Masaru Takahara

Masaru Takahara is the main protagonist of the Present Day chapter, "The Strongest", in Live A Live. He is a young warrior and martial artist bent on becoming the world's greatest fighter by travelling around the world in search of the world's best fighters in their respective styles and learning their techniques.
He was voiced by in Japanese and Gil T. Macanas in English.
==Appearance==
Masaru is a young man in great physical condition as a result of constantly hitting the gym and training his body in hopes of becoming the strongest man alive. His attire consists of a purple sleeveless hoodie, a red headband, cargo pants, fingerless gloves and a pair of tall black boots, all meant for his frequent physical activity ranging from in doors training to fights. He has short black hair.
==Personality==
Masaru is a brave warrior with a good heart and a strong sense of justice. Though his arc is mostly centered around his own self improvement and growth as a fighter he can also be quite sympathetic to other people, such as when he was enraged to learn about the deaths of his opponents and fought Odie O'Bright to avenge them or the possible scenario where he avoids fighting Cube in the final chapter and joins his party due to finding him cute.
== History ==
=== The Strongest ===
The Present Day chapter opens up with Masaru's narration as he trains in his gym, going on detail about his burning desire to become the best fighter on Earth. In order to achieve this he sets out to challenge the most accomplished warriors in the world to learn their moves and make them his own. 
During Masaru's quest he clashes with the following combatants: 
* Jackie Iaukea: Master of Sumo.
* Tula Han: Master of Sambo.
* Namkiat: Master of Muay Thai.
* Seishi Moribe: Master of Koppo.
* Great Aja: Master of Lucha Libre.
* Max Morgan: Master of Pro-Wrestling.
They all prove to be formidable opponents worthy of their title but Masaru manages to overcome their might through his tenacity and the ability to imitate their skills and turn them against them. Each master takes their loss with honor and respect, recognizing Masaru's skill.
But Masaru's journey isn't over. Some time after emerging the victor from his previous matches, Masaru comes across an imposing and mysterious wild-eyed fighter. Introducing himself as Odie O'Bright, the new challenger taunts Masaru over his previous fights, revealing that he faced the same six opponents as Masaru did after their defeats and that he mercilessly killed all of them just to prove his superiority, claiming that glory can only be found in death. He challenges Masaru to a fight to the death that will decide who is truly the greatest fighter.
Masaru is shocked and disgusted, calling O'Bright nothing more than a murderer instead of a real fighter. Enraged and decided to avenge the deaths of his rivals by using everything he learned from them, Masaru accepts the challenge and engages in a fierce battle with O'Bright. Their duel is hard fought and intense, with O'Bright demonstrating his prowess through a series of lethal techniques, but Masaru persists and then turns the tides with the combined abilities he learned on his quest, defeating O'Bright in the end.
As O'Bright dies he tells Masaru that many more fighters will be coming after him soon since he has now earned the title of the strongest in the world and that the struggle will never end. Nonetheless, Masaru embraces his title and accepts his destiny, having matured as a warrior. He prepares himself for the upcoming fights as a man in the distance looks at him eager for a match against the world's strongest man.
===The Dominion of Hate===
Masaru returns along with the other heroes in the final chapter where he can be chosen by the player as the main playable character. In the story Masaru becomes temporarily displaced, being ripped from his timeline by Odio's powers right after beating O'Bright finding himself lost in the Dominion of Hate.
If he is not chosen as the protagonist he can be found training all by himself in the Seat of the Betrayers (the ruined Lucrece Castle) dungeon. Once encountered if he is approached normally he will challenge the main character to a fight and upon defeat he can be recruited into the main party. Optionally, if he is challenged with Cube or Sundown as the protagonist he will step down from the fight voluntarily due to finding the former too adorable and not wanting to face a firearm in the latter's case so he will join without conditions.
Eventually, he and the other heroes face against Odio, wagering the fate of the Earth and its history. Eventually the Lord of Dark is vanquished 
Upon returning to his place in time, Masaru sets off on another journey while keeping his title as the strongest.
====Bad Endings====
If Oersted is killed after defeating Purity of Odio, Masaru feels unsettled by his victory. Since Oersted was killed too early, the Lord of Dark's hatred is free to continue the cycle, and Masaru along with the other six heroes are presumably trapped in Lucrece.
If Oersted is chosen as the main protagonist however, Masaru is fought like the rest of the heroes during the climax of their respective chapters, with Oersted changing history to have O'Bright be the victor of their battle while Masaru perishes instead.Optionally, if the player is losing the fight they can choose the Armageddon option, which leads to Odio destroying all the timelines, including Masaru's.
==External Links==
*
*
*
== Navigation ==
Category:Video Game Heroes
Category:Male
Category:Martial Artists
Category:Honorable
Category:Fighters
Category:Fantasy Heroes
Category:Power Hungry
Category:Warriors
Category:Cosmic Protection
Category:Dimension Travelers
Category:Alternate Reality Heroes
Category:Sympathetic
Category:Determinators
Category:Wrestlers
Category:Passionate Learners
Category:Neutral Good