Himura Kenshin aka Hitokiri Battousai
Voiced by: Mayo Suzukaze (JP, 1996 TV series), Megumi Ogata (JP, drama CD); Soma Saito (JP, 2023 TV series); Richard Cansino (EN, 1996 TV series), J. Shanon Weaver (EN, OVA), Micah Solusod (EN, live-action), Howard Wang (EN, 2023 TV series)Other Languages
Child Kenshin: Masami Suzuki (JP); Mona Marshall (EN, TV series), Katherine Catmull (EN, OVA)
Portrayed by: Takeru Satoh (live-action)
"A sword is a weapon, and swordsmanship is learning how to kill. That is the truth. What Mistress Kaoru says is play-talk that only those that have never stained their hands can say. However, this one prefers Mistress Kaoru's play-talk more than the truth. And this one wishes that in the world to come, her play talk shall become the truth."
The titular protagonist of the series. He is a wanderer formerly known as Hitokiri Battousai, a deadly man-slayer who slaughtered many men in the war before the Meiji Era. note
Kenshin's fighting style is Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, now an ancient study. With this dangerous sword style, he uses his sakabatou (a sword with a reversed edge) to restrain himself from killing anyone ever again and renounces the title Hitokiri.
His birth name is Shinta, but Hiko changed it to "Kenshin" after adopting him.
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- Accidental Murder: In his backstory, he accidentally killed Tomoe when she threw herself between him and his opponent, intending to protect him.
- Action Dad: Becomes one in the Manga's Distant Finale to his and Kaoru's son Kenji. And even though his body will one day not be able to lift a sword, he was able to beat an older and stronger Yahiko.
- He displays more traits of this in Hokkaido arc, where he personally takes on a pretty much berserk Ashitaro and disarms him painfully.
- Adaptational Attractiveness: Downplayed. Kenshin is pretty good looking in the manga/anime (making him a Chick Magnet), but his scar is a good deal smaller in the live-action movies.
- Adaptational Angst Upgrade: In the Trust and Betrayal OVA, he has none of the more comedic elements shown in the manga portions of that same portion.
- Adaptational Badass: Downplayed. While always a badass, he is practically useless without a sword. The live-action films dropped that weakness altogether, showing how good he is in unarmed combat.
- Adaptation Dye-Job: He has reddish-brown hair in the film adaptations instead of vibrant red hair like his anime and manga counterparts.
- Adaptational Jerkass: His attitude towards Akira being able to scar him varies through the adaptations:
- In the original manga, Kenshin gave a sincere acknowledgment of Akira's determination to live, and prays for the latter to find peace in his next life after killing him.
- In the Trust and Betrayal OVA, Kenshin reply with annoyance to Iizuka that Akira manage to scar him due to stubborness and left without giving the prayer in the manga.
- In the live-action movie, he just kills Akira off and callously left without a word.
- Afraid of Their Own Strength: To avoid killing others in combat, Kenshin uses his reverse-bladed sword. This is also why he is determined to be the last practitioner of the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu kenjutsu.
- Age-Gap Romance: There's an 11-year age difference between him (28) and Kaoru (17).
- All-Loving Hero: Known for helping others and avoiding massacres.
- Almighty Janitor: It's noted very early on that due to his power and reputation during the Revolution, Kenshin could've easily gained a government position in the new era. Of course, the premise of the series is that he's a wandering swordsman that is atoning for his actions.
- Animal Battle Aura: Occasionally gets a dragon aura.
- Anti-Hero: Necessarily Evil -> Good Is Not Nice. In the series proper, he's a straight-up hero.
- The Atoner: It was either Walking the Earth or killing himself through seppuku after the Bakumatsu, according to his own words.
- Aura Vision: It is implied that he can sense the auras of others around him except in a certain magnetic forest.
- Awesomeness by Analysis: One of the trademark abilities of his sword style, Kenshin is known for quickly deducing the moves of his opponents, though this trait has proved to be his undoing as well.
- Babies Ever After: He and Kaoru have a son named Kenji in the Manga's Distant Finale.
- Badass Adorable: His "Oro" catchphrase makes him so darn cute!
- Bash Brothers: With Sano — they usually fight back-to-back and have a brotherly relationship.
- Battle Aura: His is immense enough to fill an entire room in the manga.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: Though Kenshin at first sees Kaoru as being equally important to any other person, her remarkable assertion that Kenshin's past is unimportant in relation to his present self convinces him in short order that Kaoru is particularly special. This is a main factor of him falling in love with her.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Kenshin is humble and friendly. He's also one of the most skilled swordsmen, and can use his deadly skills if you mess with his friends.
- Beware the Quiet Ones: Although more "Nice", the live-action movie uses this as one of the taglines.
- Beware the Silly Ones: Kenshin, who is usually a polite, obvious moron ... and, if you push him too far, the legendary assassin Hitokiri Battousai.
- Big Brother Mentor: One to both Sanosuke and Yahiko.
- Big Good: He goes out of his way to help those around him and many of the characters (especially his True Companions) look to him for wisdom and hope.
- Bigger Is Better in Bed: In episode 19, Kaoru and Megumi see him naked and Megumi comments on how "well-built" he is.
- Blind Weaponmaster: Only in the Anime. Eventually, he recovers. Averted in his backstory, when he couldn't see Tomoe jump in front of him due to being blinded earlier in the fight, and wound up accidentally killing her.
- Broken Ace: Despite being known as the "Strongest of the Isshin-Shishi" and helping to push for the revolution, he now questions his actions, and whether the cause was worth spilling blood.
- Butt-Monkey: During comedic scenes, you can almost always expect him to be hurt or insulted by another character.
- Call to Agriculture: In the OVA. "For many years I ended the lives of evil men, but I've only realized inner peace by bringing life to this land and sharing its harvest with you." It's more of a cover story than a choice but he learns to love it. Considering how his original parents were peasants themselves, this was unsurprising.
- Cane Fu: By the Hokkaido arc, he is using a cane in the shape of a sword after giving Yahiko his sakabatou.
- Cast from Hit Points: His body cannot really handle his fighting style.
- Character Development: As time passes, Kenshin learns to trust the people around him with the truth about himself as well as with some of the burden he bears, understanding that his life, too, is a human one and that his friends and allies would suffer greatly if he were to die.
- Character Exaggeration: The original anime plays up his bumbling moments and downplays his Deadpan Snarker attitude compared to the manga.
- Chick Magnet: Kenshin has been noted to be quite handsome by many females; specific examples include Kaoru, Megumi, Tomoe, and Shura (anime only). Averted with Misao, but that's only because of Aoshi.
- Chronic Hero Syndrome: No matter how torn, beaten, or battered he is, a voice crying for help will always reach him. It's what pulls him out of his depression, in the finale.
- Crippling Overspecialization: In terms of fighting skills, he really has little other than swordsmanship (unlike Aoshi or Saitou who are fairly skilled in hand-to-hand combat as well), which opponents often take advantage of. Other characters also note that his sword style is very reliant on quick judgment and reading the opponent's sword, which isn't as effective on Combat Pragmatists and those who are capable of masking their emotions. This is averted in the Live Action adaptation, where he is able to hold his own against several Mooks unarmed for a few minutes before grabbing a nearby bokken.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He's a little goofy, but is deadly.
- Dark and Troubled Past: After the death of his parents, Kenshin (a child at the time) is taken by slavers, who are later violently killed in front of him by bandits. After burying the mutilated victims alone, Kenshin is resolute to “create a peaceful world where people could live without fear”. To accomplish his ideal, Kenshin trains with the master of the “Hiten Mitsurugi-ryū” (a fighting style so deadly that, to truly master, it means death to the teacher) and, at 14, became the legendary assassin "Hitokiri Battōsai”. Kenshin goes into hiding years later and marries a mysterious woman named Tomoe for appearance only, but they later fall in love. After a series of events, Kenshin kills Tomoe unintentionally in battle. As Tomoe died, she gave Kenshin half of the X-shaped scar on his cheek. Kenshin later finds out, after reading Tomoe’s diaries that he had killed Tomoe’s fiancé (a man who years earlier, gave Kenshin the other half of the X shaped scar) before he met her and she only married Kenshin out of revenge, but, after living together, fell in love with him. Broken and filled with remorse for killing countless people, Kenshin wanders off wielding a sakabatō or reverse blade sword. He is determined to never kill again and to aid those in need, as atonement for the murders he committed.
- Darker and Edgier: His Shin Kyoto Hen incarnation shapes up to be one. For starters, he ruthlessly assaults without announcing his attacks, he has no qualms blinding Chō in their battle for the meitou sakabatou, he bluntly tells the true fate of Aoshi's Oniwabanshu henchmen to Misao's face, and his emotions practically only shift between Tranquil Fury and Dull Surprise. He actually has a lot more in common with the Tsuiokuhen-era Battousai.
- Dark Messiah: In the revolution, he was a Knight Templar who would fight with all viciousness.
- Death by a Thousand Cuts: He delivers these using the two versions of the Ryū Sō Sen (龍巣閃, Dragon Nest Flash).
- Death from Above: Made possible through the variations of the Ryū Tsui Sen (龍槌閃, Dragon Hammer Flash), either through a Sword Plant to the head or basically slashing someone in the face. Kenshin does this non-lethally with the blunt edge of his sword.
- Death Glare: Gets a semi-permanent one when he's in "Battousai" mode. (
Sometimes his eyes get stuck that way afterwards.) - Death Seeker: So powerful was his guilt for his past as a hitokiri that, until late into the plot, he believed his own life to be worthless, providing a weakness through which his Battousai persona can emerge through; this was the core obstacle in his path to learn Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu's final secret technique.
- Declaration of Protection: To Kaoru. Also to Tomoe in the past.
- Dented Iron: His injuries, combined with the stress of his style, eventually catch up to him.
- Defusing The Tykebomb: He does this to Soujiro during their battle. It was so effective that Soujiro decided to travel the world and see it in his own eyes instead if of in the eyes of Shishio.
- Determinator: More in the manga than in the anime, Kenshin Himura defeats enemies seemingly by pure willpower alone, such as his determination not to kill. He survives several seemingly insurmountable fights in quick series, sustaining massive injuries each time and still managing to win every single time.
- Disappeared Dad: Becomes one in the second OVA as he goes on travels to do more atonement, even though it means being separated by his wife, Kaoru, and son, Kenji.
- Dishing Out Dirt: Kenshin does a mundane version of this using the Do Ryū Sen (土龍閃, Earth/Land Dragon Flash)—either allowing the debris to knock out the enemy or use it as a distraction for other attacks.
- Dork Knight: Sweet, kind, and cuddly Himura Kenshin. That's not to say he isn't a skilled disciplined Samurai with an unflappable sense of right and wrong, defender of the innocent, etc.
- Dragon-in-Chief: Considering his reputation as Japan's strongest swordsman, he naturally functions like this to the Revolutionaries. Although Katsura and Takasugi are ostensibly the leaders of the movement, Kenshin is the biggest physical threat and the one carrying out the major assassinations.
- The Drifter: In the beginning, he would wander from place to place. It stopped after meeting Kaoru.
- Dueling Scar: He got half of his iconic scar in a "duel" to the death (it was really more of a Curb-Stomp Battle, but the man who gave him the scar had such a will to live that he managed to leave his mark).
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- Earn Your Happy Ending: Kenshin goes through trauma, death, tragedy and the potential for his own death many times over before he finally finds peace. This is also why
Word of God rejects the Seisoushen OVA's ending as not fitting with the theme of the series as a whole. - Experienced Protagonist: He's a war veteran, has been an accomplished swordsman for over a decade, and is a strong contender for the best swordsman in Japan by the time the series starts.
- Expository Hairstyle Change: The timeskip at the end of the manga shows Kenshin cut his hair to reach to his jaw.
- Expository Pronoun: He usually uses "sessha", an archaic term meaning something like "Your humble servant", often translated as "this one" to refer to himself. When he switches to "ore", the aggressive-masculine form of "I", it means he's dropped the politeness facade and is about to lay down a beating.
- Eye Color Change: The title character changes eye colour to correspond to which Split Personality is in command in the anime.
- The Fettered: Kenshin is a model of this trope, where Defeat Means Friendship as well as the occasional Heel–Face Turn when the defeated party realizes Kenshin could have killed them in the first five minutes if he wasn't carefully holding back.
- Fiery Redhead: Inverted. Kenshin is best known for his vibrant red hair in a ponytail, but is quite laid-back and cautious. Even in his "Battousai" mode, he's more Tranquil Fury than murderous.
- Formal Characters Use Keigo: Kenshin refers to himself using sessha, a very archaic pronoun denoting extreme formality and humbleness of the speaker; it's best translated as something like "this unworthy person", which is why Viz's manga uses "this one". Similarly, he ends most of his sentences with de gozaru (and iterations of it); de gozaru is the archaic polite form of desu and is stereotypically used by samurai and honour-bound swordsmen during the Edo period.
- Former Teen Rebel: He was a mild one, being rambunctious and hot-blooded as a kid. In the revolution, though, he was an assassin against the government.
- Friend to All Children: Kenshin has shown an extreme fondness for children. Hurting or threatening the life of one will set him off.
- Gameplay Story Segregation: Due to the difficult nature of balancing the Amakakeru Ryū no Hirameki as it appears in the manga and anime (the air vacuum and the more powerful second strike only occur if the initial strike is blocked or misses), Kenshin's ultimate attack has to be adjusted whenever it shows up in video games.
- In Rurouni Kenshin: Enjou Kyoto Rinne, the initial hit is treated as the stronger attack and is given a full animated sequence when it properly connects. Also, because all Limit Breaks are unblockable in that game, the initial strike will go through even if blocked. The air vacuum and second strike will appear if the attack misses, but it lacks a proper animated sequence and is significantly weaker.
- In J-Stars Victory VS, the attack is split into two versions. His Amakakeru Ryū no Hirameki special attack has him perform only the initial strike and acts as somewhat of a Counter-Attack, activating if anyone steps into his Area of Effect and having priority against most moves. His Ultimate Attack, titled Nidan Kamae Amakakeru Ryū no Hirameki, has Kenshin perform the initial strike, which must hit to fully complete. If it hits, the air vacuum will appear, which Kenshin follows up with the second strike.
- Glass Cannon: Fast and powerful but ultimately his lack of muscles means his body will deteriorate to the point where he eventually can't even fight any more. Most of his fights show him taking a lot of punishment before being able to make a counterattack.
- Good Is Not Dumb: Kenshin is a kind man, but he's not naive to how awful and brutal the world can really be. Just look at his head quote.
- Good Is Not Soft: He may not kill you when he fights you, but rest assures, you don't know what pain is until you piss him off. Prior to his first major fight against a swarm of Mooks:Kenshin: Anyone who is afraid of the doctor, leave now.
Mooks: There will be no wounded, but one single dead body! - Good Old Ways: His formal and old-fashioned manner of speech is commented on more than once.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: His X-shaped scar on his face.
- Guilt Complex: Kenshin blames himself for a large number of things, starting from his Survivor's Guilt as a young child. He became an assassin because he thought it fine to sacrifice his own life, reputation, and even sanity for The Cause, and then The Atoner because the toll to the latter was too great. He continually blames himself that his past as a killer puts the people he cares about in danger (even if his love ones are willing to put themselves in that very danger), up to the point of a Heroic BSoD when he believes Kaoru to be dead. It's only at the very end of the series that he realizes even someone like him is allowed to have happiness and in the Distant Finale we finally get a glimpse of that happiness.
- Happily Married: To Kaoru in the Manga's Distant Finale.
- Heartbroken Badass: The primary reason for his vow to never kill again and its hinted throughout the series Kenshin is suffering emotional pain. Revealed in the Jinchuu arc briefly before the climatic battles that he killed his first wife, Tomoe. Even prior to that tragic day in his life, he was already suffering emotional trauma to the point of almost breaking down because of all the assassinations he committed and Tomoe's death made all the more impact because she gave him an "emotional sheathe" to conceal his emotional maelstrom in. Happens again in the midst of the Jinchuu arc. Kaoru was presumed killed and Kenshin could no longer handle the loss so he just shut himself into a community of beggars and bums for entire days without even the motivation to eat.
- The Hero: The story focuses on his journey of redemption by saving and protecting lives with his sword instead of taking them as an assassin, as well as thwarting the evil schemes of villains like Shishio.
- Heroic BSoD: Goes into a severe one after Enishi makes him believe he killed Kaoru.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: Sanosuke is the closest he has to this, as one of his most reliable allies and a close friend who he'd trust with his life. Sano for his part, admires Kenshin similarly and will follow him nearly everywhere.
- Homeless Hero: Until Kaoru gave him one, he would wander from place to place.
- Humble Hero: Never once uses his infamous title to strike fear in anyone, even his enemies.
- Iaijutsu Practitioner: How he gains the name "Battousai", because he's that good at battoujutsu. The stronger attacks of the Hiten Mitsurugi (such as the two versions of Sō Ryū Sen [双龍閃], Hi Ryū Sen [飛龍閃] and the succession technique Amakakeru Ryū no Hirameki [天翔龍閃]) all fall under here.
- Iconic Outfit: His soft red kimono.
- Ideal Hero: He's a deconstruction and reconstruction of the trope simultaneously. He was a brash youth who desired to use his powerful sword style to protect people, save others For Great Justice, and make a peaceful land for his people. Unfortunately, he ended up used as a mass-murdering One-Man Army by the leaders of the Meiji Revolution and slaughtered many as a Knight Templar in pursuit of Utopia Justifies the Means. Only later did he realize the ends did not justify his actions and all the bloodshed and hardship eventually broke him. He then swore to not kill or end lives and devote his life to protecting life for new ideals of peace without causing bloodshed.
- I Hate Past Me: To a heartbreaking extent. Kenshin is deeply ashamed of his past life as the "Battousai".
- I Let Gwen Stacy Die: He feels great guilt over his first wife Tomoe's death. Especially given that he killed her himself.
- In a Single Bound: Performing the Ryū Shō Sen (龍翔閃, Dragon Soar Flash) requires Kenshin to lunge upwards against the enemy with a force similar to this for it to work.
- The Illegible: It becomes something of a Running Gag that his handwriting is so awful. Makes sense when you consider his personal history and how he probably never focused much on penmanship.
- Incompletely Trained: He left his training early because he wanted to participate in the Meiji Revolution, and even without completing said training, he became the legendary Hitokiri Battosai. Of course, when Shishio shows up, Kenshin needs to finish his training to stand a chance against him.
- Insecure Love Interest: He usually isn't sure if he deserves someone like Kaoru.
- Intergenerational Friendship: With several characters, especially Sanosuke and Yahiko.
- In Touch with His Feminine Side: Effeminate appearance, peaceful nature, and good with "women's work."
- Jade-Colored Glasses: Earned his in the Revolution, when he realized that he had essentially been a hitokiri in a war against oppressors so that the victors might become oppressors instead. He also has no illusions that violence, whether it kills or not, begets anything other than violence.
- Killing Intent: Rurouni or not, this is something that Kenshin possesses in spades after his dark past and is more than willing to whip out to intimidate those who get on his bad side.
- Knight in Sour Armor: Incredibly wary of participating in conflicts involving the government especially highly political ones because of the disappointment of the results of the Meiji Restoration. To the point he was hesitant to go to Kyoto to face off against Shishio despite being fully aware of the threat he poses. However in the end he ultimately always enters into conflict to defend the weak in spit of the possible unintended negative political repercussions.
- Knight Templar: As Battousai, for the Ishin Shishi: a vicious assassin who would kill in cold blood if he thought it would bring about a peaceful era. Thanks to a series of tragic events, he eventually has a Heel Realization and becomes The Atoner. Unfortunately, due to a combination of self-destructive tendencies, Berserk Button, and trauma, Kenshin's former "Battousai"-self now manifests as a golden-eyed Superpowered Evil Side when his Thou Shalt Not Kill vow begins to waver.
- Last-Name Basis: Misao and a few others calls him by his family name.
- Leitmotif: Kimi wa Dare o Mamotte Iru
. - Living Emotional Crutch:
- To Kaoru. When he left for Tokyo and gave his final goodbye, she became so emotional distress that she laid in bed for days. She only got up to go after Kenshin and bring him back.
- To Sanosuke in a lesser degree. It was Kenshin that helped him get over his grief and anger over his mentor's betrayal and death. When Kenshin left for Tokyo, Sanosuke was the first one to go after him.
- Logical Weakness: Downplayed. It's never a significant inhibitor, but because of Kenshin's sword being a reverse-blade, the sharp end is the side facing himself. In the live action films Saito and Hiko both use this to their advantage by pressing Kenshin's sword against himself when they get caught in a Blade Lock; what should be a dull edge is instead sharp with Kenshin's unique blade and he sustains injuries.
- Long-Haired Pretty Boy: Kenshin has long, red hair and has noted to be quite handsome.
- Love Is a Weakness: A particularly clever enemy invoked this in the backstory. He sent Tomoe to act as a Honey Trap for Kenshin, ostensibly to learn his weaknesses. At the time, Tomoe wanted revenge against Kenshin for killing her fiance, so she agreed. Gradually, she fell in love with Kenshin for real. Then the guy who recruited her kidnapped her to lure Kenshin into an ambush. Tomoe realized at that moment that she hadn't been sent to Kenshin to learn his weakness, she had been sent to Kenshin to become his weakness.
- Love Redeems: His love for Tomoe was what made Kenshin have second thoughts about his murderous lifestyle. Tomoe's death was the prime motivator for Kenshin to swear his no-killing oath and become a wandering swordsman to atone for his past.
- Made of Iron: He certainly isn't the only character who exhibits this trait, but he can take quite a beating through multiple fights and still come out on top. Notably in the Kyoto Arc, he goes through three fights with extremely skilled swordsman and manages to survive. However... Kenshin is revealed to be a Deconstruction of this trope— In the final arc, Megumi makes it painfully clear that all the grievous injuries, on top of the physically-taxing Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, catch up to him. At the last battle, he barely has enough in him for one last fight, and at the very end of it all, his body has been pushed to the point that in five years, he can't even use the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu style at all.
- Magnetic Hero: Is this in spades.
- Beat them up: Played straight with Sano. Took a while for it to happen with Aoshi.
- Give the kid a candy bar: How he got Yahiko, whom he let keep the wallet that he pick-pocketed.
- Save their life: Kaoru, Megumi, Yahiko, Misao...
- Tell them your quest: Once Kenshin tells you that he's trying to atone for his actions during the Bakumatsu, there's an 8 out of 10 chance that people will be inspired enough to follow him. Subverted with Saito, who reluctantly joins Kenshin on not one, but THREE quests, though only to apprehend the criminals behind it.
- To get a good idea of how much Kenshin is this, just think about where all the other characters would have been if they hadn't met him:
- Kaoru would have been forced to give up the dojo or be killed if she didn't.
- Yahiko would still be a pickpocket forced to work for the Yakuza.
- Sanosuke would still be a fighter-for-hire.
- Megumi would've been forced to make opium for Kanryu for the rest of her life.
- Master Swordsman: He wouldn't be one if he wasn't called "Battousai" and Aoshi wanting a duel to gain the title of "the strongest".
- Meaningful Name: His birth name Shinta means "Kindness".
- Meaningful Rename: When Hiko Seijuro, his teacher and adoptive father, considered Shinta – which means "Kindness" – too meek a name for a swordsman, he renamed the boy "Kenshin" (Sword-Heart) so he may better travel down the road of the warrior. He later refuses to undergo it again and take up the mantle of Hiko Seijuro after mastering his style's ultimate technique, choosing instead to let the style die with him. Hiko isn't happy about it, but accepts it as Kenshin's right as his successor.
- Muscles Are Meaningless: Zig-zagged. On the one hand, Kenshin is a very short and scrawny man who is never seen working out, yet is peerless as a swordsman. On the other, his slight frame is ill-suited to the rigors of his extreme sword style, and his master, who is quite buff, warns Kenshin that he needs to build muscle and train intensively in order to use Hiten Mitsurugi properly and safely. In Megumi's medical opinion, Kenshin can only handle a few more years of the strain that the style puts on his frail body. In the epilogue, Kenshin has retired from swordsmanship because his body has deteriorated to the point he can no longer fight. As a pacifist with a family, this hardly troubles him.
- Mythical Motifs: The dragon — It's the usual aura he gets, many of his techniques have dragon in them, and it represents his rivalry with Enishi.
- Nice Guy: Kenshin is humble, friendly, and has sworn off killing anyone. Even enemies.
- Noble Male, Roguish Male: The gentlemanly, polite Noble to Sano's reckless, wild Roguish.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: Kenshin tries to pass himself off this way in the first episode, but was eventually found out. He continues to act like an idiot whenever he's not fighting at least for the first half of the series. He usually manages to maintain the masquerade until someone familiar with his past tries to force him to fight properly.
- Official Couple: With Kaoru.
- Older Hero Versus Younger Villain: Not an uncommon dynamic for him, as Kenshin was active during the war years back, while most of the others around him were children then. Explicitly, Shishio was the one who took over his old assassin job, and Enishi is his first wife's younger brother.
- Older Than He Looks: He looks like he's in his teens, but is actually 28.
- One-Man Army: He's head and shoulders above almost every other swordsman in the series, able to (figuratively) cut through armies of lesser men in a flash.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Kenshin has a couple versions of this. The most obvious is that his entire demeanor changes, but more subtly he'll drop the use of the extremely humble "sessha" and use the aggressive masculine "ore"note , which is when you know what the Hitokiri Battousai is present. Also, any time Kenshin the Thou Shalt Not Kill Martial Pacifist seems to be seriously out for blood is cause to be very, very worried.
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- Pacifism Is Cowardice: While Kenshin Himura is willing to fight if needs be, he is considered a coward by his enemies and Saito Hajime because he refuses to use violence as a first course of action as well as not killing. The villains even constantly try to kill Kenshin's friends in order to give Kenshin "proper motivation" to not hold anything back.
- Parental Substitute: In Hokkaido arc not only he's a biological father, but he and Kaoru take three troubled youngsters (Alan, Asahi and Ashitaro) under their wings. He's specially concerned about Ashitaro because he was a Child Soldier from the Juppongatana and is in serious, serious danger of becoming the next Shishio.
- Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Kenshin is usually towered over by most of his friends but routinely takes down people twice his size. He's based on a real life assassin named Kawakami Gensai, who was regularly mistaken for a woman, but who was known as the most fearsome assassin of the Meiji Era and was noted for assassinating a man in broad daylight. Kenshin is also a subversion of sorts - because his school of swordsmanship was designed for far more muscular men (like Hiko, his Cynical Mentor) he ends up unable to fight as well as he once could at the end of the series.
- Primary-Color Champion: His Iconic Outfit is a red kimono and white pants.
- Protagonist Title: "Rurouni Kenshin".
- Red Baron: Hitokiri Battousai, The "Manslayer".
- Red Is Heroic: His hair is vibrant red, his Iconic Outfit is burgundy, and he's The Hero.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Except when in Battosai mode, he's the Red Oni to Saito's Blue Oni.
- Redemption Equals Affliction: While on an assassination mission, Kenshin, received a cut to his face from his target's bodyguard (whom he immediately dispatched as well). Because the cut refused to heal it was theorized by Kenshin's peers that he had been struck by an innocent man and his wound was penance. The wound only finally stopped bleeding some months later when the famous cross-shaped-scar was completed by his dying wife, who he had accidentally struck during a battle (and who had been the fiancee of the man he murdered before). Kenshin holds the belief that the cross-shaped-scar will vanish when he has fully atoned for his sins. He also doesn't believe that is possible though by the end of the manga it has indeed begun to heal.
- Samurai Ponytail: He has the long, well kept variant.
- Sanity Slippage: It's strongly implied that he was gradually losing his sanity the more he killed people during his time as a Hitokiri. He credits meeting Tomoe as what saved him from going over the edge.
- Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: The Savvy Guy (mellow, Obfuscating Stupidity samurai) to Kaoru's Energetic Girl (a Tsundere kendo teacher).
- Scarf of Asskicking: Gained one in the Cinema-ban manga, and actually putting it on when confronting Sano in chapter two.
- Second Love: For Tomoe. Kenshin killed her fiancé Akira during the war: Tomoe initially wanted revenge on Kenshin for that, but upon finding out that Kenshin was no monster, she fell for him... and sacrificed her life to save him. Too bad her little brother didn't see it that way.
- Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: He's the Sensitive Guy (soft-spoken, prefers nonviolence, and is In Touch with His Feminine Side) to Sanosuke's Manly Man (brash, a Blood Knight, and quite uncouth).
- Shell-Shocked Veteran: His time as an assassin has left him guilty.
- Signature Move: While he generally doesn't have a singular signature move, the entire category of battoujutsu acts as a collective set of signature moves for him including his strongest move Amakakeru Ryū no Hirameki. There's a reason why he's known as "Battousai" after all.
- Simultaneous Blade Spam: One of the strongest attacks of the Hiten Mitsurugi, Ku Zu Ryū Sen (九頭龍閃, Nine-Head Dragon Flash), is designed to work this way—hitting all nine major bodily points at such insurmountable, near-impossible to evade speed. Hiko Seijuro notes, however, that the effectivity of this is dependent on the swings of the sword-user (which Kenshin is less-equipped to use due to his lithe physique).
- Skilled, but Naive: Kenshin's master emphasizes that because of his naivete, he ended up getting manipulated by the Isshin-Shishi as a political tool, becoming merely a ruthless assassin rather than a freedom fighter. And as bluntly as Hiko puts it, he's right.
- The Speedster: Kenshin's Hiten-Mitsurugi style of swordsmanship emphasizes lightning-fast movements described as "godspeed" combined with battojutsu to overwhelm opponents in an instant.
- Spectacular Spinning: All the versions of the Ryū Kan Sen (龍巻閃, Dragon Coil Flash) require Kenshin to perform spinning either amongst his enemies (to blow them all off), or perform spinning somersaults towards the enemy to avoid their attacks and land a close hit.
- Stepford Smiler: His cheerful demeanor hides enormous amounts of guilt and grief.
- Stock Shōnen Hero: Zigzagged. Kenshin is Protagonist Title-guy of a Shonen manga/anime series, but is the opposite of many of the typical cliches. Instead of being a young teenage newbie at whatever subject the manga revolves around (in this case, swordsmanship) Kenshin is already a Master Swordsman and is 28 years old, much older than the typical shonen hero. He's not Unskilled, but Strong, but Weak, but Skilled. In general, Kenshin is quite mellow and cheerful who is quite analytical and not a Hot-Blooded Idiot Hero. At some point, he became aware of his feelings for Kaoru and had a prior relationship with Tomoe, while most Shonen protagonists are Oblivious to Love. The only things he does encompass from a typical Shonen hero are as followed: All-Loving Hero, received Training from Hell, main colors include red and white, and a Chick Magnet
- Supernatural Gold Eyes: Part and parcel of his Superpowered Evil Side.
- Superpowered Evil Side: If he cracks under pressure, the Knight Templar Battousai comes out, which lacks all of Kenshin's inhibitions.
- Team Dad: Has taken in this role in Hokkaido arc, mentoring not only Yahiko but the main trio formed by Ashitaro, Alan and Asahi.
- Technical Pacifist: He will never ever kill you, but you will be in pain for sure if you fight him.
- Third-Person Person: In Viz English translation of the manga, Kenshin always refers to himself in third person as "this one" (to translate the Japanese verbe "de gozaru", signifying humility). However, when his Superpowered Evil Side Hitokiri Battousai takes over, he shifts to first person. Averted in the North American dub, where he refers to himself in the first person all the time, but when he’s not being Battousai the Manslayer, he speaks in a roundabout manner.
- Thou Shalt Not Kill: As the narrator says "in retribution for his deeds, he has taken an oath to protect the innocent and never kill again." The Battousai thinks otherwise.
- Through His Stomach: Kenshin likes Kaoru's cooking because she keeps getting better and better at it.
- Tiger Versus Dragon: He is the dragon, Enishi is the tiger.
- Took a Level in Badass: Kenshin learning his ultimate technique and taking his first steps towards coming to terms with himself.
- Training from Hell: What Kenshin underwent when training in the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu under Hiko Seijuro, which was nothing more than being whacked repeatedly by every signature technique of the style. Kenshin himself finds it a wonder how he even survived the abuse by Seijuro.
- Troubling Unchildlike Behavior: As a child, he buried all the bodies of his guardians and the men who killed them, instead of, say, trying to find help. At this point he'd already seen one set of parents die of illness and then watched his Parental Substitutes (Akane, Sakura and Kasumi) die trying to protect him. Hiko is visibly disturbed by this and decides to take in the boy since it's clear he'll never live a normal life after this.
- Twice Shy: With Kaoru — He feels he doesn't deserve and she's too shy.
- Verbal Tic: "Oro?", as well as the aforementioned keigo speech. For the former, here is an entire video of Kenshin saying it. However in the English Dub, the "Oro" is substituted for a random sound he makes depending on the situation he's in. He also occasionally incorporates variations of phrases such as "That I am" or "I'll have you know!".
- Violently Protective Girlfriend: Gender Inverted. One way to piss Kenshin off? Threaten Kaoru— be stupid enough to do that and Kenshin won't hesitate to give you a beatdown with his bare fists to get it through to your head that you don't lay a finger on Kaoru. And this form of punishment came after he got over his apathetic assassin persona.
- Warrior Therapist: Much like his namesake would indicate, he's able to tell quite a bit about someone by fighting them.
- Weak, but Skilled: He is short and scrawny but his skills are top notch.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: Some might consider him Incorruptible Pure Pureness, but old habits die hard... Except his intro speech at the end of the first chapter goes, "no, swordsmanship is an art of killing. Kaoru-dono believes a sweet, naive lie. But if this one had a wish... it would be that her sweet lie would become the truth of this world." Kenshin's Walking the Earth with Obfuscating Stupidity routine involves some serious ideals, but despite avoiding his battle expression most of the time he's not too wide-eyed. He's got the world-weary thing going, but values Kaoru as a Wide-Eyed Idealist. Some of the stupidity probably isn't fake. The line is impossible to find, as is common with Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass types. His backstory involves a bit of this, despite all his childhood trauma—it caused him to wind up a sworn assassin in a civil war. In other words, he is Zen Survivor who is trying to protect those near him with his sword as opposed to "the sweet lie" of swords being inherently protective.
- Willfully Weak: If Kenshin fought to kill, his fights would be over a lot sooner. Refusing to kill and using a reverse-blade sword is a double-handicap.
- Wingding Eyes: Is the most subject to this when his eyes go all swirly in the more lighthearted and comedic moments. Usually is followed up with an "Oro" in Japanese version or a funny sound in the English version.
- The Worf Barrage: When your sword style is considered the strongest and is designed to incapacitate opponents in a single blow, it can fall into this; Sanosuke was considered the first notable opponent since he was able to take one of Kenshin's attacks without being instantly defeated. In terms of specific attacks, Ku Zu Ryu Sen falls into this. Despite being one of Kenshin's two ultimate techniques, as well as being unblockable and undodgeable, opponents are either strong enough to ignore it, or fast enough to dodge it. In fact, Ku Zu Ryu Sen has only worked once in the entire manga against Shishio. It just wasn't enough to put him down.
- The Worf Effect: He technically doesn't lose many fights, but in the beginning of the series antagonists like Jin-E and Saitou established their threat level by easily defeating Kenshin the wanderer, leading to him succumbing to his Battousai personality.
- Worf Had the Flu:
- This comes into play when he finally fights Shishio. Kenshin had gone through fights with both Aoshi and Soujirou, two challenging opponents who were close to his level if not better. Due to his injuries, he loses in the first part of their fight.
- Kaoru theorizes that his initial defeat at the hands of Enishi was caused by his inner turmoil preventing him from fighting at his best: Caused by his guilt over killing Tomoe and lacking an answer for how he could atone for it. By the time they fight again, Kenshin has resolved these issues and defeats Enishi.
- World's Best Warrior: Even at the start of the series he's considered Japan's best swordsman, with Aoshi desiring to defeat him to gain his title.
- Would Hit a Girl: As Battosai, he has no problem threatening Tomoe with his sword in the second episode of Trust and Betrayal when she tries to touch him. When he sees Tomoe, he shoves her to the ground. He even kills her along with Tatsumi
- "X" Marks the Hero: The most iconic example, to the point that it's often called a "Kenshin scar".
- Yellow Eyes of Sneakiness: As Battousai, his eyes are amber.
- Zen Survivor: He's an ex-mass murderer and assassin who went through hardship out of arrogant youth and brash idealism, mentally broke from it, and rebuilt himself into a wise wanderer who helps others and fights to protect life without bloodshed and share with others the wisdom gained from learning from his own mistakes.
