| Kamui Shirou | |
| Biographical Information | |
|---|---|
| Full Name: | Kamui Shirou |
| Age: | 14-15 |
| Status: | Unknown (Manga) Deceased (Anime) |
| Nickname/s: | Kid (by Sorata) |
| Alias: | Kamui of the Dragons of Heaven Light Kamui |
| Allegiance | |
| Affiliation: | Dragons of Heaven |
| Title/s: | Chosen One Dragon of Heaven |
| Occupation: | Student |
| Family: | Tooru Magami † (mother) Tokiko Magami † (aunt) |
| Residence: | Japan |
| Physical Description | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Hair color: | Black |
| Eye color: | Amber (anime) Blue (manga) |
| Height: | 5'7" |
| First Appearance | |
| Anime: | Episode 0 |
| Manga: | TBA |
| Voice Actors | |
| Japanese: | Kenichi Suzumura (TV series) Tomokazu Seki (Movie) |
| English: | Steve Staley (TV series) Alan Marriott (Movie) |
| “ | I will not believe that everything is controlled by fate. No one could tell me what I should choose because my future is what I decided it to be. | ” |
–Kamui Shirou, Episdode 14: Gathering | ||
Kamui Shirou (司狼 神威 Shirō Kamui) is the main protagonist of the manga series X/1999. A similar character named Kamui also crosses over into Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE as one of the twin vampires. Their character traits might be similar but Kamui Shirou is not to be confused with Kamui (TRC)
Biography
See also: Magami clan and Kamui's Family
Kamui transfered to a public school in Tokyo at grade three in which he befriends the Monou siblings quickly. No one else wanted to befriend him because of his not knowing his father. Kamui swore to himself that no matter what happens he will protect Fuuma and Kotori's happiness. He also swore to marry Kotori, and promised Fuuma that he will protect Kotori no matter what and never let her cry.
After some years later, Saya Monou, Fuuma and Kotori's mother died under suspicious circumstances and Tooru, Kamui's mother explained it that Saya's death was for their sake. Kamui doesn't know what it means and so the two left for Okinawa. Kamui experienced another adjustment without his precious friends to go on and meddle with other people. He earns friends when he seek revenge for the two that causes him to be suspended from school. He mostly skipped classes because his mother never scolded him. In there, Tooru died, being enveloped by flames as his shadow sacrifice (anime) and of the earth (manga). Through his mother's death, he fulfills his mother's dying wish. Penetrating him to return to Tokyo because his destiny awaits him there.
Upon his arrival, he was challenged to a physic duel, a sign that others are aware of his power and of his return. He also meet Kotori and Fuuma and become involved with them. In Tokyo, the people that are involved for the end of the world gathers around him. He meets Sorata Arisugawa and befriends him quickly. But then, another thing happened. The shinken that was supposedly belongs to him was stolen in the Togakushi Shrine and result the death of Kyougo Monou, Kotori and Fuuma's father. Kamui and Sorata meet Tokiko Magami, his aunt that tolds him that there is another sword that will be later on be born. But Kamui has no idea that the sword will be born out of his aunt. Slowly, he meets more people and Fuuma is undergoing personality change when he is confused of which future to choose. He ended up choosing to be a Dragon of Heaven to protect the world Kotori and Fuuma lives on. At his expense, Kotori becomes the first casualty and Fuuma awakens as his 'Twin Star' of the Dragons of Earth.
He falls under a catatonic state upon Kotori's death and Subaru saves him from his sorrows. Right after, the Dragons of Heaven gathers and sealed the shinken in CLAMP Academy until the time that he will be needing it. Afterwards, many events happen and deaths of the ones precious to him continuously follows. With those events, he blames himself that he wanted to die ahead.
When the barriers in Tokyo are finally over and Tokyo tower is the last one left, the Dragons of Heaven lost their power to create a kekkai and the will to protect others, Kamui made his final confrontation with Fuuma and realize his wish. He was killed by Fuuma in the end. But he won and was able to return Fuuma the way he is. His body dissolves into light and made a kekkai in shape of a perfect sphere, a kekkai that he never able to create at first.
In the manga, there is no clarified ending to give as a conclusion.
Etymology
Kamui's first name is spelled as 神威; which would usually be read as Shin'i not as カムイ; which would be read as Kamui in romaji. However Japanese names do not always follow conventional pronunciation rules. While Kamui's last name is spelled as 司狼; which literally means Director/Leader Wolf . Kamui's name is not just any ordinary name like those given to other characters in the series. His name has its own purpose that fits not only his character but also his destiny.
His given name 神威 is composed of two kanji: the first being 神 which is read as "kami" for 'God(s)' and the second which is 威 which is read as "i" for 'Authority'. Kamui's name written as 神威 means 'God's Authority, or The Might of Heaven'. While, his name also has an opposite meaning which could be interpreted as 'the one who holds the authority of God's will and the power to destroy the world'.
Appearance
Kamui's amber eyes in the anime TV series
Kamui appears as a young teenager with his eyes as his most striking feature, which is hardly surprising considering that he is a CLAMP character. Although some of the official art differs, his eyes are generally purple or bluish in hue. Purple eyes, which technically can occur in real life but are rare, are often used in manga or anime to indicate that a character is mysterious or powerful. In the anime, Kamui's eyes are instead amber colored, which is interesting since that is the color of Fuuma's eyes in the manga. Apparently gold/amber colored eyes are also associated with power, but also with a more animalistic side, Eyes of Gold. In either case, his eye color marks him as special and powerful. Whether he is angry, sad, or just gloomy, Kamui's eyes are extremely expressive. Also notable about his eyes is the fact that he has very thick eyebrows, just like Sorata and Daisuke. In fact, most of the male characters in X have rather thick eyebrows.
His hair color is black, but that is also true for most of the characters in the series. His hair is medium length, tapering off at his neck, and it is also rather thick and wavy. His hair is distinct in that it is layered in the back, longer than most of the other male characters, and has considerable volume. his bangs hang dramatically over his eyes, allowing him to appear even more mysterious.
At first glance, one would not be inclined to believe that Kamui is one of the two most powerful beings in the world. For one thing, his figure is considerably thin, almost feminine. He does have broad shoulders but his waist is very thin. Also, compared to many of the other characters, Kamui is relatively short, even though his height is listed at 5'7" ( which is just under average in Japan). Upon meeting him, Yuzuriha, the shortest character from the Dragons of Heaven, remarks on his short stature, saying that he is only a little taller than she is. When he tries to leave, she worries that she hurt his feelings because he is sensitive about his height. Sorata also tends to jab him about his height in the beginning, and Kamui's reactions are sometimes quite angry.
In some CLAMP works, he resembles Lelouch Lamperouge from Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, wherein the latter's appearance was based onto him.
Personality
Kamui was introduced in both the series and anime as a cold, ruthless and reckless young man. Not caring if he involves other people in his affairs and destroying public property. It is only later on that he tries distance himself from others in order to protect them from the burden he carries. It slowly comes to light that he cares deeply towards Kotori and Fuuma, who were the first to see his kind-hearted and gentle side. It is due to his affection for Kotori and his friendship with Fuuma that he is able to better express himself later on.
After he chooses to be a Dragon of Heaven, and following Fuuma's betrayal and Kotori's death, Kamui slowly opens up with his comrades who at first, he considers as his enemies as well. He slowly becomes much more open to them, but at the same time he's clouded with fear and guilt, especially knowing that he's the reason that the Dragons of Heaven are constantly exposed to dangerous situations. He tends to worry about them, being the protective and caring person that he is, due to the fact that his comrades have sacrificed their happiness and even their lives in order to protect him.
Abilities
Kamui is indeed powerful, even among the other characters who seem to have powers as well. Like them, he is capable of leaping fifty feet high and landing perfectly fine. In comparison to the others, he heals twice as fast as an ordinary human and faster than an ordinary seal. In contrast to the other characters who mostly have a single distinct power, Kamui seems to possess most of them and more.
Telekinetic Power
Although he does not manipulate a natural element in the way Karen manipulates fire or Seiichirou manipulates wind, he can create giant energy blasts out of his own psychic or spiritual power, which is akin to psychokinesis. When preparing to fight, he gathers energy around himself and can fire it at enemies (like during his fight with Daisuke) or break through spells (like during his encounter with Seishirou in the Diet Building). Unlike Subaru and Sorata, who use spells, talismans, and so on, Kamui's power
appears to be mostly directed by his own will. His psychic powers also make him super strong as well as super agile and fast. Additionally, he is able to sense other people's power and auras, and it is because of this ability that he was able to detect that something was considerably wrong with Hinoto. Unfortunately Kamui's psychic strength, while demonstrated in the first few volumes, mostly falls apart once he actually chooses a side. He is still capable of summoning considerable power, but he is often overcome. Although he is apparently a match for Dark Kamui in terms of literal power, his will, and thus his fighting ability, is considerably dampened by his indecisiveness.
Shinken
His second most remarkable ability is that he can wield the blade known as the Shinken, also referred to as the Holy Sword or Sacred Sword, what appears to be a very ornate longsword (the blade seems a little thick to
Kamui's sword, Shinken.
be a rapier). There are actually two swords called the "Shinken", one for each Kamui, and both swords were born from the body of a woman who was ripped apart when the sword manifested. Although others handle the sword at different points in the story, it is exclusively the right of the Kamuis to use them during the final battle and unleash their full power. Others, such as Yuzuriha and Arashi, also wield magical weapons (swords specifically) but neither of them quite match the power of the Shinken.
Dream vision
Kamui inside Hinoto's dreams.
Although it is a rather minor point, Kamui, like many others in the story, has visions of the future in his dreams. Unlike the dreamseers such as Hinoto and Kotori who can slip into the dreams of others as well as see the future, his visions remain fairly limited to one particular event which is Kotori's mutilation and murder.
Kekkai
Kamui's Kekkai
There is one major power that, so far, in the manga, Kamui lacks and that is the ability to form a kekkai, which is a protective barrier which Seals can create that prevents the damage done during a battle from impacting the real world. The exact design of the kekkai varies depending on the creator, but the purpose is to protect innocent people from getting involved in battles. The only way that those inside the kekkai can get out of it is if the Seal takes it down or if that person dies. At first this wasn't an issue for Kamui because he cared very little about the impact his psychic battles had on the landscape, but eventually it becomes a problem for him and he begins to worry about his inability to create one. When he asks the others how they are able to create their Kekkai, they reply that the power comes from their desire to protect something. It might be that during the final battle Kamui will realize his true wish and find something he wants to protect enough to create a Kekkai.
In the anime, it was revealed that Kamui was able to make a barrier field in a shape of perfect sphere.
Relationships
Appearances
| X/1999 Episode List | |||||||
| A Reunion: Appears |
A Nightmare: Appears |
A Pledge: Appears |
A Sacrifice: Appears |
A Destiny: Appears |
Kouya: Appears |
Cyber: Mentioned |
Gemini: Appears |
| Onmyou: Mentioned |
Inuki: Mentioned |
Border: Appears |
Alternative: Appears |
Return: Appears |
Gathering: Appears |
Guardian: Appears |
Slaugher: Appears |
| Wish: Appears |
Newborn: Absent |
Inferno: Mentioned |
Ripple: Appears |
Current: Mentioned |
Betrayal: Appears |
Earth: Appears |
Legend: Appears |
| X/1999 Manga Volumes | ||||||||
| Prelude: Appears |
Overture: Appears |
Sonata: Appears |
Intermezzo: Appears |
Serenade: Appears |
Duet: Appears |
Rhapsody: Appears |
Crescendo: Appears |
Requiem: Appears |
| Fugue: Appears |
Interlude: Appears |
Movement: Appears |
Lament: Appears |
Concerto: Appears |
Waltz: Appears |
Nocturne: Appears |
Suite: Appears |
Inversion: Appears |
Cross-over
See Also: Kamui in TRC
Kamui made a short appearance in Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE but he represents one of the major roles. Kamui has a different persona and different details unlike in X/1999. For more information, check the link for Kamui in TRC.
Quotes
Anime
- Don't get involved with me. (Episode 1: A Reunion)
- Why just don't give what's mine? (Episode 1: A Reunion)
- Are you trying to make me a late student on his first day on his new school? (Episode 1: A Reunion)
- I told you to come and die if you want to have a fight with me. Eavesdropping, it despite me! (Episode 1: A Reunion)
- How long would you go on eavesdropping? (Episode 1: A Reunion)
- I will never let go... Ever... (Episode 2: A Nightmare)
- Have you come to seek revenge for your friend? (Episode 2: A Nightmare)
- It might be fun for you, but it's unpleasant for me. (Episode 2: A Nightmare)
- 'I'll prove you that there's no need to prove it because I am the one and only Kamui. (Episode 2: A Nightmare)
- I've wasted enough time on you. (Episode 2: A Nightmare)
- Yeah, I am up to something. So don't get involved with me. (Episode 2: A Nightmare)
- Are you saying that you are on my side because you are a Buddhist monk? (Episode 3: A Pledge)
- (To Fuuma) I forgot all about it. And you should to, never do anything to anyone if you don't have to. That's our new promise from now on. (Episode 3: A Pledge)
- (To Hinoto) Saving the world is not my concern. I don't have interest of becoming a Dragon of Heaven or Earth. The thing is that why you didn't hand the shinken at once. (Episode 5: A Destiny)
- I only bring tragedy to those people around me. (Episode 12: Alternative)
- I don't need your pity. (Episode 16)
Manga
- I think only about myself. (Volume 1: Prelude)
- I need to let it go, or else, I'll continue to do things that I'll regret later. (Volume 12)
- We can't blame ourselves for the things we did not do. (Volume 12)
Trivia
- His father is unknown.
- Kamui is the only Magami member not to be sacrificed to anyone.
- Kamui is the only one involved with the end of the world given the chance to choose which side he will join to.
- He represents the Tarot Card, 'The Magician'.