Wind Breaker, Episode 6 Recap: “A Gentleman’s Game“
In Episode 6 of Wind Breaker, titled “Vow To Follow,” as the fights between members of Bofurin and Shishitoren continue, the story delves into the history between two powerful fighters: Hiragi and Sako.
The episode opens with Suo’s fight concluding, and we then shift our focus to Hiragi’s battle against Sako from Shishitoren.
Sako, one of Shishitoren’s top five fighters, harbors a deep-seated grudge against Hiragi. Their hand-to-hand combat reveals their shared history.
But what led to this animosity?
In a flashback, we learn that Hiragi who is now one of Bofuri’s Four Kings once taught Sako how to fight when Sako was bullied by classmates in middle school.
Because of this, Sako admired Hiragi and wanted to follow in his footsteps.
However, after graduation and now heading towards Furin High, Hiragi chose to support Umemiya instead of rising to the top himself, leaving Sako feeling betrayed.
Sako then joined Shishitoren, and the two ended up on opposing sides.
Back in the present, Sako dominates the fight initially, landing heavy blows on Hiragi until he knocks him into the wings.
At that point, Sakura jumps up and starts screaming at Hiragi as he lies there to stop being pathetic.
That is when, although it seems as though Hiragi is defeated, he awakens as if resurrected.
His determination from then on shifts the tide of the battle, and he soon has the upper hand in the fight.
But, as Sako keeps remembering the past and vows to defeat Hiragi, the Bofurin fighter grabs his fist as it heads towards his face and apologizes for not being able to meet Sako’s expectations.
He then punches Sako unconscious.
As Tomage asks other Shishitoren members to drag Sako’s body off the stage so he can start his own fight, Hiragi himself picks him up and lays him carefully below the stage. He then warns Tomage he had better not remove Sako’s jacket and kick him out of Shishitoren.
After all, Tomage’s fight with Sakura is coming up next, and he might not win himself.
The episode ends with Hiragi asking Umemiya if he wants to ask him about his relationship with Sako.
Umemiya responds that, if Hiragi feels like telling him in the future, he will listen.
Just like the previous episodes, Wind Breaker, Episode 6 underscores the themes of loyalty, friendship, and camaraderie within Bofurin, contrasting it with Shishitoren’s power-driven dynamics that are destroying the gang from within.
It also sheds a light on the origins of Sako’s grudge, and the complex relationships some of the gang members have with people in rival factions.
Overall, “Vow To Follow” continues the anime’s look at the meaning of loyalty and rivalry, and the paths chosen by these delinquent fighters, all of which add even more depth to the ongoing Wind Breaker narrative.
Read recaps of previous episodes — Wind Breaker, Episode 1, Episode 2 and Episode 3, Episode 4 and Episode 5 — here on Leo Sigh.
You can watch Wind Breaker on Crunchyroll.
