Trust & Betrayal

Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal, known in Japan as Rurōni Kenshin -Meiji Kenkaku Rōman Tan- Tsuioku-hen (Japanese: るろうに剣心 -明治剣客浪漫譚- 追憶編, Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Swordsman Romantic Story – Recollection or Reminiscence Chapter), is a four-part OVA (Original Video Animation) based on the Rurouni Kenshin manga series written and illustrated by Nobuhiro Watsuki, and it is a prequel to the anime television series adaptation of the same name. It was released in Japan in 1999, directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi and written by Masashi Sogo.

The OVA is based on the Remembrance Arc (chapters 165 to 179) of the manga. It chronicles the story of Himura Kenshin during his role in the Meiji Restoration as a legendary assassin of the Imperialist cause, while also revealing the origins of his famous cross-shaped scar and exploring his relationship with his first wife, Himura Tomoe. Kenshin's first encounters with his master, Hiko Seijūrō XIII, and his rival/future ally, Saitō Hajime, are also depicted.

The OVA series was first licensed by ADV Films in 2000 for VHS and DVD releases in North America and the United Kingdom, under the title Samurai X: Trust & Betrayal, as well as by Madman Entertainment for releases in Australasia. The OVA was later compiled together as a two-hour feature-length motion picture with new animated sequences and an altered music soundtrack, which was released theatrically in Japan. In 2003, this movie edition was eventually released in North America on DVD as a "Director's Cut" edition by ADV Films. After ADV Films' closure in 2009, Aniplex of America licensed the OVA series for a Blu-ray release in North America under its original title: Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal.

Since its release, the OVA has received near-universal critical acclaim from various critics and publications for manga, anime and other media. It remains highly popular among anime fans and it is widely credited as one of the greatest OVAs of all time.

Plot[]

When a raid of murderous bandits ambush a caravan of travelers in 1850s Japan, a young red-haired boy named Shinta becomes the sole survivor of this massacre when a passing swordsman slays all of the bandits before they can also kill the boy. The swordsman, known as Hiko Seijūrō, is a master of the strongest of all sword forms, Hiten Mitsurugi-ryū. Hiko is impressed when the boy buries all of the dead (including the bandits), and decides to take Shinta as his apprentice. He then renames the boy Kenshin, a name he considers to be more appropriate for a swordsman.

After several years of training, Kenshin leaves his master (against Hiko's wishes) to take part in the Bakumatsu revolution poised to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate. He joins the Chōshū Ishin Shishi and soon works for their leader, Katsura Kogorō, as an assassin. Kenshin quickly becomes a hardened killer, feared far and wide as the Hitokiri Battōsai. In 1864, during a successful nighttime assassination in the streets of Kyōto, he kills a bodyguard named Kiyosato Akira. This encounter with Kiyosato leaves Kenshin with the first half of his cross-shaped scar on his left cheek. After killing a fellow skilled assassin sometime later, Kenshin meets a beautiful woman named Tomoe who, unknown to him, was Kiyosato's fiancée. Kenshin contemplates killing her for witnessing his actions, but decides to instead take her to the inn that he and other swordsmen of the Chōshū clan are residing. Tomoe agrees to stay and work as one of the inn's servants. Katsura suspects a spy among the Chōshū after Kenshin informs him of the assassin he killed. During this time, Kenshin and Tomoe grow close to each other as she helps him slowly regain his humanity after realizing how tortured he is internally over his role as an assassin.

After the Ikedaya incident in Kyōto, Katsura arranges for Kenshin and Tomoe to hide in the remote village of Otsu as a married couple in order to avoid suspicion. After a few months living in peace together, Tomoe's brother, Enishi, comes to visit their house and secretly reveals to his sister that the Shogunate agents assigned to kill Kenshin are close by, and that they will soon avenge her dead fiancee. Tomoe sends Enishi off, feeling ill at ease. It is by this time that Tomoe has truly fallen in love with Kenshin (and he with her), and no longer seeks revenge. The next morning, Tomoe leaves their house while Kenshin is still asleep and she tries to deceive the Shogunate men into giving up their pursuit of Kenshin; when this fails, she unsuccessfully attempts to kill their leader.

After his wife's disappearance, Kenshin is visited by a comrade who tells him that Tomoe is the spy they were looking for and that she is meeting at that moment with her co-conspirators. He also reveals to Kenshin who Tomoe's fiancée was. Kenshin, however, is unaware that it is this comrade of his who is the real spy among the Chōshū clan. While heading to Tomoe's location, a heavily-shocked Kenshin faces and kills three of the four Shogunate agents but becomes badly injured due to his traumatized state. While Kenshin is fighting with the agents' leader (a fist fighter), Tomoe steps in between the two to protect Kenshin from the leader's killing blow. This allows Kenshin to kill his enemy but, in doing so, unintentionally strikes down Tomoe with his sword as well. Before she dies in her husband's arms, Tomoe uses her dagger to cut the second half of Kenshin's cross-shaped scar on his face.

Kenshin is devastated by Tomoe's death and later vows to never kill again in honor of her life, after bringing about the new age desired by Katsura for Japan. Katsura informs Kenshin that he had a new assassin kill the real spy and take over all further assassination jobs for the Chōshū clan, but requests that Kenshin now serve as a guerrilla swordsman to help fight the Shogunate more directly on the front lines. During these final years of the Bakumatsu, Kenshin clashes with the Shinsengumi captains Okita Sōji and Saitō Hajime, among others, while Tomoe's spirit is seen comforting him in his sleep. After the Shogunate's final defeat in 1868, the Hitokiri Battōsai vanishes and leaves his blood-stained sword behind.

Sometime later, Hiko Seijūrō returns to the gravesite where he first met the boy Shinta and he notices that one of the grave-markers now has Tomoe's blue shawl wrapped around it. Despite having never met Tomoe, Hiko bows his head in sadness as he seemingly understands the tragedy his apprentice has experienced. He then looks up to the sky while recalling the moment he gave Shinta the name Kenshin.

Differences from the Manga[]

The first meeting of Enishi and Kenshin — The OVA has a notably more serious and realistic tone than that of the manga

Trust & Betrayal departs greatly from the manga. It's an impressionistic retelling of the arc's story, featuring a more realistic, darker, and serious art style and tone with vivid symbolic imagery. There are numerous changes to the plot and structure of events with many original elements added:

The opening prelude is an adaptation of flashbacks that appear during Kenshin's training with Hiko Seijūrō in Kyōto Arc. It also takes great influence from the same flashbacks appearing in the 1996 anime, incorporating many of the original elements and even remaking certain shots.
Kenshin’s internal struggle is a major focus of the first episode. It features a non-linear structure with past and present events alternating back and forth (many of which are original) with the intent of contrasting more gentle past Kenshin with ruthless present-day Kenshin. In the manga, however, Kenshin’s struggle is expressed mostly through inner monologues.
In the manga, at Kiheitai training ground, Kenshin is challenged to split a dummy in two, and if he’s successful he’ll get one ryo. He uses Sō Ryū Sen on the dummy (the same move he used against Jin-e). In the OVA, he simply uses a quick draw sweep on the dummy without being challenged by anyone.
- The shot of Kenshin doing the sweep attack is referenced in the last episode during the fight with Tatsumi (also referenced in the cover of the CD soundtrack).
Original to the OVA, Kenshin’s scar received from Kiyosato bleeds repeatedly, often after killing or during stressful situations. When I'izuka notices this he tells of a superstition: if a wound is made by the sword of someone with a strong grudge, that wound will not heal until a revenge has been exacted. This line originally comes from chapter 152 of the manga, where Sanosuke asks Megumi why Kenshin's scar still looks so vivid even though it's so old. Megumi struggles to answer but remembers a superstition that Dr. Gensai told her once. The reason why the scar is so vivid is because of Enishi’s particularly strong grudge towards Kenshin he has held over the years.
In the manga, Kenshin and Tomoe first meet at a pub one night where Kenshin helps her by getting rid of a pair of men harassing her just before he is ambushed outside by a Yaminobu assassin named Murakami (who also kills the two men from the pub before they try to get revenge on Kenshin). In the OVA, however, Kenshin first notices Tomoe briefly in broad daylight among the crowded streets, then later encounters her privately at night after killing the assassin. The latter encounter also occurs in the manga, except in that version Tomoe follows him from the pub to thank him for his earlier assistance (though she was already part of the conspiracy against him).
There is a greater focus and detail given to the daily life of Kenshin and Tomoe at the Kohagiya Inn in the second episode.
There are multiple female workers seen in the Kohagiya inn, whilst in the manga only Tomoe and the old lady are seen working.
There are rising tensions shown within the Chōshū clan not seen in the manga, as more information gets leaked.
Katsura Kogoro is given more screen time in the OVA, particularly the interactions with his Ikumatsu, who is only mentioned in the manga. There are also mentions of Shinsaku's partner Uno, who is not mentioned in the manga. Their partners are a running theme of a "sheath" for killer swordsmen in the OVA. This ties in with Tomoe and how in the OVA, Katsura directly asks her to become Kenshin’s “sheath”. In the manga, Katsura is vague about this, only bringing up the idea of “justice that seems like insanity” which nudges Tomoe to think of the idea of a “sheath” by herself.
The Shinsengumi, specifically Saitō and Okita, are featured more prominently in the OVA.
The Ikedaya incident is given a greater focus and detail in the OVA as well. Furutaka Shuntarō, one of the imperialist soldiers, is shown being tortured by the Shinsengumi, which results in him giving out the information about the secret imperialist meeting at the Ikedaya Inn. Kenshin and Tomoe also get involved in the chaos of the Ikedaya raid. In the manga, only the aftermath of the raid is seen.
In the OVA, Kenshin and Tomoe meet with Katsura right after he manages to escape from being assassinated by Shinsengumi during the chaos of Ikedaya. In the manga, they meet after the Kinomon incident, which happens a month after the Ikedaya incident.
The OVA explores Kenshin and Tomoe’s relationship on a more intimate and complex level. It takes more time for Kenshin to grow close to her, whilst in the manga he attains a strong affection for her in Kyōto in a relatively short time. Notably, in the manga, Kenshin wants an actual marriage, whilst in the OVA, he doesn't say this and is even hesitant about going to Otsu, and thus their marital status is left vague. The English dub of the OVA seems to make it appear even more apparent they are not officially married, as Kenshin asks Tomoe if she'll marry him "really" during their last night together in the dub. Their eventual bonding is the main focus of the third episode, as they adapt to a quiet country life. While Kenshin is regaining his lost humanity, Tomoe is in an almost constant state of agony between her desire to avenge Kiyosato and her growing affection toward Kenshin.
In the manga, Kenshin and Tomoe live in a village while in hiding. Kenshin poses as a doctor, helping the villagers by making and selling medicine. He also grows close to the children of the village. In the OVA, they live by themselves in a place remote from any villages or towns. I'izuka is the one who makes them sell medicine in order to not look suspicious about their income.
Original to the OVA is Kenshin’s decision to grow crops.
Original to the OVA is Kenshin gifting Tomoe a hand mirror.
Original to the OVA are flashbacks of distressed Tomoe after Kiyosato’s death. It is also revealed she received her dagger as a keepsake from Kiyosato’s family after his death.
In the manga, Katagai lives in hiding like Kenshin and Katsura. He one day notices I’izuka by chance in Kyōto and finds out he’s the spy for the Yaminobu. He’s noticed by Mumyōi and killed by Nakajō. In the OVA, it seems like Katagai has been spying on I’izuka for some time. He’s also killed by Mumyōi instead.
The Binding Forest sequence is recontextualized and rewritten in the OVA. In the manga, the magnetic fields of the forest itself are “deeply corrupted”, making Kenshin unable to use his “sixth sense”. As he fights with the Yaminobu, more of the senses are bounded through different means, eventually not being unable to fight effectively against Tatsumi. In the OVA, Kenshin is put in a state of shock after he discovers that Tomoe is the spy and that he has killed her fiancée (in the manga, he discovers this only after her death), making him unable to think clearly. The fights against the Yaminobu are also significantly shorter.
Tatsumi is as devious and meticulous as in the manga, but he is also portrayed as a deep and thoughtful individual, sympathizing with Tomoe's state of mind and expanding his loyalty to the Tokugawa Shogunate, by claiming that the nation of Japan itself would decline into a land of unruly chaos and anarchic carnage without its rule. He’s driven to kill Kenshin to avenge his underlings (as well as to avenge Kiyosato for Tomoe) as opposed to simply doing so because he was ordered to. He is also the only talkative member of the Yaminobu in the OVA.
In the OVA, Tatsumi purposefully gets a hold of Tomoe's dagger after she tries to attack him and later decides to use it to finish off Kenshin. In the manga, Tomoe's dagger is left with her even after she attempts to attack Tatsumi.
In the manga, Tomoe briefly hallucinates Kiyosato as Kenshin as he is about to face off Tatsumi, whilst in the OVA, she sees him in the shrine, seemingly as an actual ghost. There is also no monologue of her deciding to sacrifice herself in order to save Kenshin, instead we only see her smile at Kiyosato as she realizes what to do.
In the OVA, Tomoe purposely cuts the second half of Kenshin's cross-shaped scar on his face with her dagger before she dies in his arms. In the manga, however, Tomoe cuts Kenshin's cheek by accident as she falls into his arms after being struck down by his sword.
- In an interview taken from the 2011 Blu-ray booklet, when asked about this change, the director, Kazuhiro Furuhashi, said: "Because that's what Mr. Nobuhiro Watsuki said was going to happen during a conversation I had with him on the phone during the middle of the TV series. When I looked at that scene in the manga, I went, "Huh? That's not what he said." So I guess you could say I went back to the original concept."
In the manga, Shishio assassinates I'izuka somewhere in mountains with his Mugenjin sword, whilst in the OVA, I'izuka is assassinated in a less flashy manner in a town alley. Katsura also oversees the assassination.
In the manga, Kenshin (off-screen) gives Tomoe's remains a traditional burial at a Kyōto cemetery that he revisits years later to bring flowers to her grave. In the OVA, however, Tomoe's body is cremated when Kenshin burns down their house, along with the spinning top he'd kept since childhood, before returning to Kyōto while keeping her blue shawl with him as a memento of her throughout the remainder of the revolution. He later gives Tomoe a makeshift grave at the graveyard he made as a boy, planting a new wooden cross and tying the blue shawl around it.
The shot of Kenshin burning down the house is a reference to a similar shot in the first episode of the 1996 anime.
There are several motifs original to the OVA, like red and pink cherry blossoms, mirrored reflections, Kenshin’s spinning top, and his bleeding scar.
- Tomoe’s hair pin and the smell of white plum are recurring motifs in the manga, which appear in the OVA as well.
Tomoe’s notebook diary is much thinner than it is in the manga.

English dub errors/changes[]

Kenshin's comrades and superiors address him as "Kenshin" in the dub, rather than "Himura."
Tomoe's name is pronounced "Tomo" in the dub.
Okita refers to Saitō as "Master" in the dub, even though they were of equal rank within the Shinsengumi.
The Shinsengumi and Mibu Wolfs are stated to be two separate factions in the dub, instead of the same.
As previously stated, Kenshin and Tomoe's marriage is seemingly portrayed in the dub as unofficial.
Kenshin's eulogy to Tomoe in the dub is made to be more emotionally and romantically driven than its original script; this may be out of consideration of differences in romantic culture, as while Japan is reserved in its outward mannerisms, subtlety and knowing of context is far more valued, while out west, communicating emotions expressively is considered a healthy aspect of a relationship.
Kenshin states to Katsura after Tomoe's death in the dub that he will never wield a sword again after the end of the Meiji Revolution, rather than stating that he will simply never kill again after the war ends (as his later use of a Sakabatō would allow him to continue being a swordsman without the risk of killing again).