These are the characters for the series Teppu.
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Main Characters
Natsuo Ishido
- People who are good at everything have it the hardest.
The Villain Protagonist of the story. A tall, monstrously skilled young woman who dominates any sport or fight she finds herself in, until she meets her match in Yuzuko.
- The Ace: Very few characters can measure up to her level.
- Ambiguously Gay: Says very early on in the series that she doubts she'll ever have a boyfriend, but comments on the sexiness of ring girls and admires Honma's beauty. That's not even getting into the whole thing with Yuzuko.
- Childhood Friends: With Sanae.
- Combat Pragmatist: When Sanae's strength takes her off guard in Chapter 4, she uses her school loafer to get her distracted for a moment.
- Huge Schoolgirl: Probably her most noticeable trait, Natsuo is 182 cm (or 5' 11'') tall, unusual for a Japanese woman, especially one her age.
- Freudian Excuse: Her brother started to resent her for being stronger than him, as he believed men should naturally be stronger but was unable to protect himself from bullies. This turned him into a cruel and abusive shut-in, and in turn led Natsuo to drive away her friends and develop into the Jerkass she is today.
- Jerkass: Rude, arrogant, and dismissive toward nearly everyone around her.
- Lonely at the Top: She's so tired of being preternaturally skilled at everything that she's often disappointed when she wins a fight.
- Reluctant Fanservice Girl: She is very tall, so she had to wear cropped top sports bra revealing her abs at the MMA tournament much to her embarrassment in front of the crowd.
- Statuesque Stunner: Good-looking in an intimidating sort of way, unfortunately her personality overshadows that most of the time.
- Unskilled, but Strong: But picks up skills shockingly fast.
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: She was a normal, kind girl until her brother's abuse gave her a complex, causing her to beat up Sanae and destroy their friendship.
- Villain Protagonist: In your average fighting Shōnen, she'd be The Hero's arrogant Rival.
- Younger Than They Look: Natsuo's height and build make her look a lot older than a freshman. Meika and Yuzuko are surprised to learn in Chapter that she's the same age as them.
Yuzuko Mawatari
- This is fun! Don't you think so too?
A schoolgirl Natsuo meets and immediately hates. Her perpetual positivity belies her freakish power, and Natsuo's driving goal is to best her and wipe the smile off her face.
- The Ace: Nobody can defeat her, even professionally trained athletes. She's superhumanly fast and strong, her punches hit like cars, and she barely reacts to being injured. Even Natsuo doesn't break her winning streak.
- Ambiguous Disorder: Something is definitely up with her. She never drops her positive demeanor, even when a normal person would feel disappointment or anger, but also doesn't take much pleasure in her victories. She also doesn't show much reaction to pain, even in instances that would debilitate people twice her size. Youths and adults alike find her unbearably creepy when they're around her long enough. In her childhood, she kept sneaking back to the Cordeiro gym to train with Ringi, even though Ringi was so repulsed by her that she beat her bloody every time.
- Big Ol' Eyebrows: Her most prominent feature, to the point nearly a third of all chapter titles are simply different ways of commenting on her eyebrows.
- Blood Knight: A strange version, as she lives to fight, but doesn't seem to care much when she wins.
- Charles Atlas Superpower: All of her tremendous skill comes from years of tireless training.
- Childhood Friends: With Ringi. The feeling wasn't always mutual, though; Ringi used to violently beat her for being creepy, though she always came back with a smile.
- Deconstruction: Of the Stock Shōnen Hero. She's a Hot-Blooded Nice Girl with a Charles Atlas Superpower, a perky best friend who cheers her on, and a desire to befriend Natsuo; she's even got the Spiky Hair! However, her unflinching perkiness and dominant skill makes her seem creepy and unfriendly to those around her, and it's implied that she might not be quite right in the head to maintain such an attitude.
- Determinator: Unlike Natsuo or Ringi, she actually has zero aptitude or natural talent for martial arts, to the point it takes her weeks to learn techniques that others can pick up in a day. However, she enjoys martial arts so much that she devotes far more time to constant, rigorous training than anyone else, which ultimately makes her the strongest fighter in the story.
- Genki Girl: To a degree that pisses Natsuo off and weirds out everyone else.
- Innocently Insensitive: She doesn't seem to understand why her opponents would be upset when they lose, so her habit of offering a hand to help them up comes off as arrogant gloating rather than good sportsmanship.
- Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Noticeably shorter than a lot of other characters; the already tall Natsuo especially towers over her. This doesn't stop her from laying everyone she faces flat.
Takenaka Gym
Karin Kotani
"The Strongest Woman in Japan," Karin is an older woman with a distinctive face who ends up as Natsuo's mentor. She's frequently seen fretting over the present and future of Women's MMA and the difficulty most have breaking into it.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She can be rather mean and petty when pushed, especially when Natsuo gets on her bad side, but she just wants the women she trains to succeed.
- Red Baron: Known as "The Empress of the East."
Haruka Kirido
A high school student with a background in Judo. She is a frequent at Takenaka Gym and becomes something of a rival to Natsuo.
- Huge Schoolgirl: One of the only characters in the series to rival Natsuo's height and definitely the only other high schooler.
- I Just Want to Have Friends: Heavily hinted to be her motivation for beating Natsuo. A single flashback shows her sitting alone at school, eyeing a group of girls having fun together silently. It then cuts to her interacting with other members of the Takenaka Gym, with her only thoughts being "my place of-". From this, it can be gathered that she fears Natsuo will take her place in the community she has found with the other members of Takenaka Gym.
Manami Hiki
"An average office lady" who's trying to go pro.
- Cat Girl
- Character Tics: She clicks her tongue when she's pleased or interested.
- Hidden Depths: Plays guitar and is apparently a fan of The Ramones.
- Office Lady
Miyako Togami
A young woman who's been attending Takenaka Gym for 6 years.
- Hidden Depths: Likes baking cakes.
- Youthful Freckles: Emphasize how youthful and fragile she appears.
Takenaka Risuke
Team Cordeiro
Ringi Cordeiro
Daughter of world-renowned MMA champion Mario Cordeiro, Ringi is a Brazilian fighter who has recently moved to Japan. Her cheerful and playful attitude masks the fact that she has a terrifying amount of strength and talent, and may be the best teen-aged fighter in the series.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: A perky Funny Foreigner with very little care for Japanese social norms who's also devastatingly strong. She doesn't compete in the G-Girl Qualifiers because she's already a part of the competition (which is mostly made up of adult fighters).
- Childhood Friends: With Yuzuko, to the point of almost seeming like family. Ringi took a while to warm up to her, however.
- Funny Foreigner: Though it's hinted she plays this up a lot.
- Genki Girl: Like Natsuo though she was a lot more sullen as a child.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: It's heavily hinted that she plays up her ditiziness a lot. One noticeable example is casually mentioning one of her supposed weaknesses during her fight with Takenaka.
- The Unfought: Despite her physical strength setting her up as a dangerous opponent, Natsuo never fights her, as she loses to Yuzuko in the end and is unable to move on to the tournament.
Mario Cordeiro
Ringi's father, a famous MMA champion hailing from Brazil. He trained Ringi and Yuzuko as children, turning them into the superhuman fighters they are today.
- Greater-Scope Villain: From Natsuo's perspective, at least, though he's a bit of a Jerkass in his own right. His Training from Hell is what turned Yuzuko from an average weakling to an unstoppable Ace.
Classmates
Kei Ninomiya
- Na-chan, you have a terrible personality!
A member of the Volleyball Club. She's doesn't ignore Natsuo's haughtiness and bad behavior, and doesn't hesitate to tell Natsuo this to her face with a smile. Despite this, or perhaps because of this, Kei has somehow ended up as Natsuo's Only Friend.
- Brutal Honesty: Natsuo is shocked by how easily Kei finds it to tell her she has a "terrible personality." Kei is well aware of Natsuo's rudeness but accepts it because Natsuo herself is upfront about it.
- Girlish Pigtails
- Morality Pet: While Kei accepts Natsuo's Jerkass tendencies she's not above calling them out. Notably, she points out Natsuo's dismissive attitude towards Haruka's loss, and Natsuo actually seems ashamed by this. When Haruka continues coming to the gym, Natsuo is surprised to find herself relieved, realizing Kei's words actually struck her deep.
Sanae Sawamura
- I'm gonna make you eat your words.
Single-handedly putting the Karate Club on the map, Sanae is a fighter with an incredible amount of strength and a history with Natsuo. She joins to G-Girl Qualifiers to try and get revenge on Natsuo.
- The Captain: Of the Karate club.
- Childhood Friends: With Natsuo, until Natsuo screwed it up.
- Climax Boss: Natsuo's second-to-last opponent in the story, and gives her her longest and most brutal fight yet. It's also the last fight Natsuo wins.
- Perpetual Frowner: Pretty much always has a serious expression on her face (when not boiling over with anger towards Natsuo). Kanno notes that she didn't even smile when winning Nationals. The one exception is the scene in which she apologizes to Mai, and it's no wonder the other girl reacts the way she does.
- The Rival: Serves as one to Natsuo, though for very different reasons than Yuzuko.
Mai Ganeko
A black belt in the Karate Club, she hates Natsuo almost as much as she loves Sanae.
- Berserk Button: Sanae getting disrespected.
- Big Ol' Eyebrows: Not to Yuzuko's degree, but still pretty prominent.
Kanno Shigeru
Coach of the Karate Club. Enabler.
Meika Takenaka
The unnamed third member of the MMA club, she seems to be a little over her head in this series. After spending the entire series unnamed, she is eventually revealed to be Takenaka's daughter. She makes friends with Kei after they sit together at the G-Girl Qualifiers.
- Hey, You!: Yuzuko (and as it turns out, everyone) never refers to her by name until the end of the series.
- No Name Given: She goes unnamed through the ENTIRE series until the very, very last chapter where the reader is almost sure to have stopped wondering about her. This to hide the fact that she's Takenaka's daughter.
Other
Miki Youko
Karin's friend and promoter. Has been called the pioneer of Women's Judo.
Shinobu Kannagi
Mitsuko Honma
The "1" of Karin's "22-1" record. Known as "The Witch of the West."
- Red Baron: "The Witch of the West" to Karin's "Empress of the East." Also known as "The Quick-Kill Witch."
Park Du-Na
A competitor in the G-Girl Qualifiers from Korea.
- Abnormal Limb Rotation Range: Turns out to be double-jointed, a handy skill to have against armbars.
- Badass Adorable: Cute, fretful, one of the shortest fighters in the G-Girl Qualifiers, and the first one in the series apart from Natsuo or Ringi to really give Yuzuko a run for her money, even managing to draw blood. She also wipes the floor with her first opponent despite being half a foot shorter.
- Girlish Pigtails
- Red Baron: "The Korean Supernova."
- Youthful Freckles
Sogabe Hisako
Watahiki Saki
Asano Ai
Honma's pupil and a competitor in the G-Girl Qualifiers.
- Foil: To Yuzuko. Natsuo notices the way they both have thrown themselves into fighting and are having fun in their match is similar. Karin states that they're both favorites to win. They even have similar IdiotHairs.
- Idiot Hair
Abe Yuuko
A competitor in the G-Girl Qualifiers from Gym Shooting Boss.
- Curbstomp Battle: Goes down to Park Du Na in the first round under two minutes, despite having half a foot on her. The reader doesn't even see the fight.
- We Hardly Knew Ye Probably the G-Girl hopeful the reader knows least about, as her one fight was so quick it happened off-screen.
