Heihachi Mishima

Heihachi Mishima
Official artwork of Heihachi from Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and Tekken 7.
Universe	Tekken
Debut	Tekken (1994)
Smash Bros. appearances	SSB4 Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance	Tekken 8 (2024, via DLC)
Console/platform of origin	Arcade
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Place of origin	Japan
Created by	Seiichi Ishii
Voice actor	Unshō Ishizuka
Article on Wikipedia	Heihachi Mishima

Heihachi Mishima (三島 平八, Mishima Heihachi) is a main character from the Tekken universe.

Origin

Heihachi Mishima is a major antagonist/protagonist in the Tekken series of fighting video games, and the archenemy of his son Kazuya Mishima. He was born to Jinpachi Mishima, a renowned martial artist and the founder of the Mishima Zaibatsu corporation. Heihachi's ancestors had been fighting a demonic army led by a Devil Gene progenitor, Azazel since ancient times. Sometimes after Heihachi was born, in his early adult life, he met his then-future wife, Kazumi Hachijo, who had been sent to train under Jinpachi Mishima, Heihachi's father, and with time she and Heihachi fell in love, got married and had Kazuya.

However, when Kazuya became five years old, Kazumi's personality becomes completely different from the one whom Heihachi and Kazuya knew, after she was temporarily fell ill where Heihachi nursed her. In later days, Kazumi confronted Heihachi, by saying he would one day become a threat to the world, and revealed that her real intentions in marrying him were to murder him on behalf of the Hachijo clan, which then reveals to be a remnant clan of one of Azazel's original servant. As they fought, she manifested the Devil powers she awakened few days ago, and Heihachi had no other option but to kill the only woman he ever loved. This led to Heihachi overthrew Zaibatsu to take control of the company and begin a criminal empire, where he foil Jinpachi's attempt coup d'etat, and sealed him beneath Hon-Maru, and Jinpachi lost his humanity when a demonic entity unrelated to the Devil Gene possessed him to keep him alive for decades. Just as Heihachi suspected Kazuya inherited Kazumi's demon blood, he was confronted by a vengeful five years old Kazuya, due to the former's actions on killing Kazumi. As Kazuya's rage was too weak to awaken his devil, Heihachi knocked his son out, and threw him off of a cliff in order to test his strength and to see if he had the Devil Gene inherited from Kazumi, out of fear. Ultimately, as Kazuya's devil awaken, Heihachi discovered that Kazumi awakened her Devil Gene through experiencing near-death. Years later, Heihachi owned a pet named Kuma, who would gave birth of a son bearing a same name; later adopted a would be independent billionaire robotisist Lee Chaolan; and lastly sired multiple illegitimate children across the globe, such as his son Lars Alexandersson, out of paranoia, whether one of them whose mothers secretly Devil Gene carriers. Thankfully, Lars is confirmed not to inherit the Devil Gene which Kazuya has, nor Heihachi's fallen ambition, but carries Jinpachi's former heroic will.

When Heihachi hosted a martial arts tournament called the King of the Iron Fist, Kazuya returned in order to exact revenge on his father. Kazuya defeated him, threw him off the same cliff, and assumed control of the Zaibatsu, continuing his father's criminal practices.

Heihachi would later return and retake control of his corporation by defeating Kazuya in the next King of Iron Fist tournament and dropping him to his death into a volcano; it was around this time that he discovered that his son had been saved by the Devil Gene, and he now seeks this in order to attain ultimate power, going so far as to manipulate his grandson, Jin Kazama, who also bears the Devil Gene, into entering a new King of Iron Fist tournament 19 years after the last one in order to obtain the power of an ancient battling deity known as Ogre, whom Jin wanted to defeat to avenge the supposed death of his mother, Jun Kazama. One of his illegitimate daughter, Reina was born at some point after Jin's birth. As Reina is secretly also a Devil Gene carrier like Jin and Kazuya, but ironically worships her father, who despise Devil Gene, it is unclear what Heihachi's feelings to his daughter, if any, were in return.

While Jin came out victorious, Heihachi immediately ordered Tekken Force, the Mishima Zaibatsu's private paramilitary squad, to betray and murder him, with Heihachi delivering what would be the killing shot, were it not for the Devil Gene within Jin awakening in the nick of time and saving him from certain death. Two years later, as Heihachi attempted to have a new lifeform created based on Ogre's DNA samples taken from the site of his battle with Jin, he discovered that a sample of the Devil Gene was necessary to do so; around this time, he learned that Zaibatsu rivals G Corporation had exhumed Kazuya's corpse and successfully brought him back to life, and so he decided to organize a fourth King of Iron Fist tournament, with the Zaibatsu as grand prize, in order to lure both Kazuya and Jin in, in which he succeeds, leading to a battle at the shrine of Hon-Maru, in which Jin, powered by the Devil Gene, defeats both his father and his grandfather, but spares them both in Jun's name. Soon after Jin vanishes into the night, a squad of JACK robots, deployed by G Corporation, break into the Hon-Maru in order to capture both Mishimas. Heihachi seemingly perished in the explosion that re-awakened Jinpachi, after being left to die by Kazuya, but he survived and went into hiding, reappearing one month later when the fifth King of Iron Fist tournament is announced, until Jin put Jinpachi out of misery and freed him to afterlife.

He also enters the sixth tournament in order to take the Zaibatsu, which had been taken over by Jin at the end of the previous tournament back for himself. Until his encounter with a now grown up illegitimate son and rebel leader, Lars, Heihachi forfeits from the tournament while changes plans to retake Zaibatsu. Following Jin's disappearance until he is found and rescued by Lars and Lee, Heihachi used this opportunity to finally retake the Zaibatsu, and announced the seventh tournament. However, following his and Kazuya's respective encounters with Akuma (from the Street Fighter series), who was entrusted by Kazumi to dispose them in her stead, in case of her failed mission and death, Heihachi cancelled the tournament and abandoned his hunt for Jin, in order to focus on important matters against Kazuya and Akuma. Ultimately, after deciding to recount the tragic events the begun with Kazumi, and confirming the existence of the Devil Gene to a mysterious journalist, Heihachi goes off to confront Kazuya one final time at the mouth of a volcano. The duel ends with Heihachi's apparent death, and his body being dropped into the boiling lava by Kazuya, repaying Heihachi a second time.

Despite his apparent demise, Heihachi's daughter Reina, who attended the same high school as Jin, resurfaces and begins a plan during the eighth tournament: earn Jin and his allies' trust to reach Kazuya, and let herself be killed by him in order to awaken her dormant devil, before carrying her true mission to avenge her father. However, it is later confirmed that Heihachi is still alive, having survived his previous battle with Kazuya. Unbeknownst to Kazuya nor his enemies and allies alike, a mysterious member of the Tekken Monks caught Heihachi's corpse in time from being drowned into a lava. However, upon his revival, Heihachi briefly lost memories of his villainous side and began to train the monks in the arts of Mishima style Karate, while having his identity concealed.

Barring Banjō Ginga in the first and Wataru Takagi in the second Tekken games, Daisuke Gōri was famous for providing his voice in subsequent titles, until Tekken 6 as he passed away on January 17, 2010 with Unshō Ishizuka voicing him from Tekken: Blood Vengeance until Tekken 7 until his passing on August 13, 2018. Currently, he is now voiced by Taiten Kusunoki, who first voiced Heihachi in the Netflix animated series Tekken Bloodline.

In Super Smash Bros. 4

As a costume

A Mii Brawler dressed as Heihachi.

Heihachi was considered as a possible playable character from Namco, according to an interview with Masahiro Sakurai. However, Sakurai felt that Heihachi's movements would have been difficult to implement.

Heihachi is the basis for a paid downloadable content costume for Mii Brawlers. The costume resembles Heihachi's rejuvenated appearance that debuted in Tekken Tag Tournament 2. It was first shown at the end of Ryu's reveal trailer, with Ryu and a Mii Brawler with the costume attacking each other simultaneously, referencing how Heihachi and Ryu had previously appeared together in the crossover titles Namco × Capcom, Street Fighter X Tekken and Project X Zone.

Although it isn't available in-game, "Dist Thins Out (Character Select)" from Tekken 6 is used in the costume's reveal. The same song would later be used for the costume's reveal in Ultimate.

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Heihachi's appearance as a background character.

Heihachi was mentioned again during Mr. Sakurai Presents "Kazuya" as not being chosen as a playable character, having been passed over this time for his son Kazuya, whose Devil Gene afforded him greater flexibility in the design of his moveset. Heihachi does not have the Devil Gene; Kazuya instead inherited it from his mother, Kazumi.

Heihachi cameos in pixel form during Pac-Man's Namco Roulette taunt. The sprite is taken from Tekken Tag Tournament 2, and is based on his older, gray-haired appearance from Tekken 3 onwards.

As a background character

Heihachi appears on Mishima Dojo as a background character, using his aforementioned older appearance. If parts of walls and ceiling are broken, he will get up and react to it with his arms crossed. The voice clips that accompany these reactions are from Tekken Tag Tournament 2, and were provided by the late Unshō Ishizuka.

As a costume

He was reintroduced as a Mii Brawler costume, still based on his younger Tekken Tag Tournament 2 design, on June 22nd, 2020 and returned with the release of Challenger Pack 6 on June 29th, 2020.

In his costume trailer in Ultimate, Heihachi is seen performing a forward throw on Wolf into Maka Wuhu on Wuhu Island, as a direct reference to Heihachi tossing his son, Kazuya, into a volcano after defeating him in Tekken 2 as revenge for Kazuya throwing him off a cliff after defeating him in the previous game. He is then shown fighting Yoshi, as a reference to the Tekken character Yoshimitsu, who is sometimes called "Yoshi" by his fanbase. Additionally, it could serve as a reference to Alex, a dinosaur fighter from the same series.

The design of the Heihachi Wig was notably updated from Smash 4 to be consistent in style with Kazuya's new character model for Ultimate.

Spirit

Heihachi Mishima also appears as a Legend-class primary spirit in the Tekken DLC Spirit Board.

Heihachi uses a Mii Brawler puppet fighter wearing a Dragon Helmet and black Fighter Uniform and is fought on the Mishima Dojo stage. If the player has already purchased the Heihachi DLC costume, Heihachi will use a Mii Brawler puppet fighter wearing a Heihachi Wig and Outfit instead. During the battle, the Mii Brawler will suddenly receive a Final Smash when they reach high damage, referencing Heihachi's Rage Drive, which increases the power of his physical attacks.

Heihachi's spirit battle is also notable for having the Mii Brawler resemble Heihachi, as opposed to the standard Mii Brawler, albeit the younger version of Heihachi, whereas the spirit's artwork depicts Heihachi's old version.

No.	Image	Name	Type	Class	Slots	Base	Max	Base	Max	Base	Max	Ability	Series
1476		Heihachi Mishima		★★★★	⬡⬡	4240	10,604	2403	6009	1636	4090	Fist & Foot Attack ↑	Tekken Series

Gallery

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  Heihachi as a Mii Brawler costume in SSB4.

• 

  Heihachi as a Mii Brawler costume in Ultimate.

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  Heihachi's appearance in Namco Roulette.

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  Heihachi as a background character, meditating in front of the Fudō Myōō statue.

Names in other languages

Language	Name
Japanese	三島平八
English	Heihachi Mishima
French	Heihachi Mishima
German	Heihachi Mishima
Spanish	Heihachi Mishima
Italian	Heihachi Mishima
Chinese (Simplified)	三岛平八
Chinese (Traditional)	三島平八
Korean	Heihachi Mishima 헤이하치 (Mii Costume description)
Dutch	Heihachi Mishima
Russian	Хэйхати Мисима

Trivia

• Heihachi is the only DLC Mii costume whose series has a DLC character in Ultimate to not be released at the same time as his respective character. In his case, his costume was released alongside Challenger Pack 6 while Kazuya is part of Challenger Pack 10, which also happened to release exactly one year apart from one another.

External links

• Article on the Tekken Wiki
• Heihachi's official Mii on the Mii Library