Kurohyo Ryu Ga Gotoku Shinsho / Characters

For the characters introduced in the sequel, see here.

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Main Characters

Tatsuya Ukyo

Voiced by: Kengo Kora (Kurohyou 1), Takumi Saito (Kurohyou 2)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ukyo_tatsuya.jpg

as he appears in Kurohyō: Ryū ga Gotoku Shinshō

The main protagonist of Kurohyou, son of Amamiya Taizan/Nogi Tooru, orphaned at an early age after a fire in Champion District broke out, killing his mother and leaving him orphaned with Saeko who was old enough to be considered his legal guardian. Raised by the streets alone, he quickly became violent and temperamental, took judo classes, and excelled in them. Ultimately he get in a schoolyard fight that ends with a student ending up going comatose and Tatsuya being arrested. Sentenced to two years in Juvenile Hall Tatsuya would develop a strong resentment towards authority after his release as he drops out at the age of 17. Doing part time jobs and picking fights with fellow thugs and gangs in Kamurocho like most aimless youth.

Tatsuya soon became a street fighter forced into fighting for the Kuki Family after he supposedly murdered Naoki Toda and stole from him. Tatsuya quickly proves himself and gains the title "Kamurocho's Mad Dragon" for his victories in the Dragon Heat and learns that Naoki miraculously survived and discovers that the events were part of the same fire that killed his mother and how it connects to the politics of the Tojo, the cops and the landowners. He later becomes a professional boxer but returned to the Dragon Heat after a new gang from Osaka calling themselves the Ashura started working for the Nioka family.

Accidental Murder: He gets involved in the main conflict of the first game after accidentally beating a Tojo family member to death. Only not really.
Adaptational Heroism: In the drama, he doesn't actually kill the Tojo member but is framed for it.
Animal Motifs: Kurohyou directly translates to Black Panther, so it's pretty safe to say it's his motif.
Anti-Hero: He's quite moody and violent for a Yakuza protagonist, especially at the beginning of the first game. Thanks to character development, he loses his roughest edges by the time of the sequel, but he's not exactly as approachable as Kiryu, Akiyama, or even Saejima.
Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: Is confident in his skill in a fight even after Character Development.
Bash Brothers: Tenma, Tatsuya's friend/rival. Tenma would sometimes be on the receiving end of Tatsuya's beatings but ultimately the only friend Tatsuya has throughout the years. In Kurohyou 2 he regularly fights alongside Ryusho and the other fighters from Dragon Heat.
Berserk Button: In Kurohyou 2, the angriest he ever gets is whenever he confronts the people responsible for Makoto's death.
Blood Knight: Like every Yakuza main character, he's always up for a good fight, though he takes it even further by outright looking for physical conflict. Before Yakuza 0 came along his heat moves were very brutal.
Boots of Toughness: One of his outfits gives him these along with a leather jacket and jeans.
Boxing Battler: The first unlockable style Tatsuya can use and his starting style in Kurohyo 2. After the events of the first game, Tatsuya takes up his father's footsteps and becomes a world-class boxer at the beginning of the second.
Brutal Honesty: He really doesn't mince his words and says what's on his mind.
Broken Hero: In the Drama, he is shown to be very emotionally unstable, especially after his sister Saeko's death at the hands of his friend.
The Casanova: Can potentially attract a lot of woman if you play the cabaret Dating Sim.
Cannot Spit It Out: If the player chooses he can attempt to confess his love to Saki before the penultimate boss, Saki tells him to save his tongue until it's all over.
Character Development: The first game is about him maturing from his fights in Dragon Heat, going from one of Kamurocho's many street punks to a much calmer and forgiving person who sympathizes with other people's struggles.
Charles Atlas Superpower: He's able to instantly learn the basics of a martial art by having a fight with an art's expert and he trains purely through street fights. It's enough for him to defeat world class level fighters.
Combat Pragmatist: Tatsuya's Weapon Mania, Extreme Awakening/Rousing Mastery, and Military Martial arts fighting styles exemplify the brutal pragmatism of fighting as they encourage using weapons in battle and heat moves of the styles are extra brutal as they include groin attacks, head stomping, eye gouging and even biting.
Covert Pervert: If the cabaret and substories are any indication he's not above perving after women.
Cynicism Catalyst: Saeko in the drama was killed by Naoto, a Drama only character.
Dark Is Not Evil: He frequently wears black clothing items. It's actually significantly downplayed in the first game compared to other Yakuza protagonists, as he starts out as a legitimately violent thug. However, he does become this trope over the course of the game thanks to Character Development.
Delinquent Hair: A long slicked-back undercut with three braids on the side.
Frothy Mugs of Water: He is only 19 by the events of Ashura, too young to drink liquor at the bar. The Hostess Club Jewel offers a bunch of non-alcoholic alternatives for him. Saeko implies he does drink in secret.
Good Old Fisticuffs: In both games, Tatsuya starts off with Brawling, a style with bad stamina and low combos. In the manga, Tatsuya defeats Tomoki using this style which is accurate to a first playthrough of the game since you can't unlock any other styles in Chapter 1.
Hoist by His Own Petard: Some of his special Heat Moves against bosses has him use their own styles against them.
Honor Before Reason: In Shinsho's finale, the good guys have secured victory over the bad guys, but Tatsuya insists on having a proper fight with Shinjo (and by proxy Tsutsui) as the culmination of the philosophy he's formed over the game.
Iconic Outfit: A gold and black Dress Camp tracksuit and pants, he doesn't even wear a shirt under it.
Identical Stranger: With his slicked-back hair, Tatsuya bears an uncanny resemblance to Nishiki.
Legendary in the Sequel: He is renowned by the Japanese underworld in 2 for both his feat of 10 straight wins in Dragon Heat and being a world-class Boxer in America.
Limited Wardrobe: Averted. In Kurohyou 2 he can buy and put on multiple outfits, although in cutscenes he's always wearing his black tracksuit.
Luke, I Am Your Father: Taizan was revealed to be Tatsuya's long lost father. Sadly, the reunion didn't last long.
Made of Iron: He's able to recover from broken bones and injured joints unusually quickly from both a story and gameplay perspective. Exaggerated at one point in the sequel where he can possibly take a dagger to the back of his neck from one of the bosses and not die.
Man Bites Man: One of his Heat Moves has him chomp on his enemy... while accompanied by cartoon-ish chomp sound effects...
Manly Tears: Sheds some when his father, Nogi Tooru, dies at the end of the game.
Master of All: Can learn martial art styles quite easily by fighting masters of the art. If the player maxes out all the styles Tatsuya unlocks the Master of All style, Extreme Man/Kiwami.
Might Makes Right: In a non-traditional sense. Through his experiences, he comes to believe that the key to self-actualization comes through victory, but he also doesn't look down on others by the time he comes to that conclusion.
Mythical Motifs: He's known as "Kamurocho's Mad Dragon", giving him the same dragon motif that Kiryu has. He even has the kanji for 'dragon' in his name.
Product Placement: His famous black tracksuit comes from the Dresscamp brand.
Red Baron: He's known as "Kamurocho's Mad Dragon", he gains the moniker "The man who won 10 wins" in the sequel.
Screw Destiny: He believes in taking his fate into his own hands, and multiple times he actively defies Ryo's prophecies.
Stance System: Ukyo has the highest amount of any Like A Dragon character so far, boasting a preposterously broad 28 stances total throughout both Kurohyou games.
Teen Genius: While the usual Yakuza protagonists are 30-40 year old men with years of fighting experience, Tatsuya is an untrained street fighter aged around 17-19 who is able to instantly learn martial arts and defeat even world-class level professionals.
This Is Something He's Got to Do Himself: He invokes this at the end of Kurohyou 2, knocking out Yuta, Tamotsu, and Shinji so they can't follow him into the Millenium Tower. Subverted as they follow him in anyways, providing Tatsuya with some much-needed backup.
Took a Level in Kindness: He's become a lot more level-headed and disciplined by the second game (though not fully rid of his fiery temper), which leads him to act like a mentor figure to the other fledgling fighters he encounters.
Wouldn't Hit a Girl: He was rather enraged by Wardog's tactics during Ashura Hen.
Wrestler in All of Us: As per usual with most Yakuza protagonists he has a few wrestling moves in his moveset, he can do a leg capture, a piledriver, or suplex someone into a railing for instance.

Saeko Ukyo

Voiced by: Nami Harada

The sister of Tatsuya and the owner of the pub Scarlet, while she knows about her little brother being a bundle of trouble. She didn't know about how much trouble he got in when he supposedly killed Toda Naoki.

Not Blood Siblings: Saeko's parents were killed in the fire, with no other living relative, Saeko was adopted by Nogi, who's her father's best friend.
Promotion to Parent: With their parent's deaths she's the one to provide to Tatsuya.

Amamiya Taizan

Voiced by: Koichi Iwaki

The resident physician at Dragon Heat, who becomes a mentor to Tatsuya. His real name is Nogi Tooru, and not only is he the holder of Dragon Heat's 9-win streak record, but he's also Tatsuya's long-lost father. He infiltrated the Tojo Clan and became a police informant in the hopes of getting to the bottom of the fire that killed his wife.

Beard of Sorrow: Has grown some stubble years after the fire that killed his wife.
Boxing Battler: At the very beginning of the second chapter after defeating Tomoki, Taizan teaches you the Boxing fighting style in a flash. Serves as a little foreshadowing to who he really is and what he is really capable of. He was also a former boxer aiming for the world championship in his youth and his fighting style is stated to have Boxing as his base along with his mastery of other martial arts.
Climax Boss: He's the penultimate boss, and the one who stands in the way of Tatsuya achieving his 10-win streak.
Daddy Had a Good Reason for Abandoning You: He was both set on investigating the murder of his wife by becoming a mole within the yakuza and ashamed of his neglect towards her, so he ended up abandoning a young Tatsuya.
Final-Exam Boss: When in heat mode, he will use the heat mode attacks of the other dragon heat bosses; Hyuga's fast flurry of blows, Fujimoto's slower but deadlier combo, Yuki's combat rolls into multiple options, and Makabe and Cho's mad dashes (though without Cho's walljump). Apart from that he also serves as a VERY tough test of your fundamentals. Attempting to try and block everything will result in you getting your arm health smashed to bits. He can dodge like Makabe, counter like Yuki, and his grabs have almost zero time to mash out of, just like Hyuga.
Heroic Sacrifice: Saves Tatsuya from being killed by Shinjo at the end of the game.
Luke, I Am Your Father: He knew from the beginning that Tatsuya was really his son.
Master of All: Uses a variant of the Extreme Man fighting style, which is unlocked by mastering all the fighting styles in the game. Saki herself acknowledges how many martial arts Taizan is a master of. You can use his fighting style in the sequel if the game detects a save file for Kurohyo 1.
My God, What Have I Done?: Nogi is horrified to see how Tatsuya grew into a street thug after being abandoned by him, and spends the game trying to instill in him a sense of responsibility and honor.
Perma-Stubble: He's certainly not clean-shaven.
Oral Fixation: Is commonly seen with a cigarette in his mouth.
So Proud of You: Is truly proud of Tatsuya changing as a fighter and a person, stating it gives him the joy of raising a child for the first time.
Strong and Skilled: So strong at martial arts, he even competed in boxing and was the only win against former champion Tetsuji Shima.
Taking the Bullet: Takes the lethal kick to the temple meant for Tatsuya from Shinjo after their fight.
When He Smiles: He has a slight smile when Tatsuya refuses his advice to attack Tetsuji Shima's eyes, wanting to defeat the man fairly which is a big difference to the delinquent he was before.

Saki Kudo

Voiced by: Haru

Taizan's assistant at Dragon Heat. She becomes Tatsuya's trainer and ringside coach.

Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: In Kurohyou 2. There's no explanation for what happens to her after the first game, and she only gets one mention from Tatsuya.
Faux Action Girl: Knows Aikido and Jiujitsu, teaching Tatsuya the latter style after dominating him in a spar. However, any thing involving Saki and fighting happens offscreen and Tatsuya refuses to let her contribute to the final battle by saying a woman would just get in the way.
Has a Type: Seems to be attracted to martial artists. Her ex and Tatsuya even have similar food tastes.
Ship Tease: With Tatsuya in the first game, where towards the end he can confess to her. Unfortunately in the second game she disappears from the story and Tatsuya can accept a confession from Tomiko in one of 2's substories.

Dragon Heat

Ryutaro Kuki

Voiced by: Toshio Kurosawa

The yakuza patriarch of the Kuki family, the one in charge of Dragon Heat, and the boss of Naoki Toda, the yakuza Tatsuya accidentally kills at the start of the game. He gives Tatsuya an ultimatum: achieve a 10-win streak at Dragon Heat, or he'll release the video evidence implicating Tatsuya in Toda's death to the police.

Affably Evil: While he does force Tatsuya to fight in Dragon Heat he's not at all malevolent towards the boy and does at the very least pay him.
Bald of Authority: Has little to no hair, and his underlings are clearly loyal to him.
Family Theme Naming: He and his son Ryusho have the word Ryu in their names, meaning Dragon in japanese.
Hidden Depths: Enjoys running Dragon Heat not just because of the money but because it gives people and fighters hopes and dreams for the future. He was also a fighter himself in his youth.
Mellow Fellow: He never raises his voice and you'll rarely see him as anything other than calm in contrast to his son.
Pragmatic Villainy: Tatsuya complains he got paid less than Hyuga for a fight he won. Kuki tells him he'd be stupid to give his prisoner enough capital to flee the city, but he does promise to pay him better next fight.
Retired Badass: Strong enough to at least match Nogi in Boxing back in his day.
Sharp-Dressed Man: Wears a purple suit and pant, black shirt and silver necktie. His son dons the same outfit in the sequel.
Uncle Pennybags: Commands a lot of respect and power since he's responsible for introducing gambling to Dragon Heat, which made his organization wealthy.

Naoki Toda

Voiced by: Kazuya Nakai

Kuki's right hand man and owner of the Choraku restaurant that Tatsuya robbed in the beginning of the story. His accidental death in a fight against the boy kicks off the plot of the story, but Tatsuya swears he saw him alive.

Asshole Victim: Shown to be this posthumously, he was the one who did the arson in the Champion District that killed multiple people after all.
Back for the Dead: Is shown to be alive only to be killed shortly after the reveal.

DJ Rikuoh

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0000637184.jpg

Voiced by: Takeshi Maeda

A very hammy night club disc jockey who is also the announcer and color commentator for Dragon Heat and Ashura.

Announcer Chatter: In the second game, he reacts to every strong action of the Asura and Dragon Heat fights in-game.
Catchphrase: In Gratuitous English they are:
- LADIES AND GENTLEMAN!!
- On the tail!
- On the head!
- On the right hand!
- On the left hand!
Combat Commentator: In the second game replacing Saki and the manga.
Gratuitous English: He peppers English words in every single one of his hammy fight announcements.
Nobody Knows!
Non-Action Guy: In the manga, he's sitting on his ass in fear while Tatsuya is defending both of them from a group of delinquents.
Muscles Are Meaningless: While he has some impressive arms under that jacket he's a total Non-Action Guy.
Large-Ham Announcer: As the announcer for Dragon Heat, he does his job with great enthusiasm. He keeps the energy up for the Ashura matches in Kurohyou 2.
The Nicknamer: If the fighter doesn't already have an established nickname he tends to invent a grandiouse nickname for them. Like "The Mad Dragon of Kamuro" for Tatsuya and "The Crazy Revenger" for Fujimoto.

TOMOKI

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/096dc740fe59e150d44ed58a_1.png

TOMOKI as he appears in Kurohyō: Ryū ga Gotoku Shinshō.

Voiced by: Ken Suzuki

An undefeated Karateka and university student who fights in Dragon Heat to practice getting into the pro-fighting world. The first Dragon Heat Opponent.

After the events of the first game, Tomoki retired from the pro-fighting world where he is now a leader of a Kamurocho street gang, out to settle the score with Tatsuya after his one-year retirement from underground fighting.

Bald of Authority: He has a shaved head and commands a biker gang in the 2nd game.
Ear Ache: In the manga, Tatsuya nearly rips Tomoki's ear off his head with his teeth.
Flat Character: Has no other importance besides being the first Dragon Heat fighter Tatsuya has to beat. Later downplayed as he returns in the sequel and has a small role in foreshadowing Asura.
Funny Background Event: When Tatsuya gets buys a newspaper about his alleged murder victim's body being found, the front cover is about Tomoki getting knocked out in round 1 of his professional fighting debut.
Graceful Loser: After losing in the second game, he knocks out an underling who tries sucker-punching Tatsuya. After that, he wishes Tatsuya well and to watch out for Ashura.
Hidden Depths: He's quite introspective in a chat with Tatsuya in the second game which is a surprise considering his thuggish characterization shown before.
Hufflepuff House: He and his biker gang are not mentioned at all in the Asura and Kamurocho gang war substories.
Leitmotif:
- In 1, Karate Monster.
- In 2, Little Revenge.
Red Baron: "The Karate Monster".
Retired Badass: Downplayed as he's not really a badass. He is a decent fighter who at least made it to the fighting world, but his fighting career failed, he lost his sponsors and had to retire, becoming a biker gang leader in the sequel.
Took a Level in Kindness: He's less cocky and more cordial towards Tatsuya in the second game.
Warmup Boss: As the first boss in both games he's a massive step up to the standard enemy as his a.i. is smarter, he can soak up far more health, dish out more damage, and first-time players are stuck using the terrible Brawling style against his strong Karate.

Sho Hyuga

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0969b840aa9d62a9e008869f_6.png

Sho Hyuga as he appears in Kurohyō: Ryū ga Gotoku Shinshō.

Voiced by: Takeshi Maeda

A star of Dragon Heat and a former professional MMA fighter in Japanese circuits. While he doesn’t have a perfect win percentage, he is nonetheless popular in Dragon Heat for his exciting fighting style. Later on he's slated to have a rematch with Tatsuya, who is framed for the kidnapping of his estranged sister Chiaki. The second and sixth Dragon Heat opponent.

Because You Were Nice to Me: He's truly grateful for Tatsuya reuniting him with his sister Chiaki and was touched by him defending his honor and philosophy as a fighter from his sister. In the next chapter's substory, Hyuga fights Tatsuya one final time and teaches him the Wrestling style out of gratitude for everything.
Big Brother Instinct: When his sister Chiaki was kidnapped and Tatsuya is framed making it so he caused it, Hyuga becomes stronger and more serious. Not speaking a word at all to Tatsuya unlike his attitude in their previous bout.
Boring, but Practical: Back when he was an MMA fighter he fought more like a brawler, it brought him wins but a boring watch for crowds. Changing to a more showboating style gave him more popularity. He goes back to his old style in the rematch when his sister was kidnapped.
Casualty in the Ring: Retired from the MMA scene and was estranged from his sister after he killed his opponent on accident in the ring. The casualty affected him so much that he had to divorce from his violent fighting style in Dragon Heat.
Gratuitous English: IT'S SHOWTIME.
Go Out with a Smile: Has a smirk on his face after getting knocked out in his first bout with Tatsuya, implying that he had fun even though he lost.
Just Toying with Them: It's noted he doesn't have a perfect win record, no doubt because of his tendency to let the fight go on so he can have more fun with his opponent. He could've won by submission against a random Dragon Heat fighter in Chapter 2, but let's go of the lock so he can have a flashier finish.
A Lady on Each Arm: Goes to celebrate a win with two ladies at a hostess club. It's implied this is something common Hyuga.
Leitmotif: THE NAKED PANTHER.
Light-Hearted Rematch: After his second fight, Hyuga plans to skip town with his sister, but could not leave without one more fight with Tatsuya, but a fight free of hate and rivalry.
Muscles Are Meaningful: After he amped up the seriousness in training for the rematch, his arms are huge and he's a harder fight than his previous encounter.
Platonic Life-Partners: He enjoys Yurika's company which makes them seem like they're in a relationship, but she insists they are just friends.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: When Hyuga's sister was kidnapped by the Nioka family and promised to release her if Hyuga defeats Tatsuya in their rematch, he makes a big change. He suddenly becomes The Stoic, trains like hell and fights in a way not at all like his previous style. This is how he really was back when he was in the MMA scene, before he joined Dragon Heat. He only became a playful fighter because it brought him fame, money, and women. Once he's serious he really plays for keeps.
Recurring Boss: Fought twice in the story and a third time in an optional substory, which might as well be mandatory if you want to unlock all the styles.
Wrestler in All of Us: His Dragon Heat persona is akin to a pro wrestler, fighting in a way that might cause him to lose but it entertains a crowd and entertains himself. After beating him in the rematch he teaches you the Pro-Wrestling style in a substory. In a more direct example, his original fighting style was indeed Pro Wrestling, using moves like a reverse Piledriver or a Tiger Suplex.

Masumi Yuki

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0960b780bc25c54cd980761c.png

Voiced by: Chō

Tatsuya’s former high school teacher. In the past he told police of his student’s crimes leading to an arrest and eventually imprisonment in a correctional facility, Tatsuya beats him up for this. Out to settle a grudge, Yuki makes his debut in Dragon Heat against his former student. To his surprise, his small and meek teacher is actually a 5th dan blackbelt in both Aikido and Karate. The third Dragon Heat opponent.

Adaptational Attractiveness: Much more younger looking, and handsome in the manga adaptation, he's even made to be taller and more muscular than Tatsuya.
Badass Teacher: A high school teacher and an experienced martial artist.
Berserker Tears: After his defeat, he attacks Tatsuya in frustration of nobody understands the reason why he continues to teach delinquents despite being beaten around and disallowed to fight back. Once Tatsuya sees Yuki crying in his anger, he lets his former teacher let his frustrations out without defending himself.
Bitch Slap: Get caught by him while he’s in heat mode and he’ll give you a nasty double backhand followed up by a hard winded-up sock to the face.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: On the surface, he looks like a really weak and meek teacher, but in reality, he's a 5th dan master in aikido and karate.
The Cameo: Shows up in Kurohyō 2 as part of a substory. Saeko apologizes for her brother being a pain to him as a student while Yuki doesn’t mind as Tatsuya has changed for the better. When a stalker shows up with a knife to attack her, he disarms the attacker and lets Tatsuya do the rest.
Corporal Punishment: A firm believer in corporal punishment in the modern world as he was set straight by this very discipline in his university Karate club. He becomes a teacher in hopes to teach his “fists of love” to change delinquent kids. This gets him sacked from his first job.
Counter-Attack: Attacking him directly is very difficult as he uses counters more than any boss in the game. Saki encourages the player to keep their distance and attack conservatively.
First-Name Basis: Inverted. Unlike everyone else, he refers to Tatsuya solely by his last name Ukyo, which makes sense given he is a teacher.
Former Teen Rebel: Was once a delinquent like Tatsuya in his youth.
Gender-Blender Name: Tatsuya is given a note saying his third opponent is an “M.Yuki”. Not knowing he’s fighting his teacher, Tatsuya assumes he’s fighting a girl.
Kung Fu-Proof Mook: He and the mooks who use his Koryu style or the Hard and Soft style are almost immune to standard attacks with their counters, forcing the player to fight more carefully.
Leitmotif: SO UNUSUAL. The only Dragon Heat fighter with lyrics in his theme, the song is set from Yuki's perspective describing his frustration against Tatsuya.
More than Just a Teacher: Bullied by a couple of youths thinking he’s just a weak schoolteacher. He sets them straight quickly and forces them to call him sensei. He does this to multiple delinquents around Kamurocho in the third chapter.
Made of Iron: He endures what Tatsuya assumes was a brutal beating by protecting his vitals, walking away unharmed. Saki notes while every Dragon Heat Fighter has had a bone fracture or a bad injury at some point before joining, Yuki is found to have none.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Downplayed. He is only slightly smaller than Tatsuya and not any less muscular. Outside of fighting he changes his posture to look smaller than he is to look weak and unassuming.
Took a Level in Kindness: All he wanted was to inspire a single person with his show of self-control and discipline. After Tatsuya understands Yuki’s philosophy and why he never fights back. Yuki is relieved and goes back to teaching. His appearances afterward are nothing but affable and helpful to his old student.
Victory by Endurance: Not allowed to strike a student, Yuki continues to teach while enduring abuse levied to him by delinquent students hoping somebody someday will understand his philosophy.
Zen Slap: He was fired from his first teaching job for slapping a student, and it’s implied the slap knocked the kid out. He throws some in your fight with him too. See Bitch Slap above.

Nobumichi Fujimoto

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/09624ac00dcd818be8387b69.png

Voiced by: Joji Nakata

The father of Tsuneo, a president of a high school Karate club and former classmate and enemy of Tatsuya. After his son was paralyzed from a spinal injury after a grievous assault, Fujimoto decides to make his debut in Dragon Heat to fight against who he thinks is the perpetrator. Tatsuya has another man with a long-standing grudge against him. A cab driver and former Karate champion who’s still got it. The fourth Dragon Heat fighter.

Acrofatic: Despite being a very hefty man, get his health low enough to be in heat mode and he’ll throw a flurry of karate strikes towards your way.
Berserk Button: Pissed off at the fact Tatsuya gets to “go around pretending to be a martial artist” and be a big star in Dragon Heat after what he assumes he did to his son.
Combat Pragmatist: While he uses sports Karate, a little bit of Okinawan Karate is seen when you fight him. Particularly when he grabs you in heat mode where he gives you a nasty Groin Attack.
Deranged Taxi Driver: Tatsuya tries to escape from the police in Fujimoto’s taxi cab, the man crazily rants at him for causing his son’s condition and drops him off in front of a group of Tatsuya’s old high school enemies intending to cause him harm.
Emotional Bruiser: Very quick to anger and yet when his son calls to tell him he started walking for the first time after his spinal injury, he breaks into tears. A scene Tatsuya doesn’t seem to like.
Papa Wolf: Fujimoto stops at nothing to take revenge for his son’s hospitalization. Even after being defeated he demands to know if Tatsuya was the one responsible for his son’s injury, once the youth tells him he was not, Fujimoto stops his vengeful attitude and passes out.
Revenge Before Reason: His son says to not hold a grudge against Tatsuya, despite this he can’t shake the anger and feelings of vengeance for the youth.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Tsuneo tells his father to fight Tatsuya to understand he wasn’t the one responsible for his spinal injury. Nobumichi, wrongly thinking his son wanted to be avenged, goes and joins Dragon Heat despite being retired from Karate. He relents once he figures out Tatsuya wasn’t responsible.
Stronger Than They Look: He works as an unassuming cab driver. Kuki notes he is a major step up from Tatsuya’s previous opponents as he is a 3-time All Japan karate champion while the others were just normal martial artists. Upon hearing this, Tatsuya’s confidence is blown and he shows some fear.
Stout Strength: While he goes down like any other of Tatsuya’s opponents, he left the boy with three cracked ribs.

Hayato Makabe

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/097422c0d14cc5e968e445be.png

Voiced by: Takahiro Fujimoto

A very violent street fighter from Okinawa who had to escape to Tokyo for beating up 10 yakuza members. Now in the employ of the Nioka family and is their representative fighter in their rivalry against the Kuki family. The fifth Dragon Heat fighter.

Animal Motifs: He’s nicknamed the “MAD DOG”. Tatsuya and Tenma likens him to a pig.
Attack the Injury: He loves targetting Tatsuya's damaged legs.
Ax-Crazy: Even outside of fighting he talks like he's got a few screws loose.
Blood Knight: The guy loves fighting, so much so it forces him out of Okinawa for fighting the yakuza.
Break the Haughty: His always smiling face breaks into a shocked Jaw Drop once he realizes he's been attacking the wrong leg the entire fight.
The Cameo: He shows up in 2 after you've defeated all the defectors of Dragon Heat. Turns out he was the main cause for the defectors and Nioka was the one who put him up to it. You fight him again with his fighting style unchanged from 1.
Combat Pragmatist:
- His fighting style says Street Fighting but in-game it’s actually a unique fighting style, made from Extreme Awakening, Extreme Wild Dance and Extreme God Legs.
- He was told Tatsuya has an injured left leg so expect a lot of leg kicks from him in battle, too bad it was actually the right.
- Get caught by him in heat mode while he’s charging at you, and he will use Extreme Awakening’s infamous blue heat action (i.e. biting chunks out of your shoulder!).
Cheaters Never Prosper: Quickly knocked out after realizing he was kicking the wrong leg, with the same leg he was told was injured.
Expy: Of Goro Majima from the mainline games. Both are Ax-Crazy fighters with the nickname Mad Dog.
Flat Character: Up there with Tomoki as his chapter isn’t featured around him like the other fighters and instead is about Tatsuya trying to solve the conspiracy behind Dragon Heat. However, he and Tomoki return in the sequel, with the game giving both of them some more characterization.
"Hey, You!" Haymaker: He reintroduces himself to Tatsuya by turning him around and kicking him.
Kick the Dog: He injures the polite, old, noncombatant Yakuza Sasaki in 2, referring to the act as "taking out the trash'.
Laughing Mad: He’s a giggling maniac before and a howling maniac during the fight.
Makabe: "I’LL KILL YOU-YEHAHAHAAA!!
Man Bites Man: This is his heat move. The fact he’s wildly biting the air before you fight him makes it seem he actually can’t wait to take a chomp out of his opponents.
Manipulative Bastard: He was the mastermind behind the Dragon Heat defectors subplot in 2. Pissed off that Tatsuya foiled his plans, he attacks Sasaki to lure Tatsuya into a rematch with him.
Oh, Crap!: Once he’s beaten he attempts a last-ditch effort in breaking Tatsuya’s injured leg. Once he realizes the injured leg he was kicking the whole fight was the wrong one he’s mouth agape and can only mutter to himself in disbelief as he’s knocked out.
Ordered to Cheat: By the Nioka family using information about Tatsuya’s injured leg from Tenma, Makabe has no hang-ups on destroying Tatsuya’s leg. Only if it was the right one.
Perpetual Smiler: His main CG is a small grin. He only has one other CG and it’s his Oh, Crap! face before he’s knocked out.
Vocal Dissonance: Downplayed, in his battle in the sequel he has some of his voice clips from 1, but for no certain reason he also has some of Akita's soundbytes mixed in.
Sore Loser: A year after his loss in Dragon Heat he's still holding onto the fact he was tricked about Tatsuya's leg injury. He's even more sore when Tatsuya foils his plans in 2, enough to fight him again.
Tell Me How You Fight: A sadistic fighter who fittingly uses the Extreme Awakening style. Him blasting away on leg kicks once he hears his opponent’s leg is injured probably tells you he’s not that fair a fighter.
This Cannot Be!: When Tatsuya is wholly unfazed from getting kicked in his allegedly injured left leg and knocks Makabe out, he utters in bewilderment that his information was wrong and he was lied to before passing out.
Villainous Respect: He admits Tatsuya is stronger than he was in their first fight in 2.

Koumei Cho

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/096abd40622d362f62e96296.png

Voiced by: Gentoku

The leader of the "Lone Wolf Group", a biker gang made up of Chinese war-displaced 3rd generation orphans; he himself is half-Chinese on his mother's side, who died from same arson that affected Tatsuya 15 years ago. The seventh Dragon Heat fighter.

All Chinese People Know Kung-Fu: Fights using Chinese martial arts^note This extends his gang who uses the Kung Fu or Bajiquan styles.
Asian Speekee Engrish: Subverted, his men have Chinese accented Japanese but Cho speaks just fine.
Armor-Piercing Question: Tatsuya's question "Have you already forgotten your feelings for Mama?" reminds Cho of his original purpose. He forgets all his selfish desires and goes on to focus on finding his mother's killer.
Ambition Is Evil: Not really evil but his unrealistic goal of both avenging his mother and then taking control of Dragon Heat, taking control of the Yakuza, and many other things is seen as his flaw, forgetting his original purpose and ultimately makes him weaker than Tatsuya.
Big Damn Heroes: He and his gang save Tatsuya from a kidnapping by some goons sent by the main villains in the 8th chapter.
But Not Too Foreign: Is born from a missing Japanese father and Chinese mother.
Delinquent Hair: An undercut with three lines shaved to the side reminiscent of Tatsuya's hair, only with the long hair at the back of his head tied up and his sides shaved rather than braided.
Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: His goal for fighting is to find his mother's killer, which the Nioka family promises to give information about if he wins. He affectionally refers to her as Mama.
Fair-Play Villain: His gang jumps Tatsuya and Tenma in an attempt to give Cho a better chance to win. The day of the fight he checks if Tatsuya is ok, saying the win wouldn't mean anything if his opponent wasn't at full strength.
Fallen-on-Hard-Times Job: Has a job of handing out pink leaflets outside of fighting, Tenma's mocking is a Berserk Button as he doesn't have any other choice given his economic situation.
Fatal Flaw: His overambition. Taizan notes that Cho fighting for his family should make him strong, but he crosses it with selfish desires giving him "Fists of Murder" like Tatsuya used to have. Tatsuya has since changed and fights unselfishly, giving him "Fists of Light" that are capable of inspiring people. It's Tatsuya who wins the fight between the two.
Father to His Men: His Lone Wolf Group cares for him enough to attack Tatsuya the day before his fight with Cho.
Heel–Face Turn: After Tatsuya gives him an Armor-Piercing Question, Cho cleans up his act and focuses on the more important matter of investigating the arson that killed his mother. From then on he's on the side of the good guys.
Leitmotif: Lone Survivor.
Literal Metaphor: Constantly refers to a woman in his life named Mama; Tatsuya assumes he's referring to a girlfriend but finds out he literally means his mother.
Madness Mantra: When you first meet him he repeats variations of "I have to beat you!".
Manly Tears: Starts crying after his defeat, mainly because he thinks cannot face his deceased mother after losing.
Neck Lift: Lifts Tenma with one hand to showcase his strength.
Nonstandard Character Design: His eyes are smaller and slanted to show his Chinese heritage.
Secretly Selfish: Wants to find his mother's killer, but he loses sight of his original goal when he starts dreaming of power and money.
Shadow Archetype: Selfish and violent, Cho represents what Tatsuya would still be like if he didn't change himself for the better, even having similar hairstyles. Cho eventually cleans up his act as Tatsuya did.
Spanner in the Works: He discovers an injured Takenaka in an alleyway and brings him to a hospital, which helps the detective recover and arrest the main villains in the end.
Talkative Loon: Every time he drones on about his ambitions which seem to change every time whether it's "Control the Yakuza" or "Be a pro-boxer then travel to the US to be a pro-MMA fighter".
Token Minority: The only one of the 9 Dragon Heat fighters to be of mixed heritage.
Tragic Hero: He seems to frame himself as one with the death of his mother, which certainly is tragic but he twists his tragedy as an excuse for his hunger for money and power.
Wall Run: When his health is very low he runs up the cage wall and leaps off to kick you, if it lands it activates a damaging heat move.

Tsuyoshi Aramaki

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/096fcec0891a7a01f7c87a15.png

Voiced by: Takashi Uchiyama

Legendary soldier of 26 medals, a former member of the French Foreign Legion, a former police officer, and a colleague of Isamu Washio, who pulled him out of death row for the crimes he had done as an illegal mercenary. The eight Dragon Heat opponent.

Ain't Too Proud to Beg: Fears for his life at gunpoint, Washio notes how unbelievable it is for a legendary mercenary to beg not to die.
Attack the Injury: Tatsuya was beaten up with a metal pipe the day before the fight, his legs and torso are severely injured and wouldn't you know it Aramaki's attacks specifically target those two body parts.
The Big Guy: By far the most muscular fighter Tatsuya had to fight in Dragon Heat.
Boots of Toughness: Wears army boots if he wasn't intimidating enough.
Counter-Attack: He likes to counter your attacks but not as much as Yuki.
Dirty Coward: Despite being a soldier of many battles he seems intimidated by his old boss Washio and begs for his life when it seems he's going to be killed after losing the fight.
Karma Houdini: He was saved from death row by his former police superior Washio, and spared from being killed by the same man after the fight. He remains unpunished for his war crimes.
Leitmotif: Lonely Mercenary.
No Celebrities Were Harmed: His fighting style is said to be Commando Sambo and he resembles real-life Sambo MMA fighter Volk Han.
Noodle Incident: What were the war crimes he committed that warranted death row? Even DJ Rikuoh describes him as "Too wild".
Perpetual Frowner: Does not crack even a smirk in his small appearance.
Sociopathic Soldier: Sentenced to death for his crimes committed as a mercenary, and he brings the same brutality to a fight.
Vocal Dissonance: His voice is flat and a higher pitch than what you'd expect from a war-torn soldier.
You Have Failed Me: Subverted After losing the fight Washio points a gun at Aramaki's head, only to purposefully miss his shot inches near his head and lets him go.

Shima Tetsuji

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/094f154075d05a89b5c0dcb5.png

Voiced by: Kazunari Tanaka

The undefeated former Middleweight Boxing Champion of the world who had to retire due to a retinal detachment. His only loss was to Nogi Tooru. The ninth Dragon Heat opponent.

In the second game he has retired from fighting after Tiger's Gate, an Osakan underground ring he fought for shut down and he was defeated by Asura. He now works as chauffeur for the Omi Alliance in Sotenbori.

Achilles' Heel: Has bad eyes that can be taken advantage of in a fight. Fortunately for him Tatsuya wants to fight fair, to the point, the game disallows strikes to Shima’s head and it’s an instant loss if his head damage goes to 100%.
The Alcoholic: Enjoys a good drink and gets miffed at Tatsuya stiffing his promise of a free drink.
Beat Them at Their Own Game: He has a pro-wrestler friend train Tatsuya the Wrestling style in 2 to prepare him for his fight against the pro-wrestler who defeated him, Meteor Suzuki.
Berserk Button: Probably doesn’t like getting his bad eyes hurt, if his eye damage is 100% in his fight, he’ll defeat you with an One-Hit Kill heat move.
Big Damn Heroes: Saves Tatsuya from Asura in the second game, using his status as a member of the Omi Alliance and reputation as a former champion boxer to scare some Asura thugs away.
Boisterous Bruiser: A very emotive fighter. He bursts into laughter after being defeated fairly.
Boring, but Practical: Unlike the previous 7 opponents Tatsuya has fought with their own interesting styles, Shima is just a Boxer. However, he’s undefeated in Boxing and is Tatsuya’s penultimate opponent in Dragon Heat.
Boxing Battler: The Middleweight Boxing Champion of the world. Only defeated by Nogi Tooru.
Blood Knight: Just loves fighting so much as to keep fighting in underworld MMA organizations after his forced retirement from Boxing. That explains why he doesn't mind fighting with bad eyes.
Carpet of Virility: Very hairy guy.
Dirty Old Man: Enjoys cabaret clubs and is a big help in Tatsuya finding a specific cabaret girl who's the girlfriend of Akita.
Extremity Extremist: Sticks to Boxing in a no-rules fight. Interestingly the in-game Boxing style does have a kick attack and grabs, but Shima is programmed with a modified version of the Hard Arm style which can only use punches.
Fair-Play Villain: He willingly fights with his detached retinas and doesn’t hold them against his opponent if they aim for his eyes, explicitly telling Tatsuya “Do what you have to do to win.”. He’s surprised when Tatsuya doesn’t attack his eyes at all and defeats him fairly.
Graceful Loser: Doesn't seem bothered by his loss, humored that Tatsuya fought him fairly without attacking his eyes.
Handicapped Badass: Has detached retinas that forced him out of the Pro-Boxing world but that doesn't stop him from punching ass.
History Repeats: He’s defeated by father and son.
Leitmotif: Iron Champion.
Kiai: Expect to hear a lot of "Doryaa!"'s and "Seiyaa!"'s fighting him.
Nice Guy: Very genial in all appearances, the first thing he does to Tatsuya once they meet in the ring is to apologize for his cronies roughing him up. He even sets Tatsuya up with a hostess on his bill once he hears his father had died.
Screaming Warrior: He's a very loud fighter.
Signature Move: A liver blow. It's his second heat action or his One-Hit Kill move if his head damage reaches 100%.
Wham Line: "How could I ever forget the one guy who beat me? There's no doubt about it! You are Nogi Tooru!" When he looks at Taizan at ringside.
Worf Effect: He mentions being defeated by Asura's fighter Meteor Suzuki in a fight in the 2nd game, which is the reason why he's been retired.

Toto Department Store

Masatoshi Tsutsui

Voiced by: Jurota Kosugi

The true mastermind behind the conspiracy of the first game. The director of Toto Department Store, he aims to become the next governor of Tokyo. He is the one responsible for the fire 15 years ago that killed Tatsuya's mother and several other people, having ordered Toda to commit the arson before he joined the Tojo Clan. He is also known as "Masa", an evil martial artist who stopped of Nogi Tooru's streak just short of 9 wins out of 10 in the past.

Ambition Is Evil: Burns down properties, and buys out martial arts organizations in a bid to increase his financial power. He even plans to buy out Kamurocho's Millenium Tower.
Capitalism Is Bad: A cruel businessman who sees the business world just the same as the fighting world.
Tsutsui: The strong guy wins in the ring. the guy who yeilds a profit wins in business. That is capitalism.
Dirty Coward: Of course, the moment the tables turn on him he pathetically tries to negotiate with the people he was threatening just a second ago.
Evil Laugh: A deep bellow, it's so unique Nogi remembers who he is from the laugh alone.
Fat Bastard: A large man in both his youth and his old age.
I Was Quite a Looker: Well, he wasn't exactly handsome, but he had a muscular build as befitting a martial artist back in his prime.
Put on a Prison Bus: He's arrested by the end of the game, unlike Shinjo he keeps quiet to the police.
Signature Move: A karate toe kick hard enough to shatter bone, he teaches the same technique to Shinjo.
Stout Strength: Is shown to be pretty hefty even in his youth.
The Unfought: He knows himself he is too old to fight or kill so he trains Shinjo to do the fighting for him.
We Win, Because You Didn't: He shatters Nogi's arm in a fight back in their youth, but was punched at the same time causing him to be stunned for the entire 10 count making it technically Nogi's victory. Masa ignores the rules and demands Nogi to continue the fight but the man's arm is broken, so he walks away laughing declaring it his victory.

Reiji Shinjo

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0970d3c04649a05768bb464b.png

Voiced by: Nobutoshi Canna

Masatoshi Tsutsui’s secretary and hitman. The Final Boss of Kurohyō

Clark Kent Outfit: In classic Yakuza fashion, while he looks like an ordinary businessman, underneath his suit his body is honed into a deadly weapon.
Evil Counterpart: Serves as a counterpart to Tatsuya much like how Tsutsui serves as one to Taizan. Tatsuya is taught virtue and philosophy by Taizan while Shinjo is just Tsutsui’s hitman and was taught his killer techniques.
Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: First introduced as Tsutsui’s assistant and bodyguard, then suddenly he's the final boss and Tatsuya's hardest opponent. He has no personal connection to Tatsuya, just fighting him because he was ordered to.
The Heavy: Responsible for most of the troubles Tatsuya goes through like his kidnapping of Hyuga's sister and his assassinations of Toda, Washio and Kuki, framing him for the latter.
Leitmotif: An instrumental rendition of the first game's opening theme, MUPPET.
Power Floats: When he's in fight mode his hair floats up.
Put on a Prison Bus: He's arrested by the end of the game, he confesses his murders and assaults without hesitation but Takenaka seems to think he was ordered to.
Signature Move: A Karate toe kick he was tought by Tsutsui, it's strong enough to be his main weapon for assassinations and he'll use it against you in too in battle.
Sore Loser: Tries to kill Tatsuya in a last ditch effort after being beaten.
Strong and Skilled: Mentioned to be a master of Karate and Brazilian Jiujitsu. You can use his fighting style in the sequel if the game detects a save file for Kurohyo 1.
Volcanic Veins: For whatever reason his veins are blueish.

Kozo Nioka

Voiced by: Keizo Shogen

The leader of the Nioka Family, a rival group competing against the Kuki Family in Kamurocho and business partners with Naoki Toda at the Chinese restaurant Choraku as their front. He is from Osaka and serves as the main source of headaches for Tatsuya throughout the series as he has connections in both Osaka and Tokyo, in the first series he was nothing more than a petty loan shark who owns one fighter who Tatsuya must beat. In the second game he becomes much more prominent as he makes a wager against the Dragon Heat in a fight club faceoff with the Ashura, a fight club in Sotenbori as revenge for losing his prized fighter and Naoki's death.

Arch-Enemy: To Dragon Heat in both games, in every chapter he's opposing them at every turn.
Karma Houdini Warranty: He's unpunished in the first game but in the 2nd he's blackmailed by Ryusho for the rights to Dragon Heat.
What Happened to the Mouse?: His fate is unknown in the first game, but in the second he shows up as an ally for Asura.

Police

Shozo Takenaka

Voiced by: Unshō Ishizuka

A detective from the Youth Division of the police. He arrested Tatsuya on grievous assault charges, which landed Tatsuya in juvie.

Perma-Stubble: Even years ago that stubble is on his chin.
Sympathetic Inspector Antagonist: Hunts down Tatsuya rightfully because he's a delinquent out of juvie and as his job Takenaka has to check if he's still up to no good, which he is.

Isamu Washio

Voiced by: Hiroki Yasumoto

Mauve Shirt: Is killed by Shinjo.

Gang Leaders

Shota Akagi

The good leader of the close-knit Diablo gang.

Colourful Theme Naming: His name is a reference to a color red in Japanese ("red" = "aka"), which is also the color he's wearing. The same applies to the other gang leaders, with different colors.
Color Motif: He and his gang are mostly dressed in monochrome & gold.

Seiji Aono

The foolish leader of DIS, a gang of crooks and con artists.

Colourful Theme Naming: His name is a reference to a color blue in Japanese ("blue" = "ao"), which is also the color he's wearing. The same applies to the other gang leaders, with different colors.
Butt-Monkey: The weakest of all the gang leaders, he's been defeated and humiliated repeatedly.
Color Motif: He and his gang dresses in blue.
Spanner in the Works: In 2, he's the one who accidentally lead Tatsuya to Midorikawa during a foolhardy hunt for Kamuro Union members; causing the latter to be defeated and weakening the Union's stranglehold over Kamurocho.

Eisuke Shiraishi

A recurring substory character. A hopeless romantic who was recently dumped by his girlfriend, he gets Tatsuya to help him find a woman time and time again. In Chapter 9 it's revealed he's the leader of KINGDOM.

Colourful Theme Naming: His name is a reference to a color white in Japanese ("white" = "shiro"), which is also the color he's wearing. The same applies to the other gang leaders, with different colors.
Nice Guy: He's always friendly to Tatsuya and always appreciates his help.

Togo Kuroda

The leader of the Death Corps. A very no-nonsense boss of his gang, he has a certain vendetta against Tatsuya who seems to be familiar with him in kind.

Colourful Theme Naming: His name is a reference to a color black in Japanese ("black" = "kuro"), which is also the color he's wearing. The same applies to the other gang leaders, with different colors.

Other Characters

Tenma Sakaki

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0951cc40165a906dedbce3fe.png

Voiced by: Hisayoshi Suganuma

Tatsuya's best friend since high school. His parents own a restaurant in Kamurocho.

All Men Are Perverts: He enjoys hitting up hostess clubs and the Men's Entertainment Booth throughout the games, Tenma usually strings Tatsuya along with him.
Optional Boss: You don't fight him at any point in the story, but you can Premium Adventure as he's the first fighter of the Story Character Ranking.
Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: A unique example in that he really doesn't want to, the first time he gives disinformation to the villains, the second time he was forced give Tatsuya up because the villains have his father in a financial chokehold.
Good Old Fisticuffs: Uses a unique Brawling style, you can use his style in the sequel through a special code.
Manly Tears: Cries his eyes out confessing to Tatsuya abou being forced to betray him.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Smaller than the average Tatsuya but is handy in a fight.

Yurika

Voiced by: Chiaki Takahashi

Platonic Life-Partners: Tatsuya initially thinks that she and Hyuga are romantically involved but she insists they are just good friends.

Gaia

The greatest street fighter in all of Kamurocho who's strength commands the respect of all the street gangs and their leaders.

Damage-Sponge Boss: It would take around 30 minutes to defeat. Shinjo can be defeated in about a fourth of that time.
Graceful Loser: Gaia takes his defeat in stride and crowns Tatsuya as the strongest.
Super Boss: Of Kurohyo. His substory is unlocked once all the other substories are completed.

Characters / Kurohyo Ryu Ga Gotoku Shinsho

Main Characters