Manga Review: Mao Volumes 19 & 20 by Rumiko Takahashi
Note: SPOILERS for previous volumes. You may want to read my reviews of those if you’re not caught up.
Quick recap: Nanoka is a girl from the 21st Century who travels in time to the 1920s, where she helps the onmyoji (wizard/priest/doctor) Mao, who is effectively immortal since being cursed in the Edo Period.
The nineteenth volume opens with the conclusion of the Dragon Bone Village story. Water-wielding monk Sasuga has been assigned to destroy the village as a former resident’s revenge for their practice of human sacrifice. To do this, he triggered a drought so they’d gather to perform this atrocity again, this time on a girl named Sachiko. Sasuga took a fancy to the girl and offered to take her away instead, but the villagers lied and told her the ritual was only symbolic.
It wasn’t, so Sasuga doesn’t have any qualms about using his conch shell to begin the destruction. Nanoka goes off to stop him, reasoning that her Earth energy will be able to overcome his Water magic. While their elemental affinities do work that way, Sasuga is far more powerful and skilled with his element than Nanoka. Meanwhile, Mao works to save Sachiko from the villagers, and then the villagers from Sasuga’s waterspout.
There’s no loss of life, but all the groundwater was removed from the area, so the village is effectively dead. Sasuga knew he could rely on the good-hearted Mao to save the girl, and is only a little disappointed when Sachiko chooses to live a respectable life rather than go with him.
Natsuno, the earth-wielder, approaches Kamon the wood-wielder to assist her in investigating some ayakashi spirits that have been spotted flying above Shinobazu Pond. By nightfall, they’re joined by Mao and Nanoka.
The ayakashi turn out to be controlled by cat monster Byoki, who reveals that he was the one behind Natsuno’s immortality, using his ability to manipulate lifespan. He was using her to reassemble Daigo, but while that Earth mage has physically come back to life, his “soul” is still missing. Byoki has decided to kill Natsuno on the suspicion that she’s the missing piece.
It doesn’t work. Natsuno’s body is repaired by clay flying in from nowhere. Clearly, Byoki is not the only puppet master here.
Elsewhere, a mysterious mound capped by a stone is about to be flattened for a construction site. The stone has writing engraved on it, but lichen has obscured the kanji. This being the kind of series it is, toppling the stone and opening the mound results in a catastrophic mudslide.
The mound turns out to be the entombment site of Nuemaru, a notorious bandit. According to legend, he repented and became a monk, then volunteered to become a Shokushinbutsu, a monk who enters a deep meditation state to become mummified while still alive.
The legend is a little off, and Nuemaru is far more of a menace because of that. Natsuno uses the battle to train Nanoka further in the use of Earth energies, and in using her cursed sword Akanemaru without killing herself. (Nanoka still does use too much blood.)
This volume explores Natsuno’s character more, and shows that she does in fact care for people, despite her stoic nature. We also see that while not everyone can be redeemed, sometimes you can persuade them they’ve gotten enough revenge.
In the twentieth volume, we check in with Soma, the beast channeler. He’s grown far more comfortable with killing using the monster that possesses him, and has been assassinating witnesses to a military scandal. Plant mage Mei notes that his scars have reopened, but they appear to be dripping pus rather than blood.
Kamon alerts Mao and company about the mysterious pattern of deaths, and it’s trivially easy to figure out it’s Soma behind it, so they set out to stop him. Nanoka is pretty sure she can beat Soma if needed.
Nope, because Soma has become far more “one” with the beast, his loyalty to the metal-wielder Hakubi giving him the strength of purpose to work with it, rather than succumb to it. He may once have been afraid to kill, but has no remorse about having killed. It’s a hard-fought battle, and Soma nearly dies before he’s rescued by Hakubi. Hakubi still needs him…for the moment.
Natsuno explains that it’s Nanoka’s relatively pure heart that allows her to survive using Akanemaru at all, and promises to continue training her in earth magic.
Byoki contacts Yurako, the ayakashi controller, for help in his next plan. This involves manipulating Mao’s new patient, Gondo the loan shark. (Nanoka has finally returned to 2020 to take midterms, and we’re reminded that COVID is still a thing there.)
Byoki lures Natsuno into a trap, having Yurako isolate Mao in her own chamber so that he can’t help the earth mage.
Yurako and Mao’s previous (lack of) relationship is recapped, and Mao’s love for Yurako’s deceased twin sister Sana. Yurako is in love with Mao in her own twisted way, but Mao isn’t quite ready to accept this.
In the end, Byoki is again unable to kill Natsuno, and she and Mao are able to escape.
Nanoka returns in time for a new story to start. It seems that Ayame Hojo, the curse needle user, has a client who claims the curse she was sold isn’t working properly. Ayame is still recovering from her battle with her little sister Kagari, but senses that something is far worse than the client suspects. She asks Mao and Nanoka to look into it.
The client may not have followed the instructions….
The Soma battle is exciting, while the back half of the volume is mostly recap. Byoki returning to main villain status is the biggest change in these volumes.
As usual, good art and interesting writing, most recommended to time travel fantasy fans.
