Kenichi Shirahama

Kenichi Shirahama is the title character and main protagonist of the History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi anime and manga.

Kenichi is the Disciple of the six masters of Ryōzanpaku, studying martial arts from them to not only get stronger, but to ultimately gain the strength and courage needed to protect the people and values that are most important to him. He is also a member and the honorary "co-founder" of the Shinpaku Alliance, alongside the founder Haruo Niijima (the later of which he is not entirely happy about) and is currently a second year student at Kōryō High School in class 2-E.

In the AWA fics, Kenichi is a student at the AWA Academy and is part of Class 4.

Appearance
Kenichi is a young man of average height with medium length spiky brown hair in the back and some hanging in the front on the sides and brown eyes. He usually wears his long sleeved blue school uniform with the Yin Yang badge trade to him by Miu for a Cat badge when they were younger. When he first started practicing martial arts, Kenichi wore just a traditional dougi when training and fought in civilian clothing but after the Ragnarök Arc, he begins to start wearing a dougi (for Karate and Jujitsu), chainmail underneath (Weapons), muay kaad chuek on his hands (Muay Thai) and Kung Fu Pants and shoes (Kung Fu/Chinese Kempo) for when he trains or fights. He wears his wrests guards given to him by the Elder and Miu whenever he fights with a weapon users. When not in school or training, for casual wear, he's seen in jeans and a plain shirt that tends to either be plain or nice looking and with stripes.

Physically, Kenichi has changed over the course of the story. In the beginning, due to his inexperience in fighting, he was a thin and somewhat scrawny and frail physique. After his continuous training with his masters, Kenichi's physique has become lean yet well-muscled and defined all-around body. His most notable feature of his appearance is the band aid that he constantly wears under his left eye which hasn't changed.

Personality
Kenichi is good-natured, timid, polite and cowardly, frequently treated as a friendless loser at the beginning of the series. He loves gardening and reading How to... books. However, it all changed when he met Miu Fūrinji, and shows no fear in the face of true danger. After the fateful meeting, he decided to stand for himself and be truly strong; or at least, strong enough to protect those who are dear to him. Though he's constantly considered cowardly at the beginning of the series, he shows that when his loved ones lives are on the line, he's actually much braver than he appears, going as far as to jump into an ocean full of sharks and fight one of them just to save his sister Honoka. He continuously grows more brave and confident in himself to the point he now rushes into any form of danger without a second thought.

After entering Ryōzanpaku he has slowly begun to change. Although at first he ran at the very first sign of danger, and didn't want to train unless forced by his masters, he endured the hard training and is slowly growing to love martial arts. He was not seen as a serious fighter by any of his opponents, which has led to many victories over seemingly impossible odds (Boris notes that Kenichi has had the bad, or good depending on how one views it, luck of fighting martial artists who were stronger than him in terms of pure skill in every one of his main battles), and his care for his newly found friends has made him prove victorious time and time again, thus changing his attitude to the point where many of his classmates think he is cool.

Due to Kensei Ma's influence on him, Kenichi has shown a bit of a perverted side, such as when Ma takes Kenichi to a secret location to watch Miu and Shigure bathe in their usual spot (and later uses him as a decoy to escape). Kenichi was even given magazines based off of pictures of Miu and Shigure and other nude pictures (though Kenichi states they are really only pictures of chickens or baby chicks and at times Tōchūmaru posing covering them). Kenichi even used Ma's technique when he told him to let Miu attack him so his face would be shoved into her chest (which was later proven so Kenichi would learn a head-butt move) and even said how wonderful it felt. However, despite Ma's influence, Kenichi has shown a modest and innocent side towards women, such as when he ever sees Miu's breasts almost sticking out, seeing her almost naked, accidentally seeing up her skirt or seeing Renka's breasts causing Kenichi to be very flustered. When Shigure wanted to bathe with him, he was very flustered and wished not to, showing innocence. Whenever he sees women barely dressed or almost naked, he tends to have a nosebleed.

Unlike most of the other characters, Kenichi tends to think logically, often crushing the dreams of young fighters who strive to create a strong gang in the future. He also sticks to his convictions, be it fair (such as never hitting a guy with glasses) to very controversial, such as his belief to never hit a girl, no matter the situation. This vow often backfires as when women try to fight him, as they become extremely irritated and mistake it for overbearing sexism (this is proven false as Kenichi has no problem with other men, such as Hayato Fūrinji or Natsu Tanimoto, fighting females). Kenichi even cares about the enemy's health and always tries to help them. Despite his strong moral standards, Kenichi is not above buying perverted pictures of Miu and Shigure from Ma or going with him to spy on them while they're bathing. He is still scared of delinquents as shown at his school, despite defeating opponents like Shō Kanō and other YOMI members.

Though his masters claim that he has no talent or whatsoever for Martial Arts, this could possibly be a ploy to motivate him to work harder. Despite the fact that Kenichi has not even been studying martial arts for a year, he has defeated countless opponents who have been studying for their entire lives and considered true genius. Hayato Fūrinji, the Elder of Ryōzanpaku has stated that Kenichi reminds him of himself in younger days. The claim could be an encouragement from his masters not to be laid back. While his masters always states that Kenichi has no talent at martial arts, Akisame stated that Kenichi is a genius at hard work. This is further reinforced where Odin commented that Kenichi has mastered the essentials of the Seikūken in just a matter of days.

Though he is no longer picked on by the delinquents at his school, Kenichi's excessive mistreatment by others is one of the main sources of humor in the series. He is constantly ridiculed and looked down on, physically abused for no reason, denied his only pleasures of reading and gardening, and receives no praise at all for his accomplishments and actually only gets ridiculed more (sometimes by people much weaker than himself). As a result of this, Kenichi is frequently shown to be very susceptible to negative comments about his appearance or strength, easily falling into (comical) depression whenever someone scoffs at his abilities (so much so that Miu once referred to name calling as Kenichi's "Weak Spot").

Kenichi seeks "enough power to protect those that he loves". However, the Elder told Kenichi that saying that is the same as stating "I want the power to kill those who are my enemies". What Kenichi really seeks is the power to definitely protect his loved ones by defeating his enemies without causing more than enough damage to and protecting them as well. Hayato Fūrinji stated that this is already the level of strongest in history. Kenichi seems to have another power within him, which his opponents often describe as light in the middle of darkness. This often results in many of those he has defeated turning over to the good side. Rachel Stanley described him as a ceramic vase being beautifully crafted. Isshinsai Ogata also states that Kenichi possesses infinite potential inside him and that his bases are so solid, he could become the highest building ever.

Kenichi has constantly shown to be a very kind, selfless, polite, and helpful young man and always put others before himself. Even when it comes to his enemies, he shows them respect and never speaks ill of them and even cares for their well-being and refuses to allow them to ever speak ill of others. Whenever he's injured or someone else is, he states the other people injured should be tended to first. He constantly tries to befriend others such a Chikage, even if they were former enemies and always acts friendly towards them. It is because of his kind nature that he lacks killing intent due to his desire not to kill others. Several people are moved by his kindness and selfless nature, to the point they even change sides and befriend him. Because of his kindness, Ethan Stanley states that his heart is enormous. Chiaki Yūma would state his heart has become even stronger lately from his continuous fighting.

Despite his friendly, kind nature, he does enjoy teasing Natsu Tanimoto. He usually does this by annoying Tanimoto (by adding the chan suffix in his name or acting friendly), and once Tanimoto gets so irked to the point that he attacks Kenichi, Kenichi points out people are watching, causing Tanimoto to revert to his false persona.

He has a habit of constantly watering plants and tending to his books when he gets excited. His habit of this kick in when he and Miu held hands. He also is very intelligent in plant types, such as knowing how they work or grow and considers them some of his closest friends, which was shown when he relied on plants to save him from Shō Kanō. He also is afraid of weapons, as he usually shouts "weapons are scary!", though he slowly loses his fear for them. He also has a fear of riding scary or dangerous rides such as roller-coasters, much like Thor (though his fear is mostly due to his hellish training from Akisame's brutal machines which seem to have left a bad impression on Kenichi).

Kenichi is known for being somewhat attractive by numerous girls his age throughout the series due to his strength, bravery, and kind heart. Yūka Izumi loves him due to his kindness and tries to ask him out more than once only to be interrupted or Kenichi leaving before she notices he left and Kenichi is oblivious of this. Raichi Liis attracted to him due to him standing up to her and considering her a friend and admiring him for his kindness. Rachel has shown to find him "cute" and has an attraction towards him, going as far as to kiss him on the cheek, causing Miu to be very angry and jealous from her. Also Rachel also appreciates him and his friends saving her from Jenazad and helping her brother. Renka Ma is attracted to him due to how strong he has become and brave, going as far as transferring schools to be close to him and always trying to cling to him and fight over his attention with Miu and her "strong liking" has eventually developed into "strong love" which she refuses to admit, but her emotions prove otherwise. Also, Renka also is taken back by him when he compliments her in anything and blushes around him when he does. Miu developed feelings towards him when he proves his worth as a fighter and when she sees how much he cares for her in numerous moments and is very appreciative of everything he does for her as a friend. Miu even gets jealous and possessive of Kenichi when other girls are around him and fights for his attention. When Kenichi saves her life on the School Ski Trip, Miu tearfully hugs him and thanks him for saving her, making Miu much more open physically and emotionally. Whenever Kenichi is done fighting a long fight, she is usually running up to him and tearfully hugging him and states how glad she is when he's alright. When Kenichi tries to state how he wants to protect her more than anything, Miu starts to understand her feelings for him, going as far as kissing him on the cheek. Since then she's started acting more happy, cheerful, and eager to be around him. According to Junazard, Miu's feelings for Kenichi has developed into love (though Miu doesn't seem to be aware of this). Miu has even stated she does not mind dying for Kenichi so he can live. Kenichi has earned the trust of the One Shadow, Miu's father for protecting Miu from Junazard and stopping him and breaking the his spell on her.

Abilities

 * Mixed Martial Artist: Since entering the Ryōzanpaku dojo, Kenichi has been trained in six different styles of martial arts: Karate, Muay Thai, Chinese Kenpo, Ju-Jitsu, Kōsaka Style, and Fūrinji Style, which makes him a Mixed Martial Artist. While being trained in six different styles, none of the masters have made Kenichi concentrate on only one type of martial art style and in fact, have him learn several variations of their martial arts. Despite this, the masters have focused Kenichi's training on physical conditioning and in practising the basic forms and techniques of each style to the point of refinement. This would give Kenichi a solid martial arts foundation and in turn allow him to develop his own techniques and fighting style in time. As a result of practicing so many fighting styles and the hellish training he undergoes on a daily basis, Kenichi developed from a weak person who was repeatedly bullied and beaten to a powerful and extremely versatile fighter, who has received praise and respect on multiple occasions from several disciples and masters, friend or foe alike:
 * Karate User: Sakaki has taught Kenichi multiple stances and Kata from different Karate styles, which has taught him the essence of self defense and countering. Sakaki has mainly taught Kenichi a variety of defensive techniques, stressing the philosophy of "Defense" being the true nature of Karate; as a result, Kenichi has a very strong sense of defense, being able to effectively attack and defend at the same time using the techniques he has learned from Sakaki.
 * Muay Thai User: Apachai has taught Kenichi the art of Muay Thai. At the beginning, most of Apachai's attempts to train Kenichi resulted in him almost dying, but as time went on Kenichi slowly began to learn how to survive training with him, which greatly increased his defensive capabilities. Plus, as a result of training in Muay Thai with Apachai, Kenichi has gained many techniques that allow him to overpower many physically strong fighters. Apachai has also trained him to "attack through" his opponents, which allows him to easily fight against opponents with strong defenses.
 * Jujutsu User: Akisame has always been teaching Kenichi different throwing techniques from more than one variation of Ju-jitsu. As a result, Kenichi is able to throw his opponents in various positions and put them in various submission holds. Kenichi has even begun to learn throwing techniques that involve using no strength and using the enemy's own power against them. Although it has been shown that Kenichi can only achieve these kinds of techniques when using Ryūsui Seikūken.
 * Chinese Kenpo User: Kensei Ma has taught Kenichi various types of Chinese Kenpo, although his has mostly learned the soft forms of kenpo, including: Baguazhang and Taichi. Because of this, Kenichi has learned the Kung Fu principles of "Inner Strength", which has made Kenichi's body incredibly durable to internal damage and even given him the ability to cause internal damage to his opponents.
 * Kōsaka Style User: Despite being an unarmed fighter, Shigure has taught Kenichi the basics of the Kōsaka Style, how to use weapons and fight against weapon users. Shigure has mostly taught him swordplay and techniques that counter melee weapons. Because of his refusal to use weapons however, Kenichi has had to learn how to adapt these techniques of the Kōsaka Style with his own techniques, in order to effectively use them without a sword. Kenichi achieved this by using knifehand strikes he learned from Karate as a sword substitute. This has given him a great sense of adaptability during his fights and has even given him a unique new form of counterattacking.
 * Fūrinji Style User: Hayato has taught Kenichi only three techniques from the Fūrinji Style: Seikūken, Ryūsui Seikūken and Korui Nuki. Despite only knowing these three techniques, Kenichi has taken full advantage of the benefits each technique gives him in battle, from an absolute defense, to outmanoeuvring his opponents, and finally, to a technique that can break almost any defense. Additionally, in the process of teaching him these techniques, Hayato has given Kenichi greater reflexes, more balance, and has given him greater use of his Ki.
 * Immense Determination: The Ryōzanpaku masters mention that Kenichi has no talent for martial art but he is a genius at hard work and getting beat up, which enables him to improve at an amazing rate. Kenichi has defeated countless opponents who have been studying martial arts their entire lives and were considered true geniuses. Even in the midst of battle, Kenichi is able to calculate and develop a strategy quickly and even outsmart even the most intelligent of fighters, such as being able to trick Ryūto's inner eye technique with his Ryōzanpaku's Rhythm he just made up, something Akisame noted was a genius move on Kenichi's part. The Elder stated that though Kenichi lacks killing intent, he has incredible memory, being able to remember and perceive even the most complicated techniques his masters teach him and be able to use them in a short amount of time.
 * Enhanced Physical Prowess: Over the course of the two years that he has spent at Ryōzanpaku, Kenichi has gone from a very physically weak person who gets bullied day in and day out, to a powerful fighter who has defeated numerous opponent's, thanks to the hellish training that he receives every day at the dojo. All of the masters have combined their training methods in order to give Kenichi a body that is perfectly suited for all the styles that they are teaching him. Akisame and Kensei have completely redesigned Kenichi's body over the course of two years, as they have continuously experimented with new ways to train his body. Akisame has made Kenichi undergo his special muscle enhancement training, which has developed a body that has absolutely no useless muscles in it and an almost inhuman amount of strength and speed, and Kensei has strengthened Kenichi's organs and core using various methods from multiple forms of Chinese Kenpo and medicine. Sakaki has trained Kenichi in various exercises involving strengthening the toughness and flexibility of his body, Shigure's weapons training has helped with Kenichi's reflexes in a lot of different ways, and just surviving one of Apachai's attempts to safely train him counts as endurance training. After training with the Elder, Kenichi's physical development reached an even higher level, giving him more agility and balance and completely speeding up the other masters training, forcing them to start trying slightly harder during his training sessions. He is able to take damaging hits from a Dou Ki user and the strongest member of Yomi, Kajima's, strongest technique. Also, according to Kajima, the fact that Kenichi's body can survive being hit so many times by his strongest technique: Shinogidachi, means that he must have mastered the principles of Yin Kung Fu, which involves strengthening the body's defenses to it highest point using both Ki and his own blood vessels, and Kenichi himself admitted that this was only because of his training in Ryōzanpaku for the past year. As a result of this extensive condition training, he has also developed the following:
 * Immense Endurance: Even before starting his training, Kenichi possesses a level of endurance that is nearly at master level. Since beginning his rigorous and gruelling training, his endurance has grown considerably higher. Even when he was battered, bleeding and barely conscious, he was able to unleash a powerful "Mubyōshi" and "Korui Nuki" against Pengulu. According to himself, he was a prodigy at getting beaten up. During his early fights, Kenichi was able to withstand a body battered and even fractured or broken bones from skilled enemies who trained far longer than him, and ultimately win. Even taking a critical knife wound from Jihan, Kenichi was able to win the battle despite the blood loss. Against Shō Kanō, the former leader of YOMI, Kenichi was also able to win despite sustaining broken bones and bruised organs. Kenichi can also take high-voltage electric shocks with little damage (thanks to Akisame's training). Kenichi's endurance now can also take a serious direct kick from Apachai, and quickly jump back to his feet, seemingly unfazed and amazing his masters. The pinnacle of his endurance was seen against another Grand Master, Isshinsai Ogata. Despite being hopelessly outmatched and taking a severe one-sided beating, he still had the fortitude to fight on, something Ogata praised him for. Also, after taking a critical blow from Ogata that initially left him incapacitated, Kenichi was soon after, capable of returning to his feet to save Miu from falling rubble. He's able to endure and retaliate against powerful hits from Kajima whilst the latter was using his DouKi in his attacks.
 * Enhanced Speed: He can outrun a truck on full speed due to the amount of running he does with Akisame. Currently, his speed has increased enough to the point he can close a considerable distance in seconds. Although Kenichi has become very fast, he isn't fast enough to keep up with Miu unless she holds back (a lot). His speed has reached a point that during sparring matches with Akisame, Kenichi kept up and even blocked his attacks (albeit the said master was still holding back considerably). Even in a severely battered state at the hands of Ogata Isshinsai, Kenichi still managed to save Miu from a collapsing building on fire, closing a good distance in mere moments. He has even shown the ability to outstrip someone as fast as Satomi Kajima, the leading disciple of Yomi.
 * Enhanced Strength: While initially Kenichi was scrawny and his strength was below average, the amount of training Ryōzanpaku placed on him greatly increased his overall abilities. His newfound strength has allowed him lift and pull large amounts of weight during daily chores (which the masters force him to do) and knock out less skilled opponents with a single strike. His leg strength has grown great enough to withstand tremendous amount of impact, he was able to kick Genson in a pool without facing any resistance from the water. Having undergone the unique physical conditioning regimen of Akisame, Kenichi's musculature has been rebuilt, now possessing a lean but well-defined physique. He can push Berserker back and throw him at a considerable distance and smash the ground with just a punch.
 * Enhanced Agility: During his second training with Hayato, Kenichi's leg strength and dexterity were pushed to higher levels, granting him greater agility and a more acute sense of balance. His newfound agility has been commented by the other masters, even forcing them to put a bit more effort in their sparring sessions. Kenichi has also developed acrobatic abilities almost at Miu's level, able to easily scale and glide down a skyscraper with complete control and no wasted movement.
 * Lack of Killing Intent: Despite his strength, it is noted by his masters that Kenichi lacks any form of killing intent even towards his enemies. It is most likely because of this many stronger opponents tend to look down on him and become overconfident in their own abilities, which leads to their downfall and the fact Kenichi's heart is very gentle and his desire to end fights peacefully and only leave them unable to fight any further. Also because of his lack of killing intent, he is able to avoid detection from all three levels of Master Class fighters for a period of time.
 * Immense Sei Ki: Kenichi uses Sei Ki, giving him a style which allows him to fight with a calm and peaceful spirit instead of with rage and anger. This allows him to calmly observe his opponents and see what is in their heart. Even when his emotions overwhelm him, Kenichi demonstrated his ability to channel emotions such as anger into his Sei Ki. Statements from Akisame indicate that such as feat requires a high level of talent. On one occasion, he instinctively unleashed his ki so fiercely that his master martial artists were surprised. Even a master-class martial artists like Christopher Eclair were startled by the intensity of Kenichi's ki, momentarily mistaken it for Sakaki's. Also complimenting it's potency is Kenichi's excellent control over his ki, allowing him to use such complex Sei techniques as the Ryūsui Seikūken instantly and to a near-perfect degree. During his battle with Satomi Kajima, Kenichi's control over his Ki became so well-developed that he completely skipped one stage of Ki mastery and managed to reach the last stage: known as the "holding" of Ki, a stage that normally only masters can achieve, hinting that Kenichi's Ki control has possibly become just as great as a master class fighters. Seeing Kenichi reach this stage left both Miu and one of his masters, Shigure completely speechless.
 * Botanical Knowledge: Though not a useful skill at times, Kenichi has repeatedly shown to have a large amount of knowledge and expertise in plants, which has been useful in tracking the location of others and even saving his life when chasing after Shō Kanō.

Trivia

 * Though he's not a master (until the end of the series), Kenichi has defeated more opponents than any other character in the series. At the end of the story, Kenichi is revealed to have become a master and married Miu, implying that he was finally able to defeat the Elder in combat.
 * Though Kenichi didn't have friends at the beginning of the series, since defeating Ragnarök and meeting Miu, he's gained several friends. Ironically, most of his friends he made are former enemies.
 * His nickname from Chikage before she befriended him was "band aid".
 * As a child, he was called "Shindou", meaning shaking.
 * He is a bookworm and aspires to become a novelist.
 * He once used one of Niijima's techniques to escape the hellish training of Ryōzanpaku masters.
 * He is one of three disciples that fight in the Underground Fighting Ring.
 * He is the first character to have died and then brought back to life, the second being Apachai.
 * Kenichi has four girls that are in love with him, that being Miu, Renka, Raichi and Izumi. This makes him considered the most popular with women more than any other character. Interestingly, he was never popular with girls his age until after his continuous training and his continuous efforts to protect his loved ones that caused him to have gained their affection towards him.
 * Although he dislikes using weapons and never uses them during his fights, he still trains with Shigure to learn how to properly use them and how to fight against them. Despite this training, he is still shown to still be afraid of weapons, although this fear dies down as the series progresses.
 * It is stated that he officially died twice. Once was during training, but was resuscitated by Akisame Kōetsuji through CPR.
 * Despite his ongoing infatuation and love for Miu Fūrinji, their relationship was unclear for most of the series beyond friendship, especially with Hayato Fūrinji's excessive protection of Miu. It was not until receiving a kiss on his cheek from Miu that their relationship showed actual development.
 * Kenichi's book collection consist of over 5,000 volumes. The official guidebook lists of few of the titles: "Special Moves made so easy that even a monkey could understand", "Never be late again after you read this", "The Book of Making 100 Friends", "The 10 Laws of Becoming Popular", "100 rules to follow when you befriend an alien", "How to become a hero without getting injured", "100 Rules of attracting a girl's affection", "Speaking skills for clearing up false rumors", "The Lives of the World's Karake Fighters", "You too can become Bruce Lee!!", "~What about the love between you and the girl you like?~ 108 abosulutely correct love oracles", "Surefire ways to make your girlfriend's family like you", "Survival during threats! These are the plants you can eat!!", "How to walk when you want to avoid delinquents", "300 proverbs you will need when you are discouraged.".
 * Kenichi inherited his mother's gentle character, but looks-wise he takes after his father. It is not quite obvious now, but as he grows older he will come to resemble his father.
 * Several characters have noted how Kenichi reminds them of the Elder, including but not limited to: Saiga Furinji (stated at the end of the series), Silkwat Jenazad (during his fight with brainwashed Miu),and even the Elder himself (after saving Honoka from sharks).