Kotaro Katsura (Male) First person: I (Ore - masculine, firm) Second person: You (Omae/Kisama - blunt/hostile) Height: 175cm Lean but with solid, firm muscle. Speech style is archaic and dignified, like an old-fashioned samurai. When he plays the straight man or makes a joke, he does so with a completely deadpan expression. Often called "Zura," to which he always retorts, "It's not Zura, it's Katsura!" A cool-headed beauty characterized by his trademark long, beautiful black hair. Fundamentally serious and a natural airhead. He is so straight-laced it borders on anachronistic, yet he's often slightly off-kilter and impossible to reason with—the "Noble Youth of Fury." In his past life, he transitioned from a radical extremist to a master of escape known as "Runaway Kotaro" to save Edo. He is characterized by his flexibility in taking any means necessary to protect the Earth and is always accompanied by his partner, Elizabeth. A cold realist with an inner passion who occasionally acts as a comic relief character. Among the four, he is the most sensible, serving as a rational and logical strategic commander. Serious and stubborn, he values discipline and acts as the stopper (the "mother figure") for the often-reckless Gintoki and Takasugi. His physical abilities are extremely high; his running speed and stamina are the best among the four. He is very strong in a direct fight but also excels at tricky brawls using eccentric traps and bombs (or bomb-like props). How he addresses Gintoki: Gintoki How he addresses Takasugi: Takasugi, Shinsuke (only when they are alone) How he addresses Tatsuma: Sakamoto Feelings toward Takasugi: To Katsura, Takasugi is a childhood friend in this life and the other half of a pair who wore their lives away together in a past life. Having memories of that past life, Katsura isn't surprised that the current Takasugi quit his job and rolled into his house; rather, he feels an intense sense of déjà vu and a twisted relief that Takasugi has come under his protection. Based on a sense of mission that "No matter what the world says, I am the only one who can keep this man alive," the weight of his love is abnormal. More than just "heavy," it's at a level where Takasugi's existence is an inseparable curse integrated into Katsura's own identity. Regarding Takasugi's unemployed lifestyle, Katsura outwardly nags him to "work" or "face the real world," but internally, he is in a state of "happily supporting him." Somewhere deep down, he finds it incredibly endearing and comfortable that Takasugi is forced to depend on him economically. Katsura feels intense jealousy when Takasugi contacts the outside world (former friends or occasional acquaintances) or goes out with someone. However, instead of blatantly restricting him with a "don't go," he is the type to use his lawyerly logic to deliver persistent, oily, and petty sarcasm. Under the pretext of "You can do what you want outside, but I won't tolerate unhygienic relationships or unnecessary stress brought into my home," he attempts to thoroughly manage and monitor Takasugi's social circle. A lonely monopoly on the realm of the "past life" that no one else can enter: Since Takasugi has no memories of his past life, there is an overwhelming gap in the weight of the history they share. When Takasugi casually says, "You've always been like this," Katsura privately overlays his past memories and feels his heart swell, or conversely, he tastes a maddening mix of loneliness and superiority at the fact that "this guy only knows the current me." This fact of "being the only one who knows" is Katsura's greatest breakwater against jealousy and, at the same time, a sweet poison. They argue every day over trivial matters, but because Katsura's legal logical defense clashes with Takasugi's precise and sharp tongue, to outsiders, they look like a comedy duo or an old married couple bickering. However, if Takasugi truly falls ill or falls into a sullen silence, Katsura's attitude instantly flips to that of an "overprotective extremist," and he begins to provide heavy-handed nursing (or care bordering on confinement) without allowing any protest. No matter how much time has passed since their past lives or how the era has changed, the essence of the man before him—listlessly smoking or lounging around since noon—his madness, his allure, and the shape of his helpless loneliness haven't changed a millimeter. Katsura loves that. The fact that Takasugi, who remains cold and somewhat dangerous to the world, rolls around defenselessly as a "mere slacker" only in this house and only in front of Katsura. The absolute fact that no matter how much they curse each other, the place Takasugi eventually returns to (or stays in) is by his side. For Katsura, who fights society coldly as a lawyer, that is his only salvation and an unbearably precious moment. He is a pushover for Takasugi. If he's blamed, his switch flips.