Kaze no Stigma
Plot. Kazuma Kannagi was the eldest son of the Kannagi family and presumed heir. However, due to his inability to use , the power to control flames, he was considered to be useless within his family. Despite his inability to wield fire, his father insisted on him competing for the right to wield , a powerful heirloom sword traditionally wielded by the family heir. The 18-year-old Kazuma was soundly defeated by 12-year-old Ayano Kannagi, his second cousin, and his father banished him from the family. Four years later, he returns as a master of , the  power to control wind, and with a new name: Kazuma Yagami. Soon after his return, several Kannagi family members are killed by someone using Fūjutsu and Kazuma is presumed to have committed the murders in revenge for his banishment. Though innocent of the murders, he is confronted by various members of his former family who wish to fight him. However, the only person that Kazuma wants to fight is his father, the strongest Enjutsu user and whom he later defeats in a duel. Kazuma is revealed to be a Contractor, a rare individual who has entered into a contract with  the . Due to this, Kazuma is able to draw upon the wind spirits around him, which amplifies his inherent powers, and allows him to heal his wounds. When using this power, his eyes turn azure blue. However, this ability puts a strain on his body, as it is his stamina and will that limits the amount of power available to him. After the duel Kazuma returns to his hotel and finds that his younger brother, Ren Kannagi, an extremely powerful Enjutsu user in his own right, has been eagerly waiting to see his adored elder brother again. Their reunion is  interrupted by the Fūjutsu user who killed the other Kannagi and who kidnaps Ren. Kazuma returns to his former home to consult with the head of the Kannagi. Ayano intrudes into their meeting and, believing Kazuma to be guilty of the murders, attacks him on sight. Remonstrated by the family head, and her father, Ayano works with Kazuma to rescue Ren. Further story arcs revolve around Kazuma, Ayano and Ren and the growing relationship between them. Media. Light novel. "Kaze no Stigma" began as a light novel series, written by Takahiro Yamato and illustrated by Hanamaru Nanto, serialized in the  Japanese seinen light novel magazine "Dragon Magazine", published by Fujimi Shobō, a subsidiary of Kadokawa Shoten. It began serialization in January 2002. Twelve bound volumes have been published—six main volumes and six short story compilations. The latest main volume was released on October 20, 2005, and the latest short story volume went on sale in Japan on March 20, 2010. The author of the light novels, Takahiro Yamato, died on July 20, 2009, leaving the series incomplete. Manga. A manga series illustrated by Neko Miyakai began serialization in the Japanese shōnen manga magazine "Monthly Dragon Age" on April 9 , 2007 and ended on March 6, 2008. Two bound volumes have been published by Fujimi Shobō. Anime. Gonzo's "Kaze no Stigma" animated TV series aired on Japanese broadcasting channels between April 12, 2007 and September 21, 2007, containing twenty-four episodes; it aired in a late night slot. The series was directed by Junichi Sakata. The first DVD release of "Kaze no Stigma" was released on August 24, 2007. It was released by Funimation in 2009 starting with part 1. The anime's opening theme is "Blast of Wind" performed by Saori Kiuji, lyrics by Chiaki Ishikawa and Mitsuko  Komuro, composed by Kazumi Mitome and Akino Arai. The first ending theme is "Hitorikiri no Sora" by Saori Kiuji and the second ending theme is by Ayumi Fujimura, Yuka Inokuchi and Shizuka Itō. The series has been licensed by FUNimation Entertainment in North America. They released the first DVD volume in 2009. The major difference between the novel and the anime is the significantly darker tone in the novels. The character of Kazuma is much darker in the novels, which depicts him mercilessly killing most of the antagonistic characters. In the anime, Kazuma is usually depicted as only injuring or  incapacitating his opponents, while their actual deaths are usually the result of their own schemes backfiring on them. Some scenes involving gruesome deaths were simply excluded from the anime. Role-playing game. A "Kaze no Stigma RPG", published by Fujimi Shobō, went on sale in Japan in June 2007. The game is designed by Kiyomune Miwa, and uses the Standard RPG System.