Who is Ichiban Kasuga?
The hero the series built to replace an irreplaceable one, by being his opposite in every way that matters.
Ichiban Kasuga (born January 1, 1977) is a low-ranking member of the Arakawa Family who, in 2001, takes the fall for a murder to protect his patriarch, the man he worships. He serves eighteen years, and walks out in 2019 to find his family gone, his patriarch allied with the police, and a conspiracy waiting. Where Kiryu endures in silence, Ichiban talks, cries, gathers friends, and turns every fight into the Dragon Quest battles he grew up loving.
THE MAKING OF ICHIBAN
Cast and cameosA villain's voice
Ichiban is voiced in Japanese by Kazuhiro Nakaya, who played Akira Nishikiyama, the first game's antagonist: the series' new hero literally speaks with its old villain's voice. His English voice is Kaiji Tang.
A hidden debut
Ichiban was first revealed in 2017 and debuted in the mobile game Ryū ga Gotoku Online (2018), but his face had already appeared a year earlier, tucked into a trailer for Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise, a game he is not in. The studio was seeding its next decade in plain sight.
The succession
Kiryu's saga closed with Yakuza 6 in 2016; Like a Dragon (2020) handed the series to Ichiban outright, and Infinite Wealth (2024) shares the lead between them, the old dragon and the new, before Pirate Yakuza passes the spotlight to Majima.