Vagabond Vol. 31

This volume is the 31st installment of Takehiko Inoue's long-running historical manga Vagabond (published in Chinese as Ronin Swordsman), adapted from Eiji Yoshikawa's novel Musashi. The story unfolds along two parallel threads. One follows Matahachi: a man who has long hidden himself behind lies, he now carries his aged mother, Grandma Sō, back to their hometown, and she seems to be the only one willing to take him in; yet homecoming and parting come in quick succession, and mother and son are ultimately torn apart. The other thread follows Musashi: seeking an answer to his plea for "one more chance to stake my life on a duel," he returns to the Yagyū to find, in that clan, an answer to the meaning of swordsmanship and of life itself—only to encounter an unexpected figure along the way. This volume dwells at length on the emotional entanglement between Matahachi and his mother, setting the self a common man has built out of lies, and his belated confession, against Musashi's single-minded pursuit of the Way and his endless departures. It is a rare volume in the series that shifts its center of gravity onto a supporting character.