< Fist of the North Star

Fist of the North Star/Characters


Here we have the cast of the 80s Manga and Anime classic, Fist of the North Star.

From the first series

Kenshiro

The 64th successor of Hokuto Shinken,[1] a deadly martial art that has been passed from one master to a single student for over 1,800 years. Kenshiro was adopted by Ryuken as the youngest of four sons alongside Raoh, Toki, and Jagi, all whom vied for the Hokuto Shinken succession. After being named as the rightful successor, he wished to settle down with his fiancee Yuria, but his rival Shin abducts Yuria and defeats Ken in combat, engraving the seven scars on his chest that form the Big Dipper. This sparks Ken's quest to become the Savior of Century's End.

  • And Knowing Is Half the Battle - During the Animated Adaptation of the Raoh arc, Executive Meddling and Moral Guardians forced Toei Animation to put Kenshiro into contrived situations where he spares the lives of kids who are about to go down the wrong path, and deliver heavy-handed life lessons ("You may steal to stay alive, but keep doing it and you'll grow to like it, and become real villains" IE "then I will REALLY kill you") with the subtlety of a brick. Thankfully, this is not done to the detriment of the plot and the story's thematic soul, unlike the post-Shura storyline of the manga, left un-animated.
  • Badass- Easily considered one of the best examples of this when it comes to shonen heroes.
  • Bash Brothers - With Rei.
  • Berserk Button - Don't abuse a kid in front of Kenshiro or let him find out you killed them. Just don't. Zeed, Spade, Diamond, The Godland Army, Jackal, The Kiba Clan, Jagi, Souther, etc. all learned this the hard and painful way.
    • It's also a VERY bad idea to abuse women in front of Kenshiro, see the Wife-Basher Basher entry below.
  • Big Ol' Eyebrows
  • Bruiser with a Soft Center - Yuria doesn't love Kenshiro for his hyper-masculinity, but rather for his gentle, sensitive and kind-hearted side.
  • Bullying a Dragon - Are the thugs and mooks really that dumb to try to taunt and torment this guy?
    • Most of those mooks are at least a head taller than him and are usually armed. Now, the ones who attack him AFTER seeing their pals explode are either not very smart or have BOSSES who will kill them if they run; either way the poor bastards just don't have it easy.
  • Cain and Abel - the Abel to Jagi's Cain.
  • Catch Phrase - Omae wa mō shinderu ("You're already dead"). There's the Omae wa sude ni shindeiru variation, which means the same thing, but it's nowhere near as prevalent.
  • Charles Atlas Superpower - He had to work his entire life to become what he is in the show. In contrast, Toki may have had more 'raw' talent, but his illness reduced him too much for him to be successor.
  • Cool Horse - Kokuoh-Go, after Raoh's death
  • Deadpan Snarker - He may be a pretty serious guy, but he does get a few lines in when killing mooks.
  • Death Glare - If Ken gives you one of these prepare to shout "Hidebu" on the top of your lungs.
  • Earn Your Happy Ending: In Ken's Rage, Yuria was Spared By Adaptation (read more in her entry below), in the game's continuity Yuria never contracted radiation poisoning and Raoh achieved the Musou Tensei for other reasons, so Ken gets to live happily ever after with Yuria in the end. This change is quite strange since it happens in its main (Legend) story mode, all of the other characters who get their respective happy endings get pushed in the Dream Mode territory, it also make Kenshiro's own Dream scenario worthless, he dreams of defeating Raoh and living together with Yuria once again, while the same happens in the main storyline, albeit in the Dream Mode it was for different circumstances.
  • Easily Forgiven - One of the flaws that Kenshiro gets called upon by fans is the ease and frequency with which he applies this trope towards the most vile and undeserving villains in their final moments, whilst butchering armies of Mooks without a second's hesitation.
    • The worst case is Kaioh—at least with his other opponents he'd defeated them first!
    • It generally depends on the Freudian Excuse the villain had. Shin did everything out of his love for Yuria (and was prodded heavily by Jagi, although Kenshiro didn't know that at the time), and Souther did everything out of devotion to his fallen master (however misguided). Jagi, on the other hand, has no such excuses, and as a result is given one of the most agonizing deaths that Kenshiro ever dishes out.
  • Even the Guys Want Him - Occasionally played around with the likes of Mr. Heart.
  • Emotional Bruiser - "And so you see, boys and girls, it IS manly to be sensitive and kind."
  • Expy - of Bruce Lee and Mad Max, played by Mel Gibson.
  • Flanderization - The three-episode New Fist of the North Star OVA series didn't really try to make Kenshiro appear soft and gentle, or a genuine protector of the innocent, making him look like a cold-blooded killer. However, while Kenshiro is a lot harsher and colder in the OVA, the characters were also a lot less sympathetic, and any character he actually felt sympathy for forced him to kill him in one way or another anyway. In fact, none of the villains are sympathetic in the OVA. Furthermore, the smaller amount of characters and the length of the OVA reducing his time spent not killing villains and showing his gentle nature outside of battle much.
  • Four Is Death - Kenshiro's Catch Phrase and Meaningful Name.
  • Glowing Eyes of Doom - Red, and seriously evil looking.
  • Hitman with a Heart
  • Honor Before Reason
  • Incorruptible Pure Pureness - Not only will Kenshiro never back down from doing the right thing, offering him rewards for doing so is to get on the wrong side of a one-sided ass-beating.
  • Identical Grandson - To one Professor Kasumi Kenshiro, 62nd Successor of Hokuto Shinken and dean of literature at Tokyo's University for Proper Young Ladies in 1935. The final few story arcs of Fist of the Blue Sky leaves the possibility open that Kenshiro is actually a reincarnation of Professor Kasumi.
  • Kamehame Hadoken: "Hokuto Shinken Ougi: Tenha Kassatsu!!"
    • In the manga against Baran, a Hokuto Shinken "imitator" who'd been strongly influenced by Raoh: "HOKUTO GOU SHOU HA!!"
  • Ki Attacks: He can use his "fighting ki" to attack an opponents pressure points at a distance... though, the only time he's ever done this has been Tenha Kassatsu against Souther.
  • Kung Fu Jesus - The prequel film Legend of Kenshiro makes explicit allusions to Kenshiro being this trope; right down to his resurrection from being literally crucified by a tyrant, and multiple references to God (Kami-sama) instead of Heaven (Ten).
    • His title is the "Savior of Century's End"[2] for a reason.
  • Lightning Bruiser - While he may not be the most agile fighter in the show, he's far from slow.
    • Also applicable to his Hokuto Musou incarnation; while the Nanto fighters tend to be faster, he's the fastest of the Hokuto brothers and relies on this. ABUSE the dodge cancel or jump cancel for invincibility frames ahoy! And that's not even including Musou Tensei... which in-game gives him fifteen seconds of invincibility frames.
  • Lolicon - Averted. Although Lin has a crush on him, he sees her as a little sister.
  • Manly Tears - All the time. Notable in that at no point does he attempt to hide said tears.
  • Made of Iron - Oh boy...
  • Meaningful Name - In the Hokuto no Ken pilot illustrated by Tetsuo Hara before working with Buronson, Kenshiro's name was written in kanji characters that literally meant the "Fourth Son of the Fist".[3]
  • Mega Manning - Kenshiro is able to learn an opponent's techniques just from fighting or observing them. (When fighting Shu he claimed that this itself was a Hokuto Shinken technique.) Probably the two most notable examples are how Kenshiro defeated Souther the second time around (he found out that Souther's pressure points were actually on the opposite side from the normal locations), and when Kenshiro confronts Raoh in the Nanto capital, he ends up using both Toki's stance and one of Rei's attacks, after which Rihaku (and in the anime, Raoh) see the spirits of the most notable fighters that Kenshiro has fought and learned from.
    • More explicitly evoked by a blinded Kenshiro in the anime when several of Raoh's biker troops tried to stop him from reaching the Nanto capital first—the troops deliberately rev up their engines in hopes that it would drown out the sound of their attack, so Kenshiro drew his experience with Shuu to defeat them.
  • "Real" Men Don't Cry - Oh the HELL they don't!!
  • The Messiah - Albeit a rather violent, unforgiving one.
  • Names to Know in Anime: Some
  • Nice Guy
  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Failing to put Jagi out of his misery when he had the chance not only ruined his own life, as well as Yuria, Shin, Rei and Airi, but threw away the lives of countless innocents in the process. Thankfully, Ken learnt his lesson.
  • One-Man Army - Oh is he ever...
  • Papa Wolf - You'll be even more dead if you mess with innocent children.
  • Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner: Very frequently.
  • Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs - The Hokuto Hyakuretsuken,[4] delivered with his trademark "ATATATATATATATATATATATATATA!" Kiai.
  • Shipper on Deck - Believes Lin should love Bat, not him, and he gets them together at the end of the manga.
  • Sleeves Are for Wimps - Curiously, the first time he was ever defeated, he was wearing a leather jacket with sleeves.
  • The Stoic: Some of the time. Other times...
  • Tender Tears - Being a merciless death machine on two legs notwithstanding, Kenshiro is still one of the most sensitive and kind-hearted men of 1980s manga. He may actually cry these more than Manly Tears, if you can believe it.
  • Think Nothing of It - Helping innocent people to him is not even a duty, but simply the right thing for a man to do.
  • Touch of Death - In increasingly elaborate forms. It's sort of his thing.
  • Tragic Hero - Anyone tied to him via the bonds of family and friendship are doomed to a violent and tragic death; hence his refusal to ever settle down after Yuria's death.
  • Unexpected Successor - Kenshiro upset the odds when he became the 64th Hokuto Shinken successor.
  • Wife-Basher Basher - You think Ken's usual techniques are cruel? Then you ain't see what he does to those who dare hit women yet.... Whoa boy.
  • You Are Already Dead - Kenshiro's attacks have this general effect. The trope-naming Catch Phrase is delivered just before...
  • Your Head Asplode - One of the more common occurrences when Kenshiro uses a Hokuto Shinken move on his enemies, although he gets far more creative later on.

Bat

A young boy who decides to follow Kenshiro as his self-appointed sidekick and manager after witnessing Ken's battle with Zeed. At first, Bat seems to be nothing more than a spoiled brat who sees Ken as a tool for his own self-benefit. He gradually matures as he witnesses the hardships Kenshiro and his friends and rivals have to go through, as well as witnessing the death of his mother figure Toyo at the hands of Jackal. After Kenshiro leaves with Yuria, an older and wiser Bat becomes the second-in-command of the Hokuto Army.

  • Bratty Half-Pint - Before the Time Skip.
  • Cross-Dressing Voices - In the TV series, Bat was voiced by Mie Suzuki, a female voice actress, until he became an adult and was replaced by Keiichi Nanba, a male actor.
    • Averted in the Shin Kyuseishu Densetsu movies, where he is voiced by Daisuke Namikawa.
    • Also averted in the English dubs for the first Movie and TV series though as he was voiced by men namely Tony Oliver and Gary Michaels respectively.
  • Emotional Bruiser - When he grew up.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold - Whenever he isn't being a cocky little brat he does show his soft side more than once.
  • Joke Character - He once tried to be this when up against one of Amiba's Mooks, trying to punch one of the soldiers and tricking that soldier into thinking that he somehow performed a Hokuto Shinken move on him, deliberately invoking Kenshiro's own catchphrase and mannerisms. It worked—the frightened soldier froze in fear, leaving Bat to run off and leave the humiliated goon be.
  • Kid Sidekick - To Ken.
  • Large Ham - Is also a rather bit of a showoff, but to be fair, he's a pretty good harmonica player.
  • Meaningful Name - Named after the flying rodent of the same name, according to an interview with Buronson on the Japanese Raoh Den DVD.
  • Ship Tease - While it might be debatable in the first series it's definitely romantic in the later part of the manga.
  • Spell My Name with an "S" - In the Manga Entertainment dub, his name was changed from "Bat" to "Bart", likely a reference to another kid trickster.
  • Tender Tears - An adoptive big brother like Ken tends to even make the snarkiest Jerkass kid grow up to be just as sensitive and kind-hearted as a man.
  • Took a Level in Badass - Bat took one after the Time Skip, having grown up and become the leader of the Hokuto Army.

Kenshiro: "Bat, you've become a man!"

    • He even kills the very last villain of the manga.

Lin

A young mute girl who was traumatized after witnessing the deaths of her family at the hands of bandits. She befriends Kenshiro when he wanders into her village, who helps restore her voice by using one of her vital points. After being rescued from Zeed by Kenshiro, she follows him into the wasteland and becomes a loyal traveling companion. Years after Raoh's defeat, she forms the Hokuto Army with Bat as they fight off the now-corrupt Army of the Heavenly Emperor. She later finds out that she is the twin sister of the current Heavenly Empress, Lui, whom she was separated from when they were infants.

Shin

The first major adversary in the story, Shin is also the first of the Nanto Rokuseiken [5] masters to appear. Shin is the successor of the Nanto Koshūken [6] style and carries the fate of the Star of Martyrdom. Shin was secretly in love with Kenshiro's fiancee Yuria, but refused to do anything about it until Jagi convinced that Ken was too weak to protect her from the horrors of the post-war world. After defeating Ken in combat and engraving the seven scars on his chest, Shin took Yuria with him and amass his own army of loyal thugs, taking on the title of "King" and establishing the city of Southern Cross as his kingdom.

  • Air Jousting - Probably the most famous example of this trope is when he crosses aerial kicks with Kenshiro in their battle.
  • All There in the Manual - The name of his martial art style was unknown until it was revealed in the All About the Man guidebook, which established it to be Nanto Koshūken. Originally Shin's style was simply designated as Nanto Seiken, being its first practitioner introduced in the story, but once the name was established to be an umbrella term for the other Nanto styles introduced afterward, the name Nanto Koshūken was introduced as a Retronym.
  • Badass - Not only the first warrior to put up a decent fight against Kenshiro, but also the one who gave him the seven scars after a nasty beat-down.
  • Bad Boss - His introduction shows him executing mooks who had the audacity to survive a fight with Kenshiro by running away.
  • Better to Die Than Be Killed: "I refuse to die by your hand! Farewell!"
    • Hilariously made into a "Fatal KO" in the ASW fighting game... though it can be interrupted.
  • Big Bad: The Adaptation Expansion in the TV series turned him into this for the first story arc.
  • Blond Guys Are Evil
  • Char Clone
  • Death Equals Redemption
  • Despair Event Horizon - If Yuria's failed suicide attempt wasn't a big enough hint, she unconsciously whispers Kenshiro's name, finally breaking Shin's hope. He entrusts his love to the Five Chariot Stars shortly afterwards and resigns himself to fight Kenshiro to the death, sure that if Kenshiro wins, Yuria will be taken care of.
  • Emotional Bruiser
  • Even Evil Has Standards - Sure, he's a maniacal overlord who raids villages and enslaves people, but he's chivalrous to a fault and in the series extends mercy to a young servant who betrayed him.
  • Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: If Shin really knew and loved Yuria, he really shouldn't be surprised that she was Driven to Suicide by the cruelty and genocide committed in the name of earning her love.
    • In Hokuto Musou's Dream Mode, Shin is shown to literally not comprehend selflessness. However, he eventually does come to understand love, and this instigates a Heel Face Turn.
  • Evil Former Friend
  • Face Heel Turn
    • Heel Face Turn: The Dream Mode of Hokuto Musou is basically one to make Shin finally have a genuine Heel Face Turn by finally comphrehending about good and love rather than being a dickhead about it all along.
  • Fallen Hero
  • Finger-Poke of Doom: Shin can kill you just by poking his finger straight into your heart. Many of his other moves are jabbing motions intended to drive his hand straight into the enemy.
  • A God Am I
  • I Have You Now, My Pretty - Surprisingly averted. Shin intentions with Yuria was that she favor him over Kenshiro.
  • I Love You Because I Can't Control You: Shin loves Yuria because she is an emotionally strong-willed woman whom he sees as a challenge to make willingly fall in love with him.
  • I Want My Beloved to Be Happy - Subverted so hard by Jagi's influence.
  • Love Makes You Evil: His obsession with Yuria turned him to the dark side, with a little goading from Jagi.
  • Love Redeems: When he meets the Chariot Stars and learns that Raoh is coming to Southern Cross, he prefers to entrust Yuria to them instead of allowing Raoh, who's much more ruthless, to have her. He then tricks Kenshiro into thinking she's dead to keep her safe from Raoh, before dying in battle with his former friend.
  • Might Makes Right: Shin's personal mantra.
  • Murder the Hypotenuse
  • Names to Know in Anime: Some
  • One-Man Army: In Episode 21 of the TV series, where he thwarts General Barcom's mutiny alone.
  • Posthumous Character: In the manga, his character was fleshed out throughout postmortem flashbacks after his arc was over, particularly when it came to his position within the Nanto Rokuseiken; the revelation about Yuria's survival was one.
  • Rival Turned Evil
  • Smug Snake
  • Stalker with a Crush: After meeting Yuria, in the prequel spinoff Yuria Gaiden.
  • Starter Villain: He sets off as Kenshiro's old nemesis, but doesn't last beyond the first story arc.
  • Token Motivational Nemesis: In the manga, he is unceremoniously killed in the end of the tenth chapter, having served his purpose of giving Ken his scars, traumatizing him and taking Yuria away from him. Given somewhat better character development and treatment in the TV series' Adaptation Expansion, where he gets his own moment of glory when he thwarts a traitorous General and his entire Army by himself.
  • Tragic Villain
  • Yandere

Yuria

Kenshiro's fiancee, she grew up alongside Kenshiro and his brothers at Ryuken's temple. Several men developed romantic feelings for her (Raoh, Toki, Kenshiro, Juza, and Shin), but she loved only Kenshiro. After Kenshiro was named successor, she was captured by Shin and kept against her will in his lair within Southern Cross. Unable to tolerate the atrocities Shin was committing in her name, she attempted to take her own life until she was saved at the last minute by the Nanto Goshasei,[7] who revealed that Yuria is the Star of Motherly Compassion and destined to become the Last Warrior of Nanto.

  • Adaptation Dye Job - From black in the manga to red (or violet during the Southern Cross arc) in the Toei anime.
  • Driven to Suicide - In an attempt to stop Shin's madness. We later find she was saved at the last moment.
  • Dude Magnet - She really does nothing to cause this but men want her. No really. Men flock to her like moths to a flame.
  • Earn Your Happy Ending: As seen in Spared By Adaptation below, Yuria lives happily ever after with Kenshiro after Raoh's death in Hokuto Musou/Ken's Rage.
  • Emotionless Girl - For all of two pages, but hey.
  • The Heart - She's the only member of the Nanto Rokusei [8] who does not possess any actual martial art skills, but her kindness and compassion can move the hearts of even the most merciless of tyrants.
  • MacGuffin Girl - Kenshiro, Shin, Raoh and the Goshasei all fight to find or protect Yuria.
  • Posthumous Character - Yuria seems to become this at first after the Southern Cross arc, where she is mentioned a lot by other characters. Subverted in that she's not actually dead at all and then played straight after she dies for real.
  • Save the Princess - Kenshiro's objective in the first arc is to save her from his old rival Shin. Later, she gets kidnapped by Raoh to lure Kenshiro for their final battle.
  • Silk Hiding Steel - Such is the unconditional love and compassion of Yuria, the fiance of Kenshiro, that even the tyrant Raoh, whose fists could shatter Heaven and Earth itself is utterly helpless before her redemptive kindness.
  • Single Woman Seeks Good Man - For all the violent and cruel warlords wanting her as their consort, Yuria loves Kenshiro for his kind and caring nature.
  • Spared By Adaptation: In Ken's Rage, while the game follows the manga very closely, with only a few cuts then and there, a major point in Raoh's reason to achieve the Musou Tensei and consequently Yuria's fate was changed. Here he achieves it just for laying his hand against Yuria (not for sadness due Yuria's radiation poisoning and her impending death). In his last words he even says that Yuria will live for several more years (originally she lived just one year after Raoh's death), in fact, in the game, Yuria's radiation poisoning isn't mentioned at all.
  • Too Good for This Sinful Earth
  • You Gotta Have Blue Hair: Lavender/purple in the anime. Interestingly, it was a natural shade of red in the flashback where Shin kidnapped her. No explanation for her change in hair color is given. And then it turns gold during the Last Nanto General arc. Again, no explanation is given. In Hokuto Musou it's purple at all times.
  • Zettai Ryouki: Her outfit after she is revealed to be the Last General of Nanto.

Zeed

A giant mo-hawked ruffian with the characters "Z-666" tattooed on his head, Zeed is the leader of the Z-Gang, a biker gang that has raided numerous villages and delivery crew for their food and water supply. A man who does not have the word "mercy" in his vocabulary, he and his gang are notorious for killing even women and children. As the main villain of the manga's very first chapter, Zeed falls prey to Kenshiro's Hokuto Hyakuretsu Ken (Hundred Crack Fist) technique.

Spade

One of the four lieutenants in the KING organization and the first one encountered by Kenshiro, Spade is the weakest of the group, barely above the average punk in strength. Not really a martial artist, Spade uses a variety of weapons like a wrist-mounted crossbow, dual axes and a spear to fight.

Diamond

The second of the four KING lieutenants, Diamond is a bright, garishly-clad warrior skilled in Bojutsu. Very sadistic, his torture of the local villagers incites Ken to kill him.

  • Blood Knight
  • The Bully
  • Kick the Dog - Diamond forces a young girl to lift her father, who is being hanged from his neck.
    • The scene was too cruel to adapt for the anime, so in that version he forces a father to play the "William Tell" archery-game with his son balancing the targeted-can on his head.
  • Monster Clown - His face paint makes him resemble one in the manga.
  • No Celebrities Were Harmed - He bears a strong resemblance to the shock-rockers in the band known as KISS.
  • Simple Staff - Or rather a 4-inch-thick 8-foot-long post that can break two men in one swing.... meaning diddly squat against the 64th Successor of Hokuto Shinken.
  • Quirky Miniboss Squad - The diamond of Shin's playing-card henchmen, with the tattoo to match.

Club

The third of the four KING lieutentants, Club is a martial artist trained in the Praying Mantis style and enhances it with the addition of iron claws. Known for training in his style by butchering unwilling, helpless villages, Club is suprised when Kenshiro is more than a match for him.

Mr. Heart

The last of the four KING lieutenants, Heart is a large overweight fighter whose stomach is composed of a rubber-like substance capable of absorbing any external impact, earning it the nickname the "destroyer of martial arts". Ken faces Heart in the throne room of Southern Cross.

  • Acrofatic - In the anime, he jumps off a cliff by doing a somersault before fighting Ken.
  • Affably Evil - Subverted, at first he seemed to be the only nice guy in Shin's army as he scolds his own men for harassing a Bartender. Unfortunately he changed as soon as he noticed that he actually got his hand cut by a shard of broken glass in which that cut drew blood.
  • Ascended Extra - In the manga, he was a Giant Mook who lasted for only four chapters before he was killed (and only two episodes in the TV series). However he's a recurring character in various video games despite his fairly minor status (when it comes to Shin's card-theme named minions he is usually either given the most attention or the only one to get any attention). His popularity can be attributed to the fact that he is one of the first adversaries in the manga who proves to be more than a mere pushover against Ken.
    • There's a reason why he's called "Mr. Heart" (or "Heart-sama") and everyone else is just "Spade", "Diamond", and "Club".
    • He's even a playable character in Hokuto Musou via DLC, and he's unique in that he's a "Special" type character who doesn't use weapons. Instead, his body literally is rubber-like, as he can inflate his belly and hand. Also he can breath fire and fire a beam of ki from his mouth.
  • Berserk Button - The sight of his own blood, as explained below.
  • Fat Bastard
  • Giant Mook - A fairly well known example when it comes to the genre, though he becomes a bit more of a conventional example in the movie though.
  • Gonk
  • Kevlard: Practically the Trope Codifier.
  • Kung Fu-Proof Mook: due his Kevlard he's apparently immune to Kenshiro's pressur point strikes. At least until Kenshiro moves the fat and hits his pressure points once, that's it.
  • Macho Camp - One of the fairly uncommon confirmed cases of this in the whole shounen genre namely in the TV show, as just before he fought Kenshiro he was admiring Kenshiro's marvelous physique in a flirty tone of voice. (Though that doesn't seem to be the case in the movie though.)
  • Minor Injury Overreaction - Despite his enormous frame, a paper cut can send him into a wild frenzy.
  • Quirky Miniboss Squad - The last and most powerful of Shin's playing-card-themed henchmen.
  • "Wake-Up Call" Boss - The last and most powerful of Shin's Quirky Miniboss Squad, and the first villain to beat Kenshiro until he vomited blood onscreen, reminding us that even our hero is still human.
  • What Could Have Been: Mr. Heart was originally going to be renamed "Elephant" in the 1986 to go along with the animal-themed naming of Jackal and Fox (Jagi's other two underlings in the movie).

Colonel

The founder and leader of the Golan organization (God's Army in the anime), a military gang composed of religious zealots, the Colonel is a veteran warrior gifted with extra-sensory perception who also mastered the deadly Nanto Seiken art of Nanto Muonken,[9] which uses claws and boomerangs. The Colonel was once a patriotic member of the elite Red Beret special forces, until he lost his faith in his country when he was summoned to a meeting with the corrupt politicians and businessmen who actually controlled his nation. After his superiors inadvertently caused the nuclear holocaust, the Colonel and his Red Beret soldiers survived and they eventually founded the city of Godland, attributing their survival as a divine destiny. His army kidnaps young women in order to use them as breeding stock for his soldiers.

  • Colonel Badass
  • Demoted to Extra: In the TV series, he went from being the feared leader of his own organization to a deluded lackey of Shin who worships him as a god. He had it worse in the movie, where he was simply an informant who is killed by Shin without putting much of a fight.
  • Expy - Heidern and Rolento took notes from him.
  • Fallen Hero
  • Rummage Sale Reject - Averted. The Colonel holds the distinct honor of being the only character in the entire franchise (not counting Souten no Ken) to wear a complete and recognizable modern set of clothing that is not deshivelled, torn, missing sleeves or liberally mixed with Arabic/Medieval/Viking elements.
  • Social Darwinist: Believes that men who are unfit to join his army must be eliminated.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist -His reason for founding Godland was to prevent another nuclear holocaust from happening.

Jackal

A ruthless biker who roams the deserted wasteland with his gang in search of a new hideout. He possess no real martial art skills, but fights using concealed blades and dynamites, and is a bit more cunning than the average thug. He incurs Kenshiro's wrath after he kills Bat's adoptive mother, Toyo, although he manages to elude him for awhile, Ken eventually catches up to him. He eventually tricks "Devil's Rebirth" into fighting Kenshiro by tricking Devil into believing that they're long-lost brothers, but this eventually proves to be his ultimate undoing.

  • Animal Theme Naming: The members of his own gang (including himself) are all animal-based, although only two of his lackeys are named in the manga (Fox and Hawk).
  • Bad Boss - Gleefully betrays his employees long as it can be profitable to his wealth or health.
  • Badass Normal: Barring the anime, Jackal isn't a martial artist, but is a cut above most gang bosses due to his surprising cunning, his arsenal of weapons, and fighting like a complete cad.
  • Badass Longcoat
  • Blade Below the Shoulder: Hss two wristblades hidden in his gauntlets.
  • Dirty Coward
  • Demoted to Extra - Despite his role as a central villain in an entire story arc of the manga, he appears in the movie as an unfortunate lackey of Jagi whose head gets blown up by him just for taking a peek at his unmasked face. Even in the TV series, he's nothing more than an underling for Shin whose ass gets saved by Joker on one ocassion.
  • Genre Savvy - The reason why he never fights Kenshiro directly.

"If you want to live through old age, never pick fights with people stronger than you."

Devil's Rebirth

A giant killer who earned his nickname due to his monstrous appearance. He is a practitioner of the Rakan Niō Ken[10] style, which specializes in controlling wind. He was sentenced to 200 years of solitary confinement in Villainy Prison after killing over 700 people with his monstrous strength.

Rei

The second of the Nanto Rokuseiken, Rei is the successor of the Nanto Suichōken style,[11] who represents the Star of Justice. He wanders the wasteland looking for his kidnapped sister Airi, who was abducted by "The Man With The Seven Scars". He runs into Ken and Mamiya while they battle the Fang Clan, and eventually discovers that they are holding Airi hostage. After teaming up with Ken, he saves Airi and Ken reveals his seven scars to Rei. Rei laughs it off, saying that he's seen that Ken is far too kind of a person to do something like kidnapping. He later comes into conflict with Yuda over Mamiya's time as Yuda's slave.

  • Adaptation Dye Job: From black in the manga to light blue in the Toei anime. This caused some problems when it was time for him to be Locked Into Strangeness. The 1986 movie streamlined this by giving him white hair from the beginning.
  • Anti-Hero: A Type IV whilst searching for his kidnapped sister, before reverting back to a straight-up hero later on.
  • Badass: Rei is the only hero other than Kenshiro to take out a major villain in the original series.
  • Badass Long Hair
  • Bash Brothers: With Kenshiro.
  • Bishounen: So beautiful that he can be mistaken for a woman from a distance, if given a cloak.
    • When introduced, he's actually taking advantage of this to lure bandits into attempting to run him down... so that he can kill them and take their food for himself.
  • Courtly Love: The honorable and gentlemanly manner in which Rei expresses his love towards the Fiery Redhead; he never gets to kiss her before his tragic death.
  • Cruel and Unusual Death: Rei is the only protagonist in the entire series to die in the usual Hokuto-caused way: gorily and explosively. A discretion shot is used to not show him dying this way explicitly, almost as if the creators themselves wanted to spare him the indignity. This just drives home how utterly tragic his death is.
  • Death Glare
  • A Death in the Limelight
  • Dogged Nice Guy - to Mamiya.
  • Don't You Dare Pity Me!: A milder version: Rei forbids Mamiya from despairing over his death, instead asking her to live life fully from then on.
  • Dying Alone: To spare his friends the displeasure of seeing him die explosively, Rei locks himself in a house to die by himself. As if his death wasn't tragic enough...
  • Dying Moment of Awesome: Right after he dies, at the funeral (read: burning the damn building down) Mamiya stares into the heavens and realizes that she cannot see the Death Star anymore. Anyone who sees the star is doomed to die soon, NO EXCEPTIONS. Mamiya is the only character in the series spared this fate because Rei gave his life to save her.
  • Earn Your Happy Ending: His Hokuto Musou's Dream Mode is this in a nutshell. After avoiding his death by Raoh, Rei is forced to do a Face Heel Turn, serve the tyrannical Thouzer as Nanto Army's Token Good Teammate, witnessed the death of Shew who's helping him, fought against Kenshiro, all to save Airi and later Mamiya, then finally turns back against Thouzer once Mamiya inspired him enough to not serve Evil. The result is that Rei, Airi, Mamiya live Happily Ever After in Mamiya Village. Then Rei refused to take that chance and prefers to meet his fate against Raoh.
  • Emotional Bruiser: His first major Pet the Dog moment is when he warmly and kindly smiles at how the big brother of the siblings he gave chocolate to gave the bigger half to his baby sister. Aww...
  • Estrogen Brigade Bait: To the point where he was given a de facto hentai doujin-disguised-as-manga, Soukoku no Garou - Hokuto no Ken Rei Gaiden ("Bloody Wolf of Blue Darkness - Fist of the North Star Rei Side-Story").
  • Face Death with Dignity: Yes, yes, YES.
  • Famed in Story: If Kenshiro is about to instill an asskicking on someone and reminisces about following the path laid by those who came before him, Rei will ALWAYS be shown front and center, even over Toki.
  • A Good Way to Die
  • Good Eyes, Evil Eyes: When he first appears, his alignment as a potential hero or villain was pretty ambiguous, so he was drawn with rather shifty eyes. It isn't until his good guy credentials are established that he's drawn more consistently with big eyes.
  • Go Out with a Smile: Double subverted. After bidding his friends goodbye with a warm smile, Rei is stricken with a look of intense pain just before dying... but when Mamiya looks up to see the Omen Star of Death gone, she sees Rei's smiling face right next to the Big Dipper.
  • He's Back: When he loses it against Raoh's men who are brutalising Lin and other villagers, reclaiming his humanity and living up to his title of the Justice Star.
    • The anime added another moment - after the agony of having his Shinreidai triggered by Toki, Rei explodes out of his hospital room and takes out two thugs holding Mamiya hostage with one stroke each.
  • Honor Before Reason
  • I Fight for the Strongest Side: Used to live this way while searching for his sister.
  • Kung Fu Jesus
  • The Lancer: Kenshiro even calls him one of the greatest men he's ever known.
  • Late Arrival Spoiler: Raoh is one of the most well-known characters in the series, and it's impossible to mention anything he does without spoiling Rei's death.
  • Lightning Bruiser: THE fastest, most graceful fighter on the good guys' side.
  • Living on Borrowed Time: But you know what? He sure as hell makes those last days of his life COUNT.
  • Locked Into Strangeness: After having his Shinreidai power point touched by Toki to extend his life, the pain is so great that Rei's hair turns white.
  • Love Martyr
  • Meaningful Funeral: Rei may have died alone, but he did not die unloved. His place of death is surrounded by those who loved him, crying bitter tears at the loss of such a great man.
  • The Messiah
  • Names to Know in Anime: His original VA is Kaneto Shiozawa. After his death, Shinichiro Miki succeeded him in the movies, while Isshin Chiba provides Rei's voice in the fighting game. Then, in Hokuto Musou, apparently Takehito Koyasu is now voicing him.
  • One-Man Army
  • Real Men Wear Pink: Literally, with his pale pink protective cloth that make people believe the one coming to them is a woman.
  • Redemption Equals Death: Just as he rises to his destiny as the Star of Justice, he pulls a Senseless Sacrifice.
  • Sacrificial Lion: After forming a strong bond with Kenshiro and his True Companions, as well as receiving plenty of attention as a major character, Rei is the first one to fight against Raoh. It ends badly. The anime even uses his death to mark the end of the second story arc of the first series.
  • Senseless Sacrifice: As a show of gratitude to Kenshiro, Rei tries to take down Raoh to spare him. Raoh dooms Rei to a slow, painful, helpless death.
  • Sleeves Are for Wimps
  • Stay in the Kitchen: He did say that Mamiya shouldn't get involved in physical fights since she is a woman but it was more out of concern and noble chivalry (as well as budding feelings) than generic Jerkassery. Since she wouldn't listen, he decided to make his point more bluntly.
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Practitioner of Nanto Seiken? Kenshiro's best friend? Hopelessly in love with a woman he can't have? Sounds a lot like Shin in his younger days...
    • The relationship is inverted in this case. Whereas Shin was Ken's friend until he turned evil, Rei wasn't exactly on the best of terms with Ken when they first met. Interestingly, the reason why both were after Ken (or in Rei's case, the man with seven scars) was because of Jagi.
  • Taking You with Me: Dankou Sousaiken is meant to be this... except Raoh counters it point blank so he avoids getting to die with Rei.
  • Tender Tears: He sheds these for the suffering of Mamiya, the one true love of his life.
  • Tragic Hero
  • Token Good Teammate: In the Dream Mode of Hokuto Musou he becomes this for the Nanto side when Souther/Thouzer took hostage of Airi. Shew also counts, but Rei's the more visible example. Well, that and Shew isn't a playable character.
  • White-Haired Pretty Boy: When he's Locked Into Strangeness.
  • Wife-Basher Basher: "I think we're both here for the same reason... we are both weak to the tears of a woman."

Mamiya

A female resistance leader whose village is being assaulted by the Fang Clan. Her brother Ko is murdered by them and she vows revenge. After she helps Ken and Rei rescue Rei's sister Airi from the Fang Clan, Rei falls in love with her. Yuda, unfortunately, finds her whereabouts, coming to collect her, as she was one of his concubines before becoming leader of the village.

  • Action Girl: Though still prone to getting captured, Mamiya is still one of the more heroic and competent women of 1980's shonen.
  • Badass in Distress: Several times.
  • Combat Stilettos: Wandering the rocky wastelands and scaling cliffs in heels about six inches high.
  • Commuting on a Bus: After Rei's death.
  • Dark and Troubled Past: Once kidnapped by Yuda, who made her his concubine and also killed her parents for no reason. As such, Mamiya has abandoned her femininity.
  • Defeat by Modesty: Rei, who was beginning to feel for her, symbolically defeated her by ripping off her clothes to expose her body and prove that, no matter how much she denied it, she was still a woman and that she had no business on the battlefield.
  • Fiery Redhead
  • Hot Amazon: Subverted. Rei finds her very attractive and respects her courage and strength, but he would still rather have her stay on the sidelines, if only because he's not comfortable with the idea of her getting hurt.
  • Hotter and Sexier: In the Hokuto Muso game where there are a lot of Fan Service shots of her.
  • Killer Yoyo: Looks real Badass when using them!
  • Plucky Girl
  • Rape as Drama: It is strongly implied that this is what caused her to become so cold-hearted after escaping from Yuda's harem.
    • Rape and Revenge: Because of this, she chose to fight rather than being helpless again.
  • Stripperiffic: Notably averted. She dresses in realistic combat clothes. Lampshaded by Rei before he gives her a Stay in the Kitchen speech.
  • Team Mom: If Ken and Rei are the fists of the team, she is easily the heart.
  • Weapon of Choice: Apart from her bladed yoyos, combat needles and a crossbow.
  • Xenafication: While Mamiya was pretty badass compared to most of the other women in the original manga, her skills are greatly exaggerated in both the Arc Systems Work fighting game and in Hokuto Musou, to the point that she can fight on the same level as the Hokuto Shinken and Nanto Seiken successors.
  • Zettai Ryouki: One of Mamiya's outfits in the manga has her wearing a miniskirt and thigh-high boots with high heels.

Kiba Daioh/Boss Fang

Kiba Daioh (the Great Fang King) is the leader and patriarch of the Kiba Ichizoku (Fang Clan), a tribe of mountain bandits whose members are garbed in wolf fur. Kiba Daioh is a giant man who has mastered the art of Kazan Kakuteigi (the Mt. Hua Horn Wrestling), an ancient martial art said to be the root of modern Sumo wrestling. He has the ability to to turn his flesh into steel.

  • Big Badass Wolf - His entire clan's thematic motiff is that of wolf-skin clad Mongolian Warriors.
  • Hey, It's That Voice!: Holy shit. Uncle Phil, is that you in the movie?
  • Made of Iron - Literally, when he uses a technique that looks suspiciously familliar. Though it can be dispelled by hitting certain pressure points.
  • Moral Myopia - He mourns the deaths of his sons and begins seeking retribution, despite the fact that his clan is just as guilty of many atrocities.
  • Papa Wolf - Played straight and then subverted with delightful viciousness at the last minute.

Random Son: "I thought you loved us Papa!! We're of the same blood right?"
Kiba Daioh: "Oh shut it!! As long as I'm alive I can conceive as many bastards like you as I want!! Now stall them (Kenshiro and Rei) so I can escape!!"

Airi

Jagi

The third of the four Hokuto Shinken brothers, and one of the top contenders of being the most ruthless, sadistic character in the series (competed with Souther). He is outraged that Kenshiro received the succession and attempts to kill him, but Kenshiro easily beats him and disfigures his face in the process. Now forced to wear an iron mask to hide his ugly face, he swears revenge and convinces Shin to kidnap Yuria as a slight against Kenshiro. He also gives himself seven scars and calls himself Kenshiro to tarnish his brother's reputation, killing anyone he doesn't fancy. He also fights dirty, using weapons in battles meant to be fought hand-to-hand.

  • Accidental Hero - In his Dream Mode in Ken's Rage, this is what the entire plot is all about. He and Amiba show up at a village to raid it, only to arrive a fraction of a minute after the Fang Clan and Zeed arrive, joining the villagers' favor over to their side simply by showing up and killing them. Then they manage to run into Souther's army while pursuing Zeed and the Fang Clan, eventually managing to defeat the entire Nanto army as a result, and actually earning recognizion as a Hokuto Shinken user from both Kenshiro and Toki in the process. And then when they finally decide that enough is enough and decide to take revenge on Kenshiro and Toki once and for all, it is later revealed that they actually defeated another set of impersonators, boosting their reputations even more while actually believing they had enacted their revenge.
  • Adaptation Dye Job - From black hair to blond in the Toei anime.
  • Anticlimax Boss - When Kenshiro decides to defeat Jagi, he leaves Bat and Lin in Mamiya's village, because he feels there is a chance of defeat this time. Then he actually fights Jagi and finds out there's nothing to be afraid of, but a lot to be angry about.
  • Ax Crazy - And how!
  • Bad Boss - It's a miracle Jagi even HAS henchmen, considering his complete willingness to slaughter them on a whim.
  • Berserk Button - Call him by his name instead of Kenshiro's while he's dirtying Kenshiro's name? You're dead. Anything involving a "little brother"? You're dead. Reel in terror at his disfigured face? You're really really REALLY dead.
  • Black Sheep - Jagi is a disgrace to Hokuto Shinken AND a disgrace as a human being. It's no coincidence that the "Hokuto brothers" means Raoh, Toki, and Kenshiro; even in Hokuto Musou, Jagi is considered "Unique" type instead. (Ironically that puts him in the same category as Mamiya, both being weapons-based characters.)
  • The Brute
  • Cain and Abel - Jagi doesn't like Kenshiro very much.
  • Calling the Old Man Out - Happens twice with Ryuken during the Jagi Gaiden manga, and both times it is a defining moment in Jagi's life. First, Jagi calls him out for not teaching him Hokuto Shinken (which Ryuken did not want to do because he loved Jagi as his adopted son and wanted to spare him the tragedy that befalls practitioners of Hokuto Shinken). Eventually, Ryuken relents. This is a bad idea. The second time is after the bombs have fallen and Jagi's lost his girlfriend. He threatens Ryuken and calls him a fool. Kenshiro does not approve, and the rest is history.
  • Combat Pragmatist - Jagi makes using underhanded tactics into an art form. He spits needles while charging, uses a gun, and picked up a pillar to use against Kenshiro. The arguably ultimate example of this is where he makes a hole in a oil tanker, jumps on said tanker, and sets the oil on fire while Kenshiro is down on the ground. It didn't work, but it's such a great example that it was made into Jagi's Fatal KO in the Arc System Works fighting game.
  • A Day in the Limelight - To fans' surprise, Jagi is actually one of the main protagonists in Hokuto Musou. While pretty much every major character in the series is playable, the ones with protagonic roles(i.e. the brunt of the Story Mode) are Kenshiro, Rei, Mamiya, Toki, Raoh and Jagi.
  • Despair Event Horizon - He clearly was close to losing all sense of hope completely when the bombs dropped, but he truly crosses it shortly after the death of his girlfriend Anna after being raped at the hands of a gang. Combined with the news of Kenshiro's succession shortly after, this is what drove him to flat-out monsterdom.
  • Dirty Coward - Has the ignonimity of being the only Hokuto practitioner to beg and grovel for his life in the tradition's entire 2000 year history.
  • Evil Chancellor - He serves this role temporarily to Shin, kicking off the series. One of his many, many moments of pure unadulterated assholeness.
  • Face Death with Dignity - One of the few villains to NOT do this.
  • Fate Worse Than Death - Despite being spared by Kenshiro in their first fight, Jagi had to use metal implants to stop his head from erupting, causing him excruciating pain and fuelling the revenge against his little brother.
  • For Want of a Nail - So much could have gone better had his minions in Jagi Gaiden not gotten to him in time to give him the bad news about Kenshiro's succession...
  • Freudian Excuse - The Gokuaku no Hana manga does reveal many of the reasons he grew up the way he did.
  • Give Him a Normal Life - Jagi was Ryuken's adopted son, an orphaned child whom Ryuken rescued from certain death. As such, Ryuken refused to teach Hokuto Shinken to Jagi, since not only could he not show favoritism, he also wanted to spare Jagi the tragic fate that follows practitioners of Hokuto Shinken.
  • Gonk - In the Yuria Den OVA, child Jagi resembled a psychotic gremlin.
  • Guns Akimbo: Two Sawn Off Shotgun(s) in "Hokuto Musou".
  • Hypocritical Humor - Both from Jagi Gaiden:
    • One time mocking a defeated Kenshiro during training: "Only those who can overcome their feelings of anger and hatred can learn Hokuto Shinken!"
    • And of course, his sheer drive over "the younger brother exceeding the elder," when Jagi's own ambition growing up was to exceed both Toki and Raoh.
  • I Have No Son - Subverted AND played straight. In Jagi Gaiden, Ryuken refuses to let Jagi call him father when he decides to teach him Hokuto Shinken, as their relationship has changed from father/son to master/pupil, but it's not really disowning him so much as establishing the change in their relationship. However, Ryuken does later shun Jagi after he becomes more ruthless and underhanded.
  • Kick the Dog - Yuria Den shows a young Jagi attempting to kill Yuria's puppy for no apparent reason.
  • Morality Pet - His girlfriend Anna was one of the few people he could purely open up to. He didn't take her death very well.
  • Meaningful Name - His name comes from the word "Jaki", which means evil spirit.
  • My Greatest Failure - His failure to protect his girlfriend is something he mourns even in his dying moment.
  • Nightmare Face - Crikey!
  • Parental Favoritism - Completely subverted: Jagi thinks Ryuken will not teach him Hokuto Shinken because he prefers Raoh, Toki and Kenshiro over him. The complete opposite is true: Jagi is the favoured one, since Ryuken sees him as a son, not a pupil.
  • Ryuken's three talented students...and Jagi - After Jagi's death, he is never mentioned again for the remainder of the manga and whenever Ryuken's students are mentioned, they usually refer to them as the "three Hokuto brothers", leaving Jagi unaccounted. This can be justified at first, since Jagi has already played out his role in the story after his end, but even when Toki (and later Raoh) dies, the series continues to act as if only Raoh, Toki, and Kenshiro mattered (especially considering Jagi had no role in the Shura story arc).
  • Say My Name - His catchphrase.
    • Inverted in chapter 43 of the manga by of all people, Kenshiro himself. "Jagi... say my name!"
  • Sibling Rivalry - Most prominently with Raoh, since Toki and Kenshiro actually cared for Jagi and tried to not be competitive, but eventually Raoh overshadowed Jagi WAY too much for the rivalry to be sustained. However, when his rivalry with Kenshiro blossomed, it became the driving force in Jagi's life.
  • Sibling Yin-Yang - Jagi is Kenshiro's absolute polar opposite: evil, sadistic, underhanded, manic, sociopathic and completely lacking in empathy.
  • Sleeves Are for Wimps
  • Spell My Name with an "S" - In all of the Italian adaptation of the series, manga, anime and OAV, his name is always spelt "Jagger".
  • Start of Darkness - The Gokuaku no Hana spinoff series is all about this, which gives Jagi a Belated Backstory in an attempt to make him into a Sympathetic Murderer.
  • This Is for Emphasis, Bitch - He really likes to combine this with his Catch Phrase in Ken's Rage.
  • Token Evil Teammate - In the Dream Mode of Hokuto Musou he becomes this for the Hokuto side.
  • The Unfavorite - Jagi feels this way because of not being taught Hokuto Shinken.
  • Unreliable Narrator: Though Jagi Gaiden is commendable in not making everyone else in Jagi's life a Jerkass (like most Sympathetic Murderer retellings unfortunately do) while still making him a genuinely sympathetic victim, unless the manga itself is endorsed as canon by Buronson and Hara, it can only be at best viewed as the warped and deeply biased flashbacks of an already mentally-disturbed individual; further twisted out of context by an exploding brain in the final moments of his life.
  • Used to Be a Sweet Kid
  • Villain Team-Up: With Amiba in Hokuto Musou.
  • "Well Done, Son" Guy - One of the reasons Jagi wants to learn Hokuto Shinken is that he desperately wants Ryuken's approval, failing to realize that Ryuken does not want to teach Jagi Hokuto Shinken because he loves him, and that there was no need to seek his approval at all.
    • Subverted upon Kenshiro's succession (when Jagi found out) and when he's dying—Jagi came to hate Ryuken, but never could completely turn himself away from Hokuto Shinken.

Amiba

A Toki impersonator who attempted to tarnish his reputation by taking his identity (managing to change his face and reproduce the scar on Toki's back) and taking over the "Village of Miracles". A former student of Nanto Seiken, Amiba dropped out from the school and then attempted to imitate Toki's use of Hokuto Shinken as a healing art to steal his thunder. After Toki scolded him for misusing Hokuto Shinken on a patient, Amiba joined Ken-oh's Army and then began capturing villagers to experiment with them on his pressure point experiments in order to perfect his version of Hokuto Shinken.

  • Adaptation Dye Job: From black in the manga to white in the Toei anime, likely done to avoid the Continuity Snarl of Amiba being able trick Kenshiro when Toki's hair was whitened during the Nuclear War. His natural hair color though, is blond in the anime.
  • Ax Crazy
  • Disproportionate Retribution: Becoming a sadistic murderer in retaliation to being accidentally slapped in the face.
  • Easy Impersonation - Subverted somewhat. Amiba manages to disguise himself by literally rearranging his face so that he looks more like Toki and even goes as far as to reproduce the scar on Toki's back. The only real oversight is that Kenshiro later reveals that Toki's hair was whitened due to nuclear fallout, yet he is still tricked by Amiba's black hair. In the anime version, this was corrected by giving Amiba white hair.
    • In Hokuto Musou it's black hair, but Rei immediately calls him out (albiet not for this reason).
  • Evil Genius
    • Mad Scientist: Fits the mold without the look. Amiba taught himself a few Hokuto Shinken essentials as well as new ground simply via trial and error at the expense of quite a number of lives.
  • Good Eyes, Evil Eyes: His facial structure is exactly like Toki's, except for his eyes.
  • Minor Injury Overreaction
  • No Celebrities Were Harmed: Word of God says his appearance is modeled after Christopher Lambert.
  • Villain Team-Up: With Jagi in Hokuto Musou.

Uighur

The Warden of Cassandra Dungeon, a prison city where many of Raoh's enemies are locked-up, never to see the light of freedom again. A giant Mongolian warrior who wield really sharp and long Taizan (Taishan) style whips and a powerful shoulder tackle, Uighur preserved Cassandra's Legacy as an inescapable prison until he fought Ken. He is one of the few villains to give Kenshiro a good beating.

Raiga and Fūga

The twin gatekeepers of Cassandra. They are masters of the Nishin Fūraiken style, a martial art that can only be practiced by twin brothers with the same physique and mentality. They work for Uighur, who has their younger brother Mitsu held hostage.

Toki

The second of the Hokuto Shinken brothers, Toki uses Hokuto Shinken as a healing art, working out of his "Village of Miracles". He is also Raoh's blood brother, and the two of them trained under Ryuken after their home village was destroyed leaving the Land of Shura. Although he is as skilled as Raoh in Hokuto Shinken, he is dying of radiation poisoning and does not fight unless he is pressed to do so.

Raoh

Proclaiming himself 'Ken-oh' (the King of the Fist), the Conqueror of Century's End, Raoh is the Aloof Big Brother of Kenshiro and Toki. He leads his army to deliver order to the land with an iron fist. Despite being a cruel and ruthless tyrant, Raoh is shown to have compassion deep down in his heart and mourns for the fact that he has to kill his brothers to achieve his goals, but places his ambition above anything else. He later finds that Yuria is the last Nanto General and eventually admits his love for her and sorrow over her fate, which enables him to learn the ultimate Hokuto Shinken technique Musou Tensei. Later defeated by Kenshiro, he commends his brother and raises his fist, dying in a pillar of light with no regrets.

  • Adaptation Dye Job - From silver hair in the manga to black in the Toei anime.
  • Anti-Villain - For what its worth, he did make the world a better place.
  • Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence - His death could be interpreted as this, since not only did he not leave a body behind when he died, but also died without regrets, a sign of higher understanding of the human condition.
  • Aloof Big Brother
  • Ambition Is Evil
  • Badass
  • Badass Cape - So much so, he uses it to kill Rei.
  • Big Bad
  • Blond Guys Are Evil - Raoh originally had blond hair in the manga, but was given black hair in the early anime series and movie, although Raoh's earlier design for the movie (as seen in a pre-production teaser) depicted with blond hair. The Shin Kyuseishu Densetsu movies and the video games gave him platinum hair, and the Raoh Gaiden TV series reverted back to his blond hair.
  • Boring Invincible Hero - In his own spinoff Ten no Haoh.
  • Chinese People - As the later story arcs and the Prequel Souten no Ken reveals his nationality to be.
  • Cool Horse (Kokuoh-Go, "Black King," a black elephant-sized horse.)
  • Dark Messiah
  • Death Equals Redemption - And redeeming the world along with himself.
  • Death Glare - His default expression, whether he wants it or not. Has its own sound effect. Once forced a 400 kilo tiger to fear for its life.
  • Diabolus Ex Machina - You'd think he was the protagonist with all the lucky breaks he gets.
  • Died Standing Up
  • Dying Moment of Awesome
  • Easily Forgiven - Is revered with honour and love posthumously, despite murdering his own adoptive father, sentencing Rei to a slow and agonizing death and brutalizing anyone else who stood in his way.
  • Emotional Bruiser - Much as he tries to deny it, he has a heart just as sensitive and kind as his little brother Toki's.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: For all the blood he has shed to build his empire, Raoh does love and protect his citizens like a father, and does NOT tolerate senseless torture and brutality of helpless innocents who are (despite his issues) loyal to him; as his army of sadistic henchmen who thought he had "dissapeared" found out rather painfully... He has a practially chivalrous hatred towards those who beat, kill or rape women. See Wife-Basher Basher below.
    • In Raoh Den: Gekitou no Shou he justifies himself to the ghost of Ryuken by claiming that in effect, his unitary force is actually preventing them from being unleashed onto everyone else, and that he's planning to remove them when the time is right. Fortunately he's not kidding about that last part, but he'd felt that he couldn't tell anyone else.
    • Despite his ambition to conquer the world, he (like ironically Jagi in Jagi Gaiden) would never completely turn himself away from Hokuto Shinken. Raoh went to Kenshirou's second fight with Souther to watch Kenshirou die, but even he felt obligated to verbally retort when Souther started mocking Hokuto Shinken.
  • Face Heel Turn
  • Fallen Hero
  • Famous Last Words: "わがしょうがいにいっぺんのくいなし!!" ("Waga Shougai Ni Ippen No Kui NASHI!!"/"My Life Was One Lived Without A Single Regret!!")
  • Fighting Spirit: He can use his Battle Aura to attack an enemy without moving a muscle.
  • A God Am I: And intends to literally take down God himself in becoming one.
  • A Good Way to Die
  • Go Out with a Smile: ...and a defiant fist to Heaven itself!!
  • Graceful Loser: Broken-and-defeated by Kenshiro, Raoh holds the younger warrior's face for the first and final time like a big brother:

Raoh: Come, let me see the face of the man who has defeated Raoh... You are magnificent, my little brother.
Kenshiro: Big brother...

  • Hidden Heart of Gold - Very well hidden unless you earn his respect like Shuh, Shuren, Juza and Yuria did.
  • Horrible Judge of Character: For someone who wanted to restore peace and stability, Raoh sure picked some shifty generals.
    • Averted in Raoh Den - Gekitou no Sho, where he's actually entirely aware of his underlings' tendencies, but feels that he can't remove them... yet.
  • If I Can't Have You: Raoh vows to make Yuria his lover or kill her trying.
  • I Regret Nothing
  • Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: From the innocent wish of an idealistic boy was a sea of blood and tears shed:

Young Raoh: "I will return to the Land of Shura the Greatest Warrior under Heaven, to defend and protect everybody."

  • Kamehame Hadoken: HOKUTO GŌSHŌ HA
    • TENSHŌ HONRETSU
  • Kung Fu Jesus: He LITERALLY brings light and hope to the world by giving his remaining-life force to Heaven itself.
  • Large and In Charge - REALLY large. Only Fudoh and Devil's Rebirth are definitely larger. His imposing presence means he's somewhat rarely drawn larger than them anyways.
  • Lightning Bruiser
  • Love Redeems: And HOW!
  • Names to Know in Anime - His original VA is Kenji Utsumi, but for Hokuto Musou, he's voiced by Fumihiko Tachiki.
  • Necessarily Evil - Bringing peace to a wartorn planet with sheer brute force.
  • Nice Job Fixing It, Villain - If he hadn't taught Kenshiro kung fu while they were children, Kenshiro never would have become the successor.
  • Noble Demon
  • Punch The Heavens
  • One-Man Army
  • The Only One Allowed to Defeat You - He helps Kenshiro escape from Souther's men at one point, and has him bandaged up after the defeat by Souther for this very reason in Raoh Den - Jun Ai no Sho.
  • Posthumous Character - Became one in the story arcs following his death. It was easy to tell if a character was going to be important by whether or not Raoh was somehow involved in their back-story (see Falco, Jakoh, Akashachi, or any of the Hokuto Ryūken practitioners). Bonus points if the character was actually related to Raoh (like Raoh's brother Kaioh, or his son Ryu from the manga-only final chapters).
  • Rival Turned Evil
  • Serious Business - He had a real-life funeral arranged for him, although mainly done as a publicity stunt for the second Raoh Den movie.
  • Show the Forehead - a truly dedicated example. Not only is his hair particularly short-cropped, it's also slicked back. He wouldn't want anyone to miss out on the most imposing, serious forehead in the world.
  • Spotlight-Stealing Squad: After Toki's death, the series becomes more about Raoh than Kenshiro.
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute - Kenshiro's Rival Turned Evil who attempts to conquer the world and falls in love with Yuria before being defeated by Kenshiro in a tearking rematch. Are you sure we're not talking about Shin?
    • Even their aliases are similar (Shin = King, Raoh = Ken-oh = "The King of Fist").
  • Tender Tears: The only times where Raoh EVER cries is to show how soft-hearted and kind a person he is deep inside, rather than how macho he can be.
  • Tragic Villain
  • Unskilled but Strong: In the Raoh Gaiden OVA, he claims he doesn't need the kind of precise control that Toki is capable of, and that only strength matters in achieving victory.
  • Used to Be a Sweet Kid
  • Utopia Justifies the Means
  • Villain Protagonist: Raoh is arguably the protagonist of the series in the original saga's last storyline, as all the major battles feature him and revolve around his ambition and eventual redemption.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist
  • Wife-Basher Basher: Not only is Raoh one of the few tyrants in the post-war world to have never struck a woman, he himself despises those who do so. This is demonstarted in the manga wherein he literally SLAPS THE HEAD OFF A RAPIST who served in his army upon finding out the bastard has been up to his old tricks in his absence. This major Pet the Dog moment is unfortunately ruined in the animated adaptation, wherein the slapper is changed to Kenshiro.

Ryuken (Ramon Kasumi)

The 63rd successor of Hokuto Shin-Ken and the man who trained Kenshiro, Jagi, Toki, and Raoh. He eventually choose Ken over his other students to be his successor, but then Raoh challenged his decision by refusing to surrender the art. He almost defeated Raoh, but suffered a stroke before he could deliver the finishing blow, giving Raoh the perfect opportunity to finish him off. Whenever Kenshiro or one of his brothers faces an ordeal, they reflect back on Ryuken's teachings.

  • Badass Beard
  • Badass Grandpa
  • Bald of Awesome: As an old man.
  • Batman Gambit- The All About The Man guidebook reveals he knew Jagi was a scumbag and kept him around just so his successor would have someone evil to overcome.
  • Bratty Half-Pint - All the way back during World War Two Shanghai in Fist of the Blue Sky.
  • Doppelganger Spin - Uses one against Raoh. One that travels in a Big Dipper-shaped path no less!
  • Horrible Judge of Character - Subverted, Jagi believes Ryuken is this but actually he never intended Jagi to the successor in the first place and Jagi was infact a pawn to train the real succesor.
  • Jerkass - For the sake of producing a savior, Ryuken is willing to throw children down canyons to test their strength and un-adopt "sons" too weak (like Kim) to advance onto higher levels of training to fend for themselves. For a great warrior, Ryuken is truly lousy father material.
    • Subverted, if you believe Jagi Gaiden, which has a much more flattering view of his personality.
  • Lightning Bruiser
  • Meaningful Rename: His real name is revealed to be Ramon Kasumi in Fist of the Blue Sky. When he became the 63rd Hokuto Shinken successor, he changed his name to "Ryuken."
  • Posthumous Character
  • Old Master
  • Succession Crisis - With his older students turning to evil or falling to illness, Ryuken ultimately put faith in the younger and more naive Kenshiro.

Yuda

Yuda is the one of the Nanto Rokuseiken, representing the Star of Enchantment (also known as the Star of Deception). In the past, he trained alongside Rei in the ways of Nanto Seiken, but grew to resent him as Rei's Nanto Suichōken style was considered more elegant than his own Nanto Kōkakuken style.[12] He gathers his own army and uses them to gather concubines for himself, leaving them to his men when he considers them no longer beautiful. He had kidnapped Mamiya at one point, but she escaped and he eventually discovered her location, bringing himself into conflict with Rei.

Souther

The strongest of the Nanto Rokuseiken and the self-proclaimed "Holy Emperor", Souther is the Star of Leadership and the successor of the Nanto Hō-ōken style,[13] a style that can only have one successor. A ruthless tyrant who seeks to conquer the world like Raoh. Unlike Raoh, he does this not to promote stability in the wasteland, but merely to satisfy his own ego. He targets children for use as slave labour on his "Holy Emperor's Mausoleum", a massive pyramid that he intends to use as a everlasting symbol of his reign, which also doubles as a monument to honor his master that he had to kill to master his style. Of the armies opposing Raoh, his is by far the most formidable and he also claims to be immune to Hokuto Shinken.

  • 0% Approval Rating - In Hokuto Musou, Souther's own soldiers will periodically betray him because of how cruel he is. Shin even uses this to his advantage.
  • Animal Battle Aura: Gets one in the anime in the shape of a phoenix, befitting his Nanto Hō-ōken.
    • In Hokuto Musou, his Tensho Juji Ho'o literally becomes a phoenix, he can throw it at enemies as a hyper signature move.
  • Badass - The second fighter to hand Kenshiro's ass to him.
  • Bad Boss - "Fine, You may band the wounds on Shuh's legs: All it will cost you is your family's life! Go on, go right ahead!!"
  • Better to Die Than Be Killed - In the Shin Kyūseishu Densetsu version, Souther takes a leaf from Shin's book and kills himself instead of dying at Kenshiro's hand.
  • Blond Guys Are Evil - In both the manga and the anime adaptation: Unlike Raoh, the art directors decided to let him keep his original hair (and skin) color, making him the picture of an idealized "Aryan Superman" that Raoh was also meant to represent.
  • Blood Knight - So supremely confident in his invincibility that he welcomes with relish any attempt to take his life, just so he can prove the would-be assassin wrong.
  • Dark and Troubled Past - This explains it all.
  • Death Equals Redemption
  • Death Glare - His default expression.
  • Evil Laugh - For someone who claims to have no emotions left, he REALLY loves doing this.
  • Evil Sounds Deep - His villainous bass is impressive as is,[14] but his ability to project is what knocks him out of the park with this trope.
  • Face Heel Turn
  • Fallen Hero - Subverted. Despite showing all the signs of being a fine young man, and his master's every intention that he grow up to be a hero, Souther never did anything heroic after becoming the master of Nanto Hō-ōken.
  • Freak-Out - After accidentally killing his master.
  • Freudian Excuse - Having unintentionally killed his beloved adopted father, Souther became Ax Crazy.
  • Genre Savvy

Souther: (to a Mook) What's wrong? You're already dead, huh?

Mook: * sploodey-doodley*

Shuh

The successor of the Nanto Hakuroken style [15] and the Nanto Star of Benevolence. Before the nuclear holocaust, Shuh was once Souther's second-in-command and challenged a very young Kenshiro to a death match between their rival martial art schools. Shuh defeated Ken, but instead of taking his life as the rules ordered him to, Shuh forfeited his eyesight to Souther, sensing the untapped potential within Ken. Years later, he leads a resistance against Souther's army.

  • Badass Long Hair
  • Disability Superpower - He might be blind, but he can see with his heart.
  • Doting Parent - To all children.
  • Emotional Bruiser - Hard to believe this sweet and gentle man is a great warrior, isn't it?
  • A Father to His Men - And the children who have lost theirs to Souther's tyranny.
  • A Good Way to Die
  • Handicapped Badass: Being blind doesn't prevent him from kicking ass.
  • Heel Realisation - Which leads to him blinding himself to spare Kenshiro.
  • Heroic Sacrifice - Agonizingly marches to his death to spare the lives of one hundred hostages.
  • Honor Before Reason - See Papa Wolf.
  • Kung Fu Jesus - Literally bears a cross (of stone) to save his children from Souther... unto his death.
  • The Messiah - Possibly more-so than Toki.
    • How nice was he? His blood seeping out from under the stone that crushed him was viewed by Toki as Shu's posthumously crying for his murderer.
  • Messianic Archetype - See Kung Fu Jesus above.
  • Nice Guy - "Though my eyes have lost their light, the tears refuse to run dry."
  • One-Man Army
  • Papa Wolf - Arguably the greatest in the series next to the big guy Fudoh himself... his love for his children conflicted with his duty as a warrior; costing him a priceless opportunity to slay a completely defenceless Souther; then his dignity, and finally his life.
  • Spell My Name with an "S" - "Shu" or "Shew"? Depending on the Kanji, Shū can mean "kick" and Shu's style, Nanto Hakuroken, does specializes in kicks.
  • Tender Tears - Has a heart that is softer than both Kenshiro and Toki's.
  • Tragic Hero
  • Too Good for This Sinful Earth - One of the very few unambiguously good person in this wasteland torn by nuclear fire. Even Raoh, who would usually sneer at benevolence, reverently admits "a magnificent end."

Ryuga

Ryuga is the master of Taizan Tenrōken (the Mount Tai Sirius Fist), a style in which he scoops the chunks of his victims' flesh while leaving them with a feeling of bitter coldness. Ryuga's star is the Heavenly Wolf Star, also known as Sirius, a solitary star destined to serve the Hokuto Shinken successor. Ryuga is actually Yuria's elder brother, who pledged his loyalty to Raoh after witnessing the chaos of the post-war era. At first, he believes that only Raoh can restore peace and order through his sheer force, but begins to question his loyalty when he meets Kenshiro, his sister's fiancee.

Hyui

The first of the Goshasei (Five Chariot Stars), the five guardians of the Last General of Nanto, who faces Ken-oh. The leader of Wind Brigade, Hyui carries the fate of the Chariot Star of the Wind and uses a style where he slices his opponent using air currents.

Shuren

The second of the Goshasei and leader of the Crimson Army, Shuren carries the fate of the Chariot Star of Flames and is a master of the "Gosha Enjo Ken" style (the Five Chariot Fiery Passion Fist), which allows him to cover his body in flames. He leads his army against Ken-oh to avenge the death of Hyui, his younger brother.

Juza

The Chariot Star of the Clouds, Juza is a master of his own self-taught martial art style with fighting skills said to equal that of Raoh's. A childhood friend of Yuria, he felt in love with her while growing up together and wanted to pursue a relationship with her until he learned that they were half-siblings from the same father. After the war, Juza began living a carefree life of promiscuity, indifferent to the battle between Raoh and the Last General of Nanto, until he learns the true identity of the Last General.

Fudoh

Once a terrible outlaw known as "Fudoh the Ogre", Fudoh was a self-centered ruffian who cared about nobody else until a young Yuria stood up to him to protect a pregnant dog. He learned the importance of life from this experience and became Fudoh of the Mountains, one of the Goshasei, as well as a protector to all children. When Ken-oh begins to mobilize his army to the Last General's lair, Fudoh is dispatched to make sure Kenshiro gets there first.

"My body may die; I may be reduced to but a single drop of blood. But those with courage will rise time and again to face you; while you, Raoh, will live for the rest of your life but a mere terrified coward!!"

Rihaku

The Chariot Star of the Ocean and leader of the Nanto Goshasei. Unlike the other Goshasei members, Rihaku possesses no martial arts training, but he is a military strategist. He prepares a series of booby traps for Raoh when he attacks the headquarters in search of Yuria.

  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero - If it weren't for the traps he put to fight Raoh, Raoh wouldn't had escaped from his fight with Kenshiro, nor captured Yuria on his way out.
  • Non-Action Guy: In the manga, he had no actual martial art skills, but rather his speciality came from his military planning and his ability to set up traps. The anime gave him his own fighting style (Gosha Hasuiken or "Wave Crush Fist") and had him have a tussle with Raoh.
  • Sole Survivor - Only Rihaku survives his battle with Raoh and helps Bat and Lin form the Hokuto Army in the second series.

Tou

Rihaku's daughter and attendant to the Last General of the Nanto. In the Goshasei's war against Raoh and his forces, Tou feels conflicted due to her secret love for their arch-enemy.

  • Disposable Woman
  • Driven to Suicide: Kills herself in front of Raoh so that he will never forget her.
  • Love Martyr - Harbored unrequited feelings for Raoh, and took her own life in front of him just so that Raoh would remember her. Raoh was unimpressed.

From the second series

Ein

A bounty hunter hired by the Imperial Army who wants to claim the reward on Kenshiro's head to support his "little lady" (actually his daughter). Kenshiro beats him, but spares his life, and then does a Heel Face Turn and joins the Hokuto Army with Bat. He uses an unorthodox fighting style which he dubs "Kenka Kenpo" (the "art of brawling").

  • Badass Normal - He never received any formal martial art training, but he's still more powerful than the average Mook.
  • Emotional Bruiser - "I understand how Falco feels!! Anyone who kills women and children are NOT human beings!!"
  • Happily Adopted - In the anime, Asuka was actually his adoptive daughter. Her real mother was a young widow who befriended Ein before she herself was killed by bandits.
  • Heroic Sacrifice - Dies from his injuries after rescuing Lui and the others by punching his way from a flooding underground dungeon. Kenshiro wears one of his gloves in honor of his sacrifice for the remainder of the series.
  • Papa Wolf - Do anything to harm Asuka and you're pretty much screwed.
  • Tender Tears - Shed when Lin and Lui reunited.
  • Wearing a Flag on Your Head - His outfit is covered in stars and stripes.

The Harn Bros.

Two convicted wrestlers who are wanted by the Imperial Army for rebelling against them, Buzz and Gill Harn are masters of the Nanto Sōyōken style [17] who seek to defeat Falco in order to avenge the deaths of other Nanto Seiken defeated by him.

Falco

The successor of the Gento Kōken style,[20] a martial art which destroys the opponent's body on a cellular level with ki-based attacks. He is the sworn guardian of the Celestial Empress Lui. Although an honorable man, he is forced to do Jakoh's evil bidding when the Empress is kept hostage.

  • Artificial Limbs - One of his legs is a prosthetic, having sliced his real one as a truce offering to Raoh. It is implied that he might had been more powerful than Ken had he still had both of his legs.
  • Dropped a Bridge on Him - After serving as Kenshiro's main rival for a whole story arc, he gets killed off by a Nameless Shura in the arc that followed.
  • Emotional Bruiser - He wouldn't have spared baby Rin if he didn't have a heart.
  • Ki Attacks: He uses Gento Ko Ken. His color is gold.
  • No Celebrities Were Harmed - His design is based on Dolph Lundgren
  • One-Man Army
  • Worf Had the Flu: Kenshiro notes that Falco was still recovering from their fight when the Mook overpowered and wounded him to death. As soon as Kenshiro restores him a semblance of health, he proves him right by wiping the floor with his killer.
  • Worthy Opponent- He starts out like this, but once the Empress is rescued by Bat and Lin, he does a Heel Face Turn and kills the true mastermind Jakoh. Unfortunately he does not last long as one of Ken's allies.

Jakoh

The Governor General of the Imperial Army, a corrupt opportunist who is blackmailing Falco and Gento masters to do his evil bidding. In the past, Falco was ordered by Raoh to dispose of Jakoh, sensing his evil intentions. But Falco couldn't bring himself to do it, since Jakoh was raised by Falco's mother as one of her own. After Falco's mother passed away, Jakoh took the opportunity to usurp the Heavenly Empress by locking her away in a secret dungeon and use the Gento masters.

  • Actor Allusion: His voice in the anime is provided by Shigeru Chiba, who in addition to being the show's narrator, also voiced the Filler Villain Joker. Given who Jakoh was modeled after, the casting of Chiba as Jakoh was obviously deliberate.
  • Dirty Coward
  • Expy - Based on Batman's nemesis, the Joker.
  • Non-Action Big Bad: Pretty rare for this series, but he relies on his sons Jask and Shieno (or Taiga and Boltz in the anime) to enforce his will.

Solia

A General of the Imperial Army and fellow practitioner of the Gento Kōken, also known as "Solia of the Purple Light". He once lost one of his eyes during a sparring match with Falco, but still respects the man in spite of that. He challenges Kenshiro under orders from Falco.

  • Anti-Villain - He all but admits he's only fighting Kenshiro to ensure he's ready to face Falco.
  • Better to Die Than Be Killed - His death in the manga.
  • Eyepatch of Power
  • Ki Attacks - His are purple.
  • "Wake-Up Call" Boss - The first serious adversary Kenshiro fights during the latter half of the manga.
  • We Hardly Knew Ye - He's the only other Gento successor who appear in the manga (unless you count Shoki, who was a Gento successor in the anime, but was never declared as such in the manga), yet he only appears to fight Kenshiro.

Shoki

A General of the Imperial Army and close friend of Falco. Shoki once encountered a wandering Kenshiro and Yuria sometime after the battle with Raoh and provided shelter to the two by allowing them to stay in his home village, where Yuria spent the rest of her days in peace. Years later, when Jakoh took over the Imperial Army, Shoki tries to convince Falco to rebel with him.

  • Ascended Extra - In the manga, he is unceremoniously killed off by Jakoh's younger son during his first appearance. In the anime, he was made into the Gento Kōken General of Red Light and has a decent fight scene with Kenshiro. Moreover, he is killed off by a more dignified adversary (fellow Gento Kōken practitioner Blue Light Boltz).
  • Ki Attacks - Red, but only in the anime (he only uses his brute strength in the manga).
  • Meaningful Name - Named after the Chinese guardian deity Zhong-Kui, who awarded his best friend with his beautiful sister's hand in marriage. Before becoming an Imperial General, Shoki was a village guardian who provided shelter to Kenshiro and Yuria during Yuria's final years. Kenshiro pays him back by defeating Shieno for him.
  • Remember the New Guy? - Kenshiro recognizes him the moment the Hokuto Army first encounters him, even though he never appeared in the series up to that point. Admittedly it occured during the Time Skip between the Raoh and Tentei arcs.

Lui

Lin's estranged twin sister and the Celestial Empress. She was separated from her sister when they were only babies and taken hostage by the despicable Jakoh. He uses her life to blackmail the Gento warriors, such as Falco, into servitude and forces them to destroy rival martial arts in the name of the Celestial Empress.

Akashachi

Akashachi ("Red Orca") is the Captain of the pirate ship in the world, the "Dual-Hulled Orca", who helps Kenshiro cross the Dead Sea (the last remaining sea on Earth) to reach the Land of Asura. He was separated from his son Shachi years ago when a hundred of his men were slaughtered by the Nameless Asura.

Shachi

The estranged son of Akashachi the Pirate, who was separated from him when Akashachi and his crew were in the Land of Asura. To protect his girlfriend Leia from the Asura, he decided to train in the art of Hokuto Ryūken style [21] under Master Jukei, becoming Rakshasa the Asura-devouring beast.

Han

The Third Rasho (a title which loosely translates to General of Shura) and the first of the Hokuto Ryūken masters Kenshiro faces in the Land of Shura. Always under the threat of assassination, he claims to have lost count of the number of assassins he disposed after the hundredth time. His style uses hurricane-like techniques and are fast enough that they don't leave any trails of a shadow. Han is the one who reveals to Kenshiro that the Land of Shura is his birthland.

  • Badass - Such as having a harem of beauties, willingly drinking poison to mock his assassins, and don't forget his ball-breaking fight with Kenshiro.
  • Chinese People
  • No Celebrities Were Harmed - His design is based on Freddy Mercury.
  • We Hardly Knew Ye - Compared to the other two Rasho, we see little of his backstory.

Hyoh

The Second Rasho and Kenshiro's biological elder brother. After he and Kenshiro were separated when they were young, his memories of his brother were sealed away by Kaioh. Admired and praised by the common folks of Shura for being a benevolent ruler compared to Kaioh, he turns insane and becomes possessed by an evil fighting aura when his fiancee Sayaka is killed and is told by Kaioh that Kenshiro was the killer. He is the only one who knows the location of the secret technique of the Hokuto master family.

Kaioh

The Big Bad of the second series, Kaioh is the First Rasho, as well as the strongest of the Hokuto Ryūken masters. Kaioh is covered in a black armor which he wears not for protection, but to control the dark energy he possesses known as Matouki (the evil Battle Aura), which can only be possessed by those who were driven insane by Hokuto Ryūken. It turns out that he is Raoh and Toki's true blood brother, who went insane after his mother died while protecting an infant Kenshiro.

Kuroyasha

One of the most powerful Hokuto Ryūken practitioners, as well as a protector of the Hokuto Sōke bloodline, Kuroyasha was once Kenshiro's guardian when he was an infant. When Hyoh goes insane and orders the destruction of his blood brother Kenshiro, Kuroyasha goes to his lair at Raseiden to defeat Hyoh.

Jukei

The previous Hokuto Ryūken successor, Jukei was the one who sent Kenshiro, Toki, and Raoh to train under Ryuken when they were children. Jukei also trained Kaioh and Hyoh (as well as their friend Han) in the ways of Hokuto Ryūken hoping they could save the already war-torn Land of Shura from its oppressors. However they ended up becoming oppressors themselves when they became the Rasho after the nuclear war. Jukei then trained a fourth student, Shachi, but he too fell to the ways of violence. With no other hope left, Jukei expected Raoh to become the next Hokuto Shin-Ken successor and save Shura from Kaioh's tyranny. But when it is Kenshiro who arrives to Shura in Raoh's place, he decides to settle matters himself...

Nameless Shura

A low-class Shura warrior who has literally not made a name for himself yet, he is a master of Shura Nindō, a style of Ninpō taught at Shura. At the mere age of 14, he killed a hundred of Akashachi's men during his failed attempt to raid the Kingdom of Shura. Years later, when Falco went to Shura in search of the kidnapped Lin, the Nameless Shura took Falco by surprise and gave him a fatal blow. Only with Kenshiro's help was Falco able to recover his strength and defeat him.

  • Chinese People
  • Curb Stomp Battle - Many fans have voiced their disgust at how a nonentity like the Nameless Shura managed to wound one of Kenshiro's mightiest rivals from the second series.
    • The technical possibility of Falco losing so easily was explained by the fact that Falco still hadn't recovered from nearly-fatal damage taken in the fight with Kenshiro. Still, story-wise this was perhaps the most pointless and spiteful death in the series.
  • Exactly What It Says on the Tin
  • No Name Given
  • We Hardly Knew Ye

Alf

A high-class Shura warrior who claims to have defeated most of his adversaries in less than two minutes each, earning him the nickname "Alf of the Hourglass". He is one of the first Shura warriors Kenshiro faces in his venture into the kingdom.

Ryu

The orphaned posthumous son of Raoh who is likely to become the next successor of Hokuto Shinken.

  • Kid Sidekick: To Kenshiro.
  • Unnamed Parent: His mother is conveniently unidentified. Fans speculate that it may had been Yuria, who could have been impregnated by Raoh while she was under his captivity, if Raoh truly took advantage of her. The fact that she is hinted to be pregnant in the prologue of Kenshiro Den gives credence to this theory, assuming the child isn't Kenshiro's. However, Buronson and Hara have said nil about the subject. Other candidates includes Reina (Raoh's female general who appears in the movies) and Toh (who may have had an affair with Raoh at some point).

Kouketsu

The first villain of part 3 of the manga, Kouketsu was an extremely minor henchman of Raoh who used his Genre Saviness to first create fertile, prosperous land and then enslave the people living near it. Responsible for the deaths of Ryu's foster parents.

  • Adults Are Useless: Toyed with when Kenshiro refuses to intervene, telling Ryu that he must "fight his own battles." Then averted when Ken steps in and saves the day, anyway.
  • Dangerously Genre Savvy: Is only so successful because he realizes that the times have changed.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: All of the murder, pain, slavery, and death was because Raoh told him to stop being such a brownnose.
  • Expy: Has a henchman that looks just like the Frankenstein Monster. later hops on his shoulders to become a direct expy of Master-Blaster from Mad Max.
  • Fat Bastard
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: Dies when one of his own traps springs on him.
  • Non-Action Big Bad
  • Rummage Sale Reject: Surprisingly averted, as his outfit is even MORE normal and recognizable than the Colonel's.
  • Token Motivational Nemesis: For Ryu
  • The World Moves On: The sole reason for his success. "The wolves have become pigs," indeed.

Baran

The penultimate villain from the manga. Baran was once a young member of Raoh's army, who hoped to learn Hokuto Shinken to take revenge on God, believing He took the life of his little sister. Some years later, Baran takes over the once peaceful city of Blanca, and becomes known as the "Emperor of Light". He uses the power of Hokuto Shinken to dupe the people into believing he is a Messiah and spares no mercy to the unbelievers.

  • A God Am I: Sort of. See below.
  • Go Out with a Smile: Just like most of the other characters in this series who got to choose how they died.
  • Ki Attacks - Thought he had mastered Raoh's Hokuto Gōshō Ha, until Kenshiro showed him how it's really done!
  • No Celebrities Were Harmed - Modelled on singer Pete Burns during his Dead or Alive days.
  • Straw Atheist: Is waging his own personal war against God because his sister tied. Reconverts near the end to the strange monotheistic Buddhist/Hindu/Astrology mishmash that is Fist of the North Star's main religion.
  • Used to Be a Sweet Kid

Bolge

The final villain in the manga, Bolge was a Mook whom kenshiro had spared (but cut out his eyes), and went insane. he grafted all sorts of weapons to his body and went on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge against every single person who had wronged him in the past. Unfortunately, by the time he reaches Ken, Ken had lost his memory. It's up to Bat to save the day...

  • Combat Pragmatist: And how. He almost rivals Jagi for this position.
  • Coup De Grace: Delivered by Bat, of all people.
  • Defiant to the End: Survives Ken's Hokuto Hyakuretsu Ken just so he can try to take somebody with him. Bat has to kill him in the end.
  • Disability Superpower: Being blind really doesn't seem to inhibit Bolge very much.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: Slaughters everybody who ever wronged him in any way by crucifying and torturing them to death.
  • Gonk: Extremely ugly even for Fist of the North Star. Of course, his head did deform from Kenshiro's fists... but as the flashback showed, he was pretty bad even then.
  • Meaningful Name: He has grafted weapons all over his body, and even added metal plating to his skull for protection. Another translation for his name is "Borg".
  • Mook Promotion: The final villain of the manga is a bandit Kenshiro spared.
  • Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Is responsible for Ken getting his memory back, which leads to his undoing.
  • Not Quite Dead: After Ken uses his most famous finishing move, and most of Bolge explodes, he's still capable of getting up and fighting back.
  • Senseless Sacrifice: Bat almost has one of these.
  • Remember the New Guy?: Never appeared before in the manga. A flashback is provided to show when Ken beat him up.
  • Roaring Rampage of Revenge: His entire tenure in the manga.
  • Your Head Asplode: Almost happens to him, but he lives long enough to try for one last stab.
  1. ↑ "North Dipper God Fist"
  2. ↑ Seikimatsu Kyūseishu
  3. ↑ 拳四郎
  4. ↑ the North Dipper Hundred Crack Fist
  5. ↑ the South Dipper Six Holy Fists
  6. ↑ South Dipper Lone Eagle Fist
  7. ↑ the South Dipper Five Chariot Stars
  8. ↑ the South Dipper Six Stars
  9. ↑ the South Dipper Silent Fist
  10. ↑ Arhat Deva Fist
  11. ↑ the South Dipper Waterfowl Fist
  12. ↑ the South Dipper Crimson Crane Fist
  13. ↑ the South Dipper Phoenix Fist
  14. ↑ , as in, one could be forgiven for assuming voices didn't naturally come that deep
  15. ↑ the South Dipper White Heron Fist
  16. ↑ "Strike Wall Backwater Palm"
  17. ↑ the South Dipper Twin Hawk Fist
  18. ↑ バズ, with a dakuten
  19. ↑ ハズ, without a dakuten
  20. ↑ the First Dipper Imperial Fist
  21. ↑ the North Dipper Shining Stone Fist
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