15 Strongest ‘Rurouni Kenshin’ Characters, Ranked

Rurouni Kenshin is a manga by Nobuhiro Watsuki. It was published between 1994 and 1999 and was compiled into a total of twenty-eight volumes. It was adapted into a 95-episode animated television series as well as an animated film. In addition, a series of OVA episodes were also released. A new anime adaptation by studio Liden Films premieres in July 2023 as a re-adaptation of the manga. As fans will know, the characters of the series are one of the things that make the series so great, and in this article, we are going to talk about these characters.

Namely, this article will present you with a list of the fifteen most powerful Rurouni Kenshin characters as they have appeared in the manga and the anime. They will be ranked by their strength, starting from 15th to 1st place. We will not just list the characters for you but also tell you a bit about each of them so you know who they are and why they are so strong in the story.

15. Yūkyūzan Anji

An ex-monk named Anji Yūkyūzan fights alongside Makoto Shishio to overthrow the Meiji administration since it does little to halt the anti-Buddhist campaign. Five orphaned children that Anji looked after at his temple perished as a result, and his home was destroyed. Even though he is no longer a monk, he still holds many Buddhist views.

His current conviction is to purge the world of evil, led by the instinct for justice and beginning on the side of evil.

14. Kamiya Kaoru

After her father’s passing, Kaoru Himura became the heiress and instructor of the Kamiya Dojo. When individuals are slain by a man posing as Hitokiri Battōsai of the Kamiya Kasshin-ryu one day, his school’s reputation is damaged, and all of his students decide to leave.

The actual Hitokiri Battōsai, Kenshin Himura, who has now left his home and vowed to quit killing, intervenes to protect Kaoru from this usurper. Throughout the story, Kaoru develops a bond with Kenshin, who is perpetually troubled by his previous actions and feels that he is unworthy of happiness.

13. Myōjin Yahiko

Yahiko is the character who undergoes the greatest evolution during the story: from a weak street boy to a skilled swordsman. Although not gifted with natural talents like Sōjirō Seta or Yutary Tsukayama, and lacking the battle experience of Kenshin, Saito, or Aoshi, thanks to commitment and willpower, Yahiko manages to defeat much stronger opponents throughout the story of him, so as to be defined by Kaoru as the “strongest ten-year old in Japan.”

In addition to sword techniques, due to his past as a street boy, Yahiko is also an excellent pickpocket, capable of stealing small objects without the victim noticing; however, due to his proud nature, Yahiko despises this ability and is usually used only if the situation calls for it.

12. Makimachi Misao

Makimachi attempts to steal Kenshin’s money, then protests when he insists on returning the thieves’ money to its original owner. Kenshin realizes that she is good at kung fu, and her outfit is not standard. After returning the money to the owner, the two walk away, and Misao Makimachi explains that she’s looking for someone and lives in Kyoto, returning there after being in Tokyo.

But the brigands she stole from are coming back in force. Backed onto a bridge, Kenshin brings it down, as the thieves and Misao are all guilty. A little stunned after the fall, Misao tells Kenshin that he is certainly less strong than the one she is looking for, Aoshi and his Obiwabanshû companions.

11. Udō Jin-e

A strong warrior, Udō Jin-e was a significant foe in the Tokyo Arc. Jin-e employs the Nikaido Ryu technique known as the “Cut of the Heart,” which involves hypnosis through the gaze and is based on human influenceability.

For instance, he is able to hypnotize its targets, making them believe they can’t move, causing the victims to remain paralyzed, or it can suffocate the victims, making them believe they can’t breathe, causing the victims to remain unconscious.

10. Sagara Sanosuke

Sanosuke is a first-rate fighter thanks to his extraordinary skills: he possesses prodigious strength due to the continuous use of his zanbato, an incredibly heavy weapon which, however, he is able to handle with great fluency; even after the latter’s destruction, Sanosuke retains his strength unchanged, being able to knock a normal person away with a single punch, or quietly break through a wall with his bare hands.

However, Sanosuke’s most amazing ability is his great physical resistance: he is able to take very violent blows without being particularly affected and to continue fighting even with wounds that would kill an ordinary person.

9. Okita Sōji

Okita Sōji was the captain of the first squad of the Shinsengumi. Although he was a sick man suffering from tuberculosis, he was exceptionally powerful and skilled. He was credited as one of the best swordsmen of the Shinsengumi and is known for his own technique, the Mumyō-ken. Despite his sickness, He was shown to hold his own against Kenshin.

8. Yukishiro Enishi

Einishi is the younger brother of the deceased Yukishiro Tomoe and a secondary villain from the Jinchū Arc. Enishi’s fighting technique is Watojutsu, a style composed of kenjutsu and the Chinese sword technique, however, used with the Wato. Watojutsu combines the speed of kenjutsu swings with the flexibility of typical Chinese swordsmanship. Enishi creates his Watōjutsu from a manual he finds in his guardians’ house.

7. Seta Sōjirō

The serene-appearing Seta Sōjirō is the Juppongatana’s swiftest member and a strong shinobi and assassin. Shishio refers to Sōjirō as the Sword of Heaven because he believes that his natural talent for kenjustu comes from heaven.

Sōjirō’s fencing style is unrelated to any particular school, but he exhibits exceptional skill in the Batto technique, which involves quickly drawing the sword from its sheath and having the ability to essentially kill the opponent with a single blow, almost on the same level as Kenshin. The lack of emotions is Sōjirō’s second strength; as a result of the abuse he endured as a youngster, Sōjirō unintentionally suppresses all of his violent emotions except joy.

6. Uonuma Usui

The second-strongest Juppongatana member is Uonuma Usui. Usui’s primary ability is in the so-called “Mind’s Eye”: after losing his sight while fighting Shishio, Usui developed his hearing almost superhumanly, moving and fighting exactly like he could see normally.

Usui’s hearing also allows him to infer moods from a person by carefully listening to his heart rate and discerning his fighting position from the sounds made by muscles and bones.

5. Saitō Hajime

Saito’s main technique is called Gatotsu (Fang Strike). Saito positions himself in high guard, at a certain distance from the opponent, keeping the sword parallel to the ground, withdraws his left arm back, and inserts the tip of the sword between his fingers of the right hand; the attack essentially consists of a very powerful lunge carried on the run.

The blow of the “zeroshiki” fangs constitutes his final technique, with which he is able to generate devastating power: the first to suffer it is Usui Uonuma, who is literally dismembered and impaled on the wall. Saito also uses a technique called Hirazuki (Horizontal Strike), consisting of a straight slash that goes from right to left or vice versa. He claims that there are no dead angles in this blow, making it a powerful attack and difficult to dodge.

4. Shinomori Aoshi

Shinomori Aoshi is a previous antagonist from the show and one of its most talented shinobi. Aoshi is a talented ninja, and the kodachi is his preferred weapon.

He started out solely with a short sword, but over time, he embraced the two-sword approach. They appear to be one long sword when they are in the scabbard, but the enemy disguises the second kodachi by utilizing the same material for its handle as the scabbard. His primary method is Kodachi Nito Ryu.

3. Shishio Makoto

One of the series’ main and strongest antagonists is Makoto Shishio. Shishio’s Mugenjin sword, which has been soaked in the fat of his victims throughout time, is one of his weapons. He can use a firing method that he finds pleasing as a result.

Shishio, like Kenshin, is skilled at memorizing his opponent’s moves and identifying his strengths and weaknesses, giving him a significant advantage over him. He is incredibly determined to live, almost as powerful as Kenshin.

2. Himura Kenshin

Kenshin is a samurai. Having become a vagabond with the advent of the Meiji era, he wanders aimlessly in the country. He always wears a saber, which often gets him in trouble with the authorities (wearing a saber was banned in 1870). He cannot slay opponents in battle since his saber has a reversing blade (sakabato).

He might easily wield his sword by turning the blade over, but he prohibits himself from doing so. He vowed to protect all the people he could after finishing the Meiji Era Restoration and killing for it, which included never killing again. He offers to stay with Kaoru for a while, not as a Battōsai but rather as an ordinary traveler, after assisting her in preserving the reputation of his kendo dojo.

1. Hiko Seijūrō XIII

The strongest swordsman in the series, Seijūrō Hiko, is much more adept than Kenshin. In fact, while preparing for the Ougi, Kenshin attacks Hiko, using all of his focused might and energy, but only succeeds in stealing one of her bracelets.

Although they move at roughly the same speed, Hiko is more intuitive in battle and possesses superhuman strength when using the Mitsurugi Hiten technique. He especially excels in the Kuzu Ryusen, which is his favorite move. After fifteen years, the teacher and student reunite, and at this point, Kenshin will complete his training. To do so, he must first defeat Seijūrō Hiko’s ego and exceptional combat skills.