Genjuro Kibagami

From SNK Wiki

Genjuro
Genjuro Kibagami in Samurai Shodown 64-2
Profile
Full name	Genjuro Kibagami
Birthdate	June 9, 1760
Birthplace	Japan, Yamashiro-koku, Anjou-mura
Height	182 cm (6')
Weight	82.5 kg (181.5 lbs)
Blood type	AB
Family/Relatives	unnamed mother (deceased)
Job/Occupation	Hitokiri (literally translated as "man slayer", killer for hire)
Likes	Gambling
Dislikes	Nice guys
Hobbies	Going to brothels, drinking prohibited drugs
Special skill	"I can slay a thousand people at one time (and I don't discriminate between the sexes, either)."
Most unpleasant	None
Weapon	Baio-doku, a prized katana
Fighting style	Koin Ittou Ryu

Genjuro Kibagami (牙神幻十郎, Kibagami Genjūrō) -with Genjūrō meaning Mystic Tenth Son in Japanese- is a recurring character introduced in Samurai Shodown II and the official rival of Haohmaru. Genjuro's design is centered on the scar on his back with hopes to leave a lasting impression for the female players. Despite popular belief, he has no relation with Iori Yagami.

In Gamest's 1997 Heroes Collection, he was ranked the staff's eighteenth favorite character and was the number one favorite character (from the development team and fans) at the time of his debut. He was the character inspiration for the younger design of Shishio Makoto from the Rurouni Kenshin series.

[edit] Story

He claims to have killed his family and at least a thousand other people. His mother was a prostitute and, due to her profession, he knows nothing about his father. Even so, he made a silent oath to look after his mother until his father came home. When he was fifteen, Genjuro killed a man who stayed in their home -due to his mother's pleas for protection from her client's drunken rage. While he turned to leave his home for good, she attacked Genjuro while cursing his existence and left the scar on his back. He killed her in retaliation.

Orphaned, Nicotine Caffeine spotted him and took him under his tutelage along with Haohmaru in his home. Both students were close friends yet Genjuro's hunger for power worried Nicotine. To test his students, he tempted them to fight over the treasured sword, Fugudoku. They were tested by facing off with a group of other fighters. Genjuro, believing that "worthless" people don't deserve life, killed his opponents during the competition. He leaves Nicotine's place in disgust after this event. He swore to kill Haohmaru and Nicotine, spiteful for their idealistic beliefs on swordplay. He hates Haohmaru especially, because he resembles the man his mother was with when he killed them. He also was attracted to Shiki at one point, as she resembled his mother.

His profession during his travels is a hitokiri or killer-for-hire, often accepting the more "dirty" jobs such as wiping out pirate brigades and bandit hideouts. His former clients include Sankuro Yorozu and Mizuki Rashojin. In Samurai Shodown 64-2, Genjuro gains the upper hand in his last duel with Haohmaru. Before he could deal the final blow, a boy stabs him in vengeance for his unnamed father. It's heavily implied that Genjuro dies from his wound and, as promised, an older Haohmaru toasts to his friend's honor.

Similar to Ukyo, his death is believed to be retconned in the newer sequel. Here, Genjuro is attacked by two assassins; one he kills quickly and the other somehow survived. Before he makes the killing blow, the surviving assassin tells him that this was a test from a man named Golba and offers him to join his master. As he hesitates, the assassin blows himself up, which perks Genjuro's interest and begins his journey to find Golba. He is still alive in his ending and is on another job as usual.

He has a motto that he recites before he goes to slaughter people. It's roughly translated as:

"I build a nest of beast in my heart. The fang is growling; Kill... Let's go kill. The fang is crying; Kill... Let's go kill. To calm it down, I have no way but slash men..." (translation taken from here)

Although it is mostly exclusive to the series's drama CDs, players can hear parts of it being sung by a woman during his theme song in Samurai Shodown 64.

[edit] Personality

Genjuro is a brutal warrior who only fights for the pleasure of killing. He likes to dominate over others and hates people who are weak. There are times when he occasionally feels regretful and shows mercy for his actions though he often counteracts these instances with more acts of cruelty. He is often called a "demon" by his victims, usually moments before he slays them.

[edit] Powers

Energy Projectile - Genjuro can fire a projectile of energy from his sword.
Energy Attacks - Genjuro can fuel his sword with ki energy.
Stun - Genjuro can trap his opponents and leave them completely vulnerable for a limited time.

[edit] Fighting Style

Though they both trained underneath Nicotine, his fighting style greatly differs from Haohmaru in execution. All of his special moves are direct references to the Japanese card game, hanafuda. Depending on whether a move hits or misses, the move will temporarily project the images of a "winning" combo of cards and/or a "miss" based on the featured hanafuda set. His "pet" of sorts is an unnamed orange frog, a reference to the card, Yanagi ni Ono No Toufuu. His win poses from his first appearance made several heavy references to the deck; his later win poses tone down the references.

[edit] Music

Oni (Demon) - Samurai Shodown II
Oni no Uta (Demon Song) - Samurai Shodown III
Oni no Uta - Kai (Demon Song - Modified) - Samurai Shodown IV
Oni no Uta ~ Beast + Divine Ferocity - Samurai Shodown 64
Oni no Uta ~ Asura Zanmaden - Samurai Shodown 64-2
Daimen's Nite Groove (Hot Sake Mix) - Samurai Remix VA (shared with Nicotine)
Feel It (Mr. Organ Mix) - Samurai Remix VA

[edit] Voice Actors

Kong Kuwata - Samurai Shodown II~64 series, Edge of Destiny, SNK vs Capcom, Neo Beo Battle Coliseum
Tōru Ōkawa - Samurai Shodown VI
Akio Ohtsuka - Samurai Shodown II Dengeki drama CD

[edit] Game Appearances

Samurai Shodown II
Samurai Shodown III
Shinsetsu Samurai Spirits: Bushidou Retsuden
Samurai Shodown IV
Samurai Shodown 64
Samurai Shodown 64-2 - players will only encounter his Bust form as a CPU opponent
Samurai Shodown V
Samurai Shodown V Special
Samurai Spirits: Tenkaichi Kenkakuden
SNK vs Capcom: SVC Chaos
Neo Geo Battle Coliseum
Samurai Shodown: Edge of Destiny

[edit] Mobile Appearances

Days of Memories (third and seventh titles) - NPC
Samurai Spirits - Shimensouka (enemy character)
Samurai Spirits - Makai Rineki
SNK’s DARTS: Three In The Black

[edit] Cameo Appearances

Samurai Shodown: Warriors Rage - passing mention
SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium - in the background of one of the start-up screens

[edit] Anime Appearances

Samurai Spirits 2: Asura-Zanmaden (OVA)

[edit] Similar Characters

Sankuro Yorozu

[edit] Trivia

Voice samples of Genjuro's recruitment scenarios can be heard when the RPG disk is inserted into a music player. This suggests that there were plans to make him a recruitable character at one point in the game's development.