Ryū Kagami

This article, Ryū Kagami, is the property of Jet.

Ryū Kagami (カガミ・龍 , Kagami Ryū) is former Samurai from the Wano Country who is now a pirate and is the captain of the Scar Pirates. Due to the scar over his right eye he has earned the epithet Kizuato no Ryū (傷跡の龍, "Ryū of the Scar").

Appearance[]

Ryū is tall with a well built physique, long black hair and normally has a bored or sleepy expression on his face, with a lazy smile often gracing his face. His hair is tied into a pony tail at the back of his head, with a few locks falling over his jet black eyes. The most distinctive feature of his appearance is the long scar over his right eye, the origin of the name by which he is known to almost everyone.

He is normally dressed in simple khaki samurai gi. It consists of a sleeveless white shitagi, with a black sleeveless kosode above it. A grayish-white obi is tied over the shitagi and kosode to hold them in place. Below this he wears a black hakama which is cut so that it reaches just till a little above his ankles. A pair of black tabi, traditional Japanese socks, are worn on his feet with a simple pair of waraji on his feet. He wears a beige coloured vest over his shirt which has trimmed laces on both shoulders. He also wears black cloth arm guards that end in fingerless gloves on both hands. He also wears a conical straw hat on his head. His katana is kept tucked into the obi around his waist.

Gallery[]

Personality[]

Scar is patient and mild-mannered, remaining calm in almost all situations, displaying an unshakable levelheadedness that even has a calming effect on those around him. His ability to maintain a cool head no matter what the situation has even earned him the epithet of the Ice-Man. Due to his normally calm demeanor with the lazy smile that graces his face ever so often, most expect him to be more carefree than he really is as he has a thoughtful nature, though that does not prevent his competitive and reckless side from surfacing now and then. A tendency that has been a part of him since his time as a child growing up in the Wano Country is that he hates being ordered around, preferring to do things his own way and in his own time. He also has a very active imagination which greatly supplements his sense of humor and he can be quite playful and sarcastic person at times.

As a child he wanted nothing more than to become a the most powerful swordsman in the world, stemming from his having grown up in his elder brother's shadow, who was considered to be the most talented swordsman to have been ever born in the Wano Country. As a result during his time as an apprentice swordsman he always felt a need to prove himself and developed a tendency to accomplish any task in a big, flashy manner that increased his fame within the Wano Country. While he still retains his love for the grand, he is now able to control that urge at most times. He is not one to quit and will persevere till he has given his all, not backing down even if his own life is on the line. When angered his shows a much darker side of his psyche and can be a merciless enemy.

Relationships[]

Abilities and Powers[]

Physical Abilities[]

Ryū possesses immense physical strength, being capable of tossing boulders as if they were pebbles. Even as a child he showed glimpses of his monstrous strength when he brought down an entire barn while trying to catch a chicken. In order to surpass his brother and improve the destructive power of his swordsmanship, he trained extensively to increase his physical strength and is now capable of bringing down entire buildings with his arms alone.

Along with his tremendous strength he also possesses great stamina as well. He is capable of keeping on pushing himself well beyond what would be considered a normal person's limits. This allows him to use his personal sword form, which would be very tiring for a normal person, for extended periods of time. Something that greatly supplement his great stamina is his ability to sleep almost anywhere and at any time. Thus he can rest and recover his strength much faster than most people. He is known to fall asleep for a small period of time and wake up revitalized.

This is also in part a result of his great endurance, as he is not as easily injured as an average human and thus most often his injuries are minor and he can recover from them pretty fast. Having been trained under some of the most rough Samurai in the Wano Country, he was dealt a lot of punishment while growing up and as a result his body developed a great resistance to pain. A great example of this was his fight with the famed pirate Solo D. Jack, when Solo inflicted the scar on his eyes and he didn't even flinch, instead using the opening Solo had left to inflict the wound to counter against the pirate.

Ryū is also extremely fast, possessing great speed and agility. He is very agile and possesses great reflexes, able to dodge strike at an the shortest notice and can instantly launch a counterattack. He is a master of Shukuchi (縮地, "reduced earth"), a samurai technique similar to Soru, which allows for movements at extremely high speeds. Such is his mastery of Shukuchi that he can cover vast distances in short periods of time and over short distances can seem to appear at several places at once.

He is also a very capable swimmer and not having consumed a Devil Fruit, can swim for great distances and at great speed.

Swordsmanship[]

Ryū is a master of the blade, capable of holding his own against single or multiple opponents. His technique is flawless and were fights decided inside the confines of a dōjōs Ryū would be almost impossible to defeat. Be it kendō or iaidō, at the time of his departure not many Samurai could have match him in pure technical proves. But as great as his skills are, there are many individuals both within and outside the Wano Country who could hold up to him in a fight if his technique were all he had. What makes him a truly peerless swordsman is his ability to switch from one form to another in the middle of a battle, a switch than can throw off many opponents. This tendency of his to switch around between different forms led him to develop a new fighting style that incorporates part of a number of different sword styles but as a result of his mixing is completely different from any single form.

This new form of his, which he has named Ransen (乱戦, Confused Battle), is highly unorthodox in nature, a stark contrast to his technical abilities, and makes use of improvisation to adapt to changing scenarios. Making use of erratic movements, acrobatic maneuvers and moving purely on instinct, he makes use of his great reflexes to move away from attacks at the last moment or move in with an attack when his opponent least expects it. An highly aggressive form, it makes use of a combination of power, strength and speed to push his opponent at all times. Using acrobatic maneuvers such as somersaults and backflips to not only evade the slashes and strikes from his opponents, but to just as easily go on the offensive, attacking with wide, fast, and powerful swings. When combined with his extraordinary speed, Ryū can seemingly attack his opponents from all directions, be it from the front, the sides, overhead, or even from behind. Though this form seems to be highly ostentatious in nature and those few who have seen this form condemn it on the tiring nature of the flips and jumps that it involves, Ryū tends to not make many useless moves while using this form and can maintain his stamina quite well. Also due to his extraordinary stamina, he is capable of performing such acrobatics for a period of time much longer than an average swordsman. But still fatigue can be quite a significant factor in long, drawn out battles or against multiple opponents. In such situations Ryū tends to prefer using standard forms of swordsmanship to deal with his opponents.

Onmyō Kōsa (陰陽黄砂, "Shadow-Light Cross"): A move executed when Ryū has the higher ground, this move often leads to dismemberment of the opponent and is thus very rarely used by Ryū. Ryū tempts his opponent to come in to attack him and then executes a series of circular motions with his blade aimed at the major limbs. More often than not the opponent looses one or more limbs and can be completely destroyed by this move.
Ryūsui no Ugoki (流水のうごき, "Flowing-Water Movement"): Not really a unique move but rather an sequence that is a part of his personal form, Ryū often uses this sequence while going blade-to-blade with his opponent. In the same manner that water follows the contour of any surface on which it is flowing, Ryū follows the movements of his opponent. For example is his opponent is withdrawing his blade, instead of withdrawing as well, Ryū follows the opponent through, cutting through his body. Thus he makes himself as flexible as flowing water, following his opponent's movements step for step ad moving in with the killing move as soon as his opponent slips.
Onmyō Hasshi (陰陽発止, "Dusk to Dawn Strike"): When facing a horizontal slash aimed towards his lower body, Ryū jumps over the slash flying high into the air. Once in the air and on the descent he executes a powerful vertical slash with his own blade that can cut an opponent from head to torso. A very specialized move, it is only usable when faced a particular kind of attack but as evading his opponent's horizontal slash leaves them open to Ryū's attack from above, this move is almost always successful in cutting down his opponent.
Kazeshini (風死, "Wind of Death"): Setting off at a run, Ryū jumps into the air and while on the descent brings his sword down in a swift and powerful vertical slash. The combined moment of his running, the jump and the speed of his swing itself is enough to compress the air in the blade's path and send it flying forward as a powerful air of compressed air that is strong enough to knock down buildings and sharp enough to cut through steel.
Omotegiri (表斬り, "Front Beheading"): Holding his blade behind his back in a reverse grip, he spins round and brings his blade sweeping in from behind his back, creating a wide arc which ends in a horizontal slash aimed at his opponent's torso or neck.

Ryu Iaido — Ryū killing an opponent with iaidō.

But as mentioned, despite the unorthodox nature of his self-made combat style, Ryū is a master of traditional sword forms such as kendō and iaidō. These forms formed part of the basis on which he developed his own form and his usage of such classical forms acts as a good counter to the unorthodox nature of his personal form. He can catch his opponent by surprise by starting of with a highly technically sound and by the textbook style of combat and suddenly switching to his own form, a much more haphazard and unpredictable style.

Nadegiri (撫で斬り, "Killing Stroke"): A technique that originated from battōjutsu, this involves the execution of a single swift and powerful slash that has enough force behind it to incapacitate most opponents in one move. The drawing of the blade, the act of cutting the target, and the re-sheathing of the blade all take place in one smooth and rapid motion.

Hand to Hand Combat[]

Despite his prefered form of combat being swordsmanship, Ryū is also highly proficient in hand-to-hand combat. Though he always preferred fighting with his sword, his tendency to not use his blade unless he thinks an opponent is truly worthy of facing his sword, has resulted in him becoming a highly competent hand-to-hand combatant as well. Some of his named techniques are:

Seikūken (制空圏, "Vacuum Sphere"): Ryū repeatedly punches the ground at a very high speed to release a shock-wave that travels outwards till it creates a big enough circle around him. As soon as he stops his punches the energy within the vibrations from the shock wave suddenly shoots up, pushing the air itself out of its path to create a barrier of vacuum around him that stops any physical attacks.

Tenohira Nami (掌波, "Palm Wave"):

Nijū Tenohira Nami (二重手のひら波, "Double Palm Wave"):

Double Slam (ダブルスラム, "Daburusuramu"):

Weapons[]

Ryū's primary weapon is the meito Mugen (無限, Infinite), a Saijo O Wazamono grade sword. It is a katana with a blade slightly longer and straighter than normal. Mugen's hilt is red in color and has a circular bronze tsuba with an intermittent pattern cut into it. The sheath is brown in color and is hard enough to be used to block attacks from other swords without getting even a scratch. Ryū normally keeps Mugen sealed by means of a piece of white cloth which is tied between the sheath and the tsuba by means of an intricate knot.

Haki[]

Further information: Haki

Ryū is capable of using the ability known as "Haki" and is able to use all three types, Kenbunshoku Haki, Busoshoku Haki, and Haoshoku Haki, one of the few people in the world capable of doing so. He has shown considerable mastery over his Haki and is capable of using any and all types of Haki to supplement his combat skills. He first awakened this ability during his training in the Wano Country, when he unknowingly used Haoshoku Haki to knock out two bullies who were trying to force him to give up his sword to them. One of his instructors identified Ryū's ability to use Haki and he was subsequently trained to learn to use the skill.

Haoshoku Haki[]

Ryū is capable of using Haoshoku Haki, the rarest type of Haki and one that only one in a million people can use.

Busoshoku Haki[]

Ryū can use Busoshoku Haki to create a force similar to an invisible armor around himself. By using Busoshoku Haki he can bypass the powers of a Devil Fruit user and do physical harm to them by touching their "substantial body". As such, using this ability, he is capable of harming even Logia users and can fight against opponents such as Vice Admiral Smoker and Enel and actually inflict harm to them.

Kenbunshoku Haki[]

This was the form of Haki that Ryū first mastered.