Hell’s Paradise: Who Is Rokurōta & Why Is He So Powerful?

Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku, sometimes referred to as simply Hell’s Paradise, is a manga series that was created by Yūji Kaku, who both wrote and illustrated it. The manga was first released on January 22, 2018, and it was freely serialized on the Shōnen Jump+ app and website. Hell’s Paradise is filled with some amazing and memorable characters, and in this article, we have decided to talk about one specific character in the series – the criminal Rokurōta. In this article, you will find out everything about Rokurōta and how he is so powerful.

The Giant of Bizen, which is what Rokurōta’s nickname was, was born with an unusual case of gigantism and, as a child, spent most of his time eating and playing with rocks until, one day, he killed his parents and his whole village. The source of his enormous strength has not been explained, but he was able to kill Eizen, injure Genji, and almost defeat Gabimaru before being killed by the latter and Sagiri.

The rest of this article will focus on Rokurōta and his story in the Hell’s Paradise series. Rokurōta was one of the most intriguing criminals in the Hell’s Paradise lore, and it only makes sense that the fans want to know what happened to this guy, so we have decided to compose this article. This article will contain some spoilers from the Hell’s Paradise manga, so be careful how you approach it.

Rokurōta’s past reveals little about him

We first see Rokurōta along with the other criminals, gathered by the shogun, who informs them of the mission; at the time, he was just sleeping. His first full appearance was on the island. Namely, as the most skilled executioner, Yamada Asaemon Eizen was assigned to watch over the giant Rokurōta.

Rokurōta was known to be a monster, and it only makes sense that Eizen was assigned to him as the highest-ranked executioner. And while it seemed like Eizen would definitely be able to control Rokurōta, the situation did not play out well for the Asaemon. Namely, as they arrived on the island, Rokurōta woke up and walked behind Eizen. Eizen noticed that and asked Rokurōta whether he was hungry but got no reply; Rokurōta simply kept staring at him grimly.

Eizen realized he was in danger and began drawing his sword immediately. Rokurōta soon charged at him with his gigantic hand, and Eizen was quick to draw his blade and attack him, but the blade simply broke into pieces upon contact with Rokurōta’s hand, shocking the Asaemon. The gigantic hand soon struck the executioner as well, and his body was crushed on a nearby tree.

The scene was a bloody mess, and we would soon see Rokurōta eating something from his bloody hand, probably Eizen’s head, as it was not seen when his corpse was shown. But, while Rokurōta did kill and eat Eizen at the time, nothing else was revealed about the giant.

We later discovered that he was a giant since birth, being born with an unusual case of gigantism. He lived with his family, and as a baby, he spent most of his time eating or playing with rocks. One day, he brutally murdered and probably ate his parents and then killed his whole village, after which he was arrested. The shogun would later offer him a pardon if he went on the mission to search for the Elixir of Life, which he accepted. And it was on the island that he killed Eizen and went on to explore the island in search of new food, always silent and creepy.

At one point, Rokurōta arrived where Gabimaru, Genji, Sagiri, Yuzuriha, and Senta were and immediately attacked Genji. Gabimaru faced Rokurōta initially, but although he could hit the giant, he did not do any damage; Sagiri, in the meantime, obtained Genji’s sword from him. Yuzuriha refused to participate in the fight and would, at one point, run away with Senta.

Gabimaru, on the other hand, told Sagiri that he would fight Rokurōta but that she would have to cut his head off; Sagiri agreed, but she said that they had to get Rokurōta down on his knees, as his neck was too high for her to cut.

Gabimaru then used his special Ninpō: Hibōshi technique and combined it with several ninjutsu techniques, launching a series of attacks on the giant, which the latter reflected. But this was part of Gabimaru’s plan. Namely, the flames Rokurōta reflected burned the surrounding forest, and Rokurōta started coughing and choking from the smoke. This ultimately forced him to get down on his knees, and at that moment, Sagiri used the opportunity to behead and kill Rokurōta, which she ultimately did. And that is how the giant, silent criminal perished in the series.

Rokurōta’s powers and abilities were unbelievable

Rokurōta’s powers were never really explained, but we know a lot about them and how they manifested themselves; we just don’t know how and why he became so powerful. We also know that his elemental attribute was Wood, but he never used any elemental attacks, so we don’t really know how this aspect manifested itself in Rokurōta’s case. What little we saw of his powers were simply physical attacks that would destroy his opponents physically and nothing else; he was never a man of many words, and that approach was also reflected in his fighting style.

His most distinguishing feature was his enormous strength. Rokurōta was exceptionally powerful, as everyone who encountered him noted; this was partially due to his gigantism, but there must have been something else, something that the author never explained to us. And while we don’t know what it is, we can confirm that Rokurōta was one of the strongest characters in the whole series. When he was young, he killed his parents and his whole village.

He could shatter Eizen’s blade instantly and completely crush a large portion of the executioner’s body, leaving no trace of it. He was also able to pierce a large hole in Genji’s torso and was known for eating live bears starting from the head. Gabimaru, a defensive specialist, was likewise injured by Rokurōta’s attacks, and he himself commented on how powerful Rokurōta was, stating that even one blow from him could be fatal, as he was – indeed – that powerful.

On top of that, Sagiri also deduced that Rokurōta was unconsciously using his Tao, the life force present in all beings that could be used to enhance various abilities of the user, which made him so durable. Gabimaru’s physical attacks did not affect Rokurōta, but even his Ninpō: Ikari Tsubute and Ninpō: Hibōshi techniques were easily deflected by the giant criminal.

His body could also not be penetrated by swords or other weapons, although he could be beheaded, just like everyone else, as proven when Sagiri did it. And while such a body would make you think that Rokurōta was slow, he was exceptionally fast and had enormous reflexes, which is yet another element that made him so difficult an opponent.

As for his weaknesses, we’ve said that he could be beheaded just like everyone else, and from what we could understand, he wasn’t able to use any special elemental attacks like Gabimaru; he was using his Tao unconsciously, so it is highly probable that he never had any formal training nor was he able to use any specific techniques. He also lacked tactical intelligence, as he was easily outwitted by Gabimaru and Sagiri without him even knowing what hit him. He was all raw power, and since he did not face many opponents who could counter that power, he didn’t have to use his brain while fighting anyone; he would simply overpower them.