Wind Breaker, Episode 12 recap – Sakura can’t figure out what he can offer the class as Grade Captain
Wind Breaker, Episode 12, titled “The Dependable One,” opens with Suo nominating Sakura to become Grade Captain, and Sakura in shock.
Tsugeura, Kiryu and Nirei say they agree with his nomination, with Sakura trying to fob off the nomination on Sugishita, and Sugishita acting not remotely interested.
The rest of the class tell Sakura that the three main guys in the class — Suo, Tsugeura and Kiryu — are nominating him, so they also think he is the best choice.
Suo then promises to be Sakura’s second-in-command if he takes the job, and suggests Nirei would also be great in the same role.
Kaji, the guy always wearing the headphones, jumps in screaming to everyone to just make a decision and that Sakura should do it. Besides, if he ends up being useless, someone else can take over.
Sakura asks the higher class Grade Captain, the guy who is running the nomination, why Kaji gets to make that decision. He replies that Kaji is the second year Grade Captain, so is a higher rank than Sakura.
That shocks Sakura as, until now, he has thought Kaji was a bit useless.
Sakura is officially made the Grade Captain, at which point Nirei creates a group chat for Tamon Team first years so Sakura can communicate with the students he will be leading.
Sakura and Kaji save Risa-chan
The episode transitions to the following day, where Sakura is “doing the rounds of town” alongside Kaji, Nirei and Suo.
As they are walking, Kaji is stopped by an elderly lady who tells him “Risa-chan has disappeared”. Sakura and Nirei think Risa-chan is a young girl, so are immediately worried.
After chastising her for not taking better care of Risa, Kaji agrees to help and tells his subordinate, Kusumi, to deal with it.
Kusumi sends a group message telling everyone to be on the lookout for Risa-chan who, by the way, is wearing a pink ribbon.
Suo also sends a group message on Sakura’s behalf, with Sakura immediately embarrassed as he worries what would happen if a message was sent and nobody replies. It would make him look pathetic.
Of course, everyone replies telling Sakura they are now on the lookout for Risa-chan.
Meanwhile, Kaji has walked off leaving Sakura mistakenly believing being Grade Captain means just delegating tasks to somebody else.
But, as he is shouting at Suo about the group message, he gets smacked in the head by a jumping white cat wearing a pink ribbon.
Yep, Risa-chan.
The Bofurin members chase Risa-chan around the streets, but lose her after she jumps up onto a roof.
This leaves Sakura to go after her, as he climbs up to the roof like a monkey, then runs across the rooftops in hot pursuit.
Back down on the street, and Sakura is still chasing the cat but loses her as she jumps off a railing and into the river.
As he desperately tries to grab her, Kaji comes flying through the air, jumps into the river after her and rescues her.
Yep, being a Grade Captain isn’t just delegating responsibility to others after all.
Bofurin then return Risa-chan to her thankful owner, and Sakura walks over to Kaji who is drying off at the side of the road and asks him what he wants to do.
This is because he remembers Umemiya telling him he got to the top of Bofurin because everyone helped him, and now they help him do what he wanted to do.
Kaji replies he didn’t become Grade Captain because he wanted to do something specifically. He just did so because the rest of Bofurin wanted him to do it.
As Sakura tells him that means there is no reason to do it, Kaji gets angry and explains there are plenty of things he cannot do that other Bofurin members can.
That is why he relies on other members to do those things, while they rely on him. Because of that, he does what he can.
It then dawns on Sakura maybe he doesn’t have to have something he wants to do, but instead should just be Grade Captain so he can support the others. Just as they will support him.
Nirei than rushes up with Suo and tells Sakura what a great job he did chasing after Risa-chan, and compliments him on being reliable.
Sakura asks is that why they nominated him for Grade Captain, because they are counting on him? Suo immediately responds with of course. Just as he can count on them.
Sakura is afraid of getting close to people
The following day, Sakura is back at the cafe with Kotoha, but looking terrible as he was worrying about being a Grade Captain so much he couldn’t sleep.
Kotoha asks him why he looks awful then enquires if a Grade Captain has been chosen. When she learns the job went to Sakura, and he apologizes for it, she asks “Why?” as she thinks it is a good thing.
Sakura complains how can he be a good Grade Captain if he doesn’t know what to do, to which Kotoha replies just do what you can do until you figure it out.
One suggestion she has is to learn the names of everyone in his class and call them by their name, as that makes people feel like they are being looked at properly.
As Kotoha asks him to call her by her name, Sakura becomes embarrassed and rushes out of the cafe.
The old lady who frequents the cafe comments that he is so bashful, but Kotoha responds she believes it is more like he is afraid of getting close to people.
Back in the classroom, Nirei is helping Sakura learn everyone’s names.
Until, that is, Umemiya begins to scream over the intercom system that the Grade Captains for the first and second years, and their secondaries, should head to the roof immediately.
On the roof, all of the other captains and their secondaries are already gathered, with one telling Sakura’s group the get-together is so that everyone can meet.
Sakura dejectedly realizes he will have to learn all the Grade Captains’ names as well, and not just the guys in his class.
It is then we learn Nirei didn’t know everyone’s names either, but he learned all of them the previous night, including the Grade Captains, as he knew he could help Sakura that way.
After all, he adds, he has promised to help Sakura get to the top of Bofurin.
At this, Suo offers to be a negotiator as he is good at getting other people to accept his requests. Both of them can help Sakura to get where he wants to be that way.
Sakura realizes, while he is still struggling to figure out what he is good at, Nirei and Suo already know their strengths.
He thanks them and, for the first time, calls them by their names. Thus, making both of them immediately smile.
The episode ends with the arrival of Umemiya and, as Nirei explains to Sakura, the Four Kings of Furin High and their secondaries.
Yep, the most important folks.
Wind Breaker, Episode 12 is a more relaxing episode as it concentrates on Sakura’s struggles being emotionally and intellectually capable, rather than being physically capable.
It also gives us a good look at a protagonist who, while he wants to get to the top of Bofurin as he believes strength is power, is still not leader material as he has confidence issues that need to be solved.
The episode also features excellent character development as we see Sakura make a significant step forward. After all, realizing your weaknesses is the first step to fixing them, and a sign of an emotionally healthy human being.
Overall, Wind Breaker, Episode 12 is a pivotal episode that sets the stage for Sakura’s growth as a leader, making it a solid episode in the series.
You can read recaps of every previous Wind Breaker episode here on Leo Sigh — Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4 , Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7 , Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10 and Episode 11 — that may help you enjoy this superb anime even more.
And, of course, you can watch or rewatch every episode of the Production I.G. produced anime via Crunchyroll.