History BadassBookworm / AnimeAndManga

** Nami, the cartographer/meteorologist who's also the ActionGirl who actually uses the Clima-Tact created by Usopp. She uses its ability to generate [[FireIceLightning heat, cold, and mild electricity]] to cause powerful localized storms, or even to create mirages, due to her [[AwesomenessByAnalysis extensive knowledge of geography and weather physics]]. Even without the Clima-Tact she's formidable. In her first appearance she steals a ship from some pirates, timing the weather perfectly so that the oncoming storm sinks the little ship she left them in without sinking her new (only slightly larger) ship.

* ''Manga/ZatchBell'': Kiyomaro Takamine, middle school student and master tactician with loads of stamina.

* ''Manga/DragonBall''
** Gohan was raised his whole life to become a scholar. Despite being a straight-A student, Gohan is one of the strongest fighters of the show, even having more fighting potential than his father. Even after spending a decade doing no martial arts training and not fighting anybody more formidable than random unpowered criminals, he's still capable of effortlessly kicking the ass of well over 99% of all fighters in the universe, and is stronger than God.
** And then there's Piccolo, who is simultaneously the BigGuy and the SmartGuy of the Z Fighters.

* ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'': Ranma is more likely to look at books for answers and to read for entertainment at least in the manga. We see Ranma turn to books for answers such as when Dr Tofu hurt his neck we later see him reading a book on chiropractics, during the reversal jewel he turned to dating magazines for advice on dating, turned to a scroll to counter Miss Hinako's draining, picked up the diary to find out why no one was at the island with the Hawaiian virus, etc. We also see him reading at other times as to what he was reading at those other times is unknown he was reading something while waiting for Ryoga prior to the ShiShiHadoken, read something while going to sleep when Miss Hinako stayed at the Tendo's, etc.

** If Luffy, Zoro and Sanji are the jocks of the crew, Usopp can be considered the geek. Both physically underwhelming and unappealing, Usopp possesses no great power Usopp seems like a push-over but that's just surface, not only is he a [[ImprobableAimingSkills excellent sniper]] but Usopp's [[TheStrategist plans, schemes and strategies]] would make even Batman impressed. This especially shown in Water 7 where he ''almost'' defeats Luffy [[TheHero the main protagonist]] and RubberMan solely though strategy and his own knowledge of Luffy as his friend something the villains of the series lack. Even up against the near unstoppable [[ElementalEmbodiment Logias]], Ussopp shows off his brain power using fire against the gas-based Caesar Clown and later [[PowerNullifier Sea Prism Stone]].
** Sanji while he initially acted mostly as a the powerhouse aka TheBigGuy the crew in fights, he showed a different kind of strength in Alabasta where when the rest of the crew was captured and caged, Sanji figured out [[TheStrategist a scheme]] to rescue his friends and throw the Warlord of the Sea Crocodile off their trial by outsmarting him. This especially impressive since Crocodile was known for his cunning and nobody had outwitted him before that point, Sanji analyzes foes when he fights them, figuring out weaknesses and openings in conjunction with his strength. Sanji on at least four big occasions has [[StealthExpert snuck off]] undone the villain's plan, like damaging [[GodGuise Enel]]'s Arc Maxim or closing the Gates of Justice in Enies Lobby guaranteeing the crew'a safety.

** If Luffy, Zoro and Sanji are the jocks of the crew, Usopp can be considered the geek. Both physically underwhelming, unappealing and possessing no great power Usopp seems like a push-over but that's just surface, not only is he a [[FriendlySniper excellent sniper]] but Usopp's [[TheStrategist plans, schemes and strategies]] would make Batman impressed. This especially shown in Water 7 where he ''almost'' defeats Luffy [[TheHero the main protagonist]] and RubberMan solely though strategy and his own knowledge of Luffy as his friend something the villains of the series lack. Even up against the near unstoppable [[ElementalEmbodiment Logias]], Ussopp shows off his brain power using fire against the gas-based Caesar Clown and later [[PowerNullifier Sea Prism Stone]].
** Sanji while he initially acted mostly as a powerhouse and TheLancer for Luffy in fights, he showed off a different kind of strength in Alabasta when the rest of the crew was captured and caged, Sanji figured out [[TheStrategist a scheme]] to rescue his friends and throw the Warlord of the Sea Crocodile off their trial by outsmarting him. This especially impressive since Crocodile was known for his cunning and nobody had outwitted him before that point, Sanji analyzes foes when he fights them, figuring out weaknesses and openings in conjunction with his strength. Sanji on at least four big occasions has [[StealthExpert snuck off]] undone the villain's plan, like damaging [[GodGuise Enel]]'s Arc Maxim or closing the Gates of Justice in Enies Lobby guaranteeing the crew'a safety.

* ''Manga/PokemonSpecial'':

** Shuukurou Tsukishima stands out as he is not only a bookworm, but his powers is related to story books. With his Fullbring ''Book of the End'', he transforms his bookmark into a sword, and anything and anyone he cuts with it, he is able to put himself into their memories to create FakeMemories. He usually makes himself as MarySue whenever he manipulates someone's memories, e.g. making himself their best friend, relative, love, teacher, former leader, etc.

** How about we say ALL alchemists fit? Since you know -- even if we don't see Roy leafing through books too often he is an expert with his own alchemy, has a vast knowledge about other fields than his fire-thing -- oh, and he is in the army. Which implies he is not only badass but also anything but BookDumb.

** If Luffy, Zoro and Sanji are the jocks of the crew, Usopp can be considered the geek. Physically underwhelming and possessing no great power Usopp seems like a push-over but that's just surface, not only is he a [[FriendlySniper excellent sniper]] but Usopp [[TheStrategist plans, schemes and strategies]] would make Batman impressed. This especially shown in Water 7 where he ''almost'' defeats Luffy [[TheHero the main protagonist]] and RubberMan solely though strategy and his own knowledge of Luffy as his friend something the villains of the series lack. Even up against the near unstoppable [[ElementalEmbodiment Logias]], Ussopp shows off his brain power using fire against the gas-based Caesar Clown and later [[PowerNullifier Sea Prism Stone]].

** Nico Robin, a HotLibrarian ''and'' a former DarkMagicalGirl who now uses her considerable smarts and fighting skills for the sake of her TrueCompanions.

** Sanji may be the ship's cook, but he's still a pretty smart cookie, often the one to [[TheStrategist come up with plans to get the crew out of trouble]], on top of being the third strongest of the crew after Zoro and Luffy.

* ''Manga/AxisPowersHetalia'': Japan, England, and possibly Austria.

* Japan, England, and possibly Austria of ''Manga/AxisPowersHetalia''.

* Seto Kaiba of ''Anime/YuGiOh'' is one of the top two Duel Monsters duelists of all time, a master chess player, CEO of the world's most successful game company, and inventor of the Duel Disk system, among other high tech gaming gadgets. Oh, and he was also apparently trained well in Krav Maga, and can disarm someone with a card fling.

* Yoshito Kikuchi and Kanzaki Urumi in ''Manga/GreatTeacherOnizuka''. Also, Azusa Shiratori's little sister.
* Professor Gennosuke Yumi from ''Anime/MazingerZ''. He was a quite geeky-looking, MarriedToTheJob scientist, but he could be pretty badass when he wanted.
* Aizawa Kouichi from ''Manga/NabariNoOu'' is, for all intents and purposes, that one kid with the glasses -- smart, somewhat {{nerd}}y, nice, and almost boring in the shadow of his weirder friends. Yet he's revealed to be the most professional and capable ninja in his village, and is more than willing to kill/brainwash the influential (including the CEO of a vast, international medicine/defense technology corporation) if the mission calls for it. To be fair, he's actually [[spoiler:not exactly human, or a middle schooler, having been created as a living experiment centuries ago.]]
* Think twice before attacking [[TheMedic Faust VIII]], from ''Manga/ShamanKing''. Enjoy your vivisection if you do. He can operate a bone transplant on himself in the middle of battle. Now that's badass.
* ''Manga/OnePiece'':
** Nico Robin, a HotLibrarian ''and'' a former DarkMagicalGirl who now uses her considerable smarts and fighting skills for the sake of her TrueCompanions.
** Nami, the cartographer/meteorologist who's also the ActionGirl who actually uses the Clima-Tact created by Usopp. She uses its ability to generate [[FireIceLightning heat, cold, and mild electricity]] to cause powerful localized storms, or even to create mirages, due to her [[AwesomenessByAnalysis extensive knowledge of geography and weather physics]]. Even without the Clima-Tact she's formidable. In her first appearance she steals a ship from some pirates, timing the weather perfectly so that the oncoming storm sinks the little ship she left them in without sinking her new (only slightly larger) ship.
** Sanji may be the ship's cook, but he's still a pretty smart cookie, often the one to [[TheStrategist come up with plans to get the crew out of trouble]], on top of being the third strongest of the crew after Zoro and Luffy.
** Klahadore/Kurahadol is introduced as Miss Kaya's unassuming, well-dressed butler. Early on he's shown to be incredibly gentle and possibly bookish, as he constantly has to adjust his glasses. He's secretly a massive badass named [[spoiler:Captain Kuro, who to his credit, still wears those glasses and was pretty well-dressed when he was a pirate. Acknowledged as the second smartest character from East Blue by the series' creator, he's a genius whose nickname is "Kuro of the Thousand Plans." And besides being a mastermind when the gloves come on his [[Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet Freddy Krueger-sque]] clawed gloves he's also an incredibly powerful pirate who can move fast enough to vanish in front of people. Oh yeah, there's one really bad point -- he has zero respect for human life and plans on murdering his entire crew after his latest plan, a pirate attack on the village culminating in the death of Miss Kaya so he can inherit her fortune), is completed. He also faked his death by framing a look-a-like via hypnosis.]]
* Kiyomaro Takamine of ''Manga/ZatchBell'', middle school student and master tactician with loads of stamina.
* Yomiko Readman of ''Anime/ReadOrDie'' is a particularly good example, as her extraordinary power stems directly from her love of books. The manga goes even further, with a ''school'' teaching AwesomenessByAnalysis. They are [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower ridiculously good at what they do]].
* Kazuo Kiriyama from the Manga version of ''Manga/BattleRoyale'' is an evil version, a sociopathic genius who spent most of his time quietly reading books and staying out of everyone's way. Due to this their gym teacher, a former Olympic Judo champion, decides to pick on him for a bit of a laugh, failing to notice that he's been reading a book on martial arts and [[EyeScream looking remarkably confident]]... plus Kiriyama's first meeting with the guy who became his lieutenant. A book on anatomy and no human compassion equals the most ridiculously violent high-school beatings ever captured on a page.
* Yuki Nagato from ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'' is usually quiet and unassuming, and rarely ever puts down her book, even when everyone else is playing around... or when she's playing around, or even when she is water skiing. However, whenever she's confronted by the weirdness brought about by [[spoiler:Haruhi Suzumiya herself and her RealityWarper power]], Yuki exhibits surprising battle abilities. Such as the [[spoiler:ability to temporarily overwrite reality, or play a bitchin' guitar solo]]. Her badass-ness is one of the reasons why she's ''not'' creepy. Her fight with [[spoiler:Ryouko Asakura]] was great. Not only was she [[spoiler:stabbed straight through by multiple objects]], she was able to be graceful while doing it. [[spoiler:She won that fight, actually.]] Given that her true identity is that of [[spoiler:a highly, ''highly'' advanced robotic interface, whose job is to gather information for The Data Integrated Thought Entity (an EldritchAbomination), her mastery of data is very fitting.]] In later books, after [[BadassNormal Kyon]] assists her in slipping the leash a little, [[spoiler:she becomes badass enough to break away ''from her own creator,'' and form independent emotion.]]
* Gundam has a few:
** [[Anime/MobileSuitVictoryGundam Uso Evin]] likes to learn as much as he can, and his friends know that is usually near books when he is not piloting Gundam's. If he doesn't have a Gundam nearby he just Gundam-jacks ''mid-air'' the nearest mobile suit.
** [[Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam Paptimus Scirocco]] is the poster boy for the villainous Bookworm: an ambitious political mastermind and AcePilot to rival Amuro and Char, he disdains social interaction and seems at his most content when he's working on his mobile suits or perusing data in solitude.
** [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED Kira Yamato]] has a habit of completely rewriting his mobile suit's operating systems in seconds, optimizing in mobility, and weapon performance, and constantly tweaks them to counter-balance with his location and surroundings. Did I mention he does this in mid-combat?
** [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamAGE Flit Asuno]] completed his mother's mobile suit design, thus building his ''own'' '''Gundam'''. He also didn't intend to pilot it, but did end up being the very first to beat a UE [[spoiler:Veigan]] mobile suit as well as destroying every single AceCustom in his path, and in [[TimeSkip the second generation]], he may be a [[spoiler:fleet commander]] but his home office is still filled with books.
* ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' has ''several''.
** [[BarrierWarrior Yuuno]] [[TheMedic Scrya]] is a mage, an AdventurerArchaeologist, a librarian, and a scholar -- ''[[ImprobableAge at age 9]]''. In a library practically [[GreatBigLibraryOfEverything infinite in size]], he can use magic to locate and decipher world-savingly critical information in a matter of hours. In battle, he can hold his own against a powerful ancient MagicKnight armed with a powerful EmpathicWeapon, despite having no EmpathicWeapon of his own, and he wasn't even giving the fight his undivided attention. Unfortunately, [[DemotedToExtra he is still a guy]] [[ImprobablyFemaleCast in a Magical Girl show]].
** Vivio, who became a librarian in the Infinity Library [[ImprobableAge in third grade]], begins showing more of her fighting skills in ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid'', including her skill in the Strike Arts style of martial arts, sparring evenly with [[spoiler:Nove]]. This comes off as a surprise to Rio, who had thought of Vivio and Corona as "more of bookworm types."
** Nanoha herself qualifies. The reason she's a PersonOfMassDestruction at age 9 is that her math skills and intelligence allow her to perform really powerful magics. In fact, math skills are essential to spellcasting, and talented mages are normally math prodigies. Out-thinking opponents doesn't hurt, either.
** Hayate, a sweet IllGirl in a wheelchair who bonds with Suzuka over their shared love of fairytales... and is also the most powerful living character in the entire franchise with an entire arsenal of spells that have destructive force equivalent to a nuke. Plus, her power literally comes from a book.

* [[BrilliantButLazy Shikamaru Nara]] from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''. What do you get when you give a ninja an over 200 I.Q.? Almost all of his fights involve him showing surprising quickness to dodge his opponent's attacks all the while analyzing their every move. And then deciding always on the correct counter strategy. Characters go through some pretty serious, near-fatal injuries in battle (Naruto even [[UnexplainedRecovery lost a lung]]), yet to date, Shikamaru's most severe battle-related injury that we know of has been... a self-inflicted broken finger.
** All of the smarter ninja in this world count as this trope; on account of them being, you know, '''ninjas'''. Learning ninjutsu actually requires a lot of study and intelligence itself. Naruto himself, a prototypical dumb hero, demonstrates some pretty decent strategic thinking when the need arises.
*** Kakashi Hatake. Naruto calls him "as smart as Shikamaru"[[note]]Naruto probably doesn't realize ''how'' smart Shikamaru is, but he knows both Shikamaru and Kakashi are geniuses.[[/note]] which, combined with his status as the most elite ninjutsu specialist in the Hidden Leaf, would make him this easily. Inverted with his actual choice of literature -- Jiraiya's erotic novels.
*** Sakura was introduced as an actual bookworm, and while one of the weakest of the Rookie 9, she is still a trained killing machine who demonstrates ImprobableAimingSkills and can kick a normal persons ass, she once let herself be hit with shuriken to get at an enemy. Post-skip, she has gained SuperStrength and is a medical prodigy capable of inventing cures to elaborate poisons on the fly, before helping an old hag nin fight and kill the S-Class criminal who invented it. She is also hinted to have a talent for Genjutsu, which according to Jiraiya is a fairly intellectual branch of the ninja arts.
*** Orochimaru is a MadScientist who has pushed the boundaries of Forbidden Jutsu -- including achieving a gruesome kind of immortality. He is a fairly competent strategist -- if Sarutobi didn't have that one jutsu, he probably would have destroyed the Leaf Village after all, one way or another -- has his own village where he conducts numerous horrific human experiments, and probably personally trained most of the younger Sound nin himself, as well as probably "modifying" them too. His [[TheDragon Dragon]], Kabuto, is a talented medic who [[spoiler:has spliced his genes with Orochimarus' DNA]].
*** Tsunade is a revolutionary medic-nin who now runs the entire Leaf village. And Jiraiya, arguably the most capable of the Sannin, is a best-selling author as well (of smut, but still...), and seemed pretty knowledgeable of ninja history.
*** Sand puppeteers like Sasori, Kankuro and Chiyo are expected to make and repair their own puppets, which are often elaborate death machines requiring a fair amount of maintenance. Sasori and Chiyo are both master poisoners as the weapons of the puppeteer are usually coated in poison, and Chiyo appears to have some medical knowledge as well. Sasori used to work with Orochimaru and it is implied they performed experiments together. And he's an artist, or regards himself as such at any rate.
*** The Akimichi clan secret jutsu rely on knowledge of special medicines; the Aburame are bug experts who turn their bodies into bug nests; the Inuzuka appear to be decent vets; and the Yamanaka... er, sell flowers.
*** The last one sounds lame but [[MundaneUtility many poisons are made from plants so...]]
*** Iruka. Chuunin-level academy teacher. Capable of projecting two sophisticated, all-senses illusions on opposite sides of Konoha. Echolocation (a possible bloodline limit). Can handle repeatedly being kicked in the spine by a beyond-super-strong former [[spoiler:best friend]]. As skillful as ''Anko.'' Stood up to ''Pain.'' He's still a Chuunin simply because there's no reason for a higher rank while working as an academy teacher.
* Played around with the Data Tennis players (Sadaharu Inui of Seigaku, Renji Yanagi of Rikkaidai, Hajime Mizuki of Saint Rudolph, Taichi Dan of Yamabuki and Koharu Konjiki of Shitenhouji) from ''Manga/ThePrinceOfTennis''. All of them use the information they collect to further their playing strategies (hence the "Data tennis" name), but the results are different since they have very distinct personalities ''and'' methods.
** Inui and Yanagi also qualify in the GeniusBruiser category, both being over 6 ft. tall.
* Professor Colbert from ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero''. Also qualifies for RetiredBadass and HeelFaceTurn.
* ''Franchise/SailorMoon'':
** Ami Mizuno/Sailor Mercury is the [[TeenGenius smartest junior high/high school student in the whole of Japan]] and a Sailor Senshi with mastery over water and [[AnIcePerson ice-based attacks]]. She even has a visor and a special calculator that allows her to analyze the situation and discover the weak spots of their enemies. Her Badass Bookworm status is lampshaded by Ami herself in the ''Stars'' season of TheNineties [[Manga/SailorMoon anime]], when Haruka chides her for prioritizing the analysis of the rival they're fighting over her own safety and Ami replies "This is MY way to fight!"
** In the [[Manga/SailorMoon manga]] version Mamoru Chiba/Tuxedo Mask who graduated at the top of his class, is considered almost as smart as Ami, if not as smart, is an excellent fencer, and is also considered one of the best hand-to-hand combatants in the series. Pity the poor guy is still subjected to TheWorfEffect even then...
* L of ''Manga/DeathNote'', who is laconic, lazy, a [[GreatDetective brilliant detective]], and quite able to hold his own in the occasional fistfight with Light. Must be all the sweets. In the third live action movie he uses a thrown hammer to knock out a PsychoForHire.

* Playwright prospect, Kaleido Stage fansite webmistress, very skilled with technical stuff as well as with literature-related knowledge, ''and'' a talented acrobat and actress on top of it all... That's Mia Guillem from ''Anime/KaleidoStar'' to you.
* Rider in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', when you found out that she actually loves literature, when she is in her {{Meganekko}} mode. Combined with her already powerful abilities...
** Schoolteacher Souichirou Kouzuki gets extra points for being a BadassNormal, [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu beating back the famously strongest Servant Saber with his bare hands]].
* Kuroo Hazama aka Dr. ''Manga/BlackJack''. Apparently, obtaining his Medical Doctorate has transformed him into some sort of surgery-performing ninja. This is the only way one can explain feats such as using scalpels to deflect bullets, or climbing across the surface of an airplane in ''mid-flight.'' Perhaps he wasn't really mentored by Dr. Honma, but by [[WebComic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja Dr. McNinja]].
* ''Manga/{{Monster}}''
** Inspector Heinrich Lunge. While being a ridiculously intelligent BKA investigator with a photographic memory is impressive, Lunge's real threat is that he's practically a human [[ImplacableMan terminator]] who doesn't shoot to wound so much as he shoots to cause excruciating pain.
** Johan himself. A bona-fide genius- he once posed as a Law student, but legitimately got all A's, in between advising a tycoon on how to run his financial empire whilst the two discussed Latin- who happens to be a super-prolific SerialKiller, a man who amongst other things slaughters entire families off-screen. He has hardened criminals, mad scientists and Neo-Nazis all worshipping the ground he walks on, and the rest of the world p*ssing themselves in his presence because he just oozes evil. He is utterly fearless (even inviting) in the face of death and has been shot in the head [[spoiler: twice]] and survived. His hobby is walking the edges of skyrise rooftops and he is probably TheAntichrist. Not known for his fighting skill, but he's pretty familiar with guns and was bred to be TheUbermensch. He is also a ManipulativeBastard of the highest order and seems capable of talking civilization into destroying itself.
* ''Manga/MahouSenseiNegima''
** The story plays with this by translating the Library girls' abilities into battle magic. Given that said Library is filled with death traps to the point where the ground floor is off limits to Jr. high students and below the 3rd sub-basement is off-limits to the university students, rock climbing gear is needed to get to some parts of the Library that is open to the public, one of the librarians is a top class mage, and there is a dragon in the basement, a case can be made that they were fairly badass even before starting to learn magic.
** Even without that TeenGenius Yue was already clever enough to begin with to qualify. She actually manages to [[spoiler:defeats a dragon/griffin hybrid]] after [[spoiler:two classmates by leaping in front of them to block an attack]],using her artifact to look it up, determine its weaknesses, and coming up with a plan that involved [[spoiler:her stabbing a spot a few centimeters square with a small knife while dodging friendly fire]].
** And also, Albireo "Ku:nel Sanders" Imma, who qualifies as a badass ''librarian''.
** Negi himself qualifies, although his scholarly abilities aren't emphasized. However, in the first chapter he responded to one of his new students questions "I'm fluent in English to a university graduate level." This from a ten year old [[FridgeLogic (though one would think that his knowledge of Japanese would be the more impressive feat seeing as he is from Wales and all)]]. And he's referred to as a genius more than once, by people familiar with his true background. He is even able to defeat the most famous warrior in the world, Rakan (known as the immortal, among others), through a barrage of new spells and applications of magic theory that would bring top professors to his knees, to the point that Rakan declares him a badass whose greatest power is at the desk.
** Nodoka Miyazaki is taking this trope and running with it in the last arcs with the way she is MinMaxing her artifact. According to Nodoka, ancient crypts and ruins [[spoiler:in the Magic World]] are no match for [[GreatBigLibraryOfEverything Library Island]]. Nodoka's artifact is absolutely no help in dealing with traps, locks, or natural hazards - [[PluckyGirl it's all her.]]

* Appledelhi, [[spoiler:Ed's father]], from ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' is a geologist studying and mapping the ruined Earth, and a bit of a {{Cloudcuckoolander}} to boot. When he is forced into a confrontation with Spike, he ''effortlessly'' beats off all of Spike's attacks, and is well on the way to [[CurbStompBattle stomping him good]] when he's interrupted.
** The {{Cloudcuckoolander}} part? The earth he's mapping is STILL BEING RUINED by rocks falling from the sky. Every time one lands he races off to map the changes. And like Ed, Appledelhi can take somewhat cartoonish amounts of abuse and shrug it off. In a show that, for the most part, obeys all the laws of physics. A show so based on reality that Spike uses a known martial art--Jeet Kune Do, as created by Bruce Lee. Sure, the Bebop crew run into some pretty strange occurrences, but Spike is strictly BadassNormal, ending the episode several times wrapped up as if he were a mummy. He is... outclassed several times.

* In the 3rd episode of ''Manga/{{Golgo 13}}'', the titular hitman is in a sniper duel with two mercenaries using advanced rifles superior to his own M16, and modified with a unique electronic "super scope". Based on their firing patterns, he deduces that the scopes have a vulnerability in that they do not take shifts in gradient into account. He then calculates the gradient necessary for their shots to be inaccurate, and positions himself in an area of the battlefield with that gradient, easily blowing them away. Duke Togo- international assassin, and math nerd.
* Hakkai from ''Manga/{{Saiyuki}}'', the polite and scholarly type in the party heading west. He even wears a monocle (if for different reasons). And then there's the matter of his [[KamehameHadoken energy blasts]] ... His past life Tenpou from ''Saiyuki Gaiden'' is actually a bookworm (to the point of being shown buried in books) and bespectacled, but people know very well you don't want to get him mad. He also single-handedly does the work of a military unit.
* Tsutomu Tanaka, a minor character from ''KenichiTheMightiestDisciple''. This 18 year old Salaryman with a young daughter first appears as a diminutive wimp who is fairly well whipped by his wife and boss, up until he stabs his index finger into a man several times larger than him without any resistance, [=KOing=] him instantly, and outruns a member of YOMI so fast that by the time she turns a corner, he has already disappeared.
* ''Anime/BattleProgrammerShirase'': Don't mess with Akira Shirase. Yes, he does look like a textbook example of computer nerd, who haven't shaved, washed or got enough sleep in three or four days. He also can listen to a song and write a binary of mp3 of it out of his head. He can also hack your PC into going boom using nothing more than a cellphone with internet connection. Or hack and drop a sequence of decommissioned spy satellites on your head.
* Manabu Yukimitsu from ''Manga/{{Eyeshield 21}}''. Scrawny and weak, the only thing that even lets him join the team is the fact that he's more of a {{Determinator}} than the character whose determination is a running gag. However, after finally being put into the game against Shinryuuji, he [[spoiler: manages to outsmart [[TheGift gifted]] JerkJock Agon Kongo and score a touchdown.]]

* Seta Noriyasu of ''Manga/LoveHina'' is a university archeology professor who is something of a parody of ''Franchise/IndianaJones''. He's also a remarkably skilled martial artist and (in the anime, at least) passes on some of this knowledge to Keitaro.
* Gen Sakon from the original ''Anime/{{Gaiking}}'' series wasn't only a top mechanic and a great BigBrotherMentor, but a AdventurerArchaeologist and pretty handy in hand-to-hand combat.
* Kyrie Ushiromiya of ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry''. Sure, she knows her place in the family conferences (near the bottom) and will leave most of the arguing to her husband Rudolf. But stick any kind of demon in front of her and watch it go flying. George may also qualify [[spoiler:in the fourth arc]], but Kyrie is more consistently this, and her analytical nature is way more played-up.
** Anyone who does truth duels with any level of skill has to be this by sheer necessity. Battler, for example, refuses to call himself well-read because it would be arrogant due to [[BadassBoast "only reading about a hundred a year."]]
* Dekoppa or Kazuya Idetaro from ''Manga/MajinDevil'' qualifies. Quote:"...How boring. Solving Fermat's Theorem is more difficult than this." He proceeds to walk away with BadassLongcoat flapping in the breeze of the exploding remains of his opponent,ScaryShinyGlasses glowing doing an UnflinchingWalk.
* Harumi Fujiyoshi of ''Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei'' is a YaoiFangirl who spends much of her time producing {{doujinshi}}. However, she's also a very competent athlete and the school's sports teams often try to force her to join. One episode indicates that her [[{{meganekko}} glasses]] are a PowerLimiter, and she'd be an even more amazing athlete without them.
* In almost the same exact vein as Harumi, Konata Izumi of ''Anime/LuckyStar'' is a great athlete to the point of winning the 100m Dash for her school's Athletic Festival....by ''[[IKnowMortalKombat visualizing herself in the original Track & Field/Hyper Olympic video game.]]'' Complete with custom controller and ruler trick. Much the same way, her athletic ability is shelved for her...[[{{Otaku}} other interests]].
* ''[[Manga/TheLegendOfZelda Legend of Zelda: Four Swords+ ]]'': Vio is Link's "smart side" and is often seen reading. And yet, he's still strong and skilled enough to beat the "original" green Link in a sparring match.
* Manabizaki from ''Manga/{{SWOT}}'' is a person who studies too much (which is what the title means). He's always found with his nose buried in a book. However, he also has a HairTriggerTemper and gets really pissed when anything interrupts his study time. This attitude, coupled with his [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold externally nasty behavior]], have gotten him into fights with {{delinquents}}... to their detriment.
* In ''{{LightNovel/Durarara}}'', [[InformationBroker Izaya Orihara's]] primary forte is information dealing and being a [[ManipulativeBastard manipulative rat bastard]] of a {{troll}}. However, as he points out to Anri Sonohara, one doesn't make as many enemies as he does (particularly when one of those enemies is [[ImplacableMan Shizuo Heiwajima aka Ikebukuro's God of Wrath]]) and survive unless they're also damn good in a fight.
* ''Manga/DragonBall''
** Gohan was raised his whole life to become a scholar. Despite being a straight-A student, Gohan is one of the strongest fighters of the show, even having more fighting potential than his father. Even after spending a decade doing no martial arts training and not fighting anybody more formidable than random unpowered criminals, he's still capable of effortlessly kicking the ass of well over 99% of all fighters in the universe, and is stronger than God.
** And then there's Piccolo, who is simultaneously the BigGuy and the SmartGuy of the Z Fighters.
* Japan, England, and possibly Austria of ''Webcomic/AxisPowersHetalia.''
* Black from ''Manga/PokemonSpecial''. Is he a LargeHam {{Determinator}} with HyperAwareness? Yes, but he actually did some research before he went on his journey, and outright states that he's been spending time reading in libraries ever since he was a little kid so he could learn everything he possibly could.
** Preceding Black is [[ActionGirl Platinum]] [[LadyOfWar Berlitz]] who reads 10 books a day and knows quite a lot of concrete facts about Sinnoh, and various facts about a wide range of disciplines despite never leaving her mansion.
* Lucy and Levi from ''Manga/FairyTail''.
* The Black Swordsman from ''Anime/{{Kigeki}}'' will lend his services only if his employer gives him a book upfront as payment. If he happens to like the book, then you've just secured yourself a [[spoiler:Vampire]] OneManArmy.
* Yang Wenli, an aspiring historian turned strategist due to various circumstances, of ''Anime/LegendOfGalacticHeroes''. He has never been defeated in his career, besting even the Empire's brightest star Reinhard von Lohengramm. However, all he ever wants in life is early retirement and a generous pension so that he can pursue his real interest: study history.
* [[OpaqueNerdGlasses Leo]] from ''Manga/PandoraHearts'' counts, being that he's Elliot's servant and all Nightray servants are supposed to [[BattleButler double as their bodyguards]]. Though Leo's badassery is at first mostly dependent on his AccidentalAimingSkills, he later plays this trope straight after he [[spoiler:contracts Jabberwock.]]
** [[{{Tsundere}} Elliot]] and [[GuileHero Oz]] also count. The both of them spent their first conversation fighting over their favorite characters from their favorite book. The former, while not as good as many others, is still an able swordsman [[spoiler:who is not afraid of rushing towards a Chain to save his friend]] and the latter has control over B-Rabbit's power, [[spoiler:especially considering he is B-Rabbit, to begin with.]]
* ''Manga/BlackLagoon'''s Rock is probably the most dangerous character in the whole series. Not only is does his business and schmoozing experience cause him to be the best negotiator of the Lagoon company he also [[spoiler: plans out the events of an arc before hand based on his limited knowledge of the characters involved.]].
* ''Manga/SamuraiDeeperKyo'' gives us Hishigi, as well as Yukimura and the Sendai Aka no Ou (the latter two spend their entire fight quoting Confucius at each other).
* [[Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar Kenshiro's]] [[IdenticalGrandson uncle]] [[Manga/FistOfTheBlueSky Kenshiro Kasumi.]] He is a chain-smoking professor of literature at a womens' university in Tokyo who plays piano, speak several languages and dances. He is also known as [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Yan Wang,]] has friends in the Qing Bang Triads, and can [[YourHeadAsplode bust your head open]] with Hokuto Shinken.
* From ''Anime/DigimonSavers'', we have Masaru's dad, Professor Suguru Daimon. Brilliant scientist who designed and built the Digivice iC, and considering he did it in the Digital World, he probably had less to work with than [[ComicBook/IronMan Tony Stark's box of scraps]]. He is also a massive HotBlooded badass, who can punch out even the strongest Digimon, fought his partner [=BanchoLeomon=] to a standstill with his fists in their first meeting, and saved the Holy Captial by smashing a hole in the ground with his fist, making water burst out. [[spoiler:And he actually survives getting a huge hole punched in his chest long enough to transfer his spirit to his partner's body.]] One of the most badass ass-kicking scientists ever.
* ''Manga/TokyoGhoul'' loves this trope, making it a sort of AuthorAppeal.
** Ken Kaneki begins the story as a CuteBookworm but eventually evolves into one of the strongest Ghouls in the series. He's actually shown learning martial arts through reading about them, studying manuals to memorize forms and learn about weak points in the body. When attacked by a large and physically dominating opponent, he recalls something he had read previously and uses it to break the attacker's arm.
** Shuu Tsukiyama is extremely well-read, with a massive personal library filled with expensive-looking hard covers. He is also known as the infamous Gourmet, a Ghoul that other Ghouls fear due to his BloodKnight tendencies.
** Rize Kamishiro's favorite hobby is finding somewhere nice to settle down and read, and first attracts Kaneki's attention because they are reading the same novel. She's also an extremely powerful Ghoul, and likes one thing more than reading -- namely, using her CombatTentacles to scramble her victims' insides.
** Kishou Arima, the legendary "Undefeated Investigator" and [[{{Shinigami}} "Death God"]] of CCG. He enjoys reading in his few moments of spare time, and as a teenager was an exceptional Academic that memorized his text books for efficiency. As his nicknames suggest, he is the most feared character in the entire series and with good reason.
** The infamous [[HeroKiller One-Eyed]] [[BigBad Owl]] is actually one. [[spoiler: She's not only a beautiful, ''tiny'' young woman that loves to read, but actually the best-selling Novelist the other bookworm characters discuss at length. The anime shows her home is filled with books, and she's a big fan of the works of Creator/FranzKafka with the first of her eight novels referencing him]].
* [[Manga/RanmaOneHalf Ranma]] is more likely to look at books for answers and to read for entertainment at least in the manga. We see Ranma turn to books for answers such as when Dr Tofu hurt his neck we later see him reading a book on chiropractics, during the reversal jewel he turned to dating magazines for advice on dating, turned to a scroll to counter Miss Hinako's draining, picked up the diary to find out why no one was at the island with the Hawaiian virus, etc. We also see him reading at other times as to what he was reading at those other times is unknown he was reading something while waiting for Ryoga prior to the ShiShiHadoken, read something while going to sleep when Miss Hinako stayed at the Tendo's, etc.
** He might be more of a GeniusBruiser, Ranma is definitely well rounded, heck he is probably the most well rounded in skills in the manga displaying knowledge in a large variety of fields (cooking, cleaning, repair work, sewing, horse riding, first aid, CPR, some knowledge on magic, designing (he makes his own disguises in the manga; can be seen sewing a costume before the battle with Mousse - pictured above), tea ceremony, proper manners (though he doesn't always use them), animals, constructed spirit wards (didn't screw them up in the manga only in the anime), dancing (went dancing on a date in the manga), wrote a play and went to see plays), etc.
* Kasumi Kenshiro from Fist of the Blue Sky.

* Appledelhi, [[spoiler:Ed's father]], from ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' is a geologist studying and mapping the ruined Earth, and a bit of a {{Cloudcuckoolander}} to boot. When he is forced into a confrontation with [[BadAss Spike]], he ''effortlessly'' beats off all of Spike's attacks, and is well on the way to [[CurbStompBattle stomping him good]] when he's interrupted.

** How about we say ALL alchemists fit? Since you know -- even if we don't see Roy leafing through books too often he is an expert with his own alchemy, has a vast knowledge about other fields than his fire-thing -- oh, and he is in the army. Which implies he is not only BadAss but also anything but BookDumb.

** Negi himself qualifies, although his scholarly abilities aren't emphasized. However, in the first chapter he responded to one of his new students questions "I'm fluent in English to a university graduate level." This from a ten year old [[FridgeLogic (though one would think that his knowledge of Japanese would be the more impressive feat seeing as he is from Wales and all)]]. And he's referred to as a genius more than once, by people familiar with his true background. He is even able to defeat the most famous warrior in the world, Rakan (known as the immortal, among others), through a barrage of new spells and applications of magic theory that would bring top professors to his knees, to the point that Rakan declares him a BadAss whose greatest power is at the desk.

* Professor Gennosuke Yumi from ''Anime/MazingerZ''. He was a quite geeky-looking, MarriedToTheJob scientist, but he could be pretty {{Badass}} when he wanted.

* Think twice before attacking [[TheMedic Faust VIII]], from ''Manga/ShamanKing''. Enjoy your vivisection if you do. He can operate a bone transplant on himself in the middle of battle. Now that's {{badass}}.

* Yuki Nagato from ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'' is usually quiet and unassuming, and rarely ever puts down her book, even when everyone else is playing around... or when she's playing around, or even when she is water skiing. However, whenever she's confronted by the weirdness brought about by [[spoiler:Haruhi Suzumiya herself and her RealityWarper power]], Yuki exhibits surprising battle abilities. Such as the [[spoiler:ability to temporarily overwrite reality, or play a bitchin' guitar solo]]. Her {{badass}}-ness is one of the reasons why she's ''not'' creepy. Her fight with [[spoiler:Ryouko Asakura]] was great. Not only was she [[spoiler:stabbed straight through by multiple objects]], she was able to be graceful while doing it. [[spoiler:She won that fight, actually.]] Given that her true identity is that of [[spoiler:a highly, ''highly'' advanced robotic interface, whose job is to gather information for The Data Integrated Thought Entity (an EldritchAbomination), her mastery of data is very fitting.]] In later books, after [[BadassNormal Kyon]] assists her in slipping the leash a little, [[spoiler:she becomes badass enough to break away ''from her own creator,'' and form independent emotion.]]

*** Orochimaru is a MadScientist who has pushed the boundaries of Forbidden Jutsu -- including achieving a gruesome kind of immortality -- and may have been on to the secrets of the BigBad Uchiha Madara in the process. He is a fairly competent strategist -- if Sarutobi didn't have that one jutsu, he probably would have destroyed the Leaf Village after all, one way or another -- has his own village where he conducts numerous horrific human experiments, and probably personally trained most of the younger Sound nin himself, as well as probably "modifying" them too. His [[TheDragon Dragon]], Kabuto, is a talented medic who [[spoiler:has spliced his genes with Orochimarus' DNA]].

* ''SamuraiDeeperKyo'' gives us Hishigi, as well as Yukimura and the Sendai Aka no Ou (the latter two spend their entire fight quoting Confucius at each other).

* ''{{Negima}}'' plays this by translating the Library girls' abilities into battle magic. Given that said Library is filled with death traps to the point where the ground floor is off limits to Jr. high students and below the 3rd sub-basement is off-limits to the university students, rock climbing gear is needed to get to some parts of the Library that is open to the public, one of the librarians is a top class mage, and there is a dragon in the basement, a case can be made that they were fairly badass even before starting to learn magic.

** Nodoka Miyazaki is taking this trope and running with it in the last arcs with the way she is MinMaxing her artifact. [[http://www.mangareader.net/209-47584-3/mahou-sensei-negima/chapter-280.html She is scary.]] According to Nodoka, ancient crypts and ruins [[spoiler:in the Magic World]] are no match for [[GreatBigLibraryOfEverything Library Island]]. Nodoka's artifact is absolutely no help in dealing with traps, locks, or natural hazards - [[PluckyGirl it's all her.]]

* Kiyomaro Takamine of ''Manga/KonjikiNoGashBell'', middle school student and master tactician with loads of stamina.

** Hayate, a sweet IllGirl in a wheelchair who bonds with Suzuka over their shared love of fairytales... and is also the most powerful living character in the entire franchise with an entire arsenal of spells with destructive force equivalent to a nuke. Plus, her power literally comes from a book.

** Vivio, who became a librarian in the Infinity Library [[ImprobableAge in third grade]], begins showing more of her fighting skills in Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid, including her skill in the Strike Arts style of martial arts, sparring evenly with [[spoiler:Nove]]. This comes off as a surprise to Rio, who had thought of Vivio and Corona as "more of bookworm types."

** Hayate, a sweet IllGirl in a wheelchair who bonds with Suzuka over their shared love of fairytales... and is also the most powerful living character in the entire franchise who has an entire arsenal of spells with destructive force equivalent to a nuke. Plus, her power comes from a book.