Creative Staff
Story/Art: Akira Segami
Translation/Adaptation: Satsuki Yamashita, Nunzio DeFilippis & Christina Weir
What They Say
Noble ninja Kagetora has an important duty: to protect and train young Yuki. Falling in love with her is not an option; unfortunately, it’s a little too late for that. Things get really complicated when Yuki’s cousin, a respected member of the Toudou martial arts family, comes to town to check out Kagetora . . . and she likes what she sees! Then Kagetora takes Yuki back home to his village, where she learns Kagetora’s family secrets, bringing the two of them even closer. With the New Year approaching, can Kagetora keep his feelings for his charge under control . . . and keep from disgracing himself and his ninja clan?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
At the end of the last volume, Kagetora almost told Yuki how he felt about her. That would have been a total disaster because a lowly ninja can have nothing to do with the love affairs of the Toudou family heir. After that mistake, he swears he’s going to remain aloof and keep his distance. So, how long did Kagetora keep his distance from Yuki? Only until they reached the water park. Well I guess you can’t really blame a teenage guy for fawning over the girl he loves, especially when she’s wearing a bikini.
Kagetora, Yuki, and their school friends go to a water park for some fun in the sun. Women, bikini’s, and water sports that tend to pull off bikini tops. What’s not to love? Then some time later, Kagetora and Yuki spend the night at a shrine where Yuki accidentally drinks some sweet sake without Kagetora knowing. Turns out, Yuki has a little drunken master fighting style in her and she actually gives Kagetora a decent butt-kicking. Funny considering Yuki trips over her own two feet when she’s sober.
I continue to have mixed feelings about this series and up to this point of volume four I was growing board. I’ve seen the water park story done better, although the drunken master scene was entertaining. So just as I was about to yawn, the book redeems itself in a big way with an in depth look at Kagetora’s past. The life he lived with his older brothers and the death of one of his parents is very touching. This bit of character development also does a good job explaining why Kagetora is so obsessed with guarding Yuki before he even knew her. I also enjoyed the cover with Yuki wearing a female ninja outfit, very cute.
Content Grade: B
Art Grade: B
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Del Rey Manga
Release Date: December 26th, 2006
MSRP: $10.95
