#vol 164

[3]

I had to zoom all the way in to properly grasp what’s happening here but Fai blasts Ashura into what’s almost a T-pose so he can grab Sakura and pull her safely out of harm’s way. 

Which is GREAT because in all honesty I’d forgotten Sakura was in this scene after what had happened to Kurogane. Even as he’s still in the grip of his grief of watching Kurogane fall to ground he still has the presence of mind to prioritise Sakura’s safety over killing Ashura right there and then. And Fai’s ability to keep track of each of his family members throughout this magic fight is honestly a skill in itself and really shows just how good and amazing he truly is, even now, during the worst possible scenario playing out around him. 

FAI IS A GEM UNTO THIS WORLD. WE DONT DESEVE HIM.

Oh no now they’re making me cry and it’s all their fault. 

Even as Fai tries to keep them safe and get them both out of here Lava Lamp desperately tries to stop him from doing what he’s about to do. 

Because we can all guess what Fai is going to do. He’s planning to either take down Ashura or die trying. He can’t guarantee that they’ll be safe if he loses, so he wants them to leave. 

And when Lava Lamp asks him not to and the surprise on Fai’s face is open and undisguised. 

Because technically if Lava Lamp was prioritising Sakura’s safety over everything thing he would agree; he would get Sakura out of the line of fire first and foremost before worrying about anything else. But he doesn’t do that; instead he grabs Fai’s sleeve. 

AND THE EMOTION IN HIS FACE IN THE NEXT PANEL

It tears my heart in half because Fai was so certain that the truth about his backstory would turn his family against him and here they are, for HIM, fighting through pain and whatever magic is on him to try and keep Fai alive too. 

But Fai resigns himself to his resolve and gently takes his hand away. 

[8]

OOP HE’S NOT DRAGGING IT OUT IS HE? HERE WE GO. 

LAST CHANCE FOR SOMEONE TO JUMP IN BEFORE WE LOSE OUR LAST SYAORAN. WE ARE RUNNING LOW ON OUR SYAORAN STOCK. I DON’T THINK WE HAVE ANY REPLACEMENTS LEFT. 

(gore-wise, please ignore all future panels in this post if you’re not feeling up to it)

Oh thank god the Nap Technique paid off so well. 

But jokes aside if we interpret the “back of the head shots of Kurogane only” to imply that he’s been at least partially conscious for a little while, Kurogane was waiting for the right moment to use the last of his strength. 

And this was basically the last possible option. A second later and Lava Lamp would have been dead. 

It also means that WITH A HUGE HOLE BLOWN THROUGH HIS TORSO Kurogane still forced himself to run across the room and jump in front of a magic attack to defend his children. Which isn’t surprising so much as its still incredibly impressive. 

Lastly I see the seal Tomoyo placed on his head is glowing for the first time since we saw it, what, a hundred and sixty two chapters ago? 

I suspect this means he’s (for the first time?) attempting to kill someone. 

Which, while it will have consequences for his strength, IS MUSIC TO MY EARS. 

... to my eyes? 

To something. 

YOU CAN DO IT KUROGANE I BELIEVE IN YOU. 

... or its a ward of protection? 

I liked the murder plan better. 

OOP THERE IT IS. 

THAT GOOD STAB WE’VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR. 

Please pay no mind to the torrent of blood coming out of Kurogane’s side. 

Fai if you have a sec can you summon at least two (2) bandaids or something. 

[4]

I love the little sound effect of each step Fai is taking. For the third time Fai’s life has been torn to shreds as the people close to him have been murdered by a hyper powerful magician who wants something from Fai in particular. The first time he couldn’t do much beyond bargaining his life away to try fix it; the second he cared too much to murder his father figure. But this time he’s walking right into it and standing as tall as he can. 

Naturally I had to see what he was staring at in the next panel and WOOPS ITS KUROGANE so - There is some gore coming up so skip this next page if you’re avoiding it. 

Fai’s wrong about not being kind, but you can easily forgive him for thinking that considering where he is and how many people he has watched die so that other people could use him - especially now that this includes Kurogane. He’s wrong again that it’s his fault that this has happened - but again, same reasoning. The important thing is that he’s making a stand here to defy everything that he’s “let” happen. He’s going to murder the hell out of Ashura for this. 

And the split screen at the bottom are both the reactions to and the exact reasons why he’s going to do it. Because Kurogane is (seemingly) dead at Ashura’s hand, because Lava Lamp and Sakura can’t protect themselves and will be in direct danger if Fai backs down, and because Ashura is smiling happily at him as if this horror was everything he’d ever wanted from Fai. 

Because it is. 

So Fai’s going to finally give it to him 

[2]

TIME FOR SOME RIGHTEOUS ANGER. 

Though at the same time Fai is giving Ashura exactly what he wanted. Ashura even stopped attacking as soon as Kurogane was hit, looking calm and pleased with himself while Fai processed what had happened. 

Ashura is, in short, infuriating. 

But narratively? It’s nice to know that technically according to the Evil Wolverine mission this would have been a good thing - Kurogane being taken out of the picture will prevent him from interfering with Fai’s overall goal like he did in Acid Tokyo. Technically, if that was all he cared about, this wouldn’t have been a bad thing. 

But we all know how ridiculous that is and where Fai’s heart really lies. Ashura knows it too - otherwise he never would have tried attacking Kurogane or the others in the first place. 

Now we just need Fai to realise what’s actually most important to him and leave the ghost of his dead brother behind him. 

-except he’s a bit pre-occupied with Kurogane being shot so it’s murder time first and I’m very here for this. 

LOOK AT THAT SMUG FACE ON ASHURA. 

[6]

Ashura explains this to Fai as if he had somehow missed this entire situation from the first second he stepped into the room.

Thanks for the helpful tip, Ashura! So kind, so thoughtful. 

Meanwhile Lava Lamp desperately tries to help. 

It doesn’t work, but at least Ashura has the decency not to murder him too for some reason. 

Meanwhile he’s calling out Fai’s plan to die trying to take him down and it’s a little rich coming from a guy who keeps cutting off every attack before it has a chance to hit him. If you really want Fai to kill you then maybe let him have a good try at it before interrupting him. 

[1]

Because there is, understandably, lots of blood!

Lots of Kurogane’s blood in particular!

Just so much of it!

[5]

Things look good for exactly half a second before Ashura cheats.