Hōrubō

Hōrubō
Kanji	法流坊
Alias	Killing Buddha (殺し念仏, Koroshi Nenbutsu)
Biological Information
Race	Human
Birthdate	November 5
Gender	Male
Age	Unknown
Height	130 cm
Personal Status
Status	Deceased
Elemental Attribute	Earth
Team	Vanguard Party
Debuts
Manga Debut	Chapter 2
Anime Debut	Episode 2

"Killing Buddha" Hōrubō (〝殺し念仏〟法 (ほう) 流 (る) 坊 (ぼう) , "Koroshi Nenbutsu" Hōrubō) was a well-known criminal put on death row. However, before receiving the death penalty for his arrest, Hōrubō became recruited to join in an expedition team where he would compete against other death row convicts in acquiring the Elixir of Life for the shogun from an island believed to be Shinsenkyō in exchange for a pardon that would exempt him of his past crimes.

Appearance

Hōrubō's criminal profile.

Hōrubō was a very elderly man with sunken eye sockets and a bald head. He wore a dark, frayed monk's robe with a rakusu. His body was also strangely constructed, possessing coiled limbs that are able to extend for at least 2 meters.

Personality

As a death row criminal, Hōrubō was a brutal individual and was shown to be quite murderous, as he intended to take an opportunity at sea to kill Aza Chōbei before the two landed on Kotaku.

History

Past

Before being sentenced to death for his horrendous crimes, Hōrubō was given a chance to be pardon by Yamada Asaemon Jikka if he were to complete a mission that required him to venture to an island that is said to possess the Elixir of Life and return back with it for the shogun to consume. Having favored this option, Hōrubō agreed to participate.

Island Arc

Upon agreeing to the mission, Hōrubō is taken to a gathering spot were other death row criminals are interested in joining the expedition. After they were told to start a massacre until only a few were available to leave for the island, Hōrubō becomes one out of the ten criminals to survive and is assigned Yamada Asaemon Jikka as his monitor.

While still sailing at sea, Hōrubō attempted to kill Aza Chōbei but failed as the latter managed to free himself from the monk's restraint and is killed by him, which gave Jikka the right to return to Edo.

Abilities and Powers

As a death row criminal, Hōrubō was considered to be a man that was too dangerous to be allowed to live. Hōrubō had the unique ability to stretch or contort his arms or legs to restrain and constrict his opponents due to how his body is constructed. He was also one of the few criminals that managed to survive a massacre full of criminals that were also sentenced to death.

Trivia

• Hōrubō ranked 19th place in the manga 1st Character Popularity Poll.

• Hōrubō's anatomy:
  • Brain: Can only speak through sutras.
  • Eyes: Inability to know where to look.
  • Teeth: Not likely.
  • Stomach: Able to digest anything.
  • Arms: Extendable.
  • Holes: Possibility.
  • Feet: Extendable.