Renya Yagyu

Do you think he survived, as Jubei did, when the volcano began to erupt?

I can't really see why Jubei had so much antipathy towards him. I appreciate that he murdered that Hiruko child, but it was by no means deliberate. She charged in whilst they were duelling and he accidentally caught her with his blade. And just before that, Jubei tried to stop him for attacking the evil side of that Hiruko girl, even though the crazy woman was trying to kill everyone.

And it's clear to me that Renya Yagyu wasn't supposed to be portrayed as a character to oppose because of some of his behaviour. His mission is noble enough, it just clashes with Jubei's who is the protagonist. Also, he does have mercy. When he makes his first appearance, instead of killing the thief who tries to mug him, he just humiliates him instead and passes on by.

Also, I know that he is trying to murder Shigure who Jubei grows feelings for, but his intentions aren't selfish like the Kimon. He believes that the legacy of the Maiden of Light will just keep causing conflicts such as the one between the Hiruko and Kimon, and ultimately this greed will cause the ruin of mankind.

He and Jubei seem quite evenly matched, although Jubei does have his Wind slash technique which was majorly overused in the series I felt.

But do you think Renya survived? Perhaps Yoshiaki Kawajiri has plans to implement him into the elusive Ninja Scroll 2? Who knows?