Yoshimitsu

Yoshimitsu is a character from the Tekken franchise.

A Highly Visible Ninja that wields a soul-rending sword and oddly resembles a samurai much more than a ninja. He has a rogue-like highwayman's personality in that he steals from the rich (Heihachi) and gives to the poor (Marshall Law as confirmed in an official guide). While this was the extent of his characterization at the end of  T1, his maiming by a security system while attempting to rob Dr. Bosconovitch's lab, and subsequent prosthetic spinning arm which was given to him by said doctor after he got him out of there, flowed into his purpose for the second tournament in rescuing the doctor again after his kidnapping by new Big Bad Kazuya.

Post-timeskip he's hunting Ogre for his blood in order to help Bosconovitch cure his ailing daughter, and then in  Tekken 4  he returns to his Robin Hood ways to forge a Manji political party. During this tournament he gains a sworn enemy in Bryan Fury, and has to use a new sword later on due to his merciful ways getting in the way of the sword's desire to kill evil people.

Appearance
Yoshimitsu is the only character who's appearance drastically changes in every Tekken, taking advantage of the fact that he always conceals his identity on account of being a ninja. Even his sword, also named Yoshimitsu, tends to change appearance. One of the running themes of many of Yoshimitsu's outfits involves the "Void" kanji.

Personality
Despite his weird and imposing appearance, Yoshimitzu is a kind and noble person.

Abilities
Yoshimitsu's fighting style incorporates a blend of Ninjutsu, samurai style sword attacks derived from Kenjutsuand Battoujutsu, special stances, and supernatural moves.

Stances
Due to his fighting style, Yoshimitsu is one of the first and incorporates the use of fighting stances in his martial arts, allowing him a variety of tactics and mobility for different fighters and situations. Even his standard upright position can be considered a stance; apparently to keep things fair and nonlethal for his opponents in the ring, or to keep in check with the rules of the tournament, he instead fights normally in a such a way that keeps his weapon at bay, where his normal attacks execute standard punches and kicks and his specials allow him to freely wield the sword.

One is "Meditation", where he turns his back to his opponent and heals himself (excluding Tekken 3 and Tekken Tag Tournament, whereas if the player left him in Meditation stance, he will lose his own health). "Indian Stance", where he heals himself while sitting Indian style. Another of his stances is "Manji Dragonfly", where he rotates his sword and his mechanical right hand to levitate in midair.

He also has a "Flea" stance, where he stands on his sword by placing the tip into the ground and wrapping his hands and feet around the hilt. Another is his Kincho stance, where he'll yell "Hissatsu" (meaning "Certain kill" in Japanese), and threaten to pull out his wakizashi. If a certain button is pressed, Yoshimitsu will take the wakizashi out of its case and inflict damage upon his opponent as he pulls it out.

Indian Stance was introduced in Tekken 2, Flea Stance and Meditation were introduced in Tekken 3, Manji Dragonfly was introduced in Tekken 5, and Kincho stance was introduced in Tekken 6.

From Tekken 6 onward, Yoshimitsu can now sheathe his sword and fight without it, and he can also use his second sword in some of his attacks.

Yoshimitsu's Sword
Wielding a sword, Yoshimitsu has many attacks that utilize it. He can perform slashes with it, use it to impale his opponent, and rotate it with his mechanical right hand in a windmill manner (he can also use this method to fly). Another use of his sword is in "Harakiri" moves, where he impales himself and/or his opponent with it, damaging them both.

Yoshimitsu's sword is a special Japanese sword passed down through many generations in the Manji clan. Its nature is incredibly similar to the legend of the swords made by Muramasa, in which a sword forged by Muramasa cannot be sheathed until it has killed someone. His ancestors, who appear in the Soulcalibur series, are depicted using a simple katana with a purple hilt. Yoshimitsu in the Tekken series has only used a katana in the original Tekken. While his sword is always a Japanese sword and is the same sword passed down through many generations, it never keeps the same appearance and is usually depicted as a tachi, although modified in certain ways.

In Tekken 6, Yoshimitsu learns its cursed nature and enters the sixth King of Iron Fist Tournament to find a way to control it. In his Tekken 6 ending, after absorbing Azazel's core, his new sword "Fumaken" reverts back to his original sword, and when he hits the ground with it, a large shockwave shoots from the blade, bisecting Azazel's temple. As of Tekken 6, Yoshimitsu's sword no longer glows because of the fact that it is losing power and is now corrupted. The corruption can be visibly seen in Tekken Tag Tournament 2.

Trivia

 * Like Heihachi Mishima, Nina Williams, and Paul Phoenix, Yoshimitsu has appeared in all of the games in the Tekken series, excluding Tekken Revolution in which he currently isn't present.
 * His name translates to (yoshi) "propitious"; (mitsu) "shine".
 * Yoshimitsu has never taken off his mask to reveal his true face (this is the same case with Soulcalibur's Yoshimitsu).
 * In Tekken 4 only, Yoshimitsu can copy certain moves from other characters. This can be done by using Soul Stealer (Square + O). If his sword changes to a red color, do Soul Stealer again, and he will perform the copied move. Note that he can only copy certain moves and cannot copy his own, and to copy a move, the player will have to time it with the move that your opponent has performed. Practice mode is recommended to see which moves he does and doesn't copy.
 * In Tekken 2 through Tekken Tag Tournament, Yoshimitsu has secret win poses. In Tekken 2, he only has one, but in Tekken 3 and Tekken Tag Tournament, he has two. The same exact inputs can be used in all three games.
 * To view these win poses, the player can press and hold either O or X during the replay when they win while using Yoshimitsu. If the player hold down O, Yoshimitsu will perform a Japanese kabuki dance. If the player hold down X, he will somersault into the air, land, and do a pose similar to his (Shiki Soku Ze kū) pose.
 * It should be noted that X only works with Tekken 3 and Tekken Tag Tournament, O works with all three games.
 * Yoshimitsu's appearance in Tekken is based on Taira No Kagekiyo, another one of Namco's characters who appears and is the main character in Genpei Tōmā Dēn and its sequel, which were games released only in Japan. It can also be noted that in Tekken 6, Yoshimitsu can be customized to resemble Taira No Kagekiyo. And in Tekken 4, Yoshimitsu's P2 costume looks almost exactly like Taira No Kagekiyo.
 * Yoshimitsu's sword is strong enough to cut stone in half (as seen in Kunimitsu's Tekken 2 ending).
 * Yoshimitsu was one of the first characters in the Tekken series to actually speak. In one of his Tekken 3victory poses, he is heard chanting a fragment of the Heart Sutra: (色即是空 Shiki soku ze kū).
 * Yoshimitsu and Kunimitsu (along with Mokujin, Tetsujin, Unknown, and Combot when mimicking either of them) are the only playable characters who use a weapon.
 * Yoshimitsu has been made into figures and models for every game in the series except for the very first Tekken game.
 * Sodom, from the Final Fight and Street Fighter series, shares some similiarities with Yoshimitsu. Both wear samurai-inspired armor and masks, and both use two swords in combat (although Yoshimitsu hasn't always used two swords in combat). In addition to this, both have a serious and determined personality, but often leave a rather goofy and comical impression. One major key difference between the two is that Yoshimitsu is actually Japanese, while Sodom is not.
 * Poison's win quote against Yoshimitsu in Street Fighter X Tekken states that he reminds her of Sodom.
 * Yoshimitsu is one of the few Tekken characters to have a website for fans of Yoshimitsu called Manjikai.
 * Yoshimitsu was seen without a sword in Tekken: The Motion Picture.
 * In the Tekken 6 art book, Namco answers the question about Yoshimitsu being a human in his 'history page'; "Fans often say he looks inhuman, but the character setting is that there actually is a human in the armor".
 * In the manuals for Tekken and Tekken 2, Yoshimitsu is never referred to as a ninja, and the manual refers to his fighting style as "Manji style jujutsu".
 * Excluding customization items, Yoshimitsu has the most different costumes of any Tekken character, gaining a completely new default costume for every game besides Tekken Tag Tournament and Street Fighter X Tekken (which both use his iconic Tekken 3 default costume).