I Will Definitely Protect You: Difference between revisions

{{quote| '''Him:''' I will definitely protect you!<br />

Seen often in anime and manga, ''"Zettai ni mamoru"'' is almost always literally translated as "I will definitely protect you"<ref>Although since nouns and pronouns are usually dropped in Japanese whenever they can be inferred from context, it can also mean "I'll definitely protect him/her/it" depending on context.</ref> and is usually spoken by a male to a female. It's a [[Japanese Stock Phrases|Japanese Stock Phrase]] that sounds weird and stilted when translated literally, as the above exchange demonstrates.

* As an offhand statement, it can mean pretty much [[Exactly What It Says Onon the Tin|exactly what it sounds like]]: a macho boast of "I will definitely protect you!" (Optionally followed by [[Flexing Those Non-Biceps|manly]] [[Bicep -Polishing Gesture|flexing]].)

* Used in a tender or personal conversation means something like, [[Squee|"I will always be there for you."]] (it seems to also be considered a ''very'' serious commitment to your partner in this context.)

Used more straight in series where a male lead [[Took a Level Inin Badass|Takes A Level In Bad Ass]]. After he says "I will definitely protect you" to the girl, their [[Relationship Upgrade|relationship has changed]] and he will now start to take a bigger role as the series' resident [[Badass]]. (Although if he happens to be the [[Badass]] in an [[Unwanted Harem]] series... seeing a pattern here?)

''Because'' the meaning is very much based on context, it [[Fridge Brilliance|actually makes sense]] to translate it literally and leave it there. Giving it the correct contextual translation would completely miss the point of the original misunderstanding. However if someone is not familiar with the full potential of the native phrase, you're going to wind up confused as to why there is a misunderstanding in the first place. (It's questionable if translators actually think about this aspect or just [[Blind Idiot Translation|go with a literal translation.]])

{{quote| '''Kenshin''': The happiness you lost during this chaos, this time... I will protect it for you.}}

* [[Ai Yori Aoshi (Manga)|Ai Yori Aoshi]]: Used between Kaoru and Aoi to show how close their relationship is. (In an interesting inversion of roles, Aoi also says it to Kaoru [[Plucky Girl|to show how serious she is about being with him.]])

* [[Black Cat (Mangamanga)|Black Cat]]: Train lets {{spoiler|Kyoko}} know he will definitely protect her {{spoiler|after her [[Heel Face Turn]]}}, as long as she keeps her promise not to hurt anyone anymore. (Although she's already got quite a crush on Train, she doesn't misunderstand his serious meaning.)

* [[Bleach (Manga)|Bleach]] : {{spoiler|Ichigo to Orihime when he visits her at the hospital. So much that, when he dies via Ulquiorra, he pretty much ''becomes a zombie'' whose biggest instinct is to protect Orihime no matter what.}}

** And ever since they were kids, Hitsugaya repetedly told his adoptive sister Hinamori thar he'd always protect her. {{spoiler|Did NOT go as planned, via Aizen's epic trolling.}}

* Used and abused in ''[[Hayate the Combat Butler (Manga)|Hayate the Combat Butler]]'', where [[Chaste Hero]] Hayate uses this on his [[Tsundere]] [[Ojou]] Nagi. Nagi has a crush on him, and believes that he initiated the relationship. Neither of them ever bother to check for confirmation on meaning. [[Hilarity Ensues]].

* [[I''s (Manga)|I"s]] ''Ichitaka:'' '''"I will protect Iori-chan for my entire life!"'''

* [[Ichigo One Hundred Percent|Ichigo 100%]]: Manaka says to Satsuki, "I will protect you to the full extent of my abilities!" (meaning against the pervs in the Film Studies Club). She blushes and thinks to herself, "He just said he was going to protect me ... what the hell was he talking about!"

* In ''[[Id (manhua)|Id]]'', Id does this with Ilrina [http://www.mangafox.com/manga/id/v09/c054/24.html here].

* [[Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl]]: Tomari to Hazumu, several times, possibly foreshadowing the ending

* [[Ponyo Onon the Cliff Byby Thethe Sea]]: An adorable, innocent usage of the third type:

{{quote| '''Sosuke:''' Don't worry Ponyo, I will always protect you. I promise.}}

* ''[[Rah XephonRahXephon]]'': This is a major theme and, in [[Super Robot Wars MX|SRW MX]], one of Ayato's battle quites is him yelling this (doesn't have the "definitely" part but [[Hot Blood]] compensates).

* ''[[Rosario to+ Vampire]]'': Tsukune says it a few times to the harem after he starts getting his [[Took a Level Inin Badass|Bad Ass Power Up]], mostly with the second meaning, but leaning towards the third when [[Official Couple|he says it to Moka]].

* ''[[To Love LOVE-Ru]]'': Rito causes much confusion amongst the [[Unwanted Harem]] with this phrase

* In ''[[Video Girl Ai (Manga)|Video Girl Ai]]'', Youta says "I will protect you, no matter what!" as he's trying to protect Ai from being destroyed by Mai. Very much a combination of #2 and #3, since he's taking a beat-down while telling Mai that he wants to be with Ai forever.

* ''[[ZeroThe noFamiliar Tsukaimaof (Light Novel)|Zero no Tsukaima]]''

* In the ''[[Sands of Destruction]]'' manga, [[Badass Adorable]] [[Everything Is Worse With Bears|Toppi]] tells [[The Heart|Ky]][[The Messiah|rie]] this when they're first introduced in the manga. He continues to tell him this and be protective of him all because he showed him compassion despite the fact he was the one thirsty after wandering the desert for three days. The trend continues in the anime and video game.

* [[Les Yay|Female to female example]]: [[Faustian Rebellion|Homura]] said this to Madoka in ''[[Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Anime)|Puella Magi Madoka Magica]]''. The sound you just heard is the collective mental [[Squee]] of [[Yuri Fan|Yuri Fans]]s worldwide.

{{quote| '''Homura''': "No matter how many [[Groundhog Day Loop|times I must repeat it]], I will save you from the depth of despair."}}

* Non-romantic example: Seiichirou Aoki in the [[X 1999 (Mangamanga)|X 1999]] movie tells Nataku during their fight "I ''will'' protect those I love" ("boku wa aisuru mono wa mamoritai!" is his more or less literal phrase). {{spoiler|And pulls a [[Taking You Withwith Me]]. Which in ''this'' context is more like a [[Stupid Sacrifice]], sadly.}}

* Played with in chapter 58 of ''[[Kaichou wa Maid Sama-sama]]''; after their mutual [[Love Confession]], Usui tells Misaki that being with him is likely to make trouble for her and he "can't say anything as irresponsible as 'I'll definitely protect you,'" but he still wants to be with her because he loves her. Misaki gets mad at him for thinking she wants to be protected, and says that ''she'' will protect ''him.''

* In ''[[Wild Rock (Manga)|Wild Rock]]'', Emba swears to devote his life to protecting Yuuen and promises that his soul will continue to even after he dies.

* In ''[[The Breaker]]'', protagonist Shi Woon says something along this line to Sosul while attempting to rescue her from a gang of [[Complete Monster|complete monsters]]. Shi Woon didn't mean it romantically, but eventually Sosul develops a crush on him because of it.

* In ''[[Dissidia Final Fantasy (Video Game)|Dissidia Final Fantasy]]'', this is [[Final Fantasy III (Video Game)|the Onion Knight]]'s promise to [[Final Fantasy VI (Video Game)|Terra]], as an [[Mythology Gag|allusion]] to Locke.

** It also turns out that [[Final Fantasy XII (Video Game)|Vaan]] had made a similar promise to her after rescuing her from Kefka's control in the twelfth cycle. Even though she has no memory of this as a result of the purification process performed by {{spoiler|Shinryu}} in the initiation of the thirteenth cycle, something clearly resonated within Terra with this promise.

* In [[Tales of Innocence (Video Game)|Tales of Innocence]], Luca defends Iria when she is accused of betraying the group by {{spoiler|Chitose}}. Spada also pulls this with Luca throughout the entire game, and becomes dead set on it after Luca is stabbed and in a coma for days.

* Luke and Tear have a scene like around this phrase during the catalyst weapons sidequest in [[Tales of the Abyss (Video Game)|Tales of the Abyss]].

* Pretty much the ENTIRE THEME of [[Tales of Graces (Video Game)|Tales of Graces]], especially prelevant with Asbel's [[Failure Knight]] status and his [[The Determinator|promise to protect Sophie and Richard]]. The characters, both male and female, will be saying "mamoru" so often that you can make a drinking game out of it. The opening theme song is even titled "Mamoritai ~ White Wishes".

* [[Girls Love]] version: said by [[The Hunter|U]][[Tall, Dark and Bishoujo|zu]][[Hot Chick Withwith a Sword|ki]] to [[Supernaturally Delicious and Nutritious|Ke]][[Even the Girls Want Her|i]] in the [[Visual Novel]] ''[[Akai Ito]]''. Heck yeah, Uzuki's route is all about her keeping this promise and Kei believing in her no matter what!

* Inverted by Siskier in ''[[Blaze Union]]'' when Garlot is worrying that his friends might be hurt or killed in the escalating battles they face--sheface—she tells him it will be all right because she knows he'll protect everyone.

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110709050539/http://fixalted.bazzalisk.org/index.php?title=Manual_of_Exalted_Power:_Abyssals This] ''[[Exalted]]'' errata (scroll down to Resonance and Lunar Mates), which is also an (extremely rare) [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]] of the Abyssal Exalted. That's right, declaring "[[I Will Definitely Protect You]]" to his or her Lunar mate allows an Abyssal to ''[[Faustian Rebellion|turn against his or her]] undead [[Eldritch Abomination]] master''.

{{quote| "Who would have thought, you'd be left up to me? A fool of an elephant, up in a tree. Well ''this'' time I swear I'll do ''better'' than try! I'll protect you from harm.... Yes I'll do it or die."}}

* In ''[[The Cat and Thethe Canary]]'', Paul emphatically tells Anna "I'll protect you" the first time they are alone with each other. He says he's not afraid of anything, but he's easily scared.

{{quote| "If anything ever does happen, I'll protect her so it's 0k" }}

[[Category:ILoyalty Will Definitely Protect YouTropes]]

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