Makimachi Misao
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Makimachi Misao (巻町 操) is one of the characters in Rurouni Kenshin. She appears in the story after Kenshin leaves Kamiya Kaoru and his friends and goes to Kyoto alone. In the Media Blasters dub of the TV series, she is known by her western name, Misao Makimachi. Her seiyu is Tomo Sakurai and her English voice actress is Philece Sampler.
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[edit] Character
Misao is a fairly skilled ninja from the Oniwabanshu clan of ninja clan previously based in Edo. Her weapons of choice are the kunai. Misao is about sixteen years old when she is first introduced, though she appears younger.
According to Nobuhiro Watsuki, Misao's character was initially a combination of Kamiya Kaoru and Myojin Yahiko: upon her introduction into the story, she acts somewhat childish and innocent. However, as the story progresses, she becomes more mature and empathetic without losing her cheerful attitude. Misao is short-tempered, but also free-spirited and energetic. She is loyal and strong-willed and will fight for what she believes in.
[edit] Story
[edit] Background
Misao is the granddaughter of the former okashira of the Oniwabanashu. She was in the care of the last leader of the Oniwabanashu Shinomori Aoshi until Aoshi, Han'nya, Shikijo, Beshimi, and Hyottoko left her to Kashiwazaki Nenji, also known as Okina of the Oniwabanashu, when she was eight. She and Okina had a strong bond, though in Misao's mind, Aoshi remained the best. When she heard that Aoshi was in Tokyo, she went to search for him and runs into Himura Kenshin on the way back to Kyoto.
[edit] Kyoto Arc
While resting in a forest on the way to Kyoto to defeat Shishio Makoto, Kenshin notices a teenaged girl, Misao, defeat four bandits and take their goods. He interrupts her midway through the altercation, but she views him as a bum. She determines to take his sword but Kenshin easily avoids her attacks. She and Kenshin then begin traveling to Kyoto together. They stop near Shingetsu Village, where they meet a young boy. He tells them that his village is under control of Shishio Makoto. Misao and Kenshin, later accompanied by Saito Hajime, free the village.
When they arrive in Kyoto, Kenshin tries to find Arai Shakku, a legendary swordsmith who specialized in killing swords. Oddly enough, Shakku also forged Kenshin's sakabatō (reverse-bladed sword). Kenshin seeks to get a new one, as the old one was broken by Seta Sojiro. However, he quickly finds out that Shakku had died eight years ago. He travels with Misao and Okina to find Shakku's son Seiku, who is rumored to be just as skilled as Shakku. Seiku refuses to forge a sword for them because he did not like his father Shakku's philosophy of killing weapons creating new worlds. After Kenshin and the others leave, Seiku's wife asks him why he couldn't have given Kenshin Shakku's last sword, which was donated to a shrine as a god-sword. Seiku replies that in Meiji, there is no need for swords anymore. However, this conversation is overheard by two of Shishio's spies. This information eventually leads to "Sword Hunter" Cho, a member of Shishio's Juppongatana (Ten Swords) kidnapping Seiku's son, Iori. Cho heads to the temple to steal the final blade, and is confronted by Kenshin. When Kenshin is on the verge of being defeated, Seiku relents and gives Kenshin the final blade. Kenshin, however, refuses to draw the sword, as he is worried that using a killing sword will break his vow to never kill again. Cho lures Kenshin into drawing the sword, and is deeply slashed moments later. However, after Kenshin sees that the sword is a sakabato, he realizes that Cho is not dead. After the battle, Seiku gives Kenshin the new sakabato, "Shinuchi".
Okina is finally able to locate Kenshin's teacher Hiko Seijuro, the grandmaster of Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryu, and Kenshin decides to leave. Misao, who has become rather attached to Kenshin, becomes angry at him for not depending on anyone else. After Kenshin leaves, Misao meets Kamiya Kaoru and Myojin Yahiko when she recognizes a picture of Kenshin posted on the wall of a restaurant called Shirobeko (in the anime Misao runs into Yahiko while she is chasing after Kenshin). Misao takes Kaoru and Yahiko to Kenshin at his Master's home. On the way back, Yahiko remembers that he forgot to warn Kenshin about Aoshi, who he had seen in Kyoto a few days before. Misao demands to know about Aoshi, and Kaoru complies, grateful for the chance to see Kenshin again.
Misao is shocked at the news of Han'nya's and the others' deaths, and she runs back to Aoi-ya for clarification from Okina. Misao discovers that Okina went to fight Aoshi, and leaves immediately. She arrives too late to stop the fight and finds Okina barely alive and Aoshi declaring he never wishes to see Misao again. Misao is given a letter written by Okina in case he was to die, telling her that she should forget about the Oniwabanshu and lead a normal life. While she has difficulty accepting Aoshi is the one who attempted to kill Okina, she becomes determined to prevent Aoshi. She declares herself the new Okashira of the Oniwabanashu and refuses to recognize Aoshi as the clan's head any longer.
Misao becomes close friends with Kenshin, Kaoru, and Yahiko and helps them fight the agents of Shishio. Before leaving for the final battle with Shishio, Kenshin promises Misao that he will bring Aoshi back home to Aoi-ya, because he doesn't believe that Aoshi has lost himself completely. Misao is overwhelmed with this knowledge, and cannot stop her own tears. During the fight with members of the Juppongatana outside Aoi-ya, Misao is knocked unconscious. Han'nya appears before her in a dream and tells her that Kenshin has kept his promise and is bringing Aoshi back. She wakes up and helps Kaoru defeat Honjo Kamatari, another of the Juppongatana. After all of the Juppongatana present are defeated (save Iwanbo, who is too stupid to do anything and ends up fleeing), Misao and the others are attacked by "Destroying Yang" Fuji, a giant who is with the Juppongatana. They are saved by Hiko Seijuro, and wait for Kenshin, Sanosuke, Saito, and Aoshi to return.
Kenshin stays in Kyoto for about another month, but decides to finally leave with Kaoru. Misao is sorely disappointed when her new friends decide to return to Tokyo, though Kenshin attempts to cheer her up by assigning her to get Aoshi to smile. Her attempts at comedy have little effect on Aoshi, though she does not have any intention of giving up.
[edit] Jinchu Arc
Misao later returns in the Jinchuu arc of the story (along with Aoshi) when Kaoru writes her letter asking Misao to deliver the diary of the late Yukishiro Tomoe to Tokyo before her brother Yukishiro Enishi can exact Jinchu (translated Man's Judgment, refers revenge justified on Heaven's lack of intervention upon those who have wronged) on Kenshin.
However, she arrives with the diary too late as Enishi has completed his jinchu. Kaoru is dead and Kenshin has fallen into a state of depression and exhaustion. She and Yahiko swear to find Enishi, make him to read Tomoe's diary and force him down onto his knees and beg for forgiveness before Kaoru's grave. The two, after Sagara Sanosuke, attempt to bring Kenshin's spirit back, with Misao shouting for him to avenge Kaoru. When the two realize their efforts are useless, they leave him in the Fallen Village.
After Aoshi deduces that Kaoru is not dead and that the body buried was an elaborate doll (one that fooled even Takani Megumi's medical expertise due to the calibre of the design and her emotional state during the examination of the body), Misao and Yahiko begin a somewhat rash search to find Kaoru. They go to Saitou and make a deal with him, letting them search for Kaoru. Misao spends much of her time either at the Kamiya Dojo waiting for Aoshi or at Takani Megumi's clinic after the futile search for Kaoru, which included a lot of running around.
After Kenshin finds his purpose and leaves the Fallen Village and his living hell, Misao joins Kenshin and his friends as he travels to Enishi's island, where Kaoru is being held. She (with some guidance from Aoshi) sets off the bombs in the water surrounding the island, allowing the group to land on the shore. After Enishi is defeated, and after Kenshin's fight with Saito is "settled", Aoshi decides to head back to Kyoto. Misao realizes Aoshi wants to leave so early because he wants to rebury Han'nya and the others in a "place with more sunlight", supposedly in Kyoto. Misao is now happy to go home with "everyone", and Aoshi finally smiles, although Misao doesn't see it.
In Kenshin Kaden, we see Aoshi and Misao again attending the picnic where everyone (save Sanosuke, who sends a letter, and Saito, who is on assignment in Hokkaidō) is reunited.
[edit] Trivia
- The name "Makimachi" comes from Makimachi town in Niigata.
- Kazuki Muto, who is the star of another of Watsuki's works, Buso Renkin, was loosely based after Misao's character, being called, "a boy version of Misao." Their bangs are also similar.
- Misao's nickname of "Weasel girl" (itachi musume in Japanese) follows a trend for women in the manga to have animal-based nicknames, along with Kaoru (tanuki) and Megumi (kitsune).
| Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X) |
|---|
| Characters |
| Himura Kenshin | Kamiya Kaoru | Sagara Sanosuke | Myōjin Yahiko | Takani Megumi | Shinomori Aoshi| Makimachi Misao| Minor characters |
| Terms and Historical references |
| Samurai | Shinsengumi | Battousai | Meiji period | Saitō Hajime | Four Hitokiri of the Bakumatsu | Ishin Shishi | Three great nobles |
