Due to upcoming International Womenās Day, the mods chose to dedicate this post to the female lead and heroine (in Chrono-senseiās words) of Peace Maker Kurogane, Saya, who despite her lack of screentime, needs more appreciation and love. Beware this post is a bit long.
CW for sexual assault mention.
Saya is Tetsunosukeās love interest, and like many other non-Shinsengumi characters in the series, she doesnāt appears too much (even Chrono-san said that she felt bad for not drawing her often despite being the heroine!); because of that, itās understandable many people think of her as a bit of a flat or bland character who is just there to be the love interest. But since fandom is, among other things, about exploring the canon, we thought Saya was a character worth to explore her hidden depths, specially since she has become more relevant in this recent arc.
Saya is a girl who, like Tetsunosuke, also lost her parents in a violent way: they also were murdered in the middle of the chaos of the Bakumatsu, but unlike Tetsu who had his brother to take care of him, Saya was left alone and eventually sold to a brothel in Shimabara where she would be trained to become a courtesan, which is the reason she was assigned as Akesatoās kamuro. Sheās also mute. Because of that, itās easy that she may be perceived as helpless - this is easily seen in her very first appearance, where sheās being harassed by some rounin and Tetsu comes to her rescue.Ā However, itās also in her very first appearance that she also helps in her own rescue by obstructing the view of the guy whoās holding her as hostage, saving Tetsu of being punched by him and freeing herself of his grip.
Later on when she meets Tetsu again on the temple to thank him for his help and she confides to him her name, her condition and her past. Sheās the first who tells Tetsu when heās having doubts of killing Yoshida or not for revenge that he doesnāt has to change who he is and his values in order to pursue vengeance. This shows Saya as someone who actually dislikes violence, and itās supported in the Gonzo anime in an extra from her POV, which can be the view she reinforced or adopted after her own parents were killed, and itās the reason why she serves as Tetsunosukeās moral compass when heās having doubts and the person whom he makes his promise of ānever kill somebodyā after he clarifies those doubts after the Ikedaya incident: Saya represents, in a way, Tetsunosukeās āstringā - similar how Hijikata asked Sannan to be his āstringā that held him back when heās āgoing too farā on his goals. There is a reason why her name refers to the sheath or scabbard of a sword: a sheathed sword is a symbol that connotes peace.
But even so thereās more on Saya than her relationship with Tetsunosuke, despite her lack of screentime. Both anime adaptations fleshed up a bit more her friendship with Hana, her fellow kamuro companion whoās outspoken,Ā wish we could have seen more of them in the manga through, but given how Hana in her own way encouraged Saya to get with Tetsu in hopes he may redeem her and thus freeing her of a life of prostitution and worried about her, it tells they actually may be very close. Saya is also reported to have been sad when Akesato departed, and given how even after Akesato landed on the Kaientai as one of Ryomaās companions she still sends money to the okiya so Saya continues working as a kamuro instead of a tayuu, it also shows that Akesato cares a big deal about Saya and Saya about her.
(Wouldnāt mind reading some spin-off extras with the three ladies)
The manga also shows that Saya has quite a temper at times, specially when Tetsu either dismisses her shamisen skills or doesnāt answers her letters when she fears of his safety. Hilarity ensured, but still serves to prove that Saya isnāt always shy and placid with Tetsunosuke as some people may think.
However, is when the war is approaching that Saya proves that, despite being the designated love interest, she actually can function well without Tetsunosuke. When put between the hard choice of being redeemed and possibly married off to a man who apparently caught interest on her and wait for Tetsunosuke, the young man she actually loves, with a civil war about to break, Saya makes the pragmatic choice to let herself be redeemed by another guy, even if inside it may break her heart. Itās actually surprising and incredibly mature from her part, considering in some recent shounen manga the female lead usually pins after the main character no matter what and regardless if he shows interest on her, as if the MC has the girl āsecuredā to him by the end of the story to marry her off and have kids. Here is shown that, as much as Saya may love Tetsunosuke, sheāll no wait for him forever, specially when a war is approaching - and itās a hard lesson Tetsunosuke learnt when he found out she was already freed by another guy.
But alas, bad luck: the man that redeemed her actually was tricked by Suzu to buy her freedom in exchange of his wifeās safety, so that Suzu may have her as a prisoner to make Tetsunosuke suffer more. Saya is of course, scared of Suzu, yet that doesnāt stops her of trying to escape and being willing to beat the crap out of him with a stick while heās sleeping or slice his throat when he assaults her. Likewise, she also shows a compassionate side when she discovers that Suzu actually has two personalities (or likely has dissociative identity disorder) , and that the one she knew once is still there and doesnāt wants to harm her, so she comforts him and plays cards with him as well, yet the moment he reverts to his violent personality she keeps distance of him again and remains defiant towards him each time he taunts her with Tetsunosuke. Recent chapters revealed that during her captivity Saya used her time to learnt medicine from Western medicine books that were in the Yamatoya mansion, meaning that even in such difficult circumstances she never gave up and very likely planned her own escape - a testament of how smart and resilient she is.
The manga still has to reveal more details on how Saya escaped and landed in that small rural hospital in Aizu, but a thing we can be sure is that she worked hard to earn a place on it, as she herself made a special medicine to prevent infections of what she learnt by self-taught and it works to the point her own patients went to defend her when one of the Aizu military doctors questioned her skills. Oh, and despite being mocked and questioned, Saya still kept insisting to the other doctors to examine her medicine. Whoah! It also fits a lot with her initial views that she dislikes violence, that she would dedicate herself to heal and help the wounded and the sick.
All description of above shows that, while not as prominent, Saya in a way had a similar arc to Tetsunosuke: despite their tragic pasts, they still lived in the protection and care of their respective new homes - either the Shinsengumi or the okiya - and their mentors who protected them of making harsh choices - like killing or debuting as a tayuu - , yet, the moment the war broke, their circumstances threw them into the crude reality where they had to survive in their own.
TLDR; In other words, Saya is a strong, intelligent, and compassionate young lady who learnt to survive on her own and adapt to the circumstances she was thrown in; sheās sensitive and also fierce and capable, being defiant to her captor and being autodidact to the point she made a very effective medicine which sheās praised of, while holding a strong moral compass and dislike of violence. She may had been designated to be Tetsunosukeās love interest but she can function without him and prioritize her own safety over her love for him, if anything her only detriment is her lack of screentime due the focus of the manga, yet that doesnāt erases that in her appearances, she has shown to be very compelling and independent on her own.
(And also one of the reasons why she and Tetsunosuke make such a good couple, but thatās topic for another post)
Sorry for the long post, but since Saya isnāt a character thatās given much attention a bit of context was needed. Letās hope Chrono-sensei may show more of her in the future and hopefully gives her a good ending as well.