New Lone Wolf and Cub, Vol 6
By Kazuo Koike
I'm starting at a good, but awkward spot, since this is the 1st I'm reading from either series, but I've seen great reviews, so it shouldn't be a problem to cont. from the very start from here. Tōgō is confronted by a soldier, Daigoro standing behind him. The 2 start posturing with their weapons, readying to fight. Meanwhile, a deformed hermit-looking fella chats to an official, Rinzo about what he sensed of Tōgō.
The hermit collapses and Rinzo calls for help, planning on getting a doctor for him. Rinzo then vows he'd be the 1 to kill Tōgō, not Zushō. The hermit gets worse, urging Rinzo on to help him before he died. Daigoro watches as Tōgō cuts down the soldier, the man impressed Tōgō was stronger than his sword.
Daigoro runs over to Tōgō and is about to grab the fallen soldier's sword when Tōgō has him leave it there as a grave marker for him and the others dead nearby. Tōgō and Daigoro are traveling in swift wind, the boy getting a piggyback, and is ill, so when they near some men pulling a net from the ocean, he stops to prepare food. Tōgō helps pull in a net, and gets fish to prepare when an old lady offers the boy rice balls, and notices how sick he is, offering to get him out of the cold. Rinzo's still ranting on the ship about Tōgō and the audacity of his thinking he could murder the shogun to get revenge for Shimazu.
The duo rest at the lady's home, Tōgō telling Daigoro a metaphor of a dragon and tiger representing he and the soldier fighting. Tōgō advises the state of mind 1 should take when facing an opponent. After, the old lady feeds the boy once more before turning them out, and advising they get away quickly, horses running in their direction, the old lady retreating inside once more as the men declare deaths on the 2 as they're exiting. Tōgō takes them on to their amusement, at first.
The man is soon lying with his fellows in the dirt, stuck by Tōgō's sword. 1 of the last men alive begs for his life, the women pleading, as well, since the village kids lives depended on Asshole's life. The kids were being used to build a sand castle. Tōgō is captured, and the 1 are met by more dummies, the man who'd bound Tōgō's hands behind him ordering the other approaching men to kill him. Tōgō gets loose and slices a tree in half as the men stare.
Tōgō states of slicing their dumbass leader, a younger royal bro like the tree, if they attempt to assault him. The duo travel with the group, Daigoro no longer sick as they reach a village, and Tōgō wonders about the castle made of sand. Daigoro starts working with the men to sift for gold at the ocean as Tōgō hears the exiled royal man's story. The man then decides to show Tōgō his back up plan if thing's go sideways, leading them to the desert.
He's warned of a sandstorm and they are handed out goggles, and headwear, the group trekking on. They eventually reach his large house and ship. The man keeps Daigoro from sinking in quicksand, and sets up a bridge over it, as well as a trap for enemies. When Tōgō q's how the man hoped to save the village elderly, his answer hinged on his bro also not wishing to do them harm...
Tōgō then has Daigoro wait for him at the other side of the bride, the man cutting the rope, but Tōgō remaining calm to the man's frustration. After a few moments, Tōgō notices he'd stopped sinking realizing the royal had tried to dupe him. The man is impressed, and mentions how infamous Lone Wolf and Cub had become. Next, he pleads to hire Tōgō to kill his bro, but Tōgō makes clear he wasn't on the path of an assassin, but revenge.
The royal hopes this scare tactic will induce his bro to show his true feelings toward him. Tōgō senses the royal's choice probably'd only feed a negative response, but soon they hear shouts coming toward them. A large line of people charge at the bridge looking terrified, the royal man trying to calm them, since no one had attacked, yet. Then, the uncaring royal bro is showing his incompassion toward a fallen old lady.
The royal bro makes the deal of not attacking if his younger bro gave him Lone Wolf and Cub. The man is silent with shock and perhaps indecision. Tōgō notices they also had Zushō, a well-known man who married into a rich, powerful fam. Tōgō relays to Daigoro, this man was their ultimate enemy, and before the royal man rushes them away, Tōgō has Daigoro supplied with a short sword.
The 2 then recross the bridge to face the royal bro, and presumably Zushō. As Tōgō walks them slowly back across, the royal man senses it's to delay for the sandstorm, Zushō sensing the trap bridge, and only thinks of ending the serial killer, Tōgō so has his soldiers shoot at them, but the royal bro vetoes the command in favor of confirming their IDs 1st. Rinzo or Zushō commands their deaths anyways, but no one listens, he turning to his own men, but royal bro stating no one would obey, since it's against samurai code, and this sort of fight was for lords. The royal bro's actions and words has the warriors putting down their weapons, and teaching the younger royal man a lesson his older bro had been trying to impart for awhile, for the younger man's emotional growth.
When it seems Tōgō can tread no further Zushō calls for attack, which at their approach, Tōgō has Daigoro ready to fight. Not to say Tōgō does nothing, before Daigoro can jump to safe sand, Tōgō kills a couple fellas, leaving the last for the boy. Tōgō and foes watch the boy start slashing away, then Tōgō joins him as more come forward, cutting heads and not taking names. Zushō attempts slashing at Daigoro, but can't hit him, the boy stabbing him with relative ease, as Tōgō comes after him, the storm worse.
Tōgō locates him under a mound of sand, the younger royal bro confused with seeing his bro confront Tōgō, and upon his refusal to come quietly, has Tōgō face him for a fight. The royal man hopes to stop this, but his bro gives him the kingdom should he fail... Which he does, the younger royal mourning with Tōgō's apologies trailing him as he continues on his journey with Daigoro on his back. Quick, spectacularly drawn, and wonderful story! I'm digging it enough to go back and start at the 1st series! Alright, alright, now to continue the reads!
