The answers to these questions lie beyond the the surface level things that bring people to 'Vagabond'. Samurai and amazing art is what you are told when people recommend this manga, I was no different when I first heard of it - "The art is amazing and it is an amazing historical fantasy story." - but I kept reading and I found these deep seeded questions that every character seems to answer. Musashi is on a never ending quest to not only become 'Unrivaled under Heaven' but to also understand what it truly means to be unrivaled. There is more to a man than the sound his sword makes when it is swung, more than strength of his grip on the sword, but what is it? Where do you find it? There is an important turning point in Musashi's life where he goes from 'I will kill anyone and prove there is no one above me' to 'There is always someone above me, no matter what, but how do I surpass that?'. It is that character arc that I find to be exceedingly fascinating.
This concept of someone always being above you is also what feeds the 'Spital of death and killing'. To be the best you must always prove it, and becoming the best, in my opinion, means escaping that spiral. That spiral is the final hurdle that Musashi needs to overcome to become unrivaled. Once he escapes the need to kill everyone who shows up in front of him, he can become 'Unrivaled under Heaven'. We see this through Sekishusai Yagyu, as he is someone who 'defeated' Musashi without so much as lifting a finger, he is someone who holds the title of 'Unrivaled under Heaven' and he is also someone who seems to have escaped the spiral.
Matahachi is also a fascinating character. He is much more relatable than Musashi to the average reader. While one is this almost unrivaled warrior the other had longed for it his entire life but just isn't fit to be one. It's the struggle and failure of your 'average Joe'. Matahachi is just another average man that happens to be friends with a god amongst men and there is nothing he can do about it. We all know a person that exceeds in one task more than everybody else and there is always a sense of jealousy towards them. However It makes me happy to see Matahachi overcome that feeling and move on, while still being happy for Takezo, his childhood friend. Matahachi is the one who answers the question 'What constitutes a man?'. Our flaws and our weaknesses make as big of a part of us as our strengths. While Musashi also is showcase for this I feel like Matahachi is a more relatable example.
Is there even any point in talking about the art of this manga? So many people spoke of it, so many praised it and I just agree with it all. Watercolor is my favorite medium of art and seeing Inoue's watercolored pages is a treat among an already masterfully drawn work.
I'm a sucker for samurai and vagabond-like journeys (I say vagabond here as the actual meaning of the word, not the manga name). It gives me a special sense of freedom to know that in those times you could just drop your life and walk away, just travel and do things. I wish I could do something like that. This comes from a very romanticized point of view, I'm aware, but I would love to be able to that.
Overall, Vagabond is a must-read for any manga lover, but if you go in expecting a shonen level of action you probably will be disappointed as it is very realistic in it's portrayal of fights, but it still should NOT be skipped by anyone who actively reads manga.
