Grenadier (manga)

Grenadier (グレネーダー) is a manga series written and illustrated by Sōsuke Kaise, published in Kadokawa Shoten's Shōnen Ace in 2003. The manga was licensed in Taiwan by Ever Glory Publishing.

The manga was adapted into an animated television series in 2004. The Studio Live production aired on WOWOW from October 14, 2004 to January 13, 2005, totaling twelve episodes.

Plot
Grenadier follows the travels of the extremely well-formed and busty Rushuna Tendo, an expert senshi, and the samurai Yajiro Kojima, a mercenary swordsman. A Senshi or "Enlightened" is one who is skilled to some degree in the use of guns. The series begins with Yajiro and a small army of samurai launching a frontal assault against a fort in an attempt to free their lord, which was taken over by a group of gunners. The assault fails.

Yajiro orders a retreat, but is spotted by the enemy and chased to a small cliff, which he jumps off of to escape. With his pursuers still following, he follows a nearby hot-water stream upcurrent where he finds Rushuna bathing in a hot spring. She seems undisturbed by his presence or her own nudity and hides him in the hot spring with her ample breasts as cover until the enemy passes them by. After this, she introduces herself as a traveler and reveals the ultimate battle strategy to Yajiro; to avoid battle by removing an enemy's will to fight.

Hearing the gunfire of the renewed assault upon the fort, Yajiro leaves Rushuna to rejoin combat. He arrives in time to see the leader of the gunners use a Gatling gun to decimate the samurai. Rushuna also arrives at this point and shows her considerable gun talent and effectively ends the battle by defeating the lead gunner and rescuing the lord by herself.

Something in him changing, Yajiro decides to become Rushuna's partner and travel with her.

During their travels, Rushuna and Yajiro face a mysterious masked figure known only as "The Jester" who is responsible for a weapon called "Enlightened Evil". Then they discover that Tenshi, who sent Rushuna to travel in order to learn the "Ultimate Battle Strategy", had apparently put a price on her head. Joined by a young girl named Mikan Kurenai, a balloon maker, Rushuna and Yajiro make their way to the capital of Tento. Along the way they overcome many of the Juttensen, Tenshi's elite personal bodyguard.

When the three reach Tento they discover the truth and the final showdown against the Jester begins.

Characters
Rushuna Tendo is a senshi was trained in the positive teachings and kind ideals of Tenshi. A former pre-Juttensen candidate, she is trained in the use of a revolver, specializing in shooting to disable rather than to kill.

Yajiro Kojima is a swordsman also known as the "Rearguard Tiger" or "Tiger of the Rearguard", who battles in an attempt to bring about world unity.

Mikan Kurenai is an orphaned girl who comes from a family of balloon makers. Despite her young age, she is a master balloon artist, being able to construct balloons of all shapes and sizes.

Anime
Grenadier ~The Senshi of Smiles~ (グレネーダー 〜ほほえみの閃士〜) was adapted by Studio Live into an anime television series comprising of 12 episodes. It began airing on WOWOW from October 14, 2004 till January 13, 2005.