The May rain falls. Is it my tears or the mist that surrounds me? Nightingale, carry my name up above the clouds!

 – Ashikaga Yoshiteru 

Part of the magic of Mizukami Satoshi is to take what in lesser hands might be no more than battle shounen (albeit epic battle shounen) and imbue it with deep pathos and subtle character arcs. He can do intimate as well as anyone (I think Spirit Circle falls into this category). But he can go big, too. He did so in Hoshi no Samidare, and elevated the art even further in Sengoku Youko. Mizukami is an all-rounder in a way few mangaka are. A jack of all trades, to be sure, but no means a master of none.

This episode is both epic and intimate in inimitable Mizukami fashion. It follows the two great battles of 19 May, 1565, taking place in and above Kyoto. One is purely fictional (obviously) and one loosely based on historical events. But the contrasts go far beyond that. Senya and Mudou go at it like the boys they are, Mudo full of killing spirit but swept up in Senya’s pretense of fun about the whole encounter. At what would become Nijo Castle, however, the events taking place have a darkness and ugliness about them and not a trace of coltish innocence.

There’s certainly deceit and dishonor in Senya and Mudou’s battle. But it all comes from Tago (the adult in the room) not Mudou. And it came in service of his larger purpose, the assault on the shogun’s residence. There’s no malice in Mudou – he bears Senya no ill will. He just wants to fight him – and eat him – because he’s strong. He’s a simple fellow to say the least, and even has a sort of honor – he told Senya he’d keep Tsukiko safe and where she’d be, and lived up to it.

For Senya’s part, the laughing and smiling is all an act. He can mimic Yoshiteru but he can’t feel what the Shogun feels. He even asks Mudou to teach him how to enjoy getting his ass kicked, which rather bemuses the young dragon. But the katawara inside him certainly can laugh and mean it – and they’re starting to believe in Senya as a worthwhile friend. Nau moves in to rescue Tsukiko, which is technically a breach of the agreement but when you kidnap somebody I don’t think you have grounds for complaint. Tago has left a shikigami behind to guard her,  but the resourceful Tsukiko deals with that in short order. She also declines to be rescued, putting her faith in Senya to rescue her. If that’s not love I don’t know what is.

The whole encounter has the air of two lords of the schoolyard in a battle for bragging rights. There’s no such aura to the ugliness at the Shogun’s palace. This a man prepared to die and taking as many with him as he can, a betrayer watching at a distance while others do his dirty work, and a mysterious third party we’ve seen before.The true story of Ashikaga Yooshiteru is quite a dramatic one. His family were mere puppets when he was born, and he and his father were twice forced to leave Kyoto in exile. When his fortunes turned and he eventually became shogun himself, nothing was expected of him. But Yoshiteru proved to be a cunning politician and brilliant administrator who quickly gathered power to the shogunate once more.

That of course would prove to be his downfall. There were many powerful daimyou who had no interest in seeing a strong shogunate or a strong shogun. Ashikaga was killed in as assault on his Nijo residence (he actually died in June according to the modern calendar), led by Matsunaga Hisahide and members of the Miyoshi Clan, and his brother was installed as a puppet. By legend he composed the above death poem in his final moments. Here, he appears to be faring quite well – cutting down everything Matsunaga throws at him. Indeed, he seems to be defying his own fate – until the five hooded figures show up again, and distract Yoshiteru long enough for Matsunaga to stab him in the back.

Both Senya and Yoshiteru are certainly GAR here, but in very different ways. Senya never sought this battle, and he doesn’t seek Mudou’s death. He’s doing what he has to do for Tsukiko’s sake and to understand who and what he is. He’s certainly powerful and resourceful enough to have made the difference at the palace – which is precisely why he was lured away from it. Yoshiteru has becomes stronger than any normal man. and seems quite untroubled and even joyful at taking the lives of those who have come to claim his. But he too did not seek this fight, and he faces his own demise without a trace of fear or resentment at fate. Indeed this is hardest on Shinsuke, who sees another precious ally fall when he feels he might have taken action to prevent it.

Because this is Sengoku Youko, even when a great character leaves the scene there’s always another lined up to take their place. If it’s Thursday it must be Hakke Neko, the seer Tama visits to find information about the missing Jinka Yamato. No less than Shintani Mayumi (the only seiyuu I’ve interviewed, as it happens) is playing Hakke Neko, an inspired choice for another inspired Mizukami creation. It’s pretty much a limited express from here to the end of this line, but the track has plenty of twists and turns.