History Characters / LoneWolfAndCub

%%* BaldOfEvil

* IdealHero: PlayedWith. Itto impresses everyone with his nobility, dedication and honorability. However, he's not this by the established standards of Bushido: he's willing to fight dirty, use his toddler son as a pawn regularly (which enemies call him out on) and debases himself in ways no Samurai otherwise would. People ironically find themselves respecting Itto more than judging him for adhering to his principles.

* FaceDeathWithDignity: Downplayed. Total sleaze though he may have been throughout the story, Abe-no-Kaii's actual death in Volume 26 is remarkably somber. Once [[spoiler: Itto arrives and Abe realizes that he won't be able to strike him down, Itto advises Abe to accept his end with dignity. Abe uncharacteristically takes this advice and allows Itto to execute him gracefully as a ''kaishakunin''.]] He does however die LaughingMad, making his death more "defiant" than "dignified."

%%* BigBad
%%* BigOlEyebrows

%%* IGaveMyWord
* NobleDemon: Retsudo is a scheming and shadowy man driven by ambition, envy, and greed, but he is also a bushi, and holds himself to certain standards of honorable conduct. In the end, he and his enemy are both relics of the dying age of the samurai, doomed to be washed away by time.

* PyrrhicVictory: [[spoiler: By the end of the manga, he's lost all of his children, most if not all of his agents, inadvertently caused the destruction of the Kurokuwa ninja, lost a lot of credibility and taken a hit to his and the Yagyu's reputation, and expended staggering resources to kill just one man. Though he succeeds in killing Itto, it's hard to see him recovering to the state he was at before making Itto an enemy, never mind gaining the control over the shogunate he desired. Which is perhaps one reason - among many - why he lets Daigoro fatally wound him in the end.]]

%%* AlasPoorVillain

* CombatPragmatist: The baby cart alone is filled with numerous hidden blades, back-up weapons and booby traps. And that's ignoring the man himself, who's willing to throw his sword, exploit sun glare, the envionrment and even ''his own son'' to defeat his foes.

* IdealHero: PlayedWith. Itto impresses everyone with his nobility, dedication and honorability. However, he's not this by the established standards of Bushido; he's willing to fight dirty, endanger his child and debase himself in ways no Samurai otherwise would. People ironically find themselves respecting Itto more than judging him for adhering to his principles. That and there's the fact he puts his toddler's life in dagner regualry, which even the villains or opponents he faces call him out on, further describing this notion.

* WouldHurtAChild: A rare (debatably) non-villainous example. To him, opponents are opponents, no matter their age. Played more straight with how he endagers his own son's life all the time.

* IdealHero: PlayedWith. Itto impresses everyone with his nobility, dedication and honorability. However, he's not this by the established standards of Bushido; he's willing to fight dirty, endanger his child and debase himself in ways no Samurai otherwise would. People ironically find themselves respecting Itto more than judging him for adhering to his principles.

* WouldHurtAChild: A rare non-villainous example. To him, opponents are opponents, no matter their age.

* EvenEvilHasStandards: In ''White Heaven In Hell,'' Retsudo stumbles onto a dying Hyouei forcing himself onto his own sister in an attempt to impregnate her with a Tsuchigumo heir just so the Yagyu can't do the same. Retsudo loses it and gives both a prompt MercyKill.

%%* DeathGlare

* FightingYourGod: In the film adaptation ''Baby Cart In Peril,'' Itto and Daigoro are praying at a temple shrine. In a rare burst of rage, Itto grows angry and actively shouts that he'll fight Buddha if he has to; slicing the statue he and Daigoro were praying to. Subverted however as an assassin was hiding inside of the statue (with more stowing away in the ceiling), making the outburst necessary.

%%ZCE* IGaveMyWord

%%* ProfessionalKiller

* WouldHitAGirl: Kills more than a few in his quest for revenge[[spoiler:, including Retsudo's illegitimate daughter.]]

** : Itto was unjustly framed by the power-grabbing of the Yagyu and forced into becoming a Ronin but despite his occasional amorality, he is mostly heroic. Abe-No-Kaii meanwhile has a DarkAndTroubledPast but grew into a degenerate, honorless DirtyCoward with respect for nobody but himself. Itto struggled for his position as executioner and continues to struggle just to survive to the very next day, all in a desperate attempt to wreak vengeance against the Yagyu Clan. Abe-No-Kaii lives a cushy job as the Shogun's taster, indulges in all of his fetishes and wants with no restraint and abhors the struggles samurai go through. Itto [[ThenLetMeBeEvil abandons his honor and his dignity to avenge his wife and family name]] whereas Abe-No-Kaii has everything he could ever want and nothing to fight for beyond his own simple pleasures.

* {{Foil}}: To both Ogami and Retsudo.

* FightingYourGod: In the film adaptation ''Baby Cart In Peril,'' Itto and Daigoro are praying at a temple shrine. In a rare burst of rage, Itto grows angry and actively shouts that he'll fight Buddha if he has to; slicing the statue he and Daigoro were praying to. Subverted however, as an assassin was hiding inside of the statue, making the outburst necessary.

%%* AntiHero

* CarpetOfVirility

%%* CombatPragmatist: And how!

%%* CrusadingWidower

* HitmanWithAHeart: Subverted. While Itto has a deeply compassionate side, especially for people who are in straits similar to his own, he is still a ruthless assassin. So long as his conditions (five-hundred ryo and explaining the reason behind the assassination) are met, he will carry out his contract, even if the target is practically a living saint. He only refuses under very particular circumstances.

* IdealHero: Itto impresses everyone with his nobility, dedication and honourability.
%%* IGaveMyWord

%%* PapaWolf

%%* TheStoic

%%* FalseInnocenceTrick

%%* ArchEnemy

%%* EnemyMine

%%* NonActionGuy
%%* NotSoHarmlessVillain

The head of the Ura Yagyu, the Shogun's assassins. Retsudo uses his position to secretly control the Shogunate from the shadows. In order to assume more complete control, he schemed to acquire Itto's position by disgracing him and his clan, which Retsudo succeeds in. In spite of his scheming nature, Retsudo is a master swordsman and Itto's only true equal throughout the series. He is also a master strategist and is skilled at several ninja tactics as well.

* NobleDemon: Somewhat paradoxically, Itto’s abandonment of honor and dignity is so total that it essentially becomes a code in and of itself. Itto abandons Bushido and a samurai’s dedication to preserving their honor, being willing to use whatever tricks or tactics he needs to get the job done. However, he applies that same attitude towards himself, being willing to do tasks and endure indignities that pretty much any other samurai would rather kill themselves rather than be subjected to. He’s willing to do the work of peasants, and even accepts a prospective prostitute’s punishment in her place to win her the right to go free. Itto’s complete commitment to fulfilling his quest is such that it earns him a great deal of respect from many of the people around him, despite his dishonorable actions.

* NobleDemon: Somewhat paradoxically, Itto’s abandonment of honor and dignity is so total that it essentially becomes a code in and of itself. Itto abandons Bushido and a samurai’s dedication to preserving their honor, being willing to use whatever tricks or tactics he needs to get the job done. However, he applies that same attitude towards himself, being willing to do tasks and endure indignities that pretty much any other samurai would rather kill themselves rather than be subjected to them. He’s willing to do the work of peasants, and even accepts a prospective prostitute’s punishment in her place to win her the right to go free. Itto’s complete commitment to fulfilling his quest is such that it earns him a great deal of respect from many of the people around him, despite his dishonorable actions.