MANGA REVIEW | "Kagurabachi" - Volume Three
You’ve got a powerful sword, a super-sized black market auction, and a keeper who can only access the contents of said auction. On top of that, skilled sorcerers are guarding the auction and its contents with their very lives. If the one running the auction dies, the contents vanish without a trace, never to be seen again. That’s a lot for Chihiro to swallow in the third volume of Kagurabachi, as he aims to get back the Shinuchi.
Fortunately, Chihiro’s got himself a good team of allies to help him out. Those ally numbers go up with the appearance of Hakuri Sazanami, who makes an interesting first impression via his bloody nose and bloodshot eyes. He also happens to have a common goal as Chihiro: stop the auction. But before they can even start to prep for the mission, another issue arises. Her name is Hiyuki Kagari, and she wants Chihiro’s blades!
Kagari’s power — the Flame Bone of the Starving — isn’t just a cool name; it’s a hell of a skill! Whatever sort of bone she calls for, it’ll take form into a fiery weapon. Although Chihiro’s dealt with many strong opponents, Kagari knows exactly what to do and say to make our Kagurabachi protagonist hold back a bit. After all, even if a hero is wielding an enchanted blade, there’s still the chance of tragedy and misery to befallen the world.
That’s when Hakuri throws himself into the fight…straight into Kagari’s attack. A reveal of how Chihiro saved his life pushes our hero to go all out with Enten, but he doesn’t aim to kill Kagari. It’s a fight that’s impressive visually, but it unfortunately ends quite anti-climactically. Thankfully, there will be another time for Kagari to battle Chihiro again. For now, there’s that black market auction mission to take care of.
The owner of the “storehouse” is Hakuri’s father Kyora. Not only is Kyora the only one who can access the auction items, but the items will disappear forever if he dies. It makes for a complicated situation, one that results in more fighting and some extreme family troubles. Even a calm talk over tea regarding the whereabouts of the Shinuchi has enough tension that can be cut with a knife!
Perhaps the most intense moment involves Hakuri and his older brother Soya. While he seems like a nice guy, his means of showing love are brutal. He even goes so far as to kill anyone important in Hakuri’s life in order to “save him”. But as readers will be quick to figure out, it’s not Hakuri that needs to be rescued; it’s everyone else!
As for the plan to get the Shinuchi back, Chihiro does something very drastic. In fact, if his plan doesn’t work, it could spell the end of his journey to regain all of his father’s swords back. Luckily, as I mentioned in the beginning, Chihiro’s got a hell of a team to back him. And as the auction start draws near, all of the pieces appear on the chessboard, waiting for the signal to attack.
Volume Three of Kagurabachi has a lot of setup for the auction mission, but it’s got a good amount of action to keep readers entertained. Kyora is a heck of a good villain, with a power that I can’t say I’ve seen in manga recently. How the plan to get back the Shinuchi will go remains to be seen, but if the way it starts out is any indication, then the next volume of Kagurabachi is going to be a beautiful bloodbath!
FINAL GRADE:
Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.
