Kurapika (Hunter × Hunter) – DEATH BATTLE! Analysis

Note: This analysis of Kurapika will focus on the Hunter × Hunter manga, as it is the original source material. Feats from both of its anime adaptations will be included, though anything that is a drastic change from his manga arsenal, such as his bokken being actual blades instead of wood in the 1999 anime, will not be included.

Background

The Kurta Clan is a clan found in the Lukso Province, a place where they stayed hidden from the rest of the world. Their reason for staying away from the rest of humanity was due to many of them having Scarlet Eyes, a trait that turns a Kurta’s eyes scarlet whenever they become overcome with intense emotion, such as anger or excitement. People considered the eyes to be one of the most gorgeous colors in the world. One of the Kurta who possessed Scarlet Eyes, Kurapika, was a young kid who was best friends with another Kurta named Pairo. During their youth, Kurapika was saved by Pairo when he almost fell off a cliff, though this caused injuries to Pairo’s eyes and legs that worsened every day.

Feeling it was his fault for his friend’s injuries, Kurapika sought to find a doctor in the outside world who could cure Pairo. While denied many times by the clan’s elder, his and Pairo’s fascination for the world beyond grew after saving an outside woman. As thanks for helping her, she taught them the language of the outside world, told them stories about it, and gave them a book that talked about adventures of a Hunter, someone who is always on the hunt for their desires. This made Kurapika want to explore beyond Lukso Province even more, and he eventually would get the elder’s approval to take a test to see if he would be able to.

After passing multiple tests, Kurapika’s final test would be to go to a market in an outside village and buy supplies without revealing his Scarlet Eyes. He was to take special eye drops that would keep his eyes scarlet for days, as proof that they turned that way by the time he returned. Kurapika was allowed to take one Kurta along, where he chose Pairo. Despite actually turning his eyes scarlet when thugs started to bully his best friend, Pairo revealed that he swapped the eye drops when he got them for Kurapika without the elder noticing, meaning Kurapika’s eyes turned back to normal by the time they returned and that he passed the final test.

With the elder’s blessing, Kurapika could travel the world unrestricted, and he made a promise to Pairo that he’d be back with a doctor that could cure him. He also promised to take him to the outside world and adventure it together. However, six weeks after Kurapika’s departure, the Phantom Troupe, also known as Spiders, arrived at the Kurta Clan’s village. Their leader, Chrollo Lucilfer, became infatuated with the beauty of the Scarlet Eyes, so the troupe slaughtered the entire clan and took their eyeballs, as the eyes remained scarlet even after death. Kurapika soon found out about the news, and found a new goal. He would become a Hunter, and use the perks of it like going to certain places, obtaining information, and taking certain actions, and eventually get revenge and kill all the members of the Phantom Troupe. He would take his Hunter Exam four years later, and he would eventually gain new friends in the form of Gon, Leorio, and Killua, who would help him with his goal.

More Info

• Age: 19
• Height: 5’7” | 170.2 cm
• Weight: 129.8 lbs. | 58.9 kg
• Birthday: April 4, 1981
• Blood Type: AB
• Zodiac Codename: Rat
• Member of the Kurta Clan
• Loves J-pop
• Closet mother to Gon and Killua and wife to Leorio

Equipment

Bokken

A pair of wakizashi-sized Japanese swords made of wood that are tied together, which allows Kurapika to wield them as nunchaku. Depending on the situation in a fight, he can hole both of them the same or one of them in a reverse grip. He can block attacks and deliver strong strikes capable of piercing opponents with them despite being made of wood.

Contact Lenses

Kurapika wears a pair of black contacts to hide his Scarlet Eyes.

Knives

Kurapika carries multiple knives that he can use, including a switchblade that he mostly uses for intimidation.

Shuriken

Kurapika carries multiple shuriken that he can use.

Handgun

Kurapika carries a basic handgun that he mostly uses for intimidation.

Powers & Abilities

Nen

Aura is the life energy found in all living things that is essential for survival. It flows out of many Aura Nodes on the body, though these nodes only open through intense meditation or forced initiation. Nen is a technique that allows one, like Kurapika, to utilize aura in various ways, such as sensing other people’s auras, along with how strong they are, jumping higher, improving their senses, writing out hidden messages, unlocking others’ Aura Nodes by transferring their aura into them, or preventing bleed outs from wounds. A person’s emotions also affect how powerful their Nen is. Only those who can use Nen can see aura, as there are also Aura Nodes in the eyes.

There are four major principles for using Nen: Ten, Zetsu, Ren, and Hatsu. Ten lets one control their aura so it doesn’t leak out of their body and instead flow through and around it. It also reduces one’s aging, defends them against emotional Nen attacks, and all around defends them. Zetsu allows one to close their Aura Nodes to stop the flow of aura, and doing so in the eyes makes them unable to see aura. It helps relieve fatigue, and can also be used to hide from those who can sense auras, even making them appear transparent when they actually see them. However, since the aura isn’t protecting the body, this can result in even the slightest Nen attacks dealing incredible damage.

Ren is used to output large amounts of aura in a very explosive way, which increases their physical strength and durability while granting them a big pool of aura to use in many ways. Ten is capable of containing the aura produced by Ren. Ren can also be influenced with hostility to show one’s bloodlust, which can cause non-Nen users to feel immense fear, become paralyzed, or even die. Finally, Hatsu is one’s personal expression of Nen, essentially projecting their aura in order to create and use Nen abilities unique to them. These abilities can become stronger by sacrificing certain things or setting limitations or conditions on them, with those abilities becoming more powerful the stricter the condition. If a condition is broken, the user will suffer consequences. They can also persist a long time after death and become stronger if the ability is driven by hate and regret while directing itself toward the target of those emotions.

There are six different Nen categories that are all different from one another in how they use Nen, and what category one is in is loosely connected to their personality. The categories are Enhancement, Transmutation, Emission, Conjuration, Manipulation, and Specialization. Enhancers strengthen themselves or objects, Transmuters change the quality of their aura to match something else, Emitters detach aura from their bodies, Conjurers create objects from aura, Manipulators control animate or inanimate things, and Specialists possess unique abilities that don’t fit into the other five categories. Under normal circumstances, Kurapika is a Conjurer, which makes his aura appear smoother around his body compared to the other types. He’s capable of learning abilities of different categories besides Specialist, but the chances of proficiently using and mastering them is different depending on the category in comparison for a Conjurer and less than if they were Conjuration abilities in general.

He has also shown some proficiency in Transmutation to shape his aura into symbols. In rare cases, a person’s Nen type can change into a Specialist later in their life, and Conjurers like Kurapika are more likely to become them. Multiple types of Nen can be used together to create a Nen ability. Nen also has advanced techniques that delve deeper than Ten, Zetsu, Ren, and Hatsu. While Kurapika hasn’t shown using all of them, he still has used some of them. They do end up using more energy than normal to perform though. The following is a list of all the advanced Nen techniques Kurapika knows:

• Gyo: An advanced application of Ren that lets Kurapika focus a large amount of his aura into one specific part of his body in order to increase the strength of said body part. This makes it stronger than if he was only using Ten, letting him protect himself specific parts of his body to a much higher degree. Ten can help contain the focused aura close to the body. This can even be focused in his eyes to see aura and Nen constructs that are concealed, as well as the faintest traces of aura. This also works through video recordings. The downside to this technique is that, since aura is being focused in one specific part of the body, this leaves the rest of Kurapika’s body more vulnerable to attacks, though he can only put a certain amount of his aura into that part of his body while the rest protects the other parts.
• In: An advanced application of Zetsu that lets Kurapika completely conceal his aura from others. Unless one uses Gyo through their eyes or a similar ability that allows them to see hidden auras, they are unable to perceive it with their five senses or normal Nen sensing. Unlike Zetsu, aura still continues to flow, and is instead just hidden, making it useful for launching sneak attacks. As Kurapika is a Conjurer who creates things from Nen, this even hides conjured objects and lets him use them against his opponent without them knowing.
• Shu: An advanced application of Ten that lets Kurapika enshroud objects with his aura to make them an extension of his own body and make them stronger and more durable. In his case, he can use this on conjured weapons to make them much stronger, as well as any of his other equipment.

Enhanced Hearing

Even without Nen, Kurapika has more advanced hearing than most other people, allowing him to hear really faint sounds or overhear conversations most would miss.

Scarlet Eyes

As a Kurta, Kurapika’s eyes turn scarlet whenever he becomes greatly excited or enraged. When scarlet, his physical strength and Nen abilities become enhanced greatly, and he loses all restraint and rationality and becomes primal. Though, he has learned to control his emotions better while using them, as well as being able to activate and deactivate his Scarlet Eyes at will. It also changes him from a Conjurer to a Specialist. Kurapika can also perform a Nen power called Emperor Time, a Specialization ability that allows him to use all types of Nen at 100% efficiency.

While his level, or proficiency, with each type staying the same as if he’s a Conjurer, his force and accuracy with them are boosted immensely. For example, the polar opposite of a Conjurer is an Emitter, so the level of Emission abilities Kurapika can learn and utilize is the same, but the power and effectiveness of those abilities are the same as those of a master Emitter. Besides specific techniques, he’s able to use Enhancement abilities to successfully inflict noticeable damage to and guard against master Enhancers like Uvogin, a member of the Phantom Troupe. However, as a downside, Emperor Time has a condition that shortens his lifespan by one hour for each second he’s in it. Kurapika is capable of using Emperor Time for up to about three hours before fainting from exhaustion.

Conjured Chains

As a Conjurer, Kurapika can create objects. In his case, he can create five different types of chains that he wears around his fingers to use in battle. He can also make them disappear and only create one at a time. They all have incredible range, and he can manipulate their movements easily. Kurapika’s adept at using them both up close and far away. He usually wears them out in the open to always be ready with them and pretends he’s a Manipulator controlling chains to others to make them only watch out for the visible chains. Normal people can also see them, despite them normally being unable to see things made of aura. The following is a list of all of Kurapika’s conjured chains:

• Dowsing Chain: A chain with a ball at the end of it that only requires Conjuration abilities. Located on Kurapika’s ring finger, it’s his most used chain for offensive and defensive purposes in combat, being able to be swung around with ease to strike opponents, grab and throw them around, or bring them closer to him for follow-up attacks. It can also be used to determine the location of missing people if it’s used alongside a map or detect if one is lying or being secretive via the ball moving if it senses them doing it. He needs to be face-to-face with someone in order to detect their lies, and it works better in groups when he questions one person at a time. When under Emperor Time, Kurapika can even do this through video recordings if he’s met them before. How he tells lies is that he can sense subtle indications that someone is doing it through the conveyance of the chain and extreme focus.
• Chain Jail: A chain with a hook at the end of it that only requires Conjuration abilities. Located on Kurapika’s middle finger, it envelops and restrains opponents while putting them into a state of Zetsu, and he can even gag them so they can’t speak or tighten the chain to the point where it slices through those wrapped in it, though this only works on members of the Phantom Troupe. This is because, to make the chain more powerful against them in his quest for revenge, he placed a limitation on himself to only use it against Spiders. If Kurapika violates this condition, he will die. He can also strike opponents with it or make them bigger and stronger.
• Holy Chain: A chain with a cross at the end of it that requires Conjuration and Enhancement abilities. Located on Kurapika’s thumb, it heals wounds it makes contact with by enhancing one’s natural healing ability. When used under Emperor Time, it can even heal injuries as bad as a broken arm shattered into many pieces in seconds.
• Judgment Chain: A chain with a dagger at the end of it called the Stake of Retribution that requires Conjuration, Emission, and Manipulation abilities. Located on Kurapika’s little finger, it pierces through one’s body and wraps around their heart with the Stake of Retribution stabbed partly in it. After this, Kurapika gives the victim an order or rule that they have to follow. If they violate it, their heart gets pierced and crushed by the chain. He can give up to two commands for a Stake of Retribution, but he can also use up to three daggers at once on different people. A Stake of Retribution stays in its victim even if Kurapika is far away from them, and he can tell when one has been removed, which can only be done via Nen exorcism or Kurapika himself. It can kill the victim even if Kurapika doesn’t know they violated the order or rule, and if Kurapika is killed, it’s implied it’ll become stronger after death and possibly kill the victim. It’s also the same chain that Kurapika uses to set the limitation on his Chain Jail. Whether or not this means he can remove the limitation on his Chain Jail is unknown. Kurapika can only use this chain while under Emperor Time due to a condition.
• Steal Chain: A chain with a syringe at the end of it that only requires Conjuration abilities. Located on Kurapika’s index finger, it pierces one’s body and drains them of all of their aura while putting them in a state similar to Zetsu and stealing one of their Nen abilities. This makes it so they’re unable to use that ability until it’s returned to them. Even if the original owner of the ability dies, Kurapika still keeps the ability, and he can even take abilities even if he doesn’t have knowledge of the ability beforehand. Kurapika can normally only absorb one ability at a time.

Stealth Dolphin

A Specialization ability that Kurapika can only use while under Emperor Time. It summons a floating dolphin-like construct with syringes on each pectoral fin from his Steal Chain, which only he can see and hear. It works in conjunction with the chain, as it can equip and analyze an ability stolen from someone and telepathically tell Kurapika its name and functions, even multiple at once. After this, he can use the ability through the dolphin itself. As his Steal Chain also drains the victim’s aura, when the ability is performed, it uses their aura to fuel it so that it’s used with its original power.

Kurapika can also stab others with his Steal Chain to both give them an ability and conjure a listening device in their ear to see and telepathically communicate with the dolphin, including telling them about how to use it just like how it would for Kurapika. They can then use it whenever they want via the dolphin, as well as deactivate it when they are done with it. This also allows Kurapika and whoever he gave the ability to to be able to talk with each other telepathically. When used on a non-Nen user, it allows them to see aura and they become Nen users if they use the ability by semi-opening their Aura Nodes. Transferring it to someone else also allows him to absorb another ability since he himself doesn’t have it. If Kurapika faints while someone else is using a stolen ability he gave to them, they will also pass out, as well as wake up at the same time when he recovers. Lastly, the dolphin can be put on standby and disappear. He is unable to get out of Emperor Time until the stolen ability is used and returned and the dolphin is deactivated.

Feats

Strength & Attack Potency

• Carried a Great Stamp pig with ease
• Opened up the first doors of the Testing Gate, which weigh four tons total
• Sliced through a tree with his Chain Jail
• Destroyed part of a cliff with his Chain Jail
• Stomped Uvogin so hard that he created a small crater

Speed

• Outran a rolling boulder
• Moved faster than the eye can see
• Stated that he can attack targets who are a fair distance away with his chains in half a second
• Restrained Chrollo with his Chain Jail from a few meters away in 0.2 to 0.3 seconds
• Dodged gunfire
• Caught multiple bullets with his Dowsing Chain

Durability

• Tanked an attack that created a small crater against a rock wall
• Survived Uvogin’s Big Bang Impact at full power, an attack powerful enough to create a giant crater, and is stated to have as much destructive force as a small missile

Scaling

• Gon - Kurapika has learned Nen and developed his Hatsu much quicker than Gon, and was able to handle Phantom Troupe members during their time in Yorknew City, unlike Gon, who was captured and overpowered with ease. Kurapika’s Scarlet Eyes and Emperor Time also make him much stronger than Gon, minus his adult form, who is above Kurapika in every way.
• Picked up and threw a giant stone tile, as well as broke it
• Broke Illumi’s arm
• Destroyed a stone block
• Broke through a concrete wall
• Destroyed a giant rock
• Shook a giant tree with his Rock Jajanken with ease
• Launched Hollow to NGL with his Rock Jajanken (calced here)
• Worried and even was going to kill Morel with his Rock Jajanken, who blocked Menthuthuyoupi’s explosion that created a massive crater in the Royal Palace of East Gorteau with his Smoky Jail, which he did when he wasn’t even in top condition (calced here)
• Menthuthuyoupi should also be comparable to fellow Royal Guard Neferpitou, who pounced from the Chimera Ant Nest to a far away cliff to quickly attack Kite (calced here)
• Moved faster than the eye could see
• Is fast enough to create afterimages of himself
• Took a hit from Baro, who crushed through a tree
• Leorio - Is always shown as being better in combat and has saved Leorio on many occasions. While Leorio was physically stronger than Kurapika before they learned Nen, Kurapika has surpassed him greatly since they’ve learned it.
• Opened up the second doors of the Testing Gate, which weigh eight tons total
• Killua - While Killua was trained as a powerful assassin and seen as more powerful during the Hunter Exam, Kurapika was seen as more powerful than him when they went to Yorknew City due to learning Nen and developing his Hatsu faster than Killua. During this time, Kurapika was also able to kill one of the Phantom Troupe members while Killua, while being able to damage them, was still captured and outsmarted by them. Kurapika with his Scarlet Eyes and Emperor Time should also be comparable to Killua when he uses Godspeed.
• Opened up the fifth doors of the Testing Gate, which weigh 64 tons total
• Ripped out Johness’s heart
• Broke Pakunoda’s arm, which he did in 0.7 seconds
• Tore off Rammot’s head and crushed it in his hand
• Crushed through a tree with his yo-yo that weighs about 110 lbs.
• Broke free from steel chains
• Broke through a concrete wall
• Was able to keep up with and hurt Menthuthuyoupi when using Godspeed, who made an explosion that created a massive crater in the Royal Palace of East Gorteau (calced here)
• Menthuthuyoupi should also be comparable to fellow Royal Guard Neferpitou, who pounced from the Chimera Ant Nest to a far away cliff to quickly attack Kite (calced here)
• Dodged a sniper shot
• Tanked Carabid Beetle’s explosion (calced here)
• Uvogin - Was able to contest Uvogin’s strength and hurt and take hits from him. Kurapika was also the one who killed him, and while his Chain Jail helped him deal the finishing blow, Uvogin is still an incredibly smart fighter and was outsmarted by Kurapika to become ensnared in his Chain Jail like that.
• Launched a steel door and its frame
• Created a smokescreen by shattering the ground beneath him
• Created a giant crater with his Big Bang Impact, which is also stated to have as much destructive force as a small missile
• Stronger than his comrade Bonolenov, who created a giant crater with his Battle Cantabile: Jupiter (calced here)
• Is physically the strongest member of the Phantom Troupe, who can easily kill Chimera Ants, which even weaker ones such as Carabid Beetle can create massive explosions (calced here)
• Caught a bullet with his teeth
• Tanked a sniper shot
• Tanked a bazooka that was designed to destroy tanks

Training & Experience

• Ran for hours over 50 miles without rest during the Hunter Exam, even up stairs
• Is perceptive enough to notice a proctor following him during the Third Phase of the Hunter Exam
• Passed the 287th Hunter Exam
• Mastered Nen and his Hatsu in only six months, which usually takes a year just to see aura with the proper methods
• Figured out that Tocino was commanding 11 assailants as a test from the Nostrade Family
• Was seen as qualified enough to lead a group of Hunters against the Phantom Troupe
• Found Uvogin in a massive smokescreen by noticing the changes in the dust from it
• Skilled enough to secretly wrap his Chain Jail around Uvogin using In in the middle of their battle without him ever noticing
• Captured the leader of the Phantom Troupe by outsmarting him and the other troupe members with an on the fly plan
• Recovered most of his brethren’s Scarlet Eyes
• Discovered Saiyu as a mole within the Zodiacs with his Dowsing Chain
• Taught a group of people how to use Nen
• Defeated Majtani, Uvogin, Sayird, and Vincent

Weaknesses

While Kurapika can stay calm and rational most of the time, when it comes to the Phantom Troupe, he can become worked up and reckless and even divert from an original plan out of blind rage. Even if he just sees a spider tattoo, the symbol of the Phantom Troupe and one that is tattooed onto all of their bodies, his eyes turn scarlet and he goes primal. This is even the case if he knows the one with a spider tattoo isn’t a troupe member. In fact, anything spider-related that he sees causes him to become this way, and he also turns scarlet when he deals with the Scarlet Eyes of his brethren.

Overusing his Scarlet Eyes can make him feverish and incapacitated for days. Emperor Time similarly has consequences for long uses, as Kurapika loses an hour off his lifespan for each second he’s using it, and while he can use it for up to about three hours, reaching the limit causes him to pass out three times longer, with Kurapika speculating that stealing stronger abilities with his Steal Chain may cause it to reach its limit sooner. If he uses Zetsu or Gyo or his aura becomes completely depleted, he will become essentially defenseless and exhausted for the latter. As for his chains, he will die if he uses his Chain Jail on non-Phantom Troupe members. He also can only use his Judgment Chain when Emperor Time is active and his Dowsing Chain is unable to discern lies if the person lying is unaware that they’re lying. Stealth Dolphin can also only be used under Emperor Time. Lastly, Kurapika’s also unable to get out of Emperor Time until the stolen ability is used and returned and the dolphin is deactivated, as well as being able to absorb only one ability at a time with his Steal Chain without Stealth Dolphin.

Summary

Advantages

• Nen grants him increased strength and durability and has many useful techniques, like Zetsu to hide his aura from those who can normally track life energies
• Can find hidden life energies like people and attacks with Gyo
• Can conceal his aura and Nen abilities with In
• Can notice sneak attacks and other quiet assaults with his enhanced hearing
• His Scarlet Eyes enhance his physical strength and Nen abilities and allow him to use Emperor Time to be able to use all types of Nen at 100% efficiency
• His Downsing Chain can detect lies and find missing people if used with a map
• His Holy Chain can heal wounds as bad as a completely shattered arm in seconds while under Emperor Time
• His Judgment Chain can force others to follow up to two commands, which causes them to die if they don’t follow them
• His Steal Chain can absorb life energy and abilities that use it from others so that he can use them for himself, which Stealth Dolphin can tell him how it’s used and can be used with its original power

Disadvantages

• Can deviate from plans when the Phantom Troupe are involved
• Can go primal with his Scarlet Eyes if he sees anything spider-related, as well as dealing with the Scarlet Eyes of his brethren
• Overusing his Scarlet Eyes and Emperor Time can cause him to faint for long periods of time, with stronger abilities stolen with his Steal Chain making the limit of how long he can use Emperor Time shorter
• Emperor Time makes him lose an hour off his lifespan for each second it’s used
• Is more vulnerable to attacks if using Zetsu or Gyo or if he runs out of aura, which also causes him to become exhausted
• His Chain Jail can only be used on Phantom Troupe members or else he will die if used on anyone else
• His Judgment Chain and Stealth Dolphin can only be used under Emperor Time
• His Dowsing Chain is unable to discern lies if the person lying is unaware that they’re lying
• Is unable to get out of Emperor Time until a stolen ability is used and Stealth Dolphin is deactivated
• His Steal Chain can only steal one ability without Stealth Dolphin