The reason Kaiou Retsu is one of the most well-liked characters in the whole “Baki” plot is that he is integral to Baki Hanma’s growth as a fighter. Retsu has been able to expand his proficiency in Chinese martial arts by competing against a wide range of opponents.
In the plot, he had to battle two incredibly strong opponents, so of course we saw him up against the odds. What happened to Kaiou Retsu, and is he no longer alive?
Kaiou Retsu is dead in the current plot of the manga series “Baki-Dou.” In “Hanma Baki,” he nearly perished after losing to Pickle in a duel and nearly being devoured, losing only his leg and part of his shoulder. However, Musashi Miyamoto battled and killed Kaiou Retsu in “Baki-Dou.”
While it is true that Kaiou Retsu is one of the most well-liked characters in “Baki,” his passing didn’t actually add anything to Musashi Miyamoto or the other characters in that storyline.
His passing, however, was one of the most unexpected developments in the “Baki-Dou” manga and is one of the incidents that could have an impact on Katsumi Orochi’s personal plot. Let’s now examine Kaiou Retsu’s fate in “Baki.”
The Explanation of Kaiou Retsu’s Death
The supporting characters have had their share of moments throughout the entire “Baki” plot because the manga and anime would also like to highlight the different martial arts that the other characters could learn.
Throughout the entire “Baki” plot, Kaiou Retsu has emerged as one of the most intriguing martial artists and has played a crucial role in the development of Baki Hanma and the other characters.
Kaiou Retsu, a Chinese martial arts expert, is among the world’s most formidable fighters and one of the most talented young practitioners of Chinese martial arts. He became an expert in Kenpo and is a very talented fighter with a physique and skill set that could compete with Baki Hanma and other legendary fighters from “Baki.”
Improving his knowledge of Chinese martial arts was one of Retsu’s goals in order to elevate this form and make it even better throughout the course of the following millennium.
In this sense, we saw Retsu in “Hanma Baki” attempting to advance his martial arts skills by falling head over heels for the prospect of facing a stranger. Pickle was an ancient caveman that lived around 200 million years ago.
He had to battle and kill dinosaurs to survive, thus his environment made him tough. In addition, Pickle’s physiology and physique surpass those of the strongest current humans because he evolved differently than other humans.
Thus, believing Pickle was strong enough for him, Kaiou Retsu made the decision to give fighting the caveman a go. The endangered Siberian Tigers were fed to Pickle, who only consumed animals that were strong enough for him to hunt.
This gave Retsu the chance to challenge Pickle to a duel, and he agreed to let Pickle eat him in exchange for the caveman not having to battle and kill Siberian tigers for sustenance.
Retsu wanted to utilize the caveman as a springboard for his martial arts skills, thus he finally achieved his wish to battle Pickle. In order to advance Chinese martial arts, he needed to battle a formidable opponent who would push him to change. In actuality, because Pickle was so much bigger and stronger than him, his battle with him enabled him to achieve previously unattainable heights.
Although it’s possible that Retsu could find a method to criticize Pickle, things took a turn for the worse when the caveman made the decision to engage in more serious combat. He grew stronger and faster when Pickle had to crawl to imitate the dinosaurs and creatures he had to battle some 200 million years ago.
With this method, Retsu had no chance because Pickle could beat him. And he could be eaten by the caveman if he lost against Pickle.
Fortunately, Pickle did not completely consume Retsu. His shoulder, which Retsu had inadvertently left exposed early in their battle, was the first part he consumed. The caveman gorged himself on Pickle’s right leg following their defeat.
Disgraced by his defeat, he awoke in the hospital with a renewed sense of resolve to exploit his setback to improve his skills in Chinese martial arts.
Then, following Baki’s altercation with his father, the renowned samurai Yuujirou Hanma was brought back to life in the “Baki-Dou” manga plot. A clone of Musashi Miyamoto was made by scientists, who then utilized a spirit medium to call forth his soul and let it reside in the clone’s body.
In the contemporary era, this made it possible for the most formidable samurai in Japanese history to coexist with men.
Naturally, one of the combatants who faced Musashi Miyamoto in this battle was Kaiou Retsu. However, the Chinese martial artist was ultimately vanquished and slain by the renowned samurai warrior because Musashi was far more powerful and proficient than Retsu.
What Happened to Kaiou Retsu?
As previously stated, the battle between Kaiou Retsu and Musashi Miyamoto showcased hundreds of years of Chinese martial arts against the renowned Japanese samurai style. Naturally, Retsu was able to fight hard, especially since he had shown such progress in his fighting style since losing to Pickle.
In actuality, however, Retsu was just unable to cope with Musashi Miyamoto’s strength. Already powerful without a sword, the samurai killed the Chinese martial artist by severing Retsu. Since he passed away right away, Retsu acknowledged that this was a loss for Chinese martial arts.
Since Retsu’s death didn’t advance the Musashi arc, it may appear senseless in many respects. Since Katsumi Orochi received one of Retsu’s limbs after losing his own to Pickle during their battle, some naturally believed that Retsu’s passing would allow him to improve as a warrior.
One of Katsumi’s best instructors was Retsu, and he aimed to fuse his proficiency in Japanese karate with Retsu’s Kenpo.
Nevertheless, the passing of Kaiou Retsu also gave author Keisuke Itagaki the chance to experiment with a different style of plot.
This is because he essentially “isekai-ed” Retsu by including him in the spin-off manga series “Baki Gaiden: Retsu Kaiō wa Isekai Tensei Shitemo Ikkō ni Kamawan,” which centers on Kaiou Retsu, who was moved to a completely different universe following his death.
In a sense, Retsu’s passing gave rise to a spin-off manga with an isekai-style plot in which he finds himself in a completely new world with a variety of foes to battle and overcome. And since Kaiou Retsu won his own spin-off series after dying in “Baki-Dou,” this was one of the best ways for him to end his career as a character.
Are you interested in learning more about Kaiou Retsu’s world and his remarkable Baki journey? Understand his struggles, his growth, and the unexpected turns that influenced his legacy. For an in-depth look of Retsu’s life and contributions to the Baki series, visit our website. Don’t miss out!
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