The "Badger Hole" story arc comes to a close, with Rin and Döa still lost in the dark, dangerous tunnels below Edo Castle. Trapped by angry Edo soldiers, Rin is tortured while her friends hang helplessly nearby. A piercing, overpowering sound heralds the full introduction of a bizarre Itto-ryü warrior who's only been barely glimpsed in past issues. His arrival promises some vicious swordplay, as manga master Samura flexes his creative muscles to bring us another unique, fast-paced battle! Heads will fly!
General Notes
Ryan Hill provides the colors for the cover.
Vasilis Lolos and Zachary Baldus both contribute a pin-up illustration to the issue which serve as both sides of the back cover, the first featuring Manji and the second featuring Giichi (their only credited appearances in the issue).
Toren Smith (who had formerly been personally aiding in translating the series) provides an introduction wherein the process of cut-and-pasting the art so it could read left to right and how it came about is gone into more detail.
Afterwords are provided by Carl Gustav Horn and Philip Simon as this issue marks the last instance of Japanese manga being brought across the seas in the form of American comics (where as in these days, usually it is associated with the tankōbon format).
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