Tetsu Tachibana

Tetsu Tachibana
立華 鉄 (Tachibana Tetsu)
Also Known As
Aliases	Li Hua
Nicknames	Japanese Devil
Other Names	Mysterious Man
Biographical
Age	25
Year of Birth	1963
Place of Birth	Manchuria Region, China
Heritage	Chinese/Japanese
Physical
Hair Color	Black
Eye Color	Brown
Associations
Relationships	Unnamed mother Genzo Makimura (grandfather) Xiao Qiao (sister) Jun Oda (employee, oath brother) Shintaro Kazama (acquaintance) Kazuma Kiryu (employee, friend)
Occupation	President of Tachibana Real Estate
Affiliation	Tachibana Real Estate
Other
Fighting Style	Taekwondo Muay Thai
Appears In	Yakuza 0 Ryu Ga Gotoku Online
Actors
Japanese	Arata IuraWP
Modeled After	Arata IuraWP

Tetsu Tachibana (立華 鉄, Tachibana Tetsu), also known as Li Hua (立華, Lì Huá), is a major supporting character in Yakuza 0. He is the president of Tachibana Real Estate.

Profile

Appearance

Tachibana's hair is black and neatly slicked back. His hair almost reaches his shoulders in length. He has a prosthetic right hand hidden with a leather glove. Tachibana is very muscular, with large pecs and a six pack of abs shown when he is shirtless.

Tattoo

Tachibana's tattoo is on his left forearm, which depicts a grey and orange bat with pointy, tattered wings. It is accompanied by two green leaves on either side of it, as well as a small, red signature on bottom-right corner. The tatters on its wings represent Tachibana's impaired physical state and, more so, his mental scars left from the hardships he has faced throughout life, such as discrimination for his mixed-race heritage and separation from his family.

Attire

Tachibana wears a black three-piece suit, a white dress shirt, a striped silver tie, and a pair of black and white, leather spectator oxfords.

In the flashbacks to his time as a gang leader, he wears an unbuttoned suit — mostly without the jacket — with the top two buttons of his shirt undone. He rolls his shirt sleeves up when not wearing his jacket.

Personality

SPOILER WARNING: Plot details for Yakuza 0 follow. (Skip)

Tachibana displays a sophisticated and intelligent demeanor, and is a seemingly emotionless man; in reality, his appearance stems from holding in his continuous pain, and admitted to Kazuma Kiryu at one point that "grimacing began to hurt". He was initially a ruthless man due to his upbringing, but once learning that his sister was still alive and he had a chance to save her, he regained his conscience, using whatever criminal methods he deemed necessary in order to reunite with her rather than cause further harm. Tachibana's stalwartness to Kiryu from the beginning quickly makes him one of Kiryu's most trusted allies, and though he initially admitted to being incapable of risking his life for others as Kiryu does, he was more than willing to use a large portion of his earnings and even surrender himself to bargain for Kiryu's safety later on.

Despite Tachibana's monumental success as a real estate broker, he is not pretentious with his wealth, only possessing a sports car and a large office.

Background

Being born to a Japanese mother in China, Tachibana's life was one born of discrimination and strife as in his youth he and Xiao Qiao would endure humiliation and insults from their peers for their Japanese heritage. Feeling that there is no place for him in the country, he left when he was only 15 years old. Fleeing to Japan to make a new life for himself, unable to find meaningful work, he resorts to crime and quickly became a ruthless criminal with little regard for the morality of others.

In 1986, he met Jun Oda, the leader of a small gang. After beating him in a fight, Tachibana was appointed the leader of Oda's gang, and he got a bat tattoo to match with the rest of members. Soon after, Tachibana lost his right arm in a fight and his kidneys failed due to losing too much blood; he takes refuge in Little Asia for dialysis and they welcome both him and Oda.

In 1987, Tachibana realizes that his sister is alive and has inherited the Empty Lot. Fearing that Sohei Dojima would kill his sister to acquire the Empty Lot, he formed Tachibana Real Estate with Shintaro Kazama's help. Tachibana hoped that by acquiring the Empty Lot, he could protect his sister from the Dojima Family, and finally reunite with her. Kazama provided Tachibana his pocket watch containing a photo of him and his foster children to help him convince Kiryu to join forces with him.

Involvement

Yakuza 0: 1988

Upon learning that Kiryu is framed for murder, thus making Kazama's position in the Tojo Clan vulnerable, Tachibana finds and attempts to recruit him as a real estate agent for Tachibana Real Estate. However, even after revealing that he plans on clearing Kiryu's name and challenging the Dojima Family by obtaining the Empty Lot first, Kiryu is hesitant, claiming Tachibana's offer is too good. With help from Oda, Kiryu is led back into Tachibana's office and Tachibana explains that the person who enlisted his help is none other than Kazama, and shows him Kazama's pocket watch as proof. With this revelation, Kiryu finally joins Tachibana in the fight for the Empty Lot, and Tachibana arranges for Kiryu to have some protection against the police who have been looking for the suspect of Taichi Kurihara's murder.

Some time after Kiryu helps Yamanoi out, Tachibana relays to Kiryu that Daisaku Kuze was not the true culprit, nor did he ever hire someone else to do it. He also needs to verify the Empty Lot owner's location and asks him to hold out until then. After Kiryu's seemingly last stand against Kuze, Tachibana arrives and saves Kiryu; however, his kidneys begin to fail and is taken to Little Asia for treatment. Oda explains Tachibana's need for dialysis to Kiryu and that he needs to rest for the time being.

When he recovers, Tachibana arranges a meeting with Takashi Nihara and offers him one billion yen and 30% of their Kamurocho profits to give Kiryu amnesty from the Tojo Clan. He, along with Kiryu and Oda, fight their way out of the Tojo Clan Headquarters afterward. Once they make their way to the Tokyo Pier, Tachibana tells Kiryu that the Empty Lot's owner is in Sotenbori, and waits until Kiryu makes preparations and meets up at Little Asia to reveal that the owner is Makoto Makimura.

After Kiryu and Makoto return to Kamurocho, Tachibana reveals his past, his connection to Makoto, and the possible fate of the Tojo Clan if they do not acquire the land for Kazama. Before Kiryu and Tachibana could make their move they are cornered by assassin Lao Gui, sent by Sohei Dojima to capture Tachibana. With no options left, Tachibana lets himself be taken into the Kenno Clan's custody where they torture him. Defiantly opposing and angering Yoneda, he lands a blow that leaves Tachibana fatally wounded before Kuze could release him, resulting in Kuze, enraged by his insubordination, killing Yoneda by smashing his skull against the ground. In his dying words he reveals that Dojima was responsible for framing Kiryu, before succumbing to his wounds, unable to reunite with his sister.

Fighting Style

Tachibana is a partner in some battles, wherein he uses Yu Morinaga's moveset alongside some unique kick combos. He can grab, though this is solely to facilitate Kiryu's team Heat Actions, as he cannot throw due to his prosthetic arm. Kiryu can also do a special team Heat Action with him while an enemy is attacking, allowing Tachibana to counterattack them by kicking them while vaulting over Kiryu's back.

The owner of the porn video shop in Osaka tells Kiryu that, before he lost his arm, Tachibana easily defeated Oda and two other thugs when they met, which seems to indicate Tachibana's strength in his prime rivaled that of Kiryu. Oda remarks that if Tachibana's kidneys were functioning properly and he never lost his arm, he would not have needed him, Kiryu, or Tachibana Real Estate.

Trivia

• Some of the Heat Actions Kiryu can use with Tachibana involve both of his arms, despite his right arm being prosthetic.
• During the flashbacks to his past, Tachibana's bat tattoo is replaced by Oda's.
• Tachibana has a few references dedicated to him after Yakuza 0:
  • In Yakuza Kiwami, a substory features an interviewer also named Tachibana. He asks Kiryu if he remembers his name from the beginning of the interview, and if Kiryu answers this question correctly, he will remark that he "could never forget a name like that."
  • In Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, the memoir outside where Tachibana's office used to stand has Kiryu reminisce the time Tachibana cut off power to the city for a few seconds, leaving a strong impression on him.

SPOILERS END HERE. (Return)

Gallery

Yakuza 0

Body render

Tachibana meets Kiryu.

Tachibana's room.

Tachibana views Kamurocho.

"The Tojo Clan is far from united."

Tachibana Crying

Tetsu Tachibana

Ryu Ga Gotoku Online

SSR Tetsu Tachibana

KSR Tetsu Tachibana (Fighting Spirit)

KSR Tetsu Tachibana (Fighting Spirit II)