My thoughts on Teru being a sadistic and cruel person
First of all, I don't hate Teru. In this post, I will try to be as neutral as possible and look at the reasons from both sides. If I'm wrong, please let me know.
But first, I want to talk about the real-life Minamoto Clan, because the mangaka frequently mentions “Yorimitsu no Minamoto,” the most famous of the legendary exorcists, and his clan in the manga.
In Japanese folklore, Minamoto no Yorimitsu and his men (Genji-dan) are said to have fought against certain yōkai and evil spirits.
One of the most well-known stories featuring Minamoto no Yorimitsu is Shuten-dōji:
Shuten-dōji is the leader of a yōkai called Kōjō, and the Minamoto clan plots to kill him. In the process, they trap him, weaken him, and destroy him; there is no theme of torture, the goal is purely to eliminate the threat.
In general, legends involving the Minamoto lineage often involve using strategy and traps to neutralize evil spirits or yōkai, sometimes using magic and sacred objects, rather than immediately destroying them. Inflicting physical pain is rarely the primary focus; the emphasis is on preventing them from harming people.
Now let's look at Yorimitsu no Minamoto from the Toilet Bound Hanako Kun manga. In the manga, Yorimitsu is not only strong and fearless, but also cheerful and happy. He kills supernatural beings that must be killed, but allows those that do not harm humans to live (provided they are under his supervision). Surprisingly, he is also empathetic towards supernatural beings.
Even when trying to kill the oni, he aims to poison it and kill it instantly rather than inflict physical pain. That way, people will no longer be harmed by the oni. Instead of killing Hakubo, he takes him in and trains him. Because Hakubo had no wild urge to harm people. He was just like a robot obeying orders. Yorimitsu stays by Hakubo's side until he dies and always smiles.
Now let's get to the real reason I'm posting this. Teru's sadism, or rather, how cruel he is compared to his ancestors.
First, I want to talk about Teru's past. Because, as I said, I'm trying to look at it from all sides equally. Teru started exorcism when he was very young. Whether it was training, battles, or that environment, it was obviously a series of traumatic events for a child. He never got to experience childhood; he was outcasted at school. When his mother died, everything became even more complicated. He had to take care of his siblings and, even as a child, had to “grow up” early.
His father constantly stands behind him like a shadow and doesn't allow him to look back, especially to his childhood and happiness. Duty and responsibility must come first. Even if it's about his siblings, even if it's about someone he loves, even if it's about anything, work always comes first. This has made him emotionally detached and inconsistent. Most of the time he is ruthless and perfect, but on rare occasions he turns into a childish person around those he values.
Kou is more self-confident than Teru because Kou had a more “normal” childhood compared to Teru. At least, he tried to make it so. If you look closely, you'll notice that Kou is a bit more “mature.” Actually, it would be more accurate to say he is just more balanced than mature. Because Teru didn't force him to grow up. Of course, Kou went and did housework like his mother all the time, and that's a big responsibility, but at least he didn't kill the child inside him.
Or let's talk about Tiara. She's a bundle of joy, strong and highly courageous. Because her brothers treat her like a princess, making her feel happy and special, spoiling her. After all, she's just a little girl—what else can you do but spoil her?
Yes, Teru had a bad past. There's no doubt about that. There's also no problem with him killing supernatural beings as an exorcist. BUT I think his cruel treatment of them is excessive. And you can't just look at what he did to Hanako and say, “But that's his job.” Because Teru's job is to kill supernatural beings quickly, not to torture them.
Hanako got slashed, impaled, electrocuted, stepped on, left to crawl weakly on the ground while blood literally spills out of his chest, all while getting berated. Then, Kou and Yashiro saved him from this torture.
Let's look at it from Teru's perspective again. Okay, Hanako is a murderer who killed someone in the past. No one can know what someone is really like, and Hanako is a dangerous supernatural being, so it's normal for him to want to kill him. If a random supernatural being came out and said, “I don't harm people,” no one would believe them.
Hanako was also in the wrong in the Aoi and Yashiro incident. Sacrificing another student (whether it was Kannagi or not) just because he loved Yashiro was a truly dangerous situation, and as a leader, Hanako shouldn't have acted that way. Why should someone else be sacrificed for someone who is about to die?
Teru's reaction was excessive. If Akane had come and beaten Hanako, maybe it wouldn't have been such a big deal because Akane was the clock keeper for Aoi and loved her more than anything. Let's say Teru did these things to weaken Hanako, but he still went too far because Hanako was already weak due to being sealed.
As I mentioned above, members of the Minamoto clan generally don't do such cruel and savage things. They tend to eliminate supernatural beings directly. So why did Teru torture Hanako both physically and mentally? Was it a sign of rebellion against his clan, or his deep hatred for supernatural beings? If supernatural beings didn't exist, he could have had a better childhood, a more peaceful life. Or is there another unknown reason behind all this?
