This is a list of characters from theRival Schools series ofvideo games andcomic books.
Batsu Ichimonji (一文字 伐,Ichimonji Batsu) is themain protagonist in bothRival Schools games. InRival Schools: United by Fate, he is introduced as recently transferred student to Taiyo High searching for his mother. Joined byHinata andKyosuke, Batsu finds the person responsible for it is his long-lost father,Raizo. His individual ending in the game reveals he saves his mother and makes peace with his father, once he learn that the latter was brainwashed by his school's own student who orchestrated the event.
In the sequel,Project Justice, Batsu is again the main character, but is dogged by accusations that he is responsible for a new wave of attacks on local schools. The Taiyo High story in the game illustrates two different fates for him; either he fights off the allegation with the help of students from Pacific High School, or disappears for a period of time before returning with increased fighting power. The powered-up Batsu is playable in the game asBurning Batsu.
Batsu was one of twoRival Schools characters (along withAkira) planned to appear in the canceled gameCapcom Fighting All-Stars. He is a playable character inTatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, as well asStreet Fighter Online: Mouse Generation, and a solo unit inProject X Zone. Batsu makes a cameo appearance with Hinata inCapcom vs. SNK 2: Millionaire Fighting 2001, assisting Kyosuke during one of his super combos, and inIron Fist's ending forUltimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 as a member of the newHeroes for Hire line-up.
Hinata Wakaba (若葉 ひなた,Wakaba Hinata) first appears inRival Schools, being the first student to tag along in Batsu's search for his missing mother. During the story, she admits to doing so to help protect her school. In her ending in the game, she finds out her involvement in the searches inspires other students at the school to take up karate, much to her surprise.
InProject Justice, Hinata again joins Batsu and Kyosuke in investigating the new threat to the schools. Her fate in the Taiyo High story varies; in one story she is kidnapped byKurow and eventually saved by Pacific High School students, or leads Taiyo's investigation in Batsu's absence and is later saved by him when attacked by Kurow.
She makes a cameo with Batsu inCapcom vs. SNK 2: Millionaire Fighting 2001, assisting Kyosuke during one of his super combos, and in Batsu's Ending inTatsunoko vs. Capcom: Cross Generation of Heroes along with Kyosuke.
Hinata makes another cameo appearance in the background of the Kanzuki Beach stage and Akira's character episode inStreet Fighter V, as well as revealing that Hinata inheritedKen Masters' pyrokinetic ability on her own and mastered Ken's fighting style through his online training course.
Kyosuke Kagami (鑑 恭介,Kagami Kyōsuke) first debuts inRival Schools, as a student at Taiyo High who volunteers to help Batsu find his mother. It is later revealed that Kyosuke is behind the kidnapping and was working for his twin brother, Hyo. Ultimately, Kyosuke changes allegiances, and helps Batsu and Hinata in defeating Hyo, while convincing Hyo that force was not the way to achieve their dreams.
InProject Justice, Kyosuke becomes concerned when he meets Kurow Kirishima and sense the power helping him. When Hyo is later possessed by the spirit of the brothers' father, Kyosuke reluctantly fights his brother again. After the apparent death of Hyo, Kyosuke disappears, with his friends at Taiyo High waiting for him to return to school.
Outside of theRival Schools games, Kyosuke also is a playable character inCapcom vs. SNK 2. One of his super moves in that game includes cameos by Batsu and Hinata.
Hayato Nekketsu (熱血 隼人,Nekketsu Hayato) is aphysical education teacher at Taiyo High. He first appears in thePlayStation version ofRival Schools: United By Fate, as a bonus character. In that game, his plot is to find the source of the school abductions, as he believes the students are unable to do so themselves. InProject Justice, he joins fellow teachersHideo andKyoko in investigating the new set of kidnappings a year later. He likes red jerseys, fighting spirit and attractive women (this includes fellow teacher Kyoko, which causes a heated rivalry with Hideo); he dislikes bad manners, laziness, and things that his mother and father never found to be important, and he seems to lovecorporal punishment as his main weapon is akendo sword that he hits opponents with.[1] He has black hair with thick eyebrows, and is dressed in a redtrack suit with a white shirt andsneakers. His last name, Nekketsu, literally means "hot-blooded" in Japanese - a perfect description of his personality.
Hayato was designed byKazuhiko Shimamoto.
Chairperson, known asIincho (委員長,Iinchō) in Japan, whose real name, unknown, first appears in Hinata's ending inRival Schools, notifying her that their classmates had been inspired by Hinata to take up martial arts. In the ending, Chairperson is referred to as Class Leader. The School Life modes inRival Schools andNekketsu Seisyun Nikki 2 expand on her character a bit more. Her real name is undisclosed in the games, as she prefers to go by the "name" she uses in thestudent government of her school. She has long raven hair with a red hairband, and her primary outfit is a Taiyo High physical education uniform, complete with bright red sports jacket, black underwear/bloomers and white sneakers.
She makes her first playable appearance inProject Justice, working together with Ran and the students of Pacific High School to find out the cause of the recent school violence and abductions.
She is also revealed to have been usingDan Hibiki's Saikyo-Style Martial Arts via online training.
Shoma Sawamura (沢村 将馬,Sawamura Shōma) is a student andbaseball player from Gorin High, first appearing inRival Schools. In that game, he searches for persons responsible for injuring his older brother and fellow baseball player, Shuichi, and joins Natsu and Roberto when he finds they are doing similar investigations. Though his fate varies on the characters selected in the game, Nagare's ending inNekketsu Seisyun Nikki 2 reveals that Shoma is captured and brainwashed by Justice High School before being freed by Nagare.
InProject Justice, Shoma ends up befriendingMomo after she is the apparent victim of an attack by Batsu. However, Momo's insistence that he help her separates him from his friends Natsu and Roberto. After helping her in a number of scuffles, Shoma is betrayed by Momo and finds out she used him to help cause confusion among the various schools. He eventually reunites and reconciles with his friends.
Natsu Ayuhara (鮎原 夏,Ayuhara Natsu) is a student andvolleyball player from Gorin High, first appearing inRival Schools. Her motivation in the game is to find the persons responsible for the attacks on Gorin, which included members of the school volleyball club. She joins Shoma and Roberto in similar investigations, although she frequently argues with Shoma over how to go about it.
InProject Justice, Natsu is shown as suspicious of new student Momo, and disagrees with Shoma when he believes that they should help Momo out. After Shoma leaves to investigate on his own with Momo, Natsu joins Roberto and Nagare in looking for the culprits of the new school disturbance. Later, she is the first to welcome back Shoma after he is betrayed by Momo.
Roberto Miura (ロベルト・三浦,Roberuto Miura) is a student andsoccer player from Gorin High, first appearing inRival Schools. Although he's one-quarter Brazilian, Roberto's a Japanese national. He joins Shoma and Natsu in their investigations on the attacks on their school, although he serves mostly as a moderator for the disagreements between Shoma and Natsu. His ending shows he breaks his arm during their investigation, which worries him as he cannot play his favored position ofgoalkeeper, but ascout offers a chance to play as aforward instead.
InProject Justice, Roberto ends up between another fight between Shoma and Natsu, this time on whether to investigate who attacked Momo. After Shoma leaves with Momo, Roberto joins Natsu and Nagare in investigating the new disturbances going on at the schools. The Gorin High ending has him, along with Nagare, commenting on the newly forminglove triangle between Shoma, Natsu and Momo.
Akira Kazama (風間 アキラ,Kazama Akira) is a character introduced inRival Schools: United by Fate. Her initial appearance in the game is under amotorcycle helmet and a biker gear, posing as a boy in order to find out what happened to her older brother, Daigo. She befriends two of his subordinates, Edge and Gan and they eventually rescue Daigo, where Akira's true identity is revealed to the characters and player. An alternate version of Akira without the helmet and suit is playable inRival Schools, but maintains the same ending as masked Akira.
InProject Justice, Akira is revealed to have been transferred to the girls-only Seijyun High. In the Seijyun storyline, Akira is the central character, with the player following her quest to find out what happened to her brother. Unlike inRival Schools, Akira starts off without her motorcycle helmet disguise, but can unlock it after playing through a certain storyline in the game.
Akira, along with Batsu, was slated to appear in the canceledCapcom Fighting All-Stars, as well as originally going to appear inMarvel vs. Capcom: Infinite.[2]
She appears as a playable character viadownloadable content inStreet Fighter V, where she is revealed to have finally overcome her aquaphobia, thanks to Gorin University's alumni, Nagare.[3]
Edge (エッジ), full nameEiji Yamada (山田 栄二,Yamada Eiji), is a student from Gedo High School and member of the school's gang, introduced inRival Schools: United By Fate. His most distinguishing features are his blonde hair, usually styled into tallspikes, hispurple clothes, and his use of knives when fighting.
InRival Schools, Edge is one of the Gedo students who joins a disguised Akira in finding the whereabouts of Gedo's gang leader, Daigo. Though Edge is initially suspecting of Akira, and even engages, with Gan's assistance, a fight with her, he eventually comes to accept her, especially after she reveals her true gender. His ending has him initially choosing to stop picking fights with other children, but changes his mind at the urging of several of his classmates.
InProject Justice, Edge becomes suspicious when a returning Daigo has him and Gan performing various, irrational attacks against other schools. Through the help of Akira and her friends at Seijyun High, the Gedo students break Daigo out of his brainwashing. The Gedo High ending in the game reveals that Edge is named one of the leaders of the Gedo gang after Daigo leaves to train.
Gan Isurugi (石動 岩,Isurugi Gan) is a student from Gedo High and member of the school's gang, introduced inRival Schools: United By Fate. InRival Schools, Gan is one of the Gedo gang member who joins Akira in investigating what happened to Daigo. Like Edge, he is initially distrustful of Akira, but eventually accepts her as part of the gang even after she reveals her true identity. His ending has him inspired by his experiences to begin studying hard in class, albeit without much success.
InProject Justice, Gan's role is much similar to Edge's, with both being used to attack random schools and eventually help the gang leader break free of his brainwashing. The Gedo high ending reveals that Gan was the other gang member appointed to lead the gang in Daigo's absence.
Daigo Kazama (風間 醍醐,Kazama Daigo) is a student of Gedo High and the leader of the school's gang. He first appears in the arcade version ofRival Schools: United By Fate in Akira's ending, and is first playable in the PlayStation port of the game. InRival Schools, Daigo has no set story in single player mode, although it is explained he set out alone to find the person responsible for the school kidnappings. His ending in the game reveals that he was defeated and brainwashed by Hyo Imawano, and was later freed by Akira, Edge and Gan in Akira's ending.
InProject Justice, Daigo is the central character in the Gedo High story. After returning from a trip that takes place betweenRival Schools andProject Justice, Daigo begins ordering his gang to attack random schools, much to the reluctance of Edge and Gan. When Daigo orders an attack on Seijyun High, Edge and Gan work with Akira and her Seiyjun classmates to stop him. It is then revealed that Daigo was brainwashed by Kurow Kirishima in order to create discord between the schools. The Gedo High story has two ending in the game which portray different fates for Daigo - the canon ending has him break free of his brainwashing and take a leave of absence to reflect on himself, while the non-canon ending has him succumb to injuries from fighting. The brainwashed Daigo is playable inProject Justice, as the characterWild Daigo.
Daigo appear as Akira's assist character inStreet Fighter V.
Roy Bromwell (ロイ・ブロムウェル,Roi Buromuweru) is a character first introduced inRival Schools: United By Fate. A richforeign exchange student from theUnited States, he is often portrayed in the games as main character Batsu's rival. He is also anAmerican football player, with a number of his in-game special moves named after elements of the sport.
In the first game, he is ordered to investigate the school kidnappings by his father, with Tiffany and Boman joining him. During their investigation, the American trio is defeated and brainwashed to the service of Justice High, but eventually is freed thanks to Batsu and his Taiyo High compatriots. This causes Roy eventually rethink his ideas about Japan and its people. His ending in the game has him return to the United States determined to change the way of thinking in his home country, and 30 years after the games take place, he is elected thePresident of the United States.
InProject Justice, Roy, along with Tiffany, returns to Japan when the new school conflict breaks out. They show up in two of the storylines in the game; either helping Batsu and his friends in the Taiyo High story, or joining up with Boman in the Pacific High story. The Pacific High ending has him return to the United States with Tiffany, more determined to change the world.
Tiffany Lords (ティファニー・ローズ,Tifanī Rōzu) is a wealthy student from Pacific High, also from the United States. Her story inRival Schools: United By Fate has her joining Roy in his investigation of the school kidnappings, due to her crush on him. Like her classmates, she is captured and brainwashed by Justice High, but is eventually freed by students from Taiyo High. Her ending has her return to the United States with Roy, and setting out to train as abodyguard after Roy begins his studies in politics.
InProject Justice, Tiffany joins Roy in returning to Japan to investigate the new crisis in the country. Like Roy, she also appears in either the Taiyo High story, where she saves Hinata from capture, or the Pacific High story. She also returns to the United States in the Pacific High ending, setting out to help Roy in achieving his goals.
Tiffany makes a cameo appearance inDeadpool's ending inUltimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, where she can be seen asking for his autograph after he killsGalactus.
Tiffany makes another cameo appearance in the background of the Kanzuki Beach stage and Akira's character episode inStreet Fighter V.
Boman Delgado (ボーマン・デルガド,Bōman Derugado) is a student from Pacific High from the United States. He is training to be apreacher, and many of his moves in the games introduce some Christian imagery, mostly crosses.
InRival Schools, Boman joins Roy and Tiffany in their investigation of the kidnappings, albeit reluctantly due to his non-violent nature. He too is captured and brainwashed by Justice High, and eventually freed by Taiyo High students. This act inspires Boman, as in his ending, he stays in Japan to better understand Japanese culture and bridge the difference between Japan and the US.
InProject Justice, Boman is the central character of the Pacific High story, having set out to find the person responsible for disrupting an inter-school athletic competition. He is joined in the investigation by two Taiyo High students, Ran and chairperson, and later his classmates Roy and Tiffany. The Pacific High ending has him again stay in Japan to help improve relations between the US and Japan.
Hideo Shimazu (島津 英雄,Shimazu Hideo) first appears inRival Schools, introduced as aJapanese language teacher and former heir to Shimazuk-Style Karate who is sent along with Kyoko to recruit students to the school. The game's story has Hideo eventually brainwashed by the school's own student through its brainwashed principal, and forced to bring in students to the school, but is snapped out of the brainwashing by students from Taiyo High School. Hideo's story has him show some concern for Kyoko and his ending, he proposes to her.
InProject Justice, he and Kyoko, along with fellow teacher Hayato Nekketsu, investigate who is responsible for the new attacks on the school and eventually discover that a student at Justice, Kurow, is responsible. In story mode, Hideo is playable in the Justice High School, with the ending showing him hospitalized from the investigation (although a specific explanation to why is never given).
Outside theRival Schools games, Hideo appears alongside Kyoko as playable characters in the cross-over strategy RPGNamco × Capcom.
Kyoko Minazuki (水無月 響子,Minazuki Kyōko) is aschool nurse and laterchemistry teacher at Justice High School. InRival Schools, she is sent along with Hideo to recruit students to the school. Like Hideo, she end up being brainwashed to do the school's bidding, when they notice shady activities within the school they work for, until they are freed by students from Taiyo High. In her ending in the game, the values she gains from the ordeal moves her to convict a former employer for corruption, and she eventually accepts Hideo's marriage proposal.
InProject Justice, Kyoko appears with Hideo and Hayato in the Justice High storyline, investigating the cause of the new school attacks. In the story's ending, she is shown taking care of Hideo and reminding him of their wedding.
Kyoko also appears as a playable character inNamco × Capcom alongside Hideo.
Raizo Imawano (忌野 雷蔵,Imawano Raizō) first appears inRival Schools: United by Fate and is initially portrayed as the mainantagonist in the game. Theprincipal of Justice High, most of the games cutscenes show him as the organizer of the events that take place in the game and reveal that he is the father of Batsu. However, the "true" ending to the game reveal Raizo was working under the orders of Hyo, his nephew who brainwashed him as well as most of the student body. Raizo is ahidden character in the game and his ending shows him atoning for his actions and returns to his family.
In Project Justice, Raizo is not playable, but makes a few appearances in the game's Story Mode. An attack on him by Kurow is the catalyst for the events of the game's story, and he also makes an appearance in the Taiyo High story mode, where he revealed the evil spirit who possessed Hyo is his late-brother, Mugen Iwamano; then last seen in Teacher Tean/Justice High ending, where he slept at the same hospital room next to Hideo's hospital bed, and overhearing a marriage plan between both Hideo and Kyoko.
Hyo Imawano (忌野 雹,Imawano Hyō) first appears inRival Schools: United by Fate as the final boss of the game. Revealed through the player meeting certain requirements during a fight with Raizo, Hyo is shown as the mastermind behind the events of the game's story, with his goal to take over Japan. Hyo is ultimately defeated by students from Taiyo High School, which include his twin brother Kyosuke. Hyo is also playable in the game, with his ending showing him successful in his plans but regretting having to defeat Kyosuke in doing so. However, this ending is notcanonical.
InProject Justice, Hyo appears as the final boss of the game, but is not the main antagonist. In most of the game's Story Mode, he initially appears to defeat Kurow Kirishima, who had been shown brainwashing Hyo earlier in the storyline. Afterwards, he is shown being taken over by his father's spirit, where he becomesDemon Hyo, the final boss of the game. Again he is defeated by Kyosuke, but dies from the fight. He was voiced byKaneto Shiozawa, who had died in May 2000, which is why they killed Hyo off.
AStreet Fighter character who debuted inStreet Fighter Alpha 2,Sakura Kasugano (春日野 さくら,Kasugano Sakura) makes a guest appearance inRival Schools: United By Fate, which serves as a prequel toStreet Fighter Alpha 2. She has no actual storyline show in single-player mode of the game, although she does have a proper ending after beating the final boss in the game. The in-game story establishes her as childhood friends with Hinata Wakaba and Natsu Ayuhara, and states her to be a student from Tamagawa-Minami High (in theStreet Fighter games, it was never specified in which school she studied).
By the time afterStreet Fighter IV, starting fromStreet Fighter V, Sakura graduates from school.
Ran Hibiki (ひびき 蘭,Hibiki Ran) is a student at Taiyo High who is working toward a career in journalism. She is the editor in chief of the school's newspaper. She investigates the kidnappings and disappearances, seeking to scoop an exclusive news story. InProject Justice, she works with chairperson and students from Pacific High School to find the ones responsible for creating havoc between the schools. Her name is a play onDan Hibiki from Street Fighter, it has been speculated they are related but there is no confirmation, despite Dan mentioning he has a sister in theNeoGeo Pocket Color title,SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium.
Nagare Namikawa (波川 流,Namikawa Nagare) is a 3rd-year student andswimmer from Gorin High. His story explains he is a childhood friend of Shoma, and sets out to find him after he disappears from the school. Though he has no story cutscenes, his ending shows him freeing Shoma from the control of Justice High School. In Project Justice, he is a first member of the school's firstuniversity branch, Gorin University. In the game's plot, he joins Natsu and Roberto to investigate the new school attacks after Shoma separates from the group. He makes an appearance in the Gorin High ending, commenting with Roberto on Shoma, Natsu, and Momo.
Momo Karuizawa (軽井沢 もも,Karuizawa Momo) is a student andtennis player from Gorin High, first appearing inProject Justice. She appears in the Gorin storyline as the apparent victim of bullying by Batsu, and appeals to the students of the school to help her, getting Shoma to join her in getting back at Batsu. It is later revealed that she is actually working for Kurow Kirishima, and that her actions were to distract Shoma and his friends. She is betrayed by Kurow at the end of the Gorin story, however. The Gorin ending also reveals she develops a legitimate crush on Shoma, much to the chagrin of Natsu.
Yurika Kirishima (霧島 ゆりか,Kirishima Yurika) is one of two Seijyun High characters introduced inProject Justice, where she is introduced to the player as a high-class girl who fights with her violin. In the game's story mode, she was friends with Akira and befriends Zaki, but is also shown in several other storylines to be doing so at the orders of her brother, Kurow. She is later shown admitting to helping her brother's plans and betrays him to join her friends. The Seijyun High ending shows her having disappeared from school out of guilt for her actions, but she later returns (much to the pleasure of Akira).
Yurika alongside Zaki and Akira appear in theStreet Fighter: Back To School Special comic where Yurika fights Karin Kazuniki from the opposite franchise to great success before the fight is stopped by Sarai and Kei.
Zaki (ザキ), real nameAoi Himezaki (姫崎 葵,Himezaki Aoi), is a female gang leader introduced inProject Justice. Zaki is introduced at the beginning of the Seijyun High School storyline, being asked by Akira and Yurika to help investigate the strange behavior of Akira's brother, Daigo. She is shown to be highly confrontational, showing anger at an attack byBatsu Ichimonji and snapping at the teacher trio ofHideo,Kyoko andHayato when the girls are questioned about the confrontation, but is also seen as forgiving when Yurika reveals herself to be working forKurow Kirishima, the person who brainwashed Daigo, Zaki is at first reluctant to forgive her, but changes her mind when Akira forgives Yurika anyway.
Zaki appears alongside Yurika and Akira in theStreet Fighter: Back To School Special comic where she fights against Ibuki from the opposite franchise. Zaki has the least success out of the Rival Schools girls against their individual opponents before the fight is stopped by Sarai and Kei.
Kurow Kirishima (霧嶋 九郎,Kirishima Kurō) is the main antagonist ofProject Justice, but this is not revealed until later on in the story. He makes various appearances throughout different stories early on in the game's story mode, either as himself or asVatsu (ヴァツ), a fake of series heroBatsu Ichimonji. His actions include either attacking various groups of students with his lackeys - his sister Yurika, Momo, and a brainwashed Daigo - or having them do his dirty work for him.
At a certain point, Kurow unveils himself as the mastermind behind the recent upheaval among the schools. He explains that he is sent by the ninja clan the Imawano family was a part of to assassinate Batsu, Raizo, Kyosuke, and Hyo. After being defeated by the group of students selected by the player, he attempts to send a brainwashed Hyo Imawano after the players, only to be betrayed and defeated by Hyo. The sequence following the final fight in story mode reveals Kurow is hospitalized after the attack, but escapes after a few days.
A bonus storyline available inProject Justice, the Darkside Student Council, tells an alternate story in which Kurow's plans to take over the various schools succeeds. The ending for this story has him at the head of Justice High School, shown with the various characters of the series as his brainwashed servants, including his own sister.
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