OVA
Description
Mitsunari Tokugawa oversees and promotes the no-rules combat Underground Arena beneath the Tokyo Dome, pitting fighters from diverse martial arts backgrounds against each other. As the 13th head of the Tokugawa clan, he claims descent from Tokugawa Mitsukuni and bears the title "Noble Elder." Despite his advanced age, small stature (147 cm/4'10"), bald head, and grey eyes, he wields considerable influence through extensive political and military connections, including friendships with Japanese prime ministers and US Army General Gerry Strydum.
He possesses a profound, near-obsessive fascination with martial arts and combat spectacles, maintaining encyclopedic knowledge of techniques despite not being a practitioner. His arena management reflects a complex moral code: he manipulates match outcomes or bends rules to intensify fights, such as threatening his medical staff to let Baki Hanma battle Jack Hanma continue. Yet he imposes limits on excessive violence, opposing cannibalistic acts by the prehistoric fighter Pickle and intervening to prevent Pickle from preying on Kaiou Retsu and Katsumi Orochi. He displays rare empathy, weeping after Doppo Orochi's near-fatal encounter with Yujiro Hanma and blaming himself for Retsu's death after lifting the arena's weapon ban for Retsu's duel with Musashi Miyamoto.
His history intersects with major fighters early on. Teenage Baki Hanma infiltrated the Tokugawa estate, defeated his bodyguards—including Shuumei Kanou—and petitioned Mitsunari for arena access, which was granted. Mitsunari later engineered pivotal matches, pitting Baki against Koushou Shinogi and orchestrating the "Maximum Tournament" to determine the world's strongest fighter. His cunning extends beyond matchmaking; he once subdued Yujiro Hanma by covertly deploying snipers armed with tranquilizers potent enough to immobilize a blue whale.
Across the series, his attire—a distinctive green kimono earlier and a blue-brown kimono later—underscores his status. Relationships with fighters like Doppo Orochi and Igari Kanji blend genuine camaraderie with utilitarian interest in their combat prowess. In the *Baki Hanma* storyline, he facilitated encounters involving non-human fighters like Pickle, prioritizing spectacle over ethical concerns, though he later expressed regret after catastrophic outcomes. His actions consistently reinforce his dual role as a ruthless impresario of violence and a guardian of his vision of martial arts integrity.
He possesses a profound, near-obsessive fascination with martial arts and combat spectacles, maintaining encyclopedic knowledge of techniques despite not being a practitioner. His arena management reflects a complex moral code: he manipulates match outcomes or bends rules to intensify fights, such as threatening his medical staff to let Baki Hanma battle Jack Hanma continue. Yet he imposes limits on excessive violence, opposing cannibalistic acts by the prehistoric fighter Pickle and intervening to prevent Pickle from preying on Kaiou Retsu and Katsumi Orochi. He displays rare empathy, weeping after Doppo Orochi's near-fatal encounter with Yujiro Hanma and blaming himself for Retsu's death after lifting the arena's weapon ban for Retsu's duel with Musashi Miyamoto.
His history intersects with major fighters early on. Teenage Baki Hanma infiltrated the Tokugawa estate, defeated his bodyguards—including Shuumei Kanou—and petitioned Mitsunari for arena access, which was granted. Mitsunari later engineered pivotal matches, pitting Baki against Koushou Shinogi and orchestrating the "Maximum Tournament" to determine the world's strongest fighter. His cunning extends beyond matchmaking; he once subdued Yujiro Hanma by covertly deploying snipers armed with tranquilizers potent enough to immobilize a blue whale.
Across the series, his attire—a distinctive green kimono earlier and a blue-brown kimono later—underscores his status. Relationships with fighters like Doppo Orochi and Igari Kanji blend genuine camaraderie with utilitarian interest in their combat prowess. In the *Baki Hanma* storyline, he facilitated encounters involving non-human fighters like Pickle, prioritizing spectacle over ethical concerns, though he later expressed regret after catastrophic outcomes. His actions consistently reinforce his dual role as a ruthless impresario of violence and a guardian of his vision of martial arts integrity.