Heishiro Mitsurugi

"You coward!"

- Mitsurigi insulting his opponent

"Not even the king of hell could stand against my blade"

- Mitsurugi talking about how divine his power is

"Weapons are just tools, true strength lies within me!"

- Mitsurugi

Mitsurugi is a character from the Soul Calibur series of video games. He has a rivalry with a female villain of sorts called Setsuka. He is a samurai who uses the basic kitana sword for combat. Mitsurugi is a samurai warrior that has appeared in every iteration of the Soul Calibur series. As a samurai his fighting style revolves around the katana. Mitsurugi is based on, the real life swordsman, Miyamoto Musashi. He is one of, if not the most recognizable character in the Soul Calibur roster.

Personality
Mitsurugi has only one goal in mind: To seek out the strongest warrior and challenge him/her to a duel then become the strongest warrior in history. He is never satisfied at the opponents he defeated in battle. Aside from being cocky, Mitsurugi is the kind of a person who sticks to his words; he's not all show. Being a ronin, he fights with honor and kills his opponents in an honorable fashion, and several of his endings reveal that he has a moral side. As shown in one such ending, he is shown to beleive that true strength lies within a person and not from the weapon. He is considered a neutral character.

Soul Edge
He trained for years under the guidance of the Murakami Clan. Soon, word of his skill spread all across the land. When his training period came to an end Mitsurugi had numerous offers from the military. He choose to turn these down in favor of being a hired mercenary. He will purposefully choose offers from losing sides because he wants a greater challenge.

During his travels, Mitsurugi heard rumors of a new weapon called a rifle. Initially he dismissed it as a novelty. Then he heard stories of its destructive power. This drove to seek out the Soul Edge in an effort to overcome the rifle. He was unable to find Soul Edge, however, but having beaten so many warriors also in search of the mighty blade, he challenged a rifleman to a duel. He was shot in the shoulder, leaving a large scar, yet still managed to get close enough to defeat the gunman. Having beaten the rifle, Mitsurugi now searches for the Soul Edge again, this time not as a means to better the rifle, but to find a someone who can challenge him in combat.

Soul Calibur
Unfortunately, Mitsurugi was unable to find any trace of the legendary "Hero's Sword" on his quest and began taking tasks that were largely meaningless to him in order to pass the time. One of these involved guarding a nearby castle for the night; and another of which involved aiding the Spanish Marquis Andre's force in laying siege on Sir Stefan's Ostrheinsburg Castle. In his frustration of finding no signs of Soul Edge, he returned home and challenged a man wielding the rifle Tanegashima to a duel, trying to prove that he didn't need Soul Edge to beat the rifle.

However, he suffered an embarrassing defeat in front of his lord, leaving him with a scar of a gunshot wound and forcing him to depart in shame on a second quest to perfect his swordsmanship so that he might eventually defeat the rifle. It was during this quest that he learned of the Azure Knight, Nightmare, who terrorized Europe with a sword deemed invincible. Nightmare's trail eventually disappeared, but Mitsurugi was unwilling to give up, after returning from his quest Mitsurugi challenged Teppou Hei again, but this time Mitsurugi managed to kill the man with a single strike with his katana.

Soul Calibur II
Four years later, Mitsurugi stumbled upon the trail of Soul Edge while visiting a castle in Xiwei (present-day Xi'an), where a mysterious dying man, after being saved by him from a gang of assassins, handed him a shard of the cursed blade. Although skeptical at first, Mitsurugi accepted the gift. Soon afterward, an incident occurred in which a servant of the Emperor of Ming marched to the castle, demanding the "Hero's Sword," and was slain when he refused to leave without it; Mitsurugi sensed that war was coming, but Soul Edge meant nothing to him. He had crossed countless battlefields, defeating every conceivable enemy, even those with rifles. What had once been his greatest enemy was none of his concern, as it no longer proved to be a threat. His only concern was with finding an opponent stronger than himself.

It was at this time that he was suddenly attacked by unknown forces, but he fought off all of his attackers quite easily. They were after the fragment the man from Xiwei had given to him; and judging by their outfits, they appeared to be ninja, with a sword technique he found strangely familiar. They reminded him of his nemesis Taki, who had interfered every time he had drawn close to the Soul Edge. His thoughts drifted, wondering what was happening in Japan at that time, and whether or not he could have a final showdown with Taki. He decided to return to his homeland.

Soul Calibur III
By this time, the powerful daimyo of Owari, Oda Nobunaga, was dead. Betrayed at Honnoji temple by his retainer, Akechi Mitsuhide, the other daimyo were now faced with the decision of whether or not to align with his successor, Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The Murakami clan in particular, with whom Mitsurugi stayed upon his return, refused to join with mainland Japan, choosing instead to protect their existence as fierce pirates and rulers of the sea, but their resistance caught the attention of Hideyoshi, and a final stand was about to ensue.

Since Mitsurugi could find no trace of Taki, he decided to aid the Murakami in the battle. A nighttime raid commenced. The ships clustered together and rode the tide in to charge the enemy fleet - the traditional secret strategy of the Murakami. The battle began, and Mitsurugi stormed enemy ships like a hurricane. This combined with the Murakami's naval prowess allowed for swift victory, and Mitsurugi was decorated for his service, gaining an invitation to meet with the Murakami commander. The commander engaged him in long conversation, mentioning rumors of a warrior clad in azure armor appearing from the west and boasting the strength of a god. Mitsurugi looked up in surprise, realizing that this must be Nightmare, whom he had lost track of before.

Mitsurugi bade farewell to the Murakami and ran to a nearby port, giving all of his reward money to a boatman, demanding that he be taken west. He needed neither money nor fame, only the satisfaction of a fierce battle in which his very soul would clash against his opponent's; and that battle, he concluded, would be found in Nightmare.

Soul Calibur IV
Mitsurugi searched for many powerful warriors from all over the world. But no matter how many enemies he fought and how powerful he became, he still hungered for more. He gave up searching for the legendary sword because he figured that no matter how powerful a weapon, it's useless if one doesn't have the strength to match it.

However, after he defeated some assassins that were looking for information about Soul Edge, he remembered the fragment of the evil sword that he had. He was about to throw it away because he felt that he didn't need it, when suddenly, the fragment had an unholy glow, and then it flew into the sky, heading west.

With anticipation, Mitsurugi followed, hoping to find both Nightmare and Soul Edge. He also heard rumors that the land before him was filled with terror, and horrible monsters and insane warriors were gathering. These stories didn't scare Mitsurugi, however, in fact, it excited him. This was a challenge that seemed worthy for him.

Soul Calibur V
Ever-searching for a worthy adversary to test his skills, Heishiro Mitsurugi journeyed to Ostrheinsburg; there he entered a chaotic alternate dimension and faced the Hero King, Algol, high atop a colossal tower. The two warriors clashed when suddenly Algol disappeared, along with the tower and all their surroundings—a dimensional convergence had warped Mitsurugi back to reality before the duel could be decided.

Some time later, rumors of a great conflict back in Japan reached the wandering swordsman—a power struggle that would determine who would rule the entire country. Mitsurugi raced back to his homeland, but it was too late. The battlefield at Sekigahara was deserted. The war was over.

While most of Japan would enjoy the ensuing era of peace, thousands of master less samurai found themselves out of favor and out of a job. With no money to continue his travels, Mitsurugi resigned himself to a quiet life as a farmer.

Then, one day, he happened to encounter a group of soldiers, freshly returned from a tour of duty abroad. The men spoke of a great sword, so mighty that even now they only dared whisper its name: Soul Calibur. One mention of the Hero King's sword is all it took. Mitsurugi's lust for battle returned in an instant, stronger than ever.

The samurai sold his entire harvest and secured transport on the first boat to the continent, seeking an end to the duel that had begun 17 years prior...

Namco X Capcom
Mitsurugi makes an appearance in Namco X Capcom. He is a playable character game along with Taki.