TV-Series
Description
Osawa Fusataro, better known as Botaro the Pirate, is a bandit and former prisoner of Abashiri Prison who appears in the later portion of Golden Kamuy as one of the escaped tattooed convicts. He is a tall, muscular Japanese man with very long black hair, distinctive eyebrows, and a beard, and he was born near Asahikawa in Hokkaido. He carries an extensive criminal record made up of dozens of prior convictions for robbery and violence, and he escaped from Abashiri carrying a tattooed section of skin that forms part of the map to the hidden Ainu gold.
His nickname comes from his manner of fighting. He is an exceptional swimmer and free diver who specializes in dragging victims underwater and drowning them, and his body appears suited to this work, with webbing between his fingers and unusually large feet. His lung capacity allows him to hold his breath for more than thirty minutes and to dive to depths far beyond what an ordinary person could survive, making him nearly unbeatable in aquatic combat. His approach to violence is not random or impulsive; he chooses his environment carefully and kills with a calm, practiced efficiency.
His past explains the shape of his ambition. As a child, his family was wiped out by smallpox, and he was cast out by his community and lost his hometown while he alone survived. He came to believe that his decision to refuse to live in fear of the disease and to keep dreaming and thinking positively was what saved him. That loss left him with a deep need to belong somewhere permanent. He does not seek the gold simply for wealth; he wants to use it as capital to build a country of his own where he and his family can live, and to become its king, on the reasoning that if he rules his own land no one will ever be able to drive him out again.
In personality, he presents a friendly, confident, and easygoing manner. He is talkative and direct, with little regard for personal space, which allows him to get under people's skin quickly. His positivity is notable for someone with his record, and he openly urges others to hold dreams and stay optimistic. Beneath that sunny surface, though, he is a dangerous criminal who does not hesitate to rob or kill. His combination of ferocity and childlike innocence makes him an unusual figure among the convicts, and he also possesses sharp wit and a flexible mindset that lets him accept reality even while chasing an outsized dream.
Within the story, he becomes a key figure in the final phase of the gold hunt. He temporarily joins forces with Sugimoto's group, and his loyalties remain ambiguous throughout, leaving other factions uncertain whether he is friend or enemy. He takes part in major confrontations, including the clash at the Sapporo Beer Factory, where he rises from a vat of beer and appears silently behind an opponent. His dream of a kingdom sets him apart from the other prisoners, whose desires tend to center more narrowly on money, revenge, pleasure, or power.
His most significant relationship is with Yoshitake Shiraishi, the escape artist traveling with Sugimoto's group. The two get along well, and Shiraishi describes him as a tough man who always gave everything he had. At the same time, Shiraishi remains more guarded around him than others do, sensing something underneath his friendliness. Botaro ultimately saves Shiraishi's life. His own end comes in battle, when he is cornered and shot; he meets it without panic or protest, seeming to accept that reaching his dream had never been guaranteed.
His death is not portrayed as grand or heroic, but as a quiet result of the violent life he chose. The kingdom he dreamed of never took shape on any map, yet his influence continues through the people who heard him. Shiraishi survives and later honors Botaro's dying wish by using the gold to build a country of his own and becoming its king, sending a gold coin stamped with his own face to his old companions as proof of what became of the dream. In that way, Botaro's vision of a kingdom and his insistence on dreaming outlived him through the person he had saved.
His nickname comes from his manner of fighting. He is an exceptional swimmer and free diver who specializes in dragging victims underwater and drowning them, and his body appears suited to this work, with webbing between his fingers and unusually large feet. His lung capacity allows him to hold his breath for more than thirty minutes and to dive to depths far beyond what an ordinary person could survive, making him nearly unbeatable in aquatic combat. His approach to violence is not random or impulsive; he chooses his environment carefully and kills with a calm, practiced efficiency.
His past explains the shape of his ambition. As a child, his family was wiped out by smallpox, and he was cast out by his community and lost his hometown while he alone survived. He came to believe that his decision to refuse to live in fear of the disease and to keep dreaming and thinking positively was what saved him. That loss left him with a deep need to belong somewhere permanent. He does not seek the gold simply for wealth; he wants to use it as capital to build a country of his own where he and his family can live, and to become its king, on the reasoning that if he rules his own land no one will ever be able to drive him out again.
In personality, he presents a friendly, confident, and easygoing manner. He is talkative and direct, with little regard for personal space, which allows him to get under people's skin quickly. His positivity is notable for someone with his record, and he openly urges others to hold dreams and stay optimistic. Beneath that sunny surface, though, he is a dangerous criminal who does not hesitate to rob or kill. His combination of ferocity and childlike innocence makes him an unusual figure among the convicts, and he also possesses sharp wit and a flexible mindset that lets him accept reality even while chasing an outsized dream.
Within the story, he becomes a key figure in the final phase of the gold hunt. He temporarily joins forces with Sugimoto's group, and his loyalties remain ambiguous throughout, leaving other factions uncertain whether he is friend or enemy. He takes part in major confrontations, including the clash at the Sapporo Beer Factory, where he rises from a vat of beer and appears silently behind an opponent. His dream of a kingdom sets him apart from the other prisoners, whose desires tend to center more narrowly on money, revenge, pleasure, or power.
His most significant relationship is with Yoshitake Shiraishi, the escape artist traveling with Sugimoto's group. The two get along well, and Shiraishi describes him as a tough man who always gave everything he had. At the same time, Shiraishi remains more guarded around him than others do, sensing something underneath his friendliness. Botaro ultimately saves Shiraishi's life. His own end comes in battle, when he is cornered and shot; he meets it without panic or protest, seeming to accept that reaching his dream had never been guaranteed.
His death is not portrayed as grand or heroic, but as a quiet result of the violent life he chose. The kingdom he dreamed of never took shape on any map, yet his influence continues through the people who heard him. Shiraishi survives and later honors Botaro's dying wish by using the gold to build a country of his own and becoming its king, sending a gold coin stamped with his own face to his old companions as proof of what became of the dream. In that way, Botaro's vision of a kingdom and his insistence on dreaming outlived him through the person he had saved.