shira

A cold-blooded killer within the Mugai-ryū, Shira is infamous for causing the death of Magatsu Taito's close friend, O-Ren. He is a sadistic psychopath who finds sexual pleasure in torturing and murdering his victims, especially young women. After an ambush attempt on Anotsu goes awfully wrong, he vents his frustration on his attackers. Using the saw-blade side of his sword, he hacks off some of their limbs and attempts to rape a prostitute present with them while simultaneously mutilating her. Rin tries to intervene but is slapped away. Manji arrives and manages to sever Shira's hand before fleeing. Following this incident, Shira cuts flesh from his injured arm and sharpens the exposed bones into spikes. His hair turns stark white due to the trauma he inflicted upon himself. He becomes obsessed with seeking revenge on Manji, leading him to betray his Mugai-ryū comrades and indirectly cause the death of Shinriji. His relentless pursuit of Manji culminates in a battle with Magatsu Taito, who was traveling with Manji specifically to confront Shira. This confrontation leaves Shira further crippled, losing his remaining hand. Recently, he has been shown imprisoned in the same facility as Manji, with set parameters/lists dictating whom he must face before being allowed to challenge Manji (this list includes Magatsu). Shira reveals that he has lost one eye and now possesses a new "weapon," which is actually Manji's lost arm. He also harbors the bloodworms. Shira wields a ninja-to sword with a saw edge on one side. He typically uses the regular side to immobilize opponents by cutting off their legs and then employs the saw-blade to cut off other body parts, inflicting maximum pain. This sword is named "Hotosogi" or "woman shadow eraser." However, there is a second meaning for "Hotosogi" that aligns with Shira's sadistic nature; when the kanji for woman and shadow are combined, they translate to vagina. He first appears in Dark Shadows part 2 and is first named in Dark Shadows part 3.