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Sanjō Tsubame (三条 燕) is a young employee at the Akabeko who gets acquainted with Yahiko during his tenure at the restaurant and eventually becomes closer to all of the Kenshingumi.

Appearance[]

Tsubame is a small girl with short brown hair and brown eyes. She usually dresses in the Akabeko uniform.

Personality[]

Tsubame is a timid, and kindhearted girl by nature. She seems to be proficient at her work in the Akabeko, because whe is regarded as a good employer.

Tsubame is often rattled by the goings-on surrounding her new friends but begins to play a supporting role as time passes. It is noted that she expressed liking in the nishiki-e paintings.

Relationships[]

  • Sekihara Tae - Tsubame works at the Akabeko for Tae and Mr. Sekihara. Tsubame is good friends with Tae and both of them are usually seen together. In the manga, both Tsubame and Tae are invited to the party Sanosuke organized.
  • Myōjin Yahiko - Yakiho and Tsubame are really good friends and she gets acquainted with him during his tenure at the restaurant. Yahiko gets constantly mad at Tsubame because she calls him "Yahiko-chan", and he wants her to address him as "Yahiko-kun", so it denotes Yahiko is older and stronger. She slowly becomes Yahiko's sweetheart. They become a couple at the end of the manga storyline.

Abilities[]

Tsubame is good at household chores, specially at cooking and serving people, as part of her activities at the Akabeko.

History[]

Tsubame's family was historically servants of Nagaoka Mikio, who forced her to steal the Akabeko's key, before Yahiko stopped him.

Tokyo Arc[]

Tsubame is often seen at the Akabeko, and has a minor role throuh the series. She asks Sanoskuke to get her a nishiki-e painting (just as Tae also did). Later those days, she was invited to a party Sanosuke organized when he attempted to leave the Kenshingumi and join Katsuhiro "Tsunan" Tsukioka.

Kyōto Arc[]

When Kenshin left to go to Kyōto and Kaoru was devastated, Tsubame (along Tae) went to visit her and cheer her up. Tsubame cooked a soup and tried make Kaoru eat it. When Kaoru decided to follow Kenshin and go with Yahiko to Kyōto as well, Tsubame and Tae send them off and wished them good luck.

Jinchū Arc[]

After the explosion of the Akabeko restaurant, Tsubame lived in the Kamiya Dōjō. After the first night of the Jinchū, she was worried because Kenshin didn't return. She also thought Kaoru and Himura deserved to live together and be happy.

When Kenshin enters a living hell after the supposed death of Kamiya Kaoru at the hands of Yukishiro Enishi, Tsubame is deeply troubled and after Yahiko visits her and departs to the fight with Kujiranami. She pleads for Kenshin to help Yahiko fight back against one of Enishi's abandoned allies and bring Kenshin back into the world of the living. Later she was seen by Yahiko's side nursing him.

By the series epilogue (the 5-year time skip), she is saved from a group of Yakuzas by Yahiko. Afterward, Yahiko complains about Tsubame's outfit, which is the new Akabeko uniform. She invites him to lunch as a reward for saving her.

Development and Reception[]

Watsuki mentioned that Sanjō Tsubame's visual mode is inspired by the character of Tomoe Hotaru (Sailor Saturn) from Naoko Takeuchi's anime "Sailor Moon".

Other Appearances[]

  • In Samurai X: Reflection, Tsubame and Yahiko have become a couple. Watsuki has mentioned in his notes that Tsubame and Yahiko's son 'Shinya'.
  • In the Rurouni Kenshin: Origins live-action film, Tsubame is among the victims of opium poisoning.

In Live Action film[]

Sanjō Tsubame is portrayed by Mei Nagano in the 2012 live action movie "Rurouni Kenshin: Origins".

Etymology[]

  • Sanjō means "three" (三) (san) and "article" (条) ().
  • Tsubame means "swallow (bird)" (燕).

Trivia[]

  • In episode 24 of the 1996 anime, there is a difference with the manga: In the manga Sanosuke also invites Sekihara Tae and Sanjō Tsubame to the party he organizes, in contrast to the anime where they are not present.

Gallery[]

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