "succumb to evil" in their efforts, with the higher-ups voting to enter the Rakzaichi criminal auction and bid for a Sacred Blade instead of risk open warfare with the powerful Sazanami family that would threaten the peace and deplete their numbers.
Super Cop: They seem to exclusively employ sorcerers, meaning each of them have a unique superpower-esque sorcery. A sensible choice, as their sole role in the government is to combat criminal sorcerers and weapons of magical, nation-destroying capabilities.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Azami states that there is friction within the Kamunabi regarding Kunishige and the Sacred Blades, with it being such a point of contention that Kunishige's hiding place and even Chihiro's existence as his son were kept a secret from some of the higher-ups, and even in the present several members almost get into open arguments over the subject when they convene to discuss Sojo's downfall and Chihiro's actions. That said, the group nonetheless comes to an agreement that they couldn't allow Chihiro to do as he pleases with two Sacred Blades, and subsequently send their strongest fighter after him.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: The Kamunabi top brass is fully aware of what terrors the Sacred Blades are capable of, and after seeing what Sojo had done to their people with one and knowing Chihiro now has two in his possession, they decide they have to send in Hiyuki, their best fighter, to bring Chihiro in.

Azami

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_2745.JPG

"When you go around making such a spectacle of yourself, I can't play dumb."

First Appearance: Chapter 7: Smoke Signal

An old family friend of the Rokuhiras, Azami is a colonel of the Kamunabi, and one of the few who played a role in hiding Kunishige Rokuhira in the aftermath of the Seitei War.

Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: Has a big smile on his face and offers banter as he fights the sorcerers, seemingly unperturbed by their efforts to hit him, which is unto itself a strong indicator of the gap in their power levels.
Belated Injury Realization: Doesn't seem to recognise he's burst his knuckles punching sorcerers until Chihiro asks him about it, whereupon he starts screaming in agony.
Charles Atlas Superpower: Apparently doesn't use sorcery at all, he's just that strong and agile.
Colonel Badass: Holds the title of Colonel among the Kamunabi, and shows a great proficiency for hand to hand combat.
Conflict Killer: His presence alone gets the lower-tier sorcerers to flee as they don't want to tangle with the government over this; he also uses his connections to take down the bounty on Chihiro and Char.
Could Say It, But...: The underworld auction where the next sword is meant to be sold is classified information, with even fewer people knowing about it than about the Sacred swords in general, but Azami tells Chihiro everything he knows about it in a supposed effort to stop him from interfering.
Frontline General: One of the nine co-leaders of the Kamunabi, and he personally shows up to physically stop the bounty hunters after Chihiro.
Headbutting Heroes: His former colleague Shiba is not happy to see him and complains about the Kamunabi shortly afterwards, and he's polite but not cordial about what he has to say to him and Chihiro.
Hiding Behind Your Bangs: His shaggy haircut perpetually keeps his right eye covered by his hair.
Internal Affairs: Azami's main reason for crossing Shiba and Chihiro's paths is to summon Shiba to the Kamunabi and to tell Chihiro that he's being too damn conspicuous with his sword hunt.
The Mole: Following the Kamunabi council's decision to sic Hiyuki onto Chihiro, Azami begins leaking the organization's movements to his old friend Shiba in protest for their actions. This leads to them knowing about Hiyuki's hunt for them and the Kamunabi's choice to buy the Shinuchi immediately after the vote is put through.
Mr. Exposition: Beyond his mere presence indicating the government's aware and is concerned about what Chihiro's doing, he tells him the next sword is likely to be found in an underworld auction.
Not So Stoic: Part of a Bait-and-Switch where he seemingly has a Major Injury Underreaction to his split knuckles and possible broken bones from punching people as hard as he has been, but simply didn't realise he was that injured until Chihiro told him, leading to him shrieking in pain.
Obstructive Bureaucrat: Played With, as he does everything short of confiscating Chihiro's sword (which Shiba points out is pretty much the only thing that would stop him) to try and dissuade him from pursuing the next katana at the auction, but has basically guaranteed that Chihiro and Shiba are going to get themselves involved by telling them this much about it.
Required Secondary Powers: Has Charles Atlas Superpowers but not superhumanly durable skin, leading to the Not So Stoic moment above.
Secret-Keeper: Chapter 18 reveals the rest of the Kamunabi are clueless to Chihiro's existence, and Azami collaborated with Shiba to keep it that way. The confirmation by Kazane of his existence leads to him being investigated by his contemporaries.

Anti-Kuregumo Squad

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/acgs.jpg

From left to right: Kazane, Kugara (on top, full-face mask), Uzuki (bottom, gas mask), Ikuto, and Shiyumi^note

First Appearance: Chapter 10: Swift

A Kamunabi squad assembled specifically to stop Sojo and seize Kuregumo from his possession.

Arc Hero: They show up at the start of the "Vs. Sojo" Arc with the mission of taking Sojo down. They prove to be valuable allies to Chihiro, but mostly perish during the arc's climax.
An Arm and a Leg: Kugara has his left arm (and a chunk of his torso) obliterated by Sojo blitzing through him at the end of their fight. Makoto and Kazane also lose their left and right arms, respectively, from Sojo's follow up attacks.
The Big Guy: Kugara is loud, excitable, and towers over the rest of the squad physically. In battle, he engages Sojo physically (to the point of being used as a weapon by Ikuto) while the rest stay back and utilize their sorceries for ranged attacks.
Carbon Skin: Kugara is able to turn his limbs as hard as rock and also sharpen them to form deadly points.
Combat Pragmatist: They fight Sojo exclusively as a six-on-one assault, and utilize as many methods as they have available to keep him disoriented during their fight in hopes of disarming and killing him.
Cool Mask: Two of the members of the squad wear different types of masks. Kugara wears a distinctive wooden mask at all times, with a long nose which sharpens to a deadly point when he uses his Carbon Skin ability. Uzuki instead wears a gas mask over his mouth for no given reason.
Dead Hat Shot: Kugara never takes off his mask until his fatal injury from Sojo, when it falls off his face involuntarily. In the interim between Sojo's attack and the explicit confirmation of his death, the recurring visual of his discarded mask on the beach is used to highlight the brutality of his fate even compared to his teammates.
Dishing Out Dirt: Shiyumi is able to manipulate and levitate the ground, and proceeds to transport the entire battle to over the sea to limit Collateral Damage (which is wise given how destructive the swords have been.)
Facial Markings: Makoto has a thin black stripe running along his face above his nose.
Fastball Special: Ikuto can use magnetism powers, and is able to use them in tandem with Sojo's own electricity to launch Kugara at him like a railgun, dealing him a serious injury.
Flat Character: Each of the team establish their own individual personalities and dynamics with each other as characters, except for Makoto. He rarely speaks or even emotes, and his status as the scout of the squad means he sits out most of the squad's interactions with Chihiro at the hospital, leaving him with significantly less page time than his teammates.
Godzilla Threshold: Kazane is made to stay back during their second fight with Sojo, tasked with using a technique known as "Kaichi"^noteRoughly translatable as "Demon Monster" as a last resort. When Sojo gets the upper hand, he moves to employ it, but is disabled before he gets the chance to use it.
Hope Spot: The squad succeeds in wresting Kuregumo from Sojo's possession during their fight... only for him to get it back just as quickly after launching himself at literal lightning-speed back to the sword using techniques he worked out after his fight with Chihiro and during this one, tearing Kugara and another member to pieces and slicing the rest up before they can do anything to him.
Killed Offscreen: Uzuki is not seen being injured by Sojo during his final attack, but his death is confirmed along with the rest of the squad, suggesting he suffered a Disney Villain Death when Shiyumi's floating platforms fell.
Male Restroom Etiquette: Defied when Chihiro and the men in the squad discuss how to counter Sojo's special moves whilst three of them are peeing and he's washing his hands.
Magnetism Manipulation: This is Ikuto's main power, which he can use to propel others with a Fastball Special.
Marionette Master: The gas-mask sorcerer is able to manipulate small wooden dolls and tie Sojo down with ropes extending from said dolls.
Mauve Shirt: They are a group of characters introduced in the first mayor arc of the series and receive decent characterization but 4/6 of them get butchered by Sojo, and of the 2 survivors one lost an arm and the other both legs as well as in a coma
No Indoor Voice: Kugara shouts loudly about the atmosphere of the hospital where Chihiro is being treated, only to be chided by the sorceress who is talking at the exact same volume.
No Name Given: As has been the case for Mooks, names were far and few between at first, with only the squad's leader Ikuto Hasegawa getting a caption until Ch. 16 where upon Kazane and Kugara got their names mentioned in dialogue and Uzuki mentioned in a vague context where it's unclear if that means the sorcerer with the gas mask or big hands. The sorceress remains unnamed. Their names are revealed later on, however, when the Kamunabi officials discuss their deaths.
No Man Should Have This Power: After his squad is wiped out, Kazane dazedly mumbles that the Sacred Blades shouldn't be allowed to exist, and unhappily repeats this sentiment to Azami when he visits him in the hospital.
Out-Gambitted: They collaborate with Chihiro to learn Sojo's techniques. This allows them to base their second attack on countering everything he can throw at them before taking Kuregumo, up until he uses a technique Chihiro never got to see which quickly turns the battle in his favor.
Rebuff the Amateur: Kazane complains Chihiro's intention to follow them on their mission, saying he's not qualified despite his colleagues praising him for standing his ground against Sojo and preventing any civilian casualties.
Sacrificial Lion: Sojo tears through the squad just as they think they've won, killing Kugara, cutting off Kazane's hand before he can reveal his technique and slicing the sorceress's face before facing off against Chihiro again. In the aftermath, Ikuto's body can be seen at the bottom of the sea crushed under the sorceress's rubble, and Kugara's mask is lying on the beach with a body implied to be his floating close by.
Sizeshifter: Makoto can embiggen his hands to smash for greater damage and hold opponents in place.
Slashed Throat: Shiyumi has the side of her neck fatally slashed as Sojo blitzes through the squad after killing Kugara.
Smart People Wear Glasses: Ikuto is the only member of the squad to wear glasses, and he's the leader and strategist.
The Smurfette Principle: Shiyumi is the only one woman in the squad, who gets left out when Chihiro addresses the others in the toilet.
Sole Survivor: Kazane, as everyone else perished fighting Sojo or, in the case of Hagiwara, was left in a coma.
Thousand-Yard Stare: Kazane is left as the apparent Sole Survivor of his squad after their gruesome loss to Sojo. Badly wounded and staring blankly at the horizon, he mutters that the Sacred Blades should not exist.
Total Party Kill: With the exception of the dismembered Kazane and the legless and comatose Hagiwara, everyone else was killed in action fighting Sojo.
Uncertain Doom: The final fate of the squad is left ambiguous, but grim until chapter 18 — Kugara suffers a certain death as Sojo blasts clean through him, Makoto loses his left arm and a part of his torso, Shiyumi gets her neck sliced open, and Kazane loses his arm before he can deploy the team's trump card. In the aftermath, a body implied to be Kugara's is floating near his mask on the beach, Hagiwara is shown at the bottom of the sea with his legs crushed by rubble, and only Kazane is explicitly shown to still be alive as he kneels on the beach, badly wounded and with a Thousand-Yard Stare. Afterwards, it is confirmed that four of them were killed in battle and Ikuto lost both legs and is in a coma, leaving Kazane as the effective Sole Survivor.
What Is Going On?: Shiyumi is unaware of Chihiro's skill in absorbing Kuregumo's attacks, which earns her a chiding by Ikuto for not paying attention, and gives Kugara a chance to (loudly) proclaim his admiration for Chihiro.
The Worf Effect: Despite being a full six-man task force of powerful government sorcerers created specifically to take Sojo out 6-on-1, with Chihiro's advice on how to combat his Sacred Blade to boot, they get completely wiped out regardless. Their defeat highlights just how damned powerful the Blades are, and particularly their Evolving Weapon quality, with the squad only losing because they didn't count on Sojo breaking a completely new technique to blitz through them all in mere moments. To their credit, they do manage to deal Sojo a severe injury before they get taken down, which knocks him down to more even footing with an equally wounded Chihiro before the two have their final battle.

Hiyuki Kakari

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_3126_4.jpeg

"I can't do this unless you come at me for real! My life has to be on the line too!"

First Appearance: Chapter 18: Roar

"You've got no business wielding a weapon of that magnitude in self-service. It should be controlled by the Kamunabi for the welfare of the nation."

The Kamunabi's top enforcer and wielder of a unique sorcery known as the Flame Bone of the Starving.

The Ace: Said to be the most powerful fighter the Kamunabi have, and the only agent they trust to be able to bring in an Enchanted Blade wielder all on her own. Furthermore, Hiyuki was only authorized to use part of Flame Bone, namely up to the torso, yet still managed to quickly put Chihiro on the defensive.
Action Girl: Her combat abilities are unmatched within the Kamunabi, and she is more than willing to throw down one on one with Chihiro.
Barehanded Blade Block: Pulls this off against Chihiro during their duel, even if he had faked her out with his shortsword while still keeping Enten on hand.
Bifauxnen: Hiyuki is a rather androgynous woman, to the point that it isn't clear if she is a woman until chapter 20.
Big Eater: Hiyuki stuffs her face with a giant plate of spaghetti in chapter 26, a portion so massive that the waiter mistakenly gave it to her partner, who has the weight and appearance of a sumo wrestler.
Blood Knight: She shows a great bloodlust and enthusiasm for battle as her first fight with Chihiro goes on. She outright scoffs at his attempts to fight against her nonlethally, looking down at him for offering a courtesy to her she never did for him, fighting only under the restrictions issued by the Kamunabi.
Boyish Short Hair: Her hair is cut in a short and practical bob, playing a major factor in her androgynous looks and highlighting her tough, aggressive personality.
Break Them by Talking: She calls out Chihiro for acting solely in his self-interest by wielding a Sacred Blade despite his supposedly noble intentions, and brings up Kazane's injuries and the Anti-Kuregumo Squad's deaths as proof that only misfortune would follow if an individual was allowed to wield such weapons instead of the government. Her words actually get to Chihiro and make him hesitate, with Sojo resurfacing in his mind as an obvious example of what Hiyuki is talking about.
Calling Your Attacks: To direct Rikuo in battle, she has to call its name out and declare which part of the skeleton she wishes to use.
Casual Danger Dialogue: She is quite chatty when she first fights Chihiro, questioning him about Kuregumo, pausing to talk with her partner Tafuku mid-fight, and calling him out on the dangers of a single man wielding the Sacred Blades for their own ends, no matter how outwardly noble they seem.
Combat Stilettos: Her uniform comes with a tall pair of high-heeled boots, which do not impede her mobility in any way as she fights.
Deliberate Injury Gambit: Chihiro outmaneuvers her and goes for a strike to the head, which both he and Tafuku note she would be able to dodge. Instead, she decides to call his bluff, take the blow (which he was using the nonlethal flat edge to deliver) to the head, and continue attacking while he is distracted in disbelief.
Dem Bones: Flame Bone gives Hiyuki the ability to summon different parts of a giant burning skeleton which she names "Rikuo," such as its hand or ribs.
Elemental Personalities: Her sorcery gives her the ability to manipulate fire along with Rikuo's bones. She is extremely loud and often fiery in disposition, with her rage quickly taking over in combat to the point of undermining her considerable skill.
Elemental Rivalry: Fitting for a major rival to Chihiro, Hiyuki's Flame Bone is, as the name would imply, based around fire in contrast to Chihiro's Enchanted Bade, Enten, being themed around water.
Enemy Mine: She forms a temporary truce with Chihiro in Chapter 29. Hating the Sazanami family's human trafficking, she agrees to fight off the guards at the Rakuzaichi so Chihiro, her actual target, can retrieve the enchanted blades from the secret storehouse and save the imprisoned people who are scheduled to be sold at auction. Though her partner Tafuku tells Chihiro that Hiyuki likely intends to kill him after he's retrieved the blades, which her angered muttering seems to confirm.
Establishing Character Moment: Her first proper appearance in Chapter 20 has her intercept Chihiro and confidently challenge him on behalf of the Kamunabi to stand down, the flaming hand of Rikuo already burning at her side. Despite Chihiro trying to avoid conflict, she immediately engages him the moment he refuses to comply, immediately showing her intense dedication to her job and her hasty passion for battle.
Everyone Has Standards: Her aggressive and battle-loving personality aside, Hiyuki is deeply disgusted by the Rakuzaichi and considers the Sazanamis to be vile lowlifes.
Fat and Skinny: Her field partner Tafuku is broad and stout in build, while she is lean.
Good Is Not Nice: She is overly-aggressive and blunt even to her allies, but holds to a set of moral standards and seeks to do what she sees as right through her loyal service to the Kamunabi.
Grin of Audacity: Frequently flashes a confident grin, in line with her headstrong personality. They are usually shown off at the prospect of being sent off to battle, or outright while she is in the middle of battle and seeing an opportunity to take the upper hand.
Hero Antagonist: While Hiyuki opposes Chihiro and plans to either take his Sacred Blade or kill him, she has good reason to do so and isn't exactly wrong in pointing out that the Blades are effectively weapons of mass destruction that shouldn't be allowed to run free.
Hidden Heart of Gold: Underneath an incredibly violent outer shell, Hiyuki shows a strong set of personal morals and standards. Her dissatisfaction with her superiors permitting the Rakuzaichi to go through was so great she had to be held back from attacking one, and is willing to go against orders to bring down the Sazanamis' organization due to their reprehensible treatment of many innocents.
Hot-Blooded: She can go from composed and serious to incredibly worked up and angry in a matter of seconds. Her loss of composure leads to her contradicting herself, muttering to herself, and at one point she gets so worked up a treated, week-old head wound reopens and begins leaking out blood.
Inconsistent Spelling: Her family name is translated both as "Kakari" and "Kagari" relatively interchangeably.
Inspector Javert: Comes after Chihiro under order of the Kamunabi because they see all Sacred Blade wielders as a threat to national peace, and she stubbornly refuses to believe on a personal level he could be using his weapons for good, even as civilians vouch for his character.
Meaningful Name: Her first name roughly translates to "aroma of the hunt". It fits Hiyuki extremely well as a woman who actively relishes in battle and the violent aspects of hunting down fugitives on behalf of the Kamunabi.
Mythical Motifs: Her ability's full name is "Flame Bone of the Starving", which, along with the size of the bones she summons, implies some relation to the Gashadokuro, a massive skeletal Youkai said to be formed by those who died from famine and starvation.
No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction: The reports she has heard of Chihiro's skill and deeds prior to their meeting makes her wish to fight him evenly at the peak of his abilities. The fact he is unwilling to fight her with the same passion and willingness to kill she puts into the fight actively pisses her off.
Not Afraid to Die: She understands Chihiro is holding back during their first duel in his own way and it absolutely infuriates her. She refuses to dodge a blow she (correctly) assumes he will shift to be nonfatal, and dares him to fight with the intent to kill her, smiling like a maniac even as her face is slick with her own blood.
Not So Above It All: There are a couple of indications where she doesn't seem to be taking her job as seriously as she should, from forgetting Kuregumo's name to only realising Chihiro told her he broke it half a minute after unintentionally reminding her of said name, complete with Volumetric Mouth Big "WHAT?!". She passes out in a comedic fashion following her Heroic RRoD, needing to be held aloft by Takufu to not collapse on the ground.
One-Woman Army: With only the basic skeletal fist of Flame Bone, she can punch down and burn up a horde of Mooks in her way without issue.
Person of Mass Destruction: The more impressive pieces of Rikuo seem to have a dangerous level of destruction. She is outright banned from using its pieces above the torso, and when she pulls out Spinal Column with the intent to finish her fight with Chihiro, she instantly cancels it when Tafuku's spell breaks since she would be surrounded by Innocent Bystanders.
Playing with Fire: The other half of her sorcery's ability. The pieces of Flame Bone are constantly emitting a roaring fire, which does not burn her but is able to light her opponents and the surroundings ablaze as they fight.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: She is the loud, violent, and quick-tempered red in contrast to her associate Tafuku's blue, who is terse, collected, and largely plays a supporting role in battle.
The Right Hand of Doom: The most basic technique of Flame Bone is a giant skeletal gauntlet that surrounds Hiyuki's right arm and turns it into a Power Fist.
Rocket Punch: Her Flame Bone's gauntlet can also detach and launch itself at whatever Hiyuki directs it at for a powerful explosive attack.
Slasher Smile: Even in the heat of battle, she continues to flash her trademark confident grin, to the effect of making her look utterly deranged as fights go on.
Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: She's notably shocked when her superiors tell her they intend to purchase Shinuchi at the Rakuzaichi rather than start a fight and take it by force, and while she eventually relents and accepts that an open war between the Kamunabi and Sazanamis could result in them suffering great losses, she's still opposed to the plan and ultimately decides to team up with Chihiro so he can reclaim the Shinuchi and Enten during his assault on the auction.
Super-Reflexes: While she is not able to consistently match Chihiro in sheer speed, her reaction time is not to be scoffed at. After putting up ribs to give herself breathing room, she baits him with an opening and catches his blade with her hands, and even though she takes a blow due to Chihiro outwitting her, he's very much aware that it was her choice to be hit and could have dodged it otherwise.
Superpower Lottery: Her sorcery is said to be unique to her and is by far the most versatile seen in terms of sheer number of abilities, with each individual piece of Rikuo's body being a separate attack whereas most sorceries are solely a single power, and it's even explicitly stated that the Flame Bone is on part with Sacred Blades. This makes her a monster in combat, with offense and defense covered and her attacks destructive yet precise enough to put her on even standing with Chihiro, Sacred Blade wielder and natural prodigy himself.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: She comes to acknowledge Chihiro as a useful asset in bringing down the Rakuzaichi and someone to protect, but is so pissed at him by the end of their parlay she decides her plan of action will be to keep him safe until he has both Enchanted Blades and then personally try to murder him.
Temperate Berserker: Her enthusiasm for battle is undeniable and she is willing to throw herself to the fire in the name of a good fight, but she is more considerate and tactical than her personality would imply. She uses her defense to bait Chihiro by purposefully leaving an opening for him to attack through, and while his equal application of strategy allows him to outmaneuver her, he notes she would have been able to dodge his follow-up if she didn't choose to be struck.

Tafuku Mihara

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screenshot_2024_02_19_091807.png

First Appearance: Chapter 20: The Kamunabi's Weapon

A member of the Kamunabi and Hiyuki's partner on their assignment to bring in Chihiro and his sword.

Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance: His sorcery allows him to construct a sumo ring for challengers to fight within, and he has the broad build and haircut of a sumo wrestler.
Bare-Fisted Monk: One of the few combatants seen in the series to not keep any form of katana or bladed weapon on his person for combat, and his sorcery holds no ability to actually incapacitate his foes. Instead, he relies on his mighty stature and muscle to simply punch out his foes.
Domain Holder: His sorcery creates an arena known as a "holy sumo ring" in a separate space from the real world, from which nobody can leave until one of the combatants within loses a fight.
Everyone Has Standards: He is disturbed to see Hiyuki take a blow to the head on purpose and egg Chihiro on to fight her with the intent to kill. He also internally looks down on her for letting her pride get the better of her so easily during their fight.
Excellent Judge of Character: He's quite quick to realize Chihiro really isn't a bad guy, taking note of how Chihiro wouldn't target him when doing so was his best shot at escaping his sorcery, and instead putting his full effort towards fighting Hiyuki, which Tafuku finds admirable.
Fat and Skinny: He is tall, broad, and stocky, in comparison to his field partner Hiyuki, who is rail-thin.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: In contrast to the highly aggressive and brash Hiyuki, Tafuku is far more calm and reasonable.
Reused Character Design: His design is taken wholesale from one of the main characters of CHAIN, a previous one-shot by Takeru Hokazono.
Stout Strength: His resemblance to a sumo goes beyond just outward looks; he is extremely physically strong and muscular, enough to lift a man right off his feet by the collar and knock him clean out with a single punch.
Support Party Member: His sorcery is not particularly useful on its own, but becomes an invaluable asset when used to supplement the more combat-oriented Hiyuki, allowing her to cut loose with her destructive powers without risk of property damage or civilian causalities.
Undying Loyalty: Oddly, he seems to have this toward Hiyuki herself instead of any of the Kamunabi higher-ups. Other than some vocal concerns about her choices, he follows her unwaveringly in their pursuit for Chihiro, up to defying orders and going in swinging against the Rakuzaichi. He acknowledges it could get him in trouble, but hedges his bets on bringing down Chihiro being enough to sate his superiors.

Rakuzaichi Bidding Team

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kb_rbt.png

First Appearance: Chapter 29: Selection

A pair of Kamunabi agents sent to win the bid for the Shinuchi.

Anti-Hero: While they are loyally following the orders of the government and the only non-criminals among the Rakuzaichi, their obedience means they willfully attend an auction for criminals with the intent of buying a Weapon of Mass Destruction for the greater good. The female agent is at least willing to voice concern over the people for sale.
Foil: The duo contrast each other. The male is more sloppily dressed, casual, and cynical, leaning back in his chair as he muses on evil being something that cannot be entirely stopped. The female is even more sharply dressed than the average Kamunabi agent with a buttoned up suit and tie, uptight, and morally sound, questioning the ethics of allowing the Rakuzaichi at all.
The Needs of the Many: The thought process of the male agent. As even the government cannot help everyone, they should ignore the inevitable suffering of the few to focus on a greater good by saving millions with the repossession of the Shinuchi.
Oral Fixation: The male agent chews on a small popsicle stick.

Civilians

Mrs. Kyonagi

First Appearance: Chapter 4: Sorcery and the Enchanted Blade

"The reason it heals... is because you want to stop the pain. What matters most is wishing. If you wish hard enough... you can heal any injury."

The mother of Char and the only survivor of the massacre of the Kyonagi Clan.

Good Parents: Doted on her daughter and kept up a strong face even in times of hardship to make sure she was happy even in a terrible situation.
Heroic Sacrifice: Stayed behind as her daughter escaped to cause chaos in Sojo's lab and destroy as much research on their genetics as she could in a fire to buy her as much time as possible to find help and safety.
Mama Bear: Hatches a plan to escape Sojo right in the heart of his operation and starts a fire which results in several causalities all to keep her daughter out of his hands for as long as possible.
Posthumous Character: She has already been killed before Char enters the narrative. We learn about her past, personality, and fate from an extended flashback sequence in Chapter 15.
Sole Survivor: As a young girl, she was the only member of the Kyonagi Clan to escape the massacre of her clan with her life. the rest were killed and devoured by their enemies in an attempt to gain immortality.
Strong Family Resemblance: Her daughter looks exactly like her in every way.
Too Good for This Sinful Earth: From what we see of her, she is nothing but a kind, gentle woman and doting mother, but her life was a string of misfortunes from beginning to end due to her bloodline: Her clan was destroyed and eaten, which she was the only member to survive, her husband left her to raise her daughter alone when she confessed this to him, and she was eventually hunted down and killed by a lunatic who wished to conduct research on her.

Yuu's Sister

First Appearance: Chapter 27: Mr. Inazuma

Yuu's older sister, captured by the Sazanami family for auction at the Rakuzaichi prior to the story.

Cool Big Sis: She looks after her younger brother, giving him words of comfort and hope when he is scared during a lightning storm to cheer him up.
Damsel in Distress: Her brother sets out to save her from the clutches of the Sazanami family when she is kidnapped to be auctioned off during their annual Rakuzaichi event.

Antagonists

The Hishaku

A group of sorcerers that operate in the shadows, backing criminal organizations across Japan. They're also the ones responsible for murdering Chihiro's father Kunishige over three years prior to the start of the story, and stole six of his magical katanas known as the Sacred Blades.

In General

Big Bad: The overarching villains of the story that Chihiro has sworn to kill, both to avenge his father and to reclaim the Sacred Blades they stole.
Hero Killer: The killers of Kunishige Rokuhira, who was a famed war hero responsible for making the weapons used to end the Seitei War before the story began.
The Man Behind the Man: They're responsible for backing a number of illegal enterprises across Japan, such as the yakuza gang Chihiro wipes out in Chapter 1 or Genichi Sojo's arms dealer activities.
The Smurfette Principle: Of the sorcerers we've seen so far, only one of them is a woman.
Tattooed Crook: The main identifier of the Hishaku sorcerers is a pointy flame-shaped tattoo present on their hands.
They Look Just Like Everyone Else!: The member Chihiro encounters in the Rakuzaichi is almost identical to the katana-wielding Mooks accompanying him, barring some white hair and the Hishaku's tattoo on his hand. This comes as a surprise to both Chihiro and the reader, as every enemy sorcerer until then had some conspicuous design quirk to distinguish them.

Unnamed Hishaku

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hishaku_one.png

Voiced by: Hideyoshi Nozawa (vomic)

First Appearance: Chapter 1: Mission

"You know... I think bravery is often rooted in ignorance."

One of the Hishaku, who oversees the Korogumi Yakuza organization.

Ambiguously Related: His eye is blackened in the same way the Sazanami family is when they use their bloodline's sorcery, but he does not strongly resemble Kyora or Hakuri otherwise.
Bad Boss: Without the man knowing, he set up a failsafe on the leader of the Yakuza. When he tries to divulge information about the Hishaku, he violently explodes into a massive cluster of roots. He also can't be bothered to learn the guy's name.
Green Thumb: The first Hishaku sorcerer we see has the ability to manipulate and conjure plants, using them to torture a protester in a city controlled by one of their yakuza gangs and to kill the boss in case he ever tried to snitch on them.
Mysterious Watcher: He shows up at Sojo's base shortly after his second duel with Chihiro, observing the injured young man from a distance before disappearing before Shiba can notice him.
Red Right Hand: The first sorcerer we meet from the Hishaku has a disfigured right eye, with an enlarged black iris, white pupil, and warped flesh around the socket.
Villain Teleportation: He departs the Yakuza hideout by teleporting away in a spontaneous burst of flame.

Sojo's Organization

Genichi Sojo

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kagurabachi_sojo.png

"Time to change course. Go big or go home, as they say."

First Appearance: Chapter 5: A Good Meal

"I'll wield the sword with my own beliefs. As a weapon of mass destruction."

A weapons dealer who seeks to find and retrieve Char. He wields Kuregumo, one of the seven Sacred Blades.

Ambition Is Evil: His endgame is to become the first person to succeed Kunishige Rokuhira's legacy as the next man to successfully be able to bend the unpredecented powers of the Datenseki to his own ends and create a new generation of unstoppable weapons.
Arc Villain: The main antagonist and threat of the titular "Vs. Sojo" story arc, but ultimately second fiddle to the Hishaku who dies during his climatic duel against Chihiro.
An Arm and a Leg: Loses his left arm to Chihiro in their final duel.
Armor-Piercing Attack: When he activates Mei to surge toward Kuregumo, he goes clean through Kugara, despite him still having iron skin.
Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance: True to its name, his blade, Kuregumo (which can translate to "Cloud Gouger"), has the ability to manipulate moisture to create clouds of smoke among its skills. He happens to wear a puffy white ruff collar which resembles a cloud.
Ax-Crazy: Sojo is actively bloodthirsty and happy to kill just about anyone he feels like, whether it's people who oppose him, his own minions that fail him, or even innocent bystanders just because he can and wants to make a point.
Bad Boss: He's introduced listening to the "report" of an underling who failed to track Char. Said underling has been strung up, had his eyes ripped out, and is begging Sojo for death. Later, he murders not only Daruma for failure but also the man's mother and sister. And when the brother of the Mind Rape henchman gladly informs Sojo about Chihiro's whereabouts, he too gets brutally executed for no particular reason other than being a "warm-up."
Blood Knight: The moment Sojo's bounty on Chihiro is blocked by the military, he gets the location of Hinao's café, casually enters it and blasts Chihiro through a wall, showing bloodthirsty eagerness to fight the user of another magic sword.
Card-Carrying Villain: An bloodthirsty mobster who describes the desire Chihiro has to "defeat evil and protect the weak" as nauseating.
Combo Platter Powers: As another wielder of a Sacred Blade like Chihiro, Sojo similarly has access to three magical techniques through his sword:
- Kou can release a large amount of water from his location, with the purpose of confusing and disorienting opponents.
- Yui can create fields or barriers of ice on demand, allowing him to both attack and defend with it. Yui can also be combined with Kou to further increase its area of effect.
- Mei is Kuregumo's most lethal move, allowing Sojo to charge up and unleash a massive wide-range blast of electricity that is capable of slaughtering an entire street of people in one go. However, using Mei at full power makes it unable to be used again for another ten to twenty seconds, and while it can be combined with Kou's water to attack even with minimal charge, this low-power Mei is nowhere near as deadly. After grasping the "true realm" of Kuregumo, Sojo reduces the time between uses of Mei and, using his first battle with Chihiro as a blueprint, similarly learns to cloak himself in Mei's lightning to vastly increase his speed and power for up to 12 seconds, as well as use the sword as a lightning rod to launch himself to it for a devastating attack.
Dark and Troubled Past: When he attacks the trauma-using sorcerer's brother, the man tries to fight him off by making him relive the worst moment of his past. He sees a vision of himself as a child with a score of mutilated corpses hanging above him, which obviously distresses him to be reminded of even if he seems to relish the memory.
Establishing Character Moment: The first time he appears, he has strung up a henchman in his personal bathhouse and is listening to his "report" while casually bathing, surrounded by servants and attendants. This quickly establishes him as a sadistic criminal with a great abundance of resources and the willingness to put it all to use for his own gain.
Eviler than Thou: Easily kills Madoka after the sorcerer fails to bring in Char, which establishes himself as a greater threat to the audience. He later easily kills off a trio of yakuza who were displeased with his services to show just how outclassed even other criminals have become in comparison to him and the danger he represents unchecked.
Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: Despite his messy hair and the odd blemishes running down his eyes, he is quite physically attractive. This contrasts with an utterly reprehensible personality and a distinct, directly employed brutality toward anyone in his way, innocent or not.
Final Boss Preview: Azami makes it clear that Chihiro is not ready to face Sojo, and he's quickly proven right — not only does he effortlessly parry all of Chihiro's attacks, but also becomes the first opponent to actually injure Chihiro since the start of the series.
Foil: Since he's the first Sacred Blade wielder Chihiro has to go up against in the story, Sojo is fittingly one to him.
- Both are extremely violent people who will slaughter any who get in their way, but while Chihiro is an Anti-Hero who wants to prevent his father's Sacred Blades from falling into the wrong hands, Sojo is one of those wrong hands and is an Ax-Crazy psychopath.
- Chihiro, as Kunishige Rokuhira's son, actually knows how to forge Sacred Blades, whereas Sojo lacks that knowledge but is nonetheless trying to make more weapons out of the Datenseki he possesses using Char and her cells.
- Both of them look up to Kunishige and try to espouse his ideals, but while Chihiro knows of his father's sense of responsibility towards the Blades and desire that they only be used to defeat evil and protect the weak, Sojo has an extremely warped and incorrect view of Kunishige's desires and believes he wanted the Blades to be used for nothing more than killing.
Guardian Entity: His Sacred Blade, Kuregumo, produces one in the form of a dragon made of clouds and lightning.
Gutted Like a Fish: Along with slicing Kuregumo in half, Chihiro's final blow cleaves his midsection open, leaving him a bleeding mess with only an estimated few minutes to live. This allows him to try and harness the Datenseki when Chihiro decides he's not worth finishing, but it doesn't do him much good.
Hero Killer: Responsible for the death of Char's mother when she sacrificed herself to save her daughter, and the direct killer of the entire Anti-Kuregumo Squad besides Kazane and Ikuto.
Hoist by His Own Petard: In his final moments, he is destroyed by the very research he dedicated his organization toward when his attempt to use the Datenseki literally blows up in his face.
I Am Not Left-Handed: He spends his second fight with the Task Force sent to stop him on the back foot due to their numbers advantage and coordination. Just when it seems they've secured victory, he reveals his duel with Chihiro allowed him to further understand the connection between himself and Kuregumo, breaking out a modified technique that allows him to completely shred the Task Force in a matter of seconds.
Instant Expert: Sojo's mastery and connection with Kuregumo grows at a downright alarming rate. Despite having the sword for just a week, he's able to wield it and its repertoire of powers with enough mastery that Chihiro, who'd trained with his own Sacred Blade for three years, knows he's totally outmatched during their first battle and ends up severely injured. And just a week later, he's able to hold his own against a Kamunabi squad of sorcerers specifically made to take him out and then manages to kill or incapacitate all of them after grasping the sword's true realm. He only ends up narrowly losing in his rematch against a badly-wounded Chihiro due to his injuries and exhaustion from fighting the Kamunabi putting them on even footing, and Chihiro even admits that the swords had chosen him after defeating him.
It Only Works Once: Sojo ends his first duel with Chihiro using a slash behind him as a counterattack to his approach with Nishiki, forcing Chihiro back before both combatants have to abandon the battle. In their rematch, Sojo once again finds Chihiro using Nishiki to strike at his back, and attempts a counterattack with another slash behind him — however, Chihiro knew he'd be able to react and cancels his Nishiki before getting in Sojo's range, throwing off his counterattack's timing while he uses an unavoidable Kuro with the last of his spirit energy to defeat him.
Karmic Death: After losing his ideological and actual battle against Chihiro, a fatally injured Sojo attempts to grab his Datenseki in a fit of delirium, under the impression that he could control it and finally measure up to his idol Kunishige. However, he undergoes a Phlebotinum Overload and his body begins to break apart, with Sojo wondering what was wrong in shock as Chihiro's declaration that he'd never measure up to his father rings in his mind. He spends his last moments screaming Chihiro's (and Kunishige's) family name in a rage, before he finally blows up and takes his entire castle down with him. For added insult to injury, his body exploding is directly contrasted with Chihiro praising Char, the girl he'd tormented so much to exploit the very thing that finally kills him.
Kick the Dog:
- He had no problems going after Norisaku's sister and mother to punish him for his failure, and after killing him, he notes that his sister was only unconscious after getting stabbed by him earlier, yet takes zero effort to get her out of the blast radius of Norisaku's posthumous attack and leaves her to die in the ensuing explosion.
- After abducting Char and her mother to use them for his experiments in controlling the Datenseki, he cruelly tells the latter that she'd made a grave mistake by giving birth to Char given how horrid their lives would be as members of the Kyonagi Clan.
Loony Fan: He's a fan of Kunishige for creating the Sacred Blades but he's also a complete nut job who wants to use the Sacred Blades as weapons of mass destruction, believing that was Kunishige's intention, to the point where he tries to use Cloud Gouger to slaughter a city block of people just to prove his point. When faced with Kunishige's son, Sojo refuses to listen to Chihiro about his father's actual beliefs because Sojo would rather cling to his own interpretation of the man.
Loving a Shadow: Declares himself an envoy of Kunishige's will because he was able to connect with a Sacred Blade, and thus is allowed to do whatever he wants with it. Despite having a point to an extent, Kunishige's lectures to his son about the nature of the weapons and the responsibilities they entail make it obvious he would not approve of Sojo. Tellingly, he actively refuses to hear more about the man from said son while the two "talk" during their final confrontation.
Mr. Fanservice: Is first seen bathing, then is shown totally naked (from the back) as he stands up.
Mysterious Past: We ultimately learn little of his background, with his childhood, his rise to criminal power and acquisition of the only unbound Sacred Blade going unexplored.
Never Meet Your Heroes: Strangely seems to believe this himself. After being confronted with the possibility that Kunishige Rokuhira really wasn't the kind of person he thinks he was when "talking" to Chihiro during their final battle, Sojo hastily refuses to learn anything about him that could shatter his image of him, even if he was still very curious.
Nightmare Fetishist: Sojo relives a traumatic vision of a child showered in blood from a mass of corpses via the same powers that were previously used on Chihiro, and cracks a big smile whilst relishing it all.
No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine: Played With. Sojo's climatic battle against Chihiro after Char is saved is framed as them pulling every stop to kill each other in under 12 seconds while simultaneously having an unspoken, metaphorical conversation in a Mental World, where Sojo offers dango to Chihiro as a metaphor for his beliefs and argues with him about the purpose of the Sacred Blades.
Orcus on His Throne: His first appearance has his taking a bath while debriefing one of his mooks, ending with him ordering more to the scene. However, he's quick to take matters into his own hands after a few of them fail to hunt Chihiro.
Price on Their Head: After Daruma fails to capture Char, he puts her and Chihiro's details on the sorcerer network for everyone to see, with the expectation that freelancers will join in too.
Psycho Supporter: Sojo loves Kunishige and his work, but psychotically believes the blacksmith's swords were made solely as tools of murder. He tells this, ironically, to Chihiro's face while unaware that he's speaking to his idol's son.
Rank Scales with Asskicking: He is by far the most dangerous man in his organization, with his ownership of one of the Sacred Blades making him one of the most dangerous single combatants on the planet.
Rasputinian Death: He is beaten down to exhaustion during his fight with the Anti-Kuregumo Squad, shortly afterward loses an arm and is split open fighting Chihiro, and in his final moments, he seems to be disintegrated by the power of the Datenseki right before it goes up in a massive fireball.
Rule of Symbolism: Sojo is an incomplete man with a warped view of how the Sacred Blades should be used. Everywhere he goes, there are bonsai trees, which are incomplete and idealized representations of natural trees. His tattoos are unfinished. He has a mental conversation where he symbolically exchanges ideals with Chihiro by offering tea and dango, a sweet that represents the life cycle of cherry blossoms. While Chihiro begrudgingly accepts Sojo's views and swallows the entire dango, the villain refuses to know what Kushinige was like and doesn't eat the whole candy. Chihiro's lethal blow on Sojo is juxtaposed with a flashback showing the creation of Kuregumo and also slices a bonsai tree on the foreground. He then leaves Sojo to futilely attempt to harness the Datenseki and die in despair while wondering what is it that he lacked.
Summon to Hand: Inverted during his fight with the Kamunabi. After being disarmed and thrown into the ocean, he pulls himself to Kuregumo by cloaking himself in Mei and using the sword as a lightning rod. Played straight during his rematch with Chihiro, as he can quickly swap which hand holds his sword using his cloaked Mei's electricity.
Super-Power Meltdown: Grabbing the Datenseki causes him to become so overloaded with its power that he explodes with enough force to bring down his entire facility in a massive fireball.
Super-Speed: With the use of Kuregumo, especially after he tightens his bond to it, he can move extremely fast. Notably, his second duel against Chihiro happens over the course of twelve seconds, despite being a full, back and forth combat.
Sweet Tooth: In direct contrast to Chihiro, he's quite fond of sweets, particularly dango, to the point he conjures them in his Mental World as a symbolic representation of his beliefs when having an unspoken dialogue with Chihiro as the two fight to the death.
Taking You with Me: He acknowledges his injuries following his duel as fatal as he crawls away from Chihiro, but still crawls over to the Datenseki to try and get it to yield to him to attack once more in his final moments. It backfires spectacularly, robbing him of the opportunity.
Tattooed Crook: He sports yakuza-like tattoos on his chest, back and upper arms, and some on his face if those aren't scars.
The Unfettered: The only aspect of his personality that comes close to being portrayed as positive is a genuine, unwavering belief in seeing his own actions through, to Determinator levels. Unfortunately, he twists even this to a negative extreme, being willing to do absolutely anything in his pursuit of power, from murder to the extended torture of a child.
Villain Has a Point:
- While Sojo clearly has some screws loose, he can't be completely faulted for thinking the Sacred Blades are solely tools of slaughter given that they're effectively katana-shaped WMDs with enough power to end a war single-handedly before the story takes place, especially since he'd never known Kunishige's real beliefs surrounding his work the way his son Chihiro has.
- During his unspoken conversation with Chihiro during their final duel, Sojo rationalizes that his beliefs on the swords are correct because he was ultimately able to resonate with Kuregumo deeper because of his bloodlust and desire to kill, a far cry from Chihiro's (and Kunishige's) beliefs that they should be used for good. He further states that Kunishige's true intentions for the Blades didn't actually matter as it is ultimately their wielders that decide what their purposes are, and for that reason he has as much of a right as Chihiro, Kunishige's son, to speak for their creator's intentions with them. Chihiro himself opts to agree with Sojo after hearing him out, though that doesn't stop either of them from trying to kill each other, and Chihiro gives him a short but brutal "The Reason You Suck" Speech after laying him low to profess how he won't allow him to tarnish his father's legacy.
Villain No Longer Idle: Takes things into his own hands after the bounty on Chihiro gets taken down.
Villain Respect: During a metaphorical conversation with Chihiro in a Mental World during their final battle, Sojo offers Chihiro dango that symbolizes his beliefs on the Sacred Blades, stating it's a show of his respect to have a dialogue on what they think the swords' purpose is, and also acknowledges Chihiro's belief that they be used for good as valid despite him personally being nauseated by it.
Villain Takes an Interest: Following his first battle with Chihiro, Sojo finds his thoughts lingering on him due to him seeming to be his idol Kunishige's son, as he too owns a Sacred Blade and flat-out called him his father — however, he's incapable of reconciling Chihiro's altruistic and heroic intentions with the swords with his own warped image of Kunishige only creating them to kill. As a result, Sojo decides he has to fight Chihiro again in order to clear his doubts about Chihiro's parentage and to better understand the Sacred Blades.
Villainous Breakdown: When his misguided belief in his ability to control the Datenseki is shattered, his last vestiges of composure and control slip away. In his final moments, he sees Chihiro declaring him unequal to his father, and screams the Rokuhira name in panicked agony as he and his facility detonate.
Wake-Up Call Boss: Sojo is the first real threat encountered by Chihiro and serves as the antagonist for the first arc.
Weather Manipulation: As befitting its name, Sojo's Kuregumo has a distinct theme around the weather from clouds. Its magic takes the form of cloudy trails when drawn, its Guardian Entity is an dragon made of clouds and lightning, and all its powers represent phenomena that originate from clouds: Kou is rain, Yui is snow and hail, and Mei is lightning. The sword's tsuba itself is designed to look like two swirling clouds.
Worf Had the Flu: While he does manage to beat them all, the severe injuries and exhaustion from his battle with the Kamunabi do him no favors for his rematch against a similarly-injured Chihiro. Although Chihiro says he's in another league during their first fight, both of their wounds along with their deepened connections to their respective Sacred Blades puts them on a level playing field, and Sojo ultimately loses in spite of both combatants pushing themselves to their absolute limits.
Would Hit a Girl: Tortures Char and her mother to try and harness the power of their bloodline in a process that involves harvesting of body parts and skin tissue, and fatally wounds Shiyumi by cutting her throat along with the rest of the Kamunabi.
Would Hurt a Child: He has absolutely zero qualms with using Char for his experiments to make new weapons using the Datenseki, which involve her flesh getting repeatedly shaved off so that her cells can be harvested.
Wrecked Weapon: His final battle with Chihiro ends with Kuregumo's blade being snapped in half by Chihiro's finishing blow.
You Have Failed Me: Murders Norisaku and the brother of another sorcerer who'd been killed by Chihiro for failing to bring him Char or Chihiro.

Daruma

Norisaku Madoka / "Daruma"

"They call me [Daruma] because I can blast away any enemy with my homemade daruma!"

First Appearance: Chapter 3: Witness

A mercenary sorcerer dispatched to bring Char to Genichi Sojo.

A Death in the Limelight: We only learn his proper name and anything about his family in Chapter 8, titled "Norisaku Madoka: I Will Change". Shiba convinces him to do something more with his life after torturing him, and he seems ready to make good on that until he and his sister are brutally murdered by Genichi Sojo for failing him.
Agony of the Feet: His right foot is totally pulverised by Shiba from the torture, and it's still in a cast when we next see him.
Awesome, but Impractical: His choice of weaponry is a seemingly endless set of powerful, hard to dodge explosives. While this makes him a tough opponent, it is also extremely one note and without adaptability, allowing Chihiro to outsmart him, and the invariable collateral damage he causes during the fight is the exact opposite of the subtly requested by Sojo in retrieving Char.
Break Them by Talking: Taunts Char about her dead mother and the senselessness of her death whilst stalking her.
Cruel and Unusual Death: He is blown up agonizingly slowly by one of his own daruma bombs, having enough life in him to choke out a few last words even as his upper body is being shredded by the explosion.
Danger Takes a Backseat: Is the victim of this from Genichi Sojo, along with his sister.
Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Seems to be especially remorseful about what his lifestyle's done to his mother, and is on the way to make amends when he's killed.
Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": Variously called "Daruma Guy", "Daruma Idiot" or "Cylinder Head" after his characteristic hairdo until Chapter 8.
Expository Hairstyle Change: Only ever seen with his flattop haircut until Chapter 8, after which we see his hair down as he's cleaned himself up after his torture and is ready to exit the sorcerer life.
Gag Lips: His lower lip is exaggeratedly big while he's in his "Daruma" persona, while it's normal when he's in his civilian look.
Having a Blast: His sorcerer power is using enchanted daruma dolls to blow things up, which backfires when Chihiro uses the Red ability of his blade to deflect the explosion back on him and when Sojo delays the detonation and simply leaves the car Norisaku is trapped in.
Heel–Face Door-Slam: He's killed mere pages after deciding to turn his life around.
Hoist by His Own Petard: Quite literally too, see "Taking You With Me" below.
Improbable Weapon User: Stabs a shopkeeper in the throat with a pair of disposable chopsticks after getting annoyed by him.
Irony: He taunts Char about her dead mother and her Senseless Sacrifice, only to die thinking Sojo has murdered his mother for failing him and unintentionally killing his last surviving family member, his sister, when trying to kill Sojo in a suicide attack.
Starter Villain: The first time Chihiro is up against an opponent that puts up a good fight, and the first proof Char is in just as grave danger as she insists she is. He is ultimately still taken care of with relatively little issue, and simply the first of an entire parade of sorcerer bounty hunters.
Taking You with Me: Tries to kill Sojo with a daruma doll after he's stabbed both his sister and himself in the car, only for Sojo to delay the detonation long enough to let him exit the car before letting it blow up. To really rub things in, Sojo remarks to himself that he didn't stab Norisaku's sister fatally, meaning Norisaku is technically responsible for his own sister's death.
Volumetric Mouth: Takeru really likes to draw the inside of his mouth, with one of the most egregious offenders being his bellowing "JUST LIKE YOUR MOTHER!" to Char. Very mildly toned down in the print version of that chapter.

Sazanami Clan

A massive criminal family known across Japan for their yearly auction, the Rakuzaichi.

In General

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sazanami_estate.png

Honor the Rakuzaichi above all else.

Auction of Evil: The Sazanami dynasty dedicates itself to upholding the Rakuzaichi, a yearly auction held for the most powerful and vile players in the underworld where they can buy anything from super weapons to people.
Badass Creed: The family holds only to one rule in their dealings, which Hakuri tells Chihiro:
Hakuri: Honor the Rakuzaichi above all else.
Badass Family: Due to their intense training from a young age, the majority of the family are talented sorcerers. This means in practice they are a fifty man strong army that even the premier government service meant to police sorcerers are not willing to engage in open combat.
The Beautiful Elite: Regarded as a pseudo "noble house" among the ranks of the Japanese underworld, and nearly all of the adolescent Sazanamis have a set of good, even androgynous, looks. Even their father Kyora, a middle-aged man, is a distinguished Silver Fox.
Big Fancy House: The Sazanami have a massive, isolated estate in the woods where their family lives while not out conducting criminal dealings. It is filled with servants at their beck and call and is protected from being discovered by outsiders with a type of protective magical barrier surrounding it.
Blow You Away: The magical technique Isou is an extremely powerful and concentrated shockwave of air fired from its user's hands or feet. It is strong enough to bring down an entire building in the hands of the Tou and allow them to go soaring through the air.
Blue-and-Orange Morality: Their isolated community and generations of criminal lifestyle have warped their morality. They understand love and cherish family dearly, but toxically equate love to being of use to the family. They also see absolutely no value in the lives of non-Sazanamis, seeing nothing wrong with human trafficking and murder.
The Clan: They are a highly influential family of the underworld, who run a major staple of crime as a single unit. New blood in the family is taught early on the family's ways and dealings in an attempt to acclimate them to a criminal lifestyle, which has seemingly worked on all of them throughout history except for Hakuri in the present.
Eye Motifs: With one of their eyes turning black when they use their sorcery and several of the family's tendency to break down in tears, prominence in placed on the Sazanami's eyes. This serves to highlight Kyora's vigilance and powers of illusion, and the wider family's sheer numbers despite their secrecy among the criminal underworld.
Family Business: For over two hundred years, the Sazanamis have maintained an underworld auctioneering ring known as the Rakuzaichi, catering to every type of criminals perverse desires for weapons or flesh.
The Family That Slays Together: Seemingly the entire family is involved in maintaining different facets of Kyora's criminal empire, from in-house security during their auction to maintaining the needs of the hostages kept within the storehouse.
Human Traffickers: Flashbacks from the perspective of Hakuri show captured civilians of high value are some of the most common stock kept in the family storehouse, and they are noted to sell them off to the highest bidder for whatever purpose they desire. Apparently, corpses are also one of the highly sought after commodities easily acquired during the Rakuzaichi.
Magical Eye: Their family sorcery "Isou", turns their left eye a flaming black with white irises when they use it. The more advanced the sorcerer, the more prominent the effect, as Kyora's eye is also covered with a white, eyepiece-like layer on top of the black when he uses it.
Massive Numbered Siblings: How many branches the Clan's fifty members are split into is unknown, but the main branch headed by Kyora has at least seven siblings as its latest generation: The four members of the Tou, Hakuri, and two junior members who run up to see their father when he first arrives on the estate.
Pragmatic Villainy: They ensure their hostages are well-maintained physically, if not mentally, providing regular, high-quality meals.
Practically Different Generations: Among the many children shown to be fathered by Kyora, a large range of ages are seen. Eldest Soya is a young adult, his younger brother Hakuri is five years younger than him, and several of the even younger kids seen look at least ten years younger and potentially even prepubescent.
Shared Signature Move: Each member of the family grows up developing their skills in using Isou, the trademark shockwave sorcery of the Sazanami bloodline.
Simple, yet Opulent: Their funds, resources, and influence are obviously vast, yet what we see of their lifestyle suggest they focus on practical spending practices. Their clothes are uniformly high-quality, but lack obvious jewelry and unnecessary accessories or flourishes.
Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil: It's not just artifacts that are sold at the Rakuzaichi, but people. Members of the Sazanami family are desensitized to treating people as merchandise early, but Hakuri realizing the practice is monstrous prompted him leaving the family. Hiyuki Kakari of the Kamunabi is so disgusted by her superiors opting to pay the Sazanami for the enchanted blade they're after rather than steal it from the family of human traffickers that she goes against orders and forms a temporary truce with her target Chihiro, so that he can steal the blades and free the abducted people kept in the Sazanami's storehouse.
Strong Family Resemblance: As to be expected of a family, the Sazanamis all look very similar to each other. Even among them, the brothers Hakuri and Soya look nearly identical to each other, and younger versions of their father Kyora.
Superpowerful Genetics: They are noted to pass on a powerful sorcery in their bloodline. On top of their underworld connections and criminal power, this also makes all of them formidable combatants, except for the rare breed born without access to the sorcery, who are shunned and ostracized for being disappointments.
Tyke Bomb: From birth, members of the family are trained to be powerful sorcerers and groomed to be perfectly accepting of the family's criminal ways so to be inducted into the ranks of their underworld dealings during the annual Rakuzaichi.

Kyora Sazanami

First Appearance: Chapter 19: Knight of Darkness

"That's the masterpiece. Nothing is of more value than life. The Shinuchi has stolen countless lives and should be valued accordingly."

The head of the Sazanami family in the present day, and leader of their auction.

Abusive Parents: He has no issue personally delivering threats to Hakuri's life and openly considers his son a useless disappointment. In a different way he is this toward his other children as well, as he seems incapable of loving them unconditionally and his respect only stems from how useful an asset they are to him. He goes as far as to register them all as stock for the family storehouse at birth.
Affably Evil: Kyora is honestly rather polite despite being directly responsible for all the abuse and human trafficking at the Rakuzaichi, even giving one of his children an affectionate pat on the head. Unlike many examples, however, the trope is not at all played for sympathy here. While it does seem as though Kyora cares about his children in at least some capacity, his top priority is still the management of his criminal enterprise. If his children are to be sacrificed for the good of his business, then that's a sacrifice Kyora is willing to make. The fact that Kyora's affability doesn't appear to be an act makes his actions all the more twisted.
Awesomeness by Analysis: He attributes his well-developed ability to discern the value and qualities of an object from a long career as an auctioneer. When he is first confronted by Chihiro, he pieces together from his desire for the Shinuchi and his possession of another Sacred Blade he is the son of Kunishige Rokuhira.
Batman Gambit: Possibly. Chihiro and Shiba speculate whether his storehouse working the way he claims it does is actually true or just something he made up on the spot, but ultimately neither of them are willing to actually call the bluff.
Bring It: Kyora isn't so naïve to think that Chihiro doesn't have an ulterior motive with giving up Enten, yet he openly welcomes the challenge.
Challenge Seeker: He considers a deal without risk as boring and not worthy of his time. This means he actively relishes being up against an opponent who can match him in a battle of wits as well as a physical confrontation, as they prove the biggest risk to his enterprise.
Cold Ham: His manner of speech is quite eloquent and often dramatic, especially when he directly matches wits with an adversary. Despite this, his tone always remains measured and his posture is otherwise understated and composed.
Collector of the Strange: On top of the scores of people and weaponry up for auction, he has cultivated various mundane artifacts within the storehouse. These include statues, sets of armor, full animal skeletons, and pottery.
Contrasting Sequel Antagonist: Kyora is the Arc Villain of the story's second major arc, and he quickly proves himself to be a completely different flavor of villainy from Sojo. Sojo was an openly insane thug who was itching at the chance to face Chihiro in combat. Kyora, by contrast, is an extremely shrewd, cunning businessman capable of keeping up his poker face even in the most dire of situations. Unlike Sojo, Kyora isn't much of a physical threat to Chihiro and co, yet still proves himself to be an intimidating adversary through his impeccable intellect and the criminal enterprise he and his ancestors spent so many years meticulously building up.
Dead Man's Switch: He casually reveals this as a contingency against any skilled enough to get to him. The "storehouse" of the Sazanami family is maintained entirely in a pocket reality formed by his sorcery, and should he be fatally injured, all stock within ceases to exist, living or otherwise. With trafficking victims within the storehouse, this prevents Chihiro from simply killing him to dispose of the Shinuchi.
Diabolical Mastermind: While the Sazanami Clan seem to keep to themselves whenever the Rakuzaichi is not underway, their power and influence throughout the criminal underworld of Japan nonetheless is undeniable. The unique and high-quality products they offer, the small personal army the family doubles as, and their willingness to do business under any circumstance leave Kyora as the virtually untouchable final word on all criminal matters the family involves themselves with.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones:
- Despite his treatment of Hakuri and his criminal ways, he does seem to love the children loyal to the family. He fondly pats one of them on the head when they run up to him upon his return home.
- Significantly downplayed in regard to Hakuri. While Kyora is obviously abusive and cruel in his treatment of Hakuri, his internal monologue expresses some dismay once he realizes that Hakuri was Chihiro's and Shiba's informant. He doesn't hesitate to use Hakuri as a hostage in order to get Enten and callously talks about how much of a disappointment he finds Hakuri to his face, yet Kyora's hand trembles while holding the blade to his son's throat. Kyora claims it's out of disappointment for the person Hakuri grew up to be rather than any kind of love for him, but it's completely up in the air if he was bluffing or not.
Even Evil Has Standards: Downplayed. Though he views Hakuri as a massive disappointment, Kyora admits he would feel sad about killing his own son, which was why he just disowned and banished him initially. This doesn't stop Kyora from preparing to kill Hakuri anyway when he believes his son has no value as a hostage.
Exact Words: Makes a show of assuring Chihiro and Shiba he has no plans to fight them, and does keep to his word. However, it's only after they prepare to make their getaway with their guards lowered does he instead sic the Tou on them for a fight instead.
Fist of Rage: Shiba notices his hand start to tremble as he holds his son at sword point. He takes this to mean Kyora is hesitant to kill his own kid, but he quickly shoots this down and tells him he is simply furious at his son for his decision to become a traitor to his family on top of being "worthless" enough to warrant exile beforehand and is more than willing to kill him.
Greed: His main motivation, and the purpose of his entire criminal empire, is the acquisition of as much money as possible. He is willing to sacrifice anything to keep his hands on an item as valuable as the Shinuchi until it is sold to the highest bidder, and sets off a plan to bump up Enten to an even greater price than the other Enchanted Blade with the death of Chihiro Rokuhira.
I Control My Minions Through...: Indoctrination. His trusted underlings and the only other criminals he places his faith in to protect his operations are his own flesh and blood, who he grooms from birth to follow his will unquestioningly.
I Have No Son!: Exiles Hakuri, one of his own children, from the Sazanami family before the start of the story. As he was the only member of the bloodline incapable of preforming their family sorcery, Kyora considers him a disgrace, but considers himself benevolent for refraining from having him killed.
Man of Wealth and Taste: Enjoys a life of pleasure and luxury as the rich head of an estate where attendants service his every need, and is always impeccably dressed in a stylish suit, complete with a Waistcoat of Style.
Master of Illusion: A subset of his sorcery's ability is the capacity to conjure up perfect replicas of anything within the storehouse. They are indistinguishable from the true product, other than being intangible should contact be made.
Nerves of Steel: Even when he is confronted by two outsiders in his home, which is magically protected specifically to keep his estate hidden from outsiders, making Chihiro and Shiba a more or less unprecedented threat, he remains unflappably calm and composed.
Nightmare Fetishist: Gives a speech about the importance of life, which he segues into admiration for the Shinuchi as even more valuable as something that can so easily take a life.
Non-Action Big Bad: Although it's made clear that Kyora isn't weak by any means, he himself openly admits that he's no match for an enchanted blade. Rather, Kyora's true power doesn't come from his own strength, but rather his shrewd intellect and the clan he had spent so many years meticulously building up.
Pass the Popcorn: Takes a seat in the garden and enjoys some tea as he spectates the Tou battle against Chihiro on his behalf. The only support he offers until the fight comes to a standstill is summoning fresh weaponry from the storehouse for the Tou when their initial sets are destroyed.
The Patriarch: He is a serious, straightlaced older gentleman who serves as the head authority of the Sazanami family, personally handling the major preparations for the auction.
Person of Holding: As designated head of the family, the responsibility of holding the stock of their storehouse falls to him with his personal Pocket Dimension. He is capable of manifesting anything kept "registered" by said storehouse into reality with bubbling black portals, including the entire rest of the family.
Pocket Dimension: Kyora reveals that the "storehouse" where all of the Rakuzaichi's stock (including the Shinuchi) is held is essentially this, as it is an infinite subspace created by sorcery he has complete dominion over as the head of the Sazanami family. He can project illusionary replicas of items inside it to the real world, travel freely inside and out with people in tow if needed, and can also kill living things within it as he chooses.
Properly Paranoid: Feels a great unease during preparations for the yearly Rakuzaichi, despite the fact their centerpiece of a Sacred Blade makes it more popular among the underworld than ever before. Given both agents of the Kamunabi and Chihiro (along with his own relative Hakuri) all set out with the intention of bringing down his operation, these fears are quite justifiable.
Sensing You Are Outmatched: Freely admits it would be an arrogant lie to claim he could be an equal opponent in a fight against a Sacred Blade wielder. Sure enough, when he comes into confrontation with Chihiro he doesn't even try to engage him directly.
We Have Reserves: While he notes all of the living people within the storehouse have their individual worth to him, they all pale in comparison to the Shinuchi as a one of a kind Sacred Blade. This means he sees them as replaceable in the grand scope of the auction and will happily kill them off to keep Chihiro at bay.

The Tou

As a Group

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kb_tougroupshot.png

The Sazanami Clan's Special Forces

First Appearance: Chapter 23: Storehouse

The four most elite fighters of the Sazanami family, who serve as Kyora's personal bodyguards.

Child Prodigy: All four of them look to be among the newest generation of the family and young adults at the oldest. That said, they are also noted by Hakuri to be without question the four most talented in the family when it comes to skill with their sorcery.
Combat Pragmatist: Protecting Kyora is their only priority, not honor or a fair fight, meaning they are not above an ambush on their opponents or overwhelming them with a number advantage. Their strategy against Chihiro after he proves an even match for three of them at once is to have one bait an attack they block to kill his momentum and hold him in place for the other members to attack from either flank.
Dual Wielding: The lead Tou and the female both dual-wield swords during their fight with Chihiro. Chihiro destroys their blades over the course of the fight, but Kyora summons fresh pairs for them from the storehouse.
Elite Four: A quartet of warriors made up of the best of an already well-cultivated group of sorcerers.
Extremely Protective Child: Anyone who tries to threaten Kyora will quickly face the wrath of his bodyguards, who happen to be his four children. A small flashback to a previous Rakuzaichi shows them sitting at the corners of the auction with prominent bloodstains on them and surrounded by bodies as narration discusses how intruders have never interrupted the auction.
Meaningful Name: The name of the group, Tou, translates to "waves". As the strongest sorcerers of the family, this name works in conjunction with the Sazanami family name's meaning (ripple) to emphasize them as the stronger waves among the weaker ripples of the wider family.
Praetorian Guard: The four of them are entrusted as the elder Kyora's personal guard, and are said to be the four strongest of the Sazanami's multitude of sorcerers.
Secret-Keeper: The only members of the entire Sazanami Clan other than Kyora himself trusted with the knowledge a hidden backdoor into the family storehouse exists within their ancestral graveyard beneath the auction house.
Sibling Team: All four members of the Tou are siblings as the direct children of Kyora and fight together as a team.
The Smurfette Principle: Of the four, only one of the Tou are female.
Teleportation with Drawbacks: They are technically "stock" of the family storehouse, meaning Kyora can teleport them with his powers at a moment's notice. While this means he can never be separated from his first line of protection, this style of teleportation means they rely on their father's command, and can only travel to his immediate area, giving them stricter limits than the standard Teleportation Shiba utilizes.

Soya Sazanami

"Give me back my little brother!"

First Appearance: Chapter 23: Storehouse

Hakuri's eldest brother and one of the members of the Tou.

Affably Evil: Soya is genuinely cheerful and greatly loves his family, but is an unrepentant murderer, extremely quick to commit violence without provocation (even toward his beloved family) and perfectly complacent to the wider crimes of his clan.
Alliterative Name: Soya Sazanami.
Aloof Ally: To his own family. He makes backhanded and dismissive remarks about the other Tou member's intelligence and is willing to outright ignore his father's call for him with the storehouse in pursuit of his own agenda.
Big Brother Bully: He is Hakuri's elder brother by five years, and his shows of affection have always been beatdowns on his younger sibling. He also shows no regard for his brother's agency and tries to drag him back into the fold of their family's business against his will.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: The strongest sorcerer of the Tou and potentially the keenest mind of the entire family, which Kyora recognizes. Unfortunately, his willingness to disregard everything else and turn to lunacy when his brother Hakuri is involved keep him from being the ideal envoy of his father's will.
Emotional Bruiser: Second biggest physically and the strongest sorcerer of the Tou, and also extremely open with his emotions. This leads to a disturbing contrast as he weeps openly while in battle with Shiba.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Hakuri notes he genuinely loves him as a brother but has always gone about showing it to him in physically and mentally abusive ways. He goes out of his way to hunt him down in Tokyo to bring him back into the family's fold out of his own initiative.
Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Expresses his belief Hakuri's defection from the family was because he was seduced by a prisoner and Love Made Him Crazy instead of it being a moral issue. Even when his little brother doubles down and calls him out one-on-one, he instantly believes he was simply seduced again when Hinao shows up regarding him fondly.
Knight Templar Big Brother: Goes to disturbing extremes in his efforts to try and maintain what he sees as his younger brother's purity. His brother's wishes and how many people he has to kill to do so are of no concern to him.
Lacerating Love Language: Expresses love for his family through violence. The main recipient of this affection is his younger brother Hakuri, who he regularly beat in their childhood, and still gets handsy and eventually violent with him when they reunite after Hakuri's exile.
Love Makes You Dumb: According to Hakuri, Soya is normally even more intelligent than their chessmaster father. But neither he nor Shiba would guess that because whenever Hakuri is in the picture his intelligence takes a massive nosedive. All it takes is a glimpse of Hakuri from around a corner for him to immediately abandon his position and charge after him. This happens right after reasoning out Chihiro is the reason the Tou have to guard the graveyard this year and can use Enten to gather intel.
Meaningful Name: The kanji of his first name includes "affirmation" and "doctrine". Unlike his brother, he has fully bought into the doctrine of complete loyalty to his family and acts to affirm it by keeping his brother in the family business no matter his wishes, refusing to believe he would willingly defect.
Misplaced Retribution: Stemming from a instinctual unwillingness to acknowledge Hakuri as able to make his own decisions, he will instantly place the blame for his lack of cooperation on anyone he has associated with outside of the family. He declares a "merchandise woman" who apparently tempted him was killed after his exile and he plans to murder Chihiro and his allies for "making" him reject his family.
Mood-Swinger: When Hakuri is not involved, Soya is reserved and tactical, to the point Kyora expresses he is even smarter than him. When his younger brother is involved, he switches instantly to a loud, emotionally unstable lunatic who mindlessly pursues him without any consideration of a plan.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: An odd example, as we see the aspects of his personality in reverse order, and the "Out of Character" elements first. It is only the second time he appears it is revealed how he acts in his first confrontation with Hakuri is severely abnormal behavior for him, and he is normally the most clever and reserved among his siblings who only gets frenzied when Hakuri shows his face.
Shared Family Quirks: He proves just as liable to breaking down to indignant tears as easily and frequently as his younger brother.
Sibling Yin-Yang: He and his younger brother Hakuri are opposites in how their full personalities contrast each other — While he is normally clever and reserved, he snaps into short-sighted and obsessive behaviors when Hakuri is involved. Hakuri in contrast is under normal circumstance a friendly but dim-witted man who has the capacity to become far more serious when pushed to his limits.
Smarter Than You Look: Shiba finds it hard to believe he is the kind of person Kyora would describe as more intelligent, but Hakuri realizes this is only because he goes crazy whenever his younger brother is involved. When he has his composure, he showcases a keen mind, managing to perfectly guess Chihiro's had a plan to infiltrate the storehouse with Enten and his father planning the Rakuzaichi accordingly.
Yandere: Although Soya has no intention of letting Hakuri die, he shows his brotherly love through acts of violence. He tries to force Hakuri to remain submissive and loyal to the family, even referring in a crying fit of jealously to a deceased hostage and Hinao as temptresses who led Hakuri astray.

Characters / Kagurabachi

Main Protagonist

Chihiro Rokuhira

Voiced by: Shoya Ishige (vomic)

Chihiro's family and friends

Shiba

Voiced by: Jun Fukushima (vomic)

Kunishige Rokuhira

Voiced by: Kenta Fujimaki (vomic)

Hinao

Voiced by: Akari Tadano (vomic)

Char Kyonagi

Voiced by: Miko Tateishi (vomic)

Hakuri Sazanami

Yuu / "Mr. Inazuma"

Kamunabi

Azami

Anti-Kuregumo Squad

Hiyuki Kakari

Tafuku Mihara

Rakuzaichi Bidding Team

Civilians

Mrs. Kyonagi

Yuu's Sister

Antagonists

The Hishaku

Voiced by: Hideyoshi Nozawa (vomic)

Sojo's Organization

Genichi Sojo

Norisaku Madoka / "Daruma"

Sazanami Clan

Kyora Sazanami

The Tou

Soya Sazanami

Previous

Index

Next

Characters / Kagurabachi

Edit Locked

Main Protagonist

Chihiro Rokuhira

Voiced by: Shoya Ishige (vomic)

Chihiro's family and friends

Shiba

Voiced by: Jun Fukushima (vomic)

Kunishige Rokuhira

Voiced by: Kenta Fujimaki (vomic)

Hinao

Voiced by: Akari Tadano (vomic)

Char Kyonagi

Voiced by: Miko Tateishi (vomic)

Hakuri Sazanami

Yuu / "Mr. Inazuma"

Kamunabi

Azami

Anti-Kuregumo Squad

Hiyuki Kakari

Tafuku Mihara

Rakuzaichi Bidding Team

Civilians

Mrs. Kyonagi

Yuu's Sister

Antagonists

The Hishaku

Voiced by: Hideyoshi Nozawa (vomic)

Sojo's Organization

Genichi Sojo

Norisaku Madoka / "Daruma"

Sazanami Clan

Kyora Sazanami

The Tou

Soya Sazanami

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