Kousetsu Samonji, Souza Samonji | kenty, Madotsuki@ | Yushu no Toki
Regular Pink: Souza
Italics Blue: Kousetsu
Bold: Both
ē± ć«åććććć ęććć
Kago ni torawareĀ tada aisa reru
Trapped in a cage, only to be loved
ęćä¼øć°ćććØććć
Te o nobasu koto sae mo
Even reaching out is impossible
ę²ććæć«ęŗć”ćę¦ćę„ć
ć«
Kanashimi ni michiĀ tatakau hibi ni
These days filled with sorrow and struggle
ćć¤ćēµćććÆććć®ć
Itsuka owari wa kuru no ka
Will they ever come to an end?
ēøåćććććć«ę¹ćć
Aihansuru ga yue ni hika re
We are drawn to each other because we are opposites
č¼Ŗå»»ćē¹°ćčæć
Rināne o kurikaesu
And we repeat the cycle of reincarnationĀ
ęę„ćäæ”ćć¦ććć
Asu wo shinjite itai
I want to believe in tomorrow
ę¶ććŖćå°ćčøć«å»ć¾ćć
Kienai shirushi o mune ni kizama reta
An indelible mark is etched into my heart
å¹¾åć®å¤¢ę£ćéćć©ć
Ikusen no yume chiri ikedomo
Thousands of dreams scatter and die
čŖē±ćé”ć£ć¦
Jiyuu o negatte
Longing for freedom
ē©ŗćč¦äøććććØćć
Sora o miageru koto sae
Looking up at the sky
čرćććŖććć
Yurusa renai nda
It's unacceptable
ę¦ćććØć§ćč·ćććŖćć°
Tatakau koto deĀ mamoreru narabaĀ
If fighting can protect them
ē½Ŗćčč² ćććØććć
Tsumi o seou koto sae mo
Then I can stand the burden of guilt
ē³ćéćććć³ čØę¶ćę ć
Me o tojiru tabi kioku o utsutsu
Every time I close my eyes, memories replay
ēć«é
ććććć¾ć¾
Honoo no mise rareta mama
Where I am still captivated by flames
čč² ććć®ć®ęå³ćē„ććć«
Soeu mono no imi o shirazu ni
Without knowing the meaning behind what I carried on my shoulders
ēćć¦ćććććŖć
Ikite i raretanara
Thatās how I lived
å¹øććØčØććć®ć
Shiawase to ieru no ka
Is this what they call happiness?
ęććę±ćć¦å·®ćåŗćććęć
Sukui o motomete sashidasa reta te o
You extend your hand as a plea for help
å¼·ćć¤ććć§ćé¢ććŖćć§
Tsuyoku tsukande hanasanaide
Hold me closer and donāt let go
ć©ćć¾ć§ćč”ćć
Dokomademo ikou
Letās go everywhere
ćć¤ćäæ”ććēćć«
Istuka shinji kotae ni
So that the answer we believe in
å·”ćåćććć
Meguriaeru you
Will one day be found
åå¼ē§»ćććå£ēÆćÆćććŖć«ćē¾ććć®ć«
Aa, utsuri yuku kisetsu wa konānanimo ustukushi no ni
Ah, the changing seasons are so beautiful
ē§»ćććę代ć«ćÆ代åć
Utsuri yuku jidai ni wa daishou o
Yet the changing times come at a cost
ę¶ććŖćå°ćčøć«å»ć¾ćć
Kienai shirushi o mune ni kizama reta
An indelible mark is etched into my heart
å¹¾åć®å¤¢ę£ćéćć©ć
Ikusen no yume chiri ikedomo
Thousands of dreams scatter and die
ć©ćć¾ć§ćč”ćć
Dokomademo ikou
Letās go everywhere
ćć¤ćäæ”ććēćć«
Istuka shinji kotae ni
So that the answer we believe in
å·”ćåćććć
Meguriaeru you
Will one day be found
"I am ...just like a bird trapped in a cage."
"Will there ever be a day when the fighting will cease?"
This song references the histories of both swords. And this fact greatly helped me identify which utaite represented which sword, in turn helping me determine who sang what. I had the hardest time with this because somehow kenty and Madostuki sound similar in some parts and it shot me 57 times.Ā
Souza Samonji, represented by kenty and the first voice we hear, mentions being trapped in a cage, only as something to be gawked at and not used for anything more. The second voice we hear is from Kousetsu, sung by Madostuki. He laments the fact that āsorrow and struggleā seem neverending.Ā
Historically, we know that the Souza Samonji sword was owned by all 3 Great Unifiers of Japan at some point. However, he wasnāt used for battle. He was instead a prized possession, a spoil of war, something only to be displayed. Souza in the game hates the fact that he was merely something to be looked at rather than used.
His hatred for Oda Nobunaga stems from the fact that after his body was seized during the Battle of Okahazama, Nobunaga both shortened the Souza blade and inscribed āOn the 19th day of the fifth month of Eiroku three through the killing of Yoshimoto this sword came into the possession of Oda Owari-no-kami Nobunaga,ā on the tang, the area where the blade attaches to the handle. The inscription is a branding upon Souzaās chest, something he cannot get rid of nor ignore, hence the lyrics āan indelible mark is etched into my heart / thousands of dreams scatter and die / longing for freedom.ā
We can obviously see that Souzaās turbulent past haunts him even in his dreams; āevery time I close my eyes, memories replay / where I am captivated by flames.ā During the Honnoji Incident where Oda Nobunaga died, the Souza Samonji blade was seized by Toyotomi Hideyoshi amidst the flames. Then Souza was surrounded by flames again and burned during the Great Meireki Fire in 1657.Ā
He is simply not a happy camper, but with Kousetsu, itās as if happiness does come back to him.Ā
Kousetsu Samonji was a sword owned by pacifist and Shingon Buddhist, Itabeoka Kousetsusai. Dressed as a Buddhist priest and holding a rosary, also known as a mala/japamala, he prays for peace and doesnāt condone violence. Other than the second stanza of the first verse being very obviously Kotetsu speaking, the rest of his lines seem more like consolation towards Souzaās struggles. He wants to help Souza and will do anything to do so, along with accepting the consequences of being a sword standing for peace. This is seen in the lines āIf fighting can protect them / then I can stand the burden of guilt.āĀ
āYou extend a hand as a plea for help / Hold me closer and donāt let go / letās go everywhere / so that the answer we believe in / will someday be found.ā I want to point these lyrics out because yeah, itās still Kousetsuās lines, but I see the fact that in addition to helping Souza, Kousetsu tries to help himself. Souzaās question is if heāll ever break free from his past, while Kousetsuās question is if these days of desolation will end. Together, they can figure out the answers to their questions.Ā
The bolded lyrics are what Iāll talk about next. These are the shared lines (I think) and theyāre more representative of both their perspectives of each other and their situations. āWe are drawn to each other because we are opposites / and we repeat the cycle of reincarnation,ā is a hint at their symbiotic relationship. Reincarnated as humans from swords, they still found each other through not only sharing the same swordsmith, but the stark contrast of their personalities.Ā
āWithout knowing the meaning behind what I carried on my shoulders / thatās how I lived,ā is a pair of lines that I broke up because I tried to stay consistent with the Japanese. In reality it should readĀ āIāve lived without knowing the meaning behind what I carried on my shoulders.ā Other than that clarification, I wanted to say that both swords were probably so engrossed in their personal problems that they were blind to why; Why they carried it, why they were presented with these burdens.
āAh, the changing seasons are so beautiful / yet the changing times come at a cost.ā The more time both Kousetsu and Souza waste between their pain and healing, the longer it will take them to get over said pain and enter into said healing. But itās better late than never.Ā
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