Raizo Imawano

Raizo Imawano is a fighting game character from the Rival Schools series of 3D fighting games.

Appearance
Raizo has long, spiked white hair with a white beard and black eyes similar to his son, Batsu. His eyes became red due to brainwashing from his nephew Hyo. He wears a monocle over his left eye. His primary outfit is a tan and violet formal suit under a long sleeve white buttoned shirt with a long red and purple tie on the collar of his shirt, tan pants and brown shoes. His build is hulking and muscular and he sports sharp claws on his fingers, giving him a very beastly appearance. Like Batsu, Raizo also has X scars in both of his shoulders underneath his formal attire.

Story
Raizo is the founder and director of Justice High School and the estranged father of Batsu Ichimonji. He was brainwashed by his nephew Hyo Imawano in order to recruit new teachers including Hideo and Kyoko and other Justice High School students to take over Japan. He was responsible of kidnapping his own wife, Shizuku to force his son, Batsu to save his mother from him. Although, his other nephew, Kyosuke Kagami was behind the kidnapping. He was portrayed as an antagonist to the other schools who let one of their friends became brainwashed to join him and force to fight them.

Rival Schools: United By Fate
Raizo first appears in Rival Schools: United By Fate and is initially portrayed as the main antagonist in the game. The principal of Justice High, most of the games cutscenes show him as the organizer of the events that take place in the game and reveal that he is the father of Batsu. However, the "true" ending to the game reveal Raizo was working under the orders of Hyo Imawano, his nephew who brainwashed him as well as most of the student body. Raizo is a hidden character in the game and his ending shows him atoning for his actions, returning to his family and a desire to fulfill his dream to make his own school for a better country. After Batsu remembers the other day where he reads his own school's textbooks and does not understand it and his own students are smarter than him, Raizo initially calm at first towards his son, but gets up stating that he will leave the hospital to train the students to become smart and strong minded and he furiously scolds Batsu for not understanding his own school's textbooks.

Alternate ending
In the gag ending, Raizo appears as the director to his son, Batsu's fight against other two male characters along with Kyosuke which some of them are making a gag or their mistake. But after the four girls, Hinata, Natsu, Akira and Tiffany are cheering him up, he was hit by their projectiles from other male characters including his son, Batsu for his actions as they stomp away angrily before he sadly apologizes to them. The last scene shows that he gives his son Batsu some shoulder massage.

Project Justice
For some reason, Raizo is not playable in Project Justice, but he makes a few appearances in the game's Story Mode. An attack on him by Kurow is the catalyst for the events of the game's story, and he also makes an appearance in the Taiyo High story mode after being attacked by Kurow. Raizo informs his son and Kyosuke about his evil brother's spirit, Mugen Imawano who is possessing his own son, Hyo, and he instructs both to defeat him.

Gameplay
Raizo is playable in the original game as he demonstrates his brute strength to his opponents using his bare hands and his sharp nails on both of his hands. He clawed his opponents using his sharp claws from his hands and punching them with a relative damage. He also shares the same throw from his son, Batsu and his own throw was to powerbomb at the opponent rather than a back suplex like the other characters. Unlike his son, Raizo can roll himself into a red light ball to propel himself against his opponents.

Yasha Guruma- Raizo is able to propel himself with a red ball projectile and roll his opponent in different directions. He can also use this in mid-air against airborne opponents to make a corresponding attack..

Kyoujyuu-Reppa- Raizo will charge his opponent while slashing with his claws from his hands. He can slash his opponent on two to four times.

Roppu-zuki- Raizo goes in a defensive stance and run and slash his opponent with a severe damage.

Sekisaiga- Raizo will grab his opponent high, then push them over and leap and slash them multiple times and goes for a double head punch for a finishing move.

Burning Vigor Attacks
Imawano Style Kyoujyuu-Reppa- It's a powerful version of Kyoujyuu-Reppa, Raizo will charge the opponent while he slashes his opponent several times. It's has a poor recovery time when his opponent avoids this move.

Imawano Style Roppu-zuki- It is a powerful version of Roppu-zuki, Raizo goes in a defensive stance and run and slash his opponent with a critical damage if it connects. If this move misses only that he would run and makes him vulnerable.

Team-Up
Ningen Taihou- The active character will knock the opponent's back into the air. Then, Raizo grabs the active character and swings them over to his shoulders and throws the active character by headbutting the opponent with an extensive damage.



Other Appearances
Raizo made a cameo appearance in Batsu's ending in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars.