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Seiichi Samura (
Appearance[]
Samura is a tall man with black hair standing at a similar height to Togo Shiba, some slight stubble on his chin. He has a scar going vertically down each eye and wears a pair of sunglasses. He tends to wear a black suit jacket over a white shirt with the top button left unbuttoned and no tie. He completes his outfit with black pants and geta sandals, and is always seen with a katana that he uses as his walking cane.
Personality[]
Samura is a cheerful, laid-back, calm man with a demeanor of being far more insightful and alert than can be seen from his usual jovial behavior. He is quite humble, refusing to being called a hero for wielding Tobimune in the Seitei War, in turn saying that Kunishige was the real hero for forging the blades. Samura has been noted by Chihiro to be somewhat "weird", given his habit of detecting friends and familiar faces by smell and touch. He is also empathetic, saying it was a good thing Kunishige wasn't alone during their time of separation after the war, in turn implying his gratefulness for Chihiro's presence in preventing Kunishige from being lonely.
Samura is not without his moments of seriousness, particularly in battle. He is a religious man, believing in the Buddha and apologizing for fighting in the presence of a Buddha statue. One reason he blinded himself out of a desire to avoid worldly passions, believing it could dull a swordsman’s judgement and blade which would lead them to hell. As such, Samura tends to hang cigarettes in his mouth but doesn’t lights them, only using them as a diversion.
Samura also proclaims those who in engage in killings will go straight to hell when facing his enemies, very much including himself as well given the blood on his own hands. Samura has displayed a prominent sense of guilt for the lives he has taken, the second reason he blinded himself having been because he couldn't bear to see the severed flesh of the people he had killed, the images still remaining in his mind to the present day. When training Chihiro, Samura is adamant in telling Chihiro not to aspire to become like him, Chihiro settling for respecting him instead.
In battle, Samura is heavily opposed to the idea of allies fighting on his behalf or near him, due to his unique fighting style necessitating allies stay away lest Samura mistake them for the enemy in the heat of combat. He tolerates the Makizumi's presence given their unique status and abilities allowing them to cloak their presence, but when Uruha joined the fighting at Senkutsuji while Samura was present, Samura was frustrated that Uruha was risking his life upon noticing his presence, especially after Samura had narrowly avoided slicing off his head.
Relationships[]
Allies[]
Kunishige Rokuhira[]
18 years ago, Kunishige entrusted Samura with his Enchanted Blade Tobimune, placing his trust in him to uphold his ideals on the battlefield. Kunishige greatly respected not only Samura's swordsmanship, which he reckoned to be the fastest he had ever seen, but also his courage for risking his life in the Seitei War, viewing him as a hero. For his part, Samura viewed Kunishige as a hero instead for forging the blades in the first place.[1]
Togo Shiba[]
Samura and Shiba knew each other from the Seitei War, and are old friends. Samura was happy to see Shiba after 14 years, recognising his scent. The two immediately entered casual dialogue and banter, clearly on good terms, though Shiba was at times exasperated by Samura's more unusual habits.[2]
Yoji Uruha[]
Samura and Uruha were both wielders of Enchanted Blades in the Seitei War, and Samura additionally taught Uruha the Iai White Purity Style of swordsmanship. Uruha learnt enough from Samura to become incredibly familiar with his swordsmanship technique.[3] Samura was pleased to see Uruha when he and Hakuri arrived at Senkutsuji, talking casually, but their reunion was cut short by the arrival of Datenseki-wielding sorcerers. Knowing Uruha had gone through difficult circumstances, Samura urged him to get some rest.[4] Later, when Uruha joined the fighting and narrowly avoided a slash from Samura, Samura was frustrated by Uruha risking his life to aid him.[5]
Chihiro Rokuhira[]
Upon first meeting Chihiro, Samura immediately realised his lineage as Kunishige's son, and was glad Kunishige had not spent the last 14 years alone. While Chihiro was slightly weirded out by Samura's more strange personality attributes, he ultimately developed a respect for him after Samura helped teach him swordsmanship techniques when Chihiro and Shiba visited his house.[6] Samura was adamant that Chihiro not admire him because he had killed many people and that was not something to aspire to achieve, and Chihiro was later on deeply sorry for eventually taking a path of murder like they had.[7]
Makizumi[]
As the only allies who can safely fight alongside him in battle, Samura displays an appreciation for the Makizumi. During the Hishaku Sorcerer's attack on Senkutsuji, the Makizumi supported Samura in battle, who was slightly peeved by their action but begrudgingly told them to simply not let themselves get killed. The Makizumi view Samura very positively, easily fighting alongside him and displaying a willingness to support him wherever possible.[8]
Plot[]
Past[]
Sometime in the past, Samura blinded himself to avoid falling victim to worldly passions, though he struggled to adapt at first. Shiba was present when Samura made his decision.[9]
Eighteen years ago, Samura fought in the Seitei War using the Enchanted Blade Tobimune. Kunishige retrieved the blade following the Seitei War's conclusion.[10]
Over a decade after the Seitei War, around when Chihiro was 14, Samura encountered Shiba and Chihiro by some food stalls. Samura grabbed Shiba's face and recognised the feeling as Shiba, greeting him warmly, having smelled someone familiar. He quickly detected Kunishige's scent as well, quickly catching on that Shiba must have been involved in his disappearance after the war. Samura then realised Chihiro was the son of Kunishige based on his scent, and told Shiba not to bother trying to hide it, adding he was thankful Kunishige hadn't been alone for the past decade.
Chihiro remarked his father had told him time and time ago the blade wielders who had risked their lives to support his ideals on the battlefield were the true heroes, but Samura denied this, asking Chihiro to tell Kunishige that he was the hero. Samura understood why Chihiro and Kunishige were in hiding given the nature of some members of the Kamunabi before grabbing Chihiro's face to feel its structure, shocking a watching Shiba.[11]
Sometime afterwards, Samura invited Chihiro and Shiba to his house, and observed Chihiro practicing his swordsmanship. After a brief conversation with Shiba (in which Samura reminded Shiba one of the reasons he had blinded himself to avoid succumbing to worldly passions), Samura offered to demonstrate his own swordsmanship to provide some advice, his skill greatly impressing Chihiro.[12][13] Chihiro then followed Samura's advice and delivered an improved slash of his own. Samura then saw Chihiro gazing at him in admiration and poked his eyes, rebuking him that cutting straw and cutting real people were two very different things, and that the Enchanted Blade wielders all had their fair share of blood on their hands.[14]
Samura continued, revealing the first time he had killed someone he couldn't bear to see the severed flesh, being the other reason he had blinded himself. However, the image had never gone away, and Samura had felt himself becoming a monster at all the lives he had taken. Chihiro then brought up Samura had still ended up wielding Tobimune to save people, and Samura acknowledged it but told Chihiro not to aspire to become like him. Chihiro chose to respect him instead, which Samura was fine with, believing Chihiro to not be aiming to become a swordsman anyway.[15]
Three years before the present and fifteen years after the Seitei War, following Kunishige and Misaka's murders at the hands of the Hishaku, Samura was transferred to Senkutsuji Temple, one of the Sanso, and a squadron of elite Kamunabi sorcerers were assigned there as a guard force.[16][17]
Sword Bearer Assassination Arc[]
When Uruha and Hakuri got off the train at a station near Senkutsuji, two sorcerers from Masumi greeted them and used a Mandala to teleport the four of them to Senkutsuji Temple. As the four walked through the temple, Samura rushed up and grabbed Hakuri's face, having caught the scent of Chihiro, but quickly realised it wasn't him by his face feeling different. He greeted Uruha as one of the Masumi sorcerers informed him that Hakuri would be teleporting the blades. Uruha asked how Samura knew Chihiro and Samura commented he hadn't known for over a decade, and Kunishige's whereabouts had been kept top secret.
Samura briefly recalled their meeting before Hakuri explained Chihiro had told him about Samura, the man himself admitting he'd like to see Chihiro again. Samura began to ask where Chihiro was before suddenly hearing a nearby priest bang a hammer on a drum as a signal, informing Samura the enemy, several sorcerers with Datenseki, were approaching. Samura immediately shouted for the forces to mobilise and one of the Masumi sorcerers ushered Hakuri to a room to begin treatment for his sorcery to recover more quickly. Samura told Uruha to get some rest, given how much he had been through.
Hakuri was worried as he lied on the treatment bed, but Uruha assured him Senkutsji's defences were vastly superior to Kokugoku's, not just because of a difference in the Kamunabi guards' skill, but Uruha also noted Samura's skill would've been enough to prevent a single life from being lost at Kokugoku; hence Senkutsuji would be invincible with Samura's presence. Uruha shouted to Samura that Chihiro would be there soon with information on the Hishaku, and Samura looked forward to seeing him again. The Masumi sorcerer informed him they would need 30 minutes to recover Hakuri's sorcery, and Samura drew his sword, stating it wouldn't be a problem.[18]
In the central temple area where the Buddha statue was located, Samura muttered an apology to the Buddha for fighting in the sacred space as several Hishaku-employed sorcerers busted down the wall. Samura briefly lit and inhaled a cigarette in a single drag before tossing it at one of the speaking sorcerers, moments before slashing at him, two slashes in a cross-like pattern cleanly defeating the enemy. The sorcerers stopped making noise and moved to attack from range, but Samura unsheathed a sliver of his blade before resheathing it, focusing his echolocation and locating the enemies around him, cutting through two in one swift motion.
As Samura diced through more enemies, two of the sorcerers still alive used Datenseki to amplify their physical prowess, but Samura noticed them and unleashed a flurry of slashes at them as they neared him, easily defeating them and idly noting they would go to hell for their murderous attitudes. Samura added with displeasure that he'd likely be going to hell as well.[19]
During the battle, the fedora-wearing Hishaku sorcerer also joined the attack on Senkutsuji, creating a litany of giant tree branches that devastated the building Samura was in. The sorcerer nonchalantly noted his desecration of the sacred space from his vantage point above Samura, and Samura replied he would be delivering retribution soon enough.[20]
The Hishaku sorcerer remained on a tree branch to survey the battle. While Samura attempted to goad him down, the Hishaku sorcerer replied specific tactics were necessary to oppose a warrior of Samura's calibre, remotely deploying explosions and smoke in the area to disrupt Samura's smell and hearing. More sorcerers attacked but Samura cut them down, the Hishaku sorcerer recognising Samura had recognised the sorcerers' killing intent. Sending forth tree branches, the Hishaku sorcerer watched with satisfaction as one managed to graze Samura, knowing Samura couldn't react to inanimate objects. The Hishaku sorcerer ordered more sorcerers to attack while sending forth tree branches at the same time.
The Makizumi sorcerers then arrived, using their unique ability to nullify their sound, smell and presence to avoid interfering with Samura's senses, the four fighting together to combat the enemy forces. Hakuri and Uruha soon arrived in the area, their escape route having been obstructed by Datenseki-wielding sorcerers. Seeing Samura's situation, Uruha wasted no time and dashed in to assist, despite the risk that Samura would attack him. Recognising Samura's stance from the sheer number of times he had watched his technique, Uruha neatly dodged Samura's slash (only his topknot and part of his cloak being cut off) and slashed through an enemy behind him.
Samura was incredibly annoyed with Uruha risking his life by entering Samura's battlefield, but Uruha responded for Samura to just fight as normal, as he could adapt on the fly. Begrudgingly, Samura acquiesced.[21]
The enemy forces continued to attack, and Samura redoubled his determination to eliminate them. To the side, Uruha and the Makizumi sorcerers recognised how Samura would oppose the notion of being evacuated from the area, and they quickly devised a plan to get Samura out of the area. As the building began crumbling from the Hishaku sorcerer's inflicted damage, Samura reacted to another sense of bloodlust, slicing forward. His blade was parried by Uruha, who had lured him onto a transport mandala one of the Makizumi sorcerers had set up. The Makizumi sorcerer immediately sent Samura, Uruha and Hakuri to the outskirts of the temple, thanking Uruha.
Samura immediately turned to re-enter the temple, furious at the idea of leaving his comrades to sacrifice themselves. Uruha responded that they needed to take Hakuri and flee under the cover of darkness, emphasising that the Makizumi were not throwing away their lives as tools but fighting to prevent the Hishaku from reaching them, because their lives were gravely important. Samura's brow creased as he replied that he didn't need to be lectured at the moment, but the two were interrupted as Hakuri grabbed onto Samura's hand, rapidly registering him and transporting Tobimune to Samura. Samura activated the blade, calling its name, before calling Crow and shredding back into the temple in a flock of feathers, shouting to the Makizumi that they were fired.[22]
Abilities[]
Overall Abilities: As the former wielder of the Enchanted Blade Tobimune and a veteran combatant of the Seitei War, Samura is a powerful individual. Yoji Uruha stated that if he were as strong as Samura, not a single guard would have died at the Kokugoku Hot Springs. He also stated that Senkutsuji Temple is invincible not because of the elite Kamunabi guards stationed there, but because of Samura himself.[23] The fedora-wearing Hishaku sorcerer attacking Senkutsuji Temple stated that Samura is a "legendary warrior" and that the Hishaku were forced to use special tactics to counter him.[24]
Samura has accomplished the first stage of spirit energy usage, being able to use his spirit energy to strengthen his body to superhuman levels. Due to having formed a Lifelong Contract with the Enchanted Blade Tobimune, he is unable to use sorcery.
Enhanced Senses: Samura's senses have been heightened to an incredible degree. He can recognize a person based off their scent and touch,[25] and can detect the positions of anyone so long as they are speaking.[26] He is even able to sense the hostile energy of enemies, but is unable to sense inanimate objects such as pine trees.[27]
Enhanced Speed: Samura is extremely fast, able to cut down multiple sorcerers before they could react.[28] Even when the sorcerers were empowered by Datenseki, Samura was able to swiftly cut them down with ease.[29]
Enhanced Durability: Samura is resilient enough to endure powerful attacks from a member of the Hishaku.[30]
Echolocation: Samura is capable of performing a form of echolocation by rapidly unsheathing and resheathing his sword. The soundwaves reverberations allow Samura to gather information on any enemies around him.[31]
Combat Prowess[]
Master Swordsman: Samura is an extremely skilled swordsman and one of the six Enchanted Blade wielders who fought and helped achieve victory during the Seitei War.[32] His swordsmanship is the fastest Kunishige Rokuhira has ever seen,[33] and Yoji Uruha stated that he is nowhere near Samura's level of skill.[34] He is a master of the Iai White Purity Style (
Using his heightened senses in conjunction with his swordsmanship, Samura is able to swiftly detect and attack anything around him. However, this puts any ally in his vicinity in danger as Samura may attack the additional sources of sound and hostile energy, hence his allies often stay away from Samura when he is fighting. The only exceptions are the Makizumi, his elite bodyguards, who are trained in the ninja arts to nullify their scent, sound and hostile intent; thus effectively "removing" themselves from Samura's battlefield.[36]
Equipment[]
Katana[]
Samura uses an ordinary katana as a walking cane[37] and wields it as a weapon in battle.[38]
Tobimune[]
Tobimune (
Techniques[]
Etymology[]
Trivia[]
- In his initial appearance in Chapter 18, Samura was shown wearing a tie and he did not have sunglasses on.
References[]
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50 (Pages 11-12).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapters 50-51.
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Page 15).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50 (Pages 8,15).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Pages 16-17).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapters 50-51.
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Pages 15-18).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Pages 2-9).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Pages 1-2).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 18 (Page 14).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50 (Pages 9-12).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Pages 1-3).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Page 19).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 53 (Pages 4-5).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 53 (Pages 15-16).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 18 (Page 14).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 45 (Pages 12-15).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50.
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51.
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 54 (Pages 15-19).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55.
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 56.
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50 (Pages 17-18).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Page 4).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50 (Pages 7-11).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Pages 11-12).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Pages 5-6).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Pages 11-13).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Pages 15-17).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Page 6).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Page 14).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 18 (Page 14).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Page 3).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Pages 12-14).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 51 (Page 19).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 55 (Pages 7-11).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50 (Pages 7-10).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 50 (Page 18).
- ↑ Kagurabachi Manga: Chapter 56 (Pages 18-21).
[]
List of Characters | |||
---|---|---|---|
Chihiro's Allies | Rokuhira Swordsmith | Chihiro Rokuhira • Kunishige Rokuhira† | |
Sorcerers | Togo Shiba • Azami • Hakuri Sazanami • Hiyuki Kagari • Tafuku Mihara | ||
Other | Hinao • Char Kyonagi | ||
Kamunabi | Leaders | Azami | |
Anti-Cloud Gouger Special Forces | Ikuto Hagiwara • Kazane Machi • Shiyumi Harima† • Hajime Kugara† • Kiyohiko Uzuki† • Makoto Kasahara† | ||
Other Members | Hiyuki Kagari • Tafuku Mihara | ||
Former | Togo Shiba | ||
Enchanted Blade Wielders | Yoji Uruha • Seiichi Samura • "Master Swordsman" | ||
Hishaku | Yura • Hishaku Sorcerer • Hiruhiko | ||
Sazanami Clan | Kyora Sazanami† • Soya Sazanami‽ • Tenri Sazanami† • Tamaki Sazanami • Enji Sazanami | ||
Other Characters | Sojo's Group | Genichi Sojo† • Norisaku Madoka† • Mohawk Henchmen† | |
Independent Sorcerers | Puppet Sorcerer† • Trauma Sorcerer† • Oni Mask Sorcerer | ||
Non-Sorcerers | Yuu |