Kazama Genba is a character from the anime The Elusive Samurai. He is a notorious thief originally operating in the region of Shinano, whose reputation for thievery and deception becomes known even to the Suwa clan. Genba comes from a complicated background; he is a member of the Kazama clan, which is itself a branch of the Suwa family. His father was a loyal retainer whose skills were deemed dishonorable, leading to accusations of theft and the eventual disgrace and downfall of their household. From his father, Genba inherited not only his thieving techniques and his name but also a cynical worldview, adopting the creed that one should trust nothing but money. After his father died, Genba continued the family trade, wearing the fox mask left to him as he built a reputation as a master thief in Kikyogahara.

In terms of personality, Genba is highly confident in his abilities and possesses a colorful, conniving, and often vulgar demeanor. He is openly greedy, with a pronounced love for money and women, and he enjoys using tricks and schemes to get what he wants. He takes pleasure in making people suffer, particularly those who fail to pay him for his services. Despite his crude and sometimes obscene behavior, his cynical and greedy exterior hides a more complicated set of loyalties forged by the injustices he experienced as a child. His personal motto reflects his belief that no human being is without hidden motives.

Genba's role in the story begins when he is scouted by Suwa Yorishige, who recognizes his unique talents are essential for the young Hojo Tokiyuki's cause. Yorishige tasks Tokiyuki with recruiting Genba, leading to an initial encounter where Genba mocks Tokiyuki as a naive rich kid. He agrees to help steal an important document from the Ogasawara clan but only under the condition that Tokiyuki will grant him an entire territory as payment once he has reclaimed his position. During the mission, when their escape becomes perilous, Genba considers abandoning Tokiyuki. However, when Tokiyuki protects him from pursuers and is injured in the process, Genba is genuinely moved by the boy's sincerity and determination. He then fully commits his skills to ensure their mutual escape, formally joining Tokiyuki's group as a member of the Elusive Warriors.

Key relationships define much of his development. He is initially distrustful of Tokiyuki, seeing him as an untested and naive noble, but evolves to respect his resolve, becoming a loyal friend and comrade. He is brought into the fold by the cunning Suwa Yorishige, who values his abilities as a tool for Tokiyuki's ambitions. Within the group, Genba's skill set is unique; he specializes in infiltration, deception, and sabotage, providing a cunning alternative to the more direct frontal approaches of some of his allies. He often serves as a comedic foil and a chaotic, unpredictable agent within the party.

Genba's most notable ability is his mastery of disguise, centered on his fox mask. The mask is made of a special, moldable material that allows him to alter his face and completely impersonate another person with incredible accuracy, a skill that makes him a master of infiltration for espionage and theft. He is also an expert thief, capable of picking locks, stealing items, and moving at high speeds to evade capture. He employs tools like smoke bombs to facilitate his escapes. As a practitioner of what could be considered the original ninja arts, his skills are a combination of stealth, sabotage, camouflage, and information gathering. His cunning and deceptive talents are so potent that even the perceptive Yorishige could be fooled by his impersonations, marking him as one of the group's most valuable assets for any mission requiring a subtle touch. He even demonstrates the ability to create powerful bombs and, on one occasion, forces a captured enemy ninja to help him manufacture more of these explosives.