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Characters / Descendants of Darkness

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The characters of Descendants of Darkness:

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     Main Characters 

Asato Tsuzuki

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/b34baaa63b688546c2f546f6fac03ac1.jpg
The Moe, Nice Guy with a massive Sweet Tooth Protagonist of the series. He's worked in the Enmacho Celestial Bureaucracy for 70 years since his death when he was 26.

Voiced by: Shin-ichiro Miki (Japanese), Dan Green (English)
  • Ambiguously Bi: Is very frequently attracted to women, but also enjoys flirting with and teasing Hisoka on occasion.
  • Attractive Bent-Gender: In the storybook arc. Even Tsuzuki thinks that fem!Tsuzuki looks good.
  • Chronic Hero Syndrome: Tsuzuki has the unfortunate tendency to try to help every suffering person he meets, usually at the cost of personal well-being.
  • Even the Guys Want Him: Tatsumi and Watari get accidentally turned on by him when he strips out of his yukata for a bath, The Count has been dogging him for years, Muraki has an unsettling fixation on him, and Hisoka turns Tsundere at the drop of a hat around him.
  • Loved by All: Even the villain loves this guy!
  • Mirror Character: With Hisoka. They were both ostracised, abandoned, and called monsters as children.
  • Puppy-Dog Eyes: Even Tatsumi can't resist.
  • Purple Is Powerful: He controls 12 shikigami, where the average shinigami is only able to control 1-3. On top of that, he's proficient at using ofuda, along with physical combat - if slicing out Muraki's eye is any indication. Physically, he's able to crack bulletproof glass by punching it with his bare fist. It's heavily implied all of these abilities have a connection with his purple eyes.
  • Really 700 Years Old: Tsuzuki physically stopped aging at 18, lived on until his death at 26, and then worked the last 70 years in the Shokan division.
  • Sexy Priest: When undercover at a catholic school.
  • What Beautiful Eyes!: His bright purple eyes are noticed in-story as strange, especially by Muraki.
  • You Are Not Alone: Has to be reminded of this whenever he falls into depression, usually by Tatsumi or Hisoka.

Hisoka Kurosaki

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/59fcf3085316b86e1d95decb829556cd.jpg
Tsuzuki's younger, more serious partner.

Voiced by: Mayumi Asano (Japanese), Liam O'Brien (English)
  • Abusive Parents: His mother and father locked him in the cellar ever since they found out about his powers. Physical abuse is not touched on, but his mother fervently believed he was a demon. He was disclaimed as her child.
    • Actually, one of Hisoka's flashbacks-presented-as-nightmares features other village children asking him "Did your mother hurt you again?" This implies there was physical abuse, and that it was common knowledge to at least the other children.
  • Ambiguously Bi: Develops feelings for Tsubaki, but also reacts tellingly whenever Tsuzuki teases him.
  • Blessed with Suck: His empathy powers are useful, but can just as easily make him disoriented or even cause him to pass out.
  • The Cutie: Even (or especially) when he's being tsundere.
  • Kill the Cutie: He is a Shinigami. The cruelty of his death and his suffering before and afterward make it no better.
  • Cooldown Hug: Gives a couple of these to Tsuzuki throughout the Kyoto arc.
  • Covered in Curse Marks: His death-curse is etched all over his body, though it comes and goes at times. It's implied that even thinking about Muraki will cause the marks to appear on Hisoka's body.
  • Crazy Jealous Guy: Comes across as this in the drama CD when he walks in on Muraki molesting Tsuzuki.
  • Cruel and Unusual Death: Muraki raped him when he was thirteen and then cursed him to die slowly and painfully over the course of three years. Ouch.
  • Dark and Troubled Past: Ever since his parents caught wind of his emphatic abilities, Hisoka had been forced to spend an enormous amount of time locked in the cellar of his home for using them. Moreover, it is his empathy that forces him to feel the emotions of others whether he likes it or not. Even after Hisoka becomes a Shinigami, the thoughts and emotions of others—or particularly gruesome visions—could overwhelm him and send his brain into overdrive.
    • Muraki raped him at the age of thirteen and then cursed him to die slowly and painfully over the next three years after Hisoka manages to get outside for the night and witness him murder a woman. Hisoka could have died quickly enough, but Muraki wanted to draw things out. His reason? Because Hisoka was so beautiful, his death had to be 'special'.
  • Declaration of Protection: Has a variation of this toward Tsuzuki. He swears that even should everyone else disappear from Tsuzuki's life, he'll stay by his side.
  • Distressed Dude: Falls into this occasionally.
  • Family Theme Naming: All the members of his family have an aquatic name. Aside from "secret," the character for his first name (密) is more commonly read as "dense."
  • "It" Is Dehumanizing: On top of being labeled a monster, he's literally referred to with "it."
  • Luminescent Blush: Several times, and usually in response to something Tsuzuki says/does.
  • Meaningful Name: The characters in Hisoka's full name (黒崎 密) translate to "Kurosaki secret" when put together. Considering he spent the majority of his life hidden away in a cellar, that's rather apt.
    • It gets more depressing when you consider it was originally his older sister's name, and all first born girls are killed, implying Nagare would have kept her alive as his "secret" if he could have.
    • Another way the kanji of his given name could be read could be "dense," or "density." Considering the Kurosaki clan's Family Theme Naming regarding liquid in some manner, it could be very loosely related to that.
  • Mirror Character: With Tsuzuki. They were both ostracised, abandoned, and called monsters as children.
  • Mr. Fanservice: All the girls go wild when he enters the scene.
  • Please, Don't Leave Me: Begs Tsuzuki not to leave him all alone again when Tsuzuki tries to kill himself. It works.
  • Power Incontinence: Sometimes Hisoka can't control his power to absorb emotions and he passes out.
  • Together in Death: Tries to invoke this with Tsuzuki at the end of the Kyoto arc, at least in the manga, since he can't bear the thought of being alone again. Tatsumi saves them both.
  • Undying Loyalty: To Tsuzuki.
    Hisoka: Even if everyone else in your life disappears, I’ll always be here by your side.
  • You Are Not Alone: Constantly has to remind Tsuzuki that he's there for him, even if Tsuzuki isn't receptive to the comfort. Tatsumi actually implores him to stay with Tsuzuki, and Hisoka decides that even should everyone else turn their back on Tsuzuki, he'll always remain by his side.

Chief Konoe

Tsuzuki and the others' boss, the Father To His Men Chief of the Shokan Division.

Voiced by: Tomomichi Nishimura

Seiichiro Tatsumi

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Descendants_of_Darkness-Seiichiro_Tatsumi.jpg
Chief Konoe's Sexy Secretary at Enmacho who terrorizes the division about expenses and work. He used to be Tsuzuki's partner.

Voiced by: Toshiyuki Morikawa
  • Berserk Button: Hurt Tsuzuki and you will pay.
    • He gets a pretty crazed expression when he promises Tsuzuki he won't let anybody harm Hisoka, too.
  • Calling the Old Man Out: He does this to Nagare in Hisoka's stead.
    "Does your house... your land... your tradition mean so much to you? So much that you'd let your own son die without seeking treatment?!"
  • I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Toward Tsuzuki. He implores Hisoka to take care of him after he failed to do so, and during the storybook arc his counterpart character outright states this toward Tsuzuki's counterpart. Keep in mind that the characters in the book share the thoughts and feelings as their real counterparts.
  • My Greatest Failure: Letting Tsuzuki go.

Yutaka Watari

The division's resident quirky Mad Scientist.

Voiced by: Toshihiko Seki (Japanese), Eric Stuart (English)
  • Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He may be weird, but he's still the brains of the division and has proven to have excellent deduction skills.
  • Long-Haired Pretty Boy: Has probably the longest hairstyle of any guy in the division and this only adds to his appeal.
  • Nightmare Fetishist: In the dub, at least, he sounds WAY too enthusiastic about murder victims and demons.

Kazutaka Muraki

Everyone's favorite Creepy Awesome Stalker with a Crush Deadly Doctor. The main antagonist of the series.

Voiced by: Show Hayami
  • Ax-Crazy: Despite his calm and friendly demeanor, it's quite obvious that he revels in death and violence.
  • Badass Normal: Muraki doesn't actually have powers the way the shinigami do, so it's astonishing that he's been able to give them so much trouble.
  • Badass in a Nice Suit: A light grey, almost white suit which only serves to make him creepier
  • Beauty Is Bad: How many characters who've said that Muraki looks like a white angel have died horribly?
  • Big Bad: Especially in the anime, where there's only one arc where he isn't directly responsible for the horrible things everyone goes through.
  • Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: His public persona is that of a benevolent doctor. In reality, he's anything but benevolent.
  • But for Me, It Was Tuesday: Hisoka remembers vividly the horrible things he did to him but it's just another day in the life for Muraki.
  • The Chessmaster: Muraki is manipulating everyone around him for his own ends.
  • Hero Killer: In a sense. He killed Hisoka but hasn't "killed" any of the shinigami, who are already dead.
  • Karma Houdini: He really doesn't get justice for all of the horrible crimes he's committed.
  • Would Hurt a Child: Hisoka was thirteen when Muraki raped, tortured, and murdered him. Muraki also kidnapped a flower girl to traffic her organs, and stole energy from a little girl to get Tsuzuki's attention.
  • Would You Like to Hear How They Died?: Asks this to Tsuzuki regarding how he murdered Hisoka.

     Supporting characters 

Saya Torii and Yuma Fukiya

Hajime Terazuma

Wakaba Kannuki

  • Ship Tease: With Terazuma.
  • The Smurfette Principle: The only named female who besides Saya, Yuma and Suzaku who appears multiple times and doesn't suffer a gruesome death.

Goshoshin'

Hakushaku

     Supporting human characters 

Maria Wong

  • Driven to Suicide: Committed suicide because of how much her mother used her. Her mother made a deal with Muraki to bring her back.
  • Evil Diva: Appears to be one, though it turns out that she's not exactly "evil".

Maria's stepmother

Hisae Tojyou

Hijiri Minase

Kazusa Otonashi

  • Adaptation-Induced Plot Hole: In the anime, she dies offscreen and yet somehow comes back to watch Hijiri's performance, with no explanation. In the manga, she sort of becomes a shinigami (most likely because her True Sight would prove useful), which is explained to Hijiri in the hospital scene (a scene the anime cut her out of).
  • Back from the Dead: Kind of. She's still dead, but now she's a shinigami!
  • Heroic Sacrifice: Pulls one to save Hijiri.
  • Mysterious Waif: A minor example; she was suddenly orphaned, she's being pursuied by a demon, can somehow see its true form and invokes a protective impulse in the main characters.
  • True Sight: Can see the true forms of demons.
  • What Happened to the Mouse?: After she dies, her soul is brought back and Hisoka promises Hijiri that they'll look after her. She is never seen again afterward. She does appear in a flashback in the anime, though.
    • While she doesn't make an appearance herself, her toys are shown strewn around Tsuzuki's room later on in the manga, they actually are looking after her on a personal level.

Tsubaki Kakyouin

Eileen

  • Innocent Flower Girl: Before being murdered and having her heart literally stolen so it can be given to Tsubaki.
  • Only Friend: She once was this to Tsubaki. Poor Tsubaki did NOT take Eileen's fate well.

Oriya Mibu

  • Affably Evil: The term "evil" only applies because he's allied with Muraki. For the most part, he's polite and amicable, and even gives Hisoka a fighting chance to save Tsuzuki.
  • Friend to Psychos: When you're best bros with Muraki, this is kind of a requirement.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Muraki. This being "Yami no Matsuei", however, the term "heterosexual" should be used very, very loosely.

Saki Shudou

  • Ax-Crazy: Murdered his parents, and attempted to murder his half brother.

Ukyou Sakuraiji

     Gods & Shikigami 

Enma-Daioh

  • A Form You Are Comfortable With: Is depicted as looking more humanoid in the series than his religious depictions, and shapeshifts to look familiar to Tsuzuki when he needs to communicate with him directly.
  • Batman Gambit: His plan to get one of his employees a position in Hell's hierarchy relied on a demon... well, acting like a demon.
  • Big Bad: Very likely this.
  • Long-Haired Pretty Boy: He's depicted chin-down, which only draws attention to how long his hair is.
  • Manipulative Bastard: He shapeshifts into Hijiri at one point specifically to manipulate Tsuzuki with the voice of someone he cares about.
  • Mind Manipulation: Whenever Enma appears in Tsuzuki's psyche, something bad is about to happen.
  • The Chessmaster: The shinigami are his pieces.
  • "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Gives one to Tsuzuki in Kyoto.
  • Voluntary Shapeshifting: Shapeshifts at least twice in the series.

Suzaku

  • Giant Flyer: A huge phoenix.
  • Mama Bear: To Tsuzuki, especially in the Kyoto Arc where she attacks a girl-turned-monster that Muraki sent to kill Tsuzuki with. Unfortunately, this leads to Tsuzuki losing his mind and going catatonic. Lampshaded by Tatsumi, who compares her protectiveness to a mother bird protecting her chicks.
  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: See Mama Bear above.
  • Undying Loyalty: Taken to the extreme in the Kyoto Arc, where she remains loyal to Tsuzuki even after he loses his mind (something that would normally lead a shikigami to abandon or try to kill their master).

Yatonogami

  • Smug Snake: A literal serpent example. Boasts about being strong, but was slayed by a human, who he calls a coward. Is currently trapped in the Kurosaki bloodline, and still treats Nagare with disdain, even though he currently is powerless.

     Supporting human characters - Kurosaki clan 

The whole family

  • Family Theme Naming: The Kurosaki clan seems to have a water-related motif, and definitely sticks to one kanji for given names. Note: Sometimes the kanji can merely be read with the verbal pronunciation of the meaning rather than the literal kanji used having it. It's common in Japanese to ask the way someone's name should be read, since the pronounced word can have a different number of kanji, and therefore a different number of meanings.
  • Honor-Related Abuse: A longstanding tradition, it looks like.
  • Would Hurt a Child: They drown all females born into the main line as a law.

Kurosaki Kai

  • Jerkass: Had a second son on purpose to sacrifice specifically to spare his first, with possible intentions for his sons' blood feud to cause Yato to be released, the bloodline to end, and Kamakura to be destroyed.
  • Meaningful Name: His name is just barely visible on the family tree scroll. It translates to "ocean," or "sea."

Kurosaki Kasane

  • Driven to Suicide: After Iwao killed her baby, she drowned herself in grief.
    • Or, at least, that's what everyone's led to believe... until Iwao starts specifically denying he killed her as well as the baby. It's key to note Nagare had not accused him of murdering her... but still feels a need to deny it.
  • Meaningful Name: The kanji used in her name is "重", which translates to "weight." Phonetically, it can be heard as meaning "sink"... or "drown." Oh, and an alternate spelling can be read/pronounced as either "Kasane" or "Rui."
    • Kasane and Rui's names themselves are taken from a famous bit of Japanese folklore that plays with the alternate spellings, known as Kasane-Ga-Fuchi. It's about - what else? - a woman named Kasane who was drowned and becomes a vengeful spirit. She is named Kasane by her parents, but she is called Rui by them. [1]
  • Monster from Beyond the Veil: It appears she's been revived after death... but not like she once was.
  • Youkai: It appears she is now a nure-onna.
  • Snake People: A nure-onna is a woman that resides in water, who has a snake tail. She also often is depicted as sopping wet, with a baby.

Kurosaki Iwao

  • Jerk Ass Has A Point: While it's awful he committed infanticide, it's to uphold a "clan law" that there can't be a girl born as the head of a new line. There's probably a reason for this rule, such as a female head getting pregnant with the new vessel for Yatonogami... like Rui currently is.
  • Meaningful Name: Iwao's name doesn't fit in with the Kurosaki water motif. Ways that his name can be read could be "stern/strict," and "rock."
  • Relative Button: Iwao presses it by murdering Nagare's daughter, stealing her remains, then admitting to killing her and calling her a "useless thing" to Nagare's face.

Kurosaki Nagare

  • Driven to Suicide: Attempted, at least.
    Nagare, crying: "This time, I thought I could go where Kasane and the children are..."
  • Divine Date: Sexually involved with a god, though not by choice.
  • Fate Worse than Death: As head of the clan, he's a living sacrifice to a god to keep it trapped. It involves being raped with tentacles, among other things. It's so bad Nagare nearly kills himself out of spite, to inflict this fate on Iwao.
    Nagare, to Iwao: "It's not that you can't be head. It's that you will never be head."
  • Gratuitous Rape: There's an entire scene devoted to depicting Yatonokami violating Nagare. It's speculated as one of the reasons the series went on hiatus - Matsushita was essentially drawing tentacle hentai in a series aimed at teenage girls.
  • Honor-Related Abuse: It's established as shameful for Iwao that Nagare inherited position of clan head as a younger brother and therefore not having a birthright to it. Out of revenge for this slight, Iwao murders Nagare's baby and possibly his wife, and goes on to desecrate her grave.
    • It's due to the "honor" of being Ren's descendant that he's a sacrifice to begin with.
  • Karmic Rape: Some folks might find being raped a good punishment for committing child abuse.
  • Meaningful Name: The kanji for "Nagare" (流) can be read as "flow," "stream," and "current." He has a water serpent inside of him.
    • He and Rui match; together their names sound like "flowing tears."
  • Mind Rape: It's speculated Yato having his way with him could be an example of this; physically, when Tatsumi barges in, Nagare's still got his kimono on (someone cannot tie their obi on their own at the back, but it's intact on him), and there's nowhere near as much blood on the floor as he was previously shown coughing up.
  • Naughty Tentacles: He doesn't just experience rape. Oh, no... it involves tentacles.
    • Technically, they're Yatonokami's numerous tendril-like tongues. But they serve the same purpose in this context.
  • Rape as Backstory: For the past 20 years. And still happening.
  • Rape Leads to Insanity: It quickly becomes apparent Nagare's not exactly in his right mind.
  • Relative Button: His daughter was murdered and her remains were stolen by Iwao - who goes on to gloat he was doing the right thing in the situation, referring to a baby as a "useless thing."
  • "Well Done, Son" Guy: In his monologue, he outright states he put effort into becoming someone worthy of bearing the name Kurosaki. He was pleased when his father declared him heir, since he took it as a sign he was finally accepted by he predecessor.

Kurosaki Ren

  • Family Theme Naming: It all started with him, when he founded the Kurosaki clan. To this day the family uses one kanji and water motifs as a naming convention.
  • Meaningful Name: His translates to "lotus," and he slayed a water serpent. Lotuses float on top of water. The family crest, incidentally, is a lotus.
  • The Hero: To this day he's revered for saving Kamakura by slaying the great serpent Yatonogami. Most people think it's a mere legend, but it's not.

Kurosaki Rui

  • Evil Matriarch: The abusive "attempted Offing the Offspring" kind.
  • Honor-Related Abuse: She's being held in the manor's confinement room to hide her strange pregnancy, because word getting out would taint the family honor.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: Rui disowned Hisoka as her son because he was "a demon"... and as of the current arc, she's been suffering with an actual monster in her womb, that's been incubating for years.
  • Meaningful Name: The kanji for her name (累) can be read as "formation." It can be heard as "tears"... and it can be read and pronounced as "Kasane." (And vice versa.)
    • See Kasane for more lore about how their names are from a traditional ghost story.
  • Replacement Goldfish: She is a replacement for her twin sister.
  • Twin Switch: Sort of. Technically not quite, considering she's a replacement for her dead twin.
  • Would Hurt a Child: She used to beat Hisoka, in an active attempt to kill him.
    Rui, with an unhinged expression: "I'll kill it [Hisoka] with my own hands."

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