In my last article, I talked about the character of Tokiyuki, the Samurai Who Lives, and how The Elusive Samurai has him discover his mission through a baptism of fire. But the journey of our hero has just begun. Soon, a great betrayal destroys his faith in others. Indeed, the second episode of TES depicts the murder of a child, Kunitoki, betrayed by someone from his own family—his uncle, Godaīn Muneshige.
A moment like this can be a deal-breaker and make a show so unpalatable that the tone never picks up again. I’ve learned, for instance, that many people quit The Walking Dead after an infamous scene involving a baseball bat. And Code Geass did this to Twwk, back in the day. And it happened to me with Nippon Sangoku this very season. But this is not what happened to me here. To restore that faith, the show introduces us to Kojirō Nezu and Ayako Mochizuki, two young yet mighty warriors who will be Tokiyuki’s retainers and his friends from now on, and two of my favorite characters of the show.
Though they never come to steal the spotlight, Kojirō and Ayako are always there from the moment they are introduced. A tall, cheerful girl and a fierce kid with silver hair. Scene after scene, I think their journey is as inspiring as that of Tokiyuki. Theirs is the heroism of faithful followers willing to fight for their lord, to be guided by him, and to help him free their world from darkness and evil. That is my deepest desire too, and my vision of heroism. After all, it is for that purpose that I was anointed at my Confirmation.
Muneshige the Traitor: When Men Become Demons
Of all sins and horrors we humans can be guilty of, there is something uniquely demonic about betrayal. When the moment comes, we typically do not believe it at first. Then, a face that is known to us, dear to us, suddenly reveals a second, horrifying side. The past is rewritten, reinterpreted, broken into pieces. When Kunitoki Hōjō, the half-brother of Tokiyuki, discovers that Muneshige, the uncle who said he’ll die for him, is pointing the enemy troops in his direction, we see Muneshige’s face turn into a thing of nightmares.
When the mask falls off, the expression of the traitor suddenly becomes one of demonic glee. Then, his smiling face is covered in a purple flame coming from the traitor’s mouth. Kunitoki had pleaded with his uncle to abandon him, not to put himself in danger. His generosity is repaid with viciousness, and his love is repaid with mockery. It is a terrifying injustice, one that calls for someone to stop it.
Perhaps it is a coincidence, or perhaps an unconscious influence, but the scene in which Kunitoki is betrayed recalls how the Gospels depict the actions of the betrayer of Jesus, Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve Apostles, especially the version depicted in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. Both scenes happen in nature at night. A search party with torches and low-rank soldiers approaches someone who could not have been found if not for the actions of the betrayer. The friend points to the victim after false displays of love and devotion, then walks away as the innocent one is apprehended, beaten, and taken to his execution.
With its typical exaggerated blend of tones, the show masterfully depicts the depths of the traitor’s psychology. Muneshige thinks of himself as a tough, resourceful individual, able to adapt to these turbulent times and get ahead in this new era. We see the glee and vertigo of his triumph, his disdain for those he sees as losers in the game of life. As far as he is concerned, he has thrown his dice (the dice are a symbol present all throughout the episode). He has made his play, and his play is daring and bold.
Both Judas and Muneshige do what they do for a rather scarce reward. After all, most of the time, even those who benefit from the actions of traitors take note not to trust them in turn with anything important. But betrayal is darkly attractive and mysteriously addictive. We do not know much about the psychology or motivations of Judas, but the Evangelists perceived a demonic quality in his treason: “Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was one of the twelve; he went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers of the temple police about how he might betray him to them” (Luke 22:3).
The spirit who tempts us, who attracts us to the worst version of ourselves, is made manifest in the visage and the actions of the traitor. The inner darkness shows itself. As the suppressed guilt of Muneshige drives away those who used to be close to him, as his demonic traits become more evident, all he can think of doing is doubling down. This time, he will bring Tokiyuki in.
The treason does not even end with the traitor himself. Tokiyuki’s reaction to hearing that his half-brother has been sold out and decapitated is just as gripping. He loses all regard for his own safety. How many samurai clans swore to be loyal to the Hōjō clan and are now searching for him? Doubt and despair creep in. All he can see are pleasant faces turned diabolical. If this is how his past was underneath the surface, how about the present and the future? How is this young man to trust anyone again?
The Gospels also depict a sense of unease and pain. Judas handed over the Lord, but the other Apostles also abandoned him and ran away, and Peter even denied him three times. The High Priest and the Sanhedrin got involved in the murder of a miracle-maker, the Roman official knowingly condemned an innocent man to death, and the people of Jerusalem chanted for the crucifixion of an innocent. The motivations vary, as do the degrees of guilt, but the world seems completely unworthy of trust.
Even after the Resurrection and the Ascension, we are shown a Church with the doors closed, fearful of another betrayal. Fearful even of themselves. Just like Tokiyuki, how are they to trust again?
Kojirō and Ayako: The Way of the Retainer
In the face of the betrayal, Yorishige the priest reassures his young lord (and us, the viewers) in two ways. Firstly, he promises him that justice will be upheld: The traitorous Muneshige will be slain, and the innocent Kunitoki will be avenged. Treason turns our world upside down, and to escape its shadow, we need to find a new balance, a new sense of hope and trust. We need to hear “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6).
He promises him something else as well: a restoration of what was lost. New bonds will replace the broken ones. Instead of his traitorous retainers, Tokiyuki will find like-minded ones who are both courageous followers and dear friends. And thus, the priest introduces him to Kojirō and Ayako, who are every bit as committed as Muneshige was traitorous. Kids who will protect the weak just because he is weak. But Tokiyuki is still distrustful. Though the priest tells him that his new retainers are prodigies in combat, Tokiyuki doubts their abilities. Is this one of Yorishige’s hare-brained schemes? Can these kids actually help him do what he must?
The relationship takes time on the other end too. Ayako wants to protect Tokiyuki, oblivious to the fact that the latter fights better when he can move freely. Kojirō finds it strange to think of serving someone whose family was just annihilated. Nevertheless, they trust the oddball priest and follow their new lord, young and hidden from the world. And their presence, their friendship, and their commitment give Tokiyuki and us, the viewers, hope. They are kids, yet they are courageous enough to fight the whole world and take up the banner that is being trampled upon.
Ayako and Kojirō are at the sidelines most of the time, and to analyze their characters, we have to put together bits and pieces. Unlike Tokiyuki, Kunitoki, Muneshige (who did actually betray the historical Kunitoki) and even Yorishige, both retainers seem to be entirely fictional. They are evidently close friends themselves and with Shizuki, Yorishige’s daughter (they call him “Lord Yorishige”). The reason why they stay with the priest Yorishige and not their samurai families, the Mochizuki and the Nezu, is not stated outright, but it is not uncommon for some of the children of such families to become pages of their lord.
Ayako wears a red and white temple maiden attire, is extremely tall (we’ll learn that she’s insecure about it), has a warm, protective personality, and specializes in defense. Kojirō dresses in blue and has silver hair. He is the attack specialist and clearly the strategist type, passionate, humorous, and truly loyal, yet calculating at the same time. He shines when he has any occasion to be in command as a general. They are both courteous and share a playful side, a taste for adventure, and a strong moral compass. They are also ridiculously young, but well, this is anime.
Lastly, both retainers know about the foresight of the priest and obviously believe in it. It is this faith that convinces them to serve Tokiyuki even before knowing how exactly he plans to take back Japan.
The fight against Muneshige is wonderfully animated. Though despicable, the conniving, worldly-wise traitor proves himself a strong and adaptable rival. That is why he was given the mission to protect Kunitoki in the first place. His demonic persona is terrifying on the battlefield. Kojirō and Ayano are the fighters they were said to be and then some, but they fail to surprise Muneshige.
Ultimately, the fight is depicted in an array of white, purple, and red. Despite the best efforts of his retainers, Tokiyuki is wounded under the silver moon. All seems lost. Then, suddenly, Yorishige the priest calls the retainers to retreat. They are about to witness a miracle. When they obey, the Samurai Who Lives starts to dance with death, and the retainers learn a new way of fighting, one whose objective is to cooperate with the astonishing fighting style of their lord.
As Tokiyuki effortlessly evades Muneshige’s swings, Kojirō and Ayako discover that they do not need to win by themselves. They just need to give their lord an opening. And sure enough, the traitor is slain by Tokiyuki. The retainers are filled with wonder, and their bond becomes unbreakable. Lastly, in a flashback, Kunitoki tells his brother to become a hero. Things have now come full circle.
Retainers of the Hidden Lord
In the face of betrayal and of the Cross, God also reassured His Church in two ways. Firstly, He entered the darkest injustice in the world and corrected it. He gave them back from the dead their Lord, Jesus, alive again and forever. At first, unable to understand what they were seeing, the early Christians came to know that judgment had been passed, and divine justice, not the way of the world, had been blessed. Jesus had received new life, the first of many, and a new way had been opened for sinners and traitors to partake in His grace and ultimately His resurrection, or face judgment for their actions if they reject it.
Secondly, He gave them something more. He gave assistance, a miraculous power that they could cooperate with, that would lead them to do what they could not do by themselves. Like Tokiyuki, Jesus became a hidden lord. Rather than showing Himself to the world or staying physically on this Earth, with the limitations that this would imply, He created an invisible, constant communion between Him and those who voluntarily embrace it by faith, all of them at once.
This was made possible by the descent of the Holy Spirit, the mysterious presence Who had manifested over the head of Jesus at His baptism. This was the Spirit Who had accompanied Our Lord all his life, and Who Jesus had compared to the wind, invisible but powerful. The Spirit He revealed to be equal to the Father and to Himself, ordering his followers to baptize all nations in the name of “the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” The Spirit whose outpouring he had promised to the Apostles.
Instead, on the feast of Pentecost, a mighty wind entered their abode, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit, miraculous flames anointing their heads. They would cower in fear no more, terrified of the darkness of others and their own. Suddenly, the Apostles began to proclaim the mighty works of God without fear. They were still sinners, still mortal men, but now they were able to fight for their Lord in a new way. The flames came and went, but they kept the assistance of the Spirit until the day they died.
Soon after, the Apostles discovered that they could communicate the effects of Pentecost to all the baptized if they prayed and laid their hands upon them: “Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit; for it had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit” (Acts 8:14-17).
Ever since, the Catholic Church (and other Christian churches) have had the successors of the Apostles lay their hands over the baptized, anoint them with perfumed oil, and send them to their mission, knowing that the Spirit has descended upon them, confirmed in their faith. This is the sacrament of Confirmation, which I received at age 16, at a complicated time for me, in the chapel of my old school, by the hand of the Bishop of León, who I believe to have been ordained by another bishop, in an unbroken chain through the ages that leads to someone ordained by the Apostles, side by side with my classmates.
The sacrament does not guarantee that I will not be a traitor. Nor does it mean that I’m less of a sinner. But what it guarantees is that, with the help of the Holy Spirit, I can strive to fight against sin and for the Gospel as a true retainer of my hidden Lord, corresponding to a grace that makes even the impossible possible. Even if the hold a certain sin has on me seems insurmountable, as it certainly did at the time, or if I’m afraid that the consequence of preaching the Gospel will be dire, I know I will have help.
The Catholic Church teaches that by this anointing the confirmand receives, once and only once, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit as once granted to the apostles on the day of Pentecost. A spiritual, indelible mark, the seal of the Holy Spirit. Apparently, in the ancient world, a seal was the symbol of a person, a sign of personal authority, like a signature, a coat of arms, or the three triangles of the Hōjō clan. It was in this sense that Christ declared that he was marked with his Father’s seal.
This seal of the Holy Spirit, says the Catechism, marks our total belonging to Christ, our enrollment in his service forever, with the hope of seeing our Lord and Friend at the end of the good fight. It is the sign of our consecration, and as such, it is sometimes reserved for the teen years of a Christian. Among other things, it roots us more deeply in the faith, helps us grow in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and “gives us a special strength of the Holy Spirit to spread and defend the faith by word and action as true witnesses of Christ, to confess the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the Cross” (CCC 1303).
“Recall then,” says a bishop of old, St. Ambrose of Milan (c. 340–397), in his work De mysteriis, “that you have received the spiritual seal, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgment and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence, the spirit of holy fear in God’s presence. Guard what you have received. God the Father has marked you with his sign; Christ the Lord has confirmed you and has placed his pledge, the Spirit, in your hearts.”
So, let us fight guided by faith. Let us fight to the end. Let us be retainers of the Hidden Lord, until He is hidden no more. Let’s go try to do the impossible. We will surely see things never seen before.
The Elusive Samurai can be streamed at Crunchyroll.
