Baki the Grappler has more than just a gripping storyline. One of the most significant charms of the show is the stunning physique of each of its characters. Whether it’s the monstrous build of Pickle or the artificially enhanced muscles of Jack, each character sets otherworldly fitness goals. But the one with the most surreal back on the show is Yujiro Hanma. If you want to know more about the strongest creature on Earth and Yujiro Hanma’s back, this guide is for you.
Yujiro Hanma (also spelled as Yuujiro Hanma), the father of Baki Hanma and Jack Hanma, is the ultimate villain of the entire Baki series. He is the son of Yuuichirou Hanma and, so far, one of the strongest characters in the Baki universe. This has led him to earn the title of The Ogre.
Yujiro is a freelance mercenary and assassin who works for a number of government organizations to eliminate whoever dares to be a menace. Judging from his lifestyle, we can reasonably conclude that he is also one of the highest-paid assassins.
Personality
Hanma Yujiro is the perfect example of a monstrous antagonist with extraordinary abilities. He neither has compassion in his heart nor the tiniest hint of mercy for his opponents. In fact, he views mercy as a trait of the weak. He is emotionally manipulative and lives for the sole desire of fighting, causing destruction, and surpassing everyone in strength. Whatever comes in his path will surely be defeated in a vicious fight or even killed. He is ruthless and lives with a god complex, seeing everyone around him as insignificant and unworthy.
Despite his arrogance, he shows surprising signs of patience, especially when it comes to listening to others. He only speaks when needed while spending the rest of the time observing his environment.
In certain parts of the series, Hanma Yujiro is believed to have a softer side. For instance, despite killing his own wife, Emi, to motivate Baki Hanma to be stronger, he retains subtle affection for her and vows to protect anyone who has ties with her. He also offers Baki Hanma soup after their fight and fights for the weak in wars to protect them against their oppressors and to be a role model.
Overall Physique
It’s not just Yujiro’s back that’s drool-worthy. His whole body is nothing short of perfection. Standing tall at 6’3” and weighing 265 pounds, Yujiro has an exceptionally thick and long neck.
Unlike some characters on the show, he doesn’t look devilishly strong. He has an athletic body, long yet muscular legs, with a broad chest and shoulders. Yet, somehow he possesses an unrivaled strength.
With red wavy hair and red-brown eyes, Yujiro is no overnight miracle. The subtle signs of his capabilities were evident well in his teenage years.
Yujiro Hanma’s Back
While the other parts of his body might not look very strange, the build of Yujiro’s back muscles certainly does. He has a rare demon back, meaning that any time he wants to let loose in a war, his back muscles come together to take the shape of a demon.
The demon back is actually a special fighting skill that has been blessed upon the Hanma bloodline. When Yujiro forces his muscles to take the shape of a demon face, he instantly becomes several times more powerful. It is believed that activating the demon face marks the onset of a blood-lusting demon on the fighter. After that, each fighting skill, including speed, endurance, and stamina, goes through the roof. The demon face also helps Yujiro take any hit or blow without sustaining any noticeable damage.
Once the demon face is unlocked, it becomes exponentially hard to defeat Yujiro. Any blow by him in this stage will do devastating damage to the opponent.
Yujiro is known to use his demon face during many fights. Unlike his father or son Hanma Baki, he is neither kind nor believes in fair play. For him, anything you have at your disposal during a fight is a fair weapon to be used. He sees the demon face as a technique and not an unfair advantage, even though he is already stronger than all of the other fighters.
Fights Where Yujiro Has Unleashed the Demon Back
Here are some fights where Hanma Yujiro unleashed his demon back, wreaking havoc:
Yujiro vs. Orochi Doppo
This fight takes place in an underground area where the opponent Orochi Doppo has not only successfully struck Yujiro five times on his chest but has also defended himself pretty well. Orochi Doppo’s fighting style helps him attack with a series of punches, but none of them make an impact on Yujiro, who grows impatient with Orochi Doppo’s superior blocking skills. However, when Hanma Baki walks into the arena, an enraged Yujiro finally unleashes his demon back.
He then yanks at one of Orochi Doppo’s arms, almost tearing off his finger. Each strike he makes at Orochi Doppo leaves a cut on his body. After all, Orochi Doppo has trained to fight against humans, whereas Yujiro turned into nothing less than the devil himself.
Orochi Doppo makes an attempt and gets back to his fighting stance to hit Yujiro’s abs but is instantly ambushed by Yujiro’s quick reflexes, who then go on to rupture his eardrums. Orochi Doppo falls to the ground, seemingly defeated, until he gets up to try one more time, but luck isn’t in his corner. Yujiro plucks his right eye directly from the socket and delivers a final blow to his heart, almost killing him.
Yujiro vs. Kaku Kaioh
One of the most fearsome fights that Yujiro was ever involved in was with martial artist Kaku Kaioh. It was the only time he considered someone a worthy opponent and might have been concerned about his strength.
What made Kaku Kaioh different from Yujiro’s other opponents was his century-long experience, pain tolerance, immense body control, and extraordinary combat abilities. In fact, he was the only one to take back-to-back devastating strikes from Yujiro and still land on his feet, perfectly stable. And it was the first time that Yujiro’s moves did not work on someone.
Yujiro uses a unique technique of plucking out a hair from his opponent to stiffen his body so that his third strike can finally impact him.
Kaku Kaioh finally makes his first move and attempts to punch Yujiro. For the first time ever, Yujiro backs away from the blow, fearing the impact it might have on him. What follows is a series of moves from Kaku Kaioh, which brings Yujiro down to his knees despite his best defense.
Yujiro, guessing Kaku Kaioh is using the old “Shaori” technique to make his blows powerful, imitates his techniques and rattles his opponent. However, when Kaku Kaioh delivers a fierce move that brings Yujiro crashing to the ground, he finally unleashes his demon back. After that, Kaku Kaioh stood no chance against him. His eardrums were ruptured, and just as Yujiro was about to deliver his killing blow, Kaku Kaioh froze in his place, dead. The cause of death was declared old age, much to Yujiro’s dismay. Later, it was revealed that Kaku Kaioh faked his death to protect himself from Yujiro.
Is It Possible to Get a Demon Back Like Yujiro Hanma?
Technically, in the Baki universe, it’s impossible to get a demon back like Yujiro or Baki Hanma. After all, it’s not a physical trait developed through training. Instead, it’s gifted to the Hanma clan and can only be attained by those sharing the Hanma DNA.
In fact, even within the family, we see that Jack does not have the demon face back. This shows that the DNA alone isn’t enough to unlock the devil’s power. While the audience was left to speculate if it was Jack’s neverending drug regime, surgeries, and bodyweight training that stripped him of his power, it was later revealed by Yujiro that the reason actually has to do with his mother.
Diane Neil’s genes were incompatible with Yujiro’s, and that’s why Jack Hanma cannot summon devilish power like his father and brother. He also stated that Jack’s blood was impure, and he was not bestowed with the “luck of the devil” to possess such inhuman powers.
As far as real life is concerned, Yujiro’s demon back triggered fans to train hard to achieve those demon-like muscles. However, no gym or training regime on Earth can give you a demon back like that.
Wrapping Up
Each character on Baki the Grappler has a unique skill. For instance, Pickle is the prehistoric human giant who treats his opponents like prey, ready to feast on them. Jack Hanma has gone through years of unfathomable training to be where he stands today. Baki Hanma inherited a lot from his father Yujiro and then kept learning different fighting styles to surpass his father in every aspect.
But what keeps everyone in awe is the unbelievable power of Yujiro, the strongest creature on Earth, and his demon back. The brilliance of Yujiro Hanma’s back muscles, along with the supernatural power unlocked upon activating the devil’s face, makes him simply undefeatable.
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