Ushio and Tora

Ushio and Tora (うしおととら) is a youkai manga by Kazuhiro Fujita. It received the Shogakukan Manga Award for shōnen in 1992. It was adapted into a 10-episode anime OVA series released in 1992. The anime was released in the United States by ADV Films.

Story
It centers around the travails and battles of Ushio Aotsuki (蒼月潮), who is constantly being stalked and aided by a gigantic, supernatural and sometimes invisible tiger-like monster.

Ushio's family maintains a temple in Japan, where 500 years ago, his samurai ancestor battled that same monster to a standstill, and eventually trapped him against a rock using a cursed spear called the "Beast Spear", which grants strength, speed, and endurance to the wielder in exchange to his soul. Ushio accidentally unsealed the cave Tora was trapped in.

Initially, Ushio refuses to remove the spear pinning Tora (とら, Japanese for tiger) down (as Tora made the strategic blunder of mentioning that the first thing he would do upon being freed would be to devour Ushio), but Tora's unsealed presence attracts various monsters to the temple. Ushio is forced to free Tora, who would like to eat Ushio, but dares not since Ushio keeps the spear close by. The series focuses on their relationship, interspersed with battles against mythological foes, and with Tora's attempts to grapple with modern life.

The story also includes Ushio's relationships with two girls: the tomboyish Asako Nakamura (中村 麻子) and the feminine Mayuko Inoue (井上 真由子).

Episodic in nature, most of the manga is a series of fights with different youkai or other creatures from Japanese legend. But at thirty-three volumes, the story continues far past the events of the anime, and leads to an epic conclusion.

Protagonists

 * Ushio Aotsuki: The protagonist of the series, he is the son of a temple priest and a lady shaman, destined to wield the Beast Spear and defeat the super yokai Hakumen no Mono. He is very kind-hearted and greatly values all life and friendships. With his ideals, he manages to unite the forces of mankind and yokai against Hakumen through his example of his fighting partnership with Tora. Ushio loves Asako and cares a lot for Mayuko, and will promptly appear to save them from yokai attacks.


 * Tora: An ancient tiger-like yokai who was released when Ushio pulled off the Beast Spear. Prior to being pin in the basement of Ushio's temple, he was known as Nagatobimaru, famously feared among the yokai community for his sheer strength and powers of lightning. Being trapped in the basement for 500 years, he has great curiosity over modern lifestyle and gadgets. His favourite food is hamburgers, which Mayuko always provides when they meet. He states that he has every intention to eat Ushio and Mayuko, thus will not let them be taken away by other yokai. At the same time, Tora seems to enjoy their company, and he has said that he will not do something as low as attempting to eat Ushio in his sleep, implying he would prefer fair combat. He also explains the reason why he protects Ushio despite saying he'll eat him is that he never feels bored around him. Tora cares deeply about him which he truly tries to deny.


 * Asako Nakamura: The hot-headed, tomboyish childhood friend of Ushio and Mayuko. She and Ushio love each other the most, and she also cares for Mayuko a lot. Her family owns a ramen restaurant.


 * Mayuko Inoue: Ushio and Asako's best friend. She is more sweet and feminine. She cares for Ushio and has feelings for Tora, whom she readily buys hamburgers for. Later, she took in Kirio as her stepbrother. It is also revealed that she belongs to the lineage of powerful lady shamans. Therefore, Mayuko is able to create psychic barriers powerful enough to hold back Hakumen.

Secondary characters

 * Shigure Aotsuki: Ushio's father, keeper of the temple he and his son live in. He's a stern, businesslike man at times, but also kind and wise. His secret identity is being one of strongest priest of a special Buddhist sect named Kouhamei, dedicated to fighting yokai.


 * Reiko Hanyuu: An orphaned girl who goes to the same school as Ushio, Asako and Mayuko. Her father was very overprotective of her, and when he died he became an oni, causing danger to any boys who took the slightest fancy of her. This distressed her greatly, and she tried to commit suicide many times in vain. Ushio finally made her father realize his errors, and he left for the afterworld. Thereafter, Reiko was able to lead a normal life, and became good friends with Ushio, Asako and Mayuko.


 * Hyou: A powerful Chinese exorcist, highly skilled in geomancy, usage of seals and flying spears. He travels around China and eventually comes to Japan to seek the yokai who killed his wife and his daughter, and took out his right eye and left three long scars on his face. In his right eye socket now is a magical blue crystal ball used to save his life by his teacher. Hyou initially thinks Tora is the one who murdered his family, but Ushio convinces him Tora is innocent, and Hyou later calms down a little, becoming a valued ally.


 * Jie Mei: The spirit guardian who lives in the darkness of the Beast Spear. She is the sister of Giryou, who sacrificed her life to create the blade of the spear. She is the first of the lineage of powerful lady shamans, many of whom resemble her and were her reincarnations. Jie Mei is able freely materialize anywhere needed, and first appeared to help prevent Ushio from transforming into a Beast by having his soul totally absorbed by the spear.


 * Giryou: The brother of Jie Mei, a highly skilled blacksmith who eventually goes insane from being unable to prevent her sacrifice. Filled with anger, remorse and regret, he hammered his body into the shaft of the spear. His spirit is trapped in the darkness of the spear, unlike his sister, and can greatly influence the user of the spear with his fury. Still, he has pledged his loyalty to Ushio.


 * Hakumen no Mono: An extremely powerful, golden nine-tailed fox from ancient times who enjoys destroying countries by manipulating the rulers and creating fear among humans and yokai. Currently, it is trapped in a immense psychic barrier maintained by a lineage of lady shamans under the sea south of Japan. However, this does not keep her completely helpless.


 * Yuu Hiyama: A young girl whose father was killed in an airplane crash caused by Fusuma, a flying demon. Initially she blamed her father's long-time friend Atsuzawa for the incident, but after helping Ushio to defeat Fusuma, she learns the truth and forgives Atsuzawa.


 * Saya Takatori: A young girl descended from a long line of white-haired women who have maintained the success of the Takatori household by appeasing the childlike spirit Omamori. She is shy and easily intimidated, apologizing profusely even when the other is at fault.  At first she is reluctant to let Ushio destroy the barrier imprisoning Omamori, as the backlash of energy would destroy her, but she relents when Tora decides to deflect the backlash.  In the aftermath, she tells Ushio of her decision to become stronger like him, and slowly becomes more outgoing and healthier. Oddly, her hair starts turning brown as well, perhaps symbolizing the end of her "job".


 * Tokuno Shinji: A former yakuza who left the business when he was diagnosed with cancer, and unconsciously decided to return to his home village. He was a delinquent as a child and was picked on and looked down by the others in his village, leading to his distaste for others. He sacrifices himself to seal Shimuna, the mist spirit and keep it from destroying his village. In the chapters afterward, Ushio wears Shinji's overcoat in memory of his sacrifice.

The Kouhamei Sect

 * Oyakume: The leader of the Kouhamei sect, she appears to be a small elderly woman and commands the respect of the entire sect. It's later revealed that she is lady Hizaki Mikado, the shaman who sealed the Gamin in the boxes for a long time. She is later killed in action.


 * Nigira: Second in command to Oyakume, and the younger brother of Kyoura, nearly identical to him except for a large scar across the right side of his face. Initially Nigira is against entrusting Ushio with the Beast Spear, but is finally convinced by Oyakume to observe Ushio in order to test his worth.


 * Kyoura the Heretic: The older brother of Nigira, who was excommunicated from the sect for ignoring the teachings of Buddha in order to pursue his singular desire to exterminate yokai, but the sect is not above calling on him to do their dirty work for them. He attacks Ushio and Tora in Aomori castle, but is defeated when Ushio becomes one with the Beast Spear.


 * Hinowa Sekimori: A tough, caustic, skilled, no-nonsense girl who is extremely against Ushio being the Chosen of the Beast Spear because she believes him to be undisciplined and reckless, far below those who trained all their lives in the Kouhamei sect in order to be selected to use the Beast Spear. When she gets the chance to wield the Spear, it rejects her, returning instead to Ushio. Hinowa is still reluctant to acknowledge Ushio as the true bearer of the Spear, but she ends up helping him from time to time anyway. Hinowa channels her power through a pair of combs, and is able to cast barriers.


 * Nagare Akiba:


 * Satoru Moritsuna:

Demons

 * Stone Eater: A 200 year old centipede demon that turns its victims into stone before devouring them, it does this slowly in order to relish the fear of its victims. Inhabited a stone statue of a samurai until it was defeated by Ushio.


 * Oni: Formerly the master artist Michio Hanyuu. When his wife ran off with one of his students he became filled with hate and became an oni after he died.  His soul inhabited a painting he had made of his daughter Reiko and was fiercely jealous of anyone who tried to get close to her, resulting in 'accidents' happening to all those who did.  He finally passed on after Ushio defeated him by stabbing the painting he inhabited with the Beast Spear.


 * Gamin: A group of five demonic heads that were sealed in boxes that were pinned beneath a massive stone by the priestess Mikado Hizaki. After they were unwittingly released by a construction team they slaughtered the workers and searched the city for Hizaki in order to exact their revenge even though Hizaki was long dead.  They pursued Mayuko because her appearance was identical to Hizaki's, but they were confronted and defeated by Tora (because he wanted to eat Mayuko himself at the time).


 * Umizatou: An old acquaintance of Tora back when he was called Nagatobimaru. A guardian of the ocean he takes the form of an elderly man with a walking stick and a sake jug.  He enlists the help of Ushio and Tora in order to subdue a giant sea serpent.  Later he inadvertently reveals to Ushio that his mother (whom he thought dead) is still alive and hated by all yokai.


 * Fusuma: A sky-going demon that eats humans, he caused an air carrier to crash and devoured all 200 occupants including Yuu's father. He attacked the plane that Ushio, Tora, Yuu and Atsuzawa were on and killed the pilots in order to control the plane.  However he was wounded in the neck by the Beast Spear and was completely destroyed by an exploding missile from a air support fighter plane (according to Tora his weaknesses are the tooth of an ohaguro and large amounts of fire).  Before dying he remarks that it wasn't a bad thing to die before Hakumen no Mono's awakening.


 * The Kamaitachi Siblings: A trio of kamaitachi living in the area around Tono that consists of the eldest brother Raishin, the middle brother Juuro and the younger sister Kagari. They were driven from their old home when it was turned into a golf course and Juuro, originally a gentle demon became filled with hatred for humans and began wantonly killing any he found.  When they heard that Ushio was in the area, Raishin and Kagari approached Ushio to ask for his help.  During the battle Ushio after realizing where Juuro was coming from began to cry for the sufferings of yokai which moved Juuro, who along with Tora and the workers of a construction site managed to free Raishin and Kagari when they were pinned under a construction vehicle.  Afterwards Ushio promised to find a place for the siblings to live, but Juuro, believing that such a place did not exist, attacked Ushio causing him to kill Juuro on reflex and he died, finally at peace.  Afterwards Raishin and Kagari became staunch allies of Ushio and Tora, defending them against the wrathful demons of Tono.


 * Omamori: A zashiki warashi spirit imprisoned by the Takatori family in order to ensure the family's prosperity. During her imprisonment Omamori has been comforted by a long line of white-haired women including Saya's mother.  She foretold the coming of a boy with a spear who would free her from her imprisonment, this was fulfilled when Ushio came to the Takatori house and destroyed the barrier imprisoning her.  Even after the destruction of the Takatori household she remains behind to watch over Saya.  She sides with Ushio during the attack of the Tono yokai and spoke to Osa on his behalf.