Kuroki Gensai

* Anime
* Ashura
* Omega

*"I cannot be defeated by improvisations."*
— Kuroki Gensai, asserting dominance against Kiryu Setsuna

**Kuroki Gensai** (黒 (くろ) 木 (き)  玄 (げん) 斎 (さい) ; *"Gensai Kuroki"*), also known as **The Devil Lance** (魔 (ま) 槍 (そう) , *Masō*), is a renowned assassin in the criminal underworld and the affiliated fighter for Motorhead Motors in the Kengan Annihilation Tournament.

## Appearance

Kuroki is a powerfully imposing individual with a large mass of black hair atop his head with an equally voluminous beard, and stern, hardened facial features. In combat, he wears a black gi.

At around 35 years of age, Kuroki's hair was relatively short, and only had a short stubble where his beard would later grow.

## Personality

Kuroki is a generally stern and taciturn individual, who does not make idle chatter and only speaks when necessary, avoiding being wasteful with his words and his time. Despite adamantly refusing to accept apprentices, he seems to be a natural teacher and tends to teach by example in the middle of combat, even though he denies this.

Because of his tremendous experience and skill, he has very little patience for the arrogant, especially those who are weak. He very rarely brings his full force to bear against weaker opponents and pulls his punches before killing blows. However, in the rare case where he is angered, his wrath is fearsome and relentless.

Kuroki is not above being arrogant and prove it to his opponent, like in his fight against Kiryu Setsuna when he drew an imaginary circle and limitated himself in that spot just to show to Kiryu how much stronger he is than him.

## History

Taught by the previous master of the Kaiwan Style, Shimochi Kazufumi, Gensai trained and conditioned both his mind and body in his pursuit of mastering the assassination art. Sometime after his master had passed away, Gensai was visited by Tokita Niko, who had come in search of knowledge regarding Gaoh Mukaku. Upon meeting him, Gensai recognized how powerful Niko was.

At one point in his youth, Gensai met and fought Rolón Donaire to a draw.

During a meet up with close friend Taira Genzan, the latter told him about wanting to revamp and modernize the Koei Style because he had found himself a promising student.

Kuroki had also clashed with and killed Mikazuchi Rei's father.

At an unknown time, Kuroki also went to Mount Shirobara Daisen Temple, a "holy land" where many martial artists have come to train since the Kamakura period. There, he performed the "Purgatory AusterityThe Purgatory Austerity is an ascetic discipline in which one must spend three days and three nights in prayer, while surrounded by unceasing flames. Many have died trying to accomplish this rite.". Despite the difficulty and danger the rite posed, Kuroki accomplished it with ease.

Before the Kengan Annihilation Tournament, Kuroki was invited to participate by Katahara Metsudo. Accepting the invitation, Kuroki then asked his old friend Takakaze Kirimi to enter him into the tournament as Motorhead Motors' affiliated fighter.

## Plot

### *Kengan Ashura*

Kuroki was first seen briefly drinking beer on board the S.S. Kengan.

Representing Motorhead Motors in the Kengan Annihilation Tournament, Kuroki entered the arena to fight Lihito in the first round. Dominating him from start to finish, he quickly attained victory over Lihito. Later, after watching Kiryu's fight with Nikaido Ren, his employer asked him of his impression of Kiryu with Kuroki replying he wouldn't be able to go easy on him.

Facing off against Kiryu Setsuna in the second round, Kuroki asked his opponent if he was the one who betrayed and killed Taira Genzan. With Kiryu ignoring the question, the two's fight began with Kuroki on the defensive in the early stages of the match. After a few surprises, he eventually asserted his dominance to attain victory, nearly killing Kiryu in the process. After the fight, with Takakaze asking how Kiryu managed to survive, Kuroki directed the question to Lihito, who answered for him. With Lihito obliviously treating Kuroki like his master, Kuroki kept dismissing it but added that while he didn't take students, Lihito was free to watch his fights.

Before his quarter-final match against Rei, Lihito met him in the arena entryway and told him he'd be cheering him on from up close. With Kuroki giving Lihito some words of advice on how his strength compared to Rei's, Kuroki stepped into the arena. With his fight starting similarly to his fight against Kiryu, Kuroki was initially put on the back foot by an invigorated Rei. However, Kuroki weathered the storm and soon stormed to victory, knocking Rei out cold. After his fight, Takakaze teased Kuroki about him seemingly teaching Rei during their fight, though Kuroki dismissed the notion. Takakaze then told Kuroki that their real trial would be in the next round.

Kuroki observed the Tokita Ohma-Wakatsuki Takeshi semi-final fight, with Kanoh Agito joining him partway through it. After Ohma achieved victory, Agito told him he'd see him in the arena, with Kuroki acknowledging the statement. Facing Agito in the semi-finals, Kuroki had an exhilaratingly tense battle with the Emperor of the Kengan matches before eventually achieving victory.

Before the finals, he met with Ohma and informed him of everything he knew about the history of the Niko Style. In the final match of the tournament, Kuroki fought against a valiant Ohma but eventually achieved victory after weathering everything Ohma could throw at him.

After the tournament, while meditating under a waterfall, Kuroki mused that he was far from where he wanted to be.

At some point, somewhere in America, Kuroki trained Lihito and taught him the "basics" of the Kaiwan Style.

### *Kengan Omega*

In a certain tribe's reservation in the USA, Gensai was seen discussing Lihito's growth over the past two years with Kirimi.

Gensai bore witness to his pupil's match against Falcon in the Kengan Association VS Purgatory Tournament. After Lihito's loss he was challenged by an injured Falcon in one of Mt. Godslayer's hallways. After commenting on Lihito's power, Gensai promptly defeated Falcon with a single chop. Gensai also watched the fight between Agito and Lu Tian, recognizing that Lu Tian's perfected Formless stance dominated Agito with his two powerful, yet unmastered styles. After seeing Agito switching between his two styles seemlessly, Gensai noted that the now imperceptible delay in the switch meant that he won't have a guaranteed victory against Agito if they fought again.

## Power & Abilities

A master karateka of the **Kaiwan Style**, Kuroki Gensai is an extremely powerful combatant, having defeated many renowned and powerful opponents. The High Priest of the Daisen Temple remarked that Kuroki was the avatar of a Wisdom King, adding that he had never seen anyone as powerful as him in his 105 years of life. In the Kengan Annihilation Tournament, Kuroki took out many powerful opponents, such as Kiryu Setsuna, en route to the finals, while sustaining minimal injuries, and handed the previously undefeated "King of the Kengan Matches" Kanoh Agito his first and only loss.

Thanks to his sheer skill and foresight, Kuroki's defenses are nearly impenetrable. In fact, throughout the Kengan Annihilation Tournament, Gensai only ever took damage either deliberately, or when his opponent abruptly grew more powerful (as was the case with Kanoh Agito and Mikazuchi Rei), the sole exception being Ohma's use of Demonsbane.

He is extremely knowledgeable in the realm of martial arts, thanks to having known and befriended many distinguished masters of famous martial arts throughout his life. As such, he is aware of the weaknesses in these styles and is able to exploit them throughout the tournament to counter his opponents actions.

Kuroki is also noted to be able to perform the impossible, such as when he reset his dislocated elbow using centrifugal force. He is a man who has reached the pinnacle of martial arts and put it into practice, "using the right technique, at the right moment".

Kuroki has also demonstrated a level of proficiency with regards to artistry—most notably in sculpting, showcasing his masterful precision and powerful physical abilities by carving an intricate sculpture of a Deva against a tall rock face with his own hands.

### Kaiwan Style

Thanks to the extreme conditioning of the Kaiwan Style, Kuroki possesses hands that are as tough as steel and fingers that are capable of punching through solid steel. His joints are also extremely strong and durable; they are at times solid enough to be used as a spear. To instantaneously break his fingers is nigh-impossible.

## Etymology

* **Kuroki** means "black" (黒) (**kuro**) and "tree, wood" (木) (**ki**).
* **Gensai** means "mysterious, occultness" (玄) (**gen**) and "religious purification/purification, Buddhist food, room, worship, avoid, alike" (斎) (**sai**).

## Notes & Trivia

* Gensai is well-connected among business persons, martial artists, and assassins, being acquainted with a surprisingly varied manner of people.
* He likes training, but dislikes bad jokes (he's fine with jokes if they're funny, however).
* Gensai admits that there are only two kinds of people that he kills: those with no rights to live and warriors worth fighting with life on the line.
* Gensai's theme in the anime is *KNOCK ME DOWN* by KATAMALI.
* He cameos in chapter 110 of *How Heavy Are The Dumbbells* you lift.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Kuroki Gensai's profile
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Chapter 91
3. ↑ *5 wins during the Kengan Annihilation Tournament against Lihito,(Ch94)(Ep16) Kiryu Setsuna,(Ch157) Mikazuchi Rei,(Ch200) Kanoh Agito(Ch226) and Tokita Ohma(Ch235)*
4. ↑ Chapter 157
5. ↑ Chapter 153
6. ↑ Chapter 197
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Chapter 225
8. ↑ Chapter 227
9. ↑ Chapter 31
10. ↑ Chapter 81
11. ↑ Chapter 200
12. ↑ Chapter 39
13. ↑ Chapter 233
14. ↑ Chapter 111 (Dumbbell)