RYUKI

Real Name: Ryuki

Identity/Class: Extradimensional (Ashurado) demon;
    19th century and modern era

Occupation: Demon, soul-devourer; would be world conqueror/destroyer

Group Membership: Demons of Ashurado

Affiliations: Followers of Ashurado, Hana, Shisengumi, various demons of Ashurado

Enemies: Amiko Kobayashi, Oinari, Shosei Order, Wolverine (Logan/James Howlett), Mana Yanowa, Yukio

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Ashurado, the fourth level of Hell (at least in Japanese/Shinto? mythology);
    formerly bonded to Hana;
    formerly trapped within the Mark of Mana

First Appearance: (Behind-the-scenes, unidentified) Wolverine: Soultaker#1 (May, 2005);
    (mentioned) Wolverine: Soultaker#2 (May, 2005);
    (seen) Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (June, 2005)

Powers/Abilities: As a demon, Ryuki was likely immune to aging, conventional disease and many forms of conventional injury (he is, however, highly vulnerable to gold).

    Ryuki's spirit can be summoned to Earth by magic-users, but he needs to accumulate sufficient power in order to open a dimensional gateway and bring his body to Earth. Via certain means, he can also summon and control lesser demons of great power from Ashurado.

    Ryuki can reanimate and control the dead. He gains power from absorbing the souls of innocent beings slain by his agents and/or his undead minions. He can bond to and control even powerful magic-users, though his connection can be severed by gold.

    Ryuki/Hana briefly wielded the Blade of Blood.

Height: Unrevealed (his torso was seen floating overtop Hana, but we never saw his legs and/or him standing; based on his dimensions in comparison to Hana, I'd guess he was maybe 5'8 - 6' tall)
Weight: Unrevealed (from what we could see, I'd make him 175 lbs. at human density...maybe heavier because he was a demon, maybe lighter because he was made of mystic energy or ectoplasm or something)
Eyes: Orange sclera, black iris (or possibly the giant black dot was pupil...)
Hair: White
Skin: Light green

History:
(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb)) <1864 AD> - Hana -- the self-exiled twin sister of Mana, ruler of the Shosei order, who defended Japan from demons, curses, and magical threats over the centuries -- eventually returned and sought to assume control of the Shosei Order via her dark powers. As Mana and Hana battled, Hana loosed the ancient demon Ryuki, a demon from Ashurado, the fourth level of Hell, with the power to control the dead. Beyond Hana's ability to control, Ryuki possessed Hana's body and sought to have his undead minions slay innocent victims whose souls Ryuki would absorb, increasing his own power. Once sufficiently powerful, Ryuki would be able to open a gateway at the Bridge of Six Realms and crossover from Hell into Earth in his own body.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb) - BTS) - Ryuki started his mission by taking Hana to Mibu-Zuka and reanimating the Shisengumi, eleven of the most deadly samurai to ever live; they had been executed as traitors when the shogunate fell.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb)) - With no time to come up with a more permanent solution, Mana trapped Ryuki's soul within her (Mana's necklace), but was forced to also trap both Hana's and her own soul within the necklace as well.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb) - BTS) - The Shosei Order protected Mana and Hana's bodies and the necklace, the Mark of Mana, in hopes of finding a way to save their imprisoned souls. Decades passed as no spell could be found that would release the sisters without freeing Ryuki.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb) - BTS) - One night, an Ashurado cult that had long worshipped Ryuki stormed the Shosei shrine and stole Hana's body and the Mark of Mana. However, without Mana's body they could not perform the spell to release Ryuki.
    For years the Shosei Order kept Mana's body hidden while the Followers of Ashurado searched for it.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#1 (fb) - BTS) - The thief Yukio stole the Mark of Mana necklace from the temple the Followers of Ashurado, after which she began to hear a female voice, muttering about twin sisters, ancient evil, and the end of the world.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#1 - BTS) - Wolverine brought Yukio and the Mark of Mana to see Kenichiro, a friend of his versed in Japanese mysticism. They were ambushed by the Followers of Ashurado; Kenichiro was slain, but Wolverine and Yukio polished off their attackers and departed with the Mark of Mana, which granted Logan visions of Hana & Mana. It told him where to go to start looking for answers.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#2 - BTS) - Logan followed the Mark's guidance to travel to Kyoto where he located the Servants of Shosei temple holding Mana's body, after which they were all attacked by more of the Followers of Ashurado. The Servants of Shosei fell before the powerful Ashurado followers, but not before their leader told Logan to take Mana and her blade and flee, and he fought his way out. Logan took Mana's inert body to a distant house and placed the Mark of Mana on her, hoping that this would allow Mana to tell him what to do. Contact with the Mark indeed awakened Mana, restoring her soul to her body, but it also released Hana's spirit (and Ryuki's as well)

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3) - Mana explained the threat to the planet to Logan, and the two joined forces: Mana blessed and purified his whole body and gave him a set of gloves.
    As Mana expected, Hana and Ryuki again started their efforts by raising the Shisengumi outside the Mibu-Zuka temple. Hana used her black-beaded necklace in the spell to raise the Shisengumi.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#4) - As Ryuki/Hana prepared to unleash the Shisengumi, Wolverine appeared, noting that the the Shisengumi had been caught and slain in the past, and that he was there to make sure history repeated itself. Ryuki/Hana mocked him as a foreign animal; though sensing the Shosei purification aura surrounding him, she felt it was pointless as we was lacking weapons; however, Logan revealed his claws and destroyed the Shisengumi. Ryuki/Hana then told Logan that Mana could end their struggle by delivering to them the Blade of Blood at the Bridge of Six Realms at sunset tomorrow; and if Mana failed to do so, Ryuki/Hana would bring Hell to Earth.
    Meanwhile, Mana learned from the god Oinari that Ryuki's weakness was to gold (similar to how many spirits had weakness to silver or iron). She met with Logan soon after Ryuki/Hana's departure, having correctly assumed Ryuki/Hana would want the Blade of Blood and brought it with her; she knew that Ryuki wished to use the power of the Blade's souls to open a gateway to Ashurado. She gave Logan the Blade, telling him he would wield it against Ryuki/Hana at the proposed meeting place, as this would be their chance to put an end to Hana's madness once and for all and to send Ryuki's spirit back to Ashurado.

 

 

 

 

(Wolverine: Soultaker#4 - BTS / Wolverine: Soultaker#5 (fb) - BTS) - Mana led Logan to acquire some gold, which they used to coat the claws on his right hand.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#5 (fb) - BTS) - Ryuki's agents ambushed and captured Yukio, as well as Logan's adoptive daughter, Amiko Kobayashi.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#4) - The next day, Mana and Logan (wielding the Blade of Blood), met Ryuki/Hana and Ryuki and Ryuki's demon legions at the Bridge of Six Realms at sunset.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#5) - Ryuki/Hana demanded Mana hand over the Blade of Blood, but Mana refused, denouncing Hana as no longer being her sister and telling Ryuki they would use the Blade to destroy him. Using her blade and her mystic spells, Mana aided Logan in slaughtering Ryuki's demon-monsters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ryuki/Hana then summoned a number of harpy-creatures carrying Yukio and Amiko and demanded Logan surrender the Blade to save their lives. Despite Mana's protests, Logan gave the Blade to Ryuki/Hana who then used it to knock Logan away. As the demon prepared to add Yukio and Amiko to his soul harvest, Mana opposed him, using her smaller blade to counter the Blade of Blood. As they battled, Mana apologized, noting that she had been left no choice, and then Logan impaled Ryuki with his gold-coated claws, and then severed the bone between Ryuki and Hana. Telling Hana her fate belonged with her demon lover, Ryuki, in Hell, Mana plunged her dagger into Hana's chest, killing her.
    With Hana's death, Ryuki and his demons were cast back to Ashurado.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments: Created by Akira Yoshida and Shin "Jason" Nagasawa.

    You can tell the difference b/t Hana and Mana by the dots between their eyebrows. Hana has a single row of dots, while Mana has two rows of dots.

    Mana noted that while the dead were usually cremated in Japan, criminals and murderers were often executed and buried as authorities felt they did not deserve the honor of being cremated.

    There are no images the clearly show Ryuki in full body; he is generally pictured as bonded to Hana's back; when he is shown solo and is pulled back into Ashurado, only his torso and head are shown...he may have been physically cut in half when Wolverine severed his connection to Hana, but it's not clear.

    The Shisengumi were a real, historical group. Google them. How exactly the Marvel's history matched the real world, historic version, is unrevealed.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Ryuki should be distinguished from:

Followers of Ashurado

 

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb) - BTS) - The Shosei Order protected Mana and Hana's bodies and the necklace, the Mark of Mana, in hopes of finding a way to save their imprisoned souls. Decades passed as no spell could be found that would release the sisters without freeing Ryuki.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb) - BTS) - One night, an Ashurado cult that had long worshipped Ryuki stormed the Shosei shrine and stole Hana's body and the Mark of Mana. However, without Mana's body they could not perform the spell to release Ryuki.
    For years the Shosei Order kept Mana's body hidden while the Followers of Ashurado searched for it.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#1 (fb) - BTS) - The thief Yukio stole the Mark of Mana necklace from the temple the Followers of Ashurado, after which she began to hear a female voice, muttering about twin sisters, ancient evil, and the end of the world.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#1 - BTS) - Wolverine brought Yukio and the Mark of Mana to see Kenichiro, a friend of his versed in Japanese mysticism. They were ambushed by the Followers of Ashurado; Kenichiro was slain, but Wolverine and Yukio polished off their attackers and departed with the Mark of Mana, which granted Logan visions of Hana & Mana. It told him where to go to start looking for answers.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#2 - BTS) - Logan followed the Mark's guidance to travel to Kyoto where he located the Servants of Shosei temple holding Mana's body, after which they were all attacked by more of the Followers of Ashurado. The Servants of Shosei fell before the powerful Ashurado followers, but not before their leader told Logan to take Mana and her blade and flee, and he fought his way out. Logan took Mana's inert body to a distant house and placed the Mark of Mana on her, hoping that this would allow Mana to tell him what to do. Contact with the Mark indeed awakened Mana, restoring her soul to her body, but it also released Hana's spirit (and Ryuki's as well)

--Wolverine: Soultaker#1;
    1-5

 

Shisengumi

 

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb) - BTS) - The Shisengumi were eleven of the most deadly samurai to ever live. They were brutal killing machines who swore revenge when they were executed as traitors when the shogunate fell.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3 (fb) - BTS) - Ryuki started his mission by taking Hana to Mibu-Zuka temple and reanimating the Shisengumi.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#3) - Mana explained the threat to the planet to Logan, and the two joined forces: Mana blessed and purified his whole body and gave him a set of gloves.
    As Mana expected, Hana and Ryuki again started their efforts by raising the Shisengumi outside the Mibu-Zuka temple. Hana used her black-beaded necklace in the spell to raise the Shisengumi.

(Wolverine: Soultaker#4) - As Ryuki/Hana prepared to unleash the Shisengumi, Wolverine appeared, noting that the the Shisengumi had been caught and slain in the past, and that he was there to make sure history repeated itself. Ryuki/Hana mocked him as a foreign animal; though sensing the Shosei purification aura surrounding him, she felt it was pointless as we was lacking weapons; however, Logan revealed his claws and destroyed the Shisengumi.

 

 

--Wolverine: Soultaker#3;
    3-4

images: (without ads)
Wolverine: Soultaker#3, pg. 13, panel 5 (Shisengumi alive);
        p19, panel 3 (Hana w/ Ryuki);
            panel 4 (faces);
        pg. 21-22 (Shisengumi reanimated);
    #2, pg. 15, panel 2 (Followers of Ashurado);
        pg. 16, panel 3 (eyes close-up);
    #4, pg. 21-22 (Ryuki/Hana with forces of Ashurado);
    #5, pg. 20, panel 2 (severed from Hana);

Appearances:
Wolverine: Soultaker#1-2 (May, 2005) - Akira Yoshida (writer), Shin "Jason" Nagasawa (artist), John Barber (assistant editor), Nick Lowe (editor)
Wolverine: Soultaker#3-4 (June-July, 2005) - Akira Yoshida (writer), Shin "Jason" Nagasawa (artist), Sean Ryan & John Barber (assistant editor), Nick Lowe (editor), Mike Marts (consulting editor)
Wolverine: Soultaker#5 (August, 2005) - Akira Yoshida (writer), Shin "Jason" Nagasawa (artist), Sean Ryan  (assistant editor), Nick Lowe (editor), Mike Marts (consulting editor)

Last updated: 06/15/14

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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