Discussion: how will Nabari end, and who will live/die?
It popped up in the other discussion thread that most of us think that Nabari is going to be around twelve to fourteen volumes long - which is not all that far away! Of course, there was much worrying about whether a certain gloomy, cap-wearing kid will survive or not. And other characters as well - we've certainly seen that the mangaka is pretty free with inflicting heavy injuries on our beloved cast, but how many (if any) of them will she actually off in the end? What are your crazy theories, or perhaps just your gut impulses?
(*cough* I'm possibly just a tad morbid - in any story, I always like to play "guess who really dies at the end".)
There are two questions to discuss:
1. How do you think it'll end?
2. How do you wish it'll end, ideally?
SPOILERS are allowed in the following discussion, so please do not click on comments or the cut if you're afraid of spoilers!
I believe that Raimei and Gau are safe. Gau's safe because he almost died once already; he's a pair (romantic or not) with Raikou and I think if either of them is in danger this time it'll be Raikou. Same with Raimei and Kouichi being a pair (romantic or not). I can imagine Kouichi and - what's the name of the other Shinrabansho immortal? - perishing as a part of the ultimate destruction of the Shinrabansho, and I figure if Kouichi dies Raimei will survive and be left to mourn (if Raikou dies Gau will be left to mourn). I think Raikou and Yukimi both have some likelihood of dying to protect their friends/family, but somehow I think Tobari will definitely live and Hana might die. I'm not sure why, but I get the impression that Hana could become rather important later on... I'm going out on a limb here of course, but I would love it if there were more to her than meets the eye.
Yoite and Miharu I think each have a 50/50 chance of survival. If Miharu attempts to use the Shinrabansho for Yoite's sake, I think it'll certainly backfire in some unexpected way. Yoite could die in order to show that even the greatest power can't save everyone, or that even the best intentions go awry when one uses forbidden power...
Alternatively, Yoite somehow sacrifices himself to save Miharu. In doing so, Yoite does die/disappear but is fulfilled in the sense that he understands that his life was worthwhile despite everything, and that he doesn't want it to be erased.
Or the manga lets off the Yoite focus for a bit and returns to the escalating conflicts between the ninja clans (as much as I love Miharu-Yoite interaction, I feel like it's about time to look at the bigger picture again). [Insert various plot twists involving the Shinrabansho that I can't possibly predict.] In the process of helping Miharu and his friends, Yoite develops some sense of self-worth and ultimately decides to face death rather than be erased.
...or Miharu saves Yoite. Power of pure friendship/love/whatever-you-call-it triumphs!
Any of these is fine with me (though I'm a softie at heart and would like Miharu to somehow save everybody), there are two scenarios I don't want:
1. Erasing Yoite or killing Yoite only to bring him back as a reincarnation or have him show up memoryless to be Miharu's happy angst-free buddy. =_= I feel like that's cheap, or cheating in a way. The distinction must be made that if you erase the darkness of Yoite's memories/experience, it's equivalent to killing him anyway, or destroying his true self. First, he needs to still hold responsibility for all his acts/killings as a ninja, and second it simply won't be the same person. We are our deeds, and we have to face up to them and accept them as part of ourselves even if we are ashamed... you can't gain an easy redemption through just erasing the past, you've got to struggle to fix your own bad actions. (Yoite seeming to die but miraculously surviving is fine though! Just as long as he keeps his memories...)
2. Saving Yoite just to start another arc. Aaaaaaagh! Yoite's story needs to conclude with the conclusion of the manga, regardless of whether it's a good/bad ending for him.
One last thing... I suspect that Miharu will not become the king of Nabari, but rather that Nabari itself - an already dwindling, archaic way of life - will collapse and meld with the surface world. I just don't think Miharu, or Tobari for that matter, will ever accept the ninja's role of killing as a justifiable means to an end. I think that ultimately not only the Shinrabansho but also the other ninja powers will be put to rest... at least as ways to harm people... and that will be Miharu's role in the world of Nabari.
(*cough* I'm possibly just a tad morbid - in any story, I always like to play "guess who really dies at the end".)
There are two questions to discuss:
1. How do you think it'll end?
2. How do you wish it'll end, ideally?
SPOILERS are allowed in the following discussion, so please do not click on comments or the cut if you're afraid of spoilers!
I believe that Raimei and Gau are safe. Gau's safe because he almost died once already; he's a pair (romantic or not) with Raikou and I think if either of them is in danger this time it'll be Raikou. Same with Raimei and Kouichi being a pair (romantic or not). I can imagine Kouichi and - what's the name of the other Shinrabansho immortal? - perishing as a part of the ultimate destruction of the Shinrabansho, and I figure if Kouichi dies Raimei will survive and be left to mourn (if Raikou dies Gau will be left to mourn). I think Raikou and Yukimi both have some likelihood of dying to protect their friends/family, but somehow I think Tobari will definitely live and Hana might die. I'm not sure why, but I get the impression that Hana could become rather important later on... I'm going out on a limb here of course, but I would love it if there were more to her than meets the eye.
Yoite and Miharu I think each have a 50/50 chance of survival. If Miharu attempts to use the Shinrabansho for Yoite's sake, I think it'll certainly backfire in some unexpected way. Yoite could die in order to show that even the greatest power can't save everyone, or that even the best intentions go awry when one uses forbidden power...
Alternatively, Yoite somehow sacrifices himself to save Miharu. In doing so, Yoite does die/disappear but is fulfilled in the sense that he understands that his life was worthwhile despite everything, and that he doesn't want it to be erased.
Or the manga lets off the Yoite focus for a bit and returns to the escalating conflicts between the ninja clans (as much as I love Miharu-Yoite interaction, I feel like it's about time to look at the bigger picture again). [Insert various plot twists involving the Shinrabansho that I can't possibly predict.] In the process of helping Miharu and his friends, Yoite develops some sense of self-worth and ultimately decides to face death rather than be erased.
...or Miharu saves Yoite. Power of pure friendship/love/whatever-you-call-it triumphs!
Any of these is fine with me (though I'm a softie at heart and would like Miharu to somehow save everybody), there are two scenarios I don't want:
1. Erasing Yoite or killing Yoite only to bring him back as a reincarnation or have him show up memoryless to be Miharu's happy angst-free buddy. =_= I feel like that's cheap, or cheating in a way. The distinction must be made that if you erase the darkness of Yoite's memories/experience, it's equivalent to killing him anyway, or destroying his true self. First, he needs to still hold responsibility for all his acts/killings as a ninja, and second it simply won't be the same person. We are our deeds, and we have to face up to them and accept them as part of ourselves even if we are ashamed... you can't gain an easy redemption through just erasing the past, you've got to struggle to fix your own bad actions. (Yoite seeming to die but miraculously surviving is fine though! Just as long as he keeps his memories...)
2. Saving Yoite just to start another arc. Aaaaaaagh! Yoite's story needs to conclude with the conclusion of the manga, regardless of whether it's a good/bad ending for him.
One last thing... I suspect that Miharu will not become the king of Nabari, but rather that Nabari itself - an already dwindling, archaic way of life - will collapse and meld with the surface world. I just don't think Miharu, or Tobari for that matter, will ever accept the ninja's role of killing as a justifiable means to an end. I think that ultimately not only the Shinrabansho but also the other ninja powers will be put to rest... at least as ways to harm people... and that will be Miharu's role in the world of Nabari.