BLACK TORCH Volume 5 #XXX: Outro
MANGA SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT!
Azuma Jirō
"Many centuries ago, a mononoke gifted the ancestor of the Azuma Clan with heightened athleticism and the power to speak to animals. All later generations inherited these abilities to a greater or lesser degree, though in Jirō's case they came through particularly strong. His eye-opening physical talent and ability to speak to any animal right away (when it usually requires spending a lot of time together to learn to speak with even a single animal) result from this.
Ragō
"Ragō once mentioned "living for eternity" to Jirō. That was no exaggeration. Ragō is over a thousand years old. In his youth, when Ragō still preferred human form, he became friends with the lord of a powerful family. However, in time, having Ragō's power at his disposal made that lord grow arrogant. Giving in to ambition, he started more and more wars for land until his many enemies finally wiped out his entire clan in revenge. After that, Ragō began avoiding relationships, giving up human form for the cat body he wears to this day.
Kishimojin Ichika
"The Kishimojin Family is oddity even among the Bureau, being a lineage of kunoichi. Together with their red hair, only the female members of the Kishimojin clan inherit the special trait called Flameblood.
Kirihara Reiji
"The once proud and honorable name of the Kirihara family has fallen into disgrace as Shinji killed his father. Even in the Bureau, Reiji is treated as a pariah. Thus Division 2, where no one (except Shiba) knows what happened, has become a rare place where he can be himself around others.
Shiba Ryōsuke
"The only son of an affluent middle-class family, Ryosuke had a perfectly normal life until he was in elementary school. That was when his mother discovered his father cheating on her. She flew into a rage, stabbing his father to death and then killing herself. The one to first discover the grisly scene when he came home from school that day, Ryosuke has had something of a self-destructive streak ever since.
Usami Hana
"Hana grew up idolizing her parents, both of whom were police officers, and dreaming of the day she, too, could be a "hero of justice". Serious and studious, she earned excellent grades in school. She also trained in judo from elementary school through college, consistently placing in the top ranks at tournaments. However, perhaps because of some issues handling pressure, she never managed to take the top spot.
Azuma Toshimasa
"The Azuma family has been a family of onmitsu for generations. As the family heir, Toshimasa of course became an onmitsu himself, battling against the criminal rabble operating in the shadows during Japan's economic boom years. He met and married a young woman, and together they had a daughter. This girl would later go on to become Jiro's mother.
Kouga
"In nature Mononoke spontaneously coalesce into being. Amagi and Jirō's father worked together on an experiment to see if one could be artificially created. Amagi offered a portion of his own power while Jirō's father offered the resources and technology. After several years of failures they finally created Kouga.
