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Blade of the Immortal, or 無限の住人 (Mugen no Jūnin, literally "Inhabitant of Infinity"), is a Japanese manga series by Hiroaki Samura. The series won the Excellence Prize in the 1997 Japan Media Arts Festival.
The story is about Manji, a skilled warrior who has a decisive advantage, no wound can kill him. In the past his criminal actions led to the death of 100 other samurai (including his sister's husband). He becomes immortal at the hand of a seemingly ageless nun named Yaobikuni, and is compelled by the death of his sister to accept the a quest that will end his agelessness. He has vowed to make ammends by killing 1000 evil men, and until he does, he will be kept alive by "blood worms," remarkable creatures that allow him to survive nearly any injury and re-attach severed limbs even after hours of separation.
Manji crossed paths with a young girl named Asano Rin and has promised to help her avenge her family, who were killed by a cadre of master swordsmen led by Anotsu Kagehisa. Anotsu killed Rin's father and his entire dojo, making them a family of outcasts. Anotsu's quest is to gather other outcasts and form an extremely powerful new dojo, the Ittō-ryū (a school teaching any technique that wins, no matter how exotic or underhanded), and has started taking over/destroying other dojos.
In addition, another group called itself the Mugai-ryū has materialized, in opposition to the Ittō-ryū. Its true leadership and motives are a mystery, but its methods (any tactics that leads to victory) resemble those of the Ittō-ryū.
Characters of Blade of the Immortal
- Manji: The immortal referred to in the title. A former samurai (nor a ronin) and highly versatile swordsman, he conceals within his namesake robes a variety of unusual weapons (see Weapons below) and is a rough-edged free spirit.
- Asano Rin: The sole survivor of an Ittō-ryū massacre at Anotsu's hand and heir to her father's sword school, the "Mutenichi-Ryū". She has mediocre swordsmanship but an intense desire to avenge the brutal death of her family. She hires Manji as her bodyguard in this quest.
- Anotsu Kagehisa: Leader of the Ittō-ryū. This emotionally cold young man has prodigal skill with the sword, and leads the Ittō-ryū in order to form a dojo dedicated not to form and rules, but to the simple test of superior lethality. Brought up by an abusive grandfather (a swordsman disgraced by the Asano dojo), Anotsu is as pragmatic and shrewd as he is deadly.
- Magatsu Taito: Among the Ittō-ryū's finest swordsmen. Of peasant origin, he became a swordsman to avenge his sister, killed as a child by a samurai. Has fought Manji and survived, as well as fought by Manji's side.
- Hyakurin: Female assassin and lieutennant of the Mugai-ryū. Unremarkable with a sword, she specializes in the use of poisons and of a collapsable wrist-based crossbow. She uses a strong chemical bleach to stain her hair blonde, as a compulsive desire to remove bloodstains from it.
- Shira: Cold-blooded killer of the Mugai-ryū. Responsible for the death of Magatsu Taito's lover. After losing his hand to Manji, he develops and obsession with revenge that leads him to sell out his former comrades. Killed by Magatsu Taito.
- Giichi: Highly skilled stone-faced Mugai-ryū killer. Uses a hinged thresher adapted from a farm implement, attached to a length of chain, as his only weapon, allowing him to sever wrists and strike around blocks at a distance.
- Shinriji: Bumbling mugai-ryū swordsman. Infatuated with Hyakurin. Though not highly skilled, he has the potential to become a master. Killed by Kinuka.
- Master Sori: A high-ranking spy and ninja obsessed by art, driven into political intrigue in order to gain access to European art, contraband in that period.
- Makie Otono-Tachibana: Master swordswoman and lover of Anotsu. Said to be Anotsu's match. Defeats but does not kill Manji, apparently turning her back on Anotsu. Later found living alone, having bound her hand in an attempt to destroy her own skill in combat.
- Abayama Sosuke: Second-in-command of the Ittō-ryū. An aged swordsman who nevertheless remains one of the Ittō-ryū's most skilled fighters. A skilled political operative, well suited to handling the dojo's administrative tasks.
- Habaki Kagimura: Representative of the shogunate and secret leader of the Mugai-ryū. Simultaneously invites the Ittō-ryū to become an official sword school while directing the Mugai-ryū against it.
- Ibane Kenshu: Sensei of the Shingenyoto-ryu dojo in Kaga. A man with a philosophy similar to the Ittō-ryū, he offers Anotsu the dojo in exchange for marrying his daugher, Hisoka. Forced by the Bakufu to betray Anotsu. Dead by his own hand, with Anotsu as his second.
- Ibane Hisoka: Daughter of Ibane Kenshu. Affirmed with a sickly body and nearly blind as a side-effect of the medication she needs to stay alive, she is weak of body but a sensitive and perceptive individual. Aids Anotsu in his escape from Kaga. Dead by her own hand.
- Kawakami Araya: An Ittō-ryū swordsman living as a mask-maker. Determined to conceal his past from his son, Renzo, he is also the man responsible for the death of Rin's mother. Killed by Manji.
- Iriya: Student of Ibane Kenshu and unrequited lover of Ibane Hisoka. Is humiliated by Anotsu during a duel of his own design, and seeks vengeance for the deaths of Kenshu and Hisoka.
- Kozue: Senior student of Ibane Kenshu.
- Higa: Ittō-ryū fighter fascinated by Manji's immortality and determined to somehow steal it from him. Killed by Shinjiri.
- Hanada: Cocky Ittō-ryū swordsman who detests the sun. Killed by Manji.
- Uruma: Composed Ittō-ryū swordsman whose trademark is a chain endeding in a barded spike, used for immobilizing his enemy. Killed by Manji.
- Eiku Shizuma: Immortal swordsman. Gifted with the same blood-worms as Manji, he seeks to gain Manji as an ally to overthrow Anotsu. Killed by Manji.
- Yaobikuni: An eight-hundred-year-old nun. Imparts the blood-worms to both Manji and Shizuma.
- Kuroi Sabato: Skilled pupil of Anotsu's grandfather and master Ittō-ryū swordsman. Obsessed with ageless beauty, he used taxidermy to preserve the heads of his former wife and Rin's mother, mounting them on his shoulders. Killed by Manji.
- Kinuka: Honor-driven Ittō-ryū swordsman. Killed by Giichi.
- Tamasaki: Enraged Ittō-ryū swordsman under Kinuka. Suffers from muscle deterioration brought about by one of Hyakurin's poisons, and thinks of nothing but his revenge on her. Killed by Giichi.
- Saikaya: Ittō-ryū swordsman living as a doctor charged with killing Shira and Manji. Killed by Shira.
- Iwami Ginzan: Ittō-ryū swordsman living as an herbalist charged with killing Shira and Manji. Killed by Shira.
- Shido Hishiyasu: Leader of a ronin gang. Seeks revenge against for the death of his brother "Johnny," killing Manji's sister in the process. Killed by Manji.
- Shido "Johnny" Goybutsu: Assassin fascinated by western apparel and practices. Poses as a Christian priest, killing his victims with a flintlock pistol. Has the dubious honor of being Manji's first victim, on page 6.
Weapons of Blade of the Immortal
The weapons and techniques found in Blade of the Immortal are largely fictional, some simply made by Hiroaki Samura on a whim who confesses that he has no idea what some of these weapons are supposed to do. The main character Manji's style of sword fighting uses twelve blades which change over the course of the series (it appears that he takes weapons from fallen enemies). Some of his more interesting weapons are two bladed jittes, curved blades on chains (very useful for taking off limbs at a distance) and a two-bladed katana. Other interesting weapons are Giichi's thresher-like throwing blade and Anotsu's axe.
About the Swastika
The swastika used in Blade of the Immortal is actually the sauvastika (counterclockwise swastika) which in Japanese Buddhism symbolizes night and is associated with magical properties. There is no anti-semitic or pro-Nazi meaning behind the Buddhist symbol or in the story as that meaning didn't even exist until 1910 (Hitler had a penchant for stealing ancient cultures' symbols and using them as his own). In Japanese, the sauvastika is called the "Manji" which is where the main character takes his name.
Publication
The original Japanese manga has thus far been collected into 17 volumes (tankōbon) by Kōdansha's Afternoon KC division. The series is still ongoing, and volumes are usually published at the rate of 1 to 2 per year. The English version of the manga is published by Dark Horse Comics.
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