View source for Michizō Tachihara

{{Media icons
|M=Michizō Tachihara
|B=BEAST Michizō Tachihara
}}{{Tabs
|tab1 = Introduction
|tab2=Synopsis
|tab3=Relationships
|tab4=Image Gallery
}}
{{Quotes/Motto|PM|Orders make me who I am. So if I happen to die by those orders, I regret nothing.|Michizō Tachihara to [[Akiko Yosano]]{{Ref|name=ch68|chap=68}}}}
{{Character
|image = <gallery>
Michizo Tachihara (Manga).png|Manga
Michizo Tachihara (Anime).png|Anime (PM)
Michizo Tachihara Hunting Dogs (Anime).png|Anime (HD)
</gallery>
|kanji = 立原道造
|romaji = ''Tachihara Michizō''
|also known as =Sergeant Tachihara (by government soldiers){{Ref|chap=71}}<br>
* <u>''For appellations, see [[Michizō Tachihara/Relationships|Relationships]]''</u>
|age= 19{{Ref|name=vol19|vol=19}}
|gender = Male
|birthday = July 30{{Ref|name=vol19}}
|height= 176 cm (5’7){{Ref|name=vol19}}
|weight= 62 kg{{Ref|name=vol19}}
|bloodtype = A{{Ref|name=vol19}}
|likes = Pencils, hyacinths{{Ref|name=vol19}}
|dislikes= The past, [[Teruko Okura]]'s unreasonable requests{{Ref|name=vol19}}
|family = [[Shunzen Tachihara]]†
|status = Turned {{Ref|chap=90|name=ch90}}
|occupation = [[Black Lizard]] commander (former)<br>
Hunting Dog<br>
Double spy;{{Ref|name=ch89|chap=89}} (former/denounced)
|affiliation = [[Port Mafia]] (double spy)<br>
* [[Black Lizard]] (former)<br>
[[Hunting Dogs]] (former/denounced)
|ability name = [[Midwinter Memento]]
|reference = Midwinter Memento {{s|Poem by {{w|Michizō Tachihara}}}}
|manga debut = [[Chapter 5]]
|anime debut = [[Episode 4]]
|seiyuu = {{W|Yū Hayashi}}
|english va = {{W|Benjamin Diskin|Ben Diskin}} (Seasons 1-3)<br/>[https://myanimelist.net/people/54504/AJ_Beckles A.J. Beckles] (Season 4-5)
|image gallery = yes
|namesake={{filepath:Japan.png|20px}} [[wikipedia:Michizō Tachihara|Michizō Tachihara]] {{s|Japanese poet and architect}}}}
{{Nihongo|'''Michizō Tachihara'''|{{ruby|立|たち}}{{ruby|原|はら}} {{ruby|道|みち}}{{ruby|造|ぞう}},|Tachihara Michizō}} is the fifth and final member of the [[Hunting Dogs]] special units,{{Ref|name=ch68}} operating undercover as a [[Port Mafia]] mafioso and [[Black Lizard]] battalion leader. Later, he serves as a double spy for the Mafia on [[Ōgai Mori]]'s orders. He has the ability named '''[[Midwinter Memento]]'''.

==Appearance==
Tachihara is a slightly imposing young man with short, spiky hair dyed rust red and amber eyes. He wears a plaster on the bridge of his nose. His natural hair color is black.

His normal outfit consists of a long-sleeved and rather baggy white V-neck shirt with the border being black and the left sleeve rolled up so it isn't visible. This shirt is partially covered by a military green crop jacket that has beige fur around the collar. Underneath, he wears a gun strap for his dual guns. He also wears dark blue pants, brown boots, and a black band on his left wrist.

As a member of the [[Hunting Dogs]], he is seen wearing the standard Hunting Dogs cape and cap, alongside his usual long-sleeved shirt, pants, and his late brother's dog tag.

<gallery hideaddbutton="true" captionalign="center" position="center">
Tachihara as a toddler (manga).png|Tachihara as a toddler when Teruko uses her ability on him
Tachihara as a child (manga).png|Tachihara as a child 
Hunting Dogs Tachihara.png|Tachihara as a member of the Hunting Dogs
</gallery>

==Personality==
[[File:Tachihara kills Karma Transit members.png|thumb|left|220x220px|Tachihara in combat as a battalion leader.]]
On the surface, Tachihara is an arrogant, impulsive, rash individual, more than willing to solve problems through sheer brute force and his dual guns. A violent temper leads to frequent conflict between him and other mafiosi, namely [[Gin Akutagawa|Gin]], whom Tachihara views as creepy and frequently insults, leading to arguments, and [[Ryūrō Hirotsu|Hirotsu]], who often shuts Tachihara's temper down by threatening him. Tachihara's self-preservation prompts him to obey Hirotsu in the end, albeit reluctantly.{{Ref|chap=5|name=ch5}}

An apparent thirst for battle and arrogance fuels Tachihara's temper. He's often seen with a rather feral smile on his face whenever fighting.{{Ref|name=ch5}}{{Ref|name=ch14}} He seldom considers the weight of a mission over the rush of eliminating his targets. He shows no hesitation nor remorse in murder, in fact sometimes urging to just eliminate a troublesome person if he finds their baggage more than they're worth.{{Ref|chap=14|name=ch14}}

A prideful man, Tachihara despises being underestimated and belittled. This is a surefire way to get oneself shot.{{Ref|chap=48|name=ch48}}

[[File:Tachihara and Hirotsu talking to Higuchi.png|thumb|220x220px|right|Tachihara dissuading Higuchi since he values orders.]]
His rebellious side doesn't negate how he values orders, seeing them as an utmost system. Due to this, he attempts to dissuade [[Ichiyō Higuchi|Higuchi]] from saving [[Ryunosuke Akutagawa|Akutagawa]] against Mori's orders, even suggesting an alternate plan that wouldn't disobey these orders.{{Ref|name=ch14}} Furthermore, he maintains his composure when dragged into shopping with [[Elise]], and tolerates her putting bows in his hair. Despite guards laughing at him, Tachihara doesn't snap.{{Cite}}

Despite his rough exterior, Tachihara is capable of thinking rationally, just not in the heat of the moment in the Port Mafia. He can recognize danger quickly and finds himself on edge over how nonchalant [[Ōgai Mori|Mori]], [[Kōyō Ozaki|Kōyō]], and [[Chūya Nakahara|Chūya]]'s meeting went.{{Ref|vol=10|Omake.}} Tachihara has a proficient understanding of how to deal with the enemy, alluding to a much more cunning side of his true nature.{{Ref|name=ch48}}

[[File:Tachihara aims his gun at Yosano (manga).png|thumb|left|Tachihara's nature as a Hunting Dogs member.|220px]]
Much of Tachihara's details of joining the Port Mafia are unknown, however, it is a ruse. His identity as the fifth Hunting Dog reveals a much more clever, driven man. Unlike [[Ango Sakaguchi]], Tachihara always intended to infiltrate the Port Mafia, using his position in the Hunting Dogs to operate as a spy. His confrontation with Yosano is devoid of any rage, depicting a cold, blunt side as he explains his grudge against her for "killing" his brother.{{Ref|chap=68|name=ch68}}{{Ref|chap=77|name=ch77}}

[[File:Tachihara piggybacks Teruko (manga).png|thumb|right|Tachihara piggybacks Teruko.|alt=|220x220px]]
Regardless of who he is working for, Tachihara cares deeply for his comrades. He was first to try to stop Higuchi when she tried to save Akutagawa on her own{{Ref|name=ch14}} and has been seen visibly harboring guilt for when he cut down Hirotsu and Gin for the sake of his mission as a spy.{{Ref|chap=73|name=ch73}} He has also been seen caring for Teruko when she showed she was heavily injured from going against a plane head-on.{{Ref|chap=74|name=ch74}} He's also notably patient with those who are spoiled, including letting Teruko sit on his shoulders with little protests of being his "slave"{{Ref|chap=71|name=ch71}} and letting Elise put a bow on his head.{{Cite}}

Beneath a lot of Tachihara's rough and punk-like exterior is a strong sense of incompetency and inferiority compared to his [[The Soldier|older brother]] who was praised as being "perfect" while he was deemed by his family as being inferior, even being questioned as to why he didn't die instead of him. These things have driven Tachihara to act out and live a life of delinquency and ruthlessness by affiliating with gang activity, but despite these things, he still couldn't shake off these negative feelings. His insecurity and desperation to escape his brother's shadow was so strong, that Tachihara took on the first "order" that allowed him to become someone "not like his brother or his opposite" and joined the Hunting Dogs and infiltrate the Mafia to get revenge on Yosano for "killing" his brother, even when he knew and acknowledged that all of it was an excuse to appease his own negative feelings.{{Ref|name=ch68}}

==Ability==
{{Main|Midwinter Memento}}
He has the ability {{Nihongo|'''Midwinter Memento'''|{{ruby|真|ま}}{{ruby|冬|ふゆ}}のかたみ,|''Mafuyu no Katami''}} which grants him ferrokinesis, the ability to manipulate metal. It allows Tachihara to remotely control any metal object, mainly his Hunting Dogs blade and his guns. His prowess can even move a mannequin-like a human, and the weapons he controls all float. It has also been mentioned by Teruko that his Ability is useful for stealing, altering information, and also for assassination, which makes him someone who is "born to be a spy".

As a Hunting Dog, Tachihara underwent intensive training and experimentation, making him physically stronger and more durable than an average human and Ability user, however unlike his fellow Hunting Dogs, he is unable to withstand or counter strong attacks (e.g. jet plane), because he had a weaker version of the strengthening surgery due to his status as a spy.

{{Ability Box 
|name= {{Nihongo|'''Midwinter Memento'''|{{ruby|真|ま}}{{ruby|冬|ふゆ}}のかたみ,|''Mafuyu no Katami''}}
|image= [[File:Midwinter Memento.gif|200px|link=Midwinter Memento]] 
|manga debut= [[Chapter 67]] 
|anime debut= [[Episode 47]]
|ability= Ferrokinesis
}}

==Skills==
*'''Physical Prowess''': As a member of the Hunting Dogs, Tachihara underwent a light enhancement surgery. As such, he can take damages with little injuries including an explosion from [[RDG1800]].{{Ref|chap=73|name=ch73}}
*'''{{W|Safe-cracking}}''':Tachihara is seen to have known how to crack safes during his criminal life. This resulted to him being recruited to the Hunting Dogs.{{Ref|name=ch68}}

==Background==
[[File:Tachihara's past (manga).png|thumb|left|Tachihara caught cracking a safe.|220px]]
Tachihara hates being compared to his older brother, as such, he went criminal to go his own way. One day, he was caught cracking a safe of some bad guys. The bad guys didn't take his money but ordered Tachihara to work for them. Since then, Tachihara worked as a part of a big group. The bad guys turns out to be the group of Hunting Dogs, and Tachihara worked with them ever since.

At some unknown point in time, Tachihara volunteered to be a police operative in order to infiltrate the Port Mafia after their last operative, [[Ango Sakaguchi]] from the [[Special Division for Unusual Powers]] got out.{{Ref|name=ch68}}

==Battles==
{{Main|List of Battles}}
{{Michizo Tachihara Battles}}

==Appearances==
<tabber>
Main=
{{Appearance
|Chapters =
[[Port Mafia Arc]]
* Chapter 5 - [[Chapter 5|The Fatalist's Sorrow]]
* Chapter 14 - [[Chapter 14|An Unsuitable Occupation for Her]]
[[The Guild Arc]]
* Chapter 16 - [[Chapter 16|Constantly Pushed to the Past, Part 2]]
* Chapter 29 - [[Chapter 29|Even If My Head Be Mistaken]]
* Chapter 30 - [[Chapter 30|The Silent Tower and the Raven's Feast]]
[[Cannibalism Arc]]
* Chapter 46 - [[Chapter 46|The Masked Assassin]]
* Chapter 47 - [[Chapter 47|Mutual Destruction, Part 1]]
* Chapter 48 - [[Chapter 48|Mutual Destruction, Part 2]]
* Chapter 53 - [[Chapter 53|Echo, Part 3]]
[[Hunting Dogs Arc]]
* Chapter 66 - [[Chapter 66|Dreaming of Butterflies, Part 2]]
* Chapter 67 - [[Chapter 67|The Sorrow of Those Without Wings, Part 1]]
* Chapter 68 - [[Chapter 68|The Sorrow of Those Without Wings, Part 2]]
[[Sky Casino Arc]]
* Chapter 69 - [[Chapter 69|The Escape]]
* Chapter 71 - [[Chapter 71|Bungo Hound Dogs, Part 1]]
* Chapter 72 - [[Chapter 72|Bungo Hound Dogs, Part 2]]
* Chapter 73 - [[Chapter 73|Bungo Hound Dogs, Part 3]]
* Chapter 74 - [[Chapter 74|Skyfall, Part 1]]
* Chapter 75 - [[Chapter 75|Skyfall, Part 2]]
* Chapter 77 - [[Chapter 77|Skyfall, Part 4]]
[[Kamui Revelation Arc]]
* Chapter 81 - [[Chapter 81|The Strongest Man, Part 2]] (cameo)
[[Vampire Infection Outbreak Arc]]
* Chapter 88 - [[Chapter 88|As If Hurtling Downward]]
* Chapter 89 - [[Chapter 89|Hero War, Gang War]]
* Chapter 89.5 - [[Chapter 89.5|Hero War, Gang War, Part 2]]
* Chapter 90 - [[Chapter 90|Hero War, Gang War, Final Part]]
* Chapter 92 - [[Chapter 92|At the Portway to the Sky, Part 1]] (mentioned)
|Episodes=
[[Port Mafia Arc]]
* Episode 4 - [[Episode 4|The Tragedy of the Fatalist]]
* Episode 11 - [[Episode 11|First, an Unsuitable Profession for Her / Second, an Ecstatic Detective Agency]]
[[The Guild Arc]]
* Episode 12 - [[Episode 12|Borne Back Ceaselessly into the Past]]
* Episode 20 - [[Episode 20|Though the Mind May Be Wrong]]
* Episode 21 - [[Episode 21|Double Black]]
[[The Guild Aftermath Arc]]
* Episode 30 - [[Episode 30|Slap the Stick & Addict]] (cameo)
[[Cannibalism Arc]]
* Episode 33 - [[Episode 33|The Masked Assassin]]
* Episode 34 - [[Episode 34|Cannibalism (Part 1)]]
* Episode 37 - [[Episode 37|Echo]]
}}
|-| BEAST=
{{Appearance
|Chapters = 
* Chapter 3 - [[BEAST Chapter 3|The White Reaper]]
}}
</tabber>

==Quotes==
* (To [[Ōchi Fukuchi]]) "''So that's how it is, ain't that right? I can't begin to imagine the way ya heroes do your thing.''"{{Ref|name=ch89}}
* (To Ōchi Fukuchi) "''Why? Why did you do this? Under your command, I've carried out many dangerous missions, playing my part in the Mafia, faking emotions in front of my comrades. And for what? '''Because of your orders! Because I thought they made me who I am!'''''"{{Ref|name=ch89.5|chap=89.5}}
* (To Ōchi Fukuchi) "''I ain't a Hunting Dog. I'm the Mafia's Michizō Tachihara. But… I thought I'd be fine being a Hunting Dog, too, if only you hadn't done somethin' like this.''"{{Ref|name=ch89.5}}
* (To Ōchi Fukuchi after being blinded) "''C'mon, don't be satisfied with just the eyes. I'm ready. A mafioso doesn't go pathetically beggin' for his life.''"{{Ref|name=ch90}}

==Etymology==
* The name '''Michizō''' means "street" (道) (michi) and "create" (造) (zō).
* The surname '''Tachihara''' means "rise" (立) (tachi) and "meadow" (原) (hara).

==Namesake==
{{Main|Real-life References#Michizō Tachihara}}

{| class="authorbox" style="width: 100%; margin-top: 1em; background-color: #161616; border: 1px solid #cf1020;" cellspacing="5" cellpadding="2" 
|- 
|'''Michizō Tachihara''' (July 30, 1914 – March 29, 1939) 
{| cellspacing="1" style="margin: 0 auto;" 
[[File:TachiharaRL Thumbnail.png|right|195px]] 
:''From talented child artist to writer, Tachihara held prowess in a variety of fields, mainly in architecture an poetry. Beginning with {{W|Tanka|tanka}} (the most common style of traditional Japanese poetry, he later on took free verse and incorporated images of nature rather than the urban backdrop of his hometown. His famous works include the "Gentle Song" and "Of Dawn, of dusk".''{{Ref|vol=8|Author Guide.}}
|}
|}

==Trivia==
*In one of the first rough character sketches for the Black Lizard, Tachihara's black band had a smiling face on it.
*His JP voice actor, Yū Hayashi, is the singer of SCREEN mode who sung the OP theme of Bungo Stray Dogs season 2 - Reason Living.
[[File:Tachihara's disguise - idea of Teruko (manga).png|thumb|right|Tachihara's disguise - idea of Teruko.|220px]]
*Tachihara's earlier disguise to infiltrate the mafia consists of wig, spiral funny glasses and a mustache. [[Saigiku Jōno|Jōno]] suggests for him to go all-in and have {{W|Dreadlocks|dreadlocks}} instead.
**It was revealed that his trademark bandaid that he wears on his nose was chosen by [[Tetchō Suehiro|Tetchō]] as his form of disguise before he infiltrated the Mafia and that Jouno had stated it would act as his "switch" (bandaid on is Mafia and off is Hunting Dog) that would one day mentally protect him while doing his job. {{Ref|vol=18|Omake.}}
**Harukawa also chose to add bandaids on Tachihara's Hunting Dog sword's hilt on the cover of volume 17 and on the back of the cover of volume 18 to further hint and symbolize his true identity as a mafioso.
*Tachihara says that he takes care of his body on his days off when Gin asked what can help Akutagawa to relieve stress. {{Ref|vol=15|Omake.}}

==References==
{{References}}

==Site Navigation==
{{CharacterNav}}

[[Ru:Тачихара Мичизу]]
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Male Characters]]
[[Category:Port Mafia]]
[[Category:Black Lizard]]
[[Category:Hunting Dogs]]
[[Category:Ability Users]]