History Manga / Shigurui

''Shigurui'' (シグルイ, "death frenzy") is a JidaiGeki martial arts drama {{manga}} based on part of Nanjou Norio's historical novel ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'' (mainly the first chapter); the manga itself is illustrated and co-written by Yamuguchi Takayuki. In 2007, Creator/{{Madhouse}} made a [[TwelveEpisodeAnime 12-episode anime]] directed by Hiroshi Hamasaki and written by Seishi Minakami.

** Since the manga largely takes its material from the first chapter of the source novel, how the other fights at the tournament played out were also not revealed. We only know that in the end, out of the 22 contestants, only 6 survived (among them [[spoiler:Fujiki, Yukinosuke, Shuuzaburou and [[ContinuityCameo Isoda]]]][[note]]Plus the swordsman with SuperReflexes from match #7 and the [[FlashStep fast swordsman]] from match #8.[[/note]]), two of whom were "severely injured" ([[spoiler:Shuuzaburou, through Gannosuke's [[{{Kneecapping}} leg-cutting technique]]]])[[note]]The other one is the swordsman from match #7, who takes his rival's [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks thrown sword]] through his shoulder.[[/note]]. Of the other 16, 8 were killed in defeat (this includes [[spoiler: Irako, Gannosuke and [[ContinuityCameo Kanzaemon]]]])[[note]]The rest are [[RevengeMyopia Yukinosuke's opponent]] (#3), a [[StockNinjaWeaponry shuriken]]-throwing {{Ninja}} (#6), a DualWielding [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks sword-thrower]] (#7), a spearman specialized in [[LeadTheTarget stabbing through doors/screens]] (#8), and everyone involved in [[FeudingFamilies match #9]] (a armored horseback match where the competitors [[EmergencyImpersonation aren't the real ones but family relatives]], specifically a father that impersonates his son and [[TheHopelessReplacement vice versa]] - after the fight, one of the original competitors quickly kills [[EagerRookie the other one]] to avenge his son's death in the impersonation match. Later, [[OldSoldier the winners]] (and parents of the victims) fight each other in another horseback match and die in a MutualKill).[[/note]], 6 were [[MutualKill killed by each other's hands at the same time]][[note]]Two [[WeUsedToBeFriends former friends]] that use the [[FearfulSymmetry same technique]] (match #5), a [[LivingLegend stone-cutting]] swordsman and one of the men that seduced his wife [[HandsomeLech among many other women]] (#10), and the only remaining practitioners of a swordsmanship school: a SmugSnake that is indirectly [[ManipulativeBastard responsible for the death]] of [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne every other practitioner]], and the father of the [[TrickedToDeath original competitor]] whose clan's name has been [[ClearMyName falsely stained]] (#11).[[/note]], and 2 were ''executed by firing squad''[[note]]In the novel, only the winner of match #5, a {{ninja}} spy, is executed. Probable targets in ''Shigurui'' would have likely been either the other ninja from match #5 or [[spoiler:Gannosuke]], who was targeted by a firing squad during his match.[[/note]]. [[spoiler:The survivors [[KillEmAll die later, anyway]].]]

** According to the last chapter of the novel, the winner of Fujiki and Irako's match ([[spoiler:Fujiki]]) would have [[spoiler:[[KeepTheReward renounced to be one of Tadanaga's new samurai vassals]] - however, he becomes infatuated with Kinu Isoda (the winner of the second match), because she reminds him of Mie, so one of Tadanaga's counselors plans an ArrangedMarriage between them under the Isoda house to force his vasallage. She accepts, [[PoorCommunicationKills thinking that]] her marriage was going to be with [[FlashStep Komura Gennosuke]] (the winner of the eighth match), who [[IdenticallyNamedGroup shares his surname]] with Fujiki. The counselor's plan [[AllForNothing falls flat]] when Tadanaga becomes infatuated with Isoda, thus forcing her to be [[SexSlave his newest concubine]], but the two Gennosukes are already [[LoveTriangle fighting over her]] - however, after knowing Tadanaga's plan, the three [[EnemyMine make a truce]] to escape from the castle.]]

** Tokugawa Iemitsu and Tadanaga, grandsons of UsefulNotes/TokugawaIeyasu.

** Yagyu Munenori, father of UsefulNotes/YagyuJubei, also appeared as Kogan's rival in the backstory.

* AdaptationExpansion: Of the first chapter (of twelve) from ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'', with some minor details from Tadanaga's conspiracy taken out from the ''[[SpinOff Bukon Emaki]]'' novel[[note]]A [[PerspectiveFlip companion novel]] about the attempt of Goisagi Shizuma, a [[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated supposedly dead]] son of UsefulNotes/SanadaYukimura, to [[TheCoup overthrowing the Shogunate]] (with the help of [[{{Ninja}} ninjas]]) through the manipulation of powerful daimyos -- especially the shogun's own brother Tadanaga, thus indirectly kickstarting ''Suruga-jo Gozen Jiai'''s plot. The short chapter with [[TheMole Doi Toshikatsu]] (a [[SmallRoleBigImpact minor character]] in both novels) is taken from the novel, and Goisagi himself makes a minor ContinuityCameo[[/note]]. However, the manga covers the backstory from the fourth chapter (Kutsuki Gannosuke vs Sasahara Shuuzaburou, featuring the Funaki dojo and the Sasahara clan) and features the main character from the third chapter (Tsukioka Yukinosuke), hinting that the author [[LeftHanging was going to cover more duels from the novel]].

* BaldOfAwesome: Sekiun.

** In the revengue duel, Gennosuke's arm shows no sign of having been cut through until he tries to grip the hilt of his long sword with it. As soon as he does, it separates from his shoulder and the blood comes rushing out.

* NotSoDifferent: While disgusted with Fujiki's ability to commit immense violence in the name of protecting the honor of Kogan Ryuu swordsmanship, Sasahara Shuuzaburou is still capable of committing similar atrocities for his own lord, if unwillingly.

** Yukinosuke, who is one of the fighters in the third match, would have [[spoiler:reluctantly killed [[RevengeMyopia his opponent]] [[AccidentalMurder by accident]] (he mistakenly uses his technique to turn his ''katana'' to [[SetSwordsToStun the blunt side]] [[SwordOverHead when dealing the final blow]]... While he was already fighting all the time [[IJustShotMarvinInTheFace with the blunt side]]), but after the tournament he would have later been [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere abruptly slaughtered]] by an AxCrazy ronin from ''Bukon Emaki'', [[CharacterOverlap in a plot detailed in the other novel]][[note]]Long story short, the ronin [[AbductionIsLove kidnaps the main character (Goisagi)'s]] [[AllLoveIsUnrequited unrequited love interest]] (who moves to Sunpu castle to be [[UnrequitedTragicMaiden closer to Goisagi]], although she shortly realizes that living under Tadanaga [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty wasn't a good idea]]) [[BrickJoke with the help of ninjas]], and appears after the tournament, [[TheWorfEffect killing Yukinosuke]]. After fighting with Goisagi, the tournament's ''other'' Gennosuke (see below) catches the ronin, but after a LiteralDisarming lets him go and escapes the castle, but gets hunted shortly after [[{{Anticlimax}} without fighting Goisagi]][[/note]].]]

* AdaptationExpansion: Of the first chapter (of twelve) from ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'', with some minor details from Tadanaga's conspiracy taken out from the ''[[SpinOff Bukon Emaki]]'' novel[[note]]A [[PerspectiveFlip companion novel]] about the attempt of Goisagi Shizuma, a [[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated supposedly dead]] son of UsefulNotes/SanadaYukimura, to [[TheCoup overthrowing the Shogunate]] (with the help of [[{{Ninja}} ninjas]]) through the manipulation of powerful daimyos -- especially the shogun's own brother Tadanaga, thus indirectly kickstarting ''Suruga-jo Gozen Jiai'''s plot. The short chapter with [[ReverseMole Doi Toshikatsu]] (a [[SmallRoleBigImpact minor character]] in both novels) is taken from the novel, and Goisagi himself makes a minor ContinuityCameo[[/note]]. However, the manga covers the backstory from the fourth chapter (Kutsuki Gannosuke vs Sasahara Shuuzaburou, featuring the Funaki dojo and the Sasahara clan) and features the main character from the third chapter (Tsukioka Yukinosuke), hinting that the author [[LeftHanging was going to cover more duels from the novel]].

** Since the manga largely takes its material from the first chapter of the source novel, how the other fights at the tournament played out were also not revealed. We only know that in the end, out of the 22 contestants, only 6 survived (among them [[spoiler:Fujiki, Yukinosuke, Shuuzaburou and [[ContinuityCameo Isoda]]]][[note]]Plus the swordsman with SuperReflexes from match #7 and the [[FlashStep fast swordsman]] from match #8.[[/note]]), two of whom were "severely injured" ([[spoiler:Shuuzaburou, through Gannosuke's [[{{Kneecapping}} leg-cutting technique]]]])[[note]]The other one is the swordsman from match #7, who takes his rival's [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks thrown sword]] through his shoulder.[[/note]]. Of the other 16, 8 were killed in defeat (this includes [[spoiler: Irako, Gannosuke and [[ContinuityCameo Kanzaemon]]]])[[note]]The rest are [[RevengeMyopia Yukinosuke's opponent]] (#3), a [[StockNinjaWeaponry shuriken]]-throwing {{Ninja}} (#6), a DualWielding [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks sword-thrower]] (#7), a spearman specialized in [[LeadTheTarget stabbing through doors/screens]] (#8), and everyone involved in [[FeudingFamilies match #9]] (a armored horseback match where the competitors [[EmergencyImpersonation aren't the real ones but family relatives]], specifically a father that impersonates his son and [[TheHopelessReplacement vice versa]] - after the fight, one of the original competitors quickly kills [[EagerRookie the other one]] to avenge his son's death in the impersonation match. Later, [[OldSoldier the winners]] (and parents of the victims) fight each other in another horseback match and die in a MutualKill).[[/note]], 6 were [[MutualKill killed by each other's hands at the same time]][[note]]Two [[WeUsedToBeFriends former friends]] that use the [[FearfulSymmetry same technique]] (match #5), a [[LivingLegend stone-cutting]] swordsman and [[YourCheatingHeart one of the men]] that seduced his wife [[HandsomeLech among many other women]] (#10), and the only remaining practitioners of a swordsmanship school: a SmugSnake that is indirectly [[ManipulativeBastard responsible for the death]] of [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne every other practitioner]], and the father of the [[TrickedToDeath original competitor]] whose clan's name has been [[ClearMyName falsely stained]] (#11).[[/note]], and 2 were ''executed by firing squad''[[note]]In the novel, only the winner of match #5, a {{ninja}} spy, is executed. Probable targets in ''Shigurui'' would have likely been either the other ninja from match #5 or [[spoiler:Gannosuke]], who was targeted by a firing squad during his match.[[/note]]. [[spoiler:The survivors [[KillEmAll die later, anyway]].]]

* LiteraryAgentHypothesis: The series claimed to rely on accounts found in the private diary of Suruga's (where Sunpu Castle is located) chief councilor, a document that is handed down in the family of one Tejima Takeichiro.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: The story spares no detail in showing how alien to modern values the morality of the Tokugawa era was, with its focus on BlindObedience and HonorBeforeReason. For example, in an official meeting Fujiki kills another sword teacher for daring to mock the Kogan school, and instead of being arrested he is praised by the witnesses for defending his masters' honor.

* CrapsackWorld: Edo Japan is depicted as an irredeemably unjust society where tyranny and cruelty are rampant. An obviously depraved and bloodthirsty man like Tadanaga can rape and murder his subjects with impunity because he's the daimyo of Surugua and brother of the shogun, and he only gets his comuppance after his actions threaten the shogunate itself. Inflexible codes of behavior enforced by the constant threat of violence force people to obey even insane or evil leaders, and these same codes frequently scapegoat or punish people for things that aren't really their fault. The code of the samurai demands DisproportionateRetribution for any slight, and the CycleOfRevenge ensures that everyone keeps killing each other forever. The schools of martial arts often behave like groups of thugs that spread misery and pointless violence ForTheEvulz. It's NoWomansLand, where women have hardly any rights and are treated with just as much cruelty and violence as men, with the addition of sexual sadism and rape (and even men aren't safe from the latter either, especially nubile male teenagers). Love, compassion, and life itself are fleeting; only the horrors of death and suffering remain constant, [[ShootTheShaggyDogStory along with a sense of total hopelessness]], any possibility for a better life being immediately destroyed, and the only possible escape being suicide.

* {{Hypocrite}}: When Chika protests against her father allowing the grotesque Gannosuke to compete for her hand in marriage, Ichidensai initially defends the latter's right to try, saying that every person should get the opportunity to change their circumstances least once in their lives. Not only would Gannosuke's right to do so come at the cost of Chika having no say in the life-changing matter of who she marries, but it turns out that Ichidensai only let Gannosuke join the contest because he didn't think the guy could ''actually'' win. As soon as he recognizes that Gannosuke might actually be capable of cutting the helmet, he pulls a dirty trick to make sure a different student wins.

* AntiClimax: In-universe, this is what the first round of the tournament at Sunpu Castle feels like to the spectators. Whereas the manga shows its readers the whole epic backstory behind Gennosuke and Irako's grudge, and reveals the true genius and willpower hidden in their techniques, all that the audience at Sunpu Castle is able to percieve is [[spoiler:a WimpFight between a blind man who misses his swing, and a one-armed man who feebly drops his long sword and kills the other man with a short blade, thus ending the fight in a few seconds.]]

** Likewise, in Gennosuke and Irako's tournament duel, [[spoiler:Gennosuke [[ThrowingTheDistraction throws the sword]] against Irako, not against Iku: Mie and Iku suicide themeselves after seeing their beloved Irako die. However, Gannosuke does indeed throw a knife [[IfICantHaveYou against her beloved Chika]] during the match, [[LastBreathBullet after Shuuzaburou deals him the final hit]].]]

* AdaptationExpansion: Of the first chapter (of twelve) from ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'', with some minor details from Tadanaga's conspiracy taken out from the ''[[SpinOff Bukon Emaki]]'' novel[[note]]A [[PerspectiveFlip companion novel]] about the attempt of Goisagi Shizuma, a [[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated supposedly dead]] son of UsefulNotes/SanadaYukimura, to [[TheCoup overthrowing the Shogunate]] (with the help of [[{{Ninja}} ninjas]]) through the manipulation of powerful daimyos -- especially the shogun's own brother Tadanaga, thus indirectly kickstarting ''Suruga-jo Gozen Jiai'''s plot. The short chapter with [[ReverseMole Doi Toshikatsu]] is taken from the novel, and Goisagi himself makes a minor ContinuityCameo[[/note]]. However, the manga covers the backstory from the fourth chapter (Kutsuki Gannosuke vs Sasahara Shuuzaburou, featuring the Funaki dojo and the Sasahara clan) and features the main character from the third chapter (Tsukioka Yukinosuke), hinting that the author [[LeftHanging was going to cover more duels from the novel]].

** If the manga had faithfully covered the fight between Gannosuke and Shuuzaburou, the result would have been [[spoiler:Shuuzaburou's victory [[GameBreakingInjury with a leg wound]] (even if he [[CombatPragmatist wore knee protectors]]) and Gannosuke's death (although a hidden firing squad was [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ready to kill him if he won]]), but Chika [[LastBreathBullet would have been killed after the match]] by Gannosuke]].
** Yukinosuke, who is one of the fighters in the third match, would have [[spoiler:reluctantly killed [[RevengeBeforeReason his opponent]] [[AccidentalMurder by accident]] (he mistakenly uses his technique to turn his ''katana'' to [[SetSwordsToStun the blunt side]] [[SwordOverHead when dealing the final blow]]... While he was already fighting all the time [[IJustShotMarvinInTheFace with the blunt side]]), but after the tournament he would have later been [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere abruptly slaughtered]] by an AxCrazy ronin from ''Bukon Emaki'', [[CharacterOverlap in a plot detailed in the other novel]][[note]]Long story short, the ronin [[AbductionIsLove kidnaps the main character (Goisagi)'s]] [[AllLoveIsUnrequited unrequited love interest]] (who moves to Sunpu castle to be [[UnrequitedTragicMaiden closer to Goisagi]], although she shortly realizes that living under Tadanaga [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty wasn't a good idea]]) [[BrickJoke with the help of ninjas]], and appears after the tournament, [[TheWorfEffect killing Yukinosuke]]. After fighting with Goisagi, the tournament's ''other'' Gennosuke (see below) catches the ronin, but after a LiteralDisarming lets him go and escapes the castle, but gets hunted shortly after [[{{Anticlimax}} without fighting Goisagi]][[/note]].]]
** Then, according to the last chapter of the novel, Fujiki would have [[spoiler:[[KeepTheReward renounced to be one of Tadanaga's new samurai vassals]] - however, he becomes infatuated with Kinu Isoda (the winner of the second match), because she reminds him of Mie, so one of Tadanaga's counselors plans an ArrangedMarriage between them under the Isoda house to force his vasallage. She accepts, [[PoorCommunicationKills thinking that]] her marriage was going to be with [[FastestThingAlive Komura Gennosuke]] (the winner of the [[ImprobableAimingSkills eighth match]]), who [[IdenticallyNamedGroup shares his surname]] with Fujiki. The counselor's plan [[AllForNothing falls flat]] when Tadanaga becomes infatuated with Isoda, thus forcing her to be [[SexSlave his newest concubine]], but the two Gennosukes are already [[LoveTriangle fighting over her]] - however, after knowing Tadanaga's plan, the three [[EnemyMine make a truce]] to escape from the castle.]]
** After [[spoiler:Fujiki and the other winners' escape from the castle]], Shuuzaburou and Kyōnosuke Kataoka (the winner of the seventh match) would have [[spoiler:lead one squad each to catch the three fugitives: Kataoka tries to make a [[JustFollowingOrders bloodless pact with them]] to return to the castle, but Shuuzaburou misreads it as a [[CavalryBetrayal ploy to unite the two squads]] (then again, Shuuzaburou [[MyMasterRightOrWrong only wants to kill the traitors at all costs]]). Having no chance to escape anymore, they fight: Komura [[LetsFightLikeGentlemen fights against]] Kataoka [[AttackItsWeakPoint and wins]], but [[BolivianArmyEnding six soldiers kill him]]. Shuuzaburou decides to kill Fujiki after his [[MookHorrorShow refusal to giving up]], but Fujiki manages to [[WreckedWeapon cut Shuuzaburou's spear]] and [[AttackItsWeakPoint wounded leg]], making Shuuzaburou fall off his horse. When Fujiki is dealing the final blow, Shuuzaburou stabs him with his ''wakizashi'' in a MutualKill. Isoda, without her [[WeaponOfChoice trusted Naginata]], only manages to kill three soldiers before giving up: just before [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty Tadanaga meets her]], [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled she suicides]].]]

** Since the manga largely takes its material from the first chapter of the source novel, how the other fights at the tournament played out were also not revealed. We only know that in the end, out of the 22 contestants, only 6 survived ([[spoiler:among them Fujiki, Yukinosuke, Shuuzaburou and [[ContinuityCameo Isoda]]]]), two of whom were "severely injured" ([[spoiler:Shuuzaburou, through Gannosuke's leg-cutting technique]]). Of the other 16, 8 were killed in defeat (this includes [[spoiler: Irako, Gannosuke and [[ContinuityCameo Kanzaemon]]]]), 6 were [[MutualKill killed by each other's hands at the same time]], and 2 were ''executed by firing squad.'' [[spoiler:The survivors [[KillEmAll die later, anyway]].]]

** Likewise, in Gennosuke and Irako's tournament duel, [[spoiler:Gennosuke [[ThrowingTheDistraction throws the sword]] against Irako, not against Iku: Mie and Iku suicide themeselves after seeing their beloved Irako die. However, Gannosuke does indeed throw his sword [[IfICantHaveYou against her beloved Chika]] during the match, [[LastBreathBullet after Shuuzaburou deals him the final hit]].]]

** If the manga had faithfully covered the fight between Gannosuke and Shuuzaburou, the result would have been [[spoiler:Shuuzaburou's victory ([[GameBreakingInjury with a leg wound]]) and Gannosuke's death, but Chika [[LastBreathBullet would have been killed after the match]] by Gannosuke]]. Likewise, Yukinosuke would have [[spoiler:won the third match, but he would have later been [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere abruptly slaughtered]] by an AxCrazy ronin from ''Bukon Emaki'', [[CharacterOverlap in a plot detailed in the other novel]][[note]]Long story short, the ronin [[AbductionIsLove kidnaps the main character (Goisagi)'s]] [[AllLoveIsUnrequited unrequited love interest]] [[BrickJoke with the help of ninjas]] (who moves to Sunpu castle to be [[UnrequitedTragicMaiden closer to Goisagi]], although she shortly realizes that living under Tadanaga [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty wasn't a good idea]]) and appears in the midst of the tournament, [[TheWorfEffect killing Yukinosuke]]. After fighting with Goisagi and escaping the castle, the tournament's ''other'' Gennosuke (see below) catches the ronin, but after a LiteralDisarming lets him go and gets hunted shortly after [[{{Anticlimax}} without fighting Goisagi]][[/note]].]]

** Since the manga largely takes its material from the first chapter of the source novel, how the other fights at the tournament played out were also not revealed. We only know that in the end, out of the 22 contestants, only 6 survived, two of whom were "severely injured." Of the other 16, 8 were killed in defeat (this includes [[spoiler: Irako]]), 6 were [[MutualKill killed by each other's hands at the same time]], and 2 were ''executed by firing squad.''

** Then, according to the last chapter of the novel, Fujiki would have [[spoiler:declined to fight against [[NaginatasAreFeminine Kinu Isoda]], the winner of the second match (who has a minor ContinuityCameo in the tournament's roll call, alongside her rival [[CombatSadomasochist Zanami Kanzaemon]]), because she reminded him of Mie. A LoveTriangle between them and the [[FastestThingAlive winner of the eighth match]], who [[PoorCommunicationKills unfortunately]] [[IdenticallyNamedGroup share the Gennosuke surname]], makes the two fight over her, but the three make a truce to escape the tournament]]. Shuuzaburou (and the [[DualWielding winner of the seventh match]]) would have [[spoiler:gone to catch them, and Shuuzaburou and Fujiki would have died in a MutualKill: Kinu, the only survivor, would have [[KillEmAll killed herself]] [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled before being Tadanaga's special concubine]].]]
* ForTheEvulz: Many of the horrific acts of violence perpetrated throughout the series, whichever the context, are completely pointless and have no benefit other than the sadistic pleasure of the perpetrator and displaying that PowerCorrupts everyone, no exceptions.

* WeirdTradeUnion: Irako becomes a member of the [[WeirdTradeUnion Todouza]], the blind men's guild of Edo Japan. Most of their members work as musucians, masseurs, and acupuncturists, but they have strong connections with the shogun and his government. Shizuhata Kengyou, the supreme leader of the Todouza, gives his support to Irako, putting Kogan and his students in a difficult position.

* BuryYourGays: [[spoiler:Yamazaki, who was infatuated with fifteen-year-old male puil Suzunosuke, is killed by Irako shortly after his homosexuality is revealed to the reader. The Funaki brothers don't last long after their introduction either]].

* AdaptationExpansion: Of the first chapter (of twelve) from ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'', with some minor details from Tadanaga's conspiracy taken out from the ''[[SpinOff Bukon Emaki]]'' novel[[note]]A [[PerspectiveFlip companion novel]] about the attempt of Goisagi Shizuma, a [[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated supposedly dead]] son of UsefulNotes/SanadaYukimura, to [[TheCoup overthrowing the Shogunate]] with the help of [[{{Ninja}} ninjas]] through the manipulation of powerful daimyos -- especially the shogun's own brother Tadanaga, thus indirectly kickstarting ''Suruga-jo Gozen Jiai'''s plot. The short chapter with [[ReverseMole Doi Toshikatsu]] is taken from the novel, and Goisagi himself makes a minor ContinuityCameo[[/note]]. However, the manga covers the backstory from the fourth chapter (Kutsuki Gannosuke vs Sasahara Shuuzaburou, featuring the Funaki dojo and the Sasahara clan) and features the main character from the third chapter (Tsukioka Yukinosuke), hinting that the author [[LeftHanging was going to cover more duels from the novel]].

** If the manga had faithfully covered the fight between Gannosuke and Shuuzaburou, the result would have been [[spoiler:Shuuzaburou's victory ([[GameBreakingInjury with a leg wound]]) and Gannosuke's death, but Chika [[LastBreathBullet would have been killed after the match]] by Gannosuke]]. Likewise, Yukinosuke would have [[spoiler:won the third match, but he would have later been [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere abruptly slaughtered]] by an AxCrazy ronin from ''Bukon Emaki'', [[CharacterOverlap in a plot detailed in the other novel]][[note]]Long story short, the ronin [[AbductionIsLove kidnaps the main character (Goisagi)'s love interest]] (who moves to Sunpu castle to be [[StarCrossedLovers closer to him]], although she shortly realizes that living under Tadanaga [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty wasn't a good idea]]) and appears in the midst of the tournament, [[TheWorfEffect killing Yukinosuke]]. After fighting with Goisagi and escaping the castle, the tournament's [[NamesTheSame other Gennosuke]] (see below) catches the ronin, but after a LiteralDisarming lets him go and gets hunted shortly after [[{{Anticlimax}}without fighting Goisagi]][/note]].]]

* AdaptationExpansion: Of the first chapter (of twelve) from ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'', with some minor details from Tadanaga's conspiracy taken out from the ''[[SpinOff Bukon Emaki]]'' novel[[note]]A [[PerspectiveFlip companion novel]] about the attempts of Goisagi Shizuma, a supposed son of UsefulNotes/SanadaYukimura, to [[TheCoup overthrowing the Shogunate]] via [[{{Ninja}} espionage]] and the manipulation of powerful daimyos as the shogun's own brother Tadanaga, thus indirectly kickstarting ''Suruga-jo Gozen Jiai'''s plot. The short chapter with [[ReverseMole Doi Toshikatsu]] is taken from the novel, and Gosiagi himself makes a minor ContinuityCameo[[/note]]. However, the manga covers the backstory from the fourth chapter (Kutsuki Gannosuke vs Sasahara Shuuzaburou, featuring the Funaki dojo and the Sasahara clan) and features the main character from the third chapter (Tsukioka Yukinosuke), hinting that the author [[LeftHanging was going to cover more duels from the novel]].

** If the manga had faithfully covered the fight between Gannosuke and Shuuzaburou, the result would have been [[spoiler:Shuuzaburou's victory ([[GameBreakingInjury with a leg wound]]) and Gannosuke's death, but Chika [[LastBreathBullet would have been killed after the match]] by Gannosuke]]. Likewise, Yukinosuke would have [[spoiler:won the third match, but he would have later been [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere abruptly slaughtered]] by an AxCrazy ronin from ''Bukon Emaki'', [[CharacterOverlap in a plot detailed in the other novel]].[[note]]Long story short, the ronin is the rival of Gosiahi Shizuma, Bukon Emaki's protagonist, and is a serial [[AbductionIsLove woman kidnapper]] and enough of a BloodKnight to break into the Suruga castle in the midst of the tournament. However, after losing to Gosiagi, he escapes to pursue the other Gennosuke (see below) but loses to him, and later Gosiagi finally kills him[[/note]]]]
** Then, according to the last chapter of the novel, Fujiki would have [[spoiler:declined to fight against [[NaginatasAreFeminine Kinu Isoda]], the winner of the second match (who has a minor ContinuityCameo in the tournament's roll call, alongside her rival [[CombatSadomasochist Zanami Kanzaemon]]), because she reminded him of Mie. A LoveTriangle between them and the [[FastestThingAlive winner of the eighth match]], who [[PoorCommunicationKills unfortunately]] [[IdenticallyNamedGroup share the Gennosuke surname]], makes the two fight over her, but the three make a truce to escape the tournament]]. Shuuzaburou (and the [[DualWielding winner of the seventh match]]) would have [[spoiler:gone to catch them, and Shuuzaburo and Fujiki would have died in a MutualKill: Kinu, the only survivor, would have [[KillEmAll killed herself]] [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled before being Tadanaga's special concubine]].]]

* AdaptationExpansion: Of the first chapter (of twelve) from ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'', with some minor details from Tadanaga's conspiracy taken out from the ''[[PerspectiveFlip Bukon Emaki]]'' novel. However, the manga covers the backstory from the fourth chapter (Kutsuki Gannosuke vs Sasahara Shuuzaburou, featuring the Funaki dojo and the Sasahara clan) and features the main character from the third chapter (Tsukioka Yukinosuke), hinting that the author [[LeftHanging was going to cover more duels from the novel]].

** If the manga had faithfully covered the fight between Gannosuke and Shuuzaburou, the result would have been [[spoiler:Shuuzaburou's victory ([[GameBreakingInjury with a leg wound]]) and Gannosuke's death, but Chika [[LastBreathBullet would have been killed after the match]] by Gannosuke]]. Likewise, Yukinosuke would have [[spoiler:won the third match, but he would have later been slaughtered by [[SmallRoleBigImpact a ronin]] from ''Bukon Emaki'', [[CharacterOverlap in a plot detailed in the other novel]]]].
** Then, according to the last chapter of the novel, Fujiki would have [[spoiler:declined to fight against [[NaginatasAreFeminine Kinu Isoda]], the winner of the second match (who has a minor ContinuityCameo in the tournament's roll call, alongside her rival [[CombatSadomasochist Zanami Kanzaemon]]), because she reminded him of Mie. A LoveTriangle between them and the [[FastestThingAlive winner of the eighth match]], who [[PoorCommunicationKills unfortunately]] [[IdenticallyNamedGroup share the Gennosuke surname]], makes the two fight over her, but the three make a truce to escape the tournament]]. Shuuzaburou (and the [[DualWielding winner of the seventh match]]) would have [[spoiler:gone to catch them, and Shuuzaburo and Fujiki would have died in a MutualKill: Kinu, the only survivor, would have [[KillEmAll killed herself]] [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled before being Tadanaga's special concubine]].]]

* AdaptationExpansion: Of the first chapter (of twelve) from ''Suruga-Jō Gozen Jiai'', with small parts from the ''[[{{Prequel}} Bukon Emaki]]'' novel. However, the manga covers the backstory from the fourth chapter (Kutsuki Gannosuke vs Sasahara Shuuzaburou, featuring the Funaki dojo and the Sasahara clan) and features the main character from the third chapter (Tsukioka Yukinosuke), hinting that the author [[LeftHanging was going to cover more duels from the novel]].

** If the manga had faithfully covered the fight between Gannosuke and Shuuzaburou, the result would have been [[spoiler:Shuuzaburou's victory (with a leg wound) and Gannosuke's death, but Chika would have been murdered during the match]]. Likewise, Yukinosuke would have [[spoiler:won the third match, but would have been slaughtered at the finals by the main character from ''[[OneSceneWonder Buson Enmaki]]'']].
** Then, according to the last chapter of the novel, Fujiki would have [[spoiler:declined to fight against [[NaginatasAreFeminine Kinu Isoda]], the winner of the second match (who has a very minor cameo in the manga), because she reminded him of Mie. A LoveTriangle between them and the [[FastestThingAlive winner of the eighth match]], who [[PoorCommunicationKills unfortunately]] [[IdenticallyNamedGroup share the Gennosuke surname]] makes the two fight over her, but the three make a truce to escape the tournament]]. Shuuzaburou (and the [[DualWielding winner of the seventh match]]) would have [[spoiler:gone to catch them, and Shuuzaburo and Fujiki would have died in a MutualKill: Kinu, the only survivor, would have [[BetterToDieThanBeKilled killed herself before being Tadanaga's special concubine]].]]

* OldMaster: Funaki Ichidensai made a name for himself when he first performed his feat of cleaving a helmet during the battle of Shizugatake way back in 1583, and now in the Kan'ei era he's the aged head of his own school.