❖ tl;dr
PERSONALITY:
Sanada Yukimura is the embodiment of hot-bloodedness and tends to act solely on his instincts without much thought for the consequences of his actions. The young retainer is a capable warrior and he is more than aware of his abilities; his combat prowess and unrelenting drive to go all out makes him a formidable force on the battlefield. Fighting is something Yukimura takes very seriously and he is so confident in his ability that he sees no need to resort to underhanded means in order to win. Then again, it is possibly due to the fact that he is largely incapable of much forethought, so the very concept of cheating has probably never even crossed his mind to begin with; likewise, he expects his opponents to act with honor in turn.
Despite his experience in warfare, Yukimura lacks the leadership qualities of a capable commander. He makes up for this with unquestioning obedience and loyalty to his general and mentor Takeda Shingen, the Tiger of Kai. As long as his actions bring glory to the Takeda Clan - which he considers his sole raison d'être - Yukimura will dutifully follow all orders given to him, even if he sometimes fails to understand the reason behind them. This, combined with his determination and skill in battle, makes him the perfect soldier.
Although he is brought up to be Shingen's successor, Yukimura has such strong belief in his mentor's greatness that he is convinced the warlord will live to rule all of Japan forever with he, Sanada Yukimura, simply remaining a servant of the Takeda to the end of his days. This illusion of invincibility is finally shattered right in front of the young Tiger when an attack from the enemy leaves Shingen incapacitated and vulnerable. Yukimura is devastated, though not only because he was unable to defend his master from it. More importantly, the incident only serves to drive home the point that Shingen, too, is only human.
His general aside, Yukimura's admiration extends to others who are similarly capable of great feats in leadership. Among them are Echizen's God of War, Uesugi Kenshin, and Oushu's One-Eyed Dragon, Date Masamune. His interest in the latter was piqued after having faced off with him in combat the first time round and subsequently the pair has dueled nearly every time their paths crossed, with the Kai warrior being determined to defeat the powerful leader of Oushu to bring even greater glory to the Takeda.
His courtesy is not limited to people he admires, and Yukimura treats those he meets with extreme levels of respect. Always polite and humble to a fault, his formal manner of speaking and how seriously he takes everything becomes a joke to most rather quickly and some do take advantage of it to mess around with him. Since he is an idiot, he doesn't ever realise it, either.
BACKGROUND:
The time of the warring states pitted the lords of Japan's many provinces against one another, each locked in the struggle for power where only one would emerge as the ruler of the entire country, all provinces united as a singular entity. Takeda Shingen, the Tiger of Kai, is one such warlord. A great tactician and respected general, he has led his forces to victory over countless armies and with every battle fought, the day they would all finally live in a unified Japan draws a little closer.
Sanada Yukimura, Shingen's apprentice and retainer, is called forth to be given his objective in the latest war against his general's long-time rival, Uesugi Kenshin. Yukimura is told to launch a surprise attack on Kenshin's forces up in Saijoyama from the rear and raises a protest, believing that such a move would discredit his general. It only takes a smooth explanation from Shingen to convince Yukimura otherwise, however, and he sets off with a squadron of soldiers after one of many shouting matches between general and retainer.
With his inability to look at a situation in any angles other than one, Yukimura has wholehearted faith in the warlord's words and never suspects that Shingen had actually sent him up Saijoyama to face Date Masamune, the One-Eyed Dragon of Oushu instead. What starts out as a duel in order to prevent Masamune from interfering with Shingen and Kenshin's battle turns into a fierce competition between the two, with both being more or less evenly matched with one another.
Cue a number of seminuclear explosions as they continue, with the clash only coming to a dead halt when one Sarutobi Sasuke makes an appearance, introducing himself as a spy of the Takeda and advising Masamune to retreat in order to avoid a pointless confrontation with the Takeda and Uesugi forces, who have temporarily allied. Masamune then reluctantly withdraws and leaves Yukimura with, as the kid puts it, unbearable heat seething within his chest. The young man, quite dazzled by Masamune's combat prowess and overall aura, is determined to do battle with the One-Eyed Dragon once more.
Back at base camp, Shingen calls for a meeting with Yukimura, who finally sees the reasoning behind all of Shingen's tactical decisions. We learn that Yukimura has most likely been groomed from the start to succeed the warlord as the next general of Kai, but the young Tiger, while showing exceptional promise in the field of raw combat, admits that he often neglects to sufficiently consider any and all sorts of factors when strategising. To top that off, he's got a bit of a problem with foresight (or lack thereof) and seems to possess no intent to rule in the least, preferring to believe that he would remain a servant of the Takeda clan to the end of his days. For this lack of ambition, Shingen punches the crap out of him. Several times.
Yukimura meets Masamune again as the both of them vy for the right to kill Suruga's Imagawa Yoshimoto, and their bickering gives him enough time to escape, pursued by the two of them as well as Katakura Kojuurou, Masamune's right-hand man. The chase culminates in an encounter with Nobunaga, the Sixth Demon King himself, toward whom Yukimura seems to show interest and excitement instead of fear. He begins with his usual spiel of introductions, and is told to shut up before he gets himself into more trouble than he can afford to have. Fortunately for him. Nobunaga seems completely disinterested and simply leaves after putting an end to Imagawa.
When he returns to Odawara with Sasuke, Yukimura learns of Shingen's plan to surround and defeat Nobunaga by rallying forces from Oumi, Mikawa, Echigo and Oushu together. However, upon hearing that the Azai and Tokugawa clans refused to join in the alliance, Shingen arranges to meet with Tokugawa Ieyasu personally in hopes that he would change his mind. Negotiations fail, however, and results in Tokugawa's forces clashing with both the Takeda and Uesugi armies.
While in battle, Yukimura comes across a Tokugawa soldier grieving for his comrade and he wavers momentarily, reluctant to engage him when he realises that his opponents are not merely nameless individuals that he can simply kill and get over with. The soldier is felled by Sasuke before he can land an attack on Yukimura, and the ninja wonders aloud if Yukimura's fighting spirit has weakened in any way. The kid protests before Shingen cuts in, reminding Yukimura that his enemies are no less human than they themselves are.
As Ieyasu's forces find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer difference in numbers, he calls upon Honda Tadakatsu, an imposing giant of a man in armor who resembles a Gundam more than anything else, complete with launching sequence and booster rockets on his back. Having heard from Shingen of Tadakatsu's position as the strongest warrior in the warring states, Yukimura automatically challenges him, but ends up having trouble coping by himself. Sasuke and Shingen both join in the fight, and even with the three of them they only very barely manage to hold him off. Eventually Yukimura succeeds in lodging one spear in Tadakatsu's shoulder, messing with his circuitry in the process.
It soon becomes clear that the Oda clan is planning to wipe out all the other armies at one go, and Yukimura asks Tadakatsu to join forces with him and fight against the Demon King. Before he can react, though, Nouhime, Oda's wife, appears with a pile driver/rocket launcher hybrid she pulls out from nowhere under her skirt and fires it at Yukimura and Tadakatsu. The latter, whose mobility is hindered due to the damage he sustained, grabs Yukimura and tosses him into the air in order to avoid the oncoming attack. Unable to maneuver himself into any other position, Tadakatsu receives the charge head-on and is obliterated.
With that, the battle comes to an end. Shingen directs his men to help any and all wounded soldiers regardless of their alliances, and to bring them back to Kai. Yukimura rides after the Date clan, who have already left the scene, with the intention of extending this offer to them as well since Oushu is considerably further off when compared with the journey back to Takeda's province. When he catches up to them, though, it is discovered that the offer was possibly a lifesaver; Masamune had indeed been injured by Oda's rifle squad and it wasn't until he blacked out and fell off his horse that the wound was found.
This forces the Date army to head to Kai so that Masamune can be treated, and it is while they are there that Shingen approaches Kojuurou with apologies for making their army their vanguard, as well as bringing up the idea of Oushu joining the alliance against Oda. Kojuurou is reluctant, since such tactics are not keeping in line with their style at all, but eventually agrees.
While Masamune is recovering from his injury, several of his men are taken hostage by one Matsunaga Hisahide, He demands Date's six swords as well as the Tatenashi-yoroi, the Takeda heirloom set of armor in exchange for their lives. Kojuurou sets out to deal with the abductor on his own, and Yukimura asks for a meeting with Shingen, unsure whether or not letting the man go by himself was the right thing to do. On one hand, the armor is a precious treasure to their clan, and he would not dream of handing it over to a person who would go so low as to take hostages. On the other, he now has a better understanding of the bonds shared between people and feels that he can't not save them -
After Yukimura goes through a whole list of useless excuses about why he could not accompany the Date clan retainer, Shingen simply punches him out once again for his sheer stupidity and lack of initiative. Another shouting match ensues in which Yukimura finally realises the mistake that he's made, and he then sets out with the Tatenashi-yori toward Matsunaga's stronghold, Sasuke in tow. Handing the armor over on arrival, they hold off the grunts while Kojuurou finishes Matsunaga off. It is found that the three captive Oushu soldiers, thought dead in the explosion Matsunaga triggered, are still alive, and all of them return to Kai with their respective treasures.
Sanada Yukimura is the embodiment of hot-bloodedness and tends to act solely on his instincts without much thought for the consequences of his actions. The young retainer is a capable warrior and he is more than aware of his abilities; his combat prowess and unrelenting drive to go all out makes him a formidable force on the battlefield. Fighting is something Yukimura takes very seriously and he is so confident in his ability that he sees no need to resort to underhanded means in order to win. Then again, it is possibly due to the fact that he is largely incapable of much forethought, so the very concept of cheating has probably never even crossed his mind to begin with; likewise, he expects his opponents to act with honor in turn.
Despite his experience in warfare, Yukimura lacks the leadership qualities of a capable commander. He makes up for this with unquestioning obedience and loyalty to his general and mentor Takeda Shingen, the Tiger of Kai. As long as his actions bring glory to the Takeda Clan - which he considers his sole raison d'être - Yukimura will dutifully follow all orders given to him, even if he sometimes fails to understand the reason behind them. This, combined with his determination and skill in battle, makes him the perfect soldier.
Although he is brought up to be Shingen's successor, Yukimura has such strong belief in his mentor's greatness that he is convinced the warlord will live to rule all of Japan forever with he, Sanada Yukimura, simply remaining a servant of the Takeda to the end of his days. This illusion of invincibility is finally shattered right in front of the young Tiger when an attack from the enemy leaves Shingen incapacitated and vulnerable. Yukimura is devastated, though not only because he was unable to defend his master from it. More importantly, the incident only serves to drive home the point that Shingen, too, is only human.
His general aside, Yukimura's admiration extends to others who are similarly capable of great feats in leadership. Among them are Echizen's God of War, Uesugi Kenshin, and Oushu's One-Eyed Dragon, Date Masamune. His interest in the latter was piqued after having faced off with him in combat the first time round and subsequently the pair has dueled nearly every time their paths crossed, with the Kai warrior being determined to defeat the powerful leader of Oushu to bring even greater glory to the Takeda.
His courtesy is not limited to people he admires, and Yukimura treats those he meets with extreme levels of respect. Always polite and humble to a fault, his formal manner of speaking and how seriously he takes everything becomes a joke to most rather quickly and some do take advantage of it to mess around with him. Since he is an idiot, he doesn't ever realise it, either.
BACKGROUND:
The time of the warring states pitted the lords of Japan's many provinces against one another, each locked in the struggle for power where only one would emerge as the ruler of the entire country, all provinces united as a singular entity. Takeda Shingen, the Tiger of Kai, is one such warlord. A great tactician and respected general, he has led his forces to victory over countless armies and with every battle fought, the day they would all finally live in a unified Japan draws a little closer.
Sanada Yukimura, Shingen's apprentice and retainer, is called forth to be given his objective in the latest war against his general's long-time rival, Uesugi Kenshin. Yukimura is told to launch a surprise attack on Kenshin's forces up in Saijoyama from the rear and raises a protest, believing that such a move would discredit his general. It only takes a smooth explanation from Shingen to convince Yukimura otherwise, however, and he sets off with a squadron of soldiers after one of many shouting matches between general and retainer.
With his inability to look at a situation in any angles other than one, Yukimura has wholehearted faith in the warlord's words and never suspects that Shingen had actually sent him up Saijoyama to face Date Masamune, the One-Eyed Dragon of Oushu instead. What starts out as a duel in order to prevent Masamune from interfering with Shingen and Kenshin's battle turns into a fierce competition between the two, with both being more or less evenly matched with one another.
Cue a number of seminuclear explosions as they continue, with the clash only coming to a dead halt when one Sarutobi Sasuke makes an appearance, introducing himself as a spy of the Takeda and advising Masamune to retreat in order to avoid a pointless confrontation with the Takeda and Uesugi forces, who have temporarily allied. Masamune then reluctantly withdraws and leaves Yukimura with, as the kid puts it, unbearable heat seething within his chest. The young man, quite dazzled by Masamune's combat prowess and overall aura, is determined to do battle with the One-Eyed Dragon once more.
Back at base camp, Shingen calls for a meeting with Yukimura, who finally sees the reasoning behind all of Shingen's tactical decisions. We learn that Yukimura has most likely been groomed from the start to succeed the warlord as the next general of Kai, but the young Tiger, while showing exceptional promise in the field of raw combat, admits that he often neglects to sufficiently consider any and all sorts of factors when strategising. To top that off, he's got a bit of a problem with foresight (or lack thereof) and seems to possess no intent to rule in the least, preferring to believe that he would remain a servant of the Takeda clan to the end of his days. For this lack of ambition, Shingen punches the crap out of him. Several times.
Yukimura meets Masamune again as the both of them vy for the right to kill Suruga's Imagawa Yoshimoto, and their bickering gives him enough time to escape, pursued by the two of them as well as Katakura Kojuurou, Masamune's right-hand man. The chase culminates in an encounter with Nobunaga, the Sixth Demon King himself, toward whom Yukimura seems to show interest and excitement instead of fear. He begins with his usual spiel of introductions, and is told to shut up before he gets himself into more trouble than he can afford to have. Fortunately for him. Nobunaga seems completely disinterested and simply leaves after putting an end to Imagawa.
When he returns to Odawara with Sasuke, Yukimura learns of Shingen's plan to surround and defeat Nobunaga by rallying forces from Oumi, Mikawa, Echigo and Oushu together. However, upon hearing that the Azai and Tokugawa clans refused to join in the alliance, Shingen arranges to meet with Tokugawa Ieyasu personally in hopes that he would change his mind. Negotiations fail, however, and results in Tokugawa's forces clashing with both the Takeda and Uesugi armies.
While in battle, Yukimura comes across a Tokugawa soldier grieving for his comrade and he wavers momentarily, reluctant to engage him when he realises that his opponents are not merely nameless individuals that he can simply kill and get over with. The soldier is felled by Sasuke before he can land an attack on Yukimura, and the ninja wonders aloud if Yukimura's fighting spirit has weakened in any way. The kid protests before Shingen cuts in, reminding Yukimura that his enemies are no less human than they themselves are.
As Ieyasu's forces find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer difference in numbers, he calls upon Honda Tadakatsu, an imposing giant of a man in armor who resembles a Gundam more than anything else, complete with launching sequence and booster rockets on his back. Having heard from Shingen of Tadakatsu's position as the strongest warrior in the warring states, Yukimura automatically challenges him, but ends up having trouble coping by himself. Sasuke and Shingen both join in the fight, and even with the three of them they only very barely manage to hold him off. Eventually Yukimura succeeds in lodging one spear in Tadakatsu's shoulder, messing with his circuitry in the process.
It soon becomes clear that the Oda clan is planning to wipe out all the other armies at one go, and Yukimura asks Tadakatsu to join forces with him and fight against the Demon King. Before he can react, though, Nouhime, Oda's wife, appears with a pile driver/rocket launcher hybrid she pulls out from nowhere under her skirt and fires it at Yukimura and Tadakatsu. The latter, whose mobility is hindered due to the damage he sustained, grabs Yukimura and tosses him into the air in order to avoid the oncoming attack. Unable to maneuver himself into any other position, Tadakatsu receives the charge head-on and is obliterated.
With that, the battle comes to an end. Shingen directs his men to help any and all wounded soldiers regardless of their alliances, and to bring them back to Kai. Yukimura rides after the Date clan, who have already left the scene, with the intention of extending this offer to them as well since Oushu is considerably further off when compared with the journey back to Takeda's province. When he catches up to them, though, it is discovered that the offer was possibly a lifesaver; Masamune had indeed been injured by Oda's rifle squad and it wasn't until he blacked out and fell off his horse that the wound was found.
This forces the Date army to head to Kai so that Masamune can be treated, and it is while they are there that Shingen approaches Kojuurou with apologies for making their army their vanguard, as well as bringing up the idea of Oushu joining the alliance against Oda. Kojuurou is reluctant, since such tactics are not keeping in line with their style at all, but eventually agrees.
While Masamune is recovering from his injury, several of his men are taken hostage by one Matsunaga Hisahide, He demands Date's six swords as well as the Tatenashi-yoroi, the Takeda heirloom set of armor in exchange for their lives. Kojuurou sets out to deal with the abductor on his own, and Yukimura asks for a meeting with Shingen, unsure whether or not letting the man go by himself was the right thing to do. On one hand, the armor is a precious treasure to their clan, and he would not dream of handing it over to a person who would go so low as to take hostages. On the other, he now has a better understanding of the bonds shared between people and feels that he can't not save them -
After Yukimura goes through a whole list of useless excuses about why he could not accompany the Date clan retainer, Shingen simply punches him out once again for his sheer stupidity and lack of initiative. Another shouting match ensues in which Yukimura finally realises the mistake that he's made, and he then sets out with the Tatenashi-yori toward Matsunaga's stronghold, Sasuke in tow. Handing the armor over on arrival, they hold off the grunts while Kojuurou finishes Matsunaga off. It is found that the three captive Oushu soldiers, thought dead in the explosion Matsunaga triggered, are still alive, and all of them return to Kai with their respective treasures.