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Keiji Shibusawa (渋澤 啓司, Shibusawa Keiji) is a secondary antagonist in Yakuza 0. He is one of the three lieutenants of the Tojo Clan's Dojima Family, and the patriarch of the Shibusawa Family, a Dojima Family subsidiary.

Profile[]

Appearance[]

Shibusawa's face is modeled after his voice actor, Hideo Nakano. He is a middle-aged man, having a round face, sporting a light goatee. Out of the three lieutenants, Shibusawa is the most formal in terms of appearance, save for his hairstyle, which is short at the top and closely shaved on the sides. His hair is black, with a few white strands on his sides and stubble. He stands at above average height, and possesses a fairly muscular build, in spite of his outwardly business-like appearance.

Tattoo[]

Green dragon

Keiji Shibusawa's tattoo (from 10th anniversary book).

Shibusawa's tattoo depicts a green Azure DragonWP, or "Seiryu", one of the four Chinese celestial beings and the protector of eastern Japan. It is shown to be flying downward as a bringer of wealth and prosperity to the earth, befitting of Shibusawa overseeing the Dojima Family's financial matters and bringing in large amounts of money for his boss.

Unlike Kiryu's dragon tattoo, the Seiryu does not appear clutching a pearl — which represents its authority and control of water — indicating that it has not yet found one. This reflects Shibusawa's desire for the same glory, respect and authority that Kiryu would later go on to attain. Furthermore, the dragon is facing right, as opposed to Kiryu's facing left, thus reflecting the inevitable clash between the two.

Attire[]

Shibusawa's wears a black pinstripe suit — in contrast to Kiryu's white pinstripe suit — with a grey dress shirt and gold necktie underneath, and a pin depicting his family's crest on his left jacket lapel. The rest of his attire consists of a black leather belt, gold-frame, rimless wayfare glasses; brown, cap-toe, monk-strap dress shoes; and a gold watch with a black, crocodile-leather band. After a conversation with Dojima, he removes his glasses and stops wearing them from that point onward in the game.

Personality[]

We write in other people's blood. That's the yakuza's way. And I aim to pen my title in yours.

— Shibusawa to Kiryu, Yakuza 0

As one of the three lieutenants of the Dojima Family, Shibusawa is a cold and manipulative man with a talent for obtaining results no matter who he has to use in order to achieve them. If Kuze is the muscle of the family, and Awano is its public face, Shibusawa is the business side, having a knack for economics. He portrays a calm and rational nature initially, being the first lieutenant to give Kiryu the benefit of the doubt concerning his innocence.

However, his rational facade is undercut by a complete lack of empathy and hides a cruel superiority complex, forcing his subordinates, even his own oath brothers, to respect him through fear and threats. He is completely driven by his goal of not only reaching the top, but of carving out a legacy to surpass that of Shintaro Kazama, and willing to spill as much blood as it takes to meet these ends.

Despite his grand ambitions, Shibusawa is never one to rush things in his pursuit of power. He is more than content to remain the man behind his boss, completing tasks given to him and rising to the top through seemingly honest means. This, however, does not mean he is unwilling to resort to insubordination and conspiracy to achieve his goals, as shown by his decision to take Makoto hostage instead of killing her as Dojima ordered him to.

Background[]

Born to the son of a political aide, Shibusawa was inspired to work in politics. However, his father bore responsibility for the actions of his corrupt boss and killed himself. After discovering his body, Shibusawa determined that there was no point in being ethical and honest. Because of this, he joined the Dojima family, being responsible for the financial affairs of the gang.

Involvement[]

Yakuza 0: 1988[]

SPOILER WARNING: Plot details for Yakuza 0 follow. (Skip)
All Dojima lieutenants after Kiryu walk inside

Lieutenants of the Dojima Family.

After Shintaro Kazama was arrested, the spot of the new captain of the Dojima Family was open. All of the three lieutenants, Shibusawa, Daisaku Kuze, and Hiroki Awano, were after that position. And the patriarch of the Dojima Family, Sohei Dojima, promised that whoever gave him the deed of the Empty Lot would be given the rank of captain.

All three lieutenants fought for the rank of captain. Shibusawa trailed behind Kuze and Awano, but after Kuze got deranked by Dojima, he was the closest outside of Awano. To get the rank of lieutenant, he had hired Jun Oda, who secretly worked against Tetsu Tachibana to cover up his involvement in the kidnapping and enslavement of his sister out of fear of Tachibana finding out. After Kuze and Awano both failed to get the Empty Lot, Shibusawa told Dojima he was getting it for him. Not long after, Shibusawa killed Oda after the latter failed to kidnap Makoto Makimura. Shibusawa had also hired Omi Alliance subsidiary the Kijin Clan, led by Homare Nishitani, as (effectively) mercenaries to kidnap Makoto Makimura, but the efforts of Goro Majima caused this to fail in Sotenbori. By bribing a jailer previously allied with Nishitani, Shibusawa was able to cause the deaths of both him and his mentor.

Later, Lao Gui, the most effective hitman in Asia, was able to kidnap Tachibana. Shibusawa gave Tachibana to Daisaku Kuze's family, the Kenno Clan, to have him tortured for information on Makoto's whereabouts. He was killed by Yoneda, meaning the Empty Lot was now in Makimura's possession. While Goro Majima went to get some food, Shibusawa got Makimura and brought her to Dojima, who then rewarded his most loyal lieutenant with Kazama's spot as captain. Lao Gui shot Makimura before fleeing in a helicopter with Dojima and the three lieutenants. Shibusawa returned to the Dojima Family Office with Kuze, Awano, Lao Gui, and Dojima. Awano was visibly displeased with Shibusawa's promotion and almost instigated a physical confrontation. Shibusawa tells the four men that they must initiate a purge of the Kazama Family and its supporters and allies, including the Nikkyo Consortium, so that no one else can stand in the Dojima Family's way.

After Kazuma Kiryu fought Kuze for the last time, it is revealed that Shibusawa ordered Kuze to place bombs in Kazama's office and had Makoto shot, but not killed. He told Lao Gui to keep her alive, so that this would lead him and the Shibusawa Family to Shibaura, the luxury cruise yacht and mobile headquarters of the Nikkyo Consortium where Makoto was taken for treatment. Shibusawa orders his men to raid the ship, before Kiryu and Nishikiyama arrive. Shibusawa smiles at Kiryu smugly and continues to the Consortium ship, where he and his men kill several Consortium members, leaving Kiryu, Nishikiyama, Osamu Kashiwagi, and the Kazama Family to fight through the rest of Shibusawa's men. Shibusawa eventually finds Makoto and forces her doctor to take her with him to the upper levels of the ship, while he waits for Kiryu.

Shibusawa vs Kiryu

Keiji Shibusawa vs. Kazuma Kiryu.

Kiryu and Nishikiyama were forced to split their ways, and Kiryu made it to Shibusawa. Shibusawa orders the doctor to take Makoto and leave, promising to kill Makoto after he finished killing Kiryu. But before their bloody confrontation, Shibusawa revealed the reasons for his actions: That he seeks to prove himself better than Kazama. Kiryu is disgusted that Shibusawa would start a war with Kazama over something so trivial, but Shibusawa says that some men would die to attain glory and reveals how his traumatic past motivated him to achieve glory at all costs. Kiryu is angered by the atrocities he committed to attain glory and says Kazama doesn't compare to the man responsible for Shibusawa's father's suicide, but he simply tells Kiryu that Kazama wasn't a paragon and that because he worked against Dojima, people like Tachibana and Makoto had to suffer. Shibusawa states he will similarly shed blood to initiate his agenda and will kill Kiryu to start it. Then he removes his shirt to show that he has a dragon tattoo like Kiryu and that he wants to become 'Dragon of Dojima.' Although the latter states that he never cared for the moniker, Kiryu says there can only be one dragon and removes his shirt as well, accepting Shibusawa's challenge for a fight. Shibusawa and Kiryu charged at each other and fight, moving to different parts of the ship. In the end, Kiryu emerges victorious. Shibusawa says he learned from Kuze that a real yakuza never gives up and promises to kill Kiryu, Kazama, and Makoto, like he killed Tachibana. Kiryu angrily beats him to bloody pulp. On the verge of death, Shibusawa grins and tells Kiryu to finish him off, so that he could be no morally different than Kazama, but before Kiryu can deal the final blow, he is stopped by Nishikiyama, who convinces Kiryu to not kill him. Shibusawa ended up getting arrested along with Kuze.

SPOILERS END HERE. (Return)

Fighting Style[]

Shibusawa is an adept, formidable combatant — in spite of his appearance as a pencil-pushing businessman — skilled in both martial arts and brute-force fighting. His boss fight is separated into three phases, using a different fighting style in each of them. All three of them are counterparts to Kiryu's own styles in Yakuza 0: Rush, Beast, and Brawler.

Rush[]

Shibusawa uses his Rush style in his first phase. This fighting style revolves around Eastern martial arts, primarily Sanda, whereas Kiryu's is based on Western kickboxing. Much like the latter, he can duck and weave around incoming attacks. His moveset consists of:

  • a Rush Combo, made up of a left jab-right hook, a right front snap kick-right backfist, and a rapid low right backfist-right backfist-left hook-right uppercut;
  • a second combo, made up of a low right roundhouse kick, a right hook-right backfist, and a left front snap kick-high left roundhouse kick;
  • a left side kick,
  • a left jab and a double-fisted punch, before assuming a karate middle-block back stance;
  • a flying right-left front kick-left jab-spinning right backfist,
  • quickstep attacks, including:
    • a right cross-left hook-right cross after forward-stepping (unused),
    • a right/left hook-high right/left side kick after sidestepping right/left respectively, and
    • a left snap kick-spinning right heel kick after backstepping;
  • weave attacks, including:
    • a left jab-right hook after weaving right, and
    • a low right roundhouse kick after weaving left;
  • a command grab where he does a dancing shuffle followed by a low right Thai roundhouse kick, performing a rapid left gut punch-right gut punch-right backfist-left hook-left backfist-right uppercut-right side kick combo that knocks Kiryu down if said kick lands;
  • a right punt kick as a downed attack, and
  • a taunt where he drops his stance and holds his arms out by his sides while mocking Kiryu (unused).

His attack trails in this style are magenta.

Shibusawa's Rush moveset is used by Yasutaka Shirakaba in Lost Judgment's DLC, The Kaito Files, and Kiyoshi Ugajin in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name by extension. A watered-down version is used by Daijiro Saigo in Yakuza 6, as well as some miniboss enemies in the Dragon Engine titles.

Beast[]

When his second phase starts, Shibusawa switches to his Beast style. It does not differ too greatly to Kiryu's, relying on heavy-hitting swings and blows, although he is considerably slower. He also has super armor in this style, making Kiryu's basic attacks ineffective for knocking him down. His moveset is listed follows:

  • his Rush Combo, consisting of a right haymaker, a spinning right heel kick, and a charged right haymaker;
  • a left uppercut-right shoulder strike combo,
  • a leaping double hammerfist,
  • a brainbuster as a grab attack (unused),
  • a left/right side roll (unused), and
  • a jumping right elbow drop as a downed attack.

Shibusawa can also pick up chairs and tables from around the deck and use them as weapons. His object moveset includes:

  • a spinning rightward swing after picking up a chair/table,
  • a one-handed downward diagonal left swing-downward diagonal right swing combo when wielding a chair,
  • a table combo consisting of a downward diagonal left swing, a downward diagonal right swing, another downward diagonal left swing, and another downward diagonal right swing;
  • a charged downward swing that breaks the object followed by a battle cry, which functions as a Finishing Blow for his combos; and
  • throwing an object at Kiryu.

His attack trails in this style are yellow with orange accents.

Shibusawa's Beast moveset is also used by So Amon for his second phase in the same game, and by some common large enemies in the Dragon Engine titles. His object attacks are also reused by Hiroshi Hayashi in Yakuza Kiwami.

Brawler[]

Shibusawa uses his Brawler style in the third and final phase of the fight. It appears to be a more refined counterpart to Kiryu's, utilizing slow but powerful punches, kicks, headbutts and counterattacks, as well as some Judo and pro wrestling moves.

His combos are listed below:

  • a Rush Combo consisting of a left jab, a right cross, an overhand left, and a left side kick;
  • a second combo, made up of a left uppercut, an overhand right, and a right rising kick; and
  • a third combo comprised of a right superman punch, and a ducking headbutt that can stun Kiryu.

The rest of his moveset includes:

  • a right rising kick,
  • a right haymaker-left haymaker (used), followed by another right-left haymaker (unused), and a right superman punch;
  • a knockback-right hook command grab as a guard reversal, followed by a left lariat takedown and a hammerfist to the face;
  • three damage reversals, including:
    • a lunging headbutt when hit on the head,
    • a high left side kick when hit in the center-mass, and
    • a low right push kick when hit on the legs;
  • quickstep attacks, including:
    • a right downward elbow strike after forward-stepping (unused),
    • a right/left uppercut after sidestepping right/left respectively, and
    • a high right side kick after backstepping;
  • a command grab where he headbutts Kiryu before executing a large outer reap, followed by a ground-and-pound;
  • a charged running command grab where he leaps around Kiryu and drags his head down on his right knee when he lands;
  • a hopping right punt kick as a downed attack, and
  • a taunt where he drops his arms and shakes head to the right (unused).

Shibusawa immediately enters Heat Mode when the third phase begins. He emits a pale red, blazing aura, and his attack trails are now a fiery mixture of yellow, orange and magenta.

Shibusawa's Brawler moveset is reused by Renji Honda in both Judgment and Lost Judgment, and some bosses and miniboss enemies in the Dragon Engine titles use a limited variant of it, such as Akira Mizorogi in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name.

Gallery[]

Yakuza 0[]

Ryu Ga Gotoku Online[]

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