“ | Do those without doubt even exist? And if they do, does that lack translate to strength? I have come face-to-face with doubt time and time again. My own. As well as the doubt harbored within the strong. We struggle and doubt and struggle again. If abandoning such doubt is the way of the samurai then samurai I am not. For I refuse to leave such things behind. To the bitter end I remain nebulous and ill-defined. For that is who I am. | ” |
—Yamada Asaemon Sagiri (Chapter 120) |
Yamada Asaemon Sagiri (山
After the shogun called for death row convicts to acquire the Elixir of Life from an island believed to be Shinsenkyō in exchange for a pardon for their past crimes, Sagiri recruited Gabimaru to be a part of the expedition team and was put in charge of acting as his monitor until the mission was complete.
Appearance[]
Sagiri is a fair-skinned young woman of a slender build who is quite tall, as her height is 172 cm. (5 feet 8 inches), making her one of the tallest female characters in the series. She has long brown hair that she keeps in a ponytail using a very long ribbon and frontal hairs that fall across her face as bangs, as well as two very long front strands that reach down to her chest.
As an Asaemon, she wears the standard attire, albeit altered slightly for her gender, which consists of a white hakamashita kimono with a red lining running down the collar, tucked into a pair of white hakama with a single red band at the left gusset, held up by an imitation of an obi (fashioned much like a western corset), consisting of four red straps securing a dark red obimakura, which also holds her katana at her left hip. Finally, she wears a pair of white tabi, with dark waraji for footwear. Her accessories include a red bow on her collar with the standard funerary bell attached to it, as is traditional for all Yamada Asaemon, a red gauntlet at her right hand, and red tasuki she uses to tie up her sleeves to prevent them from interfering with her duties when preparing for an execution.
After taking on the task of destroying one of the Banko's tandens, Sagiri procures shinobi equipment from the fallen Iwagakure shinobi taken down by Jikka, consisting of a headband, along with adding another gauntlet and a second sword. She also switches to wearing shinobi footwear and has her hakama tucked into a pair of gaiters around her lower legs.
After a year passed, Sagiri wears a striped robe, being held together with a dark obi, a haori, and sandals. She also carries along a kasa and a walking stick.
Gallery[]
Video Games[]
Other[]
Personality[]
When performing her job as an executioner, Sagiri generally displays a stoic and serious demeanor, as she possesses a very high sense of duty when given a task. When she acted on her role as an inspector, Sagiri made sure Gabimaru answered all her questions even if he was not clothed or if it was during one of his death sentences, which made her have to constantly tell the magistrate and his men to hold off on their next attempts at executing him.[2][3] After becoming Gabimaru's monitor, she boldly made it clear that she refused to allow him to do as he pleased on the island and made sure to keep watch over him at all times.[4][5][6] Another great example of Sagiri's serious attitude was when she aimed to give Gabimaru and Mei a proper bath, viewing it as an "operation" even though it was not required of her as the criminal's monitor.[7] As noted by Kishō, Sagiri is a stickler for upholding the rules, as she kept the bindings on her assigned criminal when they made landfall even though the other Yamada Asaemons on the mission allowed the opposite since Kishō pointed out that the rules would only hinder progress on the mission. She can, however, allow herself to bend the rules a little, as she overlooked Gabimaru's attempt to kill her.[8] She is also able to accept certain unfortunate events that have fallen; though it will take a while for her to allow the situation to sink in.
While dedicated in her duties as both a samurai and an executioner, Sagiri lacks the mental state to take a life without putting any fear or hesitation into her blade, a flaw that she is greatly criticized for by her clansmen, on top of her gender, given their principles to execute the condemned painlessly by ridding themselves of this emotion. Upon analyzing Gabimaru's behavior after watching him commit murder, Sagiri learned from him that she must bear the weight of the lives she has taken like the shinobi does and accept her fear and doubt instead of trying to overcome it. Come the shogun's mission, Sagiri soon realized that this way of thinking ultimately became the key to her survival on Kotaku.
— Sagiri following the Middle Way during her fight against Rien. |
Most prominently, Sagiri is noted to be a person who stays true to herself. Having realized at a young age that her true path in life lies within the Yamada clan's duties of executing criminals, Sagiri chose to take up the blade and not adhere to the clan's traditional customs as a woman no matter what her clansmen may think of her; though she stated to herself that she would not accept this fate quietly. As such, she carries a belief that a person should choose what they want to be in life regardless of the identity they are born with.[9] Though she speaks to her clansmen with respect, Sagiri is not afraid to stand up for herself by stating her convictions. She has also come to accept her own shortcomings, such flaws being her fears and doubts as a samurai. Due to this, as well as her disregard for gender-based roles, Sagiri's way of life is seen as leaning towards the Middle Way, which has proven to greatly help her overcome difficult obstacles. Sagiri also stated to Gabimaru that embracing one's true feelings is not a weakness but instead it is where true strength comes from.
Sagiri is also a very good-natured person who is polite, kind, and caring towards others. Despite the fact that she is well-aware that a few of her fellow clansmen view her as being unworthy of becoming a samurai, Sagiri speaks to them with respect and became sadden after the ones who were tasked on the mission had died.[10] After Mei was preparing to take a bath, Sagiri kindly took the liberty to wash her clean, an act that the girl dearly appreciated. When Hōko's head was severed from his body, Sagiri expressed her relief that he was still alive and willingly carried him after defeating Mu Dan. From her experience as an executioner, Sagiri is capable of understanding the feelings of others from within their hearts, which could allow her to show empathy even towards criminals.[11] Through this trait, Sagiri realized that Gabimaru was not truly an evil person and was able to show genuine concern for his well-being.
Though she takes matters seriously, Sagiri does possess a sense of humor, as she is one of the rare few who finds Shion's puns about his eyesight to be funny. She is also one to make puns herself, which she credits Shion as being her influence, having told Gabimaru that in the end she "executed" her initial role of being partnered up with him after beheading the convict to free him from Arborification.
Another side to Sagiri that differs from her usual composed personality is that she is susceptible to becoming emotional and nervous around others, as shown when she met Yui a second time, having viewed this meeting as being special compared to the first time they met at Iwagakure; most likely given all that Gabimaru had to go through to see her. Her nervous behavior seems to have been with her since she was much younger, as she had a hard time properly welcoming Fuchi into the clan at the age of six and even more so with Senta who has a nervous personality himself.
History[]
Past[]
Sagiri was born as the daughter to the head of the Yamada clan, Yamada Asaemon Kichiji, and was raised as its heiress. However, after realizing at a young age that it was unavoidable for a clan member to not associate themselves with death, regardless of which path they choose to take, Sagiri made the decision to become a part of the clan's trade as an executioner instead of living a normal, quiet life. At some point in time, Sagiri watched as a spectator to an execution of a condemned performer done by her father and became astonished by how he skillfully beheaded his target. From that day on, she became inspired to gain the same level of skill with a sword as her father as she began her training. During her childhood, Sagiri faced bullying from children her age for being born into the infamous clan of executioners and was looked down on by her fellow Yamada clansmen, as well as her father, for the fact that she is a female following the path of a samurai. Despite the harsh treatment she faced, Sagiri managed to earn her name as a Yamada Asaemon and a ranking with the help of Yamada Asaemon Shugen, which she was grateful for. While having gained the skills needed to become an executioner, Sagiri found herself unable to handle the burden of ending the life of her victims during her execution duties, which flawed her sword skills, and had hoped to one day overcome this.
Island Arc[]
- Main article: Island Arc
After the recent discovery of the legendary island known as Shinsenkyō, Sagiri and the other ranked Yamada Asaemons become tasked by the shogun to recruit death row convicts for the latest expedition team to retrieve the Elixir of Life from the island, with the reward for the criminals being an official pardon for their crimes. She is assigned the infamous Iwagakure shinobi known as Gabimaru the Hollow and heads to his prison.
Before executing Gabimaru as the magistrate intended, Sagiri acts as an inspector and interviews him in order to better understand him. After finishing with her inspection, Sagiri reveals her true identity to Gabimaru as he is sentenced to beheading by her hands. Though the shinobi claimed to her that he was willing to die, Sagiri witnesses him moving out of the way of her sword attacks as she tries to execute him. With Gabimaru wondering as to why he is clinging to life, Sagiri opens his eyes to the fact that he wants to live a life of peace with his wife and pulls out the pardon to offer him the shogun's mission. Before giving his answer, Sagiri hears from the magistrate his refusal to release Gabimaru from custody despite it being an order from the shogun. While holding her sword to the magistrate's neck, Sagiri witnesses Gabimaru performing a fire ninjutsu to stop the officers from subduing him and hears his acceptance to partake in the mission. With Gabimaru accepting the mission, Sagiri transports him to Edo where he will be brief on the details of the mission.
- The enclosed information is from a light novel that ties in with the main story around this point in time.
After a steady downpour along the Tōkaidō road causes the ferry boats to be out of service, Sagiri decides on having her and Gabimaru take shelter at an inn in a neighboring town and rejects his irrational ideas of continuing on, which prompts her to remind him not to forget his place while with her. While at the post town, Sagiri takes note of the dull atmosphere and finds an inn they can settle in. However, upon entering, Sagiri finds that the interior of the inn to be in shabby condition and questions if it was suitable for the two of them to reside. As she prepares to step out, Sagiri is stopped by Gabimaru after he senses trouble and turns back around to witness a man and a woman named Heikichi and Oryō being harassed by a group of men who came to collect from them. Sagiri steps in to intervene and reflexively reaches for her sword as one of the men approaches her with hostility. However, the situation settles after Oryō welcomes Sagiri and Gabimaru as guests at her inn and demanded for the men to leave as to not obstruct business.
Though it was out of the blue, the two choose to follow along and were taken to their rooms. Upon entering, Sagiri becomes surprised by how the room was properly furnished compared to the interior of the entrance. Sagiri then sees Oryō and Heikichi apologizing for being pushy earlier and tells them that it was not necessary for them to bow their heads since she had planned to find another inn and stops Gabimaru from saying anything further. She then asks them about the situation earlier but is told by Oryō that she shouldn't worry about it since she is their customer. Sagiri refrains from asking further on the topic and instead asks if they are a married couple, which Oryō and Heikichi confirms. As they were being served dinner prepared by Heikichi, Sagiri and Gabimaru learn of their rules as hostesses and are assumed to be either a married couple or two people engaging in an illicit affair by Oryō, resulting in both of them spitting out their food in shock. Sagiri denies that they have this sort of relationship but is unsuccessful as Oryō misinterprets Gabimaru's exposed tied hands as a symbol of their bond. Wanting to keep their roles as executioner and felon a secret, Sagiri finds herself having no choice but to go along with her misinterpretation, which prompts the hostess to put their futons together for the night. Dumbfounded by this act, Sagiri and Gabimaru looked at each other in agreement to sleep on separate corners of the room.
During the night, Sagiri hears Gabimaru whispering to himself the cardinal rules he and his wife had while living together, as he felt nostalgic hearing about the cardinal rules Heikichi and Oryō have, and begins to think about her potential suitors from the Yamada clan given her position as heiress, who she analyzed where all strange men much like the shinobi she is sharing a room with. Sagiri then tells Gabimaru to sleep before her, only to hear his refusal and inability to do so, and is warned by him that he sensed that the return of the men from before. After hearing a loud sounds of things breaking downstairs, Sagiri and Gabimaru hear Oryō calling out to her guests to not come downstairs. Despite this, Sagiri picks up her sword and tells Gabimaru that they need to go down and help. However, Gabimaru questions if they should since the situation did not involve them and that his only purpose for being with her is for the upcoming mission. Sagiri points out though that it would be a nuisance if the men came to the second floor to block their path and goes down to intervene, leading to her briefly clashing swords with an Iwagakure shinobi named Kiō until he decided to leave out of boredom. After Sagiri treats to Heikichi's injured wrist, she learns of Heikichi and Oryō's predicament of having to payback an exorbitantly high debt to a loan shark named Shichimatsuya after being cheated by him and the magistrate of the post town named Tashiro Sukezaemon and is begged by Heikichi for help, which results in him being reprimanded by Oryō for trying to burden their customers. After the two owners had left the room, Sagiri hears from Gabimaru his refusal to have the two of them become involved in their affairs and speaks of the Iwagakure shinobi she encountered earlier, which gave him a bit of concern for a moment. Though she agrees to his point, Sagiri tells Gabimaru that it was only natural for a person to feel empathy for others but sees that her statement does not phase the man who points out that he grew up to be an emotionless murderer.
Later during the night, Sagiri is woken up by Heikichi's alarming voice and learns from him that Oryō was missing. Sagiri helps to look for Oryō around the inn but find no signs of her. Finding it hard to believe that the men from earlier had broken in to kidnap her, since they would have noticed, Sagiri comes to the conclusion that she had left willingly to the magistrate's mansion and headed to the exit of the inn where Kiō had left before, deducting that the Iwagakure shinobi was hired by Tashiro as the direction he went led to the mansion. She is then asked by Heikichi to not be concerned with his situation, given the two owner's cardinal rule of not inconveniencing the customers, but could tell that he was really worried for Oryō that could possibly lead him to storming the mansion by himself. Seeing as how she cannot leave Gabimaru's side anyhow, Sagiri calms herself down and heads back upstairs. However, she returns to her room to find it empty, realizing that she made the mistake of shifting her attention to a different matter and mentioning Kiō's identity as an Iwagakure shinobi since Gabimaru would want to escape as soon as possible if he knew that a shinobi from his former village was close at hand. While worrying about her own situation, Sagiri asks Heikichi where Shichimatsuya's house is located.
After finding Shichimatsuya, Sagiri discovers the flow of bribes the loan shark had been sending to Tashiro and drags him to the magistrate's mansion. Sagiri arrives at the burned magistrate's mansion where she looks to see Gabimaru about to harm Tashiro, after he had finished killing Kiō, and yells out to him to not go through with his hostile intentions since it would pose as a problem if a criminal were to kill an official and that Tashiro should instead be brought to justice. After Gabimaru complies to let Tashiro go, Sagiri pulls aside Shichimatsuya to reveal the bribes sent to him and pulls out her passport that bears the Tokugawa crest to let Tashiro know that she is associated with the ruler and that she is prepared to report him for his misuse of power. Sagiri hears Tashiro accepting his defeat but demanded that Gabimaru be punished for his actions towards him. She agrees to this and pulls out her sword, stating to Gabimaru that she cannot overlook his actions. As Gabimaru sat down in acceptance for what was about to come, Sagiri raises her blade above him but instead slashes Tashiro, who was beside Gabimaru, in the stomach and makes it out as an accident, much to the magistrate's disagreement as he cried out in agony. She then looks at Heikichi and Oryō with a smile as they happily reunited and comments on her accidental sword swing, saying that she couldn't deny that she had put a little too much effort into it.
The next morning, Sagiri and Gabimaru get ready to leave Meoto-ya and are thanked by Heikichi and Oryō for their help. Sagiri listens as Oryō felt terrible that they broke the rule of not inconveniencing their guests and Gabimaru's reply of how their top priority in a marriage should be to ensure that they stay together, which moved Oryō to tears. The two then left the inn but stumbled in the midst after hearing Oryō yelling out her dedication to make the inn better and have her and Heikichi become a great couple as them. Sagiri comments that Oryō was a very good proprietress but feels the need to correct her the next time she visits. She then tells Gabimaru not to act out like he did yesterday and hears his reassurance that he won't abandon the mission. Sagiri tells Gabimaru that she believes in him, having learned earlier that he has genuine feelings after all, and gives her refusal to unbind his hands after he had requested.
- End of information.
Later, Sagiri places Gabimaru with other criminals that also wish to be pardon. Before the criminals could travel to the island, they were told to start a massacre until only a few were available to depart. As the criminals began to kill each other, Yamada Asaemon Eizen attempts to discourage Sagiri into not taking the mission but to no avail. Three criminals then try to attack Sagiri and escape. Sagiri manages to decapitate them but trembles in fear. She then observes Gabimaru killing and notices how he bears the weight of the people he has killed and wishes to do the same in order to overcome her weakness. After the massacre ends, Sagiri is tasked with being Gabimaru's Asaemon and promises that she will be the one to execute him.
After arriving with Gabimaru on the island, Sagiri listens to Gabimaru explain his former leader's immortal body and how the Elixir of Life may exist but is unconvinced that it may be on the island. She then sees Gabimaru freeing himself from his bindings and tells him that this action was prohibited. After listening to the shinobi throw out multiple complaints, Sagiri draws out her sword, boldly reminds him of her role as his executioner and not his ally, and demanded that he cooperate, to which he agrees to rebind his hands. Sagiri is then shocked to see Gabimaru's neck snap after being hit by a surprise attack by Warped Keiun, one of the criminals sent to the island, but becomes surprised to see him alive. Gabimaru explains that he dislocated his neck at the perfect time and complains to her about how he took note of the fact that Keiun's hands were not bound. Though she found that it was not the perfect time to complain, Sagiri asks Keiun's Yamada Asaemon, Yamada Asaemon Kishō, as to why he broke the rules, to which he answers that he will redo the bindings once the mission is over, resulting in Sagiri receiving a stern look from Gabimaru. Warped Keiun declares to Gabimaru that he will kill him and the rest of the criminals on the island but is quickly defeated by the shinobi, much to Sagiri's shock of how strong he was.
With his criminal taken down, Kishō cuts off Warped Keiun's head and prepares to leave. Sagiri warns Kishō to be cautious due to the fact that the men who were sent to the island went missing. Despite the warning, Kishō informs her that she should worry about herself and how the criminals are making their move, telling her that the rules should not be taken seriously since it might risk the chances of finding the elixir. He then pointed towards Gabimaru as an example and offers her a chance to return home by killing him, only for the Asaemon to be silenced by Gabimaru. Kishō then warned Gabimaru that Iwagakure might get involved in the mission in the future and told Sagiri that this mission will determine the next head of the Yamada clan. After Kishō makes his leave, Sagiri asks Gabimaru as to where he would like to go next but suddenly finds herself intercepting a sword attack from him. Sagiri asked for an explanation for his action, to which he responds by saying that he wanted to kill her painlessly.
Gabimaru explains to Sagiri that, if what Kishō said about Iwagakure was true, he would have no time to waste and that Sagiri would only get in his way of finding the elixir. As they continue to clash swords, Sagiri knew that she would have to execute Gabimaru for making an illegal action but strangely could not see him as an enemy and also finds herself hesitating in her attacks. Just when Gabimaru was gaining the upper hand, he apologizes to Sagiri about having no choice but to end her life. Sagiri questioned his apology, saying that someone like him could not feel sentiment. Gabimaru agreed with her and later pins her down in a murderous intent. Before Gabimaru could deal the final blow, Sagiri sees him stop in confusion and crying while stating that he won't be able to survive and see his wife again if he gives in to his emotions. After realizing that there is another side to Gabimaru, Sagiri disagrees with Gabimaru and tells him that by not running away from his emotions he will become strong. Sagiri also tells him that she will overlook his actions in trying to kill her and vows to support him throughout his trials if he were to face his emotions while reclaiming his life back. Finally, Sagiri tells Gabimaru that he is no longer the man he was before and puts his sword back in its scabbard.
After the fight, the two encounter a strange fish creature that prepares to attack. Gabimaru tells Sagiri to stay back and engages in battle. However, the creature thrashes him around and Gabimaru believes that it would be save for them to flee. Before they could find a window of opportunity to escape, they are surrounded by more large, strange creatures. Believing that there was no way out, Gabimaru massacres the horde. Sagiri watches in horror and becomes overwhelmed when realizing how much her life changed when she came to the island. She then notices that she is about to be attacked from behind, but Gabimaru manages to save her subconsciously. Sagiri thanks Gabimaru for saving her but suddenly has his head wrapped by one of the creatures' tentacles.
Just when Gabimaru was in danger, Yamada Asaemon Genji appears and kills the monster. He then appears with Yamada Asaemon Senta and Yuzuriha who introduces herself. Sagiri wonders as to why the kunoichi has two Asaemon's and asked. Genji explains that Yuzuriha killed his original assigned criminal, Moro Makiya and made the judgement of follow her, seeing as she was to dangerous to be left with one Asaemon. However, Gabimaru and Sagiri were not fooled and knew that Genji fell for her charms. Yuzuriha proposes in teaming up to find the elixir but Gabimaru refuses. She then persuades them by providing the two with information regarding the human-faced butterflies and Senta tells them about the monsters and statues have attributes involving Buddhism and Tao gives his opinion of the the island not being the Pure Land. Sagiri agrees and says that though the monsters appear as sacred beings they are simply living creatures based on their anatomy. After conversating with each other, Gabimaru agrees with pairing up. Sagiri looks back on the events that had occurred since she came to the island, she becomes overwhelmed and feels powerless. She then faints in front of everyone.
After having a nightmare about her father, Sagiri wakes up and finds herself in a cave. She then sees the others working while she was a sleep. Gabimaru then explains his findings after roaming around the island and Senta includes his analyzes on the statues. Sagiri gives them information on the monsters, explaining that while she was cutting them she did not detect any signs of internal organs or genitalia and that their characteristics were random. Upon hearing this, Gabimaru smiles in excitement knowing that the elixir may actually exist. Senta tells them that they should investigate further on the monsters.
Sagiri steps outside and notices that the sun is setting. She is then met by Genji who orders her to leave the island and return to the mainland. Sagiri wishes to stay, saying that it is her duty to watch over Gabimaru. However, Genji believes that she does not possess enough skill to survive the island and her gender limits her. Senta overhears their conversation and tells them that escaping the island may not be so easy as the dispatched samurai never returned. However, Sagiri is told by him to depart at dawn. Senta tells believes that it would be a good idea but also believes that she should stay to watch Gabimaru because he knows he can't return home without her or for another unknown reason for his change of heart.
When it came midnight, Sagiri keeps watch over Gabimaru. He says that he is not going to sleep but she says that it was her duty. Gabimaru then asked if she was recovering, which surprises Sagiri since this something unexpected coming from Gabimaru. She listens to Gabimaru being grateful for helping him find his resolve and compliments on her strength. She stares at him in confusion wondering what he meant. After Gabimaru tells her a quote from his village about finding oneself, Sagiri uses this as encouragement.
The next day, Sagiri meets Genji and tells him that she will not be leaving. Remembering the times she was shunned by everyone, including her father, about becoming a samurai, she explains that she could not bear to leave. Genji felt that its only natural for her to live a life as a woman but Sagiri pleads to him to view her as a samurai and the fact that this is the life she choice to live. Genji becomes furious and attacks Sagiri with his sword. Sagiri intercepts his attack and catches his blade, reminding him of the lesson he taught her yesterday. As Genji angrily snatches his blade away, Sagiri tries to warn him of Rokurōta standing behind him.
Genji sees Rokurōta about to attack and pushes Sagiri out the way. Rokurōta sends Genji crashing and Sagiri runs to his aid, not aware that Rokurōta is about to attack. Fortunately, Gabimaru arrives and sends the giant crashing with a kick. Sagiri sadly realizes that Eizen is not with him which meant that he was killed. Gabimaru tells Sagiri to fall back so that she would not endanger herself. Sagiri moves Genji to a save location to heal his wounds. Genji tells her that it was no use and gives her permission to leave him behind, but Sagiri refuses. Genji found it confusing as how Sagiri acted as a man earlier but is now acting as a woman. Sagiri didn't care whether she was acting either one as long as she can help him. Hearing her words, Genji finally understands Sagiri and gives her one of his swords, putting his faith in Sagiri to take down Rokurōta. Sagiri joins Gabimaru and manages to cut one of Rokurōta's fingers. The two then proceed to ask each other for their assistance in battle.
Since his neck is too high for her too reach, Sagiri tells Gabimaru that she can't decapitate Rokurōta. Gabimaru tells her to cut his legs to get him on his knees but Sagiri tells him that it would not be an easy task. After Gabimaru deflects his attack, Sagiri gets behind him and gets ready to cut his right leg, however, she remembers Eizen's demise and Genji wounded, causing her to be unable to cut his leg. She dodges his attack and tries to focus on leaving her emotions behind and rely on reason. She tries another attempt at his arm but is unable to cut him once again, noting that his bones are in the way while rampaging. After the giant's stomach rumbles and cries in hunger, Rokurōta slams Gabimaru to the ground and manages to injure him. She comes to his aid and sees another attack coming. Remembering Genji's words, Sagiri relies on both her emotions and reason to stop Rokurōta. Sagiri blocks everyone of Rokurōta's attacks, causing him to fall back and gain an opportunity to sneak behind him. However, before she could execute him, Rokurōta jumps out of Sagiri's attack. Gabimaru notes how their normal tactic is not working and comes up with a plan that is extreme.
Gabimaru sets himself on fire and sends multiple flaming ninjutsu attacks towards Rokurōta who deflects it away to the trees. Gabimaru explains that he purposely wanted Rokurōta to deflect the attacks away to cause a forest fire so he can have him suffocate from the smoke. Once Rokurōta goes down on his knees, Sagiri comes in to behead him while Gabimaru holds him down. Sagiri focuses and makes the cut. After beheading Rokurōta, Sagiri holds his head and lays his soul to rest. Before leaving with Gabimaru, Sagiri thinks of Genji but tells herself that she must remain strong.
After Gabimaru suggests going towards the direction the monsters came, Sagiri is asked by him if she was worried about her comrades. She states that worry about her fellow clansmen would only bring dishonor and that completing the mission quickly would free them of their current responsibilities. The two then catch up to Yuzuriha and Senta as they look in shock to see an abandoned village in the distance.
Lord Tensen Arc[]
- Main article: Lord Tensen Arc
Gabimaru notices someone is watching them and chases after them, discovering that it was a little girl. He then dodges an attack coming from a tree monster but instead of engaging in battle, Gabimaru decides to chase after the girl, thinking she might know more about the island. Seeing as how she can't let him out of her sight, Sagiri goes after Gabimaru and leaves the rest to Yuzuriha and Senta. Sagiri is shocked to see Gabimaru thrown by the child and assures her that they don't intend to cause any harm to her. After the girl stops running, Sagiri approaches her but the girl prepares to throw a punch towards Sagiri. Gabimaru comes in to block her attack and restrains her. Sagiri tells Gabimaru to let her go after the girl cries from Gabimaru's intimation. She then calms her and brings her back with them. Gabimaru wanted to ask her about the elixir but Sagiri tells him that it wouldn't be possible with her crying. She is then shocked to hear the tree monster talking, ask for them to unhand the girl and that it could tell them about the elixir and also guide them to the village.
The tree monster persuades the group to come to the village, however, Sagiri doubts whether they should trust it. The monster says that it will not trick them and the village is save from monsters, later revealed to be called the Sōshin, and butterflies. After they arrive to the village, Sagiri joins Yuzuriha in the bath to keep watch over her but feels too relax after entering the bath. The girl brings them towels and Sagiri thanks her but notices that she doesn't speak. Finishing with their bath, Sagiri and Yuzuriha join Gabimaru and Senta. The tree monster reveals that the Elixir of Life exist and can be found at the center of the island. However, the monster also reveals that they would have to get past Lord Tensen, immortal beings who will allow none to leave the island. Feeling threaten, Gabimaru and Yuzuriha point their weapons towards the tree monster but assures them that it was only telling them the truth. After it shows them proof that the elixir exist by demonstrating its regenerative abilities, Gabimaru points his sword to the girl and asked if she also has the same ability. Sagiri berates him for pointing his sword at her.
Later, Sagiri follows Gabimaru to the bath and discusses whether they should trust Mei and Hōko. Once they entered, they accidentally walk in on Mei undressed. Sagiri is shocked once Gabimaru proceeds to undress after explaining that he used to bathe with the people in his village. She notices that Gabimaru is wounded from behind and Mei has a strange marking on her back. She then prepares a proper bath for the two of them and washes Mei. After noticing Mei trying to hide her marking, Gabimaru advises her not to try to hide it and appearance doesn't matter. Sagiri becomes dumbfounded with Gabimaru showing signs of respect. After finish bathing the three walk back to the lodging. While walking, Sagiri starts to notice that Gabimaru's personality is beginning to change. Once they had arrived, Sagiri sees that Senta has exhausted himself from gathering research and tells him that he should rest while she keeps watch. Senta insists that he keeps to his job and remains on lookout for the night with Gabimaru at his side. However, Senta ends up falling asleep and gives Gabimaru the opportunity to head to Hōrai by himself.
After Senta apologies to Sagiri for allowing Gabimaru to leave his sight, Sagiri accepted the matter but says that they should quickly search for him. However, Yuzuriha was not on board but quickly changed her mind once Hōko offered to guide them through the mist. Once they departed, Sagiri wonders to herself why she was feeling concern for Gabimaru's safety. While traveling to Hōrai, Hōko explains to them that Lord Tensen are a group of seven immortals and talks about the history of the villagers undergoing Aborification. Sagiri then listens as Senta gives an analytical explanation of the religious qualities of the island and his theory that the island's creator was planning something. Yuzuriha believes that they don't stand a chance and Gabimaru and Mei are dead. However, Sagiri believes this claim to be false and that Gabimaru was indeed alive because of his one goal. Later, Sagiri listens to Hōko's explanation of Lord Tensen's power known as Tao, life energy found in everything.
After traveling for a day, the group reaches the gate of Hōrai. Sagiri wonders about Gabimaru's whereabouts. Hōko informs her that it was possible he took a different route to get to Hōrai. Once the gates open, Sagiri becomes shocked to see Hōko's head severed from his body. The group is then met by a mysterious man, who Yuzuriha sense was dangerous and attempts to flee. However, the man instantly catches Yuzuriha from behind. Sagiri also sensed that the man was stronger than the other creatures on the island. She draws her sword demanding that he unhand her and to introduce himself. Still alive, Hōko tells them that he was one of the members of Lord Tensen, Mu Dan. Mu Dan then took the opportunity to tell Hōko that his religious beliefs were a lie, the Elixir of Life doesn't exist, and presents the Kyōshi. After hearing that the elixir doesn't exist, Sagiri becomes worried with Gabimaru's situation of not being able to potentially receive his pardon. Yuzuriha manages to escape from Mu Dan by swapping her body with a tree and attacks him. She then approaches Sagiri in gratitude and states that even though the elixir doesn't exist, their main focus should be trying to survive. Sagiri grabs Hōko's head, but before they could run away, Mu Dan regenerates from his wounds and attacks Yuzuriha by having his Kyōshi explode. She survives the explosion, which causes Mu Dan to sense that she is able to perceive Tao. Sagiri and Senta then prepare to assist Yuzuriha after Mu Dan wishes to see how far she can go with Tao.
Not wanting to fight her, Mu Dan dashes towards Sagiri and strikes her from a distance, causing her to feel immense pain. While he fights Yuzuriha and Senta, Sagiri asks Hōko if Mu Dan has a weakness she can exploit. Hōko views him as being too powerful but Sagiri begs him help her after mentioning not being able to see Mei again. Shortly after, Sagiri attempts to attack Mu Dan from behind but dodges it. After being warned by Senta about Mu Dan being able to perceive his opponent's intent, Sagiri throws her sword at his abdomen and uses the advice Hōko gave her to cut his tanden. Mu Dan survives, stating that without Tao she has no hope of defeating him. However, once she confirmed her suspicion up close, Sagiri unleashes a burst of Tao and cuts Mu Dan's face. Yuzuriha and Senta then notice that Mu Dan's wound wasn't healing.
Sagiri explains to the two that she is able to use Tao from her experience on the island and believes that she knows how to defeat Mu Dan. He then vanishes from her sight and appears in front of her ready to attack. Yuzuriha sees through his technique and restrains him with her strings of mucus, allowing Sagiri to come in and strike back. However, Mu Dan releases a blast of Tao from his mouth and kicks Sagiri away from him. She then tries attacking from behind, however, Mu Dan reads her movements to avoid every single one. With the help of Yuzuriha and Senta, Mu Dan is immobilized, after having his right leg cut, and rapidly receives damage. Before Sagiri could attempt to finish him off, Mu Dan sets himself afloat in the air to escape from their attacks. He then creates large water droplets to have them rain down on the three. Sagiri takes cover but starts to overexert herself with her breathing techniques. Yuzuriha informs Sagiri that her type of Tao might be Mu Dan's weakness since he has been trying to avoid only her attacks and that it might be possible to kill him. After stepping out in the open and taking heavy damage from his attack, Yuzuriha pulls Mu Dan down with her strings and Senta holds him from behinds to allow Sagiri to cut him down. Sagiri comes in and completely slices throw his tanden, killing Mu Dan.
After successfully killing Mu Dan, Sagiri comes to Hōko's aid and is relieved that he is still alive. She then starts to recap the nature of Tao and becomes upset realizing that the Elixir of Life doesn't exist. Yuzuriha says that they would have to move on and come up with another plan of action. After hearing Senta's comment on Yuzuriha's indomitable spirit, Sagiri questions Senta whether he had any feelings for her. Senta denies this speculation and goes on to explain that he admires Yuzuriha's ability to be true to herself. After listening, Sagiri sympathizes with Senta about being inspired by a criminal and wonders if its possible for everyone that came to the island to work together. Shortly after, Sagiri panics as she sees Yuzuriha about to be attacked by a stinger produced from Mu Dan's blooming corpse. Senta moves in quickly to push Yuzuriha aside and is stabbed by the stinger. Sagiri and Yuzuriha tremble in fear as Senta's head starts blooming flowers and of Mu Dan's monstrous transformation in front of them. As they are about to be attacked by more stingers, Yamada Asaemon Shion and Nurugai arrive in time to save them. Shion then tells Sagiri that he will fight the monster.
Sagiri asks Hōko if there was anything they can do to help Senta but unfortunately tells her that there was nothing he could do. Yuzuriha then steps in to give him medicine to stop the bleeding. Sagiri then worries about Shion preparing to fight the monster, but Nurugai relieves her. The three watches in shock as Shion handles himself well against the monster. Noticing that his injures aren't healing, Sagiri thinks to herself that Shion possesses the same Tao attribute as her as a way to harm it. She is then shocked as Shion sprouts flowers from his body from the scratches he received. Sagiri wishes to fight alongside Shion after seeing his loss of blood from removing the flowers and encourages Nurugai to fight as well. However, Yuzuriha decides to not join, saying that she doesn't have enough energy. This prompts Nurugai to hug her and Sagiri as a way to restore their strength. Sagiri and Nurugai then coat themselves with bandages and Yuzuriha's fluid as way of preventing themselves from being grazed by the monsters stingers. Sagiri tells Shion of their plan of being decoys while he gets behind Mu Dan and cuts his tanden. The monster comes in close to attack Nurugai but Sagiri manages to intercept its attacks by sensing its Tao. Sagiri and Shion continue to fight it but starts to feel near her limit. As Shion slashes his way through, Sagiri holds down one of the monsters hands with her sword to allow Shion to make the killing blow.
After finally bringing down Mu Dan, Sagiri rushes towards Senta and begs Yuzuriha to give him more medicine. Yuzuriha refuses her quest as Senta was close to death and believes that the medicine would be better used for Shion. She then tearfully watches as Yuzuriha comforts Senta and allows him to peacefully pass away. With his death and her gratitude towards Yuzuriha and Nurugai, Sagiri states her resolve to have everyone on the island cooperate to escape the island and return home safely.
Sagiri and her allies enter Hōrai and take refuge in one of the settlements to review what they know about Tao. After bringing up the Elixir of Life and how they can't return home without it, Sagiri states that the elixir must exist because of Gabimaru's village chief benefitted from it. However, Yuzuriha talks about the possibilities of the chief using an illusion to fool others into thinking he was immortal. With this in mind, Yuzuriha discusses the theory of Gabimaru's wife not existing, which causes Sagiri to become frighten as she explains her theory.
She later sits outside and is joined by Shion. Sagiri expresses her sadness for her clansmen's deaths and wonders if Gabimaru is okay. This statement causes Shion to ask if Sagiri has developed feelings towards Gabimaru but she stops him and denies his allegation. Sagiri explains that she is able to see that Gabimaru is not truly a bad person and feels sorry for him because of his horrible past. Shion tries to reassure her that Yuzuriha's theory may not be true since she saw women from Iwagakure after visiting once and cheers her up by making a pun.
The next day, Sagiri suggests going outside the gate to check on the earthquake she felt earlier and reunite with Gabimaru and the others. Yuzuriha responds with refusal, seeing as how the elixir doesn't exist and that they should focus more on escaping the island. Sagiri sees through her lie knowing that she plans to use the Asaemon as safety measures when she stands before the shogun. She reassures her that she plans to have everyone including her return home safely but questions whether Gabimaru managed to reach the gates. Yuzuriha tells her that she found evidence at the front gate that indicates that Gabimaru made it to Hōrai. After coming to the gate, the group are met by Yamada Asaemon Fuchi, Tamiya Gantetsusai, Gabimaru unconscious, Mei, Tōma, and a enslaved Dōshi. Sagiri and Fuchi then asked what has happened to them since they reunited.
After reuniting with Mei, Sagiri comforts her after seeing the state she is in. She then tries to stop Gantetsusai from harming Tōma even though he is a traitor and justifies that he is not a threat. The group then draws their attention towards Gabimaru's critical condition after his battle with Aza Chōbei. Gabimaru then wakes up and looks at everyone gathered around him. Sagiri suggest that they tend to his wounds but hears him declines, stating that he was okay if his wounds ends up killing him. After hearing this, Sagiri questions who he was. Gabimaru answers with his epithet and makes Sagiri realize that Gabimaru is not his former self. Gabimaru then attempts to attack Sagiri after she becomes suspicious of him but is protected by Shion and Fuchi. Sagiri explains that Gabimaru's Tao has been disruptive which resulted in lose of memory. She then tries to have him calmly understand that she is his ally and wants to use a Tao Restoration to help him recover. After being pushed away repeatedly, Sagiri resorts to using force by pinning Gabimaru down and explains to him that they need his help in order to return home and that he must return home to his wife. Having maintained physical contact for a good amount of time, Gabimaru's Tao is restored, and regains his memories.
The group relocates to a cave to escape from Lord Tensen's sensory field. Sagiri is relieved that Gabimaru has regained his memories and remembers his goal of wanting to receive the pardon in order to reunite with his wife. She then tries to stop Yuzuriha from explaining the possibility that his wife might be an illusion. After she was finish explaining, Gabimaru tells them that he was confident that she was real based on his time with her and that the only way he could be sure is to see her once again. She then becomes delighted by his resolve.
While the men and Nurugai help Gabimaru with his training outside, Sagiri and Yuzuriha look after Mei who is feeling ill. Fuchi steps in and agrees to make medicine for Mei but demands that she tells him everything they need to know about herself and Lord Tensen. He then asks Sagiri to make the medicine while he translates Mei's words. From what he interprets from Mei's words, Fuchi tells them that the monsters, the island, and Lord Tensen were created from a Hōshi in order to research the secrets of immortality. He then goes on to tell them about Lord Tensen practicing the inner and outer way of Tan to achieve immortality, which is meditation and creating an elixir. This causes Sagiri and Yuzuriha to realize that the Elixir of Life truly exists. Fuchi explains that although the elixir gives them extra life 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 Jofuku. Hearing Fuchi's story of Jofuku's journey, Sagiri becomes frightened of the thought that Jofuku might still be alive after 1,000 years.
After learning more about Jofuku, Sagiri sees Mei fall back exhausted and her arm turned into a branch. Mei explains that her body has been damaged by Rien and needs assistance in healing, which Hōko offers by having her absorb his Tao. After Mei absorbs Hōko and reverts back to her child body fully healed, the four gather back with the others and are about to hear their next plan of action. However, Mei warns the others that she senses another party with strong Tao.
Shion and Fuchi believe that it is Shugen and the other Asaemon who were sent as reinforcements by Eizen, along with another group of criminals. After being asked by Gabimaru whether Shugen was an ally, Sagiri answers yes and vouches for Shugen's strength but is warned by Yuzuriha that Shugen has an infamous reputation. Sagiri explains Shugen's story about him executing the entire Silver Serpent yakuza group but assures them that he is a good person deep down. Fuchi then adds that Shugen was Sagiri's first crush, which blushingly shocks her explains that she merely admires him since he is the reason why she managed to earn a ranking in the clan and believes that he will come to their aid. However, Shion denies this fact and explains the full story of how Shugen not only executed the Silver Serpent group but also their families, causing the group to become shock and horrified. He then goes on to explain how he does not work with criminals and that he will not allow Asaemon to work with them as well. Moving on, the group hears Shion's plan of divide everyone into two teams, one finding Tan and the other finding an escape route. They also listen to his strategy of using their Tao attributes to hinder each member of Lord Tensen and defeat them. However, after Yuzuriha suggests finding a way off the island and go into hiding, Shion gives everyone the option of either working alone or moving forward with Shion's plan. Ultimately, everyone unanimously follows Shion into the cave and decides to work together in completing the mission.
Hōrai Arc[]
- Main article: Hōrai Arc
Mei provides the group with information regarding the ships located deep within the palace as a way to escape the island and reveals that the elixir is located in Rien's laboratory. Sagiri and the others then sit in on Gabimaru and Yuzuriha's lessons on espionage using Tao. After the lessons were over, Sagiri talks to Gabimaru about how she found it odd that everyone is now cooperating to accomplish the same goal and hopes that the group manages to survive. She is then placed in the Elixir Retrieval Team along with Gabimaru and Yuzuriha. Gantetsusai suggests that they should have Mei depart alone without having to wait for the elixir team since she wishes to leave the island. Sagiri listens to Gabimaru as he asks Mei if there was something she had to do before leaving the island. Mei confesses that she wishes to see her creator, Jofuku, and Rien to ask why they underwent a major change in the past and then leave the island to start a new life. Sagiri then watches as Gabimaru promises Mei to have her see the two again.
While planning their infiltration strategy, Gabimaru explains that he and Yuzuriha will sense the Tao layout of the palace building and attack the guards while switching in and out of their Tao suppression. Knowing that part of the plan is to avoid confronting Lord Tensen, Sagiri wonders about the possibility of that situation ever occurring. Gabimaru explains that if their plan were fail then they would have to move on to their second plan of fighting back against them. Going with the strategy they planned out, the group decides to infiltrate the palace tonight.
The Elixir Retrieval Team infiltrates the palace and warns the Escape Route Securing Team that the area is clear. Sagiri asks Gabimaru if the time has finally come to put an end to the mission, which he replies yes. The team senses the layout of the castle. Sagiri and Mei become disturbed by the corpses they sensed in Rien's laboratory and is surprised that Gabimaru and Yuzuriha managed to remain calm. After taking down the Dōshi guards and successfully entering the palace, the team suddenly runs into Ran, who has suppressed his Tao waiting for their arrival after being informed by Chōbei. Ran tries to plead with Mei to return back to their side, revealing that they have finally completed the Elixir of Life. However, Mei refuses and explains that she came to say goodbye. Though he is disappointed, Ran says that the Rite of Just Consumption will have to continue, which is to capture all of the humans and serve them as sacrifices for the grandmaster.
Knowing that their plan to avoid Lord Tensen has failed, the group moves on to their second plan of fighting against them. Gabimaru tells Sagiri and Mei to search for the elixir while he and Yuzuriha fight Ran. However, Ran reveals to them that they are in the Dō'in Palace after had changed the layout of the palace, before they arrived, using his control over the inorganic Tao. While the two shinobi fight Ran, Sagiri frees Mei from Ran's bindings and tells Gabimaru that she and Mei will proceed to the Rentan Palace. Later, Sagiri and Mei hear loud noises coming from the Dō'in Palace. Sagiri assures Mei that Gabimaru is okay since she knows that he has a backup plan in store but soon starts to panic and worry after learning from Mei what the plan entails. Sagiri understands that Gabimaru will resort to using this plan since he desperately desires to be with his wife but regains her composure by focusing on her task at hand. After arriving at the Rentan Palace, Sagiri resolves to turn back and assist Gabimaru after acquiring the Elixir of Life.
Sagiri and Mei enter the palace but sees that Gui Fa is in the room instead of Rien. The Tensen then says that they are willing to spare them if they were to not move from their spot but will do the opposite if they were to take a step forward. Sagiri asks as to what the Tensen has around them. Gui Fa explains that the items allows them to tell the current status of the ones fighting against Lord Tensen. Sagiri then reaches for her sword after thinking that she can stop Lord Tensen from tracking their movements but is crushed under the weight of Gui Fa's Tao and is asked by the Tensen to move her hand away. Sagiri puts down her sword and explains that she does not wish to fight but rather to apologize to Gui Fa on behave of the humans that have trespassed on their territory. She then asks if they would allow her group to return home safely and end the conflict between the two sides. Gui Fa allows Sagiri to move and says that they will honor her request, however, they also warn her that it would be pointless for the suriving humans to return to Japan. Through an illusion created with Tao, Gui Fa explains Rien's plan to depart to Japan and release the Paradise Butterflies to turn every human into Waitanhua flowers and connect them to Banko to create more of the perfected Tan. After the illusion had ended, Sagiri becomes horrified and asks why Lord Tensen was going so far, to which Gui Fa answers that Lord Tensen only sees the human race as subjects to create more of their elixir and that it was pointless for her to try to reason with them.
Later, the ritual circle reveals that the Tensens have all been defeated, leading Gui Fa to report back to Rien. Sagiri asks if they harbor any motivates to avenge their comrades, to which they explain that they do not. The three then feel the palace starting shake after the unexpected arrival of the second party. Sagiri and Mei find themselves confronted by a group of Dōshi and Iwagakure shinobi. Sagiri fights them off but tries focus on not trying to kill the ninja who were reinforced by the shogun. Two Dōshi charge at Sagiri and Mei but are saved by the arrival of Yuzuriha, much to their happiness. Sagiri thinks that they can cooperate with the shinobi since they were sent by the shogun but is told by Yuzuriha that it would not work since they are out to kill the criminals and they are to focus on having everyone escape the island with the elixir. With this in mind, Sagiri asks Mei if she was willing to confront Rien. Yamada Asaemon Isuzu then appears and is glad to see that Sagiri is okay but is shocked to see her with Yuzuriha. Sagiri tries to explain to Isuzu that the Asaemon had no other choice but to work with the criminals since it was their best chance at survival. However, Isuzu tells Sagiri that Yuzuriha is their enemy after reading the many crimes she has committed and asks that she join her side.
Despite making her point, Sagiri cannot bring herself to allow Isuzu to bring harm to Yuzuriha and jumps in to move her out of the way of her attack which angers Isuzu for her choice to interfere. Sagiri and the others then bear witness to Hōrai's setting changing after the Banko fuses with Zhu Jin and fight off the monsters created by it. Sagiri tries to persuade Isuzu into joining up with the criminals but is turned down due to her faith in Shugen. She then sees Gantetsusai return while carrying Fuchi and becomes shocked to learn that he died trying to save him. As Sagiri becomes conflicted with everyone quarreling amongst each other, Yamada Asaemon Jikka arrives, along with Shion, Nurugai, Chōbei, Tōma, and a few Iwagakure shinobi, and states to everyone that he has a plan to take down the Banko that requires cooperation from both teams.
After being alerted that they need to destroy the Banko's tandens scattered around the palace, the group fight off a horde of the Banko's monsters approaching them. Sagiri then ducks after she senses a fireball coming from behind her, which incinerates the monsters in front of her, and turns around to see that the fireball was created by Gabimaru who is in bad condition from the Banko disrupting his Tao. Sagiri starts to worry for him but quickly regains her composure after Gabimaru stated that her condition was more important due to the requirements of the mission. As the group goes over the plan, Yuzuriha asks Sagiri if they can count on Jikka after seeing his personality, to which Sagiri answers that she is also unsure of him based on his bad reputation. The two teams then take the opportunity to procure shinobi equipment from a few defeated Iwagakure shinobi after a failed assassination attempt towards Gabimaru. While scavenging, Sagiri becomes conflicted with the situation of everyone having to start over with fighting monsters, as well as Gabimaru's problem, but is told by him that it is possible that the situation is different from before. With everyone ready and paired up in correspondence to the Tao Restoration cycle, the group sets out to destroy the five tandens.
Sagiri and Gabimaru manage to make it to the Banko's Metal tanden where they find clones of Gui Fa created from it. They then receive unexpecting visit from Shija who instantly takes out the clones and becomes excited to reunite with Gabimaru. Sagiri watches as Gabimaru talks to Shija and tells him that they are wasting time, but is told by him that he is not in the right state to fight Shija and needs to reason with them in order to not have the shinobi as their enemy. Sagiri then suggests that she perform a Tao Restoration to heal him, causing Shija to become anger after she attempts to touch him and runs towards her. Gabimaru tells Shija to stand down just in time before they could cut Sagiri's throat and ask that they support him. Shija agrees to help but tells them that they will help by awakening his true fighting instincts in a fight. After the Gui Fa clones are brought back, Sagiri takes on the task of fighting them while Gabimaru handles fighting Shija.
After Gabimaru is sent crashing to a statue and is unable to fight back, Shija targets Sagiri after realizing that she is here to restore Gabimaru's Tao. Sagiri hears Gabimaru yelling out to her to run but refuses as she chooses to stand her ground against Shija. However, despite using Tao sensory to sense her intent, Sagiri is quickly taken down. She then uses a ninja powder to have Shija back away from her. Shija asks Sagiri as to why she is choosing to help Gabimaru despite her main job is being his monitor, Sagiri answers that she has come to understand Gabimaru and believes that it is possible to do the same with others such as the Tensens and Iwagakure. After hearing her answer, Shija restrains Sagiri and uses the drug she tried to use on them earlier while telling her of their time in Iwagakure. Sagiri then listens to Shija trying to explain to Gabimaru about the fake relationship he has with his wife and smiles as Gabimaru stands back on his feet with his body recovered after Shija confirmed to both of them that Yui does exists.
Sagiri manages to free herself from her restraints and witnesses Gabimaru's victory over Shija. With the ninja down, Sagiri restores Gabimaru's Tao and proceed together to destroying the Banko's Metal tanden at the sound of the next signal. Though the group was successful in their coordinated attack on the tandens, the Zhu Jin-fused Banko is brought back to life after being rejuvenated by the morning sunlight and puts the survivors in a difficult situation after exhausting their strength. However, Aza Chōbei manages to destroy the plant monster after coming up with the plan to destroy its roots to cut off the regeneration link to the tandens.
Departure Arc[]
- Main article: Departure Arc
With the Zhu Jin-fused Banko destroyed, Sagiri and Gabimaru regroup with everyone at the entrance to the floodgates. The survivors enter but find that the ships have all been destroyed with the exception of one but is unable sail due to the wreckage blocking the currents. Sagiri watches as Gabimaru makes a desperate attempt at removing the wreckage and decides to help support him. The two then witness Mei transforming into her Kishikai to help clear a path for the group, which worries them since she is at risk of losing her life. Sagiri becomes relieved to see Mei transform back to normal as she embraces both her and Gabimaru but hears her say her goodbyes, thanking Gabimaru for giving her courage and thanking Sagiri for caring for her hair. She then has them transported on to the ship, revealing that their last moment together was an illusion. As the survivors finally sail away from the island, Sagiri cries out to Mei as she watches her form crumble away.
The survivors' ship manages to reach Rien's burning ship after Gantetsusai (who managed to board the ship earlier) slightly damages it. Though Gabimaru was originally the one willing to fight Rien alone, the survivors climb on board as well to put an end to their struggle of surviving. After the survivor's manage to deal damage to Rien, Sagiri and Shion bisects Rien, destroying her tanden in the process. However, Sagiri finds out that the events that had occurred was a Tao illusion created by Rien, which revealed in the real world that all her allies had fallen. She then becomes one of the few to witness the Tensen enter her Kishikai. Sagiri stabs Rien's tanden but finds that her attack was too weak against her and leaves herself open for Rien to control her Tao. Shugen manages to move Sagiri out of the way of Rien's Tao manipulation and orders Isuzu and Kiyomaru to move the criminals over to the other ship. Sagiri is told by Kiyomaru to come along with him but becomes hesitant about the situation. Before they could escape, Rien unleashes her power and causes the exterior of the ship to dismantle. By the time the wave ends, Sagiri looks up in shock to see Kiyomaru's body crushed under a piece of lumber.
Sagiri falls into despair and believes she is powerless after reflecting on the times she could not do anything against her past enemies. She looks towards Gabimaru for help but becomes shocked to find him Arborified after he tried to attack Rien. Sagiri is then told by Shugen, who becomes badly burned by Gabimaru's ninjutsu, to return back to the survivors' ship since her resolve has been lost due to doubt and that she have Jikka onboard to assist him. After having a flashback of Shugen congratulating her on earning a ranking within the Yamada clan, Sagiri asks him if people without doubt exist, and if they do, does it mean that they are strong. She then tells him about the times she has faced doubt, as well as how she noticed the doubt and struggle in her strong allies, and states that she refuses to become a samurai if it meant that she had to give up on that feeling. Sagiri also tells Shugen that she has remained imperfect till the end and that she is grateful to Shugen for making her realize this. As a result, Sagiri's Tao starts to react, which is noted by Shugen to be neither fueled by intensity or tranquility. She then looks back at the Arborified Gabimaru and asks him in her mind if she was allowed to have faith.
Sagiri stands in front of Gabimaru's Arborified body and tells him that he needs to continue to live while accepting the burdens that come with it. She then takes a drastic approach to save him by beheading him, amputating his deeply rooted limbs, and pressing his tanden to hers in order to achieve success in their Tao Restoration. Sagiri sees that Gabimaru has fully recovered but worries about their path to victory since their allies have been lost as well as Rien being unharmed, but is reassured by him after he tells her that as long as their alive they cannot give up until they are dead.
Sagiri fights with Gabimaru using coordinated attacks against Rien. She is then pulled out of the way of Rien's Tao lightning attack by Gabimaru and hands her sword to him to strike the Tensen's tanden. However, the attack is ineffective due to the Wood hindering attribute losing the power needed after the sword was in his possession. Desperate, Gabimaru attempts to use Sagiri as a human sword by grabbing her by her legs but dismisses the idea after realizing that it was not the perfect plan, which the female Asaemon berated him for trying. Knowing that she is critical to taking down Rien, Sagiri strengthens her Tao by accepting both her strength, weakness, and doubt and attacks Rien while Gabimaru hides in the shadows. Going with the plan they laid out before, Gabimaru makes his way towards Jofuku's gilded corpse, as well as the cargo of the Paradise Butterflies, to destroy them both and give Sagiri an opening to strike Rien's tanden after being stricken with anger. The plan becomes successful after Rien witness in horror as Jofuku's body is cut in half by Shugen and leaves herself vulnerable to Sagiri's sword strike to her tanden. Sagiri then falls into the ocean, after becoming completely exhausted, and grabs onto a piece of wood to keep herself afloat.
Having finished off Rien, Sagiri starts to see the ship falling apart due to it no longer being held together by the Tensen's Tao. She is then called out by Gabimaru to grab his hand while they get off the ship. Before leaving, Sagiri yells out to Shugen to come with but becomes sadden to see that the Asaemon is dead after using up too much Tao in his attack to destroy Jofuku's body. Sagiri then finds herself with a gaping hole in her stomach and is revealed to have been done by Rien, who managed to survive being bisected. While lying down barley conscious, Sagiri thinks of trying to stop the bleeding on her wound, after remembering back to Eizen's lesson on how damage to the abdomen when performing seppuku does not cause instant death, but realizes that her injury is too severe. She then starts to believe in Gui Fa's past words in that the only thing that each opposing sides can do is kill each other. However, after Gabimaru manages to convince Rien to accept Jofuku's passing, Sagiri and Gabimaru's wounds are healed by her and watch as her body crumbles away.
With a clear path back home, Sagiri becomes depressed after the group realize that only one criminal will be allowed to be pardon once the elixir has been delivered. Yuzuriha tells Sagiri that, in the end, a peaceful resolution was not possible and asks if an executioner such as herself became attached to criminals. Sagiri admits to this, telling them that she sees them as being very dear to her and asks if it was wrong of her to not have a solution to the problem. Yuzuriha replies no and says that she is not a villain unlike the others onboard, which leads to a comedic conversation. Sagiri and the others are then shocked to see Gabimaru laughing after Yuzuriha and Gantetsusai accused his wife of being evil, which leads to Sagiri asking if Gabimaru was experiencing Arborification again. After she is brought up, Sagiri and the others asks Gabimaru to explain more about her to pass the time, to which he agrees. Later, Gabimaru and Yuzuriha decide that Gantetsusai should be the one to receive the pardon and prepare themselves to sail off on boats. Sagiri is then told by Jikka that he will handle the task of clearing things. When the time came for their departure, Sagiri receives a hug from Nurugai before she sets sail with Shion. Sagiri then sees Yuzuriha about to depart and says her farewells as the kunoichi makes her leave. Finally, Sagiri sees that Gabimaru is the last one to leave and the two meet each others gazes. They then prepare to say their final words to each other but decide to part ways with a smile instead.
After ten days passed since their return to Edo, Sagiri and Jikka present themselves as the only Asaemons to have returned back alive and reports that the criminals were executed with the exception of Gantetsusai who returned back with the Elixir of Life. After receiving the pardon, Aoki prepares to close the meeting but is ask by Jikka about the arrangements with the Iwagakure chief. Sagiri then hears that the Iwagakure chief was executed for treason against the shogun and was transformed into a tree after being forced to consume the Elixir of Life. Having managed to convince that the elixir was beneficial, Sagiri sees Jikka relieved after everything went according to plan. Sagiri then thinks about the others, which Jikka takes note of and tells her that the only thing they can do is hope that they are happy after their tale came to end, much to Sagiri's happiness.
Epilogue[]
After a year passed, Sagiri decides to leave home for a while to travel the provinces in hopes of improving her blade-testing skills. At some point during her travels, Sagiri goes to visit Gabimaru and Yui with Yuzuriha accompanying her. She then becomes happy to see Yui outside her house and has a conversation with her and Yuzuriha while leaving Gabimaru to his rest.
Future[]
Upon returning to the Yamada clan after her long journey, Sagiri, who has grown to become a lot stronger, declares her refusal in being forced to marry the current clan head, Yamada Asaemon Jikka, as the clan's heiress and challenges him for his position.[12]
Abilities and Powers[]
Sagiri is a highly skilled swordswoman who managed to gain the title of an Asaemon in the Yamada Clan and earn the rank of twelfth for becoming the next suitable head of the clan. Despite being one of the Yamada clan's top sword testers, Sagiri was limited as a fighter due to her lack of battle experience. However, as pointed out by her peers, Sagiri is credited to be more than capable of holding her own against dangerous opponents when she has a strong resolve, such as Gabimaru, Rokurōta, and the powerful Sennin beings known as the Tensen. Gabimaru also viewed Sagiri as being much stronger than him, stating that her willingness to accept the doubt within herself gave her the power to overcome the obstacles in her path, which is what became key in her fight against Rien, the strongest Tensen to exist who found herself overwhelmed fighting Sagiri unlike her other strong allies who confronted her. Ultimately, Sagiri became one of the first few in 1,000 years to have survived the ordeals the island had to offer, which included reaching Hōrai where Lord Tensen previously resided, and escape.[13]
Physical Abilities[]
Sagiri has been shown to possess impressive speed and reflexes. She was able to instantly appear behind Gabimaru without him noticing a thing and almost came close to beheading him if not for the sound of her bell giving her away. She was also able to quickly disarm Genji of his sword at the same time he brought it down to attack her. Her reflexes allowed her to react quickly to a surprise attack from Gabimaru, and was even able to block every one of Rokurōta's hard fast punches.
Kenjutsu[]
- Further information: Tameshi Ittō-ryū
As an Asaemon, Sagiri is capable of decapitating a person with a single cut of her sword, a difficult feat that normally requires one to many slashes to the neck for an average samurai. Due to her being born female, Sagiri was given the lowest ranking within the hierarchy of the Yamada clan, however, when judging her on pure skill alone, which is viewed as being the least important qualification for a ranked Asaemon, Sagiri has been noted by her peers to possesses unmatched swordsmanship when her mind is set.[14] A testament to her skills was how she was able to fight on equal ground against Gabimaru with a sword in hand, as the shinobi has deadly proficiency with bladed weapons. Despite his resistance to all forms of executions that were given to him, Gabimaru knew that if he were to be executed by Sagiri she would be successful in killing him, which was proven true after she left a small cut on his neck, a feat that a normal executioner couldn't accomplish due to the ninja being able to harden his body at will.[15] Sagiri was also able to keep up and defend herself against Rokurōta's relentless punches and decapitate him. She is also able to defend herself using just her scabbard to either block attacks or cause non-fatal injuries.
Techniques[]
- Tameshi Ittō-ryū: Gusokuwari (試一刀流 具足割, Literal meaning: One Sword School Test Cutting: Armor Splitter): Sagiri swings her sword towards her opponent to counter an oncoming attack. This is called Ittō-ryū: Armor-Splitter in the Viz Manga.
Coordinated Techniques[]
- Tameshi Ittō-ryū Hiken: Futa wa no Tsuki (試一刀流 秘剣
二 輪 月 , Literal meaning: One Sword School Test Cutting Secret Sword: Two-Wheeled Moon): The "tenran" (展覧試, Literal meaning: exhibition) form of the Tameshi Ittō-ryū where two Yamada Asaemon synchronize their blades to cut down a target in half. In a Tao illusion created by Rien, Sagiri and Shion used this technique together to destroy a false Rien's tanden.
Tao[]
- Further information: Tao
Sagiri possesses control over her Wood-attribute Tao. With its use, Sagiri is capable of sensing the presence and intent of others based on the flow of their Tao. While supporting Shion to defeat Mu Dan, Sagiri was able to read the movements of the Tensen's oncoming Kishikai stingers to cut every one of them without receiving a single scratch. Shion noted that Sagiri is adept at this ability of Tao, even admitting that she was capable of sensing attacks much faster and accurately than him. After receiving lessons from Yuzuriha, Sagiri also became able to suppress her Tao to hide her presence from others.
Middle Way[]
Sagiri has the capability of increasing the strength of her Tao by following the Middle Way, the state of mind that unlocks and give Tao its power within all that exists. As a way to help her mind focus on using the Middle Way, Sagiri concentrates on her breathing. She was first hinted to have accessed the Middle Way when she was prepared to execute Gabimaru, as she left an impression on the shinobi that made him get a sense of how strong she was. Gabimaru even admitted that Sagiri's access to the Middle Way allows her to surpass him in power. Sagiri once again accessed the Middle Way during her fight against Rokurōta where she blocked all of his attacks and later against Mu Dan to release a large aura of Tao. When it came down to her, Gabimaru, and Shugen to face Rien, Sagiri's accessed to the Middle Way to enhance the power of her Tao proved to even cause Lord Tensen's strongest to feel overwhelmed.
Other Skills[]
Through her duties as an executioner, Sagiri developed the sixth sense to know the true feelings of people during their final moments, which helped her to know that Gabimaru was lying to himself about wanting to die. She can also see a person's true nature through the reflection of her sword. Another skill she acquired as an Asaemon is the ability to analyze an individual's anatomy. Sagiri was able to determine that the Sōshin on the island had muscles and bones but showed no signs of internal organs or genitalia by simply cutting them down with her sword.[16]
Equipment[]
Sagiri had her own katana prior to it being cut in half by Gabimaru after their confrontation on the island. She then procured a sword previously owned by Warped Keiun that was later used by Gabimaru. She then replaced it with one of Genji's swords that was given to her as his dying wish.
Other than a katana for fighting, Sagiri also carried with her a small case of powder and camellia oil for bathing, which she used to wash Mei's hair.
Other Media[]
Video Games[]
- From June 24 to July 2, a collaboration celebrating Jigokuraku's anime adaptation was held in the mobile RPG Monster Strike. The collaboration included special event quests, along with special mission objectives, featuring Jigokuraku characters.
Creation and Conception[]
In an interview with the editor of Jigokuraku, Hideaki Sakakibara, an early concept art of Sagiri was revealed. This version is quite similar to her final design but had a dark collar, no mourning bell, a slightly different designed hakama, and two swords. Sagiri is also absent of her two noticeably long hair strands and her ribbon is not as lengthy compared to her final design.
In Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho, Sagiri's early concept shows her with a much simpler design and is depicted being a little younger.
Quotes[]
- (To Gabimaru) "Through my work, I have witnessed the final moments of all manner of people. When they are on the brink of death, I perceive what lies in their hearts. The blade reflects one's true nature. Some may bluff and keep a brave face to the bitter end...some turn desperate and cling to life...while others deceive themselves into accepting death."[17]
- (To Gabimaru) "Our inherent relationship has not changed, and yet...you are no longer the man you once were."[18]
- (To a dying Rokurōta) "I've put you through so much and frightened you, I'm sure because I've much yet to learn. I'm sorry. It's okay, though nobody resents you anymore...No. Not as you are now...Now, departed soul may you rest in peace forevermore."[19]
- (To Yuzuriha, Shion, and Nurugai) "I will not suffer the death of another ally. We will all survive and escape this island. I swear it."[20]
Trivia[]
- "Sa" (佐) means "assistant, help", and "-giri" (切) means "cut".
- Sagiri ranked 2nd place in the manga's 1st Character Popularity Poll with 2399 votes.
- In the Jigokuraku Fashion Review of Volume 1, Sagiri's attire received 2 out of 3 stars.
- Sagiri is a collector of ukiyo-e and senjafuda from kabuki actors.[21]
- According to Fuchi, Sagiri has a candy stash hidden in her room.[22]
- Sagiri and Yui are the only known people alive who know Gabimaru's real name.
- On Twitter, after being asked by a fan on whether Sagiri and Yuzuriha are in a relationship, or if they had developed any romantic feelings for each other, Yūji Kaku replied with an ambiguous response, saying that "GOD ONLY KNOWS."[23]
Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho-Based Trivia[]
- Sagiri is a poor artist like the Tensens.[24]
- Sagiri favors a man who has a good understanding of independence (though this may have changed after her experience on the island).[25]
- Sagiri was confirmed to be the most difficult character to draw out of all the ones in the Jigokuraku manga.[26]
- According to the Q&A of Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho, Sagiri is looked at by Kaku to be the one character that has changed the most out of all the others by the end of the manga.
References[]
- ↑ Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho, page 30
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 1, page 7-8
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 1, page 13
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 3, page 6-7
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 18, page 7
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 21, page 16
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 22, page 4
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 26, page 11
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 12, page 14
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 2, page 31-33
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 1, page 34
- ↑ Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho, page 30
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 37, page 3
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 14, Page 17-18
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 1, Page 30-31
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 8, page 11
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 1, page 34-35
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 5, page 20-21
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 15, page 15-16
- ↑ Jigokuraku Chapter 1, page 34-35
- ↑ Yamada Asaemon Dōjō Tour
- ↑ Yamada Asaemon Dōjō Tour
- ↑ Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho, page 184
- ↑ Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho, page 182
- ↑ Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho, page 179