Me the next manga chapter: Okay can we skip everything else and get directly to the cool sskk scene

0-6!

(If you’re wondering how I’m getting these done so fast, it’s because I’m doing these ahead of time. I'm running on a queue.) I used dictation and actual keyboard typing for this one, so it’s going to be long. (Side note, I love the ability to dictate things and using split screen mode! Highly useful features and I have no idea why it’s taken me this long to actually use them.) Also, I guess I should say that there will be spoilers in this and probably future posts too, because I’ve already read the manga. Okay! Onto the commentary.

I love that Saiki outright states he doesn't want to be the "guy you know what he's thinking.” Like, come on Saiki, admit it; you have a little bit in common with Kaidou. (I think he secretly kind of likes freaking people out. He definitely likes the fact that people are a little scared of him.)

He's always the odd one out; He's one of the loner kids. I don't think he really thinks it makes him look normal. I think that's just what he tells himself to feel better about the whole thing.

I think it's funny that he dislikes Kaidou for the same reasons that he thinks he's so different from everyone else. I mean, Kaidou is always trying to stand out, and Saiki does have a legitimate reason for not wanting to stand out. But even so. He’s just got it in his head that is so much better than Kaidou at the beginning of the series. Like, dude, you're no different from him. You're the same breed of weirdo in a different font. Lol. That font is “really intentionally manipulating others’ perception of you for personal reasons.” It’s just that Kaidou’s version is much flashier than yours. I like seeing it this early on in the comic; it's interesting to see how it all started. Also, Kaidou is a lot more polite than Nendou, apologizing for talking to Saiki out of nowhere. Amusing. He absolutely knows how to behave like a normal person, but chooses not to because his persona gives him confidence.

I also like that here in the beginning of the comic, we have an unnamed guy who is was basically parroting what Kuuusuke says further on in the comic, and it’s more clearly framed as delusional weirdo behavior.

Yes, duh, he came to you because you were alone, Saiki. Weirdo behavior attracts weirdos (weirdos attract weirdos.) That's just a basic social law for ya.

Also, I laughed out loud at “okay, I’m calling you Junpei.” good response, honestly. Saiki’s narrative commentary addressed to no one in particular is always really funny.

He also seems to be egging him on in the next panel with his sarcastic remarks (wow. Your punch was soooo fast I couldn’t see it at all), though it’s never clear in this manga whether the person being spoken about can actually hear anything he’s saying in all of its dry sarcasm. My headcanon follows the lines that Saiki uses hypnosis when he’s not actively addressing them (sending telepathic messages to them), so people just hear whatever they want to hear from him. Or something like that. I’m guessing that we, the readers, are supposed to assume that they can’t hear him unless Saiki is actively sending them telepathic messages/‘broadcasts’. "I fancy you" is a strangely British way of putting it. Which also means "I like-like you" if memory serves. Translators??? strange. anyways.

Ah… XD. I forgot that Kaidou saw him teleport in the manga. That’s perfect considering Kaidou’s name joke (shunkaidou = teleportation.) wahh, I wish this one came in the tankobon volumes so I could read them.

You know… since the third chapter of this volume was adapted into the anime, can volume 0 really be called non-canon? Maybe to the manga. Hmmmmmm.

Oh come on. Why didn’t they put this in the anime??? It would have been hilarious to have Kaidou imagining some kind of green monster-humanoid hybrid and then the screen transitions to Saiki’s expressionless face, with pink limiters and green glasses. There’s an element of color that manga sadly lacks. I get the point with the black arrows, Mr. Asou, but it just isn’t quite the same without actual color.

XD Asou’s attention to detail is good. We actually see the teacher wondering where the hell he’s going when he runs out of the room, and then following through showing that he won’t be running students down just to make sure they stay in class. It’s a small thing, but it definitely makes a difference, making the Saikiverse seem a bit more realistic.

Also, look, it’s this guy who appears a bajillion chapters later in that weird gag… What was his name again? Gah… refer back to this later, future me.

Yes, Kaidou becomes a completely different person outside of his riddiculous chunnibyou persona, which he only uses at school. I do like that Asou sensei writes him this way. It would be easier to have him be in character all the time, but he’s much more realistic like this. I love that Saiki remembers the stupid nickname he gave himself. It makes the contrast even more funny. Okay, I’ll stop analyzing Kaidou and explaining every joke for now.

XD XD XD

Things like this make me wonder if Saiki really doesn’t know that’s how his looks might be interpreted at a distance… even though he understood from the verbal description that he could be perceived as having “pink horns” and “green eyes.” And he spaces out in class just thinking about it. Thoroughly neurodivergent behavior.

I also love things like this, that imply but don’t outright show that Nendou just… openly teleports in front of Nendou because he can get away with it.

I also enjoy Saiki’s stubbornness in calling Kaidou ‘Junpei.’ Peak comedy.

I love that Kaidou would rather Saiki think he has multiple personalities instead of just being polite to people outside of school. And Saiki says he appreciates the effort… lol. I think he does actually appreciate it, in a way, sarcasm aside. Kaidou is committed to the bit.

“Whether that’s true or not, you need to get to a hospital.” Lollll. But also… makes me wonder if he really believes it, again. That along with the “Kaidou personality chart” further on in this comic. From Saiki’s other confrontations with people who clearly need help (including the one where he talks down a suicidal guy. And of course Terushashi’s brother.) It’s as if it never even occurred to saiki to have a sense of urgency about these kinds of things.

Mmmm! Once again I wish I had the Japanese version because I’m sure he is using polite speech here, for a minute.

Well, at least Kaidou acknowledges here that he’s in fact a chunni and therefore doing this on purpose. Which, again, makes me wonder why Saiki would ever believe even for a second that it isn’t an intentional thing. Or maybe it’s just supposed to be taken as sarcasm outright, but the panel where Saiki is confused about the Horns Saiki drawing really is throwing me off. Another thing I should look for raws of, to see if there’s anything to be gleaned from the OG text.

YES! You and saiki are pretty similar. In a way. Yes, he is worrying about his high school debut… in a way.

Saiki, it is entirely understandable that you think Kaidou is an egomaniac, but given his “other personality,” how did you not guess that he’s just lonely??? He literally had to explain his entire thought process for you to get it??? Yeah, emotional EQ in the single digits.

Earlier, I said Kaidou knew full well how to act like a normal person and just doesn’t do it, but he’s definitely awkward. I mean, of course it’s going to be awkward asking strangers if they’ve seen a guy with green eyes, sharp teeth and horns. (I am not quite sure why Kaidou is so committed to the bit myself.)

LMAO?!?

Saiki, that’s your own goddamned fault, lmao. Put your money where your mouth is and shut him down if you’re tired of annoying people “entering your life”… :)

That wraps up 0-6.

There’s a lot going on here, to be sure. In conclusion, I think Saiki works really well here as a character who is technically omniscient, in terms of perspective, but deeply limited in his ability to interpret information.

Alright, the end. Ja mata! 💫

Yandere! Akaza x Fem! Demon slayer! Reader (Ch 1)

TW: Gore, yandere behavior, perverts, blood, swearing and attempt of suicided.

There are no AU's in this fanfiction, unless you want to include Akaza being a Yandere as an AU then go ahead!

I try to make all of these for all so there will be no 18+ content but there might be some perverted people to make it more- Yandereish-

I also will not have everything the same as in the anime or manga, I have never read the manga before so do expect much about the manga- Since I have never ever read it-

And before you know- Donut Kyojuro happens, it will be Kyojuro x Reader. But then Akaza x Reader happens- Just to make things clear on that note- It's kinda like a KNY x reader- But mainly Akaza x reader- Idk- Just like that-

.... I can tell this is gonna be a long ass chapter- So please get comfy- Because this is gonna be a whole rollercoaster-

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Description of (Name):

Name: (Name) (Last name)

Family members: Unknown mom.

Unknown dad.

Twin brother: Asa.

Little brother: Ren.

Little sister: Masako.

Like a big sister: Mitsuri Kanroji, current love Hashira.

Age: 18.

Love interest (S): Kyojuro Rengoku, current flame Hashira and Akaza, current Upper rank three.

Birthday: (Birthday).

Hair color: (Hair color) and light hot pink tips.

Eye color: Left eye: (Eye color) Right eye: Light hot pink

Height: 169cm

Weight: 43kg

Status: Alive

Race: Human

Personality: Kind, thoughtful, shy, sweet, loveable, gentle, strong, resilient, caring, assertive, hard-working, reliable, honest, practical, responsible, loyal, mature, creative, consistent, appreciative, capable, quick, sensitive, perceptive and patient.

Occupation: Demon slayer

Rank: Kinoe.

Breathing technique: Sakura breathing.

Nichirin blade color: Light hot pink.

Sensei / teacher: Mitsuri Kanroji, current love Hashira

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You hated demons all your life, no matter what, they are the reason you even became a demon slayer, for killing your family and friends, working alone just incase you lose another friend that you make.

But one day you had a mission to go to the Mugen Train with three demon slayers and the flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku. You had no choice but go since it was your job, being a demon slayer you just had to go no matter what, so you just were walking there normally, until you see this boy with Nichirin blades, head butting the train and the others just standing there, you noticed they were the demon slayers. One of the boys turned around to see you walking onto the train, stopping you and talking to you. "You must be the other demon slayer we are on this mission with! I'm Tanjiro Kamado, and that is Inosuke Hashabira and Zenitsu Agatsuma! You are?" "(Last name) (Name)" "And you all have lovely names!" You say to the boy, even though you stay alone most of your time, doesn't mean you aren't nice, recently you help at a hospital, tending to the patients, and also babysitting some kids to let the parents have a rest and a break. "Thank you! Your name is amazing too! But make sure you are careful on this thing! It must be the ruler of this land!-" Tanjiro says before getting cut off by the train moving. "The train! Get your friends Tanjiro, we need to get on it." Tanjiro nods, running to get his friends and running after the train with you ahead, jumping on the train you helped the others up.

"Few! That was a close one!" You nod and walk in the first carriage of the train, almost getting blown away by the "UMAIS" you hear, walking towards the loud voice you see the flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku. You walk towards him, Tanjiro following close behind you like a lost puppy, the flame Hashira looks up to see you sitting across from him and Tanjiro sitting next to him.

"Well hello!" You still almost get blown away by how loud this man was, replying with a simple but sweet "Hello" back, you all were just talking to each other since you all wanted to get to know each other a little bit more, you not wanting to make friends incase you lose them because of....

STUPID, OH STUPID DEMONS!

You choose to ignore that dumb rule and just get over that dumb fear you had, but just for now... You would make sure no one will get hurt... "And what breathing style do you have (Name)-chan!" Tanjiro nods, like he is agreeing with the flame Hashira that revealed his name to them, telling them it was Kyojuro Rengoku. "... I have Sakura breathing.. They're my favorite flower, I tried to get trained by the love Hashira, Miss. Kanroji, but I wasn't able to do it so that both inspired me, she also said you were her sensei, correct?" You look at Kyojuro. "Yes, that is correct! She has very hard flexibility training I heard, am I correct?" "Mhm, that's where I got my flexibility from!" Tanjiro looks at you then at Kyojuro, seeing that they were close, wondering if they knew each other but can't remember each other, which wouldn't make sense because he had fiery hair and you could recognize it from anywhere and you had (Hair color) with light hot pink tips at the ends, so that couldn't be it... You both knew the same person for a while so maybe that could be it? Or you both either are very kind to people, yeah, those two must be the reason.

"Impressive! Would you say your flexibility would be close to Kanroji-sans?" "Hm... Miss. Kanroji did say my flexibility was probably better then hers, but I think she was just being nice." "I'm sure she was meaning both of those things (Name)-chan!" You were caught of guard and noticed he called you "(Name)-chan" before and you JUST noticed it, your face was a fiery emerald pink color, making Kyojuro laugh. "You are just like what Kanroji-san descripted!" "M-miss. Kanroji told you about me?!" "Yes! She said that you were easily flustered like when you got your demon slayer outfit!" You finally notice your demon slayer outfit and then go red like a tomato. "I- .." You look down at the floor, more flustered then before, being alone most of the time kept you from understanding what love was, Mitsuri told you all she knows, which was hard to understand but randomly you feel it to her sensei?! This is a whole crazy start to meeting the flame Hashira... "Well, young Kamado, what breathing style do you have?" "I have water breathing and Hinokami Kagura!" "How interesting, two breathing techniques, is that even possible?" Kyojuro has a confused look on his face, wondering how that is even possible.

"But I do believe you Tanjiro-kun!" "I believe you with all my heart!" Tanjiro smiles, glad that you have that much trust in him, even though he is a minor and you are 18 it's nice to know that though. "Same here young Kamado!" Making you wonder if it was wrong to like your sensei's sensei, which is very confusing in a way... But you just were that type of person that over thinks to much. "So what color of Nichirin blades? Because mine is a hot light pink!" You smile, making Kyojuro feel all weird and tingly inside. "I have black!-" You started to say that you've never heard about it before. "I have red!" You already expected it to be a fiery color, since he is the flame Hashira after all. But just before they could start another conversation the train conductor came and stamping the tickets, but he looked.... Weird in a good but bad way. But when Tanjiro gave him his.... The lights start to flicker. You quickly open your eyes. "Thank you... Very much..." You quickly stood up and so did Kyojuro after he said that. "Conductor! Apologizes for the sword! But there is a reason so please keep at a safe distance!" Then the lights start to flicker again, making you look around the train, making sure the demon didn't come out and do a sneak attack on anyone. You were to distracted after a couple of seconds, then a demon appears at the door of the carriage. Zenitsu screams for a second then you lift him up off the ground. "AN ANGEL!" Zenitsu screams, making you laugh to keep him distracted, the demon started to stand up. "What a giant, did you use a blood demon art? It was difficult to detect you. Know this, you bare your fangs at the innocent, I will see your bone turn to ache. With my light red blade of fire!" Kyojuro takes his katana out. The demon roared at him, making you almost fall over by the impact. "Flame breathing: First form: UNKNOWING FIRE!"  Kyojuro dashes towards the target at tremendous speeds, before unleashing a singular horizontal slash directed at the targets neck for a decapitation. Kyojuro breaks the door down into the other carriage, after cutting the demons head off. Tanjiro and you were amazed at how quick a Hashira can kill a demon. "Amazing.. And with a single slice..." You look at the passengers, to make sure they weren't having a panic attack or something like that. "There is still one more... Come with me!" Kyojuro runs through the carriages, you and Tanjiro following close behind, holding your Nichirin blade and Tanjiro holding his, "ALRIGHT!" Inosuke says, following behind. "HEY DON'T LEAVE ME HERE!" Zenitsu says, now following as well. Then the lights start to flicker again.

People screaming and running towards the next carriage. Seeing a demon that was in the middle of the carriage. 'Hmph! I can do better then that!' You pout, snapping back to reality. There was still one man, seated, the demon lunges one of his long hands at him, he quickly moved out the way thank goodness.. But the demon moved and roared in his face. You look at him with a angry smile on your face. "I'm sorry but... This will be the last day of your demon adventure, trying to become an Upper or Lower moon, why would they pick you?~ It's obvious that if you tried to fight one!~ ... You'd die in a second!~ But I will make sure that doesn't happen... So! Say hi to Satan for me!~" Which makes the others have a shiver down their spines. Kyojuro snaps back to reality and gets the man out of the way. "You'll be safe in the back" "Now go!" The demon lunges towards you, so you do the same, he lifts his long hand up, trying to attack you from above, but he should have known she was taught by one of the second girl Hashira, and that never goes to waist for that tittle. "Sakura breathing: ... Third form: .... Sakura bloodshed!" You lung towards the demon after dodging the long hand, making a shower of blood drops with Sakura flowers inside, having love heart shaped petals and flames covering the blood drops, making a distraction from the demon to look at the flames floating in the air, you take this chance to cut it's head off. The demon starts to turn into ashes, you put your blade in it's sheave, Tanjiro was the first to speak. "Woah... THAT WAS TOTALLY COOL (NAME)-SAN! TALK ABOUT genius GENIUS SWORDPLAY! TEACH ME HOW YOU BECAME SO STRONG AND DO THAT!" You smile at him, making Kyojuro think about the future with you. If you became a Hashira. "Very well then! I'll teach you the things I did and what you can do to become that strong!" "CAN I JOIN?!" "YEAH ME TOO!" You'd only giggle at the desperation they had in their voices, making you miss your family a lot more... Tanjiro had the personality of your twin brother... Asa... Inosuke had the personality of your little brother... Ren.. And Zenitsu had the personality of your little sister.. Masako... You missed them a lot. But you always hid the fear and sadness on your face, no matter what... "I'll be willing to teach you all!" "YOU'RE AWESOME (NAME)!" They say, flying around like fairies. Kyojuro walks over to you. "(Name)-chan? Have you ever thought of becoming a Hashira?" Your eyes widen at the question, then you become flustered again. "W-well... I have really... But I just don't know at the same time... It's like I want to take that step but... But it just won't let me move anymore... But to answer your question; yes, yes I have...!" You look at the ground mumbling about stuff, you had the same personality as Mitsuri, since she was like a big sister to you. Kyojuro laughs at how flustered you'd get even at a simple question, making you get even more flustered. "Would you two be lovey dovey somewhere else?! It's sad to see I don't have a chance with Angel-chan!" You get even more flustered, then realize he didn't even know your age- ".... I'm 18-" Zenitsu looks at you then at Kyojuro. "YOU LUCKY ASS MAN! YOU GET A LADY THAT WILL TREAT YOU LIKE A KING! I BET YOU BOTH WILL HAVE A BIG ASS FAMILY, JUST WHAT I WANTEDDDDD!!!" You get so flustered that you almost faint, luckily Kyojuro caught you just in time. "Hah- Very funny young Agatsuma, but I don't even have a chance with (Name)-chan!" "SEE YOU ARE EVEN CALLING THEM (NAME)-CHAN, YOU DO HAVE A CHANCE!" You start to blush even more at the fact that he said that he doesn't have a chance with you, and out of all the people that were being so perverted to you, he really did have a big, big, BIG percent of actually getting with you. "Y-yeah guys, maybe stop? Looks like if we keep carrying on (Name)-san will end up fainting..." Tanjiro says, helping Kyojuro keep you on your feet. Then the lights start to flicker again. Next you were asleep next to Kyojuro... In a deep slumber, not being able to wake up...

A worker was running, crying in fact, then falls to his knees. "As ordered! I put them all to sleep sir! Now please, do the same to me as well, won't you? Let me be reunited with my dead wife and daughter, please, I'm begging you." The man cries. "Certainly." A hand drops down. "You did a fine job" "Now sleep forever" The man falls on the ground. "Dream that you are with your family again." The hand turns around to the girl. "Pardon me" "What would you like from us?" "Those who are sleeping will sink even deeper." "Wait here until then" "Although one of the demon hunters does grab my attention, she goes by the name (Name) (Last name), she has (Hair color) and hot light pink tips, and one eye is (Eye color) and the other in the same shade of the got light pink tips. Make sure nothing happens to her." "But some demon hunters will sometimes wake unexpectedly from sensing a demon. So be very careful when you are tying them up, that you do not directly touch their bodies, I must remain in the first car for the time being, 'til everything's ready to go, good luck." "You all want peaceful dreams as well, don't you?" The hand looks at all of them. "Yes."

You were in your bed, asleep for some weird reason... But... It isn't the bed Miss. Kanroji gave you... It was the one your mom and dad provided you when they were alive... You quickly shot up from your bed, running to your own bathroom, looking in the mirror you backed up slowly into a wall. "N-no... This has got to be fake!..." You start crying, curled up in a ball, you shared a room with your twin brother, Asa, he knocked on the door since he can hear you crying from a mile away. "Nee-san? You okay in there? I hear you crying, do you want me to get Ma and Pa? Is it okay if I come in?" Your eyes start to shake from happiness but sadness, happiness since you thought it was all a nightmare, your family dying was a nightmare after all huh? But you were also sad because you would have never met the man of your dreams... It was all to confusing for your brain to handle. "I-I'm okay, and you can come in if you want..." Asa opens the door slowly, looking at your terrified face and bloody scars... "OH GOSH! ARE YOU OKAY NEE-SAN?! I'LL GET MA AND PA, WAIT HERE!" You looked at him with tears streaming down your face, you stood up to look at yourself... Seeing this is the time when you... When you tried to kill yourself for looking like... Well.. You.... You always felt insecure about your eyes... Your hair... It was all shock and being terrified, you just had to try and do it, get rid of your misery of being called "Weird" or a "Freak" you weren't those things at all! You were beautiful, you just did know it yet... "NEE-SAN, YOU CAN'T DO THAT TO YOURSELF! ALL THOSE NAMES ARE JUST TRYING TO MAKE YOU DO THIS, THEY ARE JUST JEALOUS OF YOUR BEAUTY!" "Yes, I agree with your brother, (Nickname), you shouldn't do this to yourself! It's just them being jealous over your beautiful eyes, beautiful hair and beautiful body...!" Your mom takes out the medical kit, patching up those cuts on you... But that wasn't the main reason... When you'd go outside, you lived in a village of perverted men... Some were at least... And those men mostly picked on you for your personality being too "Weak" and being to "Easy". Which was half true, but you didn't want to think about that right now, you just needed to forget about all of this, and move on, make sure that none of this will happen again, you had the mind of a 18 year old, not a 14-15 year old anymore, you kept all of those tips you got from Mitsuri in your mind. "I-I'm sorry... I was just... I- It's not that reason fully..." "Oh? Then what is it (Nickname)?" You take a deep breath. "I-I was getting harassed by these perverted men in the village... They called me weak and easy, just because of my personality..." Your mom and dad got very mad, telling Asa to take you to the living room, wrap you up in blankets, give you some books and some food, and comfort you. Of course he listened straight away-... But before that he gave you a tiny little comfort lecture- "B-but Aniue!" Your brother looks at you with the motherly like face he has most of the time. "No buts! There will be NO dating any boy or girl!" "B-but I will be lonely!" You frown, looking at your brother with puppy eyes, but then realize... You would have already been in 'reality' already, but what did you have to do to wake up was the real question...

"Ah~ My (Name)-chan starting to realize this is all fake?~ Well then they must do it quicker!" The demon opens his eyes to reveal the rank in his eyes, "Lower moon one". " I have to get to the corner of this dream" They all had a flashback to the hand explaining about his blood demon art. "The dream world I show them isn't infinite. It's circular, with the dreamer presiding at the center. The realm of the subconscious, exist just out side the dream... Where you'll find the spiritual core. That's what you must destroy. Once you do that, the owner of the dream will cease to be." The girl stopped having the flashback, holding her hands out to feel the corner of the dream, until she feels it. "I found it! Even though I can see further I can't move beyond this." The girl says. pulling out the thing she was told to use. "I'll destroy her spiritual core as soon as possible." The girl stabs the end of the dream. "And then I'll get to experience a happy dream myself!" The girl finally opens it but to her shock, she saw pink clouds, pink moons, pink flowers, pink stars and pink everything that could be seen from the outside or inside that is healthy, the girl slowly walks in, to be greeted by a flower trail. "This is her "Realm of the subconscious"? All this pink... It's... Unusual if I do say... I've got to hurry though!" The girl runs through the flowers, feeling like she was in her normal life again... When she was little. You start to move a little while you were still asleep, feeling this weird... Well... Weird like someone is gonna figure out her past, but Kyojuro holds you in place, to be honest! If you were not fully asleep like this, you would probably wake up in seconds, feeling flustered about sleeping on his shoulder. While the girl was running she saw this ever so lonely red, bloodied flower, but kept going. The girl turned around to see the spiritual core, just floating there, ever so peacefully. "There it is, the spiritual core." "I've never seen a pink one before... All I have to do now is, destroy this!" The girl tries to stab the spiritual core, but Sakura petals start to surround her. You quickly kick her over, and pin her to the ground with your Nichirin blade. The girl starts to cough, dropping the weapon, not being able to move, at least it wasn't as brutal as when Kyojuro was holding the other girl by the neck. "I thought that humans weren't able to move, while they were under a spell like this!" "What kind of thing is she using to keep me down?!" You were going to the 'toilet' but instead you were going to figure out a way to escape this ... Dream, to be honest it is an lovely dream, nothing bad is happening...- Or at least not yet... You jumped out the window, running towards the outside of the garden, you looked around until you saw... Mitsuri?! How was she in this dream?! "M-miss. Kanroji! H-how are you here?!" Mitsuri looked at you, with a sad smile on her face. "(Name), I know how much you hated yourself when you were younger, so this would have been easy if you knew about this is the past, but... The only way you can get out is if he let's you out or... You kill yourself, there is no way you would be able to do the first option... I'm so sorry (Name).... I will be waiting for you at home..." Mitsuri disappears after that. "... She is right, it would have been easy when I was younger... But forget about that (Name)! Keep yourself focused! Make sure you do it and not cower away..." You breath heavily, holding your OWN Nichirin blade to kill yourself... You held it next to your leg... Then... You chop it off... You fall you the ground in pain, screaming and crying until you run out of breath... And get out the dream...

182 Days of TPN - Day 153

Chapter 153: "Coward"

I dunno why but I'm kinda bummed Norman's kill happened off-panel. Yeah it wouldn't feel right to see one one of the sweetest boys to take a life but that's exactly why it would work so well under his WM persona. And I just wanted to see Yverk perish, honestly. I don't like him. At least we got to see Norman attack Vylk in the second season, which is better than nothing, I suppose.

Norman would know that eradication is certainly not the only way to achieve peace if he would stop sounding like a broken record and listen to Emma's idea about the new promise and using the evil blood to save the demons. Also, I love how surprised the Lambda boys are upon hearing Emma rejecting Norman's orders/suggestion so easily. Her short & quick response is a nice callback to when she refused Ray's idea to leave all the GF kids behind back during ch4.

The WM facade that Norman is so confident with means nothing when our girl knows him so darn well, even to the point where he's lying to himself about his true feelings.

Gotta say that I prefer the anime's take on this panel much better as well. Definitely makes me feel sorry for this sad, terrified child more than a chessmaster with a god complex.

The manga does toss a whole bunch of flashbacks our way though so that does help pull some heartstrings here. I can also never remember that Norman & Vincent had the chance to meet casually while at Lambda. For a while I thought they only communicated via the rubix cube their entire time there. The Lambda staff should've never let these boys socialize.

They're both pretty stubborn when it comes to their own ideas but Norman has gotta know to yield once Emma has her heart set on something. You can't go against our leading lady. And how convenient that there's now a clear path between all the dead demons so she can march her way right up to him.

I love her so much for calling him out like this.

This trio is so darn precious with how much they care for each other and see each other as equals aaahh! Ray's words kinda remind me of ch178 when Norman said they would refuse to cross over to the human world if it means that Emma would have to sacrifice herself. And ch27 with Emma's famous speech about how they'll all live together and won't accept a future unless everyone is part of it. Look at that, all three of 'em having their own moments.

I don't even care if the anime switched up Ray's lines, it feels more personal to him when he draws on his own experiences and their relationship to remind Norman who he really is. I also love that someone is shown to be frustrated with Norman's actions. Emma is too, deep down somewhere I'm sure, but her voice is a lot more calming and hopeful during this scene, as usual.

Can't praise the anime for too long though since it doesn't include Ray offering his hand out to Norman like the manga does. (though perhaps it took inspiration from the following chapter since we don't see his hand there either when this moment is shown again.)

Anime also leaves Ray out of the hug for whatever reason. Maybe to match this chapter's extra page of Emma comforting a small, crying Norman, but c'mon, trio hugs are the best kind of hugs! (even though I personally prefer the hug shown next chapter a little bit more.) I can appreciate how the anime had Norman's hood fall down once Emma caught him as he fell to his knees, kinda like how his entire cape flew off here.

Favorite panel/moment:

Yeesss sweetie! Put that boy in his place!! I imagine she would've been just as angry if she had learned any sooner that Ray was sacrificing their siblings back at GF, so he's lucky all he got was a death glare in ch15.

Their faces are SO ADORABLE HERE!! HELP! I LOVE THEM!

Differences between the anime and the manga and how it affects my portrayal [Hakudoshi]

As probably everyone who has been following me for a while knows, my Hakudoshi is canon-divergent and headcanon based while cherry-picking certain stuff from the anime and manga.

But today I was going around several manga chapters where he appears to make new manga icons and I have noticed, once again, how there are a couple of things -like every other adaptation- that differ from the source material and I decided to make a post about this so that my followers know what I take from either the anime or the manga, mostly I follow the anime but let's dwell on it (might be a rather big post)

The first differences come right after his "birth", while it doesn't directly affect Hakudoshi's character it does change the way he and Entei met.

In the anime Sunrise introduced a second demon, Rengokuki, that along with Entei had been sealed by the priest the Infant and Kagura killed, his death leads to the seal on both demons break and Rengokuki is the one who possesses the naginata that later becomes Hakudoshi's signature weapon:

In the manga, Rengokuki doesn't exist and Entei is immediately drawn to Hakudoshi choosing him as its new master/rider due to him having broken the seal. Thus their bond is not about Entei having seen Hakudoshi as a strong demon, worth ride on his back, but more as a returning favor, Hakudoshi even says so:

This makes Entei's and Hakudoshi's "bond" even more unreal, colder than in the anime, although in the anime Hakudoshi could care less about Entei when it died (much like in the manga), the anime added Entei backing up Hakudoshi's escape. While I like the way both anime and manga portrayed their bond and I understand that Hakudoshi is a character not meant to form any sort of bond, I tend to prefer the anime's version because I like the idea of Naraku's incarnations forming at least one bond with someone. I even have made headcanons about Hakudoshi's and Entei's bond and stuff they did together when literally no one was looking, not even Kagura. Thus this is my first canon divergent piece in my portrayal albeit not used in his main verse but rather in the other ones: Hakudoshi can and will form bonds with someone if he spends enough time around them, he will be cold, distant, rude, and very unfriendly at the beginning but eventually comes to see them in another light.

Another difference I noted between the manga and the anime was Hakudoshi's introduction, I am not sure how much that changes things, probably nothing at all and it's even more probable that it's just a case of different translations for the same topic. In the manga, Hakudoshi introduces himself as "the discarded white child of Naraku" whereas in the anime he introduces himself merely as a "Naraku incarnation". Doesn't affect my portrayal but I thought it would be interesting to note.

In the manga, also regarding his weapon, Hakudoshi obtains his naginata by having Entei kill a boar demon that had that weapon. He took it from Rengokuki after he killed him with the naginata in the anime. Fun fact, in the anime a boar demon named Chokyukai had exactly the same design as the boar demon Entei killed in the manga, he even appears in the episode following Hakudoshi's introduction with a naginata exactly like Hakudoshi's with the exception that it has a sapphire in it instead of a ruby. Again, doesn't affect my portrayal but I thought it would be interesting to mention.

The following change is related to Hakudoshi's abilities, most of his abilities are kept on par between the manga and the anime (barrier creator, miasma production, regeneration, and teleportation), however, episode 144 gave two more abilities on the very same scene above: telepathy, he already somewhat possessed this ability in the manga as well as he is able to read other's minds by touching them much like his counterpart (I feel like the minimal difference between Hakudoshi and the Infant is that Hakudoshi reads minds while the Infant reads the hearts), however, the anime adds more to it and he is capable of reading other's minds without touching them. Regarding this ability, I have decided to keep it in both ways though he will not be using the non-touching mind reading one unless it's necessary or if he feels like it. This means that it works essentially like a switch button that he can control at will and helps me explain why he didn't hear or even comment further on Kagura's thoughts about killing him/betraying Naraku or even when Kohaku was right next to him thinking about Sango as his sister and about his plan to get closer to the Infant after the Zushi Nezumi incident.

The second ability introduced is 100% anime-only and it's telekinesis which means he can move objects using his mind. I am also keeping this ability of his, however, with some restrictions. In the scene above we see Hakudoshi throwing several small rocks at Kagura, more with the intention of annoying and giving her a warning. Now, those small rocks don't have big weight and thus are easy to manipulate and control. This is where my headcanon and second canon divergent happens in my portrayal: Hakudoshi is not able to use telekinesis on objects that weigh more than him, in my post-canon verse this changes as he trains harder to be able to lift heavier weights but in his main verse he cannot do it. He would not be able to, for example, levitate Tessaiga in its transformed form considering it's much heavier than himself but he would be able to use the telekinesis to move his own weapon in case, for some reason, it was driven away from him.

The third difference between the anime and the manga is, for me, one of the most important scenes considering that it shows more of Hakudoshi's methodical and strategical side. Once more this scene is anime-only, possibly more to fill in the content of the episode than anything else but I still find it interesting.

This scene makes it Hakudoshi's second direct interaction with Inuyasha (and his group, although in this specific scene it's only Inuyasha) set in between Inuyasha visiting Totosai and learning about Hosenki and Inuyasha actually finding Hosenki. In the manga such scene never happened, it was immediately shown Inuyasha finding Hosenki's lake. In the anime, they added that Hakudoshi was spying on the group through Samiyosho thus leading to the scenario above where Hakudoshi shows that he is always a step ahead. Not only that but he reveals that he knows about Hosenki's existence and even that Hosenki I is already dead (it's even implied at first that he had something to do with it only to be debunked by Hosenki's son).

Of course with the manga not having this scene they couldn't really change the plot behind it, however, I still find this scene interesting because not only shows Hakudoshi's childish behavior where he sees all this as a game (like a chess game) and Inuyasha's group are mere pawns in it but also that he could have easily killed Hosenki II, leaving Inuyasha's group without that resource and also, at the very least, injure Inuyasha seeing that he caught him by surprise but simply choose not to. He chooses not to kill his number one enemy with the mere exchange to see how Inuyasha would work around the problem, I think this is where it shows the differences between Naraku and Hakudoshi, while they are extremely similar in many ways and Naraku himself has been shown to be able to manipulate the odds in his favor, I feel like Naraku wouldn't have missed the chance to try and kill Inuyasha had he been this close to him like Hakudoshi was. This is yet another change the anime made that I keep within my portrayal of Hakudoshi, not only it gave more interactions between Inuyasha and Hakudoshi but also showed more to Hakudoshi's strategic side.

The following scene is not different in either the manga or the anime however it's something I would still like to point out as it's one of my headcanons regarding Hakudoshi's betrayal plot towards Naraku.

While I believe that Hakudoshi and the Infant had already been plotting for a while (if not from the beginning) their plan to eventually overthrow Naraku I mostly think that this scene above might have triggered it to start working, this and also once Naraku gave the Infant the Fuyoheki which kept hidden the Infant's demonic aura. Back to this specific scene, however, until then Hakudoshi had always been relying on the fact his heart (and Naraku's) was somewhere else as his "lucky charm", he could not be killed and could be doing whatever he wanted. He even hid behind Naraku's "protection" when it came to Kagura as he would punish her. This also made Hakudoshi extremely cocky regarding his status as a superior incarnation of Naraku, made him believe he was not a tool like Kagura was.

This specific moment, however, I headcanon it finally clicked in Hakudoshi's mind that he was not that different from the other incarnations, at least not to Naraku (in his mind he still was it) as he would use him as a shield just like he did with the other incarnations without hesitation, this made him realize that he is a tool just like Kagura and he absolutely refused to be it.

This would also lead to his state of rage, craziness, and denial we see in the moments before he dies.

The major change comes next, this time it was cut from the anime and I actually would have liked to have seen this animated. Unlike in episode 165 where Hakudoshi tested the newly created Moryomaru on Inuyasha, he actually tests it on both Inuyasha and Koga. This was the first and only direct interaction that Hakudoshi has with another enemy of his (and Naraku's) aside from those in Inuyasha's group.

Therefor while until now I've mostly maintained what the anime added to Hakudoshi's role, this time it's the other way around and I will be keeping this manga scene in my portrayal. It helps me give a better sight in how Hakudoshi would act around other enemies of his that are not Inuyasha and his group or around Naraku and Kagura. The anime pretty much reduced Hakudoshi's interactions to these three and I don't like it, just like I didn't like that pretty much all of Hakudoshi's personality traits in the entire series (both manga and anime) were being evil and a brat.

From here on until the parts that were animated in the original anime are pretty much all on par with the manga. Which brings the next big change to the first episode of the Final Act (and Hakudoshi's only appearance in the 2010 anime since he dies right in the first one).

His first appearance in the new anime remains the same as in the manga, meaning he goes to the dungeons to speak to Kagura who is in charge of watching the revived Goryomaru, however the major change is in his speech towards Kagura:

" Yes, freedom. If you truly desire liberation from Naraku you have no choice but to kill him." followed by " How about it Kagura? When the time comes I can retrieve your heart before I obliterate Naraku. "

In the anime, Hakudoshi attempts to make a deal with Kagura, tries to make her join forces with him, Goryomaru/Moryomaru and the Infant even tempts her with her so desired freedom and with the chance of retrieving Naraku. I confess when I first saw this I was confused, even when I hadn't read the manga yet, because until this point Hakudoshi has not once shown to care about Kagura's desire for freedom (something that to an extent he also desires but with another kind of end) nor had he ever tried to make a deal with her since he had always looked down on her. Granted this could very well just be a manipulation, most likely was, but still didn't explain his sudden need for her help when he never minded getting his hands dirty.

However, in the manga the speech goes extremely different, there is no temptation, there is no attempt to make a deal, he just plants a seed of doubt in Kagura:

" You want to know...just who Goryomaru is, don't you Kagura...? I'll tell you one thing. Even if you follow Naraku's orders...and protect Goryomarum, it won't benefit you. "

Still a manipulation however far different from that of the anime, he literally plants a seed of doubt in her, doesn't tempt her with a pact, he lets her make the decision on whether she should betray Naraku or not. And above all doesn't make such a promise to retrieve her heart.

In all honesty, I love both versions a lot, the anime's version fits a little better with my first point of canon divergent in which I wrote Hakudoshi is capable of creating a bond even if it takes a lot of time (and again not in his main verse, I refer this part to the post-canon verse and AU verses). It also gives me food for thought for an eventual AU where he actually succeeded in overthrowing Naraku (granted I never truly understood how he and the Infant intended to do so aside from absorbing Naraku into Moryomaru's body).

The manga's version is far more consistent with his relationship until now with Kagura: indifference, mutual despise, etc. But again, I did mention I didn't like how being evil and a brat was basically Hakudoshi's canon personality traits, I prefer to build my Muse with several character layers.

With this said, I made the decision to keep both versions in my portrayal and it will vary according to the kind of thread I am making.

A lot more was changed with the content of the following manga chapters when they were turned into anime but I won't dwell on it since they don't affect my portrayal of Hakudoshi. Until his death though, all the rest is much the same and in his main verse, it remains so.

But this brings me to my Post-Canon Verses which serve for interactions post-Kagome's return to the Feudal Era in which Hakudoshi is brought back to life in a similar way to Kikyo except that instead of a body made of clay, it's a body made of yokai flesh (fox yokai) with a human heart thus making Hakudoshi a half-demon.

Upon being brought back to life, however, Hakudoshi has no memory of who he used to be. Forcing him to start over in an attempt to both move forward with his (new) life and at the same time try to discover who he used to be (when it happens though, it will cause heavy conflict in his now human heart). He will also deal with human night every 9th day of the month.

I made these post canon verses with the idea of creating new interactions with other Inuyasha characters outside the whole "evil incarnation kid" (it gets repetitive and tiring to me to only use his main verse in every thread, I guess) and it also helps me build a more solid personality for Hakudoshi like other characters have.

The post became much bigger than I thought but I think I pretty much wrote down everything I wanted to write about the differences between the anime and the manga regarding Hakudoshi and how I use these interpretations in my threads.