| “ | I, Kiba Yuuto, will protect you and my comrades for the rest of my life as the “Knight” of Rias Gremory's group. | ” |
–Yuuto to Rias Gremory, Volume 3, New Knight & New Rival | ||
Yuuto Kiba is one of the male protagonists of High School DxD. He is a third-year high school student at Kuoh Academy in Class 3B and the school's pretty boy who is adored by many female students and hated by other male students. He is Rias' Knight and the Vice-President of the Occult Research Club.
Appearance
Yuuto is a handsome young man with short blond hair, blue eyes (bluish-gray eyes in the anime) and a mole underneath his left eye.
He wears the Kuoh Academy boys' school uniform, which consists of a black blazer with white accents over a white, long-sleeved dress shirt with a black ribbon on the collar, matching black pants, and brown dress shoes.
Personality
Yuuto is overall an upbeat person and cares deeply for his comrades. He's also a very polite and friendly individual, even considering Issei's initial dislike towards him. As a Knight, he has pride, chivalry, dignity, and honor befitting one, and is shown to enjoy fighting fellow swordsmen like Karlamine.
Initially, he had a deep hatred towards the Holy Swords or their wielders. But the efforts of the Occult Research Club members during Volume 3, and the souls of his deceased friends, who died earlier being victims of the Holy Sword Project, helped him overcome his drive for vengeance, making him more accepting of the Holy Swords.
Yuuto considers Issei to be his best friend, but also feels a sense of rivalry with him, wishing to one day fight him fair and square. At the same time, he also shows deep concern for his well-being, desiring to avenge Issei after his death in Volume 11 and only stopping himself due to promising to protect the girls of the Club in his stead.
Yuuto is very loyal to Rias as her Knight, calling himself "Rias Gremory's Sword", while also thinking of her as his own older sister. He did not hesitate in joining Rias' team for the Azazel Cup even with the possibility of eventually facing Issei, taking it as a chance to settle their rivalry and swearing to not hold back against him.
Yuuto is surprisingly a lecher himself, as commented by Issei in Volume 4.
History
Yuuto being found by Rias upon the brink of death
Originally an orphan named Isaiah, Yuuto was taken in by the Church and was chosen to be a part of a project called "The Holy Sword Project" under the supervision of Valper Galilei. But when the project failed to show merit, Valper's decision to eliminate them as failures, was directly responsible for the deaths of his friends and all other participants, resulting in Yuuto developing extreme antagonism against Holy Swords especially Excalibur. After successfully escaping the facility with the help of his friends, he finally succumbed to the poison he inhaled. Lying on the ground, he was in his dying moments when he was found and was reincarnated by Rias as her servant Devil. During his initial days as Rias' servant, he was distrustful of her and all those related to her. He later practices his swordsmanship under Souji Okita, who was the first person he opened up to. One day, when giving tribute to his deceased friends, he was confronted by a Stray Devil and fought a hard battle until his master, Okita, comes to rescue him. After this event, he finally began trusting Devils, opened up to Rias and took upon the name Rias thought of specifically for him, "Yuuto Kiba".
Powers & Abilities
Demonic Power: Yuuto has all the powers and abilities common to Devils, including the ability to cast spells. In Volume 11, he was able to use demonic power to create an illusion of himself against Siegfried in order to perform a sneak attack.
- Immense Speed: Due to his Knight trait, Yuuto possesses superhuman speed, which he has honed as the core of his fighting style to where Issei referred to it as God-Speed. His great speed has also allowed him to use his swordmaster's famed Sandanzuki, a three-strike technique with one initial movement. In True Volume 2, Yuuto's new way of using Glory Drag Trooper to enhance his speed allowed him to overwhelm even Issei in his Pseudo-DxD armor.
Natural-Born Demon Sword Wielder: Because of his Sword Birth, Yuuto has proven to be more compatible in using demonic swords compared to holy swords, which was proven as Gram chosen him over Siegfried, then all his other demonic swords, Balmung, Nothung, Tyrfing, and Dáinsleif chose him.
Holy Sword Wielder: After gaining his Irregular Balance Breaker, Yuuto became able to wield holy swords, even borrowing Xenovia's Durandal and Issei's Ascalon one time.
Master Swordsman: Yuuto is a swordsman of incredible skills who uses it in tandem with his speed, which lets him dominate most opponents. After training again with Souji Okita, his swordmaster, Tsubaki considered him to be Rias' Ace instead of Issei. Upon being defeated by Siegfried in Volume 9, Yuuto trained his skills even harder, improving to where he overwhelms him in Volume 11. He can fight against stronger opponents such as Ewald, a master swordsman who could wield all Excalibur's abilities at the same time. In Volume 20, he could perform one of the Tennen Rishin-ryu techniques of his master. In Volume 24, after training with Vasco Strada, Yuuto's skills improved to where he outclassed Bikou, the current Monkey King. In True Volume 2, he was able to hold his own against Issei in his Pseudo-Diabolos Dragon form.
- Sandanzuki (三段突き, Three-Stage Thrust): A famous sword technique performed by Okita Souji during his time as a samurai among the Shinsengumi, where Kiba slashes his sword at godspeed, unleashing a total of three slashes in a single movement.
Enhanced Durability: While his durability is inferior to Issei's, Yuuto has shown great tolerance to damage and pain, having withstood blows from even Sairaorg. He could stand up and fight after Siegfried in his Chaos Drive form chopped off one of his arms, ran ice pillars through his legs, and sent him crashing into the ground with enough force to make a crater.
Skilled Technician: Yuuto is a Technique-type fighter of great skill. He often spars with Issei, a Power-type fighter who can defeat him the moment he lands a solid hit, to train his skills in swordsmanship and melee combat at a much more effective rate. Yuuto later devised a creative manner to lessen the effects of Gram, similar to Excalibur acting as the sheath of Durandal and using Gram against Dragons as revealed in Volume 18. In Volume 24, he was later shown the capacity to incorporate large amounts of power in a skillful manner that suits his fighting style.
Skilled Tactician: He generally takes a tactical approach to combat, preferring to overwhelm his opponents with plans and objectives rather than overpowering them like Issei and Xenovia. In his second battle against Siegfried, Yuuto carefully observed Siegfried's movements and used his demonic power to deploy an illusion as he himself hid within his Dragon Knights, allowing him to perform a successful sneak attack the moment Siegfried let down his guard.
Flight: Being a Devil, Yuuto can use his wings to fly.
Equipment
Yuuto creating numerous Demon Swords using "Sword Birth"
Sword Birth (魔剣創造, Sōdo Bāsu): Yuuto's primary weapon and Sacred Gear, it has the ability to create numerous demon swords each with its own attributes and properties at his disposal, such as the Holy Eraser and Flame Delete. The blades of these swords can also emerge from any surface within Yuuto's limited area.
- Holy Eraser: A demonic sword with a dark blade that devours holy energy and other sources of light, the sword can also create multiple appendages that stretch out to absorb light from a long-range. However, it's not strong enough to absorb the holy energy from a true Holy Sword.
- Flame Delete: A sword with a blade made of ice that is capable of freezing flames itself.
- Replenish Calm: A sword that contains a miniature black hole which exhibits a strong gravitational force that sucks up almost anything.
- Flame Sword: A demon sword with a blade made of fire with presumably the opposite effects of Flame Delete.
- Destruction Sword: A gigantic two-handed demonic sword that's about more than two meters long and releases an ominous aura with presumably much destructive power. However, it could not compare with Excalibur Destruction, and as stated by Xenovia. Wielding it requires a lot of strength at the loss of Yuuto's speed, therefore leaving it unnecessary for his fighting style.
Yuuto's Sword of Betrayer
- Sword of Betrayer (双覇の聖魔剣, Sōdo obu Bitoreiyā): Yuuto's X Side Balance Breaker, which lets him create Holy Demonic Swords of various sizes and attributes. He achieved it in Volume 3, during their fight against Kokabiel, Valper Galilei, and Freed by "merging" his Sacred Gear with the Light Container made from his deceased comrades. During Volume 6, Yuuto was able to create a defensive shelter during these swords. After he "stabilized" in Volume 19, he gained the ability to absorb holy aura with its demonic power and then use it to enhance its own; naturally, the same can be done in vice versa.
- Durandal Birth: A combination technique between Yuuto and Xenovia, in which he sprouts countless Holy Demonic Swords that have been enhanced by Durandal's holy aura.
Yuuto’s Blade Blacksmith Sub-Species Balance Breaker: Glory Drag Trooper
Blade Blacksmith (聖剣創造, Burēdo Burakkusumisu): His second Sacred Gear and is the holy version of Sword Birth, which Yuuto had achieved in Volume 9, after gaining his irregular Balance Breaker. Being the counterpart of Sword Birth, he can create numerous holy swords with different attributes.
- Glory Drag Trooper (聖覇の竜騎士団, Gurōryi Doragu Torūpā): Yuuto's Sub-Species Balance Breaker for Blade Blacksmith, which creates an army of holy sword-wielding Dragon Knights able to imitate either the speed or technique of the user, the latter was shown during Volume 21, against mass-produced evil dragons wielding the Demon Swords aside from Gram itself. However, he cannot use both the Sword of Betrayer and Glory Drag Trooper at the same time. Yuuto can also equip armor like the one worn by his Dragon Knights in order to protect his body or trick his opponents by hiding in the army. In True Volume 2, he showed a technique in which he converts the Dragon Knights into armor with aura-blasting boosters that covers his torso and legs, drastically enhancing Yuuto's speed to the point that even Issei in his Pseudo-Dragon Deification had a hard time perceiving him.
Demon Swords (魔剣, Maken): During and after the battle with Siegfried in Volume 12, Yuuto gained possession of all the Demon Swords previously owned by Siegfried. When using them, he generally wields Gram and lets the other four be used by his Dragon Knights.
- Gram (グラム, Guramu): Known as the Demonic Emperor Sword (魔帝剣, Mateiken), it is a Dragon Slayer that has destructive power, which caused Yuuto to consider it a combo of both Ascalon and Durandal. But, it doesn't need to charge its destructive power making it "more" powerful than Durandal. Gram vastly exceeds all of the Holy Demonic Sword that he creates in all aspects, be it durability, destructive power or sharpness. Yuuto still cannot use it properly as Gram drains his energy at a very fast rate and worsens his condition the more he uses it, though Yuuto learned to lessen the effect using his Holy or Holy-Demonic Sword to encase Gram similar to Ex-Durandal. In Volume 24, he showed the results of his training with Vasco Strada by releasing its aura only on impact, allowing for more concentrated and powerful attacks while minimizing the strain on his body.
- Balmung (バルムンク, Barumunku): A Demon Sword with a drill-like aura, capable of creating powerful whirlwinds.
- Nothung (ノートゥング, Nōtungu): A Demon Sword that specialises in sharpness.
- Tyrfing (ディルヴィング, Diruvingu): A Demon Sword that specialises in destruction.
- Dáinsleif (ダインスレイヴ, Dainsureivu): A Demon Sword that can make numerous pillars of ice to freeze or pierce opponents.
Quotes
Light Novel
- (To Freed) "—You can continue howling to the Grim Reaper in hell." (Volume 6, Life 3)
- (Thinking to himself) "I seriously won’t know what will happen when I am within this group." (Volume 12, Life -1)
Anime
- "I... will become a sword for my comrades." (Season 2 New)
- (To Rias) "I, Kiba Yuuto, will serve as Rias Gremory's kin and Knight, and protect you and your friends until the end of my life." (Episode 6, Season 2 New)
Trivia
- Yuuto's birthday is on May 30.[1]
- Yuuto's height is 172 cm. (5 feet 8 inches) and his weight is 61 kg. (134 lbs.), according to the visual book with his data.
- Yuuto has different meanings: (yuu) "gentleness, superiority" or (yuu) "distant, leisurely" combined with (to), or (to) "person" or (to) "soar, fly"; referring to his personality and speed as a Knight.
- One of the meanings of Kiba is "Sharp", which would be a reference to the fact he is a swordsman.
- Kiba Yuuto means "Horse-Rider" in reference to him being a Knight because Knights in chess are symbolized by horses.
- His original name Isaiah comes from English and Biblical Origins meaning "Yahweh is Salvation".
- Yuuto is one of the servants of Rias who had been given a new name by the latter, the other one being Koneko.
- Yuuto's swordsmanship is based around the Tennen Rishin-Ryu, though it isn't entirely the same sword style since he learned how to wield swords and fighting posture from Souji Okita.
- In Rating Game fighting-types, Yuuto is considered a Technique-type.
- Yuuto has a desire to ask Rias to raise another technique-type member for the Gremory Peerage.[2]
- According to Issei, Yuuto is considered the Ace of the Gremory Peerage.[3]
- Due to his lower Dice Figure value, he is easier to use since he has a value of 3 chess pieces compared to Issei's 8 chess pieces.
- Arthur Pendragon considers Yuuto his rival and said that the two will have their battle when Issei and Vali have their battle.[4]
- Yuuto and Gasper Vladi live in a mansion near the Hyoudou Residence.[3]
- After Tosca was brought to Japan by Vasco Strada and Valerie Tepes awoke from her coma, the two girls are shown to be living with Yuuto and Gasper.[5] [6]
- Yuuto states that his favorite part of a woman's body is her lips.[7]
- Yuuto is stated to be a good cook.
- Yuuto has already made a short-term pact with an outstanding young boy magician that skipped grades.[10]
- Yuuto is considered to be deeply connected to the Sigurd Institution due to several reasons:[11]
- The first reason is that he defeated both Siegfried and Freed Sellzen, who were a part of the institute.
- The second reason was that he is the wielder of Gram, the sword which the institution was created in hopes of creating a wielder for it.
- The third reason is the fact that his companion Tosca was previously a part of the Sigurd Institution before becoming a test subject for the Holy Sword Project.
- Yuuto plays the main villain, "Darkness Knight Fang" (ダークネスナイト・ファング Dākunesu Naito Fangu), in Breast Dragon Emperor Oppai Dragon.
- Yuuto is one of the protagonists of the erotic doujinshi called "Prince x Beast" alongside Issei Hyoudou, that the Kuoh Academy Manga Club produces, as it is based on the misunderstanding that the female students have about Issei's and Yuuto's relationship, with the manga being popular among the female students of the academy.[12]
- He calls himself "Yumi" in his gender-swapped form.
- Yumi is the Japanese word for "Bow", but as a feminine name, it means "Beauty", referring to Yuuto's beauty as a woman.
- Yuuto's contract requests as a Devil are usually from women who have accumulated stress from their jobs.[13]
- In True Volume 3, Kiba is attempting to merge both Sword Birth and Blade Blacksmith.
References
- ↑ Ishibumi's twitter
- ↑ Light Novel Volume 12, Life.-1 Alliance of Young Devils!
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Light Novel Volume 6, Life.2 Asia-chan's Worries
- ↑ Light Novel Volume 12, Life.1 Crimson Promise
- ↑ Light Novel Volume 19, To be continued...
- ↑ Light Novel Volume 20, Life.1 A Restless Career Consultation
- ↑ Delusion Magazine ☆ Night Material Collection New Volume 4: Kiba & Gasper
- ↑ Gremory of the DeviTube
- ↑ Light Novel Volume 22, Life.1 Those of us that were left behind!
- ↑ Light Novel Volume 18, Life.2 The Forbidden
- ↑ Dragon Magazine May 2019
- ↑ Light Novel DX.2, Life.2 Student Council's Decision
- ↑ Light Novel Volume 13, Extra Life