Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE // Part of Kawaii Sakura Shrine

Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE Chapter Summaries

Ch 1-15 :: Ch 16-30

16. "The Hollow Memories" - Kurogane complains as he helps repair Chunhyang's house. Fye and him wonder about Syaoran, Sakura, and Chunhyang, who have gone out to search for Sakura's feather. The current Sakura doesn't have a will or self yet, so she doesn't complain about traveling around with them. But..even if her memories do come back, her memories of Syaoran will be lost forever. Despite that, Syaoran is still searching for her feathers that have flown off into different worlds. Fye stops the serious discussion with a smile, telling Kurogane to keep on repairing the roof. Kurogane yells at him when Fye just sits there sipping tea as Kurogane works.

Syaoran asks Mokona if he senses a feather, but the creature is uncertain. As they wander around Koryo Country, they feel some strange power from the area. Some acquaintances of Chunhyang on the streets tell them to participate in this dice game where the largest sum on the two die wins. He hands the die to Sakura. Her opponent receives a 11, but Sakura rolls a 12! Everyone is extremely shocked. Sakura rolls again and again, each time rolling a 12. Later, as the group sits by the river, with all their prizes beside them, Chunhyang calls Sakura "God's Beloved Daughter." A person blessed with luck is called that. She asks Sakura if she is always lucky, but Sakura does not know. Her only memories are of her name and a town in the desert. She can't remember anything else. Syaoran listens to this silently from the side. Chunhyang apologizes for asking such a question, and Sakura tells her that "Syaoran-kun" told her that they were now collecting her memories. Syaoran clenches his fists as a memory of Sakura asking to call him by just his first name without the "-kun" comes to his mind. With a really close person, it's alright to just call them by their first names. Present Syaoran forces another smile on his face as he agrees, calling Sakura "Sakura-hime."

The son of the feudal lord Ryanban is collecting taxes, and he destroys a house that hasn't paid. The tax is too high for the poor people to pay. "In that case, I'll whip the old man even more!" the son yells. Chunhyang yells out stop as Sakura rushes forward to protect the young woman and the old man who the son was about to whip. Syaoran aims a flying kick at his head before he can crack the whip. Ryanban's son threatens Syaoran and summons a fighter from his fan. Syaoran begins to fight the fighter. Chunhyang recognizes the fan as her omoni, who was a shinpan. The current Ryanban used to be a wandering shinpan as well who overthrew the Ryanban of that time and gave himself the title. Omoni was killed trying to stop him. Syaoran faces trouble as the fighter divides itself into many duplicates.

17. "Origin of the Magic" - Syaoran easily takes care of the duplicates. Ryanban sends a swirling tornado towards Syaoran, forcing him to step back and out of the winds' way. Chunhyang is really angry, and tells them that their sins will be judged once the amenosa show up. Ryanban merely laughs and tells her that they are never coming and that he will take away her shop and whip her and her grandpa. Syaoran, Sakura, and Chunhyang somberly return to the house where Fye and Kurogane await them. Chunhyang explains that the village people have tried before to try to fight the Ryanban, but the castle where the Ryanban lives is protected by secret magic and nobody can get near it. The strange power Mokona senses seems to be coming from the castle too. Fye suggests they kidnap the son, but this plan cannot work either. The Ryanban watches over the entire town with his secret magic, and they will be attacked by that magic if anything happens to his son.

"You said that a year ago, Ryanban just got strong all of a sudden...I wonder if it could have anything to do with Sakura's feather..." - Fye

Since different dimensions have different flows of time, this could be a plausible explanation. Syaoran says that he will go and see if the Ryanban has the feather. Sakura tugs on his sleeves, telling him that he's hurt. He reassures her. "It's all right. If there's a feather, I'll bring it back." They contact Yuuko through Mokona to find out how to break the secret magic and enter the castle. Yuuko already gave Fye the origin of her magic, but Fye declines using his magic without his tattoo that Yuuko took as payment before. Yuuko then decides to send them something to break the castle's magic, and it comes out of Mokona's wide-open mouth. Syaoran holds the ball-like object in his hand, a serious expression on his face. "This is the thing that will break the secret magic..."

18. "A Castle of Illusions" - Chunhyang begs to come along with Syaoran and the others to Ryanban's castle. She wants to be like her mother and bring down the Ryanban. Syaoran sternly brushes her hand aside and tells her to wait here with Sakura. As the trio leave, Chunhyang starts crying in frustration, asking herself if she is completely useless and skill-less. Sakura gently tells her that that is not the reason.

In the castle, the Ryanban and his son watch the globe as Syaoran, Fye, Kurogane, (and Mokona) make their way to the castle. The Ryanban can sense some strange power being concealed inside Syaoran's clothes. As they approach the gates of the castle and open the door, they see a view of the town introverted. (Sky on the bottom, town at the top) They wonder about how to get into the castle, and Mokona tells Syaoran to throw the sphere that Yuuko gave him. He throws it as far as he can towards the castle, and the protective magic around the castle begins to weaken and disappear. At the same time, the Ryanban's crystal ball with the feather inside cracks. After walking around in the long corridor for a while, Syaoran realizes that they have been walking in circles. (He had dropped a game piece on the ground earlier near the entrance) Fye stretches out his arm and senses that the the strongest magic is emanating from a certain wall. The place where the magic power is strongest will obviously lead them to the source of the arts - Ryanban. Kurogane breaks the wall with his fist. There is someone in the room...but it is not the Ryanban. Instead, a beautiful and mysterious woman awaits them.

19. "The Strongest Secret Enchantment" - This mysterious woman is Koriko's strongest "kiishimu" (a type of bewitching secret). She has never been seen by anyone aside from Chunhyang's mother. The Ryanban had been able to shut up the castle using the power of the feather. He leers confidently at the scene, confident that Syaoran and his gang will be no match. Kurogane is pretty angry right now, and he demands to know who she is. For the past century, this woman has been visited by nothing but worthless insects like humans, and she warns him not to raise his voice at her. It's been a while since she's had visitors here though, so she will overlook his rudeness. Syaoran asks the woman about the whereabouts of the Ryanban, but she refuses to disclose that information. Furthermore, she cannnot allow them to pass through this place. She creates a "mirage," though she calls it the "secret arts." She sends some mysterious liquid at Syaoran, and it dissolves his sleeve. "The wounds my secret arts inflict on you are real," she tells them.

Syaoran leaps to the side to dodge her attack, and his leg falls into the lake. The part which touched the liquid instantly begins to dissolve. Everything in this place can't be contained by real things. Kurogane and Fye work to break the spheres (With Fye attaching all sorts of honorifics to Kurogane's name like Kuro-sama and Kuro-pii) Fye tells Syaoran to hurry up and head towards the exit with Mokona while his legs can still move. The magic power is weakest at the top, and Kurogane helps to send Syaoran upward. The woman does not appear too disappointed. "I'll just make up for it with the ones left." Fye gives Kurogane a rueful smile. "Looks like we're in real trouble now, eh?"

20. "Battle's End" - At the top, Syaoran meets Ryanban's son, whose arm muscles seem to have multiplied several times. Mokona senses a lot of magical energy from him. The Ryanban had cast a spell on his son to make him stronger. He sends a punch towards Syaoran, who dodges it. The blast creates a huge hole behind Syaoran. Down where Fye and Kurogane stand, the liquid is drizzling down onto them from above. A big wave comes towards them, and Kurogane uses his stick to propel Fye away from the water so it doesn't burn him.

As Syaoran sends a flying kick at the Ryanban's son, he grabs Syaoran's legs and throws him backwards into the wall. The liquid continues to drizzle down on Fye and Kurogane, growing increasingly harder. The mysterious woman remarks that only one person had ever been able to bear this pain in the past, and that was Chunhyang's mother. An enormous wave now approaches the two guys. Kurogane does not want to die here because he needs to return to Japan. He says that Syaoran won't move until he finds all of his princess's feathers, so they better quickly go to the next world. Fye remarks that he doesn't really want to stay in one place either. If the person sleeping underwater in his world wakes up, he might be caught. He needs to go around to all the worlds. The woman sends the water down on the two, but out of the chaos comes Kurogane, flying towards the woman. She sinks her long nails (more like claws) into Kurogane's chest...

Mokona runs worriedly to the fallen Syaoran. The Ryanban's son grabs Mokona by the ears, demanding to know whether he is the amenosa. He tries killing Mokona, but Syaoran stops him by kicking up his injured foot. He grabs Syaoran's foot and starts wringing it. "I guess you use kicking attacks. You can't win while protecting your injured legs!" A murderous expression appears on Syaoran's face. "I'm not protecting..." He tells him that it does not matter where he hurts. He decides what he does, and he sends the Ryanban's son flying with his kick.

Back to where Kurogane and the woman were fighting. He tells her that he hates rain and cracks her headpiece with his stick. The "mirage" scene disappears. Up in his room, the Ryanban is becoming desperate. The crystal ball where Sakura's feather is held starts cracking. Kurogane warns the woman not to make any more strange moves, and she gets up and kisses him. The kiss was her thanks to him for freeing her from the Ryanban, who had controlled her with a spell in that stone on her headpiece that Kurogane just broke. She tells Fye and Kurogane that the Ryanban is on the top floor, but it seems like they will be using another dirty trick. Syaoran and Mokona reach the top floor, and they open the door to where the Ryanban awaits. Sakura and Chunhyang are held in a bubble above them, both asleep. The Ryanban sneers at them, holding the crystal ball with Sakura's feather in his hand. He asks them if they are the amenosa, for they displayed such power in breaking his spells. Syaoran coldly tells him to drop the crystal ball and the two girls. "Place on finger on me and both of them will die!" The Ryanban raises the crystal ball and the town's people appear behind him. They are under his spell, and he asks Syaoran whether he can kill them or not?

21. "The Beloved Mirror" - The Ryanban threatens Syaoran, telling him that he will inflict pain on the two girls if he dares attack the villagers. The villagers begin beating on Syaoran, who does not resist. Sakura and Chunhyang plead for Syaoran's help, and Sakura yells out "Syaoran!" This is when Syaoran realizes the two girls are part of the spell, because Sakura does not call him "Syaoran" anymore. He goes flying at the Ryanban, who holds out his crystal globe in hopes of protecting himself. One of the villagers appears in front of the Ryanban right before Syaoran's feet connect with his face, and the other villagers come to repel Syaoran. The Ryanban orders the soldiers to attack Syaoran. Just at that moment, the real Sakura and Chunhyang appear.

Chunhyang holds up a mirror that releases people from the spells cast upon them. (One of her mother's tools) Even though Chunhyang's powers are still weak, the Ryanban can't control the villagers because of the mirror. Fye and Kurogane appear, both looking a bit beat up. Syaoran tells the Ryanban to hand over the feather. "This is Sakura-hime's memory. Give it back!" The Ryanban cries out in a final desperate attempt to save himself. He tells them that they can save Chunhyang's mother with this feather. If he's injured or dead, they can't bring her back. Chunhyang feels extreme anger over this blatant lie. People can't be brought back from the dead no matter what power they use. No matter how much she misses her mother, she can't see her anymore. Syaoran asks her if she wants revenge on this man who dared to tell such lies. As Syaoran approaches the Ryanban, he tells Syaoran to not get any closer. The hand with extremely long fingernails suddenly appears around the Ryanban's neck. "This is the end!"

22. "Mutual End" - Turns out that the owner of that hand is the sorceress whom the Ryanban had imprisoned inside the castle. She takes him into her possession, promising Syaoran and the others that she will take very good care of him. Before she leaves, she compliments Chunhyang about her powerful mother who had fallen in one of Ryanban's dirty traps. Before she died, she told her that she looked forward to the day when her daughter would become a more powerful caster than she was. The sorceress takes her leave, and the feather returns to Sakura's body.

Sakura regains the memory of her birthday. The setting is very happy and carefree with Yukito and Touya celebrating the special day with her at the table. She thanks the people for coming that night. "I'm very happy to be able to celebrate my birthday with you." There is an empty chair at the table though, and the present Sakura feels that something is missing from the scene. After the memory ends, Sakura faints in Syaoran's arms.

Another man watches this scene with a smile. Those who could travel between the different worlds are all there, but the thing buried under the country of Clow surpasses all of their power. He has spent a lot of time trying to get that power, and he is determined to have it. A mysterious woman looks up at something hanging inside a large transparent container. It is not time for it to appear yet though.

The next day, the gang says goodbye to Chunhyang. She promises to work hard and become a powerful spell caster who won't let her mother down. Mokona opens his mouth, and they are off to their next destination. The villagers stare in reverence, believing them to be the amenosa. The real amenosa then appear. Turns out that they are actually kids. They had been unable to enter the village before due to the strange power the Ryanban had cast on the village. It is time to choose a new lord, but Chunhyang tells them that they don't need one. As long as everyone in the village works together, they will be happy and successful.

The gang lands in the middle of nowhere in front of a large lake. Mokona can sense a great power coming from the distance. Sakura runs over to the quartet and requests that she comes along too. Already tired from lack of sleep the night before, she falls asleep right after her request. Later that evening, Sakura wakes up and tells Syaoran that she should help search for the feathers since it is her memory. Syaoran wants to let her, but she has only gotten a few of her feathers back, and they can't risk her diving into the lake and falling asleep again. Sakura nods resignedly, and she asks Syaoran to stay by the warm fire and rest up. She thanks Syaoran as they sit around the fire. She relates her latest memory to Syaoran about her birthday. Everyone came to celebrate her birthday with her, but there was an empty seat. She remembers talking to the chair. As she talks, a sad expression appears on Syaoran's face. He had been the one sitting in that 'empty' chair, but Sakura does not remember. Sakura tells him that even though no one sat in that chair, she felt very happy. Syaoran remembers that after the birthday party, Sakura asks him about his birthday date. He does not know, since he was recently adopted by Fujitaka and remembers nothing about the past. Sakura then declares that Syaoran's birthday will be on the same day as her's, April 1st. That way, they can celebrate their birthdays together in the future. "Every year we will celebrate our birthday together and create many happy memories together!" Syaoran's reminiscing is interrupted by the lake's surface, which begins to shine. What's going on?

23. "The Country of Mist" - The fog is growing thicker, and Kurogane and Fye are still walking around. They've been walking for quite some time now, but there is still no sign of life. Not even a villager. Kurogane remarks that it is scary, and Fye smiles, telling him that he's here. Kurogane replies chirpily, "Kurogane is very happy!" Turns out that voice wasn't really Kurogane, but Mokona impersonating him. Mokona and Fye joke around, and Kurogane marches off angrily. They approach the lake and stop in surprise. Syaoran tells Sakura to hide. She falls to the ground and enters another flashback. Her father, Clow, is talking to Fujitaka. Fujitaka introduces Sakura to his son, who is about the same age as her. Clow tells her that the young boy suffered a painful life in the past, but he doesn't know it. He began to change his cold and distant personality little by little after meeting Fujitaka. What the child needs is warmth, and Clow hopes that his little daughter will give him that. "A smile that can rival the sunlight of springtime." Present Sakura opens her eyes, wondering who that boy could have been. As Syaoran dives down deeper and deeper into the lake, he also remembers a flashback. He had just returned from the princess's birthday party, and he felt very warm inside after she smiled at him despite not knowing about his past.

Syaoran nears the bottom of the lake, and spies a city there. It's a very small city though. A big fish swims over him, and he realizes that the fish is the sun of the underwater city. The fish drops a scale down, and Syaoran catches it. He smiles as he remembers one of Fujitaka's old sayings. "You will find the happiness that belongs only to you. Although you may not know what it is right now, you will surely find it someday." Syaoran swims back to the surface. As he takes off his goggles, a worried Mokona runs towards him. "Sakura is...!"