While inevitable due to the Cast Full of Pretty Boys and the story being in part about the bonds forged between them, the production plays up the close relationships between the Touken Danshi, even teasing dynamics between swords who viewers wouldn’t even expect to be remotely interested in each other. Some of these interactions border on Homoerotic Subtext, which drives audiences wild.
Examples
Mikazuki/Kogitsunemaru
From Tsuwamono Domo, Mikazuki and Kogitsunemaru are probably the closest they've been in any continuity, as Kogitsunemaru appears to be very attached to Mikazuki, and Mikazuki tends to praise him. The actors also love flirty ad-libbing with each other.
- In one performance of "Flower" in Tsuwamono Domo, Kogitsunemaru grabs Mikazuki's hand and pulls him back through the audience and onto the stage.
- A significant portion of Tsuwamono's plot revolves around the initially one-sided conflict in which Kogitsunemaru becomes suspicious of Mikazuki's actions after overhearing Higekiri and Hizamaru discussing the Saniwa-assigned mission to monitor Mikazuki. Kogitsunemaru's loyalty to the Saniwa takes precedence over his friendship with Mikazuki, to the point of wanting to kill him if he believed Mikazuki was betraying the Saniwa by saying he envied Kogitsunemaru and believes they're an unusual pair. After the misunderstanding is cleared and the two reconcile, now having come to an understanding over the separate ways they want to tackle protecting history, the story concludes with the two being closer than before.
- At one point in the game, Imanotsurugi decides that it would be best to split the teams into two to better understand the situation, and Mikazuki takes the initiative to select the teams, grouping himself with Imanotsurugi and Hizamaru, while Kogitsunemaru is grouped with Higekiri and Iwatooshi. Kogitsunemaru responds suspiciously, asking why Mikazuki didn't put them on the same team, to which Mikazuki immediately responds by dramatically and loudly implying that he believes Kogitsunemaru does not want to be separated from him, which Kogitsunemaru loudly denies as not being what he meant. Higekiri and Mikazuki then have a moment where they propose the team be Kogitsunemaru-Higekiri-Mikazuki, but then laugh because they know Kogitsunemaru wouldn’t be able to handle their combined flightiness.
- With the rerun of Atsukashiyama Ibun 2018 Paris, the two were given a duet titled "Timeline" with shippy lyrics and choreography that ends with Kogitsunemaru tenderly leaning on Mikazuki. The performance was especially heartwarming because the actors were clearly overjoyed to finally be able to perform the song together after missing out in Paris in 2018 due to Kogitsunemaru's actor's surgery.
Mikazuki/Tsurumaru
From Kishou Hongi onward, Tsurumaru Kuninaga is introduced as having a unique, initially one-sided connection to Mikazuki Munechika due to Mikazuki spending some time in the plays background. Naturally, this amounts to a lot of ship tease.
- In Kishou Hongi Tsurumaru calls Mikazuki the least boring person he knows, which is huge coming from him considering his obsession with surprises.
- In both Kishou Hongi and Paraiso, Tsurumaru tends to wistfully stare up at the crescent moon and speak to it as of it were Mikazuki.
- The two wouldn't interact onscreen until Kotobuki Ranbu Ongyousai, where it was established that the two have a close relationship, so much so that they have in-jokes with each other. They also have many other moments with each other during this event:
- A special moment is set aside for the two to dance. Mikazuki is standing on a lower stage platform beneath Tsurumaru, and as he begins to dance, light shines down on them both. Mikazuki then turns to face Tsurumaru and gestures for him to dance in response. At the end of the segment, Mikazuki pulls out his sword, and as he lowers it, Tsurumaru gradually fades back into the shadows. The performance clearly has some symbolic meaning about the relationship between the two that wouldn’t be uncovered until Michi no Oku.
- During the song's "friend" lyric of the second half performance, Tsurumaru and Mikazuki turn and gesture toward each other and switch positions, their actors also visibly cheesing at each other and adding to the light-heartedness of the interaction.
- During the MC segment of the performance, Tsurumaru and Mikazuki take the stage and talk to each other, with Tsurumaru implying that he has long wanted to fight alongside Mikazuki in the modern era and has many questions for him. Why he’s wanted to fight with Mikazuki specifically is questionable. Because he finds him so interesting? Either way, the two are shown to be close, and Tsurumaru is uncharacteristically calm and attentive when speaking to him.
- In Shinken Ranbusai 2022, Tsurumaru not only steals Mikazuki's fanservice line, "You're all so cute," but he also declares Mikazuki to be amazing after seeing the huge reaction it got.
- When Tsurumaru finally makes his debut in the audio drama Honmaru Hanamaru Koyomi, part of his story revolves around his relationship with Mikazuki, as he nostalgically recalls them planting the Saniwa's favorite plum blossom tree together (the plum blossom tree first seen in Akashi's skit in Utaawase). This story also makes it clear that Tsurumaru has taken Mikazuki's absence harder than any other character Mikazuki has interacted with (that we've been shown), with his mental health taking a huge hit. He abruptly cuts Suishinshi off when he tries to ask him about Mikazuki, and later stares up at the plum blossom tree from noon until dusk as he remembers a conversation he and Mikazuki had about it in the past.
- In all of Tsurumaru's onscreen interactions thus far, he has a softer tone when speaking to Mikazuki than how he usually speaks to the other characters, even to the Saniwa, seemingly switching up his demeanor for Mikazuki alone.
- Mikazuki is one of the other characters Tsurumaru refers to as "kimi," while others are "omae" or referred to by name (only Ookurikara as "Kara-bou"). The only other character he refers to as "kimi" is the Saniwa himself.
- Michi no Oku, Hitotsu wa Chisu is a lot for both characters ship wise, to the point where it could be in part be described as "Mikatsuru have problems, both with each other and with their mental health" The Musical. It's especially heavy on Tsurumaru's end, as he acts a lot like Mikazuki's bitter ex-boyfriend and is extremely Tsundere about him.
- The play portrays Mikazuki and Tsurumaru as epitomes of "Nicoichi," a Japanese phrase that translates to "two become one" and describes a pair of individuals who are essentially inseparable to the point that one cannot exist without the other. They manifested at the same time, with Mikazuki being the first to leave the sword room, and as a result spent a lot of time together, developing their Dance Battler fighting styles together to the point where they're practically identical, and became so adept at anticipating and using each other's moves against them that they can fight together almost perfectly in unison.
- Mikazuki can be seen smiling warmly when Tsurumaru manifests after him. In the flashbacks, since his actor isn't physically present in these scenes, he also tenderly carries the crane feather as a symbol of Tsurumaru being with him during the early days of the citadel.
- During an early scene, Yamanbagiri Kunihiro witnesses Aterui and Tamuro sparring, and it takes him back to better memories of the citadel, when Mikazuki and Tsurumaru would hold hands and playfully spar together in the same manner—complete with Tsurumaru acting silly, clumsy, and the two giggling. The two are seen coldly turning away from one another as the scene closes, reflecting how distant their relationship is now. Before leaving, Tsurumaru gives Mikazuki one last miserably longing glance, and the scene changes to Mikazuki performing one of his solos.
- It's worth noting that despite this being a flashback from Yamanbagiri's perspective, neither Tsurumaru nor Mikazuki from the flashback acknowledge him, suggesting that they were too immersed in their special moment to notice him watching over them back then.
- Mikazuki and Tsurumaru share a main story duet in which Tsurumaru wistfully sings about Mikazuki's apparent sudden departure from the citadel without his knowledge and Mikazuki teases him in response. The lyrics are very shippy, as Tsurumaru describes Mikazuki as the moon sword who escaped his grasp, how he's a blade who reflects his heart and himself, and how he's torn about whether or not to pursue him. Meanwhile, Mikazuki teases him by telling him to come closer (a reference to a teasing line Mikazuki had in the browser game), despite actively dodging Tsurumaru's attempts to catch him in the choreography, and sings some of his lyrics back to him.
- As previously mentioned, Tsurumaru's current attitude toward Mikazuki is extremely tsundere following the fall out of their relationship, which began in Paraiso and peaked here. He no longer refers to him with the warm "kimi," instead using the ruder "teme," and he's also quite hostile toward him, beating up Suishinshi Masahide in order to force him into a physical confrontation to find out why Mikazuki left the citadel. Despite this, Tsurumaru's attitude throughout the play is more akin to someone lashing out after feeling abandoned by someone close to them than someone who has truly grown to despise their former friend, with him even sadly advising Suishinshi to snuggle up to Mikazuki until he gets tired of it because he "can't anymore," right before he attacks. The main story concludes with Tsurumaru hallucinating a happier memory(?) of him and Mikazuki drinking beneath the blossoming cherry blossom tree before Mikazuki vanishes again, showing that he still misses him, as further evidenced by his solemnly singing "Hana no Utena," Mikazuki's signature song, after the memory fades.
- Tsurumaru's Tsundere attitude toward Mikazuki is further highlighted in the ending theme song "Touken Ranbu". After Mikazuki touches his shoulder, he initially throws him off in annoyance, but it's followed up in a playful moment where they point at each other.
- It's more of a Ship Tease by proxy here, but Yamanbagiri Kunihiro seems like a Shipper on Deck to Mikazuki and Tsurumaru, because not only did he consider the memory of Tsurumaru and Mikazuki sparring together a signifier of happier times in the citadel, to the point where he sings mournfully about how those times have passed, but he also takes Tsurumaru's place as captain of the team in the play so that Tsurumaru can go and meet Mikazuki, as he knew Tsurumaru had wanted to from the start. Tsurumaru appears to understand this as well, given that he readily accepted Yamanbagiri's request to the Saniwa without challenging it, and when Yamanbagiri told him to go to Mikazuki without him having to explicitly state what he meant.
- In the second act, the two sing an upbeat duet titled "Kaze to Ageha". The song lyrics are more difficult to decipher because they are most likely metaphorical, but it can be assumed that Tsurumaru is the mischievous "Kaze/Wind" in this song because he frequently mentions wind in the lyrics of his solos, including the solo he received in this performance where he says he'll send a wind to surprise the subject of the song (who is also presumably Mikazuki based on the lyrics), and Mikazuki is the Ageha butterfly. The choreography is also somewhat shippy, further suggesting that the song is about the pair.
- Tsurumaru smiles and points at Mikazuki when he says "I finally met you."
- Love is mentioned in the lyrics, as Mikazuki sings about wanting to be loved, and Tsurumaru about wanting to love being the two sides of the same coin, and the pair sing about wanting love to bloom.
- Tsurumaru and the ensemble members bow down in front of Mikazuki as he begins to sing his first verse.
- Parts of the choreography vary depending on the performance, but the two can be seen high fiving, holding hands, spinning each other around, meeting their finger tips after pressing them to their lips, and so on. On the final day performance, the two hug.
- Doubles as Mikazuki/Suishinshi Hoyay. Tsurumaru and Suinshinshi sing in the song "Flame Dance" about two shadows being illuminated by the moon, which casts them in a blue light that is commonly associated with Mikazuki and is also seen in the main story. Needless to say, Mikazuki is currently the only sword in the musicals (and the Touken Ranbu series as a whole) associated with the moon, which reflects Tsurumaru and Suishinshi's roles in the main story, as two Touken Danshi associated with and influenced by Mikazuki Munechika. Tsurumaru even points at Mikazuki during one rendition of the choreography.
- In the later renditions of the Hyakken choreography, Mikazuki and Tsurumaru hold hands before they start singing.
- Michi no Oku has the two wearing matching tuxedos, with the only differences being color palette, accessories, the diamond pattern on Mikazuki's lapel, and the gold stripes down the sides of Mikazuki's pants.
- Along with having matching outfits, the acrylic stands for Mikazuki and Tsurumaru's live outfits are intended to be positioned together, which the official account demonstrates in this tweet
showing off the merch. The way they're posed would also allow the stands to be positioned back to back.
- The play portrays Mikazuki and Tsurumaru as epitomes of "Nicoichi," a Japanese phrase that translates to "two become one" and describes a pair of individuals who are essentially inseparable to the point that one cannot exist without the other. They manifested at the same time, with Mikazuki being the first to leave the sword room, and as a result spent a lot of time together, developing their Dance Battler fighting styles together to the point where they're practically identical, and became so adept at anticipating and using each other's moves against them that they can fight together almost perfectly in unison.
- Michi no Oku isn't the first time that Mikazuki and Tsurumaru were given matching Live outfits, as Tsurumaru's third layer from Paraiso is a visual rehash of Mikazuki's Sexy Backless Outfit from Tsuwamono Domo, with the only differences being the color palette, the placement of the crest (Mikazuki's is bottom left, Tsurumaru's is top right), part of the pants design, and obviously Tsurumaru's accessories, which were carried over from his original costume as always.
Mikazuki/Other
- There are some Hoyay elements to Mikazuki and Yasuhira's tragic friendship in Tsuwamono Domo:
- Mikazuki serenades Yasuhira as he offers him the lotus flower, which Yasuhira is too stunned to accept. We later learn that the two became friends over many, many different timelines while admiring the beauty of the lotus flowers together; Yasuhira simply cannot remember because it hadn’t happened for him yet.
- In their final conversation before Yasuhira departs to willingly sacrifice himself to save the future, he asks Mikazuki to promise to place a lotus flower, a symbol of their friendship and shared fate, on his grave. This scene contains a lot of held back tears, pained laughter, and pure pain, as they both understand the gravity of their responsibilities, as well as Yasuhira's realization that he will never see Mikazuki again. Mikazuki, on the other hand, says he will keep his promise, but he is aware that he will have to continue guiding Yasuhira and Yoritomo, two people he has grown to care about, to their deaths indefinitely.
- Kashuu and Mikazuki, in particular, received some tease during the Sanjou + Kashuu Kiyomitsu run of performances because they were co-leaders of sorts, often performing duets such as Utsukushii Higeki in concerts. As well, in every Sanjou + Kashuu performance of MISTAKE, Mikazuki feels Kashuu up, which Kashuu encourages by touching his hand and sending a flirty smile back at him.
- A minor example here, but it can’t be a coincidence that whenever Mikazuki Munechika is absent from a performance, both Kogitsunemaru and Tsurumaru Kuninaga, two characters he gets ship tease with, are always used to fill in for him during song numbers he would have performed in. Tsurumaru even steals one of Mikazuki’s iconic phrases during an audience greeting.
- While the two characters virtually have no relationship beyond knowing each other in the main story, Mikazuki Munechika and Hachisuka Koutetsu flirt with each other a lot in the second act of Michi no Oku, Hitotsu wa Chisu due to their actors being very good friends in real life, frequently holding hands during the dance portion of Hyakken Kenran or otherwise messing around in flirty, improv-y ways.
- Kashuu Kiyomitsu almost always makes a habit to hit or poke Mikazuki’s butt with his bachi (Taiko drum stick) during Michi no Oku’s flame dance segment.
Tsurumaru/Ookurikara
Shokudaikiri Mitsutada and Taikogane Sadamune are absent from this continuity (as of the time of writing), bringing the original quartet down to a duo and allowing Ookurikara and Tsurumaru to get the relationship development they don’t often get in other continuities despite being in a group together.
- Ookurikara's attitude toward Tsurumaru is more obviously Tsundere here than it is in any other continuity, where it usually seems like he doesn't like him at all and just puts up with him as a Dategumi group member. He cares about Tsurumaru and shows it by worrying about him and the amount of stress he puts on himself, giving Tsurumaru a shoulder to lean on, but keeping his distance just enough to not overtly be a support system for him. There is also a sense mutual understanding between the two, as demonstrated in Paraiso when Tsurumaru almost goes too far and Ookurikara catches him, admonishing him not to break. Tsurumaru sincerely thanks him and accepts his assistance.
- Ookurikara is the only member of team Paraiso who notices Tsurumaru forcing himself to play a villainous role and the stress it's causing him, and while he doesn't actively intervene, he does act as a quiet support system, giving him someone to lean on, which is exactly what Tsurumaru needs given his tendency to reject help any other time it's offered to him.
- As usual with Toumyu, the actors flirt around with each other in the Live segment of Paraiso.
- The Souki musical Shunpu Touri no Sakazuki tells the story of the pair's friendship as Touken Danshi, which began shortly after Ookurikara manifested in the citadel. They got off to a rocky start, with Tsurumaru beginning his "training" for Ookurikara by beating the shit out of him to demonstrate how tough he needs to be to succeed in the citadel. However, a few hours later, he begins digging a hole to personally plant Ookurikara's cherry blossom tree, a tradition established by the early citadel, demonstrating that he has no hard feelings.
- One of the major reasons Tsurumaru is so hard on Ookurikara in this play is not only because he wants Ookurikara to realize he needs to rely on others, but because he also wants Ookurikara to be someone who has his back, as disclosed in the solo.
- After spending most of the play being dismissive of Tsurumaru, Ookurikara shows he genuinely does care about him by going absolutely ballistic on the Historical Revisionists after Tsurumaru tricks him into believing they killed him, killing all of them in revenge before going to check on him. When Tsurumaru "revives" he gets upset and tries to punch him over the "joke."
Saniwa/Other
- Everyone is extremely attached to the Saniwa and is constantly seeking his approval. Yes, his. The Saniwa in this continuity is a man, which makes Hasebe's obsession with being considered his number one quite curious. Kashuu as well, although less so, since it seems more like he wants the approval of a father figure in his case. Maybe.
- Mikazuki in particular cares about the Saniwa so much that he became a tragic Time God to spare him the unpleasantness of dealing with the messier aspects of correcting history. As well, in Tsuwamono, Higekiri very nearly confesses Mikazuki’s feelings for the Saniwa on his behalf, saying, "To me, the Saniwa is…" but Mikazuki interrupts him before he can say anything more.
- Quite a few of the Touken Danshi's songs are love songs dedicated to the Saniwa. Whether they're meant to be for the Saniwa in the main citadel or the Saniwa audience is unclear.
- Kogitsunemaru’s affectionate loyalty to the Saniwa remains in this continuity, to the point where he’s even willing to kill Mikazuki because he believes he’s betraying him.
- In Shinken Ranbusai 2017, Kogitsunemaru gets mad at Mikazuki and the others for touching his hair and threatens to beat them up, claiming that the Saniwa is the only one allowed to touch his hair.
Other/Other
- Yamanbagiri is strongly attached to whoever the broken sword is, as he is still devastated by his death and even attempts to sacrifice himself at the end of Kousui to be with him in death. When he is saved from his sacrifice, he says they will have to wait a little longer, implying that he still intends to reunite with him eventually. As well, his solo song in the second half of the performance has affectionate and lonely lyrics that are strongly implied to be about the unidentified sword.
- Kogitsunemaru asking Kashuu if he wants to be princess carried.
- In this continuity, Tonbokiri and Sengo Muramasa—despite being "brothers"—get a lot of ship tease, to the extent that one might wonder if Muramasa is in love with Tonbokiri, and if Tonbokiri is gradually beginning to feel the same way throughout their appearances in the series. The production team has no issue pandering to the audience with this either, as they were among the few pairs chosen to get a Souki performance.
- Similarly to the Saniwa in the browser game, Akashi Kuniyuki oddly comments on how soft Kotegiri Gou's hands are. Tsurumaru then uses the same line against him after tricking Akashi into shaking hands with him.
- It appears that the Touken Danshi can't go more than a few songs without serenading, caressing, or being generally affectionate. Some of them even hold hands, regardless of their relationship in the main story, assuming they have one at all. This is particularly noticeable during duets. The chemistry between even characters who have never had any significant interactions with each other is incredibly.
- Kashuu has been flirted with and caressed by every Sanjou during the idol performances of Atsukashiyama Ibun. Hilariously, this would lead to the Sanjou fighting over him in Shinken Ranbusai 2016, which turned out to be a dream… that everyone remembers for some reason.
- Mikazuki/Hizamaru and Higekiri/Kogitsunemaru get extremely flirty with each other in the 2018 Shinken Ranbusai performance, with Kogitsunemaru and Higekiri holding each other's faces while looking dangerously close to kissing, while Mikazuki and Hizamaru sang face to face while making teasing motions at each other.
- "Timeline" was added to the song list for Shinken Ranbusai 2022, but it was performed by a variety of sword pairs depending on the performance, some of whom had never interacted before (on screen, anyway) or had no historical background with each other, adding to the pairings' diversity. This could also imply that the song isn't inherently romantic, as the lyrics aren't explicitly so either, but the choreography remained somewhat shippy, albeit changing slightly depending on the combination of characters:
- Among the pairs that have some basis:
- Ookanehira and Oodenta Mitsuyo’s performance created a foe yay shipping dynamic between the two, as Ookanehira canonically hates every Tenka Goken (save for Juzumaru) due to not being considered one of them.
- Horikawa Kunihiro and Yamanbagiri Kunihiro, as well as Nagasone Kotetsu and Hachisuka Kotetsu performed the song, with it being unclear whether it was supposed to be an example of the song being performed platonically or Incest Yay Shipping considering these pairs consider themselves to be brothers. Then again, the production does ship Sengo Muramasa and Tonbokiri, who are also brothers of a sort…
- Another variation has Horikawa Kunihiro perform the song with Izuminokami Kanesada, who he is all but explicitly stated to be romantically interested in.
- Tsurumaru Kuninaga and Buzen Gou, who were on the same team together in Paraiso.
- Kogitsunemaru and Imanotsurugi, who are both Sanjou school swords who grew close to one another as characters and performers throughout the musicals, also sing the song together on the last day of Shinken Ranbusai.
- The song was also sung by Tsurumaru Kuninaga and Suishinshi Masahide together, which may have had some justification given their interactions (symbolic and otherwise) during the concert and the introduction of Suishinshi into the main story about Mikazuki Munechika all the way back in Tokyo Kokoro Oboe—a story that Tsurumaru had long since been involved in as well. Even if the song is taken platonically, though, the lyrics aren't at all indicative of their relationship, which makes it odd, and borderline crack. Unless, of course, one were to read it as Tsurumaru substituting for Mikazuki, who the lyrics make more sense about from Suishinshi’s perspective, in his absence. Tsurumaru even sings Mikazuki's lines and assumes Mikazuki's position on stage, lending credence to the theory.
- Murakumo Gou and Suishinshi Masahide both interacted in Tokyo Kokoro Oboe and were assigned differing roles by Mikazuki Munechika.
- The other combinations make little sense, as they have neither interacted nor have a historical basis, leading to crack pair shipping central:
- Murakumo Gou and Ookanehira
- Matsui Gou and Hizen Tadahiro
- Akashi Kuniyuki and Buzen Gou
- Tonbokiri and Kuwana Gou
- Imanotsurugi and Minamoto Kiyomaro
- Yamatonokami Yasusada and Minamoto Kiyomaro
- Akashi Kuniyuki and Sohayanotsurugi
- Yamatonokami Yasusada and Urashima Koutetsu
- Hyuuga Masamune and Nansen Ichimonji
- Samidare Gou and Koryuu Kagemitsu
- Among the pairs that have some basis:
- In the 2022 Shinken Ranbusai performance, Tsurumaru and Imanotsurugi hold hands before Tsurumaru pulls him into his arms and strokes his face seductively. He also manages to sneak in a chest grope as Imanotsurugi pulls away. As it turns out, this is the choreo for every performance of the song, and the two affectionately caress each other every time.
- In Shinken Ranbusai 2018, Kogitsunemaru announces that the teams will wait for Tomoe's response on which region has the best festivals, specifically turning to Mikazuki for agreement, possibly because Mikazuki initiated the competition and requested Tomoe's response first. Mikazuki agrees and approaches him with a warm smile as Kogitsunemaru turns to face him, both grinning and chuckling at each other. The two can then be seen off to the side inaudibly discussing something while most of the rest of the team (save for Imanotsurugi and Iwatooshi, who are also discussing something off to the side) focus on talking to Tomoegata about his decision.
- The framing of for the story of Kotobuki Ranbu Ongyousai is the Mikazuki Munechika and Kogitsunemaru reminiscing on past sorties/musicals, and as a result, they appear in many songs together. They even duet in both of Kogitsunemaru's songs from Tsuwamono, which were originally solos.
- In the rare instance that you’re a Tsurumaru/Horikawa shipper, the two duet “Chronicle” together in Shinken Ranbusai 2022.
- Kotegiri and Matsui have shippy choreography for their duet “Parasite” where Matsui seductively rubs Kotegiri’s face.
