Onimaru

Onimaru
Statistics
Japanese Name:	牛鬼丸
Romanized Name:	Gyūkimaru
Official English Name:	Onimaru
Debut:	Chapter 936
Occupations:	Warrior Monk; Highway Robber
Epithet:	"Gyukimaru on Oihagi Bridge" (おいはぎ橋の牛鬼丸, Oihagi-bashi no Gyūkimaru?)
Status:	Alive

Gyukimaru on Oihagi Bridge is a warrior monk and highway robber who resides in Wano Country.

Appearance

Gyukimaru is a very large man with a face resembling a mask. He wears a dark kimono, light pants, and a light cape, and carries many weapons on his back. He also wears a very large bead necklace.

Personality

Gyukimaru greatly reveres the legends of Ryuma, and so went to great lengths to return Shusui to his grave. He is rather pragmatic in battle and always looks for an opening on his opponent, even when they are distracted or caught up by something else altogether. However, he would not attack an opponent who can no longer fight as he left Zoro alone when he fell unconscious from a wound he received from Kamazo.

He is infamous for ambushing armed people who attempt to cross the Oihagi Bridge and taking their weapons. However, he is somewhat lenient as he allowed Zoro to keep his two remaining swords.

Abilities and Powers

Gyukimaru is a skilled thief, being able to successfully steal Shusui from Zoro and make his way halfway across Wano Country at a fast pace.

Physical Abilities

Befitting his size, Gyukimaru has enormous strength as he could easily match Zoro's physical power. He also has great speed, able to match Zoro's agility, and after stealing Shusui, he swiftly traved halfway across Wano Country to return it to Ryuma's grave.

Spearmanship

Gyukimaru has shown to be extremely skilled in wielding his naginata, able to clash evenly with the extremely powerful swordsman Roronoa Zoro. He has been shown using the handle of the staff to counter Zoro's sword strikes.

Weapons

Gyukimaru's main weapon is a very long naginata, which grants him great size and range in addition to cutting power.

He also carries around a very large variety of weapons on his back.

History

Wano Country Arc

Gyukimaru was in Ebisu Town when he spotted the sword Shusui and took it. He went to Ringo and returned it to Ryuma's grave before he was confronted on Oihagi Bridge by Roronoa Zoro, from whom he had taken Shusui. Refusing to believe Zoro rightfully earned the sword, Gyukimaru battled him to take his other two swords. A woman and a girl then came onto the scene being chased by Kamazo, and as Zoro turned his attention to Kamazo, Gyukimaru repeatedly tried striking at his openings, annoying the swordsman.

After Zoro defeated Kamazo, Gyukimaru took the assassin's scythe and walked away as Zoro fainted from the wound he received from the assassin.

Major Battles

• Gyukimaru vs. Roronoa Zoro

Trivia

• Gyukimaru is possibly based on Benkei, a Japanese warrior monk who was said to have stolen weapons from samurai that he believed to be arrogant and unworthy.
• Gyūki (牛鬼^?, "ox demon/ogre") is another pronunciation for ushi-oni, a creature in Japanese folklore with a bovine head and horns. Maru (丸^?, "ring" or "perfect") is a common suffix for Japanese male names.
  • Gyukimaru's name may be based on Oniwaka (鬼若, demon/ogre child^?) or Oniwakamaru, Benkei's childhood name.
  • It may also be a portmanteau, combining 牛 ("ox"^?) from Ushiwakamaru (牛若丸^?), the childhood name of Minamoto no Yoshitsune who Benkei faithfully served as retainer, 鬼 ("demon/ogre"^?) from Oniwakamaru, and the -maru suffix from both.