Has Sakamoto reached his former strength?

Summary

• Fans speculate that Sakamoto's main strength remains hidden, with the story hinting at an untapped power that has yet to be revealed.

• The narrative strategy of keeping Sakamoto's true power level obscured mirrors typical anime protagonist arcs.

• Despite hints of Sakamoto's past exploits, current events indicate that he has not surpassed his peak strength.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for the Sakamoto Days MangaAt this point, fans are more than convinced that Sakamoto's appearance is the biggest hoax in shonen history. And being repeatedly addressed as the greatest killer of all time doesn't help this case either. It has only left readers itching to see retired legendary assassin return to its former glory. Yet some may even argue that the killer may have already done so.

This longing was first ignited in chapter 44 of Sakamoto Days after Miyo directly compared the Sakamoto of today and the Sakamoto of 'The Order', stating that he only measures up to 30 percent of his best years. However, as the story progresses, fans can observe a similar sense of progression to that of the typical overwhelmed protagonist. With no sign of indifference, the main character continues to show more resting strength and can now trade blows with order level opponents.

Misconception: Sakamoto's post-retirement strength

A direct comparison between youth and adulthood

By continuing the story five years after the infamous retirement, the author leaves a sense of obscurity in the story. A leeway of this magnitude consistently allows the writer to keep Sakamoto's true power level under wraps. This strategy follows the same narrative principles as an anime, where the main character is capable of much more than what is shown. However, only this time, not because the man in question wants to, but because this strength is no longer available. An ingenious play that gave:

• The freedom the author needed to bring down Sakamoto's power.

• Allowed enough time for characters like Nagumo to change the balance of power.

• Fans began to consider other characters that will improve over time.

And overall, the belief was born that Sakamoto (Prime) may no longer be the biggest or strongest. A claim further substantiated by the evidence found in Chapter 164 where Sakamoto is forced to admit his inferiority to Takamura:

Compared to when I was in The Order… He's much stronger!

But do these falls mean his strength can no longer be measured? No, the mangaka has and continues to take the liberty of mentioning sufficient small details in later and earlier chapters. For example, during Sakamoto's fight against Kanaguri, the two were quite relative in strength but Sakamoto always had the advantage.

While a teenage Sakamoto along with Uzui, Rion and Nagumo were able to take on Kindaka (someone who takes over Kanaguri) without much trouble. The only way to judge this feat is by acknowledging how the teenagers were offered a place in The Order thereafter. But seeing as how they needed each other's help, scaling the teenage Sakamoto as an order-level threat wouldn't make sense and just so it's easier to digest (even if they clear most of the verse as it is) all four would be considered Lower order level threats.

A direct comparison below highlights feats of similar strength/ability to an assassin and also adds the fact that the current Sakamoto is only night it out with a much younger version, which is unlikely to be enough even as a warm-up for the real deal. That means it's no longer a question of how overwhelmed Sakamoto is, but a question of how much this 5-year gap had on the assassin.

Shooting Test: A Decline in Performance

The JCC Infiltration Arc is where it began

The writer uses the JCC infiltration arc to give fans another clue to the gap that needs to be covered. In Chapter 75, Sakamoto's bullet marks, while disguised, were shown to be incredible but still nothing compared to his all-time record. In fact, Sakamoto is shown owning up to this decline in the same chapter:

What's interesting about this is that this “all-time high” was achieved while Sakamoto was still a schoolboy. Basing this moment on percentiles alone would mean Sakamoto is 22.5 percent less efficient in comparison.

Now the disguise suggests that the player is Skinnymoto. If readers were to consider such a possibility, Sakamota may scale even lower than teenage Sakamoto in terms of control, precision, and speed. And despite the author's sting for information, the man's adolescence is terrifying enough to show the latter how high the killer's good must scale.

An inevitable result with self-imposed limitations

Will fans ever get clarity on Sakatomo's current standing?

Even with the above explanations, it should be undeniably obvious that the mangaka does not plan to leave this question unanswered. The author has been building on this untapped strength ever since the first chapter, and there's no way fans would still be confused if Sakamoto had already hit the mark. Instead, Yuto Suzuki can probably follow the narrative principle of Chekhov's gun:

You can't put a loaded gun on stage if no one is going to fire it.

Miyo's statement in chapter 44 could very well be the author's way of using this concept, hinting at a later dialogue where Sakamoto's current/future position would be discussed. Although Sakamoto has really limited the killer factor by applying no-kill rule (a ground rule established by his wife), according to the general interpretation of the story, the majority agree that it has little effect on performance at games.

Finally, with what has been discussed so far, it would be reasonable to conclude that Sakamoto has neither touched nor advanced the heights of his former strength. Yet this ascension is only a matter of time, as the series slowly progresses towards its inevitable end.