Rurouni Kenshin (2023)
Rurouni Kenshin
2023 / TV-14Ten years have passed since the end of Bakumatsu, an era of war that saw the uprising of citizens against the Tokugawa shogunate. The revolutionaries wanted to create a time of peace, and a thriving country free from oppression. The new age of Meiji has come, but peace has not yet been achieved. Swords are banned but people are still murdered in the streets. Orphans of war veterans are left with nowhere to go, while the government seems content to just line their pockets with money.
Seasons & Episode
11th year of the Meiji Era in downtown Tokyo. Kaoru Kamiya, the acting master of the “Kamiya Kasshin-ryu” style, was chasing after the “Hitokiri Battosai,” who was claiming to be a user of her sword style. One night, Kaoru meets a man carrying a sword. She immediately questions the man, but he seems to have absolutely no will to fight. “Is this the rumored Hitokiri Battosai?” As Kaoru dubiously looks on, the man introduces himself as Kenshin Himura, a “Rurouni.”
It's been a week since the resolution of the crossroad killing case, in which the name of the Kamiya Kasshin-ryu was deceptively used. Although the name of Kamiya Dojo has been cleared, there's no sign of an increase in the number of Kaoru's students. Then a passing boy, Yahiko Myojin, pickpockets Kenshin's wallet. Kenshin gives him the wallet, saying that it was his fault for allowing it to get stolen. Yahiko is repulsed at being treated like a child, but he has a reason to collect the money.
Yahiko's heart is moved by Kenshin and he decides to quit pickpocketing. Yahiko refuses to pay Kanto Shueigumi and resists their demands, but he is beaten up. Kenshin comes to his rescue and settles the matter. Regretful that he could not solve the problem by himself, Yahiko wishes to become stronger. Seeing this, Kenshin takes Yahiko to the Kamiya Dojo.
Kenshin, Kaoru, and Yahiko visit Akabeko, a beef hot-pot restaurant, where a group of democratic rights activists gets into a heated argument. One of them throws a bottle of sake, and it hits Kenshin, causing a commotion. Sanosuke Sagara, who happened to be in the store during the quarrel, stood up and blew away the activists with a single flick to the forehead. Seeing Kenshin's strength, Sanosuke's curiosity is roused and he asks, "You wanna buy a fight from me?"
Sanosuke's friend has died from an opium overdose. However, Kenshin and Sanosuke are perplexed at how he even got his hands on the drug, since opium is banned and too expensive for the average person to afford. Then a mysterious woman, Megumi Takani, appears before them. Kenshin and the others fight off Kanryu Takeda's private army who is trying to capture Megumi. However, Megumi is carrying opium...
Hyottoko, a member of the Oniwaban group, raids Kamiya Dojo, where Megumi is hiding. He unleashes his special attack "Fire Breath," in which he breathes fire from his mouth, onto Kenshin and Sanosuke. Anticipating the defeat of Kenshin and the others at the appearance of the powerful middle-ranked spy, Megumi tries to flee the scene, but Kaoru stops her and says "He's fighting for you," telling her to believe in Kenshin's strength.
Kenshin, Sanosuke, and Yahiko scramble to take back Megumi from the Kanryu residence. They are confronted by Han'nya, a spy of the Oniwaban Group. He trifles Kenshin with his martial arts skills and his "Arm-extension Spell", but Kenshin successfully conquers him when he uncovers the secret of the technique during the fight. Just when it looked like the battle was up, Han'nya removes his mask and reveals his startling true face.
Yahiko, the sole student of the Kamiya Dojo, has started to step away from his training from time to time. He says he's merely going on a walk, but it is clear that he takes his swordsmanship training very seriously, and it doesn’t look like he's ditching to slack off. Curious about what he's doing, Kenshin, Kaoru, and Sanosuke decide to follow him. What exactly is Yahiko's reason for ditching?
Sanosuke is visiting the sukiyaki restaurant Akabeko, where he always leaves his bill on a tab. One of Akabeko's workers, Tae, asks him to go buy a Nishiki painting from the painting shop on her behalf. Though Sanosuke had no interest in paintings, he finds one at the store that catches his eye. It was a painting of the man he looked up to as his master back when he was a member of the Sekiho Army, Captain Sagara. With a gleam in his eyes, Sanosuke makes his way to meet with the artist of the painting.
Tsunan is seeking to clear his decade-old unresolved regrets surrounding the Sekiho Army. Empathizing with him, Sanosuke joins Tsunan in conspiring an attack on the Home Ministry. However, Kenshin was waiting for them inside the building to stop them. Seeing the former Revolutionary warrior standing in their way, the same way they faced off against Revolutionary warriors when they were in the Sekiho Army, Tsunan's fighting spirit burns. A flurry of explosives are hurled at Kenshin.
Kenshin and the group are enjoying some tea time together. The group probes Kenshin to entertain them with an interesting story from his travels, specifically requesting "a story that's unusual, fun, and includes a villain's defeat." To answer to their demands, Kenshin decides to tell them about someone he met when he was visiting a foreign settlement in the lively city of Yokohama. A foreign doctor named Elder who was always wearing a mask.
The current Kenshin has left his past as a manslayer and wished for a peaceful world. Though Elder looked at him with eyes of confusion, Kenshin knew that Elder also shared this same desire for a healthy society and felt a sense of comradery with him. Meanwhile, another doctor called Deian Ishizu was scheming to get rid of Elder, as Elder did not seek monetary gain in exchange for her medical services, and Deian thought this was disrupting his business. Deian hires Espiral, a master of Western swordsmanship, to get rid of Elder. However, it seems Espiral has an entirely different motive for taking on the job...
Making the decision to fight against Shishio, Kenshin leaves Kamiya Dojo and sets off for Kyoto via the Tokaido by himself. Meanwhile, Sanosuke and Yahiko attempt to go to Kyoto to follow Kenshin.
Megumi is alone in Tokyo and coincidentally encounters Aoshi at Kamiya Dojo, who’s come back for another fight with Kenshin. Aoshi asks Megumi where Kenshin is, but she feigns ignorance. Unhappy with the lack of response, he threatens to kill her if she doesn’t tell him, when a man suddenly appears. Meanwhile, Kenshin encounters a young girl in the forests of the Hakone mountains as he makes his way to Kyoto.
The name of the girl that Kenshin encounters in the forests is Misao Makimachi, and she came from Kyoto to find Aoshi’s Oniwaban Group. Kenshin is surprised to hear his name. Upon seeing Kenshin’s reaction, she asks him if he knows where Aoshi is, but he keeps his mouth shut. However, Kenshin is touched by the emotions Misao has for Aoshi, in which he then decides to make the journey to Kyoto with her.
Ten years have passed since the end of Bakumatsu, an era of war that saw the uprising of citizens against the Tokugawa shogunate. The revolutionaries wanted to create a time of peace, and a thriving country free from oppression. The new age of Meiji has come, but peace has not yet been achieved. Swords are banned but people are still murdered in the streets. Orphans of war veterans are left with nowhere to go, while the government seems content to just line their pockets with money.