For the story so far, simply watch all 13 episodes of the anime and then read my summaries of the previous manga chapters. I'm assuming that you're reading this to find out what happens next, so the following are packed with spoilers. Since this page contains some large pictures, please be patient with the slow loading.
Okay, this chapter is pretty hectic. Lots of things happen simultaneously. And the White King finally makes an appearance. I'll try my best to summarize everything clearly.
In the last chapter, Sarasa & Co. put a sleeping draught into the Red Army's dinner, and sneaked into their stronghold with the intent to rescue Sarasa's mother, Chigusa. Little did they know, Asagi already informed Kazan about the attack. So Sarasa & Co. were quickly surrounded by the Red Army. At the same time, Shuri is sailing to Kumano with his army to try and capture Kazan - reason being that Kazan is withholding Tatara's mother from him.
At the center of all these conflicts is Chigusa. Hearing a commotion, she wakes up in the middle of the night, and finds her way to Kazan's room. Once there, she sees Kazan speaking through a screen door to the just ambushed Sarasa (who is in the next room). Chigusa understands the situation immediately, and starts screaming: "Tatara! Tatara!" Sarasa hears her mother's voice and starts yelling out: "Mother!" But to no avail, because Kazan is holding Chigusa back. He quickly calls for two soldiers to take Chigusa back down the mountain, where she will be safe from the impending battle. Kazan also tells Chigusa that he can't bear for her to witness her son's death. As the soldiers take her away, Chigusa tells Sarasa to escape and forget about the rescue. Chigusa also starts to regret her past actions:
"How could I have been so confused? If I escaped back then, I wouldn't be a burden to my daughter now ... Save my little Sarasa. She's just a girl. She's just a 15-year-old girl."
After Chigusa is taken away, Kazan rips the screen door open, and confronts Sarasa. At the same time, Chacha steps between them.
Kazan unleashes his men and all hell breaks loose. Sarasa is fighting soldiers left and right, but the one she really wants to go against is Kazan. However, she can't reach him. And even if she does, Chacha won't let Kazan get near Sarasa. At the same time, Asagi is enjoying himself with the battle.
Meanwhile, Shuri has already landed on Kumano and is carrying artillery up the mountain to Motomiya. Using cannons to subjugate a stray general may seem excessive, but as it turns out, Shuri has an ulterior motive. Sakaki (the guy in charge of the water canal) tries to dissuade the Red King from prosecuting Kazan, but Shuri would have none of it.
Shuri soon leaves Sakaki in the dust and keeps riding to Motomiya. But along the way, a scout informs him that Kazan is currently engaged in battle with Tatara. Shuri is, of course, very surprised. But he doesn't change his plan; he'll just bomb Kazan and Tatara together.
Back at Motomiya, Sarasa & Co. are still busy fighting the Red Army. But Sarasa is losing hope, and almost gets her head chopped off by a soldier. She's saved at the last minute by Nachi's team, who has entered from the back gate. Nachi tells Sarasa to escape while she can, and leave the fighting to his team. But Sarasa doesn't want to run away, so Nachi talks some sense into her:
"Dumbass! Don't you get it?! Our plan failed. Escape is our priority now! As long as you survive, you can try again ... It's just like me and that whale. There'll be hundreds more chances for me to get him."
Hearing this from Nachi, Sarasa finally relents and makes for the exit with Zaki. But that's when Shuri's cannons start bombing the place. Sarasa hears it right away and shields Zaki from the blast, taking an explosion full on the face. Not only are her eyes badly hurt, she's also knocked out. Zaki quickly picks her up and rushes for the exit. By this time, Asagi has joined them as well. When they reach the exit, they find Kazan's soldiers waiting for them. All seems lost until Hijiri's team shows up to rescue them. Hijiri also brings surprising news to Kazan's soldiers.
"Listen up! The one bombing this place right now is the Red King! ... He's trying to annihilate this place. This compound is already surrounded by fire. Those who want to run should run. Those who want to stay will have to face me."
Asagi, Zaki, and Sarasa (who is being carried by Zaki) eventually make it outside of the compound, only to see fire everywhere. Meanwhile, Shuri goes to inform his father, the Emperor, of all this commotion.
While all of this is going on, Nagi and the rest of Sarasa's men (remember them?) are still lost in the middle of the mountain. But now they can see the fire of Motomiya bright and clear. Yato (remember Yato?) instinctively bolts in that direction, and Nagi tells everyone to follow him. Obviously, that's the beacon they've been waiting for.
Zaki (carrying Sarasa) and Asagi are still running through the streets of Motomiya, looking for a safe spot to rest. They accidently stumble into someone's yard, and are mistaken as intruders. Zaki tells the lady of the house that they're just passing through, so she lets them out through the back gate. As Zaki carries Sarasa out of the yard, the lady stops Asagi.
The White Lady (or White King) senses that Asagi - while trying to bring down Tatara from within - may become so attached to the people he lives with as to become one of the rebels himself. Asagi reassures the White Lady that this is far from the case, and that everything is going according to plan.
After leaving the White King's abode, the threesome eventually find a safe spot at the edge of the forest. Once Sarasa is out of danger, Zaki takes her cloak and rushes back to Kazan's compound. He disguises himself as Tatara to draw the soldiers away from Sarasa, but most of all, he wants to find Chacha.
After Sarasa regains conciousness, she finds out that Chacha and Zaki are still back at Kazan's compound, which is about to collapse. She wants to go rescue them, but Hijiri (who has just escaped from the place) stops her.
"That man went so he could save you. How can you possibly go and save him? I won't let him die a senseless death ... He's sacrificing himself for his commander. It's a high honor! You have a great friend!"
But Sarasa reasons that all life is precious: under no circumstance should anyone have to die for the sake of someone else. At this point, Yato shows up. Sarasa quickly jumps onto him, and rides toward Kazan's burning compound, leaving Hijiri cursing behind her.
Back at the compound, Kazan has beaten Chacha into a corner. She has no strength left, and is basically waiting for death. While she's down, she thinks about Zaki.
"Zaki... Is Tatara safe? ...Really? That's good. You know, I also did my best. Zaki... I always thought I would die at sea ... Who'd thought it would be on a mountain..."
Kazan stops her train of thought, and tells her that she has fought well. But before he can deliver the final blow, Zaki appears.
Next Chapter: A Fleeting Image