Who Is Kanefusa?
The old retainer who witnessed the end of Yoshitsune's family
Jūrō Gon-no-kami Kanefusa
Kanefusa is an elderly retainer who has served Yoshitsune's wife as her guardian since she was a child.
He follows her on the flight from the capital through the northern provinces to Ōshū, supports her on the journey, and watches over her childbirth at Mount Kamewari. In the battle of Koromogawa, after witnessing the deaths of Yoshitsune, his wife, and their children, he sets the residence on fire, seizes an enemy commander, and leaps into the flames with him.
His loyalty to his lord's family to the very end is told as one of the great scenes of Koromogawa, alongside Benkei's standing death.
Episodes featuring this character2
NEWEpisode 12
Strike Your Master, or Lose HimThe Nyoi Crossing (Benkei Strikes Yoshitsune)
Hunted by his own brother, Yoshitsune and his band disguise themselves as mountain monks and head north. At the Nyoi Crossing, his lord is about to be exposed, so Benkei does the unthinkable and beats him with a fan in front of everyone. Later, in the snowy mountains, a newborn baby grips the very hand that struck him.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 13
No One Passes Until My Lord Is DoneBenkei's Standing Death at Koromogawa
the series finale. In Hiraizumi, Yoshitsune finally finds peace. But after Hidehira dies, Yasuhira's huge army attacks the manor on the Koromo River. Until his lord finishes reading his sutra, Benkei stands alone at the gate and does not move.
19 pages