Mutsunokami Yoshiyuki

**English** | Jason Liebrecht

**Mutsunokami Yoshiyuki** is an uchigatana *touken danshi* residing in the citadel.

## Apperance

Mutsunokami has a muscular, athletic build with parts of his body bandaged, notably his forearms, lower legs and heels, and abdomen. His eyes are a bright orange while his eyebrows are thin and messy. His hair is fashioned in a similar way to his eyebrows, being messy and unkept.

In Hanamaru, he is most often seen in his casual attire.

## Personality

He is a kind and selfless individual, putting others before himself. Though extremely emotional, letting his heart do more talking than his head, Mutsunokami is still always seen with a smile on his face. He holds his beliefs strongly, not afraid to speak his mind on a matter he knows will get him in trouble. He is incredibly empathetic to all he meets, though this often gets him in trouble during scouting's and in-field battles.

He is a foodie; if he isn't working on chores or relaxing, he'll often be seen eating at any point in the day. He loves trying new foods and especially foods from different regions.

## Background

* Mutsunokami Yoshiyuki, signed 吉行 ("Yoshiyuki"), is one of the two swords believed to be used by Sakamoto Ryōma and an heirloom of the Sakamoto family. Popular romanticization says that Yoshiyuki was given to Ryōma by his sister before he left Tosa, knowing she would have to commit suicide because of the penalty that Ryōma would inflict on his family for leaving. However, based on the letters written by Ryoma, Yoshiyuki was most likely given to him by his older brother sometime after an assassination attempt on Ryōma at Teradaya Inn. The sword was delivered to Ryōma with the help of Saigo Takamori, the leader of Satsuma clan, and Nakaoka Shintarō.
* Sakamoto Ryōma was a prominent figure in the movement to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate. However, he is more well-known as someone who was in favor of foreign technology: he was among the people who created a modern navy for Japan, he was known to favor guns over swords, and he started and led the Kaientei, a naval trading company. Due to his disfavor of the government, Ryōma was assassinated at the age of 31 with close friend Nakaoka Shintarō while they were staying at an inn. It is said he died regretting that he was caught off-guard. Ryōma used Yoshiyuki during the skirmish.
* The assassination was blamed on the Shinsengumi, who were known to have clashed with Sakamoto several times. Because of this, their leader, Kondō Isami, was charged with the incident and executed for it. Three years later, former Kyoto Mimawarigumi member Imai Nobuo would confess that he and other members were responsible for the crime, but officially, the true assassins are a mystery...
* A wakizashi belonging to Katsura Hayanosuke, another member of the Mimawarigumi, is speculated to have been used during Sakamoto's assasination and is on exhibition. The blade has a broken edge, which experts say could have been from a clash between it and Yoshiyuki.
* The sword was later damaged by a fire that broke out in the home of a descendant of Ryoma in 1913 at Kushiro, Hokkaido, and lost much of its curve as well as the *hamon* (temper line) of its blade. It was later polished and repaired. It was said that his hamon was similar to the work of Awataguchi Tadatsuna.
* The sword was donated to the Kyoto National Museum by a relative of Sakamoto in 1931. At first, because of the alterations to the blade caused by the fire, officials weren't sure that it was Yoshiyuki, but after an investigation, traces of the original hamon were found and it was confirmed genuine.

## Trivia

* Mutsunokami, who has an affinity for guns, is the only *touken danshi* that uses a weapon other than a sword. This was based on Sakamoto Ryōma's love of foreign technology at a time when the Japan was in its *Sakoku* period (aka Isolation Period).
* In katsugeki/touken ranbu, mutsunokami is revealed to have a tosa accent similar to his former master, sakamoto ryouma.
* Mutsunokami may be partially inspired by Sakamoto Tatsuma from Gintama due to his cheerful personality and manners as well as tendency to laugh and usage of a handgun. This might not be too far-fetched an idea as Tatsuma himself was an intentional spoof of Sakamoto Ryōma, Mutsunokami's owner.
* The gun Mutsunokami carries is a Smith & Wesson revolver, which is the same kind once used by Ryōma while escaping from Bafuku police in Teradaya, some time after the Satsuma-Choshu alliance was formed. The gun used by Ryoma was originally a gift from Takasugi Shinsaku, but was lost in the skirmish at Teradaya.