Summary
Ryo hails from a Shinobi ninja lineage, though details about his family remain obscure. His mother passed away when he was an infant, and his father, Sanada-san, is a wildlife photographer who makes his debut in an audiocassette drama where he is possessed by a demon. Despite these traumatic events, Mr. Sanada frequently leaves for photography assignments, much to Ryo’s frustration. Ryo has paternal relatives he has never met, whose beliefs his father rejected to forge his own path. Fan fiction often depicts Ryo as an orphan. Ryo wields the Wildfire armor, a direct translation of its Japanese name Rekka, with the Virtue of Jin, or Righteousness. He possesses a fire elemental affinity and fights with twin katanas. His surekill technique is Wildfire Flare, known as Sou En Zan or Twin Flame Cut in the YST adaptation. For this move, he joins his katanas to form a staff-like weapon to deliver a powerful strike. During the first battle against Talpa, Ryo gains the Inferno armor, referred to as Shiroi Kikoutei or White Sun Emperor in YST, and sometimes simply the White Armor in the dub. After being overwhelmed and absorbed into Talpa’s armor along with other Ronin warriors and Dark Warlords, Ryo refuses to let his friends down, breaking free by drawing on the virtues of the other Ronin to defeat Talpa. The Inferno armor’s immense power initially damaged his Wildfire swords, leading him to acquire the Swords of Fervor, or Gou Retsu Ken. He then uses the Rage of Inferno surekill, which fires a massive stream of fire rather than striking with blades. The armor’s power is legendary, capable of destroying a planet at its peak. Talpa’s obsession with this armor caused him to ignore others. Lacking its own guiding virtue, the Inferno Armor requires five virtues to maintain purity. Ryo’s tiger, White Blaze, has an armored form and carries the soul of Black Blaze, who accompanies Ryo into battle holding the Soul Swords of Fervor. However, the Inferno Armor was destroyed in a fierce battle with Mukara. A quote associated with the armor states, "Their swords rise the heat of the flames erasing the darkness of the dynasty." When Talpa failed to conquer the human world previously, his spirit was sent to the Netherworld, but his demonic armor remained. To prevent his return, The Ancient split the armor into nine suits. In the original Japanese version, each armor is infused with a Confucian or Bushido Virtue: Jin, Gi, Rei, Chi, Shin, Chuu, Tei, Kou, and Nin. The American version altered some virtues: Chi became Inouchi, and Rei became Chi, while Kou is translated as Piety and Nin as Serenity. The armors can be summoned instantly by calling their name and virtue, such as Ryo invoking "Armor of Wildfire, Dao Jin!" In the Japanese version, the command is "Busso" followed by the armor's name.
