*Bows with the sound of a gong* Greetings young ones. I am Beninja and welcome back to my first Death Battle! Last time we reviewed everything Sly Cooper now I shall give you the analysis on Rikimaru, a fellow ninja. That's enough jabbering from me. Let us begin the analysis.
*SLAM*
W: Born as the son of a samurai, it was obvious from the day of his birth that Rikimaru was destined for great things.
B: Too bad that when he was an infant, a man named Shiunsai was ordered to assassinate his father, which he and the other ninjas did. The wife and servant of the samurai saw this and ended up getting killed themselves.
W: Still in the arms of his dead mother the small child was about to be silenced forever before Shiunsai prevented his fellow ninja from doing so. Taking pity on the boy and seeing potential for the dead samurai's son, he took the boy in to be raised as his own and train him as a student.
B: But why must he be sparred? Out of the now single female and the useful servant, why him? And why must almost every hero's origin story involve witnessing their parent's death as a child?
W: Well you see it's… um… Wow Boomstick that's a really good point.
B: Guess that means you're not as smart as you say you are.
W: Shut up.
B: Anyways when Rikimaru began training, he was somewhat of a weakling, which is to be expected for a young boy. But even with that Shiunsai motivated the boy and trained him hard.
W: The exceptional tutelage plus the daily sparring lessons he got from his clan brother, Tatsumaru, made Rikimaru both talented and deadly over the years. Then at his 18th birthday he was recognized as an Azuma ninja in the clan.
B: Soon after his training was complete, Shiunsai sent him, Tatsumaru, and their sexy, female, ninja companion, Ayame, to aid their Lord Gohda when a rebellion broke out but not before he gave Tatsumaru not only leadership of the clan but the ancestral sword of the Azuma, known as Izayoi.
W: Izayoi is a straight-bladed ninjato, slightly longer than the average ninja sword. Izayoi does have certain magical properties.
B: Please say it can shoot lasers or something really cool!
W: Well if you consider it being extremely strong and resilient to injury then yes.
B: Damn it.
W: The only time the sword has ever been damaged was during Rikimaru's duel with Dr. Kimaira in Wrath of Heaven, and it was promptly repaired by the clan's blacksmith
W: Upon arrival at the castle, Tatsumaru sent Rikimaru to stop the dying Lord's son, Gohda Matsunoshi who is the next rightful heir, and the Lord's brother, Gohda Motohide who wanted the throne, from fighting.
B: Rikimaru then dueled the uncle and soon was about to kill Motohide when his brother got in the way, and Rikimaru accidentally kill his Lord instead. After that Motohide escaped the castle but the rebellion was not over. Well that's gotta suck killing your ruler like that.
W: Soon the new Lord Gohda, or Matsunoshi, informs the three ninja that his enemy, Lord Toda, was attacking from across his border with help from his uncle who also kidnapped Princess Kiku. Rikimaru then leaves on his own to dispatch of the threat by himself. He confronts a Toda ninja named Suzaku and after their quick duel he enters the sanctum. After fighting and killing off Toda ninjas he finds Lord Toda and Motohide already dead. Soon he heard battle, found Ayame who rescues the princess, and saw Tatsumaru fighting a female ninja as the cliff collapsed and they both fell into the sea before the others could react.
B: Well that's bad. Oh well. After the rebellion and Shiunsai became the leader again when Tatsumaru fell into the sea, Rikimaru was sent to investigate the disappearances of villagers on Demon Mountain. Though I think it's obvious who's been behind it. Disappearing villagers plus Demon Mountain… You do the math.
W: Actually he discovered a secret harbor where Chinese pirates were taking the villagers as slaves after the ninja and their leader were killed at the village. He then dispatched of the pirates and their leader when a masked man attacked him. But after a while Rikimaru noticed the weapon he was fighting against was Izayoi. The masked man then revealed himself as Tatsumaru.
B: Tatsumaru then called himself Seiryu, the Blue Dragon and Lord of the Burning Dawn, and then left before Rikimaru got him to say anything else. Apparently after falling in the sea, he was saved by the same female he fought and had a serious case of amnesia. They took advantage of that and convinced him he was one of them.
W: Rikimaru didn't hesitate as he was sent to check on a temple that was attacked by the Burning Dawn ninjas. Once again encountering Suzaku, he escaped before Rikimaru could fight him when another ninja blocked him. Soon he got message that the Azuma Village was attacked and by the time he got there almost everyone was dead. He then found the same female ninja who Tatsumaru fought and she introduced herself as Kagami, leader of the Burning Dawn clan.
B: After wiping out the remaining Burning Dawn ninjas he heard an anguished cry. Upon returning to his master's home he found Tatsumaru standing over their master's dying body. The two ninja fought and Rikimaru's rage helped him get the upper hand to knock him down and stand in the killing pose. But because different emotions warred with each other, his anger for Shiunsai's death and his brotherly love for Tatsumaru, he hesitates where Tatsumaru uses that to strike at Rikimaru with Izayoi, leaving a bloody gash on his eye as Tatsumaru escapes. Hey buddy next time don't hesitate and just kill the guy!
W: Would you be able to kill someone who was like a brother to you? Say someone like me?
B: Well…
W: On second thought don't answer that question.
B: Whatever. With his last breath, Shiunsai gives leadership over to Rikimaru and orders him to retrieve Izayoi to officially make him leader and to fight without passion
W: After getting Ayame to help they learned that the Burning Dawn clan planned to attack Gohda Castle with her warship, the Fire Demon. As Ayame secretly boarded the ship, Rikimaru began fighting off Burning Dawn ninjas at the harbor before the ship got there. And after finally striking down Suzaku, he boarded the ship and found Tatsumaru dead at Ayame's feet with a bloody Izayoi in her hand. She gave the sword to Rikimaru, effectively turning leadership over to him and then killing Kagami afterwards all while at the age of 18.
B: Damn.
W: Rikimaru and the Izayoi are strong but not the only weapon he uses. In the Tenchu game Rikimaru could take 16 items + 2 extra weapons out of 26 items. One of the extra weapons he carries is the Fugaku sword which deals more damage than Izayoi and has a larger range, but slows Rikimaru's movement, jumping, and attacks. The other weapon being the Muramasa which is his only sword that can hurt or kill the undead.
B: Really? Does he fight zombies?
W: Not that I'm aware of.
B: How do you not know? Oh wait I remember earlier that I said you not as smart as you…
W: Shut up. Let's just continue with the show already.
B: Fine. Anyways the Muramasa is the most powerful sword Rikimaru possesses because it deals the most in combat but it comes with a major disadvantage. Every one second drains Rikimaru's life away until he's on the verge of death itself though it will leave you alive, but just barely. Damn why would he use that?
W: Well it doesn't just drain him but it does replenish his health if he defeats the people he fights but they do have to be undead for it to work.
B: Besides his swords he carries 16 items with him one of which he always uses is the grappling hook. He uses this to reach high places like roofs or mountains or even cross large pits and it can grab onto most anything.
W: Rikimaru choses what he takes before he starts on his mission except he must always have the grappling hook with him so he chooses fifteen items, not sixteen.
B: But having fifteen out of twenty-six different weapons and items does still give him a wide range of weaponry. Not to mention he has three different categories of items, the normal, Grand Master, and special items.
W: There are fourteen normal items one of which is the grappling hook. He also carries another kind of grappling hook known as the Tetsubishi, which allows him to reel in enemies from long distances.
B: As a ninja he carries what most ninjas would. Smoke bombs, a blow gun, shrunken, caltrops or little spikes to slow enemies and hurt their feet, a healing potion, a strength potion, grenades, mines, sticky bombs, wait WHAT?
W: Yes Rikimaru also carries his own supply of bombs. He also has colored rice to help him remember where things were and where he's been.
B: I understand that he's a ninja but rice? Seriously?
W: He has more than colored rice.
B: WHAT THE FUCK? What does he use it for? Eating?
W: Actually yes. Do you want to know his special ingredient?
B: Well you brought it up for some reason so go ahead.
W: …Poison.
B: … Really?
W: Yes. He places a bowl of Poison Rice out for some hungry enemy or animal to eat so they are hurt multiple times until the poison wears off or until Rikimaru ends them himself.
B: Well then… anyways he's also got a poison antidote on him just in case he gets poisoned himself. Then there are ten Grand Master items which he could use only one on one mission for a Grand Master which he is.
W: These items include a binding spell which creates a protection seal around Rikimaru and paralyses anyone who enters it, a chameleon spell which disguises him as an enemy, a fire spell to create a ring of fire around him, an invisibility spell, super shuriken, ninja armor to protect against certain attacks, exploding arrows, a decoy whistle to fool enemies that hear him into thinking they heard an animal, fireworks which are used for distractions or damaging if placed close but can harm Rikimaru if he stays to close himself, and finally he has… a dog bone?
B: Apparently he has a ninja dog named Semimaru which he can call up with a bone to help him fight for 40 seconds only. Aww how cute. I've always wanted a puppy dog who was a ninja that could help me kill my enemies in cold blood.
W: …Wha
B: Now let's get to the tree most powerful items he has. The special items, three in total. He has a tiger trap that can trap an enemy for a mere five seconds but they cannot attack or defend while trapped.
W: He has the Stone of Power which further increases his strength by 25% and allows him to throw any projectile faster. And last but not least he carries an item that brings him back to life should he fall in battle. The Ninja Rebirth item.
B: So does that mean he's the zombie?!
W: No! It just revives him behind the closest enemy or the one who kills him. But where he was killed is where a log appears, leaving the enemy stunned in confusion. However the Ninja Rebirth won't work if Rikimaru falls down a pit or into certain traps. And he is limited to only one per mission.
B: Well that seems OP.
W: Well let's get back to Rikimaru's story.
B: Sure just shrug off the OP item like it's nothing.
W: Baby.
B: Just get to the story telling already.
W: Seven years after the Burning Dawn Crisis and moving his clan closer to Gohda Castle, Rikimaru found a mysterious warrior named Onikage during a mission. He fled but Rikimaru encounters him several times more before Onikage finally tells him he works for Lord Mei-oh, the Lord of the Underworld, and that Princess Kiku has been taken to the Underworld.
B: Rikimaru and Ayame go to rescue her and after fighting a vicious duel, Rikimaru finally kills Onikage, who turned out to be the enemy of his younger days, Suzaku. …WHAT?! HOW?!
W: Turns out Rikimaru did kill him but he more than likely made a deal with the devil himself.
B: Whoa. That's intense. Well soon they went down into Hell itself where Ayame saved the princess while Rikimaru fought and killed Lord Mei-oh, or we like to call him Satan!
W: Not appropriate Boomstick.
B: Oh stop whining Wiz that was funny.
W: No it wasn't.
B: Yes it was.
W: Enough! After defeating Lord Mei-oh the ceiling began to collapse and soon a cave-in blocked their path. Rikimaru set Izayoi aside and lifted a boulder that blocked their path and told Ayame to take his sword and get Princess Kiku to safety. They escaped just before the rocks buried the cave and anything that remained inside, including Rikimaru.
B: With Rikimaru's death, Ayame stuck Izayoi in the ground as a grave marker and then watches the sun rise with Lord Gohda and Princess Kiku. What does that remind me of?
Mufasa: Look Simba. Everything the light touches is our kingdom.
B: Nope not that.
*Toby Maguire Spiderman and Mary Jane sit on the roof after defeating Dr. Octupus.*
B: Definitely not THAT!
*Independence Day*
Hello boys! I'm BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!
B: That's the one.
W: Ahem.
B: Oh right the show. Almost forgot. Well Rikimaru knows many special attacks such as Ninja Mind Control, Ninjutsu Block, Ninja Vision, but his most powerful and dangerous one is the Wrath of Heaven.
W: The Wrath of Heaven can kill enemies with one hit. But using the wrath of heaven will leave Rikimaru on the verge of death himself so he uses it only when necessary. Also when he casts the Kuji-Kiri at the beginning he is vulnerable to attack and if he misses he will die so it is important to ensure the target will not be able to move.
B: Rikimaru is very strong even without the Stone of Power and strength potions. He has been able run like a shadow, survive a lightning strike and a small building explosion, jump down a waterfall and swim all the way to a town, and stop a boulder with nothing but his physical strength, get crushed by it, and manage to survive.
W: Not to mention the boulder he lifted up to save Ayame's and the Princess' life was the same size as the cave they were in. The physical strength alone with Rikimaru is not to be messed with. He's not just strong; he's a brilliant strategist, fast, and has mastered many, many arts of combat.
B: Rikimaru may seem invincible but he's not. After all some of his attacks and weapons leave close to death and he was killed by a cave-in though it's still very difficult to kill him.
W: Rikimaru does also have some flaws though. He can get very angry and lose his temper but only on rare occasions. Not to mention he takes things too seriously.
B: I know! This guys need to get a sense of humor or get laid cause this guy always means business and never seems to smile.
W: Regardless his skill is unmatched and his strength is legendary. And this is why Rikimaru might be the most powerful ninja to ever live.
Ayame: And you show up right when our Lord is attacked?
Rikimaru: While sleeping, I sent my shadow far and wide across the land.
Ayame: Your shadow?
Rikimaru: Yes. My shadow.
Ayame: And how do we know you're not just a shadow?
Rikimaru: I am Rikimaru. I am a shadow.
*SLAM*
Alright that wraps things up here! Rikimaru sounds powerful but will Sly be able to outwit him or will Rikimaru overpower Sly? Leave your ideas on who will win in a review. That's all the time I have but I will get the battle up ASAP. But until then, arigato. *Bows and disappears in a puff of smoke*