Yajirobe

Yajirobe (ヤジロベー) is a supporting main character in the Dragon Ball manga, and the anime Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z. He makes a minor appearance in Dragon Ball GT. He is a Human ronin (masterless samurai) who met Goku while the latter was searching for Tambourine. He spends most of his time with Korin on Korin Tower, and usually delivers Senzu Beans to the Z Fighters.

Background
Not much about Yajirobe's past is reveal in the series. Except that he is a excellent swordsman.

Personality
Yajirobe is very asocial, preferring to be by himself often so he can eat peacefully, often acting rude towards people. Yajirobe enjoys consuming large amounts of food, and has a grumpy attitude to those who bug or distract him, even in the slightest. He enjoys eating wild roast pig and also possesses a particular affinity for steamed pork buns (butaman in Japanese); which he is depicted eating in several scenes throughout the manga and anime, and regrets not consuming more when he thinks Vegeta is about to destroy the Earth during the Vegeta Saga. Also true to the vagabond ronin stereotype, Yajirobe is rude, unkempt, and does not care if his loincloth is visible to other people. According to the Daizenshuu and other databooks, Yajirobe enjoys driving stolen cars.

He also enjoys fishing, hunting, and afternoon naps. He is somewhat characterized as a coward because he tries to avoid major skirmishes, as seen with King Piccolo and Vegeta, but prefers to be thought of as intelligently careful.

Appearance
Yajirobe's appearance consists of small, beady black eyes, long, untidy black hair and, due to his enjoyment of eating, he is quite overweight. His outfit throughout the series is typical of the vagabond ronin subtype typified in manga and anime: it consists of a sleeveless, knee-length red yukata with black stripes, a black obi, black wristbands and black kyahan (gaiters/protective shin bands), waraji (woven straw sandals worn by Japanese serfs, and samurai when wearing their armor), and an ecchu fundoshi (type of red loincloth worn by samurai and ronin). He usually keeps his katana tucked into the left side of his obi. Later, in the last Dragon Ball Z arc, he grows a small moustache and he also sports a fur vest.

Abilities
At the time when Son Goku and Yajirobe first met, Yajirobe was likely one of the strongest humans alive; he climbed the Korin Tower with Goku on his back in a single day (something Goku initially struggled with), he seemed evenly matched with Goku despite not fighting at his maximum. Goku once considered him a challenge, saying "I've never met someone so tough!" However, like the rest of the other heroes, he is soon far surpassed by Goku. During the preliminaries of the 23rd World Tournament, Yajirobe is shown easily defeating everyone he was matched against until he fought Kami in disguise during his last match at the only World Tournament he entered. Yajirobe's next major appearance is in the Saiyans Saga where he trains with Kami and Mr. Popo on Kami's Lookout.

Yajirobe easily defeats Kuririn while sparring at Kami's Lookout, all the while eating and moving nonchalantly; he then fights "seriously" after Kuririn tells him to. After training, Kami tells the Z Fighters that all of them have surpassed both Mr. Popo and himself. His power level during the battle against Vegeta is 970 (it is 500 in Dragon Ball Z: The Anime Adventure Game). The movie pamphlet for Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might states that Yajirobe has a power level of 2,100.

In addition to his physical power, Yajirobe also shows exceptional skill as a swordsman and, on more than one occasion, demonstrates the ability to cleave objects or opponents thicker than the blade of his katana clean in half. Yajirobe is the only primary Z Fighter who never learns the ability to fly, and usually uses this as an excuse not to fight.

Sword Blast
Yajirobe creates a beam of energy from his sword and launches it at the opponent. Used in the Budokai Tenkaichi series.

Ka-Blam Slicer
Yajirobe creates a very large beam of energy from his sword and launches it at the opponent. Used in the Budokai Tenkaichi series. Gigantic Rock Throw – The first attack Yajirobe used against Goku, after Goku ate his meal. ◾Ka-Blam Hammer – Yajirobe rushes full speed at the opponent, knocks them up into the air, jumps after them, and performs a combination of four punches and smashes them down. Used in Budokai Tenkaichi 2. ◾Iaigiri (居合い斬; lit. "fast-draw slash") – A real life sword technique that is Yajirobe's typical sword attack. The user draws his katana from its scabbard and slashes the enemy in a single fluid motion. He used this technique to kill Cymbal. Named in the Daizenshuu 2 and Daizenshuu 7, and also used as part of his Ka-Blam Slicer technique in the Budokai Tenkaichi series.

Flash and Kill
Yajirobe rushes full speed at the opponent, knocks them up into the air, and slashes them with the Iaigiri technique as they fall from the sky. Named in Budokai Tenkaichi 3.

Miracle Ka-Blam Slash
Yajirobe rushes to his opponent and uses his katana sword to repeatedly slash and stab his opponent. It is his Ultimate Blast in the Budokai Tenkaichi series.

Senzu
One of Yajirobe's Blast 1 in the Budokai Tenkaichi series.

Super Unyielding Spirit
One of Yajirobe's Blast 1 in the Budokai Tenkaichi series.

Ki Sense
The ability to sense ki energy, which Yajirobe learned while training on Kami's Lookout. In the anime only, he demonstrates the ability to use it to pinpoint the exact location of Vegeta and Nappa to journalists. The manga and anime also hints at his ability to use it during the Vegeta's battle with Goku when he senses the Spirit Bomb's enormous ki.

King Piccolo arc
Yajirobe is introduced as a samurai mountain hunter with an insatiable appetite, and his first appearance is a confrontation between him and Son Goku at Yajirobe's Prairie. Goku had eaten a big fish that Yajirobe was saving when he was wandering around after Tambourine had severely beaten him, and Yajirobe is upset because of this. He and Goku have an even fight, with each of them landing good blows. Both of them are surprised at each other's power and stamina. While the two were fighting, Cymbal sneaks up on them. Both Goku and Yajirobe are eager to fight him, but Yajirobe wins their game of Rock-Paper-Scissors, so he gets to fight.

Cymbal demands Yajirobe gives up his Dragon Ball if he wants to live, but Yajirobe refuses and fights Cymbal. Cymbal punches Yajirobe a few times, but Yajirobe quickly recovers and gets back in the fight. The demon then fires many Beam Rays at Yajirobe, which the swordsman dodges with ease. Yajirobe then sprints towards Cymbal who is quickly and easily sliced in two. Cymbal is then quickly cooked and eaten by Yajirobe. Afterwards, Yajirobe tries to sprint away from Goku, who still wants Yajirobe's Dragon Ball. Yajirobe is also quite cunning; during the chase with Goku, Yajirobe breaks one of the rocks causing Goku to go down a waterfall.

Later, Yajirobe witnesses Goku brutally killing Tambourine, and then King Piccolo arrives, sensing Tambourine's death. Before the battle commences, Yajirobe hides behind a tree, not wanting to die a painful death. After Yajirobe watches King Piccolo brutally batter Goku across the battlefield, King Piccolo easily defeats Goku, stopping his heart momentarily. Yajirobe checks Goku's heart to see if he is alive, which he is, and helps the severely injured Goku get some water and, after being promised that there would be food waiting for him at the top of Korin Tower, Yajirobe climbs to the tower with the damaged Goku on his back, with the assisted help of Bora. When Korin offers Goku a Senzu Bean to heal his wounds, Yajirobe bursts out in anger, due to the fact that he thought the special food Goku was talking about before was much better than this.

As Yajirobe snatches the Senzu Bean pot and chomps down dozens of beans, he greatly increases in stomach size in a matter of seconds, not realizing that one bean can fill a person up for 10 days. He also helps Goku get the Ultra Divine Water. Yajirobe tries the water himself, only drinking a little sip, which caused him extreme pain. He then encourages Goku not to drink it, but Goku drinks the water anyway, and despite a lot of pain and agony for a couple of hours, Goku lives and powers up greatly.

Yajirobe appears to watch Goku fighting King Piccolo at Central City, but he sees all the damage that King Piccolo had caused and decides that it is too dangerous to stay there. On his way back though, he remembers the free meal Goku owes him and heads back. Then, he assumes that Goku is beat up pretty badly and that he would not get that meal. But he remembers that he drank the Ultra Divine Water and goes to get his meal. He then dodges a missile that the good Launch accidentally fired. After King Piccolo is defeated, he saves Goku's life by catching him before he hits the ground. He is seen leaving with Goku to heal his wounds at the Korin Tower.

Piccolo Jr. arc
Three years later, Yajirobe masks himself and competes in the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament in disguise, but he does not make it past the preliminaries, defeated by the disguised Kami in the last match of the preliminaries. After the Tournament ends, he assists Goku by giving him a Senzu Bean (this would become a bit of a gag, especially in some Dragon Ball Z movies; Dragon Ball Z movie 4 and Dragon Ball Z movie 5).

Saiyans arc

 * Look. It's a strategy. The other guys are wearin' 'em down in the first round and I'm savin' my energy for round two."
 * — Yajirobe talking to news reporters in the episode Saibamen Attack! (English Version)

When Son Goku is killed along with an invading alien named Raditz, Yajirobe is instructed by Kami to deliver a message to Goku's best friend, Kuririn, at Kame House about the other invaders, foretold by Raditz. Yajirobe performs this task, but as usual, barely cares about the situation and would rather keep up his lazy schedule rather than attempt to fight the two invaders in the next year. Despite his lack of enthusiasm, Yajirobe does train on Kami's Lookout along with Kuririn, Tien, Yamcha, and Chaozu for the upcoming Saiyan invasion. He does train slightly, but is mostly seen eating.

One year later, after the Saiyan's arrival on Earth, Yajirobe decides not to get involved in the battle against the Saibamen and Nappa, and instead gets interviewed by journalists in East City while eating free meals. Yajirobe tells them about the Saiyans and about "his men" calling them "Earth's Special Forces". When Vegeta and the revived Goku battle out in the Gizard Wasteland, Yajirobe watches from the sidelines, cowering most of the time. After Goku unleashes his Kaio-ken x4 Kamehameha, making Vegeta fly off into the sky, Yajirobe congratulates Goku, assuming he has killed Vegeta.

However, Goku informs Yajirobe that it will take more than that blast to defeat him, so Yajirobe continues to hide behind the rocks and watch the fight. After Vegeta transforms into a gigantic Great Ape, Kuririn and Son Gohan arrive on the battlefield. Kuririn orders Yajirobe to help out, but Yajirobe is too frightened to even try. He eventually assists in the fight by first slicing through Vegeta's tail to protect Goku, which reverts Vegeta back to his humanoid form, and he later slices through Vegeta's Battle Armor to protect Gohan, this makes Vegeta faint briefly, making Yajirobe believe he killed him. Yajirobe then starts to blabber to himself "I can see it now, Earth's greatest threat, brought down by Yajirobe!" and "You should learn not to mess with the best, you can't handle it". It is at this moment that Vegeta rises, and criticizes Yajirobe for his proclaimed victory.

After swinging his sword rapidly and pointlessly at the dodging Saiyan prince, Yajirobe comically explains he was just messing with Vegeta and not really trying to kill him. Vegeta then kicks Yajirobe in his face while he is still trying to talk his way out, knocking him into a rock. Vegeta proceeds to punch Yajirobe repeatedly in the face. This distraction provides Gohan with enough time to look at the Power Ball and transform into a Great Ape, defeating Vegeta. In the anime, he yelled out for Kuririn to use his katana to finish off Vegeta. After Vegeta retreats thanks to Goku telling Kuririn to spare the saiyan, Yajirobe is then scolded by Bulma for not helping Goku and the others when Vegeta arrived on Earth. But then Yajirobe defends himself in front of Bulma after she yells at him. Yajirobe anf the others are then seen in a Jet Plane when Kuririn tells them that his plan is go to Planet Namek to use the Namekian Dragon Balls to bring Piccolo, Tien, Chaozu, Yamcha and Kami back to life.

Namek & Frieza arc
Yajirobe is next seen with the group inside Wukong Hospital. He is not kept at the hospital because his injuries are minor. He later delivers a new crop of Senzu Beans to Son Goku in the hospital, so that Goku can instantly heal from his injuries and go to Namek.

Yajirobe makes an appearance during the Frieza Saga during a filler only sequence, when he is forced to accompany Chi-Chi, Master Roshi and the others to Namek to bring back Son Gohan. Yajirobe frequently attempts to run away but is stopped each time. When Goku transforms into a Super Saiyan, Master Roshi tells Yajirobe, who is drinking a soda, that he has a feeling that Goku underwent a major power increase that would change him forever.

Garlic Jr. arc
During the Garlic Jr. Saga, they receive a visit from Maron, Kuririn’s girlfriend at the time. Maron nearly drives Yajirobe and Korin up the wall, as neither is quite prepared to handle a pretty woman in their household and she was difficult to say no to (particularly for Korin). Both were relieved when she left Korin Tower.

Androids & Cell arc
Yajirobe appears briefly in the Androids Saga. He delivers Senzu Beans to the Z Fighters. Son Goku asks if Yajirobe is going to stay and fight, Yajirobe answers that he does not want to get himself killed, and then flies off in his hovercar. While leaving, his hovercraft is attacked by Android 20 and Android 19. After being saved by the rest of the Z Fighters, he attempts to back out of helping the Z Fighters, trying to justify to an irritated Bulma that he can not help them anyway since he cannot fly.

This results in Bulma forcing him to come along in her hovercar, although this was shot down by Android 20 when they got to the area, and remained in the vehicle when it crashed, although he survived. He is also shown holding the newborn Trunks on multiple occasions, always getting peed upon.

Yajirobe is lastly seen being taking to Bulma's house on Gohan while the latter also carry Bulma and an Infant Trunks. He arrives at Bulma's house before Bulma, Gohan and Future Trunks discover Cell's shed skin.

Cell Games arc
Yajirobe is seen later on Korin Tower, when Goku tests his power to give Korin a reading so he could compare it to Cell's power, and again when the Z Fighters are on their way up to Kami's Lookout after Gohan defeated Cell. Yajirobe is lastly seen waving goodbye to Gohan, Kuririn, Yamcha and Future Trunks as they are seen leaving Kami's Lookout by flying.

Majin Buu arc
Yajirobe makes a few more appearances in the manga (and many more short ones in the anime), but he loses a lot of his importance, like many of the original Z Fighters near the end of the series. During this stage of Dragon Ball Z, he grows a thin mustache.

It is never revealed if he died in Super Buu's Human Extinction Attack because the tower is directly below the lookout. However, assuming he did survive, he and Korin would have died soon thereafter along with everyone on Earth when Kid Buu blew it up with his Planet Burst. They were both restored to life with the Namekian Dragon Balls later on. Although he did not see the significance in raising his hands, Yajirobe participates in giving his energy to Goku's Super Spirit Bomb.

Universe 6 arc
Yajirobe is at Korin Tower when he and Korin witness Goku on top of Korin's tower, attempting to use Instant Transmission to reach King Kai's planet.

Future Trunks arc
Yajirobe is seen play limbo with Korin, as Goku arrives and grabs the pot full of Senzu Beans. Yajirobe asks Goku if he wants to play, but Goku says he is in a hurry, and leaves by teleporting.

Dragon Ball GT (Anime)
Yajirobe makes a brief appearance in Dragon Ball GT, when Kibito Kai saves him and Korin from the Earth's destruction. His age has started to show and his mustache is thicker. During the episode of Dragon Ball GT, Yajirobe is seen in a Flashback by Goku when they met for the first time.

Dragon Ball Z movie 4
Yajirobe appears in Dragon Ball Z movie 4, giving Son Goku and Kuririn some Senzu Beans after they are knocked out by the meteor. He also gives them Senzu Beans after Lord Slug is killed.

Dragon Ball Z movie 5
In Dragon Ball Z movie 5, Yajirobe gives Son Gohan a bag of Senzu Beans to take to Goku, as well as one last Senzu Bean he steals from Korin and passes it to Gohan. This last Senzu Bean ultimately saves the day, as it is the lone one to survive Salza's Finger Beam, and restores Goku to health.

Dragon Ball Z movie 6
The movie begins with the Big Gete Star. The liquid metal exterior of the star molds itself around New Namek, absorbing its energy. Dende, who is now the Earth's guardian, senses the plight of his people and calls Goku to ask for help.

Goku,Son Gohan, Oolong, Kuririn, Yajirobe, Master Roshi, and Piccolo arrive and encounter an army of robots deployed on the planet to enslave the Namekians, whom they plan to use as biological fuel for the Big Gete Star. Goku demands that the robots leave peacefully, but their leader emerges and reveals himself to be Cooler, alive and well, in an android version of his fourth form. Cooler admits that he was indeed burned critically in the fires of the Sun, but survived and is now back for revenge. As the others engage the robots, Goku prepares to battle Cooler alone.

At first the Z Fighters have trouble penetrating the armor of Cooler's Cyclopian Guards, but Piccolo instructs them to concentrate their energy to one point, and doing so allows them to destroy a few of the robots. Despite his usual nature, he is shown to be sorely disappointed at Oolong's cowardice and requests that he act more like Master Roshi, although this falls apart when Roshi also asks where they parked the ship, implying that he too wants to flee. However their are too many Mega Coolers to fight, and this makes Gohan, Yajirobe, Master Roshi, Oolong, and the Namekians be capture. However, Piccolo remains on the battlefield long enough to unleash a devastating attack which destroys the robots completely. He flies for the Big Gete Star to free his friends.

Goku battles Meta-Cooler, but it is apparent that Goku, even in Super Saiyan form, is no match for Cooler's "new metallic form", which gives him the ability to regenerate himself. Cooler reveals that the Big Gete Star constantly monitors his body, and fixes any problems or glitches that may occur (like Cooler's arm getting torn off for example) while also strengthening him in such a way that it can't happen the same way twice. Goku goes in for a final attack, but Cooler grabs him and starts to strangle him. Vegeta suddenly appears and saves Goku, himself transforming into a Super Saiyan. However, they are both still no match for Cooler, and are only able to win by combining their power and unleashing a devastating attack which destroys Cooler.

However, a whole army of Meta-Coolers immediately shows up (The English Version has an explanation for this: to remedy the loss of one Meta-Cooler, the Big Gete Star has created a thousand). Outnumbered and drained of energy, Goku and Vegeta are captured and transported to create Metal Super Saiyans for Cooler's army (in the English Version, their energy is intended to power the machine planet). It is here that Goku and Vegeta finally learn the truth about Cooler's survival: following his death at Goku's hands, he was not destroyed completely, but his remains floated through space for a while, including pieces of his brain. Cooler's remains were assimilated into the Big Gete Star, allowing him to take control to the mechanical planet.

Yajirobe is almost ended up killed by having his brains removed when he, Gohan, Piccolo, Oolong, Master Roshi and the Namekians, were captured by the Cyclopian Guards. He is the first to almost be cut up. But before Yajirobe can be cut up into pieces, Gohan tells him that they will think of a way to save him. But Yajirobe tells him to hurray up.

Cooler begins draining Goku and Vegeta of their energy, but they flood the circuitry with too much power and overload it, causing it to collapse. This caused the real Meta-Cooler to malfunction using their power resulted in the Big Gete Star and the Guide Robo being destroyed before it could get a chance in cutting Yajirobe up. All the Meta-Coolers are destroyed and the prisoners are freed.

As the others evacuate, Goku and Vegeta face Cooler alone. Cooler takes the form of a wired giant being and grabs Goku, squeezng him, until Vegeta slices Cooler's arm off. Goku fires a sphere of energy into Cooler and destroys his body. The Big Gete Star exits New Namek's atmosphere and explodes.

Goku and Vegeta fall from the sky near the rest of the Z Fighters, and everyone rejoices. They then realize that Vegeta is nowhere to be found, and Goku looks up at the sky, noting that without Vegeta, they wouldn't have won. Indeed, Vegeta is flying in space in his Space Pod (which he used to follow Goku to New Namek) with the computer chip from the Big Gete Star in his hands. He crushes it and heads back to Earth.

Dragon Ball Z TV Special 2
His future Counterpart, Future Yajirobe, is shown in a flashback of Future Trunks, where it is revealed he was murdered by the Android in Future Trunks' timeline.

Yo Son Goku & His Friends Return!!
Yajirobe makes a cameo appearance in Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!! at Mr. Satan's party and is briefly seen cutting through falling rubble caused by Aka's Super Wahaha no Ha.

Video Games
Yajirobe appears in all the following video games:
 * Dragon Ball Advanced Adventure
 * Dragon Ball Daimao Fukkatsu
 * Dragon Ball 3 Gokuden
 * Dragon Ball Revenge of King Piccolo
 * Dragon Ball RPG Shonen hen
 * Dragon Ball Z Attack of the Saiyans
 * Dragon Ball Z Bakuretsu Impact
 * Dragon Ball Z Buu's Fury
 * Dragon Ball Z Gaiden Shin Saiyajin Zetsumetsu Keikaku Chikyu Hen
 * Dragon Ball Z Harukanaru Densetsu
 * Dragon Ball Z Kyoshu! Saiyan
 * Dragon Ball Z Legend of the Super Saiyan
 * Dragon Ball Z Legendary Super Warriors
 * Dragon Ball Z III Ressen Jinzoningen
 * Dragon Ball Z Shin Saiyajin Zetsumetsu Keikaku Uchu Hen
 * Dragon Ball Z Super Gokuden Kakusei Hen
 * Dragon Ball Z Super Gokuden Totsugeki Hen
 * Dragon Ball Z Supersonic Warriors 2
 * Dragon Ball Z The Legacy of Goku II
 * Dragon Ball Z Budokai
 * Dragon Ball Z Budokai 2
 * Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3
 * Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 2
 * Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3

Knownable Relatives

 * Kami (Mentor)
 * Korin (Mentor)
 * Mr. Popo (Mentor)
 * Future Yajirobe (Future Counterpart/dead)

Trivia

 * In the original manga and in the anime, Goku says that Yajirobe's voice resembles Kuririn's. In the anime, Mayumi Tanaka voices both characters. She said that in scenes when Kuririn and Yajirobe together, Yajirobe's Nagoya accent is intensified to tell them apart.
 * In the Japanese version of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, Yajirobe speaks in a Nagoya dialect. The dialect he speaks is often translated into Yajirobe speaking words such as "ain't", "s'posta" (supposed to), or "What'cha doin'" and also dropping sounds in certain words since this is the best way to convey the dialect.
 * Yajirobe is the only character besides Goku to appear on the manga picture twice (when all manga volumes are lined up, their spines make a picture). Akira Toriyama stated that this is an honest mistake.
 * When Yajirobe arrives at the Kame House to tell Kuririn that he, Yamcha, Tien, and Chaozu will be trained by Kami, Kuririn says Yajirobe's name incorrectly. Kuririn calls him "Itchyrobe" in the manga, "Armadillo" in the anime, and "Yo-Yo Brain" in Budokai 3. In the English version, Kuririn refers to Yajirobe as "Hokiphoki" (and is immediately corrected). In the English version's remastered season boxset, Krillin says "I remember you, you are a... what's your name?" rather than attempting to guess at Yajirobe's name. In Attack of the Saiyans, Kuririn calls him "Alumajiro".
 * During both instances in the Saiyan Saga, when Yajirobe attacked Vegeta, because Gohan was about to be killed by the Saiyan prince. This was likewise the case when Yajirobe lost patience and screamed at Kuririn to hurry and throw the Spirit Bomb.
 * In Dragon Ball Forever's poll of the top 20 best characters, Yajirobe was voted number 19 by Japanese fans. This is above Videl.
 * Yajirobe is briefly seen in Dr. Slump and Arale-chan: N-cha! Love Comes From Penguin Village, where he runs past the screen after Korin does in the opposite direction.
 * In the Japanese version of the anime, Korin mispronounces Yajirobe's name as "Yajirobi" instead of "Yajirobé".

Voice Actresses & Actors
all information on Yajirobe came from http://dragonball.wikia.com/wiki/Yajirobe
 * Japanese : Mayumi Tanaka (1988 – Present)
 * English voice actor :  Mike McFarland (1996 – Present)