The third episode of Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku saw the Vanguard Party's arrival on the mysterious island known as Shinsenkyō, further developing the emerging plot and character dynamics, as well as giving near indisputable proof of the existence of the series' MacGuffin, the Elixir of Life. With the motivation of a full pardon for their crimes, the criminals are each fully prepared to do whatever it takes to not only ensure their own survival, but the retrieval of the fabled elixir.
According to the predictions of Yamada Asaemon Kishō, attendant to the now-deceased Twisted Keiun, the number of criminals who are alive to even perform the search will be cut down dramatically within a few hours and by the day's end, the Shōgunate will have to send another group on the dangerous expedition. By the end of the third episode of Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku, Kishō's prediction seems to be coming true, and even briefly inspires Gabimaru to cast aside the rules and attack his own attendant, Sagiri. Survival on Shinsenkyō requires strength, and thus far in the narrative, strength is depicted as something that has high and varying prerequisites. So, what's the price of strength, according to Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku thus far?
Hollowfication
For the series protagonist and deuteragonist, their respective journeys regarding their understanding of the path to power are quite similar and because of this, Gabimaru and Sagiri begin to develop an understanding that reached a major milestone during their bout in episode 3. For the both of them, upbringing and environment have brought them to the conclusion that the only way to become strong in the ways that they need to be to achieve their goals or live up to an internalized expectation is to cast aside emotion. Gabimaru was taught from infancy that weakness comes from harbouring emotions like love – even when it is love between a parent and child. Such feelings are, according to the Chief of Iwagakure, antithetical to strength and ironically, those feelings make it impossible for one to protect the things that they hold dear in the first place. On top of this, Gabimaru's rigorous training saw countless fellow ninja lose their lives, meaning that the path to power is paved in blood – one's own, and that of one's contemporaries. Becoming the top ninja in the village took another step – the transformation of the human behind the mask into a killing machine devoid of empathy or feeling; however, Gabimaru's marriage to Yui rehydrated the husk that was Gabimaru's emotions.
Similarly, Sagiri was taught by her father, the former head of the Yamada Clan, that the best executioners are the ones who do not let any emotion taint their blade. Effectively, the best way for Sagiri to perform the work that she had been brought up around was to assume a level of stoicism when it came to the job, and this is especially pronounced in her interactions with Gabimaru in the first episode of Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku. For Sagiri; however, this desire to be devoid of emotion is also partly inspired by the constant invocation of her womanhood as a barrier to greatness. In the second episode, Sagiri's senior in the Yamada Clan, Yamada Asaemon Eizen, shares a sentiment that she did with Gabimaru in the first episode – that the truth is reflected in the blade. Eizen tells Sagiri that the biggest flaw of her swordsmanship is the fear that invariably seeps into her blade when it is time to swing. Sagiri's father told her when she was younger that the mark of a good executioner is being able to perform a painless decapitation, and when she saw his handiwork for herself, the idea was etched into her mind.
Treachery
Gabimaru's reputation as a ruthless killer and his general demeanour are confusing to Sagiri, who can't quite figure him out and pendulums between recognizing him as another human being, or as the treacherous monster that earned the moniker, "The Hollow". Having watched him rip out the throats of his opponents with his teeth and lay waste to countless people in dramatically violent ways, Sagiri could only really understand his usual self as part of a deception. Gabimaru himself pendulums between emotionless killer and somewhat emotive lover-boy, which makes it even more confusing for Sagiri to pin him down. After Gabimaru's swift defeat of Keiun, Kisho's observations of the behaviours of the various criminals show that another path to the strength required to survive, which is somewhat related to the deadening of one's emotions, is the development of a Machiavellian mindset.
Plotting, scheming, lying and manipulating are all part of the game, and to gain the upper hand, Kishō recounts what he saw on the way to the island – various criminals forming alliances, or killing each other before even arriving to cut down the competition before the expedition even begins. Each criminal has their own specialty and of course, their own laundry list of crimes; however, it is those who aren't so confident in their aptitude for violence who have tried to seduce, trick or connive their way into an advantageous position. For those forming alliances, the risk of betrayal is worth it – as the old adage goes, "two heads are better than one"; however, since only one person can go home, all of these alliances are formed with the ultimate goal of betrayal in mind.
Courage
After Kisho shares his thoughts on how quickly the situation will change across the island, Gabimaru attacks in an attempt to get a headstart like the other criminals and do away with his biggest restraint: Yamada Asaemon Sagiri. However, throughout their bout, neither of them can bring themselves to land the killing blow. At some point in the bout, Gabimaru gains the upper hand after steeling his resolve the way he usually does before killing people, but even after breaking Sagiri's blade and pinning her to the ground, Gabimaru cries because he can't bring himself to do it. If he can't kill Sagiri, then he can't count on himself to have what it takes to get back home and see Yui, which drives him to tears. However, Sagiri's empathy does the work of a thousand therapists as she is able to see through his "Hollow" facade and understand his true feelings.
Recognizing that her understanding of Gabimaru's feelings allowed Sagiri to get in touch with her own, the samurai shares a beautiful piece of wisdom: Gabimaru's emotions are not the evidence of his weakness, but rather, the courage to honestly experience them is "the seed of strength". Ultimately, their changed understanding of an aspect of their being that they believed was their greatest hindrance to something that can also become strength, is the biggest advancement in both of their characters thus far, and their arrival at a different answer enables them to forgo the hefty price of strength almost entirely.