This episode begins with a flashback: a boy watches over his kid sister playing with a ball. From a distance, a group of samurai approaches but they stop when the ball accidentally rolls in their path. Angered by this impertinence, one samurai draws his sword and slays the boy's kid sister.
for the slightest offense...
...blood
Back to the present, a man wakes up as if from a dream. It turns out that he is a member of the Itto-ryuu but that he is planning to quit the group soon. As a bodyguard for that geisha house, he has gotten friendly with one of the women but their relationship is not that of lovers...yet. The geisha seems to have unrequited feelings for him as she wants the two of them to live together once she pays off all her debts in two years.
lovers?
Meanwhile, in another part of town, Rin procures the services of a sword-cleaner to clean Manji's weapons. The sword-cleaner is amazed at the sight of the weapons and comments that its owner must be a killer. Just then, Rin notices a strange-looking sword which belongs to the sword-cleaner's client. While Rin studies the sword closely, its owner arrives and he is none other than Magatsu, one of the Itto-ryuu men who killed Rin's father.
Magatsu notes Rin's unusual interest in the sword. Later, Rin offers to buy the sword from him for 30 taels of gold. Magatsu refuses, saying that if she could tell him where to find Asano's daughter, he'd give her the sword.
"do you know how much 30 taels of gold is?"
When Manji learns what Rin did, he only mocks her. 30 taels of gold is all the money they had in the world. While he could stand living without taking a bath and sleeping on the streets, he knows Rin would not even last a day. Rin realizes how unreasonable her actions are but says that for as long as she could remember that sword was worshipped as a treasure of the Mutenichi-ryuu. After her family was slain, the Itto-ryuu took all the usable swords in the dojo, including that foreign sword.
Manji offers to help her reclaim the sword by force. However, Rin only says that even though Magatsu is Itto-ryuu and if only because of that, she hates him, she knows that her real enemy is Anotsu Kagehisa.
treachery
At that moment, Magatsu is on his way to the secret hideout of the Itto-ryuu in Mukou Island when he is ambushed by his very own transporters. Fortunately, the injuries are not fatal and he manages to slay the two traitors. He finds out from one of the men that the person behind the assassination attempt is someone called "Akagi."
meetings
Magatsu arrives at the dojo just as Habaki is leaving, with Makoto seeing him off. Magatsu seems to detect something about the secretive man. Later, Magatsu goes to see Anotsu to tell him that he is quitting the Itto-ryuu.
Anotsu tells him that he is planning to join up with the Bakufu in order to become even more powerful as a group. But Magatsu, who hates the samurai, wants none of it. Anotsu regrets that the bonds of the Itto-ryuu are that weak but accepts Magatsu's reasons for leaving. As a gesture of goodwill, he tells Magatsu that he may continue to visit the geisha house. In return, Magatsu warns him about "Akagi" who seems bent on destroying the Itto-ryuu.
That evening, Manji checks up on Rin and notices her crying even though asleep. He makes a decision then and leaves for the night.
let swords speak
Magatsu is on a treetop, waiting, when Manji arrives, telling him to hand the sword over. However, Magatsu is not about to just give it to him without a fight.
The two clash swords and Magatsu almost immediately wounds Manji on the thigh in order to slow him down. Despite his wound, Manji puts up a good fight, until he steps on a bog. Apparently, this is Magatsu's plan all along, saying that he knows the area as it is the same place that he and his kid sister used to play in. He reveals then that his sister was slain by samurai and because of this he hates all samurai. After this declaration, he raises his sword and "kills" Manji.
you can have that sword
the moon
After dealing him the deathblow, Magatsu says that Manji can keep the sword. As he turns to leave, he sees the full moon and stares at it for a moment. His mistake as Manji takes this opportunity to stab him through the stomach.
Magatsu is shocked to find that Manji is still alive. Manji only says that he wants the sword's scabbard as well. This seems to amuse Magatsu somewhat and he ends up giving it to him. As a parting shot, he hopes to meet Manji again if he survives.
tough
The next morning, Rin hurries over to Manji's room to confront him about the sword, only to find him still in his bloodied clothes, snoring. Even without explaining, the gesture touches her.
COMMENTS:
Wow, this episode was hard to recap. I mean, this anime is already hard to recap as it is....but this episode was particularly difficult. Lots of subtext that I can't just put into words without ruining their effect.
The relationship between O-ren and Magatsu, for instance. It's difficult to categorize. You just know, that beneath O-ren's playfulness and Magatsu's seeming indifference is a wealth of feelings unexpressed. I cannot bring myself to put it into words.
One thing I noticed about Blade of the Immortal is that all the women are quite tragic. I don't know if it's a historical Japanese thing....but really, without revealing too much about the story, they're all pretty sad.
I thought the portrayal between the Rin and Manji's growing relationship in this episode was good. It's gradual and sort of natural-like. I hope the anime won't do anything weird to their relationship. I see the two as...big brother and little sister, comrade-in-arms sort of friends. Nothing romantic, or I'll be terribly disappointed.
Magatsu is one of my favorite character from the manga, so it was interesting to see him fleshed out in anime. :)
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