Vasily

Vasily is a blond-haired, blue-eyed Russian marksman serving in the border guard unit on Sakhalin.

He is a former comrade-in-arms of Kiroranke and others from the time of the Russo-Japanese War.

He first appears waiting in ambush for Kiroranke, who is revealed to be one of the assassins of Emperor Alexander II.

Vasily’s role is primarily that of a deadly long-range sniper whose personal grudge drives him into conflict with the main cast.

Vasily is quiet and intensely focused, especially after his jaw injury leaves him unable to speak properly.

He communicates mostly through gestures, facial expressions, and occasionally through drawings.

He shows strong professional pride as a sniper and is driven by a desire to settle the score with Hyakunosuke Ogata.

Despite being an enemy at first, he displays flexibility and pragmatism by tagging along with Saichi Sugimoto’s group when it suits his goal.

Because he does not share his name and rarely speaks, the Japanese characters never properly learn his identity.

He is informally and somewhat affectionately nicknamed “Hood-chan” due to the hood he always wears.

Vasily has blond hair and striking blue eyes, making him stand out among the cast.

After his injury, he is almost always seen wearing a hood that covers the lower part of his face.

The hood serves both to conceal his disfigured jaw and to protect it from the cold.

His expression tends to be calm and watchful, giving him a predator-like presence in sniper engagements.

During the Russo-Japanese War, Vasily fought alongside Kiroranke and other Russian comrades.

Later, he is stationed as a border guard on Sakhalin, assigned to watch for and confront Kiroranke, who had become a wanted man for his role in the assassination of Alexander II.

Vasily is part of the team lying in wait when Kiroranke attempts to cross the border.

In this period he is still in active Russian service, operating with official authority and military equipment.

After his clash with Hyakunosuke Ogata and the resulting injury, Vasily’s life changes course dramatically.

The defeat and disfigurement shake him deeply, and his fixation on Ogata grows into a personal obsession.

Vasily is an exceptionally skilled sniper, using a Mosin–Nagant rifle as his main weapon.

He is capable of accurately shooting a human head from a distance of around 200 meters, demonstrating elite-level marksmanship.

He excels at concealment, ambush tactics, and reading terrain to set up favorable sniping positions.

Even other combat-hardened characters recognize his shots as the work of a top professional.

Besides his shooting ability, Vasily is notably talented at drawing.

He can sketch quickly and clearly enough to use pictures instead of words when communicating with others.

Vasily’s primary weapon is the Mosin–Nagant bolt-action rifle, a standard issue firearm in the Russian military of his era.

He uses it with great familiarity, performing precise long-distance shots in harsh climates like Sakhalin.

He also wears a distinctive hood that covers his lower face and jaw.

This hood functions both as protection against the cold and as a way to hide his gunshot wound.

Ambush of Kiroranke

Vasily first appears as a Russian border guard sniper posted on Sakhalin.

He is part of the force waiting to intercept Kiroranke, who is identified as one of the perpetrators in the assassination of Emperor Alexander II.

From his concealed position, Vasily uses his Mosin–Nagant to control the battlefield at long range.

His presence turns the encounter into a dangerous sniper-heavy confrontation.

Sniper Battle with Hyakunosuke Ogata

During the Sakhalin conflict, Vasily engages in a duel of snipers with Hyakunosuke Ogata.

Both are highly skilled, making the encounter a tense battle of patience, prediction, and precision.

Vasily ultimately loses this duel when Ogata manages to shoot him in the jaw.

The bullet shatters his lower face and permanently damages his ability to speak clearly.

This injury becomes a defining moment in his life, both physically and psychologically.

Afterward, he hides his jaw with a hood and rarely attempts to speak, relying on other means of communication.

Becoming a Deserter

Following his defeat and trauma, Vasily deserts from the Russian forces.

His fixation on Ogata and his desire for a rematch override his duty as a soldier.

He illegally infiltrates Japan, effectively living as a fugitive in a foreign country.

His goal is simple and obsessive: find Hyakunosuke Ogata and settle their unfinished duel.

Encounter with Saichi Sugimoto’s Group

To lure Ogata into appearing, Vasily decides to target someone connected to him.

On Sakhalin, in the area of Shisuka, he snipes Yoshitake Shiraishi from a distance, betting that this will draw Ogata out.

However, Saichi Sugimoto mistakes Vasily’s accurate shooting for Ogata’s work.

Sugimoto launches a direct assault on Vasily’s position, engaging him at close range.

Vasily is overpowered and neutralized by Sugimoto before he can kill anyone else.

Once restrained, he is questioned, but his damaged speech makes normal conversation impossible.

Hajime Tsukishima, who speaks Russian, steps in to interpret and clarify the situation.

Through Tsukishima’s translation, Sugimoto’s group learns who Vasily is, what he wants, and why he came to Japan.

Joining the Journey

Realizing that Sugimoto’s group has frequent contact with Hyakunosuke Ogata, Vasily chooses to follow them.

He decides, on his own initiative, to travel with them in the hope that Ogata will eventually appear.

The group does not officially recruit him, but they allow him to accompany them.

He provides valuable sniping support despite being an unpredictable outsider.

Even when Sugimoto’s party later joins and separates from other factions, Vasily continues to trail along.

His motivations remain singular: to meet Ogata again and resolve their rivalry.

Because he never properly introduces himself and can barely talk, the others still do not know his real name.

They instead refer to him casually as “Hood-chan,” based on the hood covering his injured jaw.

Kiroranke

Kiroranke is one of Vasily’s old war comrades from the time of the Russo-Japanese War.

Their relationship becomes strained by politics and crime when Kiroranke is branded a terrorist and assassin of Alexander II.

Vasily’s role as a border guard places him directly in opposition to Kiroranke.

When they finally cross paths on Sakhalin, it is as hunter and target, not as brothers-in-arms.

Hyakunosuke Ogata

Hyakunosuke Ogata is Vasily’s main rival and the source of his deepest grudge.

Their sniper duel ends with Ogata shooting Vasily in the jaw, ruining his speech and changing his life.

Vasily’s subsequent desertion and illegal travel to Japan are driven by his need to confront Ogata again.

He respects Ogata’s skill but cannot accept his defeat, turning their relationship into a one-sided obsession.

Saichi Sugimoto and Companions

Saichi Sugimoto initially mistakes Vasily for Ogata due to the quality of his marksmanship.

After subduing him and learning the truth, Sugimoto treats Vasily more as a dangerous but useful ally.

Yoshitake Shiraishi becomes one of Vasily’s unintended victims when he is shot as bait.

Despite this, Shiraishi survives, and Vasily later fights on the same side as him.

Hajime Tsukishima acts as Vasily’s linguistic bridge, interpreting Russian into Japanese.

Thanks to Tsukishima, Vasily can partially explain his intentions and follow the group’s plans.

The rest of the group, unable to communicate with him normally, simplifies their relationship by viewing him as an odd but reliable “hooded sniper.”

Their nickname “Hood-chan” reflects a mixture of humor, distance, and reluctant camaraderie.

Because of his jaw wound, Vasily finds speaking extremely painful and difficult.

Words often come out slurred, unclear, or incomplete, which frustrates both him and the people around him.

To compensate, he uses his talent for drawing as a practical communication tool.

He will sketch simple but effective images to convey information, requests, or warnings.

This drawing-based communication leads to some light-hearted moments with Saichi Sugimoto’s group.

At the same time, it underlines how isolated Vasily is, unable to fully express himself in words.