Brave 10



Brave 10 is a medieval fantasy anime, originated from the similarly named manga. It follows the lives of those that would be known as Sanada Ten Braves, ten loyal ninjas serving under Sanada Yukimura, although rather than going for historical route, they go for a more mystic-based approach.

The main protagonist is an Iga ninja named Saizou, who meets an Izumo priestess called Isanami on the run from the ninjas who destroyed her temple and protects her on her short journey to Sanada Yukimura's castle. Sanada Yukimura is a powerful warlord in the Sengoku era. Sanada wants to gather 10 warriors, a party unrivaled in skill and power, to set his still secret plan into action...

The author, Kairi Shimotsuki, is well known for her Yaoi work, but she has also worked on the Sengoku Basara franchise and this series clearly follows the latter. Very much so, though with a heavy, Darker and Edgier Seinen slant.

This series provides examples of:

 * Acquired Poison Immunity: Demonstrated by Anastasia in the manga during the Knockout Gas attack.
 * Adaptation Dye Job: Isanami's hair is dark green in the manga at first. She gets later recolored to cyan, and becomes almost white in the anime.
 * All Girls Want Bad Boys: No matter how aloof and gruff Saizou acts, Isanami still calls him her shining knight.
 * All Star Cast: Oh boy, we've got some pretty big names for this anime. See the Trivia section.
 * Always Someone Better: Saizou's skill was famous until he met Hattori Hanzo, who proved more than his match.
 * Ambiguous Gender:
 * Anachronism Stew: For some reason, Isanami is at the center of most anachronisms, what with her biker shorts, ballet moves and lollipops.
 * Assassin Outclassin: How Anastasia ended up working for Sanada Yukimura.
 * Attack Reflector: One of Saizo's many techniques, seen in the first episode against Isanami pursuers.
 * Attempted Rape: Happens a few times in the manga, to Juuzo, Isanami and Anastasia to be precise.
 * Ax Crazy: Kamanosuke Yuri tells Isanami he's a bandit for the chance of people resisting being held up. Becomes more of a Blood Knight later
 * Back for The Finale: Hanzo vanished and practically unheard of after Kamanosuke joining, but he'll be back in the episode after, turns out He's Just Hiding. This is also the focus of his Episode 11 preview. Oukatsu isn't so lucky, though.
 * Bare Your Midriff: Anastasia's bodice doesn't cover much of her torso. Also Rokuro and Kamanosuke.
 * Barbie Doll Anatomy: Even when not covered by Censor Steam there is a lack of detail in the nudity.
 * The Beast Master: Sasuke. He likes all kind of animals, but birds in particular.
 * Bedmate Reveal: Isanami likes to sneak up into Saizou's bed. But she's a priestess, don't think wrong.
 * Before and After: Seikai was just another pretty boy before becoming a musclebound bruiser.
 * Big Bad: Tokugawa Ieyasu.
 * Big Breasts Big Deal: Being a practical woman, Anastasia would rather be small breasted. Isanami thinks otherwise.
 * Big Damn Heroes:
 * Big Eater: Isanami. And she has a Sweet Tooth, too.
 * Big No: Sasuke after Kamanosuke asks him if he could skin his weasel Amaharu.
 * Bishonen: Handsome guys galore. Author Appeal.
 * BFS
 * Saizo has one.
 * Also Date
 * Black Swords Are Better: Saizou wields one.
 * Blade Lock: As usual, an excuse during fights to keep on the Trash Talk and exchanging dialogue, as seen in Hanzo and Saizou's second fight.
 * Bleached Underpants: The anime removes the instances of Attempted Rape and nudity the manga has (so, no naked Anastasia during the Hot Springs Episode, not even with Barbie Doll Anatomy).
 * Blood Lust: In Kamanosuke's strange Ho Yay way, he says he wants to see Saizou cut and bleeding.
 * Blood On These Hands: While trapped with Isanami after the fight with the giant snake, Saizou tells Isanami he's just a killer and cannot be anybody's shining knight.
 * Blood Splattered Innocents: During the second ninja attempt in the first episode, Isanami's face gets bloodied by a dying ninja.
 * Bloody Murder: Kuchiba's other skill, aside of Lotus Eater Machine, as Kamanosuke found out.
 * Blow You Away: Kamanosuke's elemental specialty is wind.
 * Boobs of Steel: Anastasia fighting prowess rivals her bust size.
 * Bottomless Magazines: And Saaya, Juuzos' musket, doesn't even have a magazine!
 * Bread Eggs Milk Squick: While Saizo is complaining about the other braves goofing off images show Sasuke hanging out with his animals, Anastasia sitting by a river and Kamanosuke threatening a villager.
 * Broken Bird: Anastasia is tough, self-reliant and cold, and chafes at the safety of Yukimura's castle. Don't expect her to defrost easily.
 * Calling Your Attacks: Saizou, Seikai, Anastasia, Hanzo, Kaio can't apparently use their techniques without informing everyone of their names. The rest of the Braves are more discreet.
 * Cast From Hit Points: Juuzo's killing shot on.
 * Censor Steam: Even Yukimura complains about the obscuring steam in the Hot Springs Episode.
 * Chained Heat: Yukimura and Rokurou get bound into a compromising position during Hanzo's attack in Ueda.
 * Childhood Friends: Anastasia and Saizo.
 * Clingy Jealous Girl: Isanami as soon as Anastasia appears.
 * Clothing Damage: Mostly on guys. Anastasia gets her time to shine, too.
 * Cold Sniper: Juuzo. Not exactly cold, but very proper.
 * Combat Pragmatist: When Isanami isn't around to stop them the ninja side of the team delivers coup de graces and does whatever it takes to win the fights. They are not samurai, after all.
 * Compressed Adaptation: After the first episode of the anime, which covers slightly past the first chapter of the manga, the anime races through the source material, covering over 120 pages worth of manga each episode: most of the cut material featured Those Two Bad Guys, who were left out of the anime adaptation and are pretty much nothing but comic relief. See Pragmatic Adaptation.
 * Cool Big Sis: Anastasia becomes Isanami's sister figure after she rescues her from Date. With a hint of Good Bad Girl in the way she flirts with Yukimura and Saizou.
 * Crater Power: When Isanami uses her power she is left standing in a shallow crater.
 * Cross Dressing Voice: Young Seikai is actually voiced by a female. It's a wonder how his vocal evolved that his current voice is done by a male, and a non-androgynous voice at that.
 * Cry Into Chest: Isanami breaks down on Saizou after Yukimura refuses to help her early in the story.
 * Dare to Be Badass: Anastasia tells Isanami to live up to the rest of the team during her Unwanted Rescue.
 * Dark and Troubled Past:
 * Dark Is Not Evil: Isanami's Defence Mechanism Superpower is basically holy darkness.
 * Darkest Hour: By the end of episode 11, the bad guys have won. Or they have been successful at Bullying a Dragon.
 * Date Masamune: The author draws him exactly as she did in her Sengoku Basara works (it's the White Haired Pretty Boy in the picture above, by the way).
 * Decoy Damsel:
 * Defeat Means Friendship:, Seikai and Benmaru join the team after fighting the Braves.
 * Deliberately Distressed Damsel:
 * Designated Girl Fight: Averted Trope! Anastasia doesn't get paired with a female opponent until the second attack on Ueda castle, and never again after that.
 * Determinator: Saizo, of course. Dude has been slashed and bleeding how many times against Hanzo, and he's still standing up and fighting rather than being down for count.
 * Distressed Damsel: Isanami is continuously being pursued and kidnapped. Get her distressed enough at your own peril, though, and...
 * Defence Mechanism Superpower: ...Hope you like getting vaporized.
 * Doomed Hometown: Isanami's shrine was burned to the ground.
 * The Dragon: Hattori Hanzo is Tokugawa's main enforcer.
 * Dragon Lady: Oukatsu; open kimono, humongous cleavage, hidden blade, snake powers. Succeeded by Kaio, her sister.
 * Dude Looks Like a Lady: Kamanosuke has to do very little to look feminine.
 * The Dulcinea Effect: The first time he saves Isanami was just self-defense. And the second time, too. And the third...
 * Epiphany Comeback: During his fight with renegade Iga ninja Goemon, Saizou is thoroughly beaten until Goemon tells him he's no longer an Iga ninja. Saizou realizes he should think like a one of Yukimura Braves. Cue fight reversal.
 * Et Tu Brute:
 * Expy: It's hard not to see Anastasia as a Darker and Edgier Kasuga. Also, Isanami looks a lot like Kaname.
 * Also, Anastasia can also be seen as a Darker and Edgier Mizuki Tachibana, being that they're both the resident blonde, ponytailed Ms. Fanservice Cool Big Sis with the same voice to boot, as well as.
 * Evil Redheads: Hanzo is revealed to have one beneath his ninja mask, it's Anime Hair too.
 * Eyepatch of Power: Rokurou hides his right eye.
 * Face Heel Turn:
 * Faux Affably Evil: Hanzo is 100% evil, but he's quite a polite talker in describing on how much he's killing people. Also exemplified in his monologue for Episode 11 preview.
 * Five Bad Band: Five Iga Ninjas. Subject to change depending on the last reveal:
 * Big Bad: Hanzo
 * The Dragon: Kuchiba
 * The Brute: Byakugun
 * The Evil Genius: Kaio (formerly Oukatsu)
 * The Dark Chick:
 * Flat Character: Unfortunately, most of Hanzo's five (including Hanzo himself) has very little background and look like they're just in for simple megalomania, aside of
 * Flechette Storm: A trademark of Hanzo that can be seen in the opening.
 * Forced Into Evil: Zig-zagged.
 * Get a Hold of Yourself Man: Saizou need Sasuke to give him a pep talk after being thouroughly beaten by Hanzo during their first fight (or getting Isanami captured by Masamune in the anime).
 * Gender Blender Name: 'Yuri' Kamanosuke. Hmm, any wonder why he's often thought as a lady?
 * Gilded Cage: Date is a good host for Isanami, besides the chain spiked to the ground
 * The Glomp: Isanami is fond of jumping onto Saizou and not letting go.
 * God in Human Form:
 * Good Old Ways: Juuzo is prone to reminding Saizou of the proper ways.
 * Good Scars Evil Scars: Juuzo has a fashionable scar on his jaw. Oukatsu has scars, too, but aren't obvious until she gets comfortable.
 * Green Eyed Red Head: Kamanosuke.
 * Grievous Harm With a Body: While being tightly tied and weaponless, Rokurou decides to use Yukimura as an improvised weapon
 * Grin of Audacity
 * Hair Decoration: A jade headpiece that it's clearly more than for looks.
 * Happy Flashback: During the Back to Izumo arc Isanami remembers how the temple was before the ninja attack.
 * Also,
 * Heel Face Turn:
 * Heroic Comedic Sociopath: Kamanosuke's penchant for mixing bloody murder and affection is usually Played for Laughs.
 * Heroic Sacrifice: Nearly attempted by Rokuro, who revealed that the prophecy was about Saizo will have none of that shit.
 * High Pressure Blood: Every big slash is marked by a brief blood spurt.
 * Highly Visible Ninja: It has to be tough to be a blonde, blue-eyed infiltrator in 16th Century Japan, Anastasia.
 * Historical Villain Upgrade: Well, it's an anime about Sanada Yukimura. Of course Tokugawa Ieyasu and his men HAD to be villainized!
 * In particular, Hanzo probably got it the worst. At most, Ieyasu is depicted as an incompetent Smug Snake (which is lampshaded by Masamune). Hanzo goes beyond being 'loyal' to Ieyasu into and being much more sadistic and quite making his way to Hero Killer.
 * Though there could be some good justification on this. 'Hattori Hanzo' is a title passed down through Iga ninja leaders, this Hanzo may not be the same with the same Hanzo that escorted Ieyasu through Iga after Nobunaga's death (Hattori Masanari). In fact, there is a Hanzo that is really mean even to his own kinsmen.
 * Hope Spot: Kamanosuke just broke down Kuchiba's Lotus Eater Machine and cut him in half! Finally there's one Brave who survived -- Not So Fast Bucko Kuchiba reveals his other ability and finishes off Kamanosuke... Until the end.
 * Hot Springs Episode: Second half of episode six in the anime. In the manga, it comes as a brief respite after the second assault on Ueda.
 * How to Gather Characters: Isanami gets rescued by Saizou and then starts to add more and more protectors in a Debut Queue.
 * I Call It Vera: Saizo's sword is called Maribouchou and Juuzo's gun Saaya.
 * I Have You Now My Pretty: Equal opportunities for getting abused (as Juuzo can attest during his fight with Oukatsu), but Anastasia gets most, even in her introduction (manga only).
 * An Ice Person: Anastasia can turn water to ice with her Iga techniques, and she also prides herself on being cold in other senses of the word.
 * If You Kill Him You Will Be Just Like Him: Isanami stops Saizou from killing a beaten Kamanosuke when he has him in a Sword Over Head situation.
 * Implausible Hair Color: There are three redheads in the series (Benmaru, Yuri and Hanzo). Not exactly common in XVII century Japan.
 * In a Single Bound: Typical ninja fare.
 * In Love With Your Carnage: Kamanosuke gets fascinated by Saizo's killing intent.
 * In Series Nickname: She is known as Anastasia of the Glacier, but everyone calls her Ana.
 * Instant Runes
 * Its All My Fault: Isanami come to this conclusion after the second fight with Hanzo and briefly gives up. She's then goaded by Hanzo during the fight against the Five into another breakdown
 * I Was Only Pretending to Like You:
 * Japanese Pronouns: For 'I', Juuzou used 'Soregashi' while Seikai used 'Sessho'.
 * Jerkass Facade: By the end of the first episode, he totally hasn't saved the girl three times and definitely isn't working for Yukimura. Really.
 * Hitman With a Heart
 * Jidai Geki: Historical Fantasy set in 1599.
 * Kick Them While They Are Down: Anastasia is a Combat Pragmatist, after all, and will hit a helpless enemy.
 * Kid Samurai: Benmaru.
 * Knockout Gas: Used during Goemon's attack on Ueda castle. Too bad some Braves have Acquired Poison Immunity.
 * Leave No Witnesses: Silly ninjas, they got Saizou involved in protecting Isanami because of being overly thorough.
 * Light Is Not Good: Saizo's ninja tricks are themed after Marishiten, Shinto goddess of Light.
 * Limit Break: Looks like Isanami has one (being depressed or afraid will do the trick).
 * Live Action Escort Mission: Juuzo and Saizo escort Isanami back to Izumo.
 * Living Emotional Crutch: Saizo for Isanami. After watching her home being burned to the ground and almost everyone she knew being killed, she adopts Saizou as "her light".
 * The Load: Isanami's role in the team is just being there to be protected.
 * Long Lost Relative:
 * Lotus Eater Machine: Kamanosuke faces one in the fight with Hanzo's Five.
 * Make Me Wanna Shout: Rokurou uses sonic attacks in the rare instances he gets to fight.
 * Manic Pixie Dream Girl: Saizo is pretty much being dragged around by Isanami.
 * McNinja: Russian ninja with appropriate Ice powers!
 * Meaningful Name
 * With a name like 'Kamanosuke', it's pretty appropriate that he'd be fighting with a 'kama'/sickle chain.
 * Also, Isanami no miko for
 * Meet Cute: Saizo meets Isanami and within a day they are already in bickering mode.
 * Miko: Isanami, priestess of Izumo.
 * Modesty Shorts: Isanami under her Miko attire.
 * Moe Stare: Isanami is usually seen smiling, eyes wide open. It's as if she got lost in the way to another series.
 * The Mole:
 * Morality Pet: Isanami for Saizo. Were not for her intercession, Kamanosuke wouldn't have lived to join the Braves. And in turn, Kamanosuke behaves while Saizou is around.
 * Ms. Fanservice: Anastasia. Her outfit is already revealing, and she's prone to not wearing it.
 * My Sister Is Off Limits: Seikai will smash you if you don't comply.
 * Mysterious Waif: Why is Isanami, a simple miko, so important? Why was her temple destroyed? What is the source of her Defence Mechanism Superpower?
 * Ninja: Well, that is what the "historical" Brave Ten were, isn't it?
 * Ninja Log: Saizou uses this substitution trick on Sasuke during their fight.
 * Not Good With People: Sasuke is quite shy.
 * The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Kamanosuke's reason to help Saizou and join the Braves.
 * On the Next Episode of Catchphrase: Saizo's "Bring it on!"
 * Only In It For The Hottie: Jinpachi agreed to help Juuzou and eventually join Yukimura on the fact that there's one certain busty blonde named Anastasia in Yukimura's entourage.
 * Orphan's Plot Trinket: The only thing Isanami keeps from Izumo. It looks like a Protective Charm.
 * Over the Shoulder Carry: Saizou just slings Isanami on his shoulder to get away during their first meeting.
 * Owl Be Damned: One of Sasuke's named pets, Ageha.
 * Phenotype Stereotype: Russian = Hair of Gold and Blue Eyes.
 * The Pollyanna: Isanami comes across as this, but there is a lot of Stepford Smiler in her.
 * Power Blonde: Anastasia. Don't let her introduction make you think she's a Faux Action Girl.
 * Power Limiter:
 * The Power of the Void: Isanami's power is darkness that rusts and rots everything it touches into dust.
 * Pragmatic Adaptation: Because of time constraints, in the anime some characters dissappear and others take their roles in some arcs, some fights and events are cut and some villains are somewhat weakened. And because of Moral Guardians, a general helping of Bleached Underpants.
 * Pursued Protagonist: Isanami is on the run from Tokugawa the whole series.
 * Radial Ass Kicking
 * The Reason You Suck Speech
 * will gladly tell you while you are helpless how being sentimental and idealistic makes you weak and only power matters.
 * Hanzo loves to tease opponents about how they fail to live up to the hype or victims about how they're the cause of everyone's trouble.
 * Real Men Wear Pink: Date said so about his Pimped Out Dress.
 * Red Eyes Take Warning
 * Red Oni Blue Oni: Saizou and Sasuke.
 * Religious Bruiser: Seikai.
 * Rival Dojos: Koga and Iga ninjas don't get along too well. Sasuke is a Koga, Saizou is from the Iga.
 * Rope Bridge: The setting for Kamanosuke and Saizou's first fight.
 * Sanada Yukimura: The strategist version, more of a Guile Hero like the gender-flipped Hyakka Ryouran version than Hot Blooded as in Sengoku Basara. And older than those versions, too.
 * Screw This I'm Outta Here: Saizo almost does this after being curb-stomped by Hanzo and fearing he Can't Catch Up. The anime replaces this with Saizo doing it after Masamune captures Isanami.
 * Seinen: That means violence and nudity.
 * Sensual Slavs: Anastasia.
 * Sequel Hook: Yes, Izanami is calmed down, and Hanzo and his five are dead. However, there's still Masamune and Ieyasu (whose casualties are probably just missing out Hanzo), all ready to wage war.
 * Shaggy Dog Story: It turns out,.
 * Sleep Cute: On a horse!
 * Sliding Scale of Anti Heroes: Kamanosuke and Anastasia are not really heroes, they simply are in the side of good - Kamanosuke in fact is the Token Evil Teammate. Saizou is in the other hand your average bad boy with rough habits but goodie instincts awakened by Isanami.
 * Sphere of Power: The form Isanami's Defence Mechanism Superpower takes is a growing black energy sphere emanating from her, first seen during the first episode.
 * Standard Female Grab Area: Anastasia puzzlingly lets some joke villains almost rape her during her first appearance in the series just because they caught her by her wrist?!
 * Stock Ninja Weaponry: Knives, poisons, throwing daggers... the usual. Not many throwing stars, though.
 * Super Powered Evil Side: The Goddess of the Underworld is, well, not nice.
 * Super Strength: Seikai and Byakugun.
 * Survivors Guilt: Isanami is weighed down by the destruction of her temple (being her adoptive family, too), but she rarely lets on it, like when she did to Saizou after believing Yukimura wouldn't help her.
 * Sword Pointing:
 * Taking the Bullet: The Head Priest of Izumo to save Isanami at the opening of the series.
 * Terse Talker: Sasuke finds easier to talk with animals than with people.
 * Those Two Bad Guys: Ichimaru and Niko, fairly ineffective ninja villains and comic relief who first appeared attempting to rape Anastasia during her introduction. They are absent from the anime adaptation except for a brief cameo in episode five.
 * Through His Stomach: Get a bodyguard for a soba bowl!
 * Throw Down the Bomblet: Part of Benmaru's bag of tricks are grenades enough for carpet bombing.
 * Token Good Teammate: See Flat Character.
 * Token Religious Teammate: Seikai left the Izumo temple to pursue his own brand of Buddhism.
 * Total Eclipse of the Plot: An eclipse marks  Super Powered Evil Side appearance.
 * Trash Talk: Hanzo teases Saizou continously on the gap between his fame and his actual skill during their first fight.
 * Trauma Conga Line: This is actually an omnipresent presence in-story too, according to Yukimura.
 * Unusual Weapon Mounting: Oukatsu has a kunai-like razor blade in.
 * Unwanted Rescue: Isanami gets scared of being fought over, claims Its All My Fault and just gives up and resigns herself to being a prisoner of Date.
 * Unwilling Suspension: Isanami gets to hang over a precipice courtesy of Kamanosuke before he joins the Braves, and Anastasia gets hung up upside down while prisoner of Date.
 * Very Loosely Based On a True Story: The Brave 10 are based on some historical figures, but mostly they are as real as Robin Hood's Merry Men (on top of the Ki Attacks and Magic and Powers). Also unlike even the existing stories, Anastasia is an Original Character amongst the Braves, although only a little bit since if her name is to be taken note, she'd more likely be a Gender Flip version of Anayama Kousuke (who's 100% Japanese unlike Ana who's a foreigner). Not that this is the first time Anayama got genderflipped anyway. Same with Isanami, who's mostly based on Seikai's historical brother Miyoshi Isa.
 * Villainous Breakdown: Hanzo learns the hard way how to.
 * Villainous Crossdresser:
 * Wham Episode: Hoo boy, episode 9. What would be a good night sleep went downhill when
 * Very Loosely Based On a True Story: The Brave 10 are based on some historical figures, but mostly they are as real as Robin Hood's Merry Men (on top of the Ki Attacks and Magic and Powers). Also unlike even the existing stories, Anastasia is an Original Character amongst the Braves, although only a little bit since if her name is to be taken note, she'd more likely be a Gender Flip version of Anayama Kousuke (who's 100% Japanese unlike Ana who's a foreigner). Not that this is the first time Anayama got genderflipped anyway. Same with Isanami, who's mostly based on Seikai's historical brother Miyoshi Isa.
 * Villainous Breakdown: Hanzo learns the hard way how to.
 * Villainous Crossdresser:
 * Wham Episode: Hoo boy, episode 9. What would be a good night sleep went downhill when
 * Wham Episode: Hoo boy, episode 9. What would be a good night sleep went downhill when


 * Warrior Therapist: Hanzo uses her Survivor Guilt against Isanami and Jinpachi guesses his opponent isn't actually above it all against
 * What Is This Thing You Call Love: Kamanosuke doesn't get what love/affection is and it confuses him, so he approximates it to what he likes most: killing. His relationship with Saizou is colored by this.
 * White Haired Pretty Boy: This series' version of Date Masamune.
 * White Haired Pretty Girl: Isanami. Well, it's more like very light cyan.
 * Why Did It Have to Be Snakes: Isanami literally shuts down near snakes.
 * With My Hands Tied: Anastasia can easily clean a room full of guards with her hands tied and hanging upside down.
 * World of Badass: Everyone kicks ass in this series. Only Isanami is an exception, and not quite.
 * Would Hit a Girl: Ninjas are professional killers, after all, and they don't hesitate in hitting female opponents or even old women as Hanzo did during his attack on Ueda.
 * Wouldn't Hit a Girl: Juuzo, not being a ninja and a pretty old fashioned gentleman, won't fight women. That doesn't prevent women from fighting him as seen in episode four.
 * You Killed My Sister: Kaio is pretty pissed at Juuzo killing Oukatsu.