Xebek\’s Blog

Hakuoro and company help Karura’s brother, Deri, with his rebellion to take back his and Karura’s previous home.

Summary:

We start off seeing a flashback to Karura’s past. Karura and her brother Deri are running through a palace that is on fire, led by the old man who visited Karura last episode, Katumau. They are taken to a room and they lock the door behind them, as they are obviously under attack and apparently being chased. Katumau tries to lead the two of them though a trap door to a waterway where they will be taken to safety but there is pounding at the door already. Karura stays behind even though her brother tries to yell for her to come and not stay behind. Katumau takes Deri and escapes with him, as Karura fights off the enemies that have now broken down the door, giving her brother enough time to escape. Back in the present, we see some slaves chained up, forced to work in front of some soldiers. Deri and Hakuoro are in the forest nearby, along with the rest of the rebellion. They all attack, and manage to free the slaves and drive the enemy to retreat. Deri wants to chase after him but Hakuoro tries to tell him that they should, they won the battle. Deri tries to go anyways but Karura slams her sword in the way. Being forced to stop, Hakuoro tells him how they have casualties as well; they should escape and treat the wounded before the main enemy force arrives. Deri agrees so they all retreat as well. That night at the rebel camp, Aruruu and Kamyu and the non fighters are playing with the children as there are women and children that they had freed, not just their soldiers. Inside a tent Hakuoro is with Deri and Katumau as well as Karura and Touka. Deri wants to attack but Hakuoro says how even though they need tow in this fast, they must stop for now. They have wounded, and women and children they should evacuate first, then they can fight to their heart’s content. Deri is about to object but realizes Hakuoro is right so he says ok. They all of a sudden hear some gasps coming from outside so they head out the tent to investigate. They see in the river they have camped by hundreds of flowers floating down, seemingly lighting up the river. Karura walks over and picks one up, just staring at it. Karura says she knows a way into the castle. There is a waterway that should take them to the middle of the palace where the emperor is they are trying to overthrow. Deri asks how she knows this, and if he can trust her or not. Karura just says trusting her is up the leader. Inside the tent, they are looking at a map and Karura shows them the waterway, but says because its small they can only bring a small attack party and they will be in the middle of the enemy force. Some soldiers who are with them volunteer to attack the main gates to draw the soldiers away, they don’t’ care if they die if it’s for Deri. Hakuoro just turns to him and says they have tow in this battle at all costs.

That night, after the strategy meeting, everyone is just hanging out and Hakuoro is taking a drink with Deri. Deri asks him for a favor, that after this is all over for him to give him Karura. He says she reminds him of his beloved sister, who he parted with a long time ago. She has been his role model throughout his life and he has yet to see woman who stands up to her. Hakuoro says that it’s not really his place to give him Karura. A litter later while everyone is asleep, Karura is looking over the water. Hakuoro come sup and they talk. He asks her what she will do after tomorrow’s battle and she says she will return to Tusukuru. He asks if that’s ok with her and she says it is and when he asks if she is ok with throwing her past away she just asks him about his past and how he doesn’t remember anything. He tells her of what Eruruu said how no matter who he was, he is himself now and Karura kind of says how she doesn’t need her past, but she will always keep it with her. The next morning the battle starts. The main bulk of soldiers all attack the front gate, drawing out soldiers. Hakuoro, Deri, Karura, Touka……and Eruruu and Aruruu on Mukuru head through the waterway. They emerge in the middle of the palace and they manage to make their way to the throne room safely. There they come face to face with the emperor, who has two huge ponds full of flowers that he fertilized with human corpses. The emperor says it’s been a long time, Karura, that he grew these flowers for her. Deri asks if she knows him and he says maybe. Hakuoro tells him to focus on the battle and he says they will talk about this later. Deri rushes forward to attack as a bunch of the emperor’s personal guards appear. They all fight hem off and do pretty well, while there seems to be some tension between Karura and this emperor who seems to know her and have an obsession for her. Eventually the emperor says how he never had any interest in the rebellion, that all his killing and such was just to lure out Karura, and then he stops and says no, Karurauwaturei! He says how she is his beloved and he killed all those people to make these flowers for him. Everyone seems shocked, saying things like he is crazy and how he could do such a thing. He asks her to come back to him and live even better then she did when she used to be a queen. Everyone seems shocked hearing this, and Deri is just completely shocked hearing Karura being called Karuruauwaturei, the name he knew his sister by. They defeat most of his guards and Karura and Deri stand in front of him. The emperor says how this is like before, he has dreamed of when Karura would come to him but Karura says that there is no way that would happen. The two of them charge at each other and Deri kills him. He turns to Karura and asks if she is really his sister. Karura just keeps looking in the same direction, away from him. He says how he has waited so long to see her but Karura faces him and says he must have hr mistaken for someone else. When he is about to question her he says that his job isn’t over, that there are his soldiers fighting a loosing battle outside unless he goes and does something. He says she is right and runs off but turns back assign her to promise not to leave him again. She says ok and when he is gone tells everyone hey should head home. Eruruu says what about the promise and Karura keeps walking. Eruruu says it’s sad to part like this but Urutorii stops her, seemingly understanding Karura more. Deri goes to the roof of the palace overlooking the battle saying he killed the emperor; the country is theirs, the new country of Karurauwaturei.

Things seem back to normal in Tusukuru. Oboro, finally having Yuzuha back, tries to never leave her side as she plays with Aruruu and Kamyu but when she goes to take a bath and he tries to follow them, then finds out what they are doing gets embarrassed and stays back. In the palace we see Deri and his higher ups in the throne room to pay respects to the emperor of Tusukuru for providing supplies during their rebellion. They wait and Hakuoro appears and Deri just now finds out that Hakuoro is the emperor of Tusukuru. Hakuoro acts as if they never met each other for safety reason for his country and when Deri thanks him he says there is no need, that he was planning on leaving them to fail but a woman asked him to help them. Deri smiles and asks how that woman is and Hakuoro says good, so good it causes trouble some times. Deri heads out, taking a last look at Tusukuru where Karura is and Karura is on a cliff watching them leave. Hakuoro approaches her and asks if it’s ok to leave them. She says its fine, for she is only a lone woman named Karura who has sworn fealty to him.

Impressions:

Well, Karura didn’t leave or anything like the name “The Parting” may have suggested but all in all I didn’t think she would. I think they handled the end of this episode rather well. Except for the fight against the creep didn’t go as good as it could, the whole Karura parting with her brother and her brother’s revelation to who she was finally was all fairly nice. Although it didn’t really SEEM to add much to the story, this was really the end of the small Karura arc and didn’t have much to do with the overall story in the first place. Karura was really the only one who needed her back-story told so now that they have finished it we will likely see more emphasis on things that have a greater impact on the overall plot.

There is still the whole deal with Kamyu they have to deal with as far as future episodes go. They never did explain why she was so thirsty that one time and basically couldn’t quench her thirst, or exactly what the hell Hakuoro saw or meant when he saw her in a kind of trance, flying with glowing lights everywhere. Then there is of course the mystery behind who Hakuoro really is. That will probably, well, WILL be the overall final plot focus, and then there is his relationship with Eruruu which will likely coincide with the whole mystery of who/what he is.