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English
Series:
Part 2 of The Loyal Retainer
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Published:
2022-12-05
Updated:
2023-11-25
Words:
1,626
Chapters:
2/?
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2
Kudos:
7
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North Bound: a chronological navigator

Summary:

A long, long time ago in medieval Japan, two youkai met. One would become a famed demon king - the other, his loyal right hand man. But before any of that happened, a bunch of other stuff did.

North Bound is a Yu Yu Hakusho prequel fanseries set 700-1000 years before the beginning of the series that aims to be canon-compliant and connect directly with the main series, and beyond. It includes comics, art and fanfiction. This is a guide that links to every narrative work in the North Bound/the Loyal Retainer universe, showing where everything fits chronologically against the real-world historical and Yu Yu Hakusho timelines.

I've tried to minimize North Bound spoilers, but it does contain spoilers for actual Yu Yu Hakusho.

Last updated: April 13, 2024 (added "Welcome!"!)

Notes:

New works added are indicated with NEW.

 

This is yet another attempt at consolidating all the different stories that exist under North Bound! It always bothered me that there was this big gap in what The Loyal Retainer series was showing on AO3, so this is my attempt at making it a bit more comprehensive.

Please don't be surprised if you notice minute changes or continuity errors. Although my goal is to be as canon-compliant and consistent as possible, the fact is that I started the stories back in 2014-2015 and did not work chronologically. So there's a lot of after-the-fact piecing things together, which means I may change my mind or give up. It's managed to work out so far...

There are supernatural/cultural references, historical figures and events that appear throughout North Bound with a lot of artistic license. Most of my author's notes cover my attempts at research and wrestling with creative liberties and decisions. Please do not use North Bound as any kind of accurate historical or cultural reference!

Chapter 1: The Navigator Itself

Chapter Text

Main links to North Bound:

  • Overview of the series on Pillowfort - includes a link to an overview timeline that was the foundation of this chronology navigator.
  • Original masterpost on Tumblr - has links to all posts in order of completion. It includes individual illustrations that are not included in the list below.
  • Pixiv series - compiles all of the comics/images in order of completion. Matches the Tumblr masterpost and is easier to read, but is missing the author's notes commentary and will lag behind the Tumblr masterpost since I wait till there are enough images to be worth adding a new installment.

For fun:

  • A visual timeline of Hokushin as he appears throughout North Bound and the Loyal Retainer.
  • Several works marked with * and presented in italics have no significant impact on the understanding/perception of events in this chronology. I included them mainly because Hokushin appears prominently in them and it was fun to see where they fit on the timeline.

Heian period (~1,000 years before Yu Yu Hakusho series begins)

Covers Hokushin's personal history before he meets Raizen. Includes encounters with several other characters from the Yu Yu Hakusho series, including Kirin and the Mirror of Darkness, as well as various historical (?) figures.

Kamakura period (~700 years before Yu Yu Hakusho series begins)

Raizen meets the kudakusushi, falls in love, then separates from his friends. He runs into Hokushin and their shared history begins. The bulk of North Bound.

The kudakusushi gives birth to Raizen's first human descendant, and the Reikai raises the barrier.

Medieval to modern era (~500+ to ~200 years before Yu Yu Hakusho series begins)

Raizen and Mukuro wage war in the Demon World. Yomi becomes king, Shachi becomes Yomi's general. More war waging results, this time with ideological differences. Kirin becomes Mukuro's general.

  • * Fanfic with cover illustration and related drawings: "When There Are No Miracles" - AU splitting off from canon. All history follows the events of North Bound, except Yusuke and co never make it to the Human World, and the Demon World resolves the problem of Yomi separately.

Modern era (80's to Yu Yu Hakusho series in the 90's, and present)

Yusuke is born. The events of Yu Yu Hakusho take place. Eventually Yusuke activates his atavistic genes and goes to the Demon World. Hokushin, along with Touou and Seizan, find Yusuke in the Human World.

Yusuke returns to the Demon World and meets Raizen in person. He lives in Raizen's kingdom for 1.5 years and founds the Makai Unification Tournament.

Enki becomes the first Emperor of the Demon World. The barrier is lowered and Yusuke goes home. Hokushin works for Emperor Enki and travels back and forth between Human and Demon Worlds. Hokushin and Kirin eventually become official representatives of the demon Emperor in all dealings across worlds.

The future (~100 years after the end of the Yu Yu Hakusho series)

Yusuke administrates one of the three main territories of the Demon World with Hokushin as his Chief of Staff.

Chapter 2: Rokurokubi in North Bound

Summary:

An overview of rokurokubi in this universe, based on both Japanese mythology and also Yu Yu Hakusho canon.
This was originally posted on Tumblr and updated in this Pillowfort post (illustration included).

Notes:

FYI: My original intent for this "fic" was mainly to post the navigator, but the challenge is that when I update it, there's no notification. Adding new content to an existing chapter (especially if it's not otherwise directly hosted on AO3, e.g., it's an off-site comic instead of a fic) means that no one may notice even if they've bookmarked or subscribed to any part of this series.

So I'm thinking every so often I'll post some other additions I feel are worth archiving as new "chapters". This will both help to consolidate more worldbuilding info, and also to trigger an update notification for people to notice and hopefully find any quietly-added new content that might be missed. I won't do it regularly, so if you periodically look at the summary on this fic, you'll see a line that says "Last updated: [date] [notes on what was added]". Thanks for your patience and indulgence!

Chapter Text

Historical/cultural background

Thanks to the proliferation of Japanese media, youkai/yokai (sometimes simplified in English as "demon") are fairly recognized nowadays as quintessential supernatural beings of Japanese mythology and folklore. Rokurokubi are considered a classic example. They are a type of youkai that look almost completely human, except for one important difference: their necks can stretch to incredible lengths. 

Interestingly, this youkai is overwhelmingly depicted as female - with a few very rare exceptions - and they're usually found living rather mundanely, hidden amongst the normal human population. Their true nature is generally made apparent at night. When an origin is touched upon, they’re often revealed to be simply humans with an unspecified illness, or the result of karma - in a number of cases, divine retribution for the actions of their relatives.

There are descriptions of individuals/apparitions similar to rokurokubi in older works, including China, which heavily influenced the development of Japanese culture. However, the use of the word “rokurokubi” throughout North Bound is an anachronism. Most of North Bound takes place during the Heian and Kamakura periods (very roughly 8th-14th century), but like many youkai that are well-known today, “rokurokubi” as a term did not exist until the Edo period (approximately 16th to 19th century). 

There are several possibilities for the origin of the name, usually to do with something that stretches. ろくろ/轆轤 rokuro has several possible meanings; 首 kubi is “neck”. For convenience, I've rendered it in North Bound when needed as “pulley neck demon”.

In Yu Yu Hakusho 

Many different youkai appear in the series, both classic and otherwise, but there are no rokurokubi explicitly identified. Hokushin’s ability to stretch his neck simply makes him a very obvious and easy candidate to be one.

We also know the following about Hokushin specifically and youkai broadly from the series itself.

  • Hokushin is an S-class demon - extremely high on the power class scale in Yu Yu Hakusho.

  • In addition to stretching his neck, Hokushin states that he can stretch his arms far enough to grab a pebble from 20 km away. Both manga and anime show also this to varying degrees.

  • Hokushin says when the conflict in the Demon World ends, he will stop eating humans, but until then he must do so in order to maintain his strength.

  • Hokushin can either materialize or transform small objects into other objects (a flower into a gag toy knife). It is unclear if this is actually a demonstration of his powers or simply sleight of hand.

  • It is confirmed in canon that if a demon eats another being (e.g., a human psychic) with significant power, they will also increase their own power.

  • Youkai/demons exist in the series as both species/genetic constructs and as supernatural entities. That is, being a demon can be inherited (see: Hiei and Yukina, Raizen’s descendants and his fascinating comments about human and demon evolution theory that are wiped out in the English dub, etc.) but you can also turn into a demon (see: wishes that can be granted from the Dark Tournament, Suzaku’s threats to Yusuke, integration of youkai mythology in general like kitsune, tanuki, etc.).

Rokurokubi in North Bound, or "how the above was all smushed together"

Rokurokubi are demonified would-have-been humans. They were never technically “human”, and their nature is due to extraordinary circumstances - i.e., a curse from the gods to punish crimes committed by their parents. They are predominantly female (hence the obsession of the collector with finding a male rokurokubi in A House That Holds Long Limbs).

Many rokurokubi are actually unaware of their own true nature. There are those like Hokushin who can extend not only their necks but also other limbs. They are skilled impersonators, capable of mimicking other voices and sounds by manipulating their vocal cords.

Rokurokubi must eat humans for proper nutrition. Not all do, but the ones that don’t (e.g., because they don’t know) experience chronic physical weakness, ongoing maladies, and drastically shortened lifespans. Many rokurokubi simply die without ever realizing the cause of their lifelong health issues; since this is ancient Japan, it’s not that remarkable. 

As far as demons go, rokurokubi fall on the weak-to-average end of the psychic power spectrum (Yu Yu Hakusho power classes sub E to D). Hokushin begins to break this barrier after the events of A House That Holds Long Limbs. 

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