Now that the final battle with Asa is over and done with, the Yozukuras need a little bit of time for reflection. Luckily, Mission: Yozakura Family chapter 256 has the perfect excuse.

Some big things have happened since the last time we checked in with Mission: Yozakura Family. Not only were the protagonists finally able to beat the man who has terrorized their family for generations, Kyoichiro also made the surprising decision to activate his single-use True Spring Blooming “Life” for Taiyo’s sake. The fallout from this is what really lies at the heart of Mission: Yozakura Family chapter 256, even though there's a lot of other stuff going on around it.

At least nominally, the main focus of Mission: Yozakura Family chapter 256 is something called the “Cherry Blossom Vows Ceremony.” This is essentially a Shinto-style wedding where a married Yozakura couple go to the family’s sacred tree and repeat their vows: Taiyo and Mutsumi have been roped into doing this by Alpha and Hifumi, who saw the fancy outfits after they came back from the battle with Asa. It’s all just an excuse for a get-together, however, as well as a way for the series to wrap up some plot threads ahead of the inevitable conclusion.

Taiyo and Kyoichiro’s conversation is probably the most interesting thing here, so let’s zoom in on that first and foremost. Given Kyoichiro’s hostile attitude towards Taiyo, it was somewhat unexpected that he would cultivate his True Spring Blooming to save his life, but Taiyo remarks that Kyoichiro has always been looking after him in his own special way: even during the very first chapter, Kyoichiro purposefully loosened his threads so that he could get back Mutsumi’s wedding ring and not destroy his fingers in the process. His pride won’t let him admit it, but Kyoichiro’s actions towards Taiyo speak loud and clear that he trusts him to make Mutsumi happy.

The whole reason why Taiyo and Kyoichiro end up having this heart to heart in the first place is because Mission: Yozakura Family chapter 256 opens with the problem of Taiyo having lost his wedding ring. He doesn’t feel comfortable doing the Cherry Blossom Vows Ceremony without it, so he goes around asking each and every member of the family if they’ve seen it. Of course, it turns out that Kyoichiro had stolen it for “cleaning,” but the journey to discovering that also includes various fun vignettes with several members of the extended Yozakura family. Seeing Ban again after all these years was a real treat.

Unpacking Mission: Yozakura Family chapter 256 for discussion is difficult because it features so many layers that make things very complicated and distract from its true purpose. Although this is nothing but set-up for an epilogue arc to finish off the series after over five years of serialization, it’s also a resolution to the long-standing Taiyo vs. Kyoichiro rivalry AND an opportunity to catch up with the rest of the cast now that the final battle is over. There’s even a follow-up explanation as to how the twins managed to play a pivotal role in the final battle, so don’t let anyone say that there’s no point in reading between the lines.

You can read Mission: Yozakura Family chapter 256 in English for free via VIZ Media’s Shonen Jump.