| |
| Alias(es) | Fourth Raikage (四代目雷影, Yondaime Raikage, Literally meaning: Fourth Lightning Shadow) |
| Kanji | エー |
| Rōmaji | Ē |
| Debut | |
| Novel | Naruto: A Shinobi Story |
| Appears in | Novel |
| Character Status | |
| Status | Alive |
| Birthdate |  June 1
|
| Age | Part II: 47 |
| Gender |  Male
|
| Height | Part II: 1.98 m |
| Weight | Part II: 101.1 kg. |
| Blood Type | A |
| Home Country |  Land of Lightning
|
| Family | A (Father) Killer B (Adoptive Brother) |
| Affiliation(s) |  Kumogakure Allied Shinobi Forces
|
| Occupation(s) | Raikage Supreme Leader of the Allied Shinobi Forces |
| Rank | Part II: Kage |
| Ninja Registration | CL2211 |
| Team | Eight-Tails Subduing Team A–B Combo |
| Partner(s) | Killer B |
| Nature Type | |
 Lightning Release Water Release
| |
| Jutsu | |
| Shinobi & Nintaijutsu Techniques: Body Flicker Technique, Drop Kick, Elbow, Guillotine Drop, Iron Claw Lightning/Nintaijutsu Techniques: Liger Bomb, Lightning Oppression Horizontal, Lightning Oppression Horizontal Chop, Lightning Release Chakra Mode, Lightning Release: Double Lariat, Lightning Release: Lariat, Lightning Straight, Lightning Water Dragon Bullet | |
| Weaponry | |
| Vambraces | |
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A (エー, Ē, Viz: Ei, English TV: Ay) was the Fourth Raikage (四代目雷影, Yondaime Raikage, Literally meaning: Fourth Lightning Shadow) of Kumogakure. He was the leader of the Allied Shinobi Forces to fight against Akatsuki in the Fourth Shinobi World War.
Background[]
A in his younger years alongside his brother.
A is the son of the Third Raikage, who groomed him for the position of the Fourth Raikage.[1] At some point in the past, due to A not having a blood sibling who could be his tag-partner, try-outs consisting of young children were gathered in order to determine one, in keeping with a long-standing Kumogakure tradition of the Raikage having a tag-team partner. After many attempts, they found only one child who was able to successfully match A’s power and use the Lightning Release: Double Lariat on a training dummy.[2] As a result, that child was given the name “B”, and A stated that they would be brothers from that day on.[3]
Sometime later, A was made part of a special team tasked with subduing the rampaging Eight-Tails. After A and the Third Raikage arrived to deal with the matter, A was instructed to restrain the beast as his father prepared to use the Kohaku no Jōhei. As the team attempted to bind the Eight-Tails, the beast impaled several shinobi with its horn, leading A to cut it off. With enough preparation, the Third sealed the beast away temporarily. After B became the beast’s jinchūriki, A tried his best to be the best brother he can be.
A attacks Minato.
At some point during the Third Shinobi World War, A would clash with Minato Namikaze for the first time.[4] Before Minato retreated he recognized Killer B as the jinchūriki of the Eight-Tails and told A that the next time they met it would be to put the title of “Kage” on the line and also offered A the advice of making sure his brother knew who he was before becoming neither human nor jinchūriki.[5] They would clash many more times after that. A was once even told by Jiraiya that he believed Minato was the “Child of Prophecy”.[6] When A’s father died during the third war, he inherited the title of Raikage.[7] Afterwards, out of fear of losing him, he forbade B’s continued training in the Lightning Release: Lariat and ordered him to complete his training in the Tailed Beast Ball at the Valley of Clouds and Lightning and restricted him to the confines of the village.[8] At some point, he forbade B from fully transforming into his tailed beast due to its extreme power.
Personality[]
A and B become brothers.
A is generally characterized as stern, outspoken, and decisive. It also becomes surprising when someone manages to convince him to change his mind. After becoming Raikage, A grew humbler as he referred to himself as “washi”, a humble term used by old men, instead of “ore”, a prideful way of saying “I” or “me”. He believes that actions and strength mean everything and that ninjas should never compromise or bow down in front of each other.[9] Similarly, he views jinchūriki not as individuals, but as tools of villages that have no right to speak for themselves.[10] He can also be somewhat hypocritical, voicing his disdain at the other five Great Nations for letting their finest ninja go rogue, while denying his own village’s shameless acts, such as kidnapping and stealing secrets from other villages’ secrets and going back on promises.
He rationalizes, however, his actions on the goal of wanting to protect his village, willing to sacrifice allies for the greater good.[11] Despite his militant demeanor, A has quite an emotional side; his short temper and eagerness can cause him to act recklessly with regard to certain matters, including bursting through his office window to attend the Kage Summit and smashed the table when the conversation. Many people[12][13][14] are left exasperated by A’s rash behavior, commenting that it undermines his position as Raikage; however, [15]
A punishing B with his “Iron Claw”.
Serious as he can be, A also loves and deeply cares for his family, especially his adoptive brother Killer B. Since the day they became partners, A and B bonded deeply as they completed missions and honed their skills together as the A–B Combo (エービーコンビ, Ē Bī Konbi). When B became Gyūki’s jinchūriki and A’s father died, A became determined to keep his village and B safe, confining his brother's movements to the village even if it went against B’s wishes. As such, he is upset by his younger brother’s capture by Akatsuki, and even more so upon discovering it was a ploy for B to have a vacation, swearing to punish him with his “Iron Claw”. At the same time, A claims he has resolved to kill his brother if the situation ever called for it.[16]
When confronting his older brother during the Fourth Shinobi World War, B points out the flaw in A’s viewpoint: his overprotection of B prevents him from acknowledging and believing in B’s own strength. When B and Naruto prove their worth by surpassing A in strength and speed respectively, A realizes they are truly essential in ending the war and lets them pass. A benefits greatly from serving in the Allied Shinobi Forces as well. He was initially distrustful of other villages for their connections to Akatsuki but now accepts them as comrades, expressing care when they start to overexert themselves or when they save him on the battlefield.[17] A and Tsunade have somewhat of a rivalry and he is often critical of her, but he concedes her as a valuable comrade and shows concern for her during their battle against Madara. A is also capable of forgiveness although rarely. Despite his hatred towards Sasuke for his attempt to kidnap Killer B and his desire to kill him in retaliation, as well as the loss of his left hand from their battle, A recognizes Sasuke’s remorse for his crimes and decides to forgive him.[18]
Appearance[]
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A before his amputation.
A has dark skin with a large muscular build, white hair (blond in the anime) combed back, a small mustache, and a goatee. His face has pronounced cheekbones and tear troughs under his eyes, and a prominent crease across his forehead. He has pointed canines and his top lip also has a darker hue than the bottom one; traits he inherited from his father. During his fight with Sasuke, he amputated his left forearm after it was burned by Amaterasu.
A often wears a white haori without a shirt underneath and occasionally the traditional Raikage hat. He has black Fūma Shuriken tattoos on both shoulders and originally wore large, golden vambraces on his wrists, though he discarded them after the Five Kage Summit, wearing one on his remaining arm briefly near the start of the Fourth Shinobi World War. He also wears a gold belt around his waist with a boar’s face engraved in the center, black pants with torn ends, Kumo-nin shin guards, and shinobi sandals. All of these aspects combined give him the appearance of a professional wrestler.
After relinquishing the role of Raikage to Darui, A began wearing a simple black kimono held closed by a white sash. On his face, he has visible wrinkles with a thicker mustache and goatee.[19]
Abilities[]
A manifesting his Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
As the Fourth Raikage, A is an extremely powerful shinobi, being chosen as the Supreme Leader of the Allied Shinobi Forces, even after losing his dominant arm. His signature fighting style combines the elements of ninjutsu and taijutsu to form nintaijutsu. Using it, he could easily directly engage in battle with a tailed beast, defeat a fully transformed Jūgo, and overwhelm a Mangekyō Sharingan-wielding Sasuke.
Physical Prowess[]
A dodges Amaterasu.
Greatly belying his large build, A is naturally quite fast and efficient in his movements, able to intercept an opponent before they realize he has approached them.[20] Until Naruto Uzumaki’s Nine-Tails Chakra Mode,[21] A also possesses an enormous amount of strong chakra, comparable to that of a tailed beast and Shindō Shunsoku, according to Karin.
A breaks Susanoo’s ribcage.
A has enormous physical strength. With a single hand, his feats included lifting a massive two-handed barbell, smashing through walls,[22] severing one of the Eight-Tails’ horns;[23] and breaking through Susanoo, an “absolute defense.”[24] A prefers to use wrestling-style moves rather than standard taijutsu, such as powerbombs, backhanded chops, takedowns, and leg drops. A inherited his father’s immense durability, having survived being transported by Mabui’s Heavenly Transfer Technique unharmed.[25] His pain tolerance is quite high, not flinching from cutting off his own arm to escape Amaterasu’s black flames.[26]
Ninjutsu[]
Nature Transformation[]
A’s nature transformations include Lightning and Water Release, His signature technique is the Lightning Release Chakra Mode. By encasing himself in lightning chakra, his thought processing and already immense physical parameters are greatly enhanced. His raw speed and reflexes become comparable to the Yellow Flash.[27] Even the Sharingan had trouble tracing his movements.[28] This speed allows him to create afterimages and evade point-blank attacks.[29][30] His durability is enhanced to the point of withstanding otherwise fatal blow with no more than a small cut.[31] His strength becomes just below that of Tsunade[32] and his offensive might can unleash extremely powerful and fast punches. Alternatively, he can collaborate his Lightning Release with a Water Release user to power up their technique by adding an electrocution-induced paralysis effect.[33]
Part II[]
Pain’s Assault[]
Main article: Naruto: A Shinobi Story/Pain’s Assault (Arc)
Five Kage Summit (Arc)[]
Main articles: Naruto: A Shinobi Story/Five Kage Summit (Arc) and Five Kage Summit (RW109)
Fourth Shinobi World War (Arc)[]
Main articles: Naruto: A Shinobi Story/Fourth Shinobi World War (Arc) and Fourth Shinobi World War (RW109)
Birth of the Ten-Tails’ Jinchūriki[]
Main article: Naruto: A Shinobi Story/Birth of the Ten-Tails’ Jinchūriki
Trivia[]
- His name is the Japanese pronunciation of the English letter “A”. This is similar to the names of several shinobi from his village such as B, C, and F which are the pronunciations of the letter “B”, “C”, and “F” respectively.
- A was left-handed before his self-amputation.[34]
- On the last page of chapter 562, A is depicted with his left hand. This was however corrected in the tankobōn release.
- In the thirteenth opening, A is shown replacing his amputated left arm with an artificial arm made out of Lightning Release chakra as he assaulted Madara's Susanoo with both hands.
- In the anime, within Tsunade’s Infinite Tsukuyomi dream, A, along with Ōnoki and Mei Terumī, were killed and transformed into human puppets by Sasori.
Quotes[]
- (To Naruto) “Shinobi ought not lower their heads so easily, action and power are what shinobi respect! There should be no compromise between shinobi. The history of the human race is a history of war! Ever since the three Shinobi World Wars…Every country…every village has fought has fought for the strongest techniques. The weak will be crushed! That is inescapable truth of the ninja world!” [35]
- (To Killer B) “Discretion is the better part of valor! You would do well to remember that! I don’t need my strong hand, all it takes is my offhand. That’ll more than enough to defeat any man.”[36]
- (To Darui) “I have no regrets about my left arm, because I still have both of my right arms. This one, and you.”[37]
- (To Killer B) “You’re a special being to me! We’re the strongest tag team!”[38]
- (To Naruto) “It seems our savior is alive and well…inside you.”[39]
References[]
- ↑ Naruto chapter 541, page 17
- ↑ Naruto chapter 541, pages 17-19
- ↑ Naruto chapter 541, pages 16-19
- ↑ Naruto chapters 542-543
- ↑ Naruto chapter 542, page 17
- ↑ Naruto chapter 541, page 9
- ↑ Naruto chapter 543, page 13
- ↑ Naruto chapter 543, page 14
- ↑ Naruto chapter 457, page 14
- ↑ Naruto chapter 541, page 13
- ↑ The Last: Naruto the Movie
- ↑ Naruto chapter 456, pages 11-12
- ↑ Naruto chapter 459, page 2
- ↑ Naruto chapter 460, pages 4
- ↑ Naruto chapter 528, page 3
- ↑ Naruto chapter 541, page 15
- ↑ Naruto chapter 588, pages 7-10
- ↑ Sasuke Shinden: Book of Sunrise
- ↑ Naruto chapter 700, page 13
- ↑ Naruto chapter 463, page 12
- ↑ Naruto chapter 544, pages 11-13
- ↑ Naruto chapter 460, page 4
- ↑ Naruto chapter 494, page 2
- ↑ Naruto chapter 463, pages 16-17
- ↑ Naruto chapter 562, page 14
- ↑ Naruto chapter 464, page 6
- ↑ Naruto chapter 462, page 3
- ↑ Naruto chapter 463, pages 13-14
- ↑ Naruto chapter 462, pages 4-5, 7
- ↑ Naruto chapter 463, pages 12-13
- ↑ Naruto chapter 462, pages 16-17
- ↑ Naruto chapter 577, page 3
- ↑ Naruto chapter 588, pages 14-15
- ↑ Naruto chapter 473, page 8
- ↑ Naruto chapter 457, page 14
- ↑ Naruto chapter 473, page 8
- ↑ Naruto chapter 528, pages 3-4
- ↑ Naruto chapter 543, page 16
- ↑ Naruto chapter 544, page 14