Kendo Rappa

"I think... there's something real tasteless about bringing a gun or a knife to a fight. Whoever's got the weapon wins, right? That ain't a real fight. Men're meant to rip each other apart with their own power. You feel me?"

- Kendo Rappa to Fat Gum and Eijiro Kirishima.

Kendo Rappa is a minor antagonist in the manga/anime series My Hero Academia. He is affiliated with the Shie Hassaikai and a member of the organization's Eight Bullets.

He is voiced by Shouhei Kajikawa in the Japanese version and Eric Rolon in the English dubbed version.

Appearance
Kendo is a large, muscular man with long, light-colored hair. He wears a plague mask given to him by the Shie Hassaikai, and dons a tattered t-shirt and dark pants covered by a light tunic and decorated with two belts. Kendo also sports his signature gloves, which cover his hands with several leather straps and his knuckles with metal.

Personality
Kendo is hot-blooded and obsessed with violence. He cares about nothing but having a thrilling fight to the death. He also believes that weapons are unbecoming, and a real battle is one where both sides use nothing but their own bodies and natural abilities. Despite working for Kai Chisaki, Kendo has no respect for him or the Shie Hassaikai, and the only reason he joined them in the first place was to have a shot at defeating Chisaki. He also has an honorable side, as shown when he refuses to let Hekiji assist him in his fight with Fat Gum and lets the latter take Kirishima to recover so they can fight again someday.

Background
Kendo used to be a fighter in an underground ring where people could go berserk with their Quirks. However, he would always easily win his matches and never had the fight to the death he truly desired. Sometime later, Kai Chisaki arrived to recruit Kendo into the Shie Hassaikai. Kendo refused and tried to attack him, only for Chisaki to "kill" him and then bring him back to life with his Quirk. Ecstatic over meeting a powerful opponent, Kendo joined the organization for the sole purpose of defeating Chisaki; and has been killed all five times he's challenged him.

Shie Hassaikai Arc
Kendo and Hekiji Tengai are sent to ambush and stall the heroes invading the Shie Hassaikai hideout to give Chisaki time to escape with Eri. Mimic sends Fat Gum and Eijiro Kirishima into a dark room where Kendo and Hekiji are waiting for them. Kendo rushes at them with a barrage of punches and breaks through Kirishima's Red Riot Unbreakable technique. Fat Gum tries to attack Kendo, but is blocked by Hekiji's barrier, causing Kendo to complain about him interfering with his fight. Hekiji reminds Kendo that Chisaki paired them up because their Quirks work well together and will ensure their victory, but Kendo angrily tries attacking Hekiji and argues that he doesn't care about Chisaki's plans and just wants to have a good fight to the death. An annoyed Hekiji decides to let Kendo do as he pleases and assures him he will not use his barrier again, much to Kendo's pleasure.

Kendo then continues his assault on Fat Gum while Kirishima remains frozen with fear over his technique being broken; with Hejiki noting that the child has given up. However, as Kendo continues his attacks, Hekiji notices Fat Gum is planning something and tells him to hurry up and finish him. Before Kendo can deliver the final blow, Kirishima, once again finding motivation to fight, jumps between them and uses his Red Riot Unbreakable technique to take all of Kendo's punches; repairing his hardened skin whenever he breaks through it. Kendo become excited over Kirishima's determination and the latter attempts a counterattack but is stopped by Hekiji's barrier. Kendo once again expresses his annoyance, but Hekiji tells him that the child's resolve must be rendered meaningless. But Fat Gum tells them that Kirishima's efforts weren't in vain, as it gave him the time to store up all the impact he took from Kendo's punches and convert it into power to unleash on them in a single blow.

However, Hekiji managed to create a barrier with maximum defense to take the brunt of Fat Gum's attack, preventing him and Kendo from being knocked out. Kendo tells them that the battle isn't over yet and asks Fat Gum to take Kirishima into the next room where there are medical supplies. Hejiki questions Kendo's actions and demands he follow Chisaki's orders, but Kendo knocks him unconscious and declares that he wishes to fight to the death with Kirishima after he recovers. Fat Gum asks Kendo what Chisaki is planning and why he joined the Shie Hassaikai, and he tells him he wants to defeat Chisaki and that the latter intends to reinstate the Yakuza.

Kendo is later arrested and imprisoned along with the rest of the Shie Hassaikai in the aftermath of the raid.

Powers and Abilities
Strongarm: Kendo's Quirk allows him to rotate and move his shoulders at incredible speed, causing him to hit his targets with a near-endless barrage of fast and powerful punches. However, it can only be used for a few seconds, although that's still enough time for Kendo to completely wear down and overwhelm most opponents.

Enhanced Strength: Kendo possesses great strength thanks to his muscles and Quirk, and his fists are powerful enough to break through Kirishima's Red Riot Unbreakable technique and injure Fat Gum; who's Quirk makes him resistant to most attacks.

Enhanced Speed: Kendo's attacks possess incredible speed and makes him capable of overwhelming and defeating his enemies in a matter of seconds.

Trivia

 * Kendo's last name means thug or villain (乱波 Rappa). His first name contains the kanji for shoulder (肩 kata) and movement (動 dō).
 * Kendo represents a corrupted version of the first tenet of the actual eight precepts of Buddhism: do not kill other living things.
 * Kendo is the only member of the Eight Bullets who isn't a C-Rank Villain.