TomoKazu

TomoKazu is the slash ship between Kaedehara Kazuha and his friend from the Genshin Impact fandom.

Canon
Kazuha and Tomo were good friends and it was implied they were close travelling companions. Kazuha explained to the Traveler that Kazuha's friend one day asked about a sword art of which he had heard, the Musou no Hitotachi. Kazuha told his friend that it could only be witnessed when "divine punishment" is administered and that it was the pinnacle of the Raiden Shogun's skill, a symbol of ultimate power. Kazuha's friend replied that there must be someone who could withstand it and that there will always be those who dare to brave the lightning's glow.

When the Vision Hunt Decree arrived, Kazuha had to flee from place to place. While fleeing, he had heard that his friend had challenged the Vision Hunters to a duel before the throne. Kazuha's friend dueled with Kujou Sara, who had accepted the duel on Baal's behalf, in Tenshukaku. The defeated would be face punishment from the Raiden Shogun. When Kazuha arrived, the duel was over and he had seen his friend had lost. Kazuha ran away with his friend's dying vision in his hand, which possibly could have burned his right hand. He didn't regret coming out of hiding for his friend or begrudge his friend for leaving.

Kazuha couldn't remember what expression was on his friend's face during his friend's last moments alive. Kazuha would remain silent when any of the Crux's sailors spoke to him, likely because he was mourning his friend's death. While Kazuha eventually started talking to the sailors, he still thought of the death of his friend. Kazuha made the grand prize of the Crux Clash his friend's Masterless Vision. After it was stolen, Kazuha thought of a plan to have the thief reawaken the vision, which didn't work. The Traveler also could not rekindle the vision upon Kazuha's request.

Quotes
"In his last moments, what expression was on his face?"

- Kazuha about his friend's death

"All I knew was that I mustn't let his hope which burned so brightly become buried among the ice-cold statue of a god."

- Kazuha explaining his thoughts after running off with his friend's vision

Fanon
TomoKazu isn't very popular in its fandom since there isn't much known about Kazuha's friend. Another reason is because most fans would rather ship Kazuha with Scaramouche or Beidou. Some would also argue that Kazuha's friend is dead, so it would be impossible for the ship to be canon. Despite these reasons, there are a decent amount of works on AO3 for a ship that's unpopular. Many TomoKazu shippers started shipping it after seeing the story teaser "The Solitary Pursuit of Lightning" or the cutscene in the archon quest "Follow the Wind."

Kazuha's friend's name has not yet been revealed. Because of this, fans use the name "Tomo" for Kazuha's friend, which is short for tomodachi, meaning friend in Japanese.

Fandom
FAN FICTION