Henya Kariwa (
Appearance[]
Henya is a pale-skinned man of average height. He has tall spiky brown hair. His most noticeable feature is his emaciated appearance, which he achieved to ensure that he is the lightest weight possible so as to allow him to glide easily. He is usually hidden by his gliding "wings" which, when folded, look similar to a cloak. They are held in place by two crossed metal rings which circle his front and back vertically. His mouth is covered by a purple cloth and he wears ragged black pants and black shoes. His arms are wrapped in cloth and a long knife is protruding from under the cloth on his left arm, going over his hand. Two sets of explosives are attached to his back while hanging freely from the bottom; these are used to launch him into the air so that he can glide.
Personality[]
Henya has a cold personality, and is indifferent when he kills the low ranking soldiers of Shishio's army. He commonly references the game of chess, and claims that pawns should be sacrificed to achieve the greater goal. He is also extremely arrogant, and when he was sent to kill Kenshin's allies at the Aoiya, he wanted to leave after claiming his opponents (Kaoru, Misao, and Yahiko) were unworthy and a waste of time and effort.
Relationships[]
- Jūppongatana: Henya was a member of the Jūppongatana group, and he saw the rest of them as his comrades and equals.
- Shishio Makoto: As the boss of the Jūppongatana, Henya respects Shishio and obeys his commands.
Abilities[]
Henya while flying
Henya's technique is called "Hiku Happa". Because he has such a light body, Henya is able to use dynamite to propel himself high in the air. Also, the dynamite might injure his enemies and cloud their vision, a moment Henya uses to strike them with the blade attached to his left arm.
History[]
Henya originally joined the Jūppongatana so that he could fight Himura Kenshin.
Kyōto Arc[]
He makes his debut when he accompanies Seta Sōjirō back to Shishio's compound and his major role is when he's sent to attack the Aoiya, along with Kamatari and Iwanbō. His opponent ends up being Myōjin Yahiko, who defeats Henya, despite his advantage. After the Jūppongatana's disbandment, Henya is offered an 'under-the-table' deal, where he is offered amnesty in exchange for his services as an aerial scout.
Hokkaido Arc[]
Five years later, Henya was recruited to aid Saitō's team in fighting against the Kenkaku Heiki. Henya meets up with everyone to join the team, minus Eiji, at the Hekketsuhi. As Kenshin and Sano wonders why they would join, Henya says that will receive a pardon, along with information on the latest aircraft technology. After everyone arrives and Saitō explains the situation and they leave.
In the days that follow, Henya spends most how his time flying around the mountain and monitoring the Kenkaku Heiki's base. On the day they plan to interrogate Byakuya, Henya flies around and informs Saitō about how there are no disturbing movements. Henya then joins them as they interrogate Byakuya. After they finish the interrogation, Henya is stationed in Hakodate to watch over the Kenkaku Heiki there, while Kenshin's group and Saitō's group deal with the Kenkaku Heiki stationed at Sapporo and Otaru.
Creation and conception[]
Henya is based in a real swordsman called Matsubayashi Henyasai. In design terms, he has a bat-like look. Because, originally, there was supposed to be no lookers in the Jūppongatana (except for Sōjirō), Henya was created to be monster-like.
Henya was supposed to debut as one of the Oniwabanshū back in the Megumi arc. However, that ended up being a dead end, and so he was enlisted as one of the Jūppongatana. Also, Kenshin was supposed to engage him in mid-air battle, but because Kenshin had already mastered the final move, Henya would stand no chance against him. Therefore, the next logical person would be Yahiko, who follows in Kenshin's footsteps. He was also inspired by the character Freak from the Spawn comics.
In Live Action film[]
Kariwa Henya is portrayed by Hara Yuya in the 2014 movie Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno.
Appearances[]
We can find Henya:
- Episodes: 42, 44, 45, 48, 49, 52 and 61
- Volumes: 11, 12, 14, 15 and 17
- Openings: 2 (ep. 50 - 66)
Gallery[]
To be added