Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 10: Secrets [Paperback]

Hiroaki Samura (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 7, 2011

Anotsu Kagehisa, murderous leader of the rogue Itto-ryu, has journeyed to the mountains far from Edo to the romote Shingyoto-ryu dojo under invitation to bring the sword school under his wing. But instead of a warm welcome, Anotsu finds a dojo full of angry young men who don't want to take orders from an upstart, unless he can proves he's tougher than the best of them! That sits just fine with Anotsu, who has dedicated his life to putting the killing back into Japan's formalized sword schools, but Anotsu suspects that something more than proof of his worthiness lies beneath the challenge. Meanwhile, the immortal swordsman, Manji, is recovering from a battle that left him literally cut to pieces. His charge, Rin, is till nowhere to be found, bound for vengeance against Anotsu, but soon his troubles may become a bit more immediate, troubles that even an immortal may not survive! Collecting issues #58-#65 of the ongoing series.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This multivolume series first arrived on the American comics scene in 1995, and manga fans went wild. Not since Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima's Lone Wolf and Cub has a samurai series gathered such a devoted following. It's the story of Anotsu Kagehisa, founder of the Itto-ryu sword school; Rin, a beautiful swordswoman whose parents have been killed by Anotsu; and Manji, Rin's bodyguard, who accompanies her on her quest to avenge her parents' death. With skillful storytelling and masterful artistry, Samura takes the tension and stoicism of Lone Wolf and fuses it with a postmodern irreverence and casual, contemporary vocabulary (e.g., Manji says things like "shaddap!"). Indeed, irreverence is Samura's strength, allowing him to write without much worry about the accuracy of his portrayal of historic Japan. In this volume, Anotsu travels to Kaga province. Unknown to Anotsu, the injured Manji is resting there while bloodworms work to reattach his limbs after a bloody fight with Itto-ryu swordsmen. Meanwhile, Rin, now separated from Manji, has been robbed and left to fend for herself in the wilderness. Like a soap opera, this story is more anticipation than immediate action. Some readers may need a bit of plot information if they're just beginning, but Samura's dialogue is helpful. His b&w drawings are gestural but precise and leap convincingly between meditative scenes of nature and dynamic fights and battles. The thin, fast lines of his drawings suggest a vibrant informality, as if readers were peeking at his sketchbook. Thrilling, violent action combines with a dash of science fiction in an unusual manga melodrama.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Dark Horse (June 7, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156971746X
• ISBN-13: 978-1569717462
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #505,357 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "What will these hollow men be good for?", December 17, 2002

By 

Marc Ruby™ "The Noh Hare™" (Warren, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 10: Secrets (Paperback)

Due to the accident of the order I read this series in, the last several have been horrendously violent. There can be a certain elegance to the dealing of death, but Hiroaki Samura goes beyond the surface ritual and frequently reminds us that it is not graceful technique, but winning that determines survival. This is an ugly lesson, and Samura never fails to make it clear. In any case, I'd gotten to inured to pieces of people flying all over that I was quite surprised upon reaching 'Secrets' to find the events focused on character development. No doubt, this was intentional on the part of the storyteller, and quite effective.

The book opens upon Anotsu Kagehisa making he was through Kaga on his way to the Shingyoto-Ryu sword school. Its master, Ibane Kensui, has decided to offer the school to Anotsu if he will accept one certain condition. Ibane wants Anotsu to marry Hisoka, his ward. This opens a series of interchanges between Anotsu, Ibane and Hisoka that are quite revealing. Anotsu has actually never been portrayed as an completely evil man, and now we discover that he as some very positive reasons for his actions, nor is he the sort to take thoughtless advantage of Hisoka.

Back in Edo, Manji is recovering (actually, reassembling himself) at Master Sori's painting studio. Sori was the man who originally funded Rin's quest for revenge, and recently Manji has realized that the painter in blood is one of the Shogun's spies. Manji is, as usual, something of an ingrate, and he still cannot bring himself to trust Hyakurin, the woman spy who rescued him from his last disaster. As Manji puzzles this out, he discovers that there will be one more guest at Sori's home, Magatso Taito of the Itto-Ryu, who Manji has fought more than once. In fact, each man thought the other was dead.

Manji discovers that Magatso has left the Itto-Ryu and is searching for the swordsman who killed the woman he loved. Surprisingly, Manji knows the killer as well - Shira, who has a grudge of his own against Manji. The two swordsmen find themselves drawn together against a single enemy. With all this happening, Samura still takes time to show Rin, who is having her own struggles making her way to a showdown in Kaqa.

Taken in total, this is one of the best of the series, reinstating the sense of story line and helping the reader to see some of the characters in a different light. Some mysteries are resolved, and some new questions allowed to surface. This is truly a showpiece of illustration and narrative.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Some of the best manga ever1, September 8, 2002

By 

"seifergrrl" (Sandy, Utah United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 10: Secrets (Paperback)

As with all previous volumes of the Blade of the Immortal series, this is an excellent piece of work; superb art, complex story, wonderfully detailed characters.

Detailed in this volume are Rin's travels -- hard and frustrating, without Manji at her side -- to find Anotsu. Anotsu ascends to take over a remote dojo, but finds himself in a sticky situation when the current master has a request: that he take his daughter as a wife when he takes over the dojo! And of course... Manji mends from his near-fatal (even for the immortal) fight with three of the Itto-Ryu, and discovers that his attempt to get a pass has failed, and that he has a new ally he never expected...

If you're a BotI fan, you can't justify NOT buying this volume! Too much important storyline comes to light here; Manji's limitations, the secrets of the Mugen-Ryu, and the Itto-Ryu's goals... This and more!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lives up to the rest, August 14, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 10: Secrets (Paperback)

If you are a fan of this series, then this novel will not disapoint you. It explores many of the secondary characters and begins to answer many of the questions surrounding them. Of course, if you are a fan, there is no need to recomend this book as i'm sure you will want to see what happens. For those who are not familiar with the serious,I would recomend to start from the begining. As for this particular book, the biggest complaint i have is that the character art seems different from earlier in the series, and not as smoothly depicted. Other than that, an excellent book.