Himuro Ryo (
Quick Answers
What is the significance of Himuro Ryo's nickname, The Icy Emperor?
Why was Himuro Ryo's position in the Kengan Annihilation Tournament stolen by Kaneda Suekichi?
What is Himuro Ryo's affiliation with Ginokuniya Bookstore?
What role does Himuro Ryo play in the Kengan Ashura series?
Appearance[]
Himuro is a tan-skinned young man with a bob of white hair that is styled with a light middle parting and white eyebrows. He has a lean frame with a defined musculature. It is noted by Kaneda that Himuro has "beautiful skin".
Himuro dresses formally and stylishly, wearing a waist-coat and bow-tie whilst being a bartender with a white buttoned-up undershirt and black trousers. In more casual settings, he omits his waistcoat and bowtie and unbuttons the top of his shirt, revealing a portion of his chest.
Himuro spent most of the Annihilation Tournament with his arm in a cast and sling after being defeated by Kaneda.
Personality[]
Himuro is a notorious womanizer, and takes every opportunity to get girls' phone numbers and set up mixers with them, whether they are secretaries, ring girls, or even Katahara Sayaka. In combat, he is confident in his own strength. He gets quite annoyed and flustered when people he perceives to be weak refuse to back down as shown when he was fighting Kaneda Suekichi. However, he is a good sport after losing, accepting that Kaneda must be stronger than him and becoming fast friends with him.
History[]
Born within the Inside, specifically the "Rohza" district,[3] Himuro grew up with no parents and did whatever it took to survive. Eventually he got disillusioned with the way he was living and left the Inside at an unknown time, though he guessed that he would be around 15 when he left. After leaving, he got the name "Himuro Ryo" illegally registered.[4]
Plot[]
Kengan Ashura[]
Himuro Ryo was first seen working as a bartender in one of the bars Ohya Ken frequented and was introduced to Yamashita Kazuo as Ginokuniya Bookstore's affiliated fighter.
Later, having boarded the S.S. Kengan, Himuro sought out Tokita Ohma and asked him about the Inside but got a negative response. After Katahara Metsudo's words to the passengers, Himuro was left shocked when Kaneda asked him to forfeit his position as the affiliated fighter for Ginokuniya Bookstore. Even though Himuro refused, Kaneda continued to ask for the position and the two soon began fighting. Despite initially overwhelming Kaneda, Himuro ended up losing the fight and his position as representative, getting his arm broken in the process.
At some point before the tournament began, Himuro was visited by Kaneda and he uplifted the latter's spirits with his fighting words.
On the day of the Annihilation Tournament, Himuro observed all of the fights as they unfolded, taking particular interest in Kaneda's fight with Kaolan Wongsawat. After Kaneda's crushing loss by KO, Himuro mused affectionately about the unconscious fighter alongside Kushida Rin. He and the other stooges watched the rest of the first round.
In the second round, Himuro watched the fights with the rest of the four stooges. During the latter matches, Himuro went off with Okubo Naoya while Kaneda went with Kaolan. After the second round closed, he and Okubo were accosted by Hayami's Guardians as the latter began his attempted coup; Himuro and Okubo fought them off handily.
Himuro watched the rest of the tournament unfold along with a host of other fighters who had been knocked out during the rounds.
Some time after the Tournament, Himuro met up with Okubo and Imai Cosmo as they caught each other up on the various developments of the other fighters. The three of them then visited Ohma's grave.
Kengan Omega[]
Himuro and Kaneda watched the debut Kengan match of Gaoh Ryuki against Utsubuki Kokuro. Interested, he noted to Kaneda that if Ryuki was one of "them" he'd kill him.
A day later, he and Kaneda met up with Akiyama Kaede, Ryuki and Narushima Koga at Yamashita Trading Co. to help educate the latter in how to be a proper affiliated fighter. While there, Himuro was heavy-handed with Koga, causing Ryuki to attack him. However, Himuro nonchalantly blocked his Gaoh Style strike before asking Ryuki why he was going to kill Kokuro. With Ryuki giving a blunt and honest answer, Himuro then declared he would make Koga and Ryuki first-rate fighters with Ryuki openly declining.
Afterwards, Himuro took Ryuki to a cafe and posed him questions to get a gauge on him. When meeting up with Yamashita Kazuo at a later time, Himuro informed Kazuo that he couldn't read Ryuki at all. Kazuo then requested a favour from Himuro.
After conducting some Inside business with an acquaintance of his, Himuro reviewed the list of people Kazuo had asked him to find.
Eventually, Himuro tracked down Kanoh Agito and convinced him to enter the tournament between the Kengan Association and Purgatory for the Kengan Association once again.
A few days before the match between Ryuki and Akoya Seishu Himuro informed Kazuo that Kurayoshi Rino blocked Mikazuchi Rei's participation and that Hatsumi Sen had gone off the radar after travelling to China.
A month before the Kengan Association VS Purgatory Tournament, he faced and defeated Tokenshi Kota, but the injuries he received left him unable to enter the competition himself.
Days after, he and the rest of the four stooges found out Tokita Ohma was alive. They all celebrated with other fighters Ohma knew.
During the second round of the competition, Himuro and Kaneda joined Narushima Koga and Kaede Akiyama in the stands of Mt. Godslayer.
Two years after the Merger Tournament, Himuro ambushed Xia Ji after the latter attempted to take Kazuo's life. Though he was the victor of the bout, with the help of Inaba Ryo, Xia Ji proved to be a slippery opponent, and scaled the wall with his freakish strength, baffling the two.
Power & Abilities[]
Himuro Ryo is a master practitioner of Jeet Kune Do and, with his strength and skill, Himuro had won 4 Kengan matches without a single loss; prior to the main Kengan Annihilation Tournament, he was considered to be one of the strongest affiliated fighters in the Kengan matches.[5] With the style of Jeet Kune Do, Himuro has an initial vertical fist speed of 15 m/s, enabling him to launch rapid powerful strikes; by economising motion through simultaneous parrying and punching, Himuro is able to make his opponents experience his fists moving several times faster than they are.[5] Since Jeet Kune Do doesn't have any form, Himuro can fight dirty using moves such as eye pokes and striking the ribs.[5] Despite this, he was defeated by Kaneda, due to severely underestimating the man.[4][5]
Himuro can also use weapons very well: when fighting the Guardians, since his arm was still broken, Himuro had to use a nunchaku to defend himself.[6] He noted that because he used to live in a lawless place, he had to learn how to use weapons just to survive.[6] Because of his past with "The Inside" he has numerous connections and networks to gather information through.
Himuro's already impressive record jumped up to 21-0 by the time of Omega and he showcased improvements in his ability. He was able to easily block Ryuki's "Earth Crouching Dragon" and claimed to be able to easily kill him. He was also able to identify what martial art he used, the Gaoh Style. Himuro also easily beat Xia Ji while dodging and disarming all his concealed weapons.
Etymology[]
- Himuro means "icehouse, cold room/ice room" (氷室).
- Ryo means "cool, refreshing" (涼).
Notes & Trivia[]
- Himuro was so popular in his teen years that he already had groupies before he arrived at high school.[7]
- Fitting of his Casanova nature, Himuro gets a huge amount of genuine gifts on Valentine's Day.[8]
- Himuro is a chain smoker.[9]
- Himuro's favorite movie is "Cocktail".[1]
- Himuro sings pop songs at karaoke; he apparently sings with a narcissistic voice.[10]
- There is a running gag that the fighters who fought in the Kengan Annihilation Tournament keep forgetting who Himuro is, since he wasn't fighting in the main matches.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Himuro Ryo's profile
- ↑ 4 wins prior to the Kengan Annihilation Tournament
21 straight wins between Kengan Ashura and the beginning of Kengan Omega
1 win one month prior to the Kengan Association VS Purgatory Tournament against Tokenshi Kota(Ext. 2 (Omega)) - ↑ Chapter 31
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Extra: Kaneda
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Chapter 33
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Chapter 177
- ↑ 4-koma: The Four Idiots' Youth
- ↑ 4-koma: 'Tis The Season
- ↑ 4-koma: Smoke
- ↑ 4-koma: Singing