Character Profiles

Shinsengumi

Kondou Isami – Commander of the Shinsengumi. He is kind hearted and believes fervently in the warrior spirit that he is well respected by his subordinates. He is at times emotional and passionate, eager to lead the Shinsengumi however he has had little experience in real battle even though he was the head of the Shieikan dojo.

Hijikata Toshizo – Vice Commander of the Shinsengumi. He is a strict man in the beginning. He is very good friends and trusted by Kondou that he is the one who makes most of the decisions and plans for the group. Hijikata ends up being responsible for Chizuru’s welfare as he was the one who brought her back to the headquarters. Hijikata is known to make hard decisions that at times seems dubious but he is very loyal to Kondou and the Shinsengumi. Towards the end of the series due to the many experiences he’s starts to open up and at times appear to have gone soft except for when he is fighting his nemesis Chikage Kazuma.

Okita Souji – Captain of the 1st troop. One of the best swordsman in the Shinsengumi, Okita is also very perceptive person, noticing right away that Chizuru was a girl. However he acts snarky at times and “jokes” to Chizuru that he will kill her if she does anything to harm the Shinsengumi. Looking beyond that however, it is clear that Okita is very loyal to the Shinsengumi as he has deep respect and greatfulness for Kondou who had raised him in the Shieikan dojo.

Nagakura Shinpachi – Captain of the 2nd troop. Amongst all of the members, he is the one who has butted heads with Kondou the most and at one time with Hijikata. However Nagakura is typically a cheerful person who has done his best for the group as seen by his fight in Toba Fushimi. He is close friends with Todou and especially Sanosuke.

Saitou Hajime – Captain of the 3rd troop, Saitou is a quiet and formal person. He is polite, wise and is very loyal to the Shinsengumi. He is a silent force of the group always assessing a situation before acting and he practices a good deal of self control especially when he was faced with Amagiri. He is often seen assisting Kondou and Hijikata. It seems he is well trusted as he is able to give them advise which they often time follow. He believes in things that does not change, like the warrior spirit.

Todou Heisuke – Captain of the 8th troop, Todou is the youngest captain in the Shinsengumi. He immediately becomes friends with Chizuru since they are about the same age. He is a kind and understanding young man.

Yamanami Keisuke – He was a Vice-Commander in the Shinsengumi. He conducted research to study the effects of Ochimizu and how to improve it. He is well regarded in the Shinsengumi. After he was wounded in his right hand he became reclusive and cold. Finally he willingly became a Rasetsu to continue being a swordsman. Due to this he was assigned the Rasetsu squad of the Shinsengumi.

Inoue Genzaburou – The oldest of the members. He was captain of the 6th troop. He was originally from the Shieikan serving the Kondou family. He follows Kondou and Hijikata to Kyoto. He is a quiet and gentle but wise man.

Yamazaki Susumu – He was a ninja who acted as not only the Shinsengumi’s main spy but also the medic for the group. He teaches Chizuru his medicinal skills so that she can lend the Shinsengumi support if it was ever needed. Susumu is a straight young man and will do anything to preserve the leadership of the group. He becomes instrumental to Hijikata’s beliefs during the battle of Toba-Fushimi.

Shimada Kai – A large set man, Shimada Kai was one of the most loyal Shinsengumi member. Initially he was working with Yamazaki as a spy. He also acted as the reliable support of the Shinsengumi in Kyoto. Shimada was one of the last members who followed Hijikata to Goryokakku – Hokkaido.

Itou Kashitaro – Was recruited by Todou to join the Shinsengumi with the blessing of Kondou. Itou was admired by Kondou for his learning and knowledge however Itou was not well liked by the rest of the group.

The Oni Clan

Yukimura Chizuru – The heroine of the series, she is a young lady who is in search of her missing father. She travels to Kyoto in search of him and discovers a secret about herself and what her father has been involved in. She witnesses the slaughter of two Shinsengumi members who had turned Rasetsu while disguised as a boy. Hijikata took her in for questioning and later became a charge of Hijikata. She later becomes enamored with all the Shinsengumi members and decides to stay with them eventhough there were several times she was asked to leave by Kazama and Sen Hime.

Nagumo Kaoru – He is actually from the Oni clan. A young man who was treated harshly since he was a boy, he had learned to hate Chizuru since she was a woman. He befriends her initially while dressed as a girl but later on reveals his true identity and tries to convince Chizuru to join him. He is also connected to Okita turning into a Rasetsu.

Yukimura Kodou – He is Chizuru’s father who is involved with the research of the powers of Ochimizu. He was working for the Shogunate but disappears. We find out later than he is working with Kazama’s group for the Satcho clan.

Chikage Kazama – He is the leader of the Oni trio who wants to get Chizuru into the Oni clan. He is a very powerful Oni who considers Hijikata his rival. He looks down on the Shinsengumi, especially those who turned to Rasetsu, calling them fakes and worthless. In his Oni form he has white horns, white hair and yellow eyes.

Kyo Shiranui – Shiranui is a cocky Oni. He arms himself with guns. Later on he becomes Harada’s rival and fights him several times. However once Kodou proves himself a traitor to the Oni clan, he allies with Harada to defeat him and his Rasetsu army.

Amagiri Kyuju – He is a calm and collected Oni. He is a powerful Oni but he prefers to avoid unnecessary fights. He seems to have a healthy rivalry with Saitou but they never cross swords. In fact it was Amagiri who tells Saitou the true secret of the Rasetsu.

Sen hime – Is a pureblood Oni. She is the one who tells Chizuru of her true heritage and offers to protect her.

Kimigiku – She is a bodyguard of Sen Hime.

Hakodate Army

Enamoto Takeaki – He is the President of the Republic of Ezo, prior to that he was the a Naval Commander in the Shogunate. He appointed Hijikata as Vice Minister of the Army.

Ootori Keisuke – Well learned, he was a young Commander who worked under Enamoto. He and Hijikata worked together starting in the battle of Aizu up to Hakodate. Initially Hijikata did not like Ootori since he tended to be easy going and not much like a Commander, however this changed as they worked closely together.

Arai Ikunosuke – One of the naval commanders. He is also an officer of the newly established Republic of Ezo. He was involved in the Battle of Hakodate Bay where Hijikata desperately tried to defeat the New Government.