Akumetsu
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Akumetsu (アクメツ) is a shōnen manga serialized in Weekly Shōnen Champion, from 2002 to 2006. Akumetsu's story is written by Yoshiaki Tabata, and drawn by Yûki Yogo.
| Akumetsu | |
|---|---|
 Akumetsu Tankobon Vol.1 |
|
| Genre | Action, Comedy |
| Manga: Akumetsu | |
| Author | Yoshiaki Tabata |
| Publisher | Akita Shoten |
| Demographic | Shōnen |
| Serialized in | Weekly Shōnen Champion |
| Original run | 2002 – 2006 |
| Volumes | 18 |
Akumetsu follows the story of Hazama Shou (Shou Hazama) and his friend, Nagasawa Shina (Shina Nagasawa). Shina is forced to sell herself into prostitution due to family debts, and during a job at a hotel "servicing" a group of high-level economic advisors and cabinet members, finds Shou wearing a demonic mask. Shou then proceeds to injure several people and execute the ranking counselor, going under the name of Akumetsu (meaning "destroyer of evil") only to be shot by police officers and his head exploding. But the event is just the beginning for Akumetsu, as he shows up to school, still alive the next morning. His goal is to "kill every evil man" in Japan, be it Bank directors, bike gang members or inactive police commissioners.
[edit] Characters
Shou Hazama
The protagonist - a high school student, who at the start of the story, is kissed by Shina, just before she starts "servicing" the corrupt government officials. He crashes their party wearing a mask, and kills a corrupt minister with an axe, after questioning him to expose his corruption and announcing his bloody ideals for the first time, calling himself "Akumetsu" (Destroyer of Evil). He is recognized by Shina, and drags the body outside the hotel where he is gunned down by the police. A bomb mechanism in his mask causes his head to explode, to protect his identity. Shou turns up at school the next day, completely unharmed, to Shina's disbelief and shock.
Shou is beaten by a delinquent member of a bike gang in school, and mutters that he's found another "evil person". He proceeds to force a corrupt police Commissioner to take action against a bike gang by holding him hostage and making him give the force orders to fire on the advancing bikers. He then kills him, and his own death follows and the scenario is repeated. He once again turns up unharmed the next day. Then he is shown confronting the Prime Minister (Shintarou Murase), and making a deal with him. A portion of the deal is that in one month, Akumetsu will judge him, and if he is found to be "evil", he will die.
He then kills the Prime Minister's corrupt rival, and leader of the Cabinet -Hiroki Nakanoshima- at the funeral of the aforementioned commissioner, after cross-examining him on national television and delivering his ideals and accusations including his views on Japan's failing economy. Nakanoshima is, at first, thrown to the special forces bodyguards, and then Akumetsu proceeds to break through every one of them, without killing them, being shot several times along the way. He then takes Nakanoshima with him off a rooftop in a kamikaze attack. At the same time, Shina is confronted by one of the officials at the party where Akumetsu was first shown, and Shou appears while a broadcast of him holding Nakanoshima hostage is being broadcast. His next targets are the leaders of Japan's most cold-blooded banks. he broadcasts a film, through manipulation of the media, that shows excerpts from meetings between several failed entrepreneurs and bank officials, and his theory on who is to blame for the condition of the Japan. As the banks' dirty nature is revealed, the reporters at the scene start to turn against them, the first of many.
Shou claims (and is shown to) have a degree of immortality and omnipotence, the latter he proves by meeting Shina and the official while he is being shown holding Nakanoshima hostage, and the former is shown by his "deaths" and appearing, usually some time later, completely unharmed. He also has great fighting skill, as shown by his breaking through several trained bodyguards, and a superhuman level of endurance (being able to kill Nakanoshima after taking 6-7 bullets). He is impulsive and opinionated, with strong views on the economic crisis, leading him to take action, often with a lot of bloodshed. He is irreverent and excessively violent when being Akumetsu, making his actions controversial, although he simply appears to be an easy-going student when himself.
Currently he has 28 clones of himself going through Tokyo though the main Shou is in school with Shina.
Shina Nagasawa
A girl who is forced to prostitution because her father has been left bankrupt through aggressive financial strategies used by the banks. She is shown with an old and perverted minister who insults her and tells her to lick his foot. At this point Akumetsu comes into the fray and proceeds to kill the minister. She recognizes him and says part of his name, which one of the officials overhears. She witnesses his "death"
On her return to school she is surprised to see Shou alive, but is offered no explanation until the killing of Nakanoshima, when she is confronted by the official and Shou walks in on them. Shou tells them about his supposed powers and intimidates the official. The official runs, and Shina breaks down. Shou informs her that he saved her father from becoming a criminal, telling him that he was dating her, and handcuffing him to a streetlight in the process.
