House of Ninjas – Episode 8 Recap, Review & Ending Explained

The Eclipse 

House of Ninjas episode 8 starts with Mukai on her campaign trail and giving a speech to an audience. She says they can count on her to eradicate the political complacency and put Japan on the map again. After this, she shakes the hands of some people in the audience and seems shaken when she notices the strange man (The messenger) in the crowd. 

Elsewhere, Yosuke is finally happy to get his hands on the real scroll and prepares for the solar eclipse. He asks if Gaku is ready even if the success of the eclipse comes at a high price, and Gaku says he is. 

At the Tawara household,  Haru and Nagi get ready for the upcoming fight. Taki urges Haru to make the right decision regarding Gaku. She says Gaku died six years ago, and the man who returned is a stranger. Taki takes Riku to an old rare bookstore, where she converses silently with one of her friends and asks for help. 

Meanwhile, Karen is released by the cleaner crew and asked to stay low for a while. She is fairly warned not to approach Haru or spill the Shinobi secret.

What happens during the fight?

 The Hawara family meet at a secluded place and discuss Gaku’s betrayal ahead of the mission. Souichi is hopeful they can change Gaku’s mind, and they will return together. They are  joined by Oki, who reminds them that the mission is to stop the poison from being distributed. The shinobis infiltrate the enemy’s lair, and a fiery sword fight ensues.

It is clear the Shinobis are outnumbered, but they hold their own until the help Taki asked for arrives. She asked for help from the Guardians of the Demon Gate, and they came through. Souichi recognises Mayuko as one of the Guardians.

Meanwhile, Haru encounters Gaku and tries to convince him to reconsider his decision. Sadly, Gaku refuses to return to the fold and expresses his determination to kill Haru. After seeing that it is hopeless to reason with his brother, Haru puts up a stronger fight and overpowers him. However, he still doesn’t kill him; he just knocks him out. He then proceeds into an inner room filled with smoke and meets Yosuke.

The man believes he will fully become a god after killing Haru. He says by killing the one who created him, his powers will grow, and he will ascend. He uses the smoke to his advantage, and Haru gets injured a lot before adapting to the surroundings. He manages to cut off one of Yosuke’s arms. Yosuke tries to attach it back since he is a god, but as expected, he fails.

Nonetheless, he still believes Haru won’t kill him. He also reveals that the eclipse has a double meaning and is not only about the solar eclipse. Haru is about to finish him when Gaku wakes up and completes the job. Haru is surprised after Gaku kills Yosuke and walks away. He tries to call out to Gaku and asks why. Gaku replies that Haru needs to maintain his innocence.

What happens after the fight?

Hamashima thanks the family for their help in averting the disaster. The poison was never distributed. Unfortunately, he also informs them that Gaku is now considered a felon, and the family is banned from associating with him in any capacity. Hamashima promises to watch the family to ensure they stay in line. He also asks about the Guardians’ weaponry, but Taki says it belongs to the Fuma. 

On his way out, Haru asks if the agency found out the other meaning of the eclipse. Sadly, Hamashima is unsure what Yosuke meant and hopes the man lied. On the other hand,  Karen figures it out and thinks the target is Mukai, who is about to hold a ceremony at a hotel later that afternoon.

The ceremony is meant to allow the largest political party candidates’ final appeals before choosing the person they will back. Karen believes the Fuma wants to kill Mukai as she challenges the status quo. 

She rushes to the hotel and tries to save Mukai and everyone, but no one takes her seriously. Even Mukai asks security to escort her out. We notice Ayame and Gaku in the kitchen as the champagne drinks for the toasts are being prepared. Mukai proceeds with her toast, and everyone who drinks the toast starts collapsing and dies. The only one who miraculously survives is Mukai.

How does Mukai survive?

It turns out this was all Fuma’s plan. They wanted the old people in power gone so they could bring in new blood. Mukai was chosen because she is a descendant of the Hojo family and the perfect puppet for the Fuma. The ceremony gave them a chance to take out all the high-level people in the largest political party in the country in one sweep. However, it is not smooth sailings. We later see Mukai brief Gaku on the troubles she is facing from anti-revisionists who don’t want her to revise the Constitution. 

It is important to note that Gaku is now the leader of the Fuma after killing Yosuke. Ayame is his deputy. He believes that as long as they have the scroll, the Demon Gate will open, and the Fuma will lead the country to its past glory once again. 

By the time Hamashima realises what the true eclipse means, it is too late. He gets a call from Ayame, citing the change in the chain of command. She explains she is now in charge and  Hamashima simply agrees, no questions asked.

Grandma also realises the truth too late, and nothing can be done. 

How does House of Ninjas end?

The family tries its best to continue its legacy. Riku continues to train. Nagi and Yoko try to forget the pain Gaku caused them, and Haru does his best to stay away from Karen. Even though she regularly visits their favourite Gyudon restaurant, he keeps his distance. 

The Episode Review

We finally got to the finale, and most of our questions were answered. We know Yosuke wanted to pull off a political uprooting quietly and succeeded. Is this a good thing for the country? We doubt it, but the show ends before we can ascertain this. It is  still hard to understand Gaku’s decision. Now that he is the Fuma Fataro, what will he do next? Given that the Shinobis will be taking orders from the Fuma, will the Tawara work for the agency again? 

The finale didn’t tie the loose ends but explained the motives behind the villains’ actions. However, it delivered on the action scenes and kudos to all the characters as they effortlessly pulled off all these rigorous fighting scenes. 

As a viewer, you might struggle with the show’s cohesion, given the pacing, but hang in there; it gets better with time!