Bamboo Blade episode 10

As the strange girl from last time leaves the store, she tosses a charm that she was going to steal back to Tamaki at the counter. She leaves an ominous message that she will return another time to see Miya. Kojirou returns home to his parents’ grocery store and finds out that they are struggling just to get by on a daily basis. His mom gives him some nearly expired food from the store for dinner and also asks that he help out for the night. An unreasonable customer approaches Kojirou’s mom and demands a product that is no longer produced. He is told that the store can’t do anything about the situation and he walks out angry. Kojirou’s mom tells her son that unreasonable situations are just a part of life and have to be accepted.

He thinks back to his first full-time job at a convenience store. The other worker on duty told him that it was really dangerous recently, so Kojirou bragged that he could protect the store with his Kendo skills. Ironically enough he was powerless to stop a petty thug from making off with some money when they were held up. That moment marked the beginning of his downward spiral in life. After reflecting on the memory, Kojirou decides that it is time to fight back against the hand that has been dealt to him and take his life back into his own hands.

The following day, Kojirou’s parents give him a generous paycheck for his help at the store. He reluctantly accepts the envelope and is shocked to find out that they gave him 50,000 yen for one night of work. At the cute goods store, Miya is in a huff when Tama gives her the message. Miya identifies the girl as Reimi Odajima, a stalker that had given her trouble ever since junior high. Miya suddenly decides to quit on the spot to avoid a confrontation despite the fact that it is Tama’s last day. The shop owner agrees with the decision when Miya turns black on her. The owner compliments Tama on her social growth as she gives the young Kendo prodigy the work paycheck.

The two girls walk home together, and Miya asks Tama why she wanted to work. Tama is blunt with her answer of the limited edition anime boxset. Likewise Tama asks Miya to which the latter responds she was saving up to buy Dan a birthday present. Miya suddenly remembers that Dan’s birthday is today and rushes off to buy something for him. As the dust settles Tama remembers about her dad’s birthday as well. Tama returns home with a present for her father and her dream of the anime boxset placed on the back burner. In other places, Reimi returns home and we discover that her mother is the supermarket shopper that got Kojirou into trouble with the school.

An undisclosed amount of time later (presumably the next day), the Kendo team has their first official meet with other schools in the area. Tama easily sweeps the girl’s solo matches in the morning and takes first place, but her companions don’t fare so well. The team reconvenes for lunch break, and Kirino is pulled aside by some junior high friends that tell her about a hidden Kendo talent at Muroe High School named Azuma. Miya catches a glimpse of Reimi as she is eating lunch and freaks out.

The team is back at the clubroom the day after the tournament. We find out that Tama was the only one that won in the team match while Kirino, Saya, and Miya lost their bouts. He gives them encouragement for the next meet with the promise to treat them to something really nice when they win. Kojirou states that they need to find their last girl to which Kirino responds that she has the perfect person in mind… But she forgot the girl’s name.

Episode 11 looks like it will focus on Miya and Reimi, so Satori will probably join in episode 12. Maybe. If this series is only going to be 24-26 episodes, then the pacing is really weird. If it’s going to be in the 52 episode range, then it seems to be right on track. I don’t think there’s enough source material to stretch it to 50 episodes, but series have deviated from the manga with mixed results. In other news, the Kendo team is currently one big joke except for Tama. They really can’t lean on her forever though, so I expect to see some episodes where the other girls continue to develop their skills. Also, will Tama ever find a worthy rival? I don’t want to spoil the surprise by reading the manga so that question will remain a rhetorical one.

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