Grey-Spark

Lover of Wind Breaker, Natori and Humphrey the Whale

[emerdoodls]

mourning furin trio like they're my dead wife 💔

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What I gather from Red Chanpuru's Logo

Red is complimentary to green. Making it the opposite of Bofurin.

2) There's also a subtle downward triangle in the middle of the dragons. Ie "Down" or "Lowest" as opposing "The Top". It kinda reminds me of a down button on an elevator. The downward triangle also has a dark history of marginalization.

3) It's fingerpainted, Shitōga (指頭画). I'm guessing the logo was painted with blood, giving it an older almost cult like feeling.

4) It has a triple dragon logo, so all the dragon symbolism applies here, as it does with KEEL. And I'm beginning to realize the KEEL arc was created to foreshadow this very arc. Where the situation with Nagato was always meant to setup what would happen to Suo.

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Let’s Talk About Noroshi Redemption!

ENDO IS BACK (WBK Spoilers)

Noroshi Redemption has left the station. Noroshi WILL eventually become a good guy gang. Umemiya still very much wants to make peace with Takiishi. And Endo and Sakura are already hanging out. The question isn’t IF Noroshi will be redeemed, but HOW?

1) These rebels are not going to follow Endo blindly.  2) It’s not clear Endo actually cares if they stay or go.

In fact, Noroshi is a strange case where the cohesion of the gang is actually a point of contention. The question of “Do these guys actually care enough to stay together?” is itself a plot point. I’m sure Endo would be happy to fire them all. He only cares about Takiishi. But what if Takiishi doesn’t? What if Takiishi learns their names… 

Endo and Chika are trying their best

Endo and Chka’s sudden redemption is a point of debate. But I think I understand why it happened so quickly because fundamentally…

Endo and Takiishi never hated society. They only rejected it. 

There’s a difference. To Takiishi, human society was always an obstruction. Something that “got in his way”, he never hated society necessarily, he just wanted nothing to do with it. Thus his violence was a method of creating an insulated bubble around himself away from society’s inconveniences. Well, Umemiya popped that bubble. The reason he accepted society so quickly is because he never had any ill-will against it. (Unlike some of the other villains who truly hate humanity.) And the same mostly holds true for Endo.

Endo loves anti-social people for their independence. He loves Takiishi and Sakura because they can defy society like no one else. Endo and Sakura’s Odd Relationship requires its own post but in short, Endo was just bored. He never actually hated society. 

After their upcoming talk with Umemiya, Noroshi might have to change. Or perhaps they mellow out off screen. So let’s go over how I think each member would handle that change. Starting with the guy who challenged Class 1-1.

Hashirao is actually a chill dude

Hashirao only cares about fighting. Villainy has always been a means to an end for him, otherwise he’s an honorable dude. He’s even friendly enough to take on a pupil, (ie “He’s good with kids!” etc.) It shows that he has an innate kindness, and I personally think he’s the 4th strongest in Noroshi for this reason. He’s always willing to learn. Obiki would be excited to see Suo again. (I think everyone would be excited to see Suo again 🥀) So these two would be very open to reform.

Many Suo fans think Obiki would be scared of Suo like with Kanuma, but I actually think it’d be the opposite. Maybe there’ll be a running gag where an obsessive Obiki jumpscares Suo instead. Sort of like how Suo was with Tsugeura during middleschool.

Banjo was scared straight

Banjo is frequently considered the vilest character in Wind Beaker, and I think that’s completely off base. There’s many characters worse than him. To Banjo, pain has always been a way of connecting with people, and it's made very clear that he doesn’t realize the effect he has on other people, sharing Chika’s lack of empathy. I think it's safe to say he learned his lesson after his fight with Hiragi and would be very amenable to reform. Also I see some interesting Kaji interaction.

Elvis and the Bald Guy seem chummy

We don’t know anything about bald dude Kyosuke Masuda. (So much so that I had to copy and paste his name right now.) If he does go along with the redemption plan it’ll be out of sheer indifference. He just seems like a “go with the flow” kinda guy. I mean he seemed happy to see Hiragi again? But that friendly greeting was probably insincere.

The same cannot be said about Genji Sugichi (the Elvis Guy) who appeared to have a very REAL interest in Tsubaki. He would have a self-interested reason to ally with Bofurin, and I think he’s actually gettable. But with Masuda I’m less convinced, I think baldie would probably follow the lead of the next two jackasses.

Tarumi and Chihiro are the next AriKanu

These shitheads are going to be the hardest to convince. I get the sense they have a close connection with the two leaders, sort of like Arima and Kanuma in Shishitoren. Which is why they had the honor of rallying with Endo and Takiishi in the Noroshi War, but I don't think for a second that either are stronger than Hashirao, a guy who devoted his life to fighting. Unlike the other members who have glimmers of humanity, these guys are complete assholes. Especially rotten, we haven’t seen ANYTHING redeemable from these two.

To be fair, we didn’t see anything redeemable about Kanuma and Arima at first either. So I’m not going to write them off entirely, but they would likely not be onboard with redemption. The only way I could see Endo convincing them to stay is by pulling the loyalty card. 

Endo would have to beg them to stay.

Which would be unthinkable character growth for him and the entire team. I don't see any other reason they’d stick around, let alone change their dastardly ways. I mean these two display KEEL-levels of villainy. Speaking of KEEL …

The KEEL-Noroshi Alliance may end

Cutting off KEEL would be a sinking symbolic change for Mr. Yamato battleship. Endo cannot continue to be friends with both Sakura and Natori at the same time. The fact that his social circle includes both of these people AT ALL is its own point of interest. Sakura and Natori are diametrically opposed. You’d think this would be an easy choice. Obviously he’d choose Sakura, right? Well… here’s the thing. Natori represents ultimate freedom. It's not so much that he loves Natori necessarily. Rather to him, Natori represents his freedom to flaunt the law and morality. By cutting off Natori he’d be shedding a large part of his identity. Endo wouldn’t be Endo anymore if he didn’t do whacky criminal hijinks, like torturing rando goons apparently. 🙄

There’s also been new discussion on whether Natori has actually been a member of Noroshi all along. We see somebody who looks just like him fighting with Endo in the past. So it's possible Natori has dual membership. If Natori actually is the ninth member of Noroshi this would complicate things even further. This would mean Natori (of all fucking people) would have a seat at the peace talks and argue strongly against any reconciliation. And many of these dirtbags would rather walk off with KEEL than become allies with Bofurin. In fact, this whole scenario would be great for Natori backstory. (Something Nii-sensei has been interested in recently.) Not that he’s a threat or anything. Endo and Chika could clobber all those losers easily… 

But Endo can’t make them stay either.

Cut it however you want, the evil parts of Noroshi might walk and Endo’s criminality will NEED to be addressed. Which means somebody more convincing than Noroshi’s two dunderhead leaders will have to make a strong counter argument.

Who are Noroshi’s missing members?

There are two noroshi members that were not featured in the Noroshi war. This can be explained in one of two ways. 

They were completely off screen. 

They were moral objectors that abstained from the war

Maybe they were completely off-screened while fighting the Zojo and Komoku 2nd year captains, who were also completely off-screened in the war. However, in this post I want to explore the latter option. Mostly because it seems Endo and Nirei are a big deal in this arc. Meaning Nirei might run into an old hero of this.

Nirei’s Savior Theory

Some people find it odd that Nirei’s Savior hasn’t appeared yet. He wasn’t at the first captain meeting. You can see in this picture that he's a second year, so he should have been there as a third year. Nirei should’ve been jumping all over him. So not only did the tenth member of Noroshi not participate in the war. HE TRIED TO STAY. He actually gave Bofurin a chance but then left! That’s assuming Nirei’s Savior actually is the tenth member. But even if the missing members don’t include that guy, I think it’s strongly implied they took moral objection. Noroshi’s may get its own Wanijima-type character(s). A careful steady voice of reason that guides them to the light.

Whoever they are, they’re probably just free spirits who didn’t fit in at Bofurin, but don’t like Noroshi’s senseless destruction either. Keep in mind that Noroshi is not an inherently criminal organization and spent most of its time clobbering other gangs. So there’s always been room for moral members. Unlike Wani, they’d have their work cut out for them. I suspect these missing members will be central to this redemption arc and possibly Nirei's development.

So how will this play out anyway?

These Noroshi guys are borderline criminals, each with an independent streak. Changing their hearts would be a considerable task. But even still, there’s no doubt in my mind that‘s where we’re headed. But Nii-sensei has to tread a needle very carefully… A Noroshi redemption almost REQUIRES a schism, otherwise it’ll feel cheap and unearned. However it also doesn’t have to happen all at once. 

Anyway, here's my chart were I think all of them would fall:

This will take time. We may get a gradual redemption, where Noroshi doesn’t fully come around. But maybe Nirei and Sakura get a “tour” of Noroshi’s base!

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Suzuri and Natori spinoff?!?!?!?!?

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Hi! As someone who fairly recently got into wbk, I’ve been reading all your theories and analysis and they’re extremely well thought out, and a delight to read! I can see you are really passionate about it and ngl you are part of the reason I give KEEL more attention than I initially thought about it 😂.

I think your theories and analysis add a lot to the worldbuilding and I’ve really been enjoying reading all of it!

Something I did pick up right off the bat with KEEL’s first appearance was that they were *such* a sharp visual contrast to Bofurin and even Shishitoren. The members of the latter gangs have their own individual style and manner of dress while still wearing the colors of their group.

Then there’s KEEL, which honestly unless their hoods are down-we really do not see much visual difference/indiviudalism aside from height and even then there’s usually not much distinction unless the height difference is significant.

(Also, I noticed that it may have been an author’s choice but even in the flashbacks of Nagato we see only Natori or the VIPs will have their hoods down in their ‘lair’. Everyone else keeps their’s up-unless they’re getting a beat down (Nagato, and probably that one kid who wanted to leave)

It’s like there’s some sort of unspoken rule amongst KEEL that only Natori and the VIPs can really show any sort of individuality, because they’re ‘stronger’.)

You're right on the money. The KEEL grunts are literality forced to wear hand me downs that minimize individuality. Mostly from the VIPs. Although they seem to have a genuine interest in cyberpunk for some reason. I suspect this is because they're douchebag NFT bros that think cyberpunk is "COOL" so the keel guys are basically tech bros which is a reference to thier "tokuryu" nature.

I'm going to do a full post about KEEL's fashion next!

However, I do think the KEEL grunts are given more respect than Nagato. I think "slaves" like Nagato are the exception, not the rule. It appears that most of the KEEL grunts are genuine asshole thieves, who seem to enjoy their time in KEEL. Just look at them!

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Wind Breaker's Main Villain

7 REASONS why FEAR is the main villain of Wind Breaker and how Natori could become it's vessel.

(Manga Spoilers / Mentions of Abuse)

Look. I get it. KEEL is probably not becoming the main villain but I can see Natori being a big instigator moving forward. And in some ways, KEEL's return is almost inevitable for symbolic reasons. Natori has all the right symbolism to become Wind Breaker’s main antagonist.

I’m framing this almost like a sales pitch why Natori is “main villain” material, but in truth this post will serve as my complete analysis of Natori as well as the broader themes surrounding him. Understand I am approaching this with the utmost self-awareness, so take all of this with a grain of salt and just have fun. So let's jump right in~

REASON 1 - Natori represents FEAR, the main antagonistic theme

It’s understandable why most would think Natori won’t be a big deal. Natori doesn't even have a profile for the official website, and isn't even listed as a major character. 😂 Nii-sensei probably just considers him an unofficial member of Noroshi about as unimportant as Hashirao in the grand scheme of things. But what I want to impress upon you is that what KEEL represents DOES matter. 

Natori represents the illusionary power of fear. 

During Natori’s speech in Chapter 47, we see “fear” is directly compared to Natori’s bat, center framed. A literal cudgel. But just like how Sakura hesitated to jump off the rope only to find it was a short drop, we find Natori turned out to be a push over that couldn’t even last ten punches. Only appearing to be big and scary, but it was all a lie. In this sense, Natori and KEEL sort of has to be weak for the story to work. But why doesn’t this same rule apply to Endo and Noroshi? Why isn’t Noroshi weak like KEEL? 

Well, that’s because while KEEL gets its power through fear, Noroshi gets its power through independence, ie “being alone”. This distinction between Natori and Endo is what makes Endo stronger, but ironically that’s why Endo was never cut out to be the main villain of the series. Just like Choji before him, he’s not truly evil, not deep down. And so now Wind Breaker’s story has entered an invisible bind, a chain if you will,  where all evil characters need to be weak, like KEEL and Spaltips, while all strong characters have to be good or turn good.

🐉 KEEL as the opposite of “The Top” 🐉

I mean sure, you can give an evil guy a ton of muscles but without narrative substance it’s meaningless. We need a truly strong, truly evil character… For metanarrative reasons, it has to be KEEL.

As I pointed out in my Momijikawa post, KEEL is the anti-thesis to Bofurin, the very lowest point of the ship, the “lowest of the low” just like the thieves that stole Momi’s workshop.

If Umemiya is “The Top” KEEL is “The Lowest”

And it continuously gets referenced for this reason...

🐉 KEEL as the winter-colored team🐉 

Let’s think about it for a moment. What can we expect from the final enemy of the series? As I’ve discussed before, winter is definitely going to be the final threat to challenge Bofurin. It’s the natural enemy of all plants, and it takes place at the end of the year. As I’ve discussed in early posts, the theme of spring overcoming winter is baked into the story's DNA. And we see it in the show’s color-theming. In my color theory post, I discussed how Green and Yellow are generally the “good” colors (representing growth and warmth), and white and blue are generally the “bad” colors (representing trauma and coldness). Fittingly, those are KEEL’s colors, even the KEEL arc is formatted blue in the TV show, so now it's kinda theirs.

🐉 KEEL as the dragon team 🐉

So It’s no coincidence that Sakura’s main rival Sugishita has a blue color theme. And not only that, he also has a dragon motif. Reflecting a long running trope in Chinese Buddhism called “The Dragon vs The Tiger” which to grossly simplify represents directness vs devising. See, dragons represent something very different in East Asia. Chinese Dragons are wingless and serpentlike representing wisdom and power. While the Western dragons (like the one we see in the KEEL logo) have wings and represent evil and greed. 

There is ZERO chance this was unintentional. KEEL was given the dragon logo to represent the opposing force against Sakura. And in Western canon, an evil dragon is often portrayed with a great hero who tries to slay it, and is generally perceived as the most fearsome creature in western literature. It is a creature of fear incarnate.

🐉 KEEL as the main antagonistic theme 🐉

FEAR.

From the very first scene and at every turn moving forward, FEAR has been the main negative driving force of Wind Breaker for so many things that happen in the story. Fear is what drove Togame to commit his sins. It’s what drove Narita to run towards her captors and scared Tsubaki away from wearing makeup as a kid. There are other themes, but fear and loneliness seem to be central. And even now, in the New Semester, it’s still not going away, there’s the fear of treading a new path like Akari or fear of reaching out for help like Suo. 

Fear is here to stay as the main villain of Wind Beaker. It’s not going anywhere. 

So that means the endgame enemy team needs to be: >a winter-colored, ideally blue >with an animal that contrasts Sakura’s tiger >that’s based around fear, the main antagonistic force of the story…

Nii-sensei gave the most important color, theme, and animal to KEEL.

Nii-sensei has almost written himself into a corner in this regard…

That’s not to say the final enemy can’t be something else! It may be more possible that KEEL revives some other dragon team to serve as the final antagonists instead, like hooded cultists reviving the bones of a dragon. KEEL is almost perfectly designed to be a recon unit for a much bigger and dangerous team, they have "bank heist skills".

But even if KEEL doesn't become (or bring about) the final villains, it's hard to imagine KEEL not coming back, given their sheer symbolic importance already imbued onto them. When the author makes a team that represents fear and evil itself, how does one not bring them back? 

REASON 2 - He’s evil enough

Let us appreciate how much of a wonderful bastard Natori is.

There’s something refreshingly cathartic about having a simplistic villain. One that gets beaten up and sent flying into outer space like Team Rocket. KEEL is the designated irredeemable team, where even the character’s in-universe notice they’re the worst. And it was only really done once. In the same way the Kremlings were phased out of Donkey Kong for over a decade, it feels like KEEL and the evil teams have been kinda phased out in favor of generic goons. 

Ever since KEEL we’ve seen a change in how teams are presented, at least in the manga, where if there ever is an evil team, it's just random goons. Even the Noroshi guys didn’t have team uniforms, they too were just ultra powerful goons. My god so many goons. I am so tired of nameless goons. The closest thing to a real evil team again was Kraken, that was a year ago, and they kinda felt like a knock-off of KEEL.

It’s almost like KEEL has property rights to EVIL™ It’s like Nii-sensei has been giving us Diet Coke, Diet Rite, Dr. Thunder, RC Cola-

GIVE US NAME-BRAND KEEL ALREADY!

I want our unapologetic villains again! Preferably with development this time. If they’re gonna be frugal about adding evil teams, they might as well go all in on the original and just make the evilest guy the main villain. And funnily enough, he might even do it on purpose…

REASON 3 - Natori’s the genre-breaker

Natori is the 4th wall breaker, who reminds me of a famous character from Persona 4 and I won't spoil anything about the game but Adachi's basically a cynical NPC that's not following the script of what his character should do. Both figuratively and metatextually.

And in this sense, Natori and Adachi have a lot in common. Both appear to be dopey idiots on the surface, while actually being cynical underneath. They have this shared genre-breaking irreverence to the optimistic themes of their series. Adachi says you’re going to die working a boring 9 to 5 job. You’re not going to be the one to get the big promotion because talent and nepotism matter more than hard work. He just takes a giant piss on all the feel-good “Believe In Yourself!” nonsense of early 2000’s anime.

Natori has that same designated gadfly energy who viciously pokes at the inauthenticity of Bofurin. Like he knows something we don't.

I’ll expand more on this in Reason 6, but for now, let’s just say that Bofurin doesn’t exist in most of real-life Japan. The real world is far more cut-throat and FEAR is the only thing that gave Sakura any respite until he reached Furin. The bullies didn’t back off until they feared him.  Self-defense alone didn’t get Sakura peace. Going KEEL did. He put FEAR in them. So to most of the world, Bofurin and KEEL are the same. Bofurin is still a violent gang with scary haircuts.

Bofurin wouldn’t exist without gangs like KEEL

Bofurin and Noroshi (KEEL) have a symbiotic relationship. Japan has a very conservative culture. And it's been explained how the only reason Makochi’s citizens are so accepting of Sakura (and the Furin delinquents) is because they trust them after years of being protected by them from Spaltips, Vermilleo, and all the other little gangs that plague the town like KEEL. But what if Makochi has no gang problems at all? Would the people of Makochi be so accepting of a kid with scary colored hair? The answer is a clear and definite no.

Sakura has already been to five well-to-do towns and looked at how they treated him. Trusted organizations like Roppo Ichiza and Bofurin only flourish when gangs like KEEL rough up the town. KEEL and Noroshi’s violent rebellion against society leads the way for Bofurin’s reform. Creating a strange ying-yang symbolism; hence tiger and dragon. Obviously I don't think Natori is a revolutionary, but…

Right now, the only character in the whole story that has any grasp on this meta-understanding is Natori. 

He’s a giant dose of uncomfortable realism just like Adachi, who also walks on the fourth wall in this way, and you get the sense that he alone has a deeper understanding of what’s really going on. Like he's playing chess and everyone else is playing checkers…

REASON 4 - He’s smart enough

I already made a whole post about how Natori is the most cunning Strategist in Wind Breaker. I may have to recover a little old ground but to sum it up again. Natori is an exceptionally cunning strategist whose entire identity revolves around controlling and trapping others. The stickers on his bat suggest that his knack for strategy might even come from his personal history with baseball. And boy did he sweep Class 1-1.

Putting Sakura’s naivety aside, what’s stunning was Natori’s forethought and restraint. He carefully prepared and hid a large army. Held back his strongest men and did some reconnaissance first. Singling out the strongest members. Through sheer tactics, Natori was on the verge of winning despite having the weaker army. The way he planned that shipyard ambush was flawlessly thought out, and unlike Endo, KEEL’s leader actually has a great understanding of people. So far Endo has filled the mastermind role, but now that he’s a good(ish) guy, I could easily see Natori slipping into that role. Even if he clearly doesn’t have the strength on his own.

The Joker can’t beat Batman in a fistfight, and Kisaki can’t beat Mikey either. Natori doesn’t need to be strong to make problems.

When I used the term “main villain” at the start, I never used the term “final boss”. Like the Joker, Natori is a shit-starting mastermind, he can do serious damage even as he is now just with his cunning.

I’m not convinced Natori is formidable enough to be the final big bad, but I could see him filling this “Bowser Jr” type role to the big bad. Or becoming some shit-starting instigator like Kisaki who sets things in motion. 

But if that’s the case, how could Natori and KEEL possibly evolve from here? How could Natori possibly become a big enough threat for him to continue being an ongoing player?

REASON 5 - Natori is the “weapons guy”

There’s a very easy way Nii-sensei could make Natori threatening again, and it's staring us all in the face. Natori is the weapons user. So far, Natori is the only fighter in the series who’s skilled with a weapon, the one-handed weapons specifically. Just look at him go!

Can you imagine how dangerous Natori would be with an actual weapon? Or blade? Or just any stronger weapon besides a baseball bat?! I know Natori would never use a sword, the WBK manga would never go there, but holy hell! So far, none of the KEEL guys use blades because I suspect the manga has some kind of ‘No Kill” rule, but still. Imagine if Natori had to defend his life, or fight for a cause he actually believed in. You really think he’d bring a baseball bat? 

As we discussed at the start, the reason Natori loves weapons is because weapons give you power over people. They give you control. So why would we just assume that this bored sociopath would just teach himself to use a bat and call it a day? So I could see a scenario where Natori has taught himself to use a multitude of weapons. Here are just a few non-lethal weapons Natori might be trained to use:

Polesarms. Chains. Mace. Bokken. Hammers. Nunchucks. Knives! 

This makes another interesting contrast with our hero. Sakura uses his friends as weapons. Natori uses actual weapons… If Natori was a mulit-weapon specialist trained in everything, then that’d make him a one-man army, a one-man-band. The ultimate lone fighter to contrast Sakura’s character arc. So Natori evolving as a weapons user would actually have symbolic weight, and frankly it just seems like his natural progression. It's a crazy headcanon, but honestly any weapon upgrade could do. After losing two times, of course he's gonna try something new. We already saw in the second fight, Natori was angry enough to take off his jacket, symbolically rolling up his sleeves. He took the Suzuri fight a little seriously for a change, but with each return, Natori is only going to focus his power more. Bofurin is forcing him to evolve, and the obvious solution is to reach for another weapon.

Natori has an overpowered ability hiding in plain sight

. In this way, he’s kinda like The Spot from Across The Spider-Verse. One has portals. One has weapons. Both are underestimated. Natori could evolve into the final boss like The Spot, where he starts out as a joke but slowly becomes more dangerous. It would certainly be a narrative twist for Sakura’s first enemy to be his final enemy, especially considering he was the ‘asshole that got away’. 

REASON 6 - He still owes Sakura a punch

Bofurin has unfinished business with KEEL. If it wasn't clear already from the previous sections, Sakura and Natori are basically fated to be archenemies. They are complete opposites. Symbolism aside, Sakura and Natori have been built up for an overdue fight!

1) Natori is Sakura’s first shown enemy.  2) Sakura never got to fight him, so there’s some build-up there. 3) He still owns Sakura one punch.

He asked Kaji for ten, and only got nine. Truth be told, I think Sakura might’ve won that fight. But again, that was then. Natori might have developed since then. It intrigues me how it was teased but didn’t happen. At the moment, it was more important for him to learn to step back and be a leader. Nevertheless, KEEL has basically become Sakura’s white whale, and one of his big regrets. The incident was pivotal to his transformation that was seen in Chapter 60. And there are still many mysteries about KEEL even after the dust cleared. Like the full meaning of their symbol. What are they collecting the money for? How were they created? But that’s small details, the big picture is that KEEL and Bofurin are on a symbolic collision course.

I know what you’re thinking: “GREY! WHAT ABOUT SAKURA VS ENDO?! HE ALREADY BEAT NATORI’S BOSS! SO WHY BOTHER FIGHTING NATORI NOW?” Here’s the problem with that, Endo and Natori represent different things.

Noroshi is a pack of lone wolves. KEEL is a cult. 

If Sakura is “The Individual" who won’t compromise himself, then Natori represents “The Many”

More than anything else, Sakura hates when a group of people surround a single person, and Natori’s whole model is surrounding people with numbers. Natori represents everything Sakura hates about the world. And while Endo used numbers too, it's hardly his modus operandi. Noroshi is defined by its independence. Endo encourages Sakura to “work alone”. As we covered in a previous section, Natori is speaking representative of the asshole masses that terrorize Makochi, and terrorize Sakura his whole life.

It feels like Natori Shingo was designed in a lab to be Sakura’s archnemesis

He's an evil genius with a dragon theme. Made first contact. Embodies Sakura’s Chapter 60 fears. Represents the abusive masses. And has an unsettled score with the hero. He runs the team that truly is Bofurin’s opposite. The lowest of the low. The evil team that cannot be reformed or appeased. Natori wants to destroy everything. All of Furin. Maybe all of TOKYO if given the chance!

KEEL is essentially the final loose end. As far as the moral fabric of the story is concerned, KEEL is the final obstacle to peace in this universe. There’s an endless horde of goons that keep coming for Makochi and Natori is the face of the horde. But to solve that obstacle, we first have to figure out why Natori is the way he is.

REASON 7 - His backstory might mirror Sakura’s trauma

I've always thought Natori is who Sakura would’ve become if he had chosen hatred. Natori has all the telltale signs of abuse.

There are three traits a kid develops after experiencing early childhood physical abuse:

1) a complete normalization of violence, even towards themselves.    ie "If it was done to me, then it must be fine, they'll be okay" 2) a deep-seated desire for control over others.     ie "I'm the one that's feared now. I'm the one in control now. Me!" 3) a pathological distrust of society and institutions.     ie "adults will pretend to be nice, but then just hurt you in the end."

Natori doesn't just have all these traits, they're thoroughly his defining features. If this is true and Shingo was beaten, then Natori might be just like Sakura. But unlike Sakura, Natori did not forgive the society. Natori met hatred with more hatred. It's also explain his desperate need for control, as compensation for what he lacked.

Consider this: why did Endo and Chika come around so easily in the end, but not Natori? Why did they agree to a truce? Well,essentially their issues are innate to them. Endo and Chika were built differently. One is a genius living on an island, the other is implied to be neurodivergent in some way with trouble understanding human empathy. Endo and Chika were doomed to never fit in. So when Umemiya and Sakura finally got through to them, they finally got the social acceptance they secretly always wanted and agreed to terms. 

Natori is an entirely different creature

I have reason to believe Natori is a product of his environment, not nature. And he does NOT want social acceptance. He wants all human society to eat shit. He has this fury and hatred about him that Endo doesn’t seem to have. When Endo puts his guard down, he becomes an oaf. When Natori puts his guard down, he becomes joyless. 

Like Choji before him, Natori is a deeply depressed and insecure individual. But unlike Choji his issue does not seem to be aspirational, he doesn’t seem to have any real “goal” besides inflicting madness/suffering on the weak and powerless. So why is he this way? It's hard to say because at the moment, we have no backstory on Natori. We know everything about his ideology and nothing about his person. And anytime somebody asks him a hard question, he doesn’t answer. He deflects.

Kaji asks him, “Are you the real leader of KEEL?” — No response. Suzuri asks, “Why don’t you stop all this?” — No response. 

Instead he gets unbelievably, veins-bulgingly angry. He’s offended. I think part of this is foreshadowing Umemiya's revelation about Takiishi. Where Ume realized he had dismissed his foe without bothering to find out why Chika wanted to fight in the first place. Thus leading to the very war he wanted to avoid. But with Natori I think it's more than that. We already know from the Kaji fight that he wants everyone to "reject humanity, return to monke" But why is he's so emotionally invested?

We know Natori hates liars

It’s no coincidence that Natori fights the same man that fought Tsubaki, the “lipstick boy” who also had an arc about being a “liar”. In this shared vision, Natori and Tsubaki are united. Natori hates society much like Tsubaki hated his old self. The only difference is Natori thinks all human kindness is a ruse. He has a fundamental distrust for all societal institutions, and believes only in the law of the jungle. He has this hate fixation on hypocrites that he mentions at every opportunity. Mockingly calling people a ‘pretend saint’. And there’s only one other character who has these kinds of trust issues.

Turns out Kotoha hates pretend saints too…

One of my followers even pointed out an interesting Sakura/Kotoha KEEL connection. The fact that there's a Sakura class of battleships and it includes Sakura and Kotoha exclusively is too much of a coincidence, that might be intentional. And it makes me wonder how long Nii-sensei intended KEEL to be a bad guy in the story. More to the point, the two characters we know have been abused and abandoned at a very young age have trust issues and hate liars just like Natori. If Natori was beaten from an early age and it messed him up, that'd explain his trust issues just like Sakura, Kotoha and Natsuki. So much so that he can’t believe anyone can be a good person at all.

And frankly, I think he's just jealous of other people's happiness. And would rather beat everything else to the ground than face his issues. Being human is simply too painful for him.

If this is true. If Natori really was abused and all the madness he created is just an aimless nihilistic rampage, then I tremble to think what would happen if he took his rampage seriously. There might be a whole other side of Natori and KEEL coming with the winter air… 

CONCLUSION - The King of the Cold

That was fun. Time to return to Earth. Natori isn’t going to be the main antagonist of Wind Breaker. I know. But how is he NOT?

So the evilest, smartest character who represents the main antagonistic theme, who’s the narrative counterbalance to everything good in the story is not gonna be the main villain and might not even come back… If not him, who is? 

Natori is more likely our Mahito than Wind Breaker’s Sukuna. But I think this was still a good exercise in pondering who the real ”Ice Dragon” is gonna be waiting at the end of the series. Natori but stronger, I guess? Or things might go in a different direction, but that would be a mistake.

Makochi wont find peace until the “Natori problem” is dealt with.

In chapter 119, we learn about the “Way of the Fist”, the show’s philosophy laid out. We see how Suzuri did everything he could to not use his hands, he’d rather use them to cook food and shake hands, but when faced with an unrelenting evil is forced to use his fists. 

But the “Way of the Fist” is limited. 

Bofurin has to address the CAUSE of this pestilence beyond the symptoms instead of just fighting back an endless horde of goons forever. We’ve been stuck in symptom treating mode… diegetically at least. Metanarratively, Shishitoren, Gravel and Noroshi all give insight into the causes of delinquency. Freedom. Survival. Competitiveness. All defeated, all joined the nakama, save one. But reform is STILL just symptom treating. We need PREVENTION. What about Spaltips? That’s the most important question, actually. What is it gonna take to stop hooligans from spawning infinitely outside the town? And who will be the king of this endless stream of coldhearted assholes?

Representationally, it’s Natori. He truly is the king of the cold. But who actually ends up sitting on that ice throne by the end of the series is still a mystery…

[grey-spark]

Hello, I've been reading your wbk analysis and theories and they're so interesting and you have single-handedly piqued my interest at KEEL as a gang. In fact, I was looking at the wiki page for list of destroyers in Japan and found something interesting......

Some of the names of Bofurin's members are also names of destroyers/ships.

I don't want to overthink or jump to conclusions since it could just be a coincidence, but...... It seems that Bofurin and Wind Breaker's story as a whole lead back to KEEL all along.

I am losing my shit. Especially over the first one. To be fair, there are a lot of battleships and many are named after nature.

BUT THIS? The fact that there's a Sakura class and it includes him and Kotoha exclusively is sending me. That's too much of a coincidence, that might be intentional. Endgame KEEL?

[grey-spark]

My interest in Suo has increased since the start of the new arc. I wonder why...

[grey-spark]

The Momijikawa Arc Is Not Over

Discussing the chances of a Momijikawa villain arc and other possibilities (WBK Spoilers / TW Suicide)

If I had written this article two weeks ago, I’d be dismissed as a crackpot again for even suggesting this kid can become a villain. But thankfully, everyone’s darling Suo crashed out on main, and so now the barn door has been blown wide open.

If SUO can become a villain. ANYONE can become a villain.

And between the two, there was far less evidence of Suo villainy. We only got a hint of that during the KEEL incident. Suo only had one scene hinting at a villain arc. Momijikawa has had several. So I want to go over all the hints and why Momijikawa might give into hatred. And why he has every reason to go searching for the man who killed his grandfather. 

Part 1: Anger in the New Semester 

Without getting too specific, I think the Suo Arc will have themes about anger and revenge, probably involving some villain with an ax to grind. My point being that a main theme of this fall semester saga is… ANGER.

The Axes of Extinction War theory seems more possible than ever. (My theory that the next big war will be about metal chopping trees.) Axes have long been associated with anger, revenge and longstanding conflict. (Sugishita has an axe motif, and he’s closest to Momi 🤔) Also We just got a new team in Lion’s Fury literally called Moby Dick, a quintessential revenge story. And oh boy, does Momijikawa totally have an axe to grind as well…

Momijikawa is angry. Filled with it. But unfortunately, we don’t actually get a full examination of Momijikawa’s hatred of outsiders. He tells us WHY he hates outsiders, but that’s it, he doesn't explain HOW he hates them, leaving questions unanswered…

Does he hate outside civilians? Does he hate foreigners? Did he STOP hating outsiders? Or just Sakura specifically?

His hatred of outsiders is never thoroughly explained or put to bed. In fact, he sort of doubles down on his hate and changes the subject.

But he also has the baptism moment where he jumps into the water and calls himself scum. So…. It’s left kinda vague??? But my reading is that he doesn’t hate outsiders anymore, but he still hates the scammer, specifically. 

Which almost feels like a set up… Like Nii-sensei has quietly created a challenge: 

Can Momi forgive the scammer too? 

Why else have him say that? That’s the only way to complete his character arc now. On the topic of scammers, let's talk about my favorite thieving organization.

Part 2: Momijikawa entangled with KEEL

For once in my life, making a giant tangent about KEEL is actually justified because I think the New Semester Arc is very much designed to draw comparison to KEEL. The New Semester Arc is meant to be a redux of the KEEL Arc. A second chance for Sakura to do things right this time, and demonstrate his character growth as a leader. 

Even Momijikawa’s name has strange ties to KEEL’s battleship theme. The Nakajima Sakae Engine, or just Sakae (栄, Glory) was a 14-cylinder air-cooled radial engine and the most produced and used engine for Japanese fighter aircraft during World War II by the Imperial Japanese Navy. Meaning if a plane came off a battleship carrier, it was probably using a Sakae engine.

The ghost of KEEL continues to pop up in the story, in a way that the other arcs don’t. The main themes of the KEEL Arc is about fear and being outnumbered and the angry reaction to that and so central to the story that they’re arguably the main antagonistic theme. Not having courage, “looking away” as Sakura put it.

And since Momi is a foil in for Sakura, it stands to reason he’d get his own KEEL called Vermileo. But Momijikawa is not Sakura. Momijiaka doesn’t have the same self-hatred checking his impulses. He will beat and brutalize his opponents without mercy.

Unlike Sakura, Momijikawa has opened is heart to hate

There's an old quote, “If you stare into the abyss long enough and it’ll stare back into you.” And sure enough, we keep getting these panels where Momijikawa is positioned JUST like the Vermileo scum he’s fighting. Almost like he’s becoming one of them.

The biggest hint of all is the scene before he gets jumped. We have this moment where he looks himself in the mirror. And then the Vermileo guy points out how he’s not in Bofurin’s uniform. Instead he’s wearing a black shirt. Which figuratively suggests that he’s beginning to leave the Bofurin path.

Here we’ve seen him hitting a lowest point, his last loved one is dying, and gets confronted by “Banjo Jr”. Back in the war, we saw Suzuri suggest Natori go home and Natori gives a cryptic non-answer about how he’s “good at pissing people off” and here we see the Vermilleo guy saying the same thing.

Of note, immediately after saying that line, Natori takes off his uniform to reveal a plain black shirt. Now look, I'm not sure if the shirt is supposed to be a literal comparison or if the black shirts just convey villainy in general, but I can DEFINITELY say the similar themes are being covered by these two encounters.

I love how we see Suzuri give a “?” because Natori just loves to give confusing misdirections and nonanswers. He's as mysterious as Suo! And like Suo, Natori doesn't use his fists, preferring to use a baseball bat and thus can’t be communicated with. We fought Natori twice and we still don’t know anything about his backstory. Because Natori doesn’t want to talk about himself and his ordinary daylight life. Later on in the fight, when he talks about ordinary living, he gives a skeptical bored dreary look. But more to the point, Natori’s goal in this fight is to “have fun” and extract as much enjoyment from it as possible to relive that boredom.

And this is why Momijikawa consents to fight Vermilleo. To “blow off steam” and to “relieve his boredom”.

And because of it, he almost misses his grandmother’s death... Without his grandmother, Momijikawa would have fallen down a very dark path. And even WITH his grandma's influence, he still almost went that direction anyway once she left the picture. He was boarding an elevator going straight down.

If Umemiya is “The Top” KEEL is “The Lowest”

The very name KEEL is meant to invoke the very bottom of a ship, the lowest of the low. And I find it concerning how Momi attributes the death of his grandfather on the “lowest of the low”. Which was caused by scammers and thieves just like KEEL. 

Let me be clear: I am NOT saying Natori is the scammer who stole his workshop. But Natori IS the closest thing. And the tragedy is now Momi is slowly becoming the very type of person that ruined his life. Unlike Sakura who only deals out justice, Momi is meeting the hatred of the world with more hatred and its left him feeling empty and nihilistic. 

When Momijikawa looked into his reflection, he GLARED. He was so utterly disgusted with what his boring thankless life had become.

He was finally beginning to hate ordinary life itself. Or just LIFE itself. When he challenges the whole gang of Vermilleo to charge at him at once, we get a cut away to the damages life has done to him. The injustice and cruelty of an uncaring universe.

Until he snaps and decides he just wants to destroy everything

I'm fully convinced Momijikawa was saved just in time. If not for Sakura and Bofurin, this moment would have put them on the slow path to becoming Natori. Someone completely hollow, who has nothing to give humanity but unmitigated hatred and distrust. And the very next panel when Momi hits this Lowest point-

THATS when we get the shot of the guy dragging the pipe like KEEL.

This is KEEL. This is what it means to hit the Lowest.

Luckily that's when Sakura swoops in to save the day!

Like a literal superhero, invoked. The moment KEEL materializes into the world again, Sakura appears to shut it down again. But unlike last time where KEEL was completely wiped out, a little bit of it escaped this time… inside Momijikawa. 

Part 3: Momijikawa’s Revenge?

I suspect the second half of the Momijikawa arc will be in the Momose Arc. This is where he’ll actually learn teamwork and interact with the Zojo team. However, the contours of this arc evade me. I have no idea what it’s gonna look like. If I had to guess I could see the villains being a bunch of anti-art bigots, or some type of conservative militia.

Heavenly King Zojo is said to have a blade that banishes ignorance.

Momose has his pencil. That’s his blade. His art. His kindness. He’ll banish the remaining ignorance from Momijikawa’s soul. I could also see him building a relationship with the Grade Captain Yuzuriha, where Yuzu sort of fills in as his own “Nirei”. 

But until that happens… is there going to be a moment of temptation?

WOULD MOMIJIKAWA BETRAY BOFURIN TO GET A SCAMMER?

Now, obviously, we can’t hold it against Momi for hating the scammer. Not judgement here. Rather I am more so focusing on the symbolic significance of his anger in general. But here’s why it’s still significant now. I think it’s only a matter of time before we run into an evil team that represents ANGER. Let’s say, this villain team is good at tracking down people and trapping them. Will Momijikawa cut a deal? 

POINTS FOR: Why It Might Happen

1) Momijikawa has never been THAT close to Bofurin. And his status in the organization started on shaky ground. He didn’t join for YEARS. He’s kinda like the anti-Sugi in that way.

And to be ‘frank’, he didn’t even help in the Noroshi war. He could have asked a nurse to fill in for a night, when there's a will there’s a way. When everything was on the line, Momi chose his grandmother. That’s fine, but it’s revealing. Again, I’m not judging him for this. But this shows that when the chips are down his personal world comes first. 

2) He’s finally free to pursue revenge. Up until recently, he didn’t even have time to go to school. Let alone track down the bastards that ruined his life. But now that his grandmother has passed on, he’s free to do other things. And It wouldn't surprise me at all if it was always his plan to start hunting the moment he had the chance. And just like the Suo situation, there are promises that run deeper than a school team. If forced to make a choice between Bofurin and justice for his grandpa, what will he choose? I’m betting on the latter. 

POINTS AGAINST: Why It Might Not Happen

1) Sakura has already beaten Momi in a fight. It’s highly implied Momi lost the duel. So that kind of takes the wind out of the sails for any future encounter. There’s no way Sakura is gonna fight him again. That card has already been played once. 

2) Momijikawa is a really good person. Concerningly so. Like an amazingly selfless guy who’d work in a soup kitchen on his weekend. 

Momi acts too much “like a grown up” to go on some childish villain arc. Right? So I don't see him turning evil, or at least not to his core… And besides, we just went through a big arc about him being a jerk, so why go over it again? And he’s already set about changing himself, that's why he jumps in the water. It was his Misogi, his baptism.

No. Any hope of a Momi villain arc was doused when he jumped into the water. 

And what a damn shame...

Part 4: Who’s Afraid of Momiji Wolf?

Here’s the thing…It's questionable how much of Momi’s good nature is genuine goodness or just selfish protectiveness. Let’s be honest. There’s no way his grandmother would have been okay with him quitting school if she was in a sound mind. He protected her and the town for a personal vendetta. And it consumed him. 

When I look at his apartment. I don’t see the room of a teenage boy. There’s no posters. No interests. No room for his own personality. I see the dwelling of a dying woman. Sanitized with little sticky notes everywhere, even after she’s gone… Trapped in time. In a way, his apartment is as empty as Sakura’s used to be. And to be fair, we see him finally let someone in in the end. Sakura. That’s a good first step.

Man, I can already see the rest from here~

How is Momi being even MORE selfless going to solve his problems? 

Again, Momijikawa is NOT Sakura. That happy story worked for Sakura, because Sakura never had anything. Momi has a different problem being that he only lives for others.

So I want him to LEAVE. I want him to jump ship onto a villainous team and track down that scammer piece of crap. I want Momi to get piercings. Paint his nails black. Rock out! Don the black shirt and make mischief! 

Be a kid!

Like Sako before him, he’d actually grow way more as a person by joining a different team. Bofurin is not enough to heal Momijikawa. He needs to embrace the night. Grow into his own like Sako did. Become more selfish. Become more… him. 

I suspect a big feature of his story is going to be him learning that living for somebody else is dangerous. When we saw a flashback of Momi’s grandfather, notice what he says. The workshop YOU were going to run. The shame of letting Momijikawa down is what killed him. His grandfather made the fatal mistake of living totally for somebody else. So having Momi skip a real villain arc (or barely flirt with one) feels incomplete. Squished.

Momijikawa’s declaration of independence never amounted to anything substantial. Which is why the happy ending in Ch.207 misses. It's sickeningly sweet, even by the standards of WBK, and it just feels too good to be true. Compounded by the fact that so many elements of his arc feel incomplete. The only way to salvage this is to have him relapse. An evil team would encourage Sakae to be selfish, and would have no restraints in pursuing his revenge he desires...

AND CAN YOU IMAGINE HIM LEAVING NOW?!?!

Especially now. Especially when we just went through this giant fricking arc, and then he ups and LEAVES with the rascals. That'd be the biggest twist since Mob Psycho 100!!! Where its main character also made a shocking choice of group. Instead of going down the Momose/Zojo path we all expect him to, imagine if this kid makes his own path. That said, it’s possible he might regret that choice later on. Maybe he’ll outgrow the evil gang and come back in the end, but either way, I feel like a detour is needed for his growth.

SO WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?  

It seems the post-Noroshi, Fall Semester Saga may continue with themes about rage. Themes that started in the KEEL arc and were reprised in Momijikawa, who’s still very much processing his anger even though his Sakura beef is over. He still might take a turn towards the darkside to get revenge. But I think he’ll come around. If he left the team that might even be good for his growth as an individual. But it is equally, if not more possible, that none of this adventureism is gonna happen, and we’re just gonna get a straightforward Momose arc where Momi falls in line with Team Zojo. But it feels like Momi’s arc has left way too many ominous loose ends. The door on this chapter might be shut, but interesting ones are still open…

My god this is a loooonnnngggg Momi post. And there’s stuff I didn’t even cover. Like his obvious wolf connection with Noroshi and the night. Idk I have so many feelings about Momi. I feel like he has so much missed potential. That his ‘rebel in the ranks“ premise never really went anywhere interesting. He was a jerk for like one scene after the rooftop and immediately turned into grandma’s boy. And all I can do now is grasp at straws and hope this will become interesting later on. I mean I could easily see this guy turn into my favorite character, but we’ll see~

[hiragitoma]

anyways...

[caustic--soda]

uhhh

[grey-spark]

[grey-spark]

hello!! I've been reading some of ur wbk meta & theories (super fun btw, rly gave me new insight into the manga. thank u for sharing them!!) and in regards to the upcoming metal/autumn war, i.e. act 2 of the story, do you think these two pages are particularly relevant?

Nii-sensei is describing the relation of Chinese elements:

Fire beats Metal Metal beats Wood

Interestingly, Metal "generates" Water because it condensates on metal. (Funnily enough. alkali metals can also convert to water but they didn't know that at the time.) And so metal produces water like how Autumn produces Winter (which is their respective elements.) But I'm not entirely sure if Nii-sensei is using the Chinese system or lumping earth and metal together like the Buddhist system.

In any case, Metal is being used as a metaphor for character forging ("forging your own path"). Though its not necessarily a good thing. A manipulative villain might try to mold someone into something they don't want to be. And really that's the story of human oppression, metal is by far the most human and artificial element. And I think there's a baked in implication that Bofurin will have to act more like Noroshi to beat this new upcoming threat.

Thank you for bringing this up! Honestly, I should have included these pages in my initial elemental war post.

[grey-spark]

What the Moon Means in Wind Breaker

Just a quick post explaining why the moon keeps popping up in WBK. (Manga Spoilers)

Going off the show's plant growing analogy, the sun (and the color yellow) represent warmth and everything good in the world of Wind Breaker and that puts the Moon in an odd position of a false rival.

Nighttime/the Moon should be the antithesis to (plant) growth. Just like how delinquency should be the antithesis to a healthy society. But in actuality the moon gets its brightness from the sun. It reflects the sun onto us during our darkest time. If Earth didn't have a moon our nights would be pitch dark. The moon is thus a symbol of rebellion and audacity. And that's what Endo loved about Chika. And that's why the wolve is the symbol of Noroshi, its the animal that loves the moon.

The fact that Suo's harvest moon is yellow (depicted in the Sakura holding moon illustration seen below at the end of Vol 25) underlines how delinquency might be the only good thing in Suo's predetermined life. That's what Suo finds beautiful about it.

In the First Semester, the Sun was the source of goodness and the enemies were "pro-animal" ruffians.

In the New Semester, the Moon will be the source of goodness and the enemies will be "pro-humanity "villains and the corrupt aspects of society. Building on ideas that were only teased at in the first half.

That's the short of it anyway.

ᴵ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵐᵒʳᵉ ᵗʰᵒᵘᵍʰᵗˢ ᵃᵇᵒᵘᵗ ᴹᵒᵐʲᶦᵏᵃʷᵃ'ˢ ᵐᵒᵒⁿ ᵃⁿᵈ ᶜʰᵒʲᶦ'ˢ ˢᵘⁿ ᵇᵘᵗ ᴵ ʷᵃⁿᵗ ᵗᵒ ᵏᵉᵉᵖ ᵗʰᶦˢ ˢʰᵒʳᵗ

[grey-spark]

I just realized that Suo is not surprised by the natto. He's actually surprised Nirei accidentally spoke to someone who knows him.

He's surprised Nirei figured anything out about him at all.

This also implies somebody who knows Suo intimately was stalking his activity at Bofurin, and Nirei stumbled into them. This might actually be a serious plot point hiding in plain sight.

[luunaanori]

Suo Hayato and the Thunder God Raijin

Among all the grafitti on the walls of Furin, there's a very prominent one in the back of class 1-1. There you can see two figures, one with a big halo behind him and the other with a bag on his shoulders. These are Raijin and Fujin, respectively gods of thunder and wind.

They are brothers dieties who rival each other for the control of the Sky, both feared and respected in japanese culture and known as protectors and guardian dieties of the land and temples.

Back on the cover of chapter 37, both Suo and Nirei are standing in front of that mural, Suo in front of Raijin, Nirei in front of Fujin.

I've always found the comparison very interesting, and it made a lot of sense since they are gardian dieties. But with chapter 208, I got reminded of the correlation between Suo and Raijin thanks to a little detail. The horrendous weather a the end of said chapter...

Raijin (雷神) is the god of thunder, lightnings and storms, and a powerful diety in Japan. He's both feared and revered by the people. He's often painted with a demonic face and associated with the color red.

He's depicted as a fearsome god than brings destruction, but he's also a protector of the people and known to bless the crops thanks to the rain and lightnings he brings during storms. He's a god with an interesting duality that makes him a bit of a paradox. (Familiar much ?)

He's often said to be a trickster god, more in a chaotic than a malevolent way. There's also a very famous story that parents tell their children about hiding their bellybutton during thunderstorms so that Raijin doesn't eat them.

Raijin is deeply linked to the Land of the Dead, Yomi no Kuni, given the fact he was born there, split in 8 different parts from the decaying corpse of his mother, Izanami the creator goddess who was stuck into the Underworld after eating the food there. Upon this discovery, Izanagi, his father, tried to trapped them in the Underworld but he and Fujin managed to escape. (Yeah it's gruesome and no we don't have time to unpack all that. But also. Food trauma ?)

Aside from Fujin, Raijin is often shown with Raiju, a thunder beast whose appearance varies and is like the totem/familiar of the god. Suo is more often associated with dragons on his clothes but on this particular outfit, it could be seen as a raiju too...

Despite being a god and having a buddhist halo (reserved for holy or divine beings) Raijin has a lot of demonic features, from the red skin to the horns, sharp teeth and hands with 3 fingers that represent past, present and future. He looks a lot like your average Oni. And well, fun fact, there's an old custom saying throwing soy beans during festival ward off demons. You know what soybean makes ? Natto.

Among the stories about Raijin, there's one saying the Emperor grew tired of Raijin's destruction and camality at some point and asked Sugaru "the God Catcher" to capture him. When asking him to come and submit peacefully didn't work, Sugaru invoked Kannon (the Buddha of Compassion) and Raijin finally submitted and stopped destroying Japan with his storms.

Initially I wondered if that could be a hint of what could go down in Suo's arc. Would they have to stop him from destroying others or himself.... But then I remembered Suo has already been stopped from going on rampage once.

(Is Sakura the god-catcher or the Buddha of Compassion ? Discuss)

To go back to the gardian diety aspect of the god, Raijin & Fujin are worshipped as protectors and you can find their statues in front of shrines. Legends say they protected Japan against Mongol invasion twice (historically speaking, in both instances Mongols tried to invade Japan and their fleets and armies got crushed by storms and typhoons when reaching japanese territories. Yes it's real. And hilarious.)

And so, last but not least, to tie it back to chapter 208 again, Suo's disappearance and his arc start with a pouring rain and thunder rumbling ominously in the background... The storm is coming...

[grey-spark]

Added context: the reason Raijin and Fujin (gods of thunder and wind) are included on the Tamon classroom walls is likely a reference to Tamon/Vaiśravaṇa/Bishamonten, the Heavenly King of War and Rain.

This is also probably why its raining when Hiragi goes to visit Kaji. Another reference to Hiragi being a rain god.

I also can't help but notice Raijin being portrayed with a skull and a hood. It looks striking grim reaper like looming over Suo ominously.

I've spoken in the past how the Chinese element of Autumn is Metal (Scythes), just like the element of Summer is Fire (Noroshi). Well, Metal conducts electricity. Could we see an Lightning demon to fight Suo's Thunder? Or perhaps the next villain will be lighting and thunder put together and Suo is actually play the role of Fujin (Wind).

[glamorouswizard]

Char x OC

4 new characters?! /j

Finally I have finished all of my sons' profile cards, just like the chars 🙌

This is so beautiful 🥺 I am very happy, feels like my sons are "canon" in the main story 🤣😋🙏✨

[grey-spark]

Suo’s Harvest Moon & the Scythes of Extinction War (?)

(WBK Spoilers) About a year ago, I made a post about whether we might have a Trilogy of Extinction Wars based on elements that threaten plant-life and the safety of Bofurin. Those being...

FIRES - BLADES (METAL) - BLIZZARDS (ICE)

The WIND element represents Bofurin and Noroshi was the FIRE in the Summer. Going by the Buddhist sequence of elements and seasons, the next two wars would be a ice/water themed war in the Winter, but before that we’d get a METAL / EARTH in the Autumn.

At the time I called it “Blades of Extinction" because I was understandably uncertain what form the “METAL” or “BLADES” would take for the Autumn war. I spit out a series of ideas ranging from Yakuza to Mining towns. Would it be about metal ores like Zinc and Cobalt? Metal tools? Metal Music? Communist sickles? Vengeful axes? In one panel, we were given the answer. In hindsight, it should have been obvious… It appears the harvest moon is coming… Autumn is a time for harvest. Scythes are the tool of harvest. In Japan and China there are harvest celebrations set to the beginning of October.

In this sense, Suo is being harvested. His time at Furin has come to an end. And now he has to return. I made a ‘Predictions about Suo’ post going over what we know about Suo and what’s going to happen with him but to summarize, I think Suo got caught up with the wrong crowd in the past and that past is expecting him to return.

So reapers and scythes it is! Not to mention Suo has also had an ominous connection to the number 4, which has an association with death in Japanese culture. It goes well with the Reaper/ Death theme that might come with a scythe war. Also it's clear in Chinese mysticism, metal tools are the enemy of wood and plants, associated with AUTUMN. I’ve always known Suo would play a big role in the Autumn War, and I predicted there would be an arc about him leaving Furin in the early 200s. The real question is to what extent is Suo relevant to the plot and for how long?

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM SUO'S ARC

Is Suo going to get one arc? Is Suo going to get one war? Is Suo going to drive the rest of the series?

There is some indication that Suo might be related to an icy threat. Suo had an usually ICY GLOW during his moment of regression in the KEEL arc. This might imply some connection to the winter war.

However… As I discussed in my WBK Color Theory post, Wind Breaker is FULL of enemies with blue color schemes. BLUE is generally the color of cold and evil, thus its appearance on Suo doesn't tell us that much. I mean, GRAVEL has blue school uniforms, does that mean Gravel is in the winter army? Sugishita is blue, does that mean Sugi is going to be in the winter army? I am not convinced Suo will be the cause of the Winter War. That honor will more likely go to Umemiya’s Rooftop Savior or somebody from Sakura’s past.

I'm also not entirely convinced that Suo is the center of the Autumn War, either. We might get a half season arc that sets up a big player in the Autumn War, in the same way that the KEEL arc set up the villain of the Noroshi’s Summer War. That said, it's hard to imagine people who could be more powerful than whatever gang is tied to Suo. I assume the next few volumes will be about getting Suo back, even if it pisses off a powerful gang that promises war in return. Followed by a Momose-Mizuki centric side-story that sets up other factions that will appear in the metal war. It’d look something like this and the Fall Saga would last from Volume 27 to Volume 42:

This is assuming the Autumn War is slightly shorter than the Noroshi War. I gravitate towards a Momose arc after Suo's because we just went through a big Momijakawa arc preceding the Suo arc. Momose and Momijakawa have an unexplained close relationship that needs to be explored before getting into any big war-sized conflict. Not to mention we still need to meet the second years. So if the next big war starts on Chapter 300, we might have to wait a full IRL year after the Suo Arc before we see its fruit. This is only a vague timeline of course. But it begs the question, what is this Autumn Saga going to look like?

SCYTHES ARE DIFFERENT FROM FIRE

Fire is an aimless destructive force. Blades are not.

Scythes are tools held by humans, with intentionality  Scythes are a human invention, one made from metal that does not naturally exist in nature, or at least not in the form of a blade. Unlike the mindless destructive animal-based threats that came before (Shishitoren, Noroshi), this reaper threat will be something different entirely. In my last post I discussed how Vermileo signals a new type of “Pro-Humanity” enemy is coming, thus I think KEEL is a better model of what to expect, an extractive human institution. One that might even use literal blades! We’ve seen knives used before in Wind Breaker.

The first years were really lucky that the last weapon users they fought were a bunch of wimps. The next weapon-using clan might be on a whole other level. KEEL on steroids, basically, with Suo playing the part of Nagato. That said, They’re more likely just going to use powerful martial arts. Anyone strong enough to put fear into Suo,

Maybe the strongest fighters in the series thus far. 

We’ve seen “small-but-strong” clans like Roppo in the past. This would basically be an evil version of that. Maybe based out of Chinatown? Or it could be Suo’s family clan… Or a motorcycle gang he joined in middle school. It’s hard to guess! But if we’re moving in a harvest moon/reaping direction, then now is the time for the knife gang / villain.

If KEEL was the baton gang, the “Reapers” might use knives

However, I’m not convinced the whole team will use knives, it could be a situation where  the clan just uses strong martial arts and only the leader is lecherous enough to use knives.

SO WHO IS THE NEXT VILLAIN?

Now we move into the realm of far speculation, if villainy really is moving in a pro-humanity direction then we can expect a hard shift away from Endo. Noroshi loved the madness, hated society. He is framed as the dark half of Furin, the evil half of delinquency.

So the opposite would be:

Somebody who hates brawling. Somebody who hates delinquents. Somebody who hates childishness.

I'm going to assume that most WBK fans reading this know or like Kung Fu Panda, so let's put it this way. If Endo was like Tai Lung, an aggrieved insider coming back from exile. (They even share the same blue flame motif.) Then the king of blades will be like Lord Shen. Decidedly ruthless. Decidedly cruel. Utter contempt for rebels with no honor holding him back. I make the comparison to Lord Shen, because he is a model for how the next villain might be a “pro-human” or "pro-modern" enemy who relies on blades, guns and institutions to flatten anyone in their way. I don't think we’re gonna see guns or swords.

Knives are certainly on the table though. And the only person who can fight a villain with knives is someone who can dodge every attack without a blade landing on them. If anybody can fight a knife fighter, it’s Suo. Whoever it is, they’re gonna be the biggest threat since Noroshi… and this time the odds are against us.

VICTORY IS NOT CERTAIN

History tells us the second war usually doesn’t go well for the heroes, going by the Empire Strikes Back model. Starwars Episode 5 did not end well for Luke Skywalker. And to spoil a 20 year old cartoon, (yes you’re old), Avatar the Last Airbender ended Book 2 with Azula taking the entire earth kingdom and heroes running away into hiding. So my hopes after Nirei’s ominous narration are not high.

The best we can hope for is a pyrrhic victory in the Autumn War. One were maybe Bofurin's allies might succeed, but Bofurin itself is left on its back foot with an incomplete, unsatisfying outcome where they lose something important. I think Azula is an on-point comparison. The villain of the next war might be the second-in-command of the final enemy that represents the cold. This No.2 will deal a decisive blow to Bofurin on behalf of an “Emperor Palpatine” or “Fire Lord” sitting in the shadows. And like The Empire Strikes Back, we might see some cloak and dagger palace intrigue. Perhaps even a proxy war, where their true goals don't become apparent until it’s already too late. In any case, I don't see this ending well for Bofurin. 

Bofurin has gotten too many lucky breaks. It’s luck is going to run out. I think Bofurin is going to pull out a victory in the long run, but “the cold” is here. Winter is coming, and before the Winter comes the Fall.