Kariya’s speed is blinding, and Mugen seems to be no match for him. Kariya is impressed with Mugen’s unusual moves, but says that bujutsu is more than just relying on instincts and fast reflexes. After Kariya easily knocks Mugen into the ocean, he asks to see Mujuushin Kenjutsu, and the skills that killed Mariya Enshirou. Jin is surprised that Kariya knows about this, and then realizes that Kariya is kougi (shogunate government). The Little Wacko shows up to inform Jin and Mugen that Fuu has been captured, and so Jin tells Mugen to go save Fuu. We then finally get the full flashback of Jin’s past. It seems that Kariya forced Enshirou to turn the Mujuu dojo into an assassination group, but Jin refused. Kariya then commanded Enshirou to assassinate his top pupil (and designated successor), but Jin fended off the night attack, and unwittingly killed Enshirou. Kariya notes Jin’s impressive skill, but says that he still holds a razor thin advantage over Jin. The two collide for a final blow, and Jin loses, falling into the ocean.
Unfortunately, Little Wacko hid on Mugen’s boat, and can’t help but attack Mugen in spite of his orders. The boat capsizes, and Mugen is able to kill Little Wacko and make it to shore. Once there, Patch Wacko tells Mugen that the three attackers are brothers that were guarding the ship that Mugen and Mukuro attacked. Mugen left Wheelchair Wacko in an almost vegetative state, and the three brothers were disgraced and held responsible for the loss of the boat. Mugen tosses away his sword, in exchange for Fuu’s freedom, and Fuu runs off to the shack on the northern cape, as Kariya takes the next boat to the island. Fuu needs to hurry it up a little, because Mugen takes quite a beating at Patch Wacko’s hands.
Good episode with plenty of action, and lots of good backstory. As with most of Mugen’s flashbacks, his enemies are ridiculous and obsessed (and Mugen barely remembers them), but Jin’s night attack scene was beautifully done. At long last, Fuu has reached her destination, but we are still in the dark about the Sunflower Samurai’s true identity. Fuu keeps thinking it’s Kariya, and the note about the sunflower being scentless is rather intriguing.
Edit: WTF, Patch Wacko was lying. Apparently sunflowers do have a scent! I can now rest easy at night, knowing that the Sunflower Samurai has a “a faint and sweet, slightly nutty scent.”
This post was written by...
Kabitzin – who has written 1970 posts on Sea Slugs! Anime Blog.
One of the founders of Sea Slugs, I handle most of the blog admin tasks while wearing my I AM BOSS shirt. I like my action series well choreographed, and my romance series extra trashy. I also have a soft spot for puns.
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