Yamada Asaemon Fuchi (山田浅ェ門
Appearance
Fuchi has blonde hair with bangs and a hime-cut. He also has an ahoge on the top of his head. His most noticeable feature is the shadow below each of his eyes. He wears a dark kataginu on top of the standard attire of a Asaemon, which is a white robe with a bell tied on the left collar along with a hakama held together with a waist cord, holding a pair of tools for dissecting, and sandals. He carries two swords strapped to his back.
Gallery
Personality
Fuchi is a calm, rationale thinker. He prefers to do things at a scientific level, finding Tamiya and Gabimaru's imaginary battle to be pointless. He is very knowledge and is able to take charge to review subject matters. Fuchi has great pride for the Yamada Clan and doesn't allow anyone to speak disgracefully about the clan.
Fuchi's obsession for dissecting.
Even though the Yamada Clan mainly deal with testing new swords and executions, Fuchi prefers studying the human anatomy to improve medical science that comes with the trade. This preference however can be seen as an obsession. This does not only apply to humans, Fuchi can become intrigued by any organism that has special qualities, such as the undying Lord Tensen or the Sōshin. When Gabimaru explained to them about Lord Tensen, Fuchi wanted to know more about them and asked him many questions. When Tamiya wanted kill the Tensen's, Fuchi allowed it as long as he got the chance to examine it.
Plot
Island Arc
Fuchi became one of the few Asaemons who got assigned to a criminal and sent to search for the Elixir of Life on an island ordered by the shogun.[1]
Fuchi and Tamiya make landfall on the island.
After arriving on the island with his assigned criminal, Tamiya Gantetsusai, Fuchi hears his story on how he got arrested. He then hears him mock the Yamada clan and sets him straight. Later, Tamiya tells him his plan of finding the elixir by eliminating the competition. Fuchi wonders if this will end well for him since only a few criminals will survive on the island and the shogun may send out a "certain stronger group" if he becomes impatent, which causes Fuchi to be frighten of the thought. After Tamiya cuts off his hand from being stung by a strange butterfly, Fuchi is shocked to see it blooming with flowers. They are then attacked by insects and a monster. They then move on having dealt with the monster.
Lord Tensen Arc
Fuchi and Tamiya forming an alliance with Gabimaru.
While traveling in Hōrai, the two stumble upon Gabimaru who is badly injured. Before they can attack, the two criminals predict each others movements. Believing that it was pointless, Fuchi stops them and wanted to extract information from Gabimaru's experience on the island. Gabimaru wanted to team up with them and gave them information on what he acquired on the island. The ninja then told them of his experience on the island. After hearing him, Fuchi became interested in Lord Tensen's regenerative abilities and asked about its internal organs. Tamiya becomes convinced and agreed to teaming up but Fuchi asked if it was a good idea since Gabimaru was also seeking the pardon. Tamiya says that he had no interest in the pardon and only seek to become a legendary figure, which Fuchi found ridiculous. Taking interest in the undying organism known as Lord Tensen, Fuchi also agrees to teaming up with Gabimaru as well. Fuchi suggest exchanging intel which Gabimaru agrees and starts off with Mei but is shocked to see her age. After Gabimaru asked her what was the power she used to save him, Mei tells them that she uses Tao but confuses them with her odd explanation. The group are then approached by a crowd of Sōshin.
Fuchi excitingly examining the Sōshin corpses.
As Gabimaru and Tamiya kill the Sōshin, Fuchi starts to examine their corpses in delight. The three then notice that Mei has been taken by a Dōshi who is pleased with their meeting and addresses her in a polite manner. After learning from the Dōshi that Mei is similar to Lord Tensen, Fuchi asks Gabimaru if they should be concern with the situation. He sees that Gabimaru has instantly appeared by Mei's side and tells the Dōshi that he would protect her and prepares to fight him along with another Dōshi that appears beside him. He watches as Tamiya and Gabimaru fight the Dōshi's. He then listens as the Dōshi's explain why they needed Mei, which was to have her as their partner for intimate congress so they can combine their Yang with her in Yin and achieve mastery of Tao. Tamiya becomes confused as to what intimate congress meant and looks towards Fuchi, who answers saying that it meant sexual intercourse. After hearing enough of their reasoning for wanting Mei, Tamiya and Gabimaru become furious and defend Mei from behind while Fuchi stands by her side.
After interpreting Mei's words about Tao and seeing as Gabimaru and Tamiya are having trouble fighting the Dōshi's, Fuchi yells out to Gabimaru that in order to learn Tao he must accept both his strength and weaknesses. Mei helps Gabimaru sense his Tao by touching his hand but still has difficulty awakening it. Fuchi further explains that he must accept his weakness but sees that he is still having a hard time understanding quickly. However, Gabimaru says that he got the idea and steps forward to face the Dōshi's once more. Fuchi, Tamiya, and Mei watch in shock by how Gabimaru is managing to dodge the Dōshi's invisible attacks and how he was able to dispel the Centipede Dōshi's transformation. After the battle ended with Gabimaru and Tamiya killing the Dōshi's, Gabimaru faints and is carried along with them halfway up the valley.
The group stops and takes refuge in a cave. Once Gabimaru awoke, Fuchi begins discussing what they know so far about Tao. Fuchi goes over the hindering attributes and states that it might be the key to killing Lord Tensen. He then ends the discussion so they can rest for tomorrow.
The next day, the group travels up the valley and suddenly encounter Aza Chōbē and Tōma. After Chōbē attacks Gabimaru, Fuchi sees that Tōma is no longer an ally and has been collaborating with Chōbē. Fuchi watches from the sidelines as Gabimaru viscously fights Chōbē, comparing their battle to a fight between beasts. Chōbē orders Tōma to attack the others, which the Asaemon becomes shocked after hearing Tōma call him brother. Tamiya gets angry after Tōma went after him because he is missing his left hand and angrily fights back. Fuchi tells him that he can't allow it since he is still a member of the Yamada clan, however, Tamiya refuses to listen.
Fuchi guarding Mei from the Dōshi.
While fighting Tamiya, Tōma orders the Dōshi they enslaved to go after Fuchi and Mei. Fuchi takes out his swords and stands by Mei to protect her. After warding off the Dōshi, Fuchi spots Chōbē transformed. While observing their fight, Fuchi notices that Gabimaru is in critical condition and becomes confused as to why he was risking his life to kill Chōbē even though his goal was to receive the pardon. He then witnesses the fight end after Mei releases her Tao to create a massive crater and has Chōbē fall down to the valley. Fuchi and Tamiya wonders how she was able to accomplish this and are shocked to see her body mature once again. Fuchi suggests a dissection to find answers but Tamiya found him to be ridiculous. The two then wish they had some answers to all the mysterious they had witnessed.
Fuchi mourning Senta's death.
The group travels to the Hōrai gate and are met by Sagiri, Shion, Yuzuriha, and Nurugai. He then asked Sagiri what has happened to them since they arrived and the whereabouts of Tensa and Senta. After he sees Hōko's head talking in Sagiri's hands, he becomes fascinated and answers his question about defeating the Dōshi's they encountered. Later, Fuchi finds Senta's grave and mourns his death. He then walks back to the group explaining that Gabimaru's injures came from his constant fighting and that he tried to do what he can to heal him. Gabimaru regains consciousness and attacks Sagiri after she becomes suspicious. However, Fuchi and Shion block his attack on time. Sagiri explains to them that Gabimaru has lost a lot of his Tao, and as result, he has also lost his memories. They then watch as Sagiri tries to restore Gabimaru's Tao and return him back to his former self.
The group then relocates to escape enemy territory. Seeing as how he is not in the mood to dissect him after finding out the death of his fallen comrades, Fuchi allows the captured Dōshi to leave. He then walks back over to the cave and finds that Mei is feeling ill. He agrees in helping to heal Mei's illness but demands that she tell him everything they need to know about herself and Lord Tensen. After interpreting Mei's words, he tells Sagiri and Yuzuriha that Lord Tensen, the monsters, and the island were created by a Hōshi in order to research the secrets of immortality. He then explains that Lord Tensen are residing on the island to practice both the inner and outer way of Tan, which is meditation and concocting a potion in order to achieve immortality. Fuchi explains that the potion known as Tan is created from the Tao harvest and extracted from the lives of humans and lengthens Lord Tensens life spans. Knowing this, Fuchi tells them that they can be killed if their Tao is depleted. After, Yuzuriha asks why the Tensens are going further with their research, Mei answers that the possibility lies with the will of their creator Xu Fu.
The remaining survivors of the vanguard party join forces to complete the mission and escape the island.
After a quick explanation and discussion about Xu Fu, the group sees Mei fall back from exhaustion and that her arm has turned into a branch. She explains that he body has been damaged by Rien and needs recovery from another source of Tao, which Hōko offers. After she absorbs his Tao and reverts back to her child body fully healed, the four gather back with the others. While tending to Tōma's nose wound, Fuchi sees Tamiya upset over Mei's child body and wonders if he was the right teacher for Tōma. Fuchi is thanked by Tōma for his help but rejects his gratitude and walks off. The group is then warned by Mei that a second party has arrived on the island. Fuchi and Shion believe that it is Shugen and the other Asaemon as reinforcements, along with backup criminals. Sagiri vouches for Shugen's strength and believes that he is kind hearted even though he is known for his bad reputation for the execution of the Silver Serpent yakuza group. Hearing Sagiri back up Shugen, Fuchi adds that he was Sagiri's first crush, though she explains that she merely admires him. Shion denies that Shugen will become an ally after explaining the full story of the Silver Serpent's group execution and how he does not cooperate with criminals or allow any Asaemon to work with them as well. Moving on, Shion presents his strategy of finding the Tan elixir and an escape route by separating everyone into two teams and using their Tao attributes to hinder and defeat each member of Lord Tensen. However, Yuzuriha suggests finding a way off the island and go into hiding. Shion takes her recommendation into account and gives everyone the option of working separately or working together in completing the mission. Unanimously, everyone decides to follow Shion into the came and work together.
Palace Invasion Arc
Fuchi translates Mei's words and relays the information to the group, telling them that they can use the ships within the palace to escape the island and use the floodgate since the sea monsters guarding the island have been trained to not attack anything coming out of it. Shion then pulls Gabimaru and Yuzuriha over to have them instruct the group in terms of espionage using Tao. After the lessons were over, Fuchi, along with Tamiya and Nurugai, become heavily exhausted. He is then placed in the Escape-Route Team along with Tamiya. Shion, Nurugai, and Mei. Tamiya suggests that they should have Mei depart alone without having to wait for the Elixir Retrieval Team since she wishes to leave the island. However, Gabimaru asks her if she wanted to do before leaving. Fuchi offers to translate for Mei but instead chooses to talk for herself. Mei confesses that she wants to reunite with Rien and Xu Fu to ask them why they underwent a major in the past before leaving. After listening to her, Gabimaru promises to fulfill her wish.
Fuchi, Tamiya, and Tōma encounters Tao Fa and Ju Fa.
After reviewing their strategy to infiltrate the palace, the group decides to make their move tonight. The Elixir Retrieval Team sneaks into the palace and signals the Escape Route Securing Team that it is okay to enter. The team advances into the palace but are met by a sudden mist, causing Fuchi, Tamiya and Tōma to get separated from Shion and Nurugai. The three then encounter Tao Fa and Ju Fa who plan to offer them as sacrifices to the grandmaster. Knowing that their plan to avoid Lord Tensen has failed, the group moves on to their second plan of fighting against them.
Upon reuniting with his brother again, Fuchi and Tamiya allow Tōma to be by his side with no worries that he is now a threat. After walking upstairs to join him, the brothers attack Ju Fa and Tao Fa. Fuchi and Tamiya then watch in shock as Tao Fa stands up regenerating near them and compliments her body after she removes her robes in preparation for their fight. She first rushes towards Tamiya and sends him crashing to a pillar and then draws her attention to Fuchi. Tao Fa finds Fuchi to be cute and offers to preform Bōchū Jutsu with him. Fuchi responds by slicing off her hand and declines her advances, saying that he only had interests in her organs.
Fuchi and Tamiya fight Tao Fa.
Tamiya and Fuchi fight Tao Fa but are unable to counter against her Tao attacks and are quickly defeated. However, the two stand back up with full excitement of their own ambitions. Fuchi sees that Tamiya has managed to somehow dodge one of Tao Fa's Tao attacks and slices through her. However, he is immediately sent crashing back with the Tensen believing that it was pure luck. Fuchi jumps in to attack Tao Fa single handedly so Tamiya can observe how Tao works but is grabbed by the neck as Tao Fa hits him with a number of Tao projectiles. She remarks that she found it sweet that he was willing to take her attacks head on in order to help his "friend". Fuchi disagrees with her statement but remembers his past statement of believing that they have a relationship that came close to friendship since the criminals and executioners on the mission have formed a connection with one another. Tao Fa then prepares to attack Fuchi with another set of Tao projectiles. Fuchi senses that he is in danger and is suddenly grabbed by Tamiya. Tamiya gains the ability to sense Tao after blinding himself and saves Fuchi from taking damage.
Fuchi hindering Tao Fa while Tamiya makes the cut through her tanden.
Despite his success in being able to sense Tao, Fuchi knows that in order to defeat Tao Fa he needs to use his Metal Tao. He then comes up with the idea of holding on to Tao Fa to weaken her Tao and have Tamiya make the cut to her tanden. Tamiya manages to make a precise cut through Tao Fa's tanden and defeat her. However, the two see that Tao Fa has transformed and reaches out to Ju Fa. The two then fuse together to enter their Kishikai.
Fuchi and Tamiya try to cover their ears after the monster starts to emit a loud scream. Fuchi warns Tamiya that he needs to administer first aid before he can continue fighting but has it turned down. He then notices Tamiya starting to laugh uncontrollably by one of the spores released by the monster. Fuchi cuts the spore and has Tamiya return to normal. They then watch as Chōbē fight Ju Fa and Tao Fa but is quickly defeated. Fuchi suggests that the four of them should work together, reminding them that their main enemy is the monster and fighting each other comes later.
Fuchi and the others defeat Ju Fa and Tao Fa.
Chōbē defends against the monsters vines while Tōma grabs Fuchi's hand to strengthen his Metal Tao. Fuchi then comes in close to cut Tao Fa's tanden. The monster flees after Tamiya jumps in to attack and changes to its defensive form. Since the monster has two pair of tandens, Fuchi is told by Tōma to par up with Tōma to kill Tao Fa while he and Tamiya try to kill Ju Fa. Tamiya rushes in to cut away at the monsters vines to give Fuchi and Tōma an opening to attack, however, Fuchi notices that Tamiya has almost reached his limit. Fuchi is then protected by Tōma from being hit by the spores, reason being that he is crucial in his brothers plan. Tamiya manages to get below the monster by entering the pool and slashes through it, separating Tao Fa and Ju Fa. After being told Tao Fa's location within the body, Fuchi comes in with his Tao strengthen by Tōma to strike Tao Fa's tanden while Chōbē destroys Ju Fa's tanden.
With the Kishikai body destroyed, the Tensens come out of the pool with their bodies in tatters. Fuchi holds Tao Fa and tells them that it was over for them as they slowly die. After the battle ends, Fuchi wonders how the others are doing.
Abilities and Powers
As the ninth ranked Asaemon, Fuchi is viewed as being one of the next suitable heads of the Yamada clan. After arriving on Kotaku, Fuchi became one of the first few in 1,000 years to have managed to survive the ordeals the island had to offer and reach Hōrai where Lord Tensen currently resides. He was able to ward off a Dōshi from attacking him and Mei (though the Dōshi was already badly damaged from his previous fight with Aza Chōbē).
Swordsmanship
Like every Asaemon, Fuchi has the capabilities of decapitating his victims with a single cut of his sword.
Intelligence
Fuchi possesses high understanding of anatomy, which allowed him to earn a ranking in the Yamada clan and make himself well-known in the clan as an expert. Fuchi's knowledge of anatomy also offers him skills in dissecting. Even though she had skillfully analyzed the monsters anatomy based on her swordsmanship, Sagiri knew that Fuchi could understand them at a deeper level.[2] This was proven true as Fuchi was able to thoroughly examine the corpses of the Sōshin and determined that they were all structured differently. Fuchi also has knowledge in medical science and can concoct medicines or administrate first aid to his allies.
By using the same method as Japanese scholar, Sugita Genpaku, Fuchi is able to translate for others. This skill has mainly been used for interpeting Mei's words. Through this, Fuchi has also managed to gain an understanding of Tao.
Weapons
Fuchi carries around two swords strapped to his back, one being a sword with a hook tip and the other being a jagged, saw-like blade. In addition, he also carries tools used for dissecting strapped to his waist.
Trivia
- Fuchi ranked 14th in the manga's 1st Character Popularity Poll.
References
- ↑ Chapter 2, Page 54
- ↑ Chapter 10, Page 8-9