hestzhyen

[hestzhyen]

HakuHiro Brainrot Note

Hakuri and Chihiro have been separated for a long time in real-world time. Bummer. But here's a little bit of brain rot just because I can share it: scenes with Kunishige aren't the only ones getting recontextualised. This one from chapter 21 got added weight too:

We're always going back to that scene of Chihiro and Kunishige forging Enten together. Father and son working on making something to help the future. It's core to Chihiro and the series itself. And Hakuri was the one to remind Chihiro that all of that is rightly his.

They were in opposite circumstances since Hakuri wasn't allowed to inherit his family's future- then decided against it anyway. Hakuri also had no idea what Chihiro was going through and he probably wouldn't understand the magnitude of the forging memories. But he understands that Chihiro is the right one to see things through, just like he was with his own family's legacy. To do the right thing despite what others are imposing on him.

And again in chapter 25:

Chihiro was willing to give all that up to save Hakuri's life.

He was betting on the Kuro scouting gimmick to work out; Hakuri gave him confidence, but he was still gambling when he traded Enten away. Which means he was willing to accept the bad outcome of genuinely losing Enten as well.

He didn't know Hakuri was going to be captured and that he'd have to trade Enten away- he just did it in the moment and it gave him an opportunity to test things. Chihiro was willing to trade his father's hope for the future that was entrusted to him for Hakuri's life. No figuring out something else with Shiba, no retreating to save Hakuri later. He decided to give away something so incalculably precious for a boy that so many people considered worthless.

I'm going to sit with this and hold it in my hands and just be very normal about it all.

[hestzhyen]

Break, Please!

I'm trying so damn hard to read Harukaze Mound without comparing it to Oofuri but the authors of this new series are making it almost impossible.

A chronically underestimated pitcher who wasn't properly trained to find his own pitching form meets a quirky catcher who sees his potential and wants to use him to win Koushien. They both go to a totally unknown school with a team full of first-years and begin the journey of bonding not only as a battery, but as an underdog team. They probably won't make it their first year but that just gives them room to grow.

On their first day meeting everyone as a prospective team, the pitcher is unfairly written off by an experienced and confident batter. Said batter threatens to leave the team if they're going to have a wimp for a pitcher and is forced to change his tune when the catcher challenges him to a 3-at-bat that he loses. Because the catcher has an accurate read on their personalities and knows how to maximise the pitcher's arsenal of non-standard pitches to throw the batter off-balance.

Yeah.

And then there's this:

Does this shrimpy, underestimated pitcher's face remind you of another's?

COME. ON!

We've even got the passionate, slightly co-dependent/homoerotic bond forming between the battery already, with the catcher leading things along:

Top/bottom positions are already sorted out I guess.

[:fruitysus: emoji here]

The personalities of the characters involved and many of the circumstantial details are different, but the first two chapters of Harukaze Mound are nearly beat-for-beat with Oofuri's first chapter so far.

Is this the start of a new series that will try to replicate Oofuri's success with a tried-and-true banger of a start, or is it just an accident? Who knows. But it's really hard for me to not laugh at the chapters so far since I keep thinking of this as someone reading Oofuri and saying "hey this series is about 20 years old now, I bet we can copy their homework, change a few details, and no one will notice". Too bad for you but Oofuri lives rent-free in my head so I noticed! And here I am to call you out!

No shade to the authors, though. If this series can do well while aping Oofuri then I'll have two gaysball series to follow, and that's only a good thing. Especially since Oofuri is once again on hiatus for who knows how long (I'm coping... badly...).

I doubt Harukaze Mound will stay grounded (heh), though. We've already got wing imagery around the pitcher as he's throwing so it's probably going to be a hot-blooded shounen sports series. Perfectly fine by me! I can have two different delicious cakes if Harukaze keeps going on as it started. And avoid the axe. Gotta mind that guillotine hanging overhead since this is a WSJ series...

Anyway, hooray for gayseball and may the gayest team win.

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 83 (Belated) Father's Day Posting

Yes I know it was last week but this chapter was intended to release that day, so... let's get into it, dear void.

Editor's notes: First Page: 座村に斬られ一度死んだチヒロが目を覚まし... [Samura ni kira re ichido shinda Chihiro ga me wo samashi...] "Chihiro wakes up after being killed by Samura..." Last Page: 明かされる7本目の宿命その力を示す刻が来た- [akasa reru 7-pon-me no shukumei sono chikara wo shimesu toki ga kita-] "The destiny of the 7th blade has been revealed. Now is the time to show it's power..."

Kunishige's Intentions and IRL Effects

Tell, don't show is actually okay in some situations like this!

And so we get... Enten's backstory! Awesome! I gotta say, Chihiro literally sinking into his memories of forging Enten with his father was gorgeous. Absolute 10/10 imagery and a huge reason I love reading this manga.

So once again we see another through-line from the past to the future. And another contrast between Kunishige and Samura. Both of them had massive regrets about the war haunting them, both of them looked towards the future through their children- then Samura faltered and was manipulated into retreating into his own head. He abandoned Iori and adopted an extremely myopic view of what needed to be done. Meanwhile Kunishige never lost sight of the light Chihiro cast for him to follow. Therefore Samura's ready to destroy himself to amend the past while Chihiro was given the power to reshape the future that the previous generation directed the younger one towards. Once again, I love this manga. I love it so, so much when we're focusing on the core themes.

It's the difference between two viewpoints: atoning for the past and improving the future. Both of them can look extremely similar from the outside since they're rooted in prior events. But atonement doesn't always guarantee a better future while looking forward at least opens up the possibility.

I mean, think about it. Saying "sorry we did that, let me fall on my sword as penance" doesn't do anything to help the future really. Samura's hellbent on killing the other Bearers to set them free from the contract before killing himself alongside the Sword Master. But what will that accomplish? Even if Samura succeeds, all he'll accomplish is dying and eliminating one potential source of another Malediction. It does nothing to solve the Kamunabi's corruption and propaganda issue, the lingering resentments of those who didn't believe that propaganda, nor do a damn thing to stop the Hishaku. The societal issues will still be completely unaffected. The nukes will still be around and available to be used by anyone who gets their hands on them. The only "positive" outcome is that Samura will get the death he feels he deserves.

Meanwhile, Kunishige tried to save the future by creating a sword that can undo all his other works. He made the ultimate nuclear disarmament tool by working with Chihiro! Sounds a hell of a lot better, doesn't it?

The implications of this are so, so clear: Samura, as the older generation who refused to involve the younger one, is doing what he thinks is best and telling the kids to sit down and shut up. He's going to do things his way and they can pick up the pieces once he's done. But Kunishige wanted to show Chihiro how to manage everything from the start. They worked together: Kunishige teaching Chihiro, Chihiro inspiring and guiding Kunishige. They made Enten together in order to secure a safer future. And doesn't that second scenario sound like a much better foundation than the prior one?

I feel like this is the author's voice coming through loud and clear: hey, adults, let us help you. Involve us. You don't have to carry that burden of what you did alone to try and spare us. We can handle it. And we need to know so we can actually make things better.

Remember, Hokazono's only 24 years old. And Japan's got some really touchy discussions over what and how much to teach the kids about what the country did during WWII going on. Even if it's not a direct or fully conscious thematic inclusion, it's still very much present this arc through Samura and Kunishige. And the author seems to be on the side of "stop only telling us what to do and involve us in the process". Very admirable and reasonable.

Disarmament is the way!

At any rate, all signs are now pointing towards Chihiro's mission being to break the blades. That's what he inherited from Kunishige; even if the sword wasn't especially forged for him to use, it's in his hands now and he's committed to taking it on. He'll pick up where his dad left off and see his vision through. The only necessary deaths are those of the blades... and the Hishaku.

The wrinkle of the Hishaku's exact role in all of this will probably complicate things for Chihiro's vengeance journey. Well, not "probably", but "definitely". It doesn't really affect what he's going to do with the blades though. It's clear that the best course for the future is to disarm the nukes and make sure they can't fall into the wrong hands again like what happened with Sojo. I'm incredibly glad that this is where the narrative went! I feel like the theme of undoing the wrongs of the past by directly addressing the root cause/issues instead of performative actions is the best possible way to look at this situation, both in fiction and IRL.

The nukes/swords aren't beings with agency that can act on their own for a particular cause. They can theoretically be stored away in safekeeping as some kind of implied threat to prevent another large-scale conflict. But as Kagurabachi makes clear -as the author is arguing- their mere presence is also an incentive for people to attain that power for their own ends. The "good guy with a gun to stop a bad guy with a gun" mindset breaks down when we're talking about weaponry that can cause mass deaths with ease. You don't stop nukes with more nukes. You can only get rid of them entirely.

I love it when Chihiro looks like the kid he really is.

Then why the hell are we cheering for Chihiro? Isn't he just a "good guy with a gun"? Yeah. But he's kind of the only true good guy with good reason to act in this situation. It's his own dad's legacy that he's trying to deal with AND he's trying to get rid of them, not just manage them. If he was trying to do the same thing Kunishige did at the start -only give them to skilled people he trusted- then it wouldn't be very clear if he was the right person for the job. But ever since the Sojo fight it's been obvious that Chihiro's got to be the one to do it. He was given the tool to dismantle the otherwise indestructible weapons, has the moral and familial imperative to do it, and clearly believes in carrying on his dad's wish to destroy them.

This will undoubtedly set him at odds with the Kamunabi down the path. Like any government, some of the the Kamunabi higher-ups will most likely want to keep them on-hand as that unspoken deterrent. Why destroy something that saved the nation once? That power could be needed again! Can't wait to see what happens with them after this arc... it also heavily depends on what Hakuri manages to do with the Shinuchi and what happens to him after. There's so much to look forward to once we're done with this fight!

The Fight, Though?

Okay that was a lot of yap. But what will happen to Samura? Poor misguided and insanely stubborn Samura, who just wants to do what he thinks is best for everyone?

Chancla to the face for not respecting one's elders.

For one, it's obvious by now that Chihiro won't be killing him. He's not some evil guy that needs to be put down like Sojo or Kyora. So what will happen? Well, the good outcome will probably be along the lines of Chihiro breaking Tobimune -proving his will is stronger than Samura's grief- then Iori talking to Samura and getting him to stand down.

After that, though... well, the pinky ring to signify the pact made between Samura and Yura was shown to us in chapter 59 for a reason. I have no doubt that if Samura must die then that will be what does him in. It would also be great motivation to keep Iori around and involved with Chihiro's quest. I don't know if I can handle Chihiro having to watch someone else get orphaned in almost the same way he was though.

Past vs. Future

As for the immediate circumstances, I'm pretty sure this fight with Samura won't go on too much longer. Chihiro's resolve is set and Samura's hand is starting to shake; he's feeling it now, Mr. Krabs. All those stunts he pulled off earlier are probably catching up with him- not looking so great for Mr. I Must Die Alone For Someone Else's Sins. Sorry Samura, but you ain't Jesus. You're just a mentally tortured war veteran, father, and widower.

First stop: breaking Tobimune, probably.

I also want to say something about Chihiro's resolve here. Again the official TL isn't bad by any means, but the formal tone of it didn't carry over very well.

この淵天を以って…俺 が真打を折る [kono enten wo motte... ore ga shinuchi wo oru] "I vow... to break the Shinuchi with the Enten." or something along those lines. Chihiro's not just making a statement here- he's making something of a solemn vow.

What About the Other Blades?

*Depending on where it is and who has it after this fight

Well, we can probably assume that Chihiro will try to break them as well since Kunishige explicitly wanted to destroy all of them after the war. How Chihiro manages to do that will be what keeps the story moving forward though.

As we know, the Hishaku are in possession of the two unknown blades still- and Kuguri's definitely got his eyes set on the Sushi bearer's. Meanwhile Hiruhiko's bonded to Kumeyuri but it's currently with Ro, who is allied to Samura and the Kamunabi. So Chihiro can ignore the other swords and make a beeline for the Sword Master once he's done with his business here at the hotel. It won't be so simple though- it never is when there's a set number of objects to seek out and destroy.

I have a feeling that there won't be much of a victory for Team Goldfish here.

Ch. 72

Chihiro's probably not going to want to kill the two Bearers still bound to the blade, so they will have to have their Eternal Contracts broken somehow before the Sword Master is dealt with. That means seeking them out and killing them or "killing" them with Tobimune's Suzaku ability. But if Tobimune breaks or Samura is killed, then that ability vanishes. Remember, Suzaku is Samura's True Realm ability- that's Tobimune responding to his strong desires. It won't necessarily work the same for someone else. So even if Iori or someone else is able to bond to the blade, they may not be able to use Suzaku.

Then there's the tidbit that the Eternal Contract itself needs the Sword Master to be alive, else the other bearers will die. This may well apply to Chihiro too.

Also ch. 72

Either Kunishige spent 15 years making a blade with a life-death contract independent of the Shinuchi, or he used the same binding technique and took his time on intentionally imbuing the blade with the ability to break the others. Maybe both, depends on Kunishige's idea about who would wield it and other intentions while he and Chihiro were making it. But for now, it's fair to assume that Chihiro could also be affected by the bond to the Shinuchi- and that's one of the big reasons why Samura went out of his way to kill him.

So the goal now must be to break the Shinuchi first. There's no other easy option to go for: killing and reviving the other Bearers is much less practical, especially when the Hishaku are waiting for exactly that to happen so they can have their own members bond to the other blades in their possession. That's a terrible outcome (and another very good reason to stop Samura). If Chihiro breaks Tobimune in this fight -which seems incredibly likely- then they really will have no other option.

This means that Hakuri and Uruha's situation is absolutely vital and likely won't result in something good for our protagonists. Hakuri's on his way to isolate the Shinuchi by putting it in his Storehouse... but whether he succeeds or fails will still be fine for the Hishaku. If he succeeds, he's now a primary capture/torture target that Chihiro will likely have to rescue. If he fails, then the Hishaku have the blade and will either kill The Sword Master or hand it to him- both very good ways of triggering another Malediction.

Basically, all signs are pointing towards Magatsumi remaining out of Chihiro's reach for the forseeable future. It's his goal to chase while dealing with other issues along the way in service of it.

As for Kumeyuri, I don't think it's getting broken here. Instead I think it will somehow end up back in the Hishaku's hands so Hiruhiko can train with it properly once he picks himself up. Hopefully without the Masumi making an exit from the story... please, let them live. It along with the other two blades will still have more time to shine before they're taken out and collected by Chihiro like Kuregumo was.

Okay. Sit tight and don't get too impatient. Try not to, at least. We're definitely coming up on the climax of this arc! See you next week, dear void.

[hestzhyen]

How Much More?

I just... man. Hakuri...

Despite the Rakuzaichi arc having finished a while ago now, we are still revisiting aspects of Hakuri's life with his family. But we the audience are the only ones privy to the information presented- none of the other characters are aware. And Hakuri doesn't seem inclined to share how bad he's had it. It's like a very slowly unfolding horror story that you thought was over but it just keeps going when you least expect it...

Let's look at the direct vs. indirect information about his abusive past provided since he was introduced:

Ch. 19

Hakuri lost his pet preying mantis (a metaphor for luck/courage) about five years ago

Hakuri also lost his entire family around the same time (indication of tragic backstory most likely)

Nonchalant about his bloody nose

Ch. 20

He was too weak and got in the way, so he was disowned (indicates a family that equates usefulness to worthiness)

Once again unflinching despite being in immense pain

Ch. 23

His hand trembles when he mentions that his older brothers are strong and scary

He says his family will kill him on sight (turns out to be a red herring)

He's very concerned with being useful in any way he can, even if it's just running errands

He looks frightened when he encounters his older brother

Ch. 24

Flashes back to being physically abused multiple times before attempting suicide (immediate response trigger, would rather die than go back)

Truly believes that the family wants him dead for "ruining merchandise"

Directly states that Soya expresses affection through punching and kicking him (doesn't deny the abuse as a valid expression of sincere love)

Soya is unfamiliar with Hakuri defying him

Hakuri tries to protect Hinao and gets punched down to the ground for his efforts (Soya will continue to abuse Hakuri if he's allowed to)

Soya is obsessed with getting Hakuri back and doesn't seem to consider Hakuri's refusals to do so something he's capable of making a rational, informed decision of himself

Ch. 25

Kyora summons Hakuri back and immediately puts a sword at his throat to use him as a hostage (clearly not important to his father)

Calls Hakuri a pathetic wretch, completely worthless, and a hindrance while stepping on him (emotional and physical abuse)

Appears prepared to kill him

He's extremely upset and apologetic afterwards, fully blaming himself

Kyora states that Hakuri has finally been useful for the first time ever

Ch. 26

Hakuri's usual exuberance is gone and he's much more subdued

His father's words about his uselessness and worthlessness are echoing in his head while he continues to blame himself and apologise for being a burden

Chihiro is able to cheer him up by telling him he was useful after all by telling him what he needed to hear, and can keep being useful by providing information

Ch. 30

Tenri calls Hakuri a useless coward

Rejects Soya's joy at seeing him again; Soya once again believes Hakuri's refusals are due to other people manipulating him; implies Hakuri never had much agency, if any at all

Extremely negative self-talk when trying to figure out how to handle an unexpected situation

Ch. 32

Gets kicked around and demeaned by Soya and acknowledges that he is weak (this is nothing new for him, especially with it being framed as Soya trying to put him back in his place)

Hakuri is able to remain calm and think clearly while he's being hit and kicked

Still doesn't reject Soya's abuse as a form of love; only rejects the mischaracterisation of Chihiro

Being abused helped him become sturdy enough to survive Hiyuki's punch to the face

Ch. 33

Tenri considers Hakuri to be stupid

Also remarks that their family would be disgraced as a whole if word of Hakuri's lack of ability got out

Ch. 34

Kyora confronts Hakuri's sadness over his grandfather's death with blunt truth, showing a distinct lack of compassion

Hakuri was intended to possibly receive the storehouse power when Kyora died

Was manipulated into saying he loved his father (emotional abuse in the name of continuing tradition; Kyora even uses "ai" to drive home how farcical the bonds of love he claims they have are)

Admitted he wanted his father's praise and was only able to snap out of it because someone "set him on the right path"

Ch. 35

Admits that Soya uses tools like pliers on him to "bully" him instead

Also drops that Soya usually goes back to beating him up the "normal way" once the tools are lost

Blames the abuse he receives for himself being weak and useless, is desperate to be useful

Won't talk about the abuse when it's worse than usual, just clams up instead

Realises his own mindset and how he treated her directly led to her killing herself in front of him

Ch. 36

Tools come back, peeler even appears to possibly have dried blood on it

Hakuri's storehouse also has a log, metal pipes, pliers, sticks, a wrench, rope, and a chair in it Jesus fucking Christ

Kyora once again refers to Hakuri as a failure, Soya agrees

Hakuri acknowledges Soya's treatment of him as "love", albeit bitterly

And that's it for a long time. Hakuri still wants his father's love even at the very end, and he's still desperate to be useful (while also being surprised when people consider him as such); his abysmal self-esteem and twin core motivations to sacrifice himself to see things through are still major problems for him. He has a complicated situation to work through but there's some hope- especially now that he's back on his feet in the most recent chapters. Likely re-traumatised and with some diminished power, but managing to keep his agency intact. Uruha even came back!

Except...

Ch. 80

Hakuri was abused for ten years, not just the five after Kyora gave up on him

There are multiple ways to interpret Hakuri's knuckle covering that bolded "love"- maybe he's aware it isn't actual love now, maybe he's trying to avoid thinking about it. It's up to interpretation until we get a direct statement. But the point is that we are still learning that his life of tragedies and abuses is still somehow worse than we knew.

So now I'm wondering what the hell else there is to know. Will he have more issues to explore with his dead mom? Will we see more details about how often and in what ways Soya tortured him? Will we see him being neglected and forced to scrounge for food scraps and clothes like so many fans headcanon? I kind of don't want to find out!

This is all for a point though, I believe. We are getting details like this to remind us that Hakuri doesn't fucking talk about his own trauma.

He's not yet at the point where he even acknowledges that he had what most people could consider a very hard time of things. He can't acknowledge his own circumstances yet. So until that point, we will probably keep learning things at random until there's a tipping point of some kind. I hope it's a positive way like he's safe enough to talk about it all with someone to start healing. But it could also manifest as a "last bad memory that breaks him and it all comes spilling out" kind of way too.

No matter what happens, though, I think we have to brace ourselves for more random "what the fucking fuck Hakuri you poor guy" moments until he's ready to confront it all. Until he admits that he not only actually had a shit life, but that he didn't deserve any of it.

Suffering = character development not holding up in this scene. It's just pure suffering at this point. Why?

This is basically just a more condensed version of that essay I wrote back in October I guess. But I can't stop thinking about how there's still more to learn about how Hakuri suffered if this came up so long after his intro arc ended. Why are we still getting this kind of information when we don't need to feel bad for him any more? His main abusers are dead and he chose to follow Chihiro in order to help accomplish his own goals. Shouldn't we be progressing to part of his arc where he starts to heal?

But we aren't. We're seeing him be more self-destructive than ever while staying fixated on making sure he's as useful as possible. We're still learning details of how he was abused. It's not to endear him to us at this point- I don't think it's even possible for me to be any more attached to him. So there has to be some other meaning behind it.

That's why I'm beating on the “Hakuri has to face his abuse for what it really was” drum. I can't see any other reason from a narrative sense. Hakuri's arc started with the slow drip of information being shown to us and barely any being told to other characters in-universe. Chihiro and Shiba probably don't know about the torture, or how long it went on for, or Ice Lady. He doesn't talk about it. He only thinks about it when intrusive memories come up or he needs to explain something. That literal metaphor of the the torture tools he keeps in his storehouse, a space only he can access and knows about what's inside.

Most importantly, Hakuri himself hasn't directly acknowledged that he was being abused in the first place.

He's only ever called it love and expressed understandably complicated feelings for his dad in particular. The only hint we have that he might be reconsidering his treatment as "love" is that ambiguous panel of him partially covering the word in chapter 80. This, to me, says that Hakuri's character arc won't really be on an upswing until he acknowledges his past for what it was. And until that point we are going to keep getting reminded that he's not willing to do so via these random details cropping up.

I'm extremely invested in where he goes and how it's handled and... please, don't pull another Hiruhiko. I sincerely hope Hakuri's situation is dealt with the care and respect it deserves as the story goes on. And if I'm wrong and giving the author too much credit and he's actually fine now that Uruha's alive after all? I'll close up shop and never write another post for Kagurabachi again out of shame I guess.

Anyway I don't know how to end things so, uh. Give yourself a sincere compliment and be proud of how far you've come. You're worth all the effort it takes to live.

[hestzhyen]

I got tagged but I'm not gonna tag anyone because anxiety and yeah.

Favorite Color: Grey-blue

Last Song: Odd Dancer by GLIM SPANKY

Currently Reading: Enough series that I track them in a spreadsheet.

Currently Watching: The T1 vs KT Bo5 from earlier today

Craving: Welsh rarebit. It's been so long...

Coffee or Tea: Tea

[hestzhyen]

Round Robin Success

https://archiveofourown.org/works/66524629/chapters/171579730

I had the awesome opportunity to collaborate with 10(!!!) other amazing authors like @eephemeris, @mothboypoison, @simbay, @everblueocean, and @alonelystargazer to write a round robin story for Kagurabachi. Unfortunately I also had no self-control so I led things off with the 8,630 word first chapter that's available right now. The rest of the fic will be published soon. It's complete, just waiting on everyone to get the credit stuff sorted before the rest is posted.

I wrote this back in April so I didn't get to use Azami's full name, but the AO3 tag for him still hasn't been updated anyway so I guess that's fine. The other authors after me did an amazing job following up on the nonsense I handed them so please check it out!

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 82 Midair Chancla Posting

A perspective switch or two and some much appreciated information- let's dive in, dear void.

Editor's notes: First Page: 生きていた漆羽。場面変わって京都殺戮ホテル。チヒロも何やら感づいているようで...？！[ikite ita Uruha. bamen kawatte Kyouto satsuriku hoteru. Chihiro mo naniyara kandzuite iru youde...?!] "Uruha was alive. The scene shifts to the Kyoto Massacre Hotel. It seems Chihiro has figured something out as well...?!" Last Page: 二振の妖刀がぶつかる！！[futafuri no youtou butsukaru!!] "The two Enchanted Blades clash!!"

Uruha, Revived

Hoo boy, that flashback and info dump.

Missing scene restored?

It feels a little cheap that we couldn't have this line of dialogue be known until now. We were watching this from Hakuri's PoV in Chapter 58; he was in really rough shape but he wasn't fading in and out until he summoned Chihiro and completely did himself in. So it was just withheld from us to be revealed here- lame. Writing this as "you'll die as a hero" in the original scene would have been really cool foreshadowing to gnaw on with new context given this chapter. Alas.

But yeah. The theory of Samura only wanting to kill the Bearers in order to sever their bonds to the blades and spare them from true death? 100% real and factual as of this chapter. More on that later.

For now, what did we learn about Uruha?

One, he's got some really REALLY intense feelings about Samura.

His north star, perhaps?

Uruha actually cares a huge amount that he's the only one who stood a chance of keeping up with Samura. Out of all the people Samura taught, Uruha was the only one who could master the Iai White Purity style. It sounds like he chased that distinction quite desperately too. Uruha backstory soon, please? I want to know what Samura is to him and why he clings to being the only one who could stand by his mentor's side. Very glad we have a chance to get these answers now that he's back in action.

Second, Uruha's quite even-headed despite his silly appearance.

Hakuri parallels go brrrr

Whereas Samura and Chihiro let passion fuel their decisions, Uruha's like Hakuri- he's got a more logical mind that he uses to assess the situation and determine what he should do. Neither of them are cold logician types in the slightest! We definitely won't see them do that stereotypical glasses adjustment pose. They just don't let their hearts steer their actions in the moment nearly as much. Their motivations are just as emotional as their counterparts and they wear their hearts on their sleeves for the most part, especially compared to Chihiro and Samura. They just invert differently under pressure.

Uruha in particular is the direct opposite of Samura in this regard. Samura's drowning in guilt, fear, and other assorted misery- it informs everything he's done since he pushed Iori away to live with her aunt. But despite suffering a heavy loss, literally dying, and having extremely strong feelings about Samura trying to do things on his own, Uruha does what's logically best in the moment. He refused to take Hiruhiko's "bait" at the station despite clearly cherishing the people who protected him. He doesn't try to reach Samura but leaves it to Chihiro and the Masumi. Instead, he puts himself in play to defend the Kamunabi HQ and Hakuri. He might even suspect that there's a traitor in the ranks and tells the doctors to keep his revival a secret. Being an X factor in this fight could be what turns the tides!

Before moving on though, a translation detour...

Hooray for Pride Month

Camellia is a FushiUru shipper for real. The original in Japanese didn't say "he", it was left up to interpretation on who gave Uruha that chance to live. Other languages like Spanish specify "they", staying close to how it was translated in chapter 58. Because Uruha's line in this scene was identical between chapters 58 and 82:

58 ...だが 俺はもう過ごし... 生かされた...！！だから 死めわけにいかない

[...daga ore wa mou sugoshi... ikasa reta...!! dakara shime wakeni ikanai]

"...But ...Those people died for me!! I can't just... ...throw my life away! " (Official EN)

82 ...だが 俺はもう過ごし... 生かされた だから... 死めわけにいかない

[...daga ore wa mou sugoshi... ikasa reta. dakara... shime wakeni ikanai.]

"He allowed me to live... just a little bit longer. That's why... I can't throw this gift away." (Official EN)

"...But those people died for me.... I can't just... throw my life away!" (Original EN TL)

What's going on? Not the first time she did this either:

Chapter 47

Here Fushimi's saying "we" will protect Uruha [俺ら, orera] in the second panel, but the official EN translated it as "I". Congratulations to FushiUru shippers; I suspect you have an agent working for you at VIZ.

Chihiro vs. Samura

He's so fucking tired, man.

Well. This fight started off slow then suddenly kicked into high gear.

At least Chihiro realised that Uruha's alive- hopefully that'll bolster him a bit. He's really got his work cut out for him to get through Samura's dense cloud of despair.

As could be expected, his attempt to Talk no Jutsu Samura into sense didn't work out and now they have to fight with their magic nuke swords instead. At least you tried, Chihiro. And you're right that you're extremely similar to Samura. He's just marinated in guilt for longer than you've been alive and no words will sway him. He's basically the bad end for you if you hadn't accepted help from Hakuri and the Masumi. Samura doesn't want you to be like him and he's absolutely correct in feeling that way!

I actually got a bit irritated with Samura this chapter. He's not doing anything differently, but the way he's acting reminds me a bit of a parent that thinks they know better. You've got people who want to help you, man! We know exactly why he is the way he is -those flashback chapters were brutally clear about it- but I can't help wanting to grab him by the collar and shake him a little bit. He's irrationally stubborn and it's an extremely well-written major fault of his. So, they have to fight it out.

Speed and power so intense even the sound effects are shaken.

I wonder how this will turn out in terms of progressing Chihiro's character. Chihiro doesn't care if he goes to hell. Samura doesn't want him to. Will he keep descending after this arc even after his win (because yeah he's gonna win), or has he stabilised a bit with the help of the Masumi and wanting to get stronger for Hakuri's sake? I guess it depends on how everything plays out. The only thing that's sure to happen is that Iori will come back for the climax as the only person who can get an emotional response out of Samura. She's absolutely going to be the key to getting him to stand down. I guess we will get some kind of mid-air battle until then? Cool stuff, can't wait to see some action reminiscent of the Sojo fight.

Chihiro fighting to save Samura and prove there's a different way to do things, Samura fighting to put Chihiro in his place and spare him from death and pain. The younger generation vs. the older one. Getting by with the help of friends vs. feeling the need to be isolated. Classic shounen, with a uniquely Kagurabachi twist!

A Neat Thing

Hello again, Mr. Pine

I just want to appreciate this bit of writing.

The pine seed bomb implants were a very cool and natural way to help us understand what Samura was doing with Suzaku. Hokazono-sensei set Hakuri up for more trauma to naturally explain the revival mechanic, but it didn't feel forced at all. In isolation those suicidal seed bombs work perfectly fine as a real, credible threat thanks to the elevator scene. And then they're conveniently present when we need to explain Suzaku.

All of this works because of the careful construction of the scenario and the Hishaku.

It's believable that the Hishaku have blackmailed about 50 Kamunabi employee's families because we've seen them use similar dastardly moves with the Sazanamis and Samura. We were sold on them being thorough planners that don't act without a ton of back-up options to secure victory at any cost they think is reasonable. Manipulating Samura, giving the datenseki to and unsealing the Magatsumi for Kyora, letting Hiruhiko lead the Sanso raids- Yura has never once given us reason to doubt that he's ten steps ahead of everyone around him. So of course they have insiders to get them info. Of course they have hostages.

The second key is the theme of family and how important it is. Much of the story revolves around Chihiro's family being shattered and what it did to him. Hakuri's family, the Samura family, Char and her mom, even Mr. Inazuma and his sister are different iterations on the theme of how precious those bonds are and what the loss of them can do to a person. So having those seed bombers be acting out of love for their own families is a cruel twist on the theme. Where Chihiro and his crew strive to preserve familial bonds, the Hishaku co-opt them and use them to cause vast destruction. That's how you really know they're the villains.

Maintaining tight focus like this is one of the reasons I love Kagurabachi so much. Instead of saying a little about a lot of topics, this series revolves around a small core and goes very in-depth on it. It's not perfect but it's damn good and refreshing to see after sprawling series like BnHA and ones that lose the plot later on like JJK. I hope this can remain true for the rest of Kagurabachi's run.

Okay. Now we wait for answers. How're Iori and Ikura holding up? How are Samura's chancla staying on his feet in mid-air? Will we ever get back to Azami and his private rock concert? I'll see you next week hopefully with something to say, dear void.

[hestzhyen]

Fun Announcement; This Friday join me and Mr. Riku David Gallagher for Summer Games Fest!

I know this is my art blog but it's also where I typically post stream links, so forgive me BUT!!!! I was very kindly invited to Co-stream with him so pls join us Friday around 1pm PST for the Niku - Riku Power Hour!!! 💪💪

[hestzhyen]

It's almost comedic how Hakuri is constantly going on about how he needs to be useful to prove his worth while everyone around him is constantly telling him that he's literally the most important person in the world

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 81 Mistrust Posting

Hello, dear void! LET'S! GO! ☆*: .｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

Big spoiler this week in the editor's notes so the post is continued under the cut!

Editor's notes: First Page: 神奈備職員が"松"の妖術で爆散！！[Kamunabi shokuin ga "matsu" no youjutsu de bakusan!!] "Kamunabi employees are exploding due to the 'pine tree' sorcery!!" Last Page: 死んだハズの漆羽！一体ナゼ？！[shinda hazu no Uruha! ittai naze?!] "Uruha was supposed to be dead! What the heck?!"

Hakuri, Alone

Poor guy...

He hypes himself up but he's so shaky. My poor little guy who's been through so much but keeps trying his best. Hakuri, I love you. He's not in a great mental state but he keeps going.

It's really obvious now how out of his element he is- he's not used to any of this except the beat-downs and not being able to trust people. How to fight, how to keep himself stable when everything's riding on him, having people sacrifice themselves for him... he can keep going, and he will, but man he really could use an ally right now. Especially since his sorcery is seriously limited after he overexerted himself. Only two Isou blasts and he's out.

I'm glad we have his PoV and that he's the fourth thing the Kamunabi needs to protect at all costs. He's important! Hopefully he'll start to learn to see himself that way without more people needing to die for him.

Why is he the fourth thing? Well, because of the framing.

Note the Sword Master being chained to a spike like a dangerous wild animal...

Izaru (a name at last!) here's listing off the most critical things the Kamunabi needs to protect. The first three are expected: you need security to protect the other two, which we know by now are absolutely essential to keep out of the Hishaku's hands. The fourth? Well, it's the guy sprinting in the next panel whose sorcery is essential to thwarting the Hishaku by isolating the second critical item.

Speaking of names, though...

ManBearPig and Mr. Many Islands

He's Mutton Chops no more. Hello, Izaru (亥猿)! 亥 [i] is the kanji for the Boar from the Chinese Zodiac, and 猿 [zaru] is... the character for monkey. Or an insult for a sly person/hick. Hmm. He's definitely not a traitor still in my mind, since he's the guy with the most obvious faith in the institution. He's like an old bureaucrat who believes in the mission and the power it gives him. I'll leave the interpretation of his name up to anyone who happens to read this.

Izaru's kind of an asshole but he's an asshole who knows his shit and gets stuff done. I feel like he's going to be a thorn in Team Goldfish's side but not because he's evil, he's just got his own ideals. Looking forward to seeing more of him.

Right through the heart, damn.

As for Kashima (加島), his name's pretty generic. 加 [ka]: add, augment, increase and 島 [shima]: island. I sincerely doubt this links him to the small island country that got nuked by the Sword Master; it's just a common last name. He was a good guy though so rest in peace. Another person to add to Hakuri's trauma pile of decent folks who have died via a slash to the neck (at least this time it wasn't a suicide). Can we stop killing people in front of Hakuri? Please?

I do wonder how he's going to make it out of this. He really needs a strong friend to help protect and reassure him, but he's alone. Anyone could be an enemy- willingly or not. Chihiro's busy in Kyoto and can't be summoned right now, Azami's busy, Kudou's dead, Izaru's commanding things from the barrier room, the rest of the leaders are MIA. Who can help him reach the Shinuchi safely?

Well.

It's been teased for months over dozens of chapters since he was killed. His status was in doubt: Shiba couldn't find information, Chihiro outright refused to believe it, even the Masumi were unsure. Samura was revealed to have the power to heal on top of being a tortured soul that just wants to save people. The mysteries of how the bond to an Enchanted Blade affects the bearer over a long period of time are still unknown. And so, at long last:

HE'S BACK, Y'ALL

Cry for both of us, Hakuri!

WELCOME BACK, URUHA! I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU! Seriously, the platonic duo of Hakuri and Uruha was one of my favourites and I hope we get to see a ton of them from here on.

The theory of Samura wanting to break the other Bearer's bonds to their blades through death then killing the Sword Master has increased validity now, in my opinion. It was stated that Suzaku can't actually reverse death -and Chihiro and Uruha were both confirmed dead- but it was also noted that Samura has gotten insanely strong since the war ended 18 years ago. He might be able to do it now. Kill his former comrades-in-arms to spare them from all going down when he kills the Master, except himself. He's got all that damn guilt... Chihiro, I hope you can snap Samura out of his grief before Iori becomes the newest orphan in the series.

Check out Uruha's outfit though! It's got elements reminiscent of the Steam Squad's uniforms- especially Fushimi's- added to it!

It's him, it's really him!

The new buckles on the collar are like Fushimi's (which he left undone), plus the pants and footwear are more similar to the squad's now. Congratulations, FushiUru shippers. Not only did Uruha come back but he got a wardrobe update that plausibly calls back to his dead (boy)friend.

It's a bit obvious after all the emphasis this chapter on how alone Hakuri is, but it's still nice to see the callbacks so we know this Uruha is the real deal. Even if someone else was able to replicate that bonkers sword style, only the real Uruha would know about the "centipede" moment on the train. So there's zero doubts and Hakuri has a strong ally to help him get to the Shinuchi! I'm not worrying about why Hakuri's being used as bait to lure out the core forces, nor what will happen to him if he successfully puts the Shinuchi into his storehouse, or what his deep desire to be useful will lead him to do. I'm just elated that he's got Uruha at his side. I will take a week of joy before we start to slide back down into anxiety.

I said in my chapter 47 and 48 yapfests that Uruha was the one set up to help Hakuri realise his own worth so now I can't wait to see how it happens. Uruha backstory, please? Scenes of the older silly guy teaching the younger silly guy? Honestly I just want to see them interact! Hakuri's total lack of self-awareness and both of their ridiculous behaviour tendencies are something I need a lot more of in my life.

I deeply wish to know exactly what happened with Uruha so if we cut back to Chihiro or Azami next chapter I'll be in mild distress. Not a lot since I love both of those characters and want updates on them too, but some.

Traitors

Pretty sure this is the girl and the blond guy were in the group panel shown last chapter.

Not really a surprise that there are members of the Kamunabi who are willing to betray their allies. The Hishaku are quite persuasive and I know the Kamunabi's got skeletons in their closet even if we don't know their exact shape yet. We still don't know which of the four who helped Kunishige hide leaked information yet, though. We need to know who the people in this top panel report to, I think, to get the full picture:

Which of you will become a foe?

I wonder where Hagiwara's loyalties lie now. Obliterating the Hishaku? Doing whatever it takes to stop the usage of Enchanted Blades? And hey, uh, where's Kazane in all this?

There's more than just two people out there killing their former allies, with a quota per team, per area too. So this was meticulously planned by someone with authority most likely. The traitor subplot is unfolding at just the right pace to keep me interested without feeling drug out or rushed. New details are revealed when they're needed and not too much or too little at once- the structure of this one is much, much better than the Hotel. I think we're on the up and up for the rest of this arc since the Hiruhiko sideshow is definitively over for now.

Some Accounting

Completely unrelated, Hakuri's just super cute.

Alright. Just for my own tracking:

KYOTO Chihiro vs. Samura set up at the hotel; Enten and Tobimune in use, Kumeyuri present but still bonded to Hiruhiko Iori, Ikura, all three Masumi on the hotel roof Hiruhiko, Toto, Kuguri on the retreat somewhere in Kyoto

TOKYO Azami vs. Samuraishaku set up in an arena with live music on the first floor of the Kamunabi HQ Hakuri and Uruha on the way to the Shinuchi several floors below Izaru with the barrier team Kudou dead in the elevator shaft, his team was wiped out too Unknown number of traitors eliminating other Kamunabi staff as part of a plan About 50 pine tree "bomb" carriers left Ichiki, Beard, Hairclips, Eyepatch, Earlobes, Giraffe Neck unknown Hatshaku managing hostage situation from outside Kamunabi HQ Yura, Jane, Derek, and other two core members unknown Two unnamed blades unknown

ELSEWHERE Shiba and Hiyuki guarding the two Bearers we haven't met yet

That's all I've got for now. Revel in the joy of Uruha being back until next week, kind void!

[hestzhyen]

comms being opened for an emergency

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 80 Nerves Posting

Hello, dear void. The anxiety increases as we inch towards the climax of the arc.

Editor's Comments: First Page: でっけ-書庫 [dekke- shoko!!] "A huuuuuge library!!" Last Page: 己が戦場へ駆け出せ！！ [ono ga senjyou he kakedase!!] "Dash towards your own battlefield!!"

More Kamunabi Lore Dump

Kudou, you're a great person, but I felt seen and heard by Hakuri this chapter.

How I was feeling looking at all the yap in the first half of this chapter.

Ro, head of the Sorcery Nerd clan, having such a high opinion of Hakuri is adorable. Hakuri himself is adorable too. It's now canon that he gets nauseous when overloaded with information or asked to study though (please let this just be a silly gag and not tied to anxiety over trying to please his family). Hakuri, you're the best. I love you.

Following my favourite little guy has given us some insight into the Kamunabi side of things like I hoped. And more insight into the world building! Barrier and movement sorcery being "more academic" -plus some emphasis on how important it is to learn to be useful- makes me wonder if we'll get a Hakuri training arc focused on him making use of what's in the Kamunabi's library. Or maybe having someone like Azami teach him. Who better than the incredibly strong gorilla that's a head above the best sorcerers in the whole organisation?

I'm really sad that one of Hakuri's rare smiles was turned into this though:

Absolutely insane that the "x days since someone slit their throat in front of Hakuri" timer was reset to 0.

This poor kid can't escape people killing themselves in front of him. Then Kudou (most likely) died to save him too. He stays focused but honestly?! I feel like there's a good reason to think he'll burst one day. He's got a similar near-meltdown expression Chihiro had in chapter 11 before someone snaps him out of it. Neither of them are addressing the pain they've been shoving down to get things done. If that's not brought up in some way later on then I'll be disappointed honestly.

But anyway. The guy who killed himself: Ishihira, written as 石枚. 石 [ishi] for "stone" and 枚 [hira] for counter (of things like thin, flat objects, portions of gyoza or soba, ranks, fields or rice paddies, and more). Hokazono having a laugh at naming this guy Mr. Beancounter lmao. I feel awful for him though since the Hishaku are definitely doing dastardly deeds by taking his daughter as a hostage.

The second name we got was much more interesting: Prince Nez, the short Kamunabi guy that trained Shiba and Azami, is Ichiki (壱鬼). 壱 [ichi] for "first/one" and 鬼 [ki] for "ghost/devil". PLACE THOSE TRAITOR BETS! I think we'll have the reveal soon. Azami's busy entertaining Samuraishaku, Kudou just got murked, Eyepatch hasn't been on screen since the trial in chapter 46 basically, and we've seen quite a bit of Ichiki lately while not knowing where he is at present. Hmm.

Lastly, the elite squads.

Hajime...

Hagiwara is alive and not so well. But he's active and fighting at least. Man, he looks so bitter compared to the first time we saw him with the Anti-Kuregumo squad in chapter 11. I hope we catch up with him sooner or later.

I think we should also remember the woman in the panel underneath him. I won't be surprised if she comes back with a name to call her by.

HAKURI

I can't express how much I love him.

His mask is cracked so it seems like his Storehouse sorcery really is on thin ice. But man. He's always so good at thinking under pressure. And he even apologises for hurting the people who are beating him. Hakuri, you're so kind. Probably because he knows pain far too well.

Oh man.

This is extremely interesting framing to me. Hakuri's hand is outside the panel, partially covering up the huge LOVE (愛) in the narration box in Soya's panel. At least that's how it is in JP; I assume the English version will do the same. They got it close enough I guess.

But yeah. What's up with that?

Hakuri overcame Soya's "true love" and killed him to show that he finally broke free from the family bond that kept him trapped and helpless for so long. However, he acknowledged Soya's affection for him as such and doesn't talk about what he actually endured and how it affected him. He's still quite happy to say he's fine and get on with whatever needs doing. I really get the sense that Hakuri doesn't want to think about those experiences at all. He's fine now (he's not). He's okay (he's not). He can still be useful (and thinks he needs to be to be loved). He broke free from his family but not the mindset that was literally beaten into him.

So basically I'm interpreting this as more of Hakuri not wanting to acknowledge who and what gave him the strength to endure this attack and fight back. I wrote 8k words about all this in a different post but man, Hakuri... I hope we do address all the things that have been used against him lingering in his Storehouse.

The other thing I'm thinking of is that Hakuri might be cluing in that Soya's "love" for him (and Kyora's, the same ai/愛) isn't really love after all. But I think that's something further down the road for his character if we do address that aspect of what what instilled into him. Right now we're showcasing the Sazanami influence in terms of him thinking he needs to help and give everything he has for the cause. What love means and should feel like will come when Hakuri's finally ready to address that from a healthier frame of mind, most likely. If it's addressed at all (which I really hope it is).

It's also a bit odd for a reveal that Hakuri was abused for ten years instead of the five that he was "useless" for. Maybe Soya only really went off the rails when Kyora gave up on Hakuri? Or maybe he was abusive in the name of making Hakuri strong once training started? Soya a shit either way, may he burn in hell. Hakuri has better sources of strength now!

When in a pinch, think of the person who inspires you.

Once again he uses Chihiro as motivation to shore himself up and do everything he can. Just don't push yourself too far again... please...

Hishaku Machinations

It's all going to shit, just as planned.

Using Hakuri as bait, huh. Who is considered to be in the "main forces"? What's the ultimate goal of putting Hakuri in peril? Is he really the heroine of Kagurabachi? (Yes to the last one, apparently.)

The most obvious answer to the questions would probably be that Hakuri's intended to bait Chihiro away, probably to free up Samura. But that would be unsatisfying on a narrative level after we had so much setup for Chihiro and Samura to clash over ideals at last. It's possible despite the distance between Kyoto and Tokyo -Hakuri can summon him at will and all-, but it'd be a questionable and risky move is what I'm saying.

I think it might be bait for some people in the Kamunabi higher-ups, like how Kudou was taken out in the elevator. The higher-ups in the Kamunabi have some good eggs that would probably put their lives on the line to protect Hakuri if he gets in over his head. Kudo was the best of them but Azami certainly wouldn't let Hakuri be hurt- yet he's tied up with the Samurai Hishaku guy.

So who's left?

We have no information on where the other members of the council are right now. Ichiki, Beard, and Hairclips would be prime targets because they are key to sealing the Shinuchi and Beard in particular seems to be the leader. Ichiki might be with Azami (and is a great traitor candidate) though, and the little we saw of Hairclips made her seem very dispassionate. Beard isn't above bending morals but he's also got the greater good in mind so maybe him? He invited the Hishaku in to prevent innocent civilians from being caught up in the battle, so I can see him responding to Hakuri being put in danger.

Giraffe and Mutton Chops were the most dismissive of Chihiro and seem to care about the Kamunabi as an institution more than the people they're supposed to protect. I don't think they're traitors but they're not the type to respond to Hakuri being used as bait either in my mind.

Earlobes and Eyepatch don't feel like major players this arc. Earlobes has been shown talking and being a rather flippant guy, Eyepatch has been offscreen. I don't think they're going to show up.

As for other choices, it might be bait to leave the other Bearers we haven't met yet undefended- or to catch Shiba. Hiyuki wouldn't leave her post to save Hakuri but Shiba absolutely would; he would definitely teleport in to save the day (assuming the defensive barriers didn't get in his way). The only question would be how he was informed of what was happening.

Basically, I'm on the edge of my seat hoping nothing too horrible happens to Hakuri and whoever he's meant to draw to his side while bracing for heartache.

As for the bastards orchestrating all of this...

From breaking into the strongholds with trees to having hostages released, Hatshaku can fulfill all your second-man-hand needs.

I've gotta say this: I sincerely appreciate the writing of the villains in Kagurabachi. Hokazono-sensei shows a lot of restraint by having them not be cartoonishly evil like you might expect in a shounen manga. They took hostages to make people kill themselves and turn allies against each other: clearly evil. But they also let those hostages go once the pawns fulfill their tasks.

I was ready to roll my eyes and be all "yeah, they're super bad dudes, got it" if the Hishaku were shown to be killing the hostages after all. But they let them go! They have ethics, damnit. And it's really refreshing to see Hokazono keep them consistent as villains who are doing bad things but not without some internal logic. For the most part. Kuguri and Hiruhiko are definitely not going to get into heaven with how casually they kill innocent people, yeah. But the organisation as a whole is following a plan that doesn't encourage them all to be wanton killers, so the hostages go free.

It really helps the Hishaku feel serious about what they're doing. They've got these unhinged weirdos all gathered up for a goal that they care deeply about, so much so that they'll do the right thing even when they're doing wrong overall. Finally there's a criminal organisation in a shounen that I can actually be invested in!

So much to wait for... see you next week, kind void.

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 79 Gorilla Posting

Here we go, dear void. Hakuri, a lore dump that took me forever to translate, and some long-desired insight into a named character! Editor's Note: First Page: (none) Last Page: 急げっ！！！ [isoge!!!] "Hurry!!!"

Hakuri and... a New Name!

He learned nothing...

My boy! My little guy! The character I'm completely, totally normal about... he's back!! Unfortunately, he's still pressuring himself big-time.

I don't know how the official English will translate this, but on the first page, Hakuri is literally asking Kudou for a "role". Not just a task he can do, but a specific function (役目 [yakume]). So despite his much-appreciated silly faces this chapter, he's still in the depths of his self-worth issues.

Wait, who's Kudou? That's our Kamunabi higher-up with the gas mask! Their surname is 区堂, with 区 [ku] for ward/district and 堂 [dou] for hall/temple/shrine. Not very descriptive but it imparts a sense of dignity and being a small part of something greater. Kudou-san uses the neutral/polite pronoun watashi so their gender isn't really known at this time. Might end up with another Hiyuki situation by assuming y'know?

Hakuri, though... he and Chihiro care so much about each other. He better take care of himself this time (he won't).

I can't wait to see them reunite.

Because...

And so it comes to pass (along with many cute expressions)...

Hakuri's slightly nerfed right now as a consequence of how his sorcery was restored, but he should still be able to use his Storehouse to withhold the Shinuchi from the Hishaku. After that, I'm really, truly feeling like he's going to get kidnapped or some other horrible thing will happen to him. He can get kidnapped by the mole/traitor, arm the Master Swordsman on request (yes it's sealed but it can also be unsealed), lose access to his sorcery by overdoing it again... any number of things. No matter what, he's going to be a big player for the climax of this arc and I hope he doesn't suffer too much for it. He's already been through so much.

The poor guy is really hard on himself too:

...

Uruha's death panel there is weighing so damn heavily on him. So despite him thanking Kudou for the Kamunabi saving him, he's still laser-focused on being useful, probably to make up even just the slightest bit for what he feels he did to Uruha. Lord knows what he'll do if he learns that Chihiro technically died because of him too. Hakuri, it wasn't your fault at all...!

That's what the scuff marks on his face are about, though. He slept for 3 days straight but he's still not completely restored. That's how badly he wore himself out and his mindset that led him to do it is worse than ever. Hakuri is absolutely desperate to do anything he can, and it's probably not going to end well once more.

You don't have to be useful, Hakuri. You don't have to be given a role to fulfill. You're worthy of love just as you are. Please, let him learn this one day soon... but at least we leave off with him on a silly note.

Go!

Hakuri being unable to calm down is so cute; he's always giving 110%. The day where he allows himself to relax before collapsing into a coma will be a precious one!

Kamunabi Lore Dump

Real depiction of the team I wish I could work with to translate these text-heavy chapters.

The random guy we followed in the middle section of this chapter gave us a bit of information. Thank you, random guy.

So the former name of the organisation was "Counter-Sorcery Forces" and used to have a strength-based hierarchy. Congratulations, powerscalers! You have a new tool to help you in your debates.

I assume the official English will translate the military ranks on that paper, and yay I was right. Cool beans. Keep them in mind!

These aren't still in use but it's still useful to draw comparisons. Other than that, I have kind of a hard time believing that 24 people with fighting experience -who are also expected to be the first line of defence in situations just like this chapter!- are no match for three guys. Maybe it's just Samuraishaku alone? Even Azami's got some respect for him after all.

Still, it's not the first time we've seen these "Dead Willow Brothers" (死柳兄弟, shigyuukyoudai).

Chapter 57, as a refresher.

The older brother was the one throwing chains to support Hiruhiko here most likely. So hooray that was cleared up!

I wonder if the other Hishaku team has mercenaries too or if we'll finally get a clear sighting of "Jane Hishaku" and the last member we haven't seen yet. Maybe a surprising character will appear as reinforcements too. There's a lot to speculate about!

My Dearly Beloved Gorilla Wife

Someone draw him crushing a watermelon between his bare thighs PLEASE

His first name at last! 奏士郎 [soushirou]! 奏 [sou] for play music/perform/report/petition, 士 [shi] for gentleman/scholar/samurai, and 郎 [rou] for son/young man (yes it's the same kanji for what Ro of the Masumi goes by).

Azami is a man of contrasts, apparently. He speaks softly compared to the rest of the male cast (aside from Kyora) and packs a gigantic fucking punch too. I love him. He's not the traitor, he's my wife. My mind-bogglingly strong wife that probably rose to the highest echelons of the Kamunabi on raw strength alone. Seriously, I don't think I can possibly love him any more than I already do. His fighting style is to cast "fist" in his opponents faces! Leave the fancy footwork and tactics to Shiba, Azami's just going to rely on his brawn to get things done. Would still like to know what his sorcery that involves him pinching some kind of energy between his fingers is, though.

As for the Azami traitor theory, I suppose people who want to cling to it can take comfort in the fact that he wasn't given an alibi. He's absolutely furious about what happened to the Rokuhiras and had to ask Chihiro for the details. But he still could have provided the information that let the Hishaku infiltrate in the first place, I guess. The only thing that would make sense to me is if he was aiding the Hishaku out of sympathy and they misled/lied to him about their intentions. But at this point I think even Kudou is more suspicious than him.

Remember, only four people in the Kamunabi's higher ups helped Kunishige hide after the war: Azami, Kudou, Prince Nez, and the eyepatch guy we haven't seen in ages. I think we're supposed to be playing a guessing game about which one of those four it is right now.

Anyway, my wife's innocent. Let's do a minor TL note instead.

Sauceless typesetting strikes again.

圧倒的殴殺力 [attouteki ousatsuryoku] is pretty over-the-top in how much it says but it's along the lines of "overwhelming lethal brute force" while the Ruby next to it simply says パワ- (power). Speaking of nitpicks, though...

C'mon, man.

I don't expect the vertical text to be kept but the huge bold font used in JP has a bigger impact than the polite font used in English. I don't know. I just feel like it's a better match for the ridiculous setting here- we've got dudes rocking out on taiko drums and a shamisen in the background, not giving a restrained performance y'know? People enter, but only one leaves alive! This is the mother fucking Thunderdome in the middle of Kamunabi HQ! Don't question or downplay it, go all-in on the ridiculousness! There's something I want to say about this chapter that might help anyone who sees a bunch of Azami fan art with the title of the chapter: 曲者 [kusemono]. 曲者 has a ton of possible meanings but some of them likely apply to Azami himself too. "Villain", what it was translated to in the official, is perfectly valid (as are similes like "ruffian" and "knave"). But it can also mean peculiar person/stubborn fellow, something that is more than it seems, expert/master, and monster/phantom/spectre. I hope we keep learning more about Azami as this fight goes on!

Lastly...

What in the heck are you wearing my dude?

First up, that's not Samuraishaku's real face, that's the men-yoroi for his helmet- including the moustache. Pray it breaks during the fight so we can see what he really looks like.

Next, this is the second time we are having a fight against one of Kunishige's killers. Hatshaku keeps escaping but maybe we'll learn more about this guy. I feel like this is a good time to get more information on the raid itself if nothing else.

Lastly, only bringing this up because I've seen some "what if he's a different person that wasn't there at Kunishige's murder" questions because he's not wearing the suit we saw in chapter 45. Yes, this is definitely the guy who only had his left leg in frame during chapter 2. This framing makes it unmistakable:

What's under that long bang?!

Azami sees the samurai guy

Thinks about how he asked Chihiro for details of the incident over two flashback panels, zooming in on the guy's leg in the second

Notices the same leg armour in the present right in front of him

Gorilla mode activated

Clenches his fist and says they "meet at last", clearly itching to fight

Wherever Azami's loyalties lie, he clearly cares a great deal about Chihiro and Kunishige. He's fucking pissed about his friend's death and is ready to cave one of the killer's faces in.

Alright life is steamrolling me so that's all I've got this week. Be safe and treat yourself one day this week while we wait to see if there's a perspective shift. Back to Chihiro and Samura or more of this Azami & Hakuri goodness? I know what I really want but I'll take what we get.

[hestzhyen]

HAKURI

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 78 Finally Posting

LET'S! FUCKING! GOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Editor's notes: First Page: 敗れた昼彦...！！ [yabure ta Hiruhiko...!!] "Hiruhiko is defeated...!!" Last Page: 京都にチヒロ、 東京にハクリ！2つの戦場が動き出す！！ [Kyoto ni Chihiro, Tokyo ni Hakuri! 2tsu no senjou ga ugokidasu!!] "Chihiro in Kyoto, Hakuri in Tokyo! The two battlefields heat up!!"

YEAH

THAT'S RIGHT

A whole bunch of stuff happened so let's get into it!

Mechanics and Info Yap

Boy did I struggle to translate all the information that was dropped this chapter. But we learned a ton!

[ominous Latin chanting kicks up in the distance]

One, Suzaku is not infinite. Or it's not supposed to be, at least. It also doesn't actually reverse death, but given how hax Samura is right now, Chihiro's information might be out of date. I'm calling it: Samura is certified OP now. He's cracked. A true raid boss. Whatever he did to prepare for this moment, it fucking worked and now he's apparently the Kagurabachi version of Faker. Good fucking luck, Chihiro. Go for breaking Tobimune! It's the only way you can beat him since he won't expect it!

Samura was also apparently pushed into developing Suzaku during the Seitei War. I wonder if we'll see the moment that inspired the move...

Oh, and one-point-five. Owl can even affect the weather, apparently! Samura's almost a god. Seriously, good luck Chihiro (he'll be fine in the long-run because he's the protagonist, but let's pretend we don't have that meta knowledge).

The edgiest member of the Hishaku is also the master of edging himself.

Two, Kuguri's sorcery! Nice to know it! Not exactly practical, but he's a swordsman for a reason. Given how much he loves to train with the blade he probably got quite a bit stocked up before blowing it all to escape from Samura.

Translation note since I have no idea what the official English version will do with his move. In Japanese it's 破暮 [hagure]. 破 [ha] means rend/rip/tear/break/destroy/defeat/frustrate, while 暮 [ku] means evening/twilight/season's end/livelihood/make a living/spend time; 暮れ [kure] means sunset/nightfall/dusk or end/close or year's end. I'd translate this as "Broken Dusk" because it sounds cool as fuck but there's a lot of room for creative liberty here. I think the official TL is cool as hell too so no complaints from me.

[Matrix vibes intensify]

Three, some Kamunabi lore! They have barriers, of course, which were probably a gimme in terms of defensive measures. This guy also looks cool as hell!

We don't know how many fighting forces they have on-hand but it's alright. The non-combatants of the ~500 members of staff at the Tokyo location will go further underground and we will hopefully get some awesome action from a certain someone I've been wanting to see for ages now.

*----------------------------------------------------------------------------*

Let's do some trivia since I'm here!

神奈備 - Kamunabi. It's not just a name, it's an actual word (usually pronounced kannabi) for a mountain or forest where a deity is enshrined. What a fancy, pleasant-sounding way to say your mission is to imprison a guy who went insane and slaughtered about 200,000 people who'd already surrendered.

This chapter, instead of using 防壁 [bouheki] for a defensive military barrier, the term 結界 [kekkai] was used. Kekkai is a mystical barrier rather than a physical one, and folks who frequently read manga/watch anime will probably recognise it because of how common magical barriers are. It's got ties to Buddhism too, of course- it refers to the fence between the inner and outer sanctums in a temple, the prohibition of various things that would hinder Buddhist practice, and is also the Japanese term for Bai Sema.

I just wanted to mention this because the more we see of the Kamunabi the less traditionally military they seem. Leaning on mystical terminology, traditional onmyouji outfits making up the higher-ups uniforms... their whole org appears steeped in spiritual concepts and imagery.

*----------------------------------------------------------------------------*

Hiruhiko, Defeated

Oof.

Man, even I feel bad for him at this point. He wanted his own fight with Chihiro to be as hype of a clash as Chihiro vs. Sojo was but all that happened was that he hit rock bottom instead. He overcame nothing, did nothing, and still got his arm sliced off by the arc's main antagonist anyway. That's the only thing really connecting him to Chihiro at this point.

I don't think I've seen a more miserable, pitiable creature.

The ultimate counter to Hiruhiko is apathy. His passion for fighting Chihiro is burning bright, but even someone as emotional as his "rival" can't feel anything for him. Hiruhiko's totally irrelevant and I feel vindicated for thinking all of his stuff in the hotel until now was an annoying side-show.

Chihiro won his reality check fight because he was willing to adapt his mindset. Hiruhiko lost because he was laser-focused on his own interpretation. He's differentiated from Sojo's situation because Sojo actively refused to incorporate more information about Kunishige that would alter his worldview; I have a feeling that Hiruhiko will learn quite a lot from this once the shock wears off.

So this will be the true start of Hiruhiko's story I guess. Chihiro's journey didn't really begin until he had to overcome Sojo forcing him to realise that he didn't know enough about his father. So as Chihiro's self-proclaimed frenemy, Hiruhiko's journey will start with him confronting his own vision of reality being incomplete. What form that takes is up to the author- I just hope his growth is interesting to follow.

Chihiro vs. Samura Round 2

Hype and aura incarnate.

They're finally cleared to start fighting now that the Hishaku have retreated. What will happen? No clue! I won't even try to guess because it could be anything.

We've got our arc boss battle set up. Chihiro and Samura going to clash. Sojo was about death of the author and Chihiro accepting there was more to learn about a situation that was more complex than he grew up believing, Kyora was about what it means to be a good father and the dangers of blind devotion to legacy. Samura... is about condemning oneself to a path that one doesn't necessarily have to walk, I think. The burden of guilt unaddressed leading someone to spiral down and eventually out if no one can help them. Basically, what I thought since chapter 51 or so.

This part broke my heart though.

This is the personal reason.

He thinks back to Iori's sadness and it becomes a core part of his motivation. I mean, of course it did- Chihiro started walking the road to Hell the day he lost his own dad. He's burdened by taking a path that neither his father nor Samura wanted him to follow, but he's going to see it through.

So I think that rather than wanting to put Samura down like the previous two main antagonists, Chihiro wants to save him.

Chihiro's whole reason for being out here in this position is because his dad was murdered; he's not exactly champing at the bit to put other people in his position. He takes it so fucking personally when fathers aren't treating their kids right! He only killed Kyora for actively choosing to be a piss-poor father, perpetuating human suffering on a massive scale, and because Hakuri pleaded with him to do so. But Samura? This man is fundamentally good. He's misguided due to guilt and anxiety, but he's not doing things to make the world a worse place, deliberately or intentionally. He's trying to save people and make the world better for his daughter's sake.

This is why I'm so all-in on Chihiro winning the fight by breaking Tobimune. His ideals aren't going to make it easy for him to cut Samura down- he looked up to the man, he knows he's not a bad person, and he definitely doesn't want to make another orphan out of Iori. So even if he could stat check the raid boss his heart wouldn't be in it. The neatest solution would be to break Tobimune instead -Samura's overwhelming strength born from Soaring Faith- and show him a different way to do things.

I'm open to other outcomes obviously. Chihiro might be forced to kill Samura somehow, Iori and the Masumi might come in and throw a wrench in things, anything can happen. But this clash of ideals of Chihiro wanting Samura to live for Iori and Samura believing he needs to die for her is going to be incredible, I know it. Hokazono's at his best when he's examining these themes of parenthood and legacy after all- he's not fumbled once yet with them.

Man. If Chihiro and Samura are both trying to save each other here, I'm gonna go nuts. This fight is set up to be an absolute masterclass and I can't wait for it to unfold.

Meanwhile, at Kamunabi HQ...

The Kamunabi are mostly up-to-date, blah blah. We got an unexpected narrator here though.

Name, please?

We got Prince Nez's PoV and it makes sense. He was the one who tried to reassure Samura in the flashbacks that the Kamunabi was totally secure. He's got an even read on the situation and helpfully points out that we still don't know the Hishaku's exact plan here is. It's anyone's guess so I'll just slap down a non-existent bet that they're trying to cause the Malediction event here and now.

Okay so, who's gonna fight all seven Hishaku members that we may or may not finally see in full? We finally got confirmation that Shiba and Hiyuki aren't present since they're guarding the other two bearers, so who's left to face the intruders?

A new challenger approaches! NOTE: "Hibiki" is supposed to be "Hiyuki". Another dumb mistake from VIZ.

That's right, my gorilla wife is going to take the field- at long last we will see him in a real fight! Probably! Maybe we'll even get to see his sorcery at long last! And maybe we can have a few less jokes about him being the traitor until there's better reasons to believe he's a suspect!

I wifed Azami based on the very little we've seen of him and it's mostly because I like his design and the promise of his personality. He's the only guy in the whole cast who uses the casual male pronoun 僕 [boku] (even Mr. Inazuma uses the rough and very masculine 俺 [ore])! I won't go on a huge tangent here about why I love him so much but there's a reason for it, I swear. He seems to enjoy brawling despite being a straight-laced government agent and it really gets the braincells movin'. Plus being a powerful sorcerer but choosing to fight in melee with his fists. Being a calm and rational guy on the job but having a short temper when it comes to Shiba. The contrasts intrigue me and I will stand by him no matter what. He's my wife: a handsome, polite, and erudite gorilla in a wizard's robes and hat.

There's someone else who's gonna get some time on screen too, though.

[incomprehensible screeching]

HE'S BACK HE'S BACK HE'S BACK HAKURI I LOVE YOU I MISSED YOU AND I'M ALMOST IN TEARS SEEING YOU AGAIN IT'S BEEN SO LONG AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH NEVER LEAVE ME FOR THAT LONG AGAIN PLEASE I BEG OF YOU

He's still got some scuff marks to show he's not completely healed yet but he's BACK. HE'S HERE. HAKURIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

Given the announcement for non-combatants to evacuate preceding his reintroduction, I don't think he'll be in the fighting. Poor guy just woke up and surely won't be asked to overtax himself again, will he? Or more like, surely there will be some responsible adults around him capable of stopping him from overtaxing himself again? But his PoV will be valuable to see what's going on with the Kamunabi while Azami and whoever else is on deck fend off the Hishaku's assault. I have a feeling we will be getting some big reveals to set up the next arc thanks to Hakuri. Hopefully he won't be written out for months in real time again.

A Miscellaneous TL Note

If anyone was curious, 響 [hibiki] means "echo" or "reberveration"

Also, this week's chapter title is 交代 [koutai] which has a bunch of similar-yet-distinct meanings like "switch", "change", "substitution", and "taking turns".

Lastly, perhaps most interestingly...

"Resurrect" here has some fun double meanings. It was written as 黄泉返し [yomikaeshi], which actually means "return to/from Hell" but the Ruby over top reads [yomigae] for 甦, "resurrection". It's got some nice thematic tie-ins to how Chihiro and Samura both think they're headed for hell (but have a very good chance of being redeemed in some way).

OKAY! For the first time in ages I am vibrating in my seat waiting for the next chapter. I'm so freakin' stoked, man. See you next week if I don't explode from anticipation, dear void.

[hestzhyen]

On the Ao3 Data Scrape

Just some thoughts as someone who has a foot planted on both sides of the divide here. I'm a creative type who has a B.S. in tech and a career working with a wide variety of tech stacks. I love writing fan fiction and building my own PCs. I've written and read all my life, and I made a good living working with complex financial tech systems until the expectations of the field broke me. I still have a deep interest in tech though (especially where it intersects with policy and ethics). I understand the basic technical concepts that AI work off of. I've also followed the tech industry as a whole for many years not just as an enthusiast, but also as a necessity to have a career.

In the interest of transparency: while I acknowledge and actually look forward to the useful application of AI for future discovery purposes in sciences and mathematics, I have double the bias against it because it threatens both my career and my hobbies.

Alright... first up, let's figure out what I'm talking about.

"AI" is used to describe lots of things these days- virtual assistants, advanced data modeling, generative applications, pretty much anything that gets trained on a data set and set loose to perform some function in the world. I'm specifically focused on the third type mentioned: generative AI, the ChatGPTs and DeepAIs of the world. The type that hoover up art and text to generate a wide variety of output from user prompts, from answering questions to creating images to generating essays. User enters something like "what happened during the War of 1812" and the program spits out a response, first offering a summary then offering to go in-depth on certain topics. I've tried a few of these programs to see how they work and they do seem impressive at first glance. Then you realise you're one hallucination away from believing random bullshit that sounds convincing and it gets a bit uncomfortable.

Okay. But why Ao3 and fan works? Wouldn't these companies only want the highest quality stuff?

All types of AI are trained on as much data as possible- Gen AI isn't unique for using sketchy practices to acquire that data or consume a staggering amount of natural resources to do so. AI and exploitative practices are just the latest iteration of Silicon Valley's all-in bet on "move fast and break things" as a business model (i.e., act before regulators catch up, bribe lawmakers keep looking away until they can profitably give in to some ethical concerns as a concession, and offer insincere apologies a few years later if harm is proven to have been done). The quality of the data doesn't really matter all that much, it needs all of everything in order to account for all possible scenarios. Hence why amateur scribbles are gobbled up just as eagerly as a professional artist's portfolio, or why a fan fiction is worth offering up alongside the greatest literary classics. All of that information can be exchanged for money as a "training set".

What made Ao3 a particularly inviting target is the tagging system. Imagine a public repository of data that comes pre-tagged on the type of content it contains; the genre, sub-genres, and tropes invoked. It even has a pseudo ratings system (kudos+comments/hits ratio) to help roughly gauge the quality of an individual work, allowing for easy aggregation of types of works to target. Thousands of millions of works put out there for free! It doesn't matter that you'll get a bunch of Half Life: Full Life Consequence-tier stuff alongside a few works that are actually quite good. It's all valuable to help refine models- especially ones that want to communicate with users in a way that feels "natural" instead of like they're talking to a listener subroutine that will present output pulled from a constellation of data points spread across various data centres.

Maybe someone wants to create fan works that still appear authentic because they've got some charming flaws. Maybe they want to know what a typical fanfic for their favourite series/ship has in terms of content. Maybe they want to know what kind of fan art gets the most interactions what it looks like. So that's why Ao3 was scraped alongside amateur/hobby sites like Artfol, PaintBerri, and PaperDemon. It's basically a bunch of "amateur writer/artist" works collected into data sets for AI training.

As of writing this on May 7th 2025, the data sets for all the sites mentioned have been permanently disabled or deleted from the original site they were posted to. But that's not the same as the data being inaccessible for all-time.

The data sets were available for hours and they were downloaded for various purposes. Some people did it to see if their works or the works of others were scooped up. Other's motives are unknown.

The data sets were also spread to sites hosted in China and Russia, which notoriously do not respond to take-down requests from anyone aside from those country's governments. The Ao3 set is one of the ones that is still being distributed.

The person who did the scraping made their code publicly available for others to use or tune for their own needs. It can and will happen again.

So as a tech person, I understand why it happened. I'm not happy about it at all- I don't believe that AI models should be trained off of works that weren't negotiated for. I don't think AI has much business in the creative sphere at all honestly; artists, writers, and other creators are already struggling for proper recognition and compensation. Unfortunately many businesses see a chance to cut costs by having an AI model design their logos and write their PR statements instead of a real human being. The race to the almighty bottom dollar is being accelerated in real-time and many many people are getting left out in the cold in the pursuit. Even people like me -people with tech degrees and years of experience- are at risk as the models start getting good at various types of analysis- particularly risk and root cause. Why pay a salary + benefits or a consulting fee if an AI subscription can do it all?

All of this is both saddening and frightening. We're moving way too fast with no guard rails while the regulators aren't doing nearly enough. But as someone whose fanfics were scooped up in the Ao3 scrape... I'm really just fucking pissed.

Not even badly written smut is safe.

As a fan creator, I don't write analysis, impressions, fanfiction, collect data, or draw fan art to profit from it. Everything I do on here, Ao3, and in the LibreOffice suite or my sketchbook is out of pure love. Someone's creation inspired me to create something else and that's a wonderful thing, I think. Isn't that the heart of creating art, literature, any kind of media? Wanting to share ideas and inspiring others in turn?

But AI art isn't creating anything except more climate risks. It uses "training sets" curated without permission and takes out the human from the idea sharing process. My fanfiction about dudes getting railed is going to be a data point among billions to spit out some machine's best guess of what m/m erotica looks like. My very personal story based on my childhood SA experience is in there, too. That's not something I wanted to share with the world at large- only the very few people who would want to read that sort of account. I especially didn't want it to be rounded up and used to train an AI model for someone else's benefit.

Fan works are created from a place of adoration for the original work. To gather them up and claim that it's okay because they can't be copyrighted since they're derivative works (legally dubious argument, by the way) and feed some techbro's avarice is fucking anti-human.

Everything we make for joy and personal enrichment is made with bits of our own life stories. We put fragments of things we think, feel, and experience into everything- especially works of pure love for fandom. It's to do what the author of the original work did for us: get the idea out there, and inspire others in turn. Our own essence is not put out there so someone can avoid picking up a metaphorical pencil! It's not shared so someone can put it in a data set and sell it off without our knowledge or consent! It's especially not put out there to enable others avoid exploring their own potential while someone profits from providing easy, seemingly convincing results off those stolen bits of humanity! Art is not created to help others avoid creating art themselves yet still enjoy the benefits of it.

So that's where I'm at, I guess.

I don't need to be hired because AI's getting good at what I do for a living. My hobby isn't safe to share with everyone because it will get scraped and used for training AI too. So where do I go and what do I do?

Job front's terrifying right now and frankly I don't know what I can do to keep my house next year. As for my hobbies, well, I can restrict access. I opted out of Tumblr's data gathering and increased search engine visibility, and I'm not above closing shop if they are found to be selling the info after all. I locked my fics on Ao3 to logged in users only. I pretty much never share my sketches since it's a hassle anyway, and only on Tumblr. I use an open source applications suite that doesn't hoover up all my info to create all my fics and do data gathering. It's a goddamn shame that I'm incentivised to hide and lurk instead of participate in fandom if I want control over my own output. That's reality though.

Where's Ao3 at, though? I'm slightly confused where the official Ao3/OTW responses have been about this issue. The most helpful information I got was from a blog post on PaperDemon, who was also affected by the scrape. There's nothing on Ao3's official accounts about the incident that I can find. The most recent comment of any kind is buried in the April newsletter:

Not exactly the kind of response I was looking for. The initial mention in March was similarly vague and buried:

It might not even have anything to do with the scrape! Combined with them openly allowing AI-generated content, I wonder if there isn't a reason to find or make a different repository for fan works... I came across SquidgeWorld Archive, which looks like a fork of the OTW project. It might be worth considering.

I'm not going to let myself drown in hopelessness and stop creating stuff, but I don't feel great about it right now, I gotta admit. I wanted to share the joy with everyone who cared to check it out, not worry about who can see it and if they'll try to use it to put other creatives out of a job. Pilfering a community so selfless as fandom for such anti-human behaviour is awful and I wish there was a way to put a stop to it. But laws lag behind and there's no incentive for them to catch up, much less enforce what already exists, when techbro money is dangled with an implicit promise to look the other way.

I hope most people chose humanity being in charge of the business of self-expression, but with how under-valued the arts already are, who knows what will happen...

[hestzhyen]

hakuhiro…